Kia CHL Top-10 Rankings: Remparts take command of top spot
Kia CHL Top-10 Rankings – Week 3
1. Quebec Remparts
2. Winnipeg ICE
3. Acadie-Bathurst Titan
4. Edmonton Oil Kings
5. London Knights
6. Kamloops Blazers
7. Hamilton Bulldogs
8. Rimouski Oceanic
9. Kingston Frontenacs
10. Blainville-Boisbriand Armada
HM. Val-d’Or Foreurs
HM. Everett Silvertips
HM. Kitchener Rangers
The Quebec Remparts have climbed the ranks. After back-to-back weeks of slotting in at No. 2, the Quebec City club now ranks tops nationwide following a perfect weekend in which the Remparts found the win column three times on the road to push their streak to six-straight victories. After downing Rouyn-Noranda twice, Quebec then came away victorious again Sunday against Val-d’Or in a decisive 8-2 defeat of the fellow top-10 ranked club. For the Remparts, leading the way early is 2002-born centre Theo Rochette, a recent returnee from Toronto Maple Leafs’ development camp who has already posted 13 points through just seven games – highlighted by a career single-game high five-point effort coming against the Foreurs – that sit second best in league-wide scoring. Elsewhere, the Remparts have also witnessed dominant early season performances between the pipes where the tandem of overager Fabio Iacobo and rookie netminder William Rousseau have continued to turn aside the opposition. Coming to Quebec after winning it all with Victoriaville last season, Iacobo has allowed just 11 goals through his five showings, while the 18-year-old Rousseau has posted back-to-back shutouts through two appearances and 125 minutes of action in which he has combined for 65 saves.
Beyond Quebec, also earning recognition from the QMJHL in the latest edition of the Kia CHL Top-10 Rankings is the Acadie-Bathurst Titan, who hold steady at No. 3 after coming away with a 6-0-0-1 showing through seven contests, while the upstart Rimouski Oceanic slot in eighth after securing points in each of their last five outings. Elsewhere, the Blainville-Boisbriand Armada rank 10th and the Val-d’Or Foreurs earn an honourable mention.
In the west, the Winnipeg ICE continue to chip away at the competition, slotting in at No. 2 after remaining undefeated through seven games in which they have outscored the opposition by an astounding plus-32 margin. While the ICE continue to see strong performances from veteran forwards Mikey Milne and Owen Pederson, weekend action saw 2019 first-overall selection Matthew Savoie pick up another five points and Philadelphia Flyers draftee Connor McClennon score twice and add an assist to give him at least one point through all seven games this season.
In all, the ICE over take the Edmonton Oil Kings as the WHL’s top-ranked club after the Alberta-based squad reigned supreme for two weeks running plus the preseason, while the Kamloops Blazers now come in at No. 6 after earning honourable mention the week prior. Surrendering a lone loss through six appearances, the Blazers bounced back big following a hard-battled showdown versus rival Kelowna on Friday in coming away with a 5-0 road win versus Vancouver on Saturday in which five different skaters found the back of the net while New York Rangers up-and-comer Dylan Garand stopped all 23 shots to record his ninth career shutout. Rounding out the WHL, also earning recognition is the Everett Silvertips who remain undefeated through four outings.
Leading the way from the OHL is the always contending London Knights who have climbed to 5-0 on the season underscored by weekend wins versus Windsor and Sarnia. The Knights continue to see an impressive early effort from Nashville Predators prospect Luke Evangelista who has posted eight points in five games to sit tied for third in league scoring, while also drawing attention is freshman left winger Colton Smith who sits second to Evangelista in team scoring with seven points in five games. A second-round pick from the 2020 OHL Priority Selection, Smith closed out the weekend with a pair of multi-point performances, first coming away with two tallies versus the Spitfires in which he was later recognized as the game’s first star before then scoring his first career hat-trick the following night against the Sting. Beyond London, another undefeated club from the OHL is the Hamilton Bulldogs who sit atop the East Division with a 4-0 mark, helping the club to earn a spot in the Kia CHL Top-10 Rankings for the first time this season, coming in at No. 7. Rounding out recognition from the OHL is the Kingston Frontenacs who hold steady at No. 9 as well as the undefeated Kitchener Rangers who earn honourable mention after winning their first four games of the season.
