The biggest story of the season is the Great Lakes division. Nobody saw it coming that the Toronto North Stars would be top cup contenders this season. They are challenging for first in the stacked division, tied with Hamilton for points. Then you have the collapse of the Chicago Syndicate after their cup win. Currently last in the division. But to be fair, that's still good for 4th in the conference. They seem to be getting the same treatment as Toronto last season. Then there's the under performing Stampede, who are struggling against easy teams but still hanging on to their playoff spot. It is a season of rebuild triumph, as Texas is currently in position to take regular season champions. The landscape of the SHL is a lot different than it was 5 seasons ago with Texas and Toronto finally out of the bottom and making their way towards a first cup in a long time.