Yukon Malamutes 
With a really solid pre-season record, the Yukon Malamutes are poised and positioned for a strong showing in Season 72. Top 5 in the standings (based on the current index), 2nd in the Conference, and top of the Division. In the Michael Fitted Division, the Malamutes were the only team to come out with a positive record, which is a really positive sign for the team.

The Malamutes also come in with 5th most goals, 3rd least goals against, and 4th best goal differential in the league through the 5 pre-season games so far.

Although not favourites to win the league, the Malamutes are certainly a strong and capable contender.

However, the success of the team will hinge on the following:

 G - Jim Wen
Fundamentally, the best teams always have good goalies - and the Yukon Malamutes will be no exception. Rookie Jim Wen played lights out in his pre-season debut, and made it certain that he would start the season as the Malamutes starter. Finishing the pre-season top 5 in Wins, GAA, Goals Saved Above Average, and Save % mean that the Malamutes' pre-season success was certainly propped up by Wen's stellar performances. If the Malamutes want to go far, Jim Wen is certainly going to need to get hot at the right time to help the Malamutes through.

 LW - Jordan Tanner
Through 5 games, Jordan Tanner scored 5 goals on a fantastic 27.8 shooting percentage, with none of his goals coming on the power play. If Tanner can maintain his scoring touch through the season, he can be poised to win the Malamutes prestigious Struck Gold Award for being the team leader in scoring, and replacing Alexander as the bonafide scorer of the team. For the Malamutes to go far, replacing Alexander will be essential - and Tanner's hot start shows a step forward that makes him the likely candidate to do so. With strong potential and good chemistry with his line mates, the sky is the limit for Tanner. 

 LD - Sydney Shaw
THE defensive glue of the team, Sydney Shaw. If the team wishes to succeed, it will be hard to look past Sydney Shaw for success with her team leading 23:26 TOI, and 83 Defensive Game Rating. Sydney isn't all defence, posting 3 assists and a +6 +/- through 5 games. Her 4.5:1 Takeaway:Giveaway Ratio will certainly mean more opportunities for the Malamutes to capitalize on offensive opportunities, and sound defence will reduce scoring opportunities and help rookie Jim Wen get comfortable in the net. The biggest question mark for Shaw is can she start winning face-offs too? 

However, despite these three players efforts, what may really differentiate a successful season from a very successful season is the Malamutes' Defence's ability to win the faceoff. Through the pre-season, Malamutes defencemen went 10-16 in the face-off circle, for a meagre 38% success rate. If the Malamutes don't start letting their forwards take the face-offs, they may struggle with possession.