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[Double Media Week - Holidays Edition] [SJHN] S57 Power Rankings (New Years Edition)
#1

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New Year, new rankings! In celebration of the holidays, we’re giving you an extra edition of the Power Rankings, particularly since there’s been some crazy swings since the last ranking poll for the previous edition. We went back to our expert rankers and asked them to once again look at the league and put together a power poll of the league. There’s been a lot of movement for a few teams, and I think there will be more than a few surprises below. As always, if you agree, disagree, or have any questions, we welcome you to comment. So, with more preamble, let’s get started! 

Stats and rankings set prior to regular season sim date of 1/4/21

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12. Newfoundland Berserkers 
Previous Rank: 7

Arkz: Woof. Rough season for the Berserkers as they look to rebuild their team after a long string of dominant seasons. The story for the Berserkers has been the fact that they can’t stop the other team for basically just waltzing into their zone and scoring. At the time of this writing, Newfoundland are last in the league with 221 goals allowed. They’ve also slowed down when it comes to goals scored as well, and now find themselves competing with the St. Louis Scarecrows to avoid having the lowest point total in the league. Not the spot you want to be. 
Shuff: Selling off a few pieces sent this team flying down the rankings here. They have had practically negative puck luck, and recently they have averaged losing by around 2 goals a game. Not a good way to play. Hugo Gronroos has been struggling as of late as well, and Tim Allen Jr. has not been any better. Vaseline Podcalzone, Lassi Suhonen and Jonas Kahnwald have been the main point getters for the Berserkers as of late. They do have a bit of an easier schedule from here on out.

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11. Colorado Raptors
Previous Rank: 5

Arkz: We are beyond the wheels falling off at this point.. The wheels have flown off, the transmission has dropped out, and the engine has exploded. Colorado probably doesn’t deserve to be down this low when you take their whole season into account, but they’ve struggled mightily in the last week. Their goal differential has slipped and they’ve fallen behind the Battleborn in terms of points in the West. There’s still a chance though that the Raptors can rediscover their mojo and surprise in the playoffs. 
Shuff: Just fell off a roof right now. They were right in the discussion at the top of the west, but let’s just say they aren’t there anymore. Mostly due to a lack of scoring (second to last in league ahead of Newfoundland). Their possession numbers aren’t too bad, corsi for and against of 44. The PDO just hasn’t been there, and their overall goal differential on the week hasn’t even been too bad. It’s been some bad luck, and maybe some of that is a makeup of the good luck they had until now in the season.

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10. St. Louis Scarecrows
Previous Rank: 12

Arkz: It's a bit late to start peaking, but at least you can say they have improved. They still find themselves with the least amount of points in the division (tied with Newfoundland), but they have shown some signs of life in the last week. On top of that, their defense deserves more praise. They can’t score for shit, but they do a decent job keeping the puck out of the net. They have more games in hand than their rival Berserkers, so we’ll see if they are able to pass Newfoundland in the East. 
Shuff: They actually are at almost 4 goals per game this week. That’s much more than they usually score. They play low-event hockey which is not very interesting, but it works. They have a shot to pass Newfoundland and get out of the basement. That would be something. 

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9. Carolina Kraken
Previous Rank: 8

Arkz: Carolina is hanging in there, which is something. They’ve had a rough time in terms of OTL, and their differential is not pretty. Still, they’ve been playing in a division that is also all over the place and so they’ve been able to squeak out some points. If Carolina were in the West, they’d probably be a bottom team with Vancouver, but fortunately (for them), they play in the same division as Newfoundland and St. Louis. Still, this is a rebuilding season for the Kraken, so we won’t hold their performance against them and their depleted roster. 
Shuff: Someone should teach them how to play defense, their corsi against is over 60! Their goal scoring is nothing special. Vincent Wolfe and Aleksander Kozlov both had 9 goals this week, good for third in the league. Vitek Vitecek had the 21 points, good for tops in the league. That line is powering the Kraken right now.

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8. Nevada Battleborn 
Previous Rank: 11

Arkz: Nevada has shown some signs of life in the last few weeks, and that’s reflected in their improved rank. Still, they really dug a hole for themselves in the middle portion of the season, and now they find themselves trying to get out of it with only a handful of games left to play for Nevada. If Nevada is able to continue their trend, there is a good chance they might pass Anaheim in the division, which would be crazy to think about given that the Battleborn were dead on arrival not too long ago.  
Shuff: Good morning Battleborn. About time our preseason number one team has woken up. Zelma Zuntnere led the league with 12 goals this week and has been a large part of the waking up of Nevada. Phillip Weaver with an above average week as well. The Battleborn may be finding their stride with the playoffs on the horizon.

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7. Vancouver Whalers
Previous Rank: 9  

Arkz: The defending champs! After a difficult beginning of the season for the Whalers, they seem to have settled into a team identity and rhythm. This team won’t score a ton of goals and they will let in a good amount, but they can still compete and sneak games off teams like Anchorage with at least some consistency. An interesting story could be if the Whalers find themselves matched up against the Kelowna Knights in the playoffs, in a repeat matchup from last season.
Shuff: Whalers! My team, which has been better as of late. The Whalers are a bit behind in the corsi game, giving up a tad under 50 and only getting a bit under 47. A nice 100 PDO shows this Whalers week is just about what we’d expect. Jon St. Ark who has a had a rough season overall (.901 SV%) has been better as of late. Valtterri Kauppinen and KnockedOut byOvechkin had 7 goals on the week, that line has been hot and the Whalers have been riding them.

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6. Anaheim Outlaws
Previous Rank: 6

Arkz: Consistent Anaheim. They’ve been around rank six for much of the season. As opposed to some of the other teams on this list, Anaheim hasn’t had huge swings in either direction. They’ve consistently played slightly above .500 since the season started, and fittingly they have a 0 goal differential with 186 goals for and 186 goals against. That gives them one of the higher goals scored and one of the highest goals let in. It will be interesting to see what version of this team shows up in the playoffs, as they might be able to surprise. 
Shuff: The Outlaws. They score a lot of goals, but they give up the same amount. Crazy, 186 for both. Their games are all over the place, win by 5, lose by 5, win by 3, lose by 4. It’s hard to get a read on them. Asclepius Perseus Flitter and “Long" John Donair are their main goal scorers, and they do it well, APF has a 32-22-54 line and Donair has a 23-25-48 line. They also have a good PP, so you have to try not to take penalties against them if you want to have a shot.

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5. Detroit Falcons
Previous Rank: 10

Arkz: Don’t adjust your screen, that’s right. The Detroit Falcons have managed to crack the top five teams in the league. They’ve done this on the back of some strong performances within the last week, and while they are still behind in points compared to Anaheim, we gave them some extra points for the recent push. They’ve managed to tighten up their differential and they find themselves third in the East. Detroit can’t catch Maine at this point, but they can show that the program is headed in the right direction by finishing strong. 
Shuff: What? Is this S53 rankings? No, it is not, or Detroit would be first. But they are improving quite a bit. Valtteri Aalto had a very good week, .920 SV% and 2.5 GAA. Also was second in the league to Mat Smith is goal saved above average. They have had some puck luck (PDO of 101) and a bit of a corsi negative (for 44, against 50) so this may be a bit of a mirage. Still they are making strides late in the season.

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4. Kelowna Knights
Previous Rank: 3

Arkz: The Knights fall this week, but it was incredibly close between them and the Timber and isn’t a reflection on some missteps on their part. Maine has just kicked it into another gear, and so the Knights slip slightly. Still, this is a strong team and the second best team in the West. How they actually stack up against Quebec City and Maine in the playoffs will be very interesting and the Knights should feel excited about the prospect. 
Shuff: Falling just a tad, to the Timber, but they are about as good. The playoffs should be good if those two teams meet in the second round or the semis. Chris Goodname is second in defensman points on the season, while his partner Teddy Park is fourth in the league in blocked shots by defenseman. That pair is just a great complementary pair, and they do good work as the top line.

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3. Maine Timber
Previous Rank: 4  

Arkz: There, the Timber have reached rank 3, you can all stop writing me fan-mail at this point. Maine has been the second best team in the East since basically the start of the season, but now the Timber are separating themselves from the rest of the league as well. They can’t catch Quebec and they can’t be passed by Detroit at this point, but Maine has built themselves a strong team that can make a run in the postseason. Can they get past Quebec City? We’ll see but the Timber should have a lot of confidence going forward. 
Shuff: They managed a bit of separation this week, and they have a solid shot at the holding the three seed and getting home-ice in the semis if they get there. As far as this week, Adrik Baranov led all defenders in scoring at 7 goals (three way tie at 6 between Grandmaster Funk of Nevada, Bud Weiser of St. Louis and Johnny Shuffleboard of Vancouver). 

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2. Anchorage Armada
Previous Rank: 2

Arkz: Anchorage is the best team in the West. They’re probably the second best team in the league, but there’s some gaps in that armor. They aren’t fully out of striking distance of the Knights, but it's close. Anchorage has given up the fewest goals in the league, and they are going to need that defense when they go up against the other top teams in the league down the stretch and into the playoffs. Any team that’s averaging only 2.2 goals given up a game is going to be very, very tough to beat. 
Shuff: Anchorage should have the two seed locked up here, meaning they will get the pleasure of being on the Quebec City side of the bracket (Yay, 12 team playoff FHM!). They don’t really have a player who takes over the scoring, it is more of a by committee method of getting points. Chimkin Teddy has been great in the net for the Armada all season, and that has not changed. 

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1. Quebec City Citadelles 
Previous Rank: 1

Arkz: Unsurprising, Quebec City remains at the top of the rankings. With an absurd 44-8-6 record and an equally baffling differential of +86 goals. To put that in perspective, the second best differential in the league right now is Anchorage at +59. Quebec City is going to be heading into the playoffs as a juggernaut, and they have the capacity to blow anyone off the ice, even Anchorage, Maine, and Kelowna. 
Shuff: They are the best team in the league, and it’s not very close. To add to Arkz’s stats, Mat Smith have both been amazing (.920% SV) and they give up just 2.3 goals a game. Anchorage’s defense is a tad better (2.2 GAA), but it is as tight as it gets there. Then you add in that the Citadelles have the league's best offense. It’s just not fair.

And that does it for this edition of the S57 Power Rankings! We're in the home stretch now, so we'll probably have one more ranking to go along with a breakdown of the first round playoff matchups. Its been an interesting season, with some historic performances and a mix of very good and very ugly play. Still, its been incredibly fun to watch, and we can't wait to see how it all ends. As always, thanks for reading and leave any feedback below! 

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Word count: 2277. Split 50/50 with @Arkz and @mee.

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#2

Whalers are coming to get you!
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#3

Our PP has really been the key to Outlaw success this season for sure. I’m just waiting for some more players to get hot, as we’ve been middling out most of the season. No better time than playoffs!
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#4

Falcons Towel

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FalconsJapanpride

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#5

Citadelles Citadelles Citadelles Citadelles Citadelles

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#6

Armada

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Armada Steelhawks Switzerland

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Scarecrows pride Chiefs Riot Stars Blizzard Ireland

ty to @High Stick King @EvilAllBran and @Ragnar for the sigs
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#7

Scarecrows We’re not last! Scarecrows

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#8

Knights
#Killowna

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Knights|Dragons|Austria
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#9

Scarecrows

The Crows have been HOT lately. Don't be surprised at a good playoff run.

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