Chirps from Center Ice

Well, until the next COVID wave derails this little enterprise.

Wait, did I say that out loud? I guess I did. Anyway, I last did this in the middle of December, after returning it from a week or so hiatus before that, so it is consistently inconsistent.

With that said (I meant to this time) I have decided to wipe the slate clean and just start over. So that’s why the “Last Week” part of the Power Rankings you have all come to know and love is absent this week. Provided COVID doesn’t rip through and kill off half the games this week, we will be back next week, and so forth.

Hopefully.

Anyway, here’s the whole list in all of its goodness.

Rank	Team	Blurb
1		Have been class of the Central by far, but there is too much competition to think the Wolves will have a runaway at the division crown.
2		Have been class of the Eastern Conference by far, and I don’t think there is any competition where it won’t be a runaway for the Comets at the #1 seed in the North.
3		Have been class of the Pacific but…
4		…the Reign have games in hand (3) and five more head to heads with the Heat. Will be an interesting race to watch down the stretch.
5		Moose are like a bad headache. Always there. Keeping the Wolves honest and have points in seven straight.
6		Went to the top of the Atlantic on Sunday and will probably stay there. Deep, well coached team.
7		Bruising club that gets two in a struggling Wilkes-Barre this weekend.
8		Have played .500 hockey in the last ten games. One of a long line of teams just coming back online after a COVID outage.
9		Hanging around the top of the North, waiting for Utica to slip and keeping third place Toronto at bay.
10		You can only play the teams on your schedule and Hershey has absolutely mauled the Penguins of late. Very average against everyone else.
11		Stockton and Ontario have had all the fun, but here’s Henderson laying in the weeds.
12		Keith Kinkaid’s renaissance in goal is something to behold. The Wolf Pack have the second best goals against in the division.
13		I had this team pegged as a midpack team at the start of the season and that’s exactly who they are.
14		Points in nine straight. Those COVID antibodies are something, I’ll tell ya.
15		Feasting on bad teams in Tucson and Milwaukee so far in 2022. Schedule tightens bit with Eric Staal and the Iowa Wild this weekend.
16		7-2-0-1 in their last ten which isn’t bad for a team who COVID hit the hardest.
17		The Crunch are coming for your souls. Just wait.
18		Grand Rapids looks like it wants to contend with the Moose and Wolves, but when given the chance (like these last three games against the aforementioned Moose and Wolves), the Griffins stumble.
19		Monsters have played good Central Division teams and well, the results have been typical.
20		Rockford. Probably a playoff team. They are your schools most consistent C student.
21		Pair of huge wins over the Central’s best Chicago should have Iowa higher here but it doesn’t. Gotta continue to build off of that.
22		Come out of COVID protocol on the wrong end of decisions against the Penguins and Marlies.
23		Belleville is still a very good team despite its dead last showing in the North.
24		Last place in the Pacific but playing better hockey of late than the three other teams in the division yet to be named here.
25		Finally off the schnide with big wins against in state rivals Hershey and Lehigh Valley.
26		Ontario Monday sandwiched the four other games against San Diego the Canucks are playing in this stretch.
27		I mean there is no shame in losing to Stockton, but getting shutout against San Jose is bad.
28		I don’t think any of the residents of San Diego have to worry about shoveling snow this week, so there’s that.
29		Admirals and Stars are playing class clowns of the Central.
30		Schedule is relentless for the Islanders the rest of the month; two against Providence then Springfield and Hershey. Yikes.
31		Stars are the last team in the AHL to hit ten wins. They still are on just nine.Maybe Wednesday against Milwaukee?