MYHockey News
The MHR Weekend Wrap for Feb. 7-10: NE Pack Champs, MFHL Playoffs Set & BCEHL Super Showcase
February is here, and while the temperatures inside and outside of most North American hockey rinks aren’t getting any warmer, the action on the ice is starting to heat up.
We’ve officially entered the homestretch of the 2024-25 youth hockey season. Postseason play is underway or about to get started in some leagues, while for others the regular season is winding down as teams jockey for playoff spots or higher postseason seeds.
During the next month to six weeks, league champions will be crowned, and teams will compete for state, district, regional and provincial championships. Tier 1 and Tier 2 USA Hockey National Championship berths will be earned as will spots in the Esso Cup and Telus Cup Canadian U18 club national championships.
It’s the craziest and most exciting time of the year for North American hockey players. The push for the playoffs officially has begun, and we’re here for it.
During the past weekend, one of the top USA Boys Tier 1 leagues held its postseason tournament as six nationally recognized youth organizations gathered for the Northeast Pack Hockey League Playoffs. Top 20 programs at the 14U, 15O, 16U and 18U levels competed for NE Pack championships Feb. 7-9 in Utica New York.
North of the border, regular-season play in the Manitoba Female Hockey League concluded, with the regular-season title and several playoff seeds decided on the final weekend. The No. 8 vs. No. 9 MFHL best-of-three play-in matchup also was decided and will take place on Valentine’s Weekend, with the winner advancing to the league’s eight-team postseason tournament.
Also in Western Canada from Feb. 7-10, the British Columbia Elite Hockey League (BCEHL) held its inaugural Super Showcase in Burnaby, B.C., for BCEHL Girls U18 and Boys U18, U17 and U15 AAA teams at Scotia Barn. This late-season showcase brought together teams of different genders and ages to compete in a total of 44 games. Many of these contests had an impact on league playoff seeding as the BCEHL regular season nears its conclusion.
How would you like to be the 10th-ranked team in the nation, but the No. 5 seed in your league playoffs? Well, that about sums up the Northeast Pack, and that was the situation in the league’s 16U division.
That division of the NE Pack featured five teams all ranked among the nation’s top 10, according to the MHR Week 20 USA Boys Tier 1 rankings, which meant that the 10th-ranked Bishop Kearney Selects were the tournament’s lowest seed. The 16U playoffs also included the second-ranked New Jersey Rockets, third-ranked Long Island Gulls, fourth-ranked Pittsburgh Penguins Elite and eighth-ranked Mount St. Charles Academy.
As it turned out, the top-seeded and second-ranked New Jersey Rockets skated their way into the 16U finals, where they defeated fourth-seeded and eighth-ranked Mount St. Charles, 3-1.
The story was similar for all age levels in the Northeast Pack, which held its league playoffs Friday, Feb. 7, through Sunday, Feb. 9, at the Utica University Nexus Center in New York. Champions were crowned for the 14U, 15O, 16U and 18U age groups.
The 14U division included four top 18 teams, with all six teams ranked among the top 30. All six 15O participants were ranked among the top 20, and the 18U playoffs featured three top 10 teams and five that are among the top 21.
The top-seeded and sixth-ranked BK Selects knocked off second-seeded and third-ranked Mount St. Charles, 6-4, in the 14U championship game. In 15U play, No. 1 seed and second-ranked Mount St. Charles beat second-seeded and eighth-ranked Pens Elite, 8-2, for the title. The 18U championship tilt featured second-seeded and sixth-ranked Bishop Kearney vs. No. 4 seed and 21st-ranked Pens Elite, with the Selects earning the title by a 4-1 margin.
The Northeast Pack Hockey League is comprised of six youth hockey organizations from the Northeast region of the United States. The league was formed in 2019 and includes six prominent organizations that share a vision for player-focused development and are consistently ranked among the top programs in the nation in most age groups. The NE Pack holds six showcase-style weekend events throughout the season, culminating with the playoffs Feb. 7-9 in Utica, N.Y.
All NE Pack playoff games should be available for on-demand viewing on LiveBarn.
CLICK HERE for the Northeast Pack Playoff matchups
CLICK HERE for the Northeast Pack Playoffs complete schedule
Northeast Pack 14U Participating Teams
Playoff seed listed first; national rank in parentheses
#1 Bishop Kearney Selects (6)
#2 Mount St. Charles (3)
#3 Pittsburgh Penguins Elite (18)
#4 Mid-Fairfield Rangers (25)
#5 Long Island Gulls (14)
#6 New Jersey Rockets (29)
14U Semifinals
Feb. 8 at Utica University Nexus Center
BK Selects 5, Long Island Gulls 2
Mount St. Charles 5, Pens Elite 1
14U Championship Game
Feb. 9 at Utica University Nexus Center
BK Selects 6, Mount St. Charles 4
Northeast Pack 15O Participating Teams
Playoff seed listed first; national rank in parentheses
#1 Mount St. Charles (2)
#2 Pittsburgh Penguins Elite (8)
#3 Long Island Gulls (13)
#4 Mid-Fairfield Rangers (9)
#5 New Jersey Rockets (19)
#6 Bishop Kearney Selects (18)
15O Semifinals
Feb. 8 at Utica University Nexus Center
Mount St. Charles 3, Long Island Gulls 0
Pens Elite 6, Mid-Fairfield 1
15O Championship Game
Feb. 9 at Utica University Nexus Center
Mount St. Charles 8, Pens Elite 2
Northeast Pack 16U Participating Teams
Playoff seed listed first; national rank in parentheses
#1 New Jersey Rockets (2)
#2 Long Island Gulls (3)
#3 Pittsburgh Penguins Elite (4)
#4 Mount St. Charles (8)
#5 Bishop Kearney Selects (10)
16U Semifinals
Feb. 8 at Utica University Nexus Center
NJ Rockets 2, Long Island Gulls 0
Mount St. Charles 3, Pens Elite 2 (OT)
16U Championship Game
Feb. 9 at Utica University Nexus Center
NJ Rockets 3, Mount St. Charles 1
Northeast Pack 18U Participating Teams
Playoff seed listed first; national rank in parentheses
#1 New Jersey Rockets (7)
#2 Bishop Kearney Selects (6)
#3 Long Island Gulls (4)
#4 Pittsburgh Penguins Elite (21)
#5 Mount St. Charles (19)
18U Semifinals
Feb. 8 at Utica University Nexus Center
BK Selects 5, NJ Rockets 4
Pens Elite 4, Long Island Gulls 3
18U Championship Game
Feb. 9 at Utica University Nexus Center
BK Selects 4, Pens Elite 1
MFHL U18 AAA Final Regular-Season Weekend
Just like the scriptwriters planned, the Manitoba Female Hockey League’s regular-season title and a few of the final playoff seeds were determined during the last weekend of the season Feb. 7-9.
The first-place Eastman Selects entered the final weekend with a one-point lead in the standings over the second-place Winnipeg Avros, while just four points separated the fifth- and seventh-place teams. In addition, the ninth-place Central Plains Capitals were just one point behind the Interlake Lightning in the race for eighth place.
Fourth-place Yellowhead had 33 points, five more than the fifth-place Brandon Wheat Kings, with three games left for both teams. The Wheat Kings needed to win all three of their contests to have a shot at passing the Chiefs and earning home-ice advantage in the first round of the playoffs.
Yellowhead didn’t have an easy road, however, as the Chiefs played the second-place Avros and first-place Eastman on the road Saturday and Sunday. The Chiefs also hosted the third-place Winnipeg Ice, ranked 14th in Canada, Friday, so they were considered the underdog in all three matchups. Yellowhead was No. 54 in our most recent Canadian U18 Girls Tier 1 rankings.
Meanwhile, Brandon played at seventh-place Westman, Friday, at last-place Central Plains Saturday and home against the Ice Sunday.
The Chiefs got the win they needed, 2-1, against the Ice Feb. 7, before falling to the Avros, 3-2, and the Selects, 6-0, to close out their campaign. Brandon beat Westman, 5-2, Feb. 7, and Central Plains, 4-3 in overtime Feb. 8, before dropping a 6-1 decision to the Ice on the season’s final day.
That overtime loss for Central Plains paired with a 7-2 loss to Westman Feb. 9 doomed the Capitals to a ninth-place finish, one point behind the Interlake Lightning. That meant those two teams would face off in a best-of-three play-in series to see who would take on top-seeded Eastman in the opening round of the MFHL Playoffs.
Game 1 of the play-in series was played Feb. 10, with Interlake hosting Central Plains at the Veterans Memorial Sports Complex in Stonewall, Manitoba. The Caps got an incredible 55-save shutout performance from Elyse Denbow and a goal from Madlyn Moerkerk with 3:46 left in the third period to steal a 1-0 victory and gain the upper hand in the series.
Game 2 is scheduled for Feb. 12 at 9:45 p.m. EST at BDO Centre for the Community in Portage la Prairie. If necessary, Game 3 would be back at Veterans Memorial Sports Complex Feb. 14 at 9:45 p.m. EST.
The marquee matchup of the final weekend took place the night of Friday, Feb. 7, as first-place Eastman hosted the second-place Avros at Niverville Recreation Centre in a game that still should be available for viewing via LiveBarn.
Despite leading Winnipeg, Canada’s third-ranked team, in the MFHL standings, the Selects were ranked 10 spots behind the Avros in our Week 20 MHR Canada Girls U18 Tier 1 Rankings. Winnipeg entered the weekend 42-7-4 overall and had outscored its opponents, 216-75. Eastman was 37-7-1 with a goal differential of 145-49. The teams had split their four previous meetings, but the Selects had won the last two games, 1-0 in overtime and 4-2, Dec. 15 and Jan. 10. Winnipeg held a slight overall scoring edge, 7-6, in the head-to-head matchups.
That edge would prove meaningless, however, as Eastman’s Mya Grenier scored three goals in the game’s opening 32 minutes to help the Selects jump out to a 3-0 lead. They never looked back in rolling to a 4-0 victory and taking control of the race for first place. Isabelle Labossiere stopped all 23 shots she faced to record the shutout in the biggest game of the year.
Eastman took a huge step toward clinching the regular-season championship with the victory Friday, moving three points in front of the Avros. The Selects then sealed the deal on the last day of the season as Labossiere recorded another shutout with 15 saves in a 6-0 win vs. Eastman.
When the dust from the final weekend of MFHL regular-season play had settled, the first-round playoff matchups were set except for determining who would win the play-in series and face top-seeded Eastman. The postseason gets underway Wednesday, Feb. 19, with the second-seeded Winnipeg Avros hosting the seventh-seeded Westman Wildcats at 10:00 p.m. EST at Seven Oaks Arena in Winnipeg.
MFHL Playoffs Round 1 Matchups (best of five):
#1 Eastman Selects vs. #9 Interlake Lightning or #8 Central Plains Capitals
#2 Winnipeg Avros vs. #7 Westman Wildcats
#3 Winnipeg Ice vs. #6 Pembina Valley Hawks
#4 Yellowhead Chiefs vs. #5 Brandon Wheat Kings
CLCK HERE for the final MFHL standings
CLICK HERE for the complete MFHL playoff schedule
The first-ever BCEHL AAA Super Showcase was held Feb. 7-10 at Scotia Barn in Burnaby, B.C., as members of the BCEHL Female U18 AAA and Boys U18, U17 and U15 AAA leagues came together in one location to compete in 44 games.
Scotia Barn does have a LiveBarn feed, so all games should be available for on-demand viewing via webstream.
BCEHL Female U18 AAA Showcase
The BCEHL Female U18 AAA Showcase featured five teams, including the Greater Vancouver Comets, who were ranked seventh in Canada and sixth in Western Canada in our latest MHR Girls U18 Tier 1 rankings.
On the opening day of the showcase, the first-place Comets took on the second-place Northern Capitals, who were looking to snap Greater Vancouver’s four-game winning streak. The Comets were 23-2-1-0 in league play entering the showcase, while the Capitals were 12-22-0-1. Vancouver earned a 9-3 opening day victory against the Caps.
The Thompson-Okanagan Lakers (10-11-2-3) were tied with the Capitals entering the weekend and faced the fourth-place Fraser Valley Rush (9-11-1-3), a BCEHL powerhouse the last few years, twice during the event. Fraser Valley had won three of the six prior meetings between the teams. All four of those teams were ranked among the top 21 in Western Canada.
Fraser Valley and the Lakers split their two showcase meetings, with the Rush earning a 3-0 shutout win Feb. 7 and Thompson-Okanagan bouncing back to record a 3-2 victory the following day. Fraser Valley also beat the Northern Capitals, 4-3, and lost to Greater Vancouver, 4-3, in a pair of Sunday contests.
The U18 Female AAA showcase ran from Friday, Feb. 7, through Sunday, Feb. 9.
With two weekends of regular-season games remaining, the Comets have secured first place with 54 standings points, 15 more than the second-place Northern Capitals. Fraser Valley and the Northern Capitals each have 28 points, but the Rush have played two fewer games. The Vancouver Island Seals are in last place with 14 points.
CLICK HERE for the BCEHL Female U18 AAA complete schedule & results
CLICK HERE for the BCEHL Female U18 AAA standings
BCEHL Boys U18 AAA Showcase
The BCEHL Boys U18 AAA division is comprised of eight teams, six that were ranked among the top 45 in Western Canada prior to the showcase. While the Valley West Giants were the highest-ranked team in the league at No. 21, the Cariboo Cougars were in first place with a 20-6-3-1 record in league play. The 28th-ranked Cougars entered the weekend with a three-point lead in the standings over the No. 34 Okanagan Rockets, who were 19-10-2-1, and the Giants (20-9-0-1).
The U18 AAA event ran from Saturday, Feb. 8, through Monday, Feb. 10.
Valley West beat the Greater Vancouver Canadians, 9-4, Feb. 8 and the Thompson Blazers, 6-4, Feb. 9 and came out of the weekend in sole possession of second place with 45 standings points. They still trailed Cariboo by three thanks to the Cougars’ victories against Okanagan (4-1) and Fraser Valley (7-1). The Rockets, who won their other contest, 4-2, against the Vancouver North West Hawks, are in third place, two points behind Thompson and five behind Cariboo.
CLICK HERE for the BCEHL Boys U18 AAA complete schedule & results
CLICK HERE for the BCEHL Boys U18 AAA standings
BCEHL Boys U17 AAA Showcase
The BCEHL Boys U17 AAA division features nine teams, with six of those nine being ranked among Western Canada’s top 45 prior to the weekend. Leading the way at No. 11 were the Okanagan Rockets, who faced the second-place and No. 36 Vancouver North West Hawks during the showcase. The Rockets entered the weekend having won 10 of their previous 11 games and were 28-4-0-0 in BCEHL play, while the Hawks were 20-9-2. It was an important weekend for the Hawks, who also faced the third-place and 29th-ranked Fraser Valley Thunderbirds. Fraser Valley, which trailed North West by one point entering the weekend, had won three of its four meetings with the Hawks, with one game ending in a tie.
The U17 showcase ran Friday, Feb. 7, through Monday, Feb. 10
The Rockets went 2-0 at the showcase, outscoring the Vancouver North West Hawks and Fraser Valley Thunderbirds by a combined 12-1. They have 60 standings points and hold a 14-point advantage over second-place Fraser Valley in the league standings. The Thunderbirds recorded a 3-0 win against the Vancouver Island Royals in their other weekend matchup. The North West Hawks have 43 points, three fewer than Fraser Valley, and the North East Chiefs have 42. Fraser Valley beat Northwest, 2-1, Feb. 7, while the Chiefs split their two showcase outings.
CLICK HERE for the BCEHL Boys U17 AAA complete schedule & results
CLICK HERE for the BCEHL Boys U17 AAA standings
BCEHL Boys U15 AAA Showcase
There are eight teams in the BCEHL Boys U15 AAA division. and entering the weekend the pack was led by the first-place Okanagan Rockets (21-3-0-0 BCEHL), who were ranked 28th in Western Canada. The No. 47 Vancouver North West Hawks were the next highest-ranked BCEHL team, but they entered the weekend in fourth place at 12-11-1-0, two points behind the No. 56 Cariboo Cougars (12-9-2-1) and six behind the No. 59 Thompson Blazers (14-7-2-1).
The highlight of the U15 weekend saw the first-place Rockets, winners in 16 of their last 17 outings, take on the second-place Blazers. Thompson, which had taken two of three from Okanagan earlier this season, also had an important matchup against the fourth-place Hawks. Third and sixth place were separated by just four points entering the showcase.
Okanagan knocked off Thompson, 8-3, Feb. 8 as part of a 3-1 weekend that included a pair of shutout victories vs. the Valley West Giants and a 5-1 setback to the North West Hawks. The Rockets solidified their hold on first place with 48 standings points, 13 in front of the second-place Blazers and 17 in front of both Cariboo and Fraser Valley. Despite the upset of the Rockets, North West is in fifth with 29 points. Thompson split its four showcase contests, while Cariboo also went 2-2 and Fraser Valley was 3-1.
The U15 showcase ran Friday, Feb. 7, through Sunday, Feb. 9.
CLICK HERE for the BCEHL Boys U15 AAA complete schedule & results
CLICK HERE for the BCEHL Boys U15 AAA standings
