VHLM Power Rankings S84 (Week 1)

[Plate 386]

"They have been underperforming to the degree that strategies need to be adjusted."

 

- 10th (-2)
There's no other way to put it besides Mexico City is terrible. And by that, I mean they traded away every active player they had this season to spare them. I would be surprised if any other team made it to this spot throughout the season. But yeah, Mexico currently has no defense, no goalies, and two passive players. 

 - 9th (+1)
Houston moves up the rankings. While they've played solid games and kept most battles within 1 goal against similarly ranked teams, they've been blown out of the water recently. In particular, their 1-0 loss to Miami proves that there's a tiny bit of fight in them this week. 

- 8th (-1)
Philly has been a reasonably consistent team this season. However, their only wins are against Houston and Mexico City. They haven't committed to a rebuild or a retooling this season, even though some pieces could be traded away or built around. We'll see what they decide to do.  

- 6th (-1)

One would expect Mississauga to top out against Saskatoon. You would even expect them to be mid-table. They have been underperforming to the degree that strategies need to be adjusted. Hopefully, we can see a return to form for this Hound team coming out of this rolling start. 

 

- 7th (+3)
When I first wrote this list, this team was near the bottom. As I kept writing and did some more research Saskatoon somehow climbed out of the gutter and into a spot that's twice above their rank in the standings. How? Well, the short answer is they consistently beat Mississauga. And they did so with a goal diff of 1 with three games played. This means that against everyone else, they sucked. Who were those other teams they sucked against? Las Vegas and Ottawa. 

 

- 5th (-1)

Ottawa and Halifax played exclusively against each other this week. The first 6 of the Lynx's eight games have been against Halifax. It was incredibly even with Ottawa getting a 3-3-0 record in that mini-series. Eventually, their extra two wins come from games against Saskatoon. A couple of free-agent signings could push Ottawa above Halifax if they keep it up.

 

- 4th (-2)

Halifax has the most significant drop this season. Only barely edging out Saskatoon in their six-game stint. It is a disappointing start for this team as they get a clean win against Houston and even squeeze a point out of Miami in an even game. Ultimately they fit right at 4th, dropping two spots from last week. 

- 3rd (+2)
Miami will be a stronger contender than I think most of us thought. They had the most challenging week 0 start of any team in the VHLM. Playing three games against San Diego and a game against Halifax means that the Marauders had the most challenging week yet. Miami earned 11 points out of a possible 16 against the tough competition. 

 - 2nd (-1)

San Diego is quite expectedly one of the top teams in the West. Most VHLMers believed that the Marlins would be the top dog so far. An overtime win against Miami means San Diego gets the second spot this week. Though I should mention, the Marlins have added defenseman AK92 Wit da Hoodie to round out their back end. We should see a spike in defensive depth because of it. 

 - 1st (+1)
Las Vegas has dominated the field in the first week. They have the most significant goal differential at 20, which is nuts considering they've only played eight games. And all through their series with San Diego so far is 1-0-1, their dominant win streak and consistent champion style play well earn them the top spot of week 1.