Three of the Four Teams Hold a Playoff Spot Halfway Through
By: Alex Berard @aberard17 / https://www.ltlhl.com
June 7th, 2023
Winnipeg, Manitoba – With the All-Star game approaching this Sunday, June 11, as well as all teams about to hit the 40-game mark, it’s time to look around the league to see how each team is doing in their respective divisions and conferences. First up, and arguably the closest division in LTLHL, the North West Division. Led by the Denver Bandits with a 20-12-4 record and 44 points, the North West Division has a three point split between the Bandits, Seattle Samurai (20-14-3), and the Portland Twisters (19-13-3). After the three-way battle for first place is the last place Edmonton Blizzard (14-20-4) who trail the division leader by 12 points.
Denver Bandits: 20-12-4 (44pts)
Home: 13-6-2 Away: 7-6-2
1st North West Division, 3rd Northern Conference, 6th Overall
Top 3 Scorers: Vladilen Kanareikin 20-21-41 +13,
Nino Hebar 14-22-36 +4,
Quinton Parsons 14-16-30 +18
Top Goalie: Karim Hogdal 16-5-2, 0.925, 2.64
Goals For: 5th 125, Goals Against: 5th 109, Difference: +16
Powerplay: 18th 14.29%, Penalty Kill: 10th 83.10%
The Bandits came out flying to start the season, winning 10 of their first 15 games. After their strong start, Denver slowed down after dealing with some injuries but were able to maintain their progress from the start of the season. Recently Denver has gone 6-2-2 in their last 10 games to continue to lead the North West Division and put them third in the Northern Conference.
General Manager Cameron Clow hasn’t been shy of making moves to improve the Bandits and their farm team affiliate early. In the first half of the first season of LTLHL, Clow has made five trades out of the 13 trades throughout the league, so he’s not afraid to make moves when things are not working for the Bandits.
The road to the playoffs looks promising for Denver but won’t easy. Division rivals Seattle and Portland are not far behind with Denver having a one-point lead on Seattle and three points on Portland. Any slip ups in the second half could be costly in a very tight conference race as well. If Denver can improve their powerplay and stay healthy while leaning on one of the top scorers in the league in Vladilen Kanareikin, the Bandits should be able to hold of their rivals and win the division.
Seattle Samurai: 20-15-3 (43pts)
Home: 9-8-0 Away: 11-7-3
2nd North West Division, 4th Northern Conference, 7th Overall
Top 3 Scorers: Ragnvald Myntti 15-18-33 -4,
Sterling Capelle 13-19-32 +2,
Kenneth Pehrson 12-18-30 -2
Top Goalie: Ash Galvin 12-9-2, 0.911, 3.14
Goals For: 3rd 129, Goals Against: 20th 125, Difference: +4
Powerplay: 3rd 23.68%, Penalty Kill: 9th 83.33%
Another strong team in the North West Division, the Seattle Samurai also got off to a hot start, winning eight of their first 11 games. From there, it’s been a back-and-forth season picking up big divisional wins but also hitting a very big slump recently, losing six of their last eight games, with three of those losses coming within the division. Seattle currently has a 10-8-0 record inside the division. Some injuries of late have also hindered the Samurai but all four players currently on the Injured Reserve List are expected back before the All-Start break.
General Manager Clarke Stepaniuk also hasn’t been afarid to make some moves earlier on in Season 1, making three trades all in the month of May, including one in the division with the Portland Twisters.
A key concern moving forward for Seattle is keeping the puck out of the net. Seattle is third in the LTLHL for goals for but have let up the sixth most goals in the league to date. If Stepaniuk can find a way to strengthen the defense or the goaltending, or even both, this team could be dangerous heading into the playoff push. The offense numbers are spread out well, led by Ragnvald Myntti who leads the team in goals (15) and points (33). Keep an eye on Seattle as we get closer to the trade deadline.
Portland Twisters: 19-14-3 (41pts)
Home: 9-6-2 Away: 10-8-1
3rd North West Division, 6th Northern Conference, 10th Overall
Top 3 Scorers: Maksim Rutenka 21-21-42 +4,
Daulton Millar 13-24-37 +3,
Cruz Dupont 9-16-25 +4
Top Goalie: Ludvik Lyngmo 11-8-2, 0.932, 2.41
Goals For: 11th 121, Goals Against: 11th 110, Difference: +11
Powerplay: 2nd 23.86%, Penalty Kill: 6th 84.62%
The Portland Twisters did the exact opposite as the Bandits and Samurai at getting off to a good start. Portland went 3-9-3 in the first 15 games of Season 1. It seemed like a failed Player Dispersal Draft, but after a slew of trades in April and May including trading their first-round draft pick (9th overall), Ignat Mikhaltsov who struggled in Portland, posting a 1-1-2 stat line in seven games with a -5 rating. But, since May 1, Portland has arguably been the hottest team in LTLHL, winning 16 of their last 21 games. This hot streak has kept Portland’s season alive and has put them three points from the division lead and in the last playoff spot in the Northern Conference halfway through the season.
General Manager Boston Stepaniuk is another GM in the North West Division that isn’t shy of trading, leading the way in the LTLHL with six trades out of 13 made throughout the league, including three trades being within the division. Those trade didn’t make immediate impact to the Twister’s roster but the adjustments to the roster with farm affiliate call ups and other lineup changes have helped Portland get hot and into a playoff position.
With a top goal scorer in the league in Maksim Rutenka who is second in goals (21) and tied in first in points (42) as well as the second best powerplay in the LTLHL and sixth best penalty kill, the Twisters are on a path of success, and they don’t care who gets in their way. Keep an eye out for Portland once we get closer to the trade deadline as I would expect them to try to add a goal scorer to help spread out the offense.
Edmonton Blizzard: 14-20-4 (32pts)
Home: 7-9-1 Away: 7-11-3
4th North West Division, 12th Northern Conference, 22nd Overall
Top 3 Scorers: Ali Kurakov 10-17-27 -2,
Jeremiah Plaxton 8-18-26 -10,
Lazarz Zawilinski 13-13-26 +2
Top Goalie: Levi Radmacher 8-9-2, 0.907, 3.38
Goals For: 12th 117, Goals Against: 23rd 137, Difference: -20
Powerplay: 21st 13.46%, Penalty Kill: 20th 78.95%
The Edmonton Blizzard have struggled in the first half of Season 1 and being in the hardest division in the LTLHL has not helped. Although they have held their own against all three of their division rivals going 7-7-3, they have had a hard time against the rest of the league with a 7-13-1 record. The team is led by Ali Kurakov with a 10-17-27 stat line in 38 games with a -2 rating and only have three other players with double digit goals. They’re 12th in the league in scoring but have the second to worst goals allowed, 21st ranked powerplay, and 20th ranked penalty kill.
General Manager Kelly Flewelling hasn’t made a trade yet, unlike the rest of his rival GMs in the division so expect some moves coming soon. Counting out Edmonton now is early but if something doesn’t change soon, Flewelling will have to consider being a seller come the trade deadline. Even with scoring spread out, adding another scorer on the offense to help the powerplay would be a plus but the focus for the next month should be fixing defensive issues or finding a new goaltender.
The LTLHL North West Division has the tightest race out of the six divisions in the league. Keep a close eye on this division coming down the stretch, especially right before the trade deadline on July 21. All four teams should be active, more than they already are while three of them are strong contenders to make a run in the playoffs.