2023-24 ECHL Power Rankings

1. Toledo Walleye/Last Ranking: 3

Record: 16-4-3

Small, fast, dangerous and on a league-best five-game winning streak, that’s the Walleye. 

Toledo has been consistent, whether at the Huntington Center (10-3-1) or away from it (9-2-0). 

The Central Division has been a gauntlet so far this season, but not for Toledo – it’s 15-4-3, including a 5-1-0 record against archrival Fort Wayne.

Toledo has the No.2 offense (4.7 goals per game) among the 28 ECHL teams and the No. 2 power play (30.7%), and the squad isn’t too shabby defensively.

Sam Craggs has vastly improved his game – he had 10 goals and 20 points in 60 games last season. This season, he is at 14 goals and 27 points in 23 games, and more balance throughout the forward lines has taken the pressure off Brandon Hawkins to score so many goals (though he has 14 in 23 games).

The goaltending needs to improve, especially since other offenses around the division are starting to find themselves.

John Lethemon, the reigning ECHL Goaltender of the Year and on a contract with the NHL’s Detroit Red Wings, has an .863 save percentage. Jan Bednar, on an American Hockey League deal with the Grand Rapids Griffins, is at .875.

Toledo’s next 17 games are within the Central Division, and that division is stacked from top to bottom. I’d expect teams to start trying to test the Walleye physically. Have to catch ‘em first.

First career pro hat trick for @s_craggs7 earned him Play of the Week honors 🧢 pic.twitter.com/gmWjb699Iq

— Toledo Walleye (@ToledoWalleye) December 18, 2023

2. Idaho Steelheads/Last Ranking: 1

Record: 19-5-1

After a 15-2-1 start to the season, the Steelheads are 4-3-0 in their last seven games. Two of the losses were quality ones – to Newfoundland and at Kansas City – but the 7-4 home loss to Rapid City on Saturday was enough to drop them down one notch here.

Wade Murphy has been on a tear this season with 14 goals and 34 points (second only to Wichita’s Peter Bates). Mark Rassell leads the ECHL with 18 goals, and he’s got 29 points, in 25 games. And A.J. White has 13 goals and 29 points in 25 games.

It doesn’t stop there, though, when it comes to the forwards; there’s Keaton Mastrodonato, Ty Pelton-Byce and Jack Becker, all with at least 22 points. 

The defensive corps is stacked with Matt Register, Patrick Kudla and Cody Haiskanen. And the goaltenders used this season – Bryan Thomson (12 games), Dylan Wells (7) and Jared Moe (6) – have stopped 89.4% of the shots they’ve faced, which is OK, but could certainly improve.

Idaho scores a league-best 4.84 goals per game and ranks 16th in defense with 3.32 goals against per game. Its power play ranks first (30.9%) and penalty kill is 16th (77.6%).

The Steelheads have benefited a smidge from playing in the top-heavy Mountain Division, but going 3-2-1 against division-rival Kansas City and the North Division’s Newfoundland Growlers in recent weeks showed the Steelheads very much are an ECHL power again this season.

3. Kansas City Mavericks/Last Ranking: 4

Record: 18-7-1

The aforementioned three-game set between the Mavericks and Idaho – the first meetings of the season between the teams – probably were more informative about the Mavericks, who have been a major surprise this season. They showed they belong near the top of this poll.

The Mavericks won 7-5, led by a Max Andreev hat trick; lost 5-4 in overtime, with Pelton-Byce netting the winner; and lost 1-0 in regulation, as Kansas City’s Cale Morris stopped 22-of-23 shots. Idaho’s Thomson stopped all 26 he faced, and White had the second-period winner.

Andreev, who is on an AHL contract with Coachella Valley, has eight goals and 31 points in 25 games, putting him fourth in ECHL scoring and ahead of all other rookies. 

Second in rookie scoring is Kansas City’s Cade Borchardt, who has eight goals and 30 points in 25 games. Amazingly, he’s on an ECHL contract. Kyle Jackson, another Coachella Valley player, has eight goals and 21 points in 21 games.

Coach Tad O’Had, who is doing a great job with this group, has gotten 13 goals from Patrick Curry, 13 from Cole Coskey and 12 from Nolan Walker – all well beyond expectations.

The Mavericks are 10-2-0 on the road, but they’d certainly like to play a smidge better at Cable Dahmer Arena, where they’re 8-5-1.  

4. Greenville Swamp Rabbits/Last Ranking: 2

Record: 19-6-0

The Swamp Rabbits began the season 15-2-0, but they’ve fallen back down to earth with a 4-4-0 record since then. There was an impressive victory in there – 4-3 over the visiting Cincinnati Cyclones – but getting lit up 6-1 at the Savannah Ghost Pirates on Sunday wasn’t pretty.

The Swamp Rabbits have been outscored 28-22, and it has become a little difficult to know what to make of them. 

One day, they’ll be good on offense and defense, as in the 2-1 overtime victory at Savannah on Dec. 9, when Ryan Francis had the winner. And another day, things will be inverted, as in Sunday’s loss when Ryan Bednard allowed five goals on 26 shots, and Joe Leahy had the only Greenville goal.

Carter Souch has been great this season with nine goals and 21 points in 25 games, and Nikita Pavlychev and Brannon McManus have almost kept pace with him. 

Defensively, though, the Swamp Rabbits have put a little too much pressure on their goalies, namely Bednard (7-4-0 with a 2.72 GAA, a .918 SP and one shutout) and Jacob Ingham (11-2-0 with a 2.64 GAA and .920 SP), though Ingham recently was called up to Ontario of the AHL.

The South Division arguably is the league’s most difficult, and Greenville is 17-6-0 against teams within it.

5. South Carolina Stingrays/Last Ranking: 7

Record: 15-7-2

If you look at the overall records, South Carolina hasn’t been quite as good within the South Division as Greenville – the Stingrays are 11-6-2 – but that’s been changing. 

The Stingrays have won nine of their last 10 games, and that includes a 7-1-0 record within the South. The only loss was 4-0 on Dec. 8, when Florida’s Cam Johnson had a 34-save shutout in Estero, Florida.

The Stingrays showed a lot the next night, though, winning 2-1 in overtime: Johnson stopped 21- of-23 shots in a game that had a couple early fights, but South Carolina’s Mitchell Gibson stopped 22-of-23, and Austin Magera netted the winning goal.

Gibson, a Washington Capitals prospect, has looked solid this season – he’s 8-3-1 with a 2.41 GAA, a .908 SP and a shutout. Garin Bjorklund, also a Capitals netminder, is 6-4-1 with a 3.16 GAA and .886 SP.

Magera has been one of the ECHL’s top rookies – he’s got 13 goals (second among first-year players) and 24 points in 24 games – and rookie Jack Adams is right behind him with five goals and 23 points in 24 games. 

There’s a lot of talent up front, such as Josh Wilkins, Kevin O’Neil and Tyson Empey, and South Carolina will get points from the blue-liners like Connor Moore and Benton Maass. 

The defensemen also have done a good job of limiting opposing shots, too; South Carolina allows only 27.08 per game, fourth fewest in the league.

WHO ELSE?@ECHL pic.twitter.com/AGSl3j7a9G

— SC Stingrays (@SCStingrays) December 13, 2023

6. Norfolk Admirals/Last Ranking: 9

Record: 14-7-2

The Admirals have won seven of their last eight games, the only loss coming Dec. 8 when they fell 4-1 to the Jacksonville Icemen in Virginia.

Goaltending has had a lot to do with the Admirals rising from the ECHL’s cellar in past seasons to being a power this season. Thomas Milic, who is on an AHL contract with Manitoba, is 9-2-1 with a 2.26 GAA, a .920 SP and two shutouts; and Yaniv Perets, who was called up to the NHL’s Carolina Hurricanes on Sunday, was 5-5-1 with a 2.38 GAA, a .916 SP and one shutout.

Rookie Justin Robidas, another Carolina prospect – remember, the Hurricanes don’t have an AHL affiliate this season – has been off to a great start with nine goals and 21 points in 23 games. He helps lead a solid, albeit not necessarily intimidating, group of forwards that includes Mathieu Roy (11 goals, 22 points), rookie Carson Golder (nine goals, 18 points) and Ryan Foss (four goals, 18 points).

The Admirals get defensive contributions around the lineup, and that’s why they rank first with 2.43 goals against them per game.

Norfolk plays teams physically, leading the ECHL with 19.39 penalty minutes per game, and that includes Mark Liwiski’s league-leading 120 penalty minutes. They can afford to do so with the way they kill penalties, ranking second at 86.8%. And on the power play, the Admirals rank fourth at 27.1%.

7. Adirondack Thunder/Last Ranking: 10

Record: 14-6-3

Full disclosure: The Thunder actually have a slight, one-point lead over Norfolk in the North Division. And Adirondack has been on a tear, too, at 7-1-1 in its last nine games. The only regulation loss in there was 4-2 at Worcester on Dec. 8.

Adirondack also is 2-1-0 this season against Norfolk, but those teams haven’t met since Nov. 19 and won’t again until Jan. 28.

Jeremy Brodeur, who is contracted to Utica of the AHL, has been outstanding for the Thunder this season; he’s 8-3-0 with a league-best 2.11 GAA and a league-best .934 SP. Vinnie Purpura hasn’t been bad either at 5-1-3 with a 2.52 GAA and a .915 SP. And there’s New Jersey Devils-prospect Tyler Brennan, too.  

Adirondack isn’t flashy, but it’s tough to play against with a defense that ranks fourth with 2.78 goals against per game.

Patrick Grasso and Ryan Smith each have 11 goals in 23 games, and if Yushiro Hirano takes off – he’s got seven goals and 16 points in 17 games – then look out. 

Regardless, the Thunder have a knack for finding scoring when they need it from all around the lineup. Speaking of which, cheers to tough guy Nico Blachman for scoring twice in Saturday’s 4-1 victory over the Worcester Railers in Glens Falls, New York.

8. Newfoundland Growlers/Last Ranking: 11

Record: 13-10-3

The Growlers were a mystery coming into this season because they didn’t hire a coach – Matt Cooke – until the eve of the season and didn’t unveil much of their roster until then, either.

It seems we needn’t have worried, because they look strong as usual, loaded up by the NHL’s Toronto Maple Leafs and AHL’s Toronto Marlies.

Jonny Tychonick, a rookie defenseman contracted to the Marlies, has been as advertised, collecting three goals and a team-leading 24 points in 26 games. 

Rookie forward Grant Cruikshank has 11 goals and 23 points in 23 games, and rookie forward Jackson Berezowski has nine goals and 22 points in 21 games.

Occasionally, the Growlers play down to their competition – like the 6-3 loss to the visiting Maine Mariners on Dec. 9 – but they passed a big litmus test in taking 2-of-3 games at Idaho between Nov. 29 and Dec. 2.

Just wait until one of the ECHL’s all-time greats, forward Zach O’Brien, gets fully into form. He’s got five goals and 16 points in 15 games since returning from Slovakia. But the Growlers need to help out their goalies more; they’re allowing 34.31 shots per game, the fourth most in the league.

9. Jacksonville Icemen/Last Ranking: 14

Record: 13-9-2

My preseason pick to win the Kelly Cup was worrying me a little bit with their 5-6-2 start, at which point they made a big four-player trade that netted them Luc Brown and Kirill Chaika from the Indy Fuel for Anthony Petruzzelli and Victor Hadfield. 

It has worked out great for both teams so far.

Jacksonville has won 8 of its last 11 games, and Indy is 6-2-2. (Brown has three goals and four points in nine Jacksonville games; Chaika hasn’t played for them).

Christopher Brown has been on a tear with four goals and seven points in the last three games, giving him 19 goals and 24 points in 19 games this season. Brendan Harris has 11 goals and 16 points in 24 games, and Matheson Iacopelli has 11 goals and 15 points in 24 games.

Goaltending was a concern coming into the season, even if rookie Matt Vernon has looked good with a 6-3-0 record, a 2.58 GAA and a .901 SP. 

Getting Michael Houser, who has NHL experience and has been one of the ECHL’s most reliable goalies over the last decade, makes the Icemen downright formidable in net; he’s 6-5-1 with a 2.59 GAA, a .905 SP and one shutout.

The Icemen rank third in the ECHL defensively, allowing 2.71 goals per game.

Jacksonville is 12-7-2 in the difficult South Division, but has won seven of its last eight divisional games.

10. Florida Everblades/Last Ranking: 8

Record: 10-8-4

It’s tough to get too worried about a team hovering around .500 when that team is the two-time defending champion Everblades. They take the long view and showed last season they just need to get into the playoffs to make noise.

Florida is 2-3-2 in its last seven games, but that may not be reflective of its play since going 1-1-1 at Adirondack and 1-1-1 at home against South Carolina, two of the ECHL’s strongest teams. 

There was a 1-0 loss to the Thunder, in which Florida’s Cam Johnson and Adirondack’s Jeremy Brodeur both had shutouts through regulation, and a 2-1 shootout loss to South Carolina.

Florida’s offense isn’t going to intimidate anyone right now – it ranks 27th with 2.73 goals per game and is led by Bobo Carpenter’s seven goals and 14 points – but the team defense is on point. 

Florida allows only 2.64 goals per game, second fewest in the ECHL, and only 29.36 shots per game, eight fewest.

The Everblades are never easy to play against, but they’re going to be tested with eight road games among their next 10 games.  

The Rest Of The ECHL

11. Tulsa Oilers/Last Ranking: 13

Record: 13-7-3

12. Cincinnati Cyclones/Last Ranking: 5

Record: 12-10-1

13. Fort Wayne Komets/Last Ranking: 17

Record: 12-8-3

14. Wheeling Nailers/Last Ranking: 18

Record: 12-10-2

15. Kalamazoo Wings/Last Ranking: 22

Record: 12-12-0

16. Orlando Solar Bears/Last Ranking: 16

Record: 11-9-2

17. Indy Fuel/Last Ranking: 15

Record: 9-10-3

18. Iowa Heartlanders/Last Ranking: 12

Record: 10-10-5

19. Trois-Rivières Lions/Last Ranking: 6

Record: 13-12-0

20. Wichita Thunder/Last Ranking: 19

Record: 9-13-4

21. Savannah Ghost Pirates/Last Ranking: 14

Record: 9-12-4

22. Maine Mariners/Last Ranking: 20

Record: 8-11-2

23. Rapid City Rush/Last Ranking: 27

Record: 10-12-2

24. Reading Royals/Last Ranking: 28

Record: 7-12-2

25. Worcester Railers/Last Ranking: 23

Record: 8-11-4

26. Allen Americans/Last Ranking: 25

Record: 8-15-1

27. Utah Grizzlies/Last Ranking: 26

Record: 8-15-0

28. Atlanta Gladiators/Last Ranking: 21

Record: 9-14-0