The Weekend Wrap: Halloween Weekend Brings (Hat) Tricks & Treats in Buffalo, Minnesota & Calgary
Youth Hockey Hub Photo
Halloween weekend brought us more great hockey action all over North America, and we hope that the games delivered plenty of hat tricks and postgame treats to hockey players and their families.
The Fromen Injury Law Showcase in Buffalo, N.Y., has become one of the fall’s annual treats, attracting top USA Boys AAA and Canadian Tier 1 teams. This year’s tournament was held Oct. 31 through Nov. 2 and featured a total of 52 teams competing in the 14U, 15O, 16U and 18U age groups. There were between two and five top 10 USA Boys Tier 1 teams competing in each division.
It shouldn’t be long before our MHR Minn-Kota Peewee and Bantam AA rankings go live, and Halloween weekend there were 44 teams in Rochester, Minn., for the Youth Hockey Hub’s 2025 Big Pumpkin Peewee Invitational.
The tournament began Friday, Oct. 3, and concluded Nov. 1. It’s Big Pumpkin Division included 32 AA/A teams, while the Little Pumpkin Division had 12 A teams. Teams that participated in the Little Pumpkin A Division were required to be from an organization that also rosters a Peewee AA team.
Much like our Minn-Kota Peewee and Bantam AA rankings category, the MHR Western Canada U17 AAA Boys rankings should have enough inputted game results and interplay among leagues for that category to go live for Week 7 or 8. So, that’s where we went for our final highlighted event of the spooky weekend as the Calgary Edge School hosted its U17 Western School Sport Challenge Oct. 31 to Nov. 2.
The Western School Sport Challenge was held at Edge School’s two rinks and brought together teams from the Canadian Sport School Hockey League (CSSHL) and other top Western Canada non-CSSHL U17 Boys AAA programs to showcase their skills against top competition.
The 2025 Fromen Injury Law Showcase was held Oct. 31 through Nov. 2 in Buffalo. There were 14U (2011), 15O (2010), 16U & 18U divisions in the event, which attracts top Tier 1 USA and AAA Canada Boys teams.
Games were played at Cornerstone CFCU Arena, Northtown Center at Amherst, Hyde Park Ice Rink (Sunday Only) and the Paddock Chevrolet Ice Arena (Sunday Only).
Those rinks all have LiveBarn feeds for on-demand viewing.
CLICK HERE for the Fromen Showcase Guide
CLICK HERE for the Fromen Showcase Master Schedule
CLICK HERE for Fromen Showcase schedules, scores, standings & stats
Fromen Showcase 14U Division Top Participating Teams
There were 14 teams in the Fromen Showcase 14U Division. Four of the teams were ranked in the MHR Week 6 USA Boys 14U Tier 1 top 10, and nine were among the top 20. The Toronto Marlboros, ranked second in Ontario’s Week 6 U15 rankings, also competed.
#2 Pittsburgh Penguins Elite (3-1-0; 20GF, 12GA)
#2 Ontario Toronto Marlboros (4-0-0; 21GF, 15GA)
#6 Bishop Kearney Selects (2-0-2; 18GF, 10GA)
#9 Chicago Mission (2-1-1; 11GF, 9GA)
#10 Philadelphia Jr. Flyers (2-2-0; 15GF, 12GA)
#11 Chicago Reapers (3-1-0; 10GF, 8GA)
#13 Oakland Jr. Grizzlies (1-2-1; 8GF, 11GA)
#16 Woodbridge Wolfpack (0-3-1); 9GF, 12GA)
#18 St. Louis AAA Blues (1-3-0; 9GF, 15GA)
#19 Pittsburgh Vengeance (3-1-0; 16FG, 14GA)
14U Game of the Weekend
Ontario’s second-ranked Toronto Marlboros defeated USA No. 2 Pittsburgh Penguins Elite, 5-4, in overtime Nov. 2. Andrew Hanson scored his second goal of the weekend with 1:01 left in the extra session to win it for Toronto. Jayden Challenger scored four of the Marlies’ five goals to finish the weekend with seven markers.
Fromen Showcase 15O Division Top Participating Teams
The 15O Division also featured 14 teams, with each American team ranked among the Week 6 MHR top 33. Five teams were ranked in the USA Boys Tier 1 top 10, while the Nos. 7 and 16 Ontario U16 teams also participated.
#3 Woodbridge Wolfpack (3-0-0; 17GF, 2GA)
#4 Chicago Mission (1-3-0; 15GF, 17GA)
#6 Fox Motors (1-2-0; 7GF 10GA)
#7 Bishop Kearney Selects (2-1-0; 16GF, 12GA)
#7 Ontario Toronto Marlboros (1-3-0; 8GF, 22GA)
#9 Buffalo Jr. Sabres (3-0-0; 13GF, 4GA)
#12 Pittsburgh Penguins Elite (2-1-0; 14GF, 8GA)
#16 Canada Prep Upper Canada College (2-1-0; 10GF, 6GA)
#17 St. Louis AAA Blues (2-2-0; 12GF,11GA)
#21 New Jersey Rockets (1-2-0; 9GF, 11GA)
#22 Chicago Reapers (0-3-0; 1GF, 14GA)
15O Game of the Weekend
Six different players scored, with Ty Sullivan and Jackson Conroy each recording two points, as the No. 7 BK Selects knocked off the third-ranked Chicago Mission, 6-4, Nov. 1. BK outscored the Mission, 3-1, in the final period to steal the win.
Fromen Showcase 16U Division Top Participating Teams
There were no Canadian teams in the Fromen Showcase 16U Division, but that doesn’t mean it was any less challenging. All 14 participants were ranked among the Week 6 MHR USA Tier 1 Boys top 50, and all but one were in the top 40. Four teams were in the top 10, and 10 were among the top 25.
#2 St. Louis AAA Blues (1-1-2; 12GF, 8GA)
#5 Woodbridge Wolfpack (2-1-0; 9GF, 7FA)
#9 Chicago Reapers (2-1-0; 9GF, 6GA)
#10 Pittsburgh Predators (2-1-0; 10GF, 8GA)
#11 Bishop Kearney Selects (2-0-0; 9GF, 4GA)
#13 Buffalo Jr. Sabres (2-1-0; 17GF, 7GA)
#15 Wilkes Barre-Scranton Knights (0-2-1; 3GF, 8GA)
#22 New Jersey Rockets (1-1-1; 10GF, 11GA)
#24 Chicago Mission (3-1-0; 13GF, 7GA)
#25 Pittsburgh Penguins Elite (2-0-1; 9GF, 5GA)
16U Game of the Weekend
Reece Tracy and Dylan Sampair scored to give Woodbridge a 2-1 lead through two periods, and the No. 5 Wolfpack held on to beat the second-ranked St. Louis AAA Blues, 2-1, Nov. 2. Luke Ross scored with 9:46 left in the final frame to pull the Blues within one, but winning goalie Mason Hriczov shut the door, finishing with 29 saves.
Fromen Showcase 18U Division Top Participating Teams
The 18U Division included nine USA Tier 1 Boys teams and one Canada Independent Prep team. There were two teams ranked among the MHR Week 6 Boys USA Tier 1 Top 10, and all nine of the American sides were in the top 36. There were five USA top 20 teams participating along with the No. 16 Canada Independent Prep team.
#6 New Jersey Rockets (3-0-0; 20GF, 9GA)
#7 Bishop Kearney Selects (1-2-0; 8GF,9GA)
#15 Woodbridge Wolfpack (2-1-0; 10GF, 4GA)
#16 Canada Prep Upper Canada College (1-2-0; 5GF, 7GA)
#19 Gilmour Academy (1-2-0; 6GF, 12GA)
#22 Nichols School (2-1-0; 8GF, 5GA)
#30 Jersey Hitmen (0-3-0; 1GF, 8GA)
#31 Little Caesars (3-0-0; 10GF, 2GA)
#35 Chicago Reapers (1-2-0; 9GF, 17GA)
#36 Windy City Storm (1-2-0; 9GF,17GA)
18U Game of the Weekend
Aidan Pasic scored twice, while Egor Andreev dished out a pair of assists as USA No. 6 New Jersey Rockets beat No. 16 Canada Prep Upper Canada College, 4-2, Nov. 2. The Rockets scored the first four goals before Coulter Nowakowski tallied for UCC in the third period.
Big Pumpkin Peewee Invitational.
There were 32 AA/A teams in Rochester, Minn., Oct. 31 through Nov. 2 competing in the Big Pumkin AA/A Division. The Big Pumpkin format was very similar to the Minnesota district and state tournaments, with all 32 teams placed in two 16-team brackets. First-round winners advanced to the winners’ bracket, with each round’s losers dropping into a consolation bracket. The team that won the championship had to win five times, which is exactly what the Minnetonka Skippers did.
Minnetonka went 5-0, closing out the tournament with a 3-2 overtime championship-game victory against the Woodbury Predators Nov. 2. Gavin Odam scored his second goal of the tourney with 1:54 left in overtime to give his team the title. Emery Starkey and Jack Stevens also scored for the champs, while Bjorn Newman and Maverick Schiltgen tallied for Woodbury. Schiltgen’s goal with 10:28 left in the third period forced overtime.
Big Pumpkin AA Division Top Teams
Minnetonka (5-0-0; 24GF, 6GA)
Woodbury (4-1-0; 31GF, 17GA)
Blaine (3-1-0; 19GF, 10GA)
Osseo Maple Grove (3-1-0; 39GF, 11GA)
Cottage Grove (3-1-0; 19GF, 14GA)
Edina (3-1-0; 28GF, 16GA)
Chaska-Chanhassen (3-1-0; 30GF, 13GA)
Centennial (3-1-0; 18GF, 14GA)
Moorhead (3-1-0, 22GF, 10GA)
Big Pumpkin All-Tournament Team
Graham Olson – Minnetonka Goalie
Brady Doan – Minnetonka Defense
Oliver Glancy – Woodbury Defense
Porter Engelhardt – Woodbury Forward
Bjorn Newman – Woodbury Forward
Jack Stevens (MVP – Minnetonka Forward
The 12 teams competing in the Little Pumpkin A Division were divided into two five-team pools. They played four round-robin games to determine playoff seedings.
Woodbury and Osseo Maple Grove each finished the tournament 5-1-0 while playing in Pool B. OMG lost to Woodbury, 5-2, in round-robin play, but both teams advanced to the championship game, which OMG won by a 6-3 margin. After falling behind, 1-0, through one period, OMG tied the game on Colton Everett’s second-period marker before exploding for five goals in the final frame. Everett one of those goals, with Arseniy Tsapov burying a pair during the decisive run. Wyland Smyth and Levi Sorensen had the other OMG tallies.
Games were played at the Graham Arena Complex in Rochester, Minn., and should be available for on-demand viewing via LiveBarn.
CLICK HERE for the Big Pumpkin AA/A Division bracket
CLICK HERE for the Little Pumpkin A Division schedule
CLICK HERE for links to the upcoming game schedule, scores, stats & standings
Edge School U17 Western Sport School Challenge
This unique event brought together top U17 teams from the CSSHL and some of the best non-CSSHL AAA Boys teams from Western Canada for high-level competition and exposure.
The tournament began Friday, Oct. 31, and concluded with Sunday’s WSSC Championship game at 12 p.m. ET.
All tournament games were played at the Edge School’s two rinks and can be viewed on-demand via FloHockey.
The 2025 WSSC included eight teams grouped into two four-team pools. Round-robin play concluded the morning of Sat., Nov. 1, with consolation and semifinal games played that afternoon.
South Alberta Hockey Academy defeated Calgary Edge School U17 Prep, 3-1, Nov. 2 to capture the WSSC U17 championship.
CLICK HERE for the WSSC Challenge program
CLICK HERE for WSSC schedule and results
Edge School U17 WSSC Participating Teams
Edge School U17
Edge School U17 Prep
South Alberta Hockey Academy
Northern Alberta Xtreme
OHA Edmonton
Pilot Mount Academy
Calgary NWCAA Flames
KC Centennials
