After a slow start in 2015, the US hockey teams finished strong in The Show. Team Southeast took Ontario Black to the bring losing 2-1 in the final minutes. Coming on the heals of 12 US players drafted last week in the NHL's illustrious first round, US hockey is on a fast rise. Will their champion this year hoist the trophy and take a lap?

Eight teams travel to the Twin Cities this week and join the host Great Plains for an eight game round robin marathon at Bloomington Ice Garden. Teams from hockey hotbeds like Minnesota, Michigan and Massachusetts and some new blood players from sunbelt states like Florida, California and Texas. The new breed of high end talent that is now littering the first round of the NHL (Austen Matthews is from Phoenix, Arizona). 

Here is a preview of each team and  a few pics, some players to watch and YHH's call for the US champion on Saturday.

There looks to be seven really good American teams and two great ones. The core of the Mid Atlantic team comes from the Philadelphia Little Flyers who lost one game to a US team last season. The New England team houses several players from the top US Brick team last year...their game Tuesday night will have a lot of eyeballs watching.

Besides those two teams, don't sleep on the talent rich states of Illinois (Midwest), Michigan (Great Lakes) and Minnesota (Great Plains)...those teams don't have to travel far and have a bucket of talent.

Favorite: Mid-Atlantic

Don't Forget: New England

Sleeper: Rocky Mountain