By Patrick King, Sportsnet.ca

The P.E.I. Rocket have taken off in the Québec Major Junior Hockey League standings after winning seven of their last 10 games.

In the Ontario Hockey League, the Brampton Battalion are loading up for what could be an exciting playoff run after the acquisitions of Cory Emmerton and Zack Shepley.

Meanwhile in the Western Hockey League, the Brandon Wheat Kings continue to impress in the East Division thanks in part to a pair of 16-year-old snipers.

Ontario Hockey League

Hot team: Brampton Battalion

The Battalion certainly have the makings of a championship-caliber team this season as they extended their winning streak to five games after winning all three last week. In addition to the strong core they already had, the Battalion won the Cory Emmerton sweepstakes, acquiring him from Kingston and adding overage defenceman Zack Shepley from Plymouth.

Hot player: Justin Hodgman, Erie Otters

The third-year forward was red-hot last week as the Otters appear ready to climb out of the basement of the standings. In two games last week, Hodgman had three goals and six assists for nine points and a plus-6 rating.

Cold team: Barrie Colts

Although the Sudbury Wolves have a longer winless streak, the Wolves, unlike the Colts, aren't challenging for the division and conference. Barrie, who has had their share of injuries this season, dropped all three games last week and have now lost four in a row. The Colts now trail the Battalion by three points for first in the Central Division with Brampton holding two games in hand.

Cold player: Tomi Karhunen, Sarnia Sting

The Finnish rookie goaltender was rocked last week, allowing 13 goals on 69 shots for a 0.812 save percentage. The lowest point of the week came Sunday when Karhunen allowed seven goals in a loss to Sault Ste. Marie. The Sting will need Karhunen to turn his game around as they're losing ground on the elite teams in the tough Western Conference.

This week's key match-up: Kitchener Rangers vs. Windsor Spitfires, Thursday, Dec. 13

This will only be the second of four match-ups between these two elite teams this season as the Rangers won the first meeting 5-2 on Oct. 26 in Kitchener. Entering this week, the Rangers are first in the league standings with 51 points while the Spitfires are second with 47. Although the season is still young, it's not a stretch to say these two teams should be competing for the top spot in the conference for the remainder of this season, making this game important.

Western Hockey League

Hot team: Brandon Wheat Kings

The Wheat Kings are back in a tie for first place in the East Division after bringing their winning streak to seven games. Brandon has done a terrific job of drafting over the years as evidenced by the play of 16-year-olds Brayden Schenn and Scott Glennie. The Wheat Kings are now just three points back of first place in the Eastern Conference.

Hot player: Jonathon Blum, Vancouver Giants

The California rearguard, who will represent his country later this month in the world juniors, had a solid week. In two games, Blum scored twice and added three assists with a plus-2 rating. Blum's Giants trail the Spokane Chiefs by three points for first overall in league standings heading into next week.

Cold team: Portland Winter Hawks

In what must already feel like a long season in Portland, the Winter Hawks went without a win once again in four games last week. On the bright side, the Winter Hawks brought the league-leading Spokane Chiefs to a shootout on Sunday.

Cold player: Mitch Fadden, Lethbridge Hurricanes

The 19-year-old sniper was ice cold last week as he failed to record a point in four games and was a minus-1. Fadden has only failed to reach the score sheet in consecutive games twice this season prior to the current slump. Lethbridge will need Fadden to pick his game up as their other sniper, Zach Boychuk, will be attending the Canadian world junior selection camp this week.

This week's key match-up: Tri-City Americans vs. Spokane Chiefs, Saturday, Dec. 15

The top two teams in the U.S. Division will face-off for the fourth time of the season with the Americans holding the season series edge with two wins and a loss. These two teams will be quite familiar with each other by the time the season ends as they will meet 12 times over the course of the season. Each game this season has been close with two needing extra time to be decided. Since these two teams meet so many times this season, the winner of the division could very well come down to which team wins the season series.

Québec Major Junior Hockey League

Hot team: P.E.I. Rocket

The Rocket are finally beginning to take off as they have now won their last three consecutive games, including the last five on home ice. Forward Brett Morrison and goaltender Marc-Antoine Gélinas have been key cogs to the Rocket success of late. The Rocket have now won seven of their last 10 games and are a point out of sixth in the Eastern Division.

Hot player: Toby Lafrance, Victoriaville Tigres

The overage forward, who has spent his entire career in Victoriaville, recorded a 10-point week with five goals and five assists in three games. Surprisingly, Lafrance finished with a minus-2 rating. Lafrance scored the game winner in the Tigres' only win of the week, a 9-3 rout of Shawinigan.

Cold team: Halifax Mooseheads

Halifax lost all three contests last week by a combined 16-6 score. With the losses, the Mooseheads saw their lead for the top spot in the Eastern Division vanish as the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles are now tied with them in points. Halifax will need stronger performances from their stars particularly goaltender Pier-Olivier Pelletier who had a rough week.

Cold player: Michaël Dupont, Rimouski Océanic

Dupont is the league's cold player for the second consecutive week after being named the CHL goaltender of the week the week prior. In three games last week, Dupont allowed 15 goals on 75 shots, giving him a 0.800 save percentage on the week. On the bright side, Dupont led the Océanic to a win in one of his three starts.

This week's key match-up: P.E.I. Rocket vs. Baie-Comeau Drakkar, Wednesday, Dec. 12

The league's hottest team will face one of the top teams when the Rocket head for Baie-Comeau. The Drakkar are coming off a tough four-game week where they won twice and lost twice with one coming in overtime. The two wins, however, came on the road against the Rouyn-Noranda Huskies, a team they're fighting with for the top spot in the Telus Division standings. A win for the Rocket would not only give them plenty of confidence approaching the Christmas break, but help them climb back up in the standings towards a playoff spot.