NHL Power Rankings: Each Team's New Year's Resolution In 2026

New year, new beginnings, right?

Wrong. The Colorado Avalanche are still at the top of the mountain, and it looks like they're coasting their way to the NHL's Presidents' Trophy. Depending on who you ask, that may or may not be a good thing.

But all the Avs need to do now is… change nothing. Stay the course and they'll be Stanley Cup favorites for the rest of the season. For the rest of the league, however, changes may need to be made. 

In this week's NHL power rankings, we give each team one new year's resolution.

It's been nearly a month since the Avs lost in regulation, and with a potentially record-setting season in the cap era, staying the course should do fine. However, the Avs' 29th-ranked power play needs to improve. It's especially important that they do so in the playoffs. 

If the Wild really want to come over the top, their resolution would be to make one more big splash. Getting Quinn Hughes is huge, but they're missing another reliable top-six center, and you know Bill Guerin isn't afraid to deal. 

The Stars have generally been excellent but still incredibly streaky, going 0-2-2 in their past four, including two winnable games against the Connor Bedard-less Blackhawks. "We're certainly in a little bit of a funk here," Glen Gulutzan said after the second loss to the Hawks. Consistency is key, and they can't just count on catching fire at the right time when the playoffs roll around. 

It's been a successful season for the Wings so far, so whatever they do, do not lose that playoff spot in the final week of the regular season. We've seen it before. Don't do it again. There are no excuses this time. 

The Lightning's power play hasn't been good, and relying on their excellent PK doesn't seem like a sustainable strategy when they rank second in most penalties taken. Discipline could be a big factor when they face the rival Panthers in the playoffs. Also, time to roll out a big-time marketing campaign to ensure Jon Cooper wins the Jack Adams.

Getting Phillip Danault was a nice start, but there's no such thing as too many centers. That should be priority No. 1 for the Habs, and then figuring out who's going to be the guy in net. All three goalies are under team control for next season, and whoever is the odd-man out could be a valuable trade piece. 

Figure out the goaltending. Brandon Bussi has been a huge hit, but Frederik Andersen has not. Can the Canes count on a rookie goalie to carry them to the promised land? It did happen 20 years ago… 

This is Matthew Schaefer's rollercoaster, and we're just on it for the ride. This is a personal goal, but how amazing would it be for Schaefer, the Islanders and the fan base if he scored 20 goals? He's halfway there. Only three defensemen in history have scored at least 20 goals in their rookie season: Barry Beck, Brian Leetch and Dion Phaneuf.

Since the end of their four-game road trip that ended in Anaheim on Dec. 5, the Caps are a troubling 4-6-2 and averaging 3.50 goals against per game. They need to do something to shake things up, especially for Alex Ovechkin on the power play, who is on pace for just four (!) power-play goals this season. 

Christian Dvorak has been a good fit, and the short-term goal will be to get him re-signed. Longer term, the Flyers offense should be better than it is now – concerns about Rick Tocchet's system aside – and that includes getting Matvei Michkov going. 

Might another move to shore up their goaltending be necessary? The Oilers' annual second-half turnaround is underway, but concerns remain about their defense and in net. Rather than sitting around to see what happens, perhaps the Oilers need to be more proactive. Remember, Connor McDavid only signed a short-term extension. 

It certainly feels like the Panthers (and Oilers) have figured out the secret, and that it's the second half that really matters. Since their four-game losing streak, the Panthers are 9-3-1 (the Oilers are 8-4-1), and getting Matthew Tkachuk back sooner than later will be a top priority.

Stock up on whatever medicine that can keep Jack Eichel and Mark Stone on the ice because the Knights are abysmal without them. If the Knights can stay healthy, they're a Cup contender. 

After so many seasons… could the Sharks be the best team in California again? They have all the pieces, but the big picture must not be forgotten; Mike Grier may still be in the hunt for a franchise defenseman at the position he's most lacking. 

Understand the Ducks are still a developing team, but two things that ail almost every young, talented team: lack of consistency and poor defense. If the Ducks can fix one or the other in the new year, they'll easily be in the playoffs. 

The Leafs continue to be woeful on the road (5-10-1), and that needs to be addressed, especially since it's unlikely they'll have home-ice advantage even if they make the playoffs. At the heart of this issue is Auston Matthews (23 points at home, eight on the road), but he's not solely to blame, and their game-to-game efforts need to be much better as a team.

There was an 0-4-4 stretch where it seemed like the Pens were regressing when everyone had pegged them to be a lottery team before the season. They're stuck in the thick of the playoff race, and their resolution should be to balance the hopes of a playoff berth and keep planning for the post-Crosby Era. As a side note, should Marc-Andre Fleury come out of retirement, would it not make sense for it to be with the Penguins?! 

It's euphoria lately with 10 straight wins. Like a good tease, the Sabres can pull off these winning streaks, convincing you they've turned a corner, but then suddenly rip your heart out and blow it up into a million pieces. The message is as clear as it was many times before: don't screw this up. 

For a team that has a very mid penalty kill, they spend a lot of time in the box, leading the league with 210 penalties taken and a league-worst minus-34 differential. It prevents the Bruins from putting David Pastrnak and Morgan Geekie on the ice. 

Even with Jack Hughes in the lineup, the Devils' offense continues to sputter, wasting a stretch of strong play from both veteran goalies. The Devils, 31st on the power play and 32nd in goals-for per game over the past month, need to figure out line combos that work. Perhaps playing Hughes and Nico Hischier together should be a full-time thing. 

A little more puck luck should solve their offense, but the number of leads the Jackets have blown in the third period needs to be fixed to give themselves a fighting chance to qualify for the playoffs. The Jackets are tied for first with four overtime losses when leading after two periods. 

The most glaring issue is their goaltending, and they rank 30th in even-strength save percentage, per naturalstattrick.com. Of the 40 games in which a team has allowed at least seven goals in a game this season, the Sens are one of six teams that have already done so three times. 

Even with a 9-3-0 stretch, the Flames should be sellers. With the Canucks and Wild setting the market, they should fetch a good return for Rasmus Andersson. The resolution will be to maximize the assets they'll be inevitably selling off, even if it includes Nazem Kadri, as unlikely as that may be.

The Kings have a couple of games in hand, but it's the same old refrain: they can't score. They're 30th in goals-for per game and 31st on the power play, neither of which bodes well. Their defense is noticeably weaker, and they can't expect to win without being able to score should they face, y'know, the Oilers in the playoffs again. 

Since Dec. 1, the Preds are 9-5-0, which is respectable but likely as good as they'll be given a roster with hard-to-move contracts for aging veterans. Come the trade deadline, the Preds will need to find a way to extricate themselves from one of their big contracts to move forward. 

Call it a lost season. What the Rangers should do now is wonder how they can quickly return to Cup contender status should Artemi Panarin elect to enter free agency. Igor Shesterkin is in the first year of his eight-year deal, so should the new Rangers core be built from the net out since Panarin (34), Mika Zibanejad (32), Vincent Trocheck (32) and J.T. Miller (32) are on the wrong side of 30? Surely this Rangers brass can see the future is starting to dim?

Since their seven-game winning streak in October, the Mammoth have not won more than three games in a row. Adding more reliable pieces on the blue line and at center will be the immediate and long-term goals, and something needs to be done to fix a power play that should be top-10, given the scoring talent that they have. 

Just make the playoffs. The fan base feels deflated, and it needs some hot air to pump it up. Whether it's sustainable or not is a different story because the Kraken roster remains weak and full of holes. 

It's been repeated ad nauseum for the Blues and numerous other teams, but you can't win with bad goaltending. Has the Jordan Binnington Era run its course? The Blues need to decide whether this season was a blip on the radar or a sign of a more troubling long-term trend. 

Even if the Canucks rip off a winning streak, their resolution should be to remain steadfast and not alter their course based on some short-term false readings. Don't trade futures and stop making gambles that may improve the team only marginally. Whether or not they can turn it around in one season is up for debate, but in the immediate term, the Canucks should focus on getting a higher draft slot. 

Adding pieces to help Connor Bedard, Frank Nazar, Spencer Knight and a young blueline that's still trying to figure things out. Too often, the Hawks get stuck in a losing streak and take too long to snap out of it.

Kyle Connor has an eight-year extension that kicks in next season, but you wonder where the Jets see themselves right now. Are they a short fix away from contending again, or is this core finished? With low attendance numbers that haven't returned to the pre-pandemic peaks, can the fan base get as excited as they were before with this current team?

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