This week's NHL power rankings see the Boston Bruins return to first in a tight top three with the Rangers and Kings, but parity strikes again in a league full of fluctuation.
Welcome back to the ever-popular NHL power rankings at The Hockey News. Published every Wednesday, all 32 teams will be ranked from best to worst with an emphasis on their weekly performances.
One thing has been made abundantly clear so far this season: There is no favorite.
This time last season, the Bruins were 20-3-1 with a plus-43 goal differential, and the Devils were 21-4-1 with a plus-39 goal differential. The Devils eventually lost a little steam, but the Bruins ran away with the Presidents’ Trophy, becoming one of the best regular-season teams ever.
This season, there are three teams tied at the top of the standings with 37 points, and only four points separate the next seven teams. That’s followed by a big middle class where the rankings regularly see tons of fluctuation depending on hot and cold streaks and injuries.
After going 3-0 over the past week, the Bruins return to the No. 1 spot, but you could make a strong argument for the Kings (10-0-0 on the road), Rangers (league-leading 18 wins) or the Knights (only team to be ranked top-five every week).
Notable climbers this week include the Coyotes, who have knocked off five straight Cup champions and finally look like a competitive team again; the Oilers, who are 4-1-0 over the past two weeks with Connor McDavid looking like his dominant self again; and the Wild, who are 4-0-0 under John Hynes.
(All fancy stats are 5-on-5 and courtesy naturalstattrick.com. CF% stands for Corsi-for percentage and xGF% represents expected goals-for percentage.)
1. Boston Bruins (17-4-3, +22 goal differential. CF% league rank: 21, xGF% league rank: 13)
After going 0-3-0 with 17 goals allowed, the Bruins quickly righted the ship and won three straight games with only four goals allowed. That’s a sign that this is a very resilient group, and they keep defying the odds even after losing key pieces over the summer. They lost three straight games just once last season.
2. Los Angeles Kings (15-4-3, +32. CF%: 2, xGF%: 1)
If the playoffs started today, the Kings would be the most fearsome team. They have a deep lineup and play equally well at both ends of the ice. Since allowing 11 goals in their first two games of the season, the Kings have limited their opponents to 2.05 goals per game, by far the best mark in the league.
3. New York Rangers (18-5-1, +16. CF%: 18, xGF%: 19)
At times, the Rangers can be so uneven. They’re dominant most of the time, but occasionally, they’ll suffer a blowout loss, including 5-1 to the Sabres and, most recently, 6-2 to the Senators. Who knew Jonathan Quick would be the better option than Igor Shesterkin?
4. Vegas Golden Knights (16-5-5, +22. CF%: 20, xGF%: 16)
The Knights banked so many points at the beginning of the season that they remain first in the Pacific even though their points percentage in November was a pedestrian .536.
5. Colorado Avalanche (16-7-2, +17. CF%: 6, xGF%: 6)
It’s a tale as old as time – the Avs can’t stay healthy. That and Alexandar Georgiev’s up-and-down season have kept them from being a truly elite team.
6. Dallas Stars (14-6-3, +13. CF%: 10, xGF%: 5)
The Stars are stumbling a bit with five losses in their past eight games, though they’ve lost consecutive games just twice this season.
7. Winnipeg Jets (14-8-2, +11. CF%: 13, xGF%: 20)
The Jets are in a good position to soar. Connor Hellebuyck had a .920 SP in November, Gabe Vilardi is back in the lineup, and Nikolaj Ehlers is averaging more than 18 minutes per game in December. That last one is truly a minor miracle.
8. Detroit Red Wings (14-7-3, +20. CF%: 27, xGF%: 22)
Do you believe? The Yzerplan is bearing fruit, and the Wings have won six of their past seven games. Is Alex Lyon the league’s most underrated goalie? For the second straight season, he’s gone from third-string to a one-man show. The Wings offense is also clicking, scoring at least four goals in each of the six wins, and that’s before Patrick Kane joined the lineup.
9. Toronto Maple Leafs (12-6-4, +2. CF%: 16, xGF%: 19)
The Leafs pessimist: They have a league-low five wins in regulation! The Leafs optimist: They’ve lost just six games in regulation! That’s all missing the point. The Leafs are undoubtedly a good team, but the real question is if they’re willing to put their faith in rookie goalie Joseph Woll in a win-now season while William Nylander’s free agency looms.
10. Florida Panthers (14-8-2, +10. CF%: 5, xGF%: 9)
It feels like every team is stumbling a little at the moment. That includes the Panthers, who are 4-4-1 in their last 10 games and having trouble finding their offense lately. Brandon Montour and Aaron Ekblad have combined for just four assists in eight games since returning to the lineup.
11. Arizona Coyotes (13-9-2, +14. CF%: 28, xGF%: 23)
This Coyotes team is fun, and what a way to let the league know that you’ve arrived by knocking off five straight Cup champs. We’re certainly not saying they’re contenders, but things are looking up for a franchise that felt perpetually doomed. There are even rumors they’re interested in trading for a player who’s not LTIRetired to help them get to the cap floor?! Absurd!
12. Carolina Hurricanes (14-9-1, +5. CF%: 1, xGF%: 2)
One moment, Pyotr Kochetkov looks brilliant, and in the next, he looks like he can’t even stop a beach ball. This may sound crazy, but is it possible the Canes are too good at limiting shots that their goalies simply can’t get into a rhythm? Their talented roster and possession metrics point toward this team being much better than their record would indicate.
13. New Jersey Devils (12-10-1, -3. CF%: 3, xGF%: 4)
They need to address their goaltending because it looks like Vitek Vanecek freezes every time there’s a puck coming at him. Their scoring talent is bailing them out, save for Timo Meier, who somehow looks disinterested and worse with each passing game, and they simply won’t go very far if they keep allowing as many goals as they score.
14. Vancouver Canucks (16-9-1, +31. CF%: 15, xGF%: 17)
The Canucks have a winning record and an excellent goal differential, but pit them against some of the teams below them, and there are no guarantees they will win. Acquiring Nikita Zadorov and pairing him with Tyler Myers gives them a towering pair, but, quite frankly, their combined hockey IQ is still somewhere on the ground floor.
15. Edmonton Oilers (9-12-1, -5. CF%: 4, xGF%: 3)
The Oilers have played just once over the past week, but with Connor McDavid’s recent scoring tear, you can feel a big run coming. They’ve won four straight, including a key win over the Knights, and now have a six-game homestand. They’re the most terrifying team under .500 in the league right now.
16. Washington Capitals (12-8-2, -13. CF%: 24, xGF%: 25)
After knocking off five straight wins, the Caps have lost four of their past six, and scoring is a huge problem. Alex Ovechkin is on pace for a career-low 52 points in an 82-game season, Evgeny Kuznetsov is getting benched and healthy scratched, and they’re relying on 33-year-old John Carlson to play almost 26 minutes a night.
17. Tampa Bay Lightning (11-10-5, -6. CF%: 11, xGF%: 16)
Give Andrei Vasilevskiy some time, and he should get back on track. That’s about the only thing the Lightning can tell themselves right now because they have no help coming down the pipeline after mortgaging their future to win Cups, and they’re too cap-strapped to make any moves.
18. Minnesota Wild (9-10-4, -7. CF%: 14, xGF%: 13)
They’re 4-0-0 under John Hynes, but if Dean Evason got .951 SP goaltending from Filip Gustavsson, he’d still be behind the bench. So much of coaching can be dependent on the performance of goalies. The key now is to find a way to get their offense going.
19. Nashville Predators (13-12-0, even. CF%: 19, xGF%: 8)
Thanks to their top line, the Preds have won eight of their last 10, fulfilling Barry Trotz’s desire for more offense. Juuse Saros has been better, though not quite his usual dominant self yet, but even getting to .500 has surprised people. Filip Forsberg is low-key putting together an MVP-caliber season.
20. St. Louis Blues (13-10-1, -4. CF%: 29, xGF%: 30)
They’re staying in the race, which is good because they’re having trouble getting into a groove and going on a sustained winning streak. They’ve alternated wins and losses for the last seven games.
21. Philadelphia Flyers (13-10-2, +4. CF%: 12, xGF%: 7)
Winning two straight against their in-state rival is huge, and John Tortorella is once again a quote machine. Having two goalies playing well really helps, and it’s also a good sign the Flyers are never in a slump for too long. However, it’s a brutal schedule coming up, with only three of their 12 games played at home until Jan. 2.
22. Calgary Flames (10-12-3, -14. CF%: 7, xGF%: 12)
Honestly, this is setting up for Dustin Wolf to be their savior this season. Jacob Markstrom’s out for an extended period with a fractured finger, Dan Vladar was pulled early against the Wild, and compared to that awful stretch in late October, their scoring is vastly improved.
23. Buffalo Sabres (10-14-2, -16. CF%: 17, xGF%: 24)
The return of Tage Thompson didn’t help as the Sabres dropped their fourth straight game. Their playoff aspirations are quickly diminishing despite coming into the season as a dark horse. They’re a young team still in need of help, especially on the blueline. It remains to be seen if the Sabres will be patient and play the long game or feel it necessary to make the push to get better right now.
24. Pittsburgh Penguins (11-10-3, +10. CF%: 8, xGF%: 10)
Other than a five-game winning streak in early November, the Pens are still trying to figure things out, especially on the power play where they’re now trying Kris Letang with Erik Karlsson. They’ve been a little unlucky lately with two overtime and a shootout loss despite some strong performances in net.
25. New York Islanders (10-7-7, -10. CF%: 31, xGF%: 21)
By my count, the Isles have blown leads in the third period 10 times this season, most recently against the Sharks, despite leading 4-1 halfway through the third period. They have an offense that goes through major ebbs and flows and a defense that continuously breaks down.
26. Columbus Blue Jackets (8-14-5, -15. CF%: 26, xGF%: 29)
It really hasn’t been so bad, going 4-3-1 in their past eight games, though blowing a 3-0 lead against the Kings really stung. The Jackets dug themselves a hole so deep that it’s virtually impossible to get out.
27. Ottawa Senators (10-10-0, +5. CF%: 22, xGF%: 26)
Along with the Isles, the Sens are the other team whose record looks much better than how their fan base feels. New ownership has come in and said they don’t wish to make hasty changes, and their mini two-game winning streak has quieted down the critics a little bit, but you wonder if they’re necessary to really turn their season around.
28. Montreal Canadiens (11-11-3, -17. CF%: 25, xGF%: 27)
Just when Alex Newhook was really starting to play well, he suffered an ankle injury that will keep him out until the spring. The Habs have been hit hard with injuries, and Cole Caufield’s going through another dry spell with three goals in his last 16 games.
29. San Jose Sharks (7-17-2, -54. CF%: 32, xGF%: 32)
The Sharks move out of the bottom three for the first time all season, thanks to their recent 4-2-0 surge. Their play has been impressive; they didn’t relinquish their lead to the Devils even though it was close, nearly staged a comeback against the Rangers after trailing 6-3, and then completed a comeback against the Isles.
30. Chicago Blackhawks (7-16-1, -30. CF%: 30, xGF%: 31)
Acquiring Anthony Beauvillier was a sign the Hawks know they can’t just ice a team full of warm bodies, but it also goes to show just how desperate they are to find players who can play at this level and help insulate Connor Bedard. They’ve won one game in regulation since Nov. 12.
31. Anaheim Ducks (10-15-0, -18. CF%: 23, xGF%: 28)
You’d have to go back to Nov. 14 to find the Ducks’ last win in regulation. Despite their woeful play, they’re significantly better than they were last season – believe it or not – and with Leo Carlsson and Pavel Mintyukov, they’ve got some exciting young players worth watching. That’s still a step in the right direction.
32. Seattle Kraken (8-12-6, -22. CF%: 9, xGF%: 15)
A five-game winless streak brings the Kraken down to the depths. They won just four games in regulation in November and are still no closer to figuring out their goaltending situation from their inaugural season.
