Mark Jones' NHL Power Rankings: January 4th Edition
The top 10 teams all have extra analysis, as well as a few others that I have something to say about.
1. San Jose Sharks (63 pts, 29-4-5)
They've cooled off a little after a very hot start, but they're still going strong after their 5-3 win over the lowly Islanders yesterday. And they're still 19-0-2 at home. Not bad.
2. Boston Bruins (62 pts, 29-5-4)
Well, Buffalo just snapped the Bruins' win streak with their 4-2 victory, but going 10-1 in your last eleven isn't something to be dreaded. They could fall off as April approaches, but they sure look pretty good right now.
3. Detroit Red Wings (57 pts, 26-7-5)
The Winter Classic victory was the first time I've watched an entire Red Wings game this season, and they really remind me of the Stanley Cup team from last year. With their 26-7-5 record, another Cup championship is nowhere near being out of the question.
4. Washington Capitals (55 pts, 26-11-3)
I always knew that with all this Russian talent, someday they'd burst out of the pack and become an instant Cup contender. It's just too bad I never wrote that down...
Anyway, that's pretty much what they're doing right now. The Caps are 9-1-0 in their last 10 games. Semin is having an amazing breakout year and Ovechkin isn't disappointing anyone...hmm, Eastern Conference Champion (if Boston cools down)?
5. Calgary Flames (50 pts, 23-11-4)
Pretty good couple of weeks for the Flames: they haven't lost in regulation in 10 games (they're 7-0-3 in their last 10). Last night's 3-2 win over Nashville just caps off a spectacular two weeks for Calgary.
6. Philadelphia Flyers (50 pts, 21-10-8)
After a terrible start, we thought last season's Eastern Conference Championship appearance was a fluke. Not anymore. Jeff Carter is just great, goalie play is tightening up; this team is looking great!
7. Montreal Canadiens (48 pts, 21-10-6)
Kovalev is looking good and Guillaume Latendresse is a budding star; except for their dreadful series against my team, Carolina, they've been winning a lot. And they've only played 37 games so far!
8. New Jersey Devils (47 pts, 22-12-3)
Doing all this without Brodeur and having only played 37 games is incredible. I expect them to emerge as one of the East's elite teams soon.
9. Chicago Blackhawks (47 pts, 20-8-7)
They've only played 35 games so far, lowest in the league, but Toews and Kane have kept them near the top of the West. Outscoring opponents 127-94 (that's 3.6 goals a game!), look for the Blackhawks to possibly go far into the postseason this year.
10. New York Rangers (49 pts, 23-14-3)
I'm still not convinced this is actually a top NHL team. The main reason is probably that I just noticed they've been outscored by opponents 109-108 already, and if you look at it, they've only won 23 of 40 games. Just slightly above average, at least to me.
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