NHL Power Rankings: A New No. 1 Reigns, While Avalanche Level Up
It was a tough week to be in the top five.
But, well...maybe not for everyone.
Though the Boston Bruins and Vegas Golden Knights dropped three spots apiece from their previous perches at Nos. 1 and 2 in B/R's Power Rankings, a little upheaval wasn't so bad for the New York Rangers and Colorado Avalanche.
Coach Peter Laviolette's Rangers, in fact, took advantage of the aforementioned dips and climbed two spots to claim the top perch for the first time in the 2023-24 season. And the Avalanche, who'd opened the schedule with six straight wins before sliding, climbed all the way to No. 3—a spot behind the Los Angeles Kings—with a six-place jump from No. 9.
The Bruins and Golden Knights round out the upper tier at Nos. 4 and 5, while the week's biggest jump was made by the scalding hot Nashville Predators, who spiked 14 places from 27th into a tie for 13th. As for the other side, the slumping Anaheim Ducks took the biggest dive with an eight-spot plummet from No. 21 to No. 29.
Scroll through to see where your favorite team wound up and drop a rankings thought of your own in the comments.
32. San Jose Sharks
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Previous Ranking: 32
Overall Record: 5-15-2
A six-game road trip will be a trial, but the Sharks are embarking on something of a high—having won two straight and earned points in their last three. Center Tomas Hertl missed Monday's defeat of Washington with a mid-body injury but should make the trip.
31. Chicago Blackhawks
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Previous Ranking: 30
Overall Record: 7-13-0
Connor Bedard was held scoreless for a second straight game, but the Blackhawks still managed to escape with a defeat of Seattle on Tuesday. Still, the chatter was about Corey Perry, who was waived after what GM Kyle Davidson labeled a "workplace matter."
30. Minnesota Wild
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Previous Ranking: 28
Overall Record: 6-10-4
The Wild welcomed new coach John Hynes, who'd previously held the bench in New Jersey and Nashville, by defeating St. Louis to end a seven-game skid. Hynes replaced Dean Evason, who was fired on Monday after the team won just five of its first 19 games.
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29. Anaheim Ducks
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Previous Ranking: 21
Overall Record: 9-13-0
The absence of touch around the net continued to haunt the Ducks, who've dropped seven straight after a Tuesday loss at Vancouver. Anaheim managed 27 shots through the first two periods and scored just once. The team has just 12 goals across the entire skid.
28. Columbus Blue Jackets
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Previous Ranking: 31
Overall Record: 7-13-4
Ahead of Wednesday, the Blue Jackets won three of four after a nine-game skid, including a Monday win against Boston in which Yegor Chinakhov, Dmitri Voronkov, Ivan Provorov and Kirill Marchenko had goals, marking the first time in league history four Russians scored for one team in a game.
27. Seattle Kraken
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Previous Ranking: 22
Overall Record: 8-10-5
The Kraken failed to cash in on a two-man advantage late in the third period in a Tuesday loss to Chicago, though the game did mark the return of goalie Philipp Grubauer, who'd been out since November 20. Grubauer stopped 19 of 23 shots in his 13th start of 2023-24.
25. (tie) Ottawa Senators
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Previous Ranking: 19
Overall Record: 8-9-0
A 5-0 home loss to Florida was the second straight defeat for the Senators, dropping them below .500 and prompting reflection from captain Brady Tkachuk. "There's always lessons to be learned in each game," he said, "and I still have all the faith in what we're doing here."
25. (tie) Edmonton Oilers
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Previous Ranking: 29
Overall Record: 8-12-1
Happy days are here again in Edmonton, where the Oilers have climbed from an early slumber with three straight wins and six in their last nine. The recent jolt has coincided with the "return" of Connor McDavid, who has two goals and 10 assists since Thanksgiving.
24. Montreal Canadiens
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Previous Ranking: 26
Overall Record: 10-10-2
The Canadiens limped to Montreal on Wednesday night after dropping five of seven games overall and two on a four-game road trip in which they scored nine goals. They scored just 2.29 goals per game in the seven games (28th in the league) and allowed 3.86 (29th).
23. Calgary Flames
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Previous Ranking: 25
Overall Record: 9-10-3
A two-goal rally to defeat the defending Stanley Cup champs was a particularly sweet victory for the Flames, who got the winner from MacKenzie Weegar with five seconds left in OT on Monday. Rookie forward Connor Zary stayed red hot with his 10th point in 12 NHL games.
22. New York Islanders
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Previous Ranking: 23
Overall Record: 8-7-6
It was a difficult way to end a six-game point streak for the Islanders, who squandered a two-goal lead in the third period in a Tuesday loss to New Jersey. "This was not the result we wanted," forward Jean-Gabriel Pageau said, "but we'll try to forget it as quick as we can."
21. Buffalo Sabres
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Previous Ranking: 24
Overall Record: 10-10-2
Forty-eight hours in the big city yielded quite a turnaround for the Sabres, who pounded the New York Rangers 5-1 on Monday just two days after a 7-2 loss at New Jersey. "Make all the excuses in the book," forward Alex Tuch said, "but we had to be better and we responded."
20. Pittsburgh Penguins
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Previous Ranking: 17
Overall Record: 10-10-1
The Penguins rallied from two goals down to force an OT session against Nashville on Tuesday but a quick goal by the Predators extended a recent skid to 1-2-1 across four games. Pittsburgh hasn't scored more than three goals in seven straight games, going 2-4-1.
19. Philadelphia Flyers
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Previous Ranking: 13
Overall Record: 11-10-1
The Flyers sleepwalked through a 4-1 home loss to Carolina on Tuesday that at least temporarily stalled a run that had seen them win six of eight. Still, Carter Hart stopped 32 shots and boosted his save percentage to .911, his best number since 2019-20.
18. New Jersey Devils
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Previous Ranking: 18
Overall Record: 10-9-1
A second straight victory, which came Tuesday against the New York Islanders, was particularly satisfying in that it came after a rally from two goals down in the third period. "It was all about belief and believing that we can come back," forward Jack Hughes said.
17. Washington Capitals
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Previous Ranking: 11
Overall Record: 11-6-2
A 5-0 loss to Edmonton ended a five-game win streak for the Capitals and set them off on a five-game road trip that began with a 2-1 loss at San Jose on Monday. Washington had scored 19 goals across the five wins but dipped to 31st in scoring heading into Wednesday.
15. (tie) Tampa Bay Lightning
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Previous Ranking: 13
Overall Record: 10-8-5
The Lightning have gone inconveniently cold when it comes to finishing while dropping two straight games to Colorado and Arizona, netting just two goals and allowing seven. Still, Tampa Bay remains sixth in the league in scoring with an average of 3.48 goals per game.
15. (tie) Arizona Coyotes
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Previous Ranking: 20
Overall Record: 10-9-2
The Coyotes continue to hover around .500 after following a three-game losing skid with two consecutive wins, including a Tuesday night defeat of Tampa Bay. Goalie Connor Ingram has stopped 64 of the last 65 shots directed at him and already has a career-best eight wins.
13. (tie) Nashville Predators
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Previous Ranking: 27
Overall Record: 11-10-0
Things are looking particularly rosy these days in Nashville, where the Predators defeated Pittsburgh on Tuesday to stretch a win streak to six. "Obviously, it's fun to get on a little bit of a roll here," forward Gustav Nyquist said. "It's hard to do in this league."
13. (tie) St. Louis Blues
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Previous Ranking: 16
Overall Record: 11-9-1
The Blues were on the wrong end of a streak-buster on Tuesday, dropping their second game in three while ending Minnesota's seven-game skid. Ominously, St. Louis has scored three goals or fewer in five of seven games and is down to 25th in the league in scoring (2.86).
12. Carolina Hurricanes
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Previous Ranking: 12
Overall Record: 13-8-0
No home-ice advantage, no problem for the Hurricanes, who defeated Philadelphia on Tuesday to record their sixth straight win in the Flyers' building. Carolina's 112-67-19 record since 2018-19, when coach Rod Brind'Amour arrived, is third-best in the league. It's one reason he's the face of the franchise.
11. Toronto Maple Leafs
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Previous Ranking: 8
Overall Record: 11-6-3
It was only a one-goal deficit, but Toronto's comeback to win 2-1 against visiting Florida on Tuesday did count as the team's eighth rallying victory of the season, tying Colorado and New Jersey for No. 1 in the league. It was also the team's fifth win in its last seven games.
10. Winnipeg Jets
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Previous Ranking: 10
Overall Record: 12-7-2
The Jets outshot Dallas 27-21 but had the short end of a 2-0 decision that made it two straight losses to follow a five-game win streak. "There will be games that you think could have had a better result," forward Mark Scheifele said. "But you just need to keep trucking."
9. Detroit Red Wings
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Previous Ranking: 15
Overall Record: 11-7-3
The Red Wings got a symbolic boost in their quest for relevance when Hall-bound free agent Patrick Kane chose to sign with them on a one-year deal that'll pay him $2.75 million. He expects to debut with Detroit in a "week to 10 days" after rehab from offseason hip surgery.
8. Florida Panthers
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Previous Ranking: 7
Overall Record: 13-7-2
The Panthers scored five goals in Ottawa on Monday but just one in regulation and a shootout at Toronto on Tuesday. A would-be winner by Evan Rodrigues was disallowed in the fifth round. "The coach was a little sour back there," Florida's Paul Maurice said.
6. (tie) Vancouver Canucks
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Previous Ranking: 5
Overall Record: 15-7-1
It's the first sign of turbulence this season for the Canucks, who've swapped wins and losses for the last six games after beating Anaheim on Tuesday. Brock Boeser scored twice and led the league with 17 goals heading into Wednesday, just one off his 18 in 74 games last season.
6. (tie) Dallas Stars
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Previous Ranking: 6
Overall Record: 13-5-2
This just in: Jake Oettinger is a high-end NHL goalie. The 24-year-old stopped 27 shots in a shutout of Winnipeg on Tuesday and is 9-4-2 in 15 starts this season. The Stars are 6-2-1 in their last nine games and 8-1-1 in 10 road games this season, good for third in the league.
5. Vegas Golden Knights
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Previous Ranking: 2
Overall Record: 14-5-4
A stellar start for the reigning Cup champs isn't erased, but it's being forgotten these days thanks to zero wins in three games (0-2-1) and just one win in six (1-3-2). "We haven't had the best record," defenseman Ben Hutton said, "but I feel like we're getting our chances."
4. Boston Bruins
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Previous Ranking: 1
Overall Record: 14-4-3
The Bruins didn't lose much—in fact just 21 times in their first 100 games under Jim Montgomery—so a three-game skid in which they've allowed 17 goals is rare territory. "In a lot of ways, we've welcomed this kind of adversity," he said. "We knew it was going to come."
3. Colorado Avalanche
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Previous Ranking: 9
Overall Record: 15-6-0
The Avalanche beat Tampa Bay on Monday to remain one of the league's hottest teams with four straight wins and seven in their last eight games. Nathan MacKinnon has at least a point in all 10 of the team's home games, the third-best season-opening streak in franchise history.
2. Los Angeles Kings
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Previous Ranking: 4
Overall Record: 13-4-3
A tough Wednesday loss to the Capitals notwithstanding, it's high time to start believing in the Kings, who'd won five straight heading into the night and remain the league's only unbeaten road team with a pristine 9-0-0 mark. Los Angeles was only 18th-best away from home across coach Todd McLellan's first four seasons.
1. New York Rangers
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Previous Ranking: 3
Overall Record: 16-4-1
A 5-1 loss to visiting Buffalo on Monday was a sour note for the streaking Rangers, who'd won three straight going in—including a 7-4 rout of previous penthouse-dweller Boston. New York had won five straight at home and was 13-1-1 in its last 15.
Still, Artemi Panarin's assist gave him 30 points in his first 20 games and made him the first Ranger to do that since 1987. Then, a 3-2 comeback win over Detroit on Wednesday made them a cinch for this week's top spot.
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