Updated B/R NHL Fun Rankings: Which Teams Have the Best Vibes This Season?
Before we begin, I need to make this crystal clear to you, dear reader: "fun" doesn't necessarily mean "best". This is a very serious ranking done with the utmost precision and using a strict rubric.
As the season was about to start, I set out to answer a single question: Which team will be the most fun NHL to watch?
In some ways, I was very wrong. I'm not watching a Penguins or Kraken game willingly unless nothing else is on. I'm not watching a Sabres game even if nothing else is on.cpo
But in other ways, I was right: I'll tune in to watch the Blackhawks lose by six and Connor Bedard score a fun goal any day of the week. The Panthers are fun and I knew it, and I'll dunk on you all about this until you're sick of me.
It's time to take an honest look at who I thought would be most fun and who actually is, with a Charles Bukowski quote assigned to every team for even more "fun." If you don't know who Bukowski is, he was an American poet known for his blunt, take-no-prisoners style. We're looking to do the same here.
Isn't this all so fun!
32. Buffalo Sabres
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How dare you? I'm done for real this time until you go on your next three-game win streak and find yourselves four points out of the Wild Card. Or until you have one (1) solid preseason game. Whichever scenario comes first, you will find me jumping through a table outside of the KeyBank Center, banging the Buffalo Sabres' drum yet again.
Bukowski quote for the vibe: Hello, Death. But I've had almost 6 decades. I've given you so many clean shots at me what I should have been yours long ago. I want to be buried near the racetrack… where I can hear the stretch run.
31. Ottawa Senators
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And how dare you!? Everything was on track for the return to playoffs this offseason: healthy stars, a seemingly elite defensive core, and no bizarre gambling scandals. Look at you now, the worst team in the East, at 11-12-0.
It's gotten bad enough that the Sens fans have called for the dismissal of head coach D.J. Smith.
Bukowski quote for the vibe: She was desperate and she was choosey at the same time and, in a way, beautiful, but she didn't have quite enough going for her to become what she imagined herself to be.
30. Pittsburgh Penguins
3 of 32
I was told this would be the Penguins' "last-dance" run, but all I see is discourse on Twitter about whether Erik Karlsson is the problem or not.
Spoiler alert: He's not, but we're still not having fun watching the Penguins. It doesn't even feel good to dunk on people calling him the problem. That's when you know the vibe is truly horrendous. The power play can only be described as frightening, which is uncharacteristic of the Penguins, even at their most mid.
Also, can we stop calling everything involving a few old guys a "last-dance" run?
Bukowski quote for the vibe: Your poems about the girls will still be around 50 years from now when the girls are gone, my editor phones me.
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29. Calgary Flames
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Good news, folks! The Flames weren't underperforming at historical rates last season. It turns out they just aren't that good. Good thing Jonathan Huberdeau has approximately one decade to figure it out.
Bukowski quote for the vibe: And you invented me and I invented you and that's why we don't get along.
28. Columbus Blue Jackets
5 of 32
We weren't expecting miracles out of Columbus, but we expected to see the young players for more than one shift per game at least. From the hiring and firing of Mike Babcock, to Patrik Laine getting benched, to captain Boone Jenner now out for six weeks with a broken jaw, the vibes couldn't be worse in Columbus.
Bukowski quote for the vibe: We don't even ask for happiness, just a little less pain
27. St. Louis Blues
6 of 32
Do you really think firing head coach Craig Berube will save you? To be fair, I'm not sure what else will, and I'm not sure why there needs to be any saving in the first place. This is a team in NHL purgatory at the moment - not bad enough to be a Top-5 lottery team and not good enough to be a contender.
Bukowski quote for the vibe: The bus driver leaned back and we roared along over this narrow cement strip surrounded by water and all the people in the bus, the twenty-five or forty or fifty-two people trusted him, but I never did.
Sometimes it was a new driver, and I thought, how do they select these sons of b----ches?
26. Washington Capitals
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It's hard to think of something that's a worse vibe than an NHL where Alex Ovechkin is not scoring goals. It's like a lyric from Ironic by Alanis Morrisette: "It's like randomly moving the arena to the suburbs, when all you need is a goal".
Oh, wait. That isn't a line from the song?
Bukowski quote for the vibe: All people start to come apart finally and there it is: just empty ashtrays in a room or wisps of hair on a comb in the dissolving moonlight.
25. Minnesota Wild
8 of 32
What is it, exactly, that the Minnesota Wild are trying to accomplish?
Are they trying to sneak into the playoffs and have the same fate as their usual one-round effort, or are they trying to compete? John Hynes has improved the vibes, but we've seen new coach vibe inflation syndrome too many times. They're still the second-worst team in the Central Division, and they've got too much work to do than we believe they can do to make a real run. Wild fans deserve more than just making the playoffs at this point.
Bukowski quote for the vibe: I wanted the whole world or nothing.
24. Seattle Kraken
9 of 32
As the response to my pre-season "fun rankings" article showed, I might be the problem here. I sincerely thought the Kraken would continue their success, build on the talent of the youth, and keep rolling out all four lines with a vengeance.
What we got was regression, as many of you predicted. You won! I had too much faith in the depth.
Bukowski quote for the vibe: Beware those who seek constant crowds; they are nothing alone.
23. Edmonton Oilers
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What's better for the vibes per 60? A team that was supposed to win the Cup flailing through a bad start, or a team that was supposed to win the Cup going through inconsistencies? I'm sort of partial to the former, especially as it pertains to the Oilers. The start was still bad enough to land them at the 23rd-worst vibe team on Dec. 13, but this might drastically change in a month if they keep up their winning ways.
Bukowski quote for the vibe: Beware the preachers, beware the knowers.
22. New York Islanders
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Islanders fans are going to hate me for this one, as they're currently No. 2 in the Metro with a 14-7-7 record and a -3 goal differential. They are the only team currently in or remotely near a playoff spot with a negative goal differential.
Ask yourself this, Islanders faithful: Did you enjoy watching your seven overtime losses? Was that fun? You can be successful without being fun, and I'm sure that's just how Lou Lamoriello drew it up. I'll give you the win over the Maple Leafs last week -- that was fun.
Bukowski quote for the vibe: I don't like the clean-shaven boy.
21. New Jersey Devils
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The darling of the Metro was supposed to be dominating, not third-worst with a 15-11-1 record. Perhaps it's an ode to the division that they still have a winning record and aren't in a playoff spot. If we're talking about fun, they aren't boring to watch. But they sure haven't been fun to root for, with so many come-from-behind losses, and injuries to Jack Hughes and Dougie Hamilton erasing the star power at times.
The Devils are almost the inverse of the Islanders, and none of it is fun unless you have it all.
Bukowski quote for the vibe: Forget my brother, I am my own keeper.
20. Anaheim Ducks
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I don't know. You'd be silly to expect this team to be good, but I got a little silly watching the kids have fun at the start of the season. You still have fun watching the future stars of the league cook, but the vibes have come back down to reality and I'm starting to seriously worry about Trevor Zegras.
Bukowski quote for the vibe: It was my turn for a little good luck, not much, but a little. It was true that I didn't have much ambition, but there ought to be a place for people without ambition, I mean a better place than the one usually reserved.
19. Montréal Canadiens
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At 12-13-4, the Canadiens are a little too good to tank. Sue them.
Bukowski quote for the vibe: Your life is your life. Don't let it be clubbed into dank submission. Be on the watch. There are ways out. There is a light somewhere. It may not be much light, but it beats the darkness.
18. Nashville Predators
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The Predators are an interesting case right now, too good to tank, and too inconsistent to expect too much from. But you could kind of see them coming out of nowhere and making a run. Blame it on Juuse Saros.
Bukowski quote for the vibe: Never trust a man with a well-groomed mustache.
17. Tampa Bay Lightning
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Are they still good? Are they sliding into the regression that's inevitable? I don't have the answers, all I know is I don't love watching it not knowing, but I do still love watching Nikita Kucherkov.
Bukowski quote for the vibe: The problem was you had to keep choosing between one evil or another, and no matter what you chose, they sliced a little more off you, until there was nothing left. At the age of 25, most people were finished.
16. Winnipeg Jets
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Death, taxes, and the Winnipeg Jets being in a playoff spot without much noise. You got it, you can thank goaltending for allowing three or fewer goals in their past 18 games. Maybe this year they will finally make a statement and force us to enjoy watching them. They extended the perpetual vibe who is Nino Niederreiter, after all.
Bukowski quote for the vibe: If you persisted long enough, the good luck usually came. Most people couldn't wait on the luck, though, so they quit.
15. Carolina Hurricanes
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For some reason, the Hurricanes are prone to a weird push-and-pull with overreactions and underreactions when it comes to both the fanbase and the general public.
Is the sky falling in Raleigh? Not quite yet, but you expect more from them and they aren't delivering. Antti Raanta is tied for second-worst league-wide in Goals Saved Above Expected with -7.3 and it shows.
Bukowski quote for the vibe: But then if you lied to a man about his talent just because he was sitting across from you, that was the most unforgivable lie of them all, because that was telling him to go on, to continue which was the worst way for a man without real talent to waste his life, finally. But many people did just that, friends and relatives mostly.
14. Toronto Maple Leafs
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Look, we're prone to exaggeration about the Leafs of course, but they haven't been downright awful. They're holding a playoff spot with a 15-6-6 record, and they're rolling with the punches. But, oh, have there been punches. Between the goalie injuries and the blue-line exposure, the Leafs have not been as fun a watch as they should be this season.
Bukowski quote for the vibe: I don't know about other people, but when I wake up in the morning and put my shoes on, I think, Jesus Christ, now what?
13. Chicago Blackhawks
20 of 32"Fun" is truly in the eye of the beholder.
I love watching a high-event hockey game and a young star developing confidence and ripping his quick release. We have to hand it to the Blackhawks for gifting us the joy of watching Connor Bedard and half of the other team score every night.
Bukowski quote for the vibe: This whole place is diseased with the presence of everybody but myself.
12. Detroit Red Wings
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The thing about the Red Wings, is they've instilled confidence in me in a way most bubble teams haven't. There's nothing like a strong start, early adversity, then a quick comeback. But you can't keep living like that. We need to see a few more strong performances out of Ville Husso before I fully embrace the YzerVibe.
Bukowski quote for the vibe: You've got to burn straight up and down and then maybe sidewise for a while and have your guts scrambled by a bully and the demonic ladies, you've got to run along the edge of madness teetering, you've got to starve like a winter alleycat, you've go to live with the imbecility of at least a dozen cities, then maybe maybe maybe you might know where you are for a tiny blinking moment.
11. San Jose Sharks
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Are you not entertained? If you're going to tank, you might as well open the season giving multiple opponents 10 goals per game. The peak of entertainment is being so bad it's funny, and then the pressure's fully off. The Sharks are oddly starting to cook, and we can all laugh about them without feeling mean. What's better than that?
Bukowski quote for the vibe: To do a dull thing with style—now that's what I call art.
10. Philadelphia Flyers
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A John Tortorella-coached team is not always (or often) "fun," but he is always going to exude a strong and honest vibe. So when things are going well, you know and truly believe they are going well. And when things are going well ahead of schedule? It's impossible to resist the Flyers' current vibe, in a playoff spot and ahead of the Canes and the Devils in the metro. Their underlying numbers indicate this is for real; their 53.8% expected goals share at five-on-five ranks No. 4 in the league, according to Natural Stat Trick.
Bukowski quote for the vibe: Nobody can save you but yourself and you're worth saving. It's a war not easily won but if anything is worth winning then this is it.
9. Arizona Coyotes
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Every team loves to think they are the "chip-on-the-shoulder team" that people are counting out for whatever reason, but no team has been counted out by its own municipality and outside observers like the Arizona Coyotes. Well, don't look now, but the 'Yotes bought land in Phoenix, they have one of the best goaltenders in the league in Connor Ingram (who has a great, resilient story), and they're hovering around a playoff spot in the wide open west. I find myself hoping they do it.
Bukowski quote for the vibe: Watching the bull get the matador, that's the best.
8. Colorado Avalanche
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Deep down, I know this team is one of the best in the NHL and has been built for perennial success ever since the Cup win. That's especially clear now that the Avalanche came back this season with reinforcements knowing Gabriel Landeskog would be out. They're currently 18-9-2, good for No. 1 in the Central.
But I'm not having the time of my life, and neither is Mikko Rantanen. It is what it is.
Bukowski quote for the vibe: There is always one woman to save you from another.
7. Vegas Golden Knights
26 of 32
I'd never scoff at a 20-5-5 record, but we get it, Vegas -- you're good. I'm happy for you. I'll always enjoy watching this high-octane offense and Jack Eichel's success, but I'll see you in the playoffs. Where you will continue to dominate. Yawn!
Bukowski quote for the vibe: If it doesn't come bursting out of you in spite of everything, don't do it.
6. Dallas Stars
27 of 32
How dare you fall below the Jets in the standings and force us to consider they might have decent vibes!
Pound-for-pound Stars are the best team in the Central -- dare I say the entire West -- when goalie Jake Oettinger is on. But he's been a little too off recently. I still have all the faith in the world. The vibes are so good when he's on that the Stars have to rank this high, and I hope they don't blow it.
Bukowski quote for the vibe: Some moments are nice, some are nicer, some are even worth writing about.
5. Los Angeles Kings
28 of 32Drew Doughty, 34, is on pace to break his career-high goal record and he looks better than ever on both ends of the ice. Quinton Byfield is becoming the player we thought he'd be right in front of our eyes. If Pierre-Luc Dubois goes on the heater he's supposed to, this team might be a serious Cup contender.
Bukowski quote for the vibe: Baby, I said, I'm a genius but nobody knows it but me.
4. Florida Panthers
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One thing I got right before the season, and the one thing I was constantly challenged on: The Panthers will be good again. I still don't understand why people thought they'd fall off so hard. I understand that Sergei Bobrovskiy is expensive and flakey, but do half of these teams even have a better goaltender? Don't ever succumb to the sunk-cost fallacy. Besides, Spencer Knight was slated to return.
Most of all, the lethal goal scorers throughout the lineup have made up for Matthew Tkachuk's slow start, and have forced the non-believers to figure out what is going on. Please take a number, some of us always believed in the Panthers.
Bukowski quote for the vibe: The good parts of our relationship felt like a rat walking around and gnawing at the inside of my stomach.
3. New York Rangers
30 of 32
What a cohesive unit of good players that have decided and remembered that they're good, and what a great coach who we're all remembering is good. Please, Rangers media members, feed us all of the Peter Laviolette quirky stories. I forgot how much I loved them.
Bukowski quote for the vibe: It was best to stay away from other writers and just do your work.
2. Boston Bruins
31 of 32
Surprise! Keeping the league's best tandem together made the Bruins good again. This team shows you the power of good vibes and two good goalies more than anything else. This isn't to discredit David Pastrňák's continued sorcery. Of course, you wonder about the playoffs again, but who are you to frown when Linus Ullmark and Jeremy Swayman embrace after yet another win?
Bukowski quote for the vibe: It is hard to find a man whose poems don't finally disappoint you.
1. Vancouver Canucks
32 of 32
Not only do the Vancouver Canucks keep winning, but they keep winning in a fun nature. It feels like years of collective trauma unleashed, and you can see the weight lifting off every key players' shoulders. There's no team in the NHL I'm more excited to tune into than the Vancouver Canucks every game this season. And with a third of the season down at this point, I think it's finally safe to enjoy it.
We're going to go with a special quote for this one.
Jason Botchford's quote for the vibe:
"I kept asking him why our world seemed to be collapsing and everything seemed so sh--y.
"And he'd say, 'That's the way it goes, but don't forget, it goes the other way too.'
"That's the way hockey in Vancouver is.
"Usually, this is the way it goes.
"But every once in a while, it goes the other way, too."
I can't wait for it to go the other way.
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