NHL Power Rankings: Where Every Team Stands at the Four Nations Face-off Break
Want to stay in the top spot in the B/R Power Rankings? Win a lot.
Want to stay in the bottom spot in the same rankings? Well, you know.
The Winnipeg Jets and San Jose Sharks took our counsel and ran with it in the NHL's final flurry of games before the 4 Nations Face-Off, maintaining positions 1 and 32, respectively, after this week's balloting.
The high-flying Jets won eight straight heading into the hiatus while the woeful Sharks have won just once in their last 11 games and have a goal differential, -68, that's last in the league by more than two dozen.
The B/R hockey staff awarded 32 points for a first-place vote down to a single point for last. Take a look at what we came up with and drop a thought of your own in the app comments.
Votes were tallied after games played on Sunday, Feb. 9.
32. San Jose Sharks
1 of 32
Previous Ranking: 32
Overall Record: 15-35-7
Perhaps the Sharks could negotiate a break that's even longer than the two weeks that the league has planned. San Jose was ripped, 8-3, by visiting Dallas in its last pre-tournament game and has won just one of its past 11.
San Jose took a 2-0 lead against the Stars before allowing seven consecutive goals. Its 3.72 goals-against average is worst in the league by 0.28.
31. Chicago Blackhawks
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Previous Ranking: 31
Overall Record: 17-31-7
Chicago's final back-to-back games before the break were nothing if not eventful, yielding a 6-2 win over Nashville before a 10-round shootout ended in a 6-5 loss to St. Louis.
The Blackhawks led the Blues in the final half of the third period but gave up the tying goal with 4:27 remaining before losing in the prolonged extra session.
30. Nashville Predators
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Previous Ranking: 30
Overall Record: 19-28-7
The Predators achieved something resembling positivity in their final game before the break, getting four assists from Ryan O'Reilly in a defeat of Buffalo that ended a six-game losing streak.
“I don’t think this year I’ve been contributing offensively the way I’ve wanted to,” O’Reilly said. “So it’s always nice when you get on the board like that and have some confidence going into the break.”
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29. Buffalo Sabres
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Previous Ranking: 28
Overall Record: 22-27-5
The Sabres are dead last in the East and 12 points off the conference's playoff cut line, but any hope of a late-season push was buoyed by the return of Tage Thompson after missing a game with a concussion.
The 27-year-old center had three shots in nearly 19 minutes of ice time but saw a point streak of three games, during which he'd scored four goals and had four assists, end.
28. Seattle Kraken
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Previous Ranking: 29
Overall Record: 24-29-4
Two third-period goals in Calgary preceded an OT winner on the power play and sent the Kraken to the break on a high after they snapped a three-game losing streak.
It was the fourth time in the franchise's brief history that Seattle has overcome a multi-goal deficit in the third period and the second time this season.
27. Philadelphia Flyers
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Previous Ranking: 27
Overall Record: 24-26-7
Netting a win against their in-state rivals was a pleasant way to end a skid and reach the break for the Flyers, who beat visiting Pittsburgh on Saturday after an 0-4-1 stretch.
Additionally, recent trade acquisition Andrei Kuzmenko notched an assist in his first game with the team since arriving from Calgary. He'd not played since Jan. 28.
26. Pittsburgh Penguins
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Previous Ranking: 26
Overall Record: 23-25-9
Having Sidney Crosby available to play for Team Canada is obviously a priority, but it also matters to the Penguins, who were without their superstar for the last two games before the break thanks to an upper-body injury.
Crosby hadn't missed a regular-season game since sitting one out with an illness in April 2022. He's not played since February 4 and was on a five-game point streak during which he scored four goals and added three assists.
25. St. Louis Blues
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Previous Ranking: 24
Overall Record: 25-26-5
The Blues worked overtime and then some to end a brief 0-1-1 slump, finally beating Chicago when Radek Faksa scored in Round 10 of a Saturday shootout.
It was Faksa's first goal in three shootout assignments this season.
24. Montreal Canadiens
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Previous Ranking: 21
Overall Record: 25-26-5
It's a good time for some time away for the Canadiens, who limped to the break with just one win in their final nine games (1-7-1).
"Everybody needs a break now and we’ll address what we need to address when we get back together,” coach Martin St. Louis said.
23. Anaheim Ducks
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Previous Ranking: 25
Overall Record: 24-24-6
It was a long road to "NHL .500" after an abysmal start but the Ducks got there before the break thanks to a torrid stretch in which they've won three straight and six of their last seven.
Lukas Dostal beat Los Angeles with 43 saves on Saturday and established a career high for wins with 15 in 32 appearances this season. He won 14 times in 44 games in 2023-24.
22. Utah Hockey Club
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Previous Ranking: 23
Overall Record: 24-23-9
The artists formerly known as the Coyotes went off script in their final game before the break, getting 30 saves from Karel Vejmelka in a defeat of Washington after starter Connor Ingram left with an injury.
Utah went 2-1-0 on its brief pre-break road trip, sandwiching a loss to Carolina between wins at Columbus and against the Capitals.
21. New York Islanders
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Previous Ranking: 20
Overall Record: 25-23-7
Going back to back was not ideal for the Islanders, who dropped a 4-3 decision at Winnipeg on Friday before blowing a lead and falling at Minnesota on Saturday.
"We didn't have the legs to come back in the third period,” coach Patrick Roy said.
20. Boston Bruins
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Previous Ranking: 19
Overall Record: 27-24-6
David Pastrnak's assist stretched his point streak to 13 games but the Bruins let one get away in their final pre-tournament game, blowing a two-goal lead and losing to visiting Vegas.
"We got caught sitting back a little bit," Boston captain Brad Marchand said. "And a team like that will make you pay."
19. Columbus Blue Jackets
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Previous Ranking: 16
Overall Record: 26-22-8
The Blue Jackets stumbled their way into "outside looking in" status when it comes to the playoffs, dropping four straight games to fall a point behind Detroit in the chase for the Eastern Conference's eighth seed with 26 games remaining.
In fact, a three-game win streak ended with a two-goal loss at Dallas, then was followed by three consecutive losses in one-goal games at Buffalo and home against Utah (in OT) and the New York Rangers.
18. New York Rangers
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Previous Ranking: 22
Overall Record: 27-24-4
They're not in the race for a second straight Presidents' Trophy but some measure of normalcy has returned to the Rangers, who won three of four before the break and were 5-4-1 over their last 10 games.
New York will resume play three points below the current Eastern Conference playoff cut line. The team finished first overall last season with 114 points.
17. Calgary Flames
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Previous Ranking: 17
Overall Record: 26-21-8
The Flames are a stellar 16-1-2 across 19 games in which they've led after two periods but it didn't help that one of the losses came in the game before the break and prolonged a skid that's now stretched to four losses in five games and six in eight.
Calgary has fallen three points below the playoff cut line in the West and is fifth in the eight-team Pacific Division after a strong start.
16. Ottawa Senators
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Previous Ranking: 13
Overall Record: 29-23-4
It wasn't a particularly satisfying pre-break stretch for the Senators, who dropped two straight games at Tampa Bay and another at Florida to reach the hiatus with three consecutive losses.
Ottawa gave up 48 shots in the loss to the Panthers, though goaltender Linus Ullmark did make a season-high 43 saves.
15. Detroit Red Wings
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Previous Ranking: 14
Overall Record: 28-22-5
A 6-3 home loss to Tampa Bay wasn't the ideal way to end a run of success for the Red Wings, whose seven-game win streak had been the league's second-longest active stretch behind Winnipeg's eight.
Alex Lyon allowed two goals on three shots and was pulled after less than three minutes. It was the shortest start by a Detroit goalie since 2015.
14. Vancouver Canucks
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Previous Ranking: 18
Overall Record: 26-18-11
It's breath-holding time in Vancouver, where the Canucks are again pondering the health of starting goalie Thatcher Demko.
The 2023-24 Vezina finalist missed the season's first two months after injuring his knee in last spring's playoffs, left a game in January with back spasms, and left Saturday's game with Toronto with an issue that coach Rick Tocchet said was not knee related.
13. New Jersey Devils
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Previous Ranking: 10
Overall Record: 31-20-6
The Devils alternated wins and losses for six games but forward Jesper Bratt was a picture of consistency down the pre-break stretch with points in eight straight games.
He had two goals and 10 assists during the run and his streak of at least one assist in eight straight is second in franchise history behind Petr Sykora's nine in 2000-01.
12. Tampa Bay Lightning
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Previous Ranking: 15
Overall Record: 31-20-4
The Lightning were red-hot as they approached the break with points in six straight games (5-0-1) including a 5-3 win at Montreal on Sunday.
Goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy made 66 saves across two games of a weekend back to back and hasn't lost in regulation since January 25 in Detroit.
11. Colorado Avalanche
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Previous Ranking: 12
Overall Record: 33-22-2
He was a lower-profile piece of the blockbuster trade with Carolina, but 26-year-old Czech forward Martin Necas has blended well with his new teammates in Colorado.
Necas has four goals and nine points in eight games with the Avalanche, and, alongside his early season numbers with the Hurricanes, is on pace for career highs in goals (29), assists (63) and points (92).
10. Los Angeles Kings
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Previous Ranking: 11
Overall Record: 29-17-7
Backup goalie David Rittich was pulled into starting duty for both ends of a back-to-back set on Friday and Saturday and responded well enough, stopping 51 of 56 shots for a .911 save percentage.
The 32-year-old Czech was a 5-4 winner over Dallas in the first half of the pair before making 25 saves in a shootout loss against visiting Anaheim the following night.
9. Toronto Maple Leafs
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Previous Ranking: 6
Overall Record: 33-20-2
The final result at Vancouver wasn't ideal but the Maple Leafs finished a road trip at 3-1-0 after wins at Edmonton, Calgary and Seattle and reached the break with six wins in the last nine.
Toronto scored 13 goals in the first three road wins but was held to one by Canucks goalie Kevin Lankinen, who replaced an ailing Thatcher Demko and made 21 saves.
8. Minnesota Wild
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Previous Ranking: 9
Overall Record: 33-19-4
A multi-goal deficit was again no big deal for the resilient Wild, who scored five unanswered to defeat the Islanders, 6-3, in their pre-break finale on Saturday.
It was Minnesota's fifth multi-goal comeback of the season, tying the team for the second-most behind Seattle, Carolina and Edmonton with six each.
7. Carolina Hurricanes
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Previous Ranking: 5
Overall Record: 33-19-4
The Hurricanes were able to end a skid and reach the break on a good vibe thanks to a 7-3 defeat of Utah on Saturday. Carolina had lost three in a row.
"When you have this time off," coach Rod Brind'Amour said, "it's nice to go out on a positive note."
6. Florida Panthers
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Previous Ranking: 7
Overall Record: 34-20-3
Score another one for big brother Matthew in the intermittent battles of the Tkachuks thanks to Florida's 5-1 home win on Saturday that was its fifth in six games.
Matthew has scored in six straight games and his teams (Calgary, Florida) are 14-9-1 against Brady and the Ottawa Senators.
5. Vegas Golden Knights
28 of 32
Previous Ranking: 8
Overall Record: 33-17-6
Four losses in five games (1-2-2) are suddenly a distant memory for the Golden Knights, who rallied from two goals down to win at Boston on Saturday.
It was the seventh third-period rally of the season for Vegas, which reached the break tied atop the Pacific Division with Edmonton, though the Oilers have played one less game.
4. Edmonton Oilers
29 of 32
Previous Ranking: 3
Overall Record: 34-17-4
There are 27 regular-season games yet to be played but the Oilers could soon have a pair of players with multiple MVP awards on their resumes.
Leon Draisaitl, who won the Hart Trophy in 2019-20, is the current favorite to get another thanks to a league-leading 40 goals in 55 games. He scored twice against Colorado on Friday to become the seventh player in franchise history to reach 40 in 55 or fewer.
3. Dallas Stars
30 of 32
Previous Ranking: 4
Overall Record: 35-18-2
If given the choice, veteran forward Matt Duchene might actually prefer to keep playing games that count. The 34-year-old center had four goals and two assists in his last two games before the break, against Los Angeles and San Jose.
Prior to his outburst, Duchene had not scored in eight straight games but his 22 goals through 55 games have him on a pace that'll get him to 30 or more for just the third time in a career that stretches back to the 2009-10 season.
2. Washington Capitals
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Previous Ranking: 2
Overall Record: 36-11-8
They fell a point off the pace of the league's overall standings leaders in Winnipeg, but the Capitals did finish with points in six straight games (3-0-3), including Sunday's shootout loss to Utah.
He didn't score, but Alex Ovechkin's three assists against Utah moved him into sole possession of 11th place on the league's all-time points list with 1,593.
1. Winnipeg Jets
32 of 32
Previous Ranking: 1
Overall Record: 39-14-3
Ho hum. It's another week and another prolonged win streak for the Jets, who've won eight in a row and reached the break with a one-point edge on the Capitals for the top overall spot.
Their 39 wins, 202 goals and +68 goal differential are all best in the league, and it won't be long before the fan focus shifts toward the playoffs for a franchise that's not won a playoff series in four years and hasn't seen a conference final in seven.
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