.png?w=1280 "Bleacher Report")
NHL Power Rankings Has Surprising Top 10 with Devils, Penguins, Red Wings on the Rise
Kudos to the prescient hockey-watchers among us.
Given their respective No. 16, No. 21, and No. 24 slots in last season's overall standings, it would have taken a true ice guru to suggest the New Jersey Devils, Detroit Red Wings and Pittsburgh Penguins would occupy lofty positions through the opening furlong of the 2025-26 NHL schedule.
Yet, we are approaching Halloween, and the trio is 22-7-2 through its first 31 collective games, earning the respect of voters in this week's B/R Power Rankings, where the Devils took first, the Penguins fourth and the Red Wings eighth.
Meanwhile, the Calgary Flames sit at the other end of the heap, taking the 32nd and final position for the second straight week.
B/R's hockey staff awarded 32 points for a first-place vote all the way down to one point for a No. 32 vote in compiling the rankings, which saw a 17-spot drop for the St. Louis Blues (13th to 30th) and a 12-spot rise for the Dallas Stars (22nd to 10th).
Take a look at what we came up with and drop a thought of your own in the app comments.
(All stats and records are updated through games on Tuesday, Oct. 28.)
32. Calgary Flames
1 of 32
Previous Ranking: 32
Overall Record: 2-8-1
A four-game eastern swing got off to a frustrating start for the hapless Flames, who gave up a goal with 2:04 left to lose, 4-3, in Toronto.
Calgary is last in the league in scoring with a per-game clip of 2.05 goals, and its 3.55 goals-against average through 11 games is 24th-best out of 32 teams.
31. San Jose Sharks
2 of 32
Previous Ranking: 31
Overall Record: 2-6-2
It's been a difficult road for the team as a whole, but the sophomore season for 2024 No. 1 overall draft pick Macklin Celebrini has been anything but.
Still just 19 years old, the 6'0", 190-pound center has six goals and 16 points through 10 games, including at least one point in each of his last five and six assists alone in his last four. He's on an early pace to compile 49 goals and 131 points.
30. St. Louis Blues
3 of 32
Previous Ranking: 13
Overall Record: 3-5-1
The news is going from bad to worse in St. Louis, where the Blues find themselves at 3-5-1 amid a four-game losing streak (0-3-1) and will now have to continue without forward Jake Neighbours for the next several weeks.
The 23-year-old, a first-round pick in 2020, sustained a right leg injury in a Saturday loss to Detroit and was unavailable to play Monday against Pittsburgh. He leads the team with six goals in seven games and is tied for the lead with eight points.
29. Minnesota Wild
4 of 32
Previous Ranking: 21
Overall Record: 3-5-3
A steady 2-1-0 start already seems like a distant memory for the skidding Wild, who are 0-2-2 in their last four games and 1-4-3 in their last eight after an OT loss to visiting Winnipeg on Tuesday.
Nevertheless, coach John Hynes saw some positives.
"When you get in a situation where you're trying to find a way to win games, I think that that process is important," he said. "And I thought we got more of that."
28. Nashville Predators
5 of 32
Previous Ranking: 26
Overall Record: 4-5-2
Remember when the Predators flipped the script from last season and started with points in three straight games (2-0-1) to begin the 2025-26 schedule?
It's getting more difficult now they've gone 2-5-1 in their last eight games after a 5-2 home loss to Tampa Bay on Tuesday. Nashville's 12.5 percent power-play success rate since Oct. 14 is 29th in the league, and its 2.43 goals per game are 27th.
27. Boston Bruins
6 of 32
Previous Ranking: 27
Overall Record: 5-7-0
It doesn't cure all of the team's ills, but a run of five unanswered goals to secure a victory against the New York Islanders on Tuesday night will be good enough for the time being for the struggling Bruins.
Boston started the season with three straight wins before a run of seven losses in eight games from Oct. 13-27.
26. Vancouver Canucks
7 of 32
Previous Ranking: 15
Overall Record: 5-6-0
It's hard enough to return to relevance after a dysfunctional 2024-25 for the Canucks, but it's even harder without perennial Norris Trophy candidate and all-around top player Quinn Hughes, who's day-to-day with a lower-body injury.
Vancouver was without Hughes, who has seven points in nine games, for an OT win against Edmonton on Sunday and a 2-0 loss to the visiting New York Rangers on Tuesday.
25. New York Rangers
8 of 32
Previous Ranking: 24
Overall Record: 4-5-2
It was supposed to be about team captain J.T. Miller's return to Vancouver, but veteran goalie Jonathan Quick stole the spotlight on Tuesday by stopping 23 shots for the Rangers in their 2-0 defeat of the Canucks.
It was his first shutout of the season in his third start and the 64th of his career, which ties him with former New York great Henrik Lundqvist for 17th on the league's all-time list, two behind Hall of Famer Patrick Roy.
24. New York Islanders
9 of 32
Previous Ranking: 23
Overall Record: 4-4-1
They haven't strayed too far from their home in New York, but even a nearby road trip seems to have come at a bad time for the Islanders, who have begun with consecutive losses after having won four straight.
New York lost in a shootout in Philadelphia and dropped a 5-2 decision in Boston to start the trip, which continues in Carolina on Thursday and Washington on Friday before the team is back home against Columbus on Sunday.
23. Buffalo Sabres
10 of 32
Previous Ranking: 29
Overall Record: 4-4-2
It was "the one that got away" time on Tuesday night in Buffalo, where the Sabres lost a third-period lead and ultimately the game, 4-3 in OT, to visiting Columbus.
The team has dropped consecutive decisions in extra time since a streak of four wins in five games, but coach Lindy Ruff sought a silver lining.
"Maybe last year that would be a game we let a point slip away," Ruff said. "There was a lot I liked about how we were playing in that third period."
22. Tampa Bay Lightning
11 of 32
Previous Ranking: 30
Overall Record: 4-4-2
The fog seems to be lifting on the early-season struggles for the Lightning, who won just once in their first seven games but have since won three in a row, including a 5-2 triumph in Nashville on Tuesday.
The win leveled Tampa Bay's road record at 2-2-2 shortly before a western swing that will take it to Utah, Colorado and Las Vegas from Sunday through Nov. 6.
21. Ottawa Senators
12 of 32
Previous Ranking: 28
Overall Record: 5-5-1
Too much prosperity may have been a curse for the young Senators, who scored seven times each in consecutive wins against Washington and Boston but were brought down a few pegs with a 5-2 loss at Chicago.
"A little bit of immaturity (Tuesday)," goalie Linus Ullmark said. "It's not easy winning in this league. You can't go out there and put up seven two in a row and expect to do it a third time."
20. Florida Panthers
13 of 32
Previous Ranking: 17
Overall Record: 5-5-1
It's hardly cause for alarm, particularly for a team that's hung banners after the last two seasons, but an uneven start for the two-time defending champions has included a slight regression on the power play.
The Panthers were 0-for-4 while playing a man up against Anaheim on Tuesday, including a power play in OT, and ultimately lost in a shootout.
Florida's 20.5 percent success rate was 17th in the league through Tuesday, 3 percent off the season-long rate of 2024-25, which was good for 13th.
19. Columbus Blue Jackets
14 of 32
Previous Ranking: 19
Overall Record: 5-4-0
It was a timely return in familiar surroundings for veteran winger Miles Wood, whose OT goal gave Columbus a win in Buffalo on Tuesday night in the 30-year-old's first appearance after missing five games with an eye injury.
Wood, a Buffalo native, scored twice in the win for the Blue Jackets, tying the game with less than seven minutes in the third period before winning it at 2:53 of the extra session.
He's the second player in Blue Jackets history to score a tying goal in the third period and a winner in OT, joining David Vyborny, who did it in 2006 and 2007.
18. Toronto Maple Leafs
15 of 32
Previous Ranking: 18
Overall Record: 5-4-1
The Maple Leafs went the dramatic route to continue the early stages of a streak, picking up a second straight victory against Calgary on Tuesday when Max Domi scored the winner with just 2:04 remaining.
It was the 30-year-old center's third goal in 10 games as he tries to get back to double digits for the first time since he netted 20 in 2022-23.
17. Edmonton Oilers
16 of 32
Previous Ranking: 20
Overall Record: 5-4-2
The Oilers have already veered between prodigious and pathetic at various points in the 2025-26 season, but the needle was back toward the positive side on Tuesday, when they scored five times in the second period to defeat Utah, 6-3.
Edmonton was 2-3 on a five-game eastern trip, defeated Atlantic Division-leading Montreal in a brief home pit stop, then lost in Seattle and Vancouver before returning to beat the Mammoth. The team is 3-0-1 at home but just 2-4-1 on the road.
16. Los Angeles Kings
17 of 32
Previous Ranking: 25
Overall Record: 5-3-3
The Kings were down last week, but they seem to have righted the ship amid a six-game point streak (4-0-2) that includes a dramatic 4-3 win over San Jose on Tuesday in which they took a three-goal lead, lost it, and then scored the winner in the final seven minutes.
Los Angeles is 5-1-2 on the road to start the season after winning just 17 of 41 games away from home in 2024-25, tied for 18th-best in the league.
Meanwhile, the team's 31 home-ice wins last season were tied for the league lead.
15. Chicago Blackhawks
18 of 32
Previous Ranking: 14
Overall Record: 5-3-2
The uprising continues in Chicago, where the Blackhawks ripped Ottawa, 7-3, on Tuesday night to improve to 5-1-1 in their last seven games after an 0-2-1 stumble out of the gate.
Connor Bedard netted his first NHL hat trick and added an assist in the victory, improving to 12 points in 10 games. He's on pace to score 49 goals and compile 98 points, each of which would smash career highs of 23 and 67, respectively.
14. Washington Capitals
19 of 32
Previous Ranking: 8
Overall Record: 6-4-0
What a difference a week makes for the Capitals, who scored 17 goals while going 3-1-0 from Oct. 17 to 24, but have been held to a single goal in their last two games while losing at home to Ottawa and on the road at Dallas.
Washington has been held to zero or one goal four times in 10 games this season, and it has scored four or more goals four times as well. Its goals-per-game average of 2.70 was 26th in the league through Tuesday.
13. Philadelphia Flyers
20 of 32
Previous Ranking: 11
Overall Record: 5-3-1
The Rick Tocchet era has become the home-ice advantage era at Xfinity Live Arena in Philadelphia, where the Flyers have won four straight and five of six overall.
The team, coached by John Tortorella and Brad Shaw last season, won just 20 times in 41 home games, tied for 22nd-best in the league.
12. Anaheim Ducks
21 of 32
Previous Ranking: 12
Overall Record: 5-3-1
Add the Ducks to the list of teams that have outplayed expectations through the season's first month, particularly on an extended road trip in which they were 3-1-1 in five games and finished with a shootout win at defending champion Florida.
"When we recap the road trip, I think we did a great job," goalie Lukas Dostal said. "We'll keep moving forward. I felt (Tuesday) was our best game of the season."
11. Seattle Kraken
22 of 32
Previous Ranking: 16
Overall Record: 5-2-3
The Kraken had already won two straight games and showed some mettle in getting a single point in the third, rallying from a three-goal deficit in the final period on Tuesday before ultimately losing a 4-3 OT decision to visiting Montreal.
"We gave ourselves a chance," forward Shane Wright said. "Obviously, really proud of the guys and how we came back there and got a hard-earned point."
10. Dallas Stars
23 of 32
Previous Ranking: 22
Overall Record: 6-3-1
It's been an uneven start for the Stars through 10 games, but the perennial Western power is looking more like itself in the midst of a win streak that stretched to three with a 1-0 defeat of Washington on Tuesday.
Jake Oettinger made 24 saves for his 13th career shutout and improved to 6-0-0 in his career against the Capitals with a .958 save percentage and 1.25 goals-against average.
9. Carolina Hurricanes
24 of 32
Previous Ranking: 5
Overall Record: 6-3-0
The five-game win streak the Hurricanes built from Oct. 9 to 18 is fading from memory now the team has dropped three of its subsequent four, including two losses in three games to end a six-game trip.
Carolina has given up 17 regulation goals in those four post-streak games after surrendering just 11 in its first five. Its 3.11 goals-against average is tied for 18th in the league through Tuesday's games.
8. Detroit Red Wings
25 of 32
Previous Ranking: 6
Overall Record: 7-3-0
It's getting difficult to ignore the early success and resilience of the Red Wings, who swept a home-and-home series with St. Louis on Saturday and Tuesday to shake off consecutive losses in Buffalo and on Long Island, in which they were outscored 11-4.
Dylan Larkin had two goals and an assist in the second defeat of the Blues and has at least a point in nine of Detroit's 10 games this season. His early pace would give him 131 points, 52 better than his current career high of 79 from 2022-23.
7. Winnipeg Jets
26 of 32
Previous Ranking: 3
Overall Record: 7-3-0
Seven wins in their first 10 games is just fine for the Presidents' Trophy-winning Jets, who went the dramatic route and got a goal from Kyle Connor in OT to win Tuesday night at Minnesota.
Winnipeg is 4-0-0 on the road for the second time in franchise history and the second consecutive season after a 7-0-0 road start in 2024-25.
6. Montreal Canadiens
27 of 32
Previous Ranking: 10
Overall Record: 8-3-0
Full credit to anyone who was all-in during the preseason on the Canadiens, who've taken a two-point lead in the Atlantic Division after a stellar start, and even more credit to those who forecast goalie Jakub Dobes as a Calder Trophy possibility.
The 24-year-old Czech was 7-4-3 in a brief 16-game audition with Montreal last season, but he's making a play for the No. 1 position this fall thanks to a 6-0-0 start with a .930 save percentage and a 1.97 goals-against average through his first six starts.
5. Colorado Avalanche
28 of 32
Previous Ranking: 2
Overall Record: 6-1-4
A four-game losing streak doesn't sound so bad when three of the games go beyond regulation, but the Avalanche were still in dire need of the 8-4 win they got over streaking New Jersey in a battle of early titans on Tuesday.
Colorado had scored just 12 goals in the four-game slide but erupted for eight against the Devils, who'd won eight straight games, including a first NHL hat trick from late summer pickup Victor Olofsson.
4. Pittsburgh Penguins
29 of 32
Previous Ranking: 7
Overall Record: 7-2-2
Getting at least a point per night is a trend for the surprising Penguins, who stretched their streak to seven (5-0-2) by winning against St. Louis and reaching a shootout in Philadelphia in a Sunday/Monday back-to-back.
Pittsburgh reached Oct. 28 this season with a 7-2-2 record, after starting 3-6-1 through the same date in 2024.
3. Utah Mammoth
30 of 32
Previous Ranking: 9
Overall Record: 8-3-0
The Mammoth had a seven-game win streak snapped on Tuesday in Edmonton, but nearly all reviews have been positive so far, and it's yielded a windfall for 21-year-old forward Logan Cooley, who signed an eight-year, $80 million deal Wednesday.
Cooley is in the final season of his entry-level deal and could have become a restricted free agent at the end of 2025-26. His eight goals lead Utah through 11 games, and his 12 points are second on the team.
2. Vegas Golden Knights
31 of 32
Previous Ranking: 1
Overall Record: 6-1-3
It was bound to happen eventually, but the Golden Knights finally lost a game in regulation on their trip to the East Coast, dropping a 3-0 decision at two-time defending champion Florida on Saturday.
The good news? It's still the only game in which they didn't record a point, and they concluded the jaunt with an OT loss in Tampa Bay on Sunday and a 6-3 defeat of Carolina on Tuesday evening in Raleigh.
1. New Jersey Devils
32 of 32
Previous Ranking: 4
Overall Record: 8-2-0
The Devils missed a chance to become the eighth team in franchise history to string together nine straight wins, but the eight victories they bagged from Oct. 11-26 have them in the early Metropolitan Division driver's seat.
New Jersey is 5-0-0 at home, but the eight-game run ended with an 8-4 loss in Colorado on Tuesday in the first game of a trip that will take them to San Jose, Los Angeles and Anaheim before they return home to face Montreal on Nov. 6.
.png?w=480)
.jpg?w=600 "Mike McCarthy Talks Lemon Call")
