NHL Power Rankings: Avs Stay at the Top; Lightning Break into Top 5

Welcome, hockey fans, to the stretch drive.

Or at least the NHL's version of it, circa 2021-22.

The league held its All-Star festivities in Las Vegas last weekend and had planned to send players to China for the Winter Olympics thereafter, but the nixing of that plan because of COVID-19 concerns means the schedule resumed on Monday night and continues with at least one game every day through April 29.

It's an opportunity for teams that missed games earlier this season to get them played, while others that hadn't had schedules affected will be off for several more days before returning to action.

Despite the inconsistent level of post-All-Star activity across the league, some certainty remains in B/R's NHL Power Rankings—where the Colorado Avalanche took the No. 1 spot for the fourth straight week. 

In fact, coach Jared Bednar's team was a unanimous pick across the voting panel and outdistanced the Florida Panthers, Carolina Hurricanes, Toronto Maple Leafs and Tampa Bay Lightning to round out the weekly top five.

Read on to see how the remaining spots were filled, and feel free to drop a note or two in the comments section to let our puck heads know where we got it right or not.

Note: Votes were recorded before Wednesday night's games.

Nos. 32-26: Canadiens, Coyotes, Kraken, Sabres, Devils, Flyers, Blackhawks

Andy Clayton-King/Associated Press

32. Montreal Canadiens (Last Week: 32nd)

A Tuesday loss to New Jersey was the seventh in a row for the Canadiens, but the 7-1 drubbing may have been a new low in a miserable season. Coach Dominique Ducharme took the fall and was fired and replaced in the interim by Martin St. Louis. "I feel embarrassed, to be honest with you," forward Josh Anderson said. "So we better be ready to go next game." 

31. Arizona Coyotes (Last Week: 30th)

The Coyotes started the second half with a win, drubbing the Kraken 5-2 in Seattle Wednesday night. Looking forward, the team unveiled its plan to play home games at Arizona State University this fall while awaiting approval and construction of a new building in Tempe.

30. Seattle Kraken (Last Week: 29th)

NHL history will be made on Feb. 17, as Everett Fitzhugh and J.T. Brown will form the first all-Black broadcasting duo. The pair will call the Kraken-Jets game in Winnipeg.

29. Buffalo Sabres (Last Week: 28th)

The Sabres had a nine-day break between their most recent game and Thursday's date with visiting Columbus, but defenseman Rasmus Dahlin rubbed shoulders with elites at the All-Star festivities in Las Vegas. "I thought he played great," Atlantic Division coach Andrew Brunette said.

28. New Jersey Devils (Last Week: 31st)

The Devils had lost seven in a row before routing the Canadiens, even without All-Star Jack Hughes, who'd been placed into COVID-19 protocol. "We just played simple hockey," defenseman Ryan Graves said. "I think it's maybe a lesson for us that goals can come simpler, and that's how we have to play."

27. Philadelphia Flyers (Last Week: 26th)

The Flyers lost to the Red Wings Wednesday night, but their rebuild is underway with the hiring of Daniel Briere as an assistant to the GM. "Philadelphia is a place that I've called home for a long time and have had some of the most memorable moments in my career," he said.

26. Chicago Blackhawks (Last Week: 25th)

The Blackhawks began a three-game road trip after the All-Star break in Edmonton with a resounding 4-1 win over the Oilers. Alex DeBrincat recorded a goal and two assists in the victory.

Nos. 25-21: Senators, Islanders, Red Wings, Blue Jackets, Canucks

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25. Ottawa Senators (Last Week: 27th)

The Senators have strung together two post-break wins by a combined 8-4 count against New Jersey and Carolina. Brady Tkachuk ended a 15-game scoring drought with two goals against the Hurricanes. "It was getting frustrating," he said, "but I think for those types of things, you've just got to work through it."

24. New York Islanders (Last Week: 21st)

A Wednesday visit to Vancouver kick-started a run of 10 games through the end of the month for the Islanders, who were buried early by an 11-game losing streak. They began the second half with a 6-3 drubbing of the Canucks, boosted by a five-goal first period.             

23. Detroit Red Wings (Last Week: 24th)

The Red Wings beat the Flyers on Wednesday night and will visit Minnesota and New York before a three-game homestand to end February and begin March. That could mark the return of forward Jakub Vrana, who was injured in training camp. "I'm just looking forward to getting back out there and push for the playoff spot," he said.

22. Columbus Blue Jackets (Last Week: 23rd)

The offensive burst continued for the Blue Jackets, who have scored or allowed at least five goals in five straight games—winning three, including Tuesday's 5-4 win at Washington where Trey Fix-Wolansky scored in his NHL debut. "It was probably the most excitement I've ever had in my life," he said.

21. Vancouver Canucks (Last Week: 22nd)

The Canucks are 1-1 on their post All-Star break three-game homestand as they look to recover from a dismal 6-14-2 start to the season. "I don't know how good we can be, but I know we're resilient," coach Bruce Boudreau said. "I know there's a lot of character on this team."

Nos. 20-16: Sharks, Jets, Oilers, Stars, Ducks

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20. San Jose Sharks (Last Week: 19th)

The Sharks are idle until Valentine's Day, but winger Timo Meier was on the scene in Las Vegas and took fourth in the hardest shot skills competition after reaching 100.1 miles per hour. "I didn't really know what to expect, but I had fun with it," he said.

19. Winnipeg Jets (Last Week: 20th)

A 2-0 win against visiting Minnesota on Tuesday gave the Jets a positive return after they had skidded into the break on a 1-5-2 run. "I think we're desperate," forward Adam Lowry said. "The way our play was the first half of the season, we put ourselves in a pretty tough spot."

18. Edmonton Oilers (Last Week: 17th)

The Oilers were 5-0-1 heading into the break but have stumbled in their return games against Vegas and Chicago. "It is frustrating to come back from a break and start off like that," forward Ryan Nugent-Hopkins said. "There is no time to dwell on it. We know we can be better."

17. Dallas Stars (Last Week: 18th)

It's four games in seven days in a busy post-break week for the Stars. They kicked off the stretch with a 4-3 win at home Wednesday night against the Predators. Overall, it's 39 games in 80 days to the finish line for Dallas, though captain Jamie Benn isn't worried. "We have a lot of games coming up," he said, "but we'll have enough rest and downtime."

16. Anaheim Ducks (Last Week: 16th)

The Ducks haven't played since an overtime loss in Detroit on January 31, but it's still been busy. Young forward Trevor Zegras remained a viral sensation with a blindfolded goal in the All-Star breakaway challenge, and the team hired Pat Verbeek to succeed Bob Murray as general manager.

Nos. 15-11: Kings, Capitals, Bruins, Flames, Golden Knights

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15. Los Angeles Kings (Last Week: 15th)

It'll be another five days until the Kings return to the ice at Edmonton, but they'll be riding an elongated two-game win streak when they do. Meanwhile, veteran forward Dustin Brown will be staying in town, per Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman. "I didn't get the impression he's going anywhere," Friedman said.

14. Washington Capitals (Last Week: 11th)

The Capitals gave up 10 goals in two games on opposite ends of the break and will be without Alex Ovechkin for Thursday's game in Montreal because of provincial rules regarding COVID-19 isolation. The 36-year-old is seven goals from tying Jaromir Jagr (766) as the top European scorer in NHL history.

13. Calgary Flames (Last Week: 14th)

The Flames extended their winning streak to four game with a 6-0 blanking of the Golden Knights on Wednesday night. "Finding ways to win is important, especially this time of the season and from now to the end of the season," associate coach Kirk Muller said. "We've got to stay the course."

12. Boston Bruins (Last Week: 13th)

The Bruins lost to Pittsburgh in their return and host Carolina before a four-game trip. Elsewhere, David Krejci didn't re-sign after 2020-21 but hinted at a comeback while prepping for the Olympics. "I'll try to take the most out of this opportunity, and what comes after this, we'll see," he said. Speaking of exits, goalie Tuukka Rask retired after returning to play four games following offseason hip surgery,

11. Vegas Golden Knights (Last Week: 12th)

Vegas won two straight before the break, beat Edmonton Tuesday and lost Wednesday in Calgary before another week between games. Jack Eichel's return could be imminent after he went through a full-contact practice. "You're adding one of the best players on the planet," captain Mark Stone said.

Nos. 10-6: Blues, Predators, Penguins, Rangers, Wild

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10. St. Louis Blues (Last Week: 10th)

The Blues have been off since January 29, but forward Jordan Kyrou continued a breakout season at All-Star weekend and did the supposedly impossible, outsprinting Connor McDavid to win the fastest skater competition. Meanwhile, the team inked Robert Bortuzzo and Logan Brown to contract extensions.

9. Nashville Predators (Last Week: 9th)

Nashville lost to Dallas on Wednesday night and will return home to host Winnipeg on Saturday. The Predators will play just seven post-break games by the end of the month, though one home game will feature the franchise's first jersey retirement (Pekka Rinne), and another will take place outdoors at Nissan Stadium.

8. Pittsburgh Penguins (Last Week: 8th)

A 4-2 win in Boston kicked off a three-game, post-break road trip that will continue in Ottawa and New Jersey. Veteran forward Sidney Crosby netted his 499th career goal in the defeat of the Bruins. "I'm sure he'll reach it pretty soon, and it's an amazing milestone for him," Chicago forward Patrick Kane said, per Mike Zeisberger of NHL.com.

7. New York Rangers (Last Week: 7th)

The Rangers are off until Tuesday, but they reached this week near the top of the overall standings with 64 points and girding for a meaningful second half. "We've only seen the Canes once. Haven't seen Pittsburgh, seen Washington once. Ultimately we have some really big games down the stretch," forward Chris Kreider said. "And that's fun. Those are the games that you want to play in, test yourself and ultimately learn the things you need to work on."

6. Minnesota Wild (Last Week: 5th)

A 2-0 loss in Winnipeg ended a six-game winning streak from before the break for the Wild, who'd scored 29 goals in the streak but had 27 shots turned aside by Connor Hellebuyck in their first shutout of 2021-22. "We didn't get to the net like we should have. There was a pile of rebounds," coach Dean Evason said.

Nos. 5-1: Lightning, Maple Leafs, Hurricanes, Panthers, Avalanche

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5. Tampa Bay Lightning (Last Week: 6th)

Forward Pat Maroon is the only current player in the NHL who has celebrated three straight Stanley Cups—one with St. Louis, two with Tampa Bay—and the Lightning kept hold of their lucky charm with a two-year extension Tuesday that will keep him in the fold through 2023-24.

4. Toronto Maple Leafs (Last Week: 4th)

An OT defeat of Carolina made it six straight wins for the Maple Leafs, who head to Calgary, Vancouver and Seattle for their next three games. The availability of Auston Matthews is in question after he left Monday's game after a hard hit. "He is our guy and hopefully he is OK," defenseman Morgan Rielly said.

3. Carolina Hurricanes (Last Week: 2nd)

A pair of losses after the break ended a four-game winning streak for the Hurricanes, who will visit Boston and Minnesota before returning home next week. "If we want to be the best team in the world, you've got to play from when the puck drops," defenseman Brendan Smith said. "You've got to play the whole 60."

2. Florida Panthers (Last Week: 3rd)

The Panthers remain off until the middle of next week, which means NHL scoring leader Jonathan Huberdeau will lose ground. But the veteran forward has other priorities this season. "It's pretty fun," he said. "But for me personally, this year is about the team. We're a really good team."

1. Colorado Avalanche (Last Week: 1st)

The Avalanche return Thursday against Tampa Bay, but they are hoping prolific forward Nathan MacKinnon will play Sunday in Dallas following the concussion he suffered on January 26. "As we got into the break, we kind of felt that maybe he'd need a little bit more time," coach Jared Bednar said.