NHL Power Rankings: Lightning Rise to No. 2; Canadiens Out of the Basement

This just in: The Tampa Bay Lightning are pretty good at hockey.

The residents of Florida's Gulf Coast have won two straight Stanley Cups to prove their street cred, and they have been rounding into shape lately as they make the drive for a third straight banner-raising party.

Incidentally, no team has won three straight Cups since the 1981-82 New York Islanders.

The Lightning have used an 8-1-1 stretch in their past 10 games—including five straight wins—to climb two spots and into second place in B/R's NHL Power Rankings. They trail only the equally scorching Colorado Avalanche, who are 8-2 in their past 10 and have now occupied the top spot for seven straight weeks.

The Carolina Hurricanes, Toronto Maple Leafs and Florida Panthers round out the top five, with the Hurricanes falling from second to third, the Panthers dropping from third to fifth and the Maple Leafs climbing from seventh to fourth to displace the Calgary Flames from the elite quintet.

Meantime, it's cause for celebration for the Montreal Canadiens—beaten by the Lightning in the Stanley Cup Final last summer—who climbed out of the basement slot for the first time since early January.

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.

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

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32. Arizona Coyotes (Last Week: 31st)   

The Coyotes played three straight at home and lost twice. A 3-1 win Friday against Vegas was a bright spot before Arizona allowed three goals in the third period to lose a 5-3 decision to Winnipeg two nights later. "When you don't want to get engaged, you force the play with the puck and you turn it over and are under duress," coach Andre Tourigny said.

            

31. Montreal Canadiens (Last Week: 32nd)  

The Canadiens added two more wins to get their streak to five before it finally ended in an 8-4 loss at Winnipeg on Tuesday, in which Montreal fell behind 4-0 and allowed four power-play goals. "Any time you start a game like that down four goals, it's difficult," forward Josh Anderson said. "But the guys hung in there and the way we battled back as a team."  

          

30. Buffalo Sabres (Last Week: 27th)  

Three straight losses in the week made it six in a row for the skidding Sabres heading into Wednesday's surprising 5-1 win on the road in Toronto. "That's an absolute challenge to fight off frustration. That takes organizations out of it when you just start overreacting to a loss or losses," coach Don Granato said. "We just have to keep plowing ahead and push each guy to be better, and we will continue to do that."  

         

29. Seattle Kraken (Last Week: 30th)  

A road loss to San Jose on Sunday made it seven games without a win for the Kraken, who had been outscored 29-13 across the skid entering Wednesday's 4-3 win over Nashville. "You can't control those bounces and just sometimes that's the way I think the season has been going so far," goaltender Philipp Grubauer said.  

              

28. Philadelphia Flyers (Last Week: 29th)  

The Flyers ended a six-game slide with a 2-1 defeat of Washington on Saturday but failed to make it two in a row when they were blanked 3-0 by visiting Edmonton on Tuesday. "We have to have that mindset that you take pride in doing things that winners do, day in and day out," interim coach Mike Yeo said. "I don't think that it would serve us any good whatsoever just to mail in these games and develop bad habits."  

             

27. Ottawa Senators (Last Week: 25th)  

It was a two-game week for the Senators. The problem: Both games wound up as losses, and Ottawa only managed three goals while giving up seven in defeats to Montreal and Tampa Bay. Overall, the Senators averaged just 2.17 goals per game across 12 games in February, the second-lowest output in the league behind San Jose.

         

26. New Jersey Devils (Last Week: 28th)  

It was two up and two down in a busy week for the suddenly prolific Devils, who scored 13 goals in wins over Pittsburgh and Vancouver and allowed 12 (while scoring eight) in losses to Chicago and Columbus. "The team is doing well offensively," forward Jesper Boqvist said. "We're winning a lot of battles, strong on pucks, and we've scored a lot of goals lately."

Nos. 25-21: Blackhawks, Islanders, Sharks, Red Wings, Canucks

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25. Chicago Blackhawks (Last Week: 26th)

The Blackhawks ended a brief three-game slide with an eight-goal output to defeat New Jersey on Friday before they were blanked 4-0 by St. Louis two days later. Off the ice, Chicago removed the interim tag from general manager Kyle Davidson, who immediately committed the franchise to an overhaul. "We're going to look at more of a rebuild here," he said. "There are some things that we need to fix that are going to take time. Whether it's three, five years, I don't have an answer for that now. But we have to do this the right way."

             

24. New York Islanders (Last Week: 24th)

Three losses in four games—in which the team gave up 14 goals—didn't help the late-season playoff push for the Islanders, who have reached the final four for two straight seasons but entered Wednesday's games 17 points off the pace of the nearest wild-card position. "I certainly know where we stand," GM Lou Lamoriello said. "I also know what I believe our abilities are. I'll just take right now a day at a time until we get to the point where decisions have to be made."

               

23. San Jose Sharks (Last Week: 23rd)

Two wins in four games isn't the ideal week for a team building its profile, but it's a start considering the four-game stretch came after a seven-game losing streak. Off the ice, forward Tomas Hertl said there have been talks about a contract as the trade deadline nears and rumors swirl about him possibly heading elsewhere as an unrestricted free agent this summer. "We will see," he said. "I think I'll say positive."

            

22. Detroit Red Wings (Last Week: 22nd)

Detroit allowed five and 10 goals in consecutive losses against visiting Colorado and Toronto to start the week but rallied somewhat with a 4-3 overtime decision against Carolina on Tuesday in which they had trailed by a goal in the final four minutes. "We needed to get our confidence back and the only way to get it back is by going out against a real good team and winning, and we did that," coach Jeff Blashill said.

                 

21. Vancouver Canucks (Last Week: 20th)

The Canucks scored 17 goals in winning three straight games against Seattle, Calgary and the New York Rangers before dropping a less heartening 7-2 decision at New Jersey on Monday. In their past three losses, the Canucks have fallen behind 5-0, 5-0 and 6-1. "I wish I had an answer to it. I don't," coach Bruce Boudreau said. "I've racked my brain over why some games we can play so good in the first period, and then other games, if there's going to be something bad, that's going to happen in the first period."

Nos. 20-16: Blue Jackets, Jets, Ducks, Oilers, Stars

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20. Columbus Blue Jackets (Last Week: 19th)

A three-game win streak entering the week was pushed to four with a win at Florida before the Blue Jackets dropped two and finished a busy stretch with a 4-3 home win over New Jersey. Jake Christiansen, an emergency callup from Cleveland of the AHL, scored his first NHL goal against the Devils. "They are doing a great job in Cleveland working with these guys, getting them prepared when they come here. They haven't missed a beat," coach Brad Larsen said.

          

19. Winnipeg Jets (Last Week: 21st)

Two losses to begin the week stretched Winnipeg's losing streak to four, but the Jets regained some ground with consecutive defeats of Arizona and Montreal in which they netted 13 goals. The win over the Canadiens featured four power-play goals in six tries and boosted Winnipeg's output with the man-advantage to 22.4 percent—good for 12th in the league entering Wednesday.

          

18. Anaheim Ducks (Last Week: 17th)

The Ducks scored just once across consecutive home losses to begin the week but managed four in a win over visiting Boston on Tuesday, including a game-winner from Trevor Zegras with just 22 seconds left. Off the ice, newly hired GM Pat Verbeek laid out his vision for the team going forward. "You're going to need skill and skating ability, but deep down that's the future I want to build: a hardworking, competitive team," he said.

           

17. Edmonton Oilers (Last Week: 16th)

It's a mixed bag for the Oilers four-fifths of the way through a gut-check five-game road trip. Edmonton lost a winnable game at Tampa Bay, beat Florida, lost a one-goal game at Carolina and headed north to shut out Philadelphia on Tuesday. The team has allowed just 10 goals after surrendering seven to Minnesota in the home loss that preceded the trip. "The way that we've been playing—tight and tight-checking—teams are going to have a hard time scoring on us," forward Leon Draisaitl said.

            

16. Dallas Stars (Last Week: 18th)

Three games yielded five of a possible six standings points for the Stars, who entered Wednesday night two points behind Edmonton for the final Western Conference playoff spot with two games in hand. Forward Michael Raffl scored twice in Sunday's 4-2 win over Buffalo after going 16 games without a goal. "Scoring goals always feels nice," he said. "It's even nicer to get the win because these games are never easy to play."

Nos. 15-11: Capitals, Golden Knights, Kings, Predators, Wild

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15. Washington Capitals (Last Week: 12th)

A 4-3 start to February devolved into three straight losses to end the month for the Capitals, who fell on the road against the New York Rangers and Philadelphia before losing at home to Toronto on Monday. Washington will begin March with a home date with Carolina on Thursday. "We got to control the big moments and find ways to win those games," forward Tom Wilson said after their most recent loss. "I think we've found ourselves in close games quite a bit here the last month, and they've just been going the other way—and that is just unacceptable."

          

14. Vegas Golden Knights (Last Week: 13th)

Flipping a page on the calendar was welcome for the Golden Knights, who were a desultory 3-4-1 in February before opening March with a 3-1 win over visiting San Jose. The win was the 500th in the career of Vegas coach Pete DeBoer. "When I reflect back on the 500th win, what I'm going to like the most is it was a Pete DeBoer-type game," he said after beating his former club to reach the milestone. "We didn't give them a lot. We smothered them. Defensively, we were really solid."

             

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

Los Angeles started the week with three straight wins to stretch a streak to five in a row before dropping an ugly 7-0 home decision to Boston. "We're upset," forward Alex Iafallo said. "That's a loss that we don't want, to lose that big, obviously. We're going to have to look at ourselves in the mirror and learn from our mistakes, but it was a good run."

          

12. Nashville Predators (Last Week: 14th)

The Predators defeated Dallas in OT before losing to Tampa Bay in an outdoor game before 68,000 fans at Nissan Stadium to conclude a brief homestand Saturday. Nashville headed West for Wednesday's loss to Seattle and will be in San Jose on Saturday before returning home. "Everything was awesome, except the final result," forward Filip Forsberg said after losing to the Lightning. "It's been one of the greatest weeks in franchise history."

                 

11. Minnesota Wild (Last Week: 8th)

The up-and-down nature of the league has gotten to Minnesota too, as the recently hot Wild are now mired in a four-game slide in which they have allowed 19 goals while scoring just eight. "I think it's one of those things where we've gotten away from our game," defenseman Jordie Benn said. "If [the media] can see it, we can definitely see it in our dressing room. I definitely think we've done enough talking and come to play and play the way we know how."

Nos. 10-6: Bruins, Rangers, Penguins, Flames, Blues

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10. Boston Bruins (Last Week: 11th)

It was five wins in a row for the Bruins—including three straight to begin the week—before it ended with the final-minute loss to Anaheim on Tuesday. Boston outscored its foes 21-6 in the five victories. Goaltender Jeremy Swayman is 5-0-1 since returning to the team following the Tuukka Rask's retirement and was named the league's Rookie of the Month for February. "It's a huge honor, but honestly, it couldn't have happened without the team in front of me," Swayman said. "It's just been so fun to play with these guys every day and go to work."

            

9. New York Rangers (Last Week: 6th)

A Thursday win against Washington was the second straight for the Rangers, who then proceeded to drop a 1-0 decision at Pittsburgh and a 5-2 verdict to visiting Vancouver heading into Wednesday's 5-3 win over St. Louis at Madison Square Garden. "We've got to try to produce more," forward Ryan Strome said following the loss to the Canucks. "I think there's a bunch of guys that are maybe gripping the stick a bit tight right now. We're still in a lot of hockey games and we're playing good hockey as a team, I think. But obviously to score goals is what we've got to do."

                   

8. Pittsburgh Penguins (Last Week: 9th)

A 6-1 home loss to New Jersey was a cruel start to the week for the Penguins, though they did bounce back with a 1-0 win over the New York Rangers and a 3-2 win in Columbus. That preceded a five-game stretch during which they will face the league's elite at Tampa Bay, at Carolina, home with Florida and home with Vegas before hosting Carolina. "It's a big test for us," forward Evan Rodrigues said about the upcoming slate. "I think it's something we need. We have to start playing the right way and getting these wins, playing almost playoff-type hockey."

           

7. Calgary Flames (Last Week: 5th)

Calgary's 10-game win streak was snuffed out in a 7-1 loss to Vancouver, but the Flames started a new run with consecutive wins in a home-and-home series with Minnesota, scoring 7-3 and 5-1 triumphs. "You're not gonna win 82 games in a season, as much as you'd like to. Good teams get beat, and good teams have had bad nights, but to be a good team, you got to respond," forward Blake Coleman said after the loss to the Canucks.

           

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

Two wins in the early part of the week made it four straight for the Blues heading into Wednesday night's loss to the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden. "I think that we can keep getting better," forward David Perron said. "We have a long ways to go. As we get to those tighter games as we've been talking about the last couple weeks, I still think we can get better, a lot better."

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

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5. Florida Panthers (Last Week: 3rd)

A three-game win streak heading into the week turned into a three-game losing streak as the Panthers dropped consecutive games to Nashville, Columbus and Edmonton—all at home. Florida was 23-3 in their first 26 games at FLA Live Arena. "It's good to reboot, and then we've got to get back right at that schedule here," interim coach Andrew Brunette said following the loss to the Oilers. "We kind of have these reboot-kind-of breaks in our schedule, I think every three weeks, so it's good we get the cadence down with our practice."

           

4. Toronto Maple Leafs (Last Week: 7th)

It was quite a week for the Maple Leafs, who have won three times and scored 18 goals—including 10 in a single game against Detroit—heading into Wednesday's visit from nearby rival Buffalo for the first time since 2019. Meanwhile, Mitch Marner had a career-high four goals in the rout of the Red Wings. "It was pretty cool. I won't lie," he said.

            

3. Carolina Hurricanes (Last Week: 2nd)

Two wins and an OT loss for the week made it standings points in seven straight games for the Hurricanes, who entered Wednesday's games atop the Metropolitan Division by five points and second overall in the league to Colorado. The overtime loss came to Detroit, which scored after Carolina took a bench minor. "We had a couple of weird things go against us tonight, but you have to give the Red Wings credit," Carolina coach Rod Brind'Amour told reporters on Tuesday. "We were pretty average tonight, and they played hard."

                

2. Tampa Bay Lightning (Last Week: 4th)

The red-hot Lightning won three times in the week and stretched their winning streak to five straight since a loss to Colorado on February 10. Brayden Point had a goal and three assists in Tuesday's win over Ottawa. "You're not going to go anywhere if you just depend on one line," coach Jon Cooper said after the game. "That's a big part for us this year, is we've had that depth scoring, especially with some of the guys that are used to scoring a lot not being in the lineup. It's a pretty big reason where we are in the standings."

           

1. Colorado Avalanche (Last Week: 1st)

A 5-3 win over the New York Islanders on Tuesday night was Colorado's fourth in a row and 40th of the season. The Avalanche hit this mark just in 54 games, the second-fastest clip in league history. Washington reached the threshold in 53 games in 2015-16, and Detroit equaled Colorado's pace in 2007-08.