NHL Power Rankings: Week 9
The NHL Western Conference looks like the NFL’s NFC Conference…completely up for grabs, tight, and consisting of very meh teams at best to bad teams at worst below the top teams. The East, too, looks extremely tight, with middling teams vying for a playoff spot across the entire conference, liken to the AFC in the NFL. The connections are quite interesting. For a lot of teams in the West, in particular, the rancid conference is going to play in their favor. There is a lot of hockey left and if you’ve been reading these for weeks, there are some staples on this list but others, especially in the lower end of the spectrum are extremely volatile.
#16 St. Louis Blues (12-10-1; 25 Pts)
Previously Unranked
St. Louis is barely hanging on to a playoff spot and their 5-5-0 record over their last 10 is not great. They get a nod because they have a playoff spot and a manageable negative goal differential. The 16th spot is hard to choose here though because there are a few worthy competitors right now. They are finding scoring and goaltending has been quite solid, admittedly. Their expected goal against will catch up to them and we could see the Blues on the outside looking in as early as next week. 6 teams sit behind with within 6 points, that’s a lot of competition for that wildcard spot.
#15 Washington Capitals (12-7-2; 26 Pts)
Previously Unranked
Washington isn’t having the prettiest of seasons, though you could say they are overachieving relative to expectations. 7-3-0 in their last 10 puts them in the divisional playoff spot but could easily lose it over time. Luckily, they have some games at hand. The negative goal differential worries me and their shooting percentage is awfully low. Luckily, they are getting the saves and that’s a positive.
#14 Philadelphia Flyers (12-10-2; 26 Pts)
Previously #13
Philly is 6-3-1 in their last 10 and Torts has this team winning games, perhaps too many? Jokes aside, the Flyers are competitive. They have some work to do on goaltending and could score more, but every team could score more. They out chance their opponents and that is a very very good sign. Their ability to shut down chances and expected goals against is quite a remarkable part of all of this.
#13 Arizona Coyotes (12-9-2; 26 Pts)
Previously Unranked
4 game winning streak for the Desert Dogs and on the way to those wins, they played the Knights, the Bolts, the Avs, and the Blues. Blue aside, that’s some real competition. Things are bouncing the Yotes way, but wins are wins guys. They are tough, nasty, can score, and are finding goaltending in a big way. The thing about the Coyotes is they are also benefiting from a weak conference and could most certainly find their way to extra hockey from May. I would like to see them find more scoring chance generation but so far, they are looking good.
#12 Toronto Maple Leafs (12-6-4; 28 Pts)
Previously #11
I am sorry, I hate the Leafs. I say that a lot but objectively I am worried about the Leafs. They sit with just 5 regulation wins of their 12 total. That’s almost worst in the league, only team lower is the Habs, who is expected to be sub-par. The San Jose Sharks have more regulation wins than the Leafs. I know some people don’t care much about the regulation wins and wins are wins, but regulation wins matter not just because of tie breakers. 3 on 3 hockey and shootouts do not exist in the playoffs, its 5 on 5 continuous OT. The Leafs are finding it tough to win consistently during normal hockey time. +2 goal differential. PDO sub 100 due to their suspect goaltending. Am I overreacting?
#11 Detroit Red Wings (13-7-3; 29 Pts)
Previously #12
Detroit has really shown us what they are made of and now they have brought in Patrick Kane. I don’t know what to think about Kane in a Wings jersey. The injury thing is a concern, but the Wings have the pedigree, the cap space, and team to try this experiment out if they keep him limited and not an impact on the young player progression. Granted, if they are going to push Lucas Raymond down the lineup, that could most certainly be an issue. I say low risk from a financial perspective but is this team really a potential contending team? Not sure I buy that.
#10 Winnipeg Jets (13-8-2; 28 Pts)
Previously #9
Connor Hellebuyck can only do so much Jets. He cannot win you games every single time. Once the Oilers solved the goaltender, it was over for the Jets. They weren’t as spectacular as I expected them to be. Kyle Connor is a dog though, that is for sure. They did turn it around and beat up the reeling Hawks. Today they face the Hurricanes and this week they play the Avs. The Jets will be tested and rated accordingly how they play.
#9 Carolina Hurricanes (14-8-1; 29 Pts)
Previously #10
The Hurricanes were a disappointment James, I agree. But don’t look now but they are finding ways to win and gain points. 6-3-1 in their last 10 games. Hurricanes need to find a bit better goaltending, but it has most certainly stabilized a little. They are also scoring at a high clip and goal support helps, it really really does. They head to Western Canada for a trip and will seek to repeat their dominance over the Oilers from a couple weeks ago. Frankly I expect it though. Their expected goals for is solid but their expected goals against 5 on 5 is 3rd in the league. A few more saves and they are back.
#8 Vancouver Canucks (16-8-1; 33 Pts)
Previously #7
The Golden Canuck boys are no longer dominating the scoring race. They generally beat the teams they are supposed to. I want to see how they fair against a surging Wild team this week and improving Hurricanes team this weekend. They are 5-5 in their last 10 so their winning ways have gone somewhat sideways. PDO has come down big, due to their shooting percentage dropping a bit. It was bound to happen people, lets see how they are in the mid-season.
#7 Florida Panthers (14-8-2; 30 Pts)
Previously #8
Panthers have beaten the teams they are expected to and took the Maple Leafs to yet another OT, gaining a point in the process. Their 1 goal loss to the Islanders is okay. This is a team that we all need to be worried about. The Panthers are keeping their spot and looking great, all without Chucky scoring at an expected clip. I think Chucky is still recovering from a linger injury right now but if they can keep winning games without him at his best, we know what we will get in the playoffs. We all need to worry big about the Panthers.
#6 Colorado Avalanche (15-7-2; 32 Pts)
Previously #5
Following up a great week with a tough week. They started strong with a win agains the Bolts, but losing to the Yotes, Ducks, and Kings is not a great way to maintain a spot. They were hurting in the Sunday game but if you can’t finish games in OT/SO, it’s going to hurt your chances at the divisional title. Granted, great teams all have rough patches, don’t hold your breath. Colorado will be fine just fine. Get Makar back…we need to see the best D play as much hockey as possible.
#5 Dallas Stars (14-5-3; 31 Pts)
Previously #6
A point in every game this week, finishing it off with a drumming of the Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday. They head to Tampa today so it will be interesting to see if the Bolts have a response. Dallas’ road record is a sweet 8-1-2 and if you are finding ways to dominate on the road, you are in good shape all things equal. Guys, Joe Pavelski, the 39-year old wonder, is on pace for 89 points this season…like what the heck!?
#4 Vegas Golden Knights (16-5-4; 36 Pts)
Unchanged
Points in all of their games this week 2-0-2. I don’t think this team is bad by any stretch, but things have slowed down for them and there’s no denying that. They have played 4 more games than Los Angeles and only sit 5 points up. They will need to dial it in if they plan to stay at the top. Their SO loss to the Oilers was dicey because the stats suggested they were DOMINATED, by the friken Oilers?! Yikes. Was off of a back-to-back, I’ll give them a tad bit of a break. They need to stabilize just a tad more
#3 Los Angeles Kings (14-4-3; 31 Pts)
Previously #1
I dinged the Kings a bit due to that loss to the Caps. The fall from 1 to 3 isn’t as alarming at is seems guys. Their dominance over the Avs was convincing, yet it was against an tired and hurt team. That doesn’t take everything away, because you have to beat the team in front of you and they did. This Kings team is the strongest in the West until further notice and their path to get there from what we expected 3-4 years ago is nothing short of incredible.
#2 New York Rangers (18-4-1; 37 Pts)
Unchanged
What do the best teams do when they lose a game? They follow it up with a 3-game winning streak. Rangers battled their way back to beat the Sharks with a “Bread-man Hatty” yesterday, enough to keep them right where they sit last week. The Rags do hold the best point percentage in the league, but they are just behind in the advanced side and that does matter all things considered. The Rangers are a dangerous team and have every bit of chance of making it deep than anyone at this point.
#1 Boston Bruins (17-4-3; 37 Pts)
Previously #3
What do the best teams do when they lose a game? They follow it up with a 3-game winning streak. Boston turned around after a very rough loss to none other than the Blue Jackets by holding home ice for most of the week while also disrupting the Leafs chances at a win in Toronto on HNIC. They seem to have sorted out some of the defensive/goaltending issues they were facing for a little bit. Marchand seems to be more than up the task at leading this team through the ups and the downs. This team is almost scarier than last years as they are facing some hardships on their way.
In-Season Cup
Strong play by the Coyotes has Tyler racking up the days. He sits only 8 days out from the lead. Today the Yotes play James’ Capitals and he is in dire need of a day or two. If the Coyotes manage to win, James will have 2 more chances to take the cup. I expect James to take some days this week.