Power Rankings are fun and entertaining but really can’t be taken too seriously at this early stage of the NHL season. Nevertheless, it is still fun to poke a little bit at certain fan bases to remind them of how bad their particular team is at the moment.

Again, I can’t emphasize enough that the rankings are the equivalent of the early college football season rankings. So much can happen through the course of a long, arduous season that these preliminary rankings should be taken with several grains of salt.

Let’s start at 30 and work our way down. That way I can keep you guessing until you’ve figured out how to scroll down on your computer. Enjoy now!

30. Buffalo Sabres-Great hockey town and a team that is in the news for the wrong reasons lately. Expect a fire sale soon.

29. Edmonton Oilers-They have the right coach and it is starting to look like they have the wrong players. After an impressive road win in Montreal they take a 60-minute nap against a mediocre Washington team in their own building. Don't be surprised to see some big changes in the Edmonton roster.

28.  New York Rangers-Ugh, the Rangers are hard to watch right now. They were having trouble scoring already with Ryan Callahan and Rick Nash out and then their best player Henrik Lundqvist got nicked up. Long, hard road ahead on Broadway.

27. New Jersey Devils-Cory Schneider has been rock solid. So much so that Devil’s legend Martin Brodeur so much as conceded the starting gig to the newcomer. Probably a good decision on the AARP member Brodeur since the Devils are pretty awful so far this year.

26. Philadelphia Flyers-The Flyers have to light a fire under Claude Giroux if they want to go anywhere. Scoring 13 goals in nine games is a formula for failure and most of that will fall on the Philadelphia captain’s doorstep if this continues.

25. Florida Panthers-An impressive start for the south beach Panthers. By impressive for Florida I mean not horrible. Scoring is still a commodity that the Panthers have yet to find. A (shocking) groin injury will force Jacob Markstrom into the starting role. Sink or swim time for the Florida goalie of the future.

24. Nashville Predators-News that Pekka Rinne will have hip surgery and miss a month and a half is terrible news for the low scoring Predators. The defense will have to step up even more with a lesser goaltender between the pipes. Oh yeah, and that scoring thing too. Nashville needs some of that too.

23. Calgary Flames-As great of a story as it may be, let’s not get used to seeing the Flames this high on my power rankings. Calgary four points out of a playoff spot and Jiri Hudler is scoring at a point-per-game pace. Remember I said that when we get to March. Believe me that will change.

22. Dallas Stars-The Stars look like they are struggling to find an identity. They just got their stud goaltender back  (Kari Lehtonen) and should be making a move up the standings soon.

21. Columbus Blue Jackets-It’s no surprise that Sergei Bobrovsky hasn’t lived up to his Vezina Trophy or his shiny new contract. He has been good but not great and that leaves the low-scoring Blue Jackets in the middle of the pack.

20. Winnipeg Jets-As bad as I thought the Jets would be, Winnipeg keeps winning just enough to stay slightly above the cusp of the bottom third in the NHL. Evander Kane is a star. He might be a head case prima donna, but he is a star who will not be in Winnipeg when it is time to talk new contract.

19. Minnesota Wild-Josh Harding was on his way to being one of the top stars of the week before leaving last night’s game with the dreaded “lower-body injury”. Fortunately Nicklas Backstrom was just returning from his own stint on the disabled list to cover the third period Thursday night. The Wild win enough to stay on the outskirts of contention. They are lights out at home (4-0-2) and terrible on the road (1-3-1).

18. Washington Capitals-In the midst of a three game win streak the fighting Alexander Ovechkin’s look better than they might actually be. With 30 goals in his last 31 games the Capital captain is keeping his Hart Trophy caliber play going. If Washington wants to improve they’ll need better team play and consistent goaltending from Braden Holtby.

17. Carolina Hurricanes-The forgotten team in the Metropolitan Division is currently sitting in second place. Maybe that has more to do with how awful everyone else is right now, but the Hurricanes look like they could be tough to top. Cam Ward is back from injury and Jeff Skinner has returned to his pre-concussion form.

16. New York Islanders-The Islanders might be the toughest team to figure out so far. They are one of the highest scoring teams in the NHL but can’t keep the puck out of their own net. Scoring has been well distributed across the team, but how about a little defense guys?

15. Montreal Canadiens-Sitting exactly in the middle of the rankings are the defending division champs Montreal. Fortunately for the Canadiens, the current playoff format would keep them in the postseason. They are fifth in their division but sixth in the Eastern Conference. Statistically the Habs should be ranked higher and have a better record. More consistent performances against lesser teams will get the Canadiens up the table.

14. Tampa Bay Lightning-I never thought that Tampa Bay would be in the top half of the rankings, but two wins against Chicago cannot be overlooked. The Lightning are scoring which is no surprise, but the play of Ben Bishop in goal has been the difference. Steven Stamkos and Martin St. Louis will be playing tag all year as contenders for the Art Ross Trophy, but will that translate into wins for the Lightning?

13. Vancouver Canucks-Surprise, surprise! John Tortorella has the Canucks playing well and in contention in the Pacific Division. I predicted a dumpster fire for the coach swap between New York and Vancouver and it looks like I had the wrong team pegged. Roberto Luongo looks eight years younger in Vancouver’s impressive start.

12. Detroit Red Wings-After cruising through the Eastern Conference with their collective chest puffed out, Ottawa came to town for a reality check/pimp slapping in a 6-1 rout. Detroit has the personnel to be elite, but seem content to ride in the middle of the road more often than not.

11. Ottawa Senators-Ottawa made a statement in Detroit Wednesday night showing their former captain that they have plenty of weapons without him. Jason Spezza, Bobby Ryan and Craig Anderson are all-world talent and look like they are starting to click.

10. Phoenix Coyotes-Never count out Dave Tippett and his desert dogs. A bad loss in Los Angeles Thursday is far from the norm for the crafty Coyotes. Mike Smith is the real deal in goal and Phoenix plays a complete team game.

9. Los Angeles Kings-A seven goal extravaganza Thursday against the stingy Coyotes is certainly not par for the course, but if the Kings can figure out how to score, they can be a contender out west.

8. Toronto Maple Leafs-An impressive win over a top Western Conference foe on a seven game roll (Anaheim) makes a believer out of me. Toronto looks like it wants to be a contender and I see them moving up this list in the coming weeks. Solid goaltending and consistent scoring so far. Beware the annual Toronto injury bug.

7. Anaheim Ducks-I would have put the Ducks up higher but they laid a real egg in Montreal Thursday. Apologies for the bad pun. Jonas Hiller let in some softies and Anaheim looked pretty indifferent in their second consecutive loss.

6. Chicago Blackhawks-Two losses to Tampa Bay are hard to stomach, but maybe the Lightning are that good? An overall impressive start by the Hawks assures us that there is no Stanley Cup hangover. Spotty defense may be cause for concern down the road.

5. Colorado Avalanche-Everyone keeps waiting for them to lose, and the Avs keep winning. Timely scoring and excellent goaltending are the keys. Simple formula here and it’s working perfectly for Colorado.

4. Boston Bruins-With a win (barely) to knock San Jose from the unbeaten ranks, Boston has to be considered a top five team. Tuukka Rask just might be the best goalie in the NHL right now.

3. Pittsburgh Penguins-The Penguins have won seven of their first nine games without their best defenseman (Kris Letang) and in large part without their top power forward (James Neal). Marc-Andre Fleury has been spectacular

2. St. Louis Blues-Don’t be fooled by the beat down the Blue notes took at home against San Jose, they are an excellent team. Stingy defense and four productive lines in front of elite goaltending are a tough matchup every night.

1. San Jose Sharks-Despite suffering their first loss at Boston Thursday night, the Sharks are the best of the best right now. Let’s see if they can hold on to the top spot. They have a long way to go.