Well this has been one h-e double-hockey sticks of a week in the NHL. Fans had to wait forever for the season to start but now that it has, it’s sure been entertaining. The Blackhawks win streak came to an abrupt halt this week after a loss to the Colorado Avalanche (yes, the Avalanche!). Nashville seems to have forgotten how to score, Detroit lost twice to Columbus, and although Montreal was all over their road game this week, they lost pretty thoroughly to the Islanders. Just to prove how crazy it has been, St. Louis, Winnipeg and Columbus all moved up in the rankings by double digits while Tampa Bay and the Islanders both dropped by eight. At least one thing is consistent, the best are still the best and the worst are still the worst; for now.
*Rankings based upon scores and statistics through Tuesday night.
1. Chicago Blackhawks (-)
The Blackhawks had quite a run going this season and then Patrick Sharp got hurt. Coincidentally, the first night he sits out they lose. To the Avalanche. But, to avoid falling from the headlines the Blackhawks decided to start a new streak by losing to Edmonton in their next game. Nothing like losing to two teams with less than half the amount of points you’ve got, guys. Nice work.
2. Pittsburgh Penguins (-)
It was pretty nice of Evgeni Malkin to come back for a whopping three games before getting hurt again. Apparently they don’t need him anyway as the Penguins topped the Islanders Sunday 6-1. As long as Sidney Crosby continues to lead the league in points and assists, the Penguins should be good to remain at the top.
3. Anaheim Ducks (+2)
No one had a lot of hopes for the Ducks this season but they continue to prove the preseason predictions wrong. This past week they locked up Ryan Getzlaf with an eight-year contract and will hopefully do the same with Corey Perry before April. The Ducks have a nice 11-game win streak at home right now and have won most of the away games recently as well. Chicago better start getting worried because the Ducks are only four points away from taking the conference lead.
4. Montreal Canadiens (-1)
Currently leading the Eastern conference, the Canadiens have been on a roll. They won 4/5 games on their road trip last week. Although left-wing Brandon Prust is out for the next couple weeks with a shoulder injury, the Canadiens shouldn’t be too concerned; they’ve still got a very solid offense.
5. Boston Bruins (+3)
Tuesday night's game against the Penguins was a pretty juicy match to watch, although it ended in a loss for the Bruins. They definltey can’t get down on themselves though, because they’ve got a busy few weeks ahead of them with games every-other night through the rest of March. Backup goalie Tuukka Rask has been proving himself a trustworthy replacement especially after winning against the Flyers over the weekend, a team he painfully lost to in the playoffs a few years back.
6. Toronto Maple Leafs (-2)
The Maple Leafs are currently in a triple tie for fifth place in the Eastern Conference and although they’ve dropped a few games this month, they still seem to be cementing themselves a playoff spot. Things haven’t been all peachy this week in Toronto though; an interesting tweet by Ben Hankinson Tuesday night created quite a stir. Agent for Jake Gardiner, a player I watched improve greatly over his three year career at UW-Madison, Hankinson tweeted: "#FreeJakeGardiner" and has left a lot of people speculating.
7. St. Louis Blues (+12)
Although one of the highest jumping teams this week, the Blues still look pretty shaky on the ice. Neither backup goalie, Jake Allen or Jaroslav Halak, has really proven himself in net although Allen did come out with the wins this week. The defense is almost equally to blame right now but they do play better in front of Allen it appears.
8. Phoenix Coyotes (+3)
The Coyotes have been needing an oompf in their season as they try to continue to prove themselves in the Pacific division and the 5-2 win over the Kings Tuesday night might have been just the trick. The next few weeks will be crucial for the Coyotes if they plan to edge out the Kings though and they’ll be playing seven of their nine remaining March games on the road. Signing forward turned defender, 20-year old Mathieu Brisebois looks promising for the Coyotes in the future as well.
9. Ottawa Senators (-3)
Craig Anderson, the Senators star goalie, has been out since Feb. 21st but he still manages to lead the league with his goals against average and save percentage. Talk about talent. Center Kyle Turris, a great kid (who encouraged my brother to stick with the game), leads the team with points and is great inspiration for the Senators to keep plugging away.
10. Carolina Hurricanes (-1)
The Hurricanes are proving that they can in fact survive without Cam Ward by winning most of their recent games. Granted, some were against weak teams such as the Panthers, a win is still in a win in the Stanley Cup race. Hopefully they can keep it up though as Ward isn’t due to return for a few months. His backups are pretty good but it’s hard to replace a probable-Olympian and NHL veteran when you’re just a kid.
11. Detroit Red Wings (-4)
The Red Wings started to look like they were really shaping up and then they dropped two in a row, one a shutout, to the Blue Jackets this past week. Detroit needs to be concerned as they’ve got a pretty road-game heavy schedule coming up and they happen to be one of the league's worst teams on the road. Should be an interesting few weeks.
12. Los Angeles Kings (+6)
The Kings continue to show off their muscle and remind everyone how they won the Cup last year. Jonathan Quick still isn’t as fit as he was last year in net but he’s catching back up. Center Jeff Carter is everywhere right now for the Kings having scored 17 points, one goal each in their last 13 games, but his teammates could probably use some advice. Having only one reliable scorer is always dangerous when it comes to hockey.
13. Winnipeg Jets (+12)
The Jets are in a definite upswing right now and are really benefiting from Cam Ward’s injury. Just a few points behind the Hurricanes, they’re hoping to take the division lead soon. The Jets just need to work on their consistency a little more now and learn how to win games at home like they do on the road, and they should be golden.
14. New Jersey Devils (-1)
The Devils have had a pretty rough week as far as teams go, but they did manage a nice overtime win against the Jets on Sunday. New Jersey currently has one of the worst goal differentials right now and I’d bet that’s going to continue downhill without starting goalie Martin Brodeur in net. If the season went into the playoffs right now though, they’d still be in.
15. Columbus Blue Jackets (+11)
Even without the highest point jump in rankings, Columbus has shown up just about every team this week. Since I started my rankings a month ago the Blue Jackets have not made it out of the bottom five, nor did they deserve to, but after trouncing on the Red Wings and winning their last five out of six games it appears they may be a force to reckon with. Who knows? Maybe they’ll even beat the Blackhawks this Thursday...
16. Nashville Predators (-1)
The leagues' most notorious low-scoring team vanished for a couple days this past week after blanking the Oilers 6-0 and then the stars 4-0 just a few days later. It was definitely a nice change of pace for Predators fans but no one knows if they’ll keep that pace or sink back into their minimal goal scoring. Their road trip continues as they head to Canada for the rest of the week.
17. Philadelphia Flyers (-7)
The Flyers continue to be one of the leagues' most confusing teams. They’re up and then down and then right back up again; talk about inconsistency. They were on a pretty serious losing streak last week but managed to squeak out an ugly win on Sunday against the Sabres. The only games scheduled for the Flyers this week are both against the Devils which doesn’t sound promising, much like their playoff chances.
18. Vancouver Canucks (-6)
For a team that started the season looking pretty good, the Canucks are now suffering. Not only did they briefly lose their division lead, they’re barely clinging to a playoff spot. The Canucks have only won twice so far this month. The Sedins are not their normal scoring machines and the team continues to struggle without center Ryan Kesler.
19. Minnesota Wild (-2)
Although it took until now, mid-way through the season, the Wild have finally started to play together and get some serious wins. They even knocked the Canucks out of division lead after beating them 4-2 on Sunday. It looks like it’s going to be a close match between these two teams to earn that spot before the season ends.
20. San Jose Sharks (+1)
The Sharks lost their fourth straight game Tuesday night and continue to struggle. Saturday looked like they might at least pull off a shootout opportunity but after winning the faceoff, the Avs’ Matt Duchene managed to score with a mere four-tenths of a second left in overtime. For starting out the season so hot, the Sharks’ chance for a playoff spot seems to be dwindling quicker than their defense’s playing ability.
21. New York Rangers (+3)
Despite the fact that they’ve won 4/6 games so far this month, the Rangers players went on record about how disappointed they were in themselves after losing to the Sabres 3-1 Tuesday night. Being short defenseman Marc Staal doesn’t help either. He got hit in the eye last week from a deflected puck and is out indefinitely. Although it has at least brought back the topic of mandatory visors, I don’t see changes happening anytime soon. The doctors are “optimistic” about his return though, so there’s that at least.
22. New York Islanders (-8)
Albeit being one of the NHL’s best penalty kill teams, the Islanders allowed two power-play goals in their 6-1 loss against the Penguins, destroying their five-game point streak. The Islanders have off until Thursday though so they can sit in their time-out corner and think about it until then. Maybe they’ll even come back strong.
23. Buffalo Sabres (-3)
The Sabres have had it pretty rough this season. Although they went on a brief win streak, they turned around and lost four in a row this past week. Then the Sabres turned around and beat the Rangers. It’s all quite confusing and very Sabres-esque. I’m afraid it might get even worse now that forward Tyler Ennis is out and no one seems to know when he’ll return.
24. Tampa Bay Lightning (-8)
Tampa Bay has been pretty up and down all season but it appears as if they’re about hit rock bottom. The Lightning can cling to two things though: 23-year old Steven Stamkos leads the league in goals and is in line to surpass the 60-goal season he had last year AND they aren’t the worst team in Florida.
25. Edmonton Oilers (+2)
Though by no means strong, the Oilers continue to make baby steps of progress. Too little, too late but at least they aren’t getting worse. After blowing a 4-0 lead against Chicago on Sunday, they managed to salvage the game with a 6-5 win. While painful for Blackhawks fans to watch the second loss in a row, I’m sure the Oilers fans were excited after suffering through two shutouts in a row.
26. Florida Panthers (-3)
And we’ve come to Florida’s worst team. You know how you know the Panthers are bad? Their own fans criticize them relentlessly. This team was the only team I’ve been told that I ranked too HIGH. Between injuries, aging players, and basically no offense the Panthers really don’t have anything going for them. I’d say now is as good a time as any to close the book on this season and just prepare for next year.
27. Dallas Stars (-5)
The Stars started to look promising after Jamie Benn ended his holdout, but after receiving a concussion over the weekend and subsequently a team loss, it’s pretty uncertain what they’ll do next. The team had a really solid win over the Kings last week, prior to Benn getting hurt, but they still haven’t really shown us who they are.
28. Colorado Avalanche (-)
I can tell you right now, I have one friend who will be very upset by this unchanged ranking, but statistics don’t lie my friend. While yes, by some magical power the Avs did end the Blackhawks’ run, they still aren’t a very good team. Although their overtime win against the Sharks was pretty entertaining, the fact that a two-game win streak is the best they’ve pulled off all season pretty much sums it up.
29. Washington Capitals (-)
The Capitals are another confusing team this season. They had a nice overtime win against the Bruins followed by a 7-1 pummeling of the Panthers only to turn around and get their butts kicked 5-2, 4-1, 4-0 by the Islanders, Rangers, and Hurricanes respectively. Alexander Ovechkin seems to have gone back underground and the team continues to show they are in way over their heads for the season.
30. Calgary Flames (-)
The Flames can take pride in knowing that while they sit very prettily in dead last in the Western conference, there are four teams in the Eastern conference with even less points than them. They continue to go on losing streaks and it appears they’ve altogether given up on winning and instead are focusing on trades. It’s basically come down to how many players will be moved and what exactly they plan to do with Jarome Iginla. While he may have been the face of the team all these years, he’s aging and not worth much anymore; do you really want that to be the image you’re sending about your team??