NHL power rankings: Cup-defending Golden Knights reclaim the top spot with 6-0 start

Credit: © Stephen R. Sylvanie

The NHL season is well underway, and while we’re still not even close to being able to draw meaningful conclusions, we can still find some takeaways and evaluate the chaos thus far. Three teams still haven’t lost, one more hasn’t lost in regulation, and only one team hasn’t won a game yet. We’ve also had enough storylines to last us for the rest of the month.

Mike Gould and I (Scott Maxwell) continue on with another week of co-op power rankings. I have my same old system which I aggregate six stats (points %, 5-on-5 goal differential, 5-on-5 xGF/60, 5-on-5 xGA/60, power play xGF/60, and shorthanded xGA/60, all coming courtesy of Natural Stat Trick) to come up with a list that eliminates my own biases, along with a rule that no team can be above a team that’s more than five points ahead of them in the standings, regardless of where the aggregate places them. On the other hand, Mike goes off his own intellect and pure vibes, and together we find a way to combine it and meet in the middle.

1. Vegas Golden Knights

Record: 6–0–0, +14
Last Week: 2nd (+1)
Mike’s Rank: 1st
Scott’s Rank: 2nd

Scott: The defending Cup champs take the top spot due to a tiebreaker of being first in the standings (although it’s really just splitting hairs between the undefeated teams right now). Despite the success so far, their underlying numbers have been just fine, but not amazing, which is why it knocked them down to second on my rankings.

2. Colorado Avalanche

Record: 5–0–0, +13
Last Week: 1st (-1)
Mike’s Rank: 2nd
Scott’s Rank: 1st

Mike: Well, Scott wrongly ranked the Avalanche first despite them not being the reigning Cup champs (or first in the league), but we’ll cut him some slack this time around. Nevertheless, these Avs are as much of a wagon as they’ve ever been. They can grind you down, knock you out, or go blow-for-blow in a high-scoring game, the latter of which they did in Saturday’s 6–4 win over the Hurricanes in Denver. Artturi Lehkonen had four points in that one.

Scott: Well, I’m not going to dock them for the fact that the NHL schedule maker didn’t give them a sixth game in the first two weeks of the season, especially when they’re looking like the possession maniacs of old.

Mike: Excuses!

3. Boston Bruins

Record: 5–0–0, +9
Last Week: 3rd (0)
Mike’s Rank: 3rd
Scott’s Rank: 4th

Scott: Mike and I would have been perfectly in line for these next couple picks if not for a surprise team on my list that will appear a little bit later. But it’s hard to argue against the Bruins rounding out the top three when only three teams haven’t lost a game yet this season, although their defense and power play have struggled to start the year.

4. Dallas Stars

Record: 3–0–1, +2
Last Week: 4th (0)
Mike’s Rank: 4th
Scott’s Rank: 5th

Mike: The Stars are one of just four teams without a regulation loss this year, although they did drop a 5–4 decision in overtime against the Flyers on Saturday. Jason Robertson still doesn’t have a goal to begin the season, but Joe Pavelski has picked right up where he left off and Wyatt Johnston had three points in that game against Philadelphia. Also, Jake Oettinger — enough said.

5. Detroit Red Wings

Record: 5–1–0, +15
Last Week: 14th (+9)
Mike’s Rank: 6th
Scott’s Rank: 8th

Scott: The Red Wings are the trendy team right now, and for good reason. Alex DeBrincat is on fire and leads the league with eight goals and 12 points, they’re averaging five goals a game so far this season, and they’re just fun to watch all around. The goal scoring will take a step back eventually, but they’re looking competitive so far this season.

6. Carolina Hurricanes

Record: 3–3–0, -2
Last Week: 8th (+2)
Mike’s Rank: 9th
Scott’s Rank: 6th

Mike: The Hurricanes haven’t quite performed to their usual standard to begin the year, allowing seven goals to the Kraken on Thursday and losing again in Colorado two days later. Freddy Andersen is hurt and both Antti Raanta and Pyotr Kochetkov are rocking sub-.820 save percentages to start the year. But everyone knows Carolina isn’t rolling out its full roster. Not yet.

7. Toronto Maple Leafs

Record: 3–2–0, 0
Last Week: 6th (-1)
Mike’s Rank: 5th
Scott’s Rank: 13th

Scott: Once again, Mike is much higher on the Leafs so far this season than I am. It certainly makes sense to be high on this team when we’ve seen how good they can be for so many years now, and they have generated the most expected goals at 5v5 this season, but the defense has been hurting them so far. They did see a step in the right direction to start their road trip, as both games in the state of Florida were their best played of the season.

8. New York Rangers

Record: 3–2–0, +3
Last Week: 7th (-1)
Mike’s Rank: 8th
Scott’s Rank: 11th

Mike: Igor Shesterkin hasn’t really looked like himself to start the year, alternating between top-notch outings and sub-.800 SV% performances against teams like Nashville and Columbus. Usually a model of consistency, Shesterkin will get the chance to right the ship when the Rangers take on the struggling Alberta teams this week. The good news: Artemi Panarin, Alexis Lafreniere, and Kaapo Kakko all scored against the Kraken on Saturday.

9. Los Angeles Kings

Record: 2–2–1, +2
Last Week: 24th (+15)
Mike’s Rank: 18th
Scott’s Rank: 3rd

Scott: So the Kings at third is certainly my sus pick of the week, and while I admit I wouldn’t personally rank them this high, I can’t deny how good they’ve been defensively so far this season. They’ve allowed the fewest expected goals against at 5v5, and the third-fewest on the penalty kill, and everything else has been just good enough to prop up their ranking for the week.

Mike: I just don’t know what to say to this one. We’ll see how L.A. fares in its home-and-home series against the Coyotes this week.

Scott: I’m just going off how they’ve played so far. Doesn’t mean they’ll be this good at year’s end, but the numbers speak for themselves at the moment.

10. Pittsburgh Penguins

Record: 2–3–0, 0
Last Week: 5th (-5)
Mike’s Rank: 13th
Scott’s Rank: 9th

Mike: Scott and I are probably both a little too high on the Penguins, who dropped back-to-back games against the Red Wings (understandable) and Blues (less so) to close out last week. Evgeni Malkin is still chugging along at a good pace but Rickard Rakell and Jeff Carter are off to tough starts. It’s fair to say Tristan Jarry hasn’t exactly found his form to begin his new contract, either.

11. Nashville Predators

Record: 3–3–0, +2
Last Week: 22nd (+11)
Mike’s Rank: 16th
Scott’s Rank: 7th

Scott: Before you judge my selection here, I’d like to lead off with the fact that the Predators are FIRST in the league in 5v5 expected goal share, rocking a 59.14% rate. The roster certainly isn’t good enough to consistently get the results out of that, and it probably won’t last all season, but so far, they’ve exceeded expectations – even those of Mike, who seems to have put them in the top half of the league, likely against his will.

Mike: I’m not convinced that this Predators start is anything more than a mirage, but they’ve been better than I expected. Ryan O’Reilly seems to have turned back the clock a few years, which has to have helped.

12. New Jersey Devils

Record: 2–1–1, 0
Last Week: 12th (0)
Mike’s Rank: 7th
Scott’s Rank: 18th

Mike: The Devils rebounded from losses to the Coyotes and Panthers to defeat the Islanders in a back-and-forth affair on Friday. Jack Hughes very much looked the part of a 99-point scorer in that one, scoring a pair of goals and setting up Luke’s first of the year. Maybe their underlyings haven’t been the best early on, but I still like these Devils’ chances of winning the Metro.

13. Ottawa Senators

Record: 3–2–0, +6
Last Week: 13th (0)
Mike’s Rank: 14th
Scott’s Rank: 12th

Scott: Credit where it’s due, the Senators have managed to avoid their traditional slow start and keep themselves in a playoff spot for the first couple weeks of the season. They had a three-game win streak over the Flyers, Bolts and Caps where they outscored them 16-5 before losing 5-2 to the Wings, and while the underlying numbers have been mediocre, they’ve held it together so far.

14. New York Islanders

Record: 2–1–1, -1
Last Week: 10th (-4)
Mike’s Rank: 12th
Scott’s Rank: 14th

Mike: It’s the Islanders. Who cares?

Scott: Lou Lamoriello is coming for your kneecaps for that one.

15. Florida Panthers

Record: 2–3–0, -3
Last Week: 15th (0)
Mike’s Rank: 11th
Scott’s Rank: 16th

Scott: The Panthers are surviving the early injury storm thus far, as they took two of their three games last week against some key East opponents in the Devils and Leafs. The biggest surprise so far is that their expected goal generation has been one of the worst in the league, far from what they’ve been the past few years, which is what hurt them slightly in my rankings.

16. Philadelphia Flyers

Record: 3–1–1, +3
Last Week: 25th (+9)
Mike’s Rank: 19th
Scott’s Rank: 10th

Mike: Sean Couturier’s return has been something to behold. The 30-year-old center doesn’t seem to have missed a step in his year-long absence from game action, having collected four points in five games to start the season while positively influencing play at both ends of the ice. Wouldn’t it be an amazing story if Couturier challenged for the Selke Trophy in his comeback season?

17. Arizona Coyotes

Record: 3–2–0, +4
Last Week: 11th (-6)
Mike’s Rank: 15th
Scott’s Rank: 17th

Scott: In a hectic four-game week, the Coyotes managed to go an even 2-2, although they lost to the two competitive teams in the Rangers and Islanders before getting their wins against easier opponents in the Blues and Ducks. This start is still a significant improvement from last season, but there also isn’t anything about this team that jumps out at me and makes me think they’ll be a serious contender… just yet. Fun as hell, though.

Mike: If the Coyotes make the playoffs this year, Clayton Keller should (and probably will) win the Hart Trophy. He’s been outstanding to kick things off. He and Nick Schmaltz have some of the most palpable chemistry in the NHL.

Scott: Ladies and gentlemen, the most sane Coyotes fan.

18. Edmonton Oilers

Record: 1–3–1, -7
Last Week: 17th (-1)
Mike’s Rank: 17th
Scott’s Rank: 15th

Mike: The Oilers remain a trainwreck, with Connor McDavid now set to miss a week or two as a result of an upper-body injury he suffered against the Jets on Saturday. McDavid hasn’t looked at all like himself to begin the year — maybe he’s been at less than 100% all along? — and the rest of the team has seemingly followed his example, with Evander Kane and Stuart Skinner in particular off to brutal starts. The Jets were the first 2023 playoff team the Oilers have faced this year. Yikes.

Scott: I, for one, am excited for Leon Draisaitl to win the Hart Trophy again this year if he doesn’t look terrible in this next stretch without McDavid.

19. Tampa Bay Lightning

Record: 2–2–2, -4
Last Week: 19th (0)
Mike’s Rank: 10th
Scott’s Rank: 27th

Scott: I get that Mike doesn’t want to doubt the Lightning just yet with his ranking, but my ranking is less that I doubt that they will be good by the end of the year, and more just acknowledging how bad they’ve been so far, and it’s not the goaltending’s fault. They sit at a 42.92% 5v5 expected goal share through six games and have so far only managed to beat teams that likely won’t contend for a playoff spot.

20. Montreal Canadiens

Record: 2–1–1, -2
Last Week: 20th (0)
Mike’s Rank: 26th
Scott’s Rank: 19th

Mike: Sean Monahan continues to turn back the clock (stay healthy, please) and Cole Caufield remains hot, having picked up at least a point in each of Montreal’s first four games of the season. Kirby Dach’s season-ending injury is a gut punch, but these Habs have plenty of pride — even if they’re still very much a work in progress.

21. Calgary Flames

Record: 2–3–1, -7
Last Week: 23rd (+2)
Mike’s Rank: 21st
Scott’s Rank: 24th

Scott: The Flames seem to have not fully recovered from last season with their start, as they’ve lacked chemistry so far and haven’t really had a spark. In their defense, a five-game road trip out East in the first two weeks is a rough way to start the year, but it just doesn’t seem like anything has changed so far.

22. Winnipeg Jets

Record: 2–3–0, -5
Last Week: 9th (-13)
Mike’s Rank: 24th
Scott’s Rank: 22nd

Mike: Connor Hellebuyck is off to a bit of a rocky start but Mark Scheifele, his Contract Twin, has four goals in his first five games. Alex Iafallo has been chugging along; fellow ex-King Gabe Vilardi is already hurt. And poor Nikolaj Ehlers still can’t seem to muster up much traction under Rick Bowness. He’s a guy who could thrive in a new home.

23. Vancouver Canucks

Record: 3–2–0, +7
Last Week: 16th (-7)
Mike’s Rank: 22nd
Scott’s Rank: 26th

Scott: So after the Canucks got their hopes high from back-to-back wins over the Oilers, Week 2 appears to have humbled them a bit more. I’m not sure what’s more concerning: the fact that their underlying numbers have been disastrous thus far, or the fact that they haven’t even played a team that’s playing really well yet.

24. Columbus Blue Jackets

Record: 3–2–0, -1
Last Week: 27th (+3)
Mike’s Rank: 27th
Scott’s Rank: 21st

Mike: It was tough to see Patrik Laine injured on a cheap shot by Flames defenseman Rasmus Andersson in the dying minutes of what would’ve otherwise been a feel-good win for these Blue Jackets, who stole two points on Friday by way of 30 saves by journeyman goaltender Spencer Martin. The following night, Adam Fantilli picked up his first NHL goal in a back-and-forth OT win over the Wild. These Blue Jackets probably aren’t going too far this year, but they seem to be having fun.

25. St. Louis Blues

Record: 2–1–1, -2
Last Week: 18th (-7)
Mike’s Rank: 25th
Scott’s Rank: 23th

Scott: It’s been a light schedule so far for St. Louis, but they’ve come up with mediocre results so far, this week getting blown out by the Coyotes before beating the Penguins. That dynamic offense that they had two years ago is long gone now, as their 5v5 expected goals currently ranks 31st and their PP expected goals ranks 30th so far this year.

26. Minnesota Wild

Record: 2–2–1, -3
Last Week: 21st (-5)
Mike’s Rank: 20th
Scott’s Rank: 31st

Mike: This feels pretty low for the Wild, but they haven’t exactly lit the world on fire through their first five games of the year. That 7–3 loss to the Kings on Thursday was ugly. But still … 31st? Care to explain, Scott?

Scott: They’re 30th in both 5v5 expected goals for and against and sit second last in expected goal share overall, which may as well be last because the Sharks aren’t an NHL team this year. They’ve got okay results so far, but underneath the hood it’s currently on fire. That may not hold for the whole season but as I’ve said before, right now I’m evaluating them based on their play so far.

27. Buffalo Sabres

Record: 2–3–0, -3
Last Week: 30th (+3)
Mike’s Rank: 23rd
Scott’s Rank: 28th

Scott: The Sabres managed to prevent their season getting ugly quick with two wins in three games last week and getting them both against Eastern playoff rivals in the Bolts and Isles is an even bigger plus. They still lack that magic that made everyone fall in love with them in the early going, and Tage Thompson having just one goal in five games could start to become a concern if this continues any longer (which it probably won’t, he has 24 shots already).

28. Anaheim Ducks

Record: 1–4–0, -4
Last Week: 26th (-2)
Mike’s Rank: 31st
Scott’s Rank: 20th

Mike: I don’t know what Scott sees in the Ducks, who showed flashes but largely looked offensively inert in their losses to the Coyotes and Bruins over the weekend. One silver lining: Pavel Mintyukov has looked every bit the part of a top-10 draft pick in his first five NHL games. Leo Carlsson has been good, too. But these Ducks are raw and nowhere close to contention.

Scott: They surprisingly have a positive 5v5 expected goal share this season, so I don’t think I want to lump them in with the depressingly bad teams just yet.

29. Washington Capitals

Record: 1–2–1, -9
Last Week: 32nd (+3)
Mike’s Rank: 30th
Scott’s Rank: 25th

Scott: Playing more than one game has allowed the Caps to not look like the worst team in the league at the very least, but it really isn’t much better than that. Outside of their special teams, there’s nothing really going for this team, and Alex Ovechkin has looked like he’s aged six years in the six months since he’s last played. Hopefully he rebounds and gets back on that pursuit of Wayne Gretzky’s all-time goals record, but that looks like a much bigger question mark than it did two weeks ago.

30. Chicago Blackhawks

Record: 2–4–0, -4
Last Week: 28th (-2)
Mike’s Rank: 29th
Scott’s Rank: 29th

Mike: Connor Bedard’s first goal at the United Center was an electrifying moment. Unfortunately for the Blackhawks, it came in a 5–3 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights. Bedard has a -4 rating on the year and both Lukas Reichel and Kevin Korchinski are at a -6. All three have shown promise, but there’s very little overstating how difficult it can be to play in the NHL as a young ‘un — especially with that supporting cast. It’ll be a tough few years in Chicago.

31. Seattle Kraken

Record: 1–4–1, -10
Last Week: 29th (-2)
Mike’s Rank: 28th
Scott’s Rank: 30th

Scott: Outside of a 7-4 win over the Hurricanes, the Kraken have scored four goals in their five losses, which I wouldn’t recommend for any team to be successful at hockey, but especially one that thrived on offense last season. It’s just my luck that the one team whose numbers I ignored, and whose success I predicted more off the vibes, comes back and bites me immediately.

32. San Jose Sharks

Record: 0–4–1, -13
Last Week: 31st (-1)
Mike’s Rank: 32nd
Scott’s Rank: 32nd

Mike: Blech. No. These Sharks are not it. Their only point of the season to date came by way of a masterclass performance in goal by MacKenzie Blackwood. Otherwise, it’s been four king-sized losses, with the latest taking the form of a 5–1 beatdown at the hands of the Nashville Predators. Tomas Hertl is on an island. Will another team charter him a jet in time for the trade deadline?

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