NHL power rankings: Suddenly the New York Rangers aren’t the class of the Eastern Conference anymore
Last week’s theme seemed to be streaks. Not only did it feel like every team was on a hot or cold streak, but there were also several teams who went on lengthy winning or losing streaks, although almost all of them were snapped by the end of the week.
Mike Gould and I continue to navigate through the results so far with another week of our co-op power rankings. I have my same old system in 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. Boston Bruins
Record: 25-8-9, +27
Last Week: 3rd (+2)
Mike’s Rank: 1st
Scott’s Rank: 2nd
Mike: It wasn’t the best week for the Bruins but they just continue to rack up points. Make it five games in a row after their OT win over the Blues on Saturday. Elias Lindholm would be such a good fit for this Bruins team — they’re a workmanlike group that has coalesced beautifully under All-Star head coach Jim Montgomery. To think that Linus Ullmark was only a few hundred votes away from joining tandem partner Jeremy Swayman in Toronto next month …
2. Florida Panthers
Record: 27-13-2, +26
Last Week: 1st (-1)
Mike’s Rank: 3rd
Scott’s Rank: 1st
Scott: I’m not sure why losing one game made the Panthers drop two spots in Mike’s eyes, but for me, I still see a strong, all-around powerhouse with a team that also just finished winning nine straight games. In Mike’s defense, losing to a Devils team that is as injured as they are isn’t ideal, but I think it’s only a matter of time before they take the top spot in the East.
Mike: I honestly think a lot of the teams at the top of this list are as close to interchangeable as you can get. With Matthew Tkachuk finally starting to heat up, you might be right about the Panthers being on the path to first in the conference.
3. Colorado Avalanche
Record: 28-12-3, +27
Last Week: 6th (+3)
Mike’s Rank: 2nd
Scott’s Rank: 3rd
Mike: A reader recently let us know that my comment in a previous Power Rankings about the vibes being “off” in Colorado was, and I quote, “lazy.” Maybe they were right. The Avs won all three of their games last week and had two more players voted into the All-Star Game. It’s a little strange that Alexandar Georgiev and his .898 save percentage are heading to Toronto, but hey — it’s not that big a deal. What will be a big deal? Cale Makar’s contract when he becomes a UFA in 2027.
Scott: Correction, a reader let me know that “my” (read: your) comment was “lazy.”
Also, I’m going to assume that Georgiev made the All-Star Game because at least half of his votes came from people voting on the website, which is still stuck in the 90’s and sorted their goalies based on wins.
4. Winnipeg Jets
Record: 28-10-4, +42
Last Week: 4th (0)
Mike’s Rank: 5th
Scott’s Rank: 4th
Scott: The Jets saw their eight-game winning streak come to an end on Saturday after a 2-0 loss to the Flyers, but I’m willing to cut them some slack considering they were without Mark Scheifele on top of the Kyle Connor injury that still looms over this team. Despite the loss, they’ve managed to keep their impressive run of allowing three goals or fewer to 32 games.
5. Vancouver Canucks
Record: 29-11-3, +55
Last Week: 5th (0)
Mike’s Rank: 4th
Scott’s Rank: 6th
Mike: I would love to see a playoff series between the Canucks and Oilers this year. Vancouver is sending five players and their head coach to the All-Star Game in Toronto and it’s hard to say that it isn’t deserved. J.T. Miller, Elias Pettersson, Thatcher Demko, Brock Boeser, and Quinn Hughes are all having unbelievable years. This is a team with skill, depth, and swagger. They’re not battle-tested (yet) but good things are on the horizon in Vancouver.
6. New York Rangers
Record: 27-13-2, +17
Last Week: 2nd (-4)
Mike’s Rank: 6th
Scott’s Rank: 5th
Scott: It was a tough stretch for the Rangers, as they’d lost five of six games going into Sunday’s game against the Capitals, and considering that they had just lost to those same Caps the day prior, they got a much needed 2-1 win to close out the week. Suddenly an Eastern Conference that seemed theirs for the taking is much closer again and they aren’t quite looking like the juggernauts some thought they were to start the year.
Mike: I believe the Rangers are still undefeated in their sexy navy blue alternate jerseys. That says a lot, doesn’t it?
Scott: All it tells me is that there is no God.
7. Carolina Hurricanes
Record: 24-13-5, +19
Last Week: 10th (+3)
Mike’s Rank: 7th
Scott’s Rank: 7th
Mike: Hey, look, everyone! The Hurricanes are back! Carolina has won four of five since the start of 2024 and seven of eight overall, vaulting them into second place in the Metropolitan Division and eighth in the league. With nine guys well over 20 points on the year (and three more at 18+), the Canes are deeeeeep. Their goaltending is still a concern but that’s something they can — and should — address ahead of the deadline.
Scott: They might not even need to address it depending on how long-term Pyotr Kochetkov’s injury is, or if Antti Raanta can regain his form.
8. Dallas Stars
Record: 25-12-5, +26
Last Week: 9th (+1)
Mike’s Rank: 8th
Scott’s Rank: 8th
Scott: Oh hey, look. Mike and I agree on the Stars again. They bounced back from their three-game losing streak to win three of their last four games, including two blowout wins against an injury-riddled Wild team. It was also cool to see Matt Murray (not the one on the Leafs LTIR, the other one) get his first career shutout in the first of those two Wild wins.
9. Vegas Golden Knights
Record: 24-14-5, +17
Last Week: 7th (-2)
Mike’s Rank: 9th
Scott’s Rank: 10th
Mike: It was kind of a weird week for Vegas, which beat Boston but also lost to Colorado and, uh, Calgary. The Golden Knights have gotten off to a strange start to 2024 and are nowhere near the top spot in the Pacific Division anymore due to the Canucks’ continued dominance. They still command the respect typically reserved for the defending champs but they aren’t humming along like they were at the beginning of the season.
10. Los Angeles Kings
Record: 20-11-8, +27
Last Week: 8th (-2)
Mike’s Rank: 13th
Scott’s Rank: 9th
Scott: I almost want to grab the Kings and shake them like Darla from Finding Nemo and scream “WHY ARE YOU SLEEPING?!?” They’ve lost eight games in a row now, and they have not looked like the usual powerhouse that they’ve turned into this season. It’s not like it’s been bad luck, they haven’t exactly been dominating play during this stretch. Suddenly the top spot in the Pacific looks out of reach for them.
11. Edmonton Oilers
Record: 23-15-1, +21
Last Week: 13th (+2)
Mike’s Rank: 11th
Scott’s Rank: 11th
Mike: The Oilers have looked like world-beaters during their 10-game winning streak. They’ve overcome a fair amount of adversity this season (they’ve already made a coaching change, after all). Their upcoming schedule is pretty light. No, this team’s playoff spot isn’t carved into stone, but we’re at the point where it’d be surprising if they didn’t make it. If they play like this in the postseason, they’ll have a shot at winning a game past the second round for the first time in the McDavid era. But that’s an enormous “if.”
12. Philadelphia Flyers
Record: 23-14-6, +8
Last Week: 15th (+3)
Mike’s Rank: 10th
Scott’s Rank: 14th
Scott: Well, that stretch of six losses in seven doesn’t look nearly as bad for the Flyers now that they’ve rebounded with four wins in their last five games. Still took a bit of an L off the ice though with Cutter Gauthier refusing to re-sign with the team, but at least Jamie Drysdale’s already starting to look comfortable on the team.
Mike: I was a bit more charitable than most in giving the Flyers a B-minus grade for the Drysdale trade. And while I do think Gauthier will be a difference-maker in Anaheim, it hasn’t taken long for Drysdale to endear himself to the Philly faithful.
Scott: I’m just excited for that second-round pick to end up being the difference maker and making all the takes now look silly. It probably won’t happen, but it’d be funny.
13. New Jersey Devils
Record: 22-15-3, +1
Last Week: 14th (+1)
Mike’s Rank: 12th
Scott’s Rank: 12th
Mike: I always find it funny when Scott and I agree on a team’s ranking and they don’t end up in that spot in the consensus. The Devils have been pretty darn unlucky in multiple ways this season and the fact that they remain in a playoff spot by points percentage is a ringing endorsement of the talent on this roster. Even without Jack Hughes, Dougie Hamilton, and a few others, the Devils still managed to take down the red-hot Florida Panthers on Saturday. If they get in (and they should), NJ should still be a tough out. But it’s been a hard year.
14. Toronto Maple Leafs
Record: 21-12-8, +14
Last Week: 11th (-3)
Mike’s Rank: 14th
Scott’s Rank: 13th
Scott: Remind me to never say anything good about the Leafs ever again. After building off a strong week with a 7-1 win over the Sharks, they dropped three straight to teams in the playoff hunt and all of them came from blowing leads. I guess this is just the roller coaster that is this team.
Mike: Will Sheldon Keefe still be employed by the time this article goes live on Monday morning? I genuinely do not know.
Scott: I think that’s a bit of an overreaction, unless Brad Treliving really likes Nick Robertson.
15. Pittsburgh Penguins
Record: 20-15-6, +13
Last Week: 12th (-3)
Mike’s Rank: 15th
Scott’s Rank: 15th
Scott: Well, the Penguins managed to get points in all three games last week, but a 1-0-2 record isn’t exactly one to brag about. The big guns all keep getting points and dragging this team as far as they can, but they just can’t seem to get wins when they need to. Suddenly, trading Jake Guentzel looks more and more like the thing they should be doing at the deadline.
16. Nashville Predators
Record: 24-18-1, +4
Last Week: 16th (0)
Mike’s Rank: 16th
Scott’s Rank: 17th
Mike: The Preds have been doing whatever they can to put their stamp on a Wildcard spot of late, finishing the week with back-to-back wins over the Stars and Islanders to move five points up of the Coyotes and Blues for fourth in the Central. Nashville has played in two more games than both those teams but hey, a win’s a win. That was some kind of comeback they staged in their 3-1 win over the Islanders on Saturday, scoring all three of their goals in the final five minutes of the third period.
17. Seattle Kraken
Record: 19-14-9, 0
Last Week: 17th (0)
Mike’s Rank: 18th
Scott’s Rank: 16th
Scott: So we’re now at a nine-game winning streak and a 13-game point streak for the Kraken. Their defense is playing really well. They’re getting lights out goaltending from Joey Daccord of all people. Seattle might be legit again. They still lack the scoring depth that they got last year, but that was a bit more luck-driven while this year’s team is much more middle of the pack.
18. Arizona Coyotes
Record: 21-18-2, +3
Last Week: 24th (+6)
Mike’s Rank: 17th
Scott’s Rank: 20th
Mike: Well, the Coyotes had one unimpressive game and two very impressive ones last week. That game against the Flames was dire, although the Yotes will have a chance for revenge in Calgary on Tuesday. But … wow. AZ went blow-for-blow with the Bruins, of all teams, on Tuesday and kicked the crap out of the Wild on Saturday. Nick Bjugstad has been outstanding for the Coyotes this season and scored his second career hat trick in that 6-0 win over his former team.
19. Tampa Bay Lightning
Record: 22-17-5, -3
Last Week: 19th (0)
Mike’s Rank: 20th
Scott’s Rank: 18th
Scott: After struggling going into last week, they took care of business against all three teams, including two wins against other playoff contenders in the Kings and Devils. And Nikita Kucherov has five points in that stretch, and nine in their stretch of four wins in five games. I guess that shouldn’t be surprising.
20. Detroit Red Wings
Record: 22-16-5, +11
Last Week: 21st (+1)
Mike’s Rank: 19th
Scott’s Rank: 21st
Mike: Patrick Kane has certainly been a better fit in Detroit than I expected, although he started to show some very real signs of slowing down before suffering a lower-body injury against the Maple Leafs on Sunday. The Red Wings still managed to pull out a 4-2 win in that game to make it victories in five of six to kick off 2024, even more impressive considering how late they arrived to Scotiabank Arena amid some treacherous weather conditions. But this is a team that ranks 26th in the NHL in 5-on-5 expected goals percentage this season. They’re due for some regression.
21. New York Islanders
Record: 19-13-10, -13
Last Week: 18th (-3)
Mike’s Rank: 21st
Scott’s Rank: 19th
Scott: I was pretty busy last week, particularly on days where the Islanders played, so the only time I closely followed their result was when they beat the Leafs and I just assumed that they’ve been on a solid hot streak. Nope, that’s the only game they’ve won in their last four. Guess I had a bit of a “It’s the Islanders, who cares?” moment.
Mike: Yeah, the Islanders have been in a bit of a free-fall of late. It is kind of wild that Noah Dobson, who I would posit has been by far their best player this year, won’t be going to the All-Star Game.
Scott: Mat Barzal goes brrrrrr.
22. Washington Capitals
Record: 20-15-6, -26
Last Week: 20th (-2)
Mike’s Rank: 22nd
Scott’s Rank: 23rd
Mike: Last week, I said that the Capitals made no sense. They still don’t. Last week, they alternated between beating good teams and losing to, uh, Seattle. They did split a home-and-home against the Rangers over the weekend but that certainly isn’t anything to scoff at. But, like … beyond Charlie Lindgren, is anyone on this Capitals team actually having a quote-unquote Good Year? Certainly not Alex Ovechkin, Evgeny Kuznetsov, or T.J. Oshie. And yet, the Caps are just three points out of a playoff spot.
Scott: Apparently Tom Wilson is. An All-Star worthy year, you could say.
23. Calgary Flames
Record: 20-18-5, -1
Last Week: 26th (+3)
Mike’s Rank: 23rd
Scott’s Rank: 22nd
Scott: The Flames really took that Blackhawks loss to heart and have snapped back with three straight wins, outscoring their opponents 15-6 in the process. Yegor Sharangovich also had a third of their goals last week, so that probably had something to do with it.
Mike: I was a much bigger proponent of the Sharangovich acquisition for the Flames at the time of the trade than pretty much anybody, so I’m going to take this opportunity to go on a bit of a victory lap. He’s so much fun to watch — genuinely one of the best shooters in the entire league.
24. Buffalo Sabres
Record: 18-21-4, -16
Last Week: 25th (+1)
Mike’s Rank: 24th
Scott’s Rank: 24th
Mike: These Sabres are weird. If you’d said five or six years ago that Casey Mittelstadt would be leading this team in scoring at near a point-per-game pace in 2023-24, the prevailing consensus would likely be that playoff hockey would be back in Buffalo. Yeahhhhh … not even close. Rasmus Dahlin is having a really tough year in the defensive zone, Tage Thompson has struggled to stay healthy, and these guys just can’t get enough saves.
25. St. Louis Blues
Record: 21-18-2, -13
Last Week: 23rd (-2)
Mike’s Rank: 25th
Scott’s Rank: 27th
Scott: I love how, for the most part, Mike and I refuse to acknowledge that the Blues are a good team, as if they aren’t three points out of a playoff spot. I mean, they aren’t good, if not for the five-point rule I had them in 30th, but I think this has been one of our more underrated bits this season.
Mike: They are so clearly a team on the downswing. In a lot of ways, they’re the clear opposite of the Coyotes, who have the exact same number of points but are only improving. And whereas Arizona’s underlyings are merely mediocre, St. Louis’ are terrible. They’re down in Chicago and San Jose territory in a lot of categories.
26. Montreal Canadiens
Record: 17-18-7, -29
Last Week: 27th (+1)
Mike’s Rank: 26th
Scott’s Rank: 26th
Mike: Montreal did not win a game last week. This is a team with an outmatched top end and almost no depth. More often than not, Sam Montembeault has been the reason the Habs have come out of a game with at least one point. Juraj Slafkovsky is fifth on this team in scoring with 15 points in 42 games. For comparison’s sake, he’d be 14th on the Canucks.
27. Minnesota Wild
Record: 17-20-5, -23
Last Week: 22nd (-5)
Mike’s Rank: 29th
Scott’s Rank: 25th
Scott: While I disagree with Mike having the Wild as low as he does, I at least understand his reasoning since it was a really bad week. Four straight losses by a combined score of 21-5, three of them by at least a four-goal deficit, and the other one seeing them blow a 3-1 lead in a span of 1:25 in the third. I cut them some slack with all the injuries, but it has not been pretty.
Mike: Even with Kirill Kaprizov and Filip Gustavsson back, the Wild were flat-out embarrassed by the Coyotes on Saturday. Connor Ingram was still good but that might’ve been the easiest shutout of the five he’s collected so far this year.
28. Ottawa Senators
Record: 15-23-0, -13
Last Week: 29th (+1)
Mike’s Rank: 27th
Scott’s Rank: 28th
Mike: The Sens are badly in need of another high pick, which is crazy to say given how long it’s been since they’ve made the playoffs. But they haven’t been acting like it in recent years, burning firsts to acquire Jakob Chychrun and Alex DeBrincat (where’s he at now?) and using another on a player in Tyler Boucher who has one goal in 10 AHL games this year. Ottawa had lost five consecutive games in regulation to start 2024 before narrowly defeating the Sharks on Saturday. Not really a ringing endorsement.
Scott: I talked about them in my piece on seller teams on Sunday, and man, trying to solve this team’s problem is headache-inducing. They have no depth and no cap space to help that depth, and yet there aren’t really any egregiously bad contracts on the team, just a lot of slight overpayments (outside of Joonas Korpisalo. That one’s just bad).
29. Columbus Blue Jackets
Record: 13-21-9, -32
Last Week: 28th (-1)
Mike’s Rank: 28th
Scott’s Rank: 29th
Mike: Columbus played just two games last week but still managed to allow 12 goals over that span. They’ve succeeded in annoying starting goaltender Elvis Merzlikins by seemingly refusing to play him — he has yet to appear in a single game in 2024 — and the rest of the team is aimlessly meandering along. This is a team that might need a new coach, GM, and president. It’s all bad.
30. Anaheim Ducks
Record: 14-27-1, -38
Last Week: 30th (0)
Mike’s Rank: 30th
Scott’s Rank: 30th
Scott: The Ducks have lost seven of their last eight, what else is new? Credit where it’s due though, they managed to take advantage of their deep defensive pool to land one of the top prospects in the game, and now suddenly their forward prospect pool is so good it’s made Trevor Zegras expendable. They may be an interesting team to follow at the deadline with this recent organizational shakeup.
31. Chicago Blackhawks
Record: 12-29-2, -61
Last Week: 31st (0)
Mike’s Rank: 31st
Scott’s Rank: 31st
Mike: There really is no reason to watch this Hawks team without Connor Bedard. Chicago GM Kyle Davidson tore it down to the studs in his pursuit of the No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 NHL Draft … but, as a consequence, this team has pretty much no one else. Davidson really has his work cut out for him to build a solid team around his young star. As we’ve seen for years on end in Edmonton, it really isn’t as easy as it might seem. Unsurprisingly, the Hawks have scored just three goals in total over their last three games.
Scott: You say this, but they look to have close to $50 million in cap space in the offseason. If they get Macklin Celebrini, it probably isn’t too hard to just hand Jake Guentzel and/or Sam Reinhart a blank cheque if they’re still on the market and that top six looks solid.
32. San Jose Sharks
Record: 10-30-3, -90
Last Week: 32nd (0)
Mike’s Rank: 32nd
Scott’s Rank: 32nd
Scott: This Sharks team has reached such a sad state, it’s taken a toll on their mental health, particularly with the 12-game losing streak that was capped off with a 7-1 blowout loss to the Maple Leafs. But they got that win they were looking for against the Habs the next game, so things are looking up in San Jos- oh wait, they just gave the Sens their first win of 2024.
Mike: I’ve been thinking it over a lot of late and I think the Sharks would be my preferred Celebrini destination. They’re largely inoffensive and they’ve never picked first overall (Really, as long as it’s not Chicago, I don’t care). In any event, these Sharks are unwatchable and it’ll be interesting to see if and when they trade Tomas Hertl. He’d be a great second-line center for a lot of teams in this league, though he’s 30 and has six seasons left on his deal after this year at a cap hit of $8.14 million.
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