NHL Power Rankings: Week 7

We are nearly in the 2nd quarter of the NHL season already. Injuries have been the big story not only in the NFL but its spilling over into the NHL as well. The latest big one was a crazy non-hockey injury to Jack Hughes. We’ve had a weird start to the season but it will make for an exciting push to Christmas.

#16 Detroit Red Wings (11-7-1; 23 Points)

Previously #15

5 points out of 6 last week and it wasn’t all on Dylan Larkin. DeBrincat stepping up and the rest of the team moving forward could finally mean a playoff ticket for the Wings. But this is where things usually go off the rails for them.

#15 Montreal Canadiens (10-6-2; 22 Points)

Previously #8

Montreal is seeing its own regression of sorts but they are still a very fun team to watch. They sit just middle of the pack in terms of expected goals %. They had a tough week and will look for a bounce back.

#14 New York Rangers (10-8-2; 22 Points)

Previously #13

Rangers are starting to roll a little bit. Quick deserved a better fate the other night but that battle against Detroit was epic. Those jerseys, on both sides, were unreal. Rangers rank 5th in expected goals% and you wonder how things will look if they can find consistent scoring, especially at home.

#13 Tampa Bay Lightning (9-7-2; 20 Points)

Previously #6

Bolts are up and down themselves.

#12 Florida Panthers (10-8-1; 21 Points)

Previously #11

They are the most up and down team within games, apart from maybe Edmonton. They just need to get to the playoffs don’t they. They are gonna do this again aren’t they?

#11 Utah Mammoth (10-7-1; 21 Points)

Previously #9

Mammoth is really slowing down and their top dogs are slowing too. This is about the time teams start to revert to their average, to where they actually are in the league. That’s not to say the Mammoth can’t turn things around, just things were bound to break eventually.

#10 Winnipeg Jets (11-7-0; 22 Points)

Previously #14

Pretty consistent .500 hockey from the Jets right now. They are sporting a top 5 team SV% this year, no surprise there, and are able to find the back of the net at a decent clip. They are the 5th worst in expected goals %, as they can’t generate for shit. They are scoring the expected goals they are supposed to, which is good, but they need to generate more.

#9 Anaheim Ducks (11-6-1, 23 Points)

Previously #5

The week for the Ducks was a tough one as they faced what was probably an expected regression to mean for this team. They are good enough to make the playoffs but they were quickly reminded just how hard it is to win in this league. This is a good thing in my eye, it is the Ducks first test at adversity and let’s see if Coach Q can right things this week.

#8 Vegas Golden Knights (8-4-6; 22 Points)

Previously #4

Vegas has been struggling to be consistent, but they still find ways to earn points. They sit in the top 10 in expected goal %, but they just can’t seem to find the back of the net in the fashion they expect. In a year where save percentage is down, the Knights are struggling to score. They also tank in the lower half of the goaltending themselves.

#7 Boston Bruins (12-9-0; 24 Points)

Previously Unranked

The Bruins have surged up as they’ve won 8 of last 9 games. They are very streaky though and it’s a wonder when things will turn and they lose 7 of 9. They sit with a negative expected goals %, 26th in fact, but are finding ways to score. Their expected goal differential is a whopper -6.6 but they are scoring well above expected. Finish is the key boys and girls.

#6 Pittsburgh Penguins (10-5-4; 24 Points)

Previously #7

They lost the first of the Global Series before just handing it back to the Predators in shut out fashion. Pittsburgh could use a little bit more consistency but man are they looking solid, in a year where it's anyone's playoff spot to take. Why not Pitt?

#5 Los Angeles Kings (10-6-1, 24 Points)

Previously Unranked

The Kings have quietly put together quite the run here. 6-3-1 in their last 10. They are awful at home, which is shocking considering they were the best home team last year. They dominate on the road. Signing Kempe for as little as they did is a huge W for this team. Good on em!

#4 New Jersey Devils (13-4-1; 27 Points)

Previously #3

Jack Hughes getting hurt the way he did is tragic. I know it's going to only be a couple months but the fact that a major cut caused this off the ice, he’s lucky it was only this long. Thankfully the Devils will have him back soon and team USA should still have him in February. Find a way to bubble wrap that guy.

#3 Dallas Stars (12-4-3; 27 Points)

Previously #10

Jason Robertson has entered the chat folks. He was sitting 5th in highest expected goal percentage but wasn’t cashing in. We might have seen the breaking point. Nice hatty over the Flyers on Saturday. He will be the interesting piece over the next 9 months.

#2 Carolina Hurricanes (12-5-1; 25 Points)

Unchanged

Injuries are starting to impact this team with Jarvis and Kotkaniemi out with injuries the past week. Jarvis is back but Kotkaniemi is still out. Jarvis being a short term thing is huge for them but they have some of their own tightening up to do. The east is wide open and the Canes need to take advantage.

#1 Colorado Avalanche (13-1-5; 31 Points)