Neither the Colorado Avalanche nor the Ottawa Senators are as unstoppable as the Tampa Bay Lightning or the St. Louis Blues, but they were both in the news this week.
Why? They were the main components for a highly-awaited trade involving Matt Duchene. The trade sent the former third overall pick to Ottawa and Kyle Turris to Nashville, while the Avalanche got four players and three draft picks in return. Joe Sakic had talked about wanting to get plenty in return for Duchene, and he apparently got his wish.
The Senators are currently seventh in the NHL Power Rankings as they prepare for their series with Colorado in Sweden, while the Avalanche remain just outside the top 20 with a brighter future.
1. Tampa Bay Lightning: 26 points
Previously 1 (21 points)
They remain hot. They have just two losses in regulation, and one in their last 14 games. After going into extra time in their first two games this week, Tampa Bay ripped the Sharks after allowing a goal 25 seconds into the game. Vladislav Namestnikov has been just fine on the first line, and he scored twice to accelerate the Lightning rout on Wednesday.
2. Los Angeles Kings: 24 points
Previously 2 (19 points)
For a team that got off to a hot start, the Kings have somewhat returned to earth on the ice. Their only recent regulation loss, however, came against an equally dangerous team in St. Louis. Big wins against Toronto and Anaheim has restored order as the Kings have added a gap to the Golden Knights in the Pacific Division. Tyler Toffoli has continued his scoring barrage, adding two more goals in a Thursday night game that was more lopsided than the 5-3 score indicated.
3. St. Louis Blues: 25 points
Previously 3 (21 points)
They slipped up against Philly, but the Blues have been rolling in every other game. It showed on Saturday, when they used big second and third periods to ease by the Maple Leafs. Brayden Schenn led the Blues with four assists in the win, and the Blues have some breathing room in November.
4. Pittsburgh Penguins: 20 points
Previously 4 (17 points)
After a long road trip killed their offense, Pittsburgh only did marginally well in a 3-1 win against Arizona. Considering how good they look on paper, their inability to score has given other teams in the division some hope. How long will that last? If Pittsburgh cannot fend off Washington and Nashville on the road, then it may last longer than most would expect. Evgeni Malkin has been the main cog in the disappointing offense, and he contributed to all three Pittsburgh goals on Tuesday.
5. Columbus Blue Jackets: 19 points
Previously 6 (16 points)
The worst power play unit in the NHL took another shot this week. After an offensive onslaught in Florida, including 2-4 on the man advantage, Columbus has failed on their last nine attempts and has now lost three straight. The schedule is somewhat easier for the rest of November, which may give the Jackets a chance at taking command of the Metropolitan Division. Josh Anderson doubled his goal total this week with three goals, including two in Thursday’s blowout win.
6. Toronto Maple Leafs: 20 points
Previously 5 (16 points)
With Frederik Andersen and the defense continuing to struggle on the road, the Leafs’ offense returned home and got the job done against Vegas and Minnesota. The Lightning, the only team with a better offense than Toronto, still have a comfortable lead, so the Leafs need to come through against the Bruins twice to narrow the gap. Nazem Kadri came through with three goals in the two home games, the second of which Auston Matthews did not play.
7. Ottawa Senators: 17 points
Previously 7 (15 points)
Erik Karlsson is going home! Well, for two games, that is. The Swedish captain and the Senators will play a “home-and-home” with Colorado in Stockholm, but the bigger story will be a Canadian player who has never donned the O. Matt Duchene, who was sent to the Senators in a blockbuster trade that also included Nashville, will make his Senators debut in the international series. Mark Stone should continue to dominate the offensive end with or without Duchene, as he did in getting points in four of Ottawa’s seven goals this week.
8. New Jersey Devils: 19 points
Previously 8 (18 points)
After tearing Vancouver apart, the Devils went cold in Alberta. Defense was an issue on both of those losses, and they hit a brick wall in their return home against St. Louis. They will need to get back on track with Edmonton and Florida coming to town before New Jersey goes to the midwest. Taylor Hall added to his team lead in points with goals in both his return to Edmonton and his hometown Calgary.
9. Vegas Golden Knights: 19 points
Previously 10 (16 points)
Maxime Lagace has shown some improvement between the pipes, but the Knights are no longer the formidable team that got off to a historic start. There are five teams within four points of them in the Pacific Division, so someone needs to return soon to help the inexperienced goalie. Lagace did pick up his first NHL victory on Saturday, making Vegas the first team since 2010-2011 to have three goalies pick up their first NHL win in the same season (Malcolm Subban and Oscar Dansk are the others).
10. Chicago Blackhawks: 16 points
Previously 11 (14 points)
The offense was basically sucked out of any arena featuring the Chicago Blackhawks. All of Chicago’s last three games ended in shutouts, with Corey Crawford blanking both Philadelphia and Minnesota before the team hit a Montreal buzzsaw. Despite losing his last start, Crawford has now allowed just five goals in as many games and on 132 shots. His GAA of 1.77 now makes him the NHL leader in that category, and he looks like a serious Vezina candidate in November.
11. Dallas Stars: 16 points
Previously 9 (14 points)
The goalie tandem has officially been tipped upside down. Ben Bishop has faltered, while Kari Lehtonen has thrived against weak offenses. After a big night in Calgary last week, the Finn held the Sabres to one goal on 27 shots for his second victory in as many starts on Saturday. Of course, he got plenty of help from his offense early, as Gemel Smith powered the Stars with two assists in a four-goal opening period. Amazingly, Smith has 24 assists in 73 career games without scoring a goal.
12. New York Islanders: 18 points
Previously 12 (15 points)
It was a decent week for the Islanders, as they picked half of a possible six points this week. Mathew Barzal, however, had an outstanding week. The former first-round pick had seven assists this week, including five in Sunday’s win over Colorado. He owns a six-game point streak, and he looks to be another hot candidate for the Calder Trophy at this rate.
13. Washington Capitals: 17 points
Previously 13 (11 points)
Despite an underwhelming finish in Buffalo, the Capitals did plenty of work to prove their legitimacy. They won three straight games, including an overtime victory over the half-dead Coyotes, and they can skip over a few teams in the Metropolitan Division with wins over offensively challenged opponents. Tom Wilson narrowly missed a hat trick in Washington’s victory in Boston, and his two goals were his first since Game 4 of the first round of the playoffs against Toronto.
14. Winnipeg Jets: 19 points
Previously 18 (14 points)
After blitzing the Stars and getting points in all three games, the high-flying Jets are licking their chops in a light week. They take on the fading Knights on Friday before two games against Arizona. This is great news for Connor Hellebuyck, who continues to have a breakout campaign. Mark Scheifele had five goals, including a hat trick, in Winnipeg’s two blowout victories against Dallas, but he will not see them again until late January.
15. San Jose Sharks: 16 points
Previously 16 (14 points)
San Jose does not go east of Arizona until the last day of November, which is great considering their only real slip up since their return from their previous road trip was against the Lightning. At this rate, that is not a bad loss, but big match-ups against Vancouver and Los Angeles await. Martin Jones outlasted Ryan Miller on Saturday in the shootout with 25 saves on 26 shots before Joonas Donskoi put it away.
16. Vancouver Canucks: 18 points
Previously 21 (14 points)
The defense was not supposed to be good, but sometimes you have to expect the unexpected in hockey. Vancouver is fourth in GAA. Anders Nilsson has made shutouts commonplace, and Jacob Markstrom did not allow more than three goals in any of his four starts this week. That equates to being just behind Vegas for second place for a team that has no business in the playoff picture. Or do they? Brock Boeser picked up his first NHL hat trick in Vancouver’s win over Pittsburgh on Saturday.
17. Nashville Predators: 18 points
Previously 19 (12 points)
Nashville was the third team involved in the Matt Duchene trade. They ended up with former Senator and Coyote Kyle Turris while giving up youngsters like Samuel Girard to Colorado. While Turris awaits his Nashville debut, the Predators ripped off three straight wins on the road, including a big win in Los Angeles. Viktor Arvidsson scored in all three games, including the overtime winner on a breakaway to sink the Kings.
18. Calgary Flames: 16 points
Previously 17 (12 points)
Calgary’s lengthy home stand has been decent. They won three straight games, including big ones against Washington and Pittsburgh, before Mike Smith struggled against the Canucks. They need at least one win against Detroit and St. Louis before going on a six-game road trip to keep pace with Vegas. Micheal Ferland has taken advantage of returning to the Johnny Gaudreau–Sean Monahan line. He has three goals in his last four games, including one each against the Devils and Canucks.
19. Anaheim Ducks: 15 points
Previously 14 (13 points)
Talk about a rough stretch. Going winless in early November is not a good way to get out of the bottom half of the Pacific Division, and it is only a matter of time before Edmonton figures things out. Ryan Miller dazzled against the Sharks on Saturday, stopping 44 of 45 shots before falling in a shootout.
20. Boston Bruins: 15 points
Previously 20 (11 points)
No team has more consistency issues than the Bruins. At 6-5-3, Boston has yet to put consecutive wins together, so it came as no surprise that they fell to big Eastern Conference foes after knocking out Vegas and Minnesota at TD Garden, where the Bruins have five of their six wins. A home-and-home with Toronto and the California road trip is next. He might not be on a torrid pace, but David Pastrnak scored all three of his goals this week in losses, and he is currently on pace for 50 goals. Five of his eight goals have come in losing causes.
21. Colorado Avalanche: 16 points
Previously 23 (12 points)
The timing of the Matt Duchene trade was very suspect. Not only was it made during Colorado’s ugly loss in Brooklyn, but the team Duchene was traded to, Ottawa, will play them twice this week. Fortunately for Duchene, he will not have to draw the ire of Avs fans as those two games are in Stockholm. Following another big week, Nathan MacKinnon has nine points in his last four games and may be on the fast track toward putting the offense on his back.
22. Carolina Hurricanes: 13 points
Previously 15 (10 points)
Carolina still has a game advantage, but they need to start stringing wins together. They have won two in a row just once to start the season, and they needed a Derek Ryan tip to get past the lowly Panthers. They need more players besides Justin Williams and Jeff Skinner to help the Hurricanes end their playoff drought.
23. Philadelphia Flyers: 16 points
Previously 22 (13 points)
Philadelphia made it through their light week with three points, and they have kept pace in a Metropolitan Division full of parity. They will continues their six-game blitz through the balanced Central Division this week, including a home-and-home with Minnesota. Michal Neuvirth continues to look like one of the top back-up goaltenders in the league, as he shut out former teammate Brayden Schenn and the Blues on 33 shots on Thursday.
24. Detroit Red Wings: 17 points
Previously 27 (13 points)
After looking awful against the Canucks at home, the Red Wings got full revenge without needing much offense. Despite a third period-blitz from Vancouver, the Wings won on a Tomas Tatar goal with 1:14 left to clinch the season split with the Canucks. This came the day after Petr Mrazek shut out Edmonton on 36 shots, making it his best start in about nine months.
25. New York Rangers: 18 points
Previously 28 (10 points)
New York has seemingly recovered from their awful October. They have won five straight games and the offense had no problems taking care of the Blue Jackets and Bruins at home, where wins have become a challenge. Following 27 goals last season, Michael Grabner has found his groove following a slow start. After just one goal in the first 10 games, he had three this week, including his second two-goal performance in a furious rally to knock off Columbus.
26. Montreal Canadiens: 15 points
Previously 25 (10 points)
At least for now, Montreal has righted the ship. With Carey Price nursing an injury, Charles Lindgren and the Canadiens have won three straight to stray away from the Atlantic Division depths. Lindgren has been excellent in Price’s absence, especially when he shut out the Blackhawks on 38 shots. He is currently 5-0-0 in his short career.
27. Minnesota Wild: 12 points
Previously 24 (10 points)
After beating Montreal on Thursday, the Wild look like the clear cellar dwellers early in the Central Division. After a home loss to Chicago and a road trip that looks sour, finding ground in Minnesota might be a challenge. Jason Zucker followed up a five-goal drought with both Minnesota goals in Wednesday’s loss in Toronto.
28. Edmonton Oilers: 11 points
Previously 26 (7 points)
The worst offense in the NHL took another poor loss against Detroit, but they also had an offensive onslaught against New Jersey and big night from Cam Talbot in Brooklyn. The Oilers will need to continue their success vs. the Metropolitan Division to help them get out of an early hole. Connor McDavid followed up a three-assist night on Friday with the overtime winner to help the Oilers pick up a much-needed win over the Islanders.
29. Buffalo Sabres: 12 points
Previously 30 (8 points)
With Arizona and a disappointing Washington team in the schedule, the Sabres had one of their biggest weeks of the season. Evander Kane continues to be the leading offensive force, but Benoit Pouliot is starting to make his presence felt in his first season in Buffalo. He had three goals for the struggling Buffalo offense this week, including two in a big night in Glendale.
30. Florida Panthers: 10 points
Previously 29 (9 points)
The defense has been in free fall. They allowed 20 goals in their three-game home stand, and they inevitably fell to last in GAA. With Roberto Luongo looking like a shell of himself, it may be time to scrap the veterans and find their future on defense. Colton Sceviour crushed the Rangers with two goals in the first period on Saturday, but the defense inevitably failed under pressure.
31. Arizona Coyotes: 6 points
Previously 31 (3 points)
Finally, the Coyotes won at home, but the losing has continued on the road. The Metropolitan Division has been responsible for both Arizona victories, but that did not stop Washington and Pittsburgh from doing just enough to hold them back. Christian Dvorak has struggled during his sophomore campaign, but he did add two points in Arizona’s loss to Buffalo on Thursday and nearly willed the Coyotes to a huge comeback.
BOLD PREDICTIONS:
Last week:
Columbus defeats Florida by at least five goals on Thursday. Of course, the Jackets would finish one short…
Duncan Keith scores his first goal of the season. It is hard to score on defense when the offense is at a horrible premium.
Martin Jones shuts out the Lightning on Wednesday. This game was so ugly for the Sharks that anything favoring them would have been wrong.
This week:
Swedish defenseman Erik Karlsson and the Senators win both games in Stockholm.
On Friday, Florida and Buffalo each take at least 40 shots on goal and the game goes into a shootout.
Ryan Suter pots four points against Philadelphia on Tuesday.