In a week filled with huge stories, mostly of the injury variety, there is one team that made its way into the top 5 of the NHL Power Rankings. The saddest part is that I predicted that this team would finish the season with 66 points, worst in the NHL, because they had no offense.
The Columbus Blue Jackets, however, clearly have the offense. They are now third in the NHL in scoring (only the New York Rangers and Pittsburgh Penguins are better), and shattering numerous franchise records in the process. Suddenly, one of the least successful franchises in the NHL has turned into the most watchable.
They are not the only team in the Metropolitan Division to turn heads. The Philadelphia Flyers rode a five-game winning streak into the Top 10 of the power rankings.
1. Montreal Canadiens (37 points)
Previously 1 (34 points)
Their five-game road swing out west has come to a close, and they needed a shootout win to avoid being swept in California. Luckily for them, they are still tied with the Blackhawks for the league lead in points. Max Pacioretty scored twice to help the Canadiens survive a four goal outburst from LA in the second period on Sunday. Unfortunately, Alex Galchenyuk suffered a knee injury in that game and is out indefinitely.
2. New York Rangers (35 points)
Previously 2 (33 points)
The Rangers have exchanged wins and losses for their last eight games. Unfortunately for them, their last four had winnable games. They defeated Carolina at home twice, but fell on the road to the Sabres and Isles. It gets no easier from here, as Winnipeg, Chicago (twice), and New Jersey are up next. Chris Kreider came up big late on Saturday, scoring twice in the final 10 minutes of the third period to sink the Hurricanes.
3. Chicago Blackhawks (37 points)
Previously 3 (33 points)
The Blackhawks have yet to have a three-game losing streak this season. They nearly had one this week after Philadelphia and Winnipeg held them to just one goal in each loss. They had no problems, however, shutting out the weary Coyotes. Marian Hossa continues to defy age. He scored in overtime to finish off New Jersey on Thursday, and he scored twice on Tuesday against Arizona. He is just three goals behind the league lead. Corey Crawford is out at least two weeks after having an appendectomy.
4. Pittsburgh Penguins (35 points)
Previously 4 (29 points)
A nasty penalty shot fake helped @rustyyy_92 pick up his first career hat trick.
pic.twitter.com/Qyr1rUeh1Q
— NHL (@NHL) December 6, 2016
He ain’t rusty. Bryan Rust capped off an unbelievable week for the Penguins offensively when he recorded a hat trick against the Senators on Monday. In their three wins this week, the Penguins scored at least five goals in each, hitting eight on Monday. While Rust stole the spotlight on Monday, it was a balanced attack for most of the week. Phil Kessel led the charge with six points in those games, including three goals and two assists in comeback wins over Detroit and Ottawa.
5. Columbus Blue Jackets (34 points)
Previously 17 (28 points)
Playing Colorado and Arizona (twice) is not a hard schedule, but this is not the only time the Jackets have looked great. Remember they scored 10 times on Montreal. They had another outstanding night in Glendale on Saturday. While they only scored twice on Mike Smith, they took a franchise-record 60 shots in that game, and they eventually won in the shootout. They are only a couple of wins away from possibly having the most points in the NHL. No one can predict that. You know what else no one could predict? Sam Gagner is tied with Nick Foligno for the team lead in goals (10) after getting two goals (and assisting on the other two Columbus goals) in the home win over the Coyotes.
6. Ottawa Senators (34 points)
Previously 6 (29 points)
No matter how you shake it, giving up eight goals is a real killer. Just ask Anaheim, St. Louis, and definitely Montreal. Other than the disaster in Pittsburgh, Ottawa got crucial wins over Florida and San Jose. There was one positive from Sunday. Ottawa went three for five on the power play, and they got another PP goal on Wednesday. Logan Couture also scored the only power play goal against the Sens in four games (18 penalty kill chances overall). Erik Karlsson had three goals and five assists in Ottawa’s three games this week.
7. St. Louis Blues (34 points)
Previously 7 (29 points)
In a Central Division that is getting more lopsided by the minute, the Blues are the only team that is currently making the Blackhawks sweat. They have won eight of their last 10 games since getting smoked with eight goals in Columbus. With less than a month until the Winter Classic comes to Busch Stadium, the already increased hype of the outdoor game has certainly increased with the current standings. Jaden Schwartz contributed to all three of St. Louis’s goals against Montreal on Tuesday, which included scoring the game-tying and overtime goals past Al Montoya.
8. San Jose Sharks (31 points)
Previously 8 (29 points)
San Jose had a three-game winning streak and a five-day rest heading into Friday, but they likely forgot to think about Chris Kelly. He broke free of the defense and scored the game-winner on Wednesday with just 66 seconds remaining in regulation. However, this came after the defense stifled the Canadiens offense on Friday. Brent Burns has three goals in his last four games and lead all NHL defensemen with 11 goals. No surprise from the 2016 Norris Trophy finalist.
9. Washington Capitals (31 points)
Previously 5 (28 points)
Washington sure knew how to make their fans pay attention to the end of their games this week. After a clunker on Thursday, they went through two low-scoring games and let Boston back into the fourth game. All this resulted in two thrilling overtime victories at the Verizon Center. Unfortunately, Philly and Columbus have caught fire, so the Capitals are now tied for fourth in the Metropolitan Division. Marcus Johansson carried Washington against Buffalo on Monday, scoring twice and netting the overtime winner.
10. Philadelphia Flyers (33 points)
Previously 17 (25 points)
Philadelphia owns the longest active winning streak in the NHL, and it is not hard to see why the tides have turned. Steve Mason has not allowed more than two goals in any of his five starts during the streak. While it was basically impossible to match the kind of night he had against Boston last week, he nearly matched it with 42 saves on 44 Florida shots in the overtime win on Tuesday. Defensively, Philly still looks bad on paper, but 26th is way better than fighting with Dallas for dead last. On the other end, Wayne Simmonds has scored twice in each of his last two games.
11. Minnesota Wild (30 points)
Previously 11 (25 points)
Their five-game road trip had been forgettable heading into Edmonton, but they salvaged two wins against the Oilers and Maple Leafs. Someone needs to explain to me how the Wild visit(ed) Montreal, Toronto, and Ottawa on three different road trips because those three are usually on the same trip for travel purposes. Devan Dubnyk has been so good in goal this season. He has yet to allow more than three goals in any start, but that is likely going to happen this week now that I mentioned it.
12. Tampa Bay Lightning (30 points)
Previously 9 (27 points)
The Lightning have had one of the top power play units in the NHL, but the offense went ice cold this weekend. They scored just one over the weekend, but Ben Bishop was the driving force towards snapping their four-game losing streak and salvaging three points against the Capitals and Hurricanes. With 63 saves on 65 saves in nearly 126 minutes in those two games, Bishop may be recovering just in time to help the Lightning keep up with Ottawa and Montreal in the Atlantic Division.
13. Boston Bruins (32 points)
Previously 13 (25 points)
They put together a three-game winning streak this week, and they would not lose it so easily on NBC. After going down 3-0 on Washington, they came back to force overtime and salvage a point before the Caps finally earned the second point to beat Boston for the seventh straight time. Anton Blidh, Boston’s sixth-round pick from 2013, got his first point of the season on a goal that Dominic Moore tipped in on Wednesday, and David Pastrnak had three more goals for the week, including the overtime goal to put away Florida on Monday.
14. Edmonton Oilers (32 points)
Previously 12 (26 points)
What if Connor McDavid has as many assists this season as total Edmonton games? He is already at 25 through 28 games, and he would be the first player to reach the 82-assist plateau since Henrik Sedin had 83 in 2009-2010. He also leads the league with 36 points, by the way. His 11 goals are tied for the team lead with Leon Draisaitl, who put the finishing touches on an overtime win over the rival Ducks on Saturday.
15. New Jersey Devils (30 points)
Previously 14 (25 points)
Cammy’s team-leading ninth goal of the season lifted the #NJDevils to a 5-4 OT win on Saturday presented by @TheNJLottery! pic.twitter.com/NWMPTK44i3
— New Jersey Devils (@NJDevils) December 5, 2016
Could Saturday’s comeback win over the Predators be the win that turns the entire Eastern Conference on its side? Steve Cangialosi of MSG+ certainly made it seem that way. They have since won yet another home game, this time to the Canucks. Mike Cammalleri
probably will not win the Hart Trophy, but he is becoming one of the most valuable players on the team. He leads New Jersey with nine goals. Two of those came in Nashville, including the overtime winner that set what could be a huge run into motion.
16. Los Angeles Kings (28 points)
Previously 16 (25 points)
They got the lightest schedule to begin December, but they also had two can’t-miss games. After winning a back-and-forth in the desert, the Kings scored four times on Carey Price in the second period to force overtime. They would end up losing their lone home game in the shootout. Trevor Lewis continued to contribute with two goals, including the game-winner in Arizona, and Jordan Nolan scored his first two goals in 67 to contribute to the win.
17. Anaheim Ducks (31 points)
Previously 15 (26 points)
Corey Perry had to wait 19 games to get his fifth goal of the season. He can be streaky at times, but he has had five straight non-lockout seasons of at least 30 goals, so that is a good sign if the trend continues. His latest goal tied Carolina up on Wednesday and eventually resulted in a shootout victory for the Ducks, which is a big deal considering the beatdown they received in the Saddledome.
18. Winnipeg Jets (29 points)
Previously 18 (24 points)
The train keeps rolling for Patrik Laine. He now has five goals in as many games and once again shares the league lead with 17 goals. Not bad for a second overall pick whose NHL career in not even two months old. Two of those red-lighters were once again Ovechkin-like slap shots in a 6-3 loss to Edmonton, who previously beat Winnipeg in the Heritage Classic back in October.
19. Nashville Predators (28 points)
Previously 19 (25 points)
PK Subban – you nasty!
— Brian Scott Burton (@sportsourcesb) December 7, 2016
They were so close to having a good week. They had a three-goal lead in the third period against the Devils and they let it slip away. Instead, their last two wins have been against Colorado. Not bad considering they have played them twice in their last four games. P.K. Subban had his signature blast from the blue line working this week, for he connected twice this week, using a “ski ramp” tip to get past Semyon Varlamov.
20. Detroit Red Wings (29 points)
Previously 23 (24 points)
Overtime has been kind to the Wings as of late. They won consecutive games in extra time this week. It was their fourth win of that kind in the last two weeks and sixth of the season. Mike Green scored his second overtime goal on Sunday in Brooklyn. His scoring line looks like this: a hat trick in the third game of the season, two overtime winners, and the other goal also coming in the Sunday win. Cannot blame a guy to lives for the spotlight in 2016-2017.
21. Calgary Flames (30 points)
Previously 25 (24 points)
Can’t have fire without Flames. They have won four in a row and six of eight to throw themselves right back into the playoff picture. December was an incredible month for Calgary last year, especially at home, and the first week of this December is following the same script. Johnny Gaudreau returned to action on Sunday and scored on his first shot attempt. That was the beginning of an eight-goal unleashing against Anaheim, which Alex Chiasson led to cap a run of three goals in six games.
22. Dallas Stars (26 points)
Previously 20 (24 points)
They were fortunate to have Colorado in their schedule because things were not clicking together this week. A 6-2 loss to Pittsburgh and a 2-1 loss to Calgary sandwiched Kari Lehtonen‘s 3-0 shutout, his first of the season, of the free-falling Avalanche. Curtis McKenzie was one of few players to put up a fight for Dallas this week. He had a goal in both Saturday’s and Tuesday’s games.
23. Florida Panthers (28 points)
Previously 21 (24 points)
Florida had plenty of extra time to pass around this week. After cashing in on their final trip to the Joe Louis Arena, the Cats fell on winners in Boston and Philly, capping off a miserable six-game road trip. Aleksander Barkov‘s scored the overtime goal in Detroit, and it was the first of three goals this week for the Finn.
24. Carolina Hurricanes (26 points)
Previously 24 (22 points)
They are losers of four of five games, and found a way to win with one goal and LOSE with five goals. Defying logic at its best. Teuvo Teravainen was a huge pickup for the Hurricanes during the offseason, and he likely would have won first star honors in Wednesday’s game if Carolina had hung on against Anaheim. He scored twice for his first goals in 10 games.
25. Toronto Maple Leafs (25 points)
Previously 22 (24 points)
They only played two games, but they could only get one point. That was enough for Buffalo to make a move and pass them in the Atlantic Division. Even if things do not work out this season, they can look forward to playing Vancouver next year because those games were wildly entertaining this year. After getting off to a strong start to the season, Tyler Bozak crossed around Matt Dumba on Wednesday for his first goal in 13 games. He did, however, have four assists against Nashville on November 15, including all of the goals from James van Riemsdyk‘s hat trick.
26. Buffalo Sabres (26 points)
Previously 26 (21 points)
It took eight tries, but Buffalo finally scored a goal in ooooooooooovertime. Coincidentally, the game-winner against Edmonton on Tuesday was also Rasmus Ristolainen‘s first goal of the season. He also tallied two assists in that game and easily leads the team with 15 assists. You don’t need to score to be helpful. Just ask Duncan Keith.
27. Vancouver Canucks (24 points)
Previously 27 (22 points)
The hype was elevated on Saturday because the Maple Leafs came to town. In their first meeting of the season, more than enough gloves came off in the third period. Ten ejections, two fighting goalies, and 171 penalty minutes worth. Erik Gudbranson, who made a death threat to Matt Martin for his role in the last game, predictably fought his foe at home. Ryan Miller, who fought Martin in Toronto, served up the biggest revenge, stopping Tyler Bozak in the shootout to win the game. Phillip Larsen has to be removed from Tuesday’s game against New Jersey after Taylor Hall hit him in the head. He currently has four assists this season.
28. New York Islanders (25 points)
Previously 28 (20 points)
After having the fewest points in the league last Sunday, the Islanders have now had points in their last five, with their only blemish coming on an overtime loss to Danny DeKeyser and the Detroit Red Wings. They got bragging rights after shutting out Washington on the road and taking down the Rangers in the second cross-town game of the year. Defenders are hot in the Barclays Center of late. Johnny Boychuk had another fiery goal from the blue line against Detroit (Mike Green also had two goals in that game), but he had the flu on Tuesday, so Scott Mayfield punched in his first NHL goal on Henrik Lundqvist.
29. Arizona Coyotes (20 points)
Previously 29 (19 points)
Arizona has now lost five straight games, with the last two coming on non-competitive losses to Columbus and Chicago. They have the high-flying Flames on their schedule three times this month, and the first one is Thursday night.
Anthony Duclair, a 20-goal scorer last season, has just one goal and three assists with an ATOI on 13:12 this season, and his plunge in the stat sheet is a heavy cause for concern for a team that clearly has not built off of a fourth place finish in the Pacific Division last year.
30. Colorado Avalanche (19 points)
Previously 30 (19 points)
They are now losers of six straight games, and the five five of those were at home. Even with the Coyotes having issues winning, the Avalanche have become the doormat of the NHL. Going into Boston, Montreal, and Toronto this week will not help matters. Erik Johnson is out six to eight weeks with a broken leg.
Bold Predictions:
Last week:
Colorado shuts out Columbus 4-0 on Thursday. Always bet against the Avalanche…I should have told myself that.
Bo Horvat scores twice against Toronto on Saturday. He did score…in the shootout. Still a zero on the box score and another miss in my book.
The Tampa Bay goalie on Sunday gets at least 40 saves against Carolina. Bishop had a great game in Raleigh, but he was 10 saves short. To make matters worse, he lost in overtime on Phillip Di Giuseppe‘s first goal of the season.
This week:
Nikita Kucherov gets a hat trick this week.
Boston and Montreal combine for at least 60 penalty minutes on Monday.
Martin Jones/Aaron Dell shut out Toronto on at least 35 shots on Tuesday.