It has been the season of the streak. Welcome to the club,
Washington Capitals -- and, by extension, to the top of the Power Rankings. The
Toronto Maple Leafs and
Minnesota Wild have also continued to impress, while the
Colorado Avalanche and
Arizona Coyotes continue to set the bar for futility.
Sorry,
Columbus -- there's a new sheriff in town. That badge goes to the
Capitals, who have won nine in a row and are clearly the top defensive
club in the league after whipping the
Philadelphia Flyers 5-0 on Sunday. On the heels of last week's emphatic win by Washington, another interesting showdown with
Sidney Crosby and the slumping
Pittsburgh Penguins looms on Monday.
The Wild are alone in first place in the Central Division -- and the Western Conference -- after Sunday's win over the
Chicago Blackhawks,
their conference-best 14th road win. Coach Bruce Boudreau is heading to
Los Angeles to coach the Central Division squad during All-Star
weekend. Is he also heading toward a berth on the Jack Adams ballot as
coach of the year?
The
Blue Jackets have been up-and-down since their 16-game winning streak
ended on Jan. 5, but credit coach John Tortorella for keeping this team
playing competitive hockey pretty much every night.
The Canadiens, who had a nice come-from-behind win over the
New York Rangers on Saturday, continue to pad what is a sizable lead in the Atlantic Division. Are they Stanley Cup-worthy?
The Ducks are cooking, building on a 6-1-1 record in January.
John Gibson is leading the way in goal, with five wins in his past seven starts -- including two via shutout.
6. (2) Pittsburgh Penguins, 26-11-5
The Pens have lost three in a row and saw
Kris Letang go down with an injury on Saturday during an ugly loss to the
Detroit Red Wings. Tough start to 2017 for the defending Stanley Cup champs.
The
Blackhawks have gone just 5-5-0 over their past 10 games and have been
surprisingly tepid on the road. Chicago is still comfortably ensconced
in second place in the Central Division, though, which means one should
never assume anything about its vulnerability.
8. (5) New York Rangers, 28-15-1
The formerly high-flying Rangers have suffered a couple of losses in a row. Getting bodies back up front, like the injured
Rick Nash,
will help. And, let's be honest, there are worse places to be in the
standings than in the top wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference.
The Oilers are starting to play better at home and continue to keep pace in the Pacific Division.
Leon Draisaitl is quietly becoming one of the game's best No. 2 centers.
The Sharks will miss improving young defenseman
Dylan DeMelo, who is out eight weeks with a broken wrist, but are still very much where I thought they'd be.
11. (13) Toronto Maple Leafs, 20-13-8
Toronto
has, at least temporarily, dislodged Ottawa for third place in the
Atlantic Division. Can the Leafs keep it up? It's uncharted territory
for this young team.
Patrice Bergeron and
Brad Marchand are starting to heat up offensively, and that's good news for a team that is hanging tough in a very fluid Atlantic Division.
The
Blues have fallen into the morass in the middle of the playoff
discussion in the Western Conference -- although they got a much-needed
road win in Anaheim on Sunday. Still, St. Louis is terrible away from
home (7-11-1), and its second-half schedule is heavily weighted toward
road games.
Here
come the Hurricanes, winners of four straight. Carolina boasts one of
the league's best home records (15-4-1) and the top penalty-killing
unit.
The Kings are finding traction as they try to create separation in the wild-card race in the Western Conference.
The
Flames have hit a flat spot in early 2017, with a 3-3-1 record in
January. That won't cut it if Calgary is to be playoff-bound.
Are
we finally seeing the Predators team we thought we'd see at the
season's start? Nashville has won three in a row, as GM David Poile
continues to tinker with his lineup. A couple of recent minor roster
additions have brought a little more grit to the Preds.
The
Canucks are still hanging around the playoff picture and have been
excellent at home, where they play their next three -- including a big
midweek matchup against Western Conference foe Nashville.
The
Sens are very much under the radar -- and still very much in the thick
of the playoff race in the Eastern Conference. Coach Guy Boucher and his
staff have done a terrific job of keeping this team on task.
So
much for that 10-game winning streak. The Flyers hit their bye week in a
shambles, with just three wins in 14 games since the end of that streak
-- including nine straight road losses. The postseason, once seemingly a
lock for Philly, now seems unlikely.
The
Panthers continue to stumble their way through the season, with five
wins in their past 12 games. Florida has zero chance of making the
playoffs unless it finds a way to win more consistently.
Dallas is not out of it but not quite in it. Pretty much sums up the Stars' season.
The
Lightning have sunk to 12th in the Eastern Conference and have just
three wins in their past 10 games. And now they are without another key
leadership figure in
Ryan Callahan, who is out long-term with a hip injury.
The
Devils have won a couple in a row to sneak back onto the edge of the
playoff precipice in the Eastern Conference. Strangely, it's been the
defense and the goaltending -- just as much as an anemic offense -- that
has plagued coach John Hynes' team.
One win in their past five reinforces that this squad simply isn't good enough to be a playoff team. Again.
The
Wings enjoyed a rare offensive outpouring in a 6-3 win on Saturday
against Pittsburgh but need to find that level of offense more regularly
to get back into playoff contention.
The
season is only half over, and already Islanders fans are pining for
next season. Who pays for the disaster that is the current campaign?
Someone will have to. Won't they?
The
Sabres are healthy but can't find the consistency needed to be a
playoff team. A franchise that thought it had turned a corner has lots
of work to do.
The
ugliness continues in the desert for the Coyotes, who are 29th in goals
per game and staying out of the league's basement only by virtue of the
chaos in Denver.
Sharks (and other teams) are circling, as the Avalanche are entertaining offers for pretty much everyone on their sad lineup.
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