Let’s Get This Party Started: NHL Power Rankings Week 1

By Kevin Mejia

1. Carolina Hurricanes (4-0-0) – Carolina sits at first in the league, as the only team with 4 wins and no losses. They might have been a bit lucky doing it, winning their first 3 games in a shootout, and then back to back overtimes, but their convincing win versus the Florida Panthers pushes them over the top.  Hanging up 4 goals on Panthers netminder Sergei Bobrovsky is no easy feat.  Defenseman Dougie Hamilton and forward Andrei Svechnikov lead the Hurricanes’ surge.
2. St. Louis Blues (2-0-1) – After losing on their banner raising night, the Blues have been nothing but solid. All 3 of their games have gone 3-2, with the two wins coming against pesky teams in Dallas and Toronto.  Jordan Binnington seems to be proving his worth as he has a .928 save percent over the course of the 3 contests.  Young gun Sammy Blais surprisingly leads the way as he has 2 goals and 2 assists over the 3 games.
3. Boston Bruins (3-0-0) – The Bruins are one of the most dominant teams in the league. The Bruins have looked solid playing 3 quality teams in Dallas, Arizona, and Vegas all on the road, all being decided by 1 goal.  Boston has been getting great goaltending from Tuukka Rask and Jaroslav Halak.  Rask has played two games and put up an outstanding .937 save percent.  Halak has a shutout for the Bruins.  Watch out for Patrice Bergeron, David Pastrnak, and Brad Marchand as they are dominating opponents.
4. Toronto Maple Leafs (2-1-1) – The kids are back at it. 16 goals over the course of 4 games is nothing to sneeze at.  Auston Matthews has 5 goals and he has his moustache to thank.  The young core of the team with Matthews, Mitch Marner, William Nylander, and Morgan Reilly are clicking all the right buttons.  The defense has much to prove as they have allowed 13 goals.  Tyson Barrie looks like a legit number 1 right-handed defenseman in a contract year.
5. Vegas Golden Knights (2-1-0) – The magic of Vegas has seemingly not run out. With a full year of Mark Stone (2 goals and 4 assists) getting underway, the team looks primed for another big cup run.  Vegas swept the Sharks in a home and home outscoring them 9 to 2.  Vegas put up a great effort versus the Bruins, however they could not complete the comeback.  Don’t sleep on Cody Glass as a potential rookie of the year candidate as he plays with Stone and Max Pacioretty.
6. Washington Capitals (2-0-2) – After a Stanley Cup hangover, the Caps seem to be back in form. After a quality win against the Blues and an average performance versus the Islanders, the Caps have dropped 2 in a row in overtime at home.  Goalie Braden Holtby has looked somewhat out of place, as he is not playing up to snuff.  The Caps offense seems to be out to a slow start this year.  They’ll figure it out.
7. Colorado Avalanche (2-0-0) – One of the teams I am MOST excited to watch, the Avalanche have come out of the gate hot. Studs Mikko Rantanen and Nathan MacKinnon are carrying this team with linemate Gabriel Landeskog following the way.  Solid wins versus Calgary and Minnesota have impressed.  Thursday night the Avs have a solid match versus the Boston Bruins in what will be must watch hockey and a potential Stanley Cup Final preview.  Watch for goalie Philipp Grubauer in his breakout year.
8. Anaheim Ducks (3-0-0) – John Gibson has a .954 save percent. That’s it.  That’s the Ducks.  A stale offense is being CARRIED by Pittsburgh native Gibson.  Gibson has allowed 1 goal every game the Ducks have played so far.  Scoring an average of 2.67 goals might be enough for Gibson, but if he gets hurt this Ducks team might come falling down to Earth.  If scoring goes down, the Ducks will drop quick.
9. New York Rangers (2-0-0) – Broadway baby. The second hottest team in New York (sorry Rangers fans you all know it is the Yankees) is all offense. The first line of Mika Zibanejad, Pavel Buchnevich, and newly signed Artemi Panarin have all the chemistry in the world.  The line has combined for a total of 14 points.  Zibenejad has had back to back 4-point games.  The defense has been solid along with two good keepers in Henrik Lundqvist and Alexander Georgiev.
10. Edmonton Oilers (3-0-0) – The Oilers… are good???? Surprising things happen when Connor McDavid plays with competent wingers.  James Neal just dropped a 4-goal performance versus the Islanders, which is something to watch for this season as Neal will rebound after a 7-goal campaign last year with the Flames.  The Oilers have scored 5 goals or more in 2 of their 3 games.  McDavid will put this team on his back, as he is the best player in the league.  Just ask Sidney Crosby.
11. Buffalo Sabres (2-0-1) – Not buying what the Sabres are selling just yet. 3 games played, all against teams with a combined record of 2-5-1.  Defenseman Rasmus Dahlin is avoiding the sophomore slump early, as he leads the Sabres with 5 points.  Carter Hutton has a .939 save percent in 2 games which might come down a bit, but I expect him to have a good year.  I need the Sabres to win against a top team before they move up any further.
12. Montreal Canadiens (1-0-1) – What an interesting team we have in the Canadiens. The Canadiens came back from a 4 to 1 deficit versus the mighty Leafs and fell in a shootout to the Carolina Hurricanes.  Carey Price sits at a .900 save percent at the moment.  Being paid $10.5 million this year means Price will need to play better than that.  If Price can manage a .915 save percent, the Canadiens will fly into the playoffs.  Look for Brendan Gallagher to have a huge year.
13. Tampa Bay Lightning (1-1-1) – The Lightning don’t seem as invincible as they were last season, as they seemed human in all 3 games they have played. Andrei Vasilevskiy has looked average with a .908 save percent.  The offense seems to still be explosive, however it is just not the same as last year.  Should there be cause for concern that the leading scorer is Mikhail Sergachev?  Is it bad that Nikita Kucherov only has 2 points so far?  Watch for them to breakout.
14. Nashville Predators (2-1-0) – Really like the way the Preds are playing right now. Introducing Filip Forsberg to new second line center Matt Duchene has been great, as the two have developed chemistry quickly.  The D core still looks great even though the Predators had to trade P.K. Subban for cap space.  Roman Josi and Ryan Ellis are the best defense pair in the league.  Pekka Rinne is looking like a Vezina level goalie through 2 games.  This is a dangerous team.
15. Florida Panthers (1-2-0) – An interesting start to the season in Sunrise. Splitting a home and home with the Lightning is great but getting shellacked by the best team in the league is no bueno.  Sergei Bobrovsky hasn’t exactly played up to his $10 million a year status so far, but the Panthers are only 3 games into the season.  No need to overreact to his .859 save percent.  Mike Hoffman is playing great (6 points) so far in a contract year.
16. Detroit Red Wings (2-1-0) – No one expected the Red Wings to be this good. A lot of the talent in this organization is currently sitting in the AHL, with elite prospect Filip Zadina playing in Grand Rapids.  Anthony Mantha is proving he’s a capable NHL player as he has 7 points (5 goals, 2 assists) in 3 games.  Mantha single-handedly carried this Detroit team to a win over the Stars with all 4 goals (Detroit won 4-3).  Maybe Detroit can continue to surprise us all.
17. Dallas Stars (1-3-0) – Dallas is having an underrated start to the season. The Stars have played in 4 1-goal games.  These games are often considered to be toss ups, and the Stars have not been on the good end of things 3 out of 4 times.  They finally broke through last night, beating the Capitals in an overtime match.  Playing Boston, St. Louis, Anthony Mantha, and the Capitals is no easy start to a season.  Look for Ben Bishop to rebound after a rocky start with a .902 save percent.
18. Calgary Flames (1-1-1) – A wacky start to the season for the Flames; getting rocked by the Avs, shutting the Canucks out, and losing in overtime to the Kings last night. Not sure what to make of this team as they seem to be a bit inconsistent.  Goalie David Rittich has played great so far, as he has posted a .924 save percent.  Gaudreau, Tkachuk, Monahan, Giordano, and Lindholm all posted over 70 points each last season and seem to be keeping up that pace.
19. Philadelphia Flyers (1-0-0) – The Flyers have played 1 game so far… not much to make out of their game in Prague. Travis Konecny had a great goal on the backhand against Corey Crawford, along with another goal and assist.  Carter Hart will prove that he is the answer for the future in net this year.   Look for a breakout year from young defenseman Travis Sanheim.  The 23-year-old will post better than his 35-point performance from last season.  Gritty will have a standout year.
20. Winnipeg Jets (2-2-0) – Good lord the Jets defense is garbage. This team has given up the second most goals (behind San Jose) at 15.  However, the offense is more than enough to keep this team going.  Patrik Laine and Kyle Connor signed big extensions (2 years and 7 years, respectively) and will have to prove their worth by scoring a ton.  Laine can’t have 18 goals in 12 games (his month of November) again like he did last year.  Consistency is key for this Jets team.
21. New Jersey Devils (0-1-1) – Oof. Blowing a 4-goal lead to the Jets in the home opener really sucks.  It’s a young team so games like this will happen.  As everyone predicted, the problem is in net with the Devils.  Corey Schneider has a .905 save percent while Mackenzie Blackwood has a .800.  P.K. Subban needs to stay out of the box (5 penalties taken already).  Blake Coleman has already scored the goal of the year.  Look for Jack Hughes to score soon.
22. Pittsburgh Penguins (1-2-0) – Let the madness take over Pittsburgh. Evgeni Malkin and Nick Bjugstad are both out with long term injuries. Jack Johnson and Erik Gudbranson have been terrible playing together.  Sidney Crosby is the only player keeping this team afloat.  Only scoring 1 goal against a Jets team with a terrible defense is a huge concern.  Matt Murray is still inconsistent as ever, with a .903 save percent.  Is he the goalie of the future?  A big move might be afoot.
23. New York Islanders (1-2-0) – Things are not looking up for the Isles this season. Semyon Varlamov is not the goalie that GM Lou Lamoriello thought he would be when he signed Varlamov to a 4-year deal worth $20 million dollars.  Varlamov has a .872 save percent in 2 games.  Paying Anders Lee $49 million over 7 years might not be the best contract, as he has 1 point in 3 games.  The Islanders will be a basement team in the Metro division.
24. Chicago Blackhawks (0-1-0) – Well… one game doesn’t really provide a true testament to this team. A 4-3 loss to the Flyers in the Czech Republic isn’t the worst that could happen.  Good to see familiar faces in Alex DeBrincat and Patty Kane score 2 of the Hawks 3 goals.  There are concerns in net with Corey Crawford coming off a season with injury, however new keeper Robin Lehner should be key in the Blackhawks quest to return to the playoffs.
25. Columbus Blue Jackets (1-2-0) – You lost everything this offseason… Bobrovsky, Duchene, and Panarin… all gone. So be it.  You went for it and upset one of the best teams of all time.  Now the team is feeling the repercussions as the depth must step up and play their hearts out.  Seth Jones and Zach Werenski are impact players along the blueline.  Overall, this team is just going to get slapped silly this season.  Just look at the Leafs and Penguins games (11 goals allowed combined).
26. Los Angeles Kings (1-1-0) – Beating the Flames last night is an impressive feat. However, giving up 6 goals to the Oilers is not a great look.  Drew Doughty is playing up to the standard of his $11 million a year contract as he has 2 goals and 2 assists in 2 games.  Neither goalie has a save percent above .900 which is very concerning for this Kings team.  Watch out for Ilya Kovalchuk to put up big numbers this season.
27. Arizona Coyotes (0-2-0) – Not quite what people were expecting from the team in the desert. 1 goal combined in two games is not where most people pegged this new Coyotes offense to start off.  With the arrival of Phil “The Thrill” Kessel most wanted more scoring out of this Coyotes lineup.  Only allowing 3 goals keeps them in the conversation for one of the better bad teams.  Darcy Kuemper has stood on his head with a .945 save percent.
28. Vancouver Canucks (0-2-0) – A new captain of the Canucks will be announced tonight! Most likely Bo Horvat will step into the role that has been vacant since the departure of Henrik Sedin.  Talking hockey, this team has looked stale.  With only 2 goals scored and 6 allowed, it seems the Canucks just haven’t found their rhythm yet.  Rookie Quinn Hughes will likely make a run for the Calder trophy this year.  Watch for Elias Pettersson to breakout in his second year.
29. Minnesota Wild (0-2-0) – Tendy Devan Dubnyk has a .887 save percent. The Wild put up 2 goals in each of their games so far and subsequently lost both of them to superior teams in Nashville and Colorado.  Leading scorer Ryan Suter (defenseman) might have to carry the team.  Expectations on Mats Zuccarello are high as he enters the first year of a 5-year deal while Jason Zucker enters the second of a 5-year deal; both need to play well for the Wild to win.
30. Ottawa Senators (0-2-0) – Classic Senators. Playing up to the Leafs in their home opener and giving Toronto fans a panic attack, then playing like absolute garbage versus the Rangers.  Mika Zibanejad putting up a hat trick and an assist versus his old team is fitting.  Brady Tkachuk leads this young Senators squad with 2 goals.  Nothing really bright besides Tkachuk, Thomas Chabot, and Colin White.  Craig Anderson has a .875 save percent.  Yikes.
31. San Jose Sharks (0-4-0) – WOW. The Sharks have been TERRIBLE through their first 4 games. The defense is porous, as it has allowed 128 shots through to Martin Jones and Aaron Dell.  The duo can’t seem to stop a beachball.  They have a combined save percent of .867.  The tandem has given up 17 goals.  This Sharks team could compete for the West if they could get a save from their goalkeepers.  Look for a shakeup in San Jose if things don’t change.