You have been saved, hockey fans! Well, at least for November, anyway, as yours truly takes over the Power Rankings after Mr. Burnside attempted to make sense of them in the opening month of October. But I can't argue with his No. 1 team from last week as the Habs continue to roll.
| 2015-2016 Power Rankings: Week 4 | ||||
| RANK | TEAM / RECORD | TRENDING | COMMENTS | |
| 1 |
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Last Week: 1 | With Carey Price out, the Canadiens get to prove they're more than just their Hart and Vezina Trophy-winning goalie. Rookie backup Michael Condon is already 4-0-0 on the season, and the Canadiens are getting offense from everywhere, which is why they're second at 3.85 goals per game. | ||
| 2 | 7 Last Week: 9 | Make it seven wins in a row for Darryl Sutter's men, making that 0-3-0 start a thing of the past. Tyler Toffoli is tied for the NHL lead with nine goals. Jonathan Quick looks like Jonathan Quick. | ||
| 3 | 1 Last Week: 2 | I know poor Caps fans have been sucked in before (for about a decade, actually), but I'm not alone in thinking these guys are for real. They started showing it last season in Barry Trotz's first season and they're even more impressive now. This team is built for playoff success. | ||
| 4 |
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Last Week: 4 | Holy man, these guys are fun to watch. But the Stars are also trying to manage both sides of the puck, not just one. They're never going to be William Jennings threats, but by having their goals against ranking in the middle of the pack while scoring the third-most goals per game in the league, it creates a juicy recipe for sustainable winning. | ||
| 5 | 2 Last Week: 7 | The Blues just keep chugging along despite all their injuries to key players. Pretty sure even Kelly Chase is going to be brought back on a PTO, they're so banged up. I'm kidding, of course. By the way, three straight starts -- and wins -- for goalie Jake Allen. Huge week ahead with games versus the Kings, Blackhawks and Predators. | ||
| 6 | 4 Last Week: 10 | The Wild got three out of four points from the Blackhawks and Blues. There are no easy weekends in the Central Division, the NHL's toughest. Mikko Koivu is off to a strong start with 11 points (3 goals, 8 assists) in 11 games. | ||
| 7 | 4 Last Week: 3 | I'll continue our run through the Central Division and bring you the Preds, who were slowed down after a torrid start by weekend losses in L.A. and Anaheim, although they outshot their SoCal hosts by a combined 76-57. These guys are legit contenders. | ||
| 8 | 3 Last Week: 11 | Make it nine out of a possible 10 points in the past five games for the Rangers, who get to muscle up at home against the first-place Capitals on Tuesday night. Must-watch game, for sure. | ||
| 9 | 4 Last Week: 5 | I know they're only a game above .500, but if I drop the reigning Cup champs any farther, Jonathan Toews will give me one of those stares and I'll start trembling. Ooh baby, the red-hot Kings visit Monday night at the UC, giddy-up! | ||
| 10 | 2 Last Week: 8 | Dane Nikolaj Ehlers, 19, is fourth in rookie scoring with nine points (4 goals, 5 assists) in 12 games. The 2014 first-round pick (ninth overall) is living up to his billing, displaying speed and skill and hockey smarts. | ||
| 11 | 5 Last Week: 6 | With John Tavares out with illness this weekend, the Isles dropped home games to the Devils and Sabres, which in turn made Islanders fans ill. | ||
| 12 | 8 Last Week: 20 | The Bruins are 6-0-1 since opening the season, with three straight losses, and they're scoring goals by the bushel while they're at it: tops in the NHL at 3.90 goals per game. Some good tests this week with games vs. the Stars, Caps and Habs. | ||
| 13 | 1 Last Week: 12 | The Lightning turned the page on a lackluster October with a 4-3 win Sunday over Carolina in Andrei Vasilevskiy's first start and win of the season after returning from injury. He's going to push Ben Bishop this season for real. | ||
| 14 | 2 Last Week: 16 | The Penguins are 7-1-0 since opening the season with three straight losses. Sidney Crosby meets Connor McDavid Friday night in Edmonton. Crosby told me Friday that McDavid and Jack Eichel don't look like 18-year-olds with the way they've played in their first month. | ||
| 15 | 8 Last Week: 23 | The What To Make Of Us Canucks handed the Habs their first loss of the season. Time to pick up more points at home Monday night vs. the Flyers and Wednesday vs. the Penguins before embarking on a seven-game road trek mostly through the East, but which wraps up Nov. 18 in Winnipeg. | ||
| 16 | 2 Last Week: 18 | The California stretch awaits for the Panthers who play Wednesday in Anaheim, Thursday in San Jose and Saturday in L.A. Why they're in that exact order is odd to me, but hey, I'm just a humble guy from Northern Ontario. | ||
| 17 | 2 Last Week: 15 | I'm really happy to see Brent Burns score twice in Sunday's win in Denver. Why? Because I own him in the world famous Toronto Media Hacks Fantasy League. | ||
| 18 | 1 Last Week: 19 | One statistic that surprises me is seeing the Red Wings 29th in Corsi For at 46.1 percent. They finished third in Corsi For last season. | ||
| 19 | 5 Last Week: 14 | The Devils have gone 6-1-0 since beginning the season with four losses (0-3-1). Could they be one of the NHL's big surprises? Still think they're going to struggle to find enough offense from that forward group. | ||
| 20 | 1 Last Week: 21 | The Senators spilt a home-and-home with the Red Wings this weekend, showing both the good and the bad. Now, leading scorer Mark Stone faces discipline for his illegal check to the head of Red Wings forward Landon Ferraro. | ||
| 21 | 7 Last Week: 28 | Anyone got Linus Ullmark on their fantasy teams? The 22-year-old Swede appears to be the man in net for now. Two straight wins for him, including Sunday's 2-1 decision against the Islanders. | ||
| 22 | 9 Last Week: 13 | Three straight losses, two of them to the Sabres, means the Flyers are coming back down to earth after a decent start. | ||
| 23 | 3 Last Week: 26 | The Hurricanes deserve a better record -- they compete big-time under coach Bill Peters and, for what it's worth, are third in Corsi For at 54.4 percent. | ||
| 24 | 7 Last Week: 17 | It is a lot easier to accept a rebuild when you can see the merits of a plan. The Coyotes are fun to watch. And when you look at both the kids doing their thing now and the kids who will be doing their thing in the future, there's serious hope here. | ||
| 25 | 4 Last Week: 29 | The Ducks got a big win Sunday night over the Predators after general manager Bob Murray gave his coach a vote of confidence before the weekend. The Ducks are only six points behind the third-place Sharks in a Pacific Division that isn't what it once was. So who knows? | ||
| 26 | 4 Last Week: 22 | That was a soul-crushing loss to the rival Flames with fewer than nine seconds left on Saturday. It's too bad because the four-goal comeback win over the Canadiens last week was sensational. These are the ups and downs of a young squad. | ||
| 27 | 3 Last Week: 24 | Crushed by Montreal on Friday night and looking despondent by the end of it, I give the Flames credit for a spirited win the following night over the Oilers. Can they build from it? | ||
| 28 | 3 Last Week: 25 | The sobering reality of the Avs' dismal opening month is that they play in the Central Division, where all of the other six teams are playoff contenders. The Avs just can't drop any farther. | ||
| 29 | 2 Last Week: 27 | That the Maple Leafs are fifth in Corsi For but have but one victory in 10 games underlines that the lack of talent on this roster is severe enough that not even a great system can save it. | ||
| 30 |
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Last Week: 30 | This market deserves so much better, a loyal fan base that has seen so much disappointment for so long. It's sad. | ||
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