We always do things a little differently here at The Program and apologize for the lack of content in the afternoon yesterday. However, our crack staff was hard at work coming up with the debut of the Power Rankings. We take the top half of the league and break it down from 15 to 1 in reverse order. Some of the teams will be a bit of a surprise as far as where they end up but one thing is certain. There is 2 months of data to delve into here and the body of work determines their rank for this week only.
Now here are our rankings…and let the debates begin!!!!
15. Detroit Red Wings (13-10-4, 27 pts, L10: 4-5-1)
A very tenuous spot that Detroit holds here. Some will make the case that this is purely a reputation pick and that may be the case. However, Detroit is going to get better. They most certainly cannot get much worse. Nick Lidstrom has less points than well Andy Greene of the Devils…just saying. The effort last night in a 4-1 loss to Edmonton was disgusting but if any team can right the ship. It is Detroit. With 5 key players out…they are feeling the pinch like never before. Add in some poor performances from Chris Osgood and no wonder why some are saying Jimmy Howard should start. There is a lot of work to do in Detroit but it is early thankfully.
14. Ottawa Senators (13-9-4, 31 pts, L 10: 5-3-2)
Ottawa is truly what you call a home team….10 wins at home and only 3 on the road. That is really all you need to know about this team that just has too many defensive breakdown to be higher up on the Power Rankings. Brian Elliott may have said it best. “We played a good game offensively. It just seems that our breakdowns were bigger than usual. I really need to watch the video of the game. I’m not happy with my…” Insert bleeping here. Seriously if Milan Michalek is leading your team in goals (15)…there is something wrong. He is a good player but the Spezza-Kovalev disconnect is killing this team. Kovalev only plays well with Mike Fisher and well that just seems really strange to me. Either way Ottawa is going to have a tough time if they do not start playing better defensively and in the net. Its that simple!
13. Columbus Blue Jackets (13-10-5, 32 pts, L 10: 3-4-3)
This team may be considered bipolar. They have one of the best power plays and had the Calder Trophy winner in Steve Mason alongside Rick Nash. So what has happened? The weight of expectations. The Blue Jackets should be in the top 10 on this list in theory but are not because of some team disharmony, key injuries, and underachieving play. They are allowing 102 goals right now, lowlighted by a 6 goal clunker against Toronto of all teams last night. Columbus just keeps shooting itself in the foot defensively and with four players out (Klesla, Dorsett, Murray, and Modin)…it has become tough sledding the last 10-14 days. The schedule is not forgiving and Ken Hitchcock again has lost this team. If he does not right this team he may be show “right” out the door. The oh by the ways…..Mason has a 3.46 GAA and the PP is ranked #1 in the league (30th last year). Only Carolina has given up more goals per game this year.
12. Nashville Predators (15-10-2, 32 pts, L 10: 7-2-1)
Nashville has always had problems scoring goals (66 for). Jason Arnott leads the team with 9 goals and he missed a few games due to injury. Most Nashville fans have given up on Legwand and Erat and I understand why. Pekka Rinne may have been stunted a bit by Coach Trotz when he had Dan Ellis starting a good bit in the preseason and regular season but now it seems all is well. Rinne now has 11 wins on the season and a 2.61 GAA. That 6 game stretch where they got blown out of building faster than a Black Friday sale seems to be a thing of the past. The loss to the Wild the other night brought some of those cobwebs back and jitters. With a Friday and Saturday back to back against Chicago and Minnesota…that should be a big test for this team. They have to get at least 3 out of 4 points to keep their footing. It would also not hurt to get some depth scoring!!
11. Colorado Avalanche (15-9-6, 36 pts, L 10: 3-4-3)
This team started out like a house of fire but then the fire burned itself out. That is the best way to describe Colorado. Guys like David Jones were hot then he tore up his knee. Craig Anderson was the October player of the month then he cooled off like the summer wind faded. Anderson has 14 wins but 10 of them came in the first month of the season. His 2.65 GAA is a far cry from the sub 2 average he had for most of October. The defense has broken down with injuries and sloppy play. The reality is Colorado’s hot start was a mirage and many knew that. The problem is can Coach Joe Sacco right the ship enough before it starts taking in leaks from everywhere. Honestly the answer may be no. John Michael Liles is probably their best player defensively and his 9 points in 18 injury riddled games is not going to cut it. Colorado gives up over 30 shots a game and may just have to hope that well above average goaltending can last the entire season. I have my doubts.
10. Los Angeles Kings (17-10-2, 36 pts, L 10: 6-4-0)
A weird team that gives up about as much as it scores (GF 89…GA 87). Jonathan Quick is a good goalie but still young which means he has some nights that look like he is playing in a beer league. Anze Kopitar has 34 points this season and yes most of them came with Ryan Smyth as his linemate. Smyth will be out another 4 weeks more than likely which hurts Kopitar considerably but LA has found a way to persevere. The team plays more run and gun than last year because it has to. The defense is a bit off still and really it may be better that way. This team is fun to watch especially if you are not a fan and have real upside for the second half. Maybe that 5th in the West prediction was not so far off.
9. Atlanta Thrashers (14-8-3, 31 pts, L 10: 6-2-2)
Okay so they had a Moulson Clunker last night against the Islanders but this team has surprised many with their play on the road. They are .500 at home but 8-2-1 on the road. A guy like Nik Antropov has 2 goals but 21 assists. Pavel Kubina is an astounding +16 on this team. Ondrej Pavelec has been solid in net aside from a gaffe or two this year and you would never know he was the same guy that wanted out 6000 times last year. No Lehtonen…no problem apparently. Even without Ilya Kovalchuk for several weeks, Atlanta found ways to hold things together. Kovalchuk has come back hotter than Hades and has 15 goals on the year now. No question this team is young and may have problems keeping Kovalchuk but they are fun to watch. Look out for Bogosian and Enstrom as the season goes on as well.
8. Boston Bruins (14-8-5, 33 pts, L 10: 6-1-3)
Magically the ship is sailing in the right direction again. Only losing once in regulation in their last 10 games will help. More importantly Tim Thomas is back and appears to be 100% (hand injury). Give major credit to backup netminder Tuukka Rask who held things down while Thomas was gone (a nice 2.02 GAA too). Goals are still hard to come by and yes injuries have taken a toll but with guys like Savard and Chara…it was tough to keep this team down for long. When this team is healthy (even without Phil Kessel)…they are the class of the Northeast. Patrice Bergeron should not be leading the team with 8 goals and Dennis Wideman does need to get it going but it is coming around Boston fans…chin up!
7. Buffalo Sabres (16-7-2, 34 pts, L 10: 6-3-1)
The slugs as some have called them have found a way to get the MAX out of Ryan Miller and are in 1st in the Northeast. Miller is playing otherworldly for Buffalo right now and he was doing this late last year as well before the Scott Gomez incident. Miller is 16-4-2 with a 1.84 GAA, .936 save % and 3 shutouts. Vezina winner at this moment basically and maybe Hart Trophy as well. Those are some pretty heavy words and heaped on praise but it is true. Buffalo has only scored 72 goals while allowing 57 (2nd in the NHL for GA). Their only weakness may be not having a halfway decent backup (Lalime sent for conditioning and a brain adjustment this week). Thomas Vanek has to pick it up and leads the team with only 8 goals but Tim Connolly does have 15 assists and has stayed healthy. More offensive production will be needed if Buffalo expects to hold off a very determined Boston team.
6. New Jersey Devils (17-7-1, 35 pts, L 10: 6-3-1)
The only team in the NHL that I know that thrives on playing often. Their 3 games in 4 nights record this year is an insane 7-1-1. Give them 3 days rest or put them on Versus and it gets ugly. Before Wednesday night’s bed crapper, the Devils were leading the league in GA by a wide margin but now not so much. This team normally has a number of defensive breakdowns but gets bailed out by a guy who is amongst the best of all time (Martin Brodeur). Zach Parise has been amazing and on pace to surpass last year’s point total and Andy Greene has been a huge surprise from the blueline. Coach Lemaire has the Devils believing and it seems no matter how many injuries, the interchangeable parts are back with a little up tempo offense. Just imagine how good this team could be when healthy and fully gelled. To think they said this would be the year. Wrong again Hockey News….wrong again!
5. Washington Capitals (17-5-6, 40 pts, L 10: 6-2-2)
They still do not get it but for the regular season at least they have improved defensively some. In the Southeast, that is enough apparently since the calamitous fall of Carolina. Alexander Ovechkin has 18 goals but loves to knee people and that may cost Washington down the road but not right now. Jose Theodore has taken a personal absence and that has allowed Semyon Varlamov (last year’s sensation) to take the reins again. He is playing pretty well too at a 11-1-2 clip with a 2.36 GAA and .920 save percentage. Mike Green has 23 assists but is nowhere near his 30+ goals last year and his defense has been only so-so. The team has gotten it done defensively with some smoke and mirrors but that is good enough in the regular season and this ranking.
4. Calgary Flames (17-7-3, 37 pts, L 10: 6-3-1)
The defense is the key and Coach Sutter has brought that to the forefront in Calgary. The players play better in front of Kipper (Miikka Kiprusoff) and that makes a huge difference. 68 GA in 27 games is far better than the 90 they gave up this time last year. Kiprusoff has a 15-6-3 record with a 2.26 GAA and a .925 save percentage as a result. He has regained his top 5 goalie status as well. Jarome Iginla started off very slow but now has 17 goals and the much deadpanned Olli Jokinen now has 15 assists. Jay Bouwmeester has been actually surprisingly steady with a +12 and his defensive play has been much improved in the last 10 or 15 games. This has the makings of a very good regular season team but no one knows what they will be like come playoff time. As we all know, Brent Sutter’s playoff record is not so good.
3. Pittsburgh Penguins (20-9-0, 40 pts, L 10: 8-2-0)
Some have them ranked 1 or 2 but I do not…I have them 3 for now with room to grow. First they have to get healthy…right? But the Penguins have been consistently good at home and on the road for the most part. Yes they have thrown in some stinkbombs but then again what team doesn’t…really. Marc Andre-Fleury has been steady this year with a 17-7 record and a 2,45 GAA. That is all he needs to be is steady and has made some pretty incredible saves as well. Malkin and Crosby have been well Malkin and Crosby. Sure the former missed a couple weeks with a shoulder strain and yes injuries have hurt this team some but they are resilient enough to fight back. The Pens are mostly healthy now missing only Chris Kunitz as well a key player. Gonchar is back and really the only thing that is a concern is how this team performs on the Power Play after the 1st period. That 5.5% number is worst in the league from the 2nd period on and is a major concern for the coach and players alike. It is the only thing really holding the Pens from the top spot on this list.
2. Chicago Blackhawks (17-6-3, 37 pts, L 10: 8-1-1)
They can play anyway you want to. The Hawks kind of play the way the San Jose Sharks used to…a little more disciplined and still have enough firepower to scare. Their +23 goal differential is ironically tied with you guessed it…San Jose. They just extended three of their youngest players (Kane, Toews, and Keith to long term deals). Things are looking really good. This team’s only real weakness is in net. Cristobal Huet is okay but nothing spectacular. Really he is not the #1 Chicago thought they were signing. Yes Chicago has a ton of balanced scoring (leading goal scorer is Patrick Kane with 9). Add in the return of Marian Hossa and this team is almost too scary for words in the regular season. Then again, this is a regular season power ranking and not the playoffs so it is okay. The bottom line is Chicago is poised to take the top spot and maybe run with it if it can get some solid goaltending. I think Antti Niemi may be an answer but I could be wrong. Time will tell.
1. San Jose Sharks (19-6-5, 43 pts, L 10: 6-2-2)
They have a very tenuous grip on this position as of now. Losing to the relatively low St. Louis Blues last night left a bit of a taste in my mouth that I just cannot shake. However, this team is getting solid goaltending and almost amazing goaltending from Evgeni Nabokov. I know its a contract year…I get it! The Dany Heatley acquisition has worked out for San Jose and he does have 19 goals and 33 points for the Sharks along with Patrick Marleau. Jumbo Joe has 33 assists and 40 points. All things seem to be rolling along and since it is the regular season…no one remembers that slightly slow start or cares. I do not believe the Sharks are the best team in the NHL right now…but over the last two months they have been. You have to give credit to where credit is due. Time will tell how this team will fare from here on out in the power rankings.
Next week the rankings will change guaranteed and we will also have teams that will complete our “bottom three” so stay tuned. It will be a scream.
Sincerely,
Chris Wassel
Director Of The Program
