Thanks to the folks at msn.com and foxsports.com…here are a few numbers to chew on…as we approach the playoffs.
| NHL Power Rankings Week Of 03/13/2007 |
| Rk |
Team |
Last Wk |
Rise/Fall |
High/Low |
Comment |
| 1 |
 Predators |
2 |
(+1) |
1/30 |
(.700) The Nashville Predators picked up five of a possible six points in Week 23 to take over the No. 1 ranking from the Sabres. Veteran forward Jason Arnott led the way, scoring three goals and one assist in the Predators’ three games.
Team: Home | Stats | Fantasy |
| 2 |
 Red Wings |
3 |
(+1) |
2/24 |
(.688) Detroit comes into Week 24 as one of the NHL’s hottest clubs. The Red Wings enter having picked up points in nine of their last 10 games, registering a win in six of those contests. The hot Wings won two of three in Week 23 to take over the No. 2 ranking.
Team: Home | Stats | Fantasy |
| 3 |
 Sabres |
1 |
(-2) |
1/3 |
(.684) The Sabres fell hard in Week 23, losing all three of their games and the No. 1 spot in the power rankings, to boot. The club got outscored 11-5 last week and its power play was invisible in all three contests, finishing the week 0-for-9 with the extra man. Buffalo had better get its act together quick, as the Devils are charging hard in the East for that No. 1 spot in the standings.
Team: Home | Stats | Fantasy |
| 4 |
 Ducks |
4 |
– |
1/5 |
(.679) Anaheim’s solid all-around play in Week 23 allowed the team to hang onto its No. 4 ranking. The Ducks connected on five of their 15 power plays last week, while killing off all 12 of the penalties that were whistled against them. The Ducks come into Week 24 with their eye on the top spot in the NHL, trailing the Predators by only three points in the overall standings.
Team: Home | Stats | Fantasy |
| 5 |
 Devils |
5 |
– |
4/15 |
(.667) The Devils picked up five of a possible six points in Week 23 to keep the pressure on the Sabres. New Jersey won two of its three games last week, while losing in overtime in the other. The Devs are looking to take over the top spot in the East from Buffalo before the year is out so they can have home-ice advantage throughout the postseason.
Team: Home | Stats | Fantasy |
| 6 |
 Canucks |
7 |
(+1) |
6/24 |
(.630) The Canucks moved up one place in the rankings by winning three of their four games in Week 23. The Sedin twins carried the club last week, combining for eight points in the four games. Vancouver comes into the week winners of seven of its last 10 games.
Team: Home | Stats | Fantasy |
| 7 |
 Stars |
6 |
(-1) |
1/10 |
(.625) Even though the Stars dropped one place in the power rankings, the team still had a productive Week 23, winning two of its three games. The highlight of the week came on Friday when Dallas put an end to a four-game losing streak by beating Columbus 3-0 on the road.
Team: Home | Stats | Fantasy |
| 8 |
 Penguins |
11 |
(+3) |
7/20 |
(.618) The Penguins moved up three places in the rankings this week by picking up at least a point in each of their games. But no points came easy for Pittsburgh in Week 23, as the club had to play extra hockey in all three contests, winning one and losing one in a shootout, while winning another game in overtime.
Team: Home | Stats | Fantasy |
| 9 |
 Sharks |
8 |
(-1) |
3/9 |
(.616) The Sharks were on top of their game in Week 23, winning two of the three games they played and only giving up two goals in the process. Evgeni Nabokov was razor sharp in goal, picking up his sixth and seventh shutouts of the year, while losing a 2-1 heartbreaker to the Canucks on Friday.
Team: Home | Stats | Fantasy |
| 10 |
 Senators |
9 |
(-1) |
9/25 |
(.616) The Senators dropped one place in the rankings by losing two of three in Week 23. With the playoffs right around the corner, the Sens need to right their ship in a hurry, otherwise they may find themselves on the beach sooner then they’d like. Ottawa comes into Week 24 having won only once it its last five games.
Team: Home | Stats | Fantasy |
| 11 |
 Wild |
12 |
(+1) |
2/18 |
(.607) The Wild started off the week on the wrong foot by getting shut out 3-0 by the Sharks, but the team got its act together before week’s end, running off three straight wins over Boston, Buffalo and Colorado. Center Pierre-Marc Bouchard led the way, picking up four points in the three wins off one goal and three assists.
Team: Home | Stats | Fantasy |
| 12 |
 Flames |
10 |
(-2) |
7/27 |
(.603) The Flames lost two of three in week 23 and dropped out of the Top 10 in the rankings. Miikka Kiprusoff wasn’t his sharp self in the two losses, giving up nine goals to the opposition on 66 shots. Calgary’s power play also wasn’t sharp, failing to connect on eight chances in the two defeats.
Team: Home | Stats | Fantasy |
| 13 |
 Thrashers |
14 |
(+1) |
5/15 |
(.586) The Thrashers moved up a notch in the rankings by winning two of three in Week 23. The club outscored the opposition 10-4 in its two wins, with Ilya Kovalchuk recording five points off two goals and three assists.
Team: Home | Stats | Fantasy |
| 14 |
 Lightning |
13 |
(-1) |
13/24 |
(.586) Marc Denis was the main reason the Lightning only dropped one place in the rankings this week. The Tampa Bay netminder won both of his starts in Week 23, stopping 54 of the 57 shots the opposition fired his way. In the only game Denis didn’t start last week, the Bolts lost 5-1 in Vancouver.
Team: Home | Stats | Fantasy |
| 15 |
 Islanders |
15 |
– |
10/28 |
(.574) The Islanders had a rough, rough week. Not only did they drop two games to their cross-town rivals, the Rangers, they also lost forward Chris Simon to suspension for the rest of the season and playoffs after the gritty forward cracked Ryan Hollweg across the face with a stick on Thursday night. The Isles, who entered Week 24 as the No. 7 team in the East, need to bounce back right away from their loss, or they may have a hard time qualifying for the playoffs.
Team: Home | Stats | Fantasy |
| 16 |
 Rangers |
19 |
(+3) |
5/26 |
(.551) Even though the Rangers are missing several key players, like Brendan Shanahan, from their lineup, the team keeps on piling up the points. The Blueshirts picked up seven of a possible eight points in Week 23, putting themselves back in the playoff picture in the East. Jaromir Jagr scored the biggest goal of the week — possibly the year — for the Rangers, when the captain buried the game-winner in a shootout against the Hurricanes on Sunday.
Team: Home | Stats | Fantasy |
| 17 |
 Maple Leafs |
16 |
(-1) |
9/22 |
(.543) The Maple Leafs won two of three in Week 23, but still found themselves on the outside looking in when it came to the playoffs teams in the East. Toronto needs to go on a run in the last few weeks if it wants to qualify for the postseason. The Leafs entered Week 24 having only won four times in their last 10 games.
Team: Home | Stats | Fantasy |
| 18 |
 Hurricanes |
17 |
(-1) |
11/27 |
(.543) The defending Stanley Cup champs lost two of three in Week 23, keeping themselves on the outside of the playoff picture looking in with only a dozen games left in the regular season. The ‘Canes biggest loss occurred on Sunday in New York, when the team lost starting goalie Cam Ward to injury. Ward will be out indefinitely after suffering a laceration above his left knee in the 2-1 loss to the Rangers.
Team: Home | Stats | Fantasy |
| 19 |
 Avalanche |
21 |
(+2) |
11/23 |
(.536) The Avalanche were able to move up three places in the rankings by recording five out of a possible six points in Week 23. Colorado started out by beating Boston and Buffalo on the road and closed out the week by losing in overtime in Minnesota.
Team: Home | Stats | Fantasy |
| 20 |
 Canadiens |
20 |
– |
6/20 |
(.529) Even though the Canadiens aren’t that far out of a playoff berth, it’s going to be a tough climb for the club without all-star goalie Cristobal Huet, who is out for the remainder of the season with a left hamstring injury. The Habs have struggled to keep pucks out of their net since Huet went down on Feb. 14 in a game against the Devils.
Team: Home | Stats | Fantasy |
| 21 |
 Bruins |
18 |
(-3) |
10/28 |
(.514) Boston may have taken itself out of the playoff race last week by losing three of the four games it played. The Bruins rebounded in their last game of the week against Detroit, beating the Red Wings 6-3, but it may have been all for naught.
Team: Home | Stats | Fantasy |
| 22 |
 Panthers |
23 |
(+1) |
13/27 |
(.514) The Panthers went into Week 23 red hot, riding a four-game winning streak. By week’s end, the club showed no signs of slowing down, winning two of the three games it played. Veteran netminder Ed Belfour was a wall in the Cats’ two wins, stopping 56 of the 59 shots he faced.
Team: Home | Stats | Fantasy |
| 23 |
 Blues |
22 |
(-1) |
18/30 |
(.500) The Blues dropped two of three in Week 23 and fell one place in the rankings. St. Louis could have fared better last week if its power play was even halfway decent, but the club’s man-up units only connected once in 11 tries.
Team: Home | Stats | Fantasy |
| 24 |
 Oilers |
24 |
– |
7/24 |
(.478) The Oilers don’t look like they’re going to have a chance to repeat as Western Conference champions. The club comes into Week 24 having lost seven straight — three of which came in Week 23. Edmonton’s offense went south during the seven-game stretch, scoring only five goals and getting shut out three times.
Team: Home | Stats | Fantasy |
| 25 |
 Blackhawks |
28 |
(+3) |
15/28 |
(.449) The Blackhawks moved up three places in the rankings this week by winning both of their games in Week 23. The team outscored the opposition 10-5 last week, and Nikolai Khabibulin recorded his first regular-season shutout since March 1, 2004, when he was a member of the Lightning.
Team: Home | Stats | Fantasy |
| 26 |
 Blue Jackets |
26 |
– |
8/30 |
(.442) The Blue Jackets dropped two of three in Week 23. David Vyborny made sure Columbus skated away with at least one win last week by figuring in on each of the Jackets’ three goals last Wednesday against Los Angeles. The winger assisted on his team’s first goal and then potted the club’s next two tallies — including the game-winner with 21 seconds left in overtime.
Team: Home | Stats | Fantasy |
| 27 |
 Capitals |
25 |
(-2) |
12/27 |
(.435) The Capitals seemed like a lost bunch in Week 23, especially on offense. Washington lost all three of its games last week to stretch its losing streak to seven games. The Caps got shut out in their first two games of the week and only managed two goals in a 5-2 loss to the Islanders on Saturday.
Team: Home | Stats | Fantasy |
| 28 |
 Coyotes |
27 |
(-1) |
17/30 |
(.419) The Coyotes lost all three of their games in Week 23 and fell one place in the rankings. The club enters Week 24 riding a five-game losing streak, only winning two of its last 10 games.
Team: Home | Stats | Fantasy |
| 29 |
 Kings |
29 |
– |
18/29 |
(.413) While the Kings didn’t win a game in Week 23, all was not lost, as the team picked up three points in its three overtime losses. The Kings may not have gotten crowned three games in a row last week if their power play wasn’t so bad. Los Angeles only connected twice in 14 tries during the three losses.
Team: Home | Stats | Fantasy |
| 30 |
 Flyers |
30 |
– |
26/30 |
(.360) While the Flyers are still in the same spot in the rankings as they were last week, it’s not because the team rolled over and died. Philly won two of the three games it played in Week 23. Scottie Upshall led the way in the two wins, netting four points off two goals and two assists.
Team: Home | Stats | Fantasy |
