NHL Power Rankings: Golden Knights stay on top , Blackhawks still reside on the bottom

The Hawks rebounded from their Winter Classic embarrassment by winning two of three, including a 3-1 win against the red-hot Colorado Avalanche on national TV Wednesday. The two wins are the only time in their past eight games that they’ve allowed fewer than four goals. Connor Bedard had a goal and an assist against the Avs, extending his point streak to eight games and putting him on pace for a 74-point sophomore season.

The Sharks perked up last week by tightening up defensively to beat two of the NHL’s best teams, knocking off the Tampa Bay Lightning 2-1 and the New Jersey Devils 3-2 before coming up short in a 4-2 loss to Vegas on Tuesday. The best news for the Sharks, whose minus-41 goal differential is the league’s worst, is that they appear to have found a young goalie (Yaroslav Askarov) and forward (Macklin Celebrini) to build around as they try to avoid a second straight finish at the bottom of the NHL standings.

It’s hard to believe that a team with players like Steven  Stamkos, Jonathan Marchessault, Filip Forsberg and Roman Josi could be last in the league in scoring, but that’s exactly where the Preds find themselves at the midpoint of the season – they finally reached 100 goals by scoring twice in a 5-2 loss at Winnipeg on Tuesday. Nashville did win back-to-back road games at Vancouver and Calgary last weekend before the loss to the Jets; they’re home for the next five games.

The Sabres are still last in the East, but they’re just seven points out of the second wild card. The only problem is that there are seven teams between Buffalo and the Columbus Blue Jackets, who hold the last playoff spot. Holding leads continues to be a problem; Buffalo wasted a three-goal lead in Denver and lost 6-5 to the Colorado Avalanche in overtime – a loss that came 30 days after they blew a four-goal lead against the Avs in a 5-4 loss at home.

What’s the best way for a team with a league-worst power play and horrendous penalty killing? Play as much time as possible at 5-on-5. That’s what the Isles did in a 5-4 overtime win at Boston on Sunday, a game in which the only penalty was a bench minor to New York for a failed coach’s challenge. Captain Anders Lee is on pace for his first 30-goal season since he scored 40 times in 2017-18; he connected twice against Boston and has 18 goals in 40 games. New York starts a seven-game homestand after a two-game trip to Vegas and Utah.

Just when it looked like the Rangers might be rebounding from their slide by winning for the third time in four games, they blew an early 3-0 lead and a late one-goal lead in a 5-4 OT loss at home to the Dallas Stars on Tuesday. New York is hoping to get starting goaltender Igor Shesterkin back from an upper-body injury this week; he’s missed four games. They’re also hoping they don’t lose concussion-prone center Filip Chytil, who left the loss to the Stars with what the team called an upper-body injury.

The Kraken continue to fade slowly in the West. They went 0-2-1 in their first three games in January and are nine points out of the second wild card in the West. The Kraken hope starting goaltender Joey Daccord, who missed the past five games with an upper-body injury, will be ready to return when they begin a five-game road trip at Columbus on Thursday. Daccord is 12-9-2 with a 2.51 goals-against average for a team that is four games below NHL .500 and has a minus-12 goal differential.

It has not been a happy new year in Philadelphia. After closing out 2024 by sweeping a three-game trip through California, the Flyers have lost their first three games in 2025, including back-to-back 3-2 losses to the Toronto Maple Leafs. With starting goaltender Samuel Ersson again sidelined by injury, they need better play from backups Aleksei Kolosov and Ivan Fedotov; each has a save percentage below .875.

The Ducks are 4-1-1 in their past six games, largely because of their defense and goaltending, and are within a game of NHL .500 as they prepare for a six-game road trip. They might be even better if the power play were more productive; Anaheim is 2-for-21 in its past eight games. The Ducks’ best offensive threat continues to be forward Troy Terry, who has 14 goals and 33 points in 39 games and was the NHL’s Second Star for the week ending Jan. 5. The problem is that no one else on the roster has more than 23 points.

Don’t look now, but the Canadiens ended one of the great road swings in NHL history with a 2-1 shootout win at Colorado, giving them victories over the past four Stanley Cup winners on the same trip. Their only loss in the five games away from Bell Centre came against the last-place Blackhawks last Friday. Montreal has gotten a jolt from rookie goalie Jakub Dobes, who is 2-0-0 after winning the shootout in Colorado — a win that came after he shut out the Florida Panthers on the road in his NHL debut on Dec. 28.

Todd McLellan’s arrival behind the bench has given the Wings a spark. Tuesday’s 3-2 overtime win against the Ottawa Senators was their fifth straight win under McLellan after losing in his debut. The winning streak has moved Detroit within two points of the second wild card in the East. A big reason for the surge is that the power play has been on fire: Patrick Kane’s 4-on-3 overtime winner against Ottawa was Detroit’s 10th power-play goal in 19 opportunities since the Christmas break.

The Penguins didn’t lose in regulation last week. But they didn’t win, either – losing once in overtime and twice in shootouts. Allowing multiple-goal leads to turn into losses continues to be a problem; Pittsburgh lost to Carolina 4-3 in overtime after leading 2-0 and 4-3 in a shootout to Columbus after wasting a 3-1 lead in the third period. The Penguins lead the NHL with seven losses in games they led by two or more goals; three of the seven have seen them blow two-goal leads in the third period.

Columbus has climbed into the second wild card in the East because it’s filling the net, especially on the power play. The Blue Jackets went 2-for-2 in the win at Pittsburgh and is 8-for-15 with the extra man in six games since the Christmas break. Their problem is keeping the other team from scoring: Columbus has allowed 148 goals, 30th in the 32-team league, including 21 in the past six games – five of them with Elvis Merzlikins in goal.

The Blues continue to be the symbol of mediocrity. They haven’t been more than two games over or under NHL .500 since Nov. 25. A 4-1-0 stretch capped by a 4-0 home win against the Ottawa Senators on Jan. 3 put them at 19-17-4, but back-to-back 6-4 road losses to Columbus and the Minnesota Wild dropped them back to .500 – and four points out of a playoff spot. The offense is thriving (27 goals in six games since the Christmas break) but stopping opponents is an issue (22 goals allowed in those six games).

It’s been all downhill for Utah since reaching its high-water mark of 16-11-5 on Dec. 20. Wednesday’s 4-1 home loss to the Florida Panthers dropped Utah to 1-5-2 in its past eight games – and 5-8-2 at Delta Center, where they play their next six games. The biggest problem is the lack of offense: Utah has scored two or fewer goals in six of its past eight games; it also allowed opponents to score three or more goals in seven of those games (although two of the goals Wednesday were empty-netters)..

Being on the road for nine straight games caught up with Ottawa – the Senators went 0-2-1 in the final three games of the trip, dropping them to 4-4-1 as they prepare for Thursday’s home game against Buffalo, their first since Dec. 15. Their recent struggles have been a team effort; the Sens were outscored 11-4 in their past three games and 19-10 in their past six games. They are 0-4-1 since starting goalie Linus Ullmark went down with an upper-body injury, and the offense hasn’t stepped up to compensate.

The B’s have hit the skids, going 0-4-1 in their past five games and putting them at risk of missing the playoffs. They’ve scored just 10 goals (four by David Pastrnak) during their slide. Jeremy Swayman’s big new contract, signed just before the start of the season, hasn’t translated to success on the ice: He is 13-14-3 with a 2.92 goals-against average, a save percentage of .893 – and a four-game losing streak since shutting out Columbus on Dec. 28.

Calgary got an unexpected night off Wednesday when its game in Los Angeles was postponed because of the Southern California wildfires. Instead, the Kings come to Scotiabank Saddledome on Saturday before the Flames hit the road for a Midwest swing that will see them play four games in six nights. Rookie goalie Dustin Wolf is gradually getting more of the starts than Dan Vladar and is 4-1-0 in his past five games, including a 3-2 overtime win in Anaheim on Tuesday.

The Canucks and Penguins are tied for the NHL lead with 15 games decided after regulation. Unfortunately for the Canucks, 10 of those games, including Wednesday’s 2-1 loss in Washington, have ended in defeat. Starting goaltender Thatcher Demko missed two games with back spasms before backing up Kevin Lankinen against Washington, and the Canucks are hopeful he’ll be ready for their game in Carolina on Friday.

The Lightning left their offense home when the headed for California last week, losing all three games and scoring one goal in each. The Bolts avoided their first five-game losing streak in Jon Cooper’s tenure as coach when a last-minute goal by Brayden Point gave them a 3-2 win against the Carolina Hurricanes in their first game back. Tampa Bay is fourth in the Atlantic Division but has at least three games in hand on the three teams in front of them.

The Avs have been thrilled with the play of goalie Mackenzie Blackwood since acquiring him from San Jose in a trade last month. But the loss of backup goalie Scott Wedgewood presents a problem because Blackwood can’t play every game and has a lengthy injury history of his own. Rookie Trent Miner was in goal for Wednesday’s loss in Chicago — but expect Colorado to do some more goalie shopping if Wedgewood is going to be out much longer than another week or so

Carolina is 7-7-1 in its past 15 games during the past five weeks after a 17-8-1 start, and the Hurricanes will have to pick up their play to avoid being left behind in the race for first place in the Metropolitan Division. The ’Canes have been chasing the game on too many occasions, including a painful 3-2 road loss to the Lightning on Tuesday in which they never led and allowed the game-winning goal with 52 seconds left in regulation. They play their next three games, and four of the next five, at home – where they are 15-5-0.

The Devils, like the Lightning, went 0-for-California, where their offense went cold. They ended a four-game losing streak Monday in Seattle, largely because of some sensational play by goalie Jacob Markstrom in a 3-2 win before heading back East for a date with the Rangers in New York on Thursday. Then it’s home to Prudential Center for a Saturday date with the Lightning – their first home game in two weeks and the start of a stretch that will see them play five of six in Newark.

Offense has been a problem for the defending champions in the past couple of weeks. They’ve been outscored 20-14 while going 3-4-0 in their past seven games, and the 14 goals scored include two empty-netters in a 4-1 win at Utah on Tuesday and a shootout winner against Pittsburgh on Jan. 3. One major disappointment has been forward Carter Verhaeghe, who had 76 goals in the past two seasons but has just 10 through 41 games this season; he’s also a team-worst minus-22 after finishing plus-17 last season.

The Stars are one of the NHL’s stingiest defensive teams, but they can win even on nights where the defense springs some leaks. Dallas extended its winning streak to five games with its 5-4 overtime win against the Rangers in a game they trailed 3-0 in the first period and 4-3 with less than three minutes left in regulation. The best news for the Stars is that Jason Robertson’s scoring touch appears to have returned; he has three goals and nine points in his past five games.

It sounds funny to say, but the Oilers are winning with defense as much as offense. They are tied for sixth in the league with 106 goals allowed, including just five during their four-game winning streak. That doesn’t mean they’ve forgotten how to play offense: Leon Draisaitl leads the NHL with 29 goals and is second with 59 points, four more than Connor McDavid, who’s sixth. But unlike past seasons, they don’t have to worry about piling up goals to outscore opponents.

The Leafs are one of the NHL’s hottest teams, with five consecutive wins during which they’ve allowed a total of 10 goals. Auston Matthews returned from injury on Saturday and has put up two goals and seven points in three games. The trio of Matthews, Mitch Marner and Matthew Knies had a night to remember in Matthews’ return; Knies had a hat trick and two assists, Marner scored once and had four assists and Matthews scored a goal and assisted on two others. More impressive: as a line they were plus-16.

The Kings wound up playing just once last week because their home game against Calgary on Wednesday was postponed because of the wildfires in Southern California. Instead, they’ll take their four-game winning streak to Canada, where they open a five-game road trip against the Winnipeg Jets on Friday. The Kings continue to thrive on defense and goaltending; their 96 goals allowed are the fewest in the NHL, and they allowed just one goal in victories against the high-scoring Devils (3-0) and Lightning (2-1).

Minnesota might have played its best defensive game of the season at Carolina on Saturday, limiting the shoot-first Hurricanes to 21 shots in a 4-0 victory. Most impressive is that they are 5-1-0 since the Christmas break despite the absence of their best player, forward Kirill Kaprizov, who has 23 goals and 50 points in 34 games but hasn’t played since Dec. 23 because of a lower-body injury. He has yet to skate since being shut down more than two weeks ago.

Connor Hellebuyck earned his 300th NHL win on Tuesday when the Jets beat Nashville at Canadian Tire Centre and is on pace to repeat as winner of the Vezina Trophy. He gets plenty of help from the NHL’s best offense (152 goals). One problem as the Jets continue their eight-game homestand is that their best defenseman, Josh Morrissey, left the win against the Predators with a lower-body injury. Losing him for any length of time would be damaging.

The Caps took advantage of poor weeks by New Jersey and Carolina to stretch their lead in the Metropolitan Division; they are five points up on the Devils and eight on the Hurricanes in the race for first place. Alex Ovechkin has gone without a goal in his past two games but enters the second half of the season needing 23 in 41 games to pass Wayne Gretzky for the most goals scored in NHL history. Logan Thompson improved to 17-2-2 with a 2.32 GAA and .919 save percentage by making 30 saves in a 2-1 OT win-against Vancouver on Wednesday.

Vegas is unquestionably the leader of the pack at the halfway point of the season after sweeping its three games last week, stretching its latest surge to nine wins in 10 games. The Golden Knights have outshot their opponents in each of those 10 games and allowed 25 or fewer shots against in eight of them. They’ve allowed 17 goals in those 10 games, with no more than three in any games. Their next three games are at home, where they are 17-4-0, including 8-1-0 in their past nine games.