The Washington Capitals remain atop our NHL power rankings for a third straight week.
The Caps, who lead the NHL in point percentage (.730) continue to find ways to win, even though they’re having trouble scoring. Washington completed a 3-1-0 trip through Western Canada and Seattle by defeating the Calgary Flames on Tuesday, capping a trip that saw the Caps allow just five goals in four games. That defense came in handy because the Capitals managed just 10 goals of their own in the four games.
Washington is the only Eastern Conference team in the top five.
The Winnipeg Jets, who lead the Western Conference and are even with the Capitals in points with 73 but have played 52 games (two more than Washington) remained in second place, with the Edmonton Oilers jumping into third. The Dallas Stars and Vegas Golden Knights round out the top five.
At the other end of the rankings, the San Jose Sharks remain in last place despite defeating the Pittsburgh Penguins 2-1 on Monday. That win ended a six-game losing streak during which San Jose allowed 34 goals, dropping the Sharks to last in the league in goals allowed with 196.
2024-25 NHL Power Rankings: From No. 32 to No. 1
32. San Jose Sharks (15-32-6)
The Sharks are staking their claim to the bottom spot in the standings for the second straight season. There are a couple of bright signs – Macklin Celebrini is living up to being the No. 1 pick in the 2024 NHL Draft, and rookie goalie Yaroslav Askarov looks like a keeper after a 29-save effort against Pittsburgh that included one on a third-period penalty shot. But look for GM Mike Grier to be selling at the NHL Trade Deadline.
31. Chicago Blackhawks (16-29-5)
Connor Bedard showed why he was the No. 1 pick in the 2023 draft on Tuesday with a spectacular shot that started the Hawks on their way to a 4-1 road victory against the Tampa Bay Lightning. Amalie Arena has become of Bedard’s favorite road stops; as a rookie last season, he had his first two-goal and four-point game as a pro. Bedard has points in three straight games and six of his past seven.
30. Buffalo Sabres (19-26-5)
If you want to know why it’s so frustrating being a Sabres fan, check out Tuesday’s 7-2 demolition of the Boston Bruins. Tage Thompson and J.J. Peterka each had a hat trick and an assist. It came after a 1-4-0 slide that likely put the final nails into the coffin of Buffalo’s hopes of avoiding a 14th consecutive non-playoff season. The Sabres have had plenty of high draft picks in recent years but have yet to put that talent together on a consistent basis.
29. Nashville Predators (18-24-7)
Lost in the Preds’ disappointing season has been a heater by leading scorer Filip Forsberg. The veteran center had a seven-game goal-scoring streak ended Sunday in Anaheim, but he did have two assists to extend his point streak to 10 games (nine goals, 10 assists) before it ended in Wednesday’s 3-1 home loss to the Vancouver Canucks. Steven Stamkos is also finding his scoring touch; he’s up to 17 goals and 33 points in 49 games.
28. Seattle Kraken (22-27-3)
Seattle finally gave up on goalie Philipp Grubauer, putting him on waivers following a 6-4 home loss to the Anaheim Ducks in Tuesday. The 33-year-old, in the fourth season of a six-year contract, is 5-15-1 in 21 games, 0-5-1 in his past six decisions, and is last in goals-against average (3.83) and save percentage (.866) among all goalies who’ve played at least 15 games. Joey Daccord, who got a five-year contract earlier this month, will need a backup before Seattle plays San Jose on Thursday.
27. Pittsburgh Penguins (21-24-8)
Despite their 3-2 overtime win at Utah on Wednesday, Pittsburgh has dropped to the bottom of the Metropolitan Division and is on pace to miss the playoffs for the third straight season, something that hasn’t happened since the Pens missed four straight times from 2001-02 through 2005-06 — the latter was Sidney Crosby’s rookie season.
Crosby, who scored the overtime goal, is now in his 20th NHL season, all with Pittsburgh, and spent the early part of the week insisting he has no interest in playing anywhere else.
26. Anaheim Ducks (21-23-6)
The Ducks are still last in the NHL in scoring with 129 goals, but the offense roared to life during a 3-0-0 week that saw Anaheim erupt for 16 goals. Mason McTavish has six goals in his past four games, including back-to-back two-goal performances in wins against Pittsburgh and Nashville, after the third player picked in the 2021 draft had scored just six times in his first 40 games this season.
25. St. Louis Blues (23-24-4)
The Blues came back to Enterprise Center last week for three straight games, no doubt hoping a little home cooking would help them get closer to contending for a playoff berth. Instead, they lost all three games in regulation, were outscored by a combined 11-4 and dropped back below .500 as they prepare for a two-game trip to Colorado and Utah before three more home games. Time is running out.
24. Utah Hockey Club (21-21-8)
Utah continues to have trouble beating Eastern Conference teams at Delta Center. The overtime loss to the Penguins on Wednesday dropped Utah to 0-4-1 against Eastern teams at home in the past three weeks; it is 3-0-0 against Western Conference teams on home ice in that span. Utah’s eight home wins (8-11-5) are the fewest in the league and a big reason the NHL’s newest franchise is unlikely to make the playoffs.
23. Philadelphia Flyers (23-23-6)
The Flyers continue to hang around the playoff scramble in the Eastern Conference, but they’ve been unable to put together the kind of hot streak that would put them solidly in the hunt – or the kind of slump that would drop them out of the race. They lost three of four games last week, all against the three New York Metropolitan area teams, enough to drop them back to NHL .500. The Flyers head to Colorado and Utah over the weekend after hosting the Islanders on Thursday.
22. New York Islanders (22-20-7)
The Islanders increased their winning streak to five games and completed a 5-2-0 homestand with wins against Philadelphia, the Carolina Hurricanes and Colorado Avalanche. But they lost two more players, top-four defenseman Ryan Pulock and backup goalie Marcus Hogberg, with injuries. The Isles begin a three-in-four stretch at Philadelphia on Thursday before visiting the Lightning and Florida Panthers over the weekend.
21. New York Rangers (24-22-4)
The Rangers ended January with a thud, losing 5-4 at home to the Avalanche on Sunday when Artturi Lehkonen scored with 15 seconds remaining in the third period and 4-0 to Carolina. New York finished the month 8-3-3 despite leaving points on the table — all three of the overtime losses came in games the Rangers led late in the third period before went home empty after failing to at least get to overtime against the Avs.
20. Montreal Canadiens (24-21-5)
Montreal was on a roll a week ago, but three straight losses brought the Canadiens back to earth and cost them a chance to move into a playoff berth in the East. Defense was a problem; Montreal allowed four goals in each of the losses and has surrendered 23 goals in its past six games. Rookie goaltender Jakub Dobes failed to win for the first time in six NHL games when the Canadiens lost 4-3 in overtime to New Jersey on Saturday.
19. Detroit Red Wings (24-21-5)
The Wings continued their surge under new coach Todd McLellan by rallying from two goals down to defeat the Los Angeles Kings 5-2 on Monday, capping a 3-0-0 week and making them 11-4-1 since the coaching change. The lineup against the Kings included forward Dominik Shine, a 31-year-old Detroit-area native who was making his NHL debut after playing eight seasons for Grand Rapids, the Wings’ AHL farm team.
18. Boston Bruins (25-21-6)
David Pastrnak is keeping the Bruins afloat in the Eastern Conference playoff scramble. The NHL’s First Star for the week ending Jan. 26 had an assist Tuesday to extend his points streak to eight games, a stretch that’s seen him put up 18 points (seven goals, 11 assists) – including four three-point games. He has 23 points (11 goals, 12 assists) in 13 games this month and is the biggest reason the B’s hold a playoff spot.
17. Vancouver Canucks (23-17-10)
The Canucks jumped back into the second wild card in the West with their third straight win, 3-1 at Nashville on Wednesday. Even better than the two points was that No. 1 goaltender Thatcher Demko was sharp in a 31-save performance after losing four of his previous five starts. The Canucks have to improve their play at home if they want to make the playoffs; Vancouver has won just nine of 25 games (9-10-6) at Rogers Arena.
16. Columbus Blue Jackets (24-19-7)
Not much was expected from the Jackets, but they refuse to go away. They had four days off to enjoy a 3-2 overtime victory against the Kings on Saturday before heading out on their second four-game trip of the month, beginning at Vegas on Thursday. Columbus has to find a way to improve its play on the road; the Blue Jackets are 17-5-3 at Nationwide Arena but just 7-14-4 away from home.
15. Ottawa Senators (26-20-4)
A weekend at home was just the tonic for the Senators, who defeated the Toronto Maple Leafs 2-1 on Saturday and Utah 3-1 on Sunday to jump into third place in the Atlantic Division. Ottawa stays home for two more games, against Washington and the Minnesota Wild, before playing four in a row on the road – including back-to-back games at Tampa Bay on Feb. 4-6.
14. Calgary Flames (24-18-7)
Calgary had won three in a row until it ran into the NHL’s top two teams, losing 5-2 in Winnipeg on Sunday and 3-1 at home to Washington on Tuesday. The Flames have a chance to help themselves during the final nine days before the 4 Nations break – they play five of six games at home, where they are 15-7-3. Getting on the board first is a must for Calgary; since Christmas, the Flames are 7-0-0 when they score first and 1-7-0 when they don’t.
13. Tampa Bay Lightning (26-20-3)
The Lightning still have much of the core of the team that won the Stanley Cup in 2020 and 2021, then got to the Final in 2022. The top of their roster is good enough to win again; it’s the bottom part, especially the forwards, that’s bringing them down. Tuesday’s home loss to the Blackhawks was their fourth in five games and dropped them to 6-8-1 in January – enough to dump the Bolts into the East’s mushy middle unless they pick up their game soon.
12. Colorado Avalanche (29-21-2)
The Avs got some early payback from Martin Necas and Jack Drury, the two players they acquired in the trade that sent Mikko Rantanen to Carolina. Drury scored a goal and Necas had two assists in a 5-4 win road win against the New York Rangers on Sunday, and each repeated that performance Tuesday in a 5-2 loss to the Islanders. But Colorado needs more from No. 1 goalie Mackenzie Blackwood, who is 1-3-1 in his past five starts and has allowed 18 goals in that span.
11. Los Angeles Kings (26-16-6)
The good news for the Kings is that star defenseman Drew Doughty returned to the lineup Wednesday after missing 47 games because of a broken angle sustained in the preseason. The bad news was that his return didn’t help the Kings, who lost 3-0 to the Florida Panthers and fell to 0-2-1 on a five-game trip that continues at Tampa Bay on Thursday. The Kings are second in the league with 122 goals allowed, but they’re tied for the fifth-fewest goals scored with 135.
10. New Jersey Devils (29-18-6)
It’s so far, so good for the Devils as backup goaltender Jake Allen holds the fort while starter Jacob Markstrom copes with a sprained left knee ligament that will keep him out until after the 4 Nations event. Allen and the Devils won 4-3 in overtime at Montreal on Saturday, then rebounded from a 4-2 loss at Philadelphia by beating the Flyers 5-0 in Newark on Wednesday. It was Allen’s third shutout of the season – he is 5-9-1 in non-shutout games.
9. Toronto Maple Leafs (30-19-2)
Toronto allowed just five goals (one into an empty net) in two games last week — and lost both, extending its slide to three games and dropping the Leafs out of first place in the Atlantic Division. In all, the Maple Leafs have dropped three straight and scored just once in each game. Things won’t get any easier: Toronto heads to Western Canada and Seattle for its last four games before the 4 Nations break.
8. Florida Panthers (30-19-3)
The defending Stanley Cup champs are back in first place in the Atlantic Division after a 3-0 win against Los Angeles on Wednesday, but they are just 8-7-1 since the Christmas break and haven’t won more than two in a row since Dec. 16-22. One good sign for the Panthers: Matthew Tkachuk had a goal and two assists in the win against the Kings, giving him six points in his past three games and 47 (16 goals, 31 assists) in 47 games after a slow start.
7. Minnesota Wild (30-17-4)
The Wild will be without their top forward, Kirill Kaprizov, for a while longer. Kaprizov, who has played just three games since the Christmas break, will have surgery to repair a lower-body injury and will miss at least four weeks, though GM Bill Guerin stressed that it wasn’t a season-ender. Minnesota continued its amazing road success with a 3-1 win in Toronto on Wednesday; the Wild are 19-5-2 away from Xcel Energy Center but just 11-12-1 at home.
6. Carolina Hurricanes (31-16-4)
Carolina swung for the fences on Friday by acquiring two-time 100-point scorer Mikko Rantanen from Colorado and veteran forward Taylor Hall from Chicago. Neither made an impact in his debut the next night, a 3-2 overtime loss on Long Island, but each had an assist on Tuesday, when the Hurricanes beat the Rangers 4-0 at Madison Square Garden. They make their home debut Thursday against Los Angeles.
5. Vegas Golden Knights (31-15-5)
A 3-6-2 stretch has dropped the Golden Knights out of first place in the Pacific Division. Defense has been a problem; Vegas has allowed four or more goals in five of its past eight games. Center Jack Eichel continues his best NHL season; his goal against the Dallas Stars on Tuesday extended his points streak to seven games, during which he’s had 10 points (five goals, five assists). Eichel is eighth in the league with 64 points (16 goals, 48 assists).
4. Dallas Stars (32-17-1)
Dallas beat Vegas for the second time in five days by rallying for a 4-3 overtime win on the road Tuesday. Wyatt Johnston completed a natural hat trick by scoring 20 seconds into OT for the win. The Stars have home games against Vancouver on Friday and Columbus on Sunday, then go to California for their last three games before the 4 Nations break.
3. Edmonton Oilers (32-15-3)
The Oilers proved they could win with or without Connor McDavid, going 2-1-0 while their star center served a three-game suspension, then defeating Seattle 4-2 in his first game back — with No. 97 scoring a goal. Three straight wins have moved the Oilers into the top spot in the Pacific Division. Backup Calvin Pickard was in goal for the win against the Kraken, and with a 13-4-0 record and 2.47 GAA is earning more playing time.
2. Winnipeg Jets (35-14-3)
The Jets lead the NHL with 35 wins, including four in a row, and are No. 1 in goal differential at plus-59. They are also tops in scoring (184 goals) and are the only team to reach the 20-win mark at home (20-5-3). The Jets have two of the league’s top four goal-scorers — Kyle Connor and Mark Scheifele each has 29 after accounting for three of Winnipeg’s four goals in a 4-1 win at Montreal on Tuesday.
1. Washington Capitals (34-11-5)
Goalie Logan Thompson, arguably the biggest reason for Washington’s success this season, opted to forego free agency and signed a six-year, $35.1 million contract on Tuesday. A few hours later, Thompson showed why the Caps were so eager to keep him by making 32 saves in a 3-1 win at Calgary, improving his record to 23-2-3. They complete their five-game trip Thursday at Ottawa before hosting Winnipeg on Saturday in a showdown between the NHL’s top two teams.