As we get back to power ranking the teams in the NHL there will be a growing divide between the teams that have a realistic shot at the playoffs and those who have started pre-cleaning their dressing rooms.

The trade deadline did little to distinguish which teams had ambitions of the postseason and those who were holding assets until the summer and free agency. Everyone seemed like they were in on some of the bigger names moving, but the reality is that some teams keep winning an others are fading away.

There also is a gap between the top of the league and the next eight teams. No longer are the Anaheim Ducks the runaway President’s Trophy favorites. The Avalanche has re-emerged as an elite club and now sits within striking distance of the leaders in the Central Division.

Ironically, there seems to be little if any movement with the bottom ten teams. Here is eDraft’s NHL Power Ranking 18.0.

30. Buffalo Sabres-The Sabres shed about as much as they were expected to do and are now auditioning for every position on the roster for 2014-15

29. Edmonton Oilers-They didn’t completely dismantle the franchise, but the Oilers made some savvy moves to lock up some up-and-coming goaltending for the next few years. Building from the back end forward. Something eventually has to work, right?

28. Florida Panthers-The Panthers acquired Roberto Luongo for purposes unknown. At least Bobby Lu will have nicer weather to enjoy while he loses.

27. New York Islanders-The Isles continue to undervalue their property. They basically gave away Thomas Vanek for nothing. To take that a step further, the Matt Moulson-Vanek trade means that they also have nothing to show for trading Moulson away too. Sigh, Islanders (shakes head slowly).

26. Calgary Flames-Brian Burke did his best Jay Feaster impression by doing nothing on deadline day. He held on to his assets Mike Cammaleri and Jiri Hudler but dealt Lee Stempniak and Reto Berra for draft picks. I like the core of this club and the Flames will be players in free agency and be much better next season.

25. Nashville Predators-Pekka Rinne returned to Music City in time to enjoy a three game losing streak. Nashville is realistically not looking at the playoffs, but should be better with their franchise goalie back in the fold.

24. Carolina Hurricanes-The streaky Canes hover amidst the bottom dwellers in the NHL and are most likely on the outside of the playoff picture. They moved Tuomu Ruutu but got a decent return in youngster Loktionov. Carolina is too inconsistent in goal to be a viable contender.

23. Ottawa Senators- Tons of talent and no heart means that Paul MacLean may be unemployed by season’s end. Hard to believe with all the talent on the roster, but barring a miracle turnaround, Ottawa misses the playoffs and there are big changes from coach to GM.

22. Vancouver Canucks-It’s hard to imagine that the Canucks will keep Mike Gillis as the GM in Vancouver after shipping both Luongo and Cory Schneider out of town in the past 12 months. The Canucks are playing like they have no soul and will clean house this summer starting with Gillis and Ryan Kesler.

21. Winnipeg Jets-While there were rumblings that the Jets could sell at the deadline they did the most Winnipeg thing possible and did absolutely nothing. Enjoy another disappointing summer Jets fans.

20. New Jersey Devils-The Devils did the right thing by holding on to Martin Brodeur even if it’s just to keep him around for morale purposes. The pesky Devils are loitering around the wild card spot and if they can string some wins together could sneak in. One they are in, look out, they have the formula for playoff success: tough defense and elite goaltending. Getting there is the problem.

19. Washington Capitals-Sadly it looks like Alexander Ovechkin will be on the outside of the playoffs looking in. The deadline acquisition of Jaroslav Halak was solid, but it might be too little too late for Washington.

18. Detroit Red Wings-The Wings dug deep into their think tank and determined that David Legwand was a suitable replacement for Henrik Zetterberg, Pavel Datsyuk and Darren Helm. Not. Good. Enough. Playoff streak over. On the positive side, the kid line for Detroit has been great!

17. Columbus Blue Jackets-The Jackets did the right thing shipping Marian Gaborik out of town. The gritty Columbus club has shown that they can play with anyone and if they can tighten up in the defensive zone, they could hit the playoff scene for the second time in franchise history.

16. Phoenix Coyotes-The Coyotes just won’t go away, staying closer in the rear view mirror than Minnesota and Dallas would like. Don’t sleep on the Martin Erat trade for Phoenix with fellow Czechs Martin Hanzal, Radim Vrbata and Zybnek Michalek, the pouty winger could really shine.

15. New York Rangers-With the biggest splash of the trades New York upgraded their offense and possibly their chemistry with Martin St. Louis. However, they gave up a lot of intangibles with Ryan Callahan which could hurt the blue shirts down the stretch. The Rangers improved their regular season lineup, but might have hurt their postseason roster.

14. Dallas Stars-The Stars made a strong trade acquiring Tim Thomas to spell Kari Lehtonen in goal down the stretch. The Dallas offense has taken center stage lately, but strengthening the back end will help them in their push for the playoffs

13. Tampa Bay Lightning-Not even a three-game losing streak can dampen the spirits in Tampa Bay. The biggest news from deadline day was the Lightning welcoming back their star player (and now new captain) Steven Stamkos. Adding Ryan Callahan gives Tampa grit and leadership that will serve them well in the postseason.

12. Toronto Maple Leafs-The Leafs didn’t make any moves, but honestly didn’t need to. They have pieces in place to win now and there weren’t any better options available to upgrade their much-maligned defense. As weak as the Eastern Conference is, the Leafs are still contenders.

11. Montreal Canadiens-The Habs swiped Thomas Vanek basically for free, giving Montreal a proven goal scorer for the stretch run. It would have been wise for the Canadiens to invest in a backup plan for Carey Price beyond just Peter Budaj.

10. Philadelphia Flyers-Another rivalry game against the Capitals, another line brawl. Ho hum. The Flyers continue to stay hot as they close in on one of the best turnarounds in the NHL. Claude Giroux has been the best player in the NHL over the past three months and if the goaltending can hold up, the Flyers could be a tough out in the playoffs.

9. Minnesota Wild-The Wild made a couple of key moves to solidify their playoff bid. They are on a five game run and have put some distance between themselves and eighth place in the west. Adding Matt Moulson could be the best move of the deadline while Ilya Bryzgalov gives them another option in goal if Darcy Kuemper falters.

8. Los Angeles Kings-The Kings have stayed hot coming out of the Olympic break, extending their win streak to six. They have some ground yet to cover to catch San Jose and Anaheim in the Pacific Division. Marian Gaborik was acquired for some magic beans and can provide scoring if he can stay healthy.

7. Pittsburgh Penguins-The Pens failed to make any splashy moves at the deadline but added some quality depth for the third and fourth lines. Sidney Crosby played his worst game of the year Thursday night going pointless while posting a minus-5 and registering only a single shot on goal. He’ll need to be better if Pittsburgh wants to hold off Boston in the east.

6. Boston Bruins-The Bruins have won three straight and are closing in on the Eastern Conference lead. Their formula is the same with great defense and goaltending, yet they are a top five offensive team as well with their balanced scoring.

5. Chicago Blackhawks-The Blackhawks looked like the best team in the world with their Stadium Series dismantling of Pittsburgh and domination of Columbus. However, they looked listless and ordinary in losses to New York (Rangers) and Colorado. We’ll see how Chicago reacts to looking up in the standings for the first time in over a year.

4. San Jose Sharks-The Sharks ran right over the top team in the east Thursday night. They are getting healthy and seem like they are firing on all cylinders. If they can stay consistent, they will catch Anaheim in the Pacific Division.

3. Colorado Avalanche-Next to the Kings the Avalanche has been the hottest team coming out of the break. They are closing in on Chicago and St. Louis for the Central Division and look like they did the right thing by holding on to Paul Stastny. They may have to deal him in the summer, but the depth will serve them well in the playoffs

2. Anaheim Ducks-Some mediocre hockey has the rest of the elite Western Conference teams up with Anaheim in the points department. They are still one of the best teams in the NHL, but have been remarkably ordinary over their last 10 games (5-4-1). You can certainly bet that coach Bruce Boudreau is littering the locker room with four-letter sentence enhancers.

1. St. Louis Blues-The winners of the trade deadline have to be St. Louis for the Ryan Miller trade. Steve Ott is no slouch either, but Miller makes that St. Louis defense into the best in the NHL and my pick to come out of the Western Conference moving forward.