The former elites of the East, the Canadiens, Rangers and Lightning, have now been challenged by a new batch of impressive Eastern conference teams. The Capitals and Red Wings have made their way into the top five, while the Penguins are lurking behind them. As far as the West goes, the Stars still have a eight point gap between them and the rest of the conference.
1. Montreal Canadiens 19-5-3
Even with the injuries to Carey Price, the Canadiens are tied for the best record in the NHL. They continue to score 3.4 GPG and their power play is 4th in the league. Captain Max Pacioretty has easily been this teams top player so far this year. His 13 goals make him sixth in the league in that department, trailing leader Jamie Benn by only five goals.
2. Washington Capitals 18-5-1
The Capitals picked up their signature win of the season last night when they defeated the Canadiens. Braden Holtby made 33 saves on 35 shots, and was again the first star. The team scored three goals without Ovechkin, proving the offense is more than a one trick pony.
3. Dallas Stars 20-5-1
Every week it's the same story with these guys. Jamie Benn and Tyler Seguin are torching whatever goaltender is unfortunate enough to step in their path, either Antti Niemi or Kari Lehtonen gets the job done in net and the Dallas Stars continue to dominate the Western Conference. Don’t expect these guys to go anywhere, anytime soon.
4. New York Rangers 17-7-3
Their once comfortable spot in the top 5 is now being tested by a host of worthy adversaries. Detroit and Pittsburgh are looking like they could spring board up the rankings as the Rangers top liner Derek Stepan recovers from broken ribs.
5. Detroit Red Wings 14-8-4
With the return of Pavel Datsyuk, the team looks more at peace, with all the forwards now playing with their likely line mates for the rest of the season. The team has won five of their last seven games, with the two losses coming in overtime.
6. St. Louis Blues 15-7-3
The Blues haven’t played bad the last two weeks, but they haven’t been able to get a winning streak going. They are also 15th in the league in GPG, which could mean trouble as the teams around them in these rankings have had a lot more firepower than they have shown so far this season.
7. Chicago Blackhawks 13-9-4
The return of Duncan Keith means that the Blackhawks reemerge as an elite team in the West. Right now they trail only Dallas and St. Louis in the Central division, but that could all change very soon. Patrick Kane has been the best player the NHL has to offer so far this season, leading the league with 41 points.
8. Pittsburgh Penguins 14-8-2
While the Penguins may be fourth in their division, they have all of the signs of a team about to shoot up in the standings. Their stars Sidney Crosby and Phil Kessel have yet to play up to their capabilities. They are a top five offense in the NHL, right now only averaging 2.3. The time bomb is about to go off, and Pittsburgh’s opponents know if the Penguins get hot, they are one of the most dangerous teams in the NHL.
9. Minnesota Wild 13-7-4
While the offensive star power is what Minnesota is well known for, it has been defense that has won them games recently. Devan Dubnyk only gave up one goal to Chicago, and posted a shut out against Toronto in the two previous games.
10. Nashville Predators 13-8-4
Being fifth in the unfairly difficult Central Division still makes you a top 10 team in these rankings. The team does have to face Detroit, Boston and Chicago, so it is possible that their spot in the top 10 will be threatened.
11. New York Islanders 14-8-4
Their three game winning streak puts them five points behind the division leading Rangers and Capitals. John Tavares is a franchise player, and his 12 goals put him in a tie for eighth in the NHL.
12. Los Angeles Kings 15-8-1
The Jeff Carter and Tyler Toffoli combination continues to work wonders for the Pacific Division leaders. Jeff Carter is second only to Dylan Larkin with a 15 +/- and Tyler Toffoli leads the team with 11 goals.
13. Ottawa Senators 13-7-5
The Senators continue to put themselves in the playoff mix thanks to their offense that is fifth in the NHL. Star defender Erik Karlsson has been everything they could expect him to be on the blue line, he is second in the league with 24 assists while logging 27 MPG.
14. Boston Bruins 13-8-2
The Bruins top line of David Krejci, Patrice Bergeron and Loui Eriksson are all producing at roughly a point a game level, which is bad news for the rest of the league. The team had a five game winning streak snapped by Edmonton, of all teams, but that does not change the fact that this is a team on the rise in these rankings.
15. San Jose Sharks 14-10-0
Joe Pavelski has been one of the most underrated forwards in recent years. He scored 78 goals in his last two seasons, and is currently tied for eighth in the league with 12 goals. The team puts up close to 3 GPG, and Pavelski is a big reason why.
16. Tampa Bay Lightning 12-11-3
It is now December and Tampa Bay’s offense has yet to show up. They only score 2.3 GPG, which is paltry in comparison to their production last year. At this point, perhaps Steven Stamkos and his expiring contract are a distraction.
17. Florida Panthers 12-9-4
The young team is on a roll, winning four straight against playoff caliber teams. The return of Jaromir Jagr from injury has seen a reversal of the teams fortunes, and it is clear Jagr has emerged as a leader on the club despite his short time with the club.
18. New Jersey Devils 13-10-2
Adam Henrique has been great the past five games, scoring three goals and notching five points in the process. He has had instant chemistry with veteran Michael Cammalleri, who leads the team with 26 points.
19. Arizona Coyotes 13-11-1
Max Domi continues to impress all in his first season in the NHL. His 21 points lead the team despite only playing 16 minutes a night.
20. Vancouver Canucks 9-10-8
Daniel Sedin has been the one bright spot on an otherwise miserable season for a team that was expected to contend for the playoffs. His 29 points is tied for fourth in the NHL, and he has been the playmaker for the team despite being known as a sniper.
21. Winnipeg Jets 12-12-2
November was not kind to the Jets, who fell farther back in the insanely difficult Central Division. They have the second worst defense in the league, and are trending in the wrong way.
22. Philadelphia Flyers 10-10-5
The Flyers got a big boost with their three game winning streak that came at a time where the team really needed it. Wayne Simmonds has three goals and five points in his last two games, and has been the Flyers best player both on offense and on defense in this winning streak.
23. Anaheim Ducks 9-12-5
The Ducks continue to struggle in a weak Pacific Division. Their only victory in the last four games was against the struggling Canucks and the Ducks are still eight points off the pace in the Pacific.
24. Colorado Avalanche 11-14-1
The Avalanche have begun to get themselves out of the hole they dug themselves into. Matt Duchene is a big reason why, turning his season around by scoring 11 goals in November alone.
25. Calgary Flames 9-14-2
They have a 3.6 GAA, which is killing them considering their defense was so effective last season. They did pick up an impressive win against Dallas in their last contest, so it will be interesting to see if they can use the win as a catalyst to move up in the rankings.
26. Buffalo Sabres 10-12-3
With a six-game losing streak now behind them, the Sabres have a favorable schedule ahead of them to try and regain some lost ground. Arizona, Edmonton, Vancouver and Calgary haven’t gotten off to the best start so far this season, and maybe the young team can get a winning streak started.
27. Toronto Maple Leafs 8-13-5
Their 6-1 loss to Winnipeg is probably a back breaker for this team. Mike Babcock knew that it would take time to get this team back to the playoffs, but I’m not sure he was expecting this level of futility.
28. Columbus Blue Jackets 10-16-0
Columbus will gladly take this 28th spot after one of the worst starts in recent NHL history. Sergei Bobrovsky has returned to the star goaltender we all knew he was, and is the centerpiece for the team moving forward.
29. Carolina Hurricanes 8-13-4
The team on average gets outscored by one GPG. They are just an all around bad team except for the wasted talent that is Eric Staal, who has managed a 4+/- with close to no help from his line mates.
30. Edmonton Oilers 9-15-2
The team continues to play poor defense in the hopes of another first overall pick in the draft. Taylor Hall and Leon Draisaitl have been impressive offensively, but they cannot score enough to cover for some of the worst defense that has been seen in recent history. So in summary, nothing new to report in Edmonton.