The season may have opened on Tuesday, October 11th. It didn’t.
The first game of the regular season was actually on Friday, October 7th in Prague, something that the NHL just didn’t give nearly as much attention as it should have.
Every Monday morning I will be writing about my weekly power rankings, but let me first explain how I’m coming to the decisions that I am.
Before the season began I had made my power rankings based on seasonal expectations, which will be included as I go through all 32 teams in the league.
The rankings are adjusted after every game is played, and teams are moved throughout the rankings as such. How do I determine how much a team moves?
Let’s say that Team A is first in the power rankings and is seen around the league as a clear cup contender and that Team B is last in the power rankings with a clear goal of being bad to get the best draft lottery odds possible. Let’s also say that Team C is in the playoff hunt and is around the middle point of the power rankings (16th).
If Team B defeats Team A in a blowout game, Team A would more than likely drop while Team B would rise. If Team C were to beat Team A, Team A would more than likely drop less than if they lost to Team B.
Everything is relative to the current rankings, and teams are adjusted as such. So, enough explaining, let’s just get straight into it.
Tier 4: Bottom Out for Bedard’s
#32: Arizona Coyotes (0–2–0): (Previously 32nd)
The Coyotes look as bad as we had expected them to, being dominated in a 6–2 loss against the Penguins in their season opener and then following that up with a 6–3 loss against Boston.
Only having scored a single goal at even strength in those games is a sign of things to come. You can only feel bad for Vejmelka, who has faced 96 (!!!) shots in the Yote's first couple of games.
Their powerplay has looked alright so far, scoring on 3/8 opportunities. Aside from that, you can only pray for Arizona fans who will have to watch this all season.
#31: San Jose Sharks (0–4–0): (Previously 27th)
I really thought that San Jose was going to be bad this season, but this is beyond a rough start. Going 0–2–0 in the first two games of the season against Nashville was somewhat understandable. Then you dropped a close game against Carolina, also understandable.
Then you lose in a blowout game against Chicago. That’s pretty close to the bottom of the barrel. They’ve only scored 1 goal on 16 powerplay opportunities, but have had a surprisingly successful 12/12 penalty-killing unit.
James Reimer has played outstanding in the two games that he’s played, and Erik Karlsson has looked fantastic with a goal and 2 assists to begin the season. I do expect them to get better, but rough starts like this can snowball out of control pretty quickly.
#30: Chicago Blackhawks (1–2–0): (Previously 31st)
As mentioned, the victory of San Jose put Chicago in this position. Losses against Colorado and Vegas are expected but they didn’t exactly deserve to be moved up due to their play.
Overall their penalty kill has been weak (66.7%) and their powerplay has been strong (28.6%). Patrick Kane hasn’t had the best start to the season, as he only has a single assist through 3 games.
They’re primed to completely blow up their roster during the season and make a push for Bedard, and I don’t see any ability to upset that plan so far.
#29: Montreal Canadians (1–2–0): (Previously 29th)
Montreal jumped up quite a bit with their performance against Toronto in their season opener, but since losing to Detroit despite a stellar performance from Jake Allen and falling apart against Washington, it was difficult to have them any higher.
Caufield and Suzuki looked strong as a duo against Toronto, especially with their deadly play on the rush. Both of them have 3 points through 3 games, but there really aren’t any other bright points.
Jake Allen has been really good? That’s something, Slafkovsky hasn’t shown much promise through three games, only putting up a single shot on the stat sheet so far. Hopefully, he can light it up for the rest of the year so Habs fans can enjoy watching something.
#28: Buffalo Sabres (1–1–0): (Previously 28th)
Beating the Senators in their season opener was pretty surprising, especially when you look at how well Craig Anderson played between the pipes.
Dahlin has been a bright spot so far, scoring 2 goals and 3 points through the first couple of games. JJ Peterka has also started his rookie season strong with 2 points so far.
This year should be the last year of Buffalo being bad. Owen Power has looked alright so far, and you can absolutely see the potential there, but not the Calder Trophy winning skill that we expected out of him. He still has plenty of time to get there, and I expect he will.
#27: New Jersey Devils (0–2–0): (Previously 23rd)
Being one of three teams that dropped 4 spots to begin the season, you would expect New Jersey to have been a little bit worse. I don’t see them staying down here, but being outscored 10–4 in two games against Detroit and Philadelphia is a tragic way to begin the season.
But, there are many positive signs. They outshot Philly by 12, and Detroit by 17. If they can get some saves, which has been their biggest issue over the past couple of seasons, they will start to win some games.
Jesper Bratt has continued his fantastic level of production with 3 points through 2 games, but Jack Hughes has been surprisingly quiet. Not a single point yet and has been a -3. I still think this could be 90+ point season for Hughes, but he needs to be at his best for New Jersey to even think about making the playoffs.
#26: Columbus Blue Jackets (0–3–0): (Previously: 24th)
4–1 loss against Carolina, 5–2 loss to Tampa Bay, and a 5–2 loss to St. Louis is a tough way to start the year. I was thinking about having Columbus higher due to this high level of competition to begin their season, but they didn’t even put up a fight.
Patrik Laine unfortunately got injured in the Blue Jackets first game of the season after opening the scoring against Carolina, which doesn’t help their case.
Johnny Gaudreau has put up 2 points so far, but lacklustre goaltending and a lack of depth scoring has really put Columbus in a sticky situation to start the year.
#25: Anaheim Ducks (1–1–0): (Previously 26th)
Anaheim was set to move up a few spots this week, but a 7–1 loss against the New York Islanders is something that will humble you back a few positions.
They weren’t even set to move up due to their play, as they barely beat the Kraken in their home season opener. Everything production wise went to plan, with Troy Terry, Ryan Strome, Mason McTavish, Trevor Zegras, and John Klingberg all have at least 2 points through 2 games.
Aside from those 5, Frank Vatrano is the only one on the Ducks roster with a point. They’re depth scoring and defensive ability are what people questioned heading into this season and they’ve only proved that to be true.
#24: Philadelphia Flyers (2–0–0): (Previously 30th)
The Flyers are the biggest raisers this week, but don’t expect it to be for too long. John Torterella has whipped these boys into shape.
Despite being outplayed against New Jersey they still persevered to win the game, and despite being down 2–0 by the end of the first against Vancouver, they still won the game.
Carter Hart has looked fantastic so far, and having 7 players with 2+ points has resulted in a surprising start for Philly. I’d be shocked if this doesn’t end up being the peak for the Flyers seeing, but who knows.
Tier 3: Stuck in the Middle
#23: Seattle Kraken (1–1–1): (Previously 25th)
I’ll give Seattle this much, they’re much more fun to watch this year. The additions of Burakovsky, Schultz, and Bjorkstrand have proved to be successful as they’ve all played great so far for the Kraken.
Matty Beniers has been unbelievable and is the current Calder favourite in my eyes, which is yet another thing that just make them so much more entertaining than the irrelevancy that they had in their inaugural season.
Grubauer and Jones have struggled so far, which similarly to New Jersey, was the biggest issue that Seattle had last year. They may have lost to the Ducks to start their season, but the win over the Kings boosted them up just slightly over Anaheim.
#22: Vancouver Canucks (0–2–0): (Previously 18th)
I still believe that this Vancouver team has it in them to make the playoff this season, but blowing a 3–0 lead to the Edmonton Oilers to start the season and following that up with blowing a 2–0 lead against the Philadelphia Flyers isn’t a good sign.
This team is largely the same as last years, but a full year of Boudreau’s coaching should help them improve, right? Boeser and Miller are the only ones who have put up more than 1 point to begin the year and Demko hasn’t been the unstoppable force that he has proved himself to be over the past couple of seasons.
This team doesn’t have the depth to survive with their stars lacking in production, and if Demko doesn’t pick it up this team may be in serious trouble.
#21: Ottawa Senators (0–2–0): (Previously 21st)
A good effort against Toronto did slightly move them up again, but this team hasn't looked as good as you would expect them too early on. It’s a brand new team which is understandably going to have chemistry issues, but the issues appear to be the same as they have in the past.
Anton Forsberg has played lights out in both of the Senators' games but their lack of production, as well as their lack of defensive effort, is really hurting their chances to make the playoffs.
The Senators are the kind of team that needed a strong start to make a push for the playoffs by riding the momentum but so far things are looking to be “1 year away” yet again.
#20: New York Islanders (1–1–0): (Previously 19th)
I do believe that if the Islanders had another game this week that they would be higher on this power rankings, and I imagine that they’ll prove me right by next week.
A 4–3 loss to Florida may have been disappointing, but expected. A 7–1 win against the Ducks is something that we don’t see too often from an Isles team that’s much more used to playing a shutdown style of game.
Barzal currently has 3 points to start the year, which is closer to the kind of production we’ve expected of him since his explosive rookie year. Sorokin is going to make a legitimate push for the Vezina trophy this season, so don’t be surprised if the Islanders figure out how to consistently produce and win more games than expected.
#19: LA Kings (1–2–0): (Previously 16th)
I still believe in my hot take that 5 teams from the Pacific division will make the playoffs this year, but the Kings and Canucks haven’t given me any more hope so far.
They battled in a 4–3 loss against Vegas on opening night before getting beaten by the Kraken in an embarrassing 4–1 loss. Follow that up with 7–6 win against Minnesota where they ran into yet another poor performance from Marc-Andre Fleury.
I still really like this team and their quick transition to a young exciting roster make for some fun hockey to watch, but if they don’t get better in front of their goalies then they’re going to struggle more than I thought.
#18: Detroit Red Wings (2–0–0): (Previously 22nd)
I thought it was going to be a close race for 5th in the Atlantic Division between the Red Wings and Senators, but Detroit has emerged as the clear better team through two games.
Bertuzzi being out for 4–6 weeks certainly hurts their odds of keeping this kind of performance up, but winning games that they should be (Montreal and New Jersey) is something that they have fumbled in the past.
Both netminders have performed well so far, and Dylan Larkins’ 4 points through 2 games is a great start to the year for someone who was questionable to reach the success that they had last year.
#17: Winnipeg Jets (1–0–0): (Previously 20th)
Only playing a single game so far, it’s difficult to place the Jets. They move up three spots mainly due to how well they played against New York but it’s easy to forget that Halak was in net for the Rangers due to it being the second half of a back-to-back for them.
Scheifele silenced his doubters by having a great beginning to his season scoring 2 goals. Hellebuyck stopped 40/41 shots in his season debut which is hopefully a sign that his numbers will be more consistently great once again this year.
I still don’t see a way how the Jets make the playoffs considering how the Western Conference is laid out, but their opener was the kind of game that gives fans hope.
Tier 2: Playoff Hopefuls
#16: Washington Capitals (1–2–0): (Previously 13th)
Washington is a weird one. They lost to Boston and Toronto while beating the Canadians. Was the game against Boston not as close as you would have liked it to be? Sure. Was the game against Montreal much closer than you would have liked it to be? Yeah.
But the main thing is how slow this team looks. I love the additions of Connor Brown and Dylan Strome to this team, but they're clearly missing some dynamic fast play in their top 6.
Ovechkin and Kuznetsov only have a single point each so far, and Kuemper hasn’t exactly been rock solid through two games. There’s plenty to worry about with this team, but considering how the rest of the Metro is making out so far I wouldn’t be too worried about their ability to make the playoffs.
#15: Nashville Predators (2–2–0): (Previously #12)
Such a convincing start against San Jose in their opening two games in Prague. But their next two games against the Stars made them look like the much inferior roster.
Saros hasn’t been the world-stopper that he has shown to be for Nashville, which is something they will need from him if they want to reach their ceiling.
Duchene and Forsberg have just 2 points so far, so hopefully, they can find more success and production moving forward, they’ll need it. Their 6.3% PP is certainly concerning.
#14: Minnesota Wild (0–2–0): (Previously 10th)
This team is difficult to rank. They haven’t necessarily played poorly in either of their losses, but Marc-Andre Fleury’s concerning level of play is something to keep an eye on.
Boldy, Kaprizov and Zuccarello have all looked spectacular so far with them getting solid depth scoring as well. Their powerplay has clicked at a 40.0% clip so far, and given their level of talent, I wouldn’t be surprised to remain in the top 5 throughout the season.
If Minnesota can get average goaltending from Fleury moving forward, I don’t see how they can’t jump back up to where the majority of people expected them to be this season.
#13: Dallas Stars (2–0–0): (Previously 17th)
I think Dallas might be the most wrong I’ve been in terms of predictions this year. They looked fantastic through 2 games and I think they’re going to keep it rolling.
Roope Hintz and Jason Robertson both have 4 points through 2 games and I honestly don’t expect their production to slow down to a halt. Don’t be surprised if both of them reach 100 points if they stay healthy this year.
Jake Oettinger has also looked fantastic so far, which is something that I’ve seemingly wrongly doubted following his historically great playoff series last year. This should be a fun year in Texas.
#12: St. Louis Blues (1–0–0): (Previously 14th)
St. Louis’s single victory over the Blue Jackets isn’t what put them here, it was more about other teams dropping down. However, they still played extremely well in that game.
Binnington’s regular season play was the biggest question mark on this team, but he played great in the opener. The Blues’ top 6 is one of the best in the league and if they can all produce as well as they did last year this team will continue to be extremely exciting to watch.
Jake Neighbours is also coming in as a rookie with something to prove, and it looks like his potential may be a lot higher than everyone thought when he was drafted.
#11: Vegas Golden Knights (3–0–0): (Previously 15th)
It seems odd to have the only 3–0–0 team outside of the top ten, but hear me out. Close wins against the Kings and Blackhawks, as well as a blowout against Seattle isn’t exactly impressive to me. Besides the opener against the Kings, it would have been shocking for them to lose either of the other games.
They’re winning games that they should and their goaltending has been surprisingly fantastic. It’s difficult to put them much higher without seeing them against some real competition.
As mentioned, Logan Thompson and Adin Hill have been unbelievable so far. Eichel, Marchessault, Stephenson and Pietrangelo all have 3 points and they already have 9 players with 2+ points. They’re definitely better than expected, but I’m not going to be too quick to call them contenders just yet.
#10: Boston Bruins (2–0–0): (Previously 11th)
Boston hasn’t had a bump in the road yet, easily pushing out Washington in their opener and cruising past Arizona. Pastrnak and Krejci have had instant chemistry in Krejci’s return, both already having 4 points.
Ullmark has been the better netminder thus far, but I still expect the two goalies to split games throughout the season. Having one of the best tandems in the league should be seen as a gift, but you can so easily turn it into a curse.
They have shown that they can hold the fort until McAvoy, Grzelyck, and Marchand get back from injury for now. I’m not too sure that can hold up, and for their sake, they need to keep their heads above water until then.
Tier 1: Contenders
#9: Florida Panthers (2–0–0): (Previously 8th)
I have, in my opinion, seen way too many people overhype the Panthers’ start to the year. They’re 2–0–0, yes, but they were also two close games against the Sabres and Islanders.
We haven’t seen anywhere near the utter domination they displayed last year yet, so I don’t see a reason to treat them as such. Tkachuk has looked great in his new jersey with 3 points in 2 games, and Bobrovsky played outstanding in his only game so far this year.
Aside from that, they’re clearly not the same team defensively this year without Weegar. Tkachuk may give them more offensive firepower, they haven’t proved to be as strong as last year to me yet.
#8: Pittsburgh Penguins (2–0–0): (Previously 9th)
It was hard for me to not have Pittsburgh higher. A 6–2 win against Arizona didn’t make me budge on them, but a 6–2 dominant victory against Tampa Bay a couple of nights later shows how hungry the Penguins are.
Sidney Crosby leads the league in points and was the NHL’s first star of the week, Tristan Jarry has only let in a single even-strength goal on 46 shots, Guentzel has 4 points, Heinen, Zucker, Rust, Letang, and Carter all have 3 points.
They’ve gotten the depth scoring, they’ve gotten the defence, they’ve gotten the goaltending, and aside from their penalty kill their numbers have been one of, if not the best in the league so far. Don’t be surprised to see one last run from the big 3.
#7: Toronto Maple Leafs (2–1–0): (Previously 5th)
I was considering dropping Toronto more, but I’ll give them another week before I begin to overreact. Despite Matt Murray playing poorly (and now being injured), Samsonov has looked fantastic to this point.
Auston Matthews hasn’t been Auston Matthews at all to begin the season, but luckily for the Leafs the rest of their core 5 has been fantastic. Rielly still looks as weak defensively as ever, but aside from that they’ve been solid on the blue line.
There are a lot of questions surrounding the roster, but I truly believe that this could be the year. Samsonov will need to keep playing above average for them to go all the way, but right now they just need to get off to a strong start.
#6: Edmonton Oilers (1–1–0): (Previously 6th)
I haven’t been blown away by what I’ve seen from the Oilers, but I also haven’t seen a bad hockey team. They have yet to start on time in either of their two games and in one of them ended up winning, and in the other got within one goal.
McDavid and Draisaitl are as unreal as ever, which was to be expected. But the major downfall of this team so far is how poorly Jack Campbell has played.
They’ve been missing that depth scoring that appeared out of nowhere last year in the playoffs, and that’s what this team needs to succeed. I still believe that they can win the Pacific division, but they need things to go their way.
#5: Tampa Bay Lightning (1–2–0): (Previously 2nd)
I don’t see their poor start as a thing to come, but it’s certainly concerning that they actually were severely outplayed by both the Rangers and Penguins.
Stamkos’ shot looks as unstoppable as ever, but Kucherov especially has been noticeably frustrated on the ice despite him having 3 points. Vasilevskiy has played lights out as usual but they just haven’t seemed to be able to find their footing.
Most of their play has been on the perimeter, and while they’re certainly skilled enough to score more often than most out there, they need to get in the netminder's grill more often. They’re 100% missing Cirelli.
#4: Calgary Flames (2–0–0): (Previously 7th)
I was part of the ‘Calgary won’t be as good’ train following their major off-season retooling. Gaudreau and Tkachuk out, Huberdeau, Kadri and Weegar in. So far, it’s been a success.
Playing Colorado and Edmonton to start the year is rough, but they managed to overcome the odds and win both games. Kadri has been a standout so far, but they need more production from their top guys moving forward.
Lindholm, Huberdeau, and Toffoli all only have a single point. I expect that to turn around, but how soon? Neither netminder has been overly impressive either, and you have to think that a quick slump may be coming if things don’t change quickly.
#3: New York Rangers (2–1–0): (Previously 4th)
I would love to have moved the Rangers down from their loss against the Jets, but when Shesterkin has been in net they’ve looked nearly unstoppable.
Panarin is tied with Crosby for leading the league in points, and Zibanejads's shot is looking as good as ever. K’Andre Miller and Alexis Lafreniere have clearly improved over the offseason and despite only having a single point Kakko has looked great so far.
The question is if this team can compete at even strength better than they could last season, and so far they’ve only proven that they can.
#2: Carolina Hurricanes (2–0–0): (Previously 3rd)
Meh. The Hurricanes haven’t exactly impressed me so far, but they haven’t given me a reason to move them down either. The only reason why they moved up is because of Tampa dropping a few spots and the Rangers losing a game.
They didn’t look particularly impressive in a close win against the Sharks and were looking shaky to begin their opener against the Blue Jackets. If one thing is going their way it’s that they continue to have what is more than likely the best tandem in the league in Andersen and Raanta.
Necas has 4 points already, but aside from Svechnikovs 2, there isn’t a single other player on the roster with more than a single point. That will need to improve if they want to win the division again.
#1: Colorado Avalanche (1–1–0): (Previously #1)
A singular loss against a strong opponent in Calgary isn’t going to change my mind about the Avalanche. Do I think they’re much more beatable compared to last year? Yes. Do I think they are still the favourites to win the cup? Also yes.
MacKinnon and Rantanen have looked fantastic so far and Lehkonen surprisingly has 4 points through 2 games. Neither netminder has played well for them so far which isn’t a great sign.
If one of Georgiev or Francouz can give the Avs league-average goaltending I don’t see how they don’t continue their dominance throughout the regular season.