NHL Power Rankings: Week of Nov. 6

by Erik Erlendsson | @Erik_Erlendsson | Like us on Facebook
November 6, 2017

Who’s on top, who’s rising and who sits at the bottom.

No, we’re not talking about the current state of the standings (that would be way too easy to do). Instead, we present to you the weekly NHL power rankings, going from 1-31 (yes, 31, remember the Vegas Golden Knights became the newest team, which you might notice early on in this countdown).

Note: Records as of Sunday

1. Tampa Bay Lightning (12-2-2) Franchise best start will be tested on West Coast trip

2. St. Louis Blues (12-3-1) Getting contributions up and down the lineup while Alex Pietrangelo looks Norris worthy

3. Los Angeles Kings (10-2-2) Unbeaten in regulation on home ice, team looks faster and more open offensively under John Stevens

4. Columbus Blue Jackets (9-4-1) Only losses have come to the three teams right above them in these rankings

5. New Jersey Devils (8-2-0) Brian Boyle’s return to the lineup alone is worth a jump in the rankings

6. Winnipeg Jets (7-3-3) Finally starting to live up to some expectations as goaltending starting to look strong

7. New York Islanders (8-5-1) John Tavares playing like an MVP, Matt Barzal playing like a Calder contender

8. San Jose Sharks (8-5-0) Four consecutive victories heading in to showdown with Eastern Conference top team – Tampa Bay

9. Vegas Golden Knights (9-4-0) What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas, which includes victories as the Knights are on a long road trip

10. Ottawa Senators (6-3-5) Addition of Matt Duchene will provide a boost to the Senators offense

11. Pittsburgh Penguins (8-6-2) Penguins having issues during 5-on-5 play

12. Vancouver Canucks (7-4-2) Brock Boesner could run for mayor right now and win in a landslide

13. Nashville Predators (7-5-2) Addition of Kyle Turris gives Predators strong depth down the middle

14. Dallas Stars (8-6-0) Team is nearly perfect at home, need to figure out how to win on the road

15. Toronto Maple Leafs (8-7-0) California trip proved humbling for fast-starting Leafs

16. Washington Capitals (7-6-1) Will Alex Ovechkin’s political support of Vladimir Putin become a distraction?

17. Calgary Flames (8-6-0) Three-game winning streak behind the play of goaltender Mike Smith

18. Anaheim Ducks (6-6-2) Still holding their own despite slew of injuries

19. Minnesota Wild (5-5-2) Among best defensive teams in the league, just need some offense to support them

20. Chicago Blackhawks (7-6-2) Early season inconsistency is nothing new for these Blackhawks

21. New York Rangers (6-7-2) Lundqvist is playing well, not coincidentally, so are the Rangers

22. Colorado Avalanche (8-6-0) Duchene drama is finally over, but how much better are the Avalanche

23. Montreal Canadiens (6-8-1) Carey Price is out, but the Canadiens suddenly figured out how to score goals

24. Boston Bruins (5-4-3) The Black and Yellow are more like black and blue as IR starts to fill up

25. Philadelphia Flyers (7-6-2) Injuries are starting to take a toll on the Flyers backend

26. Carolina Hurricanes (4-5-3) Young D is the core, but they need to find somebody to consistently score

27. Detroit Red Wings (7-7-1) Middle of the road team continues to just middle along

28. Florida Panthers (4-7-2) The Panthers can score, but porous defense can’t keep teams from outscoring them

29. Buffalo Sabres (4-8-2) New head coach Phil Housley under heat for praising team’s play during losing ways

26. Edmonton Oilers (3-6-1) Edmonton continues to surprisingly struggle on offense and the losses are staring to pile up

31. Arizona Coyotes (2-12-1) Finally found the W column with a pair of victories. . . but still