NHL Power Rankings: Golden Knights, Bruins Start On Top

Welcome to the second edition of NHL Power Rankings here at Full Press Hockey for this season. After the way too early edition of power rankings, they are back in the weekly rotation. 

The NHL’s regular season is underway. There have been a lot of surprises to begin the season as teams have eclipsed the 10-game mark. The question will be those surprise teams that are near the top of the standings can they sustain their success going forward. We know the stalwarts can. But what about the new kids on the block that have started off strong? But even though it is early we can tell there are some teams that are in trouble and really bad.

Time to dive into the NHL Power Rankings and find out where these teams stand in this second edition.

NHL Power Rankings

1. Vegas Golden Knights 

The Golden Knights are a healthy team once again and look like one of the best teams in the NHL. There is a reason they are number one in the NHL Power Rankings. The Golden Knights are back to form and a threat to win a Stanley Cup once again. Winners of eight straight games, the Golden Knights are rolling under Bruce Cassidy.

2. Boston Bruins 

A major surprise in the East is the Boston Bruins. A perennial contender continues to be atop the standings with new coach Jim Montgomery. Boston survived injuries to top players as their depth scoring has carried them. Oh yeah, David Pastrnak is really good at hockey.

3. New Jersey Devils

The Devils are one of the hottest teams in the NHL having won seven in a row and eight of their last nine sitting atop the Metro Division. A different mindset and attitude have allowed New Jersey to turn around their bad start.

4. Dallas Stars 

New Year. Same Pete DeBoer. First-year DeBoer is great for the Stars. Though the Stars lost on Tuesday night, Dallas is playing much better. They have depth scoring finally. But the key for the Stars will be surviving without Jake Oettinger.

5. Carolina Hurricanes

The Hurricanes continue to fly under the radar. Nobody really talks about them much. Yes a sexy pick to win the Stanley Cup, but they continue to go about their business by winning. Brent Burns has been a really great addition to their defence.

6. Winnipeg Jets

Connor Hellebuyck is looking strong between the pipes for the Winning Jets. He is playing at a Vezina Trophy level again. The Jets continue to outperform expectations. But can they keep it up is the real question?

7. Tampa Bay Lightning 

The Lightning struggled out of the gate. However, the three-time Eastern Conference Champions are looking like their old selves. Brandon Hagel has settled into his role on the team and looks like the player they acquired last year.

8. Edmonton Oilers 

Edmonton has a great dynamic duo with Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl. Having Stuart Skinner has taken the pressure off of Jack Campbell. Campbell has not lived up to the contract just yet as he is adjusting to his new team.

9. Colorado Avalanche

The Avalanche are off to a slow start for their standards. Colorado has found their game overseas crushing the Blue Jackets. Mikko Rantanen has been excellent this season with no Gabriel Landeskog. Alexandar Georgiev has been rock solid, but with another injury to leading scorer Valeri Nichushkin, can the Avalanche keep rolling as their depth is being tested?

10. Seattle Kraken

Who would have thought the Seattle Kraken would be ranked this high? Give credit where credit is do, this team is playing well winning five in a row with balanced scoring and good goaltending.

11. Toronto Maple Leafs

The Maple Leafs are starting to turn around their season. John Tavares has put the Maple Leafs on his back and having a career season.

12. Los Angeles Kings

How about the young players in LA? Gabriel Vilardi leads the team with 10 goals. Many thought it would be Kevin Fiala, but it is Vilardi. Goaltending has been good too with Jonathan Quick picking up where he left off last season.

13. New York Islanders

The Islanders are playing well and showing they can win even when they do not play their best. Two come from behind victories this week alone not to mention three on the season. Goaltending continues to be their strength as they wait for Mathew Barzal to start scoring goals.

14. Calgary Flames 

What is up with the Flames? Calgary has lost six in a row. And While they should be ranked lower because of that alone they are playing pretty well despite blowing leads in the third period. Goaltending which is supposed to be a strength… isn’t. The new guys are still trying to figure out Darryl’s system, but man they need to turn it around quickly.

15. New York Rangers

The Rangers got off to a hot start and have cooled off. Defensively the Rangers need to be better. They outperformed their underlying defensive numbers last year. This year different story. Not to mention Chris Kreider has come back to Earth.

16. Florida Panthers

The Panthers are facing some adversity early on. That might be a good thing for a team that won the President’s Trophy last year. Brandon Montour has really elevated his game recently.

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17. Detroit Red Wings

Steve Yzerman is doing it again in Detroit. This is the year for the Red Wings to take the next step. Goaltending looks better, what a difference Ville Husso has made to this club. Tuesday night was not their night, but Detroit is performing better than expected.

18. Philadelphia Flyers

The Flyers have come back to Earth some, but one thing is clear under Tortorella, this team will not be outworked. Carter Hart having a comeback season. But the team is playing much better in front of him too.

19. Buffalo Sabres

These Sabres are going to be a fun team to watch this season. If they want to make the playoffs losing to Arizona does not help their case. After a strong start, the Sabres have slowed down some, but still in the mix. Consistently they need to put games together.

20. Nashville Predators 

Did we expect Matt Duchene, Ryan Johansen, and Roman Josi to have career seasons again? Of course, Filip Forsberg continues to lead the team offensively that is what he does, but Nashville is still trying to find their game after coming back from Europe.

21. Minnesota Wild

After a slow start to the season, Minnesota was able to turn things around. However, for a team that was supposed to contend they sure could use a guy like Kevin Fiala right now. They need to score and defend better in front of their goalies.

22. Chicago Blackhawks

Good on the players for playing hard each and every night for Luke Richardson. He is a good coach in a tough situation. Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews are doing all they can, but the trade watch is on when both decide it is time to move on.

23. Pittsburgh Penguins

Eventually, Father Time is going to catch up with an aging Pittsburgh Penguins team. Right now it has after a strong start. Like the Rangers, the Penguins can’t protect leads, especially in the third period as the Penguins have lost seven straight games. Outside the top line, they can’t score. It is a problem they had going back to the 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs.

24. Washington Capitals

Injuries are piling up for the Washington Capitals. This defence is not as good as the one in Colorado and Darcy Kuemper is finding that out the hard way. All the focus will be on Alex Ovechkin and his goal chase.

25. Montreal Canadiens

The Canadiens are feast or famine in the Atlantic Division. Head coach Martin St. Louis is allowing the kids of Cole Caufield, Nick Suzuki, and Kirby Dach to have fun playing hockey again. St. Louis is such a perfect fit for this young Canadiens team.

26. Ottawa Senators

Right now Ottawa is low on the Rankings and many expected them to be better than this, especially with the summer they had. Off a good start, things have come off the rails for the Senators. The offence is not the problem it is the defence.

27.  St. Louis Blues

A team that was supposed to contend in the Central Division, the Blues have lost eight games in a row. A change in philosophy has really hurt this team. They just can’t score goals.

28. Arizona Coyotes

We know the Coyotes are going to be bad. They are making no bones about it. However, they are performing better than expected recently. This 14-game road trip is so crucial to their season. So far off to a good start 2-0.

29. Anaheim Ducks

The Ducks are a bad team. Yes, they have young pieces in Trevor Zegras, Troy Terry, Mason McTavish, and Jamie Drysdale, but it is going to take time before they are a contender again.

30. Vancouver Canucks

Despite their awful start to the season, the Canucks have rebounded, but still have issues defensively. Not to mention the things their general manager has said in the media. The Canucks are who a lot of people thought they were.

31. San Jose Sharks 

The Sharks could be possibly the worst team in the NHL. However, recently they have been performing better after a slow start. Let’s talk about how the way Erik Karlsson is performing this year. He is playing like the player that won the Norris trophy back in Ottawa.

32. Columbus Blue Jackets 

Columbus is in a tailspin. The Blue Jackets are not a good team at all. Yes, they have Johnny Gaudreau and Patrik Laine, but those guys are not solving the issues Columbus is dealing with right now.

That does it for this edition of NHL Power Rankings… Stay Tuned more another edition of NHL Power Rankings in a few weeks when the season really gets going.