Tyler J. Altemose

Ah, yes. It's that time once again. My apologies for the three-week delay. The Christmas season was a busy one for me, and I spent New Years in Florida. But I'm back now, bringing you some tasty Power Rankings action. As you can gather from the title, the Vancouver Canucks have taken over the top spot rather quietly. Check out how the other 29 teams did.

 

 

Vancouver Canucks

Current Rank: 1 | Previous Rank: 4 | +3

You'd have to go back to 20 November to find the last time that this team lost by more than 2 goals. Luongo's decision to drop the 'C' is paying dividends, and the offense is getting contributions all around.

 

Pittsburgh Penguins

Current Rank: 2 | Previous Rank: 3 | +1

The Penguins are back to their winning ways.

 

 

Dallas Stars

Current Rank: 3 | Previous Rank: 5 | +2

I'm not supposed to enjoy the fact that a team from the deep south is playing so well, but I do.

 

Philadelphia Flyers

Current Rank: 4 | Previous Rank: 1 | -3

You wouldn't imagine that the road block in the Flyers' recent stretch of success would be the Florida Panthers.

 

San Jose Sharks

Current Rank: 5 | Previous Rank: 7 | +2

The Sharks goaltending was outstanding this week.

 

 

Detroit Red Wings

Current Rank: 6 | Previous Rank: 2 | -4

The Wings have been struggling to find their footing as of late.

 

 

Atlanta Thrashers

Current Rank: 7 | Previous Rank: 8 | +1

Not a bad week for the Thrashers. They continue to stay competitive with the Bolts and the Caps in the Southeast.

 

Washington Capitals

Current Rank: 8 | Previous Rank: 11 | +3

The Caps managed to stay tough after tripping out the gate this week.

 

 

Montreal Canadiens

Current Rank: 9 | Previous Rank: 6

Scoring seemed to be an issue for Les Habitants this week. But hey, look at the bright side: you beat the Bruins!

 

Boston Bruins

Current Rank: 10 | Previous Rank: 9 | -1

No matter what they do, the Bruins seem to have issues with scoring.

 

 

Chicago Blackhawks

Current Rank: 11 | Previous Rank: 16 | +5

The Blackhawks swept through some pretty fierce competition this week.

 

 

New York Rangers

Current Rank: 12 | Previous Rank: 12 | +/-0

It was a short and uneventful week for the Rangers.

 

 

Los Angeles Kings

Current Rank: 13 | Previous Rank: 14 | +1

Not a bad week on the road.

 

 

Colorado Avalanche

Current Rank: 13 | Previous Rank: 15 | +2

The Avalanche's 0-5 loss to the Kings this week was their worst all season.

 

Anaheim Ducks

Current Rank: 15 | Previous Rank: 10 | -5

The road has not been kind to the Ducks this week.

 

 

Nashville Predators

Current Rank: 16 | Previous Rank: 13 | -3

The fact that the Preds beat the Devils is pretty much overshadowed by the fact that they were outscored 10-2 in their other two games.

 

Tampa Bay Lightning

Current Rank: 17 | Previous Rank: 21 | +4

Nearly a perfect week for the Bolts.

 

 

Phoenix Coyotes

Current Rank: 18 | Previous Rank: 18 | +/-0

Tough week on the road against the East for the 'Yotes.

 

 

St. Louis Blues

Current Rank: 19 | Previous Rank: 19 | +/-0

The more I see from this team, the more I believe that their youth is going to end up costing them in the long run.

 

Columbus Blue Jackets

Current Rank: 20 | Previous Rank: 17 | -3

Oh, Blue Jackets. What happened to you?

 

 

Carolina Hurricanes

Current Rank: 21 | Previous Rank: 23 | +2

The 'Canes need to do a little more if they're going to want to stay competitive in the Southeast.

 

Ottawa Senators

Current Rank: 22 | Previous Rank: 20 | -2

My dark horse in the East is pretty close to being put down.

 

 

Florida Panthers

Current Rank: 23 | Previous Rank: 26 | +3

The Panthers looked unusually strong this week until they went to Pittsburgh.

 

Minnesota Wild

Current Rank: 24 | Previous Rank: 25 | +1

Nice home and home wins against the Flames.

 

 

Buffalo Sabres

Current Rank: 25 | Previous Rank: 22 | -3

Mediocre goaltending and a weak offense has been the story in Buffalo for the better part of the week.

 

New York Islanders

Current Rank: 26 | Previous Rank: 30 | +4

The Isles haven't had two wins in the same week since 21 October. Nice work, fellas.

 

Toronto Maple Leafs

Current Rank: 27 | Previous Rank: 24 | -3

Three straight losses, outscored 15-6. 'Nuff said.

 

 

Edmonton Oilers

Current Rank: 28 | Previous Rank: 27 | -1

It was a short week for the Oilers, but you never want to overlook a win with this team.

 

Calgary Flames

Current Rank: 29 | Previous Rank: 28 | -1

It's hard to imagine, but things are finding a way to get worse in Calgary.

 

 

New Jersey Devils

Current Rank: 30 | Previous Rank: 29 | -1

At the end of the week, the Devils were looking at a 2-8-0 record in their past ten games.