(Cover image courtesy Kevin Lamarque/Reuters)

 

Another week of the 2FB Power Rankings brings us a new batch of teams moving up, and some familiar faces at the top.  The New York Rangers held on to the top spot, but the top ten is sporting one team that was a mainstay in the past and finally back in the mix.

1. New York Rangers — (28-11-4) — 60 pts.

Last Week: 1

The Rangers threw up a stinker last night against the struggling Montreal Canadiens following a great performance the night before against the Leafs. Marc Staal is back in the lineup, but still doesn’t quite look like he is back to form which suggests this team still has room for improvement, which should scare everyone in the East. Marty Biron has been able to finally give Henrik Lundqvist the relief the Rangers desperately have been looking for over the past couple of seasons.

#MartyGras

2. Vancouver Canucks — (28-15-3) — 59 pts.

Last Week: 2

The Sedins continue to carry the Canucks as they have since the franchise established themselves as a power in the Western Conference. Combining for 101 points already, the twins are on pace to reach close to 100 points each.  A tip of the cap has to go to Cody Hodgson who has had a couple of rough seasons since getting drafted 10th overall in 2008. This season the rookie has begun to establish himself accumulating 15 pts (7 G, 8A) since Dec 1st and has 26 points on the season.

#HodgePodge

 

3. Boston Bruins — (28-12-1) — 57 pts.

Last Week: 3

The Bruins have the best offence in hockey, they have the best defence in hockey, and the have the best goalie duo in hockey. They are likely the best in hockey right now, but a loss to Vancouver last weekend and the return of Marc Staal for the Rangers has the B’s sitting third this week.

#IfYoureNotFirstYoureLast

 

4. St. Louis Blues — (26-12-6) — 58 pts.

Last Week: 6

Starting goaltender Jaroslav Halak had a triumphant return to Montreal last week as he shutout his former club, which resulted in a mix of cheering and booing from the fans. The Blues have to continue their hot play to keep pace with what has become the best division in hockey outside of the Blue Jackets. The Central boasts a first place Blackhawks team, the Red Wings, and the Predators in addition to the Blues who all hold down a playoff spot. Scary stuff.

#CentralDominance

 

5. Ottawa Senators — (25-15-6) — 56 pts.

Last Week: 6

The Senators are the hottest team in hockey right now. They are 8-1-1 in their last 10 and Craig Anderson was named first star of the week. Although many would argue that 4 Senators do not deserve to be in the All-Star game, but its hard to argue with the results probable Coach of the Year Paul MacLean is getting from this young group.

#Sensational

 

6. Washington Capitals — (24-17-2) — 44 pts.

Last Week: 15

Here come the Caps. 7-3-0 in their past 10. Dale Hunter has the boys playing good hockey and Alex Ovechkin has been starting to put his name on the score sheet more frequently with some help from Nicklas Backstrom. Tomas Vokoun has also played well of late justifying his off-season acquisition after a shaky start.

#BetterLateThanNever

 

7. Chicago Blackhawks — (27-13-6) — 60 pts.

Last Week: 9

The Hawks currently sit a top the Western Conference and have been near the top all season. The Hawks came out with a big win Sunday night against San Jose at home solidifying them as a force in the West. Marian Hossa leads the team in scoring with 48 points and is followed closely by captain Jonathan Toews who has 46. The duo, along with Patrick Kane, are a scary opponent for any top defensive pairing.

#KaneYouDigIt?

 

10. Nashville Predators — (25-15-4) — 54 pts.

Last Week: 10

Pekka Rinne has been stellar of late. After signing a huge 7 year deal at the beginning of the season the franchise net-minder took a huge step back, but has regained his form and has the Preds climbing the ladder lead by long time Predator David Legwand.

#LegUpOnTheRest

11. New Jersey Devils — (25-17-2) — 52 pts.

Last Week: 11

Travis Zajac returned from an off season injury before re-aggrivating his knee and has been out for over a week. The Devils need the depth down the middle to do any major damage come playoff time, but the success of Adam Henrique and Adam Larsson are nice consolations after the loss of Zajac.

 #AdamsFamily

 

12. Pittsburgh Penguins — (23-17-4) — 50 pts.

Last Week: 22

Malkin went into beast mode on Sunday night recording a hat trick in the third period and 5 points on the night.  Linemate James Neal also recorded two points as the Pens downed the Bolts. A big win over an opponent the Pens have to beat to stay in the playoff race. Malkin needs to continue having big performances in the absence of captain Sidney Crosby.

#AllIDoIsWin

 

13. Philadelphia Flyers — (26-13-4) — 56 pts.

Last Week: 16

The Flyers continue to struggle from top to bottom and adding insult to injury was the loss of James VanRiemsdyk to concussion like symptoms. Ilya Bryzgalov continues to struggle and the Flyers are in big trouble. The silver lining is that the Flyers have played 9 of their last 12 on the road and should benefit from a healthy dose of the Philadelphia faithful. Look for them to surge up the standings in upcoming weeks.

#Homesweethome

 

14. Los Angeles Kings — (22-15-9) — 53 pts.

Last Week: 12

The Kings continue to creep up the standings since the addition of coach Darryl Sutter. He has the Kings finally looking like the team many felt they should be. The Kings have proven they can play great defense, but they now need to improve on their offense as Jonathan Quick isn’t going to win every game for them. In their past ten, the Kings have four losses in overtime or shootout which is certainly concerning moving forward.

#TakingOffense

 

15. Colorado Avalanche — (24-20-2) — 50 pts.

Last Week: 17

Tebowmania has engulfed the state of Colorado, but the Avalanche have quietly put a nice stretch of hockey together even with the absence of Matt Duchene. Ryan O’Reilly has blossomed this year, but the Avalanche look doomed to fail with the crop of great teams in the West. Selling at the deadline is their best option moving forward.

 #OneStepBackTwoStepsForward

 

16. Toronto Maple Leafs — (22-17-5) — 49 pts.

Last Week: 13

A week ago the Leafs held down a playoff spot. Jonas Gustavsson was playing great in net and things looked great in Leaf land. Fast forward a week and the Leafs are losers of two straight and face Ottawa, who are arguably the hottest team in hockey, Tuesday night. James Reimer will be back in net and the Leafs desperately need one of their goaltenders to step up and steal the starting role.

#PeaksAndValleys

 

17. Florida Panthers — (21-14-8) — 50 pts.

Last Week: 8

The Panthers have quietly slipped down the standings. After a fantastic start the Panthers have come back to reality. A group of journeyman finally got it together to start the season, but unfortunately haven’t been able to maintain that level of play. The Panthers have some nice pieces in place and only need to wait for some of them to mature and grow with the nice core they have in place already.

#KeepingUpWithTheJones’

 

18. Calgary Flames — (21-20-5) — 47 pts.

Last Week: 21

The Flames stirred the pot this week acquiring Mike Cammalleri from the Montreal Canadiens. The talented sniper has been snake bitten in Montreal and had his ice time die off as the season went on as he continued to lack production. Jay Feaster is hoping Cammalleri can regain the form he had in ’08-’09 when he recorded 82 points alongside captain Jarome Iginla.

#CammerTime

 

19. Anaheim Ducks — (15-22-7) — 37 pts.

Last Week: 29

All of a sudden the Ducks are looking like a hockey team. Bruce Boudreau has his boys playing stellar hockey. No one is talking about trading Bobby Ryan, Ryan Getzlaf, or Corey Perry right now and the Ducks are trying to push themselves back into contention. They are 6-3-1 in their past ten, but have a very long way to go.

#TooLittleTooLate

 

20. Winnipeg Jets — (20-19-5) — 45 pts.

Last Week: 14

The Jets are struggling right now. 4-6-0 in their past 10 and losers of three straight. There is some big concerns in Winnipeg starting with goaltending, but an injury to Dustin Byfuglien has the Jets in a tail spin that they may not be able to recover from.

#Mayday

 

21. Dallas Stars — (24-18-1) — 49 pts.

Last Week: 18

The Stars continue to hang around. They need to be buyers at the deadline if they are to be playoff bound come spring time. They need to get additional scoring from someone that isn’t named Loui Eriksson or Jamie Benn and, while Mike Riberio and Michael Ryder have had nice seasons, the Stars need to acquire a top six forward if they plan on doing any damage. The loss of Brad Richards this offseason is really holding them back.

#DealOrNoDeal

 

22. Buffalo Sabres — (19-20-5) — 43 pts.

Last Week: 24

The Sabres are up two spots this week after a do or die win versus the red hot Leafs Friday kept their season unofficially alive. Ryan Miller just doesn’t look right this season and it has to be a concern for new owner Terry Pegula and long time coach Lindy Ruff.

#MillerLite

 

23. Minnesota Wild — (22-16-7) — 51 pts.

Last Week: 23

As I have mentioned all season the Wild have struggled to score goals. This trend finally caught up with them and they are plummeting down the standings. The Wild are 2-6-2 in their past 10 with no signs of turning it around. Mikko Koivu will be out up to a month with a shoulder injury and things look bleak for the Wild.

#CrashAndBurn

 

24. New York Islanders — (16-20-6) — 38 pts.

Last Week: 26

The Islanders continue to play .500 hockey. Unfortunately that doesn’t get it done in the era of 3 points games. The Islanders can’t wait for the draft lottery.

#PlayingTheLotto

 

25. Montreal Canadiens — (17-20-8) — 43 pts.

Last Week: 19

The Montreal Canadiens are in total disarray. There is no bright spot to the Canadiens this year with the exception of Carey Price and an emerging Lars Eller. This team played an impressive game last night taking down the New York Rangers, but is far too good to be this far down the standings. Pierre Gauthier has ruined this team with dumb contracts and extensions. He will be gone at seasons end… if he even makes it that far.

#ScapeGauth

 

26. Phoenix Coyotes — (20-18-7) — 47 pts.

Last Week: 20

Ray Whitney came out and ripped NHL owners this week suggesting they treat the players like assets instead of human beings. Whitney has been playing NHL hockey for a long time and this suggests things are not going well in the desert. The question is Quebec City or Kansas City?

#GrassIsGreenerOnTheOtherSide

 

27. Edmonton Oilers — (17-23-4) — 38 pts.

Last Week: 27

Rotating injuries to the kids has Oilers fans worried, but will only result in another top pick to improve this already loaded farm system. Jordan Eberle is travelling with the team this week and is likely to play Thursday, but super rookie Ryan Nugent-Hopkins is still a couple weeks away from a return. The absence of their stars is likely going to force the Oilers out of the race again this season.

#MaybeNextYear

 

28. Carolina Hurricanes — (16-24-7) — 39 pts.

Last Week: 28

The Hurricanes have been average of late and the return of Jeff Skinner this week should be a boost to a club that hasn’t go it going since the hiring of Kirk Muller to replace Paul Maurice. A winning streak down the stretch only decreases their chance of landing the first overall pick that they so desperately need.

#StaalTactics

 

29. Tampa Bay Lightning — (17-23-4) — 39 pts.

Last Week: 25

The Lightning stink and Vincent Lecavilier only embarrassed himself and his team more with a dirty sucker punch to Evgeni Malkin Sunday night. The Lightning are dying for a goalie and a hint of defence moving forward. Steve Yzerman could be busy at the deadline, but may benefit from waiting until the offseason. Steven Stamkos is on pace for another Rocket Richard trophy and is the lone bright spot in Tampa these days.

 #BoltForTheDoor

 

30. Columbus Blue Jackets — (12-27-5) –29 pts.

Last Week: 30

There is an odor coming from Ohio and the source is the Blue Jackets. Scott Howson is walking on egg shells and, much like Tampa, needs help between the pipes.  Too bad there aren’t many suitors looking to deal goalies.

 #Eww