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Welcome back to The Hockey News’ NHL power rankings, where we rank all 32 teams based on their weekly performance.
Happy holidays to all. This will be the final edition of the NHL power rankings until the calendar turns to 2025 when we return on New Year’s Day.
In light of the holiday season, it’s time to figure out each NHL team’s ultimate wish on their holiday list. Let’s start with the new No. 1.
1. Washington Capitals (21-8-2, +35. Last week: 2)
A swift return for Alex Ovechkin because then he can resume his chase for Gretzky’s record. An unexpectedly strong season, top spot in the power rankings and breaking the all-time goals record? That would be an awesome way to cap off their 50th anniversary season.
2. Minnesota Wild (20-7-4, +18. Last week: 1)
The Wild will gain a little over $13 million in cap space once the Suter and Parise buyout penalties come off the books, so you know what would make it even better? A massive increase to the cap ceiling beyond the projected $92.4 million.
3. New Jersey Devils (21-10-3, +27. Last week: 6)
Some sort of bubble wrap around Jack Hughes so we don’t collectively lose our minds when he’s skating 100 mph into the offensive zone with the puck and loses an edge or, god forbid, tries to hit someone twice his size again.
4. Vegas Golden Knights (20-8-3, +16. Last week: 4)
What do you get for a team that already has everything – nice weather, great fans and a banner – and enough money to buy all the shiniest toys on the market? A nice banana peel, maybe, so when Mark Stone slips on it and tweaks his back, they can LTIR him until the playoffs again.
5. Carolina Hurricanes (20-10-1, +25). Last week: 7)
GM Eric Tulsky is super smart, and he was basically the original champion of possession-based hockey – which every team essentially copies these days – but perhaps a copy of “The Idiot’s Guide to Unlocking Jesperi Kotkaniemi’s Potential” would be super helpful.
6. Winnipeg Jets (23-9-1, +37. Last week: 8)
Beyond better attendance for arguably their most dominant team ever, how about trying to beat the Knights for once?! Dating back to their first-round matchup in 2023, the Jets have beaten them just once(!) in 10 games. The road to the Cup will inevitably run through arguably the best team in the Pacific.
7. Toronto Maple Leafs (19-10-2, +11. Last week: 5)
I’m just gonna say what Leafs Nation has been wishing for even well before when I was born: Advancing past the second round. Go big or go home is the mantra in sports, but baby steps here, folks. Also, wishing for a speedy recovery for Anthony Stolarz because Joseph Woll will need help.
Related: Toronto Maple Leafs’ Goalie Depth Makes Life Much Easier While Stolarz Is Out
8. Los Angeles Kings (18-9-4, +15. Last week: 9)
A DeLorean to bring back another Anze Kopitar so the Kings may have him for another 20 seasons. This is Hollywood, after all.
9. Florida Panthers (19-11-2, +10. Last week: 3)
A giant freezer to cover their ballpark so their ice won’t get soft like Lake Tahoe when they host their outdoor game next season, and a bowl of hot chicken noodle soup for Aleksander Barkov.
10. Dallas Stars (19-11-0, +23. Last week: 10)
The Stars have the best points percentage at home (.813) but eighth-lowest on the road (.429). Maybe rink sponsor American Airlines can get them bigger seats and some Texas BBQ on every flight. Whatever helps.
11. Edmonton Oilers (18-11-2, +12. Last week: 11)
A top-six winger who’s not a reclamation project, a waiver wire pickup, an over-the-hill vet, an injury-prone scorer or a diver. I feel like the Oilers have exhausted all options except for acquiring a legit top-six winger.
Related: Oilers’ Power Play Problem Leaves Depth Forwards Without Rewards
12. Tampa Bay Lightning (17-10-2, +32. Last week: 12)
Word recently came out that after the Jackets swept the Lightning in the 2019 playoffs, a Nikita Kucherov-for-Leon Draisaitl swap was discussed. Wow. It would’ve been a legit bombshell 1-for-1 and not of the Taylor Hall variety. Never mind figuring out a holiday wish for the Lightning – a long-overdue Jack Adams for Jon Cooper, maybe – we were just gifted a hundred ‘What If?’ hypothetical trade articles for the next few weeks.
13. Boston Bruins (17-13-3, -18. Last week: 19)
A new GM. Yes, they’ve won six of their last eight, but that also included two blowout losses, and the roster still just doesn’t look very good.
14. Vancouver Canucks (16-9-5, +3. Last week: 15)
A pacifier – an eco-friendly one, because this is Vancouver – for everyone so we can all collectively stop talking about the Elias Pettersson-J.T. Miller rift and keep the Canucks focused on how to acquire a top-six forward and a top-four defenseman.
15. Utah Hockey Club (14-11-5, +3. Last week: 20)
A nickname, because count me as one of those who despise the ‘Utah HC’ moniker. It’s not original – European clubs have done it for eons, and we are not in Europe – and I need a Yeti mascot, like, yesterday.
16. Colorado Avalanche (18-15-0, -6. Last week: 13)
I never thought I’d say this as a harsh critic of the loser point, but the Avalanche are probably wishing for some right now. There are seven teams ahead of the Avalanche in points percentage that have fewer wins in regulation.
17. St. Louis Blues (15-15-3, -17. Last week: 14)
Maybe some sort of elixir because no team likes collecting dusty, 30-year-old defensemen like the Blues. But they’re onto something; entering Tuesday’s games, Jim Montgomery had a .700 points percentage with the Blues, which is just shy of the .715 points percentage in two-and-quarter seasons with the Bruins.
18. Ottawa Senators (16-13-2, +7. Last week: 24)
We’re getting closer to a downtown rink!
Related: We’re About To See What The Ottawa Senators Are Made Of With Long Road Trip Ahead
19. Philadelphia Flyers (14-13-4, -13. Last week: 16)
I can always use more John Tortorella press conferences. After admitting that he lost the battle with stopping players from doing the Michigan, has anyone asked when or why he started wearing hoodies behind the bench? He once abhorred casual clothing for games. Just putting others in the line of fire for my own curiosity.
20. Calgary Flames (15-11-6, -12. Last week: 17)
Reddit user Straight-Plate-5256 pointed out that Dustin Wolf’s two career shutouts have been when the moon is full – the internet can be an informative place – and now the Flames must wish every game Wolf starts is on a full moon.
21. Pittsburgh Penguins (14-14-5, -23. Last week: 22)
I’m fully begging for Kyle Dubas to make some miraculous move so the Pens can make the playoffs. I need to see Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin in the playoffs for one last hurrah. Of the top 10 scorers in points per game in the cap era, only Crosby (eighth) and Malkin (10th) were on a team not in a playoff spot entering Tuesday’s games.
22. Seattle Kraken (15-16-2, -3. Last week: 23)
Can they stop being so mid? Either lose a lot of games so we can make fun of you while you draft superstars in the lottery or acquire some elite players so you can pull yourself out of purgatory. If the Kraken were a holiday dish, they’d be overcooked turkey. Promising at the start but so bland and dry and wishing you picked something else.
23. Columbus Blue Jackets (12-15-5, -12. Last week: 18)
More hypotheticals – it’s been reported that Jacob Trouba nixed a deal to the Jackets, which again paints Columbus as the place nobody really wants to go. (We’ll get to Buffalo at the end). I think the wish is for people to stay paying more attention to the Jackets, who have an exciting team and a genuine Norris candidate in Zach Werenski.
24. Detroit Red Wings (12-14-4, -16. Last week: 26)
When Jay-Z’s The Blueprint was released, it received critical acclaim. Not only did his follow-up album The Blueprint II attract less acclaim, it was panned. Steve Yzerman is an icon in Detroit, but we’ve somehow transitioned to the sequel, and note the subtitle of The Blueprint II was The Gift & The Curse. I think it’s time to ask for a new plan.
25. New York Rangers (15-15-1, -1. Last week: 21)
The Rangers are that kid who asks the genie if he can wish for a million more wishes because there’s not just one thing wrong with this club. I’m not sure where to start here – they lost to the worst team in the NHL again.
Related: It’s Been ‘Same Story’ For Rangers This Season, And It’s Been Significantly Subpar
26. New York Islanders (12-14-7, -17. Last week: 25)
A more quality roster that gives Patrick Roy something to work with.
27. Chicago Blackhawks (11-19-2, -20. Last week: 31)
I think the Blackhawks actually got their wish – a nudge in the right direction. They look rejuvenated under new coach Anders Sorensen. Connor Bedard is scoring again, and Frank Nazar earned a call-up and should provide a little more depth scoring.
28. San Jose Sharks (11-18-5, -28. Last week: 27)
More Macklin Celebrini, please. Also, if Alexandar Georgiev could improve his play – it looks like he’s already starting to – the Sharks might be able to trade him again for futures. At times last season, the prospect of a rebuild looked like it was going to be long and painful, but after numerous disappointments in the Thornton-Marleau-Pavelski era, there’s suddenly a big dose of what they needed most: optimism.
29. Montreal Canadiens (12-16-3, -26. Last week: 28)
The Lane Hutson to Patrik Laine combo looks absolutely lethal on the Habs power play, and they, too, needed some optimism when it looked like they had really stalled under Martin St-Louis.
30. Anaheim Ducks (11-14-4, -19. Last week: 30)
They really need one of their young players to hit. Like, become an elite all-star. They have so much talent, but they’ve squandered a lot, too. From 2013, when they drafted Shea Theodore, to 2021, when they drafted Mason McTavish, only one of their nine first-round picks – Trevor Zegras, who’s in the rumor mill often – really made any impact in a Ducks jersey.
31. Nashville Predators (9-17-6, -26. Last week: 32)
The Preds scored both goals at even strength in Tuesday’s 2-0 win over the Rangers. Shocking, I know, but note the Rangers have not been good at 5-on-5 for a while now. I think given how their season is going, the one thing Barry Trotz wishes he had right now is a Harry Potter time-turner so he can re-do the entire summer.
32. Buffalo Sabres (11-17-4, -17. Last week: 29)
Not sure what Kevyn Adams was trying to accomplish when he said the Sabres weren’t a destination for free agents, but the current Sabres are playing like they don’t want to be there, either. I wish the Sabres get a little more respect because it truly is a franchise with some great history. Hey, at least the Bills are good, right?
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