With the month of November coming to an end the majority of the teams in the NHL have played about 25-percent of their regular season games. That is enough to get a pretty good idea of what we can expect this season in terms of measuring points around the league. It won’t be easy to make up ground in the standings the rest of the way and with our top-five power rankings staying the same for the second week in a row we can confidently recognize the teams on our list the best in the NHL. Here is a look at the top-five teams in the NHL right now.
1. Montreal Canadiens (16-5-2)
Last Week: 1
Stanley Cup Odds: +650
The Canadiens still own the best record in the NHL right now and will face a tough challenge on the road with stops in San Jose, Los Angeles and St. Louis before returning home. Montreal has continued to rely on Carey Price to perform at a world-class level and he has been up to the challenge to this point with a 13-2-1 record, a 1.98 goals against average and a .947 save percentage. For as good as Price has been, the Canadiens offense has produced as well as they rank fifth in the NHL with an average of 3.0 goals per game. Alexander Radulov’s arrival has sparked Alex Galchenyuk’s emergence and if the coaching staff can find a way to spark the second line of Max Pacioretty, Tomas Plekanec and Brendan Gallagher then the Habs will really become tough to knock out of the top spot in our power rankings.
2. New York Rangers (16-7-1)
Last Week: 2
Stanley Cup Odds: +700
The Rangers followed up their first shutout loss of the season to the Ottawa Senators with a 3-2 comeback win over the Carolina Hurricanes on Tuesday night but consistency has been an issue for this team over the last couple of weeks. New York is just 3-4 since the middle of November and part of the problem is that their goal scoring pace has slowed down just a little despite that they still lead the NHL with 3.7 goals per game. Mika Zibanejad’s injury definitely hurts at both even strength and on the powerplay but the Rangers have the depth to overcome while he is out. New York will visit Buffalo on Thursday before hosting the Hurricanes on Saturday so they hould be able to get back on track.
3. Chicago Blackhawks (15-6-3)
Last Week: 3
Stanley Cup Odds: +850
Chicago’s annual circus road trip came to a crashing halt when they lost three of their final four on the road but they bounced back with a 2-1 shootout win over the Florida Panthers on Tuesday and will play five of their next six games at home. It certainly doesn’t help that the Blackhawks were missing Jonathan Toews towards the end of their trip as this team was once again forced to adapt without one of its best players in the lineup. Patrick Kane and Artemi Panarin continue to lead the way up front with 23 and 21 points respectively but eventually Chicago will have to address its lack of depth. Meanwhile, for now they will continue to push forward as one of the more balanced teams in the NHL as they rank 11th in both goals per game and goals allowed per game this season.
4. Pittsburgh Penguins (13-7-3)
Last Week: 4
Stanley Cup Odds: +750
The Penguins are dealing with some inconsistencies of their own right now as they followed up a 5-2 loss to the Rangers with a 6-1 win over New York and then followed up a 6-2 loss to the Minnesota Wild with a 4-3 shootout win over the New Jersey Devils. Matt Murray is clearly the No. 1 goalie in Pittsburgh so it will be interesting to see what they do with Marc-Andre Fleury and whether or not they can find a trade partner with a deal worthy of moving the veteran goaltender. Meanwhile, the Penguins certainly need to stay healthy as Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin can’t do it all on their own. Patric Hornqvist returned to the Pittsburgh lineup on Wednesday but Chris Kunitz remained out with a lower body injury.
5. St. Louis Blues (13-7-3)
Last Week: 5
Stanley Cup Odds: +1200
The Blues have stated to heat up over the last couple of weeks as they have won six of their last seven games to improve to 13-7-3 on the season. St. Louis has scored three goals or more in each of those wins as their goals per game has climbed to 2.7, which ranks 13th in the NHL. Outstanding special teams units have been among their keys to success as the Blues rank in the top-10 in both powerplay and penalty kill percentages. Vladimir Tarasenko is extremely dangerous and if Jaden Schwartz and David Perron can help contribute on offense than the St. Louis attack will be that much more dangerous. Meanwhile, Jake Allen is now 11-3-3 with a 2.39 goals against average and .911 save percentage as he continues to prove he can hold down the No. 1 job for the Blues.
Bet on NHL hockey right now at DSI!
