NHL Power Rankings: February 9th, 2011: Vol. 7
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NHL Power Rankings: February 9
A few of the usual suspects rise back toward the top while a few others take a tumble in this week’s NHL power rankings.
(Previous week’s rankings in brackets)
1. (2) Vancouver Canucks (35-10-9): No end in sight for Vancouver’s dominance. The team looks so deep and talented that you wonder if they need to buy anything at the trade deadline.
2. (1) Philadelphia Flyers (35-13-5): Goaltending uncertainty still hangs over them a bit but it didn’t stop them from reaching the Stanley Cup final last year and this is a better team than last year’s group.
3. (3) Tampa Bay Lightning (33-17-5): Steven Stamkos isn’t slowing down; Simon Gagne and the second line are heating up.
4. (12) San Jose Sharks (29-19-6): Could San Jose be this year’s post-hype sleeper, a-la 2010 Flyers? We all forgot about the Sharks and they’ve suddenly won four straight and gone 8-1-1 over their last 10.
5. (4) Detroit Red Wings (32-15-6): Looking strong and happy to have Pavel Datsyuk on the mend – but they’ve surrendered an uncharacteristically high number of goals this season. Could a physical defenseman like Bryan McCabe or Chris Phillips be on their wish list?
6. (6) Boston Bruins (30-16-7): The Tomas Kaberle trade rumors are terrifying. Imagine him feathering one-time passes to Zdeno Chara and his 105-MPH shot on the power play?
7. (9) Pittsburgh Penguins (34-17-4): Somehow, they keep winning games. But this team is bound to freefall without Evgeni Malkin and Sidney Crosby.
8. (8) Anaheim Ducks (29-21-4): With Jonas Hiller on the shelf, we should get an idea of just how dependent the Ducks were on him.
9. (10) Washington Capitals (29-16-10): Why all the talk of acquiring a goalie when Semyon Varlamov has a 2.13 goals against average and .928 save percentage?
10. (17) Calgary Flames (27-21-7): The old, veteran group just won’t die, going 7-1-2 over its last 10. But this team can’t go anywhere if it makes the playoffs, can it? 
11. (11) Montreal Canadiens (30-19-5): Carey Price has a .946 save percentage this month. Are the Habs about to start another run?
12. (5) Dallas Stars (30-18-5): With Brad Richards rumors rampant, even a modest three-game losing streak has to spook Stars fans into thinking their best player gets dealt.
13. (13) Los Angeles Kings (29-22-2): The Kings have the fifth-best goal differential in the NHL. Maybe they were just unlucky early this season? This team is too talented not to make the playoffs.
14. (7) Nashville Predators (28-19-7): As inspiring as they’ve been this season, the Preds are just three points of out ninth place. Would you bet on them over the Kings or Blackhawks to make the big dance?
15. (23) New Jersey Devils (20-30-4): I know they’re irrelevant but few teams have been better over the last month. The Devils are 8-1-1 in their last 10, tied with San Jose for the NHL’s best mark.
16. (16) Buffalo Sabres (25-22-5): Could be a scary No. 8 seed. What if Ryan Miller gets hot and steals a series?
17. (19) Carolina Hurricanes (26-21-7): Forwards and Cam Ward keep them afloat but, man, this is an atrocious defensive hockey club.
18. (18) Minnesota Wild (27-20-5): The Wild are another team putting up a strong fight in the West but that may lose out to the deeper, more talented squads in the end. Brent Burns and Martin Havlat are no Keith/Toews or Doughty/Kopitar.
19. (25) Columbus Blue Jackets (26-22-5): They’ve won three straight to quietly re-enter the West hunt along with almost every team in the conference. Could they make a play for someone to center Rick Nash at the deadline? Jason Spezza or Brad Richards would be intriguing.
20. (15) New York Rangers (29-23-4): Five straight losses for the Broadway Blueshirts. Henrik Lundqvist is tired and the injuries are too much. The Rangers don’t have much margin for error with just a four-point lead over ninth-place Atlanta.
21. (14) Chicago Blackhawks (27-22-4)
22. (20) Phoenix Coyotes (27-19-9)
23. (28) Toronto Maple Leafs (23-26-5)
24. (27) St. Louis Blues (24-20-8)
25. (22) Atlanta Thrashers (24-22-10)
26. (21) Colorado Avalanche (25-22-6)
27. (24) Florida Panthers (23-24-6)
28. (26) Edmonton Oilers (16-29-8)
29. (29) New York Islanders (17-29-7)
30. (30) Ottawa Senators (17-29-8)
