NHL Power Rankings: Flames blaze path to No. 1 spot while Wild start slow

Flames
Wins over the Avalanche, Oilers, Golden Knights, Hurricanes and Penguins in the early going are good enough to put the Flames in the No. 1 spot. There hasn’t been much of a transition period for Calgary’s three big offseason additions. Nazem Kadri, Jonathan Huberdeau and MacKenzie Weegar have all made an immediate impact, and the Flames have met their high expectations so far. 1 5-1-0
2

Hurricanes
The Hurricanes are once again a dominant possession team at five-on-five. Carolina is controlling 63.95% of the expected goals in those situations, per Natural Stat Trick, and it has been rewarded with a 4-1-1 record to this point. 8 4-1-1
3

Bruins
I came into the season wondering how the Bruins would survive some early season injuries. Now I’m wondering if the rest of the league will survive Boston’s injury trouble. Even without Brad Marchand and Charlie McAvoy, the Bruins have been a machine through seven games. New head coach Jim Montgomery has this team playing well, and it should only get better with McAvoy and Marchand back in the fold. 9 6-1-0
4

Golden Knights
The disappointment from the 2021-22 season has not lingered at the start of this season. The Golden Knights are back to looking like a legitimate threat in the Western Conference, and Logan Thompson has looked like a bona fide No. 1 goaltender. He is currently fifth in the NHL with 3.93 goals saved above average, per Natural Stat Trick. 13 6-2-0
5

Penguins
The Penguins heard all our questions about their aging core in the offseason, and they have answered them emphatically. Pittsburgh’s key veterans apparently still have plenty of gas left in the tank. Sidney Crosby already has 11 points on the season, Evgeni Malkin looks like he’s back at full health for the first time in a while and Kris Letang is still one of the best defensemen in the league. 8 4-2-1
6

Stars
Rick Bowness is gone, and so is his brand of defensive-minded hockey. The Stars already look like a much more proficient team offensively under Peter DeBoer. In years past, Dallas relied on one line to generate all its offense. Through the first couple weeks of the 2022-23 campaign, the Stars have been much better at getting slot shots and creating high-danger scoring chances. 10 4-2-1
7

Blues
The Blues defied all expected goals models last season, and they are doing the same thing this year. Through four games, St. Louis is controlling 45.5% of the expected goals at five-on-five, according to Natural Stat Trick. Yet, the Blues are 3-1-0. I’m excited for another season of being confused by this team. 3 3-2-0
8

Avalanche
The 2022 Stanley Cup champs haven’t exactly come roaring out of the gates. Their early results have been middling, and the underlying stats back up that eye test. That said, a slow start is understandable, given what the team lost in the offseason. The Avs have had dominant moments, and I expect that they will get rolling sooner rather than later. 5 4-2-1
9

Panthers
The early returns from the Matthew Tkachuk trade have been promising. Tkachuk has nine points in seven games, and Florida is controlling play at five-on-five with him on the ice. The issue for Florida now is treading water while Aaron Ekblad is on LTIR. Without MacKenzie Weegar this year, the blue line looks much thinner. 8 4-2-1
10

Rangers
The Rangers began the 2022-23 season with a pair of convincing wins over the Tampa Bay Lightning and Minnesota Wild, and Mika Zibanejad was all over the ice. Since then, the Rangers have stumbled with losses to the San Jose Sharks and Columbus Blue Jackets. Go figure. There is still plenty to like about the Rangers’ start to the year. 5 3-3-2
11

Oilers
The Jack Campbell era is not off to a great start in Edmonton. He has allowed 1.17 goals above average, and his .750 high-danger save percentage ranks 47th in the league, per Natural Stat Trick. The Oilers invested a lot in Campbell in the offseason, and they need him to stabilize in order to reach their potential. 2 4-3-0
12

Maple Leafs
Auston Matthews has one goal through seven games. The Maple Leafs have losses to the Canadiens and the Coyotes. Burn it down. Time to rebuild. Then again, maybe the Maple Leafs aren’t going to continue shooting 5.99% at five-on-five. Toronto has been a bit snake-bitten to start the year, but that shouldn’t last. 4 4-3-0
13

Senators
The new-look Senators are currently riding a four-game winning streak. The young stars are leading the way, and the process appears to be pretty sound too. This 4-2-0 start is no fluke. Ottawa is controlling 56.93% of the expected goals at five-on-five. I’m still skeptical about this particular team’s shot at reaching the playoffs, but this will be a fun year for Senators fans. 7 4-2-0
14

Lightning
The Lightning are off to a so-so start this year, but that’s not out of the ordinary. One player who has come out of the gates firing is Steven Stamkos, who has been unstoppable from the top of the left circle on the power play. He leads the league with five power play tallies through six games. 7 4-4-0
15

Devils
According to Natural Stat Trick, the Devils have controlled 69.60% of the expected goals at five-on-five. That is first in the NHL, and it’s not even close. New Jersey is still being plagued by some of the worst goaltending in the league. If that ever changes, the Devils will roll. 15 4-3-0
16

Sabres
Just like everyone predicted, Craig Anderson has been among the best goaltenders in the NHL through two weeks. He has saved 4.34 goals above average, which is fourth in the league. Anderson is a major reason why the Sabres are off to a strong start, but it’s fair to wonder how long he can keep this up. 6 4-2-0
17

Capitals
The Capitals have out-performed their underlying numbers in the first seven games of the season. As a team, they’re shooting 12.63%, and they have scored 25 goals on 19.46 expected goals, per Natural Stat Trick. Still, they are only 4-3-0. Washington already looks like a potential regression candidate this year, but things could change if Darcy Kuemper settles in between the pipes. 6 4-3-0
18

Kings
The goaltending duo of Jonathan Quick and Cal Peterson showed some cracks toward the end of last season, and neither one has been able to find their footing through eight games this year. The Kings need one of them to step up and seize the No. 1 role for a while. 4 4-4-0
19

Jets
The Jets are chasing play at five-on-five, and Connor Hellebuyck is bailing them out and keeping them afloat in the standings. There’s a new coach in Winnipeg, but this is very much the same hockey team. 4 3-3-0
20

Red Wings
Elmer Soderblom, Michael Rasmussen, and Oskar Sundqvist all form a line that totals 19′ 5″ in height. Steve Yzerman has cornered the market on giants, but those three aren’t just there to dust the rafters at the team facility. That line has been effective at five-on-five, relative to the rest of the team. 5 3-1-2
21

Wild
The Wild entered the season with high expectations, and they have gotten themselves into some early trouble. The most discouraging thing about this start for Minnesota is that Marc-Andre Fleury has been one of the worst goaltenders in the league. His mark of -5.07 goals saved above average is among the worst in the NHL. At 37-years-old, there has to be legit concern that Fleury might not have much left to give. 15 2-3-1
22

Flyers
All John Tortorella does is take over an embattled team and do more with less. He may not be my cup of tea as a head coach, but it’s tough to argue that he knows how to get the most out of his players. The Flyers are playing above their head right now, and it helps that Carter Hart has looked like an entirely new goaltender at the start of the year. 4 4-2-0
23

Blackhawks
After spending much of the offseason tearing down their roster, the Blackhawks have won three straight games and boast a winning record. It’s still very early, and it may only be a matter of time before losses start to pile up, but the product on the ice might be better than expected in Chicago. 4 4-2-0
24

Canadiens
Martin St. Louis won’t let this Canadiens team go down without a fight. I have questions about how long Montreal can avoid falling into the deepest depths of the NHL basement, but there’s no reason they can’t be a scrappy bunch. Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield make this team worth watching. 7 3-4-0
25

Kraken
Matty Beniers is off to a good start in the Calder Trophy race. He is tied for the league lead among rookies with six points. Those haven’t been fluky tallies either. Beniers has been one of the Kraken’s best players in the first eight games of the season. 1 3-3-2
26

Blue Jackets
The good news for the Blue Jackets is that Johnny Gaudreau is averaging a point per game and gives the team a dynamic player on offense. The bad news is that the rest of the team is still pretty underwhelming. I look forward to Gaudreau shouldering too much blame when the Jackets miss the postseason. 7 3-5-0
27

Predators
The Predators and Canucks are the only two teams without a win on North American soil. Since sweeping the Sharks at the Global Series in Prague, Nashville has looked like one of the worst teams in the league. Juuse Saros is off to a slow start in net, Ryan McDonagh has had a rough transition on defense, and the offense has lacked some punch. 12 2-4-1
28

Islanders
Firing Barry Trotz may not have been the solution to the Islanders’ problems. Who could have seen that coming? It is still early, but it’s evident that the Isles’ lack of offensive firepower will remain a problem in 2022-23, unless something drastic changes with the team’s personnel. 7 3-4-0
29

Ducks
The only team getting shelled more on a nightly basis than the Ducks is the Coyotes. Those two squads are the only ones with a five-on-five expected goals share of under 40.0%, per Natural Stat Trick. The difference is that Anaheim has some legitimately exciting talent on offense. At the very least, that makes the Ducks fun to watch. — 1-5-1
30

Coyotes
Arizona pulled off a hilarious win over the Maple Leafs, but other than that, the team has been in full tank mode. In each of the Coyotes’ four losses, they have surrendered six goals. You can’t say they’re inconsistent. 2 2-4-0
31

Sharks
f there was any concern that the Sharks might have too much talent to truly compete for the No. 1 overall draft pick, that is out the window at this point. San Jose is 2-7-0, and the team is consistently getting out-chanced. Now, all eyes turn to the future of Timo Meier. 3 2-7-0
32

Canucks
I don’t think the Canucks are actually the worst team in the NHL. I had them as a playoff bubble team in the preseason. Having said that, this ranking has been well-earned. Vancouver blew multi-goal leads in each of its first four games, and it is still looking for its first win of the season. The heated seats are on in Bruce Boudreau’s car. 14 0-5-2