1 – Vancouver Canucks (36-12-6)
With just one regulation loss in their last sixteen games, the Canucks are still the top dogs in the latest edition of our NHL Power Rankings. Thatcher Demko continues to look like one of the best goalies in the league, Quinn Hughes leads a very competent defensive core, and every line up front is a threat to score in any game. In their last win against Chicago, Miller, Pettersson and Boeser combined for zero points. Dakota Joshua, Connor Garland and Filip Hronek, however, combined for seven. The team is winning games in a variety of ways this season, and that’s a big reason why they’re first in league on February 15th.
2 – Florida Panthers (34-15-4)
Anyone who thought that this team was just a flash in the pan last postseason has been proven very, very wrong. At the beginning of the season, they succeeded without the help of Brandon Montour and Aaron Ekblad. Now, they’re hitting their stride with a record of 16-3-2 in their last 21 games. Matthew Tkachuk is also starting to heat up, but thankfully, that hasn’t slowed Sam Reinhart down in the slightest. Reinhart is currently second in goals in the NHL with 39 and has scored an incredible 16 times in 17 contests in 2024.
3 – Boston Bruins (32-11-10)
Despite being losers in three of their last four, the Bruins are still first in the east as of February 15th, and that must stand for something. The team plays a very disciplined style of hockey and even when they’re losing games, it’s very rare that they’re not close. Boston ranks in the top six in both goals scored and goals against, and with probably the best duo of goaltenders in the league, they won’t be an easy matchup come playoff time. Last year was obviously a massive disappointment, but this year, they won’t be taking anything for granted once the postseason begins.
4 – New York Rangers (34-16-3)
Winners of five straight games, the Rangers are climbing back up the board in our Power Rankings. The surprise of the season in New York continues to be Jonathan Quick, who was fantastic in two of those wins against the Lightning and Avalanche, allowing each team just one goal. We’ve said it for a while now, but if Igor Shesterkin can find his game before playoffs, I wouldn’t want to see the Rangers in the first round. Although the core isn’t getting any younger at this point, they’ve still got plenty in the tank for another deep run like in 2022.
5 – Dallas Stars (33-14-6)
As of February 15th, Dallas is 9-2-1 in their last twelve games. They’ve also captured the lead in the Central over Colorado and Winnipeg, two teams that have gotten a lot more attention from hockey fans this season. The Stars aren’t flashy, but they certainly get the job done. In fact, even though they don’t have anyone on the roster with 55 points yet this season, only Colorado and Vancouver have scored more goals this year. Clearly, the team is deep everywhere, and for the most part, they’ve been able to stay healthy this season too. Like a lot of teams, Dallas’ playoff success could come down to goaltending. Thankfully, Jake Oettinger is not a guy I’d worry about.
6 – Vegas Golden Knights (31-16-6)
Adin Hill is back in the rotation for Vegas, which means the team could very well start winning a lot of games again. Since returning from injury, the Golden Knights’ starter is 4-1-0 with eleven goals against. He also played incredibly in the team’s win against Edmonton to stop the Oilers’ win streak at sixteen games. Even when teams like Vegas go through mid-season struggles, it’s very hard to ever count them out. With Hill now back, I wouldn’t be at all surprised to see them get hot and make a charge for the top spot in the Pacific Division. They are ten points behind Vancouver as of February 15th, but there’s a lot of hockey left in the calendar.
7 – Edmonton Oilers (31-17-1)
Given their incredible run, you may be wondering why the Oilers have been slotted in this low. Simply put, every other team ahead of them is also really, really good. Vegas just beat them head-to-head, and every other team in the top five has at least six wins in their last ten games. Also, in their last 23 games, they’ve only played nine teams in a playoff spot. Of course, you can’t apologize for a weaker schedule and the NHL is extremely competitive, but it still keeps a few questions on the table. In those nine games, Edmonton’s record is 5-4-0, with four of their wins coming against Wild Card teams. The Oilers are obviously very good, and WHEN they prove it against better teams, they’ll be moving right back up this list.
8 – Winnipeg Jets (32-14-5)
The Jets are just 2-4-1 in their last seven games, but it’d be tough to put them any lower than this. It is a little worrisome, though, that they’ve only scored seven goals in those seven games. Winnipeg’s strength has never been their goalscoring, but their talented core of forwards still needs to put a few pucks in the net to support Connor Hellebuyck at the other end. Even in their last two wins against Pittsburgh and San Jose, the team scored just three goals combined. Winnipeg will still be a large threat in the playoffs, but the positioning that they’re currently battling for with Colorado and Dallas in the Central is extremely important, and they’ll be looking to get out of this funk immediately.
9 – Colorado Avalanche (33-17-4)
As of February 15th, the Avs are the only team in the league to have reached the 200-goal mark. They also only have three active players with more than 30 points on the season. It’s hard to think of a team more top-heavy than Colorado, but when your top players are Nathan Mackinnon, Mikko Rantanen, and Cale Makar, you can clearly get away with it more than other teams. This depth may be an issue in the postseason as it was last year, but hopefully for Colorado, veteran signings like Ryan Johansen and Zach Parise will pay off when it counts. Also, getting Gabriel Landeskog back for the postseason would be HUGE.
10 – Carolina Hurricanes (30-17-5)
Last but not least, we’ve got the Carolina Hurricanes. The Canes have been solid this year, but not quite as impressive as previous seasons. However, with their playoff experience and depth throughout the lineup, they’ll never be an easy team to play in the toughest of games. A lot of people think that they’re still a top player away from being a true contender, but if the right guys get hot at the right time, I think Carolina can hang with anyone in the league. You don’t make the postseason five years in a row and the Conference Finals twice by fluke, but at some point, Rod Brind’Amour’s team DOES need prove they belong in the same conversation as the other top teams in the NHL.
