Power Rankings, Penguins on Top

11. St. Louis Blues (21-14-2, 7th in West)
The Blues are on the bubble right now, and they’re playing well. Winning 4 straight and 6 of their last ten. Goaltending and defense has been strong giving up only 5 goals during the winning streak. The Blues added defender Jay Bouwmeester at the trade deadline and the defense has played well and is keeping the Blues in the race. They hurdled Detroit into seventh place after beating the Wings 1-0 Sunday. Only 4 points separate them from fourth place.
12. Ottawa Senators (19-13-6, 6th in East)
The Senators are starting to lose it now that we’re getting a little further into the season. 5-5-0 in their last 10. The Senators are in 6th in the East right now with a two point lead on the Rangers and the Islanders. The Senators are tied for second worst in the East with only six road wins. Plagued with injuries this season, no one expected the Sens to be where they are now, but they need to start winning on the road to finish off such a surprising season.
13. Washington Capitals (20-17-2, 3rd in East)
Ovi is scoring and the Caps are winning. 8-1-1 in their last 10, Alex Ovechkin has 9 goals in six games and a total of 25 on the season. The Capitals are playing in a weak division which has helped them in their race to the playoffs. Sitting at 3rd in the East, they have a 2 point lead in the division over the Jets, who have been falling off the map lately going only 1-7-2 in their last ten. The Caps have the best powerplay in the NHL converting on a little over 25% of their chances. The defense and penalty kill is a problem, but if they Caps lock it down in the final stretch of the season, Washington is going to be a dangerous team to play.
14. Detroit Red Wings (19-15-5, 8th in West)
The Red Wings are slipping winning only 5 of their last 10. The offense has been streaky, but the defense has been playing better. Jimmy Howard has been playing well in net, but he’ll need to keep it up to keep the Wings in the top eight. The offense has to find some way to be more consistent. They have the skill, it’s just a matter of getting their injured forwards back and getting back on track offensively. Todd Bertuzzi and Darren Helm are big pieces to this team, and in their absence the young guys Detroit has pulled up have answered the call and played well, but they just don’t have the same fire without gritty Bert and speedy Helm.
15. New York Islanders (19-16-4, 8th in East)
The Islanders have points in four straight and have won 6 of their last 8 games. The offense is scoring and the defense is keeping the puck out of the net. John Tavares leads the team with 23 goals and 40 points, and he has four points in the last four games. The Islanders are sitting in eighth place right now. The New Jersey Devils and the Winnipeg Jets are both behind the Islanders by two points.