NHL Power Rankings: Highs and Lows, and the return of Offer Sheets

In this week’s edition of NHL Power Rankings and weekly review: James Neal lost some teeth, the Ducks lost all hope, and the Lightning reveal a new third jersey.

Happy Monday, everyone. It’s time for this week’s NHL power rankings slash week in review.

A while ago, I was assigned the role of coming up with a highlight and lowlight from the previous week. Also, to really put things into perspective of how everyone’s week is different, and every week to each person is different. So we’re taking that to the NHL.

More from Puck Prose

• Detroit Red Wings 2023 Rookie Camp Has Plenty of Ups and Downs
• This Columbus Blue Jackets rookie doesn’t want to be forgotten
• 2 trades the Boston Bruins must make to secure the Stanley Cup
• 3 reasons the Avalanche won’t win the Stanley Cup in 2024
• This is a big year for Alex Turcotte and the Los Angeles Kings

Here’s how the first week of February looked like for each team:

1. Tampa Bay Lightning (2-0-2, +3 Goal Differential)
Last Week: 1

Highlight: These saves by Andrei Vasilevskiy to preserve a tie. He seems to show up here every week.

Lowlight: Not liking those new third jerseys they revealed this week. I can barely see any details on it, just looks black on black to me on TV.

2. Calgary Flames (0-1-1, -3 GD)
Last Week: 2

Highlight: Andrew Mangiapane scoring his first career goal in Vancouver.

Lowlight: James Neal’s teeth falling everywhere after taking a high stick by Vancouver’s Alex Biega.

3. Toronto Maple Leafs (3-1-0, +4 GD)
Last Week: 4

Highlight: Jake Muzzin scoring his first goal as a Maple Leaf, proving the trade is already a win to hot takers all over Toronto.

Lowlight: Let the speculation over Mitch Marner’s next contract begin after Auston Matthews signed his big deal. More on this below.

4. Winnipeg Jets (1-2-1, -5 GD)
Last Week: 3

Highlight: Dustin Byfuglien is finally back from his injury.

Lowlight: Connor Hellebuyck not getting much help vs Montreal, nor Laurent Brossoit in Ottawa.

5. San Jose Sharks (3-0-0, +7 GD)
Last Week: 7

Lowlight: Matthew Perreault’s goal resulting from sloppy defense by the Sharks.

Highlight: Joe Pavelski’s game-winning shorthanded goal in overtime later that night.

6. Nashville Predators (2-1-1, +2 GD)
Last Week: 6

Highlight: Power play finally scored a goal for the first time in eight games, ironically against the league’s top PK unit, Arizona.

Lowlight: Vince Dunn finding his own rebound after skating right past every Predator on the ice looking for the rebound.

7. New York Islanders (3-1-0, Even GD)
Last Week: 5

Highlight: Ryan Pulock’s go-ahead and game-winning goals against the Avalanche to complete the comeback effort.

Lowlight: Scoring a go-ahead goal in Boston, only to have it taken off the board. Boston would end up winning the game 3-1.

8. Boston Bruins (3-0-1, +4 GD)
Last Week: 9

Highlight: Patrice Bergeron celebrating his 1000th career game with a goal vs the Islanders. He would later add an empty netter.

Lowlight: Blowing a 3-1 lead in New York to fall in a shootout to the Rangers.

9. Pittsburgh Penguins (0-2-1, -6 GD)
Last Week: 8

Highlight: Jared McCann scoring a revenge goal against the Panthers.

Lowlight: I still have no idea how Phil Kessel didn’t manage to score on this scramble against the Lightning.

10. Montreal Canadiens (2-0-1, +5 GD)
Last Week: 12

Highlight: Brendan Gallagher putting the Ducks away early in the first with a pair of goals.

Lowlight: Every one of these Habs fans gets two for flinching at this Shea Weber slapper (not that I blame them).

11. Vegas Golden Knights (2-1-0, Even GD)
Last Week: 10

Highlight: William Karlsson and Valentin Zykov combining for this beauty of a goal against the Lightning.

Lowlight: Artemi Panarin scoring after Marc-Andre Fleury was victimized by a bad bounce behind the net.

12. Columbus Blue Jackets (3-0-0, +6 GD)
Last Week: 13

Highlight: Cam Atkinson’s clutch goals against the Avalanche and Golden Knights.

Lowlight: Nate Schmidt scoring off a Jackets’ defender to tie the game in Vegas.

13. Washington Capitals (2-0-1, +1 GD)
Last Week: 11

Highlight: Alexander Ovechkin is now the most prolific Russian scorer in NHL history, passing Sergei Fedorov with his assist on TJ Oshie’s goal against Vancouver.

Lowlight: Derick Brassard scoring seven seconds into the third after Michael Kempny blew a tire at the blue line.

14. Dallas Stars (1-1-1, -1 GD)
Last Week: 14

Highlight: Dropping three goals in three minutes in period three against Arizona on Monday.

Lowlight: Craig Smith gets credit for this pinball goal in Nashville, after the puck hits the back of his head, then off the back of Anton Khudobin and in.

15. Carolina Hurricanes (3-1-0, +7 GD)
Last Week: 17

Highlight: Teuvo Teravainen with a gorgeous move to win the game in Buffalo.

Lowlight: They needed six skaters on the ice to score against the Devils. They scored once on a delayed penalty and once with the goalie pulled in Sunday’s 3-2 loss.

16. St. Louis Blues (4-0-0, +4 GD)
Last Week: 19

Highlight: Jordan Binnington shutting out the Lightning.

Lowlight: I guess falling behind Florida 2-0 in the third before coming back to win. 4 wins in a week is a good week.

17. Colorado Avalanche (0-1-3, -6 GD)
Last Week: 15

Highlight: This Sam Girard goal vs the Blue Jackets to take a lead late in the second.

Lowlight: Despite holding leads in three of their four games, they lost every single one.

18. Minnesota Wild (1-2-1, -2 GD)
Last Week: 16

Highlight: Jared Spurgeon’s baseball goal in Buffalo.

Lowlight: Losing captain Mikko Koivu to a torn ACL for the season.

19. Buffalo Sabres (2-1-1, -1 GD)
Last Week: 18

Highlight: Sam Reinhart putting together a great assist, great goal, and the shootout winner vs Minnesota.

Lowlight: Remember that Teravainen OT winner? Stopped a comeback bid dead in it’s tracks after Buffalo tied the game with two late goals.

20. Vancouver Canucks (1-2-1, -3 GD)
Last Week: 20

Highlight: Elias Petterson’s absolute snipe against the Blackhawks on the power play. He seems to show up here every week.

Lowlight: Either this funky bounce in Washington, or this one against Calgary

21. Arizona Coyotes (1-3-0, -5 GD)
Last Week: 21

Highlight: Alex Galchenyuk having a great week, scoring the three goals against the Stars in two different games.

Lowlight: Goals like this one from Boone Jenner should be stopped by the goalie.

22. Philadelphia Flyers (2-0-1, +5 GD)
Last Week: 25

Highlight: This absurd Carter Hart save to preserve a one goal lead in an eventual win vs Vancouver.

Lowlight: They lost their big win streak…to the Kings?

23. Chicago Blackhawks (3-0-0, +8 GD)
Last Week: 28

Lowlight: Leon Draisaitl scoring a pair of power play goals within two minutes of each other in the first.

Highlight: Chicago would respond with five third period goals to run away with the game.

24. Florida Panthers (2-2-0, -2 GD)
Last Week: 22

Highlight: Mike Matheson’s game-winning goal in overtime against the Penguins.

Lowlight: Dropping a late 2-0 lead in St. Louis to lose 3-2.

25. Edmonton Oilers (1-2-0, -4 GD)
Last Week: 23

Highlight: Cam Talbot and the defense locking down the Wild in a 4-1 win.

Lowlight: Remember that third period in Chicago? Four of those goals were scored in a stretch of three minutes.

26. New York Rangers (2-1-1, -1 GD)
Last Week: 27

Highlight: Alexandar Georgiev stopping 55 of 56 Toronto shots on net Sunday in a 4-1 win at the Garden.

Lowlight: Kevin Hayes robbed on the doorstep by Jaccob Slavin to prevent the opening goal.

27. New Jersey Devils (1-2-1, -5 GD)
Last Week: 24

Highlight: Marcus Johansson helping his trade stock with a pair of goals in Sunday’s win over Carolina.

Lowlight: Ilya Kovalchuk scoring a revenge goal after being booed every time he even stepped on the ice.

28. Ottawa Senators (2-1-0, +6 GD)
Last Week: 30

Highlight: Anders Nilsson stopping 44 of 46 Winnipeg shots to lead the Senators to an improbable win.

Lowlight: Any of the five goals Toronto scored in Wednesday’s game.

29. Detroit Red Wings (0-3-0, -6 GD)
Last Week: 26

Highlight: Dylan Larkin’s goal against the Sabres was a great show of speed and skill.

Lowlight: It was the only goal they scored that night, in a 3-1 loss.

30. Los Angeles Kings (3-0-1, +4 GD)
Last Week: 31

Highlight: Scoring three goals in the first two minutes of the third to bury the Devils in New Jersey.

Lowlight: Jakub Voracek’s late tying goal in Philadelphia to force overtime.

31. Anaheim Ducks (0-4-0, -16 GD)
Last Week: 29

Lowlight: This couple going on their honeymoon to follow the Ducks through Eastern Canada, and getting rewarded by watching a road trip from hell, which would finally cost Randy Carlyle his job.

Highlight: James Duthie being a kind soul and helping arrange a second honeymoon in Turks and Caicos for the newlyweds.

Schmooze of the Week: Offer Sheets

You have to go back to 2013 to find a player who actually signed an offer sheet. That player was Ryan O’Reilly, and the Calgary Flames signed ROR to a two year, $10M offer sheet. The Avalanche, ROR’s team at the time, would match it, and the rest is history.

Another more prominent case is Shea Weber, who signed a 14 year, $110M offer sheet from Philadelphia, which Nashville matched, and was later dumped on Montreal for PK Subban.

You have to go back to 2007 to find the most recent player who switched teams via an offer sheet, that being Dustin Penner (remember him?) going from Anaheim to Edmonton on a five year, $21.5M deal. Anaheim received in compensation Edmonton’s 1st, 2nd, and 3rd round picks in 2008 (After a series of trades, Anaheim got Jake Gardiner, Justin Schultz, and Marc-Andre Bergeron). Penner played 3+ of those seasons in Edmonton before a trade to Los Angeles.

Offer sheets are no longer fancied by NHL GM’s. Maybe it’s because the compensation is too intimidating, because of the high esteem people hold first round picks to. Maybe it’s just an honors system among all GM’s. Maybe it was determined in a mass prophecy that came down from the hockey gods after O’Reilly’s situation played out. Who knows?

This year, though, the endangered offer sheet could be making a comeback. In light of Auston Matthews’ big contract signing the other day, immediate speculation of what could happen to Mitch Marner this summer started filling the airwaves and Twitter feeds.

It makes sense. The Leafs are tight under the cap next year, with Matthews and John Tavares combining for $22.634M of cap space, and they have the rest of the roster to put together.

The Leafs aren’t alone in this situation, either. A number of RFA situations are due big time raises, and it may fall on teams to throw caution to the wind, and exercise a once-lost tactic.

Here are some of the most prominent of such situations: Marner, Brayden Point, Sebastian Aho, Matthew Tkachuk, Kyle Connor, Patrik Laine, Kasperi Kapanen, and Timo Meier.

Each of these players are coming off their rookie contracts, and are all sure to receive significant pay raises. Also, each of these players belong to teams who have the salary cap breathing down their necks.

So what GM’s of other teams could do is to lay out some offer sheets, and force the hand of those teams who are a bit hamstrung by the cap.

The worst thing that could happen is that the team who owns that players’ rights match, and your team loses nothing. That team now has an even worse salary cap situation, and may need to unload unruly contracts to help keep things in order.

If they don’t match, congrats, you just got a stud young player for a package of two to four draft picks. There’s a chance those draft picks don’t pan out anyway, as draft picks are inherently dart throws, with some darts more accurate than others. These RFA’s are proven talent.

GM’s have this tool that they haven’t used in quite some time, and that’s unfortunate. It makes offseasons more fun, and it offers teams with salary cap room the ability to take advantage of those who don’t. Cap space is a very potent weapon if utilized correctly, and this could easily be one of those correct situations.

Currently, the Sabres, Blue Jackets, Penguins, Stars, and Sharks all have restrictions on what kind of money they can shell out on an RFA. Every other team is completely in play for an offer sheet. This should be the year they make a comeback. It remains to be seen if they will.