The 2022-23 NHL season has seen a lot of remarkable hockey thus far. With the regular season ending in a little over a week, the countdown to the Stanley Cup playoffs has officially begun making positioning in the power rankings that much more important.
Finishing the year on the right note is important for the playoffs. Home ice is nice, but that can change with just one game. What really matters in the playoffs is coming in ready to go and not falling behind in a best of seven series.
NHL Weekly Power Rankings: The Week of Monday, April 3
The NHL is quickly nearing the end of the regular season. As of this writing there are some six eastern conference teams and five western conference teams that have all clinched their trip to the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Now, let’s dive in with some power rankings for the week of Monday, April 3.
32. Chicago Blackhawks
31. Columbus Blue Jackets
30. Anaheim Ducks
29. San Jose Sharks
No surprises here in the bottom four. Chicago, Columbus, Anaheim and San Jose are all in the top four of winning the 2023 NHL Draft. There is not a lot to be excited about on the ice right now for these four teams.
The tank for Connor Bedard is in full swing amongst these four teams, and it might not even yield the results they like. No one is guaranteed a lottery win this summer, a quick tankathon lottery simulation can show that somehow a team like Philadelphia or Vancouver can jump up six or seven spots and get the first overall pick.
28. Montreal Canadiens
27. Arizona Coyotes
26. Detroit Red Wings
25. Philadelphia Flyers
The Coyotes win streak a while back was fun, but they have fallen back to earth having lost their last eight games. Similar to the bottom four teams in the power rankings, all eyes are on the NHL draft lottery coming up at the end of the season. While the chances of winning might be in the single digits, everyone has a chance.
I think a team most well positioned to add a star like Bedard would be the Detroit Red Wings. Detroit has so many talented pieces already and were slated to move into the playoffs this year before the season began, so they would be a great home for the young star. Detroit is currently listed at a three percent chance of winning the lottery but hey that is still a chance.
24. Vancouver Canucks
23. St. Louis Blues
22. Washington Capitals
21. Ottawa Senators
Of these four teams, only the St. Louis Blues and Vancouver Canucks have been mathematically eliminated from the Stanley Cup Playoffs entering the games on Tuesday night. While it is not likely that Ottawa or Washington sneaks in, they do still have a chance I guess.
That being said, the Capitals have lost four straight games and the Senators are 4-4-2 in their last ten as well. Neither team has really looked like a real playoff threat this season, especially Ottawa after going out of their way to add Jakob Chychrun at the deadline.
The Blues and Capitals both are going to be saying goodbye to some playoff streaks this summer. In St. Louis their current streak sits at four years in the playoffs dating back to their Stanley Cup win in 2019. The Capitals streak sits at eight years also including their Stanley Cup win in 2018.
20. Buffalo Sabres
19. Nashville Predators
18. Winnipeg Jets
17. Calgary Flames
One of these teams is not like the other. Calgary, Nashville and Buffalo all sit outside of the playoffs. Winnipeg is currently in a playoff position but if Calgary keeps winning that could change.
Calgary is currently on a four game win streak including wins against the Anaheim Ducks, Vancouver Canucks, Los Angeles Kings and San Jose Sharks. Pretty much every game for them moving forward is a must win game, as is the case for the Jets as just two points separate the teams.
Interestingly enough, the two teams face off on Wednesday in Winnipeg. This is a playoff level game with two big points on the line for the teams.
16. Pittsburgh Penguins
15. New York Islanders
14. Florida Panthers
13. Seattle Kraken
And just like that, the Florida Panthers are looking like the top team amongst New York, Pittsburgh and Florida. Only two of those three teams can make the playoffs so someone is going to be left on the outside looking in.
It really looks like anyone of those three teams could be left outside of the playoffs. None of them are perfect and they all seem to be sticking right around each other in the standings with no one able to win consistently.
The Kraken out in the western conference are in a different race for the playoffs currently. While they might not clinch their playoff birth till one of the last games of the season, they look more like a lock then any of the other wild card teams out there.
12. Dallas Stars
11. Tampa Bay Lightning
10. Toronto Maple Leafs
9. Los Angeles Kings
The Tampa Bay Lightning and Toronto Maple Leafs are already sizing each other up for the playoffs. They are already Locke into their first round matchup so really they should be right next to each other in the power rankings as well.
Last postseasons matchup between Toronto and Tampa Bay was an excellent series that saw Tampa Bay find a way to rally from a 3-2 series deficit to win in game seven. It will be interesting to see how this year unfolds and whether or not Toronto can finally sleigh their demons and make it to the second round.
Additionally the Kings, are playing some great hockey in the Pacific Division, unfortunately their rivals in Vegas and Edmonton are also on hot streaks. Only four points separate the three teams in the standings so the positioning in the playoffs truly is still up for grabs.
The same is true for Dallas in the Central. While they have been leading the Central Division standings most of the season, only two points separate them from Minnesota and Colorado. These final games still matter.
8. Colorado Avalanche
7. Minnesota Wild
6. Carolina Hurricanes
5. New York Rangers
Colorado being eighth might seem a bit too low for the power rankings, but really their success is not measured in rankings it is measured in their most recent Stanley Cup. Their positioning in the playoffs and whether or not they have home ice is not going to be a concern. Once the playoffs start, they will find a way.
The New York Rangers really have found another level since adding Patrick Kane. The Rangers are 7-2-1 in their last ten games and while they are third in the metropolitan division, they are not going to be a team that the Hurricanes or Devils want to face in round one.
Carolina has continued to put separating between them and New Jersey for the first place spot in the Metropolitan Division. I think more people would be talking about how good of a team the Hurricanes have been this season if it was not for the Bruins putting up over 60 wins.
4. Edmonton Oilers
3. New Jersey Devils
2. Vegas Golden Knights
1. Boston Bruins
Finally we have our top four. Edmonton, New Jersey, Vegas and Boston have all been playing some great hockey as of late. Edmonton really has hit a stride with a record of 9-0-1 in their last ten games. While they still are giving up a few too many goals in some games, they keep finding ways to outscore their problems and beat some good divisional opponents like Seattle, Vegas and Los Angeles.
The Golden Knights are returning to the playoffs this year to prove their worth after failing to make the postseason in 2022. I think they could be a real threat to make it out of the Western Conference if they continue to get good goaltending from Brossoit, Thompson and Quick.
The big story in the rankings has to be the Bruins. They won their 60th game of the regular season on Sunday night and still have five games to go. They will be a fun team to watch in the playoffs without a doubt, however no Presidents’ Trophy team has won the Cup since 2013 – when Boston lost to the Blackhawks in the final.
It really looks like any team can win this upcoming postseason with so many amazing teams. So many teams bought in hard at this past trade deadline and the playoffs are going to have a lot of stars facing off in the first few rounds!