Outsider Sports NHL Power Rankings
Welcome to the Outsider Sports NHL power rankings, where our hockey staff provides their top-10 rankings each week. Each first place vote receives 10 points, while 10th place votes receive one point. Voting this week is Ben Mandell, Tom Leone, Michael Diakunczak, Arianna Fariss and Parker Dorsey.
Photo credit to CBSSports.com / Getty Images
1. Vegas Golden Knights (50 points)
The Golden Knights were atop the league last year after winning the Stanley Cup, and that doesn’t seem to be changing early on. They have opened the season 3-0 and Bruce Cassidy’s club isn’t showing any signs of a hangover.
2. Toronto Maple Leafs (43 points)
Toronto made a lot of changes this offseason to get tougher, but the most important move was locking up Auston Matthews for the next four years. He has responded to becoming the highest paid player in the league annually by scoring back-to-back hat tricks in the Leafs’ first two games.
3. Carolina Hurricanes (38 points)
The Hurricanes came into the season as one of the favorites to win the Eastern Conference, and they opened the season with a pair of wins against two quality teams. There are questions if this team can get out of the East, but for the regular season and the Metropolitan Division they should be considered the favorites until proven otherwise.
4. Dallas Stars (33 points)
This is a strong team in Dallas that can really push Vegas for the West. The Stars are the only team in the conference with the depth that can match Vegas, and if they can manage his minutes, they even have an edge over Vegas in goal in Jake Oettinger.
5. New Jersey Devils (28 points)
The Devils certainly haven’t looked the part to start the season, but they’ve managed to pick up three points and both Jack Hughes and Jesper Bratt are scoring. This is one of the most talented rosters in the East, and the fastest in the entire league. Goaltending will be the biggest question, but it hasn’t been an issue so far.
6. Colorado Avalanche (23 points)
Colorado is one of the most talented offensive teams in the NHL, but last year may have proven you either need a strong defensive core, or an elite goaltender. Offense alone will only get you so far, and Alexandar Georgiev isn’t going to get the job done.
7. New York Rangers (16 points)
The Rangers opened the post-Gerard Gallant era 1-1, and it started with a strong dismantling of Buffalo, but a disappointing five-goal performance allowed against Columbus was not what fans were expecting. With Igor Shesterkin, New York will always be good though and the offense is good enough to produce with more structure under the new staff.
8. Pittsburgh Penguins (14 points)
The Penguins had a rough start to the season, letting a lead slip against the Blackhawks on opening night. But Evgeni Malkin has been on a tear since and Pittsburgh looks poised to make another run this year.
9. Tampa Bay Lightning (13 points)
Tampa Bay is still good. Don’t let the noise fool you. Navigating the start of the season without Andrei Vasilevsky will be difficult, but there is still a ton of talent on both ends of the ice, along with the experience throughout the lineup.
10. Boston Bruins (9 points)
The Bruins spent the entire season atop power rankings last year, but a first-round exit followed by the retirement of Patrice Bergeron has a lot of people counting Boston out. Before you do so, remember who they have between the pipes, as both Linus Ullmark and Jeremy Swayman were the best goalie combo in the NHL last year. Add in when you have David Pastrnak and Brad Marchand, the offense figures to score.
Others receiving votes: Edmonton Oilers (3 points) New York Islanders (2 points) Detroit Red Wings (2 points) Ottawa Senators (1 point)
How we ranked them:
Ben M: Vegas Golden Knights, Toronto Maple Leafs, Carolina Hurricanes, Colorado Avalanche, Dallas Stars, Boston Bruins, New Jersey Devils, Pittsburgh Penguins, New York Rangers, Tampa Bay Lightning.
Tom L: Vegas Golden Knights, Toronto Maple Leafs, Carolina Hurricanes, New Jersey Devils, Dallas Stars, Tampa Bay Lightning, Pittsburgh Penguins, New York Rangers, New York Islanders, Colorado Avalanche.
Mikey D: Vegas Golden Knights, Toronto Maple Leafs, Carolina Hurricanes, Dallas Stars, Colorado Avalanche, New Jersey Devils, Tampa Bay Lightning, New York Rangers, Detroit Red Wings, Pittsburgh Penguins.
Arianna F: Vegas Golden Knights, Toronto Maple Leafs, Carolina Hurricanes, New Jersey Devils, Dallas Stars, Pittsburgh Penguins, New York Rangers, Tampa Bay Lightning, Boston Bruins, Ottawa Senators.
Parker D: Vegas Golden Knights, Colorado Avalanche, Dallas Stars, Toronto Maple Leafs, Carolina Hurricanes, New Jersey Devils, New York Rangers, Edmonton Oilers, Boston Bruins, Pittsburgh Penguins.
Rankings are based on games through Oct. 15.