Outsider Sports NHL Power Rankings Nov. 13
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.
Canucks goaltender Thatcher Demko’s hot start has helped lead Vancouver to a great start (Graham Hughes/CP).
1. Boston Bruins (48 points)
It took until mid-November for the Bruins to claim the top spot in our power rankings after last season’s dominant run. This past week was a good one for Boston, picking up five of a possible six points. The one loss came to Montreal in overtime and it marked the first time in this decade the B’s have fallen to the Canadiens. The Bruins may not be the same record setting team from last year, but this team is still very good and is quickly regaining respect around the league.
2. Vegas Golden Knights (45 points)
Vegas played just two games this week, a 4-1 loss to division rival Los Angeles and a win over San Jose. The Sharks have been laughable through the first six weeks of the season, but the loss to the Kings at home didn’t help their case. It was just the Golden Knights’ second in regulation, but with the Bruins hot start it's enough to boot the reigning champs from the top spot.
3. New York Rangers (42 points)
The Rangers just keep on winning. Another perfect week for the Broadway Blueshirts has them right among the top of the league and even receiving a first place vote from one of our staff members. Wins over Detroit and Minnesota were good wins, but the Rangers were also able to gut-out a tough game against what has been a scrappy Columbus team. The Rangers seem to have figured the coaching situation out, and the talent on this roster is playing like it should be.
4. Dallas Stars (32 points)
Dallas had a busy week, playing four games, going 3-1-0. Following a 3-2 loss at home against Boston, the Stars ripped off three wins to close out the week, including an eight-goal outburst in Minnesota Sunday night. Dallas is showing they have great goaltending and can score with the best of them, making this one of the most dangerous teams in the NHL.
4. Vancouver Canucks (32 points)
The Canucks impressive start continued this past week despite their point streak snapped at nine games. The winning streak also stretched to five games before Toronto defeated Vancouver on Saturday. Still, the Canucks took three out of four this past week from their Canadien brethren. Elias Pettersson and Quinn Hughes have been great, but perhaps nobody has been better than Thatcher Demko in goal. He’s still sitting with a GAA of 1.96 and a save percentage of .935. Vancouver may be this year’s breakout team from the West.
6. Los Angeles Kings (24 points)
Los Angeles has quietly been one of the best teams in the NHL over the last 13 months, and mainly it's because of the name recognition on the roster. Anze Kopitar and Drew Doughty are older, but the rest of the team isn’t full of star power, but a lot of very good players. They aren’t the most recognizable names like Adrian Kempe, Kevin Fiala, Pierre-Luc Dubois, Phillip Danault and Mikey Anderson. With that, the Kings had a huge win in Vegas to start the week, but losses to both Pennsylvania teams at home weren’t ideal.
7. Florida Panthers (13 points)
The Panthers not only had a busy week, but a perfect week with four wins. The defending Eastern Conference champions have struggled to find consistency prior to this past week, but the offense came alive behind Sam Reinhart’s 10 points in four games. Sergei Bobrovsky has also been solid, but his play has taken a bit of a step back from where he was last postseason.
8. Colorado Avalanche (11 points)
The Avalanche are in the midst of a really tough stretch. They beat the Jack Hughesless Devils, but that was their only win of the week. The goaltending continues to be a problem, while the offense is showing that even they can be pedestrian at times. It’s still a strong team in Colorado, but they have more questions than they did previously.
9. Detroit Red Wings (10 points)
The Red Wings dipped in our rankings a bit with some other teams finally reaching levels we expected. Detroit also only picked up three of a possible six points this week. Dylan Larkin and Alex DeBrincat have also slowed down a bit, but this team is still dangerous and as showed against the Rangers last week, they can score quickly and in bunches.
10. Carolina Hurricanes (7 points)
The Hurricanes have continued to right the ship after starting the season pretty banged up. Frederik Andersen has been serviceable in goal, but still he has lapses that cause the Caniacs to cringe. Carolina picked up an overtime win against Buffalo before splitting their Florida trip.
Others receiving votes: Toronto Maple Leafs (6 points), New Jersey Devils (4 point), Arizona Coyotes (1 point).
How we ranked them.
Ben M: Boston Bruins, Vegas Golden Knights, New York Rangers, Dallas Stars, Vancouver Canucks, Los Angeles Kings, Florida Panthers, Detroit Red Wings, Carolina Hurricanes, Toronto Maple Leafs.
Tom L: Boston Bruins, Vegas Golden Knights, New York Rangers, Vancouver Canucks, Dallas Stars, Los Angeles Kings, Florida Panthers, New Jersey Devils, Colorado Avalanche, Arizona Coyotes.
Mikey D: New York Rangers, Boston Bruins, Vegas Golden Knights, Dallas Stars, Vancouver Canucks, Los Angeles Kings, Toronto Maple Leafs, Detroit Red Wings, Florida Panthers, Carolina Hurricanes.
Arianna F: Boston Bruins, Vegas Golden Knights, New York Rangers, Vancouver Canucks, Los Angeles Kings, Dallas Stars, Colorado Avalanche, Florida Panthers, New Jersey Devils.
Parker D: Vegas Golden Knights, Boston Bruins, New York Rangers, Dallas Stars, Vancouver Canucks, Colorado Avalanche, Detroit Red Wings, Los Angeles Kings, Carolina Hurricanes, Toronto Maple Leafs.
Rankings are based on games through Nov. 12.
