This is the first season edition of theScore’s NHL Power Rankings for the 2022-23 campaign. Check out the rankings, which are updated every other Monday during the regular season.
This edition provides early overreactions based on each team’s performance.
1. Calgary Flames (4-1-0)
Preseason Rank: 4
Flames are the undisputed champions of the Western ConferenceCalgary have started their campaign with a bang and have already beaten their rivals with the Oilers, Avalanche and Golden Knights. You can’t take it away from Flames, but there are still plenty of games left.
2. Pittsburgh Penguins (4-0-1)
Preseason Rank: 9
Penguin’s attack’s early breakneck pace is sustainableBetting against Sidney Crosby and Co. is rarely wise, but Pittsburgh leads the league with 5.2 goals per game. He has scored six goals in four of five games for the Penguins. That’s horrible? yes. can you bear it? Probably not.
3. Boston Bruins (5-1-0)
Preseason Rank: 10
R.Reports of Bruins’ death were greatly exaggeratedHeading into the season, it wasn’t unreasonable to think that Boston might struggle due to long-term injuries to some key players. Whether it is sustainable remains to be seen.
4. Carolina Hurricanes (3-1-1)
Preseason Rank: 3
Martin Nekas’ true breakout season has begunThe Hurricanes forward would have produced 64 points if the shortened 2021 campaign had been a typical 82 games. The season got off to a great start with three goals and four assists in the first five games.
5. Colorado Avalanche (3-2-1)
Preseason Rank: 1
Avalanche’s power play is the best ever. Despite the obvious caveat that Colorado has only played 6 games, the club has scored 9 of its 17 chances (52.9%) with man advantage. Valeri Nichushkin scored 4 of them. For those wondering, the 1977-78 Montreal Canadiens hold his NHL record of 31.9%.
6. Florida Panthers (4-1-1)
Preseason Rank: 7
After giving up the king’s ransom to get Matthew Tokachuk, the Panthers are fine. Many believed Florida would take a step back after abandoning Jonathan Huberdough, Mackenzie Weeger, prospect Cole Schwindt and an offseason first-round pick. biggest dealIt may still happen. But for now, the Cats and Tkachuk, who lead the team in points, look good.
7. Dallas Stars (4-0-1)
Preseason Rank: 17
Jake Oettinger is the frontrunner for Vezina. This may not hold up as the season progresses, but the Stars goaltender has been nearly unbeatable so far. Ettinger is 4-0-0 with a . He also ranks top 5 in both GSAx and GSAA where he is 5-5.
8. St. Louis Blues (3-0-0)
Preseason Rank: 12
Blues may never lose againSure, St. Louis played a minimum of three games in the league, but did they lose any? The 82-0-0 season is definitely coming.
9. Toronto Maple Leafs (4-2-0)
Preseason Rank: 5
Ilya Samsonov has deleted all Leafs goaltending questions. After being unbid by the Washington Capitals this offseason, Toronto tied the 2015 first-round pick to a one-year, $1.8 million deal. This summer’s best sign he’s about to become one. The 25-year-old is his 4-0-0 with a . 938 save percentage.
10. Vegas Golden Knights (4-2-0)
Preseason Rank: 16
Logan Thompson becomes a notable name at the NHL AwardsThat’s right, Thompson is coming to the Calder Trophy and Vezina. Ranked.
11. New York Rangers (3-2-1)
Preseason Rank: 8
Igor Shesterkin’s Vezina season was an outlier. It’s a stretch, but the Rangers goaltender wasn’t exactly his elite self to start the campaign. is 5 to 5. Nevertheless, New York are playing relatively well and no one would be shocked if Shesterkin sets the tone.
12. Tampa Bay Lightning (3-3-0)
Preseason Rank: 2
Lightning is starting to lose its glow. Anyone who’s followed hockey over the last few seasons knows that Bolt will do his best heading into the playoffs, so it wouldn’t be wise to jump to conclusions based on six games. However, it is a little concerning that Tampa Bay ranks in the middle of the pack in terms of his points-per-game and points-conceded average, as well as expected scoring percentage.
13. Buffalo Sabers (4-1-0)
Preseason Rank: 25
Maurice “Rocket” Richard Trophy belongs to Rasmus DahlinThe Sabers defense has scored five goals in five games, the longest opening streak by a Blue Liner. If he keeps it up, he will earn his 82 Easy Peasy. There is nothing wrong with this logic.
14. Edmonton Oilers (2-3-0)
Preseason Rank: 6
This is Jack Campbell. The Oilers clearly expected a lot more from their goaltender when he signed him to a five-year, $25 million deal this summer. Edmonton should have foreseen some discrepancies from Campbell, whose underlying numbers were the worst in the NHL last season. But his .889 save percentage in his first four games leaves something to be desired.
15. Ottawa Senators (3-2-0)
Preseason Rank: 20
The Senators could be a playoff team. Even after ‘Pierre’s Summer’, Ottawa’s upgrades and promising core failed to turn the club into a postseason rock.A playoff qualification for the Sens is still unlikely, but this team is still in the running for the campaign. It looked good in the early stages. This is suddenly not so exaggerated.
16. Philadelphia Flyers (4-2-0)
Preseason Rank: 30
John Tortorella has a legitimate chance of winning the Jack Adams Award. Few would have predicted that the Flyers would be this good from the start. Their new head coach deserves credit for getting off to a strong start. Philadelphia still has the potential to be one of the worst teams in the league, but he hasn’t been that way through six games.
17. Washington Capitals (3-3-0)
Preseason Rank: 14
Alex Ovechkin lost contact. Despite leading the Capitals with 22 shots, the legendary marksman makes just 9% of his goal attempts. If only there were 18 years of evidence to suggest he’d break out.
18. Detroit Red Wings (3-0-2)
Preseason Rank: 23
Give Steve Yzerman the GM of the Year award. Free-agent signers David Peron, Andrew Kopp, Dominic Kubarik and Ben Chiarotte have integrated admirably into their new squad. They provide Red Wings with the veteran infrastructure it needs to support its young core.
19. New Jersey Devils (3-2-0)
Preseason Rank: 19
Lindy Ruff is safe. The veteran coach changed the minds of Devils fans who booed the start of the season. He’s on his third straight win, so he’s sure to have a lot more going for him.
20. Los Angeles Kings (3-4-0)
Preseason Rank: 13
Goalkeepers are doomed. Cal Petersen and Jonathan Quick have boasted .842 and .889 save percentages respectively this season, undermining the momentum the Kings built in a promising playoff run last season.
21. Nashville Predators (2-4-1)
Preseason Rank: 15
Playing in Prague ruined the Predators. Nashville has not won a game since defeating the Sharks in back-to-back games abroad. Jet lag must be terrible (and it must last for weeks).
22. Minnesota Wild (1-3-1)
Preseason Rank: 11
Marc André Fleury is washed. OK, it would be silly to cancel future Hall of Fame inductees so early, but Father Time will eventually catch up with everyone. The 37-year-old has a .847 save percentage and averages 5.25 goals in four games.
23. New York Islanders (2-4-0)
Preseason Rank: 22
It doesn’t matter how much it costs for Matthew Bazal to find the other side of the net. Even with a lucrative long-term contract extension secured, the Islanders’ most dynamic attacking threat has gone goalless through six games.
24. Winnipeg Jets (2-3-0)
Preseason Rank: 21
The Jets have won nothing with this core and should be blown up. Stripping ‘C’ Blake Wheeler was already a clear sign of Winnipeg’s locker room problems. Wheeler, Marc Scheifel, Conor Hellebuick and Pierre-Luc Dubois are all set to be traded if Winnipeg miss the playoffs in a row, given he could become an unrestricted free agent in 2024. I have no doubt that you will.
25. Columbus Blue Jacket (3-4-0)
Preseason Rank: 24
The Blue Jackets have a goalie controversy. Elvis Merzlikins has been struggling hard and Daniil Tarasov’s strong performance against Rangers on Sunday should give him another step forward.
26. Chicago Blackhawks (3-2-0)
Preseason Rank: 31
The Blackhawks would break the NHL short-handed goals record. Chicago already has four in their first five games. The Oilers set the current benchmark with 36 in his 1983-84, so the Blackhawks could blow it out of the water if they somehow maintain their current pace.
27. Seattle Kraken (2-3-2)
Preseason Rank: 26
Shane Wright dropped to 4th overall for a reason. The once destined teenager for superstardom has only contributed five games to his career, and the Kraken swung to miss out on this year’s first-round pick. It doesn’t make sense to play beyond your 7:06 per game average.
28. Montreal Canadiens (3-3-0)
Preseason Rank: 29
Arber Xhekaj (pronounced JACK-EYE) may be the toughest player in the NHL. Sure, he’s only fought once, but he’s put the league on notice by rabbing down Zach Cassian.
29. San Jose Sharks (2-6-0)
Preseason Rank: 28
Conor Bedard could be Bay Area bound. The Sharks weren’t expected to be in contention this season, but they weren’t supposed to be this bad.A San Jose slip heading into the league’s basement puts the team squarely in Bedard’s pursuit. However, there is no guarantee that the Sharks will actually finish with the best odds and take the first overall pick.
30. Anaheim Ducks (1-4-1)
Preseason Rank: 27
Duck is in need of a rebrand to fully take the next step. Anaheim doesn’t have many positives to kick off the 2022-23 campaign, other than the launch of Reverse Retro. The club has found the perfect medium between the Mighty Ducks era and the current color scheme in the new kit. But until the ducks look like competitors for good, they can’t play like them.
31. Arizona Coyote (1-4-0)
Preseason Rank: 32
Coyote has a future star named JJ Moser unknown to most NHL fans. The second-year defenseman is averaging a team-best 23:58 on ice and has four points in five contests.
32. Vancouver Canucks (0-4-2)
Preseason Rank: 18
Canucks never win the game again. This is pretty sad because it doesn’t seem like an overreaction at the moment.
(Analysis sources: Evolving Hockey, Natural Stat Trick)
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