Hockey and December go together pretty well, don't you think? Skates and snowflakes. Sticks and shovels. Games and gifts. You know what else goes together pretty well? The and the No. 1 spot in this week's edition of NHL Power Rankings. The top three in our pecking order could easily pa s as 1A, 1B and 1C of hockey after almost two full months of regular-season action, but since the have owned the top spot for weeks, it's time to give Tampa its due. is suddenly a superstar on a team that already had a handful of them, and there's no reason
Russ Courtnall Jersey not to consider the Lightning a Stanley Cup favorite at this point in the year. No one has scored more than Tampa Bay, and the club is still awaiting top goalie return, so it's safe to say that the 2018-19 Lightning have been an early Christmas present to their fans. Tampa isn't the only team on the rise in the rankings this week, however. In fact, if anyone deserves credit for shooting up the list, it's the . The reasons for Buffalo's ascension are countle s, but all you need to know is this: They won nine straight entering Tuesday night. You don't just do that in the NHL. So you'll have to excuse us if we went all in on the Sabres love and pushed Buffalo into the top five this week, making them one of the biggest movers outside of the defending champion : Biggest Movers 8 Capitals 9 Coyotes Rk Teams Chg Rcrd 1 A new No. 1! Truthfully, the top three are pretty interchangeable, but Tampa just sets the standard for scoring too often to ignore. 2 45-29-8 2 It's a testament to their ceiling that they can play so-so and still go 7-3 in their last 10, all without their best player. -- 46-26-10 3 A two-drop spot isn't reason for concern. Their depth is still great. It's just being tested a little bit more now. 2 47-30-5 4 If we're going by momentum, they are No. 1, hands down. We figured they'd be better this year, but 16-6-2 nearing December? Talk about a contender. 2 39-37-6 5 Regre sion to the mean could hurt their great power play, but then again, they're working with two studs on the first line. That kind of talent should keep them in the hunt all year. 4 50-25-7 6 If this team could start games better, it would probably be atop the Western Conference. 1
Todd Bertuzzi Jersey 39-34-9 7 Can Tom Wilson stay disciplined enough to remain un-suspended? Because his return has coincided with a return to relevance for the reigning champs. 8 40-31-11 8 Patrik Laine is a monster, as usual. Their succe s just hasn't gotten as much traction inside such a competitive Central Division early on. 4 52-24-6 9 The shots are flowing, as are the goals. Now if they could just figure out what's wrong with Mike Smith or hope that David Rittich keeps up the good work. 2 38-39-5 10 Anything slightly above .500 for the near future should be considered a succe s for a team absolutely ravaged by injuries. 2 47-20-15 11 When Artemi Panarin is in the mix,
Josh Bloom Jersey Cam Atkinson is doing his thing and Sergei Bobrovsky is playing up to his standard, you can almost convince yourself these guys are for real. 1 27-43-12 12 Their top-15 ranking seems almost too dependent on their talent rather than their results, but the potential for an explosion remains. 1 19-54-9 13 As long as they never leave Madison Square Garden, they won't even have to worry about the rebuild. 3 55-23-4 14 We started the year talking about how incredible their first line is, and yet somehow the Stars are below the middle of the pack in terms of scoring. 2 52-21-9 15 How awesome would it have been for Barry Trotz to beat the Caps? At least his new team is still overachieving. 1 39-27-16 16 They're in the playoff picture entering December, which is a stunner. Plus Shea Weber is returning. How many people believe they can sustain this run, however? 3 30-36-16 17 What's the plan in the net? If there isn't one, we're going to be looking at yet another finish that sees Carolina come close but ultimately remain at home. 5 52-23-7 18 Now that's the Marc-Andre Fleury they need! It'll take more than this current winning streak, but Vegas has time to make up lost ground. 7 45-29-8 19 This spot almost feels generous. By default
Brock Boeser Jersey , we're required to name Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin as reasons for hope. But Matt Murray is now out and this team has lacked pop. 1 38-32-12 20 Just when they start piling up wins, they let Columbus drop seven. But their youngsters have still made them far, far better than we thought. 3 41-32-9 21 We'll see how long they last in the top 25. With Vincent Trocheck now sidelined, they have their work cut out for them. 2 52-24-6 22 A 2-7-1 stretch is, well, not good. At some point, though, we'd expect Ken Hitchcock to get some results from these guys. 2 49-27-6 23 So maybe Cory Schneider wasn't the answer they needed in the net. It's a shame, because they have guys who are capable of giving him goal insurance. 2 38-39-5 24 The big question remains: What happens with Dave Hakstol? You can't tell us Philly wouldn't be pumped to have someone like Joel Quenneville. 7 38-33-11 25 Tune in just for Elias Petter son until the Canucks figure out how to operate around him. 3 50-23-9 26 They deserve credit for righting the ship a little bit over the last week, but they're too banged up to be taken seriously for a while. 4 27-50-5 27 Beating the Panthers isn't what it was in late 2017-18. Remember, we're only on Step One or Two of the rebuild here. 2 23-53-6 28 Craig Berube cannot save this season. 2 43-33-6 29 Coyotes Not a great week for the Coyotes, who are actually not too far removed from the playoff picture but simply can't break that negative goal differential. 9 36-41-5 30 They've now allowed more than 100
Gino Odjick Jersey goals on the year. Not good. 3 37-41-4 31 So much for Carl Hagelin coming in and making an impact. -- 44-27-11