The hottest team right now is on one of the best tears I’ve seen in years. At 8-1-1 in their last 10 games, the Bruins are now one of the best in the league. Not a bad comeback from a very cold start.

Not the hottest team in the league right now, the Wild are still the best. As long as they can keep winning those 1-goal games they’re golden. They just continue to find a way to win.

Like the Bruins, the Rangers are on an epic tear through the league. Their 12-2 record is very impressive as well as their 51 goals allowed, tied with the Bruins for the best.

The Pens will be without Sidney for a few days as injuries have prompted the team to cautiously keep him at home for their road trip. Win streaks are starting to be interrupted by losses more frequently as the Pens struggle to hold onto the top spot.

No name Panthers continue to surprise as they hold an impressive 5-point lead in the division.

Huge turnaround for the Wings as goalie Jimmy Howard went 11-4-1 in his last 16 games. Chicago still holds a nice lead in the division and 2 straight losses will knock them down a few pegs next week.

Philly is one point out of the lead for the division and their 7-3-0 record in their last 10 indicate now is a great time to leap on the Pens who will be without Sidney for a few games.  If goaltending can hold up that is…

The Leafs stayed mediocre during James Reimer’s absence but his return means they will lean back on him to challenge the Panthers.

The Canucks, like the Bruins, have finally woken up. Not as impressive as the Bruins but enough to make them crack the top 10 finally. Trade rumors about Luongo seemed to have awaken the team.

The ‘Yotes have a small hold on the division as they continue their surprising year.  Close division that could sway easily as 4th place San Jose is only 4 points out.

The new and improved Blues continue to roll with Hitchcock and now have only 3 points to gain on the leading Blackhawks. Hitchcock has worked a small miracle here.

The Sharks have chilled and continue to struggle. 4 loses in their last five drops them significantly.

The Kings are still hot and cold as they have gone 2-3 in the last five and 4 of those were decided by one goal.

At 7-2-1, the Jets have won 4 straight for one of the hottest streaks in the league. The bad news is they were so far down that this new win streak only brings them to 3rd in the division. Losing record on the road is hurting them the most but that will change next year with the new alignments.

The Stars dimmed by losing 3 of their last five.  Huge road trip awaits to challenge them.

New coach and new philosophy have not helped much as the Caps continue to sink from the top team to the middle of the pack. Ovi has started to thaw with a goal and assist in the last three games but he will need to catch fire to get this team back in the mix.

Ryan Miller is back and that will help, as long as they can keep opposing goons from rushing his net.

Up and down still, the Sens have lost 3 of their last four.  Despite their erratic play, this is a rebuilding team that spurts out win streaks on occasion. If they can stabilize their defense enough and get more hot than cold, this team could sneak into the postseason.

The hot streak is over as the Preds struggle to get wins for Pekka Rinne, who has not won since Nov. 17th.

Edmonton Oilers (13-12-3)

Ehhh…the Oilers aren’t hot anymore and have lost 4 of 5 but a weak schedule ahead might be just what the Doctor ordered.

Hmmm…what happened here. After a brief awakening, the Bolts have struggled to win. Their offense, which should be in the top 10, is anemic.

The Flames have nine unrestricted free agents at the end of they year. They’re not gonna make the playoffs with this group so why not start the fire sale?

The Habs just can’t shake their mediocrity but their current losing streak ( one win in five games) and growing IR may sink them permanently.

Semyon Varlamov has woken up from his hibernation and helped the Avs roll off three wins in a row before being blown out 0-6 by Vancouver.

The Devils ended a nasty four-game losing streak with a solid win with a nice win over Toronto. Mix of bad goaltending and lazy offense have put this team in a huge hole.

Silently, the Isles have won 4 of their last 5 with some great play by goalie Al Montoya.

Dead last in goals scored, the Jackets have pumped out a rather impressive (for them ) 4-4 record.

A new coach hasn’t helped much yet but give it time.  They finally snapped their 7-game losing streak which is a very small step in the right direction.

The biggest disappointment of the year so far, the Ducks can’t score and have a Columbus-style offensive output right now which is so sad it makes Teemu cry.

The most surprising team in the West now sits atop the Conference despite being a low scoring team. Thankfully, solid goaltending covers that up so it’s not an issue as evident in their 4 straight wins.

Sidney is back and he made a huge impact with 2 goals, 2 assists on his return.  It’s a great time for Sid to come back as the Pens have held strong in his absence and they will only get stronger with him back in the lineup.

The Blackhawks have powered their way to 2nd place in the Western Conference thanks to being the second-highest scoring team overall, next to Philly. Unfortunately, they are allowing too many goals as well. Two loses in a row where they have been outscored 4-14. Ouch.

The Sharks have now won 5 of their last 6 thanks to stingy goaltending and a hot Patrick Marleau. Tough schedule ahead will test them.

Huge turnaround for the Rangers is complete after a slow start. Now the Rangers have won 7 of their last 8 and hold the lowest amount of goals against in the NHL.

The Flyers are permanent second placers this season so far as they can’t seem to get into that 1st place spot but with the highest scoring team in the league it shouldn’t be a problem longer. They were on a hot streak and hadn’t lost in regulation in nine games, and had won three straight game before losing 2 to Winnipeg and Carolina.

Geez…take a week off and all goes to pot in D.C. The Caps have hit a wall and their offense is working as hard as the Senate right now which is to say not much. Ovi is not a factor and the Caps lost 4 in a row and 6 of 7 before snatching a close win over Phoenix on Monday.

Hot play by the Panthers and cool play by the Caps have put Florida on top of the division for the first time this year. Kris Versteeg is a monster with 11 goals and Jose Theodore is a stud in net.  Who saw that coming?

The Preds are 6-1-3 in regulation in their last ten and haven’t lost since Nov. 8th.  Of course they did lose in OT to Columbus so there’s that to deal with.

Tyler Myers still hasn’t produced and is out with an injury.  The Sabres lose one, win one, lose one… Not a good trend.

Wow. The Stars, like the Caps have hit a wall and lost 5 in a row before pulling out a win Monday. The offense has frozen in Dallas. In those losses, they scored 4 goals and had 2 games with 0.

Woof! The Coyotes have lost 2 of their last 3 after a solid road trip. Despite that the Coyotes still are holding on, not great but not bad.

The Leafs have slumped with one win in regulation in their last five games. Injuries and a slow offense have let the Leafs net get hammered by opposing teams.

The Sens are still up and down. They either win a lot or lose a lot but just can’t seem to shake that bad habit.

The Canucks just can’t seem to shake off the mediocrity. Ryan Kesler continues to struggle and the Canucks can’t seem to find any consistency at all despite having one of the best power plays in the league.

The Bolts have struggled of late, losing 3 of 4, as their offense has struggled to find the back of the net.

New coach Ken Hitchcock has stopped the bleeding in St. Louis.  The defense has showed up and only allowed 5 goals in 6 games with 2 shutouts.

The Kings started out hot, cooled and now have leveled off. If goaltending can find its leg the Kings could rebound big as they have won 3 of their last 4.

The Wings still haven’t recovered from their early slump and have struggled to find any kind of consistency in any form so far.

Edmonton Oilers (10-8-2)

Another team to hit the wall and come back to Earth, the Oilers have lost 5 of 6 with the losses a combined score of 10-21. The team has some young talent but is relying on goaltending. Unfortunately that’s where they are hurting the most right now.

Ilya Kovalchuk has struggled scoring goals and staying healthy.  He’s back now after a groin injury and has scored 2 goals in his 3 games back. Good sign for the Devils who need the offense desperately.

The Canadiens just can’t find their winning ways. Erik Cole should be so much better and Scott Gomez is a huge bust. Sidney Crosby scored 2 goals the other night in his return. That’s 2 more than Gomez has scored all year.

The Jets are riding high after a slow start and are finally near .500. Now they have 3 wins a row with victories over studs Philly and Washington. Very impressive.

Will Jarome Iginla end his career in Calgary or will they ship him to a winning team before he retires soon? With his horrible +/- rating right now a rival GM could probably steal him away.

Tough year for the Canes. Cam Ward and Eric Staal have not produced which helps keep this team in the cellar.

The wheels have completely come off in Denver as the Avs have lost 8 of their last 10. They have struggled to find consistency in goal as well as finding the back of their opposing teams goals.

Two wins in a row! Miracles can happen.

Still in a funk, the Ducks are lost. Bad offense. You can’t score if you don’t shoot the puck!

The Islanders continue to prove they are one of the worst organizations in modern sports and look to stay that way for awhile. Not much positive going on here.

Two West Coast road games netted two losses but the Caps came back home and won against Anaheim.  Their lead on the power rankings is slim right now after a hot start.

Still no Crosby and the Pens had their 5-game win streak busted by Toronto on Saturday.  Good news, they’re off most of the week and don’t play again until Thursday night. Malkin is back but sitting out practices with knee issues which could be a concern later on.

Probably the most underrated team right now, the Stars are red hot thanks to the surprising play of youngsters like Jamie Benn.

Is it the year of the Blackhawks? Chicago is undefeated in regulation at home (4-0-2) but they are sputtering on the power play, ranked 27th.

Young and hot, the Oilers are starting to find some offense to match their stellar goal tending.  Their 18 goals allowed this season are a league best.  Could be danger down the final stretch of the season if this team can keep improving.

Powered by Phil Kessel, who leads the NHL in goals and points, the Leafs are holding tight as the team with one of the biggest turnarounds from last year.

Only 1 win in their last 4 games as the Kings tumble down the list.  Offense is lagging despite the good goal tending.  Still competitive but too many losses lately are a concern.

Still letting in too many goals, the high flying Flyers keep afloat thanks to some high scoring offense. Ilya Bryzgalov is holding this team together but his 3.16 GAA is still too high if they want to overcome the Caps and Pens.

Winners of 4 straight, the Sharks finally lost to the Rangers.  Still, the Sharks are one of the hotter teams in the league and will have to prove themselves with tough home games against the hot Pens and Predators.

The best turnaround of the year have helped the horrible Sens be, … well, good.  Now in 2nd place in the Northeast Division, the Sens finally lost to Boston after a 6-game win streak. Yes….6.

Losers of 3 of their last 4, the Sabres are losing close games to late goals.  Time to buckled down to be taken serious but good for Sabres fans to know they’re still close to being competitive.

Mikko Koivu was still searching for his first goal as the Wild were treading water.  Two back-to-back wins against Detroit are a good sign at improvement as Koivu finally found the back of the net.

Pekka Rinne has played all but a few minutes of this season but the Preds just can’t seem to find their groove.  2 wins with an offensive spurt came to an end with an OT loss to Chicago Monday. But the recent showing of offense is just what they need to get motivated.

The surprising Panthers have played a lot of road game and done well.  They came home and then lost in OT.  Oh well, they’re still doing a lot better than expected.

The stumbling Ducks are now just mediocre after a good start. The Ducks are now in last place in the Pacific Division and have only won one game in their last five matches as the offensive production is AWOL. Oh yeah, and a loss to Columbus is just unacceptable.

Still close but not good enough to get over that mediocre .500 hump, the Canes just can’t seem to piece together a win streak. Eric Staal continues to disappoint with a horrible offensive season.

Two wins, two losses. Two wins,…. see a pattern.  In their last 6 games, their losses average 1 goal scored. When they win, they average 5.  Can’t blame Luongo on that.

Woof! The Coyotes have won 3 of their last 4 with that one loss coming in OT.  Mike Smith has been decent in goal which has helped considering no one expected the goal tending to be anywhere near decent this year.

The Bolts have dropped 2 of their last 3 and will need another hot streak by Dwayne Roloson to kick start a win streak as the offense just can’t seem to catch fire.

The Wings are dropping after 5 straight losses.  Ouch!

Martin Brodeur is close to returning but the Devils have cooled and could use him. Lack of a power play and a lackluster offense are starting to wear on goalie Johan Hedberg as the Devils have only won one in their last five games.

The Canadiens can at least say that their rivals in Boston are still worse than them but the Habs rough start is reason for concern.  Assistant coach Perry Pearn was fired as a scapegoat and they won 3 in a row.  Hmmm….might be onto something there.

The Blues have the worst power play and it’s hurting them. After a three game win streak, they promptly dropped 2 to shake off any excitement.

Two wins were stalled by a blowout loss to Vancouver Tuesday as the Flames continue to look for a buyer for Rene Bourque. Mikka has been good in goal considering the bad team he is on.

It’s slow going but the Rangers finally got their first home win.  That’s something but it’s an improvement on the offense we’re waiting on to see if this team can do anything this year.

The Jets lack goal tending but have slowly improved.  After a crazy 9-8 win over Philly they lost 1-0 to Tampa. Go figure.

The Bruins still suck but shook a 3-game losing streak with a win over the hot Sens. Wait….what? The Sens are doing good and the Stanley Cup winners are sucking?  Well, at least the Canadiens are doing worse. Right? They’re not?! D@#n!!

The countdown to the move to Quebec continues as the Isles have scored the fewest goals in the NHL and have not won since October 15th.  The exemplify suck at the moment.

Another win won’t keep this franchise in Columbus much longer.  Expect some house cleaning soon before the inevitable talks of relocation drown out the angry fans.

Tomas Vokoun has the Caps as the last undefeated team.  Solid play from Backstrom and Ovi help but upcoming West Coast road trip will be first real test to see if they are for real. Late Edit: Caps finally lose, to Edmonton and the Oilers #30 ranked offense.  Ouch.

No Crosby but Malkin is back and the Pens are looking solid.  4 wins in a row and goalie Marc-Andre Fleury is the reason why.

Sensational goal tending has moved the Kings up huge on the list. Jonathan Quick is making a huge name for himself in an attempt to make the Kings playoff threats this year.

The young Avs continue to blow away the rest of the league. Oddly enough, they win 5 on the road and go home to lose. Then win on the road again.

Kari Lehtonen is keeping the team afloat but they’ve lost 2 of their last three.

Powered by Waffles, the Leafs are atop the NE Division. Early season prediction by us had the Leafs having a solid year thanks to our mental powers wishing it upon the team.  We are more powerful than we thought!

You lose to the Blue Jackets, you drop in the rankings.  No question. Bigger issue, two loses in a row and outscored 2-11.  Bad week for the Wings

Pronger is out with an eye injury for a few weeks and the Flyers dropped closer to mediocrity. Lost 4 of their last 5 including a 9-8 shootout with Winnipeg.  May need to start goalie Ilya Bryzgalov for every game.

Losers of 2 in a row, the Sabres look to rebound with a game against the Blue Jackets.

The hot start cooled quick.  Lost 3 now including an OT loss to Chicago.

Winners of 3 straight, the Sharks have started to wake up after a slow start.  Offense is an issued here but if they can keep up their game from the last few matches they’ll be alright.

Three loses in a row with 2 in OT.  They’re close, but not good enough yet.  The 3-3-3 record is perfect for them right now, right in the middle.

West coast road trip is starting to take its toll with a few loses but the Devils are playing well, mostly considering how bad they were last year at this time.

The young Oilers lack an offensive punch yet but have slipped into #2 in their division thanks to stellar goaltending by Nikolai Khabibulin. Last two wins were against Vancouver and Washington, very impressive despite the worst offense in the NHL

Hovering in the middle without much going on here, the Wild have dropped a few games this week and could be in for a huge drop in the rankings next week.

Lost 3 of their last 4, the Preds look to have little bite right now. Offense needs to wake up and Mike Fisher is back this week which is just what they need.

This is not the dominant team from last year.  Like the Bruins, the Canucks are struggling to find their way and traded for David Booth to give them a boost.

Three in a row for the win column helps the Bolts rise up a bit. Offense has woken up, outscoring their opponents 11-4 in those games.

Three wins in a row including a shutout of Vancouver on Wednesday as the offense is spreading the fun around.

After a hot start, the Panthers and their new lineup fell with 2-straight 0-3 shutout loses. A win against the lowly Islanders and Canadiens lifted them back up but the team is treading water right now with one of the lower scoring offenses in the Conference.

The crappy Sens aren’t that crappy as they have won 4 frickin’ games in a row.  Wow…and what? How did this happen?

Still nursing a wicked Stanley Cup hangover, the Bruins are now officially the worst team in the Eastern Conference. Still too early to hit the panic button but the Bruins just look horrid and have little offense.

Woof! What a dog of a season so far. The Coyotes have lost 3 of their last 4 and need to find a goalie to carry them like last season.

Quick start put them out ahead fast but the Isles have quickly dropped to where we expect them : the cellar.  Tied for worst in goals scored this season with Edmonton and losers of 4 straight.  They will drop more next week.

The slow start is heating up a tad but the Rangers have no offense and good goaltending.  That’s going to get them nowhere.

Tough start for the Flames and even though they might not be good enough to go anywhere this season, a 2-1-1 record in their last 4 is hope for some improvement.

The Canadiens just look worse and worse with each game with 3 loses in their last 4.  However, they did beat Philly in their last game nicely and that’s something good to finally talk about with this club.

The Jets lost 3 of their last 4 as goaltending comes into question.  However, a late game this week gave them a crazy 9-8 win over in a rare exhibition of offense.  More to come of that? Doubt it but maybe it will wake them up a bit to notch a few more wins.

No changes here. The Blue Jackets still suck but they did finally get their first win. Enjoy it. It’ll be lonely in the win column for awhile.

Tomas Vokoun has stepped nicely into net with 3 wins and the team is spreading around the offense.  Can’t wait to see what happens when Ovi goes on a tear.

The old men of Detroit are churning out wins still and have only let in 5 goals on the season! No more Tigers means more focus now on the Wings.

The Flyers are monsters this year and Jagr does not look around the 40-year old mark. The Ilya Bryzgalov experiment is looking good and Pronger is solid on the blue line right now.  Great recipe for success.

Solid goal tending? Scoring?  And I don’t see Roy’s name in the Box Score or Sakic’s?  What’s going on here….?

Where are the waffles now?!  The Leafs are fueled by the goal tending of James Reimer and Phil Kessel’s 6 goals.

Not a typo.  The Islanders are hot with solid goal tending and a stingy defense.  Once again, not a typo.

The Stars are leading the Pacific thanks to Kari Lehtonen great play in net.  Overall, the Stars are looking solid across the board.

Goalie Jonas Hiller is dominating the net as the Ducks have won 4 in a row. Jason Blake is gone for awhile with that nasty arm cut but Teemu and Perry are flying high.

No Crosby yet and Malkin’s hurt again.  Despite that the Pens have scored the most goals in the NHL.

The Devils didn’t start off slow this year! Goalie problems looked to pop up with Martin Brodeur hurting his shoulder but Johan Hedberg stepped in and went a red-hot 3-0-0.

Anze Kopitar is hot with 7 points and a 3+ rating.  Thanks to Jonathan Quick’s miniscule GAA the Kings are looking great right now.

The retooled Panthers are still too unknown to peg just yet but already they are more competitive than last year.  Now if they can just bump that infomercial off the air in Miami and get some air time…

Patrick Kane, Patrick Kane, Patrick Kane, Patrick Kane, Patrick Kane, Patrick Kane.

Some close games here thanks to Corey Crawford so look for the ‘Hawks to move up the ladder over the next few weeks.

The Preds have dropped 3 in a row now but are not great on defense yet.  Solid special teams and David Legwand is on fire with 8 points.  It’ll get there.

Ryan Nugent-Hopkins made a hat trick already.  But it was in a loss against Vancouver. That about sums up the Oilers right now.

Like the Bruins, a bit of some playoff hangover is in the locker room. I mean, the team like had 2 loses all of last year so this year’s already a wash.  Right? Let’s riot. 3 loses in their 4 games show this team needs more than Ryan Kesler to repeat.

The Wild have surprised a lot by keeping up some decent goal tending which will make their season but 1 win in their last 5 shows the reality of this team at the moment.

The Canes have now won 2 in a row after a slow start thanks to the hot start of Jeff Skinner.

Shane Doan is on fire with 7 pts to start the season but the team is youthful and is prone to ups and down most of the season.  That’s a lot of pressure on the 35-year old Doan to carry the team.

Um….what happened here? The Bruins are looking sad in the cellar.  The Stanley Cup hangover hit them pretty hard as Tyler Seguin looks good but the shuffling lines are having a hard time finding their groove.

The Blues are showing some good signs on offense but lost Andy McDonald to a concussion and Dave Perron is still out as well that will slow them down.

The injury bug is sneaking in again. Special Teams stink and where’s Erik Cole?  He eventually will make points for the team, right?

Woof! What a dog of a season so far.  The Sharks won’t be here long.  They average a ton of shots a game and have the 4th ranked Power Play.  That will turn the tide very soon.

New Unis can’t help the Bolts start out strong. Similar issue to early last season, though.  Way too many goals going in. 26 leads the league.

The Oilers are looking decent with their kids and the Flames are burning out.  Ouch!   Too many goals in the 3rd quarter is why.

Tough start for the new franchise but that’s not really unexpected.  Give them time. Last game was a win vs. the Pens which is a solid start.

The Rangers may have Brad Richards but that doesn’t matter yet. Still hungover from Europe, the Rangers are looking tired.

The Sens are relatively competitive in their games, which is something.  But they can’t make wins yet and may have a hard time in the near future with 2 of their last 3 games being blowouts that let opponents score 7 goals.

Jeff Carter hits the IR which doesn’t help a season already struggling to net its first win. James Wisniewski may return to a team that’s already out of the playoff hunt and that’s just a handful of games more on his suspension.