With just weeks until the start of the 2018 Stanley Cup Playoffs, now is the time for NHL teams to pick up steam or keep churning it out as the postseason picture materializes.

Plenty of clubs are doing just that.

There are the Nashville Predators, who haven't lost even one of their last 14 games in regulation and should still be your first pick to go the distance thanks to their depth, their streak and their magnificent goaltending from Pekka Rinne. There are the Tampa Bay Lightning, longtime Presidents' Trophy front-runners who are locked into a return to the playoffs and offer more first-line scoring talent than anyone in the league. There are the Boston Bruins, whose defense just proved it can shut down high-powered clubs like the Lightning and who are on the brink of becoming the NHL's third 100-point team of the year. And there are the Columbus Blue Jackets, who are suddenly smack dab in the middle of the playoff picture thanks to a seven-game win streak in the Metro.

Plenty of others, however, picked the wrong time to lose that steam. (We're looking at you, Dallas Stars. Shame.)

All of it is reflected right here, right now, in our latest edition of NHL Power Rankings:

Biggest Movers
6 Blue Jackets
6 Stars
Rk
Teams
  
Chg
Rcrd
1 Predators Let's just keep talking about Pekka Rinne. These boys are serious Cup contenders. -- 47-30-5
2 Lightning They've been lighting it up all year, but something says they're going to need all their stars to show out if they want to avoid a monumental playoff upset. -- 45-29-8
3 Bruins Shutting out Tampa Bay was Exhibit A on why their defense has the potential to go the distance. -- 47-20-15
4 Jets This is the postseason where, in the public's eye, Patrik Laine becomes the Auston Matthews of 2016-17. 1 52-24-6
5 Golden Knights We're so used to their success now, but remember: This is an expansion team with almost 100 points in the standings. 1 45-29-8
6 Maple Leafs Oh baby, their prospective playoff opener against the Bruins sounds like must-watch material. -- 46-26-10
7 Wild How will they hold up against the elites over the course of a series? Devan Dubnyk won't be facing the Coyotes in the games that matter. -- 39-33-10
8 Capitals A slip-up vs. Philly isn't anything new. Their offense is still potent with Alex Ovechkin on a tear. 1 40-31-11
9 Sharks Maybe they can afford their blue-line injuries with Evander Kane skating ablaze in his new home. 2 19-54-9
10 Penguins They're still sloppy on the road, but their experience cannot be overstated. They're going to make it difficult for anyone. 2 38-32-12
11 Avalanche We need some Nathan MacKinnon in the playoffs. And what a turnaround for Colorado that would be. 1 50-25-7
12 Ducks Speaking of turnarounds, these guys are suddenly a major threat. Balance has been key, and they're getting hot at home at the right time. 2 27-50-5
13 Blue Jackets Don't tell us John Tortorella is really going to ride this team right back to the playoffs. Wait, please do, because it's happening. 6 27-43-12
14 Flyers And here we go again. Left for dead over and over, they refuse to sit down against superior teams. (Time to play spoiler!) 1 38-33-11
15 Blues While we're talking revivals, who said St. Louis was done? Vladimir Tarasenko's injury might hurt, though. 5 43-33-6
16 Stars Now is not the time to go 2-4-4 and lose Ben Bishop to injury. Not the time at all. 6 52-21-9
17 Panthers Their last big road trip is a perfect test of this group's fight --- and next year's hopefuls. 2 52-24-6
18 Kings Their goal differential still looks pretty, and they're winning more, but look who they're beating. Too little, too late? 2 44-27-11
19 Devils At least we've seen what Taylor Hall can do when he actually has help. 2 38-39-5
20 Flames Remember Jaromir Jagr? That was fun. 2 38-39-5
21 Rangers Vigneault Watch is in full effect. 3 55-23-4
22 Hurricanes Locally, even their late-season wins are apparently worth little to bipartisan crowds. 1 52-23-7
23 Blackhawks Has it even sunk in yet that the Blackhawks -- the Blackhawks, people -- are this far down the list? 1 23-53-6
24 Oilers Thanks for at least finding your way back into respectable stat columns, Connor McDavid. Next year, bring the team with you. 1 49-27-6
25 Islanders OK, so who thinks John Tavares wants to come back for another round of this in 2018-19? -- 39-27-16
26 Senators The home stretch will be a good time to see if the Sens want to sell anyone else besides Erik Karlsson. 4 37-41-4
27 Canadiens The talk of tanking the rest of the season is already in full swing. -- 30-36-16
28 Canucks They're trying their best to stay ranked even worse than the Red Wings, but ... -- 50-23-9
29 Red Wings No one has been losing like them. Not even the Wings themselves have crumbled as many consecutive times since the 1980s. 3 41-32-9
30 Coyotes Management at least has a promising close to the year to take into the offseason. 1 36-41-5
31 Sabres No one's saying they should've been the Jets, but the rebuild should've been paying *some* dividends by now. -- 39-37-6