Power Rankings: Champions clearly make Classic statement

Updated Jan. 5

Amid all the Winter Classic's well deserved attention last week, the Detroit Red Wings managed to make a statement that was hard to miss -- "Don't forget about us!"

Not that anyone really has, but much of the focus in the first half of the season has been legitimately trained on the San Jose Sharks, Boston Bruins and to a slightly lesser extent, the Chicago Blackhawks. Meanwhile Detroit's reigning Stanley Cup champs have been quietly lurking in the shadows, exerting only as much energy as necessary, something coach Mike Babcock suggested before the Winter Classic was necessary for a veteran team dealing with a long season he compared to Groundhog Day.

"What I mean is it wears you out and that's a great thing because the mentally tough survive," Babcock said. "I know when you've been through what we've been through, you're not as pumped every night as you'd like to be. Something like this gets you excited."

That should serve as a warning after Detroit shifted into a higher gear last week, overwhelming the Sharks and then effectively ending Chicago's division title dreams and its nine-game winning streak with convincing back-to-back victories.

The Red Wings are looking to repeat as Stanley Cup champions this season, a feat that hasn't been accomplished since they did it a decade ago. But the late-'90s were a much different era, when the Red Wings were free to spend -- and they did -- unencumbered by the salary cap that now forces noticeable roster turnover from one season to the next.

Detroit has been fortunate when it comes to its lineup and payroll, in large part because it is always a Stanley Cup threat and top players -- as Marian Hossa last summer -- take a little less to be part of it. Last week they showed why.

This week's rankings:

Power Rankings
Current		Team	Previous
	1	Sharks · Trends	1
	Thornton, Heatley and Marleau make a pretty good line, don't they? All are among the top five scorers.
	2	Blackhawks · Trends	5
	A Thanksgiving treat is coming for the Blackhawks, who are about to get Marian Hossa in the lineup for the first time this season.
	3	Devils · Trends	2
	Suddenly the road isn't as friendly to the depleted Devils, who have added Dainius Zubrus to the long injured list.
	4	Flyers · Trends	4
	Philly's power play is struggling and the penalty killers have been burned five times in the past three games, twice in a 3-1 loss at Phoenix.
	5	Flames · Trends	6
	Jarome Iginla keeps lighting it up for the Flames, with nine goals in his past 11 games.
	6	Capitals · Trends	7
	Mike Green has been on fire lately and has taken over the scoring lead among D-men.
	7	Penguins · Trends	8
	After a blazing start, goalie Marc-Andre Fleury has cooled off in November. He's 3-5 and has been pulled twice.
	8	Sabres · Trends	3
	Good starts weren't enough to overcome less than impressive play at even strength for the Sabres and resulted in an 0-2-1 mark last week.
	9	Predators · Trends	15
	Even if Nashville still isn't scoring much, the power play has been timely lately. And the Preds have nine wins in 11 games, including five in a row.
	10	Senators · Trends	23
	The Sens offense showed some life with 14 goals in wins over Buffalo, Pittsburgh and Toronto last week.
	11	Bruins · Trends	20
	The B's got a boost from Milan Lucic's return and have another one coming with Marc Savard set to go.
	12	Panthers · Trends	22
	Panthers seem to like playing in front of crowds because they swept their trip to Buffalo, Detroit and MSG. Tomas Vokoun has been outstanding in goal, and Florida has won eight of 11.
	13	Red Wings · Trends	9
	Detroit's offense ranks seventh, but the numbers are deceiving because 19 goals came in three games. The Wings have scored two or fewer nine times.
	14	Kings · Trends	10
	Call this gut-check time for the young Kings and particularly Anze Kopitar, with veteran Ryan Smyth on the shelf for a month.
	15	Blue Jackets · Trends	14
	Derick Brassard has been a disappointment this season, with only three goals a minus-8 rating through 20 games.
	16	Canucks · Trends	12
	Slowly but surely getting the key pieces back, with Luongo a couple of weeks ago and now Daniel Sedin.
	17	Coyotes · Trends	18
	Still winning games on the ice, but losing at the box office. Bankruptcy court filings show the 'Yotes could be $50 million in the red from this season.
	18	Avalanche · Trends	13
	Reality may be setting in for the slumping Avs, who have blown two-goal leads to lose the last two games and are 1-4-1 in the last six.
	19	Lightning · Trends	16
	Doing things the hard way. Tampa Bay has been outshot in 10 of the past 11 games, yet the Bolts have managed to get 14 points by going 5-2-4.
	20	Stars · Trends	21
	Brad Richards and linemates James Neal and Loui Eriksson have accounted for nearly half of the Stars' goal-scoring so far.
	21	Thrashers · Trends	11
	Atlanta is struggling at home but tough when it gets a lead. The Thrashers are 7-0 when scoring first and 6-0 when ahead after the first period.
	22	Rangers · Trends	17
	Marian Gaborik and Vinnie Prospal are carrying the offense, but it isn't enough for the free-falling Rangers.
	23	Islanders · Trends	19
	Trent Hunter has been on a roll since returning from the IR with a point in all six of his games.
	24	Blues · Trends	27
	After a quick start, Paul Kariya has picked up only one assist in his past 12 games.
	25	Canadiens · Trends	24
	Carey Price has been a lot better of late, allowing no more than two goals in each of his last five starts.
	26	Oilers · Trends	25
	Coach Pat Quinn, whose Oilers have lost five of six and eight of 10: "There is some intelligence needed in this game, some IQ. We have some skill, but skill hasn't done squat for us yet."
	27	Ducks · Trends	26
	Corey Perry is riding a 14-game point streak, but the Ducks need better work from both of their goalies.
	28	Wild · Trends	28
	Andrew Brunette has stopped scoring with only one goal in 11 games after getting seven in his first 11.
	29	Hurricanes · Trends	30
	Unlike the rest of the 'Canes, Tuomo Ruutu has been on fire lately with four goals and five assists in the last six games.
	30	Maple Leafs · Trends	29
	At least now Vesa Toskala doesn't have to worry about going winless this season.