The Tampa Bay Lightning have a shot to make NHL history by going for a record regular-season win total in advance of their anticipated Stanley Cup Playoff run, but they might not be the hottest team in hockey down the stretch.
For the second week in a row, that title could easily belong to the Vegas Golden Knights, who have risen into the top five of this week's NHL Power Rankings thanks to a 7-2-1 stretch that has them looking like the Western Conference favorite. To be frank, Vegas isn't the only non-Lightning team that warrants a look ahead of the playoffs, either.
While Tampa has long been the obvious Cup favorite entering the postseason, we've also got our eyes on the Pittsburgh Penguins, who have a bit of Stanley Cup Final experience themselves. Consistency hasn't exactly been the name of their game this year, but with three straight wins under their belt and an improving offense, the Pens can't be written off as a late contender. Neither can the defending champion Washington Capitals, who are also on the rise in this week's pecking order.
Perhaps the most notable victim of this week's changes: The Carolina Hurricanes. Dropping five spots and out of the top 10, it's not as if Carolina has lost its way as a balanced front-runner, winning six of its last 10 and coming off a tight win over the Montreal Canadiens. But with the St. Louis Blues still rolling behind Jordan Binnington and other powerhouse teams gaining ground, there isn't as much room for the Canes up top, especially considering their track record against the best of the best.
With the playoffs right around the corner, catch the entire NHL breakdown right here:
Rk | Teams | Chg | Rcrd | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  | At this point, we should probably all expect that they'll break the record for most wins in a season. | -- | 45-29-8 |
| 2 |  | Mike Smith is going to be scrutinized more than anyone on this team as the playoffs get going. | 1 | 38-39-5 |
| 3 |  | Don't be fooled by the loss to Tampa. They were right there with them. And that's all you can ask for right now. | 1 | 47-20-15 |
| 4 |  | We're really starting to buy in, even with the losses to Tampa. (Welcome to the club.) They've got that "it" factor. | 1 | 40-31-11 |
| 5 |  | Insert Mark Stone trade praise here. If you're not back on their bandwagon, what are you waiting for? | 2 | 45-29-8 |
| 6 |  | Until the day they're not named the Penguins (or don't carry their playoff experience), it's going to be hard to write them off. | 3 | 38-32-12 |
| 7 |  | Man, oh, man, are the playoffs going to be fun if they bring their best offense. | 1 | 46-26-10 |
| 8 |  | Erik Karlsson's return should help them later, but they also should be good enough to deal with his absence. | 4 | 19-54-9 |
| 9 |  | You have to think Barry Trotz will get creative come playoff time, but it's also fair to wonder whether they have the talent to last very long. | 1 | 39-27-16 |
| 10 |  | Beating Minnesota 1-0 is no longer that much of a compliment. They're running out of time to build momentum here. | 1 | 47-30-5 |
| 11 |  | Sorry, but we're not believers. In a top 10 absolutely loaded with contenders, they're on the second tier. | 1 | 52-24-6 |
| 12 |  | We might as well just call this the Jordan Binnington Stock Watch. Seriously, though, he's been so vital to their turnaround. | 2 | 43-33-6 |
| 13 |  | They're resilient; we'll give them that. Like the Jets, though, it's just hard to see them standing tall through multiple playoff series. | 5 | 52-23-7 |
| 14 |  | How much of a problem are road playoff games going to be for them? | 1 | 52-21-9 |
| 15 |  | Beating up on Vancouver is nice, but that's not the ceiling they paid for. | -- | 27-43-12 |
| 16 |  | Meh. The flashes were there during the season, but we all knew this wasn't the year for any kind of substantial run. | -- | 30-36-16 |
| 17 |  | Keep riding Philipp Grubauer, we guess! | 2 | 50-25-7 |
| 18 |  | Take this season, learn from it, and build on it. There's nothing to be too ashamed about here. | 1 | 36-41-5 |
| 19 |  | Milk the prospect time over the last couple of games. Because if things fall their way in the offseason, they can be a scary team on the rise. | 1 | 38-33-11 |
| 20 |  | Apparently an "aggressive" offseason is on the way. We've kind of seen that before, except with mid-tier names. Maybe this year's flashes change that. | 1 | 52-24-6 |
| 21 |  | Credit to them for rebounding after an awful start, but it's now been a few years since we could really call them contenders. | 1 | 23-53-6 |
| 22 |  | What a bad spring, overall. Minnesota's getting warmer these days, but the Wild are freezing up. | 2 | 39-34-9 |
| 23 |  | If you get beat by the Senators this late in the game, you don't deserve many more shout-outs. | -- | 49-27-6 |
| 24 |  | We've said it all season, but they might be one of the most promising of these lowly teams as far as 2020 goes. Still lots of up-and-coming talent. | -- | 50-23-9 |
| 25 |  | They've been just OK these last few weeks, which is either good or bad depending on what the fans truly want this offseason. | 2 | 27-50-5 |
| 26 |  | It's all going according to plan, which was to trade all their best pieces at the deadline. | -- | 55-23-4 |
| 27 |  | If you're looking for the coldest team in the NHL, it's probably them. Oh, how the mighty have fallen. | 2 | 39-37-6 |
| 28 |  | Only the Senators have been worse in away games. They've lost 28 of 38 on the road. | 1 | 38-39-5 |
| 29 |  | Try watching their games and deciding whether their lineups belong in the NHL. It's not too hard. | 1 | 41-32-9 |
| 30 |  | A three-game winning streak, including an upset of the Flames, can still only feel so good as a cap to this season. | -- | 44-27-11 |
| 31 |  | Are we in for an all-out war between ownership and the public this offseason? | -- | 37-41-4 |
