Never miss a moment! Get the CBS Sports App for the fastest scores, breaking news alerts and inside access to your favorite sports and teams.
The tides are a changing around the NHL, where the defending champion Pittsburgh Penguins are coming off yet another lopsided embarrassment and the Vegas Golden Knights continue to make expansion history.
While the Pens are stuck in the middle of the pack thanks to their up-down, up-down start, the Golden Knights are rising, and so, too, are the Tampa Bay Lightning, whose full-fledged attack -- i.e. Steven Stamkos and Nikita Kucherov -- has caught the league by storm. Even with Jeff Carter down for the count, the Los Angeles Kings are also on the upswing, and that's not exactly what any of us expected before the season.
No ad available
The Montreal Canadiens, meanwhile, are down in the dumps -- the lowest of dumps -- after Carey Price's stick-on-net meltdown, and their upcoming schedule doesn't look a whole lot better with the scrappy Florida Panthers and surging Kings on deck. In an early-season stretch that's seen some competence from the Colorado Avalanche, only the lost Arizona Coyotes look much worse than the Habs.
Biggest Movers
8
7
| Rk | Teams | Chg | Rcrd |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 | 45-29-8 | |
Oh, they are for real. Just look at who their last six wins have come against: The Capitals, Penguins, Blues, Red Wings, Blue Jackets and Penguins again in a 7-1 rout. Nikita Kucherov continues to stoke this fire.
| |||
| 2 | -- | 23-53-6 | |
They still don't have Connor Murphy figured out, but otherwise, Chicago is looking good on all fronts. A tall task awaits in Vegas, though. (No sarcasm whatsoever).
| |||
| 3 | 2 | 46-26-10 | |
Here's what you need to know: Their 37 goals are still tops in the NHL.
| |||
| 4 | 3 | 44-27-11 | |
Jeff Carter's out, but L.A. is on its best opening stretch in franchise history. Confession: Didn't see this coming. At all.
| |||
| 5 | 1 | 38-39-5 | |
Losing 3-0 to the Sharks was a stinker, but John Hynes' high-flying youngsters are still ahead of schedule, especially now that Nico Hischier is also in on the scoring.
| |||
| 6 | 8 | 45-29-8 | |
No matter how their game with the Blues ended, they were going to enter the new week as a top-10 team. Expansion team or not, they've withstood Marc-Andre Fleury's absence with historic results.
| |||
| 7 | 2 | 43-33-6 | |
A good stat: St. Louis is leading the league in blocked shots.
| |||
| 8 | -- | 38-33-11 | |
The Predators have their number early in the year, but if you aren't paying attention to what Wayne Simmonds is doing, what are YOU doing?
| |||
| 9 | 5 | 37-41-4 | |
If you call the overtime losses, you know, losses, Ottawa is just 4-4. But somehow, the Sens aren't just winning because of defense. Putting up six against an admittedly porous Toronto blue line is admirable.
| |||
| 10 | 7 | 27-43-12 | |
Time for Sergei Bobrovsky to catch his breath. Columbus has faced some very different brands of quality hockey in recent days.
| |||
| 11 | 6 | 47-30-5 | |
Don't be deceived by their record. Yes, they need to clean things up, but Pekka Rinne isn't far removed from a big reminder that he's still got "it," and Filip Forsberg is playing lights out. Things will get better.
| |||
| 12 | 8 | 52-21-9 | |
Big jump for them, and that's what four straight wins will do for you. Back-to-back wins came against the lowly Coyotes, but the Stars are getting some clutch production from their Tylers.
| |||
| 13 | 1 | 38-32-12 | |
In games against the Rangers, Predators, Capitals and Panthers, the Pens are 5-0, outscoring their opponents 19-12. Against the Blackhawks and Lightning, they are 0-3 and have been outscored 22-6.
| |||
| 14 | 4 | 50-25-7 | |
Maybe they would've beaten the Blues if not for some poor officiating, but the Avs were never going to maintain their rigorous opening pace.
| |||
| 15 | 4 | 41-32-9 | |
They were bound to slip with their rough schedule in recent days. At least Andreas Athanasiou is in the fold.
| |||
| 16 | 3 | 40-31-11 | |
They're as up and down as their record suggests. One night, Alex Ovechkin is slamming home a game winner. The next, Washington is getting thumped by the Panthers.
| |||
| 17 | 5 | 39-27-16 | |
Don't look now, but the Islanders are sneakily the best NHL team in New York, and Josh Bailey might have scored the goal of the season.
| |||
| 18 | 2 | 52-24-6 | |
Patrik Laine is starting to get in the groove, as is Blake Wheeler. In the net, though, the Steve Mason experiment virtually ended before it ever started, huh?
| |||
| 19 | 2 | 52-23-7 | |
They certainly don't deserve a permanent spot here, but with Jeff Skinner clicking and a tight "W' over Calgary, they're on the rise.
| |||
| 20 | 5 | 38-39-5 | |
Cut down on the turnovers, and maybe Calgary's loss to Minnesota is a different story. The defense is working, but that's not enough.
| |||
| 21 | 3 | 52-24-6 | |
They've been scratching and clawing for a while, and the grittiness paid off vs. the Caps. This'll be a team to watch down the road.
| |||
| 22 | 3 | 39-34-9 | |
Finally, some life. Three third-period goals against Calgary's "D" should help push this club into another gear.
| |||
| 23 | 3 | 50-23-9 | |
Derek Dorsett, ladies and gentlemen.
| |||
| 24 | 1 | 47-20-15 | |
Blowing a three-goal lead Saturday was pretty indicative of Boston's slow start. At least Charlie McAvoy is a beast.
| |||
| 25 | 1 | 27-50-5 | |
Good for them to take advantage of a flimsy Habs team. Bad news, though, if Cam Fowler is seriously hurt.
| |||
| 26 | 1 | 19-54-9 | |
The biggest plus is they've started to score. Back-to-back three-goal games is what they needed.
| |||
| 27 | 2 | 49-27-6 | |
Is this really going to be a year where Connor McDavid is downright dazzling but the Oilers are downright disastrous?
| |||
| 28 | -- | 55-23-4 | |
Beating the Preds is nice, and this week's schedule should help. In a lot of ways, though, they're still a big mess. A couple of wins over bad teams can't hide their problems forever.
| |||
| 29 | 1 | 39-37-6 | |
Jack Eichel's doing his thing, but so is just about anyone who gets close to the Sabres' net.
| |||
| 30 | 1 | 36-41-5 | |
Luke Schenn helped push the puck into his own goal in Arizona's latest blunder. That's the type of year this is shaping up to be.
| |||
| 31 | 2 | 30-36-16 | |
Carey Price is going to smash a whole lot more than one stick if this keeps up.
| |||