NHL Power Rankings: Maple Leafs flounder as they face possibility of lost season

Lightning
No one has been hotter than Nikita Kucherov over the last month. Since Dec. 28, Kucherov leads the NHL with 22 assists and 33 points. The 32-year-old has shown no signs of slowing down as he remains among the NHL’s elite. — 33-14-4
2

Avalanche
The Avalanche’s ineptitude on the power play remains a mystery, and it’s been a real issue in January. This month, Colorado scored just six power play goals while allowing four shorthanded goals. Given the talent on this team, that’s unfathomable. — 35-6-9
3

Hurricanes
As is usually the case, the Hurricanes get the job done via scoring by committee. Nine different players have at least 10 goals, and that type of depth is invaluable. But the question remains, who will the Canes turn to when they need a big goal in the playoffs? 1 32-15-5
4

Red Wings
Veteran winger James van Riemsdyk has really come alive. In his last 10 games, van Riemsdyk registered four goals and eight assists. The 36-year-old has been an unexpected source of depth scoring for this red-hot Red Wings team. 1 32-17-5
5

Sabres
Is Owen Power starting to turn a corner? With a 53.0% expected goals share at five-on-five, it certainly seems that way. Riding shotgun with Rasmus Dahlin certainly helps, but this seems like real progress from the No. 1 overall pick in 2021. 4 30-17-5
6

Penguins
Stuart Skinner has been … good … since joining the Penguins? In his last eight starts, Skinner allowed two or fewer goals six times. In the other two games, he allowed just three. He owns a 7-1-0 record over that span. 7 26-14-11
7

Golden Knights
The Golden Knights already have three 20-goal scorers, which is tied with the Oilers and the Avalanche for the most in the NHL. Jack Eichel, sitting on 19 goals, should give Vegas sole possession of the top spot any day now. This offense has a great combination of star power and depth. 2 25-14-13
8

Bruins
Charlie McAvoy didn’t light up the scoresheet to start the season, but he has been on fire lately. Since New Year’s Eve, McAvoy has three goals and 12 assists in 13 games. Those 15 points account for nearly half of his total production (34 points). — 31-20-3
9

Canadiens
Team USA may have passed over Lane Hutson, but he’s doing his best to make them look foolish (so far). Hutson has 53 points from the blue line, and the Canadiens own a plus-12 goal differential with him on the ice at five-on-five. 3 29-17-7
10

Oilers
With Evan Bouchard’s hat trick against the Capitals (Saturday) and Mattias Ekholm’s hat trick against the Ducks (Monday), the Oilers became the first team in NHL history to have a defenseman record a hat trick in consecutive games. — 27-19-8
11

Wild
The Wild reportedly dangled goalie Jesper Wallstedt in trade talks, and it makes some sense for them to ship out one of their goalies if they get a center in return. Wallstedt and Filip Gustavsson still have a lot of hockey ahead of them, and each one probably wants his shot to be a full-time starter. 4 30-14-10
12

Mammoth
Good news for American hockey fans: Clayton Keller is heating up in time for the Olympics. He has three goals and 11 assists in his last nine games, which has propelled the Mammoth into the West’s top wild card spot. 3 28-21-4
13

Islanders
The Islanders just shipped a third-round pick to their cross-town rivals in exchange for Carson Soucy, who they hope will solidify their blue line. In doing so, they’re banking on a revival from Soucy, who has taken a step back over the last two seasons. 2 28-19-5
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Stars
In the first year of Glen Gulutzan’s second stint, the Stars’ offense has gone in reverse. Dallas ranks 25th in xGF/60 at five-on-five. Last season, the team ranked fifth in that same category. That’s showing up in the results too as the Stars rank 16th in five-on-five scoring after sitting at sixth in 2024-25. — 30-14-9
15

Panthers
With Seth Jones out of the lineup long-term, more responsibility will fall on the shoulders of Aaron Ekblad, who has just been treading water at five-on-five. He owns a 49.5% expected goals share and a minus-1 goal differential in those situations. 2 28-21-3
16

Ducks
Beckett Sennecke scored a hat trick on Sunday, and he added two assists on Monday. The Ducks rookie is now up to 18 goals and 25 assists on the season, and he’s on track to be a future star for the franchise — in addition to being a 2026 Calder Trophy finalist. 3 28-22-3
17

Sharks
Undrafted prospect Collin Graf looks like a diamond in the rough for the Sharks. The 23-year-old has 14 goals and 29 points this season, and he could be a factor in the middle-six for years to come. This prospect pool was deep enough without San Jose hitting on UDFA dart throws. 1 27-21-3
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Maple Leafs
Toronto lost seven of its last eight. Chris Tanev is hurt. William Nylander is shooting the bird to broadcast cameras. Coach Craig Berube suffered a gnarly injury in a gym accident. Their pets’ heads are falling off! 6 24-20-9
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Blue Jackets
Jet Greaves has been tremendous, posting 11.5 goals saved above average and a .850 high-danger save percentage. He’s a big reason Columbus is still in the playoff race, and he deserved stronger consideration for Team Canada. 4 24-20-7
20

Devils
Jack Hughes just ended a 15-game goal drought, and the Devils simply need more of that from him if they’re going to get their season on track. Hughes scored 43 goals in 2022-23, so he’s capable of lighting the lamp rather frequently. He just needs to be a bit more selfish on offense. 1 27-24-2
21

Kings
Somehow, 40-year-old Corey Perry is tied for fourth in goals on this team. Somehow, this team is still clinging to the final playoff spot in the West. GM Ken Holland has to do something to bolster the Kings’ forward group ahead of the trade deadline. 4 22-16-13
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Senators
I’m pretty sure the Senators are a good team. Their underlying metrics are strong, and they’ve got plenty of young talent. They just haven’t gotten saves this year, and that combined with a few crushing losses, has them 10 points outside the playoffs. 4 24-21-7
23

Kraken
Jordan Eberle could fetch a nice little return for the Kraken ahead of the trade deadline, if the team is prudent enough to take the approach of a true seller. This roster needs a lot of work, and dealing a top-six winger like Eberle could get the renovations started. 3 24-19-9
24

Capitals
Washington has now lost six of its last seven games, and the team is 4-8-2 in January. The Capitals are broken, and there’s not a surefire way to fix this team in the middle of the season. 2 25-22-7
25

Predators
A change of scenery may be best for the Predators and Jonathan Marchessault at this point. Marchessault owns a minus-14 goal differential at five-on-five, and that’s accompanied by just 12 points in 33 games. It just hasn’t worked out in Nashville for the former Conn Smythe Trophy winner. 1 24-23-5
26

Flyers
Noah Cates got off to a strong start to the season, but he hasn’t scored in 13 games while tallying just four assists in that same span. While Cates has been stuck in a rut, Philadelphia has plummeted in the standings. 2 24-18-9
27

Blackhawks
Since his return on Jan. 9, Connor Bedard is working to find his scoring groove. Bedard has one goal in nine games, and the Blackhawks have struggled to put crooked numbers on the scoreboard. I’m gonna go out on a limb and say that isn’t a coincidence. 1 21-23-9
28

Jets
Connor Hellebuyck has been borderline human this season with 4.80 goals saved above average and a .902 save percentage. When Hellebuyck isn’t putting on his cape for the Jets, they look a lot less intimidating. 1 21-24-7
29

Flames
If you’d told me before the season that Devin Cooley outplays Dustin Wolf by a large margin, I would’ve guessed the Flames would be … well … right where they are. 2 21-25-6
30

Blues
The Blues probably need to trade Jordan Kyrou, but finding a team that’s willing to take on his contract or pay more for salary retention might be more difficult than originally expected. — 19-25-9
31

Rangers
Since Igor Shesterkin went down with injury, the Rangers have gotten some of the worst goaltending in the NHL. Jonathan Quick and Spencer Martin have combined to allow 14.7 goals above average, making an already bad team even worse. — 22-25-6
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