Mike Harrington's NHL power rankings: It's back to reality for Olympians
Check out Buffalo News sports reporter Mike Harrington's latest NHL power rankings.
(Through Friday's games. Last week’s rankings in parentheses.)
1. Tampa Bay Lightning. Vasilevskiy entered Saturday 14-2-3 in career vs. Sabres. (1)
2. Colorado Avalanche. MacKinnon burned in Olympic OT, commits grievous turnover for ENG vs. Wild. (2)
3. Carolina Hurricanes. Scored thrice in first seven minutes against Lightning. (3)
4. Minnesota Wild. Quinn isn't the other Hughes. He's a superstar on his own. (4)
The United States' Jack Eichel celebrates after the U.S. defeated Canada in the gold medal game at the Winter Olympics in Milan, Italy.
Eichel and the Vegas Golden Knights will visit Buffalo on Tuesday. Petr David Josek, Associated Press
5. Dallas Stars. Rantanen out multiple weeks from Olympic injury. (5)
6. Buffalo Sabres. Have gotten amazingly comfortable in tight spots on the road. (9)
7. Detroit Red Wings. Larkin gets OT winner in Ottawa. (6)
8. Montreal Canadiens. Great Olympics for Suzuki, whose career profile has taken huge leap. (7)
9. Pittsburgh Penguins. Crosby out four weeks after being "close" for gold medal game? Not buying it. (8)
10. Boston Bruins. At 6-1-3 in last 10, might have to finally believe. (10)
11. New York Islanders. Celebrini's play showed Team Canada should have selected Schaefer, too. (11)
12. Vegas Golden Knights. What will reaction be to Eichel on Tuesday if he joins Thompson in Olympic ceremony? (12)
13. Washington Capitals. Might rue that 1-5 shootout record. (14)
14. Anaheim Ducks. Three points behind Vegas in Pacific. (18)
15. Utah Mammoth. Just like former team, Peterka looks headed to playoffs, as well. (16)
16. Columbus Blue Jackets. Still six points out, despite recent hot streak. (13)
17. Edmonton Oilers. McDavid notches 9th 100-point season, behind only Gretzky's 15 and Lemieux's 10. (15)
18. Ottawa Senators. Brady Tkachuk had to do a lot of backtracking in wake of Olympic debacle. (20)
19. Philadelphia Flyers. Briere's boys battle hard. Just not enough talent yet. (21)
20. Seattle Kraken. Can Botterill add at deadline to stay in wild card slot? (17)
21. Florida Panthers. Champs reeked of desperation with goalie interference whining vs. Sabres. (23)
22. Toronto Maple Leafs. Lost in Tampa and Florida out of break. They're finished. (19)
23. Los Angeles Kings. Lost 8-1 to Oilers in Panarin's home debut. Woof. (22)
24. San Jose Sharks. Celebrini's Olympics were best ever for an NHL teenager. (24)
25. Nashville Predators. You wonder if Stamkos ends up back in Tampa. (25)
26. New Jersey Devils. Great idea by Hughes to include Thompson in Olympic tribute. (26)
27. Chicago Blackhawks. Murphy would look good on right side of Sabres' defense. (27)
28. Winnipeg Jets. Hellebuyck returns to post-Olympic reality: Burned for five goals in OT loss to Ducks. (28)
29. Calgary Flames. Kadri enters his final few days on the roster. (29)
30. St. Louis Blues. Massive fire sale potential at deadline. (30)
31. New York Rangers. Gold medal doesn't justify Miller's spot on Team USA roster. (31)
32. Vancouver Canucks. Old friend Myers held out of lineup pending trade decision. (32)