Wild
Minnesota just forked over a hefty price to acquire David Jiricek, a 21-year-old former No. 6 overall pick, from Columbus. For whatever reason, Jiricek failed to carve out a role for himself with the Blue Jackets, but the Wild are hoping he and Brock Faber can form an elite duo on the blue line for years to come. If Jiricek hits, this will be a home run for Wild GM Bill Guerin. 2 17-4-4
2

Devils
Now in his second full season with the Devils, Timo Meier seems to be hitting his stride. Meier had a frustrating 2023-24 campaign, but he has really turned things around. His 19 points in 27 games, a 57-point pace, may not jump off the page, but Meier has been much better than those numbers suggest. His plus-9 goal differential at five-on-five is first on the team, and that’s not fluke. Meier also boasts a 57.5% expected goals share in those situations. 2 17-9-2
3

Maple Leafs
Auston Matthews returned to the ice last week after missing almost a month of action, and the Maple Leafs managed to lead the NHL with a 7-2-0 record in that time. Much of that success was thanks to the goaltending of Joseph Woll and Anthony Stolarz. Those two combined for a .928 save percentage and 7.19 goals saved above average. 4 15-7-2
4

Capitals
Dylan Strome’s career high in points is 67, which he hit last season. With 34 points in 25 games, he’s already over halfway to setting a new career high with roughly three quarters of the season left to play. Strome has evolved into an elite distributor with Washington, and his 26 assists are third in the league. That playmaking ability is even more evident on the power play, where he’s tallied 10 helpers already. 1 17-6-2
5

Stars
Thomas Harley proved himself as a top-four option last season, but he has taken his five-on-five game to yet another level. Harley is tied for first on Dallas with a plus-13 five-on-five goal differential, and the Stars control 65.9% of the expected goals in those situations as well. Harley is dominating his minutes right now, and he might be the most underrated defenseman across the league. 3 16-8-0
6

Hurricanes
Because of injuries to Frederik Andersen and Pyotr Kochetkov, the Hurricanes have turned to Spencer Martin a lot recently, and that has not gone well. Martin ranks 71st out of 72 goaltenders with 7.78 goals allowed above average, and his .762 high-danger save percentage ranks 56th. With Kochetkov getting healthy, Carolina’s goalie situation should improve soon. 5 16-8-1
7

Golden Knights
Noah Hanifin has been unable to get his footing under him in Vegas. He’s having a pretty miserable time at five-on-five these days, posting a minus-6 goal differential and a 43.6% expected goals share. Perhaps the biggest red flag is that Hanifin hasn’t been saddled with an anchor as a defensive partner. He’s spent a lot of time with Alex Pietrangelo, and that pairing just hasn’t worked at all. 1 16-7-3
8

Canucks
Jake DeBrusk got off to a painfully slow start in a Canucks jersey, but that has changed in a big way lately. DeBrusk has eight goals in his last six games and now leads the team with 11 goals on the season. With JT Miller away from the team due to personal reasons, Vancouver needed someone to step up offensively, and DeBrusk has done just that. 3 13-7-4
9

Jets
For the first time this season, the Jets have looked human over the last week or two. Winnipeg is 1-5-0 in its last six games, and it has scored 10 goals in that stretch. Kyle Connor, Mark Scheifele, Nik Ehlers, Nino Niederreiter and Gabe Vilardi have combined for three goals in this mini slump. That won’t continue, but I do think there are fair questions about the team’s five-on-five offense in general. 7 18-8-0
10

Panthers
Following a four-game losing streak, the Panthers closed out November on the highest of high notes. Florida took it to the Maple Leafs before sweeping a back-to-back against the Hurricanes. In those games, the Panthers outscored their opponents 17-4. If there was any reason at all to worry about the reigning champs, that’s out the window now. — 15-9-2
11

Oilers
Pop quiz: Who is fourth on the Oilers in goals, behind McDavid, Draisaitl and Bouchard? I’ll let you run through roughly 20 guesses before telling you it’s veteran defenseman Brett Kulak. His five goals are one shy of his career high, and while that’s great for him, it’s probably a bad sign for Edmonton’s secondary scoring. 3 13-10-2
12

Lightning
Victor Hedman is making a strong case for a second Norris Trophy. The 33-year-old defenseman is playing exceptional hockey — both on the stat sheet and under the hood. Hedman has 22 points in 23 games, and he has crushed his five-on-five minutes. There have been times in the last couple years where it appeared Hedman was on a downward slope, but he’s eased those concerns. — 12-9-2
13

Kings
The Kings are just two points back of the Pacific Division lead, but there are very serious questions about their offense. A big part of that is the lack of production from Trevor Moore and Quinton Byfield. Those two combined for 51 goals last season. They’re currently on pace to combine for 22. That’s a steep drop-off, and Los Angeles has to find more consistent scoring if it wants to be a legit Cup threat in the West. 3 14-8-3
14

Avalanche
Colorado has performed better than its 14-12-0 record would indicate. The team’s goaltending has been disastrous with a league-worst .856 save percentage, which is 15 points lower than the 31st-ranked team. The Avs swung a trade to acquire veteran backup Scott Wedgewood from the Predators, but I’m not sure that’s going to be a quick fix. Wedgewood posted an .878 save percentage in five games with Nashville. 1 14-12-0
15

Flyers
Are the Flyers going to be the team that defies all logic this year? They’re doing what the Capitals did last year by overcoming terrible five-on-five numbers to squeak into the playoffs. Philadelphia has a minus-14 goal differential at full strength, and it has deserved those results. Does that mean the power play is cooking? Nope. It ranks 26th at 16.0%. If someone can explain this to me, let me know. 5 12-10-3
16

Bruins
It may be a coincidence, but Jeremy Swayman has been much better since the Bruins made a coaching change. In his four starts, Swayman has stopped 91 of 98 shots while posting 2.88 goals saved above average. If you want to know how Boston can climb the standings in a hurry, look no further than a hot streak from Swayman. 3 13-11-3
17

Rangers
The Rangers were rolling in the early portion of this season, and then the floor gave way beneath them out of nowhere. New York is now 1-7-0 in its last eight games and barely clinging to a playoff spot. In this stretch, Mika Zibanejad, Alexis Lafreniere and Chris Krieder have combined for four goals. Adam Fox hasn’t scored all season. Igor Shesterkin and Jonathan Quick have struggled. The vibes couldn’t possibly be worse for the Rangers. 8 13-10-1
18

Sabres
The Sabres have been unable to find consistency for much of the season, and that mirrors the performance of some key players. One of those players, J.J. Peterka, just ended an eight-game goal drought and had just two assists in that span. Buffalo doesn’t have the depth to overcome lengthy slumps from its best forwards, so the team has to help Peterka work through this funk. 1 11-12-2
19

Flames
Calgary is 1-3-1 in its last five games, and the two most recent losses were back-to-back defeats against the Blue Jackets and Penguins. The Flames were outscored 11-4 in those contests, and they lack any kind of go-to guy on offense. That’s not necessarily surprising, given the state of the roster. I guess that just makes it more impressive that the team has managed to hang on this long. 4 13-9-4
20

Blue Jackets
In terms of both expected goals share and actual goals, the Blue Jackets are a fringe top-10 team. That is pretty eye-popping, and the team might actually be solidly in a playoff spot if not for abysmal goaltending from Elvis Merzlikins and Daniil Tarasov. Dean Evason has to be one of the frontrunners for the Jack Adams Award right now. 5 11-10-3
21

Blues
If there is one player who’s trying to make a good first impression on new coach Jim Montgomery, it’s Dylan Holloway. He has four goals and seven points in his last four games, which has helped him warm up after an icy start. St. Louis needs all the help it can get up front, and Holloway is trying to pick up more of the slack. 1 12-12-2
22

Penguins
Pittsburgh strung together three straight wins last week. That was badly needed, but the team also needed Evgeni Malkin to get cooking again. Malkin went 10 games without scoring before finding the back of the net against the Panthers on Tuesday, and he had just four assists in that stretch. The Pens can still turn this thing around, but Malkin will have to be one of the ones driving the bus. 6 11-12-4
23

Kraken
The Kraken are starting to slip, and they need more from Chandler Stephenson, one of their big free agent signings in the offseason. He got $42 million last summer, and his first season in a Seattle jersey has been a struggle. Stephenson just snapped a 17-game goal drought, and his 40.0% five-on-five expected goals share is the worst on the team. Stephenson has to find himself soon or the Kraken will slip out of the playoff picture. 5 12-13-1
24

Hockey Club
You wouldn’t know it from looking at the standings, but Utah ranks eighth in five-on-five expected goals share (53.0%) and ninth in actual goals share (54.4%). All of that is encouraging, but special teams are part of what’s dragging the team down. Utah’s power play ranks 24th (16.9%), and the penalty kill ranks 23rd (76.6%). That undoes all the good work Utah does at full strength. 3 10-11-4
25

Islanders
The Isles are once again languishing away on the wrong side of the Eastern Conference playoff bubble, but at least Ilya Sorokin is keeping his team in the mix. He’s having another strong year with 6.48 goals saved above average (9th) and a .915 save percentage (17th). If New York can ever help out Sorokin with some more run support, it should be able to reach the postseason. 4 9-10-7
26

Ducks
Troy Terry had five goals in Anaheim’s first nine games of the season. He’s had one goal in the last 14. That’s bad, but so is the fact that Terry has experienced that kind of drought, and he’s still tied for the team lead in goals. The Ducks have too much young talent to be this ineffective offensively, and it makes you wonder whether changes could be on the way in Anaheim if things don’t improve. — 10-10-3
27

Senators
Ottawa’s goaltenders have allowed a combined to allow 8.23 goals above average. That is probably not what the Senators had in mind when they acquired Linus Ulmark from the Bruins in the offseason. It’s not even like Ottawa has been that leaky on defense. The team is tied for fifth in the NHL with 2.27 xGA/60 at five-on-five. The Senators simply aren’t getting saves right now. 4 10-12-2
28

Red Wings
No Red Wings defenseman gets more ice-time at five-on-five than Ben Chiarot. To be frank, I’m not sure why that hasn’t changed. Detroit has been getting hammered with Chiarot in the game, to the tune of a 38.5% expected goals share and minus-12 goal differential. At this point, the Wings would probably just be better served playing the young guns on the blue line. 4 10-11-4
29

Sharks
Macklin Celebrini is living up to the hype and then some. The No. 1 overall pick has wasted no time getting adjusted to NHL hockey. With an assist in San Jose’s overtime win over the Capitals on Tuesday night, Celebrini now has eight points in his last five games. It’s not surprising that Celebrini’s underlying numbers need some work, but his playmaking ability cannot be denied. 3 10-13-5
30

Canadiens
After dealing with a long-term injury to begin the season, Patrik Laine made his Canadiens debut on Tuesday night, and he found the back of the net in front of the home crowd. Laine has been through a lot in his career, and he’s an easy player to root for. On top of that, he should make this Montreal offense a little more fun to watch. — 9-13-3
31

Predators
I bring up Nashville’s five-on-five play often, but it just keeps getting worse and worse. The Predators have 29 goals with both teams at full strength, and that’s dead last by a full seven goals. Their minus-23 goal differential is also the worst mark in the league, behind the Penguins and Canadiens. Calling this offense anemic would be an understatement. — 7-12-6
32

Blackhawks
Outside of Connor Bedard, the Blackhawks have a real lack of exciting young talent at the NHL level. Lukas Reichel continues to struggle. Nolan Allen has gotten crushed at five-on-five. Wyatt Kaiser has been fine relative to his fellow defensemen. Chicago has a deep prospect pool, and it will only get deeper after the 2025 draft, but this rebuild has more work to do than I thought coming into the season. 3 8-15-2