With another exciting Winter Classic taking place on New Year’s Day, the NHL world is ready to look towards the next big event, the 2024 All-Star Game taking place in Toronto. Round 1 of the drama kicked off this week, as the first 32 All-Stars were announced, which is an exciting and controversial time.
To put it simply, in a league where every team gets one nominee in this first group, there will always be significant snubs that fill fans with bewilderment. In a perfect world, the Colorado Avalanche would send Nathan MacKinnon, who was rightfully nominated, but also Cale Makar (second overall in defenseman scoring) and maybe even Mikko Rantanen (tied for eighth in overall scoring). However, due to the format, only MacKinnon could be nominated and the others would have to be voted in later if at all.
While this might not be an ideal scenario, it is what it is and it’s not changing anytime soon. The NHL believes that it needs representation from every franchise in order for the All-Star game to matter, and there’s merit to this belief, even if it may water down an already under performing product outside of the hosting city. If you’re in Toronto, however, try to go to at least one day of the event, as an All-Star Game is one of the most fun live events the sport has to offer.
Due to the All-Star Game roster announcement and the start of a new year, I’m going to try and put a more positive spin on things in the Power Rankings this week. While I expect news to start picking up quickly as we approach the 2024 Trade Deadline, January is a bit of a lull in the schedule news-wise, as teams play games while jostling for postseason positions that can change after every night.
So, let’s just have some fun and discuss the best players the NHL has to offer in Week 14 of THW’s Power Rankings!
32-22: All-Stars From Every Team
32. San Jose Sharks (Previously 32nd)
31. Chicago Blackhawks (Previously 31st)
30. Anaheim Ducks (Previously 30th)
29. Ottawa Senators (Previously 29th)
28. Columbus Blue Jackets (Previously 28th)
27. Montreal Canadiens (Previously 27th)
26. Calgary Flames (Previously 23rd)
25. Buffalo Sabres (Previously 25th)
24. Detroit Red Wings (Previously 26th)
23. St. Louis Blues (Previously 24th)
22. Pittsburgh Penguins (Previously 22nd)
When I normally discuss the bottom of the Rankings, I’m focusing on why they are in this position, which leads to a lot of negative talk. However, even the worst-performing NHL teams feature some of the top talent in the hockey world, as we saw this week both on and off the ice.
First off, Lukas Dostal had a career game against the Toronto Maple Leafs last week. The rookie goaltender set a Ducks record by posting 55 saves in a 2-1 loss, which is just another reminder that Anaheim is a struggling team now, but their young core is going to be a problem in the coming years.
Next, Connor Bedard became the youngest player ever nominated for the All-Star game this week after posting 15 goals and 33 points in 38 games played. Given the amount of hype he entered the league with, the budding superstar has managed to live up to expectations so far on a frankly bad Blackhawks team. Unfortunately, a nasty long-term injury could derail this coming-out party, so the hockey world may need to wait a little longer to see more of this phenomenon.
On the ice, the Red Wings, Penguins, Blues, and Sabres all had solid weeks that could be the next steps in a rebound. I still think any of these teams could pull themselves into the postseason discussion despite their poor start to the season, but their margin of error is low. If they can stay healthy, however, I might be moving them all out of this section of the Rankings by next week.
21-10: All Hail the Pacific Division
21. Tampa Bay Lightning (Previously 20th)
20. Washington Capitals (Previously 19th)
19. Arizona Coyotes (Previously 10th)
18. Minnesota Wild (Previously 18th)
17. New Jersey Devils (Previously 17th)
16. New York Islanders (Previously 16th)
15. Seattle Kraken (Previously 21st)
14. Philadelphia Flyers (Previously 14th)
13. Nashville Predators (Previously 13th)
12. Carolina Hurricanes (Previously 15th)
11. Edmonton Oilers (Previously 12th)
10. Toronto Maple Leafs (Previously 11th)
The first week of 2024 will go down in the Kraken’s history as one of their best. The 2024 Winter Classic went perfectly for the home team, as Joey Daccord shut out the Vegas Golden Knights in a dominant 3-0 victory so every Seattle fan in attendance left T-Mobile Park with a massive smile on their face. After a bad start to the season, Seattle are 8-0-2 in their last ten and are in a fight with the Oilers and Blues for the final wild-card spot.
Another team rebounding in 2024 are the Maple Leafs, who ended 2023 at a low point but turned things around with three-straight wins across California to start the new year, including a dominant back-to-back performance by Martin Jones where he only gave up one goal in two games. While Toronto still has issues right now, they are a scary team when they are playing up to their full potential.
Towards the bottom, I’m starting to think that it’s time to separate the Lightning, Capitals, and Wild from this section along with the Penguins, Blues, Red Wings, and maybe Sabres from the bottom of the Rankings. It feels like these teams are starting to fall behind their contemporaries, which is causing the playoff picture to feel far away, even if they only have to make up a few points in the standings. Depending on how the next week goes, I might make that change in Week 15.
9-1: Winnipeg Claims First Place
9. Los Angeles Kings (Previously 8th)
8. Dallas Stars (Previously 6th)
7. Colorado Avalanche (Previously 7th)
6. Vegas Golden Knights (Previously 5th)
5. Boston Bruins (Previously 9th)
4. New York Rangers (Previously 1st)
3. Vancouver Canucks (Previously 2nd)
2. Florida Panthers (Previously 4th)
1. Winnipeg Jets (Previously 3rd)
I love when something unexpected happens during the NHL’s regular season, and I can say I did not expect the Jets to be the #1 team at any point in the 2023-24 Rankings. Yet here we are, as Winnipeg have overtaken the top spot in the league and on this list with six-straight wins and an 8-0-2 record in their last ten. While they didn’t beat the best teams in the NHL to get here, they aren’t losing games against weak foes either, which is propelling them forward throughout a soft spot in their schedule.
It’s also worth noting that, despite there being so many hot teams right now, you can argue that the Panthers are playing the best out of any of them. After having a stretch of bad play in December, players like Carter Verhaeghe and 2024 All-Star nominee Sam Reinhart have been scoring at will while leading their team back towards the top of the Atlantic Division.
Elsewhere in this section, the Kings, Stars, and Golden Knights are all on a bit of a skid by their standards, but I’m not super concerned about any of these teams at this moment. It’s easy for January to be a down month for even the best teams, and as long as they keep winning at least half their games, they will easily lock down their spot in the playoffs while preparing to buy at the deadline. So, don’t panic yet if you’re a fan of any of these teams, even if it feels like things aren’t going your way right now.
2024 Will Be an Exciting Year for the NHL
Well, with the first week of 2024 in the books, I can say with some confidence that it’s going to be an exciting year for the NHL. A months worth of news happened this week, even if it wasn’t a trade or firing. Things like the All-Star Game and Winter Classic can’t be looked, however, as they provide so much entertainment to fans across the world.
Related: The WHA – A Look Back at the Upstart Hockey League
There’s a lot of great hockey (and in some cases very bad hockey) being played right now, so I encourage anyone who made it his far to go out a try watching a team you normally wouldn’t this week. Make a note of their All-Star representative, and see them showcase their full skills. You’ll be surprised at how good they are at this hockey thing, even if their team isn’t in the postseason hunt.
