Central Division Rankings of Power: Nov 19th Edition
By Austin Manak
Well, it has been a while since I have ranked the power in this division. Three weeks to be exact. The Avalanche’s slow start really took a lot of the fun out of it, but with the Avs no longer sitting in last in the division, it seemed like an opportunity to get back on track. Without further ado, let’s shabalagoo.
The Blues took a couple weeks to get going, and had to endure games without captain David Backes, T.J. Oshie, and Paul Stastny. The trio of Americans are back in business, and the Blues are rolling with 8 wins in their last 10 games. This team is being led, however, by the STL line of Schwartz, Tarasenko, and Lehtera. They have combined for 24 goals this season, and are the driving force behind the Blues’ attack. Vladimir Tarasenko is the golden-boy of the NHL with his <a href=. (12-5-1). Previous: . St. Louis Blues. 1. team. 99
2. team. 151. The Predators are coming off a complete and utter destruction of the Toronto Maple Leafs. A 9-2 victory, leaving one Leafs fan to turn into Gollum. I didn’t know that saber-toothed cats enjoyed eating vegetation, but apparently Leafs are a part of a healthy big-cat’s diet. Enough food chain chatter. The word you are beginning to hear with the Perds, and a word that I am beginning to hate hearing all of the time at that, is “unsustainable.” The Predators are riding a 104.3 PDO at even strength this season, which would shatter the NHL record. You have to figure the Predators will cool somewhat, but at the same time, they are proving they are in serious contention for one of the Central’s playoff tickets. (12-4-2). Previous: . Nashville Predators
98. Oh the Wild. They are the darlings of the NHL possession world, leading the league in even strength Fenwick. Unfortunately for them, this hasn’t led to consistent scoring output. Earlier this month, the Wild lost four straight contests, and only managed to tickle the twine 3 times during that losing streak. Since then, they have won three in a row, and scored 12 goals. Go figure. Getting Zach Parise back from injury during their recent surge, will no doubt, add some spice to their goal scoring output. . (10-7-0). Previous: . Minnesota Wild. 3. team
(10-7-1). Previous: . Chicago Blackhawks. 4. team. 94. Like the Wild, the Blackhawks have stellar possession metrics, that bode well for their long term outlook. However, in the short term, this team really hasn’t been playing to the level that is expected in Chicago. At least not in terms of results. The Blackhawks are a mediocre 5-5 in their last ten games, and don’t have their usual high scoring output this season. Nashville has more goals in equal games this season, for crying out loud. I keep waiting for Chicago to get hot, and sort of distance themselves from the middle class of this division. We’ll see if it happens soon, or if the Hawks simply aren’t as dominant as they have been in years past.
Previous: . Winnipeg Jets. 5. team. 107. Quick, somebody phone up to Winnipeg, and tell these guys they aren’t supposed to be any good! The Jets are currently sitting in third place in the Central Division. I repeat, the Jets are third in the Central. Few expected this team to get off the ground at all this season, much less soar to this elevation. I don’t expect the Jets to struggle to maintain this altitude. Their goaltending is too shady, and they don’t have the scoring depth to be a true playoff threat in this division. But for now, soar Jets, soar!. (10-7-3)
Colorado Avalanche. 6. team. 103. The Avalanche are returning to Pepsi Center for five of their next six games at altitude, after a pair of nice victories on the tail-end of an eastern road trip. Do the Avalanche have issues? Yes. You can find plenty of my takes on those issues on this site. But, they are showing signs of life, as well. The big thing for this team right now is supporting each other in the defensive end, and getting shots on net in the offensive end. If they can do those two things, and get the young guns confident, they can make a run. Also, Semyon Varlamov needs to stay healthy. His nagging groin issues are a definite concern. These next 5 weeks until Christmas will tell us a lot about this team.. (6-8-5). Previous:
119. Thank you Dallas!! Thanks for being a team that has played worst than the Avalanche this season. The Stars are getting huge production from their star, Tyler Seguin. Newcomer Jesson Spezza has 14 assists in 19 games as well. What the Stars don’t have, is a defense. Everybody loved their offseason, bringing in Spezza and Hemsky, but this team could already score. They are similar to the Avalanche in their flaws, and those flaws are being exposed mightily this season. Not sure what the answer is in Big D, besides some big-time D-men. It probably wouldn’t hurt for Jamie Benn to get going either. Benn has just 1 goal and 3 assists in his last 10 games. . (6-9-4). Previous: . Dallas Stars. 7. team