Oilers knocking on door for top spot in Power Ranking

It was another exciting week around the National Hockey League as three Canadian teams moved up on our list, two dropped, and two stayed put.

The Edmonton Oilers are knocking on the door for top spot, moving up from third to second following a 2-1-0 week.

Despite ranking seventh in points percentage due to their slow start to the season, the Oilers have been one of the top teams in the league since the beginning of November.

Only the Vegas Golden Knights have a better points percentage than the Oilers since Nov. 1, however, Edmonton ranks first in the NHL in expected goal differential while Vegas ranks sixth. We still believe the Oilers can catch the Golden Knights in the second half of the season to win the Pacific Division.

Up two spots, from eighth to sixth, are the Winnipeg Jets. Winnipeg is coming off an impressive 3-0 win over the Colorado Avalanche. The shutout was Connor Hellebuyck’s league-leading sixth of the season.

Hellebuyck leads the NHL in games played, wins, goals-against average, save percentage and goals saved above expected. If the season ended today, there is no reason for him not to be the unanimous choice to win the Vezina Trophy.

The Jets have been solid defensively in front of him this season - 13th in expected goals against - though not elite as they have been the past couple of seasons. Regardless, the Central Division-leading Jets are proving to be an elite team capable of winning against any opponent.

Following a pair of losses to the Hurricanes and Canucks, the Maple Leafs are down one spot from 12th to 13th. The Leafs rank eighth in points percentage, 10th in goal differential per game, and 17th in expected goal differential.

From a process standpoint, Toronto sits 16th offensively and 18th defensively (expected goals). That said, it stands to reason the Leafs can be expected to score at a higher rate than their goal probability and, when healthy, Toronto boasts one of the top goalie tandems in the league.

We forecast the Maple Leafs sliding slightly in terms of points percentage, which is why our model has them 13th.

The Vancouver Canucks slid from 16th to 23rd on our list following a 1-1-2 week. The Canucks are averaging just 1.6 goals per game over their past five.

Vancouver sits 31st in slot shots, last in rush chances and 25th in expected goals per game this season. The Canucks face some tough competition this week with games in Winnipeg then at home against the Kings and Oilers.

The Ottawa Senators remain consistently inconsistent as they hang on to the 17th spot on our list for a second straight week. Ottawa lost four straight games to start 2025, but rebounded to win its last two.

Goaltender Linus Ullmark remains out with a back injury but the good news is Ottawa is hanging around the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. The Senators have a better points percentage than both teams currently in a wild-card spot (Boston and Columbus).

Up one spot from 20th to 19th, are the Calgary Flames. Calgary won both of its games last week as it kicks off a four-game road trip tonight in Chicago.

While the Flames sit just one point back of the Canucks, with a game in hand, for the final wild-card spot in the West, they will need to find a way to generate more offence to win consistently. Calgary sits 27th in goals per game and 28th in expected goals.

Lastly, though perhaps not for long, the Montreal Canadiens remain 22nd on our list. The Habs have the second-best record in the NHL (9-3-1) over the past month. In that stretch, the Canadiens' underlying numbers are legitimately strong, especially defensively.

Montreal is allowing 14 per cent fewer inner slot shots relative to its season average, 10 per cent fewer high-danger chances and 9 per cent fewer expected goals. Only Columbus blueliner Zach Werenski has more points in the last month among defencemen than Lane Hutson, and Patrik Laine continues to wire pucks into the net on the power play from the left circle.

Montreal is in the mix for a wild-card spot - something that seemed unlikely, if not impossible not too long ago.