Jets trail only Hurricanes in latest NHL Power Ranking

With one month to go in the season, the race for wild-card spots and division titles is heating up.

The Winnipeg Jets, who went a perfect 3-0-0 last week, are up three spots, from fifth to second in our Power Rankings. The Jets have the best points percentage in the NHL and are on the verge of finishing the season with a historically great power play. Winnipeg has scored on 31 per cent of its power-play opportunities, fifth best of any team in NHL history. The 2022-23 Edmonton Oilers own the best percentage of all-time at 32.4 per cent.

The Jets have positioned themselves well to finally push past the first round of the playoffs as Winnipeg owns a 92 per cent chance, according to our Sportlogiq Playoff Probability Model, of finishing first place in the Central Division.

Speaking of playoff odds, the Ottawa Senators have improved their chances greatly over the past couple of weeks. The Sens, up one spot from 10th to ninth on our list, have won six straight games and are six points up on the Montreal Canadiens who are chasing the final playoff spot in the East. Before the winning streak, our model gave the Senators a 52 per cent shot of making the postseason. Now, Ottawa is a virtual lock with 95 per cent odds.

The Senators have done a much better job creating offence, specifically around the net during their winning streak. The Sens are averaging 4.17 goals per game, a 42 per cent increase from their season average. Inner slot shots are up 21 per cent and rebound chances are up 41 per cent.

The Edmonton Oilers, 2-2-0 last week, are down a couple of spots, from ninth to 11th on our list.

Edmonton is coming off a 3-1 win over the New York Rangers, a game in which it showed a playoff-style willingness to defend while protecting a lead in the third period. The Oilers blocked 12 shots in the final frame and have cut down their goals against by 17 per cent, relative to the season average, over their past five games.

Leon Draisaitl, in the mix for both the league MVP and the scoring title, sits two points back of Nathan MacKinnon in points. The next goal he scores will be his 50th this season, the fourth time he will have hit that mark.

The Toronto Maple Leafs are down two spots from 15th to 17th this week. The Leafs are mired in a slump, losing five of their past six games. Despite ranking ninth overall in points percentage, Toronto sits 12th in goal differential and 19th in expected goal differential, per-game.

Our model has not had the same confidence in this season's version of the Leafs as it has had in the past. Offence has been hard to come by lately, as Toronto has averaged 2.5 goals per game over its past six.

The good news for the Leafs is that they are still within striking distance of the top spot in the Atlantic, just four points back of the division-leading Florida Panthers. Avoiding the Panthers or Lightning in the first round will be huge, but the Leafs will need to snap out of this funk sooner than later to do so.

The Vancouver Canucks are clinging to the final wild-card spot in the West. Vancouver, up three spots from 21st to 18th on our list, is tied in points with the St. Louis Blues, who have one fewer game remaining.

The good news for the Canucks is that forward Elias Pettersson seems to be finding his offensive game. Pettersson has four goals and seven points in his past six games. He had just four goals in his previous 34 games before this recent hot stretch.

Our model currently gives the Blues the edge on grabbing the final playoff spot in the West with a 38 per cent chance while the Canucks have a 23 per cent chance.

Meanwhile, the Montreal Canadiens are fighting for a playoff spot in the East. The Habs are one point behind the New York Rangers for the final spot with two games in hand. Our model gives the Canadiens a 29 per cent chance of making it.

That said, Montreal has done an excellent job defensively of late, cutting its goals against to 2.40 per game in its past five games. Inner-slot shots are also down 29 per cent from their season average in that stretch.

The Habs’ top line of Nick Suzuki, Cole Caufield and Juraj Slafkovsky continues to dominate. No line has scored more since the 4 Nations break as the trio has outscored the opposition 11-3 while on the ice at five-on-five.

Lastly, the Calgary Flames are up one spot from 22nd to 21st this week.

The Flames, losers of two straight, have a tough week coming up as it starts an Eastern Conference road trip Monday night in Toronto. Calgary will face the Rangers on Tuesday, the Devils on Thursday and the Islanders on Saturday before heading home.

The Flames, two points back of the Canucks for the final playoff spot with two games in hand, have a 31 per cent chance of making the playoffs according to our model.