After being swept against last year’s reigning Stanley Cup champion Vegas Golden Knights, head coach and long-time hockey guru Rick Bowness called out the Winnipeg Jets for a letdown performance. The big takeaway was how Winnipeg had, “no pushback” against a more physical western conference foe that’s used to having their way against the newest Canadian team.
Jets general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff was one of the first people in the organization who listened what the respected coach had to say and made crucial offseason decisions. He started by re-signing franchise cornerstones (forward) Mark Scheifele and (goalie) Connor Hellebuyck to long-term deals. Many analysts were confused at these moves given how Winnipeg barely scraped into the postseason needing their stars to play their best. The most reasonable expectation would be for the Jets to trade either if the following seasons showed more decline and to eat the dead money from both their long-term contracts.
Cheveldayoff was just getting started. He traded former third overall pick Pierre-Luc Dubois to Los Angeles for a haul of needed depth and star players, including forwards Gabriel Vilardi and Alex Iafallo. Additional forward depth was added in free agency with the signings of Nino Neiderreiter and Vladislav Namestnikov. Former Jet Laurent Brossoit was re-signed to backup Hellebuyck for when the star needs rest.
Winnipeg began the season as a question mark for almost every sports pundit. They have the right pieces, but could Rick Bowness put everything together and get more out of a roster that’s been criticized annually for not playing defense? Well, we’re finding out not only has Bowness succeeded, but that the Jets are one of, if not the best team in the NHL.
Bowness’ Jets are so good right now that Arizona’s head coach André Tourigny said, “They’re a really good team. They’re not just a good team, they play maybe the best hockey in the NHL. They’re really stingy and poised with the puck.” The Coyotes are one of the better teams with a chance of stealing a wild-card spot due to their gritty, physical play. Yet Arizona was thrashed 6-2 at home by Bowness’ team this past Sunday.
Winnipeg has turned into one of the league’s best defensive teams while the offense is overwhelming opposing defenses. Even more eye opening is their 11-1-2 record without last year’s (their) second leading goal scorer Kyle Connor.
While it’s possible the other 29 teams find ways to figure out how to fluster the Jets, the conference and the league are on notice.
Here’s the first ever NHL power rankings on jdsportscorner.com. These will show where all 32 teams objectively stand. Some teams will have tiebreakers based off of how they’d perform on a neutral site.
#32 San Jose Sharks
Coach Dave Quinn made the mistake of saying he found the winning formula once the Sharks got to 12 points in November. They have 23 by mid-January.
#31 Chicago Blackhawks
Everyone who pays attention to the NHL knew Chicago would be awful this season. The good news is that first overall pick Connor Bedard will be the league’s next superstar barring more injuries. Now the team has to build around him after their regular season ends.
#30 Ottawa Senators
Interim coach Jacques Martin is respected in Canada’s capital for how he coached and matured the mid-2000s Senators teams that went on to make a Stanley Cup finals appearance. It’s still early but he’s struggling on how to work with this team and what he can get out of captain Brady Tkachuk. Ottawa is one of two teams that hasn’t won a game since the calendar year began. This once again confirms D.J. Smith kept his job longer than he should have.
#29 Anaheim Ducks
While most analysts are focusing on trade rumors with starting goalie John Gibson (again), former third overall pick Trevor Zegras recorded four goals the first half of the season before landing on injured reserve with a broken ankle. Anaheim is ahead of three other teams for total goals this season. This team is awful and worries more about making highlight reels instead of finding ways to build up a winning culture.
#28 Columbus Blue Jackets
The Jackets have the second worst scoring defense in the league. One could counter that’s because the offense doesn’t score as much but Columbus is in the middle of the standings in scoring. In a weak Metropolitan division, management has to reassess coaching hires.
#27 Minnesota Wild
There hasn’t been a more disappointing team this season than the Wild. Firing coach Dean Evason barely made an impact after three weeks and many are left wondering if this is just a bad luck season or if a serious re-tool of the roster is needed.
#26 Buffalo Sabres
I have a lot of respect for coach Don Granato. He inherited not just an awful roster when he started coaching the Sabres, but awful situations involving players quitting on the team and Jack Eichel’s trade rumors. All took place during the COVID-19 lockdown games. However, it seems he’s not the answer for Buffalo moving forward. Give Granato credit for making the Sabres a more attractive job opening for when that happens.
#25 St. Louis Blues
It doesn’t matter what the Blues do this season. All audiences will remember how general manager Doug Armstrong’s gradual gutting of the roster led to a backstab firing of coach Craig Berube. Not only will Berube be one of the most sought after coaches in the offseason, St. Louis will have to address why they have a bottom five offense in the league with no top talent available.
#24 Montreal Canadiens
The re-build underway will take a while to complete, and it’s most visible on defense. Sam Montembeault is a solid goalie but he needs more help in front of him.
#23 Calgary Flames
Calgary is 8-4 after snapping a four game losing streak mid-December. Yet they look mediocre and there’s nothing to feel excited about. That doesn’t bode well once March arrives.
#22 Arizona Coyotes
Earlier it was mentioned Arizona is a solid team that could sneak into the playoffs. Ask anyone who’s watched the Coyotes play this season and they’ll tell you this could be the fourth best team in the central division. Coach Tourigny is doing a great job with the young roster.
#21 Seattle Kraken
General manager Ron Francis gets an A+ for picking goalie Joey Daccord in the expansion draft. The young netminder has given up four goals in four games to start 2024 and is a reason the Kraken have both won eight straight and recorded a point in twelve straight games. Daccord was left open by Ottawa because they preferred Filip Gustavsson as the starter. Well, both goalies are starting and could have decorated careers…just not in Canada’s capital.
#20 Detroit Red Wings
Anyone who follows hockey closely and knows what goes on is fully aware of what general manager Steve Yzerman’s doing. Detroit had no talent outside of captain Dylan Larkin or Tyler Bertuzzi when he was hired, even in the minor leagues. The Red Wings are a top five offensive team with a porous defense. You can bet this is what Yzerman foresaw and already knows how to fix it.
#19 Edmonton Oilers
Their resurgence could be due to interim coach Kris Knoblauch, but again the question of how far this team goes relies on team defense, especially who starts in net. Until that’s definitively answered, Edmonton will remain a middle-of-the-pack team.
#18 Pittsburgh Penguins
Sidney Crosby having more goals than Washington’s Alex Ovechkin halfway through the season is something no one expected. Even wilder is Jake Guentzel leading the Penguins in points with 45.
#17 New Jersey Devils
For those who didn’t read the regular season predictions, it’s not a surprise the Devils aren’t as hot as last year. Their 13 game winning streak was a big reason they made the playoffs. Now other eastern conference teams have a better idea of how to play coach Lindy Ruff’s young squad. Also not surprising is how porous the goaltending is, nullifying any contributions from the offense and special teams.
#16 Washington Capitals
Many are stunned the league’s second best all-time scorer having eight goals after 39 games. I am not. The injury to Nicklas Backstrom is that crippling to where Alex Ovechkin has to facilitate the offense in ways that’s not scoring a hat-trick once a week. Add in Spencer Carbery being a first year head coach still figuring out how to improve a gradually aging roster without depth and this is what you get.
#15 Tampa Bay Lightning
Here’s something more jaw-dropping than Alex Ovechkin’s lack of goal scoring: the Lightning are the fourth worst NHL team in goals against. This is with Andrei Vasilevskiy starting 20 games.
#14 New York Islanders
There’s no player in the league with more pressure than Ilya Sorokin right now. Former starting and now backup goalie Semyon Varlamov is on injured reserve, so the Islanders can’t rely on someone else outside Sorokin who gives them a good chance to win. Yet the number of losses due to blown leads continues to worry the franchise.
#13 Nashville Predators
On paper, Calgary and Nashville are almost the same. Performance-wise, the Predators find ways to win despite facing depth issues and ongoing trade talks. That’s why ownership and management matter before the games are played.
#12 Philadelphia Flyers
The hiring of John Tortorella could go down as one of the best moves in franchise history. Not even two full seasons in and the Flyers look like a team threatening to uproot the eastern conference favorites’ playoff hopes. Philadelphia isn’t there yet, but they’ve bought into Tortorella’s philosophy, barely resisting his changes. That’s a big development.
#11 Los Angeles Kings
The Kings’ seven game losing streak is a problem, but not too dire. They’ve only played 38 games and have the best defense in the league even with Pheonix Copley on injured reserve. Los Angeles needs more offense not based off the rush.
#10 Toronto Maple Leafs
This team is the litmus test for who the true championship contenders are. Toronto’s a great offensive team and has solidified roster depth, but having Martin Jones as the de facto starting goalie is a weakness only the best teams will exploit.
#9 Carolina Hurricanes
Outside of a road game in Boston, Carolina should win every game this month especially since the offense is out of a slump and the defense has stabilized.
#8 Dallas Stars
The remaining eight teams are very hard to choose in numerical order. There’s a case for all eight having any spot, and those criticizing the take that a team that’s had the most eight-goal scored games (three) should be eighth, I understand. Keep in mind that Jake Oettinger isn’t starting because of a lower body injury. Dallas also has a combined losing record against the next seven teams. That’s how hard and competitive the NHL is.
#7 New York Rangers
Names are being thrown out by pundits on who should be league MVP. Mika Zibanejad is a worthy candidate for anyone who watches New York. Yes, Artemi Panarin will be considered because he’s the team leader in points, goals and assists, but ask yourself would the Rangers have a 30% power-play if Zibanejad isn’t the most guarded or harassed player by opposing defenses? He’s that versatile.
#6 Boston Bruins
To set the record straight, even if the Bruins had the most points in the NHL right now, I wouldn’t have them as number one or two. They’re in a slump and are finally feeling the effects of no Patrice Bergeron. The schedule is going to get rocky and Linus Ullmark’s lower body injury is another challenge after last year’s record breaking regular season.
#5 Florida Panthers
As I said at the start of the 2022 season, the Paul Maurice hiring was one of, if not the best hiring for any team. After a Cinderella run to the Stanley Cup finals, the Panthers have a top three defense, a top five penalty kill, and physically wear out opponents every night to force enough power-play chances. Oh, and Matthew Tkachuk is starting to heat up.
#4 Vegas Golden Knights
I want the current champions to be higher but their scoring slump combined with the hard decisions of which goalie should start each night is a concern. They went from tied for first in the conference to trailing Vancouver by six points. Ouch.
#3 Colorado Avalanche
What Nathan MacKinnon is doing right now should earn him the Hart Trophy, even before the All-Star break. The Avalanche are playing phenomenal without captain Gabriel Landeskog, and it’s because MacKinnon is a top three player in the game.
#2 Vancouver Canucks
The firing of Bruce Boudreau was awful, but that’s forgotten because of how Rick Tocchet has finally elevated the team and brings the best out of a well constructed roster. Vancouver has the best scoring offense and their top point leader is J.T. Miller. Tocchet is the easy Jack Adams pick if the Canucks win the pacific.
#1 Winnipeg Jets
Everything coach Rick Bowness and the Jets have done this season pales in comparison to these two stats: they’ve had 31 consecutive games giving up three goals or less. Second, of their last 19 games they’ve given up two goals or less in all but one: an overtime 3-2 loss to Montreal. The last time Winnipeg gave up more than three goals was November 2nd. We’re witnessing an incredible run.
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