NHL Power Rankings: Red-Hot Hurricanes Rise, but Flyers are Grounded

In terms of NHL travel, the Carolina Hurricanes and Philadelphia Flyers are not far apart.

Their respective home facilities at the Lenovo Center and the Wells Fargo Center are barely more than an hour from each other via plane and are only separated by a 400-mile stretch of East Coast pavement on interstates 85 and 95.

When it comes to competition these days, though, the gap is measured in light years.

The Hurricanes are the league's hottest while the Flyers are one of its coldest, which accounts for the 30-spot gap between them in the latest edition of B/R's Power Rankings, which take the competitive temperature in each of the NHL's 32 cities.

The B/R hockey staff fulfilled its weekly ballot-box duty, casting votes that awarded 32 points for first place all the way down to a single point for No. 32. Take a look at what we came up with and drop a thought of your own in the app comments.

*Votes were tallied after games played on Tuesday, Nov. 5.

Previous Ranking: 30

Overall Record: 4-8-1

The Flyers were a season-long surprise in 2023-24 after starting fast and holding the momentum through most of the schedule, but it's been the opposite this year with a 3-7-0 skid through their last 10 games leading to them taking over the basement from San Jose.

Previous Ranking: 32

Overall Record: 4-8-2

The Sharks have found their swagger with four wins in five games after an abysmal start, and they'll be further buoyed by the return of No. 1 pick Macklin Celebrini. The 18-year-old missed 12 games with a hip problem before playing in Tuesday's win over Columbus.

Previous Ranking: 26

Overall Record: 4-7-2

The freefall is real for the Canadiens, who lost a late lead against Calgary to drop their fourth straight and eighth of their last 10 (2-6-2). Montreal is 30th in the league in generating shots on goal (24.9 per game), but it has the sixth-highest average (32.2) in shots per game against.

Previous Ranking: 28

Overall Record: 4-7-1

It was already a bad enough start for the Predators, but they've managed to fall into another skid, losing 3-0 to Los Angeles to end a three-game homestand in which they were outscored 10-6. They'll be on the road until returning against Utah on Saturday.

Previous Ranking: 20

Overall Record: 4-6-2

How long will it take the Ducks to begin receiving and contemplating offers for goalie John Gibson once he returns following emergency appendectomy surgery in September? His eight-year, $51.2 million contract runs through 2026-27, but he's not played in a postseason game since 2018.

Previous Ranking: 15

Overall Record: 5-8-1

It's only been a few weeks, but a 4-2-0 start to the season suddenly seems years ago for the Kraken, which have gone 1-6-1 in eight games since beating Calgary in OT on October 19. Seattle has netted more than three goals once in the stretch and is 21st in the league in scoring.

Previous Ranking: 29

Overall Record: 5-7-1

Connor Bedard had his second three-point game of the season and sixth of his career in a win at Anaheim that let the Blackhawks complete a five-game trip at 3-2-0.

"You're feeling it at the end, so it's good that we were able to kind of dig deep here and get a couple," the 19-year-old said.

Previous Ranking: 31

Overall Record: 5-7-2

The Penguins were 12-plus minutes from a three-game win streak before losing a two-goal lead and falling at the New York Islanders.

Still, Evgeni Malkin's goal and assist were his first points in four games. He has five points in nine games after producing 11 in his first five.

Previous Ranking: 27

Overall Record: 5-6-2

There's nothing like a late rally to galvanize a team, and the Islanders got that against Pittsburgh after trailing 3-1 in the third.

"We believe in each other here, and finally being able to come back in a game, and especially down two, is massive," forward Casey Cizikas said.

Previous Ranking: 23

Overall Record: 5-7-1

The Sabres were hoping for a quick turnaround after Lindy Ruff returned to the bench, but it's been special teams that have impeded progress.

Buffalo's 12.8 power-play percentage is second-worst among 32 teams, and the penalty kill (73.8 percent) is tied for 24th.

Previous Ranking: 22

Overall Record: 5-5-1

Wednesday's visit to Chicago started a three-game stretch against Original Six foes for the Red Wings, which head to Toronto Friday before hosting the New York Rangers on Saturday.

A weekend win over Buffalo ended a three-game slide in which Detroit was outscored 14-7.

Previous Ranking: 24

Overall Record: 6-7-1

It would be hard for a special teams unit to be less special than the Bruins' were on Tuesday, when they went 0-for-6 on their power play and allowed three goals while shorthanded against Toronto.

Boston's 13.3-percent clip on the power play is 29th in the league.

Previous Ranking: 18

Overall Record: 6-7-0

Colorado has nearly emerged from the 0-4-0 hole it dug at the start of the season, and it'll also help that forward Valeri Nichushkin is set to return later this month. He's been in Stage 3 of the NHL/NHL Players' Association Player Assistance Program since May 13.

Previous Ranking: 16

Overall Record: 5-5-2

Losing three straight isn't ideal for any team, but it was perhaps a bit easier to take for a Blue Jackets team that fired 49 shots but scored just once at San Jose on Tuesday.

Columbus has scored just five goals in the three losses after netting 17 in its previous four games.

Previous Ranking: 17

Overall Record: 6-6-0

The Senators are awaiting the return of a first-pairing defenseman in Artem Zub, who has missed nine games with a concussion but was on the ice for an optional skate on Wednesday. He averaged 21:01 of ice time across 69 games for Ottawa in 2023-24.

Previous Ranking: 21

Overall Record: 5-5-3

A 4-1-1 start has evaporated into a 1-4-2 stretch over the last seven games for Utah, which scored five goals in the one victory but only 10 across the six losses. The team's 2.14 goals per game since October 22 is 28th in the league, and its goals-against average (3.57) is 29th.

Previous Ranking: 25

Overall Record: 6-6-1

It looked more serious when it occurred, but it turns out the left ankle injury Connor McDavid suffered against Columbus in late October was only a three-game malady. The Oilers went 2-1-0 without him while getting three goals and six points in those games from Leon Draisaitl.

Previous Ranking: 19

Overall Record: 7-6-0

Dylan Holloway's run with the Blues got a bit more eventful on Tuesday when he left the bench on a stretcher after being hit in the neck with a puck. He was back at practice, though not skating, on Wednesday and could return for Thursday's game with Utah.

Previous Ranking: 10

Overall Record: 7-6-0

The Lightning have skidded since a 3-0-0 start, and it won't help if Brayden Point is sidelined for any amount of time. He had 13 points in his first 12 games but missed Tuesday's date with St. Louis, leaving coach Jon Cooper to suggest he'd "take it one game at a time."

Previous Ranking: 11

Overall Record: 7-5-1

A late rally and an OT winner was an ideal way to start a road trip for the Flames, which beat Montreal and will visit Boston and Buffalo before returning home. Calgary had lost five of its last six games since breaking from the gate with five wins and an OT loss in its first six.

Previous Ranking: 14

Overall Record: 7-5-2

It wasn't a high-profile signing compared to other deals, but the summertime pickup of goalie Anthony Stolarz has been huge for the Maple Leafs. The 30-year-old won a Cup with Florida in June and has been stellar with Toronto, going 5-2-2 with a .928 save percentage.

Previous Ranking: 13

Overall Record: 8-5-2

It was a unique three-game western swing for the Devils, which scored a combined nine goals in shutout wins at Vancouver and Edmonton but were blanked in Calgary when one of Jacob Markstrom's replacements, Dan Vladar, made 22 saves in a 3-0 win for the Flames.

Previous Ranking: 3

Overall Record: 7-4-0

Dallas took three of four—beating Edmonton, Buffalo and Boston—before a trip to Finland that was memorable but unsuccessful thanks to two straight losses to Florida.

"I'm going to try and forget as quickly as possible about the two hockey games," coach Pete DeBoer said.

Previous Ranking: 9

Overall Record: 6-2-3

A Quinn Hughes milestone was the latest good news in a positive stretch for the Canucks, which are 6-1-1 in their last eight games. The 25-year-old notched his 300th career assist against Anaheim Tuesday to become the third-fastest defenseman in history to reach that number.

Previous Ranking: 12

Overall Record: 8-3-3

It was only a two-game trip to visit rivals from the Central Division, but the Kings handled it nearly as well as they could have, scoring eight goals and allowing just one in defeats of Nashville and Minnesota. The team's five road wins are one off the league's early lead.

Previous Ranking: 2

Overall Record: 8-3-1

It's probably not a long-term issue, according to head coach Bruce Cassidy, but the Golden Knights will be thinner in goal without Ilya Samsonov. He didn't make the trip for Wednesday's game in Edmonton and won't on Friday, either. Akira Schmid has been called up to back up Adin Hill.

Previous Ranking: 5

Overall Record: 8-3-0

Remember when it seemed Alex Ovechkin's chase for the goals record would be the only thing about the Capitals worth watching? Well, that's hardly been the case thanks to an offense that averaged 4.18 goals through 11 games, a quantum leap from last season's 2.00.

Previous Ranking: 4

Overall Record: 8-2-2

There's not a lot to find wrong with a team that's won eight of 12, but a 5-1 home loss to Los Angeles was a dose of reality for coach John Hynes.

"It was a good snap back of the importance of details, the importance of staying with your game," he said. "Little details in the game matter."

Previous Ranking: 7

Overall Record: 8-2-1

They don't need the break, but the Rangers headed into a rare three-day respite in the middle of a homestand on the strength of consecutive defeats of Ottawa and the New York Islanders. Igor Shesterkin stopped 75 of 78 shots in the wins for a .961 save percentage.

Previous Ranking: 8

Overall Record: 9-3-1

It was a long, productive road trip for the defending champions, who swept the state of New York with wins against the Rangers, Islanders and Buffalo Sabres before crossing the Atlantic to visit Finland and win two more—scoring 10 goals while doing so—against Dallas.

Previous Ranking: 6

Overall Record: 9-2-0

It's the league-best "W7" alongside the Carolina logo in the NHL standings these days thanks to an all-encompassing run in which the team has averaged 4.71 goals per game (third best in the league) since October 22, while surrendering a league-low 2.29.

Previous Ranking: 1

Overall Record: 12-1-0

Guess what? The Jets are still hot.

Winnipeg won eight straight to start the season before a loss to Toronto in late October, but it has bounced back for four more wins, the latest of which was a Tuesday shutout of Utah that gave Connor Hellebuyck 39 for his career.