The NHL hockey season has been quite interesting to this point. The New Jersey Devils are by far the league’s worst team, and they have lost Zach Parise for a good amount of time. The Ilya Kovalchuk signing has gone horribly wrong so far, and he is being booed. Is it time for Martin Brodeur to retire? The St Louis Blues are the talk of the NHL with their strong start, led by newcomer Jaroslav Halak. Montreal is probably regretting the fact that they let him go instead of Carey Price. The Washington Capitals and Vancouver Canucks are rolling, while the Toronto Maple Leafs, New York Islanders, Nashville Predators, and Calgary Flames are slipping. Steven Stamkos leads the NHL in goals and points, Tim Thomas leads in goals against average and save percentage, and four goalies have notched eight wins.
The Rankings
1. St Louis Blues: They have one regulation loss in 12 games played and just beat the tough Bruins.
2. LA Kings: Jonathan Quick is playing stellar hockey. They have won four in a row and eight of their last ten.
3. Washington Capitals: They have won four in a row and seven of their last ten.
4. Detroit Red Wings: Nicklas Lidstrom is tied for the team lead in points with 15.
5. Vancouver Canucks: It didn’t take them long to get high on this list. They have won six in a row and look like the Cup contenders I thought they’d be.
6. Boston Bruins: A couple of tough games against the Capitals and Blues, but every team would have problems with them. Tim Thomas is a man on a mission.
7. Philadelphia Flyers: They’re 7-2-1 in their last ten games and have a nice cushion in the Atlantic Division.
8. Tampa Bay Lightning: They’ve stumbled a bit, losing three in a row.
9. Minnesota Wild: They rank 4th in goals against, 2nd on the power play, and 9th on the penalty kill. Their problem is scoring goals.
10. Dallas: Not sure how long they’ll keep this up, considering their penalty kill is awful and the goaltending is suspect.
On the bubble: Columbus, Colorado, San Jose, Pittsburgh, Ottawa
