Oct. 23, 2000

Colorado continues to impress, but some teams are creeping up the mountain. Dallas might be the hottest team in the league, even if Ottawa and the Avs remain unbeaten. And yes, it's time to put teams like Florida and Philly where they belong: Way down near the bottom.

ESPN.com's secret formula has taken it all into account. To right any wrongs, click here and give us a few Rank Comments of your own.

Team	PVS	W-L-T	ESPN.com says
1. Avalanche	1	6-0-2-0	Forget about the off-ice Patrick Roy story. At the rink, the Avs have only allowed 12 goals in eight games.
2. Stars	7	6-2-1-0	Stars far from being has-beens. With Mike Modano, Brett Hull and Ed Belfour, these guys are white hot.
3. Coyotes	4	6-1-1-0	Unbeaten at home (4-0). Maybe, they don't need a new rink after all.
4. Blues	2	5-2-1-0	Put this Saturday's game vs. Dallas on the calendar ... in pen. It's going to be a good one.
5. Senators	6	4-0-3-0	Want more respect in the Rankings? Don't allow six goals to the winless Thrashers. AT HOME.
6. Devils	3	3-2-1-0	Loss in D.C. wasn't pretty. But Devils are averaging five goals a game -- a far cry from the Jacques Lemaire era. Martin Brodeur (3.24 GAA, .857 save pct.) needs to be better.
7. Red Wings	8	5-3-0-1	No Chris Chelios. No Steve Yzerman. But had a solid 3-1 week. And Columbus and Tampa Bay come to town this week.
8. Maple Leafs	9	4-3-0-0	Win in Edmonton was very impressive. Curtis Joseph saved 49 of 51 shots in wins over Oilers and Flames.
9. Oilers	10	5-2-2-0	Too bad style points aren't worth anything in the standings because for the cost of going to a game, Oilers are worth every penny.
10. Sharks	12	4-2-0-0	Sharks are over. 500 two weeks in a row. In the Pacific Division, a 4-2 record is still good for last place. Ouch.
11. Penguins	11	4-2-1-0	Quietly, Robert Lang has been fantastic -- five goals and 10 points in seven games.
12. Ducks	22	4-2-1-1	Paul Kariya and Teemu Selanne have combined for 13 points during a 3-0-1 streak.
13. Canucks	23	5-2-0-1	"Instinct is instinctual," said coach Marc Crawford. Boy, I'd like to be a fly on the wall for his pregame speeches.
14. Kings	5	3-4-2-0	Without Rob Blake, Kings are where they should be: On the fringe.
15. Canadiens	25	4-3-1-0	Some things don't change: Saku Koivu's hurt, and the Habs never give up.
16. Predators	17	4-2-1-0	Despite loss to Sharks, it's time to admit the Preds are legit. But maybe we should wait and watch Wednesday's game in Colorado.
17. Capitals	19	1-3-3-1	Showing signs of life. But six of next seven are on the road.
18. Hurricanes	20	2-2-2-0	Here's a surprise. Canes are .500. Ron Francis is off to a slow start with just one goal and three points in six games.
19. Flames	21	3-5-0-0	Where in the world is Valeri Bure? He hasn't scored a goal in eight games. Heck, even Dwayne Hay has a goal.
20. Lightning	24	2-4-1-0	Before beating Rangers, 4-2, on Sunday, the Lightning allowed 13 goals in two games, including six vs. the expansion Wild.
21. Rangers	16	3-3-0-0	No one in New York cares about the Rangers because of the Subway Series? That includes Rangers players, who didn't seem to care much in Sunday's loss to Tampa Bay.
22. Sabres	13	2-3-1-1	Dominik Hasek is human (3.40 GAA, .879 save pct.). Mike Peca is needed.
23. Bruins	18	3-4-1-0	It looks like Pat Burns could be the first coach fired this year. Peter Laviolette is waiting in the wings.
24. Flyers	14	1-5-2-0	Eric Lindros is probably firing darts at his Bob Clarke dart board, eating a Pop Tart and smiling.
25. Wild	29	1-5-2-0	A win, a tie and a shutout. Wild aren't very good, but work their butts off. Jamie McLennan looked good stopping a Pavel Bure breakaway on Sunday.
26. Panthers	15	0-2-2-2	Nine goals for. Zero wins. Are you kidding? The worst part is that Roberto Luongo doesn't even have a customized mask yet. C'mon Roberto, get a good paint job.
27. Islanders	28	1-3-2-0	What's the over/under on Rick DiPietro's arrival on the Island? Power Rankings says by Jan. 1.
28. Blackhawks	26	2-5-0-1	Not one guy has a plus-minus better than zero. Valeri Zelepukin has no points and only five shots on net in eight games.
29. Thrashers	30	0-3-3-0	Donald Audette (6-7-13) is on fire. But one guy can't account for a third of your team's production.
30. Blue Jackets	27	1-6-0-1	Close loss in Detroit was encouraging, but these guys haven't scored more than two goals since winning with three on Oct. 12.