The first cut is the deepest. Or is it the first Power Rankings are the toughest to sort out? After all, how do you compare a team that has played one game against a team that has played two or three?
Easy, use a dartboard.
While the Avalanche didn't look horrible in their season opener against the Penguins, Patrick Roy saved their bacon. Dominik Hasek did some bacon saving for the Red Wings against the Canucks, but the Red Wings have shown a tad more opportunism over the last week (hello, three shorthanded goals). Plus, we weren't going to weasel out of it and call it a tie.
Least impressive performance of the week: The Penguins going 0 for 10 on the power play.
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Team
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Pvs.
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W-L-T-OL
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The skinny
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1. Red Wings
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2
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2-0-0-0
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Not only have they added three future Hall of Famers, but Brendan Shanahan found his game.
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2. Avalanche
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1
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1-0-0-0
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Did someone forget to tell Patrick Roy the playoffs are over?
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3. Flyers
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3
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1-0-1-0
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After losing Jiri Dopita for a month, the Flyers' depth certainly will come in handy.
|
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4. Capitals
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6
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1-0-0-0
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Shellacking the defending conference champs is nice, but there are still 81 games left to play.
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5. Stars
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5
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1-1-0-0
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Team with small payroll and few offseason changes 3, team with big payroll and lots of offseason changes 0.
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6. Blues
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7
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0-0-2-0
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In case you're scoring at home: Johnson, tie; Brathwaite, tie; Turek, two shutouts.
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7. Bruins
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16
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2-0-0-0
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Bill Guerin breaks Patrik Stefan's jaw, then scores the game winner. Talk about getting away with one.
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8. Devils
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4
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0-1-0-0
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Not a good sign when Martin Brodeur's GAA almost equals the amount of his contract extension.
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10. Sharks
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9
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0-0-1-1
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Note to Mike Rathje: They don't miss you...yet.
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9. Maple Leafs
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8
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0-1-1-0
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Anyone know the country code for the Czech Republic?
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11. Hurricanes
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17
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2-0-0-0
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The 'Canes fortunes courtesy of Jeff O'Neill (to the News & Observer): "I chunk my 2-iron off the tee and the golf gods aren't with me. But I hit the crossbar and it goes in."
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12. Senators
|
10
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1-2-0-0
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Isn't it nice to discover you can live without your leading scorer because your problem was defense in the first place.
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13. Sabres
|
11
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1-1-0-1
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Relying on last-minute heroics isn't the best way to go through the season.
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14. Islanders
|
22
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2-0-0-0
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You know something is expected of you when wins over Florida and Tampa Bay no longer register as moral victories.
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15. Flames
|
24
|
2-0-0-0
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Print out the standings now so your grandchildren will believe your claim that the Flames were once the best team in the West.
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16. Oilers
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15
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1-1-0-0
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Rem Murray turning over No. 17 to Jari Kurri isn't exactly Bourque turning over No. 7 to Esposito, but it was touching nonetheless.
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17. Rangers
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18
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1-1-0-0
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The Rangers and the Sabres are the only .500 teams that have been outscored. The Sabres lost Hasek. What's the Rangers' excuse?
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18. Canadiens
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21
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1-0-1-0
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You know times have changed when a former Leafs captain ends up playing in Montreal.
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19. Penguins
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12
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0-2-0-0
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How can a team with Alexei Kovalev, Martin Straka and Robert Lang be 0 for 10 on the power play?
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20. Blue Jackets
|
27
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0-0-2-0
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After tying two Stanley Cup contenders, the rest of the schedule should be easy.
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21. Wild
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28
|
1-0-1-0
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Some teams go years without 0-0 ties. The Wild have been around for less than two seasons and already have three.
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22. Thrashers
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29
|
1-0-0-1
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Someone want to let the Bruins know Thrashers aren't turkeys and shouldn't be carved up like one.
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23. Blackhawks
|
25
|
1-1-0-0
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Brian Sutter on playing Calgary, his former team: "It's like playing against your brothers. Once the game starts, you don't really care." Only a Sutter can say that.
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24. Kings
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14
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0-1-1-0
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Robitaille is 0-0-0 and a minus-2 with one shot in two games. Oh, it's Randy. Nevermind.
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25. Panthers
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23
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1-2-0-0
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Jason Wiemer is making Valeri Bure look like the other guy in the trade.
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26. Mighty Ducks
|
26
|
1-1-0-0
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Oleg Tverdovsky's reslience and toughness is way underrated.
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27. Canucks
|
13
|
0-2-0-0
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You know it's going to be a long season when players start saying, "We have to regroup," and it's only the second game.
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28. Coyotes
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19
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0-1-1-0
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A four-game road trip to open the season isn't such a good thing for a young team.
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|
29. Predators
|
20
|
0-1-1-0
|
Apparently the injury bug migrated south from Montreal to Nashville.
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30. Lightning
|
30
|
0-2-0-0
|
There is absolutely no way the Lightning can underachieve this season.
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