Power Rankings - March 10
Led by Joe Thornton, left, the San Jose Sharks are coming on strong in the Western Conference. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
Mike Brophy
2008-03-10 15:17:11
And with 13 games remaining, the Sharks have a legitimate shot at ending second behind the Detroit Red Wings.
There are a number of reasons why the Sharks are among the best teams in the NHL, including outstanding goaltending and coach Ron Wilson’s ability to get his team to pay attention to defensive detail.
The fact Joe Thornton has risen to fourth in league scoring and Jonathan Cheechoo, injured much of the first half, is once again a scoring machine helps, too.
With five assists in seven games, Brian Campbell has been a nice addition to the defense.
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RK.
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TEAM
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LW
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OVERALL
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L10
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THE SCOOP
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1
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 |
1
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42-25-5
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6-4-0
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Newcomer Brad Richards made quite a splash in his debut, recording five assists in Game 1 after arriving from Tampa Bay. He then had just one assist and was minus-4 in his next three outings before scoring a goal and an assist and finishing plus-2 in the Stars 3-0 win over Colorado Sunday. |
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2
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 |
3
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45-18-6
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4-5-1
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Three straight wins, including a humdinger 4-3 decision over Nashville, which brought many smiles back to the faces of Red Wings fans. Nicklas Lidstrom returned to the lineup after missing six games (the longest stretch on the sidelines of his illustrious career) with two assists. |
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3
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2
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39-25-7
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7-3-0
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After being shut out in back-to-back games, the Ducks came back to life with a 3-1 win over Montreal. Top goal-scorer Corey Perry suffered a lacerated tendon above his right knee and is expected to miss 4-6 weeks. Ouch! |
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4
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7
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40-21-8
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9-1-0
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You had to see it to believe it. First Patrick Marleau saved the day in overtime when he batted a puck out of mid-air that was headed into his team’s net. Then, a few minutes later, he bagged the shootout winner. And to think, there was plenty of talk that the Sharks were going to trade their captain. Huh?! |
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5
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6
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40-23-6
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7-2-0
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Don’t look now, but Patrik Elias has found his scoring touch. For a while, it looked like it was touch-and-go as to whether or not he’d fit in with new coach Brent Sutter. Elias has two goals and nine points in his past nine games. |
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6
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5
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39-24-7
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5-3-2
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Sid the Kid is back. Yippee! With two goals (including a fluky game-winner against Washington Sunday) and four points in his first three games, Sidney Crosby looks like he has picked up right where he left off when he went down with an ankle injury in mid-January. |
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7
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4
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38-23-9
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6-4-0
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Losing to Anaheim and San Jose on their four-game Western swing gave the Canadiens a pretty good indication of where they stand against the league’s elite teams. Beating Phoenix and L.A. was to be expected. |
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8
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11
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36-24-9
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8-0-2
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Winning six of their last seven games has many believing the Rangers could be a threat come playoff time. It would be nice to see Jaromir Jagr come out of hibernation, however. He has no goals in his past five games and just two in 19. |
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9
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9
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35-23-10
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6-2-2
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What the heck has happened to Kristian Huselius? While he remains second in team scoring, the Swedish left winger hasn’t scored a goal in 20 games. |
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10
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10
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37-26-7
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3-5-2
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Four straight losses has folks in Minnesota scratching their heads. That said, the Wild have picked up points in their last two games, losing both in the shootout. |
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11
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8
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38-25-7
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3-5-2
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I know what you’re thinking; this is awfully high for a team with just three wins in its past 10 games. You may be right. But Bryan Murray has settled on his starting goalie, obviously Martin Gerber, and the Sens looked fine beating Phoenix. |
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12
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13
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37-27-6
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7-2-1
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The Avalanche won six straight before losing 3-0 to Dallas. Jose Theodore continues to give his team a chance to win virtually every game. |
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13
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15
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37-29-5
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7-2-1
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Sergei Samsonov continues to hold a hot hand (making GM Jim Rutherford look like a genius) scoring his 12th goal since joining the Hurricanes. Make that four wins in a row for Carolina. |
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14
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14
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34-24-10
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6-2-2
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Who are these guys? 10 goals in two games? Who says the Canucks can’t score? Even agitator Alex Burrows got in on the action with a goal and an assist in back-to-back games. |
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15
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12
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36-25-8
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6-2-2
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When things go bad for the Bruins, they go really bad. Three losses in four games and outscored 20-6 in that span, the B’s are looking for answers. A commitment to team defense might be a good place to start. |
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16
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17
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35-26-8
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5-2-3
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Seven goals in seven games made Jeff Carter one of the hottest snipers in the NHL. That said, I bet the Flyers were hoping for more than one goal and two points out of Vinny Prospal in six games since acquiring him from Tampa Bay. |
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17
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16
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35-27-8
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4-4-2
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Three goals by the Predators in 7:35 gave the Red Wings the scare of their life, but alas, it wasn’t enough as Detroit hung onto the 4-3 win. Martin Erat continues his career year and is up to 22 goals. |
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18
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21
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33-29-7
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6-3-1
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It will take a miracle for the Blackhawks to make the playoffs, but it is going to be darn fun watching them try. Even if they fail, the Hawks have served notice they are a team to watch out for in the future. |
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19
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19
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32-27-10
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4-4-2
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The Sabres are knocking at the playoff door, but the Flyers aren’t letting them in. Thomas Vanek has no goals and is minus-5 in four games. |
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20
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18
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34-30-5
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4-5-1
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Three losses in four games for Gretz’s Guys have them moving further away from a playoff position. An NHL-worst 14-17-3 home record is one big reason why. |
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21
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22
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31-28-11
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4-4-2
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A win over Tampa Bay was preceded by three straight one-goal losses for the highly competitive Blue Jackets. With 14 goals, Jason Chimera has a shot at breaking his single-season high of 17. |
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22
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24
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32-30-8
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4-4-2
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Poor Nicklas Backstrom. The rookie lived every player’s nightmare when he swept a shot past his own goalie, Cristobal Huet, for what proved to be the winning goal against Pittsburgh Sunday. |
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23
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25
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33-31-5
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6-4-0
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Back-to-back overtime wins over Columbus and Chicago have the Oilers thinking they can still make the playoffs. Oh well, it doesn’t hurt to dream. |
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24
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26
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32-31-8
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5-3-2
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Nathan Horton scored two overtime winners as the Panthers rolled up four straight victories. |
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25
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23
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30-30-10
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6-3-1
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Two losses in three games (both to New Jersey) have pretty much put a cap on the Leafs’ playoff hopes. After scoring a goal in each of his first three NHL games (spread out over three seasons), Jeremy Williams has been blanked in five straight. |
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26
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20
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32-31-7
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4-6-0
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Coach Ted Nolan played a hunch when he went with backup goalie Wade Dubielewicz against the Rangers, and it backfired as the Islanders’ cross-town rivals beat them 4-1 with starter Rick DiPietro watching from the bench. |
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27
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27
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29-29-10
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2-7-1
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Brad Boyes scored both goals in a 4-2 loss to Vancouver giving him 34 on the season. |
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28
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28
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30-32-8
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1-5-4
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The Thrashers snapped a nine-game losing streak with a 3-2 shootout win over Minnesota, but returned to their losing ways the next day against Florida. |
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29
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29
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26-35-8
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1-7-2
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Just when it looked like he may never score another NHL goal, Vinny Lecavalier snapped his 12-game goalless drought with one against Columbus in a 5-3 loss. |
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30
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30
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27-38-5
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2-6-2
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Goalie Erik Ersberg’s NHL debut was one for the books; he shut out the Ottawa Senators 2-0. |
The Hockey News ranks the teams 1-30 on Mondays. Changes in rankings reflect each team’s play from the previous seven days.
For more great profiles, news and views from the world of hockey, Subscribe to The Hockey News magazine.
Raymond Conway (Posted 2008-03-17 12:44:24)
Dear Donald,
Please see my comment below!
donald (Posted 2008-03-14 19:35:07)
new york the hottest team?
stay up a little later and watch the real deal sharks in action. there is no hotter team nor a better team in the nhl. the cup is staying in california.
oleo (Posted 2008-03-14 17:28:13)
Jesus Christ
half of you are so biased it's ridiculous. Look Ottawa is playing poorly, Toronto is not good and Montreal has a kid playing goalie. You guys can argue all you want but its the truth.
The Rangers are the hottest team in hockey, the Devils have the best goalie by far and Pittsburgh has tremendous but raw talent.
I would say Rangers or Devils out of the east with the west being anyone's game
Mavid (Posted 2008-03-14 15:23:11)
Ahhh yes spoken by a true Hab Hater..you have no idea how I predicted them to finish so please refrain from speaking on my behalf.
I figured you were either a Leaf or a Sens fan...I am amazed that you can predict the future with such accuracy..well time will only tell..won't it. The Sens played better on the western road trip??? Talk about being high on drugs..lets see they played 4 games and lost three one of them being to the worst team in the NHL and you call that playing better...but then I am not really all that surprised that is what you think...dream on...
Tim (Posted 2008-03-14 14:58:54)
Actually Mavid, I predicted the habs in 9th or 10th, just like last year.So did you... the people who say differently are high on drugs.This is a team that has overachieved record wise, has lived off their powerplay and have gotten lucky in the injury department.They will end up in 6th lose quickly in the playoffs because their soft and will allow no doubt as they almost always do 35-45 shots a game.last night again, the seantors showed the habs , they cant touch them, totally dominated them( as usual) and yes mavid, youre whinning not expressing your opinions.the senators played better than the habs on the west coast.luck only lasts so long..enjoy it while it lasts...
Raymond Conway (Posted 2008-03-13 07:48:09)
Come on!! Edmonton 23rd? I think their performance over the last 7 days justifies a much better ranking. Sure they may miss the play-offs (sob sob) but they are undoubtedly one of the hottest teams in the league at the moment! I know it's late in the season and you've been doing this for a while, but hey, you're getting the big bucks, so start putting some real thought into these things!
Mavid (Posted 2008-03-12 10:38:39)
No Tim I won't stop commenting (whinning as you say) this is an open forum for opinions and I will continue to express mine. If you don't like what I have to say then I suggest you go and read a different hockey website. I did not say that the Habs should be higher, what I said was that they had a better western road record, and played better than the Sens yet they moved down the standings by the same amount..The Sens should be lower based on their play for the week, the Habs were a point of reference (learn to read) they will make a quick exit will they? I bet you are you one of those ones who said they would finish 13th in the conference too.
Tim (Posted 2008-03-12 09:02:26)
Mavid, stop whining about the habs.theyre ranked exactly where they should be.feel lucky they won 3 out of their last 5 games while giving up 40 shots in each.For the love of god the worst offensive team in the league New Jersey comes in to the bell ceanter and drops 40 shots a game!! who cares if they beat them, that wont fly in the playoffs.expect a quick exit no matter who they play
Mavid (Posted 2008-03-12 08:12:49)
Its true that both the Sens and Habs went on a western road trip, the Sens won1-4 Habs won2-4 and yet they moved down the standings the same. You say it was expected that the Habs would beat the Kings, yet the Sens could not..
drishy (Posted 2008-03-12 00:26:53)
i agree with jake.. with perry out and san jose winning 9 straight (actually 10 now but 9 when the rankings were made) plus marleau and cheech recently gettin hot they should def be above anaheim.. since the addition of campbell the sharks have def been the hottest team in the league.. oh and drop the not so mighty wings a few notches too.. maybe next week will actually reflect where the sharks should stand (2nd overall in points).. GO SHARKS!
Tim (Posted 2008-03-11 16:55:35)
Yeah Alexander, the habs played great.... giving up 40 shots to phoenix, San Jose, LOS ANGELES !!! and anaheim.real objective view !!! not to mention they got their skirts dirty and didnt defend themselves against any of these teams that pushed them around.I love seeing latendresse skating by Niedermeyer after he wallpapers Hamrlik... he should take his purse and go to hamilton
Duncan Stanage (Posted 2008-03-11 13:23:30)
Every week it's..."oh, boohoo the hockey news hates my team, god, don't they know the Leafs have a better than .500 record against teams with Swedish 4th line right wingers when Toskala eats meatballs for his pre-game meal" just give it a break, THN is a first class magazine who rank teams objectively and without bias.
Alexander Cohen (Posted 2008-03-11 03:58:19)
The Habs didn't deserve that! They came back from 3-1 in the San Jose game and played very well in all of the four western games. I guess last week was just a flash in the pan of non-biast Habs comments.
rich (Posted 2008-03-10 22:32:14)
boo hoo they are 4 live wit it
Jake M (Posted 2008-03-10 21:59:54)
How are the Sharks behind the Ducks this week? The Sharks are on a 8 game winning streak and they are still behind the Ducks? And Stars? What does the hockey news have against the san jose sharks? Every week they are in a lower ranking than what they deserve.
Tim (Posted 2008-03-10 21:47:56)
Good job this week. Yeah whats with the canucks? Keep this up and it'll be Roberto who?
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