Week 6 Pacific Division Power Rankings

This week: VS DET, @ WPG, @ STL

7. Vancouver Canucks (4-9-3)

Last week: 6

The Canucks started an East coast road trip with a 6-4 win over the Ottawa Senators, but that’s been followed by three straight regulation losses to the Montreal Canadiens, Toronto Maple Leafs and Boston Bruins. Just when you think Vancouver may be starting to build a little momentum, things fall apart again.

If you’ve ever wondered why a player who puts up as many points as J.T. Miller is scrutinized as heavily as he is, this play might give you an idea.

This week: @ BUF, VS LAK

6. San Jose Sharks (5-9-3)

Last week: 7

The Sharks closed out the week with a pair of wins on the road, 5-4 over the Dallas Stars and then 3-2 in a shootout over the Minnesota Wild. It doesn’t take much to be ranked ahead of the Ducks and Canucks these days.

Erik Karlsson has pretty much been a one-man show for San Jose this season, but they somehow managed to score five goals against Dallas without him hitting the scoresheet. After a slow start, Timo Meier has been heating up with seven goals and 12 points over his last eight games.

This week: @ VGK, VS DET, VS NYR

5. Seattle Kraken (8-5-2)

Last week: 4

The Kraken extended their winning streak to a franchise-best five games with a 5-1 drubbing of the Nashville Predators last Tuesday, but they closed out the week with a 1-0 loss to the Wild and a 3-2 overtime loss to the Winnipeg Jets.

Nobody on Seattle has scored more than five goals this season. When this team wins, it seems like there’s a new hero every night. Against the Predators on Tuesday, it was Jordan Eberle potting a pair of goals after having scored just one goal in the season’s first 13 games.

This week: VS NYR, VS LA

4. Calgary Flames (6-6-2)

Last week: 3

It’s tough to know what to make of the Flames right now. After a significant remake of their core, they’ve had an up-and-down season thus far. They picked up a badly-needed 3-2 win over the Jets on Saturday to snap a seven-game winless streak.

Mikael Backlund has been on the Flames for approximately 400 years. He’s been known more for his defensive acumen over that time, but he’s also tied for second on the team with five goals this year.

This week: VS LA, @ TB, @ FLA

3. Edmonton Oilers (9-7-0)

Last week: 2

The Oilers managed to split a pretty tough four-game road trip, beating the Tampa Bay Lightning and Florida Panthers while losing to the Washington Capitals and Carolina Hurricanes.

After a solid 35-save performance in the 3-2 win over the Lightning, Jack Campbell got lit up for seven goals on 32 shots against the Hurricanes.

Edmonton lost one of its biggest offensive weapons outside of Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl long-term on the road trip. In a scary scene at Amalie Arena, Evander Kane had his wrist slashed by Pat Maroon’s skate in the win over the Lightning. He’s going to be alright, but he’ll be out of the lineup for 3-4 months.

This week: VS LA, VS VGK

2. LA Kings (10-6-1)

Last week: 5

The Kings are moving up a few spots this week after finishing off a perfect 4-0-0 homestand.

Given how much trouble they’ve had keeping pucks out of their net this year, a 1-0 win over the Wild and a 2-1 overtime win over the Blackhawks last week were almost refreshing.

Then they capped off the homestand with a 4-3 win over the Detroit Red Wings on Saturday in which they debuted their fantastic new reverse retro uniforms.

Sean Durzi liked them so much that he scored twice in them.

This week: @ CGY, @ EDM, @ VAN, @ SEA

1. Vegas Golden Knights (13-3-0)

Last week: 1

Before having it snapped with a 3-2 loss to the St. Louis Blues on Saturday, the Golden Knights extended their winning streak to nine games with a 7-4 win over the Buffalo Sabres on Thursday.

Jack Eichel’s first game back in Buffalo last season didn’t go they way he wanted. He’ll remember this game much more fondly, though, after scoring a hat trick in front of a hostile crowd.

This week: VS SJ, VS ARI, @ EDM