The dust is settling with just a few weeks left in the TWC NHL Power Rankings. This week was another quieter one, with just two teams making big moves in opposite directions. Teams are clinching the playoffs more consistently, and now is all about the seeding.
TWC Power Rankings explained
If you’re new to our power rankings, this is how it all works.
Here at TWC, we use a statistical model to effectively rank teams on a week to week basis. The model takes into effect winning percentages, CF%, SCF%, HDCF% as well as SV%. Each statistical category is weighed and scored differently, giving each team a unique TWC Score that determines their ranking after each week. The formula puts the highest emphasis on winning percentages over other statistics. All numbers are taken in all situations, to incorporate special teams into the fray.
We got some excellent feedback over the course of last season from our readers as to how we could improve this model moving forward. We have slightly altered the weightings of the statistical categories, but also added a large recency component to make sure that each week the teams that are riding hot streaks are more appropriately demonstrated in the rankings.
Don’t like where your team is ranked? Unfortunately, they will have to turn it around on the ice, as we take zero personal opinions into effect.
Have any suggestions for the TWC Power Rankings for next season? Leave us a comment and let us know. Without further ado, this week’s power rankings are below!
Week 26 NHL Power Rankings
| Rank | Change | Team | Team Name | Last Week | Record | TWCScore |
| 1 | – |  | Florida Panthers | 3-0-0 | 51-15-6 | 796.3 |
| 2 | – |  | Colorado Avalanche | 3-0-0 | 52-14-6 | 781 |
| 3 | +1 |  | Toronto Maple Leafs | 3-0-1 | 47-19-6 | 771.7 |
| 4 | -1 |  | Carolina Hurricanes | 2-2-0 | 47-18-8 | 768.2 |
| 5 | – |  | Calgary Flames | 4-0-0 | 44-19-9 | 766.3 |
| 6 | +1 |  | Boston Bruins | 2-2-0 | 45-22-5 | 746.4 |
| 7 | -1 |  | Tampa Bay Lightning | 1-2-1 | 44-20-8 | 744.7 |
| 8 | +1 |  | Minnesota Wild | 1-1-1 | 44-21-6 | 732.9 |
| 9 | -1 |  | Pittsburgh Penguins | 1-3-0 | 42-22-10 | 731.1 |
| 10 | – |  | New York Rangers | 3-0-0 | 47-20-6 | 722.4 |
| 11 | +1 |  | Edmonton Oilers | 2-0-1 | 42-25-6 | 710.8 |
| 12 | +1 |  | Dallas Stars | 2-1-1 | 41-27-4 | 707.4 |
| 13 | +2 |  | St Louis Blues | 4-0-0 | 42-20-10 | 705.5 |
| 14 | – |  | Washington Capitals | 3-0-0 | 40-22-10 | 701.4 |
| 15 | -4 |  | Los Angeles Kings | 0-3-0 | 38-26-10 | 700.5 |
| 16 | – |  | Nashville Predators | 2-1-1 | 41-26-5 | 685.2 |
| 17 | – |  | Vegas Golden Knights | 1-1-0 | 40-29-4 | 683.4 |
| 18 | – |  | Winnipeg Jets | 1-1-1 | 34-28-11 | 656.7 |
| 19 | +1 |  | Vancouver Canucks | 3-0-0 | 35-28-10 | 654.8 |
| 20 | -1 |  | New York Islanders | 1-2-0 | 33-29-9 | 645 |
| 21 | – |  | San Jose Sharks | 0-2-1 | 29-33-9 | 618.7 |
| 22 | +1 |  | Columbus Blue Jackets | 2-1-1 | 34-33-6 | 611.3 |
| 23 | -1 |  | Anaheim Ducks | 1-2-0 | 29-33-12 | 610.2 |
| 24 | – |  | New Jersey Devils | 1-2-0 | 25-41-6 | 602.7 |
| 25 | +1 |  | Detroit Red Wings | 2-0-1 | 28-34-10 | 592 |
| 26 | -1 |  | Ottawa Senators | 1-3-0 | 26-40-6 | 581.5 |
| 27 | +1 |  | Chicago Blackhawks | 0-2-0 | 24-37-11 | 573.3 |
| 28 | -1 |  | Buffalo Sabres | 1-3-0 | 26-37-11 | 572.3 |
| 29 | – |  | Seattle Kraken | 1-2-0 | 23-43-6 | 565.7 |
| 30 | – |  | Philadelphia Flyers | 1-2-0 | 23-38-11 | 565.6 |
| 31 | – |  | Montreal Canadiens | 1-2-0 | 20-41-11 | 531.7 |
| 32 | – |  | Arizona Coyotes | 0-3-0 | 22-45-5 | 515.3 |
The Florida Panthers remain the belle of the NHL this week, as their seven-game win streak was more than enough to keep them in first place. Going to be a scary few days for whoever ends up in those wild card positions in the Eastern Conference.
Not to be outdone by any means, but the Colorado Avalanche extended their win streak to six games last week after going 3–0–0 and comfortably remained in second place. The big difference between the top two teams came down to underlying numbers. Although the Avalanche have the better points percentage, the Panthers are top three in CF%, xGF%, and SCF% which gives them a boost in their TWCScore.
Another surprise move this last week was the Toronto Maple Leafs and Carolina Hurricanes swapping spots in third and fourth. The Maple Leafs—on the heels of Auston Matthews’ 51 goals in 50 game performance—are now 8–1–1 in their last ten games. Moving closer to home ice advantage, the Leafs went 3–0–1 last week which was much better than the Hurricanes 2–2–0 record. This gave Toronto the slight edge in our model giving them the third spot.
The Calgary Flames retained their fifth overall position, despite going 4–0–0 last week. Just goes to show how strong the top four teams are in our model, when a team like the Flames who are the top team in their division, went on a franchise record-setting road trip and yet still missed out on the top four. That being said, the Flames are still one of the league’s top teams—especially in the Pacific Division.
Moving down our list, the Boston Bruins and Tampa Bay Lightning actually swapped places this week. The Bruins, who were almost destined for a wild card spot, now actually sit just one point behind the Lightning in the standings. These next few weeks are going to be fascinating in the Atlantic Division.
The St. Louis Blues were the biggest movers of the week, going 4–0–0 and extending their win streak to five games. They are currently tied with Minnesota for second in the Central Division and probably would like to steal home ice advantage away from the Wild.
On the opposite end of the spectrum, the Los Angeles Kings slid hard last week. A 0–3–0 record pushed them down four spots in our rankings, but more importantly pushed them closer to being outside of the playoff picture. As it stands right now, they are two points up on Vegas, but the Golden Knights have a game in hand. I’m sure the last thing the Alberta teams want to see are the Golden Knights capitalizing on this slide and sneaking into the playoffs where I am sure the team will be back to full strength quite quickly.
Past Power Rankings
Check here for how teams have done over past weeks and stay tuned for upcoming power rankings. Note: Week 11 was skipped and combined with Week 12 due to a lack of games.
Week 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25
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