NHL Power Rankings: Each team's biggest cause for concern

This is the second in-season edition of theScore's NHL Power Rankings for the 2024-25 campaign. Check back for updated rankings every other Monday.

In this edition, we look at each team's biggest cause for concern in the early part of the season.

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1. Winnipeg Jets (11-1-0)

Previous rank: 2

Cruising against a soft schedule. The Jets are soaring, and their power play has been nearly automatic. But did the team's only loss against Toronto reveal some concern? Winnipeg was outplayed at five-on-five and got back into the game on special teams. Only three of the Jets' first 12 contests were against playoff teams from last year. Can they do it against tougher competition?

2. Florida Panthers (9-3-1)

Previous rank: 6

Goals against. Everything is peachy in Pantherland, but the season's early stages have been looser than we've grown to expect from Florida. The club is allowing 3.15 goals against per game, a sizeable jump from last season's NHL-best 2.41 mark.

3. New York Rangers (8-2-1)

Previous rank: 3

Igor Shesterkin's free agency. The backbone of the Rangers has been his typical self to commence his contract year. New York is in a great spot, but it's only natural to look ahead to Shesterkin's unrestricted free agency and be at least slightly concerned.

4. Carolina Hurricanes (8-2-0)

Previous rank: 17

Jordan Staal. The Hurricanes are surging up the standings, but the captain is ice-cold, recording only one point in 10 games. Although Staal contributes to Carolina's success in other ways, getting him going would be a nice boost.

5. Vegas Golden Knights (8-3-1)

Previous rank: 9

Regression. The Golden Knights lead the league with 40 tallies scored at five-on-five. However, they've generated just 25.37 expected goals while rocking an inflated 13.61% shooting rate. Vegas will likely come back down to earth eventually. What will happen then?

6. Minnesota Wild (8-1-2)

Previous rank: 11

Craig Leipold's promise. The Wild owner said over the offseason that he'll pay just about anything to extend star Kirill Kaprizov, and the winger has started the season with a blistering 21 points in 11 games. Be ready to pay the piper, Craig.

7. Washington Capitals (8-3-0)

Previous rank: 14

Subpar goaltending. Washington made the playoffs last season largely on the back of Charlie Lindgren's strong play. He hasn't backed it up early this campaign, and offseason addition Logan Thompson hasn't been better. If, or when, the Capitals' offensive production takes a step back, they'll need one of Lindgren or Thompson to find their groove.

8. Dallas Stars (7-4-0)

Previous rank: 1

Finland, or alternatively, the Panthers. The Stars headed to Tampere with a sterling 7-2-0 record, but they couldn't secure a single point overseas in back-to-back losses to Florida. These two teams won't meet again this regular season. Still, it isn't outlandish to think the Panthers and Stars could meet in the Stanley Cup Final.

9. Tampa Bay Lightning (7-5-0)

Previous rank: 4

Special teams. The Lightning are getting by just fine in life after Stamkos, but an 20% power play and 73.2% penalty kill will need to improve if Tampa Bay hopes to be a real threat in the East again.

10. New Jersey Devils (7-5-2)

Previous rank: 5

Ondrej Palat. He's spent a big chunk of his five-on-five minutes with Jack Hughes early in the season but has mustered only three points and 16 shots in 13 games. Left-wing depth is a weakness for New Jersey, and Palat's lack of production isn't helping the cause.

11. Vancouver Canucks (5-2-3)

Previous rank: 16

Thatcher Demko. No, seriously, is he OK? There's still no firm timeline for the goaltender's return as he deals with a unique knee injury. Kevin Lankinen has done an admirable job keeping the Canucks afloat between the pipes, but there's no doubt that they're a stronger force with Demko in net.

12. Los Angeles Kings (6-3-3)

Previous rank: 20

Quinton Byfield. Byfield has been mixing in at center again after excelling on the wing last season. It hasn't gone well, as he's still looking for his first goal of the campaign. Byfield went three games without a shot on net before registering three against Chicago. It might be time to accept that he's a winger, not a center.

13. Toronto Maple Leafs (6-5-2)

Previous rank: 7

Lowly power play. A unit with that much talent (not to mention an astronomical price tag) shouldn't be this bad, but here we are. The Leafs are the league's second-worst team on the man advantage with a 10% success rate.

14. Edmonton Oilers (6-5-1)

Previous rank: 19

What's Connor McDavid going to come back to? The Oilers weren't doing too hot even when their captain was healthy, and he's still going to be out for at least one more week. Will Edmonton stay afloat in the meantime, or will McDavid need to dig his team out of a significant hole?

15. Ottawa Senators (6-5-0)

Previous rank: 18

Dreaded month of November. The Senators are a disastrous 9-24-2 in November over the past three seasons. Can Ottawa finally avoid posting a losing record in the second month of the campaign and keep things on the rails?

16. Boston Bruins (6-6-1)

Previous rank: 12

Offensive depth. The Bruins are struggling to score at five-on-five, with David Pastrnak and Justin Brazeau being the only two players with more than three goals. Without rock-solid goaltending, Boston's roster flaws are being exposed.

17. Colorado Avalanche (5-7-0)

Previous rank: 22

Well-being of their forwards. Colorado must've ticked off the hockey gods. Artturi Lehkonen and Valeri Nichushkin have yet to play this season (and still no sign of Gabriel Landeskog), while Jonathan Drouin has been out since the opener. Ross Colton did an amazing job of making up for their absences, but now he's out with a broken foot. Yikes.

18. St. Louis Blues (6-6-0)

Previous rank: 13

Philip Broberg's health. Broberg's play early in his St. Louis tenure has been one of the top stories around the league. If he misses extended time after an awkward fall Saturday, it would be a tough pill to swallow for a team already without their best player, Robert Thomas, due to injury.

19. Detroit Red Wings (5-5-1)

Previous rank: 24

Penalty killing. Teams who kill off 66.7% of penalties don't end playoff droughts. Detroit needs to rectify it ASAP to supplement an otherwise solid start to the season.

20. Nashville Predators (4-6-1)

Previous rank: 32

Defensive commitment. The only skaters in the positives on Nashville's plus-minus chart are Gustav Nyquist, Zachary L'Heureux, and Marc Del Gaizo. Steven Stamkos (minus-9), Roman Josi (minus-8), and Jonathan Marchessault (minus-5) have been big contributors to the Predators' 26th-ranked goal differential.

21. Calgary Flames (6-5-1)

Previous rank: 10

Crashing down to earth. The Flames' electric start to the campaign was a great story, but they can't let things completely unravel as the results regress. Calgary answered four straight losses by shutting out New Jersey. That's a positive sign, but those extended losing streaks must be avoided.

22. Utah Hockey Club (5-4-3)

Previous rank: 8

Connor Ingram. Utah looked to have a hidden gem when Ingram emerged as the franchise's starting netminder, but he's off to a horrible start after moving from the desert to the mountains. Ingram owns a .881 save percentage in 10 games so far, along with an ugly minus-4.6 goals saved above average.

23. Pittsburgh Penguins (5-7-1)

Previous rank: 23

Everyone not named Sidney Crosby or Evgeni Malkin. Yes, this also includes you, Kyle Dubas and Mike Sullivan. If anyone feels like stepping up and helping the two iconic Penguins, that'd be great. Thanks.

24. Seattle Kraken (5-7-1)

Previous rank: 15

Are they just mid? Big offseason signings Brandon Montour and Chandler Stephenson are off to good starts with the Kraken. And yet, Seattle ranks as an average team at best in most stats. The club might be firmly in that dreaded place: Out of the playoff picture but not in the mix for a top-five draft pick.

25. New York Islanders (4-6-2)

Previous rank: 21

Offense. The Islanders already don't have a reputation for being a fearsome scoring team, but it's about to get worse. First, New York lost offseason acquisition Anthony Duclair to injury, and now Mathew Barzal is joining him on the sidelines with an upper-body issue. Oof.

26. Anaheim Ducks (4-5-2)

Previous rank: 26

Trevor Zegras. He was supposed to be a pillar of Anaheim's rebuild, but Zegras hasn't produced like a star since his 65-point campaign in 2022-23. Injuries played a negative factor last season, but three points in 11 games to start the year isn't good enough for the face of the franchise.

27. Columbus Blue Jackets (5-5-1)

Previous rank: 29

Mounting injuries. Long-term injuries to Boone Jenner, Kent Johnson, and Erik Gudbranson have seriously tested Columbus' depth. The Blue Jackets managed things early, but back-to-back big losses to Winnipeg and Washington might've revealed some cracks.

28. Buffalo Sabres (4-7-1)

Previous rank: 28

State of the rebuild. The Sabres rank 17th in goals for and 24th in goals against. Lines two through four aren't producing, the goalies aren't stopping pucks, and the Lindy Ruff hire feels like a miss. Some day, Buffalo will take a step forward and make the playoffs. Maybe.

29. Montreal Canadiens (4-7-1)

Previous rank: 27

Lack of confidence. Martin St. Louis said his Canadiens threw up all over themselves after their 6-3 loss to the Capitals on Halloween. Confident teams don't do that. The Habs are a young squad, and this season will drag if they don't get some swagger back.

30. Chicago Blackhawks (5-7-1)

Previous rank: 25

Connor Bedard's help is hardly helping. Bedard is off to a slow start due to a frigid shooting percentage, but the players Chicago brought in to help carry the load up front aren't delivering. Teuvo Teravainen (eight points), Tyler Bertuzzi (four points), and Ilya Mikheyev (two points) need to make more of an impact.

31. Philadelphia Flyers (4-7-1)

Previous rank: 30

Goaltending. Ivan Fedotov has an atrocious .817 save percentage in six games since joining the Flyers in the spring. Samuel Ersson took the starter's role and is now dealing with an injury. If Aleksei Kolosov isn't the answer, Philadelphia could be in significant trouble in the crease.

32. San Jose Sharks (3-8-2)

Previous rank: 31

Macklin Celebrini's hip. The fact that we've seen the 2024 first overall pick in only one NHL game is a major loss. Macklin, please come back. Sharks fans' sanity depends on it.

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