Through Friday's games. Last week's rankings in parentheses.
1. Florida Panthers. Reinhart scores in 7th straight game vs. hometown Canucks. (1)
2. Colorado Avalanche. Kadri breaking out with team-high 51 points in 34 games. (4)
Some significant mistakes led to the 5-4 loss to the Dallas Stars, but Jack Quinn and Dylan Cozens tallied goals as the Buffalo Sabres showed the outlook is bright for a franchise that’s in jeopardy of missing the Stanley Cup Playoffs for a record 11th season.
3. Tampa Bay Lightning. Won six of seven before stumble in Anaheim. (2)
4. Carolina Hurricanes. Dominant performance against Rangers. (5)
5. Pittsburgh Penguins. Hat trick vs. Jackets gets Crosby within four goals of 500. (9)
6. Toronto Maple Leafs. Gave up 21 goals in five-game stretch while going 2-2-1. (3)
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7. Washington Capitals. Ultra consistent: 11-5-5 at home, 11-5-4 on the road. (7)
8. New York Rangers. Need to get more from Lafreniere and Kakko. (6)
9. St. Louis Blues. Nifty shot by Parayko on rare penalty-shot goal by a D-man in Seattle. (8)
10. Nashville Predators. Beat Jets to snap four-game skid that started vs. Sabres. (10)
11. Vegas Golden Knights. Mega road week ahead: Caps, Canes, Panthers, Lightning. (12)
12. Boston Bruins. Spectacular ceremony to retire Willie O'Ree's number 22. (11)
13. Minnesota Wild. Foligno has already cracked career high with 15 goals. (13)
14. Los Angeles Kings. Byfield (No. 2 overall in 2020) makes NHL debut. (16)
15. Anaheim Ducks. Terry gets much-deserved All-Star Last Men In vote. (15)
16. San Jose Sharks. Meier explodes for first five-goal game in franchise history. (20)
17. Calgary Flames. Burned Panthers for four-goal win after losing to them by four on the road. (14)
If the Sabres ever want to get anywhere in the Atlantic Division, they first better conquer Ottawa and Detroit, Harrington says.
18. Dallas Stars. Rallied in third on back-to-back nights for wins in Buffalo and Detroit. (18).
19. Winnipeg Jets. Brutal upcoming week: Penguins, Panthers, Canucks, Blues. (17)
20. Detroit Red Wings. Will finish ahead of Sabres by going 4-0 in season series as Buffalo went 0-1-3. (23)
21. Vancouver Canucks. Boudreau has made major impact tightening the goals against. (22)
22. Edmonton Oilers. Hard to imagine Tippett survives this collapse. (19)
23. New York Islanders. RIP, four-time Stanley Cup champion (and brief ex-Sabre) Clark Gillies. (24)
24. Columbus Blue Jackets. Have alternated wins and losses for six straight games. (21)
25. Chicago Blackhawks. Will be weird to not see Kane at an All-Star Game. (27)
26. New Jersey Devils. Hughes at 21 points in 21 games. (25)
27. Philadelphia Flyers. "For Sale" sign going up for much of the roster, including Ristolainen. (26)
28. Buffalo Sabres. Quinn's injury the biggest bummer in a season full of them. (28)
29. Ottawa Senators. Lesson on winning goal by Sabres: Always play to the whistle. (29)
30. Seattle Kraken. Have only nine goals in last five home games but went 2-3. (30)
31. Arizona Coyotes. Ex-Sabre Larsson up to six goals – all in last eight games. (31)
32. Montreal Canadiens. Montembault with 49 saves in OT loss at Vegas. (32)