The finish line is in the distance as we head into the final few weeks of the NHL regular season. Teams will show their heart as they battle to get in, or to gain advantageous position. Every game and every point matters. The margin of error is growing smaller and smaller with each passing day. Let’s take a look at how each team did last week, and what momentum they’ll carry into this week.
Anaheim Ducks: D+ (Previous grade: C)
The Ducks had a solid 5-1 win over Ottawa this last week, but that’s about their only highlight. They lost to Montreal and to Toronto, giving up a combined total of 14 goals in the process. John Gibson being injured has certainly hurt this team, but it’s not like he would’ve led them to glory. Lukas Dostal has struggled immensely this season, though some of it is due in part to the poor defense in front of him.
Arizona Coyotes: F (Previous grade: Unchanged)
With a 4-3 loss to the Avalanche on Sunday, the Coyotes have now matched the season high losing streak of nine games. A 6-3 loss to the Oilers this Monday has broken that and put them at ten. This team’s playoff hopes are quickly fading away as they struggle to gather any sort of forward momentum.
Boston Bruins: F (Previous grade: C+)
The Bruins’ poor play last week led them to losing four games in a row. A 5-4 OT loss to the Kings was especially tough to swallow, as they gave up a lead on three separate occasions. They ended it with a shootout win over Dallas this Monday, but that’s week twenty not week nineteen. Their recent play has allowed Florida to catch and even overtake them for the division lead, which you know has to be a bitter pill to swallow.
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Buffalo Sabres: C+ (Previous grade: D-)
The highlight of the week was Buffalo absolutely thrashing the Kings in a 7-0 victory. They added some sugar to that with an OT win over the Wild, but a brutal loss to the Panthers stopped them from going any higher. The Kings victory shows what Buffalo can do on their best day, but that has rarely been shown in a season full of underperforming and disappointment.
Calgary Flames: D- (Previous grade: A+)
The Flames followed up a four game winning streak by losing three in a row. Every time you think this team is doing the right things in order to catch up to the other playoff teams, they shoot themselves in the foot. It’ll be interesting to see what other moves they attempt to make, as they appear to be focused on the future more so than the remainder of this season.
Carolina Hurricanes: B (Previous grade: Unchanged)
The Canes went 2-1-0 this week to continue their uphill trend the last few weeks. This is what we’ve been wanting to see from Carolina all season, but it’s still not enough for this team. They want to be better, with head coach Rod Brind’Amour even coming out and saying they have to be more aggressive. This is a team that wants to succeed and is determined to do so.
Chicago Blackhawks: F (Previous grade: Unchanged)
A 3-2 win over the Senators ended what was an eight game losing streak for the Blackhawks. Having Connor Bedard back will certainly help this team, but not much. They’re at rock bottom and have no real direction for the future outside of hopefully some good draft picks.
Colorado Avalanche: D- (Previous grade: F)
The Avs have struggled since the break to say the least. Their 4-3 win over the struggling Coyotes was only their second win since the All-Star break. They’ve lost the top spot in the division and currently sit three points behind Dallas, while only one point ahead of Winnipeg. It’s a bad time to start a slide, so hopefully Colorado can end it before it gets too much worse.
Columbus Blue Jackets: D (Previous grade: D-)
Columbus has only played three games since exiting the All-Star break. They’ve only won one of those games. There’s really not much to say about this team anymore. Hopefully they give us at least a little bit of something to talk about before the end of the season.
Dallas Stars: A- (Previous grade: B-)
The Stars are doing exactly what they need to, and that’s getting points anyway they can. Top that off with the fact that they’ve been absolutely stellar on the road and you have a team that’s currently holding down the number one spot in the Central division. Whether or not they can hold it until the playoffs is yet to be seen.
Detroit Red Wings: D+ (Previous grade: A-)
The Red Wings lost twice this week, but managed to get a dominant 5-0 victory over Calgary to end it. Their recent losses don’t do much to change the fact that they’ve usually been winning more often than not. We’ll see if that trend continues given the high note they ended the week on.
Edmonton Oilers: B (Previous grade: D)
Crucial loss to the Blues aside, Edmonton is still winning and they’re still holding down third place. At the end of the week they were only one point ahead of LA, although that number has gone up to three since they beat Arizona this Monday. It’s hard to really say that this team is destined for greatness in the playoffs given that we’ve seen all this before, but they’re pretty dang good.
Florida Panthers: A+ (Previous grade: A-)
The Panthers have given the Bruins absolutely no room to breathe at the top and it’s paid off. Five wins in a row have seen Florida overtake Boston for the number one spot in the Atlantic (Although Boston did bring it back with a win over Dallas this monday). Florida has wanted nothing more than to prove last year’s run wasn’t a flash in the pan and they’ve done that so far. Now they just need to bunker down and go on a good playoff run.
Los Angeles Kings: B+ (Previous grade: A)
The Kings were humiliated at the hands of Buffalo. It seemed they were on the same trend they were before. Then they responded with three wins in a row. They appear reinvigorated and ready to shake away the negativity of their long skid. Hopefully they can do just that and make a statement right before the postseason.
Minnesota Wild: A (Previous grade: Unchanged)
It’s now four wins in a row for Minnesota (five now that they’ve beaten Vancouver this Monday). They just refuse to lay down and die every single time it looks like they’ve reached their ceiling and are going to fall apart. They’re gaining ground on the wild card competing teams, especially the struggling Predators. The fact that they have so many glaring issues yet continue to find ways to win games is quite impressive.
Montreal Canadiens: D (Previous grade: D+)
A 1-2-0 week is nothing new for the Habs, who have found themselves losing more often than not recently. It’s safe to say that this season is gone for Montreal, but they haven’t let that faze their optimism towards the future. They’re very confident in their prospects and they have every reason to be. The future is bright for Montreal, that much is safe to say.
Nashville Predators: D+ (Previous grade: C+)
Despite Jussi Saros’ best efforts, Nashville is slipping. A crucial win over St Louis hopefully slowed some of the bleeding, but it’s yet to be seen if it’ll stop the skid all together. They’re still very close to a wild card spot, but that gap continues to grow wider, and the teams behind them continue to get closer, the longer Nashville free falls.
New Jersey Devils: A- (Previous grade: D+)
The Devils have won three of four this week, and it’s safe to say their Stadium Series game against Philadelphia was one of the most entertaining games of the year. It was a crucial win for them as well as they fight and claw for a postseason spot. There’s a long road ahead for the Devils and hopefully they’re ready to travel it.
New York Islanders: D- (Previous grade: A-)
Three losses in a row have stopped the Islanders in their tracks just as they were starting to speed up again. Their only solace this week is they managed to get a point in a highly entertaining game against the Rangers. It was still a crucial loss though, and one they gave up a 4-1 lead in.
New York Rangers: A+ (Previous grade: B)
The Rangers continue to chug along as they’ve now won seven in a row since the All-Star Break. They’ve increased their lead over the Hurricanes to six points, but the margin of error is still very, very slim given how well Carolina is playing. The Rangers clearly know this and it’s been reflected in their stellar play the last couple of weeks. They’re all systems go and are bent on making a statement.
Ottawa Senators: C (Previous grade: A+)
The Sens followed up their four game winning streak with two losses in a row. The Blackhawks loss was particularly depressing as it seemed like a game they should’ve had. Should’ve had is a good term to sum up the Sens entire season however, as they woefully failed to meet any of the preseason hype they had surrounding them.
Philadelphia Flyers: C- (Previous grade: A+)
The Flyers also had their four game winning streak ended by a two game losing streak, including a crucial (albeit entertaining) loss to the Devils in their Stadium Series game. The Flyers currently have a five point lead over New Jersey for the third place spot in the division, while sitting four points behind Carolina for the second place spot.
Pittsburgh Penguins: D- (Previous grade: D+)
The Penguins played two and half solid periods of defensive hockey against the Kings before Adrian Kempe suddenly exploded and handed them a 2-1 loss and a broken heart. The loss was the Pens fourth in their last five games. They now sit nine points out of a wild card spot and ten points behind the third place Flyers. It’s starting to look pretty bleak for this team.
San Jose Sharks: F (Previous grade: Did not play)
The Sharks have only had three games (Four now that they’ve played Vegas) since the break and they’ve lost every single one. This is what rock bottom looks like guys. This team cannot sink any lower and that’s probably the best piece of news these guys have gotten all year.
Seattle Kraken: C+ (Previous grade: D-)
The Kraken won two straight to end off their week on a high note heading into a Monday game against the Red Wings. However, it’s probably too soon to get any hopes up given this team’s inability to maintain any sort of forward momentum whatsoever. There’s good news in the fact that they stayed away from the basement of the league, and their prospects look quite good.
St Louis Blues: D+ (Previous grade: A-)
The Blues won a crucial game over the Oilers in emphatic fashion, but then dropped an almost as crucial game against the Predators to officially go 1-2-0 for week 19. This team is hoping that that’s just a bump in the road and they can go back to business as usual, but time is running short and mistakes have to be kept to a minimum.
Tampa Bay Lightning: B+ (Previous grade: D+
A 9-2 loss to their rival Panthers after a three game winning streak was certainly a stinger for this team and will most likely be hard to bounce back from. Have faith in this team’s resilience and experience though. There’s a very strong chance they’ll find their way back into the playoffs to try for yet another Cup.
Toronto Maple Leafs: A+ (Previous grade: D-)
The Leafs have won three straight (four now that they’ve beaten St Louis) but the real story is the absolutely stellar play of Auston Matthews. Six hat tricks this season, including two this last week alone. His 48 goals are the league’s lead and he’s on track to adding a good ten more to that list. There’s just no stopping this kid.
Vancouver Canucks: B- (Previous grade: C)
The Canucks continue to plod forward and gather points, but it does seem to feel like they’ve lost a little bit of steam ( a 10-7 loss to the Wild this Monday only adds to that feeling). Maybe it’s just a small hiccup or maybe it’s something else. The next couple of weeks will certainly tell us the answer.
Vegas Golden Knights: D+ (Previous grade: A)
Vegas lost two of three last week and with that lost even more ground on Vancouver and gave some up to LA and Edmonton. They were the favorites to win the Pacific again this year, now they seem to be fighting tooth and nail just to hold onto second place. Make no mistake though, they’re still a tough out for anyone.
Washington Capitals: D+ (Previous grade: D-)
Despite Ovechkin’s recent increase in offense being a sigh of relief for this team, it’s done little to stop their free fall. Every week brings them close and closer to missing the playoffs for a second straight year and to the painfully obvious realization that it’s most likely time to tear down this core and rebuild.
Winnipeg Jets: A- (Previous grade: D-)
The Jets quickly won three straight to right the ship and get back on course. They sit one point behind Colorado for second place and four points behind Dallas. They have a lot of work to do, but this team is up to the challenge I believe. Especially with Connor Hellebuyck playing like his old, Vezina winning self.
