Subscribe
Follow Us
Not counting the 2024 Global Series Czechia, it's been exactly 13 days since the 2024-25 National Hockey League campaign kicked off in Seattle on October 8. And although it's still extremely early, the chaos brewing in ClutchPoints' weekly NHL Power Rankings is palpable. Some teams are absolutely shattering preseason expectations — like the Calgary Flames — while others just cannot seem to buy a win — we're looking at you, Nashville.
Who expected the Predators to be dead last in league standings at any time this season, especially after their spending spree this summer? Who expected Evgeni Malkin to turn back the clock and keep pace for the scoring lead through seven games — and score his 500th in the process? And who saw the Winnipeg Jets being the only undefeated team remaining in the NHL through two weeks? There have been some significant glitches in the matrix as we enter Week 3.
But the more things change, the more they stay the same. The Dallas Stars and New York Rangers continue to dominate in their respective divisions, with each team suffering just a single loss. And proving that the first week wasn't a fluke, the Utah Hockey Club continues to make waves in the early going, which is just a treat for hockey-starved fans in Salt Lake City.
Heading into another busy seven-day stretch in the NHL, hockey fans won't need to wait long for the highlight of Week 3: Frozen Frenzy. On Tuesday night, all 32 teams will be in action for the only time during the campaign. Most of the start times are staggered by 15 minutes, with the Washington Capitals kicking things off in Philly against the Flyers at 6 pm ET. The Los Angeles Kings and Vegas Golden Knights wrap things up, with puck dropping on the strip just past 11 ET. It'll be a chaotic night of hockey — a fantasy manager's dream come true.
Every squad has now played between four and eight games, and things aren't yet taking shape — but we're getting close. Where does your favorite team land in Week 3 of the NHL Power Rankings? Let's find out.
Previous 2024-25 NHL Power Rankings: Week 1 | Week 2
1. Dallas Stars (no change)
For the second straight week, the Stars are at the top of the NHL Power Rankings mountain. Although Dallas lost for the first time in 2024-25 — a 3-2 defeat at the hands of the Washington Capitals on Thursday — the squad bounced back with a convincing 4-1 win over the Oilers two nights later. With that, the Stars are 5-1 and tied for first place in the Central Division with the red hot Jets, who aren't too far down the rankings themselves. Jake Oettinger secured the bag to the tune of an eight-year, $66 million pact, and the star netminder will patrol the crease in Texas well into the future. This roster is getting scoring from up and down the lineup, and as long as that and Oettinger's excellence continues, the Stars should remain near the top all year long.
2. Winnipeg Jets (+3)
What a start to the year in Manitoba. Through two weeks, the Jets are the only undefeated team remaining in the National, having crushed the Sharks and Penguins in their light Week 2 schedule. The top line of Mark Scheifele, Kyle Connor and Gabriel Vilardi has been electric, while Connor Hellebuyck looks poised to at least be in the conversation for back-to-back Vezina Trophies. Now 5-0 and having scored 24 goals — and given up just eight — Winnipeg is looking like a powerhouse in the early going. After spending the last week-and-a-half at home, it'll be interesting to see if the Jets can keep the unbeaten streak going on the road, with games in St. Louis, Seattle and Calgary in Week 3.
3. New York Rangers (+1)
The Rangers are one of only four teams who have not yet been beaten in regulation in 2024-25. And the good times kept rolling last week, with the Blueshirts winning a back-to-back set with the struggling Red Wings before downing the Maple Leafs on Hockey Night in Canada on Saturday. That has New York 4-0-1, a sparkling record for last season's President's Trophy winner. After a dark horse Hart Trophy-caliber campaign, Artemi Panarin looks absolutely possessed this year, leading the league with six goals and 12 points in just six contests. And Igor Shesterkin is a brick wall; the Russian looks like he's going to be worth every penny of the outrageous contract extension he eventually signs. All is well for now in the Big Apple, and the New York Yankees playing in their first World Series since 2009 isn't hurting the vibe one bit.
4. New Jersey Devils (-1)
The top team in the NHL through two weeks is the Devils, who have played more games than everyone else and even doubled up a few. Despite that, New Jersey is off to a great start at 5-2-1, and the injury bug looks to be at bay for now. In fact, both Brett Pesce and Luke Hughes should be back to help bolster an already solid defensive core ‘imminently,' head coach Sheldon Keefe said on Monday. The Devils went 1-1-1 in Week 2, which certainly isn't great, but Jack Hughes still hasn't gotten going. It's only a matter of time with the young superstar, and Jacob Markstrom already looks to be a smart investment for general manager Tom Fitzgerald. The inflated game totals will rectify eventually, but NJ is still looking like a top-five team — in both league standings and the NHL Power Rankings — thus far.
5. Florida Panthers (+1)
Even without the services of Sasha Barkov and Matthew Tkachuk, the defending Stanley Cup champions are looking like one of the premier teams in the NHL. A four-game slate in Week 2 went swimmingly, with the Panthers securing seven of a possible eight points. Florida beat Boston, Columbus and Vegas, the finale a 2023 Finals rematch at home, which must have felt good for the players. A JT Miller overtime winner for the Canucks spoiled a perfect week for the Panthers, but a 4-2-1 record without two of their best players is hugely encouraging. And Sergei Bobrovsky will likely become the 14th goalie to win 400 games this week — he's just one away. The surefire Hall of Famer could reach the incredible milestone as soon as Tuesday night against the Wild at Amerant Bank Arena.
6. Vegas Golden Knights (-4)
After a terrific start to the campaign, the Golden Knights have fallen back down to earth in a big way. Vegas is losers of three straight, all of them on the road in the southeastern United States. And the squad was only able to manage a single point on the road trip, losing 4-2 to the Capitals, 4-3 to the Lightning and 4-3 in overtime against the Panthers to end the week. With that, the Knights are down to 3-2-1, and thus take a bit of a tumble in the NHL Power Rankings. The team will be thrilled to get back to T-Mobile Arena, where they'll remain for a four-game home stand against the Kings, Senators, Sharks and Flames.
7. Tampa Bay Lightning (+2)
The Nikita Kucherov show continues in Tampa Bay. The Russian superstar is up to nine points in just four games, and he's started the season with seven of the Lightning's 16 goals in 2024-25. The former Hart Trophy winner is looking like an early favorite this season, and after amassing 144 points last year, who knows what the right winger is capable of with Jake Guentzel on his opposite wing. The Bolts had a solid week, beating Vancouver and Vegas before dropping a tight 5-4 final to Ottawa in Canada's capital over the weekend. Tampa remains 3-1, and with Andrei Vasilevskiy looking (close to) back to form, this should be a top-three team in the Atlantic Division come April.
8. Utah Hockey Club (-1)
After a thrilling first week in the NHL, the Utah Hockey Club has continued playing reasonably good hockey. A three-game winning streak was followed up by back-to-back losses to the Devils and Ducks, respectively, but the club got back in the win column by coming from behind to defeat the Bruins on Saturday night. Make that a 4-1-1 start for hockey's newest team, which nobody in Salt Lake City will be too upset about. This roster is young, fast and exciting, but the bump in the NHL Power Rankings is due to two devastating injuries. Both Sean Durzi and John Marino will be out of the lineup long-term, and it'll be interesting to see how Utah performs without the two blue liners for the next couple of months.
9. Calgary Flames (+3)
The show keeps on going on for the Flames, who are out to prove that they're for real this season. Calgary is still without a regulation loss, having had the perfect 4-0 streak broken in a tight overtime defeat to the Kraken on Saturday night. Still, 4-0-1 is phenomenal, especially for a club that had absolutely no expectations heading into the season. And GM Craig Conroy is ready to make the team even better, reportedly looking to add another middle-six center. That's music to the ears of Flames fans, who are ready to continue being the positive surprise of the 2024-25 campaign. Dan Vladar and youngster Dustin Wolf have both been excellent between the pipes, and it'll be worth watching to see if one of the two ends up taking over the starter's job on a more permanent basis. Regardless, this roster is clearly having a lot of fun right now, and they'll look to keep it going during a three-game homestand against the Penguins, Hurricanes and undefeated Jets in Week 3.
10. Toronto Maple Leafs (-2)
The Maple Leafs are off to a reasonably strong start in 2024-25, especially considering Joseph Woll is still on the shelf. Anthony Stolarz has proven he's much more than a serviceable backup, and he's given Toronto's new head coach Craig Berube everything he could have asked for as a fill-in. It looks like those two could end up splitting the crease, but the Leafs are doing well regardless of who is between the pipes, having won three of their first five. A 4-1 loss to the Rangers at home was disappointing, but at least Auston Matthews is back to scoring goals. In the only game on Monday night, Toronto will welcome Kucherov and Tampa Bay to Scotiabank Arena for an all-Atlantic Division clash.
11. Vancouver Canucks (no change)
After a winless first week, last season's top seed in the Pacific Division has begun to turn things around. The Canucks have won each of their last two games, in Florida against the Panthers on Thursday and vs. the Flyers in Philly on Saturday night. With that, Vancouver is above .500 ahead of a road matchup with Connor Bedard and the Blackhawks on Tuesday. Kevin Lankinen has been holding down the fort admirably in Thatcher Demko's absence, but we won't really know how good this team is until the star netminder is ready to return. Still, the Nucks are back on the right track, and should again be a top-three team in the division in 2024-25. Elias Pettersson, who is making $11.6 million and remains without a 5-on-5 goal since the 2023-24 regular-season, badly needs to get his confidence back for this team to start climbing back up the NHL Power Rankings.
12. Boston Bruins (-2)
Jeremy Swayman is still figuring things out in net after finally securing the bag; he's lost each of his last two starts. And Boston has dropped two of three, losing to Florida and Utah with the young American between the pipes. They were able to salvage a victory with Joonas Korpisalo in net, a 5-3 triumph over the struggling Avalanche. Despite an up-and-down week, the Bruins remain 3-2-1 and second place in the Atlantic, which certainly isn't a bad place to be. They'll try to not allow the Predators to win their first game of the year when the two cross-conference foes meet in Smashville on Tuesday night.
13. Minnesota Wild (+4)
The Wild need good goaltending if they hope to return to the Stanley Cup Playoffs in 2025 — and so far, so good. Filip Gustavsson has been absolutely lights out between the pipes, but more importantly, he scored the first goalie goal in franchise history in a 4-1 win over the Blues last Tuesday. It was an incredible moment for the Swedish netminder, who had a down year in 2023-24 but is looking like one of the league's best goalies in the early going. And Minnesota has been rock solid early on, failing to lose in regulation through their first five. At 3-0-2, Week 3 is an important one, with the Wild continuing a gruelling seven-game road trip in Florida, Tampa Bay and Philadelphia. Expect coach John Hynes to keep riding Gustavsson's hot hand as long as the goal scorer keeps playing this well.
14. Edmonton Oilers (+2)
The first Connor McDavid-Sidney Crosby meeting of the 2024-25 season is on tap when the Oilers welcome the Penguins to Rogers Place on Friday night. With Sid the Kid now in Year 20 of his illustrious career, there are only so many meetings left between two of the greatest centers in NHL history. McDavid has feasted against Pittsburgh in his career, racking up nine goals and 27 points in 14 career games, and he'll be looking to continue producing for his club later this week. Edmonton has started to turn things around after another terrible start to the season; the Oil are now 2-4 after victories over Philadelphia and winless Nashville in Week 2. A slight bump up the NHL Power Rankings is deserved, but the jury is still out on this roster until it starts stringing some wins together — and getting better goaltending.
15. Colorado Avalanche (-1)
Finally, after an 0-4 nightmare, the Avalanche are back on the right track. Colorado needed to beat both Anaheim and San Jose, and that's exactly what happened in Week 2. Relief is what everyone in Denver is probably feeling after a nice little two-game winning streak, and it continues to be the superstars leading the charge. Cale Makar is tied with Kucherov for the league lead in scoring, while Nathan MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen are just behind — and still well over a point-per-game. Alexandar Georgiev played pretty well against the Ducks, and Justus Annunen was great vs. the Sharks two nights later. The goaltending badly needs to improve for the inevitable climb up the standings to continue. The Avs still get docked in the NHL Power Rankings, but it's probably only going to be up for this club with three of their next four games coming against teams below them on ClutchPoints' list. That begins against the Kraken during Frozen Frenzy on Tuesday.
16. St. Louis Blues (no change)
There could be a goaltending controversy brewing in Missouri. After a relatively mundane start to the season — and two losses in three starts for Jordan Binnington — Joel Hofer led the Blues to back-to-back impressive victories over the Islanders and Hurricanes to end the week. He shut out New York, allowed just three goals on 40 shots against Carolina, and looks like he could be ready to continue starting meaningful games. Binnington is still the leader in net, but his hold is starting to slip the way his backup is playing in 2024-25. St. Louis will just be hoping the goaltending holds up as they look to rectify last year's playoff miss. The undefeated Jets are in town on Tuesday night before a four-game road trip takes the Blues through Toronto, Montreal, Ottawa and Philadelphia.
17. Los Angeles Kings (+1)
It's been a tale of two teams for the Kings this week; they lost 8-7 to Ottawa in a wild Canadian Thanksgiving shootout last Monday afternoon, and followed it up with a 6-2 drubbing at the hands of the Leafs two days later. But just when it looked like things were going off the rails, the Kings rebounded with back-to-back 4-1 victories in Montreal and Anaheim, improving to 3-1-2 on the campaign. That has the squad in second place in the Pacific Division, which isn't bad at all considering Darcy Kuemper just joined Drew Doughty on the IR. David Rittich has been more-than-solid in relief, and he should run with the starting role as long as Kuemper is out. The Kings will look to make it three straight wins on the strip Tuesday night.
18. Carolina Hurricanes (-3)
The Hurricanes are still being penalized for playing less games than most other teams, having skated in just four since opening night. But a 2-2 record for a team of this caliber obviously isn't ideal, and they're paying for it in the NHL Power Rankings. Carolina took care of New Jersey and Pittsburgh before losing to St. Louis to fall back to .500, although both Frederik Andersen and Pyotr Kochetkov have looked rock solid in the early going. The rest of this talented roster should figure it out soon enough, and No. 18 is probably — probably — the furthest the Canes will fall in the rankings in 2024-25. A long six-game road trip that began last week continues out west in Edmonton, Calgary, Seattle and Vancouver in Week 3.
19. Washington Capitals (+4)
The most important thing for the Capitals this season, besides winning games, is Alex Ovechkin scoring goals. And The Great Eight got his first of the season in a 6-5 victory over the Devils, which also happened to be Washington's third consecutive victory. On a mission up the NHL Power Rankings, the Caps have put their season opener behind them, improving to 3-1 and currently holding onto a guaranteed playoff berth in the Metropolitan Division. That's extremely encouraging, as has been the play of both Charlie Lindgren and Logan Thompson between the pipes. After a roster transformation over the summer, the early returns are paying dividends in the nation's capital. Washington is on the road in Philly on Tuesday, and will play those same Flyers at home the next day.
20. Ottawa Senators (+2)
After a wacky 8-7 overtime victory over the Kings a week ago today, the Senators finished the week at .500 — which has them 3-2 through five games. That's not bad, especially considering the three victories have come against above average teams in the Panthers, Kings and Lightning. Ottawa is scoring a lot of goals, but having a tough time keeping them out of the net with Linus Ullmark currently on the shelf. That should improve once he's back between the pipes, but the Sens are undoubtedly off to an encouraging start as they look to break a playoff drought that dates back to 2018.
21. Seattle Kraken (+7)
The biggest jump in the NHL Power Rankings in Week 3 belongs to the Kraken. Despite not really having any star players up front, Seattle boasts four strong lines and a level of depth that few other teams can match. And that was on display last week, with the club scoring 15 goals over three consecutive victories over the Predators, Flyers and Flames — the latter being Calgary's first loss of the season. The Kraken are certainly looking better than last year, although it's going to be tough to match the breakout 2022-23 campaign that saw them win 46 games. Still, Seattle is 4-2 and third place in the Pacific, and that's a place they'll be thrilled to be through six games.
22. Detroit Red Wings (-2)
The early-season woes continue for the Red Wings, who have struggled to look like a postseason contender in the early going. In fact, they're dead last in the Atlantic Division with a disappointing 2-3 record, and there have already been rumblings that head coach Derek Lalonde could be on the hot seat. The Wings won both of their games against the flailing Predators, but allowed 15 goals over three losses to the Rangers (x2) and Penguins. It's still extremely early, but no one can be too happy with the way things are going in Motown right now. Both Cam Talbot and Alex Lyon have been up-and-down, and one of them really needs to step up and provide better goaltending as a team desperate to make the playoffs continues underachieving in 2024-25.
23. Nashville Predators (-10)
If we thought Colorado's start to the season was nightmarish, the first two weeks in Nashville have been nothing short of a disaster. One of the big surprise teams of the 2023-24 campaign joins the lowly Sharks as the only two squads remaining without a win. Even with Steven Stamkos, Jonathan Marchessault and Brady Skjei in the fold, the Predators are somehow 0-5, and dead last in National Hockey League standings. The significant drop in the NHL Power Rankings was generous, as Nashville genuinely looks like a bottom-seven team right now. That's stunning considering the summer spending spree, and needs to be rectified immediately. That will likely happen sooner rather than later, but seriously, nobody had the Predators anywhere near this low. They'll look to finally get in the win column against the Bruins at home on Tuesday.
24. Montreal Canadiens (-3)
The Canadiens made up some nice ground in the NHL Power Rankings right off the bat, but unfortunately fell back to a familiar spot after a tough Week 2 showing. Montreal failed to win a single one of its three games, being outscored 14-7 in losses to Pittsburgh, Los Angeles and the New York Islanders. With that, it's 2-3-1 and back to third-last in the Atlantic Division, a place the Habs hoped to remain out of after a 2-1 start. There's still a ton of reason for optimism, especially the way Sam Montembeault has been playing, but the Canadiens need to get back on track — and it won't be easy against the Rangers on Tuesday. With Juraj Slafkovsky banged up, it could be Kirby Dach being elevated to first line duties along with Nick Suzuki and a red hot Cole Caufield for the tilt.
25. Buffalo Sabres (-1)
The Sabres are 2-4-1 and have lost three of their last five games, but they might have one of the league's best top lines starting to come together. JJ Peterka has been phenomenal since returning from a concussion, potting four goals and six points over five games, while Alex Tuch has managed seven; Tage Thompson, six. Buffalo will most likely live or die by that star trio in 2024-25, and it's a great sign that all three are producing in the early going. Still, the Sabres will need the depth to come through if they hope to break the longest drought in professional team sports, and things still just aren't clicking up and down the lineup in Western New York. After an encouraging win against the Blackhawks, the Sabres will look to make it two in a row against the surging Stars on Tuesday — the first of a four-game homestand at the Keybank Center.
26. New York Islanders (-1)
The Islanders haven't been performing too poorly in the early going — in fact, they're 2-1-2 through five games. But Anthony Duclair will miss significant time with a leg injury suffered in Saturday's 4-3 shootout win over the Canadiens, which is a devastating blow for a team that has notoriously struggled to score goals. Duclair had two of them while playing on the top line with Bo Horvat and Mat Barzal, and he'll be a difficult forward to replace long-term. The Isles probably don't deserve to be this low on the NHL Power Rankings, regardless, and will look to begin making up some ground when the Red Wings are in Long Island on Tuesday.
27. Pittsburgh Penguins (-1)
What an incredible night it was for Crosby, Malkin and the Penguins last Wednesday. Sid the Kid hit point No. 1600, Geno scored his 500th goal, and Pittsburgh came from behind to beat Buffalo 6-5 in overtime in front of the raucous crowd at PPG Paints Arena. It was a night full of milestones in Pennsylvania, and ended in magical fashion with Malkin setting up Crosby for the game-winning goal in the extra frame. The pair of three-time Stanley Cup champions have electrified audiences in Pittsburgh and beyond for decades, and are well-deserving of the incredible milestones. Unfortunately for the Pens, they lost each of their next two games, 4-1 to the Hurricanes and 6-3 to the Jets. A 3-4 record isn't ideal, and even considering the continued standout play of their superstars, this roster seems to be lacking that playoff ingredient.
28. Chicago Blackhawks (+1)
The Blackhawks rotated wins and losses in Week 2, but Bedard's team has fallen to 2-3-1 after being doubled up by the Sabres on Saturday. It's not a terrible start for Chicago, but the team doesn't look to have taken much of a step forward after a couple of key signings over the summer. Teuvo Teravainen has been better than expected, with seven points in six games, while Bedard is keeping pace with seven of his own. But no other forward has more than three, and that's not encouraging. Petr Mrazek still looks steady as ever between the pipes, but the team in front of him needs to do more if the Hawks hope to climb up the NHL Power Rankings over the coming weeks and months.
29. Philadelphia Flyers (-2)
The Flyers started off the season well by beating the Canucks in a shootout in their season opener — and they haven't won since. Philadelphia lost on the road in Calgary, Edmonton and Seattle before allowing Vancouver to get some early revenge on Saturday night. Although Matvei Michkov has arrived after scoring two goals against the Oilers, Philly is 1-3-1 and not looking like anything close to a contender. Neither Samuel Ersson nor Ivan Fedotov has provided much stability between the pipes, either, and they're matching expectations as one of the league's worst tandems. It could be a long year for the rebuilding Flyers despite last season's surprise run. They'll look to figure things out during a home-and-home with the Capitals to start Week 3.
30. Anaheim Ducks (+1)
The Ducks probably deserve a bit better than No. 30 in the NHL Power Rankings — they are playing .500 hockey, after all. And Lukas Dostal looks to be the goaltender of the future in Anaheim after pitching a couple of gems over the last week. That includes a 41-save masterclass in a loss to the Avalanche on Friday. Still, the Ducks are not looking like a playoff team, and the cracks will probably show even more if Dostal starts to falter in any way. Anaheim welcomes winless San Jose to the Honda Center before embarking on a four-game road trip to play the Rangers, Devils, Islanders and Penguins.
31. Columbus Blue Jackets (-1)
As if the Blue Jackets weren't already riddled with injuries, it was revealed late last week that youngster Kent Johnson would be out long-term. It's another brutal blow to a team that is already expecting to be without Boone Jenner, Erik Gudbranson and Dmitri Voronkov for the foreseeable future. Columbus actually hasn't been performing too badly in spite of it all, and they get out of the NHL Power Rankings basement in Week 3. Still, at 2-3, this roster is just treading water, and it's probably only a matter of time before they're back to last place in the Metro.
32. San Jose Sharks (no change)
After a quick week at No. 31, the Sharks are back to a place they know oh-so-well: the NHL Power Rankings basement. Macklin Celebrini has been out since his electric debut, and it was revealed Monday he would be on IR for at least two more weeks. With fellow rookie Will Smith now getting healthy scratched, the season is going off the rails early in San Jose. Along with the Predators, the Sharks have failed to win a single game in six tries, although they've at least made it past regulation twice. Still, it looks like the rebuild will continue in earnest in 2024-25, and there's no optimism this roster will be coming out of any basement any time soon.
