NHL Power Rankings are selected by a panel of theScore's hockey editors.
In our second in-season edition, we highlight one player on each team who needs to step up.
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1. Carolina Hurricanes (14-3-2)
Previous: 1
Brandon Bussi: It's hard to find a weakness on the defending champs, and goaltending doesn't even qualify given Pyotr Kochetkov's performance so far. But the Hurricanes will likely need to rely on Bussi at some point, and his .869 save percentage shows that he hasn't been able to recapture last season's magic.
2. Edmonton Oilers (13-3-3)
Previous: 3
Jake Walman: He's already fallen out of favor under head coach Mike Babcock, leading to a recent slew of healthy scratches. That's not going to cut it in the first season of a seven-year, $49-million contract with a full no-movement clause.
3. Minnesota Wild (13-3-4)
Previous: 7
Ryan Hartman: He's been a 20-goal scorer three times in his tenure with the Wild, but he's managed four points this season and is a team-worst minus-7.
4. Boston Bruins (13-4-1)
Previous: 4
Nikita Zadorov: The Russian leads the NHL in penalty minutes by eight. Zadorov was scratched for discipline issues in October, and although he's been better since then, he needs to continue limiting the penalties he's taking.
5. New Jersey Devils (13-6-0)
Previous: 17
Timo Meier: The Devils' highest-paid forward needs to start producing. He's tallied three goals and four assists in 19 games this season.
6. Montreal Canadiens (11-3-4)
Previous: 13
Juraj Slafkovsky: He hasn't been bad by any means, but his nine-goal pace isn't going to cut it.
7. Vegas Golden Knights (12-5-2)
Previous: 2
Rasmus Andersson: Vegas signed Andersson to a seven-year contract worth $8.5 million annually over the summer, and he's on pace for 26 points this season. Making matters worse, the Golden Knights are being outscored 17-10 with him on the ice at five-on-five.
8. Tampa Bay Lightning (11-4-2)
Previous: 5
Conor Geekie: The Lightning have been waiting for the 2022 11th overall pick to provide legit depth scoring. Geekie has done little outside of a three-game goal streak in late October.
9. Dallas Stars (10-5-2)
Previous: 10
Tyler Seguin: It's great to see the veteran healthy again, but he and the Stars would probably appreciate an uptick from the six points he's managed this season.
10. Colorado Avalanche (11-6-2)
Previous: 6
Scott Wedgewood: Last season's leader in save percentage has played five games and got shelled in his last two starts. Wedgewood's goals-against average is currently two full goals higher than last year.
11. Ottawa Senators (11-6-2)
Previous: 11
Fabian Zetterlund: The Senators need Zetterlund to be an impact depth player, but he's managed only two goals this season despite an increase in ice time.
12. Utah Mammoth (10-7-1)
Previous: 8
Karel Vejmelka: The typically reliable Czech goaltender ranks second last among all netminders in goals saved above expected (minus-8.1).
13. Washington Capitals (10-6-0)
Previous: 12
Alex Ovechkin: It's crazy to say, but time may have finally caught up to the league's all-time greatest goal-scorer. Ovechkin's produced one tally in 16 games and needs to get going soon to avoid ending his career with a whimper.
14. Florida Panthers (10-7-2)
Previous: 9
Anton Lundell: The Panthers were likely hoping for more than eight points so far from the 25-year-old center, especially with Aleksander Barkov out for all but two games.
15. Anaheim Ducks (10-7-1)
Previous: 18
Lukas Dostal: The Ducks are fun to watch - they've got one of the league's top offenses - but they're going to have to make some saves at some point. Dostal is part of the problem with an ugly .866 save percentage.
16. Nashville Predators (9-4-5)
Previous: 23
Jonathan Marchessault: The 2023 Conn Smythe winner has looked like a shadow of his former self since he joined the Predators. He's shown few signs of turning it around this season with two goals and three assists in 14 appearances.
17. Buffalo Sabres (8-6-3)
Previous: 14
Ryan McLeod: Three points and a team-worst minus-7 rating in 15 games isn't going to cut it for McLeod, who's typically a reliable two-way center. He's coming off back-to-back 50-point campaigns and is Buffalo's fifth-highest paid forward.
18. New York Rangers (10-8-1)
Previous: 15
Pavel Dorofeyev: The goals are starting to come - he's got four in his last seven - yet the $77-million man has been outscored 18-9 at five-on-five and sports an NHL-worst minus-18 rating.
19. Seattle Kraken (9-6-1)
Previous: 21
Bobby McMann: The Kraken handed McMann a six-year, $34.5-million contract to help their mediocre offense, but he hasn't delivered so far this season, managing three goals and two assists in 16 games.
20. New York Islanders (7-6-4)
Previous: 22
Adam Pelech: The veteran defensive defenseman was getting caved in on his typical pairing with Ryan Pulock. Now he's dragging down Matthew Schaefer's underlying metrics after the 19-year-old phenom was dominating possession alongside Logan Stanley.
21. St. Louis Blues (8-8-2)
Previous: 24
Connor McMichael: The forward was part of the return in the Jordan Kyrou trade. It's taking McMichael some time to adjust to his new squad - he's got two goals in 17 games and a minus-10 rating.
22. Toronto Maple Leafs (8-10-2)
Previous: 19
Sergei Bobrovsky: Those who criticized the Maple Leafs for signing an aging Bobrovsky to a lucrative free-agent contract are being proven right by the early returns. The 38-year-old has three wins in 13 appearances and an .881 save percentage.
23. Winnipeg Jets (8-8-3)
Previous: 16
Gabriel Vilardi: Although he's been a consistent 30-goal threat since joining the Jets, he's mired in a prolonged slump with one tally this season.
24. Calgary Flames (8-9-1)
Previous: 32
Simon Nemec: The Flames paid a steep price to acquire Nemec from the Devils this offseason, then handed him a five-year, $36.25-million contract. The early returns haven't been overly promising, as he looks overmatched in a top-pairing role and has managed only seven assists in 18 games.
25. Columbus Blue Jackets (7-9-0)
Previous: 26
Conor Garland: The diminutive winger has zero goals and one assist in 15 games, and he's not even two months into a six-year, $36-million extension.
26. Detroit Red Wings (7-9-3)
Previous: 25
Shawn Horcoff: We're going off the board for Detroit and calling out the interim general manager, who needs to resolve stalemates involving Dylan Larkin and Simon Edvinsson.
27. San Jose Sharks (8-11-1)
Previous: 20
Mason Marchment: The Sharks signed Marchment to a five-year deal with a $6.75-million average annual value as a free agent this offseason. He's posted a team-worst minus-12 rating while totaling three goals and four assists in 20 games despite getting an extended look alongside Macklin Celebrini.
28. Los Angeles Kings (5-9-2)
Previous: 29
Quinton Byfield: It may be time to accept that the big Byfield breakout is never coming. The 24-year-old seemed poised to blossom as the Kings' first-line center after Anze Kopitar's retirement, but he has four goals and six points in 14 games and has gotten outscored 9-4 at five-on-five.
29. Pittsburgh Penguins (6-10-2)
Previous: 27
Sidney Crosby: Six goals and seven assists in 18 games is nothing to scoff at for a 39-year-old, but Crosby needs to get back to his usual point-per-game self for Pittsburgh to have a shot at returning to the playoffs. As currently constructed, the team doesn't have the firepower to succeed without the captain at his best.
30. Philadelphia Flyers (5-10-5)
Previous: 30
Rick Tocchet: We're once again bucking the rule of picking a player here, but it's warranted. What happened to the hard-nosed, in-your-face brand of hockey Tocchet had the Flyers playing last season? It's also inexcusable to be playing Matvei Michkov 15:54 per game when he has more than twice as many goals as the next Flyer.
31. Chicago Blackhawks (4-13-1)
Previous: 28
Artyom Levshunov: The 2024 No. 2 pick hasn't lived up to the hype so far. The Blackhawks are getting completely dominated in his minutes, and he's not making up for it with his offensive production - he's managed a goal and two assists in 18 games.
32. Vancouver Canucks (3-16-1)
Previous: 31
Kevin Lankinen: Truthfully, there's a case for picking every Canucks player - and there's also an argument to be made that Kevin "Tankinen" is at least helping the franchise improve its lottery odds. The 31-year-old is signed for three seasons after this one with a $4.5-million AAV, but Vancouver clearly has more trust in waiver claim Leevi Merilainen between the pipes right now.
