In a week where Hockey Fights Cancer was the overarching theme, emotions were rampant across the NHL as players competed for more than the sake of the game. Three weeks into the hockey season, the results have been dominated by one team, the Montreal Canadiens. Still without a loss in regulation, the Canadiens have been strong in all facets of the game. Since returning from an injury, Canadiens goalie Carey Price has lived up to the hype that comes with being dubbed the top goaltender in the NHL. Other goaltenders have also been impressive, including Minnesota Wild’s Devan Dubnyk, who garnered three shutouts in his last three games; Detroit Red Wings’ Jimmy Howard, sporting a .973 save percentage and Ottawa Senators’ Craig Anderson, who shut out the Edmonton Oilers in an emotional performance. After taking time off after his wife was diagnosed with cancer, Anderson took to the ice for the first time since the devastating news Sunday night in Edmonton. After an inspired shutout performance against the Oilers’ dynamic offense, Anderson broke down crying after the game. Anderson was named the first star of the game and was treated to a standing ovation by the Edmonton faithful. The following rankings are based on performances to date.

  1. Montreal Canadiens

This is familiar territory for the Canadiens. After the first month of play last season, the Canadiens were undoubtedly the top team in the NHL. From that point forward, no team in the NHL had a more drastic drop-off than the Canadiens. Will it be different this time for the Canadiens who started off hot last year only to drop off in the second half? Defenseman Shea Weber has filled the void of P.K. Subban after being named one of the NHL’s three stars of the week, and Price has demonstrated why he is among the league’s best. Time will tell how effective the Canadiens are offensively, but for now the Canadiens deservedly sit atop of the power rankings.

2.  Edmonton Oilers

After four first-round draft picks and years of being near or at the basement of the NHL, the Oilers finally seem poised for a postseason appearance. Led by 2015 No. 1 overall pick forward Connor McDavid, the Oilers have the ability to compete with the league’s best. Off-season acquisition forward Milan Lucic has been great company for McDavid, providing a physical and veteran presence for the young star. Goaltender Cam Talbot has also proven effective, leading the NHL in wins and shutting out the opposition in two of his nine starts.

3.  Pittsburgh Penguins

While it is early on, the Penguins sit atop one of hockey’s most competitive divisions, the Metropolitan. Victories against the New York Islanders and Philadelphia Flyers are a testament to the Penguins continued success. Forward Sidney Crosby’s return to the Penguins has given them back their top player. Forwards Evgeni Malkin, Patric Hornqvist and Phil Kessel have all contributed to a strong start for the Penguins.

4.  Minnesota Wild

The storyline thus far for the Minnesota Wild has been the three consecutive shutouts by Dubnyk. Dubnyk has been a streaky goaltender throughout his career, but when he is on the top of his game, he is one of the best goalies in the league. Defenseman Ryan Suter is tied with Weber of the Montreal Canadiens and Brent Burns of the San Jose Sharks for the league lead in points for defensemen. Forward Eric Staal also started off strong for the Wild after having a disappointing 2015-2016 season with the New York Rangers and Carolina Hurricanes. Dubnyk will have to continue his strong play in order for the Wild to be competitive in the central division.

5.  New York Rangers

The Rangers might have the most dynamic offense right now in the NHL. They play four strong lines of forwards. Even in the absence of forward Chris Kreider, the Rangers have lit up the scoreboard this week, most notably Austrian-born forward Michael Grabner tallied a hat trick Sunday night against the Tampa Bay Lightning. Despite the Rangers strong offensive game questions still remain if the Rangers defense can keep the number of goals by the opposition to a minimum. Stronger play by defensemen Nick Holden and Dan Girardi will be required in order to tighten up on defense.

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