It’s starting to get late early for many Stanley Cup hopefuls as December begins.
We’re just one month away from 2024 — which is, unfortunately, a real year — and we’re already starting to see major trends set in as the NHL season rolls along. Some teams, such as the Los Angeles Kings and Vancouver Canucks, have surprised with early hot starts, leading many to believe they’ll be playoff contenders come spring.
And yet, for some teams, slow starts to the 2023-24 season may end up derailing hopes for a long playoff run. We’ve already talked about teams like the Edmonton Oilers, who continue to stagnate in a quagmire of their own making, so far this year. But a team like the Pittsburgh Penguins, who are in the final years of Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, and Kris Letang’s careers, are treading water even after big offseason acquisitions put them in a position to succeed.
Obviously, the season isn’t over quite yet, but it’s fair to start getting worried if you’re a Penguins or Oilers fan — not to mention the Calgary Flames or New Jersey Devils either. As for the rest of the NHL, here’s how we see things shaping up for the final month of the year in our December 2023 power rankings.
32
San Jose Sharks (5-16-2)
Last ranked: 32
San Jose strung together some wins in November, but their minus-57 goal differential should tell you the whole story. These Sharks stink.
31
Columbus Blue Jackets (7-13-4)
Last ranked: 31
Patrik Laine was healthy scratched for the first time in his career last month as the Blue Jackets continue to flounder as one of the worst teams in the East. Columbus had a bit of an upswing to end November, but don’t be fooled: the Blue Jackets are bad.
30
Anaheim Ducks (9-13-0)
Last ranked: 29
The Ducks bring a seven-game losing streak into December and have been outscored 33-12 in that time period. I already wasn’t high on Anaheim when they were hot in late October so take this as a sign that the Ducks of last year have returned in full force.
29
Chicago Blackhawks (7-14-0)
Last ranked: 30
The Corey Perry story has overshadowed pretty much any news coming out of Chicago these days. Yes, even the news that Taylor Hall will be out for the season due to injury. Still, Connor Bedard continues to build his Calder Trophy case with 10 goals and 17 points in 20 games.
28
Seattle Kraken (8-10-6)
Last ranked: 26
Goaltending is really sinking the Kraken’s ship this season. Philipp Grubauer and Joey Daccord have a combined .881 save percentage headed into the final month of 2023, the fifth-worst save percentage in the NHL. With Seattle missing their well-rounded offensive attack that won them a playoff series, their road to get back to the postseason is that much harder.
27
Minnesota Wild (7-10-4)
Last ranked: 16
What happened to the Wild over the last month? After a middling month of October, the bottom fell out from this Minnesota team, culminating in the firing of Dean Evason and the hiring of John Hynes as his replacement. Any spark of offensive firepower disappeared from this team while the duo of Marc-André Fleury and Filip Gustavsson in net have been atrocious. The Wild’s fall from a playoff contender will certainly open the door for other opportunistic teams out West this season.
26
Montreal Canadiens (10-11-2)
Last ranked: 21
November was a rough month for the Canadiens. The team has yet to have a double digit goal scorer on the year as Cole Caufield and Nick Suzuki struggle to keep this ineffective roster afloat. Yes, the Canadiens are still rebuilding, but early returns make it seem like this team has plateaued at its current talent level.
25
Edmonton Oilers (8-12-1)
Last ranked: 20
Connor McDavid and the Oilers are in trouble of missing the playoffs as the team grapples with a disastrous year. Edmonton strung together some good wins in November, but the team really needs to figure out its goaltending situation. The Oilers have tried outscoring their problems, but in a year where McDavid and Leon Draisaitl aren’t the world-beaters we’re familiar with, Stuart Skinner and Calvin Pickard just aren’t going to cut it.
24
Ottawa Senators (8-9-0)
Last ranked: 18
The Senators get a bit of the benefit of the doubt here, since they’ve played far fewer games (17) than anyone else in the NHL so far. Still, in the games they have played, they haven’t been very inspiring. While Joonas Korpisalo has been fine in net, the Senators anemic offense is where the true issues lie. There’s time for Ottawa to turn it around but the East is a much harder beast to tackle compared to the West.
23
Arizona Coyotes (10-9-2)
Last ranked: 27
Don’t look now, but the Coyotes might actually be better than we thought? Given how chaotic the West is, Arizona has put themselves in wild card contention as December begins. A big reason for that is the play of Connor Ingram in net, who has gone 8-3-0 with a .924 save percentage. I’m not fully sold on the Coyotes yet, but it’s been a nice change of pace to see them competitive in games on a more consistent basis.
22
Calgary Flames (9-10-3)
Last ranked: 28
The Flames pulled themselves back from the brink, but they’re not out of the woods yet. After a catastrophic October, November was more of a mixed bag, which the Flames will gladly take after the tire fire that was their opening to the season. Jonathan Huberdeau is still struggling to produce and Jacob Markström is only just starting to find his footing after an awful start, so it’s clear the Flames still have areas to improve upon if they want to make a real run at a playoff spot.
21
St. Louis Blues (12-9-1)
Last ranked: 25
Jordan Binnington had a very Jordan Binnington month, going 4-4-0 with a .902 save percentage while looking both unbeatable and lackluster. When Binnington is on, the Blues are so hard to beat, but his inconsistency is stopping St. Louis from gaining any real momentum as December begins.
20
Pittsburgh Penguins (11-10-1)
Last ranked: 17
The Penguins find themselves squarely in the middle of the worst spot to be in the NHL: too bad to be good but too good to be bad. The biggest offender here is Pittsburgh’s power play, sitting seventh-worst at 11.9 percent on the year. A team with Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin shouldn’t struggle this much with a man advantage and it’s starting to cost them in the standings. The Penguins absolutely have another gear they can hit, so we’ll have to see if they can find it within themselves before the playoffs get out of reach.
19
Buffalo Sabres (10-11-2)
Last ranked: 19
Tage Thompson’s injury has really held back the Sabres from taking that next step. Without Thompson, the Sabres offense is missing its much-needed spark and as such, the team has stagnated just a bit. Still, thanks to the goaltending of Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, the Sabres have remained stable in the playoff race with the hope that the rest of the team steps up with the loss of Thompson for a few more weeks.
18
Nashville Predators (11-11-0)
Last ranked: 23
Another team taking advantage of the wild wild West this season, the Predators enter December after an impressive six-game win streak. Filip Forsberg is leading the charge in Nashville with 12 goals and 27 points in 25 games while offseason addition Ryan O’Reilly has followed suit with 19 points in 21 games played. The Predators are still in that shaky middle ground of playoff contention, but they’ve been quite impressive during this stretch all the same.
17
New York Islanders (9-7-6)
Last ranked: 13
The Islanders sported a seven-game losing streak in November as their lack of offense continues to be the story on Long Island. Ilya Sorokin and Semyon Varlamov have given the Islanders chances in games, but when push comes to shove, the offensive production isn’t there. The 2023-24 season is slowly shaping up to be the same-old story for the Islanders unless they can magically come up with the offensive production needed to be a competing NHL team.
16
Washington Capitals (10-6-2)
Last ranked: 24
After an irrelevant start to the 2023-24 season, the Capitals have put themselves back in the playoff hunt. And they’re doing so without bombastic production from Alex Ovechkin, who has just five goals in 18 games so far. There’s a lot to still be skeptical about with Washington, but they’re definitely finding ways to win even if they’re ugly.
15
Philadelphia Flyers (11-10-2)
Last ranked: 22
It’s clear by now that the Flyers aren’t going to be the tire-fire many thought they would be after last year’s showing. In fact, John Tortorella’s group has shown some flashes of brilliance against really good teams so far this season. It definitely helps having Sean Couturier and Cam Atkinson back in the lineup full time after missing last year due to injury. If these trends continue, could the Flyers be further along in their rebuild than even they expected to be?
14
New Jersey Devils (11-9-1)
Last ranked: 6
The Devils had an uncharacteristic November, losing seven of nine games during a long stretch of the month. That skid now has them sitting outside of the playoff picture by a few point margin, a pretty shocking turn of events for a team as talented as New Jersey. Offensively, this Devils team can score in bunches, but the play of Vítek Vaněček and Akira Schmid have left a lot to be desired in net. I still believe this team will be able to get it together, but December will be a crucial month for this Devils squad.
13
Detroit Red Wings (12-7-3)
Last ranked: 15
Steve Yzerman added Patrick Kane to the Red Wings ranks in late November as the forward returns to the NHL after offseason hip surgery. We’ll have to see how Kane fits into the Red Wings system as he plays his first games, but Detroit is currently locked in a battle with the middle of the Atlantic and can use all the help they can get. Good news is that offensively, the Red Wings are producing at a top-five rate this year in part thanks to Alex DeBrincat and Dylan Larkin’s strong seasons so far.
12
Tampa Bay Lightning (10-9-5)
Last ranked: 9
Andrei Vasilevskiy is back in net after missing the start of the season due to injury, but has gone 1-2-0 with an .892 save percentage so far. It’ll take some time for Vasilevskiy to get back into form for sure, but if he can, the Lightning could very well be back to their usual selves. As December begins, the Lightning sit seventh in the NHL with 3.42 goals for per game, so scoring has not been a problem for them so far this year.
11
Winnipeg Jets (12-7-2)
Last ranked: 12
The Jets won eight of nine games across a long November stretch, allowing them to get separation as one of the top teams in the Central Division. Not only that, Connor Hellebuyck is starting to play better in net after going 6-3-0 with a .916 save percentage in November. It’s still early, but it seems like Hellebuyck and Mark Scheifele (23 points in 21 games) are proving their worth after a summer of trade rumors.
10
Toronto Maple Leafs (12-6-3)
Last ranked: 7
The Maple Leafs grit out a bunch of comeback victories in November, giving their fans heart attacks in the process. Overall, the Maple Leafs record last month was good at 7-3-2, but something just feels off with this Toronto squad. A depleted defense and uneven scoring have the Maple Leafs on a bit shakier ground than usual. Still, they’re in the mix in a tough Atlantic even if they’ve got some things to work on.
9
Vancouver Canucks (15-7-1)
Last ranked: 11
The road ahead is long, but so far, the Canucks have passed every test laid out in front of them. Vancouver’s stars are producing, led by Brock Boeser’s 17 goals on the year, and Thatcher Demko has righted the ship and put himself firmly in Vezina Trophy contention with his play thus far. Rick Tocchet seems to be pushing all the right buttons in Vancouver as the team sits in a top three spot in the Pacific.
8
Carolina Hurricanes (13-8-1)
Last ranked: 8
The Hurricanes went 6-3-1 in their last 10 games, yet it’s clear they’re not playing up to the standard we know. Frederik Andersen has been out with blood clots while it took 12 games for Andrei Svechnikov to score his first goal of the season. Even with the slow start, Carolina’s starting to pick up steam as of late, which could be trouble for the teams above them in the standings.
7
Florida Panthers (14-7-2)
Last ranked: 14
Paul Maurice’s squad went 10-4-1 in November as the Panthers are quickly starting to prove their Stanley Cup Final run from last season was no fluke. Matthew Tkachuk might still be looking to get hot in the goal scoring department, but Sam Reinhart and Carter Verhaeghe have picked up the slack and then some.
6
Dallas Stars (13-5-2)
Last ranked: 5
Outside of a subpar playoff performance last year, it’s hard to find any faults in Jake Oettinger’s game. Oettinger is no doubt squarely in the Vezina race with a 9-4-2 record and a .916 save percentage so far this year. While the Stars offense hasn’t shown off its true explosive power yet — Jason Robertson still has six goals on the season — Dallas is a complete enough unit with Oettinger behind them to weather an average offensive output so far.
5
Vegas Golden Knights (14-5-4)
Last ranked: 1
The Golden Knights took a step back in November after a red-hot October. Vegas went 5-5-3 last month, cooling off significantly as their offense sputtered a bit more than people were expecting it to. There’s no cause for long-term concern yet for the reigning Stanley Cup champions, especially since Adin Hill and Logan Thompson are playing lights out, so let’s hope this is just a blip in the road for this team.
4
Los Angeles Kings (13-4-3)
Last ranked: 10
It’s safe to say the Kings are the hottest team in the NHL as December begins. Los Angeles went 8-2-1 last month and a major factor in their ascension is due to Cam Talbot. Yes, really. Talbot is currently on pace for his best season ever as a starting goaltender, posting a 10-4-1 record with a .928 save percentage. After a month and a half of play, it seems like this Kings team has finally taken the step to being a true contender in the NHL.
3
Colorado Avalanche (15-6-0)
Last ranked: 4
The Avalanche are certainly piling on the goals this season, as their 3.76 goals per game is third best in the NHL. Now that Colorado is icing a relatively healthy roster, Cale Makar, Nathan MacKinnon, Mikko Rantanen, and company are back to their dominant ways as they’ve carved their way to the top of the Central as the final month of 2023 begins.
2
Boston Bruins (15-4-3)
Last ranked: 2
A three-game losing streak before the end of November may sour some people on this high ranking for Boston, but every great team goes through a rough patch. Given the pedigree of this Bruins team even without Patrice Bergeron and David Krejčí, I’ll give them the benefit of the doubt here that their late November swoon was just a momentary dip because otherwise, Boston was absolutely rolling through teams last month.
1
New York Rangers (16-4-1)
Last ranked: 3
Everything’s been coming up New York this season. Kaapo Kakko injury may be a blow to his development, but the Rangers are no doubt happy that Alexis Lafrenière has taken strides this season (eight goals and 14 points in 21 games). Jonathan Quick has gotten a resurgence in a Rangers uniform as the backup to Igor Shesterkin, a surprise to many given he’s 38 years old.
Overall, the Rangers had an excellent month of November, which has them leading the Metro by a significant margin. Peter Laviolette is absolutely getting the best out of his squad right now and that could very well spell trouble for the rest of the NHL as the season moves along.
