Updated: March 8, 2010, 12:39 PM ET

Power Rankings: Caps solidifying status

Week:

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So where were we? Ah yes, before we were so rudely interrupted by the Olympics we were talking about the powerful Washington Capitals, the surprising Phoenix Coyotes and the up-and-down Philadelphia Flyers. So. Nothing has really changed as we prepare the first post-Olympic, post-trade deadline Power Rankings. Read on and weep -- if you must.

-- By Scott Burnside; posted March 8

2009-2010 Power Rankings: Week 24
RANK	TEAM / RECORD	TRENDING	COMMENTS
1	Washington 44-13-8	-- Last Week: 1	Caps hit the break on a three-game winless streak but have won their first three post-Olympic games to re-establish themselves as the cream of the NHL crop. GM George McPhee's deadline deals paying immediate dividends.
2	San Jose 42-14-9	1 Last Week: 3	Sharks have won two of three to keep a hop, skip and jump ahead of Chicago at the top of the Western Conference standings.
3	Chicago 43-17-5	1 Last Week: 2	Loss to Detroit on Sunday in which Cristobal Huet was lifted will do nothing to assuage fears of Blackhawks fans that they don't have the goaltending to go the distance. Hawks have given up 15 goals in four post-Olympic games. No wonder the faithful are restless.
4	Pittsburgh 40-22-4	4 Last Week: 8	Penguins starting to cook as GM Ray Shero has produced his annual trade-deadline magic. Pens have won four straight since Sidney Crosby gave Canada the gold with his overtime winner against the U.S., and they now own top spot in the Atlantic Division.
5	Phoenix 39-22-5	-- Last Week: 5	Don Maloney is another GM who should take a bow for his work on deadline day. Maloney's Coyotes continue to make life difficult for opponents throughout the West and have won both games since adding Wojtek Wolski, Lee Stempniak et al on March 3, outscoring opponents 7-1 along the way. Playoffs in Glendale. Go figure.
6	Vancouver 40-23-2	1 Last Week: 7	Canucks' long road odyssey will end mid-week, and they will return home Saturday with the knowledge that they will play 10 of their last 15 games at GM Place. Have won three of four since the break and still own the top spot in the Northwest Division.
7	Colorado 37-22-6	2 Last Week: 9	Avs are 2-2 since the Olympic break but have given up three goals in each of those four games, which isn't a particularly good sign. Still, within two points of the division lead with a big head-to-head with Vancouver coming up Tuesday.
8	Los Angeles 38-22-4	4 Last Week: 4	Kings have lost two of three since the break and will be looking to integrate new parts, Jeff Halpern and Fredrik Modin, to keep pace in the West where they still have their sights set on home-ice advantage in the first round.
9	Buffalo 35-20-9	1 Last Week: 10	Sabres, led by Olympic MVP Ryan Miller, are 2-2 since the break and have just eight goals over that period. The offense is going to have to catch up to Miller, or it's going to catch up to the Sabres, who remain in a dogfight with Ottawa for the Northeast Division crown.
10	New Jersey 38-23-3	4 Last Week: 6	We thought Ilya Kovalchuk was supposed to jump-start the Devils' offense? Instead, the Devils seem out of sync, having lost two of three since the break and winning just twice in their past eight outings overall. The slide has cost them top spot in the Atlantic and could cost them home-ice advantage in the first round if they don't get things turned around.
11	Ottawa 36-25-5	-- Last Week: 11	It's either feast or famine for the streaky Sens, who looked like world- beaters before the Olympics and now have lost three in a row since the break, managing just one goal in each of those contests.
12	Detroit 31-22-12	1 Last Week: 13	Big wins over Nashville and then Chicago on Sunday followed a 6-3 whipping at home at the hands of the Canucks earlier in the week. Lost Todd Bertuzzi during Sunday's game but in general are as healthy as they've been all year. Do we now see the much-anticipated rise of the Winged Wheel?
13	Nashville 35-25-5	1 Last Week: 14	Preds have dropped two in a row, including a tough loss to Central Division foe Detroit, and now hit the road for four straight. The road to the playoffs, as always, is a difficult one for the plucky Preds, who start the week in seventh place in the West.
14	Philadelphia 34-26-4	2 Last Week: 12	With Michael Leighton firmly entrenched as the Flyers' go-to guy in goal, is it time they make their long-anticipated move up the Eastern Conference standings? Close out a four-game home stand this week.
15	Calgary 32-24-9	-- Last Week: 15	New Flame Vesa Toskala got the win in Minnesota on Sunday, but the Flames will have to find the consistency that has eluded them all year if they're going to scratch their way back into the playoff picture in the West.
16	Montreal 32-29-6	7 Last Week: 23	The Habs continue to show impressive resolve, erasing a three-goal deficit to beat Anaheim in a shootout Sunday. Have won three of four on the road since the Olympic break to maintain a firm grip on a playoff spot in the East.
17	Boston 29-24-11	1 Last Week: 18	Tim Thomas has come up big with Tuukka Rask on the shelf. Still, as always, the offense is the big deal in Boston, where the Bruins have gone 2-2 since the break but have managed just seven goals. That kind of production won't get you into the playoffs -- even in the mediocre Eastern Conference.
18	St. Louis 30-26-9	2 Last Week: 20	Blues begin post-Olympic schedule with six straight on the road. They won two of the first three but were waxed by Colorado 7-3 in their last. They need to win at least two of their next three on the road to keep pace in the West.
19	Carolina 27-31-7	6 Last Week: 25	Yeah, we get it that the Canes have a lot fewer points than the teams below them in the rankings. But they bring it every night and have won eight of nine. Even after GM Jim Rutherford began deconstructing the team at the deadline building for the future, the Canes continue to play the spoiler. Kudos to Paul Maurice and the rest of the coaching staff.
20	Anaheim 30-27-8	4 Last Week: 16	Ducks have lost three straight since the break, including blowing a three-goal lead to Montreal on Sunday, although they did pick up a point in the shootout loss. Still, that's no way to get back into the playoff hunt.
21	Dallas 28-24-12	4 Last Week: 17	Another team determined to play itself right out of the playoff hunt, the Stars have lost all three since the break and been outscored 17-5. Good thing they resolved their goaltending issues by adding Kari Lehtonen and keeping Marty Turco.
22	Minnesota 31-28-5	3 Last Week: 19	Wild are treading water, going 1-1-1 since the break, but jettisoned some dead wood at the deadline and clearly have one eye on the future and one on the current season.
23	Tampa Bay 27-26-11	1 Last Week: 22	Another team on the edge of the playoff world that appears to have little clue, the Lightning are 1-2 since the break and have given up 14 goals over that stretch. Luckily they play in the east where pretty much anyone can make the playoffs.
24	New York 29-28-9	-- Last Week: 24	Rangers have lost three straight and managed just nine goals since the break. Familiar tune in New York. Most worrisome is that two of those losses have come with Marian Gaborik back in the lineup. Yikes.
25	Winnipeg 28-26-10	4 Last Week: 21	Thrashers started post-Olympic schedule with two straight wins, but since then have been outscored 10-2 in losses to Tampa and Carolina. Not good. Not good at all.
26	Florida 26-28-10	1 Last Week: 27	Panthers have won two in a row and play the next three on the road. The playoffs are a mirage unless they can win all three.
27	Columbus 25-29-11	1 Last Week: 26	What small amount of traction the Blue Jackets had before the Olympics seems to have evaporated, as they've lost both outings since the break and four in a row overall.
28	New York 26-31-8	-- Last Week: 28	How GM Garth Snow failed to divest himself of at least one goalie at the deadline continues to mystify us. Isles have lost two of three since the break.
29	Toronto 20-33-12	-- Last Week: 29	Leafs have scored just five goals in four games since the break, although they managed to take opponents to a shootout in two of those games.
30	Edmonton 21-38-6	-- Last Week: 30	Gritty 2-0 win over New Jersey and shootout win over Minnesota gives the Oil a rare two-game winning streak. They haven't won three in a row since early December.
Biggest Jump: 7 Biggest Drop: 4

Power Rankings: Caps solidifying status

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