{"id":237699,"date":"2025-10-24T14:00:10","date_gmt":"2025-10-24T14:00:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/237699\/"},"modified":"2025-10-24T14:00:10","modified_gmt":"2025-10-24T14:00:10","slug":"nhl-power-rankings-hurricanes-leap-to-no-1-and-weve-chosen-our-guys-for-each-team","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/237699\/","title":{"rendered":"NHL Power Rankings: Hurricanes leap to No. 1 and we\u2019ve chosen Our Guys for each team"},"content":{"rendered":"

A few years ago, in November 2022, we here at Power Rankings HQ chose Our Guys. One per team. Those Guys being particularly good, while encouraged, was not a prerequisite<\/a>.<\/p>\n

We\u2019re back at it for 2025-26. A lot of these picks are based on skill. Some of them, particularly toward the bottom, are based on other things. The only rule: If you showed up on Player Tiers<\/a>, our league-vetted list of the top 150 players in hockey, you were ineligible. Be good, in other words, but not too good \u2014 and if you\u2019re not good, be old, be interesting, or have a cool name.<\/p>\n

1. Carolina Hurricanes, 6-1-0<\/p>\n

Last week: 3
Sean: 1
Dom: 1<\/p>\n

Before we get to #OurGuy, let\u2019s first talk about the NHL aptly scheduling a Rankings Bowl game the night before. Colorado vs. Carolina: Winner gets first overall in the Power Rankings, the most coveted NHL award outside the Stanley Cup. Carolina dominated to start with a 4-1 lead and almost squandered it before putting it away in a shootout. That\u2019s all the Hurricanes needed to cement their spot at the top of the NHL mountain.<\/p>\n

So who\u2019s #OurGuy from the league\u2019s best team? We\u2019re going with Jackson Blake, who\u2019s off to a nice start after signing a bajillion dollar extension this summer. He\u2019s notably stolen Andrei Svechnikov\u2019s spot on the top power play in the early going which could put him in line for a productive season. Also, he has a movie star name which is important.<\/p>\n

2. Colorado Avalanche, 5-0-3<\/p>\n

Last week: 1
Sean: 2
Dom: 2<\/p>\n

When it comes to #OurGuys, we tend to skew on the young side \u2014 the up-and-coming talents ready to make a name for themselves. We, uhh, don\u2019t have a lot of options on that front with the Avalanche, so instead we\u2019re going to root for the guy with the best story. That\u2019s obviously Gabriel Landeskog. With two points in eight games (and a goal unjustly taken away from him earlier this week), Landeskog is off to an unfortunately slow start. But we have faith the Avalanche captain will look closer to the somehow-still-dominant player we saw in last year\u2019s playoffs.<\/p>\n

3. New Jersey Devils, 6-1-0<\/p>\n

Last week: 9
Sean: 4
Dom: 3<\/p>\n

How can you not love a rookie that posts updates on Telegram<\/a> throughout the season? Arseny Gritsyuk has endeared us with his love for posting, and the shot on his first goal wasn\u2019t bad either.<\/p>\n

Arseny Gritsyuk buries his first NHL goal on the power play! \ud83d\udcaa pic.twitter.com\/b4cyE60L4Y<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 NHL (@NHL) October 23, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n

4. Vegas Golden Knights, 5-0-2<\/p>\n

Last week: 10
Sean: 3
Dom: 4<\/p>\n

Since the start of last season, Pavel Dorofeyev has scored 42 goals. That was 12th-most in the league at the start of Thursday\u2019s games, more than \u2014 among a whole bunch of others \u2014 Auston Matthews and Nathan MacKinnon. In about 50 five-on-five minutes with Dorofeyev, Mitch Marner and Tomas Hertl on the ice, Vegas is controlling a smooth 73 percent of the expected goal share.<\/p>\n

Also, he does stuff like this. What\u2019s not to like?<\/p>\n

DOROFEYEV PULLS A FORSBERG OH MY \ud83d\udea8\ud83d\udea8\ud83d\udea8 pic.twitter.com\/7HT6lVOCqi<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 B\/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) October 21, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n

5. Utah Mammoth, 6-2-0<\/p>\n

Last week: 15
Sean: 6
Dom: 5<\/p>\n

The Mammoth have a lot of flash at the top of their lineup. Clayton Keller and Nick Schmaltz are staples. Logan Cooley and Dylan Guenther are the up-and-comers. And JJ Peterka is the new guy in town. But it\u2019s all for not without a responsible two-way center holding it all together. That\u2019s Barrett Hayton, who is finally realizing the upside that made him a top-five pick.<\/p>\n

That may not come in the form of production, but since 2022-23, his teams\u2019 xG rate is 0.53 better per 60 with him on the ice. That\u2019s the sixth-best mark in the league. He\u2019s a driver.<\/p>\n

6. Washington Capitals, 5-2-0<\/p>\n

Last week: 4
Sean: 5
Dom: 6<\/p>\n

It shouldn\u2019t surprise anyone to see Ryan Leonard pop a bit; he started last season as one of the top prospects in the league, had another great run at Boston College and earned a playoff roster spot for the Capitals. Players with his mix of skill and pain-in-the-assery are pretty rare and pretty fun.<\/p>\n

He\u2019s delivering thus far, scoring three times in seven games, leading the Caps with 2.08 goals per 60 and making an early push to be at the top of the Calder discussion. Get used to seeing stuff like this from him.<\/p>\n

He JUST missed on this one, but Ryan Leonard\u2019s shot is going to be a problem\u2026 \ud83d\ude2e\u200d\ud83d\udca8 pic.twitter.com\/bVu3DSaOE5<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 NHL (@NHL) October 22, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n

7. Edmonton Oilers, 4-3-1<\/p>\n

Last week: 6
Sean: 8
Dom: 7<\/p>\n

Expecting Andrew Mangiapane to hit the 35-goal mark, as he did with the Flames a few years back, would be unreasonable, but he\u2019s still capable of substantive five-on-five play and decent production. Quality depth, in other words. Still a pretty novel concept in Edmonton.<\/p>\n

8. Winnipeg Jets, 5-2-0<\/p>\n

Last week: 7
Sean: 7
Dom: 9<\/p>\n

It\u2019s not easy being the backup behind a bell-cow starter. Eric Comrie only played 20 games last year and has only suited up once so far in Winnipeg\u2019s first seven this year. When he does play, though, he\u2019s been rock solid for the Jets with six goals saved above expected over those 21 games and a .916 save percentage. Maybe, just maybe, this is the year the Jets give Connor Hellebuyck a few more nights off. It could solve his playoff woes and Comrie looks more than capable of taking on a bigger role.<\/p>\n

9. Montreal Canadiens, 6-3-0<\/p>\n

Last week: 8
Sean: 9
Dom: 8<\/p>\n

We\u2019ve both got a lot of time for Kaiden Guhle, which is why he\u2019s the pick here despite a lower-body injury that\u2019ll shelve him for another month, if not more. He\u2019s not particularly flashy, but he looked good next to Lane Hutson last season. Montreal could\u2019ve used him against Edmonton on Thursday.<\/p>\n

10. Dallas Stars, 3-3-1<\/p>\n

Last week: 2
Sean: 12
Dom: 10<\/p>\n

It\u2019s been a minute since we\u2019ve seen a fully-operational version of Tyler Seguin in Dallas. Last season, before December surgery on a hip that had been giving him trouble, he had 20 points in 19 games. During the playoffs, he helped drive play but finished with eight points in 18 games, then had another operation on his shoulder.<\/p>\n

In six games thus far, though, he\u2019s looked good across the board, putting up six points and, at five-on-five, helping Dallas control the run of play. Watching him maintain that level for a full season, at 33, would be fun \u2014 and it\u2019d certainly help give the Stars another layer of offensive production.<\/p>\n

11. Anaheim Ducks, 4-2-1<\/p>\n

Last week: 20
Sean: 10
Dom: 13<\/p>\n

We\u2019re going with Chris Kreider for all the reasons Murat Ates laid out in his piece<\/a> about old guys who are currently looking a little less old. Kreider had an assist on Thursday night, though, which hurts his Cy Young case.<\/p>\n

12. Detroit Red Wings, 5-3-0<\/p>\n

Last week: 13
Sean: 11
Dom: 14<\/p>\n

Sometimes #OurGuy is an underrated unknown. Sometimes he\u2019s got a cool name. Sometimes he\u2019s got a great story. Emmitt Finnie is all three.<\/p>\n

The Red Wings rookie not only made the team against all odds, but has become a top-line staple next to Dylan Larkin and Lucas Raymond. Finnie has more than held his own in tough minutes and has seven points in eight games to boot. Not bad for a kid who was drafted 201st just two years ago. Assuming he sticks around, Finnie will be the first player drafted in the 200s to play a full season since the 2019 draft.<\/p>\n

13. Toronto Maple Leafs, 3-3-1<\/p>\n

Last week: 5
Sean: 15
Dom: 11<\/p>\n

Bobby McMann, welcome to the top line!<\/p>\n

Toronto has been a tough watch through the start of the season and Auston Matthews\u2019 line, especially, has been a mess. Putting William Nylander up there, too, is obviously the headline, but don\u2019t think we didn\u2019t notice the speedy McMann lining up on the other side. McMann has shown some flashes of scoring upside in the past; now he has a prime opportunity to make due on that promise. At the very least, he adds a different element.<\/p>\n

14. Florida Panthers, 4-5-0<\/p>\n

Last week: 12
Sean: 14
Dom: 12<\/p>\n

They like calling Anton Lundell \u201cBaby Barkov\u201d in South Florida, and he put some of that on display Thursday night by annoying the bejeezus out of Sidney Crosby in their matchup minutes. Florida controlled attempts 16-9, shots 7-1 and chances 8-1 when the two were on the ice together. The champs lost, though. That should be lightly concerning. Having Big Barkov would be nice!<\/p>\n

15. Pittsburgh Penguins, 6-2-0<\/p>\n

Last week: 24
Sean: 13
Dom: 16<\/p>\n

Pittsburgh is an entertaining watch at the moment. It\u2019s a roster chock-full of Flibbets and Donks, and most of them are punching above their weight class. Five goals for Justin Brazeau? Top-pair beast Parker Wotherspoon? An Anthony Mantha sighting? Hey, why not?<\/p>\n

Our pick, though, is Ben Kindel. He\u2019s 18 years old, a first-round pick in June who has a great shot at sticking around for the full season, and lots of folks are already in love with him. Plus, he\u2019s a Penguin who wears No. 81 and is capable of scoring goals like this. Call him Ben Kessel or Phil Kindel. Your pick.<\/p>\n

Beautiful one timer by 18-year old Ben Kindel. This kid belongs! 3-1 Pens leading two time Stanley Cup Champions after 2 pic.twitter.com\/rux1ok2IyA<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Bob Pompeani (@KDPomp) October 24, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n

16. Vancouver Canucks, 4-4-0<\/p>\n

Last week: 16
Sean: 16
Dom: 15<\/p>\n

Conor Garland is ineligible here due to his Player Tiers inclusion. We took some heat for that one, but he\u2019s been their best forward. Jake DeBrusk hasn\u2019t been quite as good, but he likes Pok\u00e9mon, which is cool.<\/p>\n

jake debrusk\u2019s favourite pok\u00e9mon \u201cis the closest thing to a canuck (orca)\u201d JD A CANUCK FOR LIFE pic.twitter.com\/d8HWPYVenZ<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 keke (@r2aatu) October 17, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n

17. St. Louis Blues, 3-3-1<\/p>\n

Last week: 17
Sean: 19
Dom: 18<\/p>\n

If the St. Louis Blues aren\u2019t selling snuggies with Jimmy Snuggerud\u2019s face on it, then what\u2019s the point? His three goals to start the season are second only to Pavel Buchnevich on the team.<\/p>\n

18. New York Rangers, 3-4-2<\/p>\n

Last week: 18
Sean: 20
Dom: 17<\/p>\n

We are not picking Jonathan Quick here simply because he\u2019s old \u2014 though he is. A happy early 40th birthday to him. We\u2019re also picking him because he\u2019s still a competent backup, with a .911 save percentage and a GSAx of nearly one in two starts thus far, and because he seems like a pretty good dude<\/a>. Three nice qualities!<\/p>\n

19. New York Islanders, 4-3-0<\/p>\n

Last week: 29
Sean: 18
Dom: 22<\/p>\n

Remember the other guy in the Noah Dobson deal? Emil Heineman. Well, he\u2019s on the Islanders\u2019 top line and has started the season with five goals in seven games. He\u2019s been a really nice get for the Islanders. Shout out to Arpon Basu, who\u2019s always been a Heineman Guy.<\/p>\n

20. Los Angeles Kings, 3-3-2<\/p>\n

Last week: 21
Sean: 21
Dom: 19<\/p>\n

Los Angeles, we\u2019re begging you: Just give Brandt Clarke a chance to shine. Clarke feels like the team\u2019s only defenseman with any offensive juice, but is sixth on the depth chart. Yes, there\u2019s a reason for that \u2014 his defensive game needs a lot of work \u2014 but if the alternative is more Cody Ceci and Brian Dumoulin, the Kings are making the wrong choice. With such a deep forward group, it\u2019s time to let Clarke cook.<\/p>\n

21. Minnesota Wild, 3-4-1<\/p>\n

Last week: 14
Sean: 22
Dom: 20<\/p>\n

With all due respect to Zeev Buium, a walking endorsement for an NHL version of \u201cRed Zone\u201d for power plays, we\u2019re going with Marcus Johansson. If you\u2019re a 35-year-old who\u2019s still kicking around on the middle six of a half-decent team despite not scoring more than 13 goals since 2018, you\u2019ve earned our respect.<\/p>\n

Now, is that a great sign for Minnesota? Probably not. Same goes for the fact that no Wild forward has been on the ice for more of their five-on-five goals. But it all counts for something.<\/p>\n

22. Philadelphia Flyers, 3-3-1<\/p>\n

Last week: 27
Sean: 17
Dom: 26<\/p>\n

Before the season started, Trevor Zegras told ESPN\u2019s Greg Wyshynski<\/a>, \u201cI want them to go from saying \u2018he\u2019s good at hockey\u2019 to \u2018he\u2019s a hockey player.\u2019\u201d Plays like this tell us he\u2019s on the right track.<\/p>\n

WHAT A PASS BY ZEGRAS TO COUTURIER \ud83d\ude33 pic.twitter.com\/SFJtWCkAnD<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 B\/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) October 14, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n

Through six games Zegras not only has five points, but he\u2019s also flashing the five-on-five substance his game has been missing the last few years. If Zegras can consistently prove he\u2019s more than just flash, the Flyers will have a true impact player on their hands.<\/p>\n

23. Seattle Kraken, 4-2-2<\/p>\n

Last week: 26
Sean: 23
Dom: 21<\/p>\n

He\u2019s played all of three NHL games, but here\u2019s hoping Berkly Catton sticks with the Kraken. The No. 8 pick in 2024, Catton is the sort of elite talent the Kraken desperately need to stay out of the muck. Corey Pronman thinks he\u2019s got star potential<\/a> as a first-line center, and that\u2019s good enough for us.<\/p>\n

24. Chicago Blackhawks, 4-2-2<\/p>\n

Last week: 30
Sean: 24
Dom: 25<\/p>\n

We gassed up Frank Nazar last week, and it\u2019s a good time to re-up that one. He scored on Thursday night for the second time in two nights in a 3-2 win over the Lightning. The Lightning! The Blackhawks beat the Lightning!<\/p>\n

Nazar now has nine points in eight games and a positive Game Score in six of them. Chicago desperately needed someone to step up as a long-term piece with Connor Bedard, and he fits the bill more and more each day.<\/p>\n

25. Columbus Blue Jackets, 3-3-0<\/p>\n

Last week: 28
Sean: 27
Dom: 29<\/p>\n

He\u2019s not lighting the world on fire thus far (2G, 1A), but Kent Johnson is a blast. He\u2019s a creative, entertaining player, and he\u2019s coming off a substantive 57-point season at just 22 years old. We\u2019re holding our stock.<\/p>\n

26. Buffalo Sabres, 3-4-0<\/p>\n

Last week: 25
Sean: 27
Dom: 24<\/p>\n

It\u2019s tough to narrow down just one Sabres player to add to #OurGuys. Jack Quinn and Zach Benson have had incredible individual efforts over the last week, but we\u2019re going with newcomer Josh Doan. One of the two pieces in the Peterka deal offered plenty of intrigue entering the season, given his elite underlying numbers in a small role. If Doan could translate it higher up the lineup, the Sabres were in business.<\/p>\n

So far, he\u2019s done just that and has been one of Buffalo\u2019s best players to start. Doan is tied for the team lead with six points and has been the team\u2019s unquestionable driver at five-on-five with a stunning 66.8 percent xG. Doan is the real deal.<\/p>\n

27. Nashville Predators, 3-3-2<\/p>\n

Last week: 22
Sean: 25
Dom: 28<\/p>\n

Did you know Steven Stamkos didn\u2019t make our list of the top 150 players? Nobody pushed back on that decision, either. Wild. Watching him dial it back up would be fun \u2014 but #OurGuy here is Ozzy Wiesblatt. He\u2019s a first-round pick (2020 with San Jose) who\u2019s trying to carve out an NHL niche after a solid run with Milwaukee of the AHL, and he\u2019s got a great name. On a roster that\u2019s pretty short on intrigue, that\u2019s more than enough.<\/p>\n

28. Ottawa Senators, 3-4-1<\/p>\n

Last week: 23
Sean: 28
Dom: 27<\/p>\n

Artem Zub needs a better PR team. He entered the season with a borderline top-10 Defensive Rating in the same company as the game\u2019s absolute best \u2014 but with nowhere near the same press. Zub is a rock on Ottawa\u2019s blue line, a perfect complement to Jake Sanderson on the team\u2019s shutdown line. It\u2019s time he gets some attention for his work.<\/p>\n

29. Boston Bruins, 3-6-0<\/p>\n

Last week: 19
Sean: 29
Dom: 29<\/p>\n

Wouldn\u2019t it be funny if Elias Lindholm was actually good again? After a tough start to his Boston tenure, Lindholm found his footing in the second half. He\u2019s carried that over to his second season with six points in his first eight games.<\/p>\n

Is that worth $7.75 million for the next six years? Even in a rising cap world, probably not. But he\u2019s still a decent player.<\/p>\n

30. San Jose Sharks, 1-4-2<\/p>\n

Last week: 32
Sean: 31
Dom: 32<\/p>\n

A five-point game, which Macklin Celebrini went out and had on Thursday night, is about as fun as it gets \u2014 but Celebrini, sadly, is ineligible here. We\u2019ll go with Will Smith instead, and we\u2019re feeling pretty good about the consolation prize.<\/p>\n

Smith had four points against the Rangers, including the game-winning overtime goal \u2026 on a feed from Celebrini. Sign us up for 15 years of that. Sign Judi up, too<\/a>.<\/p>\n

WILL SMITH \ud83d\udd25<\/p>\n

He gives the @SanJoseSharks<\/a> their first win of the season in @Energizer<\/a> OT! pic.twitter.com\/RRcy2KMq2e<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 NHL (@NHL) October 24, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n

31. Calgary Flames, 1-6-0<\/p>\n

Last week: 31
Sean: 32
Dom: 31<\/p>\n

Next to nothing is working for the Flames so far, so we\u2019ll turn to our old friend Jonathan Huberdeau. He may only have one goal in three games, but he\u2019s been a surprising force when it comes to possessing the puck. His contract is extremely prohibitive, but it would be nice to see what he could still do on a good team that can surround him with talent.<\/p>\n

32. Tampa Bay Lightning, 1-4-2<\/p>\n

Last week: 11
Sean: 13
Dom: 12<\/p>\n

Seven games in and the Lightning just lost to the Blackhawks and are tied with the Sharks in the standings. Not good. Because #OurGuys would never let us down, ever, it\u2019s hard to pick any player associated with this absolute disaster. We\u2019re going to have to go with Nick Paul, a good player who has played zero part in Tampa Bay\u2019s current mess.<\/p>\n