NHL 2026-27 Power Rankings: Week 4

We are nearing the one-month mark of the 2026-27 NHL season. That’s still too small a sample size to make any final conclusions about the league’s 32 teams, but we’ve also learned a lot thus far.

In this Week 4 edition of The Hockey Writers‘ power rankings, where does each team rank?

32-31: Back to the Basement

32. Vancouver Canucks (No change)

31. Chicago Blackhawks (-3)

Just like last season, the Chicago Blackhawks and Vancouver Canucks find themselves at the bottom of the standings. While both teams had encouraging runs (Vancouver at the beginning of the campaign and Chicago following the return of Connor Bedard), those runs were short-lived.

The Canucks didn’t add much in the summer, so they were expected to be here. But after the Blackhawks dealt the No. 4 pick in the 2026 NHL Draft for Bowen Byram, some fans felt the club had playoff potential. Byram has missed time, but it’s evident that optimism of that magnitude should be put on the back burner for now.

30-16: Could Make the Playoffs, but Have Question Marks

30. Los Angeles Kings (No change)

29. Columbus Blue Jackets (-2)

28. Anaheim Ducks (-13)

27. Philadelphia Flyers (+4)

26. Calgary Flames (+3)

25. Nashville Predators (No change)

24. San Jose Sharks (-3)

23. Buffalo Sabres (-10)

22. Winnipeg Jets (-4)

21. St. Louis Blues (+5)

20. Detroit Red Wings (No change)

19. Pittsburgh Penguins (+3)

18. New York Rangers (-2)

17. New York Islanders (+2)

16. Seattle Kraken (+8)

This is a long list of teams, but frankly, none of them seem like legitimate playoff teams right now. Each of them certainly has a chance—some having better odds than others—but a major issue or two is keeping them from the next tier.

The Anaheim Ducks are worth highlighting. They’re probably not actually this bad, given their passable underlyings, but it’ll be an uphill battle to make the playoffs at this point. The top-end talent is there, but overall, the team might be set for regression.

The Calgary Flames and Philadelphia Flyers are starting to separate themselves from the basement teams. I still wouldn’t bet on either making the playoffs—expected for the Flames, but disappointing for the Flyers after reaching Round 2 of last year’s postseason.

Perhaps I’m being a bit harsh to the Buffalo Sabres, whose .500 points percentage is identical to some teams above them in this ranking. But following a 50-win campaign led by several young, emerging stars, Buffalo is starting to slip.

The New York Rangers and Seattle Kraken are higher in the standings than they’re ranked here, but I don’t have much belief in them. Without Igor Sheshterkin, the Rangers are flat-out not that good, unfortunately. I hope I’m wrong, but I see this team being average-at-best for the rest of the season. Seattle has been getting outplayed all season long—I have no doubt some regression is coming. For now, though, I have to respect the club’s 7-4-1 record.

15-11: True Playoff Contender

15. Florida Panthers (-4)

14. Toronto Maple Leafs (+9)

13. Ottawa Senators (+1)

12. Washington Capitals (-2)

11. Montreal Canadiens (+1)

I feel a little more confident about these five going to the dance, although all but the Washington Capitals are Atlantic Division teams (so, at least one of them will probably miss out).

The Florida Panthers took a step back in Week 4. Still, I’m not concerned about them much at all. The team as a whole is playing well, and Matthew Tkachuk has been productive. This is arguably a top-five roster in the NHL when healthy, and captain Aleksander Barkov shouldn’t be out for too long.

I’m not convinced the Toronto Maple Leafs are as good as their record indicates (they’ve had subpar numbers at 5-on-5), but a four-game winning streak is hard to argue with. For now, I lean toward Toronto making the playoffs, even if regression could certainly be in order.

One team that has lost its luster for me a bit is the Washington Capitals. They haven’t exactly been analytical darlings to this point, and their 6-4-0 record is only wildcard caliber. Washington may be better than it was last season, but not by much.

10-4: Potential Stanley Cup Contender

10. Colorado Avalanche (-6)

9. Vegas Golden Knights (-7)

8. New Jersey Devils (+9)

7. Edmonton Oilers (-2)

6. Tampa Bay Lightning (-3)

5. Minnesota Wild (+1)

4. Utah Mammoth (+4)

These are potential contenders, with the “potential” modifier being there due to one slight concern or another.

The Colorado Avalanche seem to be suffering the consequences of their questionable offseason. This team is still good, don’t get me wrong, but it has gone from an undeniable juggernaut to just another contender. I don’t think the regression is simply noise, either.

The New Jersey Devils are getting a huge boost for patching up their biggest hole: goaltending. They were a dominant analytical team previously, but you couldn’t expect them to live up to those metrics consistently, given who was between the pipes. Now, Connor Hellebuyck is in town, and general manager Sunny Mehta didn’t trade all that much to get him. Following a three-game winning streak without Hellebuyck, this ranking might be too low.

I considered moving up the Minnesota Wild, Tampa Bay Lightning, and Utah Mammoth. They’ve put up strong underlyings, though the teams in the next tier have been hot recently (or all season).

3-1: True Contenders

3. Dallas Stars (+6)

2. Boston Bruins (+5)

1. Carolina Hurricanes (No change)

The Dallas Stars had a rough start, but they’re creeping toward the top of the Western Conference with five straight wins. This is not a team you want to find on your schedule right now.

Do the Boston Bruins have the NHL’s best PDO (sum of save and shooting percentage)? Yes, they do, and that’s unsustainable. But they’re also 9-2-1 with a plus-22 goal differential. This is a juggernaut until proven otherwise, especially given their improving chance-differential numbers: a 59.35% expected goal share in Week 4.

Finally, the Carolina Hurricanes retain their spot at No. 1. The defending Stanley Cup champions have the best record in the NHL, and they’re doing it by dominating their opponents in the chance department. Getting Alexander Nikishin signed only helps.

There was a lot of movement in this week’s power rankings, and there will likely continue to be. The proven contenders will probably stay near the top, and the proven basement-dwellers will probably stay near the bottom. But things are unpredictable aside from them.

Stats courtesy of Natural Stat Trick