The Boston Bruins have rebounded well from a disappointing start to the 2015-16 NHL season with four wins in their last five games and a five-game point streak.
Bruins goalie Tuukka Rask, who had struggled in his first five starts, earned his first shutout of the season in a 6-0 win over the Arizona Coyotes on Tuesday night. It was Boston’s first win at TD Garden, where it will play seven of its 11 games in November.
Here are the latest NHL power rankings. All records current as of Oct. 28.
1. Montreal Canadiens (9-1-0): A surprising 5-1 loss to the Vancouver Canucks on Tuesday night won’t dampen the good spirits in Montreal after a historically good start.
2. Washington Capitals (6-1-0):Â The Capitals have the third-best goal differential and former first-round pick Evgeny Kuznetsov is on his way to stardom with 11 points in seven games.
3. Dallas Stars (7-2-0): Dallas came back from a 3-0 deficit and won 4-3 against the Anaheim Ducks on Tuesday night. It was an impressive win for a Stars club with a lot of young, inexperienced players at key positions.
4. Nashville Predators (6-1-1): The Preds are tied for the fewest goals allowed with 16. If they give No. 1 goaltender Pekka Rinne two or three goals, their chances of winning drastically rise.
5. New York Rangers (6-2-2): New York’s dominance at even strength — tied for the most 5-on-5 goals scored — has been key to its early success.
6. Chicago Blackhawks (6-3-0): The Blackhawks have had trouble scoring recently with two 1-0 overtime wins, but their defensive game has been strong without No. 1 defenseman Duncan Keith, which is impressive.
7. New York Islanders (6-2-1): The Islanders are taking care of business at home with a 4-1-1 record at the Barclays Center.
8. Los Angeles Kings (6-3-0): Six straight wins has erased the disastrous 0-3-0 start that headlined the first week of the season. There’s too much veteran experience on this team for panic to set in.
9. St. Louis Blues (6-2-1): The Blues are the second-best puck possession team with a 56.4 Corsi-for percentage at even strength.
10. Minnesota Wild (6-2-1): A 4-0-0 mark at home has overshadowed some defensive issues for the Wild that have resulted in 25 goals against.
11. Tampa Bay Lightning (5-3-2): The Lightning have the third-highest faceoff percentage in the league. The bad news is that they’ve gone 2-3-2 away from home so far.
12. Winnipeg Jets (5-3-1): Top prospect Nik Ehlers has a three-game goal streak and seven points in nine games.
13. Florida Panthers (5-3-1): The Panthers are going to be in the playoff mix all season. A plus-12 goal differential and a 9.4 shooting percentage are impressive.
14. Boston Bruins (4-3-1): As noted in the intro, the Bruins have erased an 0-3-0 start by taking at least a point from five straight games. David Krejci is second in the NHL in scoring and the power play ranks No. 1 with a 32.1 percent scoring rate.
15. Arizona Coyotes (5-4-1): Max Domi leads all rookies in scoring as the Coyotes sit atop the Pacific Division standings. Who saw that coming?
16. San Jose Sharks (5-3-0):Â The Sharks’ offense has cooled off a bit after a strong start. They rank 15th in goals per game and 26th in power-play percentage.
17. Vancouver Canucks (4-2-3): Vancouver’s defensive prowess — fourth in goals against and fifth in penalty killing — has been key to its early-season success.
18. Detroit Red Wings (4-4-1): Detroit has lost five of its last six games with just eight goals scored in those defeats.
19. Pittsburgh Penguins (4-4-0):Â Ten even-strength goals in eight games isn’t enough for a team with a blue line that lacks the necessary defensive skill to steal games.
20. Philadelphia Flyers (4-2-2): The Flyers overcame multiple deficits Tuesday night to earn a point against the Sabres and extend their point streak to three games.
21. Ottawa Senators (3-3-2): The Senators are what we expected: an average team. A 4-1 loss to the Coyotes on Saturday night was a bit troubling, though.
22. New Jersey Devils (4-4-1): Could the Devils challenge for a playoff spot? Probably not, but Cory Schneider’s brilliance in net will keep them in the mix longer than they should be.
23. Edmonton Oilers (3-7-0):Â No. 1 overall draft pick Connor McDavid is off to a nice start with 10 points in 10 games, but 31 goals against (third-highest in the league) won’t win many games.
24. Buffalo Sabres (3-6-0): Jack Eichel has one point in his last five games and top-six winger Evander Kane is out of the lineup again with an injury. All of the good feelings from Buffalo’s start to the season have pretty much evaporated.
25. Toronto Maple Leafs (1-5-2): Toronto ranks third in puck possession at even strength (using Corsi-for percentage) and has won 51 percent of its faceoffs. The problem, again, is lackluster goaltending.
26. Colorado Avalanche (2-5-1):Â I’ll just leave this here.
27. Anaheim Ducks (1-6-2): Six even-strength goals (worst in the league) and a 3.0 shooting percentage at 5-on-5 (worst in the league) is pathetic for a team loaded with offensive talent. At this rate, will head coach Bruce Boudreau be behind the bench for the upcoming homestand?
28. Carolina Hurricanes (3-6-0):Â The Hurricanes actually are the fourth-best possession team at even strength, but they have just 11 goals thanks to a lackluster 5.8 shooting percentage.
29. Columbus Blue Jackets (2-8-0): New head coach John Tortorella is 2-1 with Columbus despite not having its best player, first-line center Ryan Johansen, for those three games.
30. Calgary Flames (2-7-0): The Flames have a 47.1 Corsi-for percentage and a minus-18 goal differential during 5-on-5 play. That’s awful for a team that entered the campaign with high expectations.
Thumbnail photo via Winslow Townson/USA TODAY Sports Images
