Celebrating a victory is a common sight around the Philadelphia Flyers camp these days, as Ilya Bryzgalov, left, and Jaromir Jagr demonstrate. The team continues to win despite injuries to key players. (Greg Fiume/Getty Images)
The Philadelphia Flyers continue to strut an outstanding offensive game and as a result have found their way to the top of the power rankings this week. Flyers general manager Paul Holmgren made some bold moves in shipping out Mike Richards and Jeff Carter last summer, but so far so good in the city of Brotherly Love.
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1. PHILADELPHIA FLYERS (19-7-3) No Chris Pronger and no Claude Giroux, yet the Flyers keep winning. One of the keys to their success has been their ability to score goals. (Last Week: 6) |
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2. MINNESOTA WILD (20-8-3) The Wild's seven-game win streak came to an end in Winnipeg, but the surprise team of the year isn't going away. (Last Week: 1) |
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3. DETROIT RED WINGS (19-9-1)Goalie Jimmy Howard has quietly developed into one of the league's elite netminders. He leads the NHL with 18 wins. (Last Week: 10) |
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4. BOSTON BRUINS (19-9-1)The Bruins have been dealing with some injuries, including a lower-body ailment to captain Zdeno Chara. But they have been surviving. (Last Week: 2) |
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5. CHICAGO BLACKHAWKS (18-8-4)Cory Crawford may be struggling in goal these days, but backup Ray Emery has successfully picked up the load lately. (Last Week: 9) |
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6. NEW YORK RANGERS (17-7-4)As long as they stay away from Toronto, the Rangers have performed well since their start in Europe. The Maple Leafs have handed the Rangers two of their league-low six losses this season. (Last Week: 5) |
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7. VANCOUVER CANUCKS (18-10-2)The slow-starting Western Conference champs have made their way up the standings with an impressive 8-1-1 run. (Last Week: 4) |
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8. ST. LOUIS BLUES (17-9-3)The Blues' team defence and special teams have improved and that's why they have gone 11-2-3 under new coach Ken Hitchcock. (Last Week: 7) |
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9. PITTSBURGH PENGUINS (17-10-4)The Penguins have experienced another setback with captain Sidney Crosby and other key players sidelined with injuries, but somehow they stay competitive. (Last Week: 3) |
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10. FLORIDA PANTHERS (16-9-4)Three consecutive losses have stalled the Panthers' impressive first-half run. But the revival of the rats has certainly made this an interesting time in South Florida. (Last Week: 8) |
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11. NEW JERSEY DEVILS (16-13-1)The Devils have won four of five, all one-goal games. The line of rookie Adam Henrique between Ilya Kovalchuk and Zach Parise has been better, too. (Last Week: 22) |
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12. NASHVILLE PREDATORS (15-11-4))The Predators have won three in a row. An improved power play is one of the reasons for this streak. (Last Week: 21) |
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13. DALLAS STARS (17-11-1)The Stars have won back-to-back games with rookie goalie Richard Bachman, including a shutout against former Stars forward Brad Richards and the Rangers. (Last Week: 17) |
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14. TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS (16-11-3)There was an expectancy that the Maple Leafs couldn't keep up their early-season success and that has been the case with four losses in six games. (Last Week: 14) |
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15. WINNIPEG JETS (14-12-4)Winners of five in their past six games has the Jets back in the playoff picture in the East. (Last Week: 13) |
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16. MONTREAL CANADIENS (13-11-7)We're not sure how long this will last, but the Habs have won two in a row since acquiring Tomas Kaberle. (Last Week: 25) |
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17. OTTAWA SENATORS (14-13-4)They're an offensive dynamo, but have surrendered a league-high 3.39 goals per game and now have to deal with a concussion to sniper Milan Michalek. (Last Week: 15) |
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18. CALGARY FLAMES (14-14-2)The Flames had the good vibrations of their impressive 6-1-1 run temporarily derailed with a tough loss to Nashville on Tuesday. (Last Week: 19) |
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19. PHOENIX COYOTES (15-11-3)The Coyotes were outscored 9-3 in losses to Detroit and Minnesota in their past two games. (Last Week: 12) |
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20. SAN JOSE SHARKS (15-10-3)A 2-5-2 stretch has league observers scratching their heads about this underachieving bunch. (Last Week: 11) |
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21. BUFFALO SABRES (15-12-3)This team has dealt with its share of injuries, but it continues to exhibit inconsistency and this has Sabres' fans frustrated. (Last Week: 16) |
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22. EDMONTON OILERS (14-13-3)The good news for the slumping Oilers is that they likely get back speedy Taylor Hall on Thursday. (Last Week: 24) |
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23. WASHINGTON CAPITALS (15-13-1)They appeared to be getting comfortable with new coach Dale Hunter, but then suffered a humiliating 5-1 defeat to the undermanned Flyers. (Last Week: 23) |
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24.COLORADO AVALANCHE (14-16-1)They need more shootouts. They're the only team with a perfect 5-0 record in the penalty shot competition this season. (Last Week: 27) |
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25. LOS ANGELES KINGS (13-13-4)Besides a five-game losing streak, they've had difficulty replacing fired coach Terry Murray with first-choice Darryl Sutter. (Last Week: 18) |
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26. NEW YORK ISLANDERS (9-13-6)Where would they be without the underrated Matt Moulson and his 15 goals, tied for eighth in the NHL? (Last Week: 20) |
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27. TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING (12-16-3)Things are going so bad that Martin St. Louis gets hit in the face with a puck during the morning skate of what was to be his 500th consecutive game. (Last Week: 26) |
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28. COLUMBUS BLUE JACKETS (9-17-4) The Blue Jackets finally climbed out of the league basement after an impressive performance by goalie Steve Mason against the Canucks. (Last Week: 29) |
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29. ANAHEIM DUCKS (8-16-5)Another struggling team has yet to get on track with its new coach. The Ducks have gone 1-3-1 under Bruce Boudreau. (Last Week: 28) |
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30. CAROLINA HURRICANES (9-18-4)New coach Kirk Muller got his first win, but there still is a long way to go on Tobacco road. (Last Week: 30) |
Tim Wharnsby
Tim's worked the sports beat at The Globe and Mail and the Toronto Sun, specializing in Canada's one true sporting obsession - hockey. He knows the players, the coaches, the backroom boys and most importantly, the fans. That's what he brings to his stories. Knowledge, fairness and understanding are trademarks of a Wharnsby story. That's what you will get here as he writes for CBCSports.ca.
