Super 16: Canadiens climb three spots, enter top 10

The top five in the weekly Super 16 power rankings remain unchanged for the second straight week. The movement in the bottom half is where it gets most interesting, especially as it relates to the 2019 NHL Trade Deadline on Feb. 25 at 3 p.m. ET.

The Montreal Canadiens jumped three spots to No. 10, the biggest rise of any team in the Super 16 from last week to this week. The Dallas Stars, unranked the past three weeks, got back in this week at No. 13. The Carolina Hurricanes got in at No. 16 after dropping out two weeks ago.
All three teams could be active before the deadline.
The Vegas Golden Knights (No. 11) and Columbus Blue Jackets (No. 14) each dropped three spots. Each is expected to be active before the deadline too.
To create the power rankings, each of the 13 staff members puts together his or her version of what the Super 16 should look like. Those are submitted and a point total is assigned to each.
The team picked first is given 16 points, second gets 15, third gets 14 and so on down to No. 16, which gets one point.
Here is the latest Super 16:

1. Tampa Bay Lightning (39-11-3)

Total points:208
Last week:No. 1
Reason for optimism:Health. The Lightning have no injuries of note.
Biggest need:A jolt to their offense. The Lightning lead the NHL at 3.83 goals per game, but they've scored eight goals in four games since returning from their mandatory five-day break and 2019 Honda NHL All-Star Weekend. Right wing Nikita Kucherov, who leads the NHL with 81 points (22 goals, 59 assists), has gone eight straight games without a goal, his longest drought of the season. They have enough offense internally, but they need to find it again.

2. Calgary Flames (34-14-5)

Total points:190
Last week: No. 2
Reason for optimism: Secondary scoring. Calgary's top line of Johnny Gaudreau, Sean Monahan and Elias Lindholm arguably is the best in the NHL and has produced 22 goals in 14 games since Dec. 31. But the Flames are getting production from their other forwards too. The 11 other forwards to play at least one game during that stretch have combined for 30 goals, helping Calgary go 11-2-1.
Biggest need: Better play from goalie Mike Smith. David Rittich has taken over as the No. 1 goalie in large part because he has outplayed Smith, who has allowed four or more goals in three of his four starts since Jan. 3.

3. Winnipeg Jets (34-16-3)

Total points:182
Last week:No. 3
Reason for optimism: Bryan Little and Jack Roslovic. The second-line forwards have provided secondary scoring. Little has 14 points (seven goals, seven assists) in 13 games since Jan. 6. He had 20 points (six goals, 14 assists) in the first 40 games of the season. Roslovic has seven points (five goals, two assists) in seven games since Jan. 17 after he had nine (two goals, seven assists) in his first 45 games.
Biggest need:Patrik Laine to start scoring. Laine has no goals in eight games and four in 29 games since Dec. 1. The drought is on the heels of him scoring 18 goals in 12 games in November. No trade will help Laine. He needs to find his touch again.

4. San Jose Sharks (31-16-7)

Total points:165
Last week:No. 4
Reason for optimism:They're right there. The Sharks have won three in a row and will move within two points of Calgary for first place in the Pacific Division if they can defeat the Flames at Scotiabank Saddledome on Thursday (9 p.m. ET; ESPN+, SN1, NBCSCA, NHL.TV).
Biggest need: Erik Karlsson in the lineup. The defenseman has missed five games with a lower-body injury. He was able to play in the 2019 Honda NHL All-Star Game on Jan. 26, but he missed the two games prior to the All-Star break and has sat the three games since. He is expected to return soon, coach Peter DeBoer said, but will his injury be something that nags him the rest of the season?

5. Nashville Predators (32-19-4)

Total points:151
Last week: No. 5
Reason for optimism:Brian Boyle. The Predators acquired the 34-year-old forward in a trade from the New Jersey Devils on Wednesday for a second-round pick in the 2019 NHL Draft. Boyle has 13 goals this season, including six on the power play.
Biggest need:Power-play production. The Predators scored a power-play goal in their 5-2 win against the Arizona Coyotes on Tuesday. It was their first in 10 games dating to Jan. 10, and they are 3-for-49 on the power play in 15 games since Jan. 1. Boyle gives Nashville a big net-front presence on the power play. He should help.

6. Toronto Maple Leafs (33-17-3)

Total points:140
Last week: No. 7
Reason for optimism: Auston Matthews. He signed a five-year contract worth $11.634 million per season Tuesday, taking a potential headache away from Toronto and the 21-year-old center, who is heating up again with four goals in his past five games.
Biggest need: Continued road success. The Maple Leafs already got the defenseman they needed when they acquired Jake Muzzin, who has fit in well in his three games since the trade from the Los Angeles Kings on Jan. 28. Now Toronto needs to keep it going on the road. The Maple Leafs start a season-long six-game road trip at the Montreal Canadiens on Saturday. They are 16-6-2 on the road this season but are tied with the Jets and St. Louis Blues for the fewest road games played in the NHL (24).

7. New York Islanders (30-16-6)

Total points:129
Last week:No. 6
Reason for optimism:Getting healthy. The Islanders will be getting back left wing Andrew Ladd and defenseman Thomas Hickey soon. Ladd has missed 35 games with a lower-body injury and Hickey has missed 20 with an upper-body injury. Getting them back will be like adding two veteran depth players before the deadline without having to give up anything.
Biggest need:More offense from their defensemen. The Islanders have gotten 16 goals from defensemen this season, tied with the Anaheim Ducks and Boston Bruins for the fewest in the NHL. The Islanders are the only team that doesn't have a defenseman with more than three goals. It figures to be hard to acquire an offensive-minded defenseman before the deadline.

8. Boston Bruins (29-17-8)

Total points:111
Last week:No. 10
Reason for optimism:Tuukka Rask. He is 8-0-2 with a 1.63 goals-against average and .945 save percentage in his past 11 games.
Biggest need:Secondary scoring. The Bruins have been top-heavy all season and haven't evened out, which is a reason general manager Don Sweeney is expected to try to acquire another top-six forward before the deadline. Forwards Patrice Bergeron, Brad Marchand, David Pastrnak and David Krejci had combined for 41 goals in Boston's past 26 games. The other 21 skaters who have played at least one game in that stretch combined for 41 goals.

9. Washington Capitals (29-18-6)

Total points: 94
Last week: No. 9
Reason for optimism:They're playing better. Washington has had some success in three games since its mandatory five-day break following the All-Star Game, defeating the Flames and Vancouver Canucks each by one goal and losing 1-0 to the Boston Bruins on Sunday, when goalie Braden Holtby made 38 saves. The Capitals lost seven in a row before the break.
Biggest need:Better third periods. The Capitals have been outscored 16-9 in the third period in their past nine games and lost a lead in the third twice in their past five games.

10. Montreal Canadiens (30-18-6)

Total points:92
Last week:No. 13
Reason for optimism: Success without power-play production. The Canadiens are 31st in the NHL on the power play (12.9 percent), but they are 13-5-1 in games when they haven't scored a power-play goal since Dec. 4.
Biggest need: A left-shot defenseman. The Canadiens' top two defensemen, Shea Weber and Jeff Petry, are righties, great commodities to have. But they're a rare team that needs a left-handed top-four defenseman.

11. Vegas Golden Knights (30-21-4)

Total points:91
Last week:No. 8
Reason for optimism:Depth scoring. The Golden Knights are one of three teams in the NHL with at least five players who have scored at least 14 goals this season (Jonathan Marchessault, 17; William Karlsson, 16; Max Pacioretty, 16; Alex Tuch, 16; Cody Eakin, 14). The Pittsburgh Penguins and San Jose Sharks each have six players with at least 14.
Biggest need:More scoring. The Golden Knights have eight goals in their past five games and have scored two or fewer in seven of their past nine games, going 3-6-0 in that stretch with only one of the wins coming in regulation. Another scoring forward, even for a third-line role, could help down the stretch.

12. Pittsburgh Penguins (28-19-6)

Total points:67
Last week:No. 12
Reason for optimism:Depth and options. The Penguins need to get center Evgeni Malkin back in the lineup, but once he returns they feel they'll have better options for forwards to fit into specific roles with Nick Bjugstad and Jared McCann instead of Derick Brassard and Riley Sheahan. The possibilities with Bjugstad and McCann plus a healthy Malkin are driving optimism despite the fact the Penguins have lost six of their past nine games.
Biggest need:Malkin and goalie Matt Murray. Malkin has missed three games with an upper-body injury. He didn't practice Wednesday and is questionable to play at the Florida Panthers on Thursday (7 p.m. ET; SNE, SNO, FS-F, ATTSN-PT, NHL.TV). Murray missed practice Wednesday and is day to day with an upper-body injury, coach Mike Sullivan said.

13. Dallas Stars (28-21-4)

Total points:55
Last week:NR
Reason for optimism:Defense. The Stars have won five in a row, but the strong play defensively has been going on longer. They have allowed two goals or fewer in nine of their past 12 games. They are allowing 2.53 goals per game, second-fewest in the NHL.
Biggest need:More scoring. The Stars have been getting more production of late, with 11 goals in their past three games, including four from center Tyler Seguin. They are the only team in the NHL that doesn't have at least four players with at least 10 goals.

14. Columbus Blue Jackets (29-20-3)

Total points: 39
Last week:No. 11
Reason for optimism:Special teams. The Blue Jackets penalty kill is an NHL-best 97.1 percent (34-for-35) in 14 games since Dec. 31. Their power play has come around too, going 8-for-27 (29.6 percent) in 10 games since Jan. 10.
Biggest need:Decisions. Forward Artemi Panarin and goalie Sergei Bobrovsky each faces an uncertain immediate future, and the topic has been hanging over the Blue Jackets like a black cloud. They need to figure things out so they can determine what type of team they're going to have in the last quarter of the season.

15. Carolina Hurricanes (26-21-6)

Total points:20
Last week:NR
Reason for optimism:Scoring is up. The Hurricanes, who are tied for 21st in the NHL at 2.85 goals per game, have scored 26 goals in their past six games (4.33) despite going 2-for-18 (11.1 percent) on the power play. They are second in the NHL in scoring (61 goals) since Dec. 31 after scoring the second-fewest (90) prior.
Biggest need:Figure out what they are. Are the Hurricanes a legitimate Stanley Cup Playoff contender, or will they be a seller before the deadline? They must make that determination soon because the market for some of their defensemen and pending unrestricted free agent forward Micheal Ferland will heat up unless they tell teams they're going for it and they want to keep them. They are three points out of the second wild card into the playoffs from the Eastern Conference with 29 games to play.

16. Minnesota Wild (26-22-5)

Total points: 15
Last week: No. 14
Reason for optimism:They are in a playoff spot with a bit of room. Even though the Wild have lost three in a row, two have come after regulation, so they're picking up points. They're 4-2-2 in their past eight games, and that's given them a four-point cushion in the Western Conference wild card race.
Biggest need:Center depth. Mikko Koivu's season-ending knee injury is a massive blow, and they'll need to find a replacement for him to allow them to contend beyond just making the playoffs this season. Koivu was injured in a 5-4 shootout loss to the Buffalo Sabres on Tuesday.
Others receiving points:Buffalo Sabres 8, Philadelphia Flyers 8, St. Louis Blues 2, Vancouver Canucks 1
Dropped out: Buffalo Sabres (No. 15), Colorado Avalanche (No. 16)

HERE'S HOW WE RANKED 'EM

AMALIE BENJAMIN
1. Tampa Bay Lightning; 2. Calgary Flames; 3. Winnipeg Jets; 4. San Jose Sharks; 5. Nashville Predators; 6. Toronto Maple Leafs; 7. New York Islanders; 8. Vegas Golden Knights; 9. Boston Bruins; 10. Montreal Canadiens; 11. Columbus Blue Jackets; 12. Pittsburgh Penguins; 13. Washington Capitals; 14. Carolina Hurricanes; 15. Dallas Stars; 16. Philadelphia Flyers
TIM CAMPBELL
1. Tampa Bay Lightning; 2. Calgary Flames; 3. Winnipeg Jets; 4. San Jose Sharks; 5. Nashville Predators; 6. Toronto Maple Leafs; 7. Washington Capitals; 8. Boston Bruins; 9. Montreal Canadiens; 10. Pittsburgh Penguins; 11. Vegas Golden Knights; 12. New York Islanders; 13. Dallas Stars; 14. Columbus Blue Jackets; 15. Buffalo Sabres; 16. Minnesota Wild
BRIAN COMPTON
1. Tampa Bay Lightning; 2. Calgary Flames; 3. Winnipeg Jets; 4. New York Islanders; 5. Montreal Canadiens; 6. San Jose Sharks; 7. Toronto Maple Leafs; 8. Boston Bruins; 9. Nashville Predators; 10. Dallas Stars; 11. Vegas Golden Knights; 12. Washington Capitals; 13. Carolina Hurricanes; 14. Pittsburgh Penguins; 15. Columbus Blue Jackets; 16. Philadelphia Flyers
NICHOLAS J. COTSONIKA
1. Tampa Bay Lightning; 2. Calgary Flames; 3. Winnipeg Jets; 4. Toronto Maple Leafs; 5. San Jose Sharks; 6. New York Islanders; 7. Nashville Predators; 8. Boston Bruins; 9. Montreal Canadiens; 10. Washington Capitals; 11. Columbus Blue Jackets; 12. Pittsburgh Penguins; 13. Vegas Golden Knights; 14. Dallas Stars; 15. Buffalo Sabres; 16. Carolina Hurricanes
TOM GULITTI
1. Tampa Bay Lightning; 2. Calgary Flames; 3. San Jose Sharks; 4. Winnipeg Jets; 5. Toronto Maple Leafs; 6. New York Islanders; 7. Nashville Predators; 8. Boston Bruins; 9. Montreal Canadiens; 10. Washington Capitals; 11. Vegas Golden Knights; 12. Pittsburgh Penguins; 13. Columbus Blue Jackets; 14. Dallas Stars; 15. Buffalo Sabres; 16. Carolina Hurricanes
ADAM KIMELMAN
1. Tampa Bay Lightning; 2. Calgary Flames; 3. Winnipeg Jets; 4. San Jose Sharks; 5. Nashville Predators; 6. Toronto Maple Leafs; 7. Vegas Golden Knights; 8. New York Islanders; 9. Washington Capitals; 10. Dallas Stars; 11. Montreal Canadiens; 12. Boston Bruins; 13. Minnesota Wild; 14. Columbus Blue Jackets; 15. Carolina Hurricanes; 16. Philadelphia Flyers
ROBERT LAFLAMME
1. Tampa Bay Lightning; 2. Calgary Flames; 3. Winnipeg Jets; 4. Nashville Predators; 5. San Jose Sharks; 6. Toronto Maple Leafs; 7. Washington Capitals; 8. New York Islanders; 9. Vegas Golden Knights; 10. Pittsburgh Penguins; 11. Boston Bruins; 12. Montreal Canadiens; 13. Columbus Blue Jackets; 14. Dallas Stars; 15. Minnesota Wild; 16. Carolina Hurricanes
MIKE G. MORREALE
1. Tampa Bay Lightning; 2. San Jose Sharks; 3. Winnipeg Jets; 4. Nashville Predators; 5. Calgary Flames; 6. Washington Capitals; 7. Toronto Maple Leafs; 8. New York Islanders; 9. Vegas Golden Knights; 10. Boston Bruins; 11. Pittsburgh Penguins; 12. Dallas Stars; 13. Montreal Canadiens; 14. Columbus Blue Jackets; 15. Carolina Hurricanes; 16. Philadelphia Flyers
TRACEY MYERS
1. Tampa Bay Lightning; 2. Calgary Flames; 3. Winnipeg Jets; 4. San Jose Sharks; 5. New York Islanders; 6. Nashville Predators; 7. Toronto Maple Leafs; 8. Boston Bruins; 9. Vegas Golden Knights; 10. Montreal Canadiens; 11. Washington Capitals; 12. Dallas Stars; 13. Columbus Blue Jackets; 14. Pittsburgh Penguins; 15. Minnesota Wild; 16. Vancouver Canucks
BILL PRICE
1. Tampa Bay Lightning; 2. Calgary Flames; 3. Winnipeg Jets; 4. Nashville Predators; 5. Toronto Maple Leafs; 6. Boston Bruins; 7. San Jose Sharks; 8. New York Islanders; 9. Vegas Golden Knights; 10. Washington Capitals; 11. Montreal Canadiens; 12. Pittsburgh Penguins; 13. Dallas Stars; 14. Minnesota Wild; 15. Columbus Blue Jackets; 16. St. Louis Blues
SHAWN P. ROARKE
1. Tampa Bay Lightning; 2. Winnipeg Jets; 3. Calgary Flames; 4. Nashville Predators; 5. San Jose Sharks; 6. Boston Bruins; 7. New York Islanders; 8. Pittsburgh Penguins; 9. Toronto Maple Leafs; 10. Washington Capitals; 11. Vegas Golden Knights; 12. Montreal Canadiens; 13. Dallas Stars; 14. Minnesota Wild; 15. Philadelphia Flyers; 16. Columbus Blue Jackets
DAN ROSEN
1. Tampa Bay Lightning; 2. Calgary Flames; 3. San Jose Sharks; 4. Winnipeg Jets; 5. Nashville Predators; 6. New York Islanders; 7. Toronto Maple Leafs; 8. Boston Bruins; 9. Montreal Canadiens; 10. Vegas Golden Knights; 11. Washington Capitals; 12. Pittsburgh Penguins; 13. Dallas Stars; 14. Carolina Hurricanes; 15. Philadelphia Flyers; 16. St. Louis Blues
MIKE ZEISBERGER
1. Tampa Bay Lightning; 2. Winnipeg Jets; 3. Calgary Flames; 4. San Jose Sharks; 5. Nashville Predators; 6. Toronto Maple Leafs; 7. New York Islanders; 8. Boston Bruins; 9. Montreal Canadiens; 10. Pittsburgh Penguins; 11. Washington Capitals; 12. Vegas Golden Knights; 13. Dallas Stars; 14. Carolina Hurricanes; 15. Buffalo Sabres; 16. Columbus Blue Jackets