Super 16: Golden Knights make big jump

The red-hot Vegas Golden Knights made the biggest jump in the Super 16 power rankings, moving up three spots to land at No. 7 this week.

The Golden Knights are riding a season-long seven-game winning streak, the longest active streak in the NHL. They were No. 15 four weeks ago. They moved up to No. 13 a week later, then No. 12 and No. 10 before jumping into the top seven this week.
The Tampa Bay Lightning are No. 1 for the sixth consecutive week. It is the fifth straight week they are the unanimous No. 1.
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, with some news and notes to follow for each team:

1. Tampa Bay Lightning (33-8-2)

Total points: 208
Last week: No. 1
Hit: Nikita Kucherov leads the NHL with 71 points (21 goals, 50 assists) in 43 games. The forward reached 70 points 13 games faster than he did last season, when he had 100 points in 80 games. It's the fastest any player in Lightning history has reached 70 points, and he's the first NHL player with 70 points in his team's first 43 games since Jaromir Jagr did it in 38 games for the Pittsburgh Penguins in 1999-2000.
Miss: Forward Ryan Callahan is day to day with an upper-body injury. He didn't play in a 4-0 win against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Tuesday.

2. Winnipeg Jets (27-13-2)

Total points: 185
Last week: No. 2
Hit: The Jets have outscored the opposition 62-45 after the second period this season, including 5-1 in overtime. Mark Scheifele has factored into all five OT goals, with the center scoring three and getting an assist on two.
Miss:Defenseman Dustin Byfuglien has already missed four games is expected to miss several more, possibly extending past the break for the 2019 Honda NHL All-Star Game (Jan. 26) because of a lower-body injury. Forward Nikolaj Ehlers is expected to be out until February with a lower-body injury sustained against the Pittsburgh Penguins on Jan. 4.

3. Toronto Maple Leafs (27-13-2)

Total points:171
Last week: No. 3
Hit: John Tavares, who with 47 points (27 goals, 20 assists) is on pace for what would be an NHL career-high 92 points, needs one goal to reach 300 in the NHL. The center is pace for 53 goals. He has never scored more than 38 goals or had more than 86 points in a season.
Miss: William Nylander's struggles continue. The forward, who signed a six-year contract Dec. 1 and made his season debut Dec. 6, has three points (one goal, two assists) in 14 games.

4. Washington Capitals (26-12-4)

Total points:160
Last week: No. 4
Hit: John Carlson has 41 points (six goals, 35 assists) in 41 games, which is tied for third among NHL defenseman this season. He is the fourth defenseman in Capitals history to score at least 40 points in the first 41 games of a season, joining Mike Green (38 games in 2008-09 and 41 in 2009-10), Al Iafrate (40 games in 1992-93) and Kevin Hatcher (41 in 1990-91).
Miss:Evgeny Kuznetsov has scored one goal at even strength this season. The center had 19 even-strength goals last season.

5. Calgary Flames (28-13-4)

Total points: 157
Last week: No. 5
Hit: Johnny Gaudreau continued his hot streak with two assists in a 5-3 win against the Colorado Avalanche on Wednesday. He has seven goals and eight assists in a six-game point streak. The Flames are 18-0-2 when he has at least two points.
Miss:They have allowed at least one power-play goal in six of their past nine games, going 20-for-28 on the penalty kill (71.4 percent).

6. Nashville Predators (27-15-3)

Total points: 132
Last week: No. 6
Hit: Filip Forsberg scored his second goal of the game in overtime to give the Predators a 4-3 win against the Chicago Blackhawks on Wednesday. It was the forward's second game back after missing 17 with an upper-body injury. He leads Nashville with 16 goals.
Miss: The Predators are 26th in the NHL on the power play (15.3 percent).

7. Vegas Golden Knights (27-15-4)

Total points: 128
Last week: No. 10
Hit:The Golden Knights are 10-0-2 in their past 12 home games, tying their longest point streak at T-Mobile Arena last season, when they went 10-0-2 from Dec. 3, 2017-Jan. 23, 2018. They've won seven in a row and are 8-0-2 in their past 10.
Miss:Forward Reilly Smith is on injured reserve with a lower-body injury and could miss at least two more games after sitting out a 4-2 win against the New York Rangers on Tuesday.

8. San Jose Sharks (25-13-7)

Total points: 121
Last week: No. 7
Hit: Erik Karlsson has at least one assist/point in his past 14 games (one goal, 24 assists).
Miss: Defensemen Marc-Edouard Vlasic (wrist) and Justin Braun (knee) have missed the past three games. Braun is on injured reserve.

9. Pittsburgh Penguins (24-13-6)

Total points: 120
Last week:No. 8
Hit: Marcus Pettersson has an assist in four consecutive games (five assists total) after the defenseman had one assist in his first 14 games with the Penguins after being acquired in a trade from the Anaheim Ducks on Dec. 3.
Miss: Forward Zach Aston-Reese was placed on injured reserve Wednesday with an undisclosed injury sustained in a 5-1 win against the Florida Panthers on Tuesday.

10. Boston Bruins (25-14-4)

Total points: 101
Last week: No. 12
Hit: Patrice Bergeron has 12 points (five goals, seven assists) in eight games since the center came back after missing 16 games from Nov. 17-Dec. 20 with a rib/collarbone injury. The Bruins have won five in a row, going 7-for-17 on the power play (41.1 percent).
Miss: Charlie McAvoy (foot) will miss his seventh consecutive game Thursday. The defenseman could return to the lineup at the Maple Leafs on Saturday.

11. Columbus Blue Jackets (24-15-3)

Total points: 76
Last week: No. 9
Hit: The Blue Jackets are 28-for-31 on the penalty kill (90.3 percent) in 15 games since Dec. 6, third in the NHL in that stretch.
Miss: Their power play woes continue. They are 0-for-24 in their past 11 games and 1-for-38 in their past 15.

12. Buffalo Sabres (23-14-6)

Total points: 65
Last week: No. 11
Hit:The Sabres have won two of three games without captain and leading scorer Jack Eichel (49 points; 15 goals, 34 assists). The center could return from an upper-body injury when Buffalo plays at the Carolina Hurricanes on Friday.
Miss:Forward Conor Sheary, who scored 18 goals in 79 games with the Penguins last season, has one goal on 40 shots in 23 games since Nov. 10.

13. New York Islanders (23-14-4)

Total points: 48
Last week:No. 14
Hit: Brock Nelson has six points (three goals, three assists) in the past five games. The Islanders are 9-2-0 since Dec. 15.
Miss:Defenseman Thomas Hickey has missed nine consecutive games since he sustained a lower-body injury against the Avalanche on Dec. 17.

14. Colorado Avalanche (20-16-8)

Total points: 34
Last week: No. 13
Hit: Gabriel Landeskog needed 43 games to set his NHL career high in goals, scoring two in a 7-4 loss to the Winnipeg Jets on Tuesday to reach 27 this season. The forward had 26 in 81 games in 2013-14.
Miss:The Avalanche have a minus-16 goal differential in 17 games since Dec. 4, fourth worst in the NHL in that time. They also have an NHL-worst 66.1 percent penalty kill in that span. They are 4-10-3.

15. Montreal Canadiens (23-16-5)

Total points: 29
Last week:No. 15
Hit: Jeff Petry has 30 points (nine goals, 21 assists) in 44 games, putting him on pace for 56 points this season, which would shatter the defenseman's NHL career high of 42 points, which he had in 82 games with Montreal last season.
Miss:Max Domi has no goals in 14 games since Dec. 11 and three in 22 games since Nov. 23. He had 11 goals in the first 22 games of the season.

16. Dallas Stars (23-17-4)

Total points:28
Last week:NR
Hit:The Stars are 5-1-1 since Dec. 27, and they've scored a power-play goal in six straight games, going 6-for-15 with Tyler Seguin factoring on every goal (two goals, four assists). Seguin has six goals in the past four games.
Miss:Jason Spezza has no points in a season-long five straight games and has three points (one goal, two assists) in 11 games since Dec. 13.

Others receiving points:Minnesota Wild 2, Chicago Blackhawks 2, Carolina Hurricanes 1
Dropped out: Anaheim Ducks (No. 16)

HERE'S HOW WE RANKED 'EM

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