NHL

NHL Power Rankings: Locals threatening to make dubious history

It’s never happened before in the 31 seasons which all three teams have been in existence that the Rangers, Islanders and Devils have all missed the playoffs the same year. But we could be in for a first this season.

Let’s start with the Rangers. They endured a brutal nine-game road trip to open the season in which they went 3-6, but the scoring hasn’t picked up much since: They have two or fewer goals in nine of 14 games. Henrik Lundqvist hasn’t looked like himself and they have been outworked in many games and sit in fifth place in the Metropolitan Division. Maybe they still have to adjust to new coach Alain Vigneault’s system, but the season’s already 14 games old for them.

Now to the Islanders. Yes, they would be in the playoffs if they started today, but that’s only because the division is so bad and the top three teams automatically qualify this season. Their 15 points would put them in sixth or seventh place in any of the other three divisions and the Islanders have yet to put together two good games in a row.

Last postseason’s Achilles heel Evgeni Nabokov is allowing almost three goals per game, and trading Matt Moulson and draft picks for Thomas Vanek seemed like a questionable move for a team that is looking to build off last season’s trip to the playoffs. The defense has also been a problem this season, especially in the losses.

And finally the Devils. It seems like much longer than 17 months ago that they were two wins away from the Stanley Cup. But with no Zach Parise, Ilya Kovalchuk or David Clarkson the offense has been really bad. They are 3-7-4 and in seventh place in the division, ranking 27th in goals per game (1.9) and as of Wednesday, haven’t scored a goal in almost 150 minutes. And at 41, future Hall of Famer Martin Brodeur isn’t going to be this team’s savior.

The good news is, there is still plenty of hockey left and therefore plenty of time for the Rangers, Islanders and Devils to improve and qualify for the playoffs. But if they don’t, it’ll be a first (in a bad way) for the metropolitan area.

(Last week’s ranking)

1) Avalanche (1): Still soaring at 12-1, the Avalanche rank fifth in goals per game and first in goals against per game. Their penalty kill is also No. 1 but the most impressive stat is that they do not have one player with a negative plus/minus rating.

2) Ducks (3): Completed an eight-game road trip with an impressive 2-1 win over the Rangers to finish 5-2-1.

3) Coyotes (7): A five-game winning streak for the Coyotes, who notched their 11th victory six games earlier than last season.

4) Penguins (8): Bounced back from a three-game losing streak with four wins last week, allowing five goals in the process. That included Jeff Zatkoff’s first NHL win a 3-0 shutout over the Blue Jackets on Saturday.

5) Sharks (2): San Jose suffered its first loss of the season on Wednesday when scoring first in a 5-4 shootout defeat to the Sabres. They had been 7-0-2.

6) Blues (6): The legend of Alex Steen continues. He scored another goal in Tuesdays 3-2 shootout win over the Canadiens, his league-leading 13th, and has points in 12 of 13 games.

7) Blackhawks (5): Despite a 3-2 overtime loss to the Flames on Sunday, the Blackhawks have picked up points in 13 of 15 games and haven’t shown any signs of a Stanley Cup hangover.

8) Maple Leafs (4): The leaders of the Atlantic Division can thank their netminders. Jonathan Bernier (6-4, 2.31 GAA, .933 SV%) and James Reimer (4-1, 2.36 GAA, .942), for giving them solid goaltending for the first time in a decade.

9) Canucks (10): Twins Daniel and Henrik Sedin agreed to identical four-year contract extensions with the Canucks — excellent news for a perennial Cup contender still looking for its first title.

10) Lightning (11): They’ve certainly protected home-ice well, going 6-2, including wins over the Kings, Blackhawks and Blues. Steven Stamkos ranks second in the league with 11 goals.

11) Bruins (9): The Bruins beat the Ducks 3-2 in a shootout on Oct. 31, the same night the World Series champion Red Sox were in the house with the trophy. But they’ve lost two since then.

12) Red Wings (14): Went 3-1 on a Canadian road trip but lost the final game, 4-2 in Winnipeg. Have to get better defensively or they could see their lengthy playoff streak come to an end.

13) Kings (13): Tough blow losing Jeff Carter, who had been on of their leading scorers, due to a lower-body injury. If he’s out an extended period of time the offense will suffer.

14) Wild (18): Scored 13 goals in their past three games – all wins – and have clamped down on defense as well.

15) Canadiens (12): Lost games to the Avalanche and Blues, two of the top teams in the Western Conference. Fun fact: Seven of their eight losses are to Western Conference teams.

16) Predators (15): Carton Hutton (3-1-1, .914 save percentage) has filled the void created when Pekka Rinne went down with a hip injury, and unlike last season, Nashville is winning the close games (5-0-2 in one goal contests).

17) Stars (22): Their past three games have gone past 60 minutes and Dallas has won two of them. At 7-6-2, they’re exceeding expectations but are in sixth place in the Central Division.

18) Capitals (25): Alex Ovechkin missed two games but came back with three points in a 6-2 rout of the Islanders on Tuesday to help the Caps continue their roll. They are winners of three straight, outscoring opponents 16-4 in the process.

19) Islanders (21): Tough team to figure out. They have a solid 3-1 win over the Bruins but then back that up by getting trounced by Washington, which included allowing four power play goals.

20) Hurricanes (17): Scored more goals in a 2-1 win over the Flyers on Tuesday than they had in each of the past three games.

21) Senators (19): Impressive 4-1 win over the Blue Jackets Tuesday to end a five-game losing streak. They were also without last season’s Vezina finalist Craig Anderson who is out with a neck injury.

22) Blue Jackets (16): Missed the playoffs last season by a whisker but so far, have looked nothing like a playoff team with a 5-9 record.

23) Rangers (26): The Rangers’ second leading scorer is Derek Stepan, who has three goals. But they all came in one game, a 5-1 win over the Hurricanes on Saturday.

24) Jets (20): Haven’t won back-to-back games since a 2-0 start. They are 2-10 since then.

25) Flames (23): Calgary has allowed four or more goals in eight of 15 games, which explains why they have gone from 3-0-2 to 6-7-2.

26) Flyers (27): The 7-0 loss to the Capitals on Friday was ugly, but not as ugly as the display goalie Ray Emery put on during the game racking up 29 penalty minutes pummeling an unwilling Braden Holtby in the process.

27) Devils (24): Shutout by the Flyers and Wild and have now been blanked four times in 14 games.

28) Oilers (29): Edmonton beat the Panthers 4-3 in overtime on Tuesday for their third road win of the season. Their 1-5 home record has a lot to do with why they sit in last place in the Western Conference.

29) Panthers (28): For the second time all season, the Panthers have gotten points in consecutive games. Both were losses (no surprise there).

30) Sabres (30): Here’s why hockey is great: The worst-in-the-NHL Sabres beat the Sharks, who have the second-most points in the league, 5-4 in a shootout Tuesday in one of the most entertaining games of the season.