In this week's power rankings, the East stays largely the same while the West gets shuffled. The Canucks grab the top spot in the West while the Kings, Blackhawks, and Blues jump up 2 spots each.

Just a refresher, the rankings are kind of like the BCS, since teams are ranked according to a mathematical formula. But it's not a very difficult formula, as it is simply a team's 5-on-5 goal ratio multiplied by their adjusted points per game. With the story published on Behind the Net today showing that shootouts are essentially a coin flip, there's even more reason to discount shootout wins.

Eastern Conference

	This Week	Last Week	Rationale	Rating
	1	1	The Flyers have now lost two straight games by a combined score of 11-2. They're still in first due to the large lead they had last week, but Pittsburgh is close behind.  If they don't turn it around, they should drop next week.	1.893
	2	2	The gap between the Penguins and Flyers has closed thanks to a week that saw the Penguins go 2-1-1 (remember, shootout wins don't count here.) In just one week, the Penguins cut their deficit in half.	1.702
	3	3	A 2-0-1 week against the Southeast propelled the Bruins to the top of the Northeast, where they belonged. Now, they just need to find some goals.	1.671
	4	4	Getting outscored 7-1 in their last two games dropped the Canadiens into a fight with the Rangers instead of trying to catch the Bruins. There's not a clear division among the top-3.	1.283
	5	6	The only team to move up this week, and it was largely due to their 7-2 drubbing of the Islanders. Well, the Thrashers certainly helped them too.	1.271
	6	5	Not a good week in Atlanta, as the Thrashers went 0-2-1 while getting outscored 10-4 in their two losses. It's not that the Thrashers are bad, it's that they played the Bruins and Penguins.	1.235
	7	7	The Caps are sitting atop the Southeast division, but don't let that fool you. The only three teams currently in playoff position to allow more than 97 goals against all come from the Southeast. If Washington can stop giving up goals, they'll start being the team everyone expected.	1.205
	8	8	The Panthers may be sitting in 12th in the standings, but they should be a playoff bubble team. The problem is their league-worst power play, which is converting at a miserable 9.4%. If they could fix that, the Panthers would shoot up the standings.	1.021
	9	9	Going 1-1-2 isn't going to help your cause, but keeping every game to within one goal will help you tread water. The Lightning are the only team in the top-8 to give up more goals than they score, however.	0.997
	10	10	You might not understand why Buffalo is above Carolina, but the main reason is their ability to win the battle at 5-on-5. Even if it's just barely.	0.855
	11	11	For a team currently in 9th place, there isn't much to be happy about in Carolina. Losing the 5-on-5 battle, giving up 34 shots a game, a 27th-ranked PK unit, and a 24th ranked power play.	0.820
	12	12	Ottawa is closing in on joining the bottom-3 in the East, which is quite impressive. A minus-22 goal differential combined with a terrible 5-on-5 ratio equals a subpar hockey team. It's only their special teams that are keeping them in the playoff picture.	0.788
	13	13	What can you say about the Maple Leafs? They beat up on the Devils and barely lost to the Hurricanes. Last week was basically a good reflection of them.	0.608
	14	14	A brutal loss to cross-town rivals cannot be good, but they did go 3-0 before then, beating the Canadiens 4-1 and the Lightning in overtime. Yes, they too beat up on the Devils.	0.473
	15	15	Things just keep getting better for Flyers fans. The Devils faced the two worst teams in the league not playing in New Jersey, and got outscored 9-2. Sadly, the depths of their terribleness may have just hit bottom.	0.221

Western Conference

	This Week	Last Week	Rationale	Rating
	1	2	Going 3-0-1 with big wins over Columbus and Philadelphia were enough to propel the Canucks to the top spot in the West. They now have the largest goal differential in the West. Oh, they're also 7-0-3 in their last ten games	1.701
	2	1	Detroit went 3-1 last week, playing three one-goal games. They didn't do much to fall out of the top spot, but Vancouver did enough to jump in.	1.667
	3	5	Winning the Battle of California by a combined 8-1 score (Anaheim and San Jose) was enough to take their 2-0-1 week up two spots in the West. They're still not leading the Pacific Division, but with two games in hand, they're in a good position.	1.523
	4	3	Going 0-1-1 dropped the Avalanche back, but with games against Edmonton, Calgary, and Buffalo, the Avs should be in a better position next week.	1.435
	5	4	The Stars let points slip away last week, going 1-1-1- against Calgary, Phoenix, and Nashville. A shootout loss to Calgary and a shutout loss to Phoenix kept the Stars close, but those are 3 points the Stars could use.	1.320
	6	8	Don't look now, but the Blackhawks are starting to shore up their defense. Three straight games only allowing one goal? Five straight allowing two or fewer? They're still in 8th place, but that's because they have played two additional games. Time to make a run.	1.219
	7	7	The Sharks traded comfortable wins last week, beating the Coyotes and ceding one to the Kings. It doesn't get easier next week against Minnesota, Chicago, Los Angeles, and Vancouver.	1.111
	8	9	The Coyotes went 1-2 last week despite getting outscored 7-3. That 1-0 win over the Stars salvaged the week, but with L.A., St. Louis, Minnesota, and Columbus on the horizon, the Coyotes could have a good week.	1.057
	9	11	The only team in playoff positioning in the West with a negative goal differential, the Blues had a great week. They went 3-0 while outscoring the Red Wings, Predators, and Blackhawks 9-4.	1.048
	10	6	The biggest loser of the week, the Predators fell 4 spots, but they aren't far behind 8th place. Nashville went 0-4 last week, only scoring 4 goals. In the super close West, that's just not going to be good enough.	1.040
	11	10	An 0-2-1 week drops the Blue Jackets down, but the blowout losses to Vancouver and Chicago didn't help. Luckily for Columbus, they get to play Toronto and Ottawa before heading on the road to play Nashville and Phoenix.	0.950
	12	12	Typical for the West, Minnesota went 1-1-1, beating Colorado but losing to Detroit. A tough game against San Jose, then two close games against Nashville and Phoenix can be lessened with their game against the Devils.	0.846
	13	14	The Flames follow up a 1-0-1 week with games against the Oilers and Islanders. But they have to play the Avalanche and Canucks too.	0.813
	14	13	The Ducks are barely behind the Flames, thanks largely to a 4-1 loss to the Kings. It doesn't get any easier this week with games against the Flyers, Blackhawks, and Predators.	0.810
	15	15	An 0-2-1 week looks bad, but the Oilers are playing teams close. Besides, they're better than the Leafs, Islanders, and Devils.	0.688