in NHL Free Picks

Our method for evaluating the teams includes each team's points-per-game (standings) average, their goals-for and goals-against, and their special teams' effectiveness (including shorthanded goals for and against). Each team's ranking from last week's Power Rankings appears in parentheses.

1. Detroit Red Wings (1): With their victory over the Oilers on Tuesday night, the Wings clinched the President’s Trophy with the NHL’s best record, guaranteeing themselves home ice advantage for the duration of the playoffs.

2. Ottawa Senators (2): The Senators are in a dogfight for the top spot in the Eastern Conference, positioning that could prove crucial. The winner gets either the Lightning or the Thrashers; the loser must go up against the Canadiens’ red-hot Cristobal Huet.

3. Dallas Stars (4): Only Mike Modano and Sergei Zubov have scored more points with the man advantage than has Jussi Jokinen, one of many top-tier rookies overshadowed by the dynamic duo of Alexander Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby.

4. Carolina Hurricanes (3): Mike Rogers holds the franchise record for points in a single season with 105; it’d take a superhuman effort in the final three games, but Eric Staal (96 points) still has a shot to surpass that total.

5. Buffalo Sabres (5): He doesn’t receive much attention outside off Buffalo, but Maxim Afinogenov—the Sabres’ leading scorer—is the most exciting player to watch in the entire Northeast Division, and perhaps the Eastern Conference.

6. New York Rangers (6): They’re already without Tom Poti and Darius Kasparaitis, and now Marek Malik has joined the list of the Blueshirts’ walking wounded. Officially out with an “upper body,” it’s believed to be Malik’s shoulder that’s causing him pain.

7. Calgary Flames (7): Miikka Kiprusoff extended his Flames franchise record single-season shutout total to nine on Tuesday night, blanking the Mighty Ducks. Without question, Kiprusoff is the front-runner to win the Vezina as the NHl’s best goalie.

8. Nashville Predators (9): Chris Mason stepped up with a strong performance for the Predators on Tuesday night in their first game following the announcement that Tomas Vokoun was done for the season, stopping 27 shots to blank the St. Louis Blues 2-0.

9. Philadelphia Flyers (8): He was thought to be done for the season, but it appears that captain Keith Primeau—out with post-concussion syndrome—may soon be ready to return to the lineup.

10. Anaheim Mighty Ducks (10): With 88 points in 76 games, Teemu Selanne has been the Ducks’ most reliable scorer all season long, and his +32 rating is the team’s best.

11. New Jersey Devils (13): The blazing hot Devils continued their torrid streak on Tuesday, topping the Hurricanes and continuing their rapid rise up the standings. Incredibly disciplined, New Jersey is the NHL's least-penalized team.

12. San Jose Sharks (14): On Monday night, Jonathan Cheechoo became the first 50-goal scorer in Sharks’ franchise history; without question, he has been the primary beneficiary of Joe Thornton’s presence.

13. Colorado Avalanche (11): Things fizzled out a bit at the end, but José Théodore’s first start for the Avs was an unmitigated success. He stopped 21 of 25 shots en route to a 6-4 victory over the Coyotes.

14. Montreal Canadiens (12): In what might well have been a first round playoff preview, the Habs demonstrated on Monday night that they have what it takes to compete with the high-flying Sens, coming away with an impressive 3-2 victory.

15. Edmonton Oilers (15): With two consecutive losses, the Oilers are giving the Canucks the opening they needed to get back into the Western Conference playoff race.

Kevin Greenstein is the Editor-in-Chief of www.InsideHockey.com. He can be heard every Wednesday at 2:30pm EST on www.BetUSradio.com

16. Vancouver Canucks (17): It’s been a season to forget for the Canucks, pre-season Cup favorites who find themselves battling for the West’s final playoff spot. But even at this late date, it’s not too late for them to make good on their enormous potential.

17. Tampa Bay Lightning (16): Just when it looked as though Sean Burke had secured the starting job, he gave up five goals on 14 shots against the surging Thrashers.

18. Atlanta Thrashers (19): They appeared to be dead in the water just one week ago, but following their victory over Tampa on Tuesday, they’re just four points behind, with a game in hand and one game still remaining against the Lightning.

19. Toronto Maple Leafs (20): He’s been a huge disappointment for most of the season, but Mats Sundin delivered a performance for the ages on Tuesday, tallying six points to help the Leafs get past the Panthers in a 6-5 overtime nail biter.

20. Los Angeles Kings (18): “Lucky” Luc Robitaille has decided to call it a career. The NHL’s all-time leading scorer amongst left-wingers, Robitaille will put an end to his Hall of Fame career on Monday at San Jose.

21. Minnesota Wild (21): Rookie Josh Harding is serving notice that he’s prepared to battle for the starting job next season. In just his second NHL game on Tuesday night, Harding out-dueled Nikolai Khabibulin and shut out the Chicago Blackhawks 2-0.

22. Florida Panthers (23): With 44 points in 78 games, Jay Bouwmeester is quietly emerging as one of the NHL’s better offensive defensemen.

23. Phoenix Coyotes (22): Wayne Gretzky’s club has a long way to go before they’ll be able to compete with the West’s elite teams, but one recent bright spot has been the strong play of blueliners Derek Morris and Keith Ballard.

24. New York Islanders (24): Relishing the role of spoiler, the Isles invaded Madison Square Garden with a vengeance on Tuesday, dismantling the playoff-bound Rangers. Will the Isles match that intensity when they host the Flyers next Tuesday to close out the season?

25. Boston Bruins (25): It’s been a season to forget in Beantown, but two huge positives has been the emergence of journeyman prospect Brad Boyes as a top-flight scorer and Patrice Bergeron as the Bruins' finest player.

26. Columbus Blue Jackets (26): Sergei Fedorov has scored only 36 points in 62 games, in what has been the worst season of his storied NHL career. The Blue Jackets will need far better production from Fedorov in 2006-07.

27. Washington Capitals (27): With 100 points in 77 games, Alexander Ovechkin has nearly doubled the production of the Caps’ next best scorer (Dainius Zubrus, 54 points).

28. Chicago Blackhawks (28): One of the ‘Hawks’ streakiest scorers, speedy Rene Bourque should finally be ready to emerge as a top-tier forward next season.

29. St. Louis Blues (29): Smooth-skating blueliner Christian Backman has improved dramatically this season, and should be the Blues’ power play quarterback in 2006-07.

30. Pittsburgh Penguins (30): The youngest player in NHL history to top 90 points, Sidney Crosby (91 points) has survived a very difficult debut season with style and grace.