Helene Elliott’s NHL rankings

Through Monday’s games

1.Pittsburgh, 21-8-2. Penguins have won 12 straight and Sidney Crosby has points in 18 straight, one short of his career-best. He has 20 goals and 36 points in his streak. (1)

2. Philadelphia, 19-7-5. Flyers have lost in regulation only once in last 10 games. Enforcer Jody Shelley suspended two games for hitting Boston’s Adam McQuaid from behind. (5)

3. Detroit, 19-7-3. Red Wings stymied by Kings on Monday despite 51 shots on Jonathan Quick. (2)

4. Montreal, 18-10-2. Impressive rookie defenseman P.K. Subban hit a bump in the road and was scratched three straight games. (3)

5. Dallas, 18-10-2. Stars have won eight of their last 11. It would be hard for them to trade Brad Richards while they’re doing so well. (6)

6. Vancouver, 16-8-4. Henrik Sedin, last season’s MVP, leads the league with 30 assists. Twin Daniel is among top scorers, with 36 points. (8)

7. Boston, 16-8-4. If Marco Sturm trade goes through with the Kings, the Bruins will have no one they directly acquired in the Joe Thornton trade. (14)

8. New York Rangers, 18-13-1. Brandon Dubinsky has Gordie Howe hat trick (goal, assist, fighting major) in 7-0 rout of Capitals. Good bounceback after loss to Columbus. (12)

9. Phoenix, 14-8-6. City council in Glendale, Ariz., scheduled to vote Tuesday on new 30-year lease for Coyotes. That would ease the way for Chicagoan Matthew Hulsizer to buy the franchise from the NHL. (7)

10. Atlanta, 17-11-3. Thrashers have won nine of 11. Dustin Byfuglien leads defensemen with 11 goals and 32 points and is in the early Norris Trophy chatter. (9)

11. Kings, 17-10-1. Kings’ twitter account sent tweet that Sturm will wear number 10 — but trade is still contingent on him passing a physical. With his wonky knees, that’s not guaranteed. (13)

12. Tampa Bay, 16-10-4. Boo to Dan Ellis for criticizing Linus Omark’s shootout spinorama for Edmonton. It was clever and entertaining, unlike Ellis himself. (10)

13. Washington, 18-11-3. Six-game losing streak led owner Ted Leonsis to call a meeting. He blogged, “Panic and anger won’t help. That is all I can say right now.” Wonder if he said Coach Bruce Boudreau’s job is secure. (4)

14. Nashville, 15-8-6. Predators have earned points in eight straight games (6-0-2). Center David Legwand expected to be out this week because of a recurring lower-body injury.(16)

15. Chicago, 16-13-3. Defense falls apart in 7-5 loss to Colorado on Monday. Only good news is that Patrick Kane (ankle) will soon start skating. (11)

16. Ducks, 16-13-4. Bobby Ryan scoring with Mikko Koivu’s stick Sunday against Minnesota was hilarious. Especially because he’s a righty and the stick is for a lefty. (21)

17. Colorado, 16-10-4. Avalanche on Monday began stretch of 16 of 21 at home. Despite injuries and road-heavy schedule, Joe Sacco’s team has hung in with tough competition in the West. (18)

18. San Jose, 15-10-5. Sharks edge the Blackhawks, but lose to Dallas in a shootout. Still consistent only in their inconsistency. (19)

19. Columbus, 16-11-2. Rick Nash catches fire. Blue Jackets had best record after 28 games in franchise history. (15)

20. St. Louis, 14-9-5. So many key injuries and so little depth. Concussion for Andy McDonald is worrisome, because he has had several. (17)

21. Buffalo, 12-14-4. Loss to Penguins ends a 3-0-1 surge. No real shame in losing to hot Pens, though. (20)

22. Carolina, 12-12-4. Goalie Cam Ward is among the league leaders in save percentage at .925 after allowing 15 goals in last nine games. (23)

23. Edmonton, 11-13-5. Writers say team’s staff pressured off-ice officials into giving Oilers one more shot Sunday against Vancouver to avoid tying franchise-record low of 11. (25)

24. Minnesota, 13-12-4. Wild has given up 15 more goals than it has scored (71-86). Not typical of that team. (24)

25. Ottawa, 13-16-3. Senators rearrange defense pairs to help Sergei Gonchar, who remains minus-16. Rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic? (25)

26. Toronto, 11-14-4. Defenseman Dion Phaneuf will return to Calgary for first time since Flames traded him to the Maple Leafs a year ago. (26)

27. Calgary, 13-15-3. Local media have been blistering GM Darryl Sutter and Coach Brent Sutter, and with good reason. (28)

28. Florida; 13-15-0 Panthers and Lightning tied for fewest home games played this season, at 11 each. Panthers play next two at home —then leave town again for three. Strange schedule. (27)

29. New Jersey, 8-19-2. GM Lou Lamoriello, who has never hesitated to fire a coach, has given John MacLean a lot of rope. How much more patience does Lamoriello have? (29)

30. New York Islanders, 5-18-5. An embarrassment from top to bottom. That includes you, Rick DiPietro, after being unprepared for a faceoff against Atlanta and giving up a goal. (30)