NHL RANKINGS

Lonnie White’s rankings and comments

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Team (Record) Comment 1 Detroit Red Wings 4-1-0-0) Hockeytown already primed for Cup run. 2 New York Islanders (4-0-0-1) Osgood is finally being appreciated. 3 Philadelphia Flyers (2-1-2-0) Cechmanek has been steady in goal. 4 Colorado Avalanche (2-2-0-0) Hoping Forsberg changes mind by All- Star break. 5 Calgary Flames (4-1-0-1) Turek playing like an all-star goaltender. 6 San Jose Sharks (2-0-1-1) Still unbeaten but haven’t played a road game. 7 Montreal Canadiens (4-1-1-0) Perreault is on pace to score 60 goals. 8 Edmonton Oilers (4-1-1-0) Playing like a legitimate force in the West. 9 Dallas Stars (2-2-0-1) Hitchcock has plenty of depth to work with. 10 Ottawa Senators (3-2-1-0) Getting strong play from Lalime in goal. 11 St. Louis Blues (1-1-2-0) Brathwaite may take over as No. 1 goalie. 12 Boston Bruins (3-2-0-0) Undefeated at home, winless on the road. 13 New Jersey Devils (0-3-0-0) Robinson’s team hit by injury bug. 14 Washington Capitals (2-3-0-0) Quality team with an injury-free Jagr. 15 Minnesota Wild (3-0-2-0) Has become difficult team to beat at home. 16 Carolina Hurricanes (3-2-0-0) O’Neill proving to be talented scorer. 17 Toronto Maple Leafs (2-2-1-0) Defense is shaky in front of Joseph. 18 Tampa Bay Lightning (2-3-0-0) Young team keeps playing hard. 19 Ducks (2-4-0-0) Titov has 76 more games to score a goal. 20 Kings (1-3-1-0) Now would be a good time for Stumpel to step up. 21 Buffalo Sabres (3-2-0-1) Satan’s fast start provides spark on offense. 22 Pittsburgh Penguins (0-4-0-0) Slow start costs Hlinka his job. 23 Phoenix Coyotes (2-2-1-0) Opportunistic power play is underrated. 24 Vancouver Canucks (2-3-0-0) One of the top-scoring teams in league. 25 New York Rangers (2-2-1-0) Richter returning to form. 26 Chicago Blackhawks (2-3-1-0) Not a pushover under Brian Sutter. 27 Columbus Blue Jackets (0-1-4-0) On pace to set league record for ties. 28 Florida Panthers (1-4-0-0) Bure brothers heating up on offense. 29 Atlanta Thrashers (1-1-0-1) Ferraro is back in lineup, but Stefan is hurt. 30 Nashville Predators (1-2-1-0) Not too far off from the rest.

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