Super 16: Predators continue rise

The Tampa Bay Lightning maintained their hold on the top spot and the Nashville Predators continued to climb in NHL.com's weekly Super 16 power rankings.
The Lightning are a unanimous No. 1 for the second consecutive week and third time this season. This is their sixth consecutive week atop the Super 16.

The Predators moved up to No. 5 this week after they were No. 7 last week and No. 8 two weeks ago. They couldn't crack the top 16 three weeks ago.

To create the power rankings, each of the participating staff members puts together his or her version of what they think the Super 16 should look like. Those are submitted and a point total is assigned to each.
The team picked first is given 16 points, second gets 15, third gets 14 and so on down to No. 16, which gets one point.
Check out how the rankings came together once the math was finished this week and stay for the information about each team:

1. Tampa Bay Lightning (15-3-2)

Total points: 208
Last week: No. 1
Hit: The three players on the Lightning's second line -- Brayden Point, Yanni Gourde and Ondrej Palat -- have combined for 34 points (14 goals, 20 assists) in the past 14 games.
Miss: Defenseman Jake Dotchin has not practiced the past two days, making it unlikely he plays against the Chicago Blackhawks on Wednesday. Lightning coach Jon Cooper said Dotchin is day to day.

2. St. Louis Blues (16-5-1)

Total points: 192
Last week: No. 2
Hit: Defenseman Jay Bouwmeester made his season debut Tuesday. Bouwmeester missed the first 21 games with an ankle injury.
Miss: The Blues have been winning despite their special teams. They are in the bottom 10 in power play and penalty kill.

3. Columbus Blue Jackets (13-7-1)

Total points: 165
Last week: No. 5
Hit: Forward Artemi Panarin has three goals in his past four games, all wins.
Miss: Center Alex Wennberg has missed the past three games with an undisclosed injury.

4. Winnipeg Jets (12-5-3)

Total points: 158
Last week: No. 6
Hit: The Jets are starting and closing games well. They have outscored the opposition 27-16 in the first period and 21-13 in the third. They have scored the first goal in 12 of their 20 games and are 9-1-2 in those games. They are 3-0-2 when tied entering the third period.
Miss: They've been outscored 24-18 and outshot 252-179 in the second period. They were outscored 3-0 and outshot 19-7 in the second period of a 5-3 loss to the Predators on Monday.

5. Nashville Predators (12-6-2)

Total points: 146
Last week: No. 7
Hit: Defenseman Mattias Ekholm has a goal in four straight games, all on special teams (three on the power play, one shorthanded). He scored three goals in 82 games last season. The Predators are 7-1-0 in their past eight games and have averaged 4.5 goals per game.
Miss: They have allowed at least three goals in eight of their past 10 games.

6. New Jersey Devils (12-5-3)

Total points: 137
Last week: No. 4
Hit: Rookie defenseman Will Butcher has a goal in two straight games after going the first 18 games of his NHL career without one. He has 14 assists, one behind forward Taylor Hall for the Devils lead.
Miss: The Devils have not scored a power-play goal in eight of their past 10 games, going 0-for-19 in those games but winning two of them (2-3-3).

7. Toronto Maple Leafs (14-8-0)

Total points: 136
Last week: No. 9
Hit:Frederik Andersen has allowed nine goals on 204 shots in six games (.956 save percentage) since allowing six goals on 32 shots in a 6-4 loss to the Blues on Nov. 4.
Miss: Forward William Nylander has one goal in his past 14 games, and forward Zach Hyman has no goals in his past 12.

8. Los Angeles Kings (12-7-2)

Total points: 117
Last week: No. 3
Hit: The Kings are 6-for-6 on the penalty kill in three games since allowing two power-play goals in a 3-2 loss to the Vancouver Canucks on Nov. 14. The Kings are first in the League on the PK at 90.1 percent and have scored two shorthanded goals.
Miss: They have lost five of their past six games (1-5-0) and have scored two or fewer goals in each of the losses.

9. Pittsburgh Penguins (11-8-3)

Total points: 95
Last week: No. 8
Hit:Center Riley Sheahan has a point in three straight games (one goal, two assists).
Miss: Center Evgeni Malkin will miss the game against the Canucks on Wednesday because of an upper-body injury.

10. Calgary Flames (12-8-0)

Total points: 90
Last week: No. 14
Hit: Forward Johnny Gaudreau has a 10-game point streak (eight goals, 11 assists), including five consecutive multipoint games (six goals, six assists). He has a goal in six straight games.
Miss: The Flames allowed a power-play goal in five straight games prior to going 3-for-3 on the penalty kill in a 4-1 win at the Washington Capitals on Monday. The Flames are last in the League on the PK at 71.8 percent.

11. New York Islanders (11-7-2)

Total points: 75
Last week: No. 12
Hit: Center Mathew Barzal leads NHL rookies with 15 assists and is second behind Arizona Coyotes forward Clayton Keller with 19 points.
Miss: Jaroslav Halak is 0-3-0 and has allowed 13 goals on 80 shots (.838 save percentage) in his past three starts.

12. Vegas Golden Knights (12-6-1)

Total points: 70
Last week: No. 16
Hit: Forward William Karlsson has five goals in his past four games and nine goals in 19 games. He had six goals in 81 games last season and nine goals in 81 games in 2015-16 with the Blue Jackets.
Miss: The Golden Knights have won two of their past eight road games (2-5-1) and play four of their next six games on the road.

13. Anaheim Ducks (10-7-3)

Total points: 37
Last week: NR
Hit: Forward Corey Perry has produced two points in three straight games (one goal, five assists) and in four of his past five games (one goal, seven assists) after scoring five points (one goal, four assists) in his previous 14 games.
Miss: The injured list remains long and filled with impact players, including center Ryan Kesler (hip surgery), centerRyan Getzlaf (facial fracture), defenseman Cam Fowler (knee), goalie Ryan Miller (lower body) and forwardPatrick Eaves (Guillain-Barre syndrome).

14. Ottawa Senators (8-5-6)

Total points: 32
Last week: No. 11
Hit: The Senators are 5-1-1 in games played away from Ottawa this season, including two wins against the Colorado Avalanche in the 2017 SAP NHL Global Series in Stockholm.
Miss: Center Matt Duchene has no points in five games with the Senators since they acquired him in a trade from the Colorado Avalanche on Nov. 5.

15. Chicago Blackhawks (10-8-2)

Total points: 30
Last week: NR
Hit: Center Artem Anisimov has scored five goals in his past three games, including a hat trick in a 6-3 win against the New York Rangers on Nov. 15.
Miss: Forward Brandon Saad has two points (one goal, one assist) in his past 14 games after starting the season with eight points (six goals, two assists) in his first six games.

16. Carolina Hurricanes (9-6-4)

Total points: 25
Last week: NR
Hit: The Hurricanes are 5-1-1 and averaging 3.57 goals per game in their past seven games after going 4-5-3 and averaging 2.58 goals per game in their first 12. Forward Sebastian Aho has scored in each of his past four games after starting the season without a goal in his first 15 games.
Miss: They have struggled in one-goal games, going 2-3-4, including 1-4 in games decided after regulation.
Dropped out: Washington Capitals, San Jose Sharks, New York Rangers
Others receiving points: New York Rangers, 21; San Jose Sharks, 16; Washington Capitals, 13; Dallas Stars, 3; Minnesota Wild, 2

HERE'S HOW WE RANKED 'EM

AMALIE BENJAMIN
1. Tampa Bay Lightning; 2. St. Louis Blues; 3. Toronto Maple Leafs; 4. Columbus Blue Jackets; 5. Winnipeg Jets; 6. New Jersey Devils; 7. Los Angeles Kings; 8. Nashville Predators; 9. Pittsburgh Penguins; 10. Vegas Golden Knights; 11. New York Islanders; 12. Calgary Flames; 13. Washington Capitals; 14. Ottawa Senators; 15. New York Rangers; 16. San Jose Sharks
TIM CAMPBELL
1. Tampa Bay Lightning; 2. St. Louis Blues; 3. Los Angeles Kings; 4. Nashville Predators; 5. Pittsburgh Penguins; 6. Columbus Blue Jackets; 7. Winnipeg Jets; 8. Ottawa Senators; 9. New Jersey Devils; 10. New York Islanders; 11. Calgary Flames; 12. Toronto Maple Leafs; 13. Anaheim Ducks; 14. Chicago Blackhawks; 15. Minnesota Wild; 16. Washington Capitals
BRIAN COMPTON
1. Tampa Bay Lightning; 2. St. Louis Blues; 3. New Jersey Devils; 4. Toronto Maple Leafs; 5. Winnipeg Jets; 6. Nashville Predators; 7. Columbus Blue Jackets; 8. New York Islanders; 9. Calgary Flames; 10. Vegas Golden Knights; 11. Carolina Hurricanes; 12. Los Angeles Kings; 13. Pittsburgh Penguins; 14. Chicago Blackhawks; 15. Anaheim Ducks; 16. Ottawa Senators
NICK COTSONIKA
1. Tampa Bay Lightning; 2. St. Louis Blues; 3. Winnipeg Jets; 4. New Jersey Devils; 5. Nashville Predators; 6. Columbus Blue Jackets; 7. Toronto Maple Leafs; 8. Vegas Golden Knights; 9. Los Angeles Kings; 10. Pittsburgh Penguins; 11. Ottawa Senators; 12. New York Islanders; 13. Calgary Flames; 14. Carolina Hurricanes; 15. Anaheim Ducks; 16. San Jose Sharks
LISA DILLMAN
1. Tampa Bay Lightning; 2. St. Louis Blues; 3. Columbus Blue Jackets; 4. Nashville Predators; 5. Winnipeg Jets; 6. New Jersey Devils; 7. Toronto Maple Leafs; 8. Calgary Flames; 9. New York Islanders; 10. New York Rangers; 11. Pittsburgh Penguins; 12. Carolina Hurricanes; 13. Vegas Golden Knights; 14. Ottawa Senators; 15. Los Angeles Kings; 16. Anaheim Ducks
TOM GULITTI
1. Tampa Bay Lightning; 2. St. Louis Blues; 3. Columbus Blue Jackets; 4. New Jersey Devils; 5. Nashville Predators; 6. Winnipeg Jets; 7. Toronto Maple Leafs; 8. Los Angeles Kings; 9. Pittsburgh Penguins; 10. New York Islanders; 11. Calgary Flames; 12. Vegas Golden Knights; 13. Ottawa Senators; 14. Carolina Hurricanes; 15. Anaheim Ducks; 16. San Jose Sharks
ADAM KIMELMAN
1. Tampa Bay Lightning; 2. St. Louis Blues; 3. Winnipeg Jets; 4. New Jersey Devils; 5. Los Angeles Kings; 6. Columbus Blue Jackets; 7. Toronto Maple Leafs; 8. Pittsburgh Penguins; 9. Vegas Golden Knights; 10. Nashville Predators; 11. Calgary Flames; 12. Chicago Blackhawks; 13. New York Islanders; 14. Anaheim Ducks; 15. Washington Capitals; 16. Carolina Hurricanes
ROBERT LAFLAMME
1. Tampa Bay Lightning; 2. St. Louis Blues; 3. Columbus Blue Jackets; 4. New Jersey Devils; 5. Winnipeg Jets; 6. Toronto Maple Leafs; 7. Nashville Predators; 8. Pittsburgh Penguins; 9. Los Angeles Kings; 10. Vegas Golden Knights; 11. Calgary Flames; 12. New York Islanders; 13. Anaheim Ducks; 14. Dallas Stars; 15. Chicago Blackhawks; 16. New York Rangers
MIKE G. MORREALE
1. Tampa Bay Lightning; 2. Columbus Blue Jackets; 3. Nashville Predators; 4. Winnipeg Jets; 5. St. Louis Blues; 6. Los Angeles Kings; 7. Toronto Maple Leafs; 8. Calgary Flames; 9. New Jersey Devils; 10. Chicago Blackhawks; 11. New York Rangers; 12. Anaheim Ducks; 13. San Jose Sharks; 14. Pittsburgh Penguins; 15. New York Islanders; 16. Vegas Golden Knights
BILL PRICE
1. Tampa Bay Lightning; 2. St. Louis Blues; 3. New Jersey Devils; 4. Columbus Blue Jackets; 5. Toronto Maple Leafs; 6. Calgary Flames; 7. Winnipeg Jets; 8. Los Angeles Kings; 9. Nashville Predators; 10. Vegas Golden Knights; 11. New York Islanders; 12. Anaheim Ducks; 13. Chicago Blackhawks; 14. Pittsburgh Penguins; 15. Washington Capitals; 16. San Jose Sharks
SHAWN ROARKE
1. Tampa Bay Lightning; 2. St. Louis Blues; 3. Winnipeg Jets; 4. Columbus Blue Jackets; 5. Nashville Predators; 6. Calgary Flames; 7. Los Angeles Kings; 8. Pittsburgh Penguins; 9. New Jersey Devils; 10. Toronto Maple Leafs; 11. San Jose Sharks; 12. New York Rangers; 13. Washington Capitals; 14. Anaheim Ducks; 15. New York Islanders; 16. Vegas Golden Knights
DAN ROSEN
1. Tampa Bay Lightning; 2. St. Louis Blues; 3. Nashville Predators; 4. Columbus Blue Jackets; 5. Winnipeg Jets; 6. New Jersey Devils; 7. Toronto Maple Leafs; 8. Los Angeles Kings; 9. Pittsburgh Penguins; 10. New York Islanders; 11. Vegas Golden Knights; 12. Calgary Flames; 13. Anaheim Ducks; 14. Chicago Blackhawks; 15. Carolina Hurricanes; 16. San Jose Sharks
MIKE ZEISBERGER
1. Tampa Bay Lightning; 2. St. Louis Blues; 3. Toronto Maple Leafs; 4. Columbus Blue Jackets; 5. Winnipeg Jets; 6. Nashville Predators; 7. Los Angeles Kings; 8. Pittsburgh Penguins; 9. Vegas Golden Knights; 10. New York Islanders; 11. Ottawa Senators; 12. Carolina Hurricanes; 13. Calgary Flames; 14. Chicago Blackhawks; 15. Anaheim Ducks; 16. San Jose Sharks