Super 16: Lightning move past Penguins, Blues to take third in rankings

Two voting points is the difference between three of the top five teams in this week's NHL.com Super 16.

The Tampa Bay Lightning, who are 16-2-1 since Dec. 23, have 173 points, enough to move them up two spots to No. 3. The Pittsburgh Penguins again are No. 4, with 172 points this week. The St. Louis Blues are down three spots to No. 5 with 171 points.
They're all behind the Washington Capitals, who are No. 1 for a third straight week, and the Boston Bruins, who are up one spot to No. 2.
The Columbus Blue Jackets are up four spots at No. 6 this week. The Florida Panthers fell the furthest of any team, slipping five spots to No. 12.
The same 16 teams from last week are ranked this week.

To create the power rankings, each of the 13 participating staff members puts together his or her version of what 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.
Here is the latest Super 16:

1. Washington Capitals (36-13-5)

Total points:202
Last week: No. 1
Hit:Alex Ovechkin has 14 goals in the past seven games. He leads the NHL with 40 this season and has 698 in his NHL career.
Miss:Goalie Ilya Samsonov took an Ovechkin shot off his mask during the morning skate Tuesday and was scratched from the game against the Los Angeles Kings, a 4-2 win. Samsonov practiced Wednesday after he completed the NHL concussion protocol.

2. Boston Bruins (33-10-12)

Total points:192
Last week:No. 3
Hit: The Bruins have allowed five goals in an active five-game winning streak, including a 2-1 overtime win against the Chicago Blackhawks on Wednesday.
Miss: Forward Joakim Nordstrom has missed two games with an allergy-related condition.

3. Tampa Bay Lightning (33-15-5)

Total points: 173
Last week:No. 5
Hit:The Lightning have won seven straight home games.
Miss:They are 0-for-15 on the power play in the past six games and 1-for-26 in 11 games since Jan. 9.

4. Pittsburgh Penguins (33-14-5)

Total points:172
Last week:No. 4
Hit:Matt Murray is 6-0-0 with a .922 save percentage and 2.63 goals-against average in six starts since Dec. 28.
Miss:Forward Dominik Kahun has missed three games with a concussion.

5. St. Louis Blues (32-14-8)

Total points:171
Last week:No. 2
Hit: Zach Sanford has nine points (four goals, five assists) during a six-game point streak. The forward scored two goals in a 6-3 win against the Carolina Hurricanes on Tuesday.
Miss:The Blues have allowed at least three goals in a season-long seven straight games, winning two.

6. Columbus Blue Jackets (29-16-9)

Total points:125
Last week:No. 10
Hit:The Blue Jackets are 8-0-1 in their past nine games despite not getting more than two power plays in any of them.
Miss:Alex Wennberg will miss 3-4 weeks with an upper-body injury. The forward was injured during a 4-3 win at the Montreal Canadiens on Sunday.

7. Colorado Avalanche (29-16-6)

Total points: 115
Last week:No. 6
Hit:Andre Burakovsky has 11 points (four goals, seven assists) during a five-game point streak. The forward has 39 points, a new NHL career high, one more than the 38 points he had in 2015-16 with the Capitals, and his 17 goals match his NHL best from that season.
Miss:A 6-1 win at the Buffalo Sabres on Tuesday was their second win in six road games since Dec. 28. They were 13-6-1 in their first 20 road games.

8. Dallas Stars (30-18-5)

Total points:103
Last week:No. 9
Hit:The Stars have scored at least three goals in five consecutive games for the second time this season (Nov. 13-21).
Miss:They have allowed seven power-play goals in the past six games (7-for-20; 65.0 percent).

9. New York Islanders (30-15-6)

Total points:98
Last week: No. 8
Hit:The Islanders have eight overtime wins, tied with the Penguins for most in the NHL. Anthony Beauvillier scored in overtime for a 4-3 win against the Dallas Stars on Tuesday, giving him nine points (five goals, four assists) in the past seven games.
Miss:Semyon Varlamov is 1-3-1 with an .872 save percentage and 4.11 GAA in five starts since Jan. 11.

10. Vancouver Canucks (30-19-5)

Total points: 93
Last week:No. 12
Hit:A win against the Minnesota Wild at Xcel Energy Center on Thursday will give the Canucks seven of a possible 10 points on a five-game road trip. During a five-game trip Jan. 7-14, they got four of 10 points (2-3-0).
Miss: The Canucks are 14-4-1 since Dec. 19 but are struggling to prevent shots against. They are 30th in the NHL in 5-on-5 shot-attempt percentage (SAT) at 44.9 percent and are allowing 34.3 shots on goal per game, third-most in the League, in their past 19 games.

11. Philadelphia Flyers (29-17-7)

Total points:90
Last week:No. 13
Hit: The Flyers are 4-0-1 in their past five games and 6-1-1 since Jan. 13. Brian Elliott is 4-0-1 with two shutouts, a .935 save percentage and a 1.58 GAA in five starts since Jan. 15.
Miss: Claude Giroux has gone 12 straight games without a goal. The forward is on pace for 54 points, which would be his lowest total in a full NHL season since 2009-10, his first full NHL season, when he had 47 points in 82 games.

12. Florida Panthers (29-17-6)

Total points:84
Last week:No. 7
Hit:Sergei Bobrovsky is 5-1-1 with a .926 save percentage and a 2.56 GAA in seven starts since Jan. 9. It's a significant turnaround for the goalie, who had an .895 save percentage and 3.33 GAA in his first 33 games (32 starts).
Miss:Aleksander Barkov has missed two games with a lower-body injury. The forward was injured during a 4-0 loss to the Montreal Canadiens on Saturday.

13. Edmonton Oilers (28-19-6)

Total points:46
Last week:No. 15
Hit: Leon Draisaitl had 22 points (seven goals, 15 assists) during an 11-game point streak that ended in a 3-0 loss at the Arizona Coyotes on Tuesday. Edmonton went 8-1-2 during the forward's streak.
Miss: Defenseman Kris Russell has missed three games with a concussion.

14. Carolina Hurricanes (30-20-3)

Total points:43
Last week:No. 11
Hit:Sebastian Aho has scored in three straight games and has 27 goals in 53 games this season. The forward scored his 27th goal in his 65th game last season, when he finished with an NHL career-high 30.
Miss: Petr Mrazek has allowed 10 goals on 63 shots in his past two starts after allowing six goals in his previous four starts. He allowed six goals on 26 shots in a 6-3 loss to the Blues on Tuesday.

15. Toronto Maple Leafs (28-19-7)

Total points: 28
Last week: No. 14
Hit:Auston Matthews is second in the NHL with 39 goals, one behind Ovechkin, after scoring twice in a 5-3 loss at the New York Rangers on Wednesday. The center has 23 goals in 24 games since Dec. 7.
Miss: Frederik Andersen is day to day with a neck injury the goalie sustained during a 5-3 loss to the Florida Panthers on Monday.

16. Calgary Flames (27-21-6)

Total points:14
Last week: No. 16
Hit:Elias Lindholm has four points (two goals, two assists) during a four-game point streak. The forward has six goals in his past 10 games.
Miss: Mark Giordano had an MRI for a lower-body injury he sustained during a 3-1 loss to the San Jose Sharks on Tuesday. The Flames captain, who won the Norris Trophy voted as the best defenseman in the NHL last season, has 27 points (five goals, 22 assists) in 54 games and leads the Flames playing 23:57 per game.
Others receiving points: Vegas Golden Knights (10), Arizona Coyotes (8), Nashville Predators (1)
Dropped out: None

HERE'S HOW WE RANKED 'EM

AMALIE BENJAMIN
1. Washington Capitals; 2. Boston Bruins; 3. St. Louis Blues; 4. Pittsburgh Penguins; 5. Tampa Bay Lightning; 6. Columbus Blue Jackets; 7. Colorado Avalanche; 8. New York Islanders; 9. Philadelphia Flyers; 10. Florida Panthers; 11. Carolina Hurricanes; 12. Dallas Stars; 13. Vancouver Canucks; 14. Toronto Maple Leafs; 15. Edmonton Oilers; 16. Calgary Flames
TIM CAMPBELL
1. Boston Bruins; 2. St. Louis Blues; 3. Washington Capitals; 4. Pittsburgh Penguins; 5. Tampa Bay Lightning; 6. Dallas Stars; 7. New York Islanders; 8. Colorado Avalanche; 9. Philadelphia Flyers; 10. Florida Panthers; 11. Columbus Blue Jackets; 12. Carolina Hurricanes; 13. Edmonton Oilers; 14. Vancouver Canucks; 15. Vegas Golden Knights; 16. Toronto Maple Leafs
BRIAN COMPTON
1. Boston Bruins; 2. Washington Capitals; 3. Pittsburgh Penguins; 4. Tampa Bay Lightning; 5. St. Louis Blues; 6. New York Islanders; 7. Columbus Blue Jackets; 8. Philadelphia Flyers; 9. Dallas Stars; 10. Vancouver Canucks; 11. Colorado Avalanche; 12. Florida Panthers; 13. Edmonton Oilers; 14. Toronto Maple Leafs; 15. Carolina Hurricanes; 16. Calgary Flames
NICHOLAS J. COTSONIKA
1. Washington Capitals; 2. Boston Bruins; 3. Pittsburgh Penguins; 4. Tampa Bay Lightning; 5. St. Louis Blues; 6. Columbus Blue Jackets; 7. Florida Panthers; 8. Philadelphia Flyers; 9. Colorado Avalanche; 10. Vancouver Canucks; 11. Edmonton Oilers; 12. Dallas Stars; 13. Calgary Flames; 14. New York Islanders; 15. Carolina Hurricanes; 16. Toronto Maple Leafs
TOM GULITTI
1. Boston Bruins; 2. Washington Capitals; 3. St. Louis Blues; 4. Pittsburgh Penguins; 5. Tampa Bay Lightning; 6. Columbus Blue Jackets; 7. Colorado Avalanche; 8. New York Islanders; 9. Dallas Stars; 10. Philadelphia Flyers; 11. Florida Panthers; 12. Vancouver Canucks; 13. Carolina Hurricanes; 14. Toronto Maple Leafs; 15. Edmonton Oilers; 16. Calgary Flames
ADAM KIMELMAN
1. Washington Capitals; 2. Tampa Bay Lightning; 3. Boston Bruins; 4. St. Louis Blues; 5. Pittsburgh Penguins; 6. Columbus Blue Jackets; 7. Dallas Stars; 8. Vancouver Canucks; 9. Philadelphia Flyers; 10. Florida Panthers; 11. Colorado Avalanche; 12. Edmonton Oilers; 13. New York Islanders; 14. Vegas Golden Knights; 15. Arizona Coyotes; 16. Toronto Maple Leafs
ROBERT LAFLAMME
1. Washington Capitals; 2. Boston Bruins; 3. Pittsburgh Penguins; 4. St. Louis Blues; 5. Tampa Bay Lightning; 6. Colorado Avalanche; 7. New York Islanders; 8. Dallas Stars; 9. Vancouver Canucks; 10. Edmonton Oilers; 11. Philadelphia Flyers; 12. Columbus Blue Jackets; 13. Florida Panthers; 14. Carolina Hurricanes; 15. Toronto Maple Leafs; 16. Vegas Golden Knights
MIKE G. MORREALE
1. Washington Capitals; 2. Pittsburgh Penguins; 3. Tampa Bay Lightning; 4. Boston Bruins; 5. St. Louis Blues; 6. Colorado Avalanche; 7. Columbus Blue Jackets; 8. New York Islanders; 9. Philadelphia Flyers; 10. Carolina Hurricanes; 11. Florida Panthers; 12. Vancouver Canucks; 13. Dallas Stars; 14. Toronto Maple Leafs; 15. Edmonton Oilers; 16. Calgary Flames
TRACEY MYERS
1. Washington Capitals; 2. Boston Bruins; 3. Tampa Bay Lightning; 4. St. Louis Blues; 5. Pittsburgh Penguins; 6. Columbus Blue Jackets; 7. Vancouver Canucks; 8. Dallas Stars; 9. Colorado Avalanche; 10. New York Islanders; 11. Florida Panthers; 12. Philadelphia Flyers; 13. Edmonton Oilers; 14. Arizona Coyotes; 15. Calgary Flames; 16. Toronto Maple Leafs
BILL PRICE
1. Washington Capitals; 2. Boston Bruins; 3. St. Louis Blues; 4. Tampa Bay Lightning; 5. Pittsburgh Penguins; 6. Dallas Stars; 7. Columbus Blue Jackets; 8. Vancouver Canucks; 9. Colorado Avalanche; 10. New York Islanders; 11. Philadelphia Flyers; 12. Edmonton Oilers; 13. Florida Panthers; 14. Vegas Golden Knights; 15. Arizona Coyotes; 16. Toronto Maple Leafs
SHAWN P. ROARKE
1. Pittsburgh Penguins; 2. Tampa Bay Lightning; 3. Washington Capitals; 4. Boston Bruins; 5. St. Louis Blues; 6. Vancouver Canucks; 7. Dallas Stars; 8. Columbus Blue Jackets; 9. Florida Panthers; 10. Carolina Hurricanes; 11. Colorado Avalanche; 12. Toronto Maple Leafs; 13. Philadelphia Flyers; 14. New York Islanders; 15. Calgary Flames; 16. Nashville Predators
DAN ROSEN
1. Washington Capitals; 2. Tampa Bay Lightning; 3. Boston Bruins; 4. St. Louis Blues; 5. Pittsburgh Penguins; 6. Colorado Avalanche; 7. Columbus Blue Jackets; 8. Florida Panthers; 9. Vancouver Canucks; 10. New York Islanders; 11. Philadelphia Flyers; 12. Dallas Stars; 13. Carolina Hurricanes; 14. Edmonton Oilers; 15. Calgary Flames; 16. Arizona Coyotes
MIKE ZEISBERGER
1. Washington Capitals; 2. Boston Bruins; 3. St. Louis Blues; 4. Tampa Bay Lightning; 5. Pittsburgh Penguins; 6. Colorado Avalanche; 7. Columbus Blue Jackets; 8. New York Islanders; 9. Dallas Stars; 10. Vancouver Canucks; 11. Philadelphia Flyers; 12. Florida Panthers; 13. Toronto Maple Leafs; 14. Carolina Hurricanes; 15. Edmonton Oilers; 16. Vegas Golden Knights
---
Listen: New episode of NHL @The Rink