Super 16: Jets remain No. 1; Red Wings, Penguins enter power rankings 

It's Trophy Tracker week here at NHL.com, and that means it's time to do some projecting in the Super 16, too, for the most valuable player in the NHL this season.

We have already revealed the midseason favorites for the Calder Trophy (Connor Bedard, Chicago Blackhawks), Jack Adams Award (Rick Tocchet, Vancouver Canucks), Norris Trophy (Quinn Hughes, Canucks) and Vezina Trophy (Connor Hellebuyck, Winnipeg Jets).

Not surprisingly, the Jets and Canucks are No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, in the Super 16 for the second straight week, followed by the Boston Bruins at No. 3, the Colorado Avalanche at No. 4 and the New York Rangers at No. 5.

The Hart Trophy tracker for League MVP will come out Friday. You'll be able to guess who is in the running for that based on what you'll read below.

As a reminder, to come up with the Super 16 each week, the voters put together their own version of what they think the rankings should look like and a point total is assigned to each, with the team selected first given 16 points, second 15, third 14, and so on.

Here is the midpoint MVP edition of the Super 16.

1. Winnipeg Jets (29-10-4)

Total points: 203

Last week: No. 1

"Connor Hellebuyck is not only the MVP for the Jets, he should also be in consideration for the Hart Trophy and the Vezina Trophy voted as best goalie. His 22 wins are tied with Thatcher Demko of the Canucks for second in the NHL, and his 2.19 goals-against average and .925 save percentage each rank in the top three among goalies to play at least 15 games this season. Hellebuyck has allowed two or fewer goals in 19 of his past 20 games; let that sink in. The Jets have the best points percentage in the NHL (.721). Hellebuyck is one of the big reasons why." -- David Satriano, staff writer

2. Vancouver Canucks (29-11-4)

Total points: 195

Last week: No. 2

"This is a tough one because the Canucks have at least four MVP candidates in Demko, Hughes, and forwards J.T. Miller and Elias Pettersson. But I have to go with Miller. He has 60 points (20 goals, 40 assists) through 44 games, putting him on pace for 37 goals, 75 assists and 112 points, which would shatter his NHL career high of 99 in 2021-22. He leads the Canucks with 24 power-play points, is tied with Pettersson for the lead in average time on ice among forwards (19:43) and leads Vancouver in face-off winning percentage (53.8 percent) with a minimum of 400 taken." -- Bill Price, Editor-in-Chief

3. Boston Bruins (26-8-9)

Total points: 183

Last week: No. 3

"There are multiple players who I could mention for Bruins MVP at this point, but I'm going with Jeremy Swayman. The goaltending for the Bruins has covered up for any missteps by either the offense or defense, allowing a team in transition to find itself. And though both goalies have been excellent, Swayman has taken a step to separate himself from good friend Linus Ullmark, bolstering the Bruins when Ullmark has been out. All told, Swayman -- recently named to the 2024 Honda (U.S.)/Rogers (Canada) NHL All-Star Game -- is 13-3-7 with a 2.38 GAA, .922 save percentage and three shutouts." -- Amalie Benjamin, staff writer

4. Colorado Avalanche (29-13-3)

Total points: 170

Last week: No. 5

"Nathan MacKinnon is MVP of the whole League, hands down, so how can he not be the MVP of his team? The forward does it all for the Avalanche. He leads them and is tied with Tampa Bay Lightning forward Nikita Kucherov for first in the NHL with 72 points while averaging 1.67 points per game. He plays 23:09 per game, the second-most by any forward in the NHL behind teammate Mikko Rantanen (23:18). He dominates at even strength and on the power play. And he's clutch, as his five game-winning goals illustrate." -- Shawn P. Roarke, senior director of editorial

5. New York Rangers (29-13-2)

Total points: 144

Last week: No. 4

"It's easy to look at Artemi Panarin and his 60 points, which are tied for fourth in the NHL, and lock him in as the Rangers' most valuable player so far this season. It wouldn't be wrong to say that either. But he's not and Panarin would be the first to tell you that it's actually the center who drives his line. Vincent Trocheck flies under the radar behind Panarin, Igor Shesterkin, Mika Zibanejad and Chris Kreider, but he's been New York's do-everything forward and having the best offensive season of his NHL career. He has 43 points (14 goals, 29 assists) in 43 games. He is the essential middleman on the No. 2 power play in the NHL (28.6 percent) and a key cog on the ninth-ranked penalty kill (82.5 percent). He's won 62.1 percent of his 774 total face-offs, second among the 78 players who have taken at least 400." -- Dan Rosen, senior writer

6. Florida Panthers (27-13-4)

Total points: 143

Last week: No. 6

"Sam Reinhart is having a season for the ages and is the undisputed most valuable player for the Panthers. By extending his goal streak to eight games in a 3-2 overtime loss to the Detroit Red Wings on Wednesday, Reinhart equaled his NHL career high for goals in a season (33; 2021-22). It's worth noting Pavel Bure had the only two 50-goal seasons in Panthers history, the first coming in 1999-2000 when he was named NHL All-Star Game MVP when the event was last held in Toronto. Reinhart is the first player in NHL history to score a special-teams goal in eight straight games, leads the League with 16 power-play goals and nine game-winning goals, and is tied for second with four short-handed goals. He also leads Florida forwards in average ice time (20:22) and all skaters in points per game (1.27)." -- Mike G. Morreale, staff writer

7. Dallas Stars (26-12-5)

Total points: 123

Last week: No. 7

"Man, I could go in a few different directions here but I'm taking Jason Robertson as Stars MVP at the midway point. The 24-year-old leads Dallas with 45 points (15 goals, 30 assists) and after getting two assists in a 5-1 win against the Los Angeles Kings on Tuesday, is on a six-game point streak (three goals, five assists). Tuesday was also Robertson's 82nd multipoint game in the NHL. He's had quite the career already and though the Stars have gotten great offense from several players, Robertson is most valuable through the first half." -- Tracey Myers, staff writer

8. Edmonton Oilers (24-15-1)

Total points: 115

Last week: No. 11

"The Oilers are on their longest winning streak in their history and not surprisingly it's being led by Connor McDavid. After a slow start, McDavid is back to his Hart Trophy form and has gotten Edmonton back into Stanley Cup Playoff contention after bottoming out 12 games into the season and falling into a tie for last in the NHL. McDavid is averaging 1.53 points per game and has 17 points (five goals, 12 assists) during the 11-game run while getting at least one point in every game. Though McDavid has a strong supporting cast around him with Leon Draisaitl, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Zach Hyman all having good seasons, the captain is still the face of the franchise and the League and is putting together another MVP-caliber season. The Oilers will only go as far as McDavid takes them and at the moment he is leading toward the top of the standings." -- Derek Van Diest, staff writer

9. Carolina Hurricanes (24-14-5)

Total points: 104

Last week: No. 9

"Sebastian Aho does it all for the Hurricanes and is the obvious choice as their most valuable player in the first half. The center leads Carolina with 48 points and 33 assists and is tied with Seth Jarvis for the team lead with 15 goals in 43 games. His four game-winning goals are second on the Hurricanes behind Andrei Svechnikov's five. Aho also leads Carolina's forwards in ice time, averaging 19:37 per game and playing in all situations. He has won 53.7 percent of his face-offs, which is second best on the Hurricanes among players to take at least 100 draws behind Jordan Staal (57.2 percent)." -- Tom Gulitti, staff writer

10. Vegas Golden Knights (25-14-5)

Total points: 96

Last week: No. 10

"Jack Eichel obviously deserves a ton of credit for the season he's had, but I'm going with Mark Stone as Golden Knights most valuable player thus far. The 31-year-old forward leads by example with his ability to excel in all situations, including offensively, where he is tied for the team lead with 44 points (15 goals, 29 assists) in 44 games. Vegas obviously has some things it needs to clean up over the next few weeks, but it's hard to envision it won't with a captain like Stone leading the way." -- Brian Compton, managing editor

11. Philadelphia Flyers (24-14-6)

Total points: 77

Last week: No. 14

"The Flyers' surprising run to playoff contention includes several players you could mention as their most valuable. Center Sean Couturier has returned to star form after 22 months away because of two back surgeries, and goalie Carter Hart has solidified himself as one of 5-7 best in the NHL at his position. But my vote goes to forward Travis Konecny, who is the engine that drives the offense. He leads the Flyers in goals (21) and points (40), and they control 56.8 percent of the shot attempts at 5-on-5 when he's on the ice, best on the team. He's also one of the top threats in the NHL short-handed, with his five goals tied with New York Islanders forward Simon Holmstrom for the League lead and a big reason Philadelphia has the No. 2 penalty kill in the NHL (86.3 percent), up from 26th last season (74.7 percent). Konecny also has been a consistent producer, going consecutive games without a point once (three from Nov. 22-25) in his past 30. He was chosen as the Flyers' lone representative for the 2024 NHL All-Star Weekend, and he's my pick for their MVP." -- Adam Kimelman, deputy managing editor

12. Toronto Maple Leafs (21-13-8)

Total points: 57

Last week: No. 8

"Auston Matthews has been the Maple Leafs' most valuable player through the first half and has a chance to win the Hart Trophy again. He was voted NHL MVP in 2021-22, when he led the League in goals for the second straight season and became the first Toronto player to reach 60. This season, he leads the League with 34 goals and is on pace for 66. No one has scored that many since Mario Lemieux scored 69 for the Pittsburgh Penguins in 1995-96." -- Nicholas J. Cotsonika, columnist

13. Los Angeles Kings (21-12-8)

Total points: 44

Last week: No. 12

"It feels like the least opportune time to have the Kings' MVP discussion with them having lost nine of 10 (1-5-4), but there is a reason Los Angeles is still hanging on to third in the Pacific Division despite the slump. Until this week, the Kings were the top defensive team in the NHL mainly thanks to goalie Cam Talbot, who has been a rock this season. Talbot is 14-11-5 with a 2.43 GAA, .915 save percentage and two shutouts, a darn good stat line for a goalie on a struggling team that has no scorers in the top 40 and has allowed fewer than three goals just once since Dec. 28. It is only fair that the 36-year-old will be the only Kings representative at All-Star Weekend." -- Paul Strizhevsky, staff writer

14. Detroit Red Wings (23-16-5)

Total points: 36

Last week: Unranked

"Alex DeBrincat leads the Red Wings in scoring and he was a key player in helping to get Patrick Kane to sign with Detroit on Nov. 29. DeBrincat has given them a bona fide goal scoring threat, something they were lacking before his arrival in the offseason. That alone has made Detroit a far more dangerous team than it previously was. He has 40 points (17 goals, 23 assists) in 44 games. Though DeBrincat cooled after his hot start, he scored nine goals in his first seven games, pushing the Red Wings to a 5-1-1 start. That alone began changing expectations in Detroit. The feeling now is the Red Wings should be a playoff team. That wasn't the case before this season." -- Rosen

15. Pittsburgh Penguins (21-15-6)

Total points: 21

Last week: Unranked

"It's still Sidney Crosby in Pittsburgh. The now 36-year-old center leads the Penguins with 26 goals and his 46 points are tied with Jake Guentzel for the team lead. He's on pace for the second 50-goal season of his likely Hall of Fame career 14 years after he scored 51 in 2009-10. Crosby leads all Penguins forwards at plus-19, is second to Guentzel with 20:11 of ice time per game and tied with Jeff Carter for the most game-winning goals (three). He has taken 965 face-offs, the most of any player in the NHL (minimum 400 taken) and 510 more than anyone else on Pittsburgh, winning 59.6 percent of them. There is nothing Crosby can't do. Still." -- Rosen

16. New Jersey Devils (22-17-3)

Total points: 18

Last week: No. 15

"The Devils need Jack Hughes in the lineup. The center has not only been their MVP this season despite missing 10 games with injuries, he's without question their best player too. Hughes, who missed his fifth straight game with an upper-body injury Wednesday, has 45 points (15 goals, 30 assists) in 32 games. The Devils are 19-11-2 with him in the lineup and 3-6-1 without him after a 3-2 loss to the Montreal Canadiens. He has points in 22 games and at least two points in 12, including nine with at least three." -- Rosen

Others receiving points: Tampa Bay Lightning 15, Seattle Kraken 14, Nashville Predators 8, Washington Capitals 3

Dropped out: Kraken (No. 13), New York Islanders (No. 16)

New Amsterdam Game of the Week

Each week, NHL.com will highlight one game that features two teams in the Super 16. This week, it's the No. 5 Rangers against the No. 13 Kings at Crypto.com Arena on Saturday (10:30 p.m. ET; MSG2, MSG, KCAL).

The storyline in this game goes beyond the Rangers and Kings and right to goalie Jonathan Quick, who will be making his return to Los Angeles for the first time since the Kings traded him to the Columbus Blue Jackets on March 1. Quick played 16 seasons with the Kings, winning the Stanley Cup twice (2012 and 2014) and leaving, albeit not on his own terms, as the greatest goalie in their history and a likely Hall of Famer. He should be feted with an emotional video tribute. One day, his No. 32 should rise to the rafters of Crypto.com Arena and potentially the Kings will commission a statue of him outside next to the greats of the franchise. Most important is Quick should start against his former team, the struggling Kings. That alone will be worth watching and, of course, the price of admission. -- Rosen

HERE'S HOW WE RANKED 'EM

AMALIE BENJAMIN

1. Vancouver Canucks; 2. Winnipeg Jets; 3. Boston Bruins; 4. Colorado Avalanche; 5. Florida Panthers; 6. New York Rangers; 7. Dallas Stars; 8. Vegas Golden Knights; 9. Carolina Hurricanes; 10. Edmonton Oilers; 11. Toronto Maple Leafs; 12. Los Angeles Kings; 13. Philadelphia Flyers; 14. New Jersey Devils; 15. Detroit Red Wings; 16. Pittsburgh Penguins

BRIAN COMPTON

1. Winnipeg Jets; 2. Vancouver Canucks; 3. Boston Bruins; 4. Colorado Avalanche; 5. Florida Panthers; 6. New York Rangers; 7. Edmonton Oilers; 8. Dallas Stars; 9. Carolina Hurricanes; 10. Philadelphia Flyers; 11. Toronto Maple Leafs; 12. Vegas Golden Knights; 13. Pittsburgh Penguins; 14. Los Angeles Kings; 15. New Jersey Devils; 16. Washington Capitals

NICHOLAS J. COTSONIKA

1. Winnipeg Jets; 2. Boston Bruins; 3. Vancouver Canucks; 4. Colorado Avalanche; 5. New York Rangers; 6. Dallas Stars; 7. Florida Panthers; 8. Vegas Golden Knights; 9. Carolina Hurricanes; 10. Philadelphia Flyers; 11. Edmonton Oilers; 12. Los Angeles Kings; 13. Toronto Maple Leafs; 14. New Jersey Devils; 15. Pittsburgh Penguins; 16. Washington Capitals

TOM GULITTI

1. Winnipeg Jets; 2. Boston Bruins; 3. Vancouver Canucks; 4. Colorado Avalanche; 5. New York Rangers; 6. Florida Panthers; 7. Dallas Stars; 8. Carolina Hurricanes; 9. Edmonton Oilers; 10. Vegas Golden Knights; 11. Philadelphia Flyers; 12. Los Angeles Kings; 13. New Jersey Devils; 14. Toronto Maple Leafs; 15. Detroit Red Wings; 16. Washington Capitals

ADAM KIMELMAN

1. Winnipeg Jets; 2. Vancouver Canucks; 3. Boston Bruins; 4. Colorado Avalanche; 5. New York Rangers; 6. Vegas Golden Knights; 7. Dallas Stars; 8. Edmonton Oilers; 9. Florida Panthers; 10. Philadelphia Flyers; 11. Toronto Maple Leafs; 12. Carolina Hurricanes; 13. Nashville Predators; 14. Tampa Bay Lightning; 15. Los Angeles Kings; 16. Detroit Red Wings

MIKE G. MORREALE

1. Winnipeg Jets; 2. Vancouver Canucks; 3. Florida Panthers; 4. Boston Bruins; 5. Colorado Avalanche; 6. Carolina Hurricanes; 7. New York Rangers; 8. Dallas Stars; 9. Vegas Golden Knights; 10. Detroit Red Wings; 11. Edmonton Oilers; 12. Philadelphia Flyers; 13. Tampa Bay Lightning; 14. Los Angeles Kings; 15. Toronto Maple Leafs; 16. Pittsburgh Penguins

TRACEY MYERS

1. Vancouver Canucks; 2. Boston Bruins; 3. Colorado Avalanche; 4. Winnipeg Jets; 5. New York Rangers; 6. Florida Panthers; 7. Dallas Stars; 8. Vegas Golden Knights; 9. Philadelphia Flyers; 10. Carolina Hurricanes; 11. Edmonton Oilers; 12. Toronto Maple Leafs; 13. Los Angeles Kings; 14. Detroit Red Wings; 15. Tampa Bay Lightning; 16. Seattle Kraken

BILL PRICE

1. Vancouver Canucks; 2. Winnipeg Jets; 3. Boston Bruins; 4. Colorado Avalanche; 5. New York Rangers; 6. Edmonton Oilers; 7. Florida Panthers; 8. Vegas Golden Knights; 9. Dallas Stars; 10. Carolina Hurricanes; 11. Philadelphia Flyers; 12. Los Angeles Kings; 13. Detroit Red Wings; 14. Toronto Maple Leafs; 15. Nashville Predators; 16. Tampa Bay Lightning

SHAWN P. ROARKE

1. Winnipeg Jets; 2. Vancouver Canucks; 3. Boston Bruins; 4. Colorado Avalanche; 5. Florida Panthers; 6. Edmonton Oilers; 7. Dallas Stars; 8. Carolina Hurricanes; 9. New York Rangers; 10. Toronto Maple Leafs; 11. Pittsburgh Penguins; 12. Detroit Red Wings; 13. Seattle Kraken; 14. New Jersey Devils; 15. Los Angeles Kings; 16. Vegas Golden Knights

DAN ROSEN

1. Winnipeg Jets; 2. Vancouver Canucks; 3. Boston Bruins; 4. Colorado Avalanche; 5. Edmonton Oilers; 6. Carolina Hurricanes; 7. Florida Panthers; 8. New York Rangers; 9. Philadelphia Flyers; 10. Dallas Stars; 11. Vegas Golden Knights; 12. Pittsburgh Penguins; 13. Detroit Red Wings; 14. Tampa Bay Lightning; 15. Toronto Maple Leafs; 16. Seattle Kraken

DAVID SATRIANO

1. Winnipeg Jets; 2. Vancouver Canucks; 3. Colorado Avalanche; 4. Boston Bruins; 5. Edmonton Oilers; 6. Florida Panthers; 7. New York Rangers; 8. Dallas Stars; 9. Carolina Hurricanes; 10. Seattle Kraken; 11. Philadelphia Flyers; 12. Vegas Golden Knights; 13. Detroit Red Wings; 14. Toronto Maple Leafs; 15. Los Angeles Kings; 16. Tampa Bay Lightning

PAUL STRIZHEVSKY

1. Winnipeg Jets; 2. Boston Bruins; 3. Vancouver Canucks; 4. New York Rangers; 5. Colorado Avalanche; 6. Florida Panthers; 7. Dallas Stars; 8. Vegas Golden Knights; 9. Edmonton Oilers; 10. Carolina Hurricanes; 11. Philadelphia Flyers; 12. Toronto Maple Leafs; 13. Los Angeles Kings; 14. New Jersey Devils; 15. Pittsburgh Penguins; 16. Detroit Red Wings

DEREK VAN DIEST

1. Winnipeg Jets; 2. Vancouver Canucks; 3. Colorado Avalanche; 4. Boston Bruins; 5. New York Rangers; 6. Florida Panthers; 7. Dallas Stars; 8. Edmonton Oilers; 9. Vegas Golden Knights; 10. Philadelphia Flyers; 11. Carolina Hurricanes; 12. Toronto Maple Leafs; 13. Los Angeles Kings; 14. Detroit Red Wings; 15. Nashville Predators; 16. Tampa Bay Lightning