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December is upon us in the 2021-22 NHL season — and with it the annual tradition of predicting which teams will make the playoffs based on their spot in the standings after American Thanksgiving. There were some eye-opening performances over the past week that produced some notable changes in our Power Rankings.
Plus, no matter how a team looks so far, there’s at least one player on each roster who needs to step up; we identify one for all 32 clubs here.
How we rank: A panel of ESPN hockey commentators, analysts, reporters and editors rates teams against one another — taking into account game results, injuries and upcoming schedule — and those results are tabulated to produce the list featured here.
Note: Previous ranking for each team refers to last week’s rankings, published on Nov. 24. Points percentages are through Tuesday’s games.
Previous ranking: 1
Points percentage: 0.738
Upcoming schedule: vs. OTT (Dec. 2), vs. BUF (Dec. 4), @ WPG (Dec. 7)
Jesperi Kotkaniemi. The Hurricanes haven’t seen the best of Kotkaniemi. Yes, the center matched last season’s goal total (5) in his first 20 games this season, but he is only averaging about 12 minutes of ice time per game and has taken his time getting up to speed in Rod Brind’amour’s world. Carolina has also been red-hot out of the gate, shielding Kotkaniemi as he finds his way. Now is the time for his personal storm surge.
Previous ranking: 4
Points percentage: 0.750
Upcoming schedule: vs. BUF (Dec. 2), vs. STL (Dec. 4), @ STL (Dec. 7)
Spencer Knight. The Panthers truly haven’t had many passengers this season; everyone’s giving a steady effort. That includes Knight — until he hit some recent speed bumps. It’s not unusual for a young goalie to slip, and in Knight’s past five appearances, he is 1-3-0 with an .882 save percentage and 3.63 goals-against average. Knight’s goalie partner Sergei Bobrovsky has dealt with injuries this season, and Knight has been relied on maybe more because of it. Florida can’t afford to see…
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Source : espn
