Todd Cordell
1. Tampa Bay (14-2-2)
They have the league's best top line, a Norris caliber defenseman, and Andrei Vasilevskiy has been excellent. There are some holes in the lineup, I think, but they're set up pretty well to mask them.
2. St. Louis (13-5-1)
Despite allowing a ton of goals to Calgary last time out, I think the Blues have been the best defensive team in the league thus far. They also have one of the best top lines and some excellent defensemen. They look legit.
3. San Jose (10-6-0)
They're 7-3-0 in their last 10 and quietly lead the league in 5v5 Expected Goals For%. They may be old, but they're still good – better than I thought they'd be.
4. Columbus (11-7-1)
The Blue Jackets are one of the more balanced teams in the league and they've been great at full-strength. Factor in Sergei Bobrovsky looks ready to contend for a Vezina again and there's a lot to like about this team.
5. Calgary (10-7-0)
They've won five of seven and have been caving teams in at 5v5 of late. The emergence of the Sam Bennett - Mark Jankowski - Jaromir Jagr line has given them some much-needed pop in the bottom half of their lineup.
Jared Crozier
1. Tampa (14-2-2)
Great play from the Bolts, combined with slides from Los Angeles and St. Louis leaves TB as the no-brainer #1 this week.
2. New York Rangers (9-7-2)
After a very slow start they have been lights out in November with a 6-0-0 record, 26 goals for and a 42.1% power play and 92.8% PK so far this month. They have 9 players with 5 or more points in their last 6 games.
3. Nashville (10-5-2)
A five-game winning streak has them climbing in the Central standings, Turris' seamless addition (3 points in first 2 games) solidifies their standing as a Cup favorite.
4. Winnipeg (10-4-3)
Despite a massive deficit in shot attempts in November, Connor Hellebuyck in goal and the duo of Scheifele and Wheeler have them in the thick of the race. Nothing like a home and home against the Coyotes to cure what ails you after allowing 5 to Vegas on Friday though.
5. St. Louis (13-5-1)
A couple of 3 goal losses in a row have them dropping from my top spot last week to the verge of dropping out of the top 5 this week. Need to right the ship quickly to avoid being overtaken in the Central
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