NHL Power Rankin's - Year in Review edition

It has been a great inaugural year for the NHL Power Rankin's - following in the footsteps of, and building upon the sturdy franchise name made famous by the NFL Power Rankin's over the past half-decade. I'd like to thank the Academy, and all my loyal listeners...

Let it be known that since Bettman's Nightmare went live, the Rankin's have had this year's edition of the Phoenix Coyotes ranked in the top 5 - making their debut at #3 back in early January. So like Southern hockey or not, you can at least count on the Rankin's to provide you a filter through your bias that enables you to speak intelligently on hockey matters.

The year's final Big Mover award goes to Nashville, which fell 8 spots on losses to Florida, Carolina and the Islanders to close the season. Not the most promising of trends as the Preds enter the playoffs.

All the usual suspects can be seen at the top - except for Pittsburgh, that is. Don't be surprised to see the Penguins make an early exit from the post-season this year. Rankin' 11th going into the post-season with no power play to speak of and sieve-like goaltending has this native 'burgher less than hopeful for a repeat - Rocket Richard trophy or not.

The highest finish for a non-playoff team is St. Louis (#13). They couldn't quite pull of an 08-09 Anaheim run, but they gave it a good fight. On the flip side, Montreal finishes lowest of the 16 post-season entrants, at #20. If I were a Habs fan (or player, for that matter), the prospect of playing Washington in the first round would likely have killed my spirit, too.

Toronto wins the year's Consistency award. Despite Edmonton's presence in the league, the Leafs managed to hold onto the 30th spot in the Rankin's for the lion's share of the year.

Based upon their respective places in the final Rankin's, I'll give the Overachiever award to the Los Angeles Kings - finishing in a surpising 5th place - and the Underachiever award (and oh, how I relish this) to the Philadelphia Flyers. Sorry, but I don't see Chris Pronger bringing the long-elusive gleam of the Cup home to Broad Street despite the hopes, dreams and flat-out guarantees of the Philadelphia phaithful.

1) (1) Phoenix
2) (2) Washington
3) (4) Chicago
4) (5) San Jose
5) (6) Los Angeles
6) (7) Buffalo
7) (8) Detroit
8) (3) Nashville
9) (9) Vancouver
10) (12) New Jersey
11) (10) Pittsburgh
12) (11) Colorado
13) (16) St. Louis
14) (14) Ottawa
15) (15) Anaheim
16) (13) Calgary
17) (18) Boston
18) (19) Dallas
19) (20) Philadelphia
20) (17) Montreal
21) (21) Atlanta
22) (22) NY Rangers
23) (23) Minnesota
24) (24) Florida
25) (26) Carolina
26) (25) NY Islanders
27) (29) Tampa Bay
28) (27) Columbus
29) (28) Edmonton
30) (30) Toronto