NHL Power Rankings: December 2010

December was a month where teams had big winning streaks, or bad losing streaks, or in some cases teams have been hit with the injury bug. What fortunes, or misfortunes, could 2011 bring to these teams?

Included with the teams record (Win-Loss-OT Loss) and their point total is their Win-Total Loss record, which combines regulation and overtime losses. "Prev" is the team's previous ranking in both October and November.

01) Pittsburgh Penguins
25-11-3 [25-14]; 53 pts | Dec: 9-3-1 [9-4]; 19 pts | Prev: 12/3
December saw the Penguins finish up a 12 game winning streak and Sidney Crosby score a point in 25 straight games, the latter ending on the final game of the season against the Islanders of all teams. Crosby is definitely the leading MVP candidate halfway through the season.

02) Vancouver Canucks
23-8-5 [23-13]; 51 pts | Dec: 11-1-2 [11-3]; 24 pts | Prev: 21/13
However, not even the Penguins were as hot as Vancouver was in December. All three of their losses were by only one goal, and their power play is the best in the league.

03) Philadelphia Flyers
23-10-5 [23-15]; 51 pts | Dec: 8-4-1 [8-5]; 17 pts | Prev: 10/4
With Michael Leighton back, the Flyers will need to decide on their starting goalie going forward. With Chris Pronger out for another few weeks because of a foot injury, the Flyers are starting to show some cracks with his absence.

04) Detroit Red Wings
24-9-5 [24-14]; 53 pts | Dec: 8-5-3 [8-8]; 19 pts | Prev: 8/2
The Red Wings were playing very average even before both Pavel Datsyuk and Daniel Cleary went down to injury for about a month each. A very difficult gauntlet of road games, including trips to Vancouver and Pittsburgh, await the depleted Wings to start the New Year.

05) Tampa Bay Lightning
22-11-5 [22-16]; 49 pts | Dec: 8-3-2 [8-5]; 18 pts | Prev: 2/6
The Lightning remain in the bottom five in goals allowed per game. Steven Stamkos remains hot though not quite as blazing hot as he was in November, giving the Bolts the offense they need to offset their defensive woes.

06) New York Rangers
22-14-2 [22-16]; 46 pts | Dec: 8-3-1 [8-4]; 17 pts | Prev: 17/10
The Rangers played relatively few games in December but are still among the top teams in the top-heavy Atlantic division. The Rangers are in the top 10 in goals per game and goals allowed per game. They also play much better on the road (13-6) than at home (9-10).

07) Los Angeles Kings
22-14-1 [22-15]; 45 pts | Dec: 9-4-1 [9-5]; 19 pts | Prev: 1/15
Jonathan Quick remains the foundation to the Kings' success though he did have a few hiccups this past month. Anze Kopitar leads the team in points and the Kings do a good job staying out of the penalty box.

08) Dallas Stars
22-13-4 [22-17]; 48 pts | Dec: 8-5-3 [8-8]; 19 pts | Prev: 9/8
Dallas was also quite average in December and aren't doing so well on special teams, yet they're still among the top teams in the Western Conference. Hopefully they can take advantage of three games against the Oilers this month.

09) Washington Capitals
22-12-5 [22-17]; 49 pts | Dec: 5-6-3 [5-9]; 13 pts | Prev: 4/1
The Capitals really struggled this month, losing 8 in a row at one point. Alexander Ovechkin slumped as well, going goalless in 8 straight games as well. While the Caps have played better lately, perhaps a Winter Classic against Pittsburgh will really get this team going.

10) Boston Bruins
20-11-5 [20-16]; 45 pts | Dec: 8-3-3 [8-6]; 19 pts | Prev: 6/16
Tuukka Rask has played well in his few starts but he's still completely outclassed by Tim Thomas, who has played out of his mind this season. Together, they've helped Boston allow slightly over two goals per game, by far the best in the league.

11) St. Louis Blues
20-12-5 [20-17]; 45 pts | Dec: 8-4-2 [8-6]; 18 pts | Prev: 7/14
The Blues finish 2010 on a five game winnings streak, while taking care that their prized acquisition in Jaroslav Halak isn't overworked going into the final months of the season.

12) Colorado Avalanche
20-13-5 [20-18]; 45 pts | Dec: 7-4-3 [7-7]; 17 pts | Prev: 11/12
Matt Duchene has had a strong second season as he leads the team in goals and points. Craig Anderson has returned to the starting goaltender position though he hasn't quite returned to form just yet.

13) San Jose Sharks
20-13-5 [20-18]; 45 pts | Dec: 9-5-1 [9-6]; 19 pts | Prev: 15/19
Antti Niemi is now 3-0 with six goals allowed against his former team, the Chicago Blackhawks. San Jose can only hope Niemi can continue to play even that well moving forward.

14) Atlanta Thrashers
20-15-6 [20-21]; 46 pts | Dec: 7-6-3 [7-9]; 17 pts | Prev: 20/11
Behind Dustin Byfuglien, Andrew Ladd and the other former Chicago Blackhawks alongside Evander Kane and goalie Ondrej Pavelec, the Thrashers have played very well this season, but they have slumped lately, losing five of their last six.

15) Anaheim Ducks
20-17-4 [20-21]; 44 pts | Dec: 8-6-1 [8-7]; 17 pts | Prev: 26/18
Both Anaheim and Atlanta are the only teams to play at least 40 games this year, both having played 41 games. With a big home stand to start the New Year, the Ducks will need every win they can get. Adding Maxim Lapierre from Montreal will add some depth to the team

16) Montreal Canadiens
21-16-2 [21-18]; 44 pts | Dec: 6-8-1 [6-9]; 13 pts | Prev: 3/5
Montreal is in the bottom 10 of the league offensively, but Carey Price and Montreal's defense has carried the team thus far though they are only 3-8 in their last 11 games.

17) Nashville Predators
18-13-6 [18-19]; 42 pts | Dec: 8-5-1 [8-6]; 17 pts | Prev: 16/20
The Predators had a five game winning streak which was followed up by a five game losing streak. In the bottom five of the league in offense, Steve Sullivan leads the team with just 10 goals. Pekke Rinne has played well whenever he's not injured for one of the top defenses in the league, which has kept Nashville in the playoff hunt.

18) Columbus Blue Jackets
20-15-3 [20-18]; 43 pts | Dec: 6-7-3 [6-10]; 15 pts | Prev: 13/9
A three game winning streak to close the year brought positive news to an otherwise dismal December for Columbus. Two key road trips in January may decide Columbus' fate this season.

19) Chicago Blackhawks
20-16-3 [20-19]; 43 pts | Dec: 6-5-1 [6-6]; 13 pts | Prev: 5/7
Corey Crawford has played so much better than Marty Turco that he has become the starting goaltender, though the flu for Crawford has given Turco another chance to impress, which he hasn't done all year. Just as Patrick Kane returned from injury, Jonathan Toews gets injured himself, continuing an odd year for the defending Cup Champions.

20) Phoenix Coyotes
17-13-7 [17-20]; 41 pts | Dec: 6-6-2 [6-8]; 14 pts | Prev: 28/17
Phoenix has yet to find the consistency which gave them success last season, though Ilya Bryzgalov was hurt for much of December. While Phoenix has yet to produce a 10-goal scorer, 11 players have at least five goals so their offense is at least somewhat balanced.

21) Carolina Hurricanes
17-15-4 [17-19]; 38 pts | Dec: 7-4-1 [7-5]; 15 pts | Prev: 19/23
With Eric Staal being their biggest scoring threat and Cam Ward playing well, the Hurricanes had a decent December though with both Tampa Bay and Atlanta on the rebound they have a tough task competing in the Southeast division.

22) Minnesota Wild
17-15-5 [17-20]; 39 pts | Dec: 6-5-3 [6-8]; 15 pts | Prev: 22/21
If the Wild still have plans for the playoffs, they are going to have to step up either offensively or defensively. The offense has been lacking while the defense has been alright but unable to make up for the offense's shortcomings.

23) Calgary Flames
17-18-3 [17-21]; 37 pts | Dec: 7-6-1 [7-7]; 15 pts | Prev: 14/24
With Darryl Sutter out as Flames GM, will coach Brent Sutter be the next one out? The Flames have said they aren't going to trade Jarome Iginla, who leads the team in goals and points, though Calgary is reaching a point where a franchise reboot may not be that bad of an idea.

24) Florida Panthers
16-17-2 [16-19]; 34 pts | Dec: 6-5-2 [6-7]; 14 pts | Prev: 23/26
At just under 9%, Florida continues to operate the league's worst power play by far. Tomas Vokoun has done the best he can to keep the Panthers competitive in their games, but if teams know Florida can't score with an extra man, what's to stop them from giving the Panthers an extra hold or hook to slow them down even more?

25) Ottawa Senators
16-18-5 [16-23]; 37 pts | Dec: 5-5-4 [5-9]; 14 pts | Prev: 25/22
Losing Jason Spezza for six weeks may prove costly for an Ottawa team already struggling to stay in playoff contention. The Senators are one of the worst teams in the league on offense and are hardly any better on defense.

26) Buffalo Sabres
15-18-4 [15-22]; 34 pts | Dec: 6-5-1 [6-6]; 13 pts | Prev: 29/25
Speaking of costly injuries, losing Derek Roy for essentially the season have put the struggling Sabres in an even bigger bind. Thomas Vanek, the team's leading goal scorer, has been held without a point in his last seven games.

27) New York Islanders
11-19-6 [11-25]; 28 pts | Dec: 6-7-1 [6-8]; 13 pts | Prev: 24/30
Though they opened the month with another six game losing streak, the Isles have since played very well, going 6-2 in their last eight games including wins against the Lightning, Penguins and Red Wings (those three in OT or the shootout, though). End of year miracle, or something more?

28) Toronto Maple Leafs
13-19-4 [13-23]; 30 pts | Dec: 5-8-0 [5-8]; 10 pts | Prev: 18/27
Despite contributions from Phil Kessel and Mikhail Grabovski, there is little scoring outside of five or so players and neither Giguere nor Gustavsson have played as well as some may have hoped.

29) Edmonton Oilers
12-17-7 [12-24]; 31 pts | Dec: 5-5-3 [5-8]; 13 pts | Prev: 27/28
The Oilers end the year on a five game losing streak. Rookie Taylor Hall leads the team with 12 goals, but the Oilers are last in goals allowed per game and are also last in the penalty kill.

30) New Jersey Devils
10-25-2 [10-27]; 22 pts | Dec: 2-11-0 [2-11]; 4 pts | Prev: 30/29
With a goal per game average of 1.7, over half a goal less than 29th Toronto, it's not hard to find New Jersey's source of trouble. In a recent six game losing streak, the Devils scored only one goal in each of those six losses. They were without question the worst team in December and, following the Islanders' recent successes, the Devils are the worst team in the league.