Power Rankings: Playoff races still up in air, but not our top spot

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ESPN.com

Just when we thought some of the playoff races would have come into focus over the past week …

Instead, the East and West (at least in spots 4-8) have gotten a little … cloudy.

What we do know is, San Jose is still our best team heading into the final week of the regular season. The Sharks are 8-0-2 in their last 10 games, and while they may not be able to catch the Wings, they have a firm hold on the No. 2 seed.

Meanwhile, the Northwest Division race and the battle for spots 5-8 in the East are anyone's guess.

As always, you can weigh in and rank your 30 teams here.

Until next time, enjoy, puckheads!

-- Posted on Wednesday, March 26

2007-2008 Power Rankings: Week 24
	RK (PV)	TEAM	REC.	COMMENT
	1 (1)	Sharks	45-21-10	The Sharks may not catch the Red Wings for the overall lead league, but they are still the hottest team in the NHL. They are riding a 16-game points streak and Joe Thornton has five goals and an assist in his past four games.
	2 (3)	Red Wings	51-20-6	Coach Mike Babcock reiterated this week that Dominik Hasek is "our guy" to start the playoffs in net. Meanwhile, Tomas Holmstrom (abdominal injury) may not be ready to return by April 9.
	3 (4)	Canadiens	43-24-10	While we dreamed about that Patrick Roy-Chris Osgood center-ice fight from way back when, the Canadiens moved into the top spot in the East.
	4 (2)	Ducks	43-26-8	The Ducks have won four of their past five games and are hoping to hold on to the No. 4 spot (and home-ice advantage) in the West.
	5 (6)	Penguins	44-26-7	Sidney Crosby is expected to return this week after missing 28 of the past 31 games with a high ankle sprain.
	6 (5)	Rangers	39-26-11	The Rangers have had it tough the past few days. After losing back-to-back games vs. Philly (albeit they got a point in SO and OT), the Rangers are still sixth in the East, failing to gain ground on Ottawa and New Jersey.
	7 (10)	Hurricanes	41-30-6	After losing in a shootout to the Caps, the Hurricanes weren't able to seal up the Southeast Division earlier this week. Still, Cam Ward is going strong after 15 straight starts in net. He has a .917 save percentage over that span.
	8 (11)	Flames	40-27-10	After winning three of their past four games against Northwest opponents, the Flames moved into the division lead ... for now. A season-ending four-game road trip could test the waters.
	9 (8)	Devils	42-27-7	Patrik Elias returned to the lineup this week, but that didn't help New Jersey's offensive woes. The Devils have managed to score only three goals over the past four games. Can't be too surprised here -- their 191 goals are the second-worst in the NHL.
	10 (9)	Canucks	38-28-10	Are the Canucks in danger of falling out of playoff position? Vancouver fans are likely hoping it won't come down to that April 3 matchup vs. Edmonton.
	11 (7)	Stars	42-29-5	The Stars have dropped seven of their past eight games. Not the kind of streak you want in the final days of the regular season.
	12 (12)	Wild	40-28-9	The Wild's recent four-game road trip did not go well, as they went 1-2-1. Said coach Jacques Lemaire: "It's more mental. The mind wasn't there. We were not sharp. You know, it's not always that guys aren't trying."
	13 (19)	Flyers	39-28-10	It may seem like a big leap, but not with the way things have been coming together of late in Philly. Four straight wins, Daniel Briere has 12 points in 10 games and the Flyers move up to No. 7 in the East.
	14 (14)	Senators	42-28-7	The CFL is returning to Ottawa! ... In other news, the Sens rebound with a big win over the Sabres (and a Rangers loss) to put their playoff hopes back into the proper perspective.
	15 (17)	Capitals	38-31-8	The Capitals were only two points out of a playoff spot Wednesday. Will they make the dance? Barry Melrose says no, but we're not as skeptical.
	16 (20)	Oilers	39-33-5	The Oilers are 12-3-0 in their past 15 games and they continue to give their Northwest foes a run for their money.
	17 (13)	Avalanche	40-31-6	Can you imagine where this team would be if it actually started scoring, especially on the power play (the Avs are 29th in the NHL at 14.0 percent)?
	18 (15)	Bruins	38-28-10	We can't take anything away from coach Claude Julien and the way this squad has fought through adversity. Can they hold on long enough to keep that playoff berth?
	19 (18)	Predators	38-31-8	So who's the starting goalie in Nashville? We're starting to get confused!
	20 (16)	Sabres	35-30-11	The two losses each to Toronto and Ottawa may have sealed Buffalo's playoff fate.
	21 (21)	Panthers	36-32-9	With two losses in their last three games, the door is closing on Florida's late-season playoff push.
	22 (22)	Coyotes	37-34-6	Phoenix's big win over San Jose was too little too late after its previous 0-4-1 stretch.
	23 (25)	Maple Leafs	35-32-10	Headlines in Wednesday's Toronto-area papers: "The end is near."
	24 (23)	Blackhawks	36-32-8	While the playoffs are out of the picture, there is other drama involving Jason Williams, whose ice time has been cut by coach Denis Savard. Will we see Williams back next season?
	25 (24)	Blue Jackets	33-22-11	Three straight losses and coach Ken Hitchcock had a closed-door meeting with his team in the last week. Not pretty.
	26 (26)	Islanders	34-36-7	Rick DiPietro's season again ended early thanks to a nagging hip injury. Are the Islanders worried about their 15-year man?
	27 (27)	Blues	30-34-12	Why so Blue? Sorry, we've got nothin'.
	28 (28)	Thrashers	31-38-8	This week's Rankings topic: Should GM/coach Don Waddell stay on in Atlanta? Discuss!
	29 (29)	Lightning	30-38-8	Will Tampa Bay pull a Philly for the 2008-09 season?
	30 (30)	Kings	30-40-6	The Kings just can't catch a break, even in last place. One of their great stories of the season: Rookie defenseman Jack Johnson (foot) is the latest player whose season has been cut short due to injury.