Power Rankings: Sharks take over top spot as Flames heat up

Week: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9

ESPN.com

We had Scott Burnside over at our house in Toronto for dinner Sunday night. What a mistake. He tried several times to wrestle over the responsibility for this week's Power Rankings. Sorry, dude -- LeBrun is back in charge.

And with that, we've got a new sheriff at the top of the heap. Oh yeah, baby, the Sharks are No. 1.

-- By Pierre LeBrun; posted Nov. 9

2009-2010 Power Rankings: Week 7
	RK (PV)	TEAM	REC.	COMMENT
	1 (2)	Sharks	12-4-2	GM Doug Wilson told us this past weekend that he believes star centers Joe Thornton and Patrick Marleau are playing the best hockey he can remember them playing in San Jose.
	2 (1)	Penguins	12-5-0	Max Talbot, Sergei Gonchar, Evgeni Malkin, Tyler Kennedy ... now Kris Letang? The Cup champs are being devoured by injures. No team, no matter how deep, can withstand this many injuries.
	3 (3)	Avalanche	12-4-2	Someone tell the hockey fans in Denver their team isn't so bad. Worst attendance Wednesday night against the Coyotes since the team moved to Denver? Brutal.
	4 (11)	Flames	10-4-1	Not sure why Burnside keeps dropping the boys from Calgary so low in his rankings. These guys are serious Cup threats. Jarome Iginla is heating up!
	5 (9)	Devils	11-4-0	Fitting indeed that the injury-riddled Devils keep proving the world wrong as their architect gets inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame.
	6 (5)	Capitals	10-3-4	No Ovechkin? No problem. Meet Tomas Fleischmann, who has seven points (five goals and two assists) in six games.
	7 (8)	Kings	10-5-2	Ah, the frustrations of a young and rising team. Big win over the Cup champs, big letdown against Nashville.
	8 (4)	Sabres	9-4-1	Somebody please tell Thomas Vanek (seven points in 12 games) that the season has started -- especially because LeBrun has him on his fantasy team.
	9 (12)	Flyers	9-4-1	Four straight wins, with Ray Emery coming on. The Flyers goalie, somewhat quietly, is sporting a .922 save percentage.
	10 (7)	Blackhawks	8-5-2	Now Dave Bolland goes down. Jonathan Toews, thankfully, is expected back this week, perhaps as soon as Monday night.
	11 (16)	Red Wings	7-5-3	OK, Nick and the boys should be punished for losing to Toronto, but the win over San Jose gets noticed.
	12 (10)	Rangers	10-7-1	The front-office brass likes the idea of Peter Forsberg centering Marian Gaborik.
	13 (13)	Stars	7-4-6	Marc Crawford's group is producing goals: 3.18 per game, eighth in the NHL.
	14 (14)	Canucks	10-8-0	They also are serious bidders in the Forsberg derby.
	15 (24)	Blue Jackets	9-5-2	Points in five straight games (3-0-2).
	16 (6)	Coyotes	10-7-0	Not sure what Burnside was smoking last week. And can someone please buy a darn ticket in Phoenix, er, Glendale?
	17 (5)	Bruins	7-7-2	Loss to the Habs was rock bottom. Will the road to redemption start with the win over Buffalo?
	18 (17)	Oilers	8-8-1	Injury- and flu-ridden club pulled off gutsy win in Denver on Sunday.
	19 (18)	Canadiens	8-9-0	Win one, lose one, win one, lose one, win one, lose one. ...
	20 (19)	Senators	7-5-2	Mike Fisher off to a terrific start, with 13 points (6-7) in 14 games.
	21 (25)	Ducks	6-7-2	We know he has 14 assists, but is it time to worry that Ryan Getzlaf has only one goal and it's the second week of November?
	22 (22)	Thrashers	7-6-1	So, 2-4-0 at home and 5-2-1 on the road? Can someone explain?
	23 (23)	Lightning	6-4-5	GM Brian Lawton was furious about Chris Neil's hit on Victor Hedman and let the league know about it.
	24 (21)	Predators	7-7-1	Hanging in there now without their top player, Shea Weber. Goalie Dan Ellis scored a big win in Los Angeles.
	25 (29)	Maple Leafs	3-7-5	A season-high ranking for the Buds. Points in seven straight games (3-0-4)!
	26 (20)	Islanders	6-6-5	Leading scorer Matt Moulson has a name fit for hockey. And he's from Canada, eh?
	27 (27)	Blues	5-6-4	The ranking perfectly fits their 27th-ranked offense in the NHL.
	28 (28)	Wild	6-10-0	The ranking perfectly fits their 28th-ranked offense in the NHL.
	29 (26)	Panthers	5-9-1	The second-worst goals-against average in the NHL.
	30 (30)	Hurricanes	2-11-3	Cam Ward's injured? Yeah, it's officially rock bottom in Carolina.