NHL Hockey

While the top four teams in the Power Rankings remained the same this week with Carolina, Ottawa, Detroit and Dallas standing their ground, there was some significant movement that took place in Week 18 to show that some of the power has shifted around the league.

The Sabres made the biggest jump in the Top 10, moving from the No. 7 slot to the No. 5 hole courtesy of the three wins they picked up last week and the five-game winning streak they are riding. Buffalo has opened some eyes around the NHL during this current stretch, as it has beaten some of the league's top squads in the Senators, Rangers and Flyers to prove that their success is no fluke. The Sabres, who are 7-2-1 in their last 10, only trail the powerful Sens by six points in the Northeast heading into Week 19.

The Lightning covered the most ground of all the clubs in the rankings last week, moving up three places from the No. 15 spot to the No. 12 post. The defending Cup champions ran off three straight wins in Week 18 to put a greater distance between them and the Atlanta Thrashers in the Southeast Division. After 55 games, Tampa was sitting comfortable in second place with 64 points in 55 games, while Atlanta was in third with 54 points. More importantly, if the playoffs were to start tomorrow, the Lightning would be the sixth seed in the East and the Thrashers wouldn't be eligible for the postseason.

On the minus side, the Flyers dropped three places in the rankings, losing all three games they played in Week 18. The three losses not only dropped them in the Power Rankings, they also affected Philly's place in the league standings, allowing the Rangers to move into first in the Atlantic with 72 points. To make matters worse, the Flyers ended their dreadful week by getting shut out 5-0 by the Canadiens on the road in Montreal on Sunday.

Another significant development in the Power Rankings was the Blues finally climbing their way out of last place. The Blues won two out of three last week to move them out of the basement and into the 29th slot. After losing four straight in Week 18 — and six overall — the Penguins are now the new cellar-dwellers in the rankings. Pittsburgh has lost 16 of its last 17 games.