THE TIMES’ RANKINGS

Lonnie White’s NHL Rankings and Comments:

1 Detroit Red Wings

(7-1-0-0) Robitaille fills a void and makes Bowman smile.

2 New York Islanders

(6-0-1-1) Playing like a confident team that likes winning.

3 Calgary Flames

(7-1-0-1)Turek determined to prove St. Louis made a mistake.

4 Philadelphia Flyers

(3-2-3-0) LeClair keeps rolling along and he’s getting more help.

5 San Jose Sharks

(3-1-3-1) Gaining respect with success on current East Coast trip.

6 Dallas Stars

(3-2-2-1) Working hard for every point they get.

7 Minnesota Wild

(3-0-3-1) Developing a strong reputation as a tough team to beat.

8 Edmonton Oilers

(6-3-1-0)Carter may be the most underrated player in the league.

9 St. Louis Blues

(3-2-3-0) Weight is stepping up like a true all-star.

10 Boston Bruins

(4-2-2-0) Dafoe gives the Bruins a chance to win every night.

11 New York Rangers

(4-4-1-0) Fleury is playing as if he were 28 again.

12 Carolina Hurricanes

(4-3-0-1) O’Neill getting a ton of shots and scoring.

13 Toronto Maple Leafs

(4-3-1-0) Getting the job done on the road with 3-1 record.

14 New Jersey Devils

(2-3-0-1) Starting to get their act together after slow start.

15 Buffalo Sabres

(4-3-1-1) Barnes playing well in new captain role.

16 Chicago Blackhawks

(4-3-2-0) Sutter is doing great job turning franchise around.

17 Colorado Avalanche

(4-4-0-0) Just not playing hard night in and night out.

18 Phoenix Coyotes

(3-3-2-0) Francis getting balanced scoring from four lines.

19 Washington Capitals

(4-4-0-0) Capable of going on a tear with Jagr back.

20 Montreal Canadiens

(4-3-1-0) Injuries a big reason for recent slide.

21 Pittsburgh Penguins

(2-4-0-1) Kehoe is hoping injured Kovalev returns soon.

22 Kings

(2-4-1-1) Have to start winning close games.

23 Mighty Ducks

(3-5-1-0) Murray doing a good job keeping things together.

24 Tampa Bay Lightning

(3-4-0-0) Strong goaltending has made franchise respectable.

25 Ottawa Senators

(3-5-1-0) Team will get a boost once Magnus Arvedson returns.

26 Atlanta Thrashers

(1-2-1-2) Still searching for a team identity.

27 Vancouver Canucks

(2-6-1-0) Crawford has to get better effort from defense.

28 Nashville Predators

(2-4-2-0)Character win at Edmonton may spark team.

29 Columbus Blue

Jackets (1-3-4-0)Not getting enough offense to get wins.

30 Florida Panthers

(1-6-1-0) Losing Valeri Bure was a huge setback.