From Stastny to Sakic, Back to Stastny

Back in the 1988-89 season, Slovakian forward Peter Stastny was without question the offensive leader of the Quebec Nordiques. He scored 85 points in 72 games that year to lead the team, while a young rookie named Joe Sakic provided a very valuable supporting contribution (62 points in 70 games). As it turned out, it was the last time Stastny would lead the Nordiques in scoring; by the next year, Sakic had officially taken the mantle as the team's offensive leader.

Over the course of the next 18 seasons, Sakic became (and remained) the face of the franchise. From their controversial move to Denver during the summer of 1995 to their Stanley Cup victories in 1996 and 2001, Sakic led the team to new heights while earning an inevitable spot for himself in the Hockey Hall of Fame. And for the now-Colorado Avalanche, it appears that history is repeating itself.

Peter's son Paul broke into the Avs' lineup with a bang last season, breaking his father's team record point-scoring streak for a rookie and getting named as a finalist for the Calder Trophy as the league's top rookie. Stastny finished third on the Avs in scoring with 78 points, while Sakic led the team with 100 points.

This season, Stastny — like Sakic before him — appears to be taking over as Colorado's most dangerous scoring threat. With 22 points in 17 games, he is leading the team in scoring, and his presence is giving Denver's hockey fans hope that a post-Sakic swoon might not be as inevitable as has been speculated.

On the strength of Stastny's tremendous contributions — and some strong goal-tending from Peter Budaj and a rejuvenated José Théodore — the Avs have surged to no. 5 in this week's Power Rankings.

Statistically, teams are measured from left to right by won-loss record, standings points, goals scored, goals allowed, power play success, and penalty-killing success. Please note that the data is up to and including games played on Tuesday night, and that our statistics for special teams effectiveness also take shorthanded goals into account. Each team's ranking from last week appears in parentheses.

1 OTTAWA SENATORS (1): Star center Jason Spezza has been out with a groin injury, but the Senators have kept on rolling. The dynamic playmaker is expected to return for tonight's game against the Sabres, giving the Sens even more firepower to work with.

14–2–0 28 53 32 17.14% 93.15%

2 DETROIT RED WINGS (2): Henrik Zetterberg tallied at least a point in each of the Wings' first 17 games. But on Tuesday night, the fast-rising Blues shut Zetterberg down and came away with an impressive 4–3 victory.

13–4–1 27 59 40 17.44% 86.46%

3 CAROLINA HURRICANES (3): With grizzled veterans Rod Brind'Amour and Cory Stillman leading the way, six 'Canes are scoring at better than a point-per-game pace, helping the Southeast Division leaders to tally an NHL-best 68 goals.

11–4–3 25 68 47 23.00% 76.47%

4 MONTREAL CANADIENS (5): Though Cristobal Huet is doing a fine job in defense of his starting job, rookie Carey Price is making it clear that he is the Habs' goaltender of the not-too-distant future.

10–4–3 23 52 40 29.63%85.53%

5 COLORADO AVALANCHE (8): Young polish winger Wojtek Wolski has been broken out this season, building upon a strong rookie season to emerge as the Avs' plus-minus leader (plus-10) and a key offensive contributor (15 points in 17 games).

11–5–1 23 53 45 17.07% 81.94%

6 PHILADELPHIA FLYERS (9): The expectations surrounding his acquisition from Anaheim (in the Chris Pronger trade) buried Joffrey Lupul in Edmonton last year. But after getting a fresh start with the Flyers, he's re-emerged as a top young forward.

11–6–0 22 52 40 20.27%86.90%

7 NEW YORK ISLANDERS (7): After ringing up only one assist games, has finally caught fire for the Isles in recent weeks, tallying 11 points during an eight-game scoring streak.

9–5–0 18 40 41 19.05% 86.89%

8 MINNESOTA WILD (6): Mikko Koivu, the younger brother of the Canadiens' captain Saku, has slowly emerged as a top-line NHL forward in his own right. His 15 points and plus-6 rating are both team bests.

9–6–2 20 45 39 17.11% 85.19%

9 CHICAGO BLACKHAWKS (17): Much of the buzz surrounding the 'Hawks focuses on their talented young core, and rightly so, but the performances of veterans like Robert Lang (17 points in 17 games) are also key reasons why Chicago is suddenly a playoff threat.

10–7–0 20 50 49 18.52% 87.06%

10 BOSTON BRUINS (10): Though the Joe Thornton trade went horribly wrong for the Bruins, one player acquired in that deal (Marco Sturm) has certainly kept up his end of the bargain; the German winger is tied for the team lead with seven goals.

8–6–2 18 35 36 10.94%80.00%

11 NEW YORK RANGERS (14): Henrik Lundqvist's play this season has been nothing short of sensational, but with backup Stephen Valiquette's impressive handling of the Leafs on Saturday night, it's even more clear that the Rangers' stellar team defense is a huge key to their success.

9–7–1 19 32 29 13.64% 89.61%

12 COLUMBUS BLUE JACKETS (4): He never developed into a top-line forward, but former Rangers prospect Manny Malhotra fits in nicely with the Blue Jackets, his consistently high effort level clearly endearing him to demanding head coach Ken Hitchcock.

8–6–3 19 43 37 12.09%94.25%

13 NASHVILLE PREDATORS (16): That they have managed to tread water despite the absence of future Norris Trophy candidate Shea Weber (dislocated patella) is a great sign for the Preds, who should tighten their hold on a playoff spot when he returns.

9–7–1 19 47 47 12.66% 81.48%

14 SAN JOSE SHARKS (12): In his first seven NHL games, rookie Devon Setoguchi has already tallied five goals. But his improbably high shooting percentage (26.3%) is a sign that a cool-off is inevitable if he doesn't shoot the puck more frequently.

9–7–2 20 46 40 16.30% 93.42%

15 ST. LOUIS BLUES (11): After two years of being the league's laughingstock, the Central Division is back in action; if the playoffs were to start today, even the last-place Blues would qualify (based upon standings points earned per game played).

8–7–0 16 39 37 10.96% 89.23%

16 ANAHEIM DUCKS (22): Andy McDonald's offensive contributions have predictably dipped precipitously without Teemu Selanne, but he has started to come on strong of late, tallying two consecutive shootout-winning goals.

8–8–3 19 43 52 11.76% 81.55%

17 VANCOUVER CANUCKS (23): The Canucks' offensive struggles are still their Achilles' heel, and it's become painfully apparent that the Sedin twins — while quite skilled — would be better suited to a supporting role on the team's second line.

8–8–0 16 41 46 15.85% 80.49%

18 DALLAS STARS (15): Following Saturday night's collapse against the Kings, Stars owner Tom Hicks cleaned house, firing Doug Armstrong and naming Brett Hull and Les Jackson as interim cogeneral managers.

7–7–3 17 48 50 19.12% 88.75%

19 TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING (28): Perhaps he's not, as infamously described by former Lightning owner Art Williams, "hockey's Michael Jordan," but Vincent Lecavalier has evolved into one of the NHL's most complete — and exciting — players.

8–8–1 17 54 54 21.13% 84.85%

20 LOS ANGELES KINGS (21): They may share a moniker, but the similarities between the mellow surf-folk singer and rookie Kings defenseman Jack Johnson definitely end there; the bruising blueliner is second on the team with 20 penalty minutes.

8–8–1 17 54 55 18.39% 80.82%

21 TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS (19): The Leafs have surrendered a league-worst 67 goals, and while it's easy to point blame at the goaltenders, the real culprit in Toronto is the team's porous defense, consistently out of position and a step (or more) behind the opposition.

7–7–5 19 61 67 6.74% 82.52%

22 CALGARY FLAMES (18): It would be too easy to attribute Daymond Langkow's success in Calgary to the presence of Jarome Iginla on his wing; in truth, it's no easy feat to help Iginla make the most of his immense talents, a challenge Langkow has handled with aplomb.

7–8–3 17 52 57 16.09% 75.51%

23 NEW JERSEY DEVILS (24): The Devils are hoping that Patrik Elias's two-point performance against the Penguins on Monday night is a sign that he's finally breaking out of his lengthy slump. Without a productive Elias, the Devils' playoff hopes will be slim.

7–8–2 16 40 48 12.99% 75.00%

24 ATLANTA THRASHERS (27): It's the "Ilya Kovalchuk Show" in Atlanta, but not much else. The dynamic Russian winger (15 points in 18 games) is by a wide margin the team's best performer, more than doubling the output of the second-leading scorer, Marian Hossa.

8–10–0 16 47 66 11.11% 74.42%

25 PHOENIX COYOTES (26): That the Coyotes are playing near-.500 hockey is a clear sign that head coach Wayne Gretzky is starting to find his way behind the bench. Unfortunately, the team's lack of top-end talent leaves them at least one year away from playoff contention.

7–9–0 14 41 50 8.22% 82.09%

26 PITTSBURGH PENGUINS (13): Starting netminder Marc-Andre Fleury has struggled this season, and he'll need to do a much better job of controlling his rebounds if he's to get back on track.

7–10–1 15 49 55 20.43% 83.15%

27 BUFFALO SABRES (25): Teppo Numminen (heart surgery) was suspended without pay for failing to arrive at training camp in adequate physical condition; perhaps the Sabres' on-ice struggles are simply a matter of karma biting them in the derriere.

6–9–1 13 44 50 18.75% 88.89%

28 FLORIDA PANTHERS (20): If they are to battle their way back into the playoff picture, the Panthers will need better goaltending from starter Tomas Vokoun (.903 SV%, 3.12 GAA). When he's on top of his game, Vokoun has proven to be one of the NHL's best.

7–11–1 15 47 59 20.78% 82.11%

29 WASHINGTON CAPITALS (29): The Capitals recently recalled young left winger Chris Bourque, son of former NHL legend Ray; he's been held scoreless through his first three games, but the team is hopeful he will provide some additional scoring depth behind offensive leader Alexander Ovechkin.

6–10–1 13 40 48 14.47% 80.90%

30 EDMONTON OILERS (30): Oilers GM Kevin Lowe was spotted in the Bruins' press box last week, sparking speculation that he might be interested in acquiring Glen Murray. Only the Rangers have scored fewer goals than the Oilers' 37, but the Blueshirts' defense is far superior.

6–10–1 13 37 56 8.57% 85.14%

Mr. Greenstein is the editor in chief of InsideHockey.com.