Kristen Shilton is a national NHL reporter for ESPN.
Another week, another new No. 1 team atop the ESPN NHL Power Rankings!
Plus, with the league’s holiday roster freeze in effect, and the IIHF World Junior Championship set to begin Tuesday, we analyzed each team’s roster to sort out the nationality mix of each club.
How we rank: A panel of ESPN hockey commentators, analysts, reporters and editors each send in a 1-32 poll based on the games through Wednesday, which generates our master list here.
Note: Previous ranking for each team refers to the previous edition, published Dec. 15. Points percentages are through Thursday’s games.
Previous ranking: 1 Points percentage: 75.00% Next seven days: vs. EDM (Dec. 22), vs. BUF (Dec. 23), vs. WSH (Dec. 27)
Vegas has expanded its international representation over the past year. At this time in 2022-23, the Golden Knights were represented by a league-low three countries (Canada, the U.S. and Sweden), but now they have skaters from double that number.
Previous ranking: 4 Points percentage: 68.97% Next seven days: vs. CGY (Dec. 23), vs. SJ (Dec. 27), @ VGK (Dec. 28)
Los Angeles captain Anze Kopitar is one of three Slovenian-born skaters to ever play in the NHL, and the only one to have dressed in more than 50 games in the league.
Previous ranking: 6 Points percentage: 69.12% Next seven days: vs. SJ (Dec. 23), vs. PHI (Dec. 28)
Vancouver is tied for the second-most countries represented (with seven) this season, and claims one of the five most productive Latvian-born NHL players in forward Teddy Blueger.
Dallas is an apparent draw for Wisconsin-bred skaters, with three prominent veteran players from the state — Joe Pavelski, Craig Smith and Ryan Suter — in the lineup.
Previous ranking: 11 Points percentage: 63.33% Next seven days: @ CBJ (Dec. 23), vs. OTT (Dec. 27)
Toronto has two California-born players on its roster, but neither Auston Matthews nor Nick Robertson were raised there primarily; Matthews moved to Scottsdale, Arizona, as a toddler and Robertson relocated to Michigan at age 8.
Previous ranking: 10 Points percentage: 66.13% Next seven days: vs. BOS (Dec. 22), @ CHI (Dec. 27)
Colorado goaltender Alexandar Georgiev grew up in Russia — and represents that country internationally — but was born in Bulgaria and became the first Bulgarian-born player to suit up in the NHL.
Previous ranking: 17 Points percentage: 60.94% Next seven days: @ DET (Dec. 22), @ VAN (Dec. 28)
Florida’s Aleksander Barkov became just the eighth Finnish-born player to ever captain an NHL team when he was given the C in 2018. He’s the only Finn currently captaining a team, too.
Previous ranking: 22 Points percentage: 60.94% Next seven days: @ CAR (Dec. 23), vs. PIT (Dec. 27)
New York defenseman Noah Dobson is one of three active NHLers born in the tiny Canadian province of Prince Edward Island (population: 157,000). He is among the top producers out of his home province with over 150 career points to date.
Previous ranking: 14 Points percentage: 63.33% Next seven days: vs. TB (Dec. 23), @ NYR (Dec. 27)
Washington’s native Belarusian, Aliaksei Protas, started out playing in his original country before toggling between opportunities in the U.S (skating with a youth hockey team in Colorado) and Canada (with the WHL’s Prince Albert Raiders).
Previous ranking: 9 Points percentage: 57.58% Next seven days: vs. NYI (Dec. 23), @ NSH (Dec. 27), vs. MTL (Dec. 28)
New Jersey is the only NHL team this season to have a country other than Canada or the United States among its two most represented nations, thanks to a league-leading four Swiss-born skaters.
Previous ranking: 15 Points percentage: 57.58% Next seven days: vs. DAL (Dec. 23), vs. CAR (Dec. 27)
Tampa Bay dresses three skaters from the Canadian province of Saskatchewan, a perennial powerhouse in producing NHL players (despite its relatively small population of 1.2 million).
Previous ranking: 19 Points percentage: 56.25% Next seven days: @ COL (Dec. 23), vs. COL (Dec. 27)
Arizona defenseman Vladislav Kolyachonok is one of the highest drafted Belarus-born players in the past 20 years — he was selected 52nd overall by Florida in 2019. He is one of three skaters from Belarus selected that high since 2003.
Previous ranking: 12 Points percentage: 53.13% Next seven days: vs. PHI (Dec. 22), @ NJ (Dec. 23), @ MIN (Dec. 27)
Detroit is home to the league’s only active Netherlands-born skater in Daniel Sprong, the first player from his country to appear in an NHL game since Ed Beers in 1986.
Previous ranking: 25 Points percentage: 51.54% Next seven days: @ CHI (Dec. 22), @ CAR (Dec. 28)
Montreal leads the NHL this season in Canadian-bred players and, at the same time, is home to one of just two active players (Noel Acciari) hailing from the small state of Rhode Island.
Previous ranking: 20 Points percentage: 53.23% Next seven days: @ OTT (Dec. 23), @ NYI (Dec. 27)
Pittsburgh is tied this season for the largest number of Swedish-born players while also boasting the NHL’s top active player from Denmark — forward Lars Eller — by total games played (984).
Previous ranking: 16 Points percentage: 51.56% Next seven days: vs. CHI (Dec. 23), vs. DAL (Dec. 27)
St. Louis packs a punch on the blue line with three of its top six defenders — Justin Faulk, Nick Leddy and Scott Perunovich — calling three different Minnesota cities home.
Previous ranking: 30 Points percentage: 51.61% Next seven days: vs. BOS (Dec. 23), vs. DET (Dec. 27)
Minnesota’s Mats Zuccarello is one of just eight Norwegians to ever play in the NHL, and he has also been the most successful, with 192 goals and 601 points in 794 career games.
Edmonton can claim a tie for the second-most Canadians on an NHL roster this season, and the league’s most productive German skater of all time, Leon Draisaitl.
Previous ranking: 23 Points percentage: 50.00% Next seven days: @ LA (Dec. 23), vs. SEA (Dec. 27)
Calgary is the only NHL squad with multiple players from Belarus, and forward Yegor Sharangovich is, at just 25, among the most productive pro players from his country (ranking sixth overall in career scoring, with 125 points in 236 games).
Previous ranking: 21 Points percentage: 45.59% Next seven days: @ NYR (Dec. 23), vs. BOS (Dec. 27)
Buffalo has one of the league’s more diverse lineups as is, but the Sabres also boast the uniqueness of Dylan Cozens: He’s one of three NHLers to be born in Canada’s Yukon Territory, and the only one taken with a first-round draft choice.
Previous ranking: 26 Points percentage: 45.59% Next seven days: @ ANA (Dec. 23), @ CGY (Dec. 27)
Seattle has an eclectic mixture of nationalities this season with a league-high eight countries represented. But the Kraken hit nine in terms of birth countries; forward Andre Burakovsky was born in Austria but raised in Sweden, the place he calls home and represents internationally.
Previous ranking: 29 Points percentage: 41.18% Next seven days: vs. TOR (Dec. 23), @ NJ (Dec. 27)
Columbus is tied for the most nationalities represented (eight), including French-born Alexandre Texier, who is top-five all-time in points among players from his home country.
Previous ranking: 27 Points percentage: 39.29% Next seven days: vs. PIT (Dec. 23), @ TOR (Dec. 27)
Ottawa forward Tim Stutzle is rapidly becoming one of the most productive German-born NHL players of all time, and joins Orest Romashyna (who never actually played in the NHL) and Leon Draisaitl in a tie for being the highest-drafted skater from Germany (all three were selected third overall in 1963, 2014 and 2020 respectively).
Previous ranking: 28 Points percentage: 37.50% Next seven days: vs. SEA (Dec. 23), vs. VGK (Dec. 27)
Anaheim forward Bo Groulx is among a handful of NHLers to have been born in France. But the son of former pro hockey player Benoit Groulx (now head coach of the AHL’s Syracuse Crunch) actually grew up in Gatineau, Quebec, and represents Canada internationally.
Previous ranking: 31 Points percentage: 33.87% Next seven days: vs. MTL (Dec. 22), @ STL (Dec. 23), vs. WPG (Dec. 27)
Chicago goaltender Petr Mrazek is one of six active Czech-born netminders in the league this season, and the most veteran at that with over 350 games played.
Previous ranking: 32 Points percentage: 31.82% Next seven days: @ VAN (Dec. 23), @ LA (Dec. 27), vs. EDM (Dec. 28)
San Jose is tied for the largest number of Czech-born skaters with three; there are fewer than 30 skaters total hailing from Czechia in NHL lineups this season.
CHICAGO — First-year Anaheim Ducks coach Joel Quenneville returned to the United Center on Sunday night for the first time since he and two other former Chicago Blackhawks executives were banned from the NHL in October 2021 for their mishandling of a sexual assault allegation by a former player in 2010.
Quenneville, 67, has the Ducks off to a 2-2-1 start almost four years after he was forced to resign as coach of the Florida Panthers. He was banned from the NHL for nearly three years.
“I’m grateful to be back in the game,” Quenneville said before Chicago’s 2-1 win on Ryan Donato‘s overtime goal. “I’m excited about being back in here in Chicago.”
It has been a long road for Quenneville, the second-winningest coach in NHL history. His 971 career victories entering Sunday trail only Scotty Bowman’s 1,244.
An independent investigation commissioned by the Blackhawks led to Quenneville stepping down from the Panthers in October 2021. The investigation concluded the team mishandled allegations raised by 2008 first-round draft pick Kyle Beach against video coach Brad Aldrich during the team’s first Stanley Cup run.
Quenneville has spent parts of 25 NHL seasons behind the benches of St. Louis, Colorado, Chicago and Florida. He guided the Blackhawks for more than 10 years and led them to championships in 2010, 2013 and 2015.
The Blackhawks fired Quenneville in November 2018 after a 6-6-3 start. He joined the Panthers for the 2019-20 season.
Quenneville returned to the United Center for the first time with Florida in January 2020 and received a video tribute from the Blackhawks and a roaring ovation from fans. He was behind the Panthers’ bench in the arena four times during the COVID-shortened 2020-21 season, but no fans were present.
Quenneville seemed a little uncertain about how he might be received by United Center fans this time.
“The memories we had were all very positive here,” he said. “I’m just happy to be back in that building and hear the crowd being excited, and the crowds look like they’ve been good so far this year.”
When asked if he expected acknowledgment from fans, Quenneville responded with his signature, “We’ll see.”
The reaction turned out to be muted and mixed.
Public address announcer Gene Honda called Quenneville’s name in a routine introduction as the visiting team coach about 10 minutes before the opening faceoff. A handful of fans cheered and about the same number booed, with only about half of the United Center’s 19,717 seats occupied.
The Ducks conducted background checks and spoke with Beach before hiring Quenneville, who said he has accepted responsibility for his role in failing to properly address the allegations and has engaged in educational activities to deepen his understanding of sexual assault scenarios.
“Right from the day that we joined the Ducks, it’s been a lot of positivity,” Quenneville said. “Just getting around people that are in the game, being around the organization, having a young team, kind of reminds me of the team when we were here.”
With Anaheim, Quenneville took over a team with the NHL’s third-longest active playoff drought. The Ducks finished sixth in the Pacific Division last season at 35-37-10 after being in the bottom two for the previous four years.
Two top five teams lost in Week 8, with Miami losing to Louisville and Ole Miss blowing a multi-score lead against Georgia. Texas Tech’s first loss of the season came in a squeaker against Arizona State. Meanwhile, Ohio State looked as steady as ever in a 34-0 shutout of Wisconsin and Indiana blew out Michigan State to remain undefeated.
What does it all mean for the AP Top 25? Let’s break down the rankings.
Stats courtesy of ESPN Research.
All times Eastern.
Previous ranking: 1
2025 record: 7-0
Week 8 result: Defeated Wisconsin 34-0
Stat to know: Ohio State has won 15 straight games as the AP No. 1, the longest streak by a Big Ten team.
What’s next: Nov. 1 vs. Penn State
Previous ranking: 3
2025 record: 7-0
Week 8 result: Defeated Michigan State 38-13
Stat to know: Indiana is now 16-0 against unranked opponents under Curt Cignetti.
What’s next: Saturday vs. UCLA
Previous ranking: 4
2025 record: 7-0
Week 8 result: Defeated Arkansas 45-42
Stat to know: This is Texas A&M’s first 7-0 start since 1994.
What’s next: Saturday at LSU, 7:30 p.m., ABC
Previous ranking: 6
2025 record: 6-1
Week 8 result: Defeated Tennessee 37-20
Stat to know: With the win over Tennessee, Alabama became the first team in SEC history to win four straight games, all against ranked teams, with no bye week mixed in.
What’s next: Saturday at South Carolina, 3:30 p.m., ABC
Previous ranking: 9
2025 record: 6-1
Week 8 result: Defeated Ole Miss 43-35
Stat to know: Georgia is 2-0 at home under Kirby Smart when trailing by nine or more points entering the fourth quarter.
What’s next: Nov. 1 vs. Florida (in Jacksonville, Florida), 3:30 p.m., ABC
Previous ranking: 8
2025 record: 6-1
Week 8 result: Defeated Rutgers 56-10
Stat to know: Oregon is 6-0 following losses under Dan Lanning.
What’s next: Saturday vs. Wisconsin
Previous ranking: 12
2025 record: 7-0
Week 8 result: Defeated Duke 27-18
Stat to know: Georgia Tech had a 95-yard fumble return in the first quarter, the longest in school history.
What’s next: Saturday vs. Syracuse, noon
Previous ranking: 5
2025 record: 6-1
Week 8 result: Lost to Georgia 43-35
Stat to know: Ole Miss gained just 13 yards in the fourth quarter, tied for its third-fewest in a quarter under Lane Kiffin.
What’s next: Saturday at Oklahoma, noon, ABC
Previous ranking: 2
2025 record: 5-1
Week 8 result: Lost to Louisville 24-21
Stat to know: The loss to Louisville was Miami’s fourth home less as a double-digit favorite under Mario Cristobal, the most losses in FBS in that span (since 2022).
What’s next: Saturday vs. Stanford, 7 p.m., ESPN
Previous ranking: 17
2025 record: 6-1
Week 8 result: Defeated LSU 31-24
Stat to know: This is Vanderbilt’s first 6-1 start since 1950.
What’s next: Saturday vs. Missouri
Previous ranking: 15
2025 record: 7-0
Week 8 result: Defeated Utah 24-21
Stat to know: BYU has started 7-0 in back-to-back seasons for the first time in program history.
What’s next: Saturday at Iowa State, 3:30 p.m., Fox
Previous ranking: 13
2025 record: 5-2
Week 8 result: Defeated USC 34-24
Stat to know: Notre Dame has won seven of its past eight meetings with USC.
What’s next: Nov. 1 at Boston College
Previous ranking: 14
2025 record: 6-1
Week 8 result: Defeated South Carolina 26-7
Stat to know: This was Oklahoma’s first win against South Carolina.
What’s next: Saturday vs. Ole Miss, noon, ABC
Previous ranking: 7
2025 record: 6-1
Week 8 result: Lost to Arizona State 26-22
Stat to know: The loss to Arizona State was Texas Tech’s first game of the season with 20 or more points allowed.
What’s next: Saturday vs. Oklahoma State, 4 p.m.
Previous ranking: 16
2025 record: 6-1
Week 8 result: Defeated Auburn 23-17 (2 OT)
Stat to know: Missouri has won 22 straight games against unranked opponents.
What’s next: Saturday at Vanderbilt
Previous ranking: 18
2025 record: 6-1
Week 8 result: Defeated Washington State 22-20
Stat to know: Virginia’s 6-1 start is its best through seven games since 2007.
What’s next: Saturday at North Carolina, noon, ACC Network
Previous ranking: 11
2025 record: 5-2
Week 8 result: Lost to Alabama 37-20
Stat to know: Tennessee’s 20 points against Alabama is its fewest scored in a game this season.
What’s next: Saturday at Kentucky, 7:45 p.m., SEC Network
Previous ranking: 19
2025 record: 6-1
Week 8 result: Defeated Florida Atlantic 48-13
Stat to know: The win over FAU was South Florida’s fourth straight game with at least 48 points.
What’s next: Saturday at Memphis, noon
Previous ranking: NR
2025 record: 5-1
Week 8 result: Defeated Miami 24-21
Stat to know: Louisville’s win over Miami was its second over an AP top-2 team in program history.
What’s next: Saturday vs. Boston College, 7:30 p.m., ACC Network
Previous ranking: 10
2025 record: 5-2
Week 8 result: Lost to Vanderbilt 31-24
Stat to know: Garrett Nussmeier has thrown a passing touchdown in 13 straight games, the third-longest active streak among current SEC quarterbacks.
What’s next: Saturday vs. Texas A&M, 7:30 p.m., ABC
Previous ranking: 24
2025 record: 6-1
Week 8 result: Defeated Oklahoma State 49-17
Stat to know: This is Cincinnati’s first 6-1 start to a season since 2022.
What’s next: Saturday vs. Baylor, 4 p.m.
Previous ranking: 21
2025 record: 5-2
Week 8 result: Defeated Kentucky 16-13 (OT)
Stat to know: Texas’s 179 total yards against Kentucky marked its fewest in a win in the past 30 years.
What’s next: Saturday at Mississippi State
Previous ranking: NR
2025 record: 5-2
Week 8 result: Idle
What’s next: Saturday vs. Washington
Previous ranking: NR
2025 record: 5-2
Week 8 result: Defeated Texas Tech 26-22
Stat to know: Arizona State is now 6-1 against AP-ranked opponents since the start of the 2024 season.
What’s next: Saturday vs. Houston, 8:00 p.m., ESPN2
Previous ranking: NR
2025 record: 5-2
Week 8 result: Defeated Washington 24-7
Stat to know: Michigan is on a 28-game home winning streak against AP unranked teams.
What’s next: Saturday vs. Michigan State, 7:30 p.m., NBC
SAN JOSE, Calif. — The Sharks apologized for a message that was displayed on the video board that appeared to praise Immigration and Customs Enforcement on a night the team celebrated Hispanic heritage.
A message from a fan was shown on the video board during the first intermission of San Jose’s game against Pittsburgh on Saturday night that read, “SJ SHARKS FANS/LOVE ICE !!/GET ‘EM BOYZ !”
The Sharks issued an apology later in the game, saying “an offensively worded message which had been externally submitted was inadvertently displayed on the in-arena scoreboard.”
“Sharks Sports & Entertainment deeply regrets that this message, which does not meet our organization’s values, was not detected during our standard review process,” the statement continued. “The Sharks organization sincerely apologizes for this oversight, and we are actively working to determine the origin of the message.”
The Sharks were holding their ninth annual celebration of Hispanic heritage on what they call “Los Tiburones Night.”