17. Montreal Canadiens - I like what Steve is doing this offseason. How many times have I said that already? Either way, he's executing the perfect 'on the fly' retool. He turned Skinner into Necas, Guentzel into Middelstadt, and Komarov into Anisimov. In all three deals, he got the more valuable asset. He has many high end roster players such as Bobrovsky, Marchessault (and his amazing contract), Trocheck, Atkinson, Fowler etc. This is the direction Steve ultimately needed to take and boy has he ever made the most of it so far. You'll see this team back in the playoffs next year and the future is looking bright.

18. Nashville Predators - Much like Steve in Montreal, Ty in Nashville needed to do a bit of a retool if he was to stay at the top of the league moving forward. He lost Bergeron, as expected, but that aside, has had a solid offseason. He picked up a solid younger centre in Stepan (who's signed to a nice 5 year - 3,000,000 deal) for just a 2 and a 5. That will help ease the pain of losing Bergerson. Ty also traded out a very old Luongo with veteran D-man Niskanen to acquire a high end, much younger goalie in Holtby. Holtby should get solid starter ratings next year and is signed for 5 years at a really nice salary. The Preds planned to, and will take a little step back this year, but it's worth it in the long run.

19. St. Louis Blues - This team is not as good as it once was, but there's some reason for optimism. Yes, Murray's rates suck this year, but Eric has him for another 9-10 years. Karlsson is locked in for 5 years as well. Granlund is there long term as well. If Eric can find a way to retool around those guys, this team will be in better shape moving forward. As for this year, the Blues will be relying on overpaid vets to carry them, with no starting goalie.

20. Arizona Coyotes - Joel's Coyotes are slowly, quietly improving. He has a fringe playoff roster as it stands, but some nice, decently young roster players to build around. Arizona also has their picks in tact, as well as some good prospects coming up in the system. This will be a team to watch for in the coming years if Joel keeps doing what he's been doing.

21. Winnipeg Jets - Carey Price's performance last year really put the Jets in a bind. They can't afford to sell low on him, can't afford to start him (his rates suck), and can't afford to pay 6.5+ mil for a player who is literally useless. That aside, this roster does have some nice pieces. I don't anticipate the Jets going very far any time soon, but they do have some decent players and a couple mid-level prospects. Jordan has a lot of work to do, though, one way or the other.

22. Buffalo Sabres - The mighty have greatly fallen in this case. This used to be the best roster in the league, or close to it. I will say that I do like Jared's recent moves. He made the right call dealing Crosby and Nyquist. He did well in those deals. He's also been consistently adding picks and some good prospects as well. He still has a lot of work to do, but there are some roster players to build around, and some prospects coming up to surround them. This is not a competitive team this year, but it could be good in the coming years.

23. Edmonton Oilers - Leon has done really well as of late. He bought low on Saad, hung on to Zucker, drafted Patrick, got a good return for Johansen, and a hell of a deal for Markstrom. He also wrecked me in a trade where I moved up to grab Elias Pettersson. The forward core is looking great for Edmonton moving forward. The Oilers have some good young prospects, players, and tons of picks in the coming two seasons. The D and goalie positions will definitely need to be addressed in the coming year or two. Short term, this team is still a mess. Long term - it's looking really good for Edmonton.

24. Anaheim Ducks - The everlong rebuild continues. With Manson, Labanc, Gibson, Severson and Crawford (who will be traded) being the only decent roster players in place, this roster is far from being competitive. This team is setup purely for the future, and will be at the bottom of the standings once again this year.

25. Toronto Maple Leafs - If Garrett would stop being 'happy to hold on to' his veteran players, this organization would be in great shape. He screwed up royally not dealing Schneider; Vlasic might be in that boat soon, too. On the other hand, he's done well drafting in recent years and has some really good young pieces to build around. Garrett needs to sell his vets over the next year or two, but the future is looking bright in Toronto beyond that.

26. Philaelphia Flyers - Before I talk Flyers, I will say that I like Anthony, and he has made some really good moves, even a few good draft picks in recent years. Sadly, I think Anthony is closer to competing this year than the rest of the field, and his team is awful. On top of that, some recent moves have left the Flyers in a real tough spot moving forward. I still like some of his prospects, and he has a few roster players to build around. With that said, Anthony needs to put his dick back in his pants during FA and start doing what's right for his team in the long run. The Bernier contract was awful, and Lehtonen's wasn't much better. Save your cash, draft well and it'll pan out. If not, it won't.

27. San Jose Sharks - It's tough to keep in mind that these are power rankings. This organization has been in a lull for a long time, and the team sucks again this year. Some good pieces to build around, no doubt, but tons of work to be done in San Jose. I'm still mind blown that Mika took Tippett over the Fins that were available, though that doesn't affect the power rankings much.

28. Minnesota Wild - There are a few decent NHLers left in Minnesota, but that's about it. Al is more likely to hit rock bottom before trying to work his way back to being competitive. I expect Al to sell most, if not all, of his NHLers this year and try and build from the ground up. A boatload of work to do in Minnesota, but Brannstrom, Kaprizov and picks are a good start.

29. Vancouver Canucks - Hischier and Demko are nice pieces to build around. I don't really get the Suter signing. This team consists of about 1,000 fourth liners. The prospects are okay, and picks are thankfully in tact. Tons of work to do for Rob before this team is close to competitive.

30. Florida Panthers - At this point of the article, most of these teams have to tank further before rising in the standings in coming years. Florda's roster has some fringe NHLers on it, with a couple 3rd liners mixed in. Brent Seabrook leads the way on the back end. The team is just horrendous this year, but Tyler Bell has been doing the right thing. In full rebuild mode for a couple years now, the prospects are coming, picks are all in tact, and the future looks bright. Unfortunately, this team is a few years away from coming close to being in playoff position.

31. Seattle Stoners - You could make a case that Rex's roster might be better than a couple of those ranked above him. He can't possibly try and make a run with the organizational depth (or lack of) he has, though. It's really tough to rank these bottom teams, because they're so bad. I do love the Heiskanen pick, but Rex has tons of work to do before this team is close to competitive.

32. Washington Capitals - It should come as no surprise for an expansion team to finish off the list. But man, Rex killed Larry (and Larry killed himself) in the expansion draft. This roster is absolutely horrendous, and Larry is somehow out a 3rd rounder in the upcoming draft. He has Tuch and Tolvanen to build around, that's it. I understand why Larry went young, but he left value on the table in the expansion draft and the Capitals organization will pay for it dearly.