Power TANKings: How Low Can The Leafs Go?

I would like to welcome you to the first installment of the “Power Tankings”. My plan is to provide a weekly update of the inverse power rankings of the bottom five teams of the league.

For the most part, these teams have nothing left to play for besides their pride, which also means their fans are feeling it too, so I figured why not spin this in a positive way, and look at the green grass on the other side – so to speak.

With Wednesday’s trade for Evander Kane (who is out for the season after undergoing shoulder surgery), it appears the Sabres are “all-in” on making sure they will get one of Eichel or McDavid. As <a href=. 8th place. Atlantic Division. Buffalo Sabres. 1. player. 12

player. 148. They just lost to Toronto, so they have to be ahead of them in these rankings. They are 5-5 in their last ten games and have seemed to turn the corner a little bit, but I think the gap between them and the next tier of teams is too large to make them any lower.. 7th place. Pacific Division. Edmonton Oilers. 2

121. They have 3 fewer points than Toronto with the same number of games played, and the fact that the beat the Leafs a few games ago may come back to haunt their draft day positioning. <del datetime=. 6th place. Pacific Division. Arizona Coyotes. 3. player

Metropolitan Division. Carolina Hurricanes. 5. player. 109. Sure, they’re 3rd-worst in the overall standings right now, but they have three games in-hand on two of the three teams directly behind them and have been 6-2-2 in their last 10 games (and 9-3-3 since the turn of the new year). As with the Coyotes above, they have talent, and a proven net-minder in Cam Ward, so I definitely believe there’s a chance they allow the Leafs and Coyotes to “catch” them in the standings, barring trades of significant pieces.. 8th place

Bad but not quite bad enough: Columbus (49 points puts them at 5th-worst record right now, but 3 games in-hand on Toronto), New Jersey (6-3-1 in their past 10 and always a threat to win a low-scoring game), Ottawa (3 games in-hand and already at 51 points)

What this means for Toronto

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This may finally be the beginning of the rebuild that a lot of fans have known was required for a long time. Per a report on TheScore.com, Shannahan has been given full authority to tear this team down to the studs and build from the bottom up. In my opinion, this needs to happen as soon as possible.

After Buffalo and Edmonton, the 3-7 spots in these “Power Tankings” are wide open for the taking, and any win now before changes are made could make a significant difference in draft position.

I’m not asking the Leafs to stop playing, but it’s time to get some young players up and see what they have to offer. Toronto may be in the middle of one of its worst seasons in recent years, but it just may turn out to be the most important.

Next: Maple Leafs Entering Full Rebuild?

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