NHL teams
Greg Wyshynski, ESPN 6y

Power Rankings: Predators, Bruins and Jets pace the Cawlidge Hawkey edition

NHL, Nashville Predators, Boston Bruins, Winnipeg Jets

The NCAA Division I men's hockey Frozen Four begins on Thursday at 6 p.m. ET and concludes with the championship game at 7:30 p.m. ET on Saturday in St. Paul, Minnesota. (Check out the action on ESPN and ESPN2.)

In honor of that tournament, we have dedicated this week's power rankings to the #CawlidgeHawkey players who are now thriving on NHL teams.

How we rank: We use a panel of voters, and these rankings reflect which teams voters think would win head-to-head matchups. Higher-ranked teams are favored over lower-ranked teams. A run of wins doesn't guarantee a jump, and a couple of losses doesn't guarantee a fall.

Previous rankings: Preseason | Week 1 Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5 | Week 6 | Week 7 | Week 8 | Week 9 | Week 10 | Week 11 | Week 12 | Week 13 | Week 14 | Week 15 | Week 16 | Week 17 | Week 18 | Week 19 | Week 20 | Week 21 | Week 22 | Week 23 | Week 24 | Week 25

1. Nashville Predators

Record: 51-18-11 
Week 25 Ranking: No. 1 

Kyle Turris had 35 points in 36 games with Wisconsin back in 2007-08, where his roommate was Ryan McDonagh, who is now with the Tampa Bay Lightning.

2. Boston Bruins

Record: 49-18-12
Week 25 Ranking: No. 2 

Charlie McAvoy played 75 games for Boston University, where he skated alongside fellow current Bruins D-man Matt Grzelcyk.

3. Winnipeg Jets

Record: 50-20-10
Week 25 Ranking: No. 4 

Blake Wheeler was a star at Minnesota, scoring 96 points in 127 games, and he was named the MVP of the 2007 Western Collegiate Hockey Association Final Five championship.

4. Vegas Golden Knights

Record: 51-22-7
Week 25 Ranking: No. 5 

Reilly Smith played three seasons at Miami (Ohio) and scored 122 points in 121 games. He was a plus-63 for this career.

5. Tampa Bay Lightning

Record: 53-23-4
Week 25 Ranking: No. 3 

Alex Killorn chose Harvard over Boston College, Boston University and Yale. He played four seasons for the Crimson and was a 2011-12 nominee for the Hobey Baker Award.

6. Washington Capitals

Record: 48-25-7
Week 25 Ranking: No. 7 

T.J. Oshie spent three seasons with the University of North Dakota and was a Hobey Baker Award finalist in 2007-08.

7. Pittsburgh Penguins

Record: 45-29-6
Week 25 Ranking: No. 9 

Jake Guentzel played three seasons at Nebraska-Omaha, tallying 119 points in 108 games. That school also produced Andrej Sustr, Greg Zanon and Dan Ellis.

8. Toronto Maple Leafs

Record: 48-25-7
Week 25 Ranking: No. 8 

James van Riemsdyk scored 74 points in 67 games for the University of New Hampshire before moving on to the Philadelphia Flyers organization.

9. Philadelphia Flyers

Record: 40-26-14
Week 25 Ranking: No. 15 

Shayne Gostisbehere was the NCAA men's hockey tournament MVP in 2013-14 for champion Union, and had 82 points in 119 NCAA games.

10. San Jose Sharks

Record: 44-26-10
Week 25 Ranking: No. 6 

Joe Pavelski won an NCAA title with Wisconsin in 2006, when he had 53 points in 41 games for the Badgers.

11. Columbus Blue Jackets

Record: 45-29-6
Week 25 Ranking: No. 11 

Zach Werenski was named the Big Ten defensive player of the year in 2016 for Michigan. He had 61 points in 71 career NCAA games.

12. Los Angeles Kings

Record: 44-28-8
Week 25 Ranking: No. 13 

In 2007, Jonathan Quick led UMass to its first NCAA men's ice hockey championship tournament appearance.

13. New Jersey Devils

Record: 43-28-9
Week 25 Ranking: No. 17 

Ben Lovejoy played one year for Boston College and three years for Dartmouth College. He also played lacrosse at Dartmouth, where he was named to the All-Ivy League team.

14. Minnesota Wild

Record: 44-26-10
Week 25 Ranking: No. 10 

Zach Parise played two years at North Dakota, scoring 49 goals and finishing as a finalist for the Hobey Baker twice.

15. Anaheim Ducks

Record: 42-25-13
Week 25 Ranking: No. 14 

Ryan Kesler played one season with The Ohio State University, after choosing the Buckeyes over Wisconsin.

16. Colorado Avalanche

Record: 42-29-9
Week 25 Ranking: No. 16 

Erik Johnson played one year with Minnesota after being drafted first overall in 2006 by the St. Louis Blues. He was the Golden Gophers' first No. 1 overall pick.

17. St. Louis Blues

Record: 43-31-6
Week 25 Ranking: No. 12 

Colton Parayko played three seasons for the University of Alaska, where he won back-to-back Western Collegiate Hockey Association defensive player of the year awards.

18. Florida Panthers

Record: 41-30-8
Week 25 Ranking: No. 18 

After winning "Mr. Hockey" in Minnesota as a high school player, Nick Bjugstad scored 98 points in 109 games over three seasons for the University of Minnesota.  

19. Dallas Stars

Record: 41-31-8
Week 25 Ranking: No. 20 

Ben Bishop led the Maine Black Bears to the 2006 and 2007 Frozen Four, losing in the semifinals both times.

20. Carolina Hurricanes

Record: 35-34-11
Week 25 Ranking: No. 26 

Jaccob Slavin was named the National Collegiate Hockey Conference rookie of the year while playing for the Colorado College Tigers.

21. Calgary Flames

Record: 36-34-10
Week 25 Ranking: No. 22 

Johnny Gaudreau played three seasons for Boston College, winning the Hobey Baker in 2014 after leading the NCAA in goals, assists and points.

22. New York Islanders

Record: 33-37-10
Week 25 Ranking: No. 20 

Anders Lee played three seasons for Notre Dame, scoring 61 goals in 125 games. He was a Central Collegiate Hockey Association first-team all-star in 2013.

23. Chicago Blackhawks

Record: 33-37-10
Week 25 Ranking: No. 23 

Patrick Sharp played two years for Vermont, making the Eastern College Athletic Conference all-rookie team in 2001.

24. Detroit Red Wings

Record: 30-38-12
Week 25 Ranking: No. 24 

Danny DeKeyser played three seasons for Western Michigan, winning a conference title in 2012.

25. New York Rangers

Record: 34-37-9
Week 25 Ranking: No. 19 

Chris Kreider was a three-time Hockey East champion with Boston College, scoring 49 goals in 114 games.

26. Edmonton Oilers

Record: 34-40-6
Week 25 Ranking: No. 27 

Cam Talbot is a product of the University of Alabama-Huntsville, and is one of only two players to reach the NHL from that program. (The other is former Flyers forward Jared Ross.)

27. Arizona Coyotes

Record: 27-39-11 
Week 25 Ranking: No. 25 

Clayton Keller played one season with Boston University, scoring 21 goals in 31 games, and that was good enough to earn Hockey East rookie of the year honors in 2017.

28. Vancouver Canucks

Record: 30-40-10
Week 25 Ranking: No. 28 

Brock Boeser spent two season at North Dakota, scoring 43 goals in 74 games and making the 2016 NCAA All-Tournament team.

29. Montreal Canadiens

Record: 28-39-13
Week 25 Ranking: No. 29 

Max Pacioretty scored 15 goals in 37 games during his only season with Michigan in 2007-08, winning conference rookie of the year.

30. Ottawa Senators

Record: 28-41-11
Week 25 Ranking: No. 31 

Ryan Dzingel played three years for Ohio State, scoring 108 points in 110 games and leading the Big Ten in scoring in 2014.

31. Buffalo Sabres

Record: 25-43-12
Week 25 Ranking: No. 30 

Jack Eichel played one season with Boston University. He scored 71 points in 40 games and skated away with the Hobey Baker and the Rookie of the Year award after leading the NCAA in points.

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