Hi, all. If you're a stats nut, enjoy a little more to keep you interested between games (or between cable/channel disputes). If you're not, then move along. Nothing to see here.
So, last month, I showed how the Isles fared against everyone else in November, based on data from the power rankings that I whip up every week. By throwing out all data except for one month, we can (hopefully) get a better feel for our beloved Isles' progress as the season wears on. After the jump, we'll see how the Isles (and everyone else) did in December...
December 2011 Power Rankings
Winning | |||||||
W | L | OTL | Pts | Pct | PWR | ||
1. |
Chicago | 10 | 2 | 1 | 21 | 0.808 | 2116 |
2. |
Boston | 9 | 3 | 0 | 18 | 0.750 | 1991 |
3. |
Winnipeg | 10 | 3 | 1 | 21 | 0.750 | 1983 |
4. |
NY Rangers | 10 | 4 | 1 | 21 | 0.700 | 1957 |
5. |
Philadelphia | 9 | 3 | 1 | 19 | 0.731 | 1951 |
6. |
Colorado | 10 | 5 | 0 | 20 | 0.667 | 1903 |
7. |
New Jersey | 9 | 5 | 0 | 18 | 0.643 | 1766 |
8. |
Vancouver | 10 | 4 | 1 | 21 | 0.700 | 1760 |
9. |
Washington | 8 | 5 | 1 | 17 | 0.607 | 1754 |
10. |
Nashville | 9 | 5 | 0 | 18 | 0.643 | 1724 |
11. |
St. Louis | 7 | 4 | 3 | 17 | 0.607 | 1717 |
12. |
Detroit | 9 | 6 | 0 | 18 | 0.600 | 1673 |
13. |
San Jose | 6 | 4 | 3 | 15 | 0.577 | 1633 |
14. |
Dallas | 7 | 6 | 0 | 14 | 0.538 | 1607 |
15. |
Florida | 7 | 5 | 3 | 17 | 0.567 | 1592 |
16. |
Pittsburgh | 7 | 6 | 0 | 14 | 0.538 | 1587 |
17. |
Calgary | 8 | 4 | 4 | 20 | 0.625 | 1549 |
18. |
Ottawa | 7 | 5 | 3 | 17 | 0.567 | 1533 |
19. |
Los Angeles | 7 | 6 | 2 | 16 | 0.533 | 1465 |
20. |
NY Islanders | 6 | 6 | 2 | 14 | 0.500 | 1449 |
21. |
Tampa Bay | 6 | 6 | 1 | 13 | 0.500 | 1415 |
22. |
Minnesota | 6 | 6 | 3 | 15 | 0.500 | 1289 |
23. |
Buffalo | 4 | 7 | 3 | 11 | 0.393 | 1181 |
24. |
Toronto | 4 | 6 | 3 | 11 | 0.423 | 1160 |
25. |
Montreal | 4 | 7 | 3 | 11 | 0.393 | 1141 |
26. |
Phoenix | 6 | 9 | 1 | 13 | 0.406 | 1137 |
27. |
Carolina | 5 | 7 | 2 | 12 | 0.429 | 1109 |
28. |
Columbus | 4 | 8 | 2 | 10 | 0.357 | 1055 |
29. |
Anaheim | 3 | 8 | 2 | 8 | 0.308 | 867 |
30. |
Edmonton | 3 | 9 | 0 | 6 | 0.250 | 680 |
Well, I'm a tad surprised, at least. The Isles finished 20th in December, as opposed to 26th in November and 25th in October. I suppose the NHL-.500 record would dictate a better finish than the other months, but it just felt like a worse month than that.
Meanwhile, who would've thought Winnipeg would ever have a month like that? For all their struggles, the Capitals finished in the top 10 this month, as well. Am I the only one who takes perverse pleasure in seeing Toronto and Montreal near the bottom?
Anyway, as we already suspected, the Isles aren't playing well enough recently to be a playoff team, even if they're improving. Got any other observations?