NHL Power Rankings, and Adorable Islanders Pictures

Today's New York Islanders practice lines were back to their pre-Grabner flu and pre-Moulson/Parenteau-rest form, but with Michael Grabner and Nino Niederreiter sharing the spot next to Casey Cizikas and Kyle Okposo. Read that as you will, after the Isles won two straight without Grabner.

Some links and notes before our weekly NHL power rankings and media ranking roundup:

• Newsday on Josh Bailey's move to right wing: "I didn't feel I played all that bad [at center] -- the production just wasn't there." [As noted yesterday, Bailey was also on NHL Home Ice on XM.]
• The Sound Tigers won again, and Fornabaio has a bushel of notes on shot-blocking, Jeremy Colliton taking a headshot, and Kevin Poulin aiming for an empty-net goal.
• Kyle Okposo's boyhood pictures are adorable. Blonde dye job in the USHL not so much. ["Islesography" video profile] (Seriously, it's a very good, thorough piece.) Also: Did you remember that his first NHL game was the ToskaLOL goal by Rob Davison?
• As anticipated, the Mario Lemieux statue does indeed have him splitting the Isles' defense (Richard Pilon and Jeff Norton). Odd that they didn't go for one of his encounters with Darius Kasparaitis in 1993, when the Penguins were well on their way to another Stanley Cup being just another team.

• Where's Dubie? [The Checking Line]
• Hornick has your playoff picture after last night's games.
• The Islanders kids and Hugo Boss [photos at Skates on a Plane]
• Random non-Isles read: Is the Sharks' window closing? (Or, alternatively, is the West just really tough?)
• Random read II: If the Central and Atlantic send four teams each to the playoffs, it will be just the second time since 2000 that's happened. (Last time: 2008-09, which was also the Atlantic and Central.)

Survey of Media Power Rankings

Here is the weekly roundup of media rankings and commentary. The consecutive victories over the Bruins and Devils, and Anders Nilsson's debut, caught some eyes:

Twenty-fourth here, twenty-fifth there, it's been that kind of year five years.

For reference, here is last week's power rankings post.

Real Power Rankings

And now on to our weekly "real" power rankings courtesy of Mike, or ICanSeeForIslesAndIsles (who is the one you'll find tirelessly compiling FIG picks in the game thread), who conceived and delivers these week after week. They are calculated in true "power ranking" fashion -- i.e. how well teams fare based on their opponents' records.

These reflect figures through Monday's games. The team at the top keeps remaining the same. Which should make the fall all the sweeter.

The Islanders' wins, meanwhile, did not improve their standing with the Powers That Be:

Wow, Columbus. Just wow.