This is the sixth edition of theScore's NHL Power Rankings for the 2021-22 season. Check back for updated rankings every second Monday during the regular season.

In this edition, we identify one holiday gift each team could use for the rest of the season or in the future.

1. Carolina Hurricanes (21-7-1)

Previous rank: 8th

🎁 Continued success for their supporting cast. The Hurricanes have performed well this season, especially with some key players in COVID-19 protocol. Even before Sebastian Aho and Andrei Svechnikov landed on the list, Teuvo Teravainen, Vincent Trocheck, Martin Necas, and Nino Niederreiter contributed enough to keep the NHL's new best team rolling.

2. Tampa Bay Lightning (19-6-4)

Previous rank: 7th

🎁 A map. Just in case Tampa Bay ever runs into some trouble finding a way to win.

3. Washington Capitals (18-6-7)

Previous rank: 6th

🎁 A better power play. The Capitals had the third-best success rate with the man advantage last season and typically have a dangerous power play featuring Alex Ovechkin and Co. Ovi's been fantastic in 2021-22, but he's done most of his damage at five-on-five. Washington ranks near the bottom of the league on the man advantage.

4. Toronto Maple Leafs (20-8-2)

Previous rank: 5th

🎁 A new shutdown pairing. Jake Muzzin and Justin Holl haven't been able to keep their opponents in check. Muzzin has lost a half-step, and Holl has regressed to a third-pairing blue-liner - at best. The Leafs either need to acquire a legitimate top-four defenseman to help Muzzin or pray one emerges internally.

5. New York Rangers (19-7-4)

Previous rank: 2nd

🎁 Pucks. So Chris Kreider can keep banging them in the net. The veteran forward is up to 18 tallies on the season, good for fourth in the NHL.

6. Minnesota Wild (19-8-2)

Previous rank: 3rd

🎁 Respect. The Wild are a great team, but they don't seem to get the national attention they deserve. Players like Jared Spurgeon, Jonas Brodin, and Marcus Foligno are criminally underrated.

7. Florida Panthers (18-7-4)

Previous rank: 1st

🎁 More comfort on the road. The Panthers are 14-3-0 in their home barn this season, but they've won only four of 12 games away from FLA Live Arena, albeit with four of those eight losses coming after regulation. Still, whatever they can do to improve in hostile territory would transform them from a good team into a great one.

8. Colorado Avalanche (17-8-2)

Previous rank: 11th

🎁 First-aid kit. The rash of injuries the Avalanche have been dealt this season is hard to fathom. A restock of supplies for the club's infirmary is likely necessary.

9. Vegas Golden Knights (20-11-0)

Previous rank: 14th

🎁 A healthy Jack Eichel. The Golden Knights' prized trade acquisition said early in December he could do everything but take contact after undergoing disc replacement surgery in November. If and when Eichel is ready to make his Vegas debut, the club will finally have the elite No. 1 center the club has coveted for years.

10. Pittsburgh Penguins (17-8-5)

Previous rank: 18th

🎁 A productive Evgeni Malkin when he's back. Speaking of injured superstar pivots, Malkin appears somewhat close to rejoining the Penguins for game action. The 35-year-old's play declined last season, though he was also limited with injury. If Pittsburgh gets a rejuvenated version of the Russian playmaker upon his return, look out.

11. Nashville Predators (19-10-1)

Previous rank: 19th

🎁 An improved penalty kill. The Predators are a fairly balanced club and one of the hottest in the NHL. However, the penalty kill could use some help. The team came into Sunday ranking 21st with a success rate of only 79.4% when shorthanded.

12. Anaheim Ducks (17-9-6)

Previous rank: 12th

🎁 A spotlight for Troy Terry. We're past the point of Terry's breakout year being a fluke, and he deserves to be seen. The Ducks forward is putting up sensational numbers and is a huge reason the club is in the thick of the playoff race in the Pacific Division.

13. St. Louis Blues (17-9-5)

Previous rank: 17th

🎁 Possession prowess. The Blues' performance this season has been commendable considering the players they've been without at various times. However, St. Louis is still a subpar possession team, having posted expected goals for and scoring chances for percentages under 50% at five-on-five in 2021-22.

14. Calgary Flames (15-7-6)

Previous rank: 4th

🎁 Rest. The Flames got decimated by a COVID-19 outbreak, and the hockey world should be hoping they can return fully healthy as soon as possible.

15. Edmonton Oilers (18-11-0)

Previous rank: 9th

🎁 A new lower body for Mike Smith. Edmonton's 39-year-old netminder hasn't played since Oct. 19 due to a lower-body injury, and his absence has been felt. Mikko Koskinen has been too inconsistent and Stuart Skinner is too inexperienced to trust. If the Oilers can't trade for a reliable goalie, their only hope is for Smith to get healthy.

16. Boston Bruins (14-10-2)

Previous rank: 13th

🎁 Better puck luck. The Bruins entered Sunday's action leading the NHL in five-on-five xGF% at 55.84. But their goals for percentage was only 49.43, which ranks 17th. So they're driving possession but aren't scoring at a favorable clip aside from on the power play. Boston's 52.08 scoring chances for percentage shows the team's luck should start evening out.

17. Vancouver Canucks (14-15-2)

Previous rank: 29th

🎁 Whatever Bruce Boudreau wants. The veteran coach has rejuvenated his new club after a bleak couple of months. He's reeled off six consecutive wins since being hired and may be more popular than Santa Claus in Vancouver right now.

18. Los Angeles Kings (14-11-5)

Previous rank: 21st

🎁 Bubble wrap for the defense. Drew Doughty has already missed significant time, Sean Walker is out for the year, and now Alex Edler is out long term. The Kings can't afford to lose any more blue-liners.

19. Dallas Stars (14-12-2)

Previous rank: 10th

🎁 A new accelerator for Tyler Seguin. The Stars' highest-paid player is struggling to get back up to speed in his first full season after undergoing a hip arthroscopy and labral repair in November 2020 and a knee scope one month later. For Dallas to have any chance, Seguin needs to find another gear.

20. Winnipeg Jets (14-11-5)

Previous rank: 15th

🎁 A new whiteboard for Dave Lowry. The Jets are starting anew after Paul Maurice's stunning resignation. The team will need the interim bench boss to draw up a fresh defensive game plan in order to turn around a mediocre start to the season.

21. San Jose Sharks (15-14-1)

Previous rank: 20th

🎁 A bidding war for Tomas Hertl. The Sharks center is a pending UFA, making him a popular candidate to be moved at the deadline. Getting a massive haul for Hertl could help expedite San Jose's retool.

22. Detroit Red Wings (15-13-3)

Previous rank: 16th

🎁 A vaccine for Tyler Bertuzzi. The Red Wings winger is the only NHL player who hasn't received his COVID-19 jab yet.

23. Philadelphia Flyers (12-12-5)

Previous rank: 26th

🎁 An answer. It seems like every time the Flyers solve a problem with their roster, a new one arises. Perhaps ol' St. Nick can find some room in his sleigh for whatever's been ailing the Flyers for the past two seasons.

24. Chicago Blackhawks (11-15-4)

Previous rank: 24th

🎁 More goals. The Blackhawks boast two of the NHL's best snipers in Patrick Kane and Alex DeBrincat, and that duo has combined for 35% of Chicago's markers in 2021-22. This team has more to improve than just its offense, but it entered Sunday ranked fourth-last in goals for per game.

25. Columbus Blue Jackets (14-13-1)

Previous rank: 22nd

🎁 Better defense and goaltending. Unlike the Blackhawks, the Blue Jackets surprisingly came into Sunday with a top-10 offense. Where Columbus really needs help is in its own end. The club entered the final day of the weekend having surrendered the most shots per game in the NHL while possessing one of the league's worst goals-against rates.

26. Seattle Kraken (10-17-3)

Previous rank: 23rd

🎁 Last year's Philipp Grubauer or Chris Driedger. Goaltending looked to be a position of strength for Seattle. Instead, the Kraken rank 32nd in the NHL with an .875 all-situations save percentage.

27. Ottawa Senators (9-17-2)

Previous rank: 28th

🎁 New ownership. It's hard to have any sort of confidence in this franchise as long as Eugene Melnyk is steering the ship.

28. New York Islanders (8-12-6)

Previous rank: 32nd

🎁 A new scent for UBS Arena. The Islanders are just 2-5-3 in their new barn. Perhaps it's lacking the aroma of beer and cigarettes, which made Nassau Coliseum feel like home.

29. New Jersey Devils (10-15-5)

Previous rank: 25th

🎁 A new alternate jersey. The "Jersey" jersey belongs on the naughty list.

30. Buffalo Sabres (10-15-5)

Previous rank: 27th

🎁 More building blocks. The Sabres have potential franchise cornerstones Dylan Cozens, Rasmus Dahlin, and Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, with Peyton Krebs in the system, too. But they could use even more young talent to enhance the rebuild. There's no Jack Eichel or Taylor Hall to dangle anymore, but Buffalo should try to turn some of its pending UFAs into picks.

31. Montreal Canadiens (7-21-3)

Previous rank: 31st

🎁 Lottery luck. Montreal's season is practically over. The only thing giving Habs fans hope is the potential of drafting first overall for the first time since 1980. The Canadiens haven't had a legitimate first-line center this century, but Shane Wright would fill a long overdue need.

32. Arizona Coyotes (6-21-2)

Previous rank: 30th

🎁 A permanent home. The arena situation hanging over the Coyotes is highly concerning, and until it's resolved, relocation rumors will run rampant for the league's last-place team.

(Analytics sources: Evolving Hockey, Natural Stat Trick)

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Chicago Blackhawks winger Brett Connolly has been suspended four games for his hit on Dallas Stars forward Tanner Kero, the NHL's Department of Player Safety announced Sunday.

Connolly hammered Kero into the boards even though the Stars forward never touched the puck. Connolly was handed an interference major and a game misconduct on the play.

Kero had to be stretchered off the ice. He was conscious, alert, and responsive afterward. Kero was hospitalized as a precaution.

This marks the first time Connolly has been suspended or fined in his 11-year NHL career.

Stars veteran Joe Pavelski got emotional postgame speaking about his injured teammate.

Kero has recorded 34 points in 123 career NHL games split between the Stars and Blackhawks.

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The NHL postponed a dozen games originally scheduled from Dec. 20-23 "due to the concern about cross-border travel and given the fluid nature of federal travel restrictions."

All matchups featuring a Canada-based club versus an American team during that span will take place at a later date.

Here are the games that the league will reschedule:

The NHL also said Sunday that its regular-season schedule will continue aside from those postponements, and a decision on the league's Olympic participation is expected "in the coming days."

Shortly after the NHL revealed its cross-border decision Sunday, the league also confirmed the Detroit Red Wings are holding off on playing through at least Dec. 26. Detroit had two games scheduled in that span - a home date against the Colorado Avalanche on Monday and a road clash with the Minnesota Wild on Thursday.

A rapid increase in COVID-19 cases in both countries has already forced five clubs to shut down temporarily and two more to halt play this weekend. On Friday, the NHL postponed all Calgary Flames, Avalanche, and Florida Panthers games until at least Dec. 27. On Saturday, the league added the Boston Bruins and Nashville Predators to that list while putting the Toronto Maple Leafs and Vancouver Canucks on pause through Sunday.

The NHL's holiday break will run from Dec. 24-26.

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The Winnipeg Jets have placed captain Blake Wheeler on long-term injured reserve, the team announced Sunday.

The 35-year-old forward hasn't played since suffering an apparent leg injury on Dec. 10 versus the Vancouver Canucks.

Then-Jets head coach Paul Maurice said at the time that Wheeler would be out "a while," but he didn't give an exact timeline.

Wheeler has 17 points in 22 games during his 12th season with the Jets.

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Alex Tuch will make his Buffalo Sabres debut Monday versus the Columbus Blue Jackets, head coach Don Granato announced Sunday, according to team writer Jourdon LaBarber.

Tuch, 25, was a key piece of the November trade that sent former Sabres captain Jack Eichel to the Vegas Golden Knights. He hasn't played this season while recovering from offseason shoulder surgery.

The native of Syracuse, New York, grew up a Sabres fan, and his first game with the club will be in Buffalo.

"He's ready to go. He's as excited as anybody I've seen to play a game - because it's here. Because he's putting that jersey on," Granato said.

Originally a first-round pick of the Minnesota Wild in 2014, Tuch joined Vegas in the expansion draft and posted 139 points in 249 games with the franchise.

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After his New Jersey Devils dropped a fifth straight game, head coach Lindy Ruff said it's on him to right the ship.

"The same things happen to our club over and over, ill-advised mistakes that turn into goals against," Ruff said after losing 5-2 to the Detroit Red Wings on Saturday night, according to team reporter Amanda Stein. "Careless decisions with the puck that turn into goals against."

He added: "All that's on me. That's my responsibility. The way this team plays is my responsibility."

The Devils have dropped nine of their last 10 contests to fall to 10-14-5 this season. After missing the playoffs for the last three campaigns, many expected New Jersey to be more competitive in 2021-22.

While Ruff did take plenty of the blame for the team's recent performance, he also didn't hesitate to call out some of his players.

"Our top (forwards) are the ones that hurt us," Ruff said. "I thought our bottom forwards gave us a good night - (they were) great on the kill, scored the first goal, shorthanded goal, all the good stuff. Our top guys have to be harder to play against."

He continued: "They have to be harder on the puck. They have to win more battles. They have to create more odd-numbered situations themselves, speed, drive in the middle. All those little things add up by the end of the game."

The Devils were missing a number of players Saturday, including Jesper Bratt, P.K. Subban, Nico Hischier, and Ryan Graves, as well as goaltenders Mackenzie Blackwood and Jonathan Bernier.

However, New Jersey has been outscored 44-23 over the past 10 games. Bratt leads the team with 24 points in 28 games, while Andreas Johnsson ranks second with 19 in 29 contests.

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