The Man Advantage: Down The Stretch

With less than 10 games left on the NHL regular season calendar for each team, we take a look at players who have excelled on the power play the last two weeks.

Calgary Flames

What a turnaround it's been for the Flames, who are readying themselves for the playoffs after missing the postseason last year. Led by rookie sensation Johnny Gaudreau (19 PP points), the Flames have the 12th-best power play in the NHL with a 18.8-percent success ratio. However, the team has scored six goals in 28 opportunities (21.4 percent) in the last nine games. The top line of Gaudreau, Jiri Hudler and Sean Monahan have provided all the offense over this stretch, combining for all six goals and 11 points, while defensemen Dennis Wideman and Kris Russell have each chipped in three assists.

Edmonton Oilers

It's taken all season, but the Oilers have finally dug themselves out of last place in the Western Conference, ahead of the hapless Coyotes by three points. Despite their struggles, the Oilers have actually been a decent PP squad for most of this season. At 18.0 percent, they rank 19th in the NHL, ahead of such powerhouse teams as the Rangers (17.4), Anaheim (16.4) and Montreal (15.6). Lately, however, the kids from E-Town have really been lighting it up, going 10 for 36 (27.7 percent) over their last nine games. Not surprisingly, the charge has been led by Jordan Eberle and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, with five and four points, respectively, over that stretch. Interestingly, veteran Derek Roy has turned out to be a decent addition for the team. Acquired from Nashville back in December, Roy has 21 points 39 games for the Oilers, more than doubling his output (10 points in 19 games) from his brief stint with the Preds. And even though Roy has not contributed much on the power play, four (3G, 1A) of his five PP points have come in the past nine games.

Detroit Red Wings

The Red Wings have been an absolute beast this season when it comes to the power play. Second only to Washington (24.8) at 24.5 percent, the Wings have scored at least one PP goal in 12 of their past 14 games, going 13-for-54 (24.0 percent) over that span. The acquisition of defenseman Marek Zidlicky from New Jersey at the trade deadline has been a big factor. With the Devils, Zidlicky had just 23 points in 63 games, but roughly half of that output (3G, 9A) came on the power play, so you just knew he was going to fit in nicely with the PP-savvy Wings. He has eight points in 12 games so far, six coming with the man advantage (3G, 3A). The Wings' PP attack features two well-balanced lines, so the scoring lately has been very spread out. Just a few of the standout performers in the past eight games have included Zidlicky (four points), Justin Abdelkader (three), Henrik Zetterberg (two), Gustav Nyquist (two) and Pavel Datsyuk (two).

Buffalo Sabres

On the opposite end of the scale, in Buffalo, it's well known what a truly horrendous season the Sabres have had. Last in the NHL both in the overall standings (20-46-8) and on the power play (12.7 percent), the organization clearly has its sights set on landing either Connor McDavid or Jack Eichel in next year's Entry Draft. That said, it hasn't been all bad for the Sabres lately, as the power play has scored six goals in the last six games, running at an impressive 33.3 percent (6 for 18). Brian Gionta has had a hand in all six of those goals, scoring two and assisting on the other four. He's been helped by his linemates Tyler Ennis (three points), Rasmus Ristolainen (three), Matt Moulson (two) and Johan Larsson (two). As an aside, Larsson, recalled from AHL Rochester in February, has quickly moved up the ranks and is now firmly entrenched as the Sabres' No. 1 center. He received only 6-9 minutes of ice time in his first half-dozen games, but now plays 20-plus minutes per night with a healthy dose of PP time to boot. He has seven points in his last eight games, including two PP helpers. Granted, it's hard to find good fantasy value in Buffalo, but Larsson's worth a look.

Columbus Blue Jackets

For a team whose playoff hopes are pretty much done, the Blue Jackets are clearly intent on finishing the season on a strong note. The Jackets are 8-2-0 in their last 10 games, and their power play is a big reason why. In fact, the Columbus PP has been pretty good all season, fifth overall at 21.9 percent. However, it's been positively on fire lately. So far in March, the Jackets are an insane 13-for-35 -- that's a 37.1 percent, people. Cam Atkinson, who has just nine PP points to his credit all season, has scored four of those points in the last nine games (3G, 1A). Jack Johnson, who is seventh among NHL blueliners in PP assists with 18, has three helpers over that same stretch, while Ryan Johansen and Nick Foligno each have two points. Of note, Alexander Wennberg, who averaged roughly two minutes on the PP prior to injuring his hand, should be back in the lineup soon and will likely wind up back on the PP at some point. He has just three points on the PP so far this season, and none since Feb. 17, but he had five even-strength points in his last four games prior to the injury.