NHL Playoff Power Rankings: The Final Seven Standings

The playoff field has been trimmed to seven, and the margin for error is gone. These rankings are less about raw talent now and more about who can survive the grind when every shift starts to feel like a test. The teams left standing are all dangerous, but the hierarchy still matters because one hot goalie, one bruised blue line, or one stale power play can flip the whole bracket. This is where the pretty numbers stop and the survival story really starts.