With more than a full month of the NHL season in the books, it’s time for the first installment of the 2024-25 Herald Power Rankings. And unlike in past years, you’ll have to do some scrolling/scanning to find your Bruins. There is good news, though. As underwhelming as the B’s have been, no one is really running away with anything just yet. A three-game win streak – something that remains elusive to the B’s – can change the whole complexion of the race for the playoffs.

Here’s the opening look-in to the league (Friday’s results not included):

1. Winnipeg Jets – They took a hit in Tampa on Thursday, but 15-2 is still pretty good. And as we know here, this kind of record-setting start guarantees a long playoff run.

2. Minnesota Wild – The Wild may still be carrying a lot of dead money for one more year, but it hasn’t weighed the club down so far.

3. New Jersey Devils – Call me impressed by the back-to-back beat-downs of the Stanley Cup champions.

4. Carolina Hurricanes – A lot of observers – this one included – thought the Canes would take a step back with the losses they suffered in the offseason. So far, we were wrong.

5. Florida Panthers – The champs suffered a sizable comeuppance this week at the hands of the Devils, but they looked just fine until then.

6. Vegas Golden Knights – Bruce Cassidy’s team is off to a strong start. What a surprise.

7. Dallas Stars – Maybe it’s recency bias formed through the eyes of a Bruin watcher, but the Stars look like the real deal.

8. New York Rangers – The Blueshirts have not been top-tier, where their fans believe they should be, but they’ve been OK.

9. Toronto Maple Leafs – A good road comeback win over the previously insurgent Capitals was a good sign. With Auston Matthews out, they’ve managed to keep their heads above water.

10. Washington Capitals – The Caps surprisingly managed to pull out all the close games last year. Now they expect more of themselves.

11. Vancouver Canucks – Jake DeBrusk and Danton Heinen may not be ripping it up just yet in Van, but the Bruins West have looked better than the Bruins East.

12. Los Angeles Kings – When Drew Doughty went down in the preseason, that seemed like the death knell for LA. It wasn’t.

13. Edmonton Oilers – Could be only a matter of time before last year’s runner-ups flip the switch again. That they keep losing the switch is maddening.

14. Tampa Bay Lightning – They’re not what they once were, but the troika of Nikita Kucherov, Victor Hedman and Andrei Vasilevskiy make them a tough out every night.

15. Colorado Avalanche –The Avs have endured some key injuries and, with three straight wins, could be ready to climb.

16. Calgary Flames – There are a lot teams that are tough to get excited about. This is one.

17. New York Islanders – Ditto.

18. Ottawa Senators – They keep hitting potholes but it does feel like there is finally some forward momentum for this team.

19. Utah Hockey Club – Now that there are some real building blocks on the roster, it would be nice if they came up with a freakin’ name for their team.

20. Boston Bruins – In 18 games, the B’s have just five regulation wins and they have a minus-16 goal differential. They’ll be hard-pressed to make the playoffs. And that’s not what was expected.

21. Buffalo Sabres – They remain a cautionary tale for those who want to blow it up and tank the season.

22. Detroit Red Wings – A third team that’s not doing much for the reputation of the vaunted Atlantic Division.

23. Seattle Kraken – The expansion team is proving it’s not quite the Golden Knights Redux.

24. Philadelphia Flyers – It’s a familiar refrain in Philly, but the goaltending is problematic.

25. St. Louis Blues – As we saw earlier this week, the Blues are a pretty fragile team right now.

26. Pittsburgh Penguins – Kyle Dubas already began selling off some parts this week, moving Lars Eller back to Washington.

27. San Jose Sharks – The Sharks actually have a winning record in their last 10 games (5-4-1).

28. Chicago Blackhawks – Rebuilding is not easy.

29. Nashville Predators – As with the Bruins, the offseason shopping spree has not paid any dividends.

30. Columbus Blue Jackets – It’s easy to root for the Jackets with the tragedy they’ve endured, but they just don’t have the horses.

31. Anaheim Ducks – The kids aren’t all alright. Trevor Zegras had just a goal and two assists and Cutter Gauthier was still looking for his first NHL goal going into Friday’s game.

32. Montreal Canadiens – Count me as someone who had thought the Habs would be farther along in their rebuild by now.