The NHL Goes Streaking

It’s early November, the time when most NHL teams are just getting their game together, except for the usual mediocre ones (cough, cough, Edmonton).  But for some reason, many teams in the NHL this season have decided to go on a streak (winning or losing).  As of November 8, 2010, 7 teams had a winning/losing streak of at least 4 games, and another 3 had streaks of 3 games.  Tied for the longest streak in the NHL right now is the impressive 7 game winning streak of the St. Louis Blues, who have surprised many by rocketing to 1st place in the league.  The next longest is held by the Vancouver Canucks, who have gone from 9th to 3rd place in the West thanks to a 6 game winning streak.  On the other hand, the New York Islanders have the longest losing streak, with 7 in a row down the drain.  Perhaps the most disappointing part about this is that before, the Isles looked like they just might put together a decent season for once.  Next is the Nashville Predators, who have dropped 5 in a row.  The Philadelphia Flyers had also won 6 games on a row, before they finally suffered a loss last night against the Washington Capitals.

The New York Islanders and the St. Louis Blues are tied for the longest streak in the NHL at the moment: The Blues have a 7 game winning streak going right now, while the Isles have lost a terrible 7 in a row

 

While winning streaks are great for NHL teams (not so much the losing variety), I find that plenty of people see a team on a streak and come to the  conclusion that that’s how that team is going to perform for the rest of the season.  Then when that team suddenly has their streak ended and do a complete 180, the fan has absolutely no idea what just happened.  Perhaps the best example of this in recent memory is the Vancouver Canucks’ dismal 10 game losing streak in 08-09.  The Canucks had dropped a significant number of places in the standings, and were on the outside looking in at the playoff teams.  They then promptly decided that enough was enough and went on to have 4 4-game winning streaks in a row to win the Northwest Division and make it to the playoffs.  So I say again, it’s early in the season, and don’t invest too much on a team that is really hot at the moment.  You can bet that after 82 games, they’ll probably be in a much different position.  That is to say, don’t bet your life savings on the St. Louis Blues winning the President’s Trophy.