THE TIMES’ RANKINGS: Top To Bottom

Team (record) Comment (last week’s rank)

1. Detroit (24-9-8): Hitting stride in 5-0-2 streak.

2. New Jersey (25-10-2): Impressive in 8-1-2 surge.

3. Colorado (20-8-12): Forsberg, Roy star in 4-0-3 streak.

4. Dallas (25-9-6): Stars keep rolling with 4-0-1 streak.

5. St. Louis (22-14-6): Will press for goals without Hull.

6. Philadelphia (21-10-7): Lindros, LeClair could use help.

7. Pittsburgh (20-12-8): Jagr’s groin pull a real pain.

8. Montreal (20-15-6): Still sluggish offensively.

9. Ottawa (18-17-4): Wins in four of five a nice recovery.

10. Phoenix (17-16-7): Do they have their act together?

11. Boston (17-16-6): Lack of depth shows in 1-4-1 slide.

12. Washington (17-15-8): Wilson must stop 2-5-4 skid.

13. Kings (16-16-6): Big guns must step up and produce.

14. Chicago (13-18-7): Defense excels in 3-1-1 push.

15. San Jose (14-20-4): Sharks show teeth in 5-2-2 run.

16. Ducks (13-19-7): Kariya might regret returning.

17. N.Y. Rangers (12-17-12): Underachievers of the year.

18. Florida (14-20-5): Signs of life, win three of five.

19. Buffalo (13-19-6): Last three wins were shutouts.

20. N.Y. Islanders (15-19-5): Big trade might be imminent.

21. Carolina (14-20-5): Offense slows in 2-7-1 slump.

22. Edmonton (11-19-9): Season’s biggest disappointment.

23. Calgary (11-22-8): Roloson stands tall against Flyers.

24. Toronto (13-19-5): Swamped, 12-1, in two against Detroit.

25. Vancouver (11-22-6): Should be doing more offensively.

26. Tampa Bay (8-23-7): Lack of big deals a big deal.

ST. LOUIS AT DETROIT

* When--Wednesday, 4:30 p.m.

* TV--ESPN.

* Storyline--The Blues remained competitive while Pierre Turgeon recovered from a broken arm, but their resources will be stretched during the absence of Brett Hull, who had surgery Sunday to repair a broken bone in his left hand. Can castoffs Craig Conroy, Blair Atcheynum and Scott Pellerin keep carrying them? Detroit’s Scotty Bowman, who recently became the first coach to win 200 games with three teams, has done a masterful job this season without Conn Smythe-winning goalie Mike Vernon (trade), top defenseman Vladimir Konstantinov (car accident) and two-time Selke Trophy winner Sergei Fedorov (unsigned free agent). His job has been made easier by right wing Kirk Maltby, who has five goals in his last four games.