The New Jersey Devils celebrate during a game against the Minnesota Wild. (Andrew Mordzynski/GettyImages)

The NHL has entered Week 7, and the status quo has been shaken.

The Edmonton Oilers are notably absent from dominance in the Pacific Division, the New Jersey Devils have ran the Metro and the Toronto Maple Leafs have looked like a shell of their former selves. Notably, the Colorado Avalanche currently run the show in the West. The Chicago Blackhawks and San Jose Sharks, two teams that finished in the bottom of their divisions last year, have made massive strides in improvement.

Let us talk about some of these teams and the players behind them.

Colorado Avalanche

Record: 13-1-5 | Points: 31

Center Nathan MacKinnon is a serious contender for the Art Ross Trophy this year, as he leads the league in points (33). The Avalanche are currently a powerhouse with the recent return of their captain, forward Gabriel Landeskog. They also have All-Star defenseman Cale Makar at the blue line who currently has six goals, 19 assists for a total of 25 points and a +17 rating. Makar currently leads the league in points by a defenseman. It is too early to predict now, but this is a team that I could see in the playoffs with the Presidents’ Trophy.

Edmonton Oilers

Record: 9-8-4 | Points: 22

The Oilers are such an interesting hockey club. They have made it to the Stanley Cup Final in back-to-back years only to lose both times and are currently in the fight for a Wild Card spot in the Western Conference. Center Connor McDavid is almost objectively the most gifted player in the league and is second in the league in points with 33 (nine goals and 21 assists). Yet, the Oilers have struggled early into the season. Stuart Skinner, Edmonton’s goaltender, has received his fair share of criticism from NHL fans in his career, and he has not been hot this season either. He has a win-loss of 7-8 with a GAA of 2.86 and a below average save percentage of .889. Their defense has also been sloppy, as their premier defenseman, Evan Bouchard, already has 31 turnovers. While Bouchard is definitely more valuable as an offensive defensemen with three goals and 13 assists, he has to step it up on the defensive side of things. Bouchard is one of the highest-paid blueliners in the league, with an average annual value of $10.5 million for four years. McDavid maybe capable of some magic, but he can not do everything by himself.

New Jersey Devils

Record: 13-4-1 | Points: 27

The Devils have been one of the hottest teams in the league, but the hot streak is likely to come to an end soon with the recent injury of franchise player Jack Hughes. He had 10 goals and 10 assists so far on the season but will be out for eight weeks due to a “freak accident” at a team dinner which required surgery on his finger. Reportedly, he leaned on some glass and it broke, which led to a cut. Hughes might be the closest thing in the NHL to a glass cannon, as he is no stranger to injury. The Devils will have to rely on other prominent players like left wing Jesper Bratt, defenseman Luke Hughes and defenseman Simon Nemec if they want to remain in playoff contention.

Toronto Maple Leafs

Record: 8-9-2 | Points: 18

It must be hard being a Toronto fan. Between the Game 7 loss for their MLB team, the Toronto Blue Jays, the 58 year Stanley Cup drought and constant chokes in the playoffs from the Leafs, life is not fun for the Toronto sports fan. Toronto is currently tied for the worst team in the Eastern Conference with the Buffalo Sabres–the other team everyone in the NHL makes fun of ironically enough. The Leafs currently appear to be a hospital bay with captain and star center Auston Matthews, defenseman Chris Tanev, center Nicolas Roy and goaltender Anthony Stolarz all being injured. This team has struggled, but with it being so early into the season, I could definitely see them turning things around and finding their way to a playoff spot by the end of the year.