NHL TOP TO BOTTOM

1. Colorado (28-8-8-1) Four all-star starters.

2. New Jersey (22-11-9) Last loss Dec. 16 (7-0-4).

3. St. Louis (29-9-4-1) Kids picking up the slack.

4. Detroit (26-13-4-4) Defense keys 5-0-1-1 stretch.

5. San Jose (26-12-6) Can’t explain loss to Nashville.

6. Ottawa (24-13-6) Oilers end five-game win streak.

7. Dallas (25-14-4-1) Eagle flies back into coop.

8. Vancouver (24-13-4-4) Goalie controversy brewing?

9. Toronto (21-14-7-3) Doing it without defense.

10. Philadelphia (21-14-9) Goalie Cechmanek on 9-0-3 run.

11. Pittsburgh (21-17-6-1) Lemieux getting bruised.

12. Kings (19-17-7-1) Storr’s turn in goal.

13. Buffalo (22-15-5-1) Players want Peca, bosses don’t.

14. Edmonton (21-19-6-1) Roussel gives Salo a break.

15. Phoenix (19-13-11-1) Still no excuse for loss at Montreal.

16. Washington (20-16-8-1) Check out home record.

17. Carolina (18-16-6-2) 7-0-1 on Tobacco Road.

18. Boston (17-17-6-4) In playoff hunt with Keenan.

19. Chicago (18-20-4-2) Thibault answers Smith’s cut.

20. Calgary (15-18-8-4) Can’t quite climb .500 mountain.

21. Nashville (17-21-7-1) Big wins are on the road.

22. N.Y. Rangers (17-24-2-1) Fewer hitters than Original Mets.

23. Atlanta (15-20-8-1) Reach .500, then 0-6-2.

24. Mighty Ducks (14-23-6-4) Giguere goes to goalie school.

25. Minnesota (14-21-8-2) Road no help.

26. Montreal (14-25--4-2) In market for Audette?

27. Tampa Bay (13-23-5-2) Lecavalier out up to a month.

28. Columbus (14-26-4-2) Tugnutt’s return helps a bit.

29. N.Y. Islanders (12-26-4-2) Like old days vs. Lemieux

30. Florida (9-22-8-6) Niedermayer, Pitlick fight each other.

Game of the Week

VANCOUVER AT COLORADO

* When--Thursday. * Time--6 PST. * TV--None.

* Storyline--Marc Crawford, who has Vancouver playing at a playoff pace with a reduced payroll, goes back to the city where he coached the Avalanche to the Stanley Cup. And the Canucks, a high-scoring bunch who never met a shot they didn’t like, tangle with Patrick Roy, the winningest goalie in NHL history and one prone to give up goals, if not losses. Crawford knows Roy well so watch for pressure when the goalie handles (or, in Roy’s case, frequently mishandles) the puck.