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PHT Power Rankings: Ranking the Hurricanes’ victory celebrations

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The Carolina Hurricanes have been one of the hottest teams in the NHL over the past two weeks with wins in seven out of their past eight games. This little surge has allowed them to creep back to within four points of a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.

They obviously still have a long way to go, and based on where they are in the standings and the deficit they still have in front of them the odds are not in their favor. But they are at least hanging around and trying to make a run at it, and they are kind of fun to watch.

One of the reasons they have been so fun is because they have been the best team in the NHL this season when it comes to angering the old guy that likes to yell at clouds due to the way they celebrate their wins on home ice.

You know, stuff like this.

In the end, it doesn’t really matter what anybody else thinks of it because the players are obviously enjoying it, the fans are obviously enjoying it, and this is all supposed to be entertainment. If you can’t have fun when you’re winning then what the hell are we all doing here? What is the point of all of this?

Something different is good!

If I have one criticism of the whole thing it’s that they also don’t do it on the road to a chorus of boos from opposing fans. Let’s be honest here, a team from the south going into a place like, I don’t know, let’s say ... Toronto ... and doing this after a win would be pure comedy gold if only for the reactions it would cause.

Do it on the road you cowards!

With all of that in mind, this week’s PHT Power Rankings (one of our bi-weekly random rankings) will take a look at all of the Hurricanes’ victory celebrations.

All rankings are final.

1. Jan. 4 win vs. Columbus (Thor Hammer Strike)

This is the best one yet and I am not really sure there is a close contender at this point.

2. Nov. 23 win vs. Florida (The domino surge)

After doing the SKOL clap the Hurricanes line up staggered throughout the neutral zone and knock each other over like a bunch of dominoes. It’s different, it’s unique even for them, and to this point it is their best effort and most creative effort.

3. Jan. 11 win vs. Buffalo (Bowling for Hurricanes)

Captain Justin Williams goes bowling after a big win over the Buffalo Sabres. It is pretty self explanatory, but also pretty awesome. [Watch it here]

4. Dec. 31 win vs. Philadelphia (Putting the rookie in the net)

The Hurricanes are hoping that Andrei Svechnikov is going to put a lot of pucks in the net throughout his career. They celebrated their New Year’s Eve win over the Philadelphia Flyers by putting him in the net.

5. Oct. 8 and 10 wins vs. Vancouver and New York (The one that started it all)

There is always something to be said for the classics and the one that starts it all. You can see it in the video at the top.

6. Oct. 26 win vs. San Jose (Row the boat)

It starts off looking like the original, and then quickly escalates into something new. This is the first time we saw any sort of variation in the celebration. [Watch it here]

7. Nov. 18 win vs. New Jersey

This was when the celebrations really started to vary a little bit in terms of what they were doing instead of just a different variation of the original. It’s different. It’s good. But it’s not one of their best.

8. Dec. 23 win vs. Boston (Hello, Pucky the Whale)

Have to be honest here, am not really a fan of the celebration itself or the Hurricanes wearing Whalers gear. On the other hand, anything that involves Pucky The Whale is okay in my book. [Watch it here]

9. Dec. 16 win vs. Arizona (Ships passing in the night)

Half of the team lines up on one blue line, the other half lines up on the other, they do the SKOL clap, and then charge toward the glass at the opposite end of the rink, passing by each other. [Watch it here]

10. Nov. 21 win vs. Toronto (The one that made Brian Burke mad)

You just knew once they did this against a big-time original six team that the criticism would really start to come out, and that is exactly what happened when former Maple Leafs general manager Brian Burke referred to all of this as “pee-wee garbage stuff.” Instead of the entire team charging toward the end glass, they all split up and went throughout the rink. [Watch it here]

11. Nov. 12 win vs. Chicago

12. Jan. 13 vs. Nashville

Sunday’s win against Nashville featured a variation of their Dec. 16 celebration against the Arizona Coyotes with the team splitting up at opposite blue lines, and then shoulder bumping at center ice. It’s okay. It’s not great. Such a big win over a Stanley Cup contender probably deserved more. [Watch it here]

Adam Gretz is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @AGretz.