The Bruins are 25 games away from the season’s finish line, but we are far from knowing their fate. Yes, they are a more flawed team than we’ve seen here in a decade, but the teams around them vying for a wild card spot will never be confused with the ‘77 Canadiens. It feels like the last team with a three-game win streak will get that final Eastern Conference spot. Competition for the final spots in the West is not quit as fierce, but it’s not settled either.

As the NHL takes a break from league games for the Four Nations Faceoff, let’s take a look at the current Herald Power Rankings:

1. Winnipeg Jets – Of any Canadian team that could break the Stanley Cup drought that dates to 1993, the Jets seem the most capable. Big, strong, skilled and in possession of the NHL’s best goalie at the moment, the Jets seem built to win it all.

2. Washington Capitals – Spencer Carbery has to be the frontrunner for the Jack Adams Award. The Caps looked like a franchise on the wane before he took over last season. Now they’re as good as any team in grinding out tough wins. And they should be adding Ryan Leonard in April.

3. Florida Panthers – The league standings say the defending Cup champs are the sixth best team. We’re not buying that.

4. Edmonton Oilers – Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl are both perennial Hart Trophy candidates, but they could use another rugged D-man and maybe even another goalie just in case Stuart Skinner falters.

5. Dallas Stars – The Miro Heiskanen injury is a concern for an otherwise solid team.

6. Vegas Golden Knights – Bruce Cassidy’s team has the talent to win it all, though at times the Knights seem to be just biding their time in the regular season. The goaltending is average, however.

7. Carolina Hurricanes – It may take a little while for the massive Mikko Rantanen addition to take hold. But if the Canes are to really break through, they’ve got to do something about their road mediocrity (12-13-3).

8. Toronto Maple Leafs – Every time I think the Leafs are different – and you think they would be under Craig Berube – they refuse to take that step forward.

9. Minnesota Wild – The Wild are toothless without Kirill Kaprizov, who is on LTIR with a lower body injury. He’s eligible to come off it on March 2, when the B’s are in St. Paul.

10. New Jersey Devils – Whether or not this is the year Tom Fitzgerald’s team takes a giant step into the elite echelon, they’re at least doing a much better job of keeping the puck out of their own net. They’ve gone from 26th last year to second in goals against.

11. Colorado Avalanche – Martin Necas has proven to be a great fit after his ugly minus-3 Avs debut in Boston, but Colorado is still depth-challenged.

12. Tampa Bay Lightning – While everyone was sleeping on the Bolts, they ripped off four straight wins and pulled to within two points of the Leafs for second place in the Atlantic.

13. Vancouver Canucks – Though the Canucks have a minus-11 goal differential, finally parting ways with J.T. Miller has helped the vibe. They won their last three before the break.

14. Los Angeles Kings – They’re a tough out in LA, but their 12-14-2 road record makes me doubt they’re a legitimate contender.

15. Detroit Red Wings – They dropped their last game before the break, but they’ve been a different team since Todd McLellan took over.

16. Ottawa Senators – Just when you think the Sens are about to blossom, they go and lose three straight before the break. They’re still too mercurial.

17. Columbus Blue Jackets – If there is a team to root for, this is the one with all it has been through. Zach Werenski may forever play Brad Park to Cale Makar’s Bobby Orr when it comes to the Norris, but he’s having a monster season.

18. Calgary Flames – Somehow, some way, the Flames remain very much in the hunt. The addition of Joel Farabee and Morgan Frost is intriguing.

19. New York Rangers – Just as the Canucks are improved by J.T. Miller’s removal, the Rangers have been enriched by his addition. Of all the teams vying for an Eastern Conference wild card, the Blueshirts are the most talented.

20. Boston Bruins – They have a minus-25 goal differential and a 1-8-1 road record since the Christmas break. Hampus Lindholm returning will help, but one player can’t fix all that.

21. New York Islanders – The once-floundering Isles’ win over the Bruins at the Garden on Jan. 5 started an 11-3 run that got them back in the race. Not sure they can stay in it.

22. Utah Hockey Club – The former Coyotes are getting closer, but they’re still not there.

23. St. Louis Blues – Jim Montgomery is a very good coach. He’s not a miracle worker.

24. Montreal Canadiens – The Habs’ run into wild card relevancy seemed just a tad ahead of schedule. And it was.

25. Philadelphia Flyers – The Flyers are still in team-building mode and the shipping out of money (Farabee’s $5 million a year) and a potentially large contract (Frost is a pending RFA) signals that.

26. Pittsburgh Penguins – The Pens have enough talent to give even good teams some trouble. They just don’t do it very often.

27. Anaheim Ducks – The Ducks are not a great team, but at 24-24-6 they’re not the pushovers that they once were. They visit the B’s on the first game after the Four Nations break.

28. Buffalo Sabres – The Sabres are headed for their 14th straight DNQ. So, you really want to blow it up, Bruins fans?

29. Seattle Kraken – Unlike the Golden Knights, the expansion Kraken have not played their hand perfectly. Not qualifying Morgan Geekie sure seems like a miss.

30. Nashville Predators – There will be a lot of money coming into the system over the next three years but the Preds are a cautionary tale. Building a team through free agency is not as easy as it sounds.

31. Chicago Blackhawks – The addition of some aged vets has not helped move the needle much. Connor Bedard needs another dynamic young player with whom he can grow, much like Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews did.

32. San Jose Sharks – Macklin Celebrini has made Sharks the most fun bad team to watch, but the minus-68 goal differential says they have a long uphill climb.