What a game between the Boston Bruins and Pittsburgh Penguins. The Bruins jumped out to a 2-1 lead and then came the second period. The Penguins scored four unanswered goals, then the Bruins called a timeout and made a goalie change. The Bruins scored about 27 seconds later, but the Penguins challenged for goalie interference and won because they are undefeated in challenges. The Bruins scored again to make it a five-goal third. Jeremy Swayman got injured when Patrice Bergeron rammed into him, forcing Linus Ullmark to return, awkward. Ullmark didn't allow any more goals either, as he remained undefeated. The Bruins tied the game with about a minute left and then won it in overtime when Hampus Lindholm went coast to coast like butter on toast. That's two weeks in a row with a coast-to-coast overtime goal.
It's only the Bruins' third win in ten years after being down three goals.
They followed up with a win against the New York Rangers, where they outshot them 17-4 in the third period, something that's almost impossible to do since the trailing team almost always outshoots the leading team.
But they had their seven-game winning streak snapped by their archrival Toronto Maple Leafs. I'm dying for a second-round playoff match-up between these two.
Yup, I talked about the Bruins again.
Things I like
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The Buffalo Sabres rebuild appears to be ahead of schedule. Although they last made the playoffs in 2011, so maybe they're behind. Tage Thompson has been the biggest surprise. Following his breakout season last year, he's been on fire this season with 14 points in 11 games, including a six-point effort against the Detroit Red Wings. The last Sabre to score six points in a game was Pat LaFontaine. The Sabres have a great nucleus for once, with nine players having at least seven points and five in double digits. This doesn't include 21-year-old Jack Quinn, who will probably break out next season.
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I haven't been high on Connor Hellebuyck or the Winnipeg Jets recently, but both are off to great starts. Hellebuyck recorded his second shutout and is now tied for the NHL lead while posting the best numbers of his career, and the Jets are tied for the NHL lead in fewest goals allowed. Josh Morrissey, Pierre-Luc Dubois, and their first-round pick in 2020, Cole Perfetti, are off to great starts. It's unlikely they'll stay in second place in the central, but Jets fans will take it after last season.
Things I don't
- Three potential playoff teams are mired in losing streaks and languishing at the bottom of the standings. The Penguins have lost seven in a row, the Senators five, and the Blues six. The Senators' recent losses have all been close. They're young, have a lot of new pieces, and Cam Talbot just started his first game back from injury. They'll be okay. The Penguins' recent losses have been close, but their first four were not. There's a lot of talent, so I wouldn't panic, but you have to wonder if it hits double digits. The Blues are the most concerning after starting out 3-0 because they've just kept getting blown out. They're also the lowest-scoring team in the NHL, which is odd since they're so deep. Their next game is in Boston, so that won't help.
Fights of the Week
Special thanks to hockeyfights.com for making this section a little easier to do.
Barclay Goodrow vs. Trent Frederic and Braden Schneider vs. A.J. Greer
It's a twofer! Both are decent but short.
Nathan Beaulieu vs Jonah Gadjovich
For those that enjoy methodical fights.
Goat of the Week
Kevin Fiala - Los Angeles Kings
You can't necessarily fault Fiala as the puck was bouncing, but you do question why he didn't play it with his stick while trapping it with his body. If you decide to play it with your hand, you certainly can't miss it. But he did, and the Blackhawks had an easy game-winner since the other Kings went the other way.
Stat Line of the Week
11/03/22 Vancouver 8 vs. Anaheim 5
| Skater | TOI | G | A | +/- | SOG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A.Kuzmenko | 16:38 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 1 |
Andrei Kuzmenko is a KHL player making his NHL debut at the ripe age of 26. He scored his first hat trick in the third period and added an assist to up his total to nine points in his last five games and eleven on the season. The Canucks may have unearthed a hidden gem. Elias Pettersson chipped in a goal and four assists. The Canucks are still struggling, but they were great offensively this night.
Numbers, Numbers
900 – Career NHL assists for Sidney Crosby, sixth fastest to get there 300 – Career NHL goals for Claude Giroux 4 – Game win streak for the Seattle Kraken, the longest in franchise history 8 – Hat tricks this week 19 – Points for Erik Karlsson, first in defensemen scoring and top five overall but still a bad trade 6 – Game goal streak for Nikita Kucherov 7 – Seconds between the game-tying and winning goals for the New Jersey Devils over the Edmonton Oilers
Rankings
The rankings are based on how the teams are currently playing.
Top 5
- Boston
- New Jersey
- Vegas
- Carolina
- Dallas
Bottom 5
- Columbus
- St. Louis
- San Jose
- Ottawa
- Pittsburgh