The NHL was extra generous on giving Tuesday, with half of the ten-game slate hitting overtime and a couple of comebacks. The highlights were the Colorado Avalanche clawing back from a 4-0 deficit in the first period against the Buffalo Sabres to win 5-4 in regulation. The Florida Panthers came back from 3-1 against the Pittsburgh Penguins to force overtime but fell short 5-4. No deficit is ever too much in this era of the NHL.
Things I like
1.Patrik Laine is the most unlucky, talented player possibly ever. After having a strong start in Winnipeg, he was run out of town due to jealousy. He dealt with personal issues after landing in the worst-run franchise in the Colombus Blue Jackets. He finally was released and ended up with the Montreal Canadiens. He’s off to a strong start with two power-play goals in two games. I’m happy for him, and I hope this leads to a career resurgence.
2.The Winnipeg Jets have crashed back down to reality as I knew they would. They only have five wins in their last 13 games, and only two are against above-average teams. That’s not good. The next two games are against the Boston Bruins and Vegas Golden Knights, so expect losses.
Things I don’t
1.To stop the New York Rangers from crashing and burning further, they traded their captain in season for the third time in the last 15 years after sending Jacob Trouba to the Anaheim Ducks. The previous two captains ended up in Tampa Bay. It seems pointless to name a captain if you will trade him a few months or years later in the season. Trouba wasn’t lighting it up and had zero goals this season, and the Rangers have been slumping, but it didn’t seem to spark them. The Rangers are 6-9 in their last 15, which isn’t that awful. But they have lost seven of their last nine. They were up 3-1 against the Seattle Kraken but then gave up five unanswered. They did score two more to get within one before losing 7-6. I’m sure they’ll fire their coach next.
2.The Chicago Blackhawks made the second coach firing this season with the dismissal of Luke Richardson. I haven’t actually watched the Blackhawks play this season, so I probably shouldn’t comment on this, but I will anyway. I realize this is mostly due to Connor Bedard struggling, but this reminds me of the San Jose Sharks firing David Quinn. Your team is terrible. How can you expect him to win? In this case, the Blackhawks have Bedard and a few other players, but you still need more top picks, so winning doesn’t help. I realize you can’t tell the players not to win so you can amass picks, but that’s reality.
Fights of the Week
Special thanks to hockeyfights.com for making this section a little easier to do.
Cole Smith vs Zack Ostapchuk
Short but furious. It was slim pickings this week.
Goat of the Week
Rasmus Sandin - Washington Capitals
With all day to pass and many options available, Sandin passes directly to Tyler Toffoli, who scores a nice goal. The San Jose Sharks won in overtime.
https://www.nhl.com/video/sjs-wsh-toffoli-scores-goal-against-logan-thompson-6365496161112
Stat Line of the Week
12/05/24 Florida 7 vs. Philadelphia 5
| Skater | TOI | G | A | +/- | SOG | PPA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| M.Tkachuk | 17:57 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 3 |
The Florida Panthers scored 28 goals in a five-game span. The game against the Flyers was the last game in that span. Matthew Tkachuk dished out four assists, three on the power-play, and scored a power-play empty net goal. The Panthers had been up 3-0 before they found themselves down 5-4. Tkachuk has 15 points in his last six games.
Numbers, Numbers
23:31 – Time on ice for Nathan MacKinnon, first for forwards
5 – Players with five game-winning goals
42 – Points for league leader Kirill Kaprizov on pace for 131
10 – Power play goals for Brayden Point, first in the NHL
36.7 – Shooting percentage for Brayden Point, second overall
37.1 – Shooting percentage for Adam Gaudette, first overall
Rankings
The rankings are based on how the teams are currently playing.
Top 5
- Los Angeles
- Vegas
- Washington
- New Jersey
- Boston
Bottom 5
- Nashville
- Chicago
- Buffalo
- Detroit
- NY Islanders