Read Btwn Recap: Last Week in the NHL, Oct. 19-25

EASTERN CONFERENCE

Mackenzie’s Eastern Conference Stars of the Week: Jack Hughes (NJD): 5 G, 1 A, 6 P; 1 Hat Trick, 1 OTG; Emmitt Finnie (DET): 4 G, 2 A, 6 P; Pittsburgh Penguins (lol)

Metropolitan Division 

Pittsburgh Penguins (7-2-1)

Can we plan the parade yet? The Penguins are having a much better push at the moment, having won two of their three games last week and earning a point in the third. Two fantastic wins against the Canucks and Panthers are showing that the team’s calculated approach seen in their season opener may not have been a fluke. Evgeni Malkin leads the team in points at 16, with Sidney Crosby close behind at 14. This team isn’t dead in the water as many had predicted, so keep your eyes peeled. Caleb Jones (LBI) and Rickard Rakell have been added to IR.

Carolina Hurricanes (6-2-0)

The Hurricanes finally had their first real tests of the season last week, and, well, it didn’t go that well for them. A 4-1 loss to VGK, a shoot out win over the Avs, and a 3-2 loss to the Stars is not what fans of the Canes were hoping for. The team may look good against the bottom 16 teams but, right now, they’re not looking great when faced with too much pressure. They did bring out their Whalers jerseys early for a game against the Avs in their throwback jerseys, so that was cool. With only two home games this week, the team needs to look deeper into their #CarolinaCulture and find out what makes them a contender. Jacob SLavin (LBI) is on IR, as is Shayne Gostisbehere. Eric Robinson (UBI), William Carrier (LBI), and K’Andre Miller are all out. 

New York Rangers (3-5-2)

No one wants to “be a part of it” right now with this team. The team played two games last week, both against opponents they should have defeated. Instead, they lost 3-1 to the Wild on Monday at home (but at least they finally scored a goal) and handed the Sharks their first win of the season in overtime. Something isn’t right with the Rangers and they need to get it together before they find themselves with Gavin McKenna over the summer. Matt Rempe is out following a fight with Ryan Reaves during the Sharks game. 

New York Islanders (4-3-1)

The Isles continued their win streak, extending it to four games before losing in a shootout to the Flyers on Saturday. The win against San Jose was a bit tricky, but was a win nonetheless. Ilya Sorokin, while some may have doubts, is still the Isles top guy in net. A standout 7-2 win against the Red Wings shows that the Isles can produce and have more depth than possibly expected, at least in creating scoring chances. Overall, the team still needs to focus on their defense: Matthew Schaefer can’t play for all six defenders. Pierre Engvall (LBI) and Alexander Romanov (UBI) have been placed on IR. Max Shabanov is out. 

Columbus Blue Jackets (4-4-0)

The Blue Jackets had a good week, winning two of their three games. A 5-1 win against the Stars is the standout though. During the win, Boone Jenner had his 82nd multipoint game, slotting himself in second for most in franchise history. Elvis Merzlinkins took home first star of the week in the game, only allowing one goal from Dallas’ high-pressure offense. The team is even currently and will look to push past the .500 mark in two games this week. Miles Wood (UBI) is currently listed as out. 

Philadelphia Flyers (4-3-1)

The Flyers also had a good week, winning two of their three. The 2-1 loss to the Senators was a close fought game though, so no one should be too discouraged. A shootout winner from Trevor Zegras against the Islanders should propel the team into confidence before the Battle of Pennsylvania on Tuesday. The team looks confident with Rick Tocchet behind the bench and will hopefully be able to keep moving on up. 

Washington Capitals (6-3-0)

The Capitals split their week, winning two and losing two, all in regulation. The Caps are settling into their season well and look like they could continue their trajectory from last season. However, they are not standing out in any particular area. They, statistically, are a mediocre team right now. Alexander Ovechkin is on the hunt for goal 900 this week in the team’s two games, with the chance to score another milestone point against the Islanders. Dylan Strome and Rasmus Sandin are both out, with Sandin on IR.

New Jersey Devils (8-1-0)

Y’all. The Devils are on an eight game win streak currently. The team is alive, they’re scoring, and they look solid. Even with Cody Glass (UBI) and Brett Pesce sitting out of the lineup, the Devils are hot, hot, hot, and they know it. The team embarks on their first real roadtrip of the season this week and will face the Avs and Sharks again. The Avs will likely be hard to beat again, but New Jersey is not to be underestimated. Jack Hughes is lighting up the lamp, leading the team with eight goals and twelve points. 

Atlantic Division

Florida Panthers (5-5-0)

The Panthers are not having the start to the season they wanted coming off back-to-back Stanley Cup winning seasons. The team did win two of their games last week, but the vibes don’t feel great. In an emotional return to Boston for Brad Marchand, the team won 4-3, but considering how Boston has been looking, that differential should have been larger. Followed up by a 5-3 loss to the Pens, the Panthers are lucky they shut out Vegas when they did. Florida is plagued with the injury bug though. Brad Marchand is out for personal reasons, but Jonah Gajovich is out for at least a week. 

Boston Bruins (4-7-0)

The Bruins are currently at the bottom of the conference. The team only managed one win last week out of four games. A 7-5 loss to the Ducks probably stings the most though. After a strong start, this team has been confusing. Jeremy Swayman currently sits at .887 for save percentage and a horrifying 3.45 goals against average. If you need a good scare this Halloween week, perhaps turn on the Bruins broadcast. Hampus Lindholm was placed on IR last week. 

Toronto Maple Leafs (4-4-1)

Toronto, what do you want more: a World Series win or a working Leafs team, because it appears you may only select one. The Leafs are absolutely riddled with injuries right now, with Chris Tanev, Scott Laughton, and William Nylander out. Nylander is only day-to-day though. The Leafs don’t look bad, per se, but they aren’t looking great. Losses  to the Devils and Sabres were only marginally improved by a win against the Sabres, but the win came in overtime. The Leafs will look to bounce back against the Flames and Blue Jackets this week. In good news, though, Joseph Woll has resumed skating with the team and looks to be in good spirits. 

Ottawa Senators (5-4-1)

The Sens won two of their three games last week but earned points in all. Most impressively, perhaps, was the 7-1 win against the Caps on Saturday. The Senators currently sit second in the league for goals scored but have allowed the same number of goals against. The team is looking strong on the power play too, currently at the top of the rankings and at 35.1%. If the team can maintain this kind of offensive pressure, they should be sitting pretty. 

Montreal Canadiens (7-3-0)

Although the Canadiens split their week, it is not out of bounds to say: look out. The Habs’ offense is on fire, the defense looks solid, Jakub Dobes is sitting pretty at second in the league for goaltenders . . . all is well in Montreal. Even the loss to the Oilers was close, although they could have taken a few less penalties. Cole Caufield is still one of the top players to watch here. Kaiden Guhle (LBI) has been added to IR and Patrik Laine is out. 

Tampa Bay Lightning (3-4-2)

Tampa is not having the season they want so far and no one seems to understand why. The team lost to the Blackhawks 3-2 then won 4-3 against the Ducks. The team is at the bottom of the league in scoring and face-offs, somewhere in the middle for goals against and power play percentage, but they thankfully sit toward the top on the PK. The team should be able to win more games this week. Something needs to change here. 

Detroit Red Wings (6-3-0)

Unlike the Rangers, the Red Wings are starting off their centennial season on the right foot. Detroit also split their games last week. Rookie, Emmitt Finnie, has stood out, earning eight points in nine games, four goals and assists, and currently has a +7 rating. Cam Talbot is currently 21st in the league for goaltenders, so there is certainly room for improvement, but not all too much worry. Patrick Kane is still listed as out. 

Buffalo Sabres (4-4-1)

Considering the season’s outlook, Buffalo should be pleased with their performance so far. Earning points in three of four games last week, they have looked solid on the ice. The Sabres special teams are performing well. The penalty kill is currently at the top of the league, at 93.9% effective. Otherwise, statistically, they sit somewhere in the middle. Michael Kesselring (LBI) has been placed on IR. Jacob Bryson is day-to-day currently. 

WESTERN CONFERENCE

Breanna’s Western Conference Stars of the Week: Logan Cooley (UTA): 6G, 2A, 8 PTS, +5, Macklin Celebrini (SJS): 4G, 3A, 7 PTS, +2, Spencer Knight (CHI): 2-0-0, 1.47 GAA, .957 SV%

Central Division

Utah Mammoth (7-2-0)

Who would’ve thought the best team in the West was going to be the Mammoth? This week, Utah has rattled off four straight wins to extend their franchise record win streak to six games. In the wins against the Bruins, Avalanche, Blues and Wild, the Mammoth have outscored their opponents 20-11 and the power play is operating at over 40 percent! As the victories pile up, all eyes have been on Utah’s biggest stars. Over this four game span, Logan Cooley has collected eight points (6G, 2A) which includes recording the franchise’s first natural hat trick, Nick Schmaltz has recorded four goals and four assists, and Mikhail Sergachev (1G, 6A) and Clayton Keller (4G, 3A) have both contributed to the team’s success as well.

Colorado Avalanche (5-1-3)

The Avalanche were handed their first regulation loss of the season this past week, but it seems their luck has turned around. Colorado has lost three straight games, falling 4-3 in overtime to Utah, 5-4 in the shootout to Carolina, and 3-2 to the Bruins in a matinee matchup this past Saturday. The comedown was expected. The Avs have been playing Scott Wedgewood in pretty much every single game this season due to Mackenzie Blackwood, their usual starter, being out with a lower-body injury and now that the workload is catching up to Wedgewood, their next option is rookie Trent Miner. The power play has been abysmal during this stretch and even though the Avs are making it to the extra frame and beyond, they are yet to win an overtime/shootout game so they are missing out on important points.

Winnipeg Jets (6-2-0)

The Jets went 2-1-0 in their three games this week, but there wasn’t a whole lot of scoring happening. Winnipeg got a 2-1 win over the Flames, were shut out 3-0 by the Kraken, and got back in the win column with a 5-3 win over the Flames. The Jets have remained stellar on the PK, allowing just one goal on 12 opportunities and Josh Morrissey has been the star this week. Although Mark Scheifele has three points and Jonathan Toews leads the team with two goals in this stretch, Morrissey has collected four assists which saw him break the Jets/Thrashers franchise record for most career assists by a defenseman. Connor Hellebuyck, who went 1-1-0 in games this week, posted an amazing 1.00 goals against average and .966 save percentage so there’s no worries at all in net.

Chicago Blackhawks (4-2-2)

The Blackhawks only played two games this week and won both of them. They took down the Ducks 2-1 in overtime and then defeated the Lightning 3-2. Ryan Donato (3G, 1A) and Frank Nazar (2G, 1A) are leading the team in goals and points over this stretch, but a bright spot for Chicago this season has been their goaltender, Spencer Knight. In these last two games, Knight has won both contests, posting a 1.47 goals against average and .957 save percentage. He has been stellar in net for Chicago and remains an important part in the team’s improvement this season.

Nashville Predators (4-3-2)

Nashville dropped their fourth straight game 5-2 to the Ducks to start the week but then snapped their four game losing skid on Thursday by getting a 2-1 win over the Canucks. The Preds then picked up a 5-4 shootout win over the Kings and have found a little bit of their groove again. Ryan O’Reilly leads the team with three goals and five points over this three game span, followed closely by Filip Forsberg (2G, 1A) and Spencer Stastney (3A). However, the major loss of the week was that captain Roman Josi is week-to-week with an upper-body injury and those are big skates to fill on the blueline so we’ll see how the Predators adjust without him in the lineup for the foreseeable future. 

Dallas Stars (4-3-1)

The Stars have had a rough go recently, posting just a 1-1-1 record in their last three games. They fell 5-1 to the Blue Jackets, lost 3-2 in overtime against the Kings and then snapped their four game losing streak with a 3-2 win over the Hurricanes. The injury bug has seemingly hit the Dallas locker room as both Matt Duchene (upper-body) and Roope Hintz (undisclosed) have been ruled out of contests due to injuries and the loss of those players has clearly impacted the team. And weirdly enough, Jake Oettinger has not looked like himself this season. In these last three games, he went 1-1-1 and recorded a below .900 save percentage and a 3.03 goals against average. The Stars have a few “easy” upcoming opponents so they should be able to grab a few wins.

St. Louis Blues (3-4-1)

It isn’t going much better for the Blues lately either. St. Louis has lost three straight games and has been outscored 15-9 in that span. While their power play remains successful, the penalty kill has struggled and the goaltending has not been helpful. Only two players have scored multiple goals over the last three games (Buchnevich, Neighbours) and to make matters worse, Robert Thomas, who leads the team with four assists in this stretch, left Saturday's game against the Red Wings with an upper-body injury. There has been no update on his status, but that would be a huge loss for an already struggling Blues team. Wins are necessary to stay in competition even this early when it comes to the Central Division, so St. Louis needs to get the train back on the rails. 

Minnesota Wild (3-5-1)

The Wild got a 3-1 win over the Rangers to start the week, but then fell 4-1 to the Devils and then 6-2 to the Mammoth. Despite signing Kirill Kaprizov to the biggest contract in NHL history before the season started, the Wild’s star player has been relatively quiet to start the year and over these last three games, he only put up one goal and an assist. The Wild do return home to begin a six game homestand which will be nice considering the team has only played two games up until this point. Minnesota has to find some scoring to get back in the win column as they currently sit dead last in the Central.

Pacific Division

Vegas Golden Knights (5-1-2)

The Golden Knights remain atop the Pacific Division, but just barely. Vegas defeated Carolina 4-1 but were then shut out 3-0 by the Panthers. The penalty kill has remained perfect, but the power play has struggled, going 0-for-6 over these last two games. Along with the struggles on the ice, the Golden Knights have been experiencing some major injury issues. Captain Mark Stone was placed on injured reserve with a wrist injury and starting goaltender Adin Hill left the game against the Canes with a lower-body injury which has him listed as week-to-week. With a week ahead full of tough opponents, it might be a struggle for Vegas to remain in their current position in the Pacific.

If you are struggling with the recent decision the Golden Knights have made, here are some resources to use and organizations to support.

https://www.raliance.org/rape-crisis-centers/ 

https://rainn.org/help-and-healing/ 

https://canadianwomen.org/the-facts/sexual-assault-harassment/ 

https://www.thetrevorproject.org/resources/guide/how-to-support-lgbtq-survivors-of-sexual-violence/ 

Seattle Kraken (5-2-2)

It’s a pleasant, but welcome surprise to see the Kraken this high up in the division standings. Seattle went 2-2-0 this week, losing to the Flyers and Capitals before bouncing back and winning back-to-back games against the Jets and Oilers. The offense has seemingly kicked in for the Kraken, led by Jordan Eberle (4A) and Jade Schwartz (3G, 1A). Rookie Berkly Catton recorded his first career NHL points this week and has been a great addition to the roster. All three goaltenders saw action over the last four games and each of them posted an above .900 save percentage, which includes Joey Daccord’s shutout over the Jets. The only downfall is that Jared McCann, the team’s leading scorer for the last four seasons, has been placed on IR with a lower-body injury. But if it all keeps going well for the Kraken, it should be an exciting season!

Anaheim Ducks (4-3-1)

The Ducks have turned into a scoring machine! This past week, they took down the Capitals 5-2, defeated the Bruins 7-5 and then fell 4-3 to the Lightning. And while 15 goals over a three game stretch is impressive, Anaheim isn’t doing a whole lot to prevent the puck from going in their own net which can prove to be a problem. The offense has been led by Troy Terry who posted six points (3G, 3A) Mikael Granlund (2G, 3A) and Jacob Trouba (2G, 3A). The Ducks have one last game in their current four-game road trip before heading home to face off against the Red Wings, Devils and Panthers. The improvement the Ducks have made from just last season alone is pretty evident and they currently sit in a playoff spot.

Edmonton Oilers (4-4-1)

What is going on in Edmonton? The Oilers went 2-2-0 this week as they dropped a game to the Red Wings, followed by two wins over the Senators and Montreal before losing to the Kraken. The defense has seemingly been nonexistent as the Oilers have been outscored by a narrow 14-13 and once again, the goaltending tandem of Stuart Skinner and Calvin Pickard are proving they are not the recipe for success. The usual suspects of Leon Draisaitl (2G, 3A), Connor McDavid (1G, 3A) and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (1G, 3A) have been driving the offense with the defense chipping in big time on the scoresheet, but the lack of depth scoring might prove to be an issue. 

Los Angeles Kings (3-3-3)

Another surprise is how much the Kings are struggling to start the season. All three games Los Angeles played this week went to extra time with Adrian Kempe being the overtime hero in the wins over the Blues and Stars, but the Predators got the 5-4 win on Saturday. Kempe has been the bright spot, posting three goals and two assists over this three game stretch, while seven other players have chipped in with multiple points as well. The Kings have a mixed bag of upcoming opponents as some of the teams are also struggling, while others are playing extremely well so it’ll be interesting to see how the team fares with those upcoming matchups.

Vancouver Canucks (4-5-0)

Here we go again. The Canucks have the longest injury list in the NHL and have been struggling significantly to start the season. This week, they got a 4-3 win over the Capitals (a game where they held a 4-0 lead at one point), but then dropped three straight to the Penguins, Predators and Canadiens. In that three game losing streak, Vancouver was outscored 11-5 and granted they were missing Brock Boeser for the first due games, the lack of scoring is a little concerning. Over this week’s last four games, Conor Garland and Elias Pettersson both lead the team with two goals and three assists each. But with Teddy Blueger, Filip Chytil, Derek Forbort, Nils Hoglander and Jonathan Lekkerimaki all out with injuries, this team is struggling to score.

San Jose Sharks (1-5-2)

The Sharks got their first win of the season this week with a thrilling 6-5 overtime win over the Rangers! Macklin Celebrini, Will Smith and Michael Misa were all at the forefront of that win and even though the Sharks dropped their other two games of the week to the Islanders and then the Devils, there is hope for the team. San Jose is another team majorly struggling with their current goaltending tandem even though the defense hasn’t been stellar, but the young players are carrying this team to success. This week, Celebrini racked up seven points (4G, 3A) which includes his second career hat trick and five point game against the Rangers, William Eklund (1G, 3A) and Smith (2G, 2A) both recorded four points and Collin Graf (1G, 2A) and Misa (2A) found the scoresheet as well. The upcoming schedule won’t be easy for the Sharks, but they are playing well enough that they could secure a few wins.

Calgary Flames (1-7-1)

The Flames are dead last in the NHL which I don’t think anyone expected. Calgary lost all three games played this past week, falling to the Jets twice and the Canadiens. Their current losing streak sits at a whopping eight games. The biggest problem for the Flames is that the team just can’t score. Over the last three games, no player has more than one goal and two points. There’s no telling if the team finds success in the upcoming four game road trip, but something has to give if they want to have even a chance of making the playoffs this year.