Morning Notes: Gallant, Dallas, Carlson, Polak
When the Dallas Stars snatched up Ken Hitchcock this morning just days after firing Lindy Ruff, it took away one of the veteran options the Vegas Golden Knights could have considered for their head coaching job. Bob McKenzie of TSN tweets that with the Dallas vacancy filled, Gerard Gallant should be considered a front-runner for the Golden Knights job.
Gallant was fired from the Florida Panthers early in the year to the dismay of much of the hockey world, a decision that seems regrettable now that Tom Rowe has also been relieved of his duties in the sunshine state. Gallant has been considered an excellent head coach for years, though his actual record isn’t awe-inspiring. In the three years he’s made it through a full season, he’s only taken his team to the playoffs once and holds a career 152-140 record in the regular season.
- The Dallas staff will have an entirely different look next year, as the entire coaching staff save Curt Fraser have been let go according to Andy Strickland of Fox Sports. Even Fraser could be let go, but will have a discussion with Hitchcock in the next few days. The former Atlanta Thrashers head coach, Fraser has been with the Stars for five seasons, longer even than Ruff.
- John Carlson was back at Washington Capitals practice today and skating on the top unit with Karl Alzner according to Isabelle Khurshudyan of the Washington Post. He was previously listed as probable for the game, but as Khurshudyan puts it now “he’s playing, y’all”.
- The Maple Leafs on the other hand, first-round opponents of the Capitals, had Roman Polak back at practice today after leaving their final game with a lower-body injury. Perhaps more importantly though, rookie defender Nikita Zaitsev was absent once again. Zaitsev took a hard hit from Nick Foligno and was diagnosed with an upper-body injury.
East Notes: Tatar, Stephenson, Sparks, Lindgren
Ken Holland has a lot of work cut out for him this summer, even if he did get a vote of confidence from the Red Wings owner today. With a team struggling to get anything going during the season, he broke some more bad news today at their final presser of the year. According to Ted Kulfan of The Detroit News, Holland said that Tomas Tatar will be out 4-6 months following shoulder surgery, putting training camp and the start of the season in jeopardy.
Tatar had 46 points this season and his third straight twenty-goal campaign, but couldn’t help the Red Wings continue their playoff streak. The 26-year old is one of the more interesting names to follow in the summer, as he is a restricted free agent and may be one of the best chips the Red Wings have in a potential rebuild. His injury doesn’t help that, as teams will be wary of acquiring a player who needs that much rehab. He made just $2.75MM this season, but will command a heft raise after three straight 45+ point seasons.
- The Washington Capitals have sent Chandler Stephenson down to the Hershey Bears, as they finalize their roster before the first round series against the Toronto Maple Leafs. Stephenson suited up for just four games this season, and has yet to find a way to crack into the Capitals lineup on a full-time basis. The 22-year old center has 38 points in 71 games this season in the AHL, but is still waiting for his first NHL point.
- The Maple Leafs sent Garret Sparks back to the minors as Frederik Andersen returned to practice and is expected to play game 1 on Thursday. Sparks never did get a chance to start a game for the Maple Leafs this season, despite an excellent season in the AHL. His .926 save percentage was among the minor league leaders, and bodes well for his chances at a backup position this summer. Curtis McElhinney, the Maple Leafs current backup, is an unrestricted free agent this summer.
- The Leafs also dipped into their unsigned prospect pool, signing Jesper Lindgren to an amateur tryout after his season ended with MODO of the Swedish junior league. Lindgren is another small defender who has offensive upside, as he showed with 24 points in 50 games this season.
Playoff Notes: Leafs, Dansk, Pacioretty
The Toronto Maple Leafs were back on the ice today to prepare for their Thursday night matchup against the Washington Capitals, and as expected had Frederik Andersen in the net. What they didn’t have, was many defenders in front of him as both Roman Polak and Nikita Zaitsev—who suffered injuries in the final game of the season against Columbus—were absent. Tyler Bozak and Nikita Soshnikov were also both nowhere to be seen, though Bozak is still expected to play.
It’s not clear if the two defenders are actually out or just staying off the ice, as the Maple Leafs have not made a call-up from the minors to replace them. Instead, Josh Leivo was skating as the sixth defender; something that will definitely not be in the plans for game 1. For a team that faced almost no injury controversy during the season, the past few weeks have been a trying period with multiple head injuries for Andersen and now two key defenders out. They’ll need all hands on deck if they want to beat the President’s Trophy winning Capitals.
- The Columbus Blue Jackets gave an entire fan base a heart attack this morning when they announced a call up of goaltender Oscar Dansk. The minor league netminder isn’t up to replace any injury though, just to serve as the team’s third goaltender through the playoffs. Both Sergei Bobrovsky and Joonas Korpisalo are healthy and ready to lead the Blue Jackets against their opponents, the Pittsburgh Penguins.
- Max Pacioretty left Montreal practice today after taking either a stick or a puck to the face according to Eric Engels of Sportsnet. While there is no report yet on the severity, it would be hard to see Pacioretty sit out game one for any laceration or dental injury. Engels also reports that it will be Brian Flynn, Torey Mitchell and Michael McCarron scratched for the opener, meaning it will indeed be Steve Ott centering the fourth line alongside Alex Galchenyuk.
- Evgeni Malkin was back into the line rushes at Penguins practice according to Dan Rosen of NHL.com. The superstar center has been aiming for a game 1 return for a while, and it looks like he’ll be ready to go. Centering Bryan Rust and Phil Kessel, getting Malkin back is a huge factor for the Penguins who continue to get healthy at the right time—that is, other than Kris Letang who will miss the entire playoffs.
Toronto Maple Leafs Rookie Bonuses May Impact Offseason Flexibility
Though the Toronto Maple Leafs and their crop of rookie talent has been one of the most exciting story lines this year, the impressive season each of them has had may negatively impact the team’s ability this summer. As reported by Chris Johnston of Sportsnet, the team will pay out a minimum of $5.37MM in entry-level bonuses this season, most notably to Auston Matthews who earned a whopping $2.85MM extra. The team could have to pay $5.5MM should Nikita Zaitsev be named to the all-rookie team, with his main competition being the Rangers’ Brady Skjei and Flyers’ Ivan Provorov assuming Zach Werenski gets the first defenseman spot. 
Johnston outlined the bonuses earlier this year, noting that because the Maple Leafs finished the season roughly $178K under the cap (according to CapFriendly), more than $5MM will be carried over to next year’s cap in the form of an overage. The problem that poses is that teams must be salary cap compliant before the season starts, and before any player can be put on LTIR. Despite Stephane Robidas coming off the books for the Maple Leafs, the team still has $10.55MM tied up in Nathan Horton and Joffrey Lupul, and another $2.53MM locked up in Phil Kessel and Tim Gleason (retained salary and buyout respectively). That means nearly $20MM of the rumored ~$76MM cap will be consumed in dead money this summer for the Maple Leafs, not giving them much flexibility to improve the team.
Three of those rookies—Zach Hyman, Connor Brown and Zaitsev—will be restricted free agents this summer, and all deserve hefty raises from the sub-$1MM cap hits they had this season. Zaitsev in particular has reportedly agreed to a new deal that will pay him $4.5MM per season, eating a good chunk of the money the Maple Leafs will have to play with. With a backup goaltender and another defenseman on the shopping list, the team won’t have a lot of cap space to use in the summer, but will have a ton come the season. It’s an odd situation they find themselves in, but one their management team should be able to work their way out of. It is important to note that any team is allowed to be up to 10% over the cap at any point during the summer, but must be back down by the last day of training camp.
If there is anyone around the league who you’d be willing to bet has a way out of this situation, it’s “Loophole” Lou Lamoriello, who has made a name for decades finding ways around salary issues. After such a successful season—regardless of whether they get past the Washington Capitals in round one—the Maple Leafs will be one of the more interesting teams to watch this summer and leading up to the expansion draft. Perhaps Vegas will be one of the ways they shed a contract, making a deal with the Golden Knights to take someone like Eric Fehr off their hands. Regardless, someone will likely be moved out this summer to give them a little bit of breathing room and perhaps a chance to take a run at one of the big free agents.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
Minor Transactions: 04/10/17
The 2016-17 regular season wrapped up last night with a few exciting finishes including Connor McDavid getting his 100th point, Bryan Bickell scoring a shootout goal in his final game, and Riley Sheahan finally scoring a goal (or two) this season, giving Joe Louis Arena a nice send off. Today, teams are making several roster moves to either prepare for the playoffs or give their AHL squads a fighting chance.
We’ll keep track of all the moves right here:
- The Washington Capitals will head into their first round series against the Toronto Maple Leafs without Garrett Mitchell, as the rookie forward was sent back down to the AHL. The 25-year old was given his NHL debut on Sunday night as a reward for his exemplary service for their minor-league club. A sixth-round pick back in 2009, Mitchell has served as an alternate captain for the past two years and developed a leadership role for the Hershey Bears.
- Ottawa has sent Andreas Englund and Nick Paul back to the AHL now that they are ready to take on the Boston Bruins. Englund has played five games for the Sens this season, but with the impending return of Erik Karlsson will not stick around for the playoffs.
- The Islanders, eliminated on Saturday by a Maple Leafs win, have assigned Josh Ho-Sang, Adam Pelech and Connor Jones to the AHL for the Bridgeport Sound Tigers playoff push. Currently one point behind the Hershey Bears for the last spot in the Atlantic Division, the Sound Tigers will welcome the help.
- Pittsburgh has sent Jean-Sebastien Dea, Oskar Sundqvist, Kevin Porter, Dominik Simon and Derrick Pouliot to the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, clearing room for their injured players to return to the lineup. The last few games has seen Pittsburgh rest several players, while a return of Evgeni Malkin is expected at some point in the first round.
- In addition to signing Charlie McAvoy to an entry-level deal, the Bruins have recalled Zane McIntyre from Providence on an emergency basis. He’s there to replace Anton Khudobin, who has been battling an injury on and off for the past few weeks. Tuukka Rask will start game one for the Bruins, who begin their series on Wednesday night in Ottawa.
- The Columbus Blue Jackets won’t keep Sonny Milano with them for their first round matchup, as he’s been sent back to the Cleveland Monsters. Milano was held scoreless in his four games this season, though still possesses exceptional offensive upside. He’ll help Cleveland try to repeat as Calder Cup champions, though they’ll need to get in first; the team has just a one point lead over the Charlotte Checkers for the final spot in the Central Division.
- The Nashville Predators have recalled Pontus Aberg from Milwaukee to provide some depth during their playoff series against the Chicago Blackhawks. Aberg has played 15 games for the Predators this season, registering two points. The 37th-overall pick in the 2012 draft showed this season that he can dominate the AHL, scoring 52 points in 56 games.
- The St. Louis Blues have assigned Chris Butler back to the Chicago Wolves after his one-game reward. The veteran blueliner was a rock for the Wolves this season and help them try to capture the Calder Cup trophy—they’re currently in first place in the Central Division and looking like a strong contender.
Evening Snapshots: Zaitsev, Polak, Bickell
News and notes from around the NHL this evening:
- Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Nikita Zaitsev suffered an injury tonight in a game against the Columbus Blue Jackets. Columbus captain Nick Foligno hit Zaitsev just as time expired in the first period, and Zaitsev left the ice awkwardly. The young defenseman tried to return in the second before leaving again. The Leafs hope the injury is not serious as they are close to signing Zaitsev to a seven-year deal.
- Making matters worse for the Toronto Maple Leafs, defenseman Roman Polak also went down with an injury tonight. Polak collided with Blue Jackets’ Boone Jenner in front of the Toronto net and labored back to the bench. He soon after left the bench and went to the dressing room. Polak’s injury leaves Toronto with only four defensemen for the rest of the game. And while this game has no impact for the Blue Jackets, the Maple Leafs’ playoff position depends on whether they gain a point tonight. One point will move the team to 3rd in the Atlantic and set to face the Ottawa Senators. If Toronto fails to gain a point, they will play the Washington Capitals as the second wild card seed.
- Carolina Hurricanes forward Bryan Bickell plays his last NHL game tonight as the Hurricanes take on the Philadelphia Flyers. Bickell was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis and just recently made his return last week. He announced yesterday that he will retire at season’s end. Bickell will finish his career with 66G and 70A in 394 games, and three Stanley Cups with the Chicago Blackhawks.
Toronto Notes: Andersen, Matthews
Leafs goalie Frederik Andersen has “no symptoms” of a concussion, but will sit tonight’s game against Blue Jackets, according to coach Mike Babcock. The goaltender is expected to start Game 1 of the playoffs.
Andersen, who was hit by Pittsburgh’s Tom Sestito who ironically was back for his first game after serving a four-game suspension for a hit against Tobias Enstrom, hit Andersen in a fly-by. Initial belief was he had suffered a concussion. Backup Curtis McElhinney took over in Saturday’s game and is expected to get the start with recent callup Garret Sparks to take backup duties.
Other Toronto notes …
- When rookie Auston Matthews scored his 40th goal Saturday, an empty netter with three seconds remaining that clinched the Maple Leafs a playoff spot, it put the teenager into rare company. The 19-year-old rookie is now the fourth rookie-teenager in NHL history to score 40 goals. He joins elite company next to Dale Hawerchuk (45 goals at 18 years of age in 1981-82), Mario Lemieux (43 goals at 19 years of age in 1984-85) and Sylvain Turgeon (40 goals at 19 years in 1983-84). Matthews had previously broken the American-born rookie scoring record when he recorded his 39th goal Monday.
- Dave McCarthy of NHL.com reports the Leafs will have nine players play 82 games this year, a testament to their health and one reason for the team’s success this year in reaching the playoffs. Matthews, Nazem Kadri, James van Riemsdyk, Connor Brown, Leo Komarov, Zach Hyman, Jake Gardiner, Matt Martin, Nikita Zaitsev have played all 81 games so far and are expected to play tonight. William Nylander is only at 80 games.
Minor Transactions: Last Day Of The Regular Season
The Washington Capitals, who have long since clinched the President’s Trophy for the best record in the NHL this season, have next to nothing to play for in their 2016-17 regular season finale. What better use for such a game than to reward a time-tested contributor to the organization. The Capitals announced today that they have recalled Garrett Mitchell, as well as Chandler Stephenson, from the AHL’s Hershey Bears for the last game of the season. Mitchell, the Hersey captain, will make his NHL debut at 25 after being a sixth-round selection of the Capitals back in 2009. Far from an offensive juggernaut, Mitchell is instead a physical two-way forward who makes up for his lack of points by sticking up for the Bears’ younger players and leading by example in his own end. It is a classy move by Washington to give a player who has worked hard for the organization a brief glimpse at NHL life, even though his ceiling appears to be a nothing more than a fourth-line player at this time.
Around the league, the transactions are coming in fast:
- Washington’s opponent tonight is the Florida Panthers and newly-recalled young goalie Sam Brittain. It remains to be seen if Brittain will make his NHL debut tonight, but he’ll at least be on the bench as Florida announced that the 24-year-old had been promoted from the AHL’s Springfield Thunderbirds for the game. Brittain has played mostly in the ECHL this season and is far from being a regular NHLer any time soon, but will at least get a look at big league action in the season finale.
- Another goalie getting a rare look at the highest level is the New York Rangers’ Magnus Hellberg. Buried behind all-world keeper Henrik Lundqvist and one of the more reliable backups in the league, Antti Raanta, Hellberg was surely excited to hear that he had been called up from the AHL’s Hartford Wolf Pack. Hellberg, 26, has never started an NHL game and that won’t change tonight as Raanta gets the call for the Rangers. However, Hellberg has seen the ice three times in his career and has strung together several strong AHL seasons in a row, so gaining some more experience tonight, even from the bench, brings him closer to an NHL future.
- A goalie headed the other way today is the Montreal Canadiens’ Charlie Lindgren. Despite nothing but success in his few NHL appearances early in his young career, the Habs are set in net with Carey Price and Al Montoya. Lindgren will have to wait for opportunity to strike for a longer stint with the Canadiens, as he’ll head back down to the AHL and the St. John’s Ice Caps alongside defenseman Brett Lernout, the team announced.
- Another pair headed back to the minors are Winnipeg Jets’ prospects Kyle Connor and Nelson Nogier. Following their season finale yesterday, the Jets decided today to return the duo to the AHL’s Manitoba Moose to get some final play time in this season. While the Jets expected more than five points in 20 games from Connor in his rookie season, after being a Hobey Baker finalist for the University of Michigan last year, expect him to play a major role for Winnipeg in 2017-18.
- Another player set to take on a major role next year is Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Robert Hagg. Fans can get a preview of the prospect-studded blue line that Philly is likely to roll out in 2017-18 when Hagg makes his NHL debut today. The team announced his recall this morning from the AHL’s Lehigh Valley Phantoms, and he will skate alongside the likes of Shayne Gostisbehere and Ivan Provorov tonight and Travis Sanheim and Samuel Morin as well next year in a truly impressive collection of young talent.
- Across the state, the Pittsburgh Penguins are planning on resting some of their players today – those that aren’t already injured anyway – and have called up a trio of players from the AHL’s Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins to help fill the voids. Oskar Sundqvist and Derrick Pouliot, two names familiar to Penguins fans, will return to the lineup, while Jean-Sebastien Dea will make his NHL debut. A longtime WBS contributor, Dea’s work ethic and consistency has finally earned him his first shot at the pros for a team that is in desperate need of depth that can step up their play.
- Pittsburgh’s Round One opponent, the Columbus Blue Jackets, are adding some promising young talent of their own in forward Sonny Milano. The team announced that they had promoted the 2014 first-rounder from the AHL’s Cleveland Monsters and that he will get the call today against the Toronto Maple Leafs as the Jackets look to reverse their recent luck before the postseason gets underway. Milano has only skated in three games with Columbus this season, but leads the Monsters in scoring with 46 points in 61 games.
- The St. Louis Blues announced that they have recalled defenseman Chris Butler from the AHL’s Chicago Wolves. However, Butler’s return to the NHL lineup may be overshadowed by the possibility that Vladimir Sobotka could also make his season debut after a long hiatus from the team while playing in the KHL.
- With an extremely disappointing season finally over in Dallas, the Stars have moved a slew of players back down to the AHL’s Texas Stars to give them some play time before the end of the season. Forwards Jason Dickinson, Mark McNeill, Gemel Smith, Denis Gurianov, and Remi Elie and defenseman Julius Honka will all head back to Texas, a team that, like its affiliate, has no chance at the playoffs either.
More to come throughout the final day of the 2016-17 season
Maple Leafs Call Up Garret Sparks On Emergency Basis
Per usual, the last day of the regular season has already provided a flurry of activity. Recalls abound as teams heading to the playoffs rest their starters and those remaining teams, with nothing left to play for, begin to take a look ahead with some new additions to the lineup. However, one move already today is an outlier: the Toronto Maple Leafs have announced an emergency call-up of goaltender Garret Sparks from the AHL’s Toronto Marlies.
The move comes not as a luxury, but as a necessity. The Leafs may have the most important game of the day, as they get set to square off with the Columbus Blue Jackets tonight with major playoff seeding implications on the line. A regulation loss and Toronto faces the Washington Capitals in the first round, a match-up many consider to be a quick elimination for any team, as the Eastern Conference’s second wild card team. If they are able to pick up even one point, Toronto leap frogs the Boston Bruins and gets to play the rival Ottawa Senators in the Atlantic Division pairing. So who will be in net for this big game? It won’t be starter Frederik Andersen. Andersen left yesterday’s game, a playoff-clinching win over the Pittsburgh Penguins, early due to injury and will not suit up tonight. It remains unclear what kind of condition Andersen is in, having been pulled due to injury twice in recent weeks, but Toronto will play it safe with their starter. Curtis McElhinney will get the call instead today against his former team, and played admirably in relief of Andersen yesterday, but has not played in back-to-back games all season.
Cue Sparks, who may end up seeing the ice in relief in one of the most important games of the season for a team he has yet to appear with in 2016-17. With Jhonas Enroth the backup in Toronto earlier this season, a brief reprieve by Antoine Bibeau, and then the subsequent claim of McElhinney, Sparks has not had the opportunity to take the ice for the Maple Leafs this season. Could that change tonight? Sparks started 17 games for Toronto last year, and while his .893 save percentage and 3.02 goals against average were unspectacular, Sparks played relatively well for a 22-year-old. This season with the Marlies, Sparks has been exemplary despite sharing the net with Bibeau, recording a .926 SV% and 2.07 GAA in 29 appearances. Sparks has shown that he deserves another shot at the NHL, but will he get that chance tonight? Could Andersen’s injury be worse than indicated and afford Sparks a playoff roster spot? That all remains to be seen, but what’s clear is that, at least for now, Toronto needs depth in net for a big game and Sparks is the guy to provide it.
Saturday Snapshots: Final Saturday Of The Regular Season
8:48pm: The Toronto Maple Leafs defeated the Pittsburgh Penguins 5-3, clinching a playoff spot for the first time since 2013. Despite losing goaltender Frederik Andersen, the Leafs rallied for three goals in the third to punch their ticket to the playoffs. TSN’s Bob McKenzie sums up the seedings with tomorrow’s results. If Toronto gets one point tomorrow, they will take on Ottawa in the first round while Boston faces off against Washington. Should they lose, they draw Washington and the Bruins get Ottawa.
2:54 pm: Today is the second last day of the regular season, and as such, there’s a lot going on around the National Hockey League. The entire playoff bracket can be finalized this evening, stars will be healthy scratched, and milestones hit.
Playoff Matchups:
- Two Eastern Conference matchups have already been set: Canadiens vs Rangers and Penguins vs Blue Jackets. Another could be set tonight, if Toronto, Ottawa, and Boston all win. That would mean Capitals vs Maple Leafs. Should the Maple Leafs lose while the other two win, then that would guarantee Senators vs Bruins.
- Wild vs Blues is clinched by a St. Louis win or a Nashville loss.
- Oilers vs Sharks would be clinched by:
- An Oilers extra-time loss vs the Canucks tonight, OR
- An Oilers regulation loss and a Sharks loss in any fashion.
- Blackhawks vs Predators happens if:
- The Predators lose in regulation, OR
- The Flames win and the Blues get a single point, OR
- The Flames and Predators both lose in OT.
- The Flames would take on the Ducks if:
- The Oilers lose, the Blues get a point, and the Flames win, OR
- The Oilers lose, and both the Flames and Predators lose in OT, OR
- The Oilers lose, and the Predators lose in regulation.
- The Flames would take on the Blackhawks if Calgary loses and the Predators win.
- The Ducks would take on the Predators if:
- Both Edmonton and Calgary lose, and the Predators win, OR
- Nashville gets a point, while Edmonton loses and Calgary loses in regulation.
Other clinching scenarios:
- The Oilers clinch home-ice with a single point. They visit Vancouver tonight, and host them tomorrow.
- The Ducks clinch the Pacific Division with an Oilers loss of any kind.
- To pass Anaheim and win the Pacific, the Oilers would need to sweep the Canucks this weekend and have Anaheim lose to Los Angeles tomorrow.
- Should the Toronto Maple Leafs win tonight against the visiting Pittsburgh Penguins, Toronto will clinch a playoff spot for the first time since 2013. That would eliminate the New York Islanders and Tampa Bay Lightning.
- The Islanders could also be eliminated with a regulation loss or any kind of loss if the Maple Leafs get a single point.
- UPDATE: Ottawa clinched home ice by defeating the Rangers, 3-1.
- They defeat the Rangers today, OR
- Boston and Toronto lose in regulation, OR
- The Bruins and Senators each get a single point combined with a Maple Leafs OT loss.
Scratches:
- The Penguins are resting a handful of players, but not their captain. Regulars Nick Bonino, Brian Dumoulin, Patric Hornqvist, Matt Murray, and Bryan Rust will all be healthy scratches, however Sidney Crosby will dress. Forward Kevin Porter and goaltender Tristan Jarry have been called up to fill out the lineup; Jarry will back up Marc-Andre Fleury. The Penguins coach, Mike Sullivan, told TSN that he’s aware of what’s on the line for the Maple Leafs, but re-iterated that his priority is to do what’s best for the team “in the short-term and the long-term. Having said that the lineup we put in will be competitive.”
- The Canucks will be without the services of Sven Baertschi for this weekend’s home-and-home with the Oilers. Postmedia’s Ben Kuzma reports that Baertschi may have hurt his shoulder or neck on Thursday vs the Coyotes.
- The Senators will be resting several players. Their lineup isn’t known yet, but Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch suggested Craig Anderson, Mike Hoffman, Dion Phaneuf, Kyle Turris, and Viktor Stalberg as possibilities.
Milestones:
- Oilers captain Connor McDavid could become just the fifth player to score 100 points since 2010. He’s sitting at 97 points in 80 games, the seventh-most points in a season during in that time frame. Only Evgeni Malkin, Daniel Sedin, Crosby, and Patrick Kane have cracked the century-mark this decade. McDavid is nine points ahead of Crosby and Kane for the NHL scoring lead, and looks poised to take home the Art Ross in his first full season at age 20.
- With one more goal this season, Auston Matthews can become the fifteenth rookie in NHL history to score 40 goals. Currently, he’s tied with Crosby, Steve Yzerman, and Peter and Anton Stastny at 39. Kings’ coach Darryl Sutter, Sylvain Turgeon, and Warren Young all scored 40 goals in their rookie seasons.