Elias Petterson is back on track
Hockey fans, Merry Christmas!
The NHL may be on pause as the players head home for the holidays, but that doesn’t mean there wasn’t plenty of action to keep tabs on over the last week. Here’s the very best, and worst, of everything in an (abbreviated) week of hockey action.
The Week’s Goal
Jordan Eberle scored this stunning goal against Winnipeg Jets to honor the World Juniors. David Rittich gets a snipe on his beautiful, but often under-utilized spin-orama backhand.
Don’t look now, but Eberle has come on in a big way this year with the Kraken. Eberle, a Regina native, is back after posting 44 points in just 79 contests last year. This season, he has posted 25 points in 32 contests.
Enjoy a Week of Savings
Anyone in the Capitals’ front office who insisted on Charlie Lindgren being freed this year should be given a big raise. After Darcy Kuemper sustained an injury to his upper body, Lindgren has been a firebrand in December. He posted a perfect 8-1 record in December’s games, with a.927 Save percentage. Lindgren made a statement with his outstanding performance against the Winnipeg Jets in December’s final game. He made this spectacular shorthanded stop on Adam Lowry.
Player of Week
Despite a disappointing start to the Vancouver Canucks season, there have been some bright spots. However, Elias Pettersson’s emergence has been an absolute joy to see. The 23-year-old scored two goals on Thursday against the Seattle Kraken and had three assists. After a fast-paced 3-on-3 overtime, neither team was victorious, Pettersson won the shootout. Canucks fans are sure to be delighted to have another emerging Swedish superstar as they embark on another long rebuild.
Gentlemanly behavior
Cale Makar made his Lady Byng chase even more bizarre by declining a penalty on Matthew Barzal, the New York Islanders, and in a strange turn of events. Makar did issue an acknowledgment. His teammates were genuinely sorry for the gaffe. However, this one was a wonderfully wholesome and, frankly, bizarre play that you need to see to be believed.
Controller unplugged
Juuse Saros gets full marks for this one. He refuses to allow Klim Kostin’s forechecking to stop him from creating one of hockey’s most memorable moments. Kostin, as a result, repeatedly lifts his stick over the statuesque Saros, and even checks the bench as if to make sure he’s not going crazy. It seems like Saros’ mind games worked as well, as the Predators eventually topped the Oilers 4-3 in overtime.
Hit of the Week
If NHL players weren’t keeping their heads up for Keegan Kolesar before this week, they probably should now. One of the most outrageous hits of the season was laid by the Vegas Golden Knights forward, sending Ilya Lyubushkin, a 6-foot-2, 200-pounder, soaring several feet in the air, like something from a video game. Tumbling head over heels, Lyubushkin would ultimately be okay, though we’re sure he’s got a bruised ego to match his bruised backside following this one.
Quote of the Week
Max Domi, who had previously spent two seasons with Columbus, signed with Chicago Blackhawks in order to rebuild his value. In the first three months this season, Max Domi has achieved exactly that. He’s scored 23 points in 32 games so far and played top-six minutes for Chicago Blackhawks. Whether or not the change of scenery is the reason for the improved numbers may be up for debate, but it sure sounds like Domi’s pretty happy in ChiTown, at least based on this hilarious quote on the winger’s winter plans with his family.
Take on the Save Challenge
The goaltending position in today’s game has never been in a more dire state, as players are more skilled than ever, leaving goalies flailing and allowing more goals than we’ve seen . That’s made handing out big deals to netminders a particularly troubling proposition, evidenced nowhere better than in the NHL’s Pacific Division. Maybe it’s just Connor McDavid making these dudes look silly, but it might be worthwhile for every NHL GM to staple this tweet to their forehead the next time they want to drop a wad of cash on a goalie.
Mr. Mr.
Roman Josi’s achievements in the music city have surpassed those of a franchise that has had a long history of producing skilled defensemen. The Predators have made Josi the highest-scoring player in their history, surpassing David Legwand. Josi is now the only defenseman in their franchise to score more points than Ray Bourque.
Winter Wonderland
The Coyotes know how to celebrate the holidays for a team living in the desert. This is the amazing sweater that the Desert Dogs wore to warm ups last week. It even has the Kachina snowman, which looks way too angry to be celebrating Christmas. Maybe he’s just seen one too many Coyotes games.
Magic Messier
One of the NHL’s greatest leaders has an interesting origin story. While on the That’s Hockey Talk Podcast with Mike Rupp, ex-NHLer and Mark Messier. The magic of the universe He learned the skills necessary to be one of the most influential NHL captains.
Ovechkin makes history
Alex Ovechkin’s On Thursday, the Winnipeg Jets beat Gordie Howe to become NHL history. He now holds the record for most goals (802) in NHL history. The best sniper his generation was able to celebrate with his home fans and even took the time for a moment to enjoy the moment with his rivals, shaking hands with them. . However, the most memorable moment was pos-game when a reporter asked Great 8 about his plans to celebrate this important milestone. NHL players, they’re just like you and me!
Ayy, Vinny!
Nothing quite beats a home-cooked meal at this time of the year, especially when it’s nonna’s cooking. Vincent Trochek was clearly on the right track. The Rangers forward brought the entire Rangers team home to enjoy delicious Italian food the night before they played against the Penguins. Molto bene!
Statistically, impossible
Rasmus Ristolainen is a controversial figure. While hockey analytics geeks view him as a defensive liability and traditional fans and general mangers value his hard-nosed play, hockey managers and general managers see him more as a safety risk. Where you stand on the Ristolainen discourse is ultimately up to you, however, there’s no denying what he’s accomplished this year is simply remarkable. Even though he played a lot for the Flyers, the right-handed defenceman didn’t record a single point. He was able to break that streak in his last game before the break when he scored his first point of season with an assist on Nick Seeler’s third-period goal.
He sees you when you’re sleeping
Santa is always checking in this time of year, making his lists and checking them twice to see who’s naughty (and nice). Clayton Keller, despite his great play on the ice on Wednesday, nearly got into trouble after he was penalized against the Vegas Golden Knights. Thankfully, one of Santa’s wonderful little helpers, NHL referee Garrett Rank, got Keller all straightened out with an important warning during a crucial time of the year.
Scrap of the Week
We’ve got a good old-fashioned rock ‘em, sock ‘em tilly here, as Jonah Gadjovich and Dennis Gilbert drop the mitts in a spirited scrap on Tuesday. Gadjovich took the early lead but the fight ended in a spirited slugfest as division foes got the fans and their teams excited after one of the most exciting fights of the season.
Trending up: Carolina Hurricanes
It’s hard to feel much better than the Carolina Hurricanes are right now heading into the break. Carolina is a firebrand, having won eight straight and nine of their last ten. Combining their success with the slumping New Jersey Devils team, the Canes are poised to make another splash in the back half NHL season. There have been many factors that have contributed to their streak, but the most important one is some significantly better scoring luck. After an abysmal 6.8 shooting percentage at 5v5 to start the year — ranked second last league-wide — the club has found their stroke, and sit top-10 by the metric since December 1st.
Trending Down: Columbus Blue Jackets
Things have gone from bad to worse in Columbus, as Johnny Gaudreau alone hasn’t been able to salvage what has become a pathetic showing for a Columbus team that hoped to take a leap this season. Johnny Hockey has done all he can to keep the Blue Jackets relevant. His 34 points rank first on the team, by a healthy margin. His strong underlying metrics have mostly remained unchanged from last year’s stellar year in Calgary. The team’s lack of support cast and some other factors have led to a disappointing result. It is utterly deplorable The Blue Jackets have been swept to the basement by their Metropolitan Division team. They are losers of six of their last ten games and eight of ten overall. Connor Bedard, who would be a great partner for Johnny Gaudreau’s finishing passes next season, is a bright spot.
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