Trick ot Treat ?

It was an extremely busy day on the National Hockey League ice, as it seems everyone wanted to play Tuesday so they can enjoy Halloween on Wednesday night. There is just one game scheduled for when the little ghouls and goblins will be circulating the neighborhood looking for treats. There were plenty of outstanding performances for fantasy owners on Tuesday night, especially in the New Jersey-Tampa Bay game, which ended up being a fantasy fiesta. The best part about Tuesday's outstanding performances is that the top fantasy stars weren't exactly early-round draft picks in most pools. Let's get started!




Tuesday's Fantasy Five

As mentioned, the Devils-Lightning game was an offensive showcase with several big performance for fantasy owners. Brayden Point of the Lightning was a standout player, however, recording a goal with a career-high five points, a plus-4 rating and two shots on goal in the team's 8-3 home victory. He was also dynamic in the faceoff circle, winning 10 of 14 chances at the dot. Point is now up to seven goals with 14 points through 11 contests and he has been even or positive in the plus/minus category in all 11 of his games, posting a plus-9 rating. He hasn't had consecutive scoreless games all season, as he is hurtling towards a second straight All-Star appearance.

Dylan Larkin was the difference in the team's 5-3 victory on the road against the Columbus Blue Jackets, racking up two goals with an assist, a plus-1 rating and a game-high seven shots on goal. He also spent two minutes in the sin bin, pleasing owners in leagues rewarding bad behavior. In addition, he was 14-for-25 (56.0 percent) in the faceoff circle, helping the Red Wings to a rare road win. Heck, it was a rare win overall for Detroit, who is still just 3-7-2 with eight points after the victory. He was one of four young guns to score for the Red Wings, as Tyler Bertuzzi, Anthony Mantha and Michael Rasmussen also etched their names onto the scoresheet with one goal apiece.

Devin Shore isn't exactly a player most fantasy owners flock to on draft day, or even off the waiver wire during the season. However, he picked up a shorthanded goal with two assists, a plus-2 rating, three hits and a faceoff win in his only chance during 13:12 of ice time in a 4-1 victory on the road against the Montreal Canadiens. Esa Lindell got into the act for Dallas with a power-play goal, assisted by Shore, while he also had a helped on Miro Heiskanen's even-strength marker halfway through the first period. Shore started out a bit slow, with just one goal over his first six contests. However, he has emerged as a useful option in deeper pools and as a sleeper in DFS with a goal and seven points with a plus-5 rating over his past five contests.



Eric Staal was once one of the most feared pivots in the NHL during his time with the Carolina Hurricanes. He has bounced around a little bit during the twilight years of his career, but he can still be a very dangerous score on some nights. He was good for a goal, two assists and a hit over 18:00 of ice time in Tuesday's razor-thin 4-3 victory on the road against the Edmonton Oilers. The 34-year-old has warmed it up lately with a pair of multi-point games over his past three outings, totaling two power-play goals and three assists during the impressive span. He is showing he still has plenty left in the tank and is a worthy No. 3 center in most fantasy pools of 12 or more teams.

Ben Bishop shut down the surprisingly effective Montreal Canadiens, dropping them to a still fairly impressive 6-3-2 record over the past 11 outings. Bishop let in just one goal on 35 shots to secure another win, moving to 5-4-0 with a 2.26 goals-against average and .925 save percentage through his nine starts. Really, he has had just one poor appearance this season when he yielded six goals to the Toronto Maple Leafs on Oct. 9 at home. Outside of that, he has allowed three or fewer goals over his other eight appearances, including two or fewer goals in four of his past five outings. He has re-emerged as a solid low-end No. 1 backstop in most pools.

Fantasy Game of the Night

There wasn't much debate on the most prolific fantasy game of the evening. The New Jersey Devils and Tampa Bay Lightning combined for 11 total goals, so this game was easily the most beneficial to fantasy owners. That is, of course, if you were not using Keith Kinkaid for any reason. The Jersey backstop let in seven goals in 38 shots before finally getting the hook, allowing Cory Schneider to finish up the final 15 minutes. He also let in a goal on six shots, as the Lightning were humming all night. Niko Hischier also had a forgettable night, going scoreless with a minus-4. Miles Wood was the fantasy standout on offense for New Jersey, posting a goal with an assist. The 100th pick overall in the 2013 NHL Entry Draft hadn't had a multi-point game since the opener on Oct. 6 against Edmonton. Win or lose, Kyle Palmieri continues to chug along, posting his ninth goal of the season with 14 points to serve as an obvious must-start in most pools. Sami Vatanen is starting to feel more comfortable in his new surroundings, posting five shots on goal for the third consecutive outing. He has two assists with a plus-3 rating and 15 SOG over the past three contests.

We mentioned Point above, but he was far from the only positive fantasy producer on a night the Lightning lit the lamp eight different times. Nikita Kucherov was able to light the lamp twice while chipping in with an assist, a plus-1 rating, a blocked shot and a hit over his 15:05 of ice time. After going scoreless in his first two games, he has five goals and 12 points across the past nine outings. Brayden Coburn also had a pair of goals, while Steven Stamkos was up to his usual tricks with a marker and a pair of helpers. Yanni Gourde and Ryan McDonagh joined 'Kooch' in the three-point club, as Gourde registered three assists and McDonagh posted a goal with two helpers. Gourde and Tyler Johnson each checked in with an impressive plus-4 rating, too, which is an often overlooked an underappreciated stat in fantasy hockey. Johnson also had a goal and an assist in the rout. Fantasy players on high-octane offenses like Tampa Bay can register big-time points. Unfortunately for me, I checked in scoreless with a minus-3 rating in my C League game in Cary, N.C. tonight. I am only worthy of fantasy consideration in Bizarro formats - ha.

Quick Hits: Sean Monahan picked up a pair of assists with a plus-2 rating, while David Rittich continues to play well when given the chance, allowing just one goal with 28 shots in a 2-1 overtime road win against Buffalo. … Johnny Gaudreau sent the home folks away sad when he buried the game-winning tally to beat Carter Hutton. … Mathew Barzal logged just 16:13 of ice time, but he was good for a pair of assists. Jordan Eberle notched a pair of goals in the team's 6-3 win in the Steel City. … Matt Martin excited his fantasy owners with a goal, an assist, a plus-1 rating and two hits in just 11:21 of ice time. Normally he is known more for the physical stuff, but occasionally he breaks through on the scoresheet, too. … Jamie Oleksiak is enjoying quite the start, although he might be a sell-high candidate since he hasn't really had this kind of offensive success in the past. He picked up two more assists with a plus-1 rating, a blocked shot and three hits. He is working on a four-game point streak, posting two goals with six points and a ridiculous plus-10 rating. … Patrice Bergeron helped out on each of Boston's goals in their 3-2 victory in Carolina. Brad Marchand lit the lamp twice for the visitors, including the even-strength game-winning tally at 5:23 of the third period. … Micheal Ferland and Dougie Hamilton lit up the Carolina power play, and Hamilton's goal was especially sweet against his former organization. … David Pastrnak hit for a power-play goal midway through the second, his 11th tally of the season. … Pontus Aberg poked in two goals against the visiting Flyers, and if he continues at this rate he is going to make a name for himself. That's back-to-back goals with a pair of markers for the 25-year-old Swede. … Chris Kreider was also in the two-goal club, posting a strong plus-3 rating in the 4-3 shootout win at San Jose. … Timo Meier and Brent Burns each had a goal and assist in the loss to the Blueshirts. Both players are enjoying a career-high nine-game point streak, too. … Robin Lehner allowed two goals on 25 shots before checking out due to an undisclosed injury, although he still ended up as the winning goalie in Pittsburgh. … Sidney Crosby had a goal and an assist, giving him 10 points over the past five games. Remember when fantasy owners were wringing their hands because it took him a few games out of the box to notch his first goal?

Sid and Nate make a date at Tim Hortons (Crosby and McKinnon)

 Crosby and McKinnon

As the NHL finishes its first month of the season and enters the second, there have been plenty of surprises and disappointments in the early going, including the surprising play of Montreal, Ottawa and Carolina as well as the disappointing start to the season for Los Angeles, Florida and Philadelphia.

Some surprises for players include Alex DeBrincat, Jonathan Toews, Kyle Palmieri and Zach Parise while the disappointments include Erik Karlsson, Ryan Strome and Pavel Zacha.


There is a lot of information to get to so let’s get started.

WEEK OF OCTOBER 29-NOVEMBER 4

4 Games – Buffalo, Calgary, Columbus, Ottawa, Tampa Bay

3 Games – Anaheim, Carolina, Chicago, Dallas, Detroit, Edmonton, Minnesota, Montreal, Nashville, New Jersey, New York Islanders, New York Rangers, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, San Jose, Toronto, Vancouver, Vegas

2 Games - Arizona, Boston, Colorado, Florida, Los Angeles, St. Louis, Washington, Winnipeg

Chicago, Columbus, Dallas, Minnesota, New Jersey and Philadelphia play three games on the road.

Anaheim, Montreal, San Jose and Vancouver play three games at home.

INJURIES

Pekka Rinne is day-to-day with an undisclosed injury. (Click here to see the rest of the injury list.)

Note: A tired team is one that has played the day or night before and is going against a team that did not play the previous day or night. The reverse is true for a rested team.

ANAHEIM

Games this week
vs. Philadelphia, vs. New York Rangers, vs. Columbus

Rested Team: vs. Columbus (Sunday)
Tired Team: None

Notes
Patrick Eaves (concussion) and Ondrej Kase (shoulder) have yet to play this season but are on the Ducks current road trip. Jakob Silfverberg was placed on the injured reserve list with a non-displaced fractured finger. Nick Ritchie finally returned to action against Chicago Tuesday as he missed the start of the season as he had not signed his contract until a week ago. He lined up with Rickard Rakell and Ryan Getzlaf on the top line. The Ducks are getting good performances out of their young players like Sam Steel and Kiefer Sherwood. John Gibson continues to shine as one of the NHL’s top goalies as he is

ARIZONA

Games this week
vs. Ottawa, vs. Carolina

Rested Team: None
Tired Team: None

Notes
The Coyotes are in the midst of a five-game homestand. Jakob Chychrun has missed the whole season but has now been cleared for contact as he tries to return from a knee injury. He likely won’t play this week but could be back in the lineup the following week. Christian Fischer had the hat trick on Tuesday. It was the first of his career. Alex Galchenyuk finally played in his first regular season game for Arizona on Tuesday as he had been out with a lower-body injury. He played with Lawson Crouse and Clayton Keller and was held off the scoresheet but picked up his first point of the season Thursday as he had an assist.

BOSTON

Games this week
@ Carolina, @ Nashville

Rested Team: None
Tired Team: None

Notes
Zdeno Chara is showing some signs of his aging as he doesn’t see much action on the power play at the age of 41 but Thursday he scored twice to lead Boston to a 3-0 win over Philadelphia. Jaroslav Halak picked up the shutout as turned aside 26 shots. He has been terrific for the Bruins since signing in the off-season as he is 3-0-2 this year with a 1.43 GAA and a .945 save percentage. Tuukka Rask is 3-2-0 with a 3.41 GAA and a .901 save percentage and that is after stopping 38-of-39 Ottawa shots Tuesday.  Kevin Miller was placed on the injured reserve list with a hand injury. He will miss at least three weeks. Torey Krug is getting closer to returning from an ankle injury and could be inserted into the Boston lineup at some point this week.

BUFFALO

Games this week
vs. Calgary, @ Ottawa, vs. Ottawa, @ New York Rangers

Rested Team: vs. Calgary (Tuesday)
Tired Team: @ New York Rangers (Sunday)

Notes
The Sabres play four games this week including three games in four nights. I’m thinking that Linus Ullmark and Carter Hutton will split the net. Buffalo plays a home-and-home series against divisional rival Ottawa this week and if there are any fisticuffs, look for Zach Bogosian to get involved and add to his penalty minute totals. Jeff Skinner has been hot as he has four goals and eight points in his last three games to give him 10 points in 10 games thus far.  The trio of Skinner, Jack Eichel and Jason Pominvill have combined for 17 points in the last three games. Patrik Berglund was a healthy scratch last week but after sitting one game, he was back in the lineup.

CALGARY

Games this week
@ Toronto, @ Buffalo, vs. Colorado, vs. Chicago

Rested Team: None
Tired Team: @ Buffalo (Tuesday)

Notes
The Flames play three games in four nights as part of their four-game week. Mike Smith should see action in three games with David Rittich playing in the fourth contest. Rittich has been terrific this season with a 2-1 record to go with a 2.37 GAA and a .933 save percentage, certainly a lot better than Smith’s 3-4 record with a 4.10 GAA and .866 save percentage. Look for Rittich to get a chance to run with the job as he had started the previous two games. The Flames sent Juuso Valimaki, their first round pick in 2017, to the minors. Travis Hamonic returned to action on Thursday after suffering facial fractures in the Flames opening game.

CAROLINA

Games this week
vs. Boston, @ Arizona, @ Vegas

Rested Team: None
Tired Team: @ Vegas (Saturday)

Notes
Scott Darling has finished his conditioning stint in the minors for Charlotte of the AHL as he is recovering from a lower-body injury suffered in training camp. He will battle Curtis McElhinney and Petr Mrazek for the starting job in net. Sebastian Aho has a nine-game points streak in which he has four goals and 14 points thus far. The Hurricanes dealt Elias Lindholm and Noah Hanifin to the Flames for Micheal Ferland and Dougie Hamilton and while Hamilton has struggled offensive with only three assists, Ferland has six goals and nine points in nine games. Andrei Svechnikov, the second pick in the 2018 Draft, has 10 penalty minutes to lead the Hurricanes.

CHICAGO

Games this week
@ Vancouver, @ Edmonton, @ Calgary

Rested Team: None                                     
Tired Team: @ Edmonton (Thursday)

Notes
The Blackhawks are in Western Canada all week and play three games in four nights. Corey Crawford should get a couple of starts with Cam Ward getting one start. Corey Crawford is back and has won three in a row after beating the Rangers Thursday. He has given up only three goals in the three wins. Crawford had been out since December with a concussion but certainly looks healthy at this time. Brandon Saad finally did something offensively as he scored his first two goals of the season Tuesday. Gustav Forsling was sent to the minors as he needed to get into game shape after he underwent off-season wrist surgery and was unable to play in the pre-season. He should be back with the Blackhawks before too long.     

COLORADO

Games this week
@ Calgary, @ Vancouver

Rested Team: None
Tired Team: @ Vancouver (Friday)

Notes
Semyon Varlamov is off to a great start this season as he finally lost his first game in regulation Wednesday in a 1-0 loss to Tampa Bay. The netminder is 4-1-2 this season with a sensational 1.56 GAA and a .953 save percentage. Mikko Rantanen and Nathan MaKinnon saw their nine-game points streak end Wednesday. Gabriel Landeskog was the NHL’s first star of the week with six goals and seven points in only three games. He is also a plus-12 this season in 10 contests. Mark Dano played in his first game in a Colorado uniform Wednesday and got into a tussle with Yanni Gourde. Nikita Zadorov leads the Avs in penalty minutes thus far with 13.

COLUMBUS       

Games this week
vs. Detroit, @ San Jose, @ Los Angeles, @ Anaheim

Rested Team: None
Tired Team: @ Anaheim (Sunday)

Notes
The Blue Jackets play three games in four nights as part of a four-game week. Sergei Bobrovsky should get the call thrice with Joonas Korpisalo starting once. Bobrovsky is off to a slow start with a 2-4-0 record to go with a 3.87 GAA and a .872 save percentage. Korpisalo is a perfect 3-0 but with mediocre peripherals as well. The Blue Jackets received some good news this week as Seth Jones returned to the lineup for the first time since he was injured in training camp. He scored his first of the season Thursday. Josh Anderson leads the Blue Jackets in goals with five while UFA to be Artemi Panarin, has three goals and 12 points. Cam Atkinson has four goals and eight points in nine games but he has a minus-seven rating.          

DALLAS

Games this week
@ Montreal, @ Toronto, @ Washington

Rested Team: None
Tired Team: None

Notes
Jason Dickinson gave the Stars some much needed secondary scoring Thursday with a pair of goals and an assist to give him four points in seven games. The Stars have been led by their top line of Tyler Seguin, Alexander Radulov and Jamie Benn, although Radulov has missed the last three games with a lower-body injury. Justin Dowling has seen action on the top line in his spot and has an assist in two games. Ben Bishop has been strong in the Dallas cage as he is 4-3 with 2.32 GAA and a .923 save percentage. Jason Spezza continues to perform with eight points in nine games after a horrible 2017-18 campaign in which he had only 26 points in 78 games.

DETROIT

Games this week
@ Columbus, vs. New Jersey, vs. Edmonton

Rested Team: None
Tired Team: None

Notes
Mike Green is expected to make his seasonal debut on October 26 as he has missed the start of the season recovering from a virus. Jacob De La Rose is also expected to play after being picked up on waivers from Montreal. A cardiac issue as well as visa problems have prevented him from playing for the Red Wings thus far. Danny DeKeyser could return from a hand injury this week. Michael Rasmussen could stay with the Red Wings past his nine-game limit for burning a year from his entry-level contract. He has only one assist in eight games thus far and has to return to junior if Detroit sends him down. Anthony Mantha has a goal and two assists in nine games with a minus-12 rating.

EDMONTON

Games this week
vs. Minnesota, vs. Chicago, @ Detroit

Rested Team: vs. Minnesota (Tuesday), vs. Chicago (Thursday)
Tired Team: None

Notes   
The Oilers are 4-3-1 this season and the good news is that they have only played one game against a sub-.500 team, the Rangers. Cam Talbot has seen all the action this season with backup Mikko Kostinen waiting patiently. He should get a start soon. Connor McDavid is the best player in the NHL and has six goals and 14 points in eight games. Linemate Ryan Nugent-Hopkins is hot with 11 points thus far. You can’t go wrong playing alongside McDavid. Jesse Puljujarvi has been a disappointment with only one goal in seven games before he was a healthy scratch Thursday. Still, that is better than Ryan Strome who has zeros across the board in eight games. Defenseman Evan Bouchard scored his first career goal on Thursday and became the youngest Edmonton Oiler defenseman to ever score.

FLORIDA

Games this week
vs. Winnipeg, @ Winnipeg

Rested Team: None
Tired Team: None

Notes
The Panthers and the Jets travel off to Finland this week and play twice against the Jets. Look for Alex Petrovic to add to his penalty minute totals if there is any rough stuff. It will be a homecoming for Aleksander Barkov who hails from Finland. Evgenii Dadonov leads the Panthers with nine points, one better than Barkov, Vincent Trocheck and Keith Yandle. Roberto Luongo is still week-to-week with a knee injury according to coach Bob Boughner. Colton Sceviour saw second line action Wednesday with Trocheck and Jonathan Huberdeau as Mike Hoffman moved down to the third unit with Frank Vatrano and Jared McCann. James Reimer is 1-2-1 after his first win of the season on Wednesday.

LOS ANGELES

Games this week
vs. Philadelphia, vs. Columbus

Rested Team: None
Tired Team: None

Notes
The Kings have been one of the worst teams in the NHL thus far with a 2-7-1 start. Jack Campbell has both wins and Jonathan Quick has been awful with an 0-3-1 mark to go with a 4.55 GAA and a .845 save percentage. Anze Kopitar continues to struggle with only three goals and nary an assist in nine games. This is after a 35 goal, 92-point season last year. The Kings blueline has only two goals this season, one by Drew Doughty and the other by Paul LaDue. Tanner Pearson has yet to score in 10 games. I could go on and on with the rest of the team but you get the idea as to why they are so bad thus far. Dustin Brown is hoping to play on October 28 after missing the start of the season with a broken finger. He has been missed.

MINNESOTA

Games this week
@ Vancouver, @ Edmonton, @St. Louis

Rested Team: None
Tired Team:  @ Edmonton (Tuesday)

Notes
Devan Dubnyk has been great this season as he is 4-1-2 with a 1.95 GAA and a .946 save percentage. Matt Hendricks will start skating soon. He has missed the last three games with a leg injury. Zach Parise continues to shine this season with 11 points in nine games. Ryan Suter has two goals and nine points in nine games. Mikael Granlund has four goals and three assists in a six-game scoring streak after going pointless in his first three games. Eric Staal has struggled this season with only two goals and five points in nine games. Nino Niederreiter has only two assists in nine games while Jordan Greenway has just half of that.

MONTREAL
             
Games this week
vs. Dallas, vs. Washington, vs. Tampa Bay

Rested Team: None
Tired Team: None

Notes
Who are these guys? After most pundits thought the Canadiens would be a bottom-team this season, they are off to a great start with a 5-2-2 record and are led by Max Domi who has four goals and 10 points in nine games. Most thought that the Canadiens lost the deal for Alex Galchenyuk but Domi has been sensational thus far and has really come into his own in Montreal. Jesperi Kotkaniemi’s next game will be his 10^th and look for the Canadiens to keep him and burn the first year of his entry-level contract. He has four assists in nine games and is still looking for his first NHL goal. Paul Byron has four goals and seven points and is headed for his third straight 20-goal season. Carey Price is 3-1-2 with a 2.48 GAA and a .906 save percentage, a lot better than last season’s disaster.

 NASHVILLE

vs. Vegas, @ Tampa Bay, vs. Boston

Rested Team: None
Tired Team: None

Notes
Viktor Arvidsson scored his seventh of the season Thursday and has goals in each of his last three games. He has 10 points in 10 games and looks in good shape to beat his career best 61 points, which he has done in each of his last two seasons. Filip Forsberg also has seven goals and has 11 points. Pekka Rinne’s undisclosed injury has had no effect on the Predators as Juuse Saros is 5-1-0 with a 2.47 GAA and a .918 save percentage. There is no need to rush Rinne back to action. The Predators have great offensive defensemen in P.K. Subban, Roman Josi and Ryan Ellis but it’s Mattias Ekholm who has the most points on the blueline with eight.
NEW JERSEY

Games this week
@ Tampa Bay, @ Detroit, @ New York Islanders

Rested Team: None
Tired Team: None

Notes
Kyle Palmieri started the season with seven goals in four games. He has not scored in his last three games but did have a three-assist performance Thursday and has 11 points in seven games. Cory Schneider is still on a rehab assignment in the minors and will play once again on October 26. He is trying to return from off-season hip surgery. The Devils could use him as they have not had a win in their last three games. Great news on the Brian Boyle front as he is in remission from cancer. Taylor Hall had a couple of assists Thursday and has 10 points this season. Pavel Zacha has yet to get a point in seven games this season. Damon Severson has two goals and six points in seven games.

NEW YORK ISLANDERS

Games this week
@ Pittsburgh, vs. Pittsburgh, vs. New Jersey

Rested Team: None
Tired Team: None

Notes
The Islanders play a home-and-home series with the Penguins and if there is any rough stuff, look for Matt Martin to be involved. Nick Leddy has yet to pick up a point in eight games this season after a 42 point effort last year. Brock Nelson is now a top-six forward, taking over a spot vacated by John Tavares when he left as a UFA. Jordan Eberle has moved up the depth chart and is playing alongside Mathew Barzal. Josh Bailey moved down to the second unit. Robin Lehner is 2-2-1 with a 2.67 GAA and a .926 save percentage. He has taken over from Thomas Greiss as the starter despite giving up 13 goals in his last four games.

NEW YORK RANGERS

Games this week
@ San Jose, @ Anaheim, vs. Buffalo

Rested Team: vs. Buffalo (Sunday)
Tired Team: None

 Notes
Adam McQuaid was injured on Thursday and that could pave the way for Tony DeAngelo to return to the lineup. Neal Pionk had a three-game points streak end on Thursday. He had six assists during the streak. The same goes for Mika Zibanejad who had four goals and seven points in three games before being held off the scoresheet Thursday. Alexandar Georgiev spent some time in the minors last week to get in some playing time and was rewarded with the start on Tuesday. He picked up his first win of the season giving up two goals on 38 shots. In his only other start of the season, he gave up seven goals to Carolina on 39 shots. Ryan Spooner has only one assist in nine games.

OTTAWA            

Games this week
@ Arizona, vs. Buffalo, @ Buffalo, vs. Tampa Bay

Rested Team: None
Tired Team: None

Notes
The Senators play four games this week including three games in four nights. Craig Anderson should get the start in goal on three occasions with Mike Condon playing once. The Senators play a home-and-home series with Buffalo and should there be any rough stuff, look for Mark Borowiecki to be in the middle of things. Mark Borowiecki picked up a one-game suspension for elbowing Urho Vaakanainen of Boston. Craig Anderson is 4-2-1 this season with a .915 save percentage despite a 3.14 GAA. Cody Ceci is expected to play on October 26 after missing four games with an upper body injury. Thomas Chabot has 10 points in eight games, making some (not a lot) of fans forget about Erik Karlsson. Nineteen-year-old Alex Formenton returned to the lineup Tuesday from a concussion.

PHILADELPHIA

Games this week
@ Anaheim, @ Los Angeles, @ San Jose

Rested Team: None
Tired Team: None

Notes
The Flyers are in California all week. They have been struggling of late and could turn to Michal Neuvirth as Brian Elliott has had a bad start to the season. Elliott is 2-5-0 this season with a 3.39 GAA and a .886 save percentage. Travis Konecny returned to the top line Thursday alongside Claude Giroux and Sean Couturier. They were a great line last season and need to recreate the magic this season. James van Riemsdyk is still sidelined but is expected to start skating in the next day or so. He should be out another two-three weeks with a lower body injury. Wayne Simmonds leads the Flyers with six goals. Jakob Voracek leads the Flyers with 12 points in 10 games. Scott Laughton has four goals and 16 penalty minutes in 10 games.

PITTSBURGH

Games this week
vs. New York Islanders, @ New York Islanders, vs. Toronto

Rested Team: None
Tired Team: None

Notes
The Penguins play a home-and-home series with the Islanders and as happens a lot of times in back-to-back games against the same opponents, tempers could flare. If they do, expect to see Jamie Oleksiak standing up for his teammates. Sidney Crosby had no goals and five assists in his first six games but has been great this past week with three goals and five points in his last two games. Evgeni Malkin has 12 helpers and 15 points this season. Matt Murray has won four of his five decisions with a .910 save percentage but he has a 3.37 GAA. Patric Hornqvist has four goals in his past two games after not finding the back of the net in his first six games.

ST. LOUIS

Games this week
vs. Vegas, vs. Minnesota

Rested Team: None
Tired Team: None

Notes
Jake Allen continues to be an anvil for fantasy owners as he is 2-3-3 with a 3.93 GAA and a .876 save percentage and he was pulled yet again Thursday after giving up four goals on 17 shots. The Blues are in trouble and had a closed-door meeting after their loss Thursday. Carl Gunnarsson was sent to the minors for a conditioning stint. He has yet to play this season. Robert Bortuzzo has a lower body injury and will miss at least three weeks. Robby Fabbri has been sent to the minors as he tries to return from a groin injury that has kept him out of action all season. Jaden Schwartz has only a goal and three points in seven games. Alex Pietrangelo picked up his first point of the season Saturday but still has only one in nine games.

SAN JOSE

Games this week
vs. New York Rangers, vs. Columbus, vs. Philadelphia

Rested Team: None
Tired Team: None

Notes
This week is the start of a four game home stand. Brent Burns leads the San Jose blueline with 10 points and that is five better than Erik Karlsson who is also a minus-seven in nine games this season. Timo Meier is off to a good start with five goals and eight points in nine games. Joe Thornton has been skating and could return to game action this week. If so, he will play alongside Meier and Logan Couture who is tied with Burns for the team lead in points. Tomas Hertl is also having a nice start with three goals and nine points. Melker Karlsson has yet to get a point in nine games this season. Evander Kane has four goals and nine points with 25 penalty minutes.

TAMPA BAY

Games this week
vs. New Jersey, vs. Nashville, @ Montreal, @ Ottawa

Rested team: None
Tired Team: None

Notes
The Lightning play four games including three games in four nights. Andrei Vasilevskiy should play three times with Louis Domingue playing once. Vasilevskiy gave up five goals on 34 shots Saturday but still is 4-1-1 this season with a 1.80 GAA and a 2.16 save percentage. Steven Stamkos and Nikita Kucherov were reunited Wednesday but have not played together a lot.  Stamkos has only a goal and four points in eight games while Kucherov has three goals and eight points. Yanni Gourde has four goals and eight point in eight games and leads the Lightning with three power play goals. Mikhail Sergachev has three assists in eight games.

TORONTO

Games this week
vs. Calgary, vs. Dallas, @ Pittsburgh

Rested team:  None
Tired Team: None

Notes
Nazem Kadri scored his first of the season Wednesday. John Tavares scored Wednesday and it was his first goal in six games. After scoring 10 goals in his first six games, Auston Matthews has not scored in the last four contests. Kasperi Kapanen has nine points this season and has made a lot of fans forget about the need to have William Nylander in the lineup. Speaking of Nylander, he and the Maple Leafs are talking and it appears that he will eventually ink a bridge deal for a couple of seasons. Jake Gardiner is eligible for free agency next season and isn’t sure he will be back next season as there may not be enough money left for him.

VANCOUVER

Games this week
vs. Minnesota, vs. Chicago, vs. Colorado

Rested Team: vs. Colorad (Friday)
Tired Team: None

Notes
Elias Pettersson is close to returning to the lineup as he has been out with a concussion. Adam Gaudette picked up his first point in his NHL career. Brock Boeser is still out with a groin injury but could return as early as October 27. Alexander Edler may have a serious injury and could be out a while. He has five assists in 10 games thus far. Bo Horvat leads the Canucks with seven goals and nine points, one point better than Pettersson who has played six less games. Troy Stecher has a goal and five points from the blueline and has not picked up a point on the power play. Only five Canucks have points on the power play with Horvat, Pettersson and Sven Baertschi each getting two goals and two assists while Edler and Boeser each have three assists.

VEGAS

Games this week
@ Nashville, @ St. Louis, vs. Carolina

Rested Team: vs. Carolina (Saturday)
Tired Team: None

Notes
After starting the season at 1-4, Vegas has gone 3-0-1 in their last four games. They are not getting great performances out of so many players as Erik Haula has only a goal and an assist in nine games after scoring 29 goals last season. Tomas Nosek has only one goal after a great playoff in 2018 while Max Pacioretty has only two goals with no assists in nine games. It has not been a great start to the trade as Tomas Tatar, part of the return from Vegas to Montreal, has been scoring at a much higher pace with three goals and eight points in nine games. The Golden Knights have not had a goal from their blueline yet and only six assists in nine games. They need more production from their rearguards. The Golden Knights inked suspended defenseman Nate Schmidt to a six-year extension worth $35.7 million.
  
WASHINGTON

Games this week
@ Montreal, vs. Dallas

Rested team: None
Tired Team: None

Notes
The Capitals continue to struggle in their own end as they have given up 33 goals in nine games and that includes a shutout in their opener. They have been scoring offensively as defenseman John Carlson leads the way with 14 points, one better than forwards Nicklas Backstrom, Alex Ovechkin and Evgeny Kuznetsov. Andre Burakovsky got off the schneid Thursday with his first goal and point of the season. Commissioner Gary Bettman upheld the 20-game suspension of Tom Wilson for his illegal check to the head of Oskar Sundqvist of the Blues. Backstrom picked up the 600^th assist of his NHL career Monday. Jakub Vrana has two goals and four points and is tied with Michal Kempny for the team lead with 12 penalty minutes.

WINNIPEG

Games this week
@ Florida, vs. Florida

Rested team: None
Tired Team: None

Notes
The Jets play a ‘home-and-home’ series in Finland against Florida and if there are any fisticuffs, Dustin Byfuglien should be involved to some extent. Coach Paul Maurice moved Patrik Laine to the top line Wednesday with Mark Scheifele and Blake Wheeler but that lasted only 40 minutes and Laine was replace by Nikolaj Ehlers who scored his first goal in 27 games. That includes the playoffs from last season.  Laine still has not scored in even-strength situations this season. He will be happy to be going home to Finland this week. Tyler Myers and Ben Chiarot lead the Jets with 24 penalty minutes. Ehlers has four points this season and is a team-worst minus-six.

Nylander Update

Maple Leafs general manager Kyle Dubas and representatives for William Nylander are still in meaningful negotiations about five weeks away from the Dec. 1 deadline to sign the restricted free agent.

The other option is Toronto trading the 22-year-old winger. But while Dubas was spotted at both New York Rangers and Philadelphia Flyers home games the past 48 hours (Calgary and Colorado were the respective visiting teams), he’s on the home turf of New Jersey-based agent Lewis Gross, who is handling the talks with Nylander’s father, Michael.

The two men met on Monday after taking a couple of days to digest new numbers that came out of a meeting in Zurich, Switzerland, last week, with Dubas and William Nylander present. The opposite ends of the numbers for a long-term pact were believed to be around $8 million US per season on the player side versus just more than $6 million offered by the Leafs, but they could be narrowing. A compromise would be a bridge deal in the $4 million-to-$5 million range that both sides had initially rejected.

Meanwhile, it does no harm for Dubas to “enjoy getting out to watch some games,” as he politely told NHL.com in Philly. The Leafs, who took a break from practice on Monday, have a spread-out home-and-home against the Winnipeg Jets on Wednesday and Saturday. Nylander was working out with an Austrian club team.


CORRADO RETURNS

Frank Corrado, who doesn’t know the word “quit,” is back in the Leafs organization. The defenceman, claimed on waivers three years ago this month, has agreed to an AHL contract with the Marlies.
The 25-year-old, Woodbridge-born Corrado played 41 games for the Leafs and hung on to the fringe of the roster for a couple of years. Moving to Pittsburgh, he made it into seven games for the Penguins the past couple of seasons while shuttling back and forth with their AHL farm team. His career took another bad turn with an ACL injury sidelining him most of the calendar year 2018, but he’s cleared to play.

Crawford Returns, so does Quick.

This wasn’t the return their teams had in mind.  Jonathan Quick and Corey Crawford have combined to lead their teams to four Stanley Cup Championships and remain vital parts of their respective clubs.  Both of them made their return from injury on Thursday and both of them fell in blowout losses.  Quick’s defeat was the more extreme of the two as he was chased in a 7-2 loss to the Islanders.

Crawford, on the other hand, suffered a 4-1 loss to the Arizona Coyotes.  While Quick was making his return after missing five straight games, Crawford had been sidelined for nearly a year.  What his availability would be like in 2018-19 was left as something of a mystery during the summer, which makes the fact that he was able to return in October a big win for Chicago.

That’s the big thing here: the return of Crawford and Quick are big wins for their respective clubs.  This wasn’t the return that either wanted, but it’s the long run that matters for each of them.





PITTSBURGH 3 TORONTO 0

Matt Murray, in his first start since returning from a concussion, turned aside all 38 Maple Leafs shots to earn the shutout.  It was his first shutout of 2018-19 and the seventh perfect game of his career.

This isn’t just the first time Toronto has been shutout in 2018-19, it’s also the first time the Maple Leafs have been held to under three goals since the season began.  Auston Matthews’ seven-game multi-point streak also came to an end.

Evgeni Malkin led the charge for Pittsburgh with two goals and an assist.  He has three goals and nine points in six contests this season.

Kris Letang found the back of the net and registered an assist.  That gives him three goals and six points in five games.

Frederik Andersen kicked out 36 of 37 Penguins shots.  Pittsburgh’s other two goals were empty-netters.



COLORADO 5 NEW JERSEY 3

Gabriel Landeskog was the hero with a hat trick.  His second goal of the game at 8:08 of the third period tied the contest at 3-3 and then he completed the hat trick with the game-winning goal at 16:38.

Mikko Rantanen scored a goal and registered three assists for Colorado.  That brings him up to two goals and 13 points in seven games.

Avalanche teammate Nathan MacKinnon also came up big with three assists.  He has seven goals and 11 points in seven contests.

Philipp Grubauer stopped 27 of 30 Devils shots.  He’s 1-1-0 with a 3.53 GAA and .891 save percentage in two starts.

At the other end of the ice, Keith Kinkaid allowed four goals on 33 shots.  That ended his run of four straight starts where he had surrendered two goals or less.

Taylor Hall scored a goal and registered two assists for the Devils.  He has a goal and seven points in five games.

COLUMBUS 6 PHILADELPHIA 3

Cam Atkinson scored a pair of goals for the Blue Jackets.  That gives him four goals and six points in six games.

Nick Foligno netted the game-winning goal.  It was his third goal and fifth point in six contests this season.

Travis Konecny had a goal and an assist for the Flyers.  He’s up to a goal and four points in seven games.

Calvin Pickard surrendered six goals on 28 shots last night.  He has a 4.75 GAA and .833 save percentage in three contests.

Sergei Bobrovsky turned aside 32 of 35 Flyers shots.  He has a 2-2-0 record, 4.03 GAA, and .875 save percentage in four starts.

TAMPA BAY 3 DETROIT 1

With this loss, the Red Wings are 0-5-2, making this the first time in their franchises history that they have lost seven straight games to start a season.  The only other team without a win so far this season is the Florida Panthers, but the Panthers have played in just four contests.

Luke Glendening scored the Red Wings’ lone goal.  It was his first marker and third point in seven games this season.

Jimmy Howard turned aside 28 of 30 Lightning shots.  On the plus side, he bounced back after surrendering a combined nine goals over his previous two starts.

Steven Stamkos scored the game-winning goal.  He’s off to a quiet start with a goal and an assist in five games.

Brayden Point also found the back of the net.  That gives him four goals and five points in five games.

Andrei Vasilevskiy stopped 29 of 30 shots Thursday night.  He improved to 3-1-0 with a 1.48 GAA and .954 save percentage in four starts.

WINNIPEG 4 VANCOUVER 1

Dustin Byfuglien made his return from an upper-body injury and scored a goal and two assists.  He has a goal and four points in five contests in 2018-19.

Bryan Little found the back of the net and registered an assist.  He’s up to two goals and three points in seven games.

Connor Hellebuyck saved 26 of 27 Canucks shots.  He’s 3-2-1 with a 2.66 GAA and .914 save percentage in six starts.

At the other end of the ice, Anders Nilsson allowed four goals on 32 shots.  He has a 3-1-0 record, 2.26 GAA, and .925 save percentage in four games.

Bo Horvat scored Vancouver’s only goal.  It was his fourth goal and fifth point in seven contests.

ARIZONA 4 CHICAGO 1

Corey Crawford stopped 27 of 30 shots last night.  He was making his first start since Dec. 23, 2017.

Former Blackhawks forward Vinnie Hinostroza scored two goals, including the game-winner.  Those were his first two goals of the 2018-19 campaign.

Clayton Keller scored a goal and registered an assist for Arizona.  He has a goal and three points in six games.

Antti Raanta turned aside 33 of 34 Blackhawks shots.  He has a 2-3-0 record, 1.97 GAA, and .921 save percentage in five starts.

Erik Gustafsson netted Chicago’s lone goal.  It was his first marker and fourth point in six games.

EDMONTON 3 BOSTON 2 (OT)

Leon Draisaitl scored the overtime winner last night.  It was his second goal and sixth point in five games.

Connor McDavid registered a pair of assists.  That gives him four goals and 11 points in five contests.

Cam Talbot stopped 27 of 29 Bruins shots.  This was his third straight win after he dropped his first two starts.

At the other end of the ice, Jaroslav Halak turned aside 19 of 22 shots.  He was making his first start since Oct. 11 when he stopped 25 of 26 shots against Edmonton.

David Krejci found the back of the net for Boston.  It was his first goal and sixth point in seven games.

NY ISLANDERS 7 LOS ANGELES 2

Jonathan Quick made his return from a lower-body injury on Thursday, but it didn’t last.  He stopped 23 of 29 shots before being yanked midway through the third period.  Jack Campbell stepped in and kicked out two of three shots.

Robin Lehner didn’t complete the game either, but likely for a very different reason.  He turned aside 28 of 30 shots before leaving late in the third period.  That’s probably related to Lehner taking a shot off his mask.  Thomas Greiss entered the game and saved the five shots he faced.

Valtteri Filppula scored two goals and registered an assist.  That gives him four goals and six points in six games.

Andrew Ladd had a goal and two assists for the Islanders.  He’s up to two goals and four points in three contests.

Scott Mayfield assisted on three of the Islanders’ seven goals.  He has a goal and five points in four games.

SAN JOSE 5 BUFFALO 1

Jake McCabe scored the Sabres’ lone goal.  It was his first marker and second point in seven games.

Logan Couture led the charge for San Jose with a hat trick.  He has four goals and six points in seven contests.

Brent Burns assisted on two of the Sharks’ five goals.  He’s up to six assists in seven games this season.

Martin Jones turned aside 24 of 25 Sabres shots.  He had surrendered three goals in each of his previous two outings.

Carter Hutton kicked out 34 of 38 shots last night.  He’s struggled recently, surrendering a combined 13 goals over his last three starts.

The Senate is in session

The Ottawa Senators' summer can probably best be described as embarrassing and it reached new levels on Sept. 13 when Erik Karlsson was traded to San Jose in a package that many felt was less than what Karlsson should have brought.  It looked like Ottawa was on track to finish in the league’s basement this season, which would have been a particularly bad fate given that the Senators lack their 2019 first round pick as a consequence of the Matt Duchene trade.

And yet, six games into the season, while the Senators haven’t been good, they have at least been okay.  With a 4-1 win over Dallas on Monday, they are 3-2-1 this season.  True, it’s still very early, but they aren’t the tire fire that many anticipated going into the campaign.

That’s thanks in part to their rookies.  Maxime Lajoie has excelled thus far with four goals and seven points in six games while 19-year-old Brady Tkachuk has three goals and six points in four contests.  They hold the second and third slots in the rookie scoring race at this early stage, behind Vancouver’s Elias Pettersson.

They’ve had different heroes in different games though. When Ottawa bested Toronto 5-3, the player that stood out the most was defenseman Thomas Chabot.  In their 5-1 win against Los Angeles, Chris Wideman of all people scored two goals.

On Monday, Craig Anderson was vital as Ottawa was outshot by Dallas 38-23.  In general, Anderson has played a key role in holding down the fort.  Ottawa ranks second last in shots allowed so far this season with a staggering 38.3 shots against per game.  With a .925 save percentage in five starts, Anderson has managed to help manufacture some wins, but if he can’t keep this up then the Senators solid start might become a distant memory.

TORONTO 4 LOS ANGELES 1

Garret Sparks struggled in his first start this season, allowing six goals to Chicago, but he bounced right back last night.  He turned aside 33 of 34 shots and he managed to contain the damage in the second period when the Leafs were out shot 15-8.  That strong start comes at a particularly good time because Frederik Andersen is dealing with a knee injury.  While it’s possible that Andersen will still be available for Thursday’s contest, Sparks strong performance should help alleviate Leafs fans’ nerves a little.

Meanwhile, Jack Campbell stopped 21 of 25 Leafs shots.  He got off to such a great start in the absence of Jonathan Quick (lower body), but Campbell has allowed eight goals over his last two starts.  Of course, containing the Maple Leafs offense at the start of this season has been a task that most teams haven’t been up to thus far, so Campbell isn’t alone there.

Ilya Kovalchuk scored the Kings’ lone goal.  He has two goals and four points in six games this season.

Auston Matthews’ season-opening goal scoring streak is over, but his point streak was extended to seven games with him registering two assists last night.  That gives him 10 goals and 16 points in seven games.

Kasperi Kapanen found the back of the net twice.  He’s up to four goals and eight points in seven contests.  He had just seven goals and nine points in 38 games with the Maple Leafs last season.

Calling William Nylander,

MONTREAL 7 DETROIT 3

This was Tomas Plekanec’s 1,000th career game and he added to his celebration by scoring a goal at 16:56 of the first period. 

Tomas Tatar found the back of the net and registered two assists against his former team.  The Canadiens forward is up to three goals and seven points in five games.

Jonathan Drouin scored a pair of goals for Montreal.  He has two markers and three points in five games.

Antti Niemi kicked out 25 of 28 shots.  He’s 2-0-0 with a 2.88 GAA and .893 save percentage in two starts.

At the other end of the ice, Jimmy Howard turned aside 15 of 20 shots before being yanked just 24:35 minutes into the game.  Jonathan Bernier stepped in and allowed another two goals on 15 shots.

Andreas Athanasiou scored twice for the Red Wings.  That gives him two goals and three points in six contests.

OTTAWA 4 DALLAS 1

Craig Anderson kicked out 37 of 38 Stars shots.  That the second straight start where he surrendered just one goal, giving him a 3-1-1 record, 3.02 GAA, and .925 save percentage in five games.

Brady Tkachuk scored the game-winning goal.  He already has three markers and six points in four games.

Matt Duchene assisted on two of the Senators’ four markers.  He’s up to six helpers in six games in 2018-19.

John Klingberg netted the Dallas Stars’ only goal.  That gives him four goals and six points in five contests.

Ben Bishop turned aside 20 of 23 shots last night.  He’s 2-2-0 with a 2.55 GAA and .913 save percentage in four starts.

 

NASHVILLE 4 MINNESOTA 2

Mikko Koivu had a goal and an assist for the Wild.  That gives him a goal and four points in five games this season.

Alex Stalock turned aside 24 of 27 shots last night.  It was his first start of the season, giving Devan Dubnyk a game off ahead of Tuesday’s contest Arizona.

Filip Forsberg accounted for the game-winning goal.  It was his fourth goal and sixth point in six games.

Ryan Johansen registered two assists for the Predators.  He has a goal and six points in six contests.

Pekka Rinne kicked out 29 of 31 shots last night.  He’s 3-1-0 with a 1.75 GAA and .943 save percentage in four starts.

Move over Bobby

I get self-conscious whenever I write a lot about one team in a short span of time because I worry that in doing so I’m not giving proper recognition to other equally big stories.  I’m particularly wary of focusing too much on the Maple Leafs because I’ve spent my whole life in Toronto and I don’t want that to cloud me from taking a national perspective on the league.  But how can I not focus on the Maple Leafs right now given the start they’ve had?




Averaging five goals in each of their first five games is insane.  Morgan Rielly recording 12 points in five games is insane.  He’s surpassed Bobby Orr for the second most points ever by a defenseman through five games – and the record holder is Harry Cameron’s 15 points set all the way back in 1917-18 with the Toronto Arenas.  Auston Matthews scoring nine goals in five games is insane.  He’s also become the youngest player ever to record multiple points in each of their team’s first five games, taking that admittedly obscure record from Wayne Gretzky.  The fact that there are four players this season with at least 10 points and they’re all members of the Maple Leafs is insane.  John Tavares is there with six goals and 10 points, as is Mitchell Marner with three goals and 10 points.




This won’t last.  Toronto has a strong offense, but no offense in the modern NHL is this strong.  Eventually the Maple Leafs will run into scoring problems, as all teams do from time to time.  Regardless of when that comes, we’ll soon see their average goals per game start to trend down, because this is just unsustainable.  When that happens, their current defensive struggles will take the spotlight unless they’ve been addressed.  For now though, it’s fun to watch, especially if you took any of Matthews, Rielly, Tavares, or Marner in your fantasy league.

He shoots He scores !

Kasperi Kapanen might make Nylander a ghost

Mike Babcock has avoided commentary on the William Nylander contract dispute, leaving it to general manager Kyle Dubas and the player to work out.

But his line switch on Sunday will put the winger’s absence in a new light and who knows, perhaps speed up a resolution. After watching Tyler Ennis do his best Nylander impression on the right side with Auston Matthews and Patrick Marleau, providing everything but size and finish, Babcock saw the Maple Leafs’ painfully slow start to the Chicago game as the ideal time to get Kasperi Kapanen into that spot. Many think Kapanen was being wasted on the fourth ‘Nordic Combined’ line with Par Lindholm and Andreas Johnsson, as those two are a step behind him offensively.

After Marleau-Matthews-Kapanen stumbled on a breakout that made it 2-0 Chicago in the first period, they came back on the next shift, Matthews with a long bomb breakaway pass to the fleet Kapanen to get the Leafs on the board. They traded roles less than a minute later on the tying goal and were out again when Matthews gave the Leafs a brief lead with 1:02 to play in regulation.

Their efforts were over-shadowed by John Tavares’ hat trick in the 7-6 overtime Madness on Madison, but Babcock’s lineup decision here Tuesday is clear. His praise of Kapanen come with a proviso, however, to use his bigger body and model his game more like the bulldozing Zach Hyman does for Tavares and Mitch Marner.

But if those top six forwards keep rolling, how much will the club miss Nylander moving ahead?

Don’t expect Nylander and his agents to cave and for him to grab the next plane from Stockholm, but with 13 goals in three games, the Leafs would not seem to be in a hurry to close the rumoured $2 million US gap per year in the talks for a long-term deal. Babcock’s attention now is on defensive breakdowns.

Kapanen, who has not griped about extended periods with the fourth-liners that goes back to last season, has some cache with the coach, proving himself a good playoff performer and now taking on some penalty-killing duties. He’s ready for his close-up.

“There’s always room to improve and I look forward to that,” Kapanen said after Sunday’s game, in which he tied Tavares with seven shots on net in 15 minutes of ice time. “I want to try and do better for the next game.”

Like the Hawks, Dallas has won its first two while giving up just one goal, a real road test for Toronto which began a four-game swing on the weekend. All three of the Leafs lines will find it heavy going on Tuesday. Ennis ended Sunday with Lindholm and Johnsson, in the sort of role that was envisioned for the 5-foot-8 forward before the Nylander talks went south.

Matthews, who had four points in less than 17 minutes on Sunday, has been highly complimentary of Ennis since camp, but Kapanen's arrival changes the line dynamic for the better.

“He brings a lot of speed,” Matthews said. “You saw that on the first goal, and the one he fed me, it was an unbelievable pass.

“I don’t think a lot of guys can skate like he does up and down the rink. You have a guy like that out there, it creates quite a bit of space and he has a good shot to finish it off. We meshed pretty well tonight.”

HYMAN THE ‘HORSE’ OF THE TAVARES LINE

He’s a horse with no name no longer.

Both hat trick man John Tavares and Leafs coach Mike Babcock gave much of the credit for Sunday’s result in Chicago to the on-going hustle of left winger Zach Hyman, who set the tone for snipers Tavares and linemate Mitch Marner.

“Zach can’t get anyone to even talk about him,”

Babcock noted of Hyman’s low profile in the media. “But why does that line play in the offensive zone all the time? Because he keeps going to go get it, go get it, go get it. You look around the league at how many guys can skate like that and protect the puck like that. He’s heavy. We are fortunate to have him.”

Tavares agreed Hyman was “a horse” among many Leafs who made contributions Sunday, even if a few detracted on a night the Leafs gave up six. Defenceman Morgan Rielly had the eventual winner at 19 seconds of overtime, part of four goals in the final 1:43, two by each club.
“Mitch and John were great, but it’s Hyman who really drives that line in terms of puck possession,” Rielly said. “Then John and Mitch can find each other.”
While the stars were being interviewed, Hyman was looking at the mess of a game sheet as the Leafs departed for Dallas.

“Four goals, and crazy goals, too. You don’t see 7-6 games too often.” Hyman said before flipping the praise back to Tavares.

“John can put the puck in and you saw the different types of goals he can score. One was a tip, one was coming down off a rebound, one was top shelf from the top of the circle. He does all those little things, but he’s also strong defensively.”