NHL Week in Review: 1/15-1/21

Daily Headlines

Monday 1/15

• Sidney Crosby scores twice, and Tristan Jarry makes 22 stops for his fifth shutout as the Penguins halt the Kraken's nine-game win streak with a 3-0 win. 
• Marc-Andre Fleury blanks the Islanders 5-0 to earn his 552nd career victory, passing Patrick Roy for the second-most in NHL history.
• Mark Stone records a hat trick to help the Vegas Golden Knights to a 4-1 victory over the Nashville Predators.  
• Joel Armia breaks the tie late in the third period as Montreal takes a 4-3 upset win over the Colorado Avalanche. 

Tuesday 1/16

• Down 4-2, Colorado rattles off five unanswered goals to help them rout the Ottawa Senators 7-4 behind a pair of goals from Mikko Rantanen. 
• Edmonton erases a 2-0 deficit by scoring four straight to help them beat Toronto 4-2 and push their winning streak to 11 games. 
• Calgary strikes twice in the third period to force overtime and completes the comeback in the dying seconds for a 3-2 win over the Coyotes. 

Wednesday 1/17

• The Red Wings keep their incredible run going by downing the Florida Panthers in overtime on the power play as Dylan Larkin secured the 3-2 win in Sunrise. 
• Cole Caufield scores late in the third period to help the Canadiens steal two points from the Devils in a 3-2 win. 

Thursday 1/18

• David Pastrnak pots three goals to lead the Bruins to a 5-2 win over the Colorado Avalanche. 
• A hat trick from Austin Matthews helps him extend his league lead, and a late challenge helps Toronto hold their 4-3 win against Calgary. 
• TJ Oshie scores three times as the Capitals pick up two big points in a 5-2 win over the Blues. 
•  Behind two goals from Warren Foegele, the Edmonton Oilers extend their win streak to 12 games as they beat Seattle 4-2. 

Friday 1/19

• Minnesota scores five times on the power play against the Panthers to take down Florida 6-4, led by a pair of goals from Kirill Kaprizov. 
• Chicago avoids a collapse as Seth Jones scores 22 seconds into overtime to take down the Islanders 4-3 despite leading 3-1 going into the third period. 
• Martin Necas returns from injury with a goal and an assist as the Hurricanes pull away from the Red Wings late in a 4-2 win to snap Detroit's seven-game point streak. 

Saturday 1/20

• New York fires Head Coach Lane Lambert amid the team's four-game losing streak, naming Patrick Roy as the interim coach. 
• Logan O'Connor records his first NHL hat trick while Nathan MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen score twice each as the Avalanche win a 7-4 barnburner against the Flyers. 
• Danton Heinen scores three times, and David Pastrnak scores his 30th goal of the season to play a part in Boston's 9-4 drumming of the Montreal Canadiens. 
• Edmonton sets a Canadian record by winning their 13th straight game in a 3-1 win over the Calgary Flames. 
• Vegas scores three times in the third period, capped off by Brendan Brisson's first NHL goal to erase a 2-0 deficit in a 3-2 win over the Penguins. 
• Connor Garland and Nils Hoglander score twice to help the Canucks take down the Maple Leafs 6-4.
• Jonathan Quick plays well in his homecoming to Los Angeles, but the Kings emerge with a 2-1 victory against the Rangers. 

Sunday 1/21

• Kirill Kaprizov nets his third hat trick as the Wild take down the Hurricanes 5-2 behind three goals in the third period. 
• Claude Giroux returns to Philadelphia and ties the game early in the third period before the Senators complete the comeback in a 5-3 win over the Flyers. 
• Bo Horvat provides the game-winner in overtime to help the Islanders earn their first win under Patrick Roy in a 3-2 win over the Dallas Stars. 

Team of the Week- Boston Bruins

I struggle to give Boston its due when they deserve it, but they truly earned it this week. They were one of three teams to go 3-0-0 and did so by scoring nearly six goals per game. Their 17 goals were third in the league, but they did it in just three games. A lot of that is thanks to the nine-goal outburst against the Canadiens on Saturday. Danton Heinen picked up a hat trick in that game, and 16 of their 18 skaters recorded at least one point. Not to be outdone, they also posted a shutout against New Jersey to start their week. Jeremy Swayman was in the net for that win and their 5-2 win over the Avalanche. The Bruins were expected to fall off a little this season with the retirements of Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci. It still hasn't happened, as they put some distance between themselves and the rest of the Atlantic Division. 

Disappointing Team of the Week- Seattle Kraken

The Kraken entered this week on a nine-game win streak and looked to be in a good position in the Wild Card race. Then, they went 0-4-0 to push themselves four points out of a playoff spot and into a logjam with four other teams. The Kraken finished their six-game road trip with three losses before returning home to lose to Toronto 3-1 on Sunday. The issue was their lack of offense. The Kraken totaled just five goals across four games, including getting shut out by the Penguins early in the week. Jared McCann and Jordan Eberle scored twice each, with the rest of the team combining for one goal. It's not as if Joey Daccord struggled, either. His numbers weren't lights out, but he did enough to help his team stay in the game. 

Surprising Team of the Week- Minnesota Wild

The Minnesota Wild continue to be a team that can't figure out if they're really good or really bad. The Wild won three of their four games this week, scoring 19 goals across their four contests. Getting Kirill Kaprizov back in the lineup helped. He and Joel Eriksson Ek tied for the league lead with eight points, with Kaprizov scoring five goals, including a hat trick in Carolina, and Eriksson Ek scoring four. Brock Faber also continued to make his case for the Calder, scoring seven points to lead all rookies. Their win in Florida was especially memorable. Marc-Andre Fleury was knocked out of the game early after a collision behind the net, leading to a huge fight. This came after Fleury passed Patrick Roy for second in wins with a 5-0 shutout against the Islanders. Filip Gustavsson wasn't great but finished his week with 40 stops in Raleigh. The Wild are hanging around the Wild Card race. They're six points out but within striking distance as long as they stay hot. 

Three Stars of the Week

3rd Star- Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen (BUF)- 2-1-0, .968 SV%, 0.67 GAA in 3 games

I'm not 100% sure, but I think this is the first time I've had a goalie in my three stars with a regulation loss. Regardless, posting back-to-back shutouts is impressive, no matter what level you're playing at. In a time when scoring seems to be on the rise, to hold two opponents scoreless in a row is quite the feat. Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen 164:09 without allowing a goal, making this the 8th-longest shutout sequence in Sabres history. The shutouts might've come against two of the worst teams in the league, but that's just semantics. 

2nd Star- David Pastrnak (BOS)- 5 goals, 2 assists in 3 games

There were a lot of skaters to pick from this week, with three players tying for the league lead with five goals and four tying with eight points. I opted for David Pastrnak for a few reasons. First, he recorded multiple points in all three games he played. Second, he scored five goals in just three games, while the other needed four. Third, he did it while playing almost three fewer minutes per game than Auston Matthews. Pastrnak now has eclipsed 30 goals, moving him into third in the league, while also sitting in third in points behind MacKinnon and Kucherov.

1st Star- Kirill Kaprizov (MIN)- 5 goals, 3 assists in 4 games

It was a very good week for the Minnesota Wild. Not only did they win a lot, they also got Kirill Kaprizov back. To make it even better, Kaprizov produced a lot. He tied for the lead in goals and points, capping off his week with a hat trick in Raleigh. He scored his five goals in fewer shots than both Matthews and Pastrnak, doing so in just 16 tries. He recorded points in all four games, including back-to-back three-point performances against Florida and Carolina. The Wild have a lot of ground to make up in the division, but I wouldn't count them out completely. 

My Top 16 (* denotes a new entry)

16. Toronto Maple Leafs (-)

15. Tampa Bay Lightning (+3)*

14. Los Angeles Kings (+1)

13. Nashville Predators (-2)

12. Detroit Red Wings (+5)*

11. Philadelphia Flyers (+1)

10. Carolina Hurricanes (-4)

9. Edmonton Oilers (+1)

8. Florida Panthers (-5)

7. Vegas Golden Knights (+2)

6. Dallas Stars (+2)

5. New York Rangers (+2)

4. Colorado Avalanche (+1)

3. Boston Bruins (+1)

2. Winnipeg Jets (-)

1. Vancouver Canucks (-)

For the first time in a few weeks, there wasn't any movement at the top of the rankings. The Vancouver Canucks held their spot at #1 with a near-flawless week. A shootout loss to begin the week in Columbus was the only blemish on an otherwise strong showing. The Winnipeg Jets also stayed in place, winning both of their contests. They remain the league's best team by points percentage after wins over the Islanders and Senators. My Team of the Week, the Boston Bruins, moved up a spot to #3 after averaging nearly six goals per game across their three wins. The 9-4 win over Montreal helped to inflate that number, but they also added three-goal wins over New Jersey and Colorado. Speaking of the Avalanche, they also moved up one spot. It was a tough week for them defensively, but they scored 19 goals in four games, tying them for the league lead. The Rangers went 2-2-0 this week and rounded out the Top 5. They saved themselves from falling by dismantling the Ducks on Sunday. 

Biggest Risers- The Detroit Red Wings moved up five spots after winning two of their three games. They finished their road trip 3-1-0, with their only loss coming to Carolina. The Tampa Bay Lightning joined the Red Wings as the only other team to move into the Top 16. The Bolts lost to Detroit but put seven up on the Wild earlier in the week, along with a 3-1 win over Buffalo. 

Biggest Falls- The Florida Panthers took the biggest tumble this week, falling from #3 to #8 after dropping all three of their games. They managed to pick up overtime points in two of their losses but lost significant ground in the division standings after Boston's big week. The Carolina Hurricanes fell four spots to barely remain in the Top 10. The Canes suffered a pair of 5-2 losses to Los Angeles and Minnesota while beating Detroit on a late goal in the third period.