Post by mattgough60 on May 31, 2017 20:48:03 GMT -5
5 Early Season Surprises
Bob McKenzie
5. What is going on in Toronto?
- The Buds finished off the 2019/2020 season with plenty to be pleased with, making their first playoff appearance since 2012. Toronto managed to sneak into the playoffs, grabbing the 8th seed by a hair from the New York Rangers, matching them with the deadly Philadelphia Flyers. Unfortunately for Leaf fans, the Flyers proved to be too much, bouncing the Maple Leafs in 6 en route to a Stanley Cup. Its safe to say that higher expectations are on the table this year for the Leafs, however with 24 games played they find themselves sitting tied for 26th in the league. Toronto received a huge blow at the beginning of the season, losing Dylan Strome to a season ending injury, and haven’t seemed to get into a rhythm since. Perhaps the biggest surprise has been the teams goaltending, as the Leafs have allowed 3.6 goals against per game compared to their past season average of 2.8. Other notable stat differences show a drop in PP% from 17.6% to 12.4% and a PK% dropping from 83.1% to 76.1%. Can the Leafs get out of this funk and start making ground on the East?
4. Have the Yotes broken the curse?
- After years of torment in Glendale, Arizona, it seems like Coyotes management has finally managed to ice a team that very well could contend come playoff time. After a disappointing 19/20 finish, falling out of the playoffs in the latter half of the season, Arizona has rebounded for 20/21 and their improvements are shocking. Arizona improved its powerplay percentage from 16.9% to 27%- Good for first in the league. They’ve improved their GPG from 2.6 to 3.2, and currently sit 6th on the PK at 88.4%. The most impressive thing about this team is that while they’ve managed to increase their goals and shots per game, they’ve also managed to increase their hits per game, sitting at 2nd in the league at 23.8. Hopefully this team can continue its success, and finally see its first iNHL playoff berth.
3. Tampas Big Three
- Amidst all the blockbuster deals in Tampa it was expected that this Lightning team would begin to tail off and come back to earth. Sans Stamkos, Hedman, Johnson and Palat its hard to even recognize this Bolts team anymore. The energy is still very much present in this locker room, led by Kucherov, Gervais, and Goldobin. Tampa currently sits 6th in the East, coming off an emphatic win against Western giant, Dallas, 7-0, thanks to a 4-goal night by Filip Rydtsrom. Perhaps the savior of the season for Tampa has been Nikolai Goldobin, with 27 pts in 24 games, an acquisition from the Rangers for a 2nd and 3rd two years ago. It was deemed Goldobin would never be much more than a 30 point scorer, however the season immediately after, Nikolai managed to put up 47 points. Should he stay on his current pace this season, he will nearly double that.
2. Fall from Grace
- We were treated last Stanley Cup Final to another fantastic game 7 thriller. The Colorado Avalanche were down 3 games to none and it seemed that there was no hope. They somehow managed to claw their way back, game by game, and take it to game 7. That was as close as they would get, the Flyers would be crowned champions. But didn’t we expect that fight and energy again this season? While the Flyers seem to be experiencing no cup hangover, the Avalanche have crumbled. The worst powerplay at 10.6%, 2.8 goals per game for 6th worst, and 3.2 goals against for 7th worst. A shocking collapse for the Avs, with Jake Allen putting up nearly equal numbers to Nik Amundrud.
1. Big Bad Brown
- The most surprising player story of the season thus far is the emergence of Logan Brown for the Chicago Blackhawks. With 25 games played and a 2 minute per game increase from last season, Logan is putting up exceptional numbers for the young Hawks team, with 15 G 14 A and a 1.16 PPG. During the 2019/2020 season Brown averaged 13.24 in ice time, shooting an abysmal 2.38% and finishing the season a minus 20. After being incorporated into the Blackhawks PP and PK, Brown has managed to become a force, shooting at 19.23%, and looks to eclipse his shot total from last season in his next couple of games. Chicago has certainly learned to better manage Logans minutes, coming at no better time for the right winger during a contract year. He currently sits third in the league for points.
Bob McKenzie
5. What is going on in Toronto?
- The Buds finished off the 2019/2020 season with plenty to be pleased with, making their first playoff appearance since 2012. Toronto managed to sneak into the playoffs, grabbing the 8th seed by a hair from the New York Rangers, matching them with the deadly Philadelphia Flyers. Unfortunately for Leaf fans, the Flyers proved to be too much, bouncing the Maple Leafs in 6 en route to a Stanley Cup. Its safe to say that higher expectations are on the table this year for the Leafs, however with 24 games played they find themselves sitting tied for 26th in the league. Toronto received a huge blow at the beginning of the season, losing Dylan Strome to a season ending injury, and haven’t seemed to get into a rhythm since. Perhaps the biggest surprise has been the teams goaltending, as the Leafs have allowed 3.6 goals against per game compared to their past season average of 2.8. Other notable stat differences show a drop in PP% from 17.6% to 12.4% and a PK% dropping from 83.1% to 76.1%. Can the Leafs get out of this funk and start making ground on the East?
4. Have the Yotes broken the curse?
- After years of torment in Glendale, Arizona, it seems like Coyotes management has finally managed to ice a team that very well could contend come playoff time. After a disappointing 19/20 finish, falling out of the playoffs in the latter half of the season, Arizona has rebounded for 20/21 and their improvements are shocking. Arizona improved its powerplay percentage from 16.9% to 27%- Good for first in the league. They’ve improved their GPG from 2.6 to 3.2, and currently sit 6th on the PK at 88.4%. The most impressive thing about this team is that while they’ve managed to increase their goals and shots per game, they’ve also managed to increase their hits per game, sitting at 2nd in the league at 23.8. Hopefully this team can continue its success, and finally see its first iNHL playoff berth.
3. Tampas Big Three
- Amidst all the blockbuster deals in Tampa it was expected that this Lightning team would begin to tail off and come back to earth. Sans Stamkos, Hedman, Johnson and Palat its hard to even recognize this Bolts team anymore. The energy is still very much present in this locker room, led by Kucherov, Gervais, and Goldobin. Tampa currently sits 6th in the East, coming off an emphatic win against Western giant, Dallas, 7-0, thanks to a 4-goal night by Filip Rydtsrom. Perhaps the savior of the season for Tampa has been Nikolai Goldobin, with 27 pts in 24 games, an acquisition from the Rangers for a 2nd and 3rd two years ago. It was deemed Goldobin would never be much more than a 30 point scorer, however the season immediately after, Nikolai managed to put up 47 points. Should he stay on his current pace this season, he will nearly double that.
2. Fall from Grace
- We were treated last Stanley Cup Final to another fantastic game 7 thriller. The Colorado Avalanche were down 3 games to none and it seemed that there was no hope. They somehow managed to claw their way back, game by game, and take it to game 7. That was as close as they would get, the Flyers would be crowned champions. But didn’t we expect that fight and energy again this season? While the Flyers seem to be experiencing no cup hangover, the Avalanche have crumbled. The worst powerplay at 10.6%, 2.8 goals per game for 6th worst, and 3.2 goals against for 7th worst. A shocking collapse for the Avs, with Jake Allen putting up nearly equal numbers to Nik Amundrud.
1. Big Bad Brown
- The most surprising player story of the season thus far is the emergence of Logan Brown for the Chicago Blackhawks. With 25 games played and a 2 minute per game increase from last season, Logan is putting up exceptional numbers for the young Hawks team, with 15 G 14 A and a 1.16 PPG. During the 2019/2020 season Brown averaged 13.24 in ice time, shooting an abysmal 2.38% and finishing the season a minus 20. After being incorporated into the Blackhawks PP and PK, Brown has managed to become a force, shooting at 19.23%, and looks to eclipse his shot total from last season in his next couple of games. Chicago has certainly learned to better manage Logans minutes, coming at no better time for the right winger during a contract year. He currently sits third in the league for points.