The Shot Heard Around The League – The NHL Week 8 Report

Eight weeks into the season, and we are getting to the nitty gritty of the season. Some divisions are getting tighter and the teams looking to clinch a spot to the playoffs are fighting nail and tooth, while the others in the division are looking to rack up some points before we head into the last part of the season. As we look forward to another week of hockey and with 10 weeks left in the season, let’s look at the week prior and the weeks ahead to see which teams have a shot to make it, and what teams will be packing it up early.

Toronto & The Rest of the North

Those In The Top 4 – Dates With Destiny

The Toronto Maple Leafs are running away with the division, and with another strong week, they are going to create the biggest gap in team points in any of the divisions, as they are up by 7 points over the Winnipeg Jets. The Leafs are also leading the league in team points and are posting one of the best records in the league as well. Recently, especially within the last few weeks, there has been a lot of hate on how well the Maple Leafs are doing and many people believe they are the weakest of the leaders in their divisions. However, I believe quite the opposite; Toronto has looked like one of the most dangerous teams in the league and with two skaters in the top 10 of the NHL’s scoring leaders list, Mitch Marner and Auston Matthews, and their goalie in top 5 goalies in the league, the Leafs are locking down on both sides of the ice. I don’t think they will win the cup, but they do have a strong chance of making it to the Stanley Cup finals and possibly even making it a long series with whatever other team they will play. However, out of each of the leaders in their divisions, I believe Toronto has the strongest chance at winning Lord Stanley’s mug. Expect a long season from the Leafs, and best believe that I will support the Leafs train, as I would rather see them win over Colorado or Boston, teams who have been predicted to win the cup.

In second, the Winnipeg Jets have a chance at making some noise in the playoffs, as long as they can keep up their play. The Jets are seeming to find their comfort zone after losing Patrik Laine and Jack Roslovic were traded to the Columbus Blue Jackets and the Jets would receive Pierre-Luc Dubois. With Laine gone, Mark Scheifele has stepped up and put up some numbers for the Jets as he sits with the most goals, tied with Nikolaj Elhers and Kyle Conner, assists, and points on the team. The top four players on the Jets, the aforementioned three players and Blake Wheeler, are all above 20 points and at least three of them are above 10 goals on the season (Wheeler has only 7 goals). Winnipeg will need deeper line players like Paul Stastny, Mathieu Perreault, Adam Lowry, Mason Appleton and even Pierre-Luc Dubois, as he only has 6 points on the season, to start putting more goals in the net and playing the puck more in hopes to tack on some assists. The Jets went 8-4 in February and are 2-2 so far in March, and they have a big week against the Maple Leafs with 3 games all in Toronto on Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday. I don’t believe the Jets will make that big of an impact in the playoffs, as they could hit a rough month and find themselves out of the top 4, but if they are in the top 4 at the end of the season, I would expect them to at least put a fight and make some teams sweat in the second round. With March being a mostly away game month for the Jets, they will need some strong wins at home and on the road if they want to keep their current position with a possibility of making it to the 2nd round and hopes of making it beyond in the playoffs.

The third place Edmonton Oilers are possibly a dangerous 2nd round team, borderline 3rd round, for the playoffs. With Connor McDavid leading the team and the league in points and assists, closely followed by Leon Draisaitl. However, it’s the lack of goal scoring outside their top three players that could end up being detrimental to the Oilers, as Ryan Nugent-Hopkins is the only other player on the team besides McDavid and Draisaitl with at least 10 goals on the season. This has been a problem with the Oilers ever since they drafted McDavid in 2015; besides the top three, possibly the top two, the rest of the team cannot put enough pucks past the tender and it hinders the Oilers when it counts the most, especially in the late portion of the season. However, the Oilers do move the puck well and love to do it, as they have at least five players with 10 assists or more. They will need to keep putting up assists and moving the puck to help with the lack of goals for the Oilers. Players like Kailer Yamamato, Ethan Bear, Tyler Ennis, Adam Larsson, and James Neal to not only look to put more goals up on the board for the Oilers but also look to rack up some assists as well as they are all 7 assists and below. The Oilers had a good month in February as they went 9-3 and are looking to improve their record for March as they only picked up one win in the opening week of March. They look to play the Ottawa Senators at home on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday and then will travel to play the Canucks in Vancouver on Saturday. Like I said, the Oilers are a dangerous team that will more than likely make it to the second round and fizzle out, but depending on who they play and if the deeper lines can step up and put some points up, they might have a shot at making some upsets.

Closing out the the top four, the Montreal Canadiens are looking to make it past the first round, as they are likely the weakest, maybe second to the Oilers if they don’t put up some numbers, team in the top four. Montreal had a hot streak at the end of January and early in February as they would win 5 out of 8 in January and 3 games their first week in February. Since the first week of February, Montreal has only won 3 games and has lost 8 games, now finding themselves teetering in fourth place. As a Dallas Stars fan, I could see some similarities between the two teams in the month of February. The main issue for the Canadiens was allowing too many shots on goal, especially in the earlier points in the game. Too much volume at the net will result in goals for most goalies in the league. They also were struggling to score in the later in the game, mostly the third period. Montreal will need to play more aggressive hockey in the later portion of the season, as they could easily walk themselves out of playoff contention. The Canadiens will look to turn it around in the Week 9 as they will play in Vancouver on Monday and Wednesday and head to Calgary to play on Thursday and Saturday. Montreal will need to grab some wins and some points now if they want to make it out of the regular season and into the playoffs. However, if Montreal cannot improve in March, and Calgary finishes out the season strong, then the Canadiens could find themselves out of the top four and out of the playoffs.

Those Not In The Top 4 – Dates With The Couch

Calgary and Vancouver stay relative to having a shot at making the playoffs, along with some contingencies from Montreal, but they will need a strong March and rest of the season in hopes of making it. Both the Flames and Canucks sit less than 5 points behind the Canadiens, who have struggled since the second week of February and could lose their spot for the playoffs. Calgary, who post a record of 8-11 since the beginning of February, and Vancouver, who has gone 5-12 since the beginning of February, are both looking at producing better numbers during the month of March, as both teams have more games at home than on the road. If either team wants a shot at earning a place in the top 4, expect stronger play from both teams. However, if one team is going to have a better shot at making the top 4, I would expect it to be Vancouver as they have won 3 of the last 4 games and are looking to continue building up numbers.

Ottawa seems to be the lone team who has no shot at making the playoffs, unless they play lights out hockey and other teams just lose straight through the rest of the season. Ottawa has played weak since the beginning, as they only won 7 games through a month and a half, with only 1 win in January. The Senators have had some strong moments but since they are so far behind now, being 9 points away from the fourth placed Canadiens and with two other teams playing better as each week goes on, the Senators are looking at packing it up early and watching another playoff series at home on the couch.

Standings:

1. Toronto Maple Leafs – 18-6-2, 38 Pts
2. Winnipeg Jets – 15-8-1, 31 Pts
3. Edmonton Oilers – 15-11, 30 Pts
4. Montreal Canadiens – 11-6-6, 28 Pts
5. Calgary Flames – 11-12-3, 25 Pts
6. Vancouver Canucks – 11-15-2, 24 Pts
7. Ottawa Senators – 9-17-1, 19 Pts

The West Side Story

Those In The Top 4 – Favorited By Most

The Vegas Golden Knights sit atop the West for another week, and of course they are not up by much. With one of the smaller points margin between the top two teams, Vegas still has some work to do in order to escape the regular season in the top position. Among Colorado as the league’s favorite to win it all, Vegas is also predicted to do fairly well in the playoffs. However, I do not think they can get past the Western Conference Finals, as they have only been to the Stanley Cup Finals once out of their three years in the league. Vegas has played some dominant hockey as of recently since they are on a 6 game win streak and looking to continue it against the Wild in Minnesota on Monday and Wednesday and against the Blues in St. Louis on Friday and Saturday. The Golden Knights have arguably the best goalie in the league, only second to Tampa Bay’s Andrei Vasilevskiy. They also have control of pace of the game and the aggression of the game anytime Ryan Reaves is on the ice. This is especially important since the Golden Knights are a relatively low scoring team. Out of the leaders in each division, I believe the Golden Knights have the smallest chance of winning the cup, mainly due to how well the other divisional leaders have been playing all season and also recently. I would expect a strong run for the Golden Knights, but I don’t have any high hopes of the Mug coming to Vegas.

In second in the West, the St. Louis Blues are a team I don’t believe will do a lot in the playoffs, but you never know. The Blues are one of those teams that have strong regular seasons and then lose their confidence when hitting the playoffs, besides the year they won it. David Perron sits as their best player with the most points and assists on the team, but with only one other player above 10 goals on the season, the Blues will need to spread the puck around the ice in hopes of a larger volume of pucks at the net. A big looming positive for the Blues is the return of Vladimir Tarasenko in the next upcoming month. The Blues have also been playing some better hockey compared to February as they have won 4 out of the last 5 games, and are looking to pad their stats against the Sharks on Monday in San Jose and then look to grab a point or two against the Golden Knights at home on Friday and Saturday. However, with teams like Colorado predicted to do better and on the tail of the Blues, I wouldn’t expect a long playoff run from St. Louis, but that just might be the Stars fan in me talking.

The league favorite Colorado Avalanche are said to be the team to beat this year for the Stanley Cup, and it’s probably true. Colorado has looked like a rather strong team throughout this season and the playoff bubble. They only seem lower in the standings due to the problems with Covid on the team, and also losing some easy games to some bottom of the division teams. The Avalanche probably posses the biggest threat to the rest of the league when it comes to the playoffs. Their golden pony Nathan MacKinnon had an amazing playoff run in the bubble last season and is posting some relevant numbers this season as he sits with second on the team in points. However, MacKinnon and the rest of the team are under 10 goals on the season, besides Mikko Rantanen having 12 goals. The Avalanche are going to have to put some pucks in the back of the net if they want to be the favorite like everyone has them as. Colorado went 2-2 last week and they are hoping to have a better week as they at home against the Arizona Coyotes on Monday and Wednesday and against the LA Kings on Friday and Sunday. Colorado is only a few points behind the Golden Knights, but the fourth place Minnesota Wild are behind the Avalanche by 1 point, along with the Kings and Coyotes being behind the Avalanche by only 3 points, and the Wild is not a team I would count out.

The 4th place Minnesota Wild are slowly creeping their way into a secure spot in the playoff contention. Only a point behind the Colorado Avalanche, and with a strong amount of games at home this month, Minnesota could easily sink their way into the top 3 and be comfortable enough until playoffs start. They had a strong February even with Covid issues, but they have started out March on a sour note. They will play the Vegas Golden Knights on Monday and Wednesday and the Arizona Coyotes on Friday and Sunday at home. The Wild will need to win these games, or at least earn some points from these games, because the Kings and the Coyotes are only two points from the Wild and one of them could easily pass them and the Avalanche. Minnesota will need to be more consistent on scoring goals, as one night they will score 5 and then only score a goal or two the following game while allowing the same amount of goals on their net. If Minnesota can balance themselves out on the forecheck and the back check, I would expect them to be a team looking to create an upset in the playoffs.

Those Not In The Top 4 – Favorited By None

The Los Angeles Kings and the Arizona Coyotes both sit as major threats to the 4th and even the 3rd place spots for playoff contention as they only sit behind 2 points from the 4th place Wild and only 3 points behind the 3rd place Avalanche. Arizona had a strong Week 8 and first week of March by winning 2 out of 3 games, while the Kings only won 1 out of 3 games last week. Arizona has some important games this week as they play in Colorado on Monday and Wednesday and then they play in Minnesota on Friday and Sunday. The Kings also have a strong schedule during Week 9 as they play on the road in Anaheim on Monday and Wednesday and then in Colorado on Friday and Sunday. Both teams will need to gather some wins this week, if not some points in overtime/shootouts, as they will need the points to stay relative, and with both teams playing Colorado this week, if they can give the Avalanche some losses, it will only strengthen their claim for the playoffs. Out of either team, the Coyotes would seem to at least survive a round in the playoffs, making their chance for a spot in the playoffs a little stronger than the Kings.

The West’s bottom teams would be Anaheim with 20 points and San Jose with 19 points. Would seem the only competition that these two teams have are each other, fighting for the second to last position. Unless one or both of these two teams can play dominant hockey and the other teams in the division just crap the bed, I wouldn’t get my hopes up for the Ducks or the Sharks to visit Lord Stanley in the playoffs.

Standings:

1. Vegas Golden Knights – 16-4-1, 33 Pts
2. St. Louis Blues – 14-8-3, 31 Pts
3. Colorado Avalanche – 13-7-2, 28 Pts
4. Minnesota Wild – 13-8-1, 27 Pts
5. Los Angeles Kings – 10-8-5, 25 Pts
6. Arizona Coyotes – 11-10-3, 25 Pts
7. Anaheim Ducks – 7-12-6, 20 Pts
8. San Jose Sharks – 8-11-3, 19 Pts

Looking To Control The Central

Those In The Top 4 – Dreaming Of The Playoffs

The Tampa Bay Lighting or, as everyone loves to mention, the defending Stanley Cup champions are holding the first place in the Central division by a mere thread it seems. The team point gap is the smallest in the league with the Central division, as the Lighting only hold one point over the second place Carolina Hurricanes and only two points over the third place Florida Panthers. Even the Chicago Blackhawks, who sit in fourth in the Central, are 5 points behind the Lighting, which is still less than the amount of points between Toronto and Winnipeg in their division. Tampa Bay has some teams on their heels, and I don’t imagine this changing any time soon, as the top 4 spots will probably stay relatively close until the end of the season. Tampa Bay has the best goalie in the league as Andrei Vasilevskiy is playing like every year and being a brick wall in front of the net. With Tampa Bay’s Big 3, Steven Stamkos, Victor Headman, and Brayden Point, the Lighting are once again once of the scariest teams in the league, and are probably one of the divisional leaders who will go deep in the playoffs this year. Tampa Bay will be in Detroit on Tuesday and Thursday and then they will head home to play Nashville on Saturday. Expect the Lighting to stay within the top 4 in the division, and expect a deadly run with a possible return to see Lord Stanley’s Mug once again.

Being in second and only one point behind the Lighting and only one point ahead of the Panthers, Carolina sits in a rocking chair while being stuck between a ramming bull and a solid steel wall. Carolina’s play has been fun to watch, and I’d imagine that we will see them continue it into the playoffs. The Hurricanes top players of Vincent Trocheck, Sebastian Aho, Andrei Svechnikov, and Jordan Staal are carrying this team along and making sure the puck moves around the ice while staying on a teammate’s stick. The top 4 players all have over 20 points on the season, and they also have 7 players over 15 points as well. While there are only two players that have over 10 goals on the team, Trocheck and Nino Niederreiter, the amount of assists that their top players have show how they are winning games. The Hurricanes had a decent February and are looking to better in March as they won all 4 of their games last week. They will play Nashville at home on Tuesday and Thursday and then they will head to Detroit to play the Red Wings on Sunday. With another strong week like last week, we could see Carolina take over the first place position in the Central.

The 3rd place Panthers are only two points behind the Lighting and only one point behind the Hurricanes, making the race for the finish line an interesting one. They are also only up by 3 points on the Blackhawks, a team that has been red hot and looking to continue their terror as the season heads to a close. However, Florida is looking to go on a deep playoff with hopes of making it to the finals. But even before the Panthers look towards the playoffs and whom they will have to face, the Panthers have to fend off the rest of the Central division from taking their spot away from them. The strongest aspect of Florida’s game is the amount of shots they throw on net per game, as they remain one of the top teams, if not the top team, in the league for most shots on net. With the amount of chances they are creating, it’s not a shock that high scoring games. The Panthers look to Columbus this week as they play the Blue Jackets on Tuesday and Thursday and then head home to play the Blackhawks on Saturday. I would expect the Panthers to keep up their play and their volume on the net, and I would imagine that they have a very successful run this year.

The Chicago Blackhawks sit in fourth place in the Central division, only being behind the first place Tampa Bay Lighting by 5 points. However, they sit over the next closest team, the fifth placed Blue Jackets by 6 points, creating the biggest gap in team points between the fourth and the fifth spots in a division. Chicago had a rough start to the year but have turned it around as they have gone 9-6 since the beginning of February. Patrick Kane has not only lead the team but is now sitting in second looking to lead the NHL in points. Alex DeBrincat also finds himself on the scoring leaders list, while Kevin Lankinen sits at ninth on the top goalies list. Chicago has pieces that can help give them a good round or two push in the playoffs, but the third round would be tricky for them, if they made it that far. I believe as long as Chicago keeps up their play and wins some games and stacks some points, I don’t see Columbus surpassing them for the fourth spot in the Central.

Those Not In The Top 4 – Dreaming For A Spot To The Playoffs

The Nashville Predators and the Columbus Blue Jackets are the only relevant two teams that could maybe pose a threat to the fourth seated Blackhawks, however, being down by 6 points for the Jackets and 9 points for the Predators, I do not see a last minute push unless either the Blackhawks lose their mojo and the Jackets get hot or the Blackhawks lose their mojo, the Blue Jackets can’t find a way to win, and Nashville goes crazy on the last half of the season. I know Nashville is rumored to be shopping a few of their players as the trade deadline nears, so I wouldn’t be surprised if we see some movement from players out of Nashville. As for the Blue Jackets, they possibly have the best chance at threatening Chicago’s fourth place position, but I do not see it happening for them unfortunately.

As for the Dallas Stars and the Detroit Red Wings, it seems like being down by at least 12 points is a hard hill to climb, especially with a team playing like Chicago has. It seems like the Red Wings and the Stars will find themselves a spot on the couch early along with the Sabres, Senators, Sharks, and Ducks. Unless Dallas turns it up to 11 and Chicago, Columbus, and Nashville start to lose their traction, then I do not see the Stars getting into the playoffs this year. The same would go for Detroit, and I would imagine that not much would change from here on out.

Standings:

1. Tampa Bay Lighting – 17-4-2, 36 Pts
2. Carolina Hurricanes – 17-6-1, 35 Pts
3. Florida Panthers – 15-5-4, 34 Pts
4. Chicago Blackhawks – 13-8-5, 31 Pts
5. Columbus Blue Jackets – 10-11-5, 25 Pts
6. Nashville Predators – 11-14, 22 Pts
7. Dallas Stars – 7-8-5, 19 Pts
8. Detroit Red Wings -7-16-3, 17 Pts

Battle For The East Coast

Those In The Top 4 – Sweating On The Dance Floor

The New York Islanders are now the number 1 seated team in the East division, and things are starting to look up for them. They do only sit 2 points over the second place Capitals, but I believe the Islanders could have a lock on the first, if not the second, seat in the division. The Islanders are on a 5 game win streak, and with three games against the seventh place New Jersey Devils and one with the third place Bruins during Week 9, we could possibly see the streak continue. Matthew Barzal has lead the Islanders to the number one spot in the division, and highly doubt that he and the other players are going to let that slip through their fingers, not unlike how he slipped a between the legs shot pass the Sabres’ goalie on Saturday. With a lot of road games to get out of the way during March, the Islanders will hop to put up some good wins and grab some points while on the road and will also look forward to April as they will have a plethora of home games to win. I had hinted early on in the season to watch for the Islanders, as they are always a dangerous team, and it seems like that prediction is getting stronger every week.

The Washington Capitals now find themselves in second and they are looking to at least fend off the rest of the division, mostly the third place Bruins and the fourth place Penguins. The Capitals find themselves ahead by three points and behind by two points, which a loss or win can really affect their seating in the division. The Capitals won two out of their three games last week and looking to improve during Week 9 as they play New Jersey at home on Tuesday and then will head to Philadelphia to play the Flyers on Thursday and Saturday. The Capitals will need to score more, as they only have one player over 10 goals (Nicklas Bäckström). They are racking up the assists, showing they have what it takes to make smart decisions when passing the puck and hooking up their teammates with a clear pathway to the goal. I would expect the Capitals to remain in the top two in the East and possibly beat a team or three in the playoffs, as Ovechkin loves to show out in the playoffs.

Boston finds themselves in third place, tied in points with the Pittsburgh Penguins and only ahead of the fifth place Philadelphia Flyers by 2 points. Boston finds themselves in a sweaty position as they not only have to worry about keeping their seat in the top 3 but also having to worry about the Flyers possibly knocking them out of the top 4. It seems like Boston’s inconsistency is what is losing them games, as they will go to score 3 or more goals in one game and then end up losing the next game by a high goal margin. Boston’s top players will need to keep the team in check in hopes of staving off the teams from Pennsylvania and keeping their spot amongst the top 4 teams. The Bruins will look to improve in Week 9 as they went 1-2 in Week 8. They will be playing the Islanders in New York on Tuesday, and then will head home to play the other inhabitants of New York, the Rangers, on Thursday and Saturday. With games against playoff hungry teams this week and the weeks to come, Boston will need to work on staying consistent while playing aggressive on the ice, looking to always control the puck and control the pace of the game.

Closing out the top 4 of the East division sits Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins. They sit tied with the other black and yellow team in the division and the league, the Boston Bruins, at 29 team points and the Penguins are looking at possibly surpassing the Bruins and pressuring the Capitals for the second place spot in the division, as they only sit 3 points behind them. The Penguins have been playing rather well as they are 9-6 since the beginning of February and won 3 out of their 4 games last week. The Penguins are looking to start up a win streak as they will play the NY Rangers at home on Tuesday, and then will travel to Buffalo to play the Sabres on Thursday and Saturday. With games against two of the bottom three teams this week, the Penguins have a shot of grabbing some wins and stacking some points, possibly pushing them up the standings with a better chance at making it to the second round of the playoffs.

Those Not In The Top 4 – Sweating To Get On The Dance Floor

The Philadelphia Flyers sit as the biggest threat to the top 4 teams in the East division, as they are only two points behind the third place Bruins and the fourth place Penguins, and they are five points behind the second place Capitals. After only winning one game out of the four they had last week, the Flyers will look to turn it around in Week 9 as they will play Buffalo on Tuesday and the Capitals on Thursday and Saturday at home. If the Flyers can grab a win or two this week and notch some points, they could sit a very profitable position and could surpass either the Bruins or the Penguins.

The New York Rangers represent the “down, but not completely out” teams in the league as they sit 6 points behind the teams in third and fourth. The Rangers are really hurting from Panarin’s absence and will need some of their veterans, like Chris Kreider or Mika Zibanejad to step up and help lead the team to greener pastures. The Rangers won 3 out of their 4 games last week, and they are looking to carry the same energy into Week 9 as they will play on the road in Pittsburgh on Tuesday and in Boston on Thursday and Saturday. With two top 4 teams to beat this week, the Rangers can show the rest of the division, and the league, if they can handle the heat on the dance floor or not.

The bottom two teams, the New Jersey Devils with 18 points and the Buffalo Sabres with 15 points seem like they will be joining the couch riders very early. Both teams seem almost mathematically eliminated as it would take teams to lose for more than 2 weeks straight and for either one of them to win in that time period as well. Crazier things have happened, but from the rumored trade list that was released by TSN this past weekend, I doubt we will see either the Devils or the Sabres in the playoffs this year.

Standings:

1. NY Islanders – 15-6-4, 34 Pts
2. Washington Capitals – 14-6-4, 32 Pts
3. Boston Bruins – 13-6-3, 29 Pts
4. Pittsburgh Penguins – 14-9-1, 29 Pts
5. Philadelphia Flyers – 12-7-3, 27 Pts
6. NY Rangers – 10-10-3, 23 Pts
7. New Jersey Devils – 8-11-2, 18 Pts
8. Buffalo Sabres – 6-14-3, 15 Pts

Matthew Barzal’s Goal From Between The Lines

Goal of the year is what they are calling Barzal’s goal this past Saturday against the Buffalo Sabres. Not only does he burn a defender going coast to coast and meanwhile just straight up outplays the defender and the tender, but then has the audacity to put the puck between his legs and put it past the goalie. It may be one of the most disrespectful goals of all time, with only Pavel Datsyuk’s goals ahead of that. I have been a silent fan of Barzal since he joined the league and I also have a silent love for the Islanders, since the Stars never really have to play them. With the Islanders sitting at number 1 in the East and being on a 5 game win streak, I might have to drop some cash to find me a Fisherman jersey and throw Barzal’s name on there.

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Oh my goodness Mat Barzal pic.twitter.com/3yVKAq58FQ

As we prepare for another week in this shortened season, things will start to get a little more competitive and divisions are going to get a whole lot tighter as well. After Week 9, I would imagine we will start to see some predictions and thoughts on who will make it to the playoffs and how well everyone will do in the playoffs. It should be a fun time as once Week 9 is over, we go down the hill for a full on sprint to the finish. Check back next Monday as I will discuss the top 4 teams in each division and if the playoffs were to start then, who would go on to win Lord Stanley’s cup, and I will also give some of my predictions for the top 16 teams who will make the playoffs and who I think will be our winner of the Cup this year.

NHL’s Scoring Leaders:

1. Conor McDavid, EDM – 15 G, 28 A, 43 P
2. Patrick Kane, CHI – 11 G, 27 A, 38 P
3. Leon Draisaitl, EDM – 10 G, 26 A, 36 P
4. Mitchell Marner, TOR – 10 G, 24 A, 34 P
5. Mark Scheifele, WPG – 11 G, 22 A, 33 P
6. Auston Matthews, TOR – 18 G, 13 A, 31 P
7. Jonathan Huberdeau, FLA – 10 G, 19 A, 29 P
8. Alex DeBrincat, CHI – 14 G, 14 A, 28 P
9. Brock Boeser, VAN – 13 G, 15 A, 28 P
10. Anze Kopitar, LAK – 6 G, 22 A, 28 P
11. Brad Marchand, BOS – 12 G, 15 A, 27 P
12. Nicklas Bäckström, WSH – 10 G, 17 A, 27 P
13. David Perron, STL – 10 G, 17 A, 27 P
14. Aleksander Barkov, FLA – 8 G, 19 A, 27 P
15. Mark Stone, VGK – 6 G, 21 P, 27 P

NHL’s Top 15 Goalies:

1. Andrei Vasilevskiy, TBL –  15-3-1, .939 SV%, 1.73 GAA
2. Marc-Andre Fluery, VGK – 12-3, .942 SV%, 1.60 GAA
3. Philipp Grubauer, COL – 12-6, .921 SV%, 2.06 GAA
4. Frederik Andersen, TOR – 12-4-2, .906 SV%, 2.68 GAA
5. Semyon Varlamov, NYI – 11-4-3, .926 SV%, 2.10 GAA
6. Connor Hellebuyck, WPG – 11-7-1, .911 SV%, 2.73 GAA
7. James Reimer, CAR – 11-3, .903 SV%, 2.83 GAA
8. Vitek Vanecek, WSH – 10-5-3, .906 SV%, 2.82 GAA
9. Kevin Lankinen, CHI – 9-4-4, .919 SV%, 2.76 GAA
10. Kaapo Kahkonen, MIN – 9-4, .918 SV%, 2.30 GAA
11. Jordan Binnington, STL – 9-6-3, .908 SV%, 2.69 GAA
12. Tristan Jarry, PIT – 9-7-1, .897 SV%, 3.12 GAA
13. Jacob Markstrom, CGY – 8-7-2, .907 SV%, 2.88 GAA
14. Tuukka Rask, BOS – 8-4-2, .906 SV%, 2.46 GAA
15. Sergei Bobrovsky, FLA – 8-2-2, .900 SV%, 3.02 GAA

Photo Cred: @NHL / Twitter.com / https://twitter.com/NHL/status/1368555811824353286/photo/3

NHL Hockey Standings / NHL.com / https://www.nhl.com/standings/2020/division

NHL Stats (Goalies) / NHL.com / http://www.nhl.com/stats/goalies

2020-2021 NHL Scoring Leaders / QuantHockey.com / https://www.quanthockey.com/nhl/seasons/2020-21-nhl-players-stats.html