There was a lot of preseason talk in 2015-16 about the rookie battle between Jack Eichel and Connor McDavid, which seemed justified given how talented those two were. McDavid unfortunately got hurt though and while Eichel’s rookie season was great, at 56 points it wasn’t remarkable. In the end the Calder Trophy went to Artemi Panarin, who turned his KHL experience into a 30-goal, 77-point season.
This season’s battle between Auston Matthews and Patrick Laine might prove to be more impressive, at least in terms of numbers. The two faced off tonight as the Maple Leafs hosted the Jets and the rookies took center stage with Laine scoring two goals, including his 30th of 2016-17, while Matthews registered three assists, including his 50th point and later a helper on the overtime winner.
Keep in mind that for all the talented rookies we’ve seen during the salary cap era, Alex Ovechkin is the only one to reach the 40-goal mark in his first campaign. Both Laine and Matthews have a real shot of becoming just the second and third members of that list. As it is, Laine is now one of just 15 rookies to reach the 30-goal mark as a rookie during the salary cap era.
Of course, I can’t go into the game-by-game summaries without also highlighting the fact that Jonathan Toews had a hat trick and five points last night. That’s the second time Toews has scored five points in a single game and it’s his fourth career hat trick. He’s been on fire lately with eight goals and 20 points in his last 12 contests.
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PENGUINS 3 HURRICANES 1
Sidney Crosby scored the game-winning goal. He has 33 goals and 66 points in 53 contests this season.
Evgeni Malkin also found the back of the net for the Penguins. It was his 25th goal and 60th point in 52 games.
Jeff Skinner netted the Hurricanes’ lone goal. With that he’s reached the 20-goal milestone and has 39 points in 55 games.
Cam Ward stopped 19 of 22 shots in his fourth straight loss. He has a 21-19-7 record, 2.65 GAA, and .904 save percentage in 48 starts.
Matt Murray saved 29 of 30 shots last night. That gives him a 22-7-3 record, 2.27 GAA, and .926 save percentage in 34 contests.
CANADIENS 3 RANGERS 2 (Shootout)
Carey Price saved 28 of 30 New York shots in regulation time. He also surrendered just one goal in five shootout rounds to earn his 25th win of the season.
Shea Weber found the back of the net and registered an assist for Montreal. He has 14 goals and 34 points in 60 contests.
Andrew Shaw netted Montreal’s other goal prior to the shootout. It was his eighth goal and 20th point in 46 games in 2016-17.
Rick Nash scored a goal to extend his point streak to three games. He has 17 goals and 30 points in 47 contests.
Henrik Lundqvist kicked out 26 of 28 shots prior to the skills competition. Alexander Radulov and Paul Byron each beat him in the shootout.
SENATORS 2 DEVILS 1
Erik Karlsson netted Ottawa’s game-winning goal. That gives him 10 goals and 52 points in 58 contests in 2016-17.
Kyle Turris scored the Senators’ other marker. With that he’s reached the 20-goal mark for the third time in four campaigns.
Travis Zajac is on a three-game point streak after finding the back of the net. He has 12 goals and 35 points in 59 contests.
Craig Anderson saved 29 of 30 shots in his second straight win. He has a 15-7-1 record, 2.34 GAA, and .927 save percentage in 23 starts this season.
Cory Schneider turned aside 21 of 23 shots on Tuesday. He has a 19-18-8 record, 2.61 GAA, and .914 save percentage in 46 contests in 2016-17.
ISLANDERS 3 RED WINGS 1
Josh Bailey netted a goal and registered an assist. That gives him 12 goals and 41 points in 59 contests.
Calvin de Haan scored the game-winning goal. He has four goals and 16 points in 59 games in 2016-17.
Petr Mrazek stopped 19 of 22 Islanders shots. That gives him a 14-16-6 record, 2.98 GAA, and .902 save percentage in 37 contests.
Thomas Greiss saved 26 of 27 shots last night. He has a 19-11-3 record, 2.50 GAA, and .918 save percentage in 34 games.
Henrik Zetterberg scored a goal to extend his point streak to three games. He has 14 goals and 46 points in 60 contests.
LIGHTNING 4 OILERS 1
Nikita Kucherov led the Lightning with a goal and three assists. He’s up to 22 goals and 53 points in 52 contests.
Ondrej Palat found the back of the net twice. He has 13 goals and 30 points in 52 games.
Iiro Pakarinen scored Edmonton’s lone goal. It was his first marker and third point in four games this season.
Ben Bishop earned his fifth straight win by saving 20 of 21 shots. He has a 16-12-3 record, 2.55 GAA, and .911 save percentage in 32 contests.
Laurent Brossoit kicked out 24 of 27 Lightning shots. That gives him a 1-1-0 record, 2.89 GAA, and .910 save percentage in four games.
MAPLE LEAFS 5 JETS 4 (Overtime)
Patrik Laine netted a pair of goals on Tuesday. As mentioned above, that gives the Jets rookie 30 goals in just 55 career games.
Laine’s chief rival in the Calder Trophy race, Auston Matthews, assisted on three of Toronto’s five goals. He has 28 goals and 52 points in 59 contests.
Jake Gardiner netted the overtime winner and recorded an assist. The 26-year-old blueliner has nine goals and 30 points in 59 games.
Frederik Andersen stopped just 16 of 20 shots, but still got the win. He has a 24-13-10 record, 2.81 GAA, and .913 save percentage in 48 starts.
Connor Hellebuyck kicked out 32 of 37 shots. He has a 20-15-3 record, 2.79 GAA, and .910 save percentage in 43 contests.
BLACKHAWKS 5 WILD 3
Jonathan Toews had a huge game with a hat trick and two assists. He’s up to 15 goals and 42 points in 51 games this season.
Nick Schmaltz scored a goal and registered two assists for Chicago. That gives him five goals and 14 points in 41 contests.
Corey Crawford stopped 29 of 32 shots to pick up his fifth win in his last six games. He has a 23-13-3 record, 2.57 GAA, and .917 save percentage in 39 starts.
Mikael Granlund netted a pair of goals. He’s up to 19 goals and 55 points in 59 games in 2016-17.
Mikko Koivu assisted on two of Minnesota’s three markers. He has 17 markers and 46 points in 58 contests.
FLAMES 6 PREDATORS 5 (Overtime)
Johnny Gaudreau assisted on four of the Flames’ six goals. That gives him 11 goals and 39 points in 50 contests.
Filip Forsberg had a hat trick, but it wasn’t enough to save Nashville in this one. He has 19 goals and 39 points in 59 games this season.
Pekka Rinne surrendered four goals on 13 points before being yanked early in the second period. Juuse Saros replaced him and stopped 15 of 17 shots.
Mikael Backlund netted a pair of goals for Calgary. He has 17 goals and 41 points in 60 games.
Brian Elliott turned aside 23 of 28 Predators shots. He has a 13-13-3 record, 2.83 GAA, and .895 save percentage in 31 contests.
KINGS 2 AVALANCHE 1
Trevor Lewis scored the game-winning goal. He netted eight goals and 19 points in 59 contests.
Tyler Toffoli accounted for Los Angeles’ other marker. That gives him 10 goals and 22 points in 40 games in 2016-17.
Mikko Rantanen scored an unassisted goal. He’s found the back of the net in three straight games.
Peter Budaj stopped 24 of 25 Kings shots. He has a 27-19-3 record, 2.12 GAA, and .917 save percentage in 52 contests.
Calvin Pickard turned aside 30 of 32 shots last night. He has a 10-19-2 record, 2.88 GAA, and .909 save percentage in 33 games.
