December Recap
The Kings lead the Pacific, with Jonathan Quick and Martin Jones splitting the starts very effectively. Toffoli and Kopitar are both having great seasons offensively, as is Drew Doughty on the blueline. Offseason acquisition Alex Edler has steadied their top four. The Canucks are right on their heels, led by stellar goaltending by Jacob Markstrom. Vancouver could potentially have two consecutive Vezina winners after trading away Ryan Miller in the offseason. San Jose continues to struggle without Couture, a major disappointment of a season for them so far after some big, splashy acquisitions in the offseason.
Nashville and Chicago are two of the best offensive teams in the league. Nashville is powered by their league best powerplay and two elite defensemen in Josi and Weber who are both on pace for twenty goal seasons at the moment. Chicago has Patrick Kane, the NHL's leading goal scorer, who hasn't skipped a beat with the lost depth scoring on his team. Darcy Kuemper and the Wild are quietly in the conversation at the top of the Western conference. Ryan Suter is having a stellar year with 22 points and a plus 14. Zach Parise is also proving to be a real driver on offense, with 29 points and a plus 17.
Boston is the top team in the league, and they are really head and shoulders above the rest when it comes to offense so far with 3.42 goals per game. Brad Marchand leads the league in scoring with fifty points and Torey Krug leads all players in assists with 34. Montreal continues to be incredibly competitive as they are being backstopped by a characteristically elite season from Carey Price. The Lightning, led by Steven Stamkos and his 45 points, are the second most dangerous team offensively but haven't been able to convert that scoring into as many wins as they would hope. The Panthers are in a near historic tail spin, losing fifteen straight games in spite of many nights of Luongo heroics.
Washington is getting top notch play from their duo of Backstrom and Ovechkin and dominant goaltending from Braden Holtby. The Flyers and Blue Jackets are having competitive seasons thanks in large part to great defense and goaltending. The Islanders and Rangers are also within a point of third spot in the most competitive division in hockey. Pittsburgh continues to struggle near the bottom of their division but hope that their recent coaching change will turn things around.
Team Stat Leaders:
GF/gm - Boston (3.42), Tampa Bay (3.03), St. Louis, Chicago (2.85), Nashville (2.84)
GA/gm - Montreal (2.10), NY Islanders (2.11), Philadelphia (2.17), Columbus (2.21), Washington (2.22)
PP - Nashville (26.6%), Chicago (24.5%), Anaheim (22.3%), Boston (21.7%), Pittsburgh (20.6%)
PK - Detroit (92.2%), Philadelphia (90.4%), Tampa Bay (88.5%), Toronto (88.4%), Los Angeles (86.3%)
Goalie Leaders (min 15gp):
GAA - Markstrom (VAN) 1.82, Price (MTL) 1.90, Jones (LAK) 1.92, Halak (NYI) 1.97, Kuemper (MIN) 1.99
Sv Pct - Markstrom (VAN) .943, Allen (ARI) .942, Jones (LAK) .936, Lehner (OTT), Bobrovsky (CBJ) .932
GSAA - Allen (ARI) 21.29, Markstrom (VAN) 21.29, Bobrovsky (CBJ) 14.26, Jones (LAK) 13.07, Halak (NYI) 11.54
SO - Halak (NYI) 8, Price (MTL) 7, Varlamov (COL) 6, Bobrovsky (CBJ), Fleury (PIT), Lehner (OTT), Schneider (NJD) 5
Rookie Leaders:
Points - Theodore (ANA) 6-14-20, Schmaltz (CHI) 9-7-16, Duclair (NYR) 7-9-16, McDavid (BUF) 6-10-16, Pouliot (WPG) 5-7-12, Hartman (PIT) 5-5-10, Hrabarenka (NJD) 4-6-10
Other Stat Leaders:
Takeaways - Nielsen (NYI) 35, Weber (NSH) 34, Backstrom (WSH) 31, Kulikov (FLA), Sekera (WPG), Stone (OTT) 30
Hits - Bjugstad (FLA) 196, Tinordi (MTL) 191, L. Schenn (CGY) 174, Manning (PHI) 169, Melindy (ARI) 119
Blocked Shots - Vlasic (SJS) 145, Girardi (NYR) 126, Brodie (CGY) 121, Martinez (LAK) 114, Tanev (VAN) 113
PIM - L. Schenn (CGY) 111, Manning (PHI), Tinordi (MTL) 103, Borowiecki (SJS) 83, Bjugstad (FLA)
FO% - Glendening (DET) 59.7, Engqvist (NJD) 58.9, Vermette (PHI) 58.8, Crosby (PIT) 58.7, Domi (ARI) 58.5
+/- - Backstrom (WSH) +27, Pastrnak (BOS) +26, Marchand (BOS), Ovechkin (WSH) +25, Bergeron (BOS) +24
Injuries:
D Connor Murphy (ARI) OUT 1-2 weeks (ribs)
D Josh Manson (ARI) OUT 2-3 weeks (hand)
D Andrej Meszaros (BUF) OUT indefinitely (arm)
F Stephen Gionta (CAR) OUT 2-3 months (knee)
F Johnny Gaudreau (CGY) OUT 2-3 months (eye)
F Jonathan Toews (CHI) DTD (shoulder)
D Andy Greene (DET) OUT 2-3 weeks (hip)
C Riley Sheahan (DET) OUT 1-2 months (groin)
D Darnell Nurse (EDM) OUT 3-4 months (abdomen)
D Philip Larsen (EDM) OUT indefinitely (throat)
F Marcus Kruger (LAK) OUT 3-4 months (elbow)
D Jared Spurgeon (MIN) OUT 1-2 months (elbow)
D Adam Larsson (NJD) OUT 2-3 weeks (arm)
F Vladimir Sobotka (NJD) OUT 2-3 months (ankle)
D Ryan McDonagh (NYR) OUT indefinitely (concussion)
D Marc Staal (NYR) OUT 2-3 months (abdomen)
F Logan Couture (SJS) OUT 2-3 weeks (ankle)
F Jeff Carter (SJS) OUT 2-3 months (shoulder)
D Jacob Trouba (WPG) OUT 2-3 weeks (hand)
F Tanner Pearson (WPG) DTD (knee)