This article is part of our The Daily Puck series.
Guys, I think Toronto might have a bright future. The Maple Leafs have really impressed offensively this season. More than that, they've done it largely on the strength of rookies. They have three players ranked in the top five in rookie scoring. That's quite notable, but their rookie output goes beyond the big three of Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner, and William Nylander. They have two more rookies, Nikita Zaitsev and Connor Brown, ranked in the top 12 in rookie scoring, and Zach Hyman isn't far behind. Sure, Matthews is the big name, and rightfully so. He's already one of the league's leading goal scorers, and seemed primed to be one of the 10 best players in the NHL for years. However, it's clear this isn't going to be a one man team. Their one problem? They've allowed 2.86 goals per game. Their starting goalie, Frederik Andersen, only has a .916 save percentage. That's fine, but they could use a little better play in net. Or, conversely, the team could stop allowing so many shots on goal. Their rookies becoming veterans should help on that front. If in a few years we are talking about the Leafs as Cup contenders, don't be surprised.
Featured Matchups
Blue Jackets (PP: 8, PK: 10) at Senators (PP: 24, PK: 11), 7:00 p.m.
Expected Goalies:Sergei Bobrovsky (33-13-4, 2.13, .928), Craig Anderson (17-8-1, 2.26, .930)
Key Injuries:Matt Calvert (oblique), Chris Neil (finger), Bobby Ryan (finger)
Alex Burrows has already paid off in a big way for Ottawa, as he scored two goals in his debut with the Senators. That's a slightly tongue-in-cheek statement, obviously, but it is interesting that he played 2:31 on the power play in that game as well. Burrows had been only averaging 21 seconds per game with the extra man in Vancouver. Having Anderson back in goal has been huge for the Senators. Mike Condon was fine, but Anderson, when he's been in net, has been one of the league's best goalies this season, as his save percentage can attest to. Columbus has scored 3.19 goals per game, so they could provide a real test for Anderson. However, their once top-ranked power play has really sputtered out. That's concerning for a guy like, say, Alexander Wennberg, who has tallied 21 points with the extra man. Nineteen of those have been assists, and Wennberg is a player whose fantasy value comes from other people converting when he sets them up. He does have 12 goals, but he's only taken 85 shots on net in 62 games. There is a Blue Jacket to be found in the Recommended Pickup section.
Canadiens (PP: 11, PK: 20) at Rangers (PP: 19, PK: 16), 7:00 p.m.
Expected Goalies:Carey Price (28-16-5, 2.34, .921), Henrik Lundqvist (29-16-2, 2.63, .913)
Key Injuries:Jesper Fast (shoulder), Dan Girardi (ankle), Michael Grabner (hip), Kevin Klein (back)
Price and Lundqvist are two great goalies with possible Hall of Fame futures, but they have both had their issues this season. Those problems may seem like they are behind both of them, though. Over his last six games, Price has a 1.47 GAA and a .947 save percentage. King Henrik's turnaround happened a little earlier. Over his last 17 games, he's tallied a 2.17 GAA and a .931 save percentage. This could also help both teams with their middling penalty kills, although those units can't blame all their issues on bouts of iffy goaltending. Michael Grabner surprisingly leads the Rangers in goals with 26. However, that's thanks to a 19.1 shooting percentage, which could regress. Plus, Grabner only has 10 assists, so he's actually sixth on the Rangers in scoring. Mike Ziabanejad scored two goals in his first game back from injury, but since then he's notched one goal in 18 games. Montreal may not have a great power play, but that hasn't stopped Shea Weber from tallying 21 power-play points, including 11 goals.
Flyers (PP: 10, PK: 13) at Capitals (PP: 5, PK: 6), 7:30 p.m.
Expected Goalies:Steve Mason (18-17-6, 2.78, .905), Braden Holtby (33-8-5, 1.91, .930)
Key Injuries:Travis Konecny (lower body), Brandon Manning (suspension), Michael Raffl (lower body), Andre Burakovsky (hand), T.J. Oshie (upper body)
Philadelphia has had goal prevention issues this season, but in February they only gave up 2.45 goals per game. That's partially because they only allowed a meager 24.8 shots on goal per contest that month. Overall, they've given up a mere 28.5 shots on net per tilt, so clearly their problem has primarily been their goaltending. On that front, Mason has allowed one goal on 73 shots in his last two starts. That's a small sample size though, and Washington has been fantastic across the board in every aspect of the game. Since becoming a Capital, Kevin Shattenkirk has played 19:41 per game, and he's tallied five shots on goal. Alex Ovechkin leads the Capitals with 27 goals, but T.J. Oshie is only three behind him with 24. However, Oshie has accrued his goals in 13 fewer games. He also has a 22.9 shooting percentage, which can help explain that. The Flyers have four players who have scored at least 42 points (Jakub Voracek, Claude Giroux, Wayne Simmonds, Brayden Schenn), but those four players all have a plus/minus rating of minus-18 or worse. Shayne Gostisbehere takes the cake, though, with a minus-24 rating.
Other Matchups
Avalanche (PP: 29, PK: 24) at Jets (PP: 20, PK: 27), 7:00 p.m.
Expected Goalies:Calvin Pickard (10-20-2, 2.86, .911), Connor Hellebuyck (20-15-3, 2.87, .907)
Key Injuries:Semyon Varlamov (groin), Nikita Zadorov (ankle), Tyler Myers (lower body)
Colorado has allowed 3.29 goals per game, worst in the league. The Jets gave up a league-high 3.73 goals per contest in February. You would think this would be a high-scoring game, but the Avalanche have only scored 1.97 goals per game. Winnipeg, though, has averaged 2.92 goals per tilt, so they should at least have a nice day offensively, perhaps led by Patrik Laine.
Devils (PP: 18, PK: 17) at Bruins (PP: 13, PK: 1), 7:00 p.m.
Expected Goalies:Cory Schneider (19-19-10, 2.64, .914), Tuukka Rask (30-15-4, 2.26, .913)
Key Injuries:Pavel Zacha (concussion)
Boston has crawled up the penalty-kill rankings to now have the best penalty kill in the NHL. They are also reaping the benefits of Patrice Bergeron turning things around. He's notched 14 points in his last 10 games. Taylor Hall has taken a whopping 172 shots on net in 53 games. Kyle Palmieri has 17 power-play points.
Lightning (PP: 3, PK: 18) at Sabres (PP: 2, PK: 29), 7:00 p.m.
Expected Goalies:Peter Budaj (27-20-3, 2.12, .917), Robin Lehner (18-18-7, 2.63, .921)
Key Injuries:Kyle Okposo (ribs), Ryan Callahan (hip), Steven Stamkos (knee)
Talk about a couple great power plays. The Lightning have four players who had had excellent seasons with the extra man, led by Nikita Kucherov and Victor Hedman. The Sabres, in addition to having a bad penalty kill, have allowed the most shots per game in the league (34.0). Sam Reinhart and Jack Eichel both have 15 goals and 25 assists. The difference is that Eichel has done that in a mere 43 games, while Reinhart has played in 62. Still, both have proven themselves to be worthy of their lofty draft statuses.
Stars (PP: 17, PK: 30) at Panthers (PP: 25, PK: 2), 7:00 p.m.
Expected Goalies:Kari Lehtonen (14-19-6, 2.94, .900), James Reimer (12-8-0, 2.43, .922)
Key Injuries:Mattias Janmark (knee), Antoine Roussel (hand), Roberto Luongo (lower body)
Luongo is expected to miss at least a week. Fortunately for the Panthers, Reimer has actually been the better goalie of the two. Since returning from injury, Aleksander Barkov has 11 points in 12 games. Jonathan Huberdeau also has 11 points in 12 games since returning from his own injury. After a slow start, John Klingberg has 10 goals and 38 points in 62 games, including 14 power-play points.
Blackhawks (PP: 16, PK: 28) at Predators (PP: 12, PK: 12), 8:00 p.m.
Expected Goalies:Scott Darling (16-5-2, 2.13, .931), Pekka Rinne (25-16-6, 2.54, .914)
Key Injuries:Artem Anisimov (lower body), Scott Darling (upper body), Niklas Hjalmarsson (upper body), Johnny Oduya (rest), Nick Schmaltz (illness), Jordin Tootoo (illness), Ryan Ellis (lower body), P.A. Parenteau (finger), Miikka Salomaki (lower body)
If Darling can't give it a go, Corey Crawford may need to play on back-to-back nights. It seems unlikely that Jeff Glass will get a start unless it's absolutely necessary. Nobody is hotter than Filip Forsberg right now. He's tallied 10 goals and 13 points in his last six games.
Canucks (PP: 28, PK: 25) at Kings (PP: 21, PK: 5), 10:00 p.m.
Expected Goalies:Ryan Miller (16-19-4, 2.67, .915), Jonathan Quick (2-0-1, 2.63, .921)
Key Injuries:Matt Greene (undisclosed), Jordan Nolan (leg), Nick Shore (upper body), Derek Dorsett (neck), Erik Gudbranson (wrist), Jacob Markstrom (lower body)
The Kings have only given up 26.1 shots on net per game. The Canucks have only managed 27.6 shots on goal per contest. I wouldn't expect much offense from Vancouver in this game. Jeff Carter has a couple of nice round numbers to his name right now. He's scored 30 goals on 200 shots on net.
Red Wings (PP: 30, PK: 14) at Oilers (PP: 9, PK: 22), 10:00 p.m.
Expected Goalies:Petr Mrazek (15-16-6, 2.95, .903), Cam Talbot (32-18-7, 2.38, .920)
Key Injuries:Jonathan Ericsson (wrist), Jimmy Howard (knee), Gustav Nyquist (suspension), Andrew Ference (hip), Tyler Pitlick (knee), Benoit Pouliot (undisclosed)
With Thomas Vanek having been traded, Tomas Tatar is now the top left wing for the Red Wings. He's averaged 2:31 per game on the power play, and that number could go up now. However, considering that Detroit has the league's worst power play, that may not mean much, and Tatar only has two points with the extra man. Jordan Eberle only has 13 goals in 64 games, but that's partially because of an 8.2 shooting percentage. Despite that, though, he's managed to have a decent season, since he's added 25 assists. He also has 11 power-play points.
Recommended Pickup
Boone Jenner, LW, CLM – Jenner has had some bad luck this season when it comes to pucks going in the net. He only has a 7.5 shooting percentage, and his previous season-low shooting percentage is 10.8. He's put 159 shots on net in 62 games, so it's not like he hasn't had his opportunities. If he had more typical puck luck, he'd be having an even better season. Perhaps fortune is starting to smile on him, as he has three goals in his last nine games. Over his last 13 contests, he's tallied seven points, and he's also thrown in 12 penalty minutes. Jenner isn't going to score 30 goals like he did last season, but if you are looking for somebody to pick up down the stretch, Jenner could be your man.
