This article is part of our NHL Barometer series.
This week's article includes a change of scenery benefitting a Staal, Artturi who?, a hot Penguins blueliner not named Letang making up for the injured star, down goes Nash….again and a not so crunchy pickle in San Jose.
First Liners (Risers)
Rickard Rakell, C, ANA – Who needs training camp? Rakell missed all of preseason with an abdominal issue before signing a six-year, $22.8 million contract extension with the Ducks, and then missed the first nine games while waiting for a visa and to fully recover. The Swede just finished a six-game, eight-point streak, giving him a total of 21 points in 23 games. After setting career highs in goals (20), assists (23) and game-winning goals (seven) in 2015-16, Rakell looks primed to blow those numbers out of the water.
Eric Staal, C, MIN – Staal continued his strong play in Carolina with 53 points in 48 games during the lockout season in 2012-13, followed by 61 in 77 games the next year. The wheels started falling off after the 2013-14 campaign, as he posted 54 points in 77 games in 2014-15 and just 39 in 83 games last year between Carolina and New York. A knee injury in the World Championships robbed Staal of some speed and he looked to be a shell of his former self. A change of scenery to the House of Hockey seems to have rejuvenated the veteran, as he leads the Wild with 25 points (10 goals, 15 assists) along with a plus-13 rating.
Artemi Panarin, LW, CHI – Panarin burst on the NHL scene with 77 points and a Calder Trophy in his first year after coming over from the KHL. So much for any thoughts of a sophomore slump, as he has posted 15 goals and 35 points in 35 contests along with a plus-14 rating, 91 shots on goal and nine power-play points. The 25-year old has been especially hot recently, notching five goals and 12 points in the last six games as Chicago's top left winger.
Anders Lee, RW, NYI – The Islanders are having a nightmarish campaign but Lee has been one of the few bright spots. He has seamlessly moved to John Tavares' wing, providing New York #1 center with a scoring option. However, it took Lee a while to get going. As our update noted, he was an unmitigated disaster for the first 18 games of the season, netting only a goal and an assist. But the lights flicked on right around Thanksgiving -- in his last nine contests, Lee has piled up seven goals and three helpers, aided by the move alongside Tavares.
Artturi Lehkonen, LW, MTL – Lehkonen, the Canadiens' second-round pick in the 2013 NHL Entry Draft, had 16 goals and 17 assists in 49 games for Frolunda last season before leading his team to the Swedish League championship by scoring 11 goals with eight assists in 16 playoff games. He earned a spot on the Canadiens in training camp but got off to a slow start and missed nine games with a shoulder injury. Lehkonen is making up for lost time, as he has scored four goals with an assist in his last nine games while skating on the second line.
Justin Schultz, D, PIT – Schultz was never able to meet the hype in Edmonton but had a decent partial season in Pittsburgh while winning a Cup. The Pens did not give him a qualifying offer but he ended up re-signing with the team to an affordable one-year deal worth $1.4 million. Schultz has really turned it on of late, notching 15 points (six goals, nine assists) in his last 11 contests, helping Pitt overcome the absences of Kris Letang and Trevor Daley.
Andrej Sekera, D, EDM – Sekera continued his strong play the past month tallying the game-winning goal late in overtime Monday. That gave the veteran D-man four goals and 16 points in 34 games, slightly over half of the 30 he scored last year in 81 games. Sekera has logged heavy minutes, serving as Edmonton's de facto #1 blueliner, despite the presence of summer acquisition Adam Larsson.
Tuukka Rask, G, BOS – Rask may be putting together a campaign like his 2013-14 season, when he won the Vezina Trophy with a 36-15-6 record, 2.04 GAA, .930 save percentage and a league-high seven shutouts in 58 games. This season, Rask is 16-5-3 with a 1.82 GAA, .932 save percentage and three shutouts in 24 games. On this pace, he could exceed the brilliant numbers he posted three seasons ago. (Update: This was written Monday night and on Tuesday, Rask allowed three goals on 16 shots and was pulled from the game against the Islanders. View it as a momentary blip in the road.)
Scott Darling, G, CHI – Corey Crawford will be back soon but Darling has more than held down the fort in his absence. He has won five straight starts and is 6-0-1 with a 1.71 GAA and .943 save percentage while starting in place of Crawford. Overall, the local product is 10-2-2 with a 2.22 GAA and .927 save percentage, making him a solid DFS candidate every time he is between the pipes. (Update: This was written Monday night and on Tuesday, Darling allowed four goals on 30 shots in a loss to Ottawa. Stick with him until Crawford returns.)
Others include Sidney Crosby, Mitch Marner, Alexander Wennberg, Zack Smith, Leon Draisaitl, Ryan Getzlaf, Bo Horvat, Claude Giroux, Valtteri Filppula, Sam Gagner, Auston Matthews, Corey Perry, Patrik Laine, Brandon Saad, Tyler Toffoli, Kyle Okposo, Brad Marchand, Wayne Simmonds, Jaromir Jagr, Vladimir Tarasenko, Sebastian Aho, Rasmus Ristolainen, David Schlemko, Jonas Brodin, Duncan Keith, Victor Hedman, Cam Fowler, Troy Stecher, Matt Niskanen, Ryan McDonagh, Dougie Hamilton, Aaron Ekblad, Brent Burns, Kevin Shattenkirk, Matt Niskanen, Devan Dubnyk, Steve Mason, Henrik Lundqvist, Sergei Bobrovsky. Matt Murray and Braden Holtby.
Training Room (Injuries)
Rick Nash, RW, NYR – Nash, who missed four games with a groin injury before returning to action last Thursday against Dallas, suffered another groin injury in overtime Sunday versus New Jersey. Since returning to action, he scored against Dallas and Nashville before getting shut out against the Devils. On the year, Nash has 13 goals and seven assists in 30 games and is set to miss at least three games.
Kris Letang, D, PIT – The oft-injured Pittsburgh blueliner is out again, this time with a lower-body problem. Letang's absence has been classified as week-to-week, so be prepared to play without the elite scorer for a while. Prior to being sidelined, he amassed a pair of goals and 17 assists in 25 games, with nine of those points coming on the man-advantage. Letang also added 52 hits and 48 blocked shots, so his absence leaves a huge void on the Penguins' – and your – roster.
Others include Andrew Shaw (concussion, IR), Jonathan Marchessault (lower-body injury, missed six of the last seven games), Andrei Markov (lower-body, questionable for Tuesday), Nikita Kucherov (lower-body, placed on IR), P.K. Subban (upper-body injury, missed last two games), Trevor Daley (upper-body, week-to-week), Corey Crawford (appendectomy, could be back within the week), Jonathan Quick (groin, aiming for mid-February return) and Craig Anderson (wife's illness, out until after holidays).
Fourth Liners/Press Boxers (Fallers)
Frans Nielsen, C, DET – Nielsen is having a mediocre year but has not provided anywhere near the level of production Detroit expected when they signed him to a six-year, $31.5 million contract this offseason. The long-time Islander notched 52 points last season, the second highest total of his career, paving the way to that big payday. Nielsen has seven goals and 10 assists in 32 games, which is decent but well below last year's pace, and is saddled with an unsightly minus-12 rating to boot.
Tanner Pearson, RW, LA – Pearson started strong but has hit the skids lately, with a goal drought stretching 13 games. Pearson has seven goals and six assists in 30 games, giving you a sense of how solid the beginning was and how surprising this drought is. Eventually, he will find his scoring touch; but for now, staple Pearson to your bench.
Marc-Edouard Vlasic, D, SJ – Vlasic isn't an elite contributor but he usually provides some scoring and a solid plus-minus to warrant a spot as your fifth or sixth defender. After posting 39 points and a plus-15 last year, he only has eight points and a plus-2 in 32 games. The addition of David Schlemko has adversely affected Vlasic as the latter is skating two minutes less per game than a season ago.
Ryan Miller, G, VAN – Vancouver is just 14-16-3 and part of the reason for that poor record has to fall on Miller and Jacob Markstrom. Miller is just 7-9-1 with a 2.70 GAA and .907 save percentage. His numbers are even worse in December, as he has a 3.14 GAA and .903 save percentage. The Canucks will likely try and pull the trigger on the season before too long, making Miller a trade or benching candidate. If you own him, hope for the former.
Others include Vincent Trocheck, Vladislav Namestnikov, Jimmy Hayes, Filip Forsberg, Marian Gaborik, Boone Jenner, Brian Campbell, Petr Mrazek, Jaroslav Halak and Cory Schneider.
