Another exciting week of hockey, and we’re officially in the final month of the regular season! Also, Auston Matthews deserves a shoutout for reaching 60 goals this week!
Game of the Week
This one was a back and forth battle in Music City! Vegas got out to a commanding lead in the first period, tallying three goals from Ivan Barbashev on a sweet one timer, Brett Howden on a snapshot off a deflection out front, and Shea Theodore who netted a bullet of a wrister from the point. Nearly midway through the second period, Vegas goalie Jiri Patera robbed Nashville’s Tyson Barrie on a breakaway with a beautiful left pad save to keep the Knight’s lead at 3. However, with just over five minutes left in second, Nashville looked to start a comeback with a quick shot from the slot from Mark Jankowski that made the score 3-1. Vegas wouldn’t let the period end at that score though, as William Karlsson converted on a two on one with less than a minute to play in the second. Unlike the first period, the third period was all Nashville. Ryan O’Reilly scored a gritty rebound goal in front of the net to start the comeback. Then just over halfway through the third, the Predators got two goals in forty seconds from Filip Forsberg on a drive to the net and Gustav Nyquist on a powerplay wrist shot to even the score at 4-4 and send it to overtime. Early in overtime, Preds star defenseman and captain Roman Josi made a swift cut to the net and outwaited the goaltender to deposit the game winning goal and complete the massive comeback for Nashville.
Trivia Question of the Week
What Uconn forward has scored more points in the NHL than any other Uconn player? (Hint: he scored four goals on Friday!)
Stump Stars of the Week
1st Star - Connor McDavid, Edmonton Oilers, 3 Games, 3 Goals, 5 Assists
2nd Star - Logan Thompson, Vegas Golden Knights, 3 Gms, 3 Wins, .971 SV %
3rd Star - Clayton Keller, Arizona Coyotes, 3 Games, 2 Goals, 4 Assists
Goals of the Week
Topping our charts this week is Andrei Kuzmenko who did it all in a flash! A St. Louis defender Justin Faulk tried to circle his own net, but Kuzmenko quickly stole the puck by threading it through Faulk’s skates. He then was alone in front of the net, and made a gorgeous move in tight quarters, going backhand to forehand to fool the goaltender, then sending a soft chip shot into the top of the goal. Watch above!
Kirill Marchenko treated us to a beauty against the Penguins! Picking the puck up with speed on the left wing, he used a sweet back and forth deke to throw off Penguins’ defender Kris Letang, breaking his ankles before decisively snapping a gorgeous wrist shot into the top right corner of the goal.
Guess who’s back? We have our first ever repeat entry in back to back weeks of the week in review! No surprise it’s McDavid to do it. On this goal, he used pure speed to outskate a defender on his way to the goal, then quickly dragged the puck away from his body to give him enough room to send a shot upstairs above the goalie’s pad.
Playoff Race Check-in
Eastern Conference
The best in the east are still duking it out! Just five points separate the Rangers (104), Bruins (101), Hurricanes (101), and Panthers (99). While these teams look to be the four who will have home ice in Round 1, there’s still lots to be decided before the playoffs and lots of different matchup scenarios, so stay tuned to see how these teams perform down the stretch and how they shake out in the standings!
In the wild card, things are getting interesting. The Capitals are poised to take the final Metro divisional playoff spot from the Flyers, as they are only one point behind and have played three fewer games. The Lightning have pulled ahead and seem to be a lock to earn the top wild card spot. That leaves teams like the Flyers, Red Wings, and Islanders all in striking distance, but fighting for the final spot. It’s sure to be interesting.
Western Conference
The Stars are holding the top spot in the west, but like it’s been the rest of the season, certainly not by much. The Avalanche and Canucks are just trailing by 3 points, but the Jets - who had been in the mix for a long time - entered a dry spell and are now 7 points out of the top spot. Inside the last ten games of the year it’s still very up in the air as to what can happen, but the Stars are riding a seven game winning streak and don’t look to be slowing down any time soon.
The wild card race in the west isn’t as tight anymore, and things look to be cooling off. The Golden Knights have retaken the third Pacific Division playoff spot, leaving the LA Kings in the wild card with the entertaining Nashville Predators. The Preds have cooled off a bit lately, but still hold the top wild card spot. The Kings are just three points behind, and also three points ahead of St. Louis for the last playoff spot. The Blues and the Wild are within a shout, but their chances aren’t looking great as the season winds down.
Matchups to Watch
Wednesday - Lightning @ Maple Leafs
Two high end playoff likely Atlantic Division rivals squaring off in Toronto will be a great matchup. Both teams want momentum working in their favor going into the playoffs, so the atmosphere will be electric.
Thursday - Bruins @ Hurricanes
Another matchup of playoff teams here that has a history of bad blood. These two have met in the playoffs quite a bit over the past five years, and it always tends to get chippy and tough. Regardless, high end talent will yield a great, entertaining game.
Sunday - Stars @ Avalanche
What a way to cap off the week! Two of the top teams in the show, fighting for the top spot in their division, conference, and even the league. A late tilt on a Sunday in Colorado could be a great way to keep the weekend alive, and you know the hockey will be entertaining! This is my pick to be the best game of the week, tune in if you can!
Trivia Answer
Tage Thompson - A true breakout star and Uconn’s best product thus far, Thompson has had a bit of a down year due to injury, but overall has electrified the league since joining the Buffalo Sabres.
Thank you again for reading another week in review! I’d love to start some more engagement on these posts to build more of a community, so comment your favorite team below! See you next week!
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