For Pucks Sake Podcast
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Since before the season started, NHL media has said that the Toronto Maple Leafs defense is not good enough for the team to be a true cup favorite. That’s a harsh, but accurate statement. The Leafs right side has consistently been a liability for the team, and discussing how to fix it became the most heavily talked about topic in Toronto media.
The last time an NHL player finished the season with over 120 points was in 2005-06 when Joe Thornton ended with 125. Since the 2004-05 lockout, the Art Ross winner has typically put up a little over 100 points, except during the 2012-13 lock out shortened year and Jamie Benn’s league leading 87 points in 2014-15. This season could very easily be the first time someone ends with 130+ points since before the turn of the century; after 49 games Nikita Kucherov leads the league in scoring with an insane 78 points, putting him on pace to finish with 130 points in 82 games. If Kucherov is able to keep up his current pace, he will be the first player to eclipse 130 points in a season since Mario Lemieux’s 161 point year in 1995-96. (It’s worth noting that the league average SV% that season was .898 and this year it’s .908)
Kucherov leads the NHL in points (78) and assists (56) along with being third on the Lightning for goals with 22. In second place for points is Johnny Gaudreau with 73 in 50 games, one more than Kucherov has played so far. Barring injury, Kucherov should finish the season with the most points in the league.
We sit down for an interview with Nikki from PUCKerUp Sports, the female-run Washington Capitals publication! Also covered:
- The Ducks did a bunch of nothing
- Paul Byron SUCKS
- David Perron is good
- so are the Flames
- AND MORE
You can find more from Nikki on Twitter (@X0NL_), where you can also check out PUCKerUp Sports (@PuckerUpSports). You can also find more at https://puckerupsports.com.
For Pucks Sake Podcast is availabile on iTunes, SoundCloud, GooglePlay and Spotify!
January 16th was an eventful day for the Anaheim Ducks; three separate trades occurred throughout the evening. This followed Anaheim’s acquisition of Devin Shore from the Dallas Stars in exchange for Andrew Cogliano on the 14th.
The Ducks lost 12 games in a row, going from third in the Pacific to being out of a wildcard spot and 11 points behind Vegas for a divisional playoff spot. The team’s lack of recent success led to speculation and questioning from the press and from fans regarding the job security of head coach, Randy Carlyle. Ducks General Manager, Bob Murray, shot down an rumors by giving a statement in which he said that he is not considering a coaching change.
I love the lead up to the NHL Entry Draft. It’s fun to learn and discover the future of the NHL, but, as much as I love it and find it fascinating, I know that the picks my two favorite teams make are not going to be relevant for another couple years. At least not at the NHL level.
My teams are the Toronto Maple Leafs (I have no idea how that happened) and the Minnesota Wild (I’m from Minnesota.) Both teams are sitting in a playoff spot right now. The Leafs are almost guaranteed a spot and hopefully the Wild will be able to hold onto at least a wildcard position. There is no real chance that either of my favorite teams will get the first overall pick and draft Jack Hughes. But that does not mean that this year I am apathetic regarding the draft lottery. There is a fast, talented, American projected to go first overall. Of course I am invested!
Back on December 6th, the Minnesota Wild traveled to Calgary only to be shut out 2-0. Flames winger, Elias Lindholm, scored twice from the right circle, cleanly beating Wild backup goaltender, Alex Stalock. Shutout losses are always disappointing. However the main concern exiting the game was not the team’s on ice performance but the health of captain, Mikko Koivu.
During the third period, Koivu and Mark Giordano collided, resulting in a scary knee-on-knee hit. Koivu exited the game with a lower body injury (which was later revealed to be a sprained MCL) and did not return. The league suspended Giordano for two games and Koivu ended up missing four games in mid-December.
With Koivu hurt, the Minnesota Wild called up Luke Kunin from the Iowa Wild and Charlie Coyle moved from right wing to center. Both moves have made the Wild forward group a little more interesting.