What’s Going On In The Pacific Division: The Kings are starting to win, the Canucks are on a three-game losing streak, and more!
5 months ago
It’s that time of the week!
So the big question is, what’s going on around the Pacific Division? Well, we’ll look to answer that in the latest edition of What’s Going On In The Pacific Division!
Anaheim Ducks
Since the previous edition of the article, The Anaheim Ducks have won two games, defeating the Ottawa Senators 5-1 and the Buffalo Sabres 4-3, but losing 9-2 to the Toronto Maple Leafs while on Hockey Night in Canada.
Their leading point-getter Frank Vatrano could be one of the biggest assets at this season’s deadline, as he has a career-high 26 goals and 44 points in just 55 games this season. Adam Henrique is another player who seemingly appears like he’ll be traded, and he has 16 goals and 36 points in 54 games.
This season, John Gibson has played the majority of the Ducks games and has a 12-19-1 record in 36 games played, along with a .900 save percentage and 3.07 goals-against average. Heir-apparent Lukáš Dostál has appeared in 26 games with an 8-14-1 record, as well as an .897 save percentage and a 3.73 goals-against average.
Over their next five games, the Ducks will host the Columbus Blue Jackets, head to Los Angeles to face the Kings, return home to host the Nashville Predators, before another away game, this time against the San Jose Sharks. To cap the five-game span, they’ll once again return home to host the New Jersey Devils.
Calgary Flames
The Calgary Flames have a 26-25-5 record and recently came from behind to defeat the Winnipeg Jets and former Flame Sean Monahan. However, they have gone 1-2-0 since last Wednesday, losing to the San Jose Sharks and a blowout loss to the Detroit Red Wings.
Nazem Kadri has 19 goals and leads the team with 48 points. Blake Coleman has already set a new career-high in goals (22) and points (44) in just 56 games, while Yegor Sharangovich has 20 goals and 37 points. Jonathan Huberdeau’s play has picked up recently and he now has nine goals and 34 points, while MacKenzie Weegar’s 15 goals leads all defencemen in that regard.
The Flames have a few soon-to-be unrestricted free agents that will surely get moved, but it’s a lot less clear what will happen to netminder Jacob Markström. This season, the 33-year-old has a .913 save percentage and a 2.60 goals-against average in the 35 games he’s played in. Will he be traded to a team like the New Jersey Devils? It seems entirely possible.
In their next five games, the Flames will host the circled-logo Boston Bruins, before heading north on Highway 2 to face off against the circled-logo Edmonton Oilers. They’ll then have a three-game home stand, hosting the Los Angeles Kings, Pittsburgh Penguins, and the Seattle Kraken.
Edmonton Oilers
With the 16-game win streak far in the rear view mirror, the Edmonton Oilers have been playing some interesting hockey. Since the last “What’s Going On In The Pacific Division” article, they’re 2-1-0 and have won three of their last four games, but not in convincing fashion. For example, their last win against the Arizona Coyotes saw them trailing by a goal heading into the third period. Still, they find ways to win.
In this stretch, Connor McDavid has found a way to crawl back into the Art Ross race. This season, he has 21 goals and 83 points in 50 games, only nine points behind Nathan MacKinnon and 11 behind Nikita Kucherov. Leon Draisaitl has 27 goals and 68 points, while Evan Bouchard has broken out as an elite offensive defenceman, scoring 14 goals and 53 points this season. Zach Hyman leads the team with 33 goals and 51 points.
Goaltending was a strong point for the Oilers during their streak, but netminder Stuart Skinner’s stats have regressed recently, as he has an .872 save percentage in his last four games. Calvin Pickard has been fine in a backup role, posting a .910 save percentage and a 2.48 goals-against average, but the Oilers may need to find a netminder at this season’s trade deadline.
The Oilers will start a five-game home stand on Wednesday, taking on the Boston Bruins, Minnesota Wild, Calgary Flames, Los Angeles Kings, and St. Louis Blues, all in the month of February. All teams are in or around the playoffs, so they’re gonna have a tough time.
Los Angeles Kings
Prior to the All-Star break, the Kings won and fired their head coach Todd McLellan. In the last article, we looked at how they dominated the Edmonton Oilers, before a blowout to the Buffalo Sabres. Well, they played four games since the last WGOITPD and won all four, defeating the New Jersey Devils, Boston Bruins, Pittsburgh Penguins, and Columbus Blue Jackets.
Adrian Kempe has 129 goals and 48 points, leading the team in the latter category. However, Anže Kopitar isn’t far behind with 17 goals and 45 points, while Kevin Fiala has 14 goals and 44 points. Quinton Byfield, who scored a candidate for goal of the year on Tuesday, has 18 goals and 42 points. The Kings have additional four players with double-digit goals, including team leader Trevor Moore, who has 21 goals and 37 points.
It looks as if their goaltending has stabilized a bit, as David Rittich has taken the crease and has a .919 save percentage and a 2.25 goals-against average in 15 games played. Cam Talbot had a hot start to his season, but is now down to a .913 save percentage and a 2.53 goals-against average in 35 games.
Like the Edmonton Oilers, the Kings will play five more games in February. They’ll host the Nashville Predators and the Anaheim Ducks, before a road trip to face off against the two Alberta teams and the Vancouver Canucks.
San Jose Sharks
The San Jose Sharks have played four games since the latest WGOITPD article, which happened to be their first four games during the month of February. They won one of those games, defeating the Calgary Flames (boo), but lost the other three games, including being shut out twice.
Future Shark (potentially) Macklin Celebrini has 23 goals and 43 points in 28 games this season for Boston University. The actual Sharks are a totally different story, as leading goal and point scorer Tomáš Hertl went under the knife for his knee. Thankfully for the Sharks, Mikael Ganlund has returned and he has six goals and 31 points. Fabian Zetterlund is tied with Hertl on goals with 15, but he only has eight assists for 23 points.
The Sharks netminders are playing their hearts out. Kaapo Kähkönen has a .905 save percentage and a 3.46 goals-against average in 26 games played… which is really good in reality. Mackenzie Blackwood’s save percentage resides at .898, but with a 3.51 goals-against average, you can tell he’s getting peppered with shots.
Over their next five games, the Sharks will have a three-game home stand against the Nashville Predators, New Jersey Devils, and the Anaheim Ducks. Afterwards, they’ll embark on a two-game road trip against the Dallas Stars and the Minnesota Wild.
Seattle Kraken
The Kraken only played two games since the last article, defeating the Boston Bruins but falling 4-3 in overtime to the Detroit Red Wings. They’re in a weird place, as they are only three points back of a Wild Card berth, but have yet to make up any meaningful ground the past few weeks.
Forward Jordan Eberle’s name has circulated in trade rumours and he has 10 goals and 30 points in 51 games. Jared McCann leads the team in goals with 24, and is tied with Oliver Bjorkstrand with 41 points. Defenceman Vince Dunn also has eight goals and 40 points.
Netminder Joey Daccord has kept them in the race, as he has a .921 save percentage and a 2.37 goals-against average in 38 games this season. On the other hand, Philipp Grubauer has an .889 save percentage and a 3.10 goals-against average, so it’s easy to tell who’s crease it is.
The Kraken’s next five games will be at home, as they’ll host the Vancouver Canucks, Minnesota Wild, Boston Bruins, Pittsburgh Penguins, and Edmonton Oilers. They should have some clarity on whether they are buying or selling before the end of the home stand.
Vancouver Canucks
The Vancouver Canucks continue to lead the league in points with 80, but had a rather rough week going 1-3-0 and are in the process of a three-game losing streak. They also lost for the first time in regulation after leading after two, as they played a barn burner against the Minnesota Wild that the Wild won 10-7.
J.T. Miller has 28 goals and 75 points, leading the team in the latter category. Elias Pettersson isn’t far behind, with 29 goals and 73 points. Defenceman Quinn Hughes has 12 goals and leads all defencemen scoring with 69 points. Brock Boeser leads the team in goals with 31, while also picking up 57 assists. Former Flame Nikita Zadarov has scored some goals recently, as he has two goals and six points as a Cancuk, while Elias Lindholm has four goals and six points in nine games.
In the crease, the Canucks have Thatcher Demko who has a .918 save percentage and a 2.44 goals-against average in 42 games played. Fortunately for his Vezina Trophy chances, he was not in net against the Wild in that 17-goal game that saw three different hat tricks. That distinction goes to Casey DeSmith, who had a .906 save percentage heading into that game, dropping all the way to an .896 save percentage afterwards after allowing eight goals on just 25 shots, yikes.
The Canucks will finish up their road trip on Thursday against the Seattle Kraken, before starting a three-game home stand against the Boston Bruins, Pittsburgh Penguins, and Los Angeles Kings. To round out their five games, they’ll head to Anaheim to take on the Ducks on Mar. 3.
Vegas Golden Knights
It wasn’t a great week for the reigning Stanley Cup champions, falling to the Carolina Hurricanes and Nashville Predators, but shutting out the San Jose Sharks. They now only have a three-point lead on the Edmonton Oilers while playing an additional four games.
With Jack Eichel (19 goals, 44 points) dealing with a lower body injury, captain Mark Stone’s 16 goals and 53 points has taken over the team lead. Jonathan Marchessault leads the team in goals with 28 of them, as well as 44 points in 56 games. William Karlsson, Ivan Barbashev, Nicolas Roy, and Chandler Stephenson all have 30 or more points as well.
Netminder Adin Hill would have been a Vezina Trophy candidate if he didn’t suffer an injury earlier in the season. His .929 save percentage and 2.15 goals-against average leads all qualified goaltenders this season and has a 14-5-2 record with two shutouts. Logan Thompson filled in while Hill was injured, and has a .909 save percentage and a 2.68 goals-against average in 32 games.
Over their next five games, they’ll host the Toronto Maple Leafs, before embarking on an Eastern Conference road trip that’ll see them face the Ottawa Senators, Maple Leafs, Boston Bruins, and Buffalo Sabres.
Thanks for reading! You can follow me on Twitter @Brennan_L_D.
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