The latest edition of the NHL Stat Corner covers the end of the week before the busy weekend schedule ramps up. We look at what great things the Calgary Flames are doing at both ends of the ice and the Florida Panthers and Toronto Maple Leafs’ dominance at home. We also take a look at the recent performances the Colorado Avalanche have given us, plus tons more player and team stats and milestones from around the NHL from the past two days.
Flames Excelling at Both Ends of the Ice
The Flames are the first team with six shutouts in the first 17 games of the season since the Boston Bruins in 1938-39. Jacob Markstrom became the 10th goaltender in NHL history to record five shutouts in his first 13 games of the season. The last time this was accomplished was in 2007-08 by Pascal Leclaire recording five shutouts in nine games. Markstrom’s five shutouts this season are tied with his first 272 games played in the NHL with the Panthers and Vancouver Canucks. This is a huge turnaround from last season and it looks like everyone has bought into head coach Darryl Sutter’s system and defended very well.
But the performance hasn’t just gone up in the defensive zone. Multiple players are either breaking out or having bounce-back seasons. It’s a great time to be a fan of the Flames. Andrew Mangiapane is one of two players in franchise history to score 11 goals in the team’s first 11 games of the season, joining Jerome Iginla in 2009-10. Mangiapane leads the NHL with 11 goals on the road. Oliver Kylington is one of three players this season with multiple point streaks of five games. Both of these players can be considered breakout candidates. We saw some of this in Mangiapane over the last year, but Kylington is a nice surprise.
Panthers are Untouchable at Home
The Panthers have the 20th-longest home regular-season winning streak in NHL history at 13 games. The last team to win that many were the Maple Leafs in 2018 (13). The Panthers’ previous home winning streak was eight games in 2018. Despite losing their legendary head coach earlier in the season and their captain Aleksander Barkov recently, nothing seems to be able to slow this team down.
Spencer Knight broke a franchise record by making 45 saves as a rookie goalie. The previous mark was 44 saves by Markstrom. A ton of the spotlight has been on Sergei Bobrovsky this season as he has finally shown he is worth the massive contract he signed. This, in turn, has forced Knight to take a backseat role. But when he gets his chance, he is sure to play his heart out and fight for that No. 1 spot in Florida.
Related: NHL Stat Corner: Ducks, Maple Leafs, Flames, Capitals & Rangers
Campbell Makes it Near Impossible for Opponents to Win in Toronto
Jack Campbell has the most wins at home through his first 20 games in Maple Leafs’ franchise history (17). He is 17-2-1 with a .932 save percentage (SV%), 1.90 goals-against average (GAA), and three shutouts — an incredible start to his Maple Leafs’ career last season and just as good this year, as the team is now 10-1 in their past 11 after struggling early on. None of this has been on Campbell, as he is as solid as they come this season, and he and Markstrom stand alone at the top as far as goalies are concerned.
Morgan Reilly scored two goals in a game for the fourth time in his career. Rielly will have to continue to play like a No. 1 defenceman in Toronto after signing that large $7.5 million average annual value (AAV) deal to stay put. With five members of the Maple Leafs being paid a huge percentage of the salary, he, along with each of the others, will have to perform to their worth if they don’t want the fans to turn on them. There has been a history of a whipping boy on defence in Toronto if things aren’t going well.
Blues’ Justin Faulk Solidifying Name in U.S. History Books
St. Louis Blues’ Justin Faulk played his 700th career game in the NHL. He is the 33rd U.S.-born player to play that many games. Though he has been very solid throughout his career and the trade from the Carolina Hurricanes has worked out well for both him and the team, I don’t believe he is even considered for the U.S. Olympic team in 2022. Scott Perunovich also recorded his first career point. Blues’ fans have been very excited about this young defenceman, especially after losing a talent like Vince Dunn in the expansion draft. Perunovich is the next young stud up. Hopefully, he is here to stay.
Avalanche Dominating Opponents on Win Streak
The Colorado Avalanche have outscored opponents 24-8 during a four-game winning streak. They defeated the Canucks 7-1 and 4-2, San Jose Sharks 6-2, and the Seattle Kraken 7-3 (“Avalanche builds 7-0 lead and rolls over the NHL’s 32nd team in Seattle”, The Denver Post, Nov. 19, 2021). The Avalanche have a league-leading four shorthanded goals this season. What’s very impressive about this is that they’ve done it without their best player Nathan MacKinnon who is out with an injury. Nazem Kadri has really stepped up this season and surprised while Darcy Kuemper has finally settled in after a shaky start to the season.
Erik Johnson moved into a tie for fourth in franchise history with goals by a defenceman with 62. He tied Rob Blake and is only 13 goals off Tyson Barrie’s franchise-leading 75 goals. He’s averaged 9.5 goals per 82 games throughout his career, so it is possible with two years remaining on his contract in Colorado.
Player & Team Stats From Around the NHL
Team
- It was the first time the Vegas Golden Knights defeated the Detroit Red Wings at home in their history. The Red Wings were the first team to beat the Golden Knights in their inaugural season. Nic Roy played his 100th career game.
- The Kraken are off to the worst start to their inaugural season (4-11-1) since the Ottawa Senators in 1992 where they finished (10-70-4).
Player
- Sidney Crosby is the 12th player in NHL history to record 1,000 points in wins, doing it in 589 games.
- It was the first time since 2010 that two players with active point streaks of 15-plus games played on the same day. Both Connor McDavid and Troy Terry extended their 15-game point streaks to 16 with a goal from each of them in their respective games.
- Clayton Keller became the 11th player in Arizona Coyotes franchise history to reach 200 career points.
- Barrett Hayton recorded the first two-goal game of his career.
- Stuart Skinner becomes the fourth rookie goaltender in Edmonton Oilers’ franchise history to record at least 46 saves in a game.
- Justin Danforth of the Columbus Blue Jackets scored his first career goal.
- Canucks’ Kyle Burroughs scored his first career goal.
The Kraken aren’t what many thought they’d be in their first season and should be looking towards the future soon. What McDavid and Terry have done for their clubs has helped propel them to the top of the standings in the Pacific, which looks more competitive early than what was expected. Crosby continues to thrive after all these years, and it helps to be near the top of the list when the Penguins have the longest active playoff streak. Come back soon and stay up to date with all the latest player and team stats and milestones. Until next time.