This article is part of our NHL Barometer series.
This week's article includes the top pick in this year's draft meeting the hype, an unsung D-man out in the desert, the top center down in the sunshine state and a Staal brother struggling.
First Liners (Risers)
Frans Nielsen, C, NYI - All of the focus up the middle in Brooklyn is rightly on John Tavares. But the team's second-line center, Nielsen, is off to a pretty good start. After notching 58 points two years ago, Nielsen dropped to 43 last year, but has seven points in nine games. Six of those points have come in the last five games, including a pair of goals Monday.
Connor McDavid, C, EDM - McDavid, the first overall pick in this year's draft, entered the NHL with an unreal amount of hype. So far, he has more than lived up to his advanced billing. McDavid's assist Tuesday gave him five on the year to go with five goals in 10 games. His 25.0 shooting percentage is likely unsustainable, but averaging a point a game the rest of the way would not be surprising.
Henrik Zetterberg, LW, DET - Zetterberg, who had 66 points in 77 games last season, is off to a strong start. He has tallied two goals and nine assists in the Wings' first nine games. Zetterberg has more than made up for the absence of his running mate, Pavel Datsyuk. At 34, Zet shows little sign of slowing.
Tyler Toffoli, RW, LA - Toffoli put a line on the right side of his ledger Tuesday, notching his first assist of the year but he also added another mark to the left of that column. His line now looks like a stud pitcher early in the season, as he has seven goals with the one assist, with five of those goals coming in a four-game span. Toffoli took a step forward with 23 goals and 26 assists last year. He is averaging two more minutes of ice time, including 45 more seconds on the man advantage this season, which bodes well for continued success.
Drew Stafford, RW, WPG - Stafford saw his three-game goal streak end Tuesday, but he still has five goals in nine games this season. After coming from Buffalo to Winnipeg last season, Stafford posted 19 points (nine goals, 10 assists) in 26 games with the Jets. That performance earned him a two-year, $8.7 million contract with the Jets in June. Stafford plays on the third line but still should notch 20-25 goals; however, expect some short-term regression due to his obscenely high shooting percentage.
Michael Stone, D, ARI - Stone was held scoreless Tuesday but that doesn't diminish his strong start. He is seeing top-line duty with Oliver Ekman-Larsson while playing major minutes lately. Despite not notching a point, Stone has three assists in his last six games while playing 25-plus minutes the last two games and more than 22 in his last four. He is definitely worth a pickup if available in your league.
Ryan Murray, D, CLM - Injuries, more than anything, have slowed Murray. Last season, he played just 12 games thanks to knee, ankle and foot injuries. This year, so far, he has been healthy and productive. Murray has a goal and three assists in 10 games while grabbing 20-plus minutes of ice time in each game, including more than 3:30 in power play time. Columbus needs a PP QB and it looks Murray will be that player.
Corey Crawford, G, CHI - Crawford was up-and-down last year but came up big in the Cup Finals. Despite his uneven play at times, Crawford notched 32 wins for the second straight year and has 30-plus in each of the last four full seasons. Monday, Crawford notched his second straight shutout, blanking the Ducks. The 30-year-old is off to another strong start, going 5-2-0 with a 1.57 GAA and .943 save percentage
Cory Schneider, G, NJD - Schneider saw his four-game winning streak end with a 3-1 loss to the Blue Jackets on Tuesday. Prior to the loss, he entered the game with a 2.28 goals-against average and .922 save percentage. Schneider could see close to 70 starts in New Jersey, and despite the subpar team around him, should be good for solid ancillary stats even if his win total may suffer.
Others include Jonathan Toews, David Krejci, Tomas Plekanec, Ryan O'Reilly, Tyler Seguin, Evgeny Kuznetsov, Jason Spezza, Adam Henrique, Bryan Little, Mikko Koivu, Nicklas Backstrom, Tyler Ennis, Sam Gagner, Kyle Okposo, Nail Yakupov, Artemi Panarin, Alex Ovechkin, Max Pacioretty, Nikolaj Ehlers, Lee Stempniak, James Neal, Andrew Ladd, J.T. Miller, Radim Vrbata, Torey Krug, Colton Parayko, P.K. Subban, Ryan Suter, Andrei Markov, John Klingberg, Brent Seabrook, John Carlson, Mark Streit, Morgan Rielly, Jaroslav Halak, Jonathan Quick, Roberto Luongo, and Devan Dubnyk.
Training Room (Injuries)
Ryan Getzlaf, C, ANA - The Ducks, off to a nightmarish start, received another blow Tuesday when it was announced Getzlaf would require an appendectomy. Fortunately, Getzlaf is only is expected out for four to 12 days. Prior to being sidelined, Getzlaf had just one point in eight games with a minus-five rating, and you wonder how long he had been playing through the discomfort.
Aleksander Barkov, C, FLA - Barkov, off to a hot start with three goals and three assists in seven games, will miss two to four weeks with a broken wrist suffered when he was hit by a shot last Thursday against Chicago. Fortunately, Barkov will not need surgery, so the absence will be in weeks, not months. While he is out, Nick Bjugstad will play on the top line for Florida.
Jaromir Jagr, RW, FLA - Jagr left Florida's game against the Avalanche on Tuesday with a hamstring injury. No word yet on the severity of the injury and if he will be able to play Friday. The ageless one already has six goals and four assists in nine games, so any extended absence would be a big blow to a Panthers' squad already without Barkov.
Jaden Schwartz, RW, STL - Schwartz will miss 12 weeks with a fractured left ankle, which occurred in practice last Friday when he reportedly collided with a goal post. Last year, Schwartz set new personal marks for goals (28) and assists (35), continuing the progress he made in 2013-14. Now, he will be sidelined until late-January.
Jordan Eberle, RW, EDM - Eberle, slated to miss four to six weeks from the end of September with a shoulder injury, has been skating before practice. He has yet to practice with the team but speculation is he may be back in about a week. When Eberle does return, he could slot at right wing on the Oilers' top line with Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Taylor Hall.
Others include Ryan Johansen (undisclosed, indefinite), Brad Richards (back, IR), Pavel Datsyuk (ankle, practiced Monday), Paul Stastny (broken foot, five/six weeks), Evander Kane (MCL, out four to six weeks), Mike Hoffman (LBI, DTD), Kevin Shattenkirk (LBI, close to returning), Mike Green (UBI, two to three weeks), Justin Schultz (undisclosed, indefinite) and Thomas Hickey (LBI, out a month).
Fourth Liners/Press Boxers (Fallers)
Jordan Staal, C, CAR - Staal is now pointless through nine consecutive games to start the season, after being held off the score sheet during Carolina's 3-1 win over the Red Wings on Tuesday. To add insult to injury, he is averaging almost two fewer minutes of ice time per game, including a minute less of power play time and has just nine shots in those nine games. This start coupled with his decline the last few seasons makes the 10-year, $60 million extension he signed with Carolina on July 1, 2012, look like a major albatross around its neck.
Justin Abdelkader, RW, DET - Abdelkader began the year red hot but has since hit the skids. Since tallying five points in the first two games of the season, Abdelkader has failed to score a point in six straight. After scoring 44 points a year ago and his quick start this season, visions of 50-60 points likely went through most of his fantasy owners. Well, his recent slump and especially his lack of shots -- seven in those six games -- make those visions a pure dream and not reality.
Dougie Hamilton, D, CGY - The trip out West hasn't gone as Hamilton nor the Flames had hoped. There were high expectations for the 22-year-old after Calgary acquired him from Boston and gave him a long-term deal but he has yet to meet these hopes. Hamilton notched a goal in his second game but is scoreless in his last seven. He is averaging 21:05 in ice time and is one of the league's most talented young defensemen, so a rebound should be coming.
Kari Lehtonen, G, DAL - Lehtonen had a stranglehold on the Stars' No. 1 netminding job the past few seasons. This offseason, Dallas signed Antti Niemi to provide some competition and create a two-headed monster between the pipes. Lehtonen is 3-1 but also has a 3.00 GAA and sub-.900 save percentage, which could allow Niemi to wrest more starts from him.
Others include Mike Fisher, Tyler Johnson, Dominic Moore, Chris Kreider, David Perron, Teddy Purcell, Dan Boyle, Kevin Bieksa, Karri Ramo and Mike Smith.
