This article is part of our NHL Barometer series.
This week's article includes a pair of Panthers heating up Florida, a former Calder Trophy winner on a roll, a top center out for the season in Pittsburgh and a long-time Shark scuffling.
First Liners (Risers)
Vincent Trocheck, C, FLA - Trochek, selected in the third-round of the 2011 draft, failed to score Thursday but has still posted a point in four of his last six games. In that span, he has tallied two goals and six assists. Those eight points give Trochek 21 goals and 27 assists, both career highs, in 71 games during his breakout campaign,
Antoine Vermette, C, PHX - Overall, it's been a so-so season for Vermette, who has 33 points in 63 games, nearly matching what he scored last year in 65 games before he was dealt to Chicago, where he a major component in their postseason run to another Cup. Vermette returned to Arizona this season, where he is serving as the team's top center. He has picked up his game recently, tallying 10 points the last six games, with all the points coming in four contests, including an empty net goal Thursday.
Michael Frolik, LW, CGY - Where did this outburst come from? Frolik notched a hat trick Monday and followed it with a goal and two assists Wednesday. Those six points give Frolik 32 in 58 games, so you can see why these performances are so surprising. Frolik was one of Calgary's big acquisitions this offseason, signing a five-year, $21.5
This week's article includes a pair of Panthers heating up Florida, a former Calder Trophy winner on a roll, a top center out for the season in Pittsburgh and a long-time Shark scuffling.
First Liners (Risers)
Vincent Trocheck, C, FLA - Trochek, selected in the third-round of the 2011 draft, failed to score Thursday but has still posted a point in four of his last six games. In that span, he has tallied two goals and six assists. Those eight points give Trochek 21 goals and 27 assists, both career highs, in 71 games during his breakout campaign,
Antoine Vermette, C, PHX - Overall, it's been a so-so season for Vermette, who has 33 points in 63 games, nearly matching what he scored last year in 65 games before he was dealt to Chicago, where he a major component in their postseason run to another Cup. Vermette returned to Arizona this season, where he is serving as the team's top center. He has picked up his game recently, tallying 10 points the last six games, with all the points coming in four contests, including an empty net goal Thursday.
Michael Frolik, LW, CGY - Where did this outburst come from? Frolik notched a hat trick Monday and followed it with a goal and two assists Wednesday. Those six points give Frolik 32 in 58 games, so you can see why these performances are so surprising. Frolik was one of Calgary's big acquisitions this offseason, signing a five-year, $21.5 million contract with the Flames in July 2015, but he has failed to live up to that deal. Maybe this hot streak gets him going for the rest of the season.
Jussi Jokinen, LW, FLA - Jokinen returned to action with a bang Thursday after missing Tuesday's game with a lower-body injury by scoring two lucky goals. That doesn't show up in the boxscore, as all you will see is the two goals added to the left side of his scoring column. Jokinen now has 15 goals and 37 assists in 70 games and is more than living up to his end of the four-year, $16 million deal he signed with the Panthers in July 2014
Jaden Schwartz, RW, STL - Schwartz continued his breakthrough as a top winger last season, notching 63 points in 75 games after posting 56 in 80 the year before. He played just seven games -- totaling four points -- before fracturing his left ankle Oct. 23. Schwartz missed 49 games before returning to action Feb. 12. Lately, he has been making up for lost time, with eight points his last games, giving him 15 in 16 games since coming back to action.
Tyler Myers, D, WPG - After winning the Calder Trophy as a 19-year-old defenseman with the Sabres, Myers game went south. It reached a point where Myers had be dealt and he was last season, getting traded to Winnipeg. After posting 13 points (four goals, nine assists) in 47 games with Buffalo, Myers tallied 15 points (three goals, 12 assists) in just 24 games with the Jets. Expectations were high for Myers this season, but he got off to a slow start. But Myers has been better lately, scoring three goals while assists a pair of assists his last five games.
Mark Streit, D, PHI - Nearly all the focus on the Philly blueline has been rightly center on Shayne Gostibehere. But some of the attention should shift to Streit, who has seven points his last 10 games. Those seven points give Streit just 19 in 50 games for the year, as he is suffering through a disappointing campaign. But he seems to have righted the ship lately.
Semyon Varlamov, G, COL - Varlamov's overall numbers -- 25-18-3, 2.65 goals-against average and .917 save percentage -- leave a bit to be desired. But he has been rounding into form lately, winning three of his last four starts, allowing just two total goals in those victories. Colorado is holding on to the eighth seed in the West and will need Varlamov to play at this level for the team to retain the spot.
Steve Mason, G, PHI - Like Colorado, Philadelphia is battling for the final spot in the playoffs. Just like the Avalanche, the Flyers will be relying on their goalie to carry them. Philly has Mason and Michal Neuvirth, each of whom have been playing well. But I highlight Mason this week, as he is 4-0-1 in his last five starts, but be aware he does not start each game.
Others include Alex Galchenyuk, Anze Kopitar, Derick Brassard, Steven Stamkos, Paul Stastny, Sean Monahan, Ryan Kesler, Aleksander Barkov, Mark Scheifele, Jack Eichel, Sean Couturier, Jonathan Toews, Joe Colborne, Sidney Crosby, Zack Smith, Alex Killorn, Reilly Smith, Michael Raffl, Max Pacioretty, Kyle Okposo, Ondrej Palat, Vladimir Tarasenko, Mark Stone, Mats Zuccarello, Shane Doan, David Pastrnak, Sven Andrighetto, Wayne Simmonds, Viktor Arvidsson, Johnny Gaudreau, Devante Smith-Pelly, Mark Giordano, Keith Yandle, Erik Karlsson, Brent Burns, Kevin Shattenkirk, Tyler Myers, Dougie Hamilton, Shayne Gostisbehere, Aaron Ekblad, Kris Letang, Torey Krug, Petr Mrazek, Jonathan Bernier, Braden Holtby, Jonathan Quick, Ben Bishop, Tuukka Rask, Cam Talbot and Thomas Greiss.
Training Room (Injuries)
Evgeni Malkin, C, PIT - Malkin, who was red-hot with eight points in nine games, will miss the rest of the season, as he will be sidelined 6-8 weeks with his injury. That injury came March 11 when he was checked behind the net and appeared to injure his left arm. Malkin finishes the year with 58 points in 57 games and this is the seventh straight season that injuries have cost Malkin a decent amount of time.
Alex Steen, LW, STL - Steen, injured Feb. 20 in Arizona, has missed 11 games with what appears to be a shoulder injury. He is practicing with the team but having difficulty shooting the puck. St. Louis has 10 games remaining, so Steen won't need to be rushed back. But the goal is to have him scrape up the rust and be peaking when the playoffs start.
Oliver Ekman-Larsson, D, ARI - Ekman-Larsson has been sidelined since March 7 with an upper-body injury. OEL, who had 49 points in 66 games before he was injured, is inching closer to returning but no date has been set for it. It's possible OEL plays Saturday, so monitor our updates closely.
Others include Tyler Bozak (head, cleared for contact), Jakub Voracek (LBI, could play Saturday), Jannik Hansen (ribs, DTD), Sam Bennett (UBI, DTD), T.J. Brodie (UBI, DTD), Niklas Kronwall (sprained knee, out 1-3 weeks), Justin Faulk (LBI, WTW), Jack Johnson (shoulder surgery, out for season), Brian Elliott (LBI, could play Saturday), Corey Crawford (UBI, DTD) and Robin Lehner (high-ankle sprain flare up, indefinite).
Fourth Liners/Press Boxers (Fallers)
Jordan Staal, C, CAR - Jordan was the better Staal in Carolina for much of the season. Since Eric was traded to the Rangers, Jordan may be going through withdrawal, as his game has gone south. His goal Tuesday was just his second in his last nine games, and those two goals are the only points he has scored as well. Staal will see all the ice time he can handle, but it remains to be seen if he will produce with it.
Patrick Marleau, LW, SJ - Marleau had 28 points in 36 games the first three months of the season while the calendar read 2015. However, since the New Year started, Marleau has been a shell of his former self, posting just six goals and six assists in 33 games. That poor play has continued even more recently, as he has just one point in his last six games. Marleau has one year left on the three-year, $20 million extension he signed in January 2014, and it's questionable as to whether he will be in San Jose for it.
Dion Phaneuf, D, OTT - Phaneuf has brought veteran leadership with him to Ottawa but that hasn't translated to points on the scoreboard. He has gone scoreless in his last seven games and now has seven in 17 games as a Senator. The hope that he would carry his early season production to Canada's capital was clearly misguided.
Antti Niemi, D, DAL - Niemi has no wins since Feb. 23 and has ceded the No. 1 goaltending spot in Big D to Kari Lehtonen. After signing a three-year, $13.5 million contract with the Stars in June 2015; Niemi was expected to split time with Lehnton, which had been the case most of the season. But Niemi has struggled while Lehtonen - after a win Thursday -- is now 4-1-1 in his last six.
Others include Tyler Johnson, Mika Zibanejad, Ryan Strome, Tomas Hertl, Henrik Zetterberg, Troy Brouwer, Jason Zucker, Nathan Gerbe, Dustin Brown, Cam Fowler, Zdeno Chara, Dan Girardi, Eric Gelinas, Jake Allen, Ondrej Pavelec and Louis Domingue.
