NHL Barometer: Risers and Fallers

This week's article includes Minnesota's No. 1 center, Matthews with sunburn from the red light, Hyman on fire, Igor is back, Woll inching closer and Stone out long-term, and Holtz slumping again. 

First Liners (Risers)

Joel Eriksson Ek, C, MIN – Eriksson Ek extended his point streak to eight contests with a helper Saturday. He has seven goals and eight assists during this span. The 27-year-old center has shown excellent chemistry with Kirill Kaprizov and Matt Boldy on the top line since the trio was assembled shortly after the all-star break. Minnesota's top pivot has 54 points in 58 games and sits just seven points shy of the career-high 61 points he posted in 78 contests last season. Add in 129 hits and a plus-15 rating and Eriksson Ek is contributing across the board.  

Auston Matthews, C, TOR – Ignoring 52 goals in 56 games would be a major oversight on my part. Matthews continues to rack up goals, lighting the lamp 19 times while adding 10 assists in his last 16 games. Matthews is on pace to exceed the career-highs of 60 goals and 106 points he posted two seasons ago. In 537 games since he made his debut in the 2016-17 season, Matthews has lit the lamp 351 times while dishing out 268 assists. He has taken his game to another level this season for the Leafs. 

Zach Hyman, RW, EDM – The beat just continues to roll on for Hyman. His goal Monday extended his streak in lighting the lamp in five straight contests. Hyman is now to 38 goals on the season, exceeding the career-high of 36 tallies he posted just last season. If there is an area to nitpick, and it would be a small one, Hyman has just 19 assists in 54 games this season after posting 47 helpers last year. With all the talent around him in Edmonton, it would not be shocking if Hyman markedly increased his production in that category before the end of the season.

Tyler Toffoli, RW, NJD – Toffoli extended his point streak to six with a goal Sunday. During this span, Toffoli has posted three goals and four helpers. Toffoli's having a solid first season with the Devils, as through 57 games, he has 25 goals and 42 points. The production should not be a major surprise, as Toffoli scored 34 goals and added 39 assists, both being career-best totals, last season with Calgary. Toffoli is skating on the third line at even-strength and on the first power-play unit. 

Lucas Raymond, RW, DET – Raymond notched a pair of assists Saturday, giving the third-year winger three multi-point performances in the last five games. Over his past 13 contests, Raymond has amassed four goals and 14 points, upping his season marks to 16 tallies and 48 points. The 48 points in 58 games exceed the total Raymond posted last season and leave him just nine points shy of tying his career-high of 57 points in 82 games set as a rookie. The only negative in his game is his minus-12 rating, but that is an improvement over what he posted each of his first two years in the league.

Thomas Chabot, D, OTT – Chabot, somewhat quietly, has been highly productive the last month or so. Since January 21, Chabot has four goals and seven assists with 11 hits and 32 blocked shots in his last 15 games. Those numbers look even more impressive when you consider that Chabot has five goals and 16 assists in 34 games for the season. He is seeing second pairing and power-play unit deployment and clearly has his slow start and injury breaks in his rear-view mirror for the Senators.

Igor Shesterkin, G, NYR – Shesterkin is back. After a major rough patch in January, Shesterkin has found his form. Saturday's 2-1 victory over the Flyers was Shesterkin's sixth straight win and his third consecutive outing with only one goal allowed. During his win streak, he has a 1.84 goals-against average and a .951 save percentage. With 25 wins on the year, Shesterkin has an outside shot of exceeding the career-high 37 victories he posted last season and should hit 30-plus wins for the third straight year.

Jacob Markstrom, G, CGY – Depending on your view, Markstrom's solid play in net is either a good or bad thing for the Flames. He has helped Calgary stay on the fringes of playoff contention, but that makes the possible partial tear down and trading of expiring contracts even more difficult to sell to the fan base. Markstrom looked to be all signed, sealed and delivered to the Devils a few weeks ago, agreeing to a deal, before the trade fell apart. He has been strong lately, adding to his trade value, so if he stays or goes, Markstrom still should be a solid option between the pipes in your leagues. 

Others include Scott Laughton, Thomas Novak, Mason McTavish, Dylan Strome, Alexis Lafreniere, Nikita Kucherov, Matt Boldy, Artturi Lehkonen, Sebastian Aho, Mats Zuccarello, Frank Vatrano. Evan Bouchard, Noah Dobson, Miro Heiskanen, Jonas Brodin, Charlie McAvoy, Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, David Rittich and Pyotr Kochetkov.

Buy Low

Oliver Kylington, D, CGY – This is a prospective rise and recommendation. Kylington returned to the Flames January 25 after last playing in the NHL during the 2021-22 campaign. After going scoreless his first eight appearances, Kylington has two goals and an assist over the last three games. Kylington is on the third pairing for now, but he could be moved up to a top-four role if one or both of Chris Tanev and Noah Hanifin are traded. If that happens, his ice time and value will substantially rise.

Training Room (Injuries) 

Joseph Woll, G, TOR – Woll, out with a high-ankle sprain since Dec. 7 versus Ottawa, saw his first game action Friday since being injured. He stopped 36 shots to defeat Laval 4-1 in an AHL contest. Ilya Samsonov has taken over between the pipes while Woll has been sidelined. Prior to being injured, Woll was 8-5-1 record with a 2.80 goals-against average and .916 save percentage for the Maple Leafs. Once activated, he should challenge Samsonov for the No. 1 goalie spot in Toronto.

Others include Travis Konecny (upper body, missed last two games), Mark Stone (lower body, possibly spleen, injured Tuesday, could miss balance of the regular season), Matthew Tkachuk (undisclosed, missed Saturday's game against Washington, should play Tuesday), T.J. Oshie (lower body, injured Feb. 22, no timetable for return), Owen Power (hand, missed six games, returned to action Sunday with a goal) and Hampus Lindholm (undisclosed, placed on injured reserve Thursday).

Fourth Liners/Press Boxers (Fallers) 

Yanni Gourde, C, SEA – Gourde snapped a six-game slump with his helper Monday. Any hope that this assist would be the trigger to kickstart his production has been proven to be unfounded, as Gourde went scoreless his next two games. Gourde posted 48 points each of his first two seasons with the Kraken. With just 21 points in 55 games, hitting that mark looks to be very doubtful. In addition, Gourde, despite having another year left on his deal, has been mentioned in trade rumors. If he is dealt, Gourde is unlikely to move to the second line, so his production may remain mostly static. 

Alexander Holtz, LW, NJD – The future still is bright for the Holtz, but the strides he looked to have made earlier this season have been somewhat lost in his recent slump. Holtz has just two points in his last 15 games after notching 12 goals and 10 assists in his first 43 contests of the year. Those numbers aren't stellar, but when you consider that Holtz has mainly seen third-line ice time in New Jersey, they take on a slightly different context. He still could be used as trade bait for a No. 1 goalie. If that happens, a rise in ice time and production could potentially result.

Brent Burns, D, CAR – The Hurricanes are red-hot, but Burns has been a passenger rather than a driver. Prior to scoring a goal Monday, Burns had gone 15 straight contests without lighting the lamp and four games without a point. Following that score, Burns has failed to dent the scoresheet in his last three contests, making it one point in his last 19 games. After scoring 54 points his last year in San Jose two years ago and 61 his first year in Carolina last season, Burns is at just 31 points in 57 contests this year. In addition, all of his other numbers are down across the board with one more season at $5.28 million salary on his contract.

Others include Josh Norris, Leo Carlsson, Nino Niederreiter, Jaden Schwartz, Seth Jones, Shayne Gostisbehere, Elvis Merzlikins and Nico Daws.

Sell High 

Stuart Skinner, G, EDM – Skinner had come back to earth lately, prior to his win Monday. We knew some form of regression was coming after the Oilers ripped off 16 in a row, so this recent downturn is not that much of a surprise. Skinner had allowed 26 goals in six games, though he is not to blame for all of those, as the Oilers' team defense has also hit a bit of a rough patch. Edmonton and Skinner are likely to rebound before too long, which may have already happened Monday, so monitor his and the team's play before deciding whether to have him in your active lineup.