This article is part of our From the Press Box series.
The Penguins entered this season with the profile of a club that was counting on its top-heavy layer of superstar talent to be a contender in the Eastern Conference.
Through the season's first three months, the Pens floundered outside playoff position due to a combination of factors. First, the experimental pairing of Phil Kessel and Sidney Crosby proved to be an abject failure, as they simply could not find a workable chemistry. In fact, Crosby saw a succession of linemates that didn't click over any prolonged period at the start of this season. Meanwhile, injuries to Marc-Andre Fleury and Kris Letang, not to mention the abrupt end to the career of Pascal Dupuis, threatened to derail the Penguins' season altogether.
Dupuis was a longtime fixture on Crosby's wing, credited by many as the defensive conscience of the Penguins' top line. Undoubtedly, his retirement was a blow to the Pittsburgh captain, who subsequently endured a revolving door of new linemates and saw his productivity slide well below career norms. Meanwhile, Fleury was forced to play behind a defense corps that doesn't possess the depth and quality of most other contending teams. With a lack of offensive support compounding the issue, he was forced to face more shots than usual, and a concussion sent him to IR in December. Similarly, Kris Letang, the club's top-scoring defenseman, also missed time in December, exposing a lack of depth on the blue line. However, both players have returned healthy and productive, which
The Penguins entered this season with the profile of a club that was counting on its top-heavy layer of superstar talent to be a contender in the Eastern Conference.
Through the season's first three months, the Pens floundered outside playoff position due to a combination of factors. First, the experimental pairing of Phil Kessel and Sidney Crosby proved to be an abject failure, as they simply could not find a workable chemistry. In fact, Crosby saw a succession of linemates that didn't click over any prolonged period at the start of this season. Meanwhile, injuries to Marc-Andre Fleury and Kris Letang, not to mention the abrupt end to the career of Pascal Dupuis, threatened to derail the Penguins' season altogether.
Dupuis was a longtime fixture on Crosby's wing, credited by many as the defensive conscience of the Penguins' top line. Undoubtedly, his retirement was a blow to the Pittsburgh captain, who subsequently endured a revolving door of new linemates and saw his productivity slide well below career norms. Meanwhile, Fleury was forced to play behind a defense corps that doesn't possess the depth and quality of most other contending teams. With a lack of offensive support compounding the issue, he was forced to face more shots than usual, and a concussion sent him to IR in December. Similarly, Kris Letang, the club's top-scoring defenseman, also missed time in December, exposing a lack of depth on the blue line. However, both players have returned healthy and productive, which has been a big part of the Penguins' recent run of success.
Indeed, with the turn of the calendar, the Penguins' fortunes have changed dramatically. Part of that is because Fleury and Letang are back in the fold and playing very well, but the biggest development relates to Crosby and the chemistry that he's enjoying with linemates Chris Kunitz and Patric Hornqvist. In his last eight games alone, Crosby has scored eight goals and added six assists, but his hot streak actually stretches back into mid-December.
It's no coincidence that the Penguins are playing their best hockey of the season right now, going 6-1-2 in their last nine games and climbing into playoff position.
With the newfound stability at the top end of their roster, it looks like Penguins are primed for a strong finish to this regular season. Any fantasy owner who bailed on the stars in this lineup will likely pay dearly for that quick trigger.
Return of 'The Next Next One'
The story of high-end prospects failing to produce fresh results was supposed to finally change in Edmonton this year thanks to the addition of the latest piece, one Connor McDavid. Through his first 13 games as a pro, he certainly served notice that he could be a difference-maker, as he compiled 12 points along and elevated the play of his teammates, particularly Nail Yakupov.
Even though the Oilers were only 5-8, things were looking up, with much of the reason for optimism surrounding last year's No. 1 overall pick. He brought a stability and confidence that seemed to be spreading throughout the roster – until McDavid suffered his collarbone injury, bringing Edmonton's momentum to a sudden halt.
Almost immediately, the Oilers' fortunes plummeted, as the likes of Yakupov and other front-line players such as Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Jordan Eberle and Taylor Hall could not steady this listing ship. With McDavid out, the Oilers went 14-18-5, leaving them in the familiar position of challenging for the NHL's worst record, primed to receive yet another high draft pick.
However, McDavid returned this week, playing his first game since early November. Amid much expectation and fanfare, he produced a goal and two power-play assists to lead the Oilers to a convincing win over Columbus. But the bigger message was the fact that he looked ready to pick up the leadership role and may be able to pave the way to a strong finish for this chronically underachieving team. Now that he's back, McDavid gives a lot of his teammates a different fantasy outlook. All of a sudden, we should note his linemates both at even strength and on the power play. The productivity of those players is certain to improve, as will the Oilers' fortunes.
What happens when leaders don't lead?
The saga of the floundering Montreal Canadiens is becoming compelling viewing. We know that Carey Price (leg) has missed much of the season, and his absence roughly mirrors the timing of their demise. Still, even losing the defending league MVP doesn't fully explain the tailspin of epic proportions that has seen the Canadiens compile a league-worst 7-19-2 mark since Price last played.
His replacement in goal, Mike Condon, has performed fairly adequately, if not always consistently, compiling a 2.47 GAA in 34 appearances. The real problem is a lack of teamwide scoring. A case can certainly be made that Price was a security blanket for the rest of the team, but the stats show that Montreal has scored less than two goals per game without him.
There are plenty of culprits who share the blame. Let's begin with team captain and top goal-scoring threat Max Pacioretty, who's produced only seven goals and 12 points in his last 26 games. That's barely a 20-goal and less than a 40-point pace for a full season. Their top-scoring defenseman, P.K. Subban, went through a 33-game stretch without scoring a goal earlier this season and has only four so far, well short of the 15 he managed last year.
The Habs have been frustrated by the off-ice issues that have surfaced around Alex Galchenyuk at a time when his on-ice productivity has all but vanished, with only four goals and 11 points to show for his last 26 games. That's nowhere close to what they were hoping to get from the 2012 draft's No. 3 overall pick.
Times are so desperate for the Canadiens that Dale Weise, normally a bottom-six forward, is still getting top-six minutes because of an offensive flurry in October that saw him collect six of his 11 goals on the season.
Their list of underachievers also includes Tomas Plekanec (with four goals in 39 games) and David Desharnais (two goals and five assists in 26 games). That's not much of a 1-2 punch for the guys who are supposed to be holding down the top two center positions.
You know things are going from bad to worse in La Belle Province when long-time favorite and team leader Andrei Markov is the subject of boo birds, as he has stumbled badly this year. Since posting a plus-10 rating in October, he's gone a miserable minus-12, and yet he still retains a regular shift and heavy workload alongside Subban.
For fantasy owners, it's an awfully tough call to bail on any of these front-line players, but it's been a long time since a group with such high expectations has collapsed this badly.
But for a Leafs fan who isn't enamored with the Canadiens, this continues to be fun to watch.
