Another week in the marathon NHL season has come and gone. With each passing week the best teams will rise to the top of the division standings. At the same time, teams are fighting for a postseason bid. It’s what makes divisional games important as the season moves on. That’s why we do this weekly update on the best division in the NHL – The Atlantic Watch for the week of November 17th.
Atlantic Watch – Top Four Teams
Florida Panthers – This was a tough week for the Panthers. They had a devil of a time against New Jersey and lost two consecutive home games to them. Bouncing back, they beat the Winnipeg Jets convincingly last night by a score of 5 – 0. Their top players this week were Sam Reinhart and Alesksander Barkov. Reinhart had 2 goals and 5 points this week and Barkov had 1 goal and 5 points.
Toronto Maple Leafs – As the season moves on, this past week might be a turning point for the Leafs. They came into the week on a three game winning streak. They did lose one this week but won two overtime games. What could have been a three game losing streak became a 2-1 week. Center Bobby McMann had three goals in two games last week. Providing scoring depth as some of their top six forwards struggle so far this season.
Tampa Bay Lightning – The Lightning had two games this week. Not a grueling week physically. Although the two teams on the schedule were the #1 and #2 teams in the league. Tampa won both games by a combined score of 8 – 1. Goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy won his 300th career game. He was the fastest goalie in NHL history to achieve 300 wins.
Boston Bruins – The Bruins went 1-1-1 in three games this week. More concerning is their lack of offense. They are 24th in the league with a minus 17 goal differential. Boston’s special teams remain below average. Their power play is dead last in the league and their penalty killers are 26th in the NHL. Their slide down the standing standings might be unavoidable.
Atlantic Watch – Bottom Four Teams
Ottawa Senators – The Senators started out strong this week with an impressive 3-0 win over Toronto. They followed that up with an overtime loss to Philadelphia. Closing out the week with an unimpressive 4-0 loss to Carolina. Inconsistent play leads to a middle of the pack team. Their power play started the season strong but are coming down to earth a bit. Last week they were converting 31% of their power play chances. This week, they are down to 27%.
Buffalo Sabres – The Sabres went 1-2 this week. Their win was in overtime. Like their team stats, Buffalo’s play has been unimpressive. Special teams, team offense and team defense continue to struggle. There is a lot of young talent on this team like Tage Thompson. There are also strong veterans like Alex Tuch. One thing is clear, if this team doesn’t put together a good row of performances, they may let this season slip by.
Detroit Red Wings – On the road last week for three games, Detroit went 1-2. continues to struggle offensively. Last week the Wings were ranked 30th in the league in goals per game. After this week, they are ranked 30th in the league in goals per game. This is an offense that has names like Dylan Larkin, Patrick Kane, Vlad Tarasenko and Alex deBrincat. It’s anyone’s guess why they are mired at the bottom of the league. While their power play is ranked 4th in the league, their penalty kill is tied for last in the NHL. Is the coach Derek Lalonde on the hot seat?
Montreal Canadiens – Montreal went 2-1 this week. Cole Caufield and Nick Suzuki lead their team this week. Both scored two goals and 4 points this week. Their team defense is still a work in progress. They did have a better week defensively and went from giving up 4.10 goals a game down to 3.89. Bringing up the rear is making it easy for the Canadiens to watch the Atlantic division by looking up.
Look Ahead to Next Week
Florida Panthers: Three games with the first two on the road. They travel to Winnipeg and then Chicago. They then head home to play Colorado. .
Toronto Maple Leafs: One game this week. They host Vegas on Wednesday.
Tampa Bay Lightning: Three games with the first two on the road. First up the Penguins then Columbus. Then they come back home to host the Dallas Stars.
Boston Bruins: Three games, first two at home. They host Columbus and Utah then they head to Detroit to face the Red Wings.
Ottawa Senators: Three home games this week. Hosting Edmonton then Vegas and Vancouver.
Buffalo Sabres: Three games all on the road on the West Coast. Starting in Los Angeles then Anaheim and closing out the week in San Jose. True test for this team.
Detroit Red Wings: Three games. First one in San Jose on the road. Then they host the Islanders and the Bruins.
Montreal Canadiens: Two home games with a four day break in between. Edmonton on Monday and Vegas on Saturday. Time for home cooking to help the Habs.
