San Jose Sharks

San Jose Sharks Scoring Leaders

Neil Becker

29sports.com

 

Joe Thornton Goals 12 Assists 44 Points 56 Grading B+

Patrick Marleau Goals 26 Assists 27 Points 53 Grading A

 

Top Defenceman

Dan Boyle Goals 13 Assists 25 Points 38 Grading A

 

Comments: Without question the comeback player of the year is ten- year veteran Patrick Marleau who after scoring 48 points last season is now on pace for over 90. What’s most impressive is that Marleau who posted a disappointing –19 last season, entered the All- Star break with a +22 rating.

Also enjoying a great year is Joe Thornton who like clockwork will have his usual season of 90 plus points. If there is a knock on the man known as ‘big Joe’ it’s the fact that he is only on pace for 20 goals which is behind his total of 29 from a year ago.

Meanwhile on defence, Dan Boyle has also enjoyed a comeback season. Unlike last season where Boyle dressed for only 37 games with the Tampa Bay Lightning, this Ottawa native has enjoyed perfect health. Boyle who was a –29 a year ago, entered February with an impressive +12 rating.

Phoenix Coyotes

Phoenix Coyotes Leading Scorers

Neil Becker

29 sports.com

Shane Doan Goals 20 Assists 28 Points 48 Grading A

Oli Jokinen Goals 17 Assists 17 Points 34 Grading B-

 

Top Defenceman

Ed Jovanovski Goals 3 Assists 20 Points 23 Grading B

 

 Comments: In is first year with the Phoenix Coyotes Oli Jokinen has struggled with his consistency. Jokinen who was brought to the Coyotes for his offence is behind his pace that saw him have three consecutive seasons of thirty plus goals.

The Coyotes leading scorer Shane Doan continues to get better with age. The veteran captain is on pace for another 70 plus scoring season. This All-Star who scored 28 goals last season is also on pace for over 30 this year.Meanwhile on the blue line Ed Jovanovski is once again producing offensively but won’t reach last year’s career season of 51 points. He leads by example with his strong work ethic both on and off the ice.

Pittsburgh Penguins

Pittsburgh Penguins Scoring Leaders

Neil Becker

29sports.com

 

Evgeni Malkin Goals 21 Assists 54 Points 75

Sidney Crosby Goals 20 Assists 48 Points 68

 

Top Defenceman

Alex Goligoski Goals 6 Assists 13 Points 19

 

Comments:  

Evgeni Malkin continues to get better and better as he enters the second half in great position to defend his NHL scoring title. Malkin who had 106 points last season is on pace for a monstrous 120 point campaign.

After playing only 53 games last season, captain Sidney Crosby has been relatively healthy with the exception of a lower body injury that caused him to miss the All Star game and a couple of league games. Crosby is on pace for another 100 point season which is becoming the norm for these two young superstars.

Meanwhile on defence rookie Alex Goligoski has been a force not just offensively but defensively as well.

Philadelphia Flyers

Philadelphia Flyers Scoring Leaders

Neil Becker

29sports.com

 

Jeff Carter Goals 32 Assists 21 Points 53 Grading A

Mike Richards Goals 18 Assists 32 Points 50 Grading A

 

Top Defenceman

Kimmo Timonen Goals 3 Assists 26 Points 29 Grading B+

 

Comments: Sometimes the best trades are the ones you don’t make and that definitely applies to Philadelphia Flyers general manager Paul Holmgren. Last season this veteran GM almost traded his budding superstar Jeff Carter to the Toronto Maple Leafs. Carter who scored 53 points and 29 goals last year is having a career season and is on pace for 53 goals and 88 points.

Mike Richards is another young forward who is getting better and better. Last year he had a breakout season with 75 points and will easily surpass those numbers.

At the All Star break Richards was on pace for 83 points and a 30 goal season. He has shown a bit of nastiness over the past couple of seasons and has drawn comparisons to a young Bobby Clarke.

Meanwhile on defence, Kimmo Timonen is on pace for a very respectable 48 points and is a +8. While it’s respectable, it doesn’t come close to his season with the Nashville Predators a couple of years ago when he scored 55 points and was an impressive +20.

 

Ottawa Senators

Ottawa Senators Scoring Leaders

 Neil Becker

29sports.com

 

Dany Heatley Goals 21 Assists 22 Points 43 Grading B

Daniel Alfredsson Goals 12 Assists 30 Points 42 Grading B

 

Top Defenceman

Filip Kuba Goals 1 Assists 24 Points 25 Grading A-

 

Comments: Dany Heatley is on pace for a respectable 76 points which is a slight decline from last year when he scored 82. The most alarming trend is that Heatley was a –6 at the All –Star Break after finishing with a +33 last year.

Captain Daniel Afredsson is also behind last year’s scoring pace. Last season he scored 89 points and was a +15. This season he is on pace for 75 points and at the break was a –1.

Meanwhile on the blue line Filip Kuba continues to be a valuable asset. This veteran who only scored 31 points last season has 25 at the break. The most pleasing stat is that Kuba who was a –8 last season was a +9 at the break.

 

Luke Schenn Scores His First Goal

Toronto Maple Leafs Answer The Challenge

Neil Becker

29sports.com

 

Toronto Maple Leafs goalie Vesa Toskala rose to the challenge of his coach and general manager by turning aside 31 shots in a spirited 5-2 Saturday night win against the Montreal Canadiens.

A day after Toskala yielded a weak overtime goal to the Florida Panthers, general manager Brian Burke and coach Ron Wilson criticized their number one goalie and expressed how he has to get better.

“I don’t waste my energy on what goes on in the media,” said Toskala who now has 19 wins this season. “I’m just focused on playing hockey.”

With all due respect to Toskala, the man of the hour on this Saturday night at the Bell Centre was Leafs 19 year-old rookie defenceman Luke Schenn who scored his first ever NHL goal.

“Yeah, they let me know that I hadn’t scored a goal yet this year, so it was definitely nice to get it, and there’s not better place than in Montreal verses the Canadiens on a Saturday night,” said Schenn who was taken fifth overall in last June’s Entry Draft.

It will be an expensive weekend for Schenn as the Leafs will be holding their annual rookie night dinner on Sunday night in Florida. Even though it will cost him a bit of money, it’s something he doesn’t mind one bit.

“That’s all part of it,” the Saskatoon native said about the traditional rookie dinner, which will take place two days before they face off against the Panthers. “It’s going to be an expensive one, but when you get the rookie dinner in the NHL, that means you’ve made it, so it’s going to be an honor to pay for it.”

Toronto who was coming off a lackluster 5-0 Wednesday night loss against the Buffalo Sabres are now just four games under .500 with a 20-24-9 record. 

Meanwhile the Montreal Canadiens head out for a west coast road trip having lost seven of their last nine games, which has left coach Guy Carbonneau frustrated.

“We’ve said since September that if you want to win in this league, you have to compete and you need good goaltending,” he said. “We had that, but now we’re struggling on every front.” “We have a tough time scoring goals and every time we make a mistake, it’s in our net. That’s not a good combination.”

The only bad news for Toronto on this night was that they lost defenceman Mike Van Ryn in the second period to a lower body injury.