NHL Recap: Week 2
We have just about wrapped up the first week of NHL action and every team has a handful of games under their belts.
With these season-opening matchups, there are knee-jerk reactions and exciting stories that popped up during the week.
Starting with the positives, the Florida Panthers have begun the season with five straight victories for the first time in franchise history.
This has not been due to an easy opening schedule either, Florida has defeated Stanley Cup contenders Tampa Bay and Colorado with authority and recently defeated a tough Flyers team on the road after trailing.
Needless to say, the Florida Panthers are building off their impressive playoff run last year and are looking to establish themselves as Stanley Cup contenders.
One team that has not been building off playoff success last year early in this season is the Montreal Canadiens.
Montreal is 1-5 including an embarrassing 5-1 loss to the Buffalo Sabres. Many expected Montreal to take a step back after their run to the Stanley Cup finals last year, but their start this year has been nothing short of horrific.
Perhaps the NHL’s leading storyline heading into this season was the introduction of the league’s newest expansion team, the Seattle Kraken.
The Kraken have not had a stellar start to the season but have been competitive in nearly all of their games.
They also finally got to open up the NHL’s newest arena and retired the number 32 since they are the NHL’s 32nd franchise. Overall, a relatively successful week for the league’s newcomer.
In injury news, Tampa Bay has put star forward Nikita Kucherov on long-term injured reserve. Kucherov was placed on LTIR last year as well, but Tampa Bay’s talent still easily slotted them into a playoff spot.
Although the duration of Kucherov’s injury is unknown, it does not look like Tampa Bay could go another regular season without him and still make the playoffs.
The Lightning looked extremely flat in their opener against Pittsburgh and are just 2-2-1 to start the year.
The Penguins are another team with injured stars with both Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin out so far to begin the season.
However, Pittsburgh's depth forwards have responded tremendously, and the Penguins have not yet lost a game in regulation.
Another team that has not lost in regulation to start the season is the Edmonton Oilers. The Oilers are 5-0 and Connor Mcdavid is reminding everyone that he is the best in the world.
Mcdavid recently scored his 200th career goal and is leading the NHL in points with 13 in just five games played.
With just a week of action in the books, the NHL season is shaping up to be another thrilling affair.
Maclain Young is a second-year majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact him, email macyoung21@gmail.com
