{"id":332559,"date":"2025-12-08T14:54:07","date_gmt":"2025-12-08T14:54:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/332559\/"},"modified":"2025-12-08T14:54:07","modified_gmt":"2025-12-08T14:54:07","slug":"leafs-returning-to-form-but-can-they-survive-their-goalie-injuries","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/332559\/","title":{"rendered":"Leafs returning to form, but can they survive their goalie injuries?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">With Hunter Crowther<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">This massive slog of teams in the middle of the playoff hunt continues to be a uniquely fascinating experience. We seem to be witnessing a rare point in history where every contender from the last five or so years (except for four or five of them) is taking a step back at the same time, all while most of the teams that have consistently been out of the playoffs in that same span are seeing their young talent take the next step and becoming serious threats. It\u2019s made for some incredible hockey on some nights, and some mediocre hockey on others, but at least we likely won\u2019t have the playoff spots decided by the Olympic break!<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Hunter Crowther and I navigate through the season with another year of our co-op power rankings. I have my same old system in which I aggregate six stats (points %, 5-on-5 goal differential, 5-on-5 xGF\/60, 5-on-5 xGA\/60, power play xGF\/60, and shorthanded xGA\/60, all coming courtesy of Natural Stat Trick) to come up with a list that eliminates my own biases, along with a rule that no team can be above a team that\u2019s more than five points ahead of them in the standings, regardless of where the aggregate places them. On the other hand, Hunter goes off his own intellect and pure vibes, and together we find a way to combine it and meet in the middle.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Record: 21-2-6, +49\u00a0<br \/>Last Week: 1st (0)<br \/>Hunter\u2019s Rank: 1st<br \/>Scott\u2019s Rank: 1st<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Scott: It took almost two months of hockey, but the Avalanche have finally lost a second game in regulation, and it was a sizable defeat, falling 6-3 to the Islanders of all teams. Interestingly enough, the Avs actually came out as third in my model before the five-point rule brought them back up to first, but that\u2019s largely due to their power play, which has been shockingly horrendous. Not only are they only 23rd in the league in power play percentage (a measly 16%), they\u2019re also 28th in PP xGF\/60 at 7.58. It feels weird to see a team with Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar at their absolute peaks struggle this much on the man advantage, but there are many teams with great 5v5 offense that haven\u2019t seen that success translate to the power play.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Record: 20-5-5, +28<br \/>Last Week: 2nd (0)<br \/>Hunter\u2019s Rank: 2nd<br \/>Scott\u2019s Rank: 2nd\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Hunter: The Stars were solved by a hungry Rangers group last Tuesday, giving up a late lead and losing in overtime, their first defeat since Nov. 22. But the Stars responded with three straight wins against the Devils, Sharks and Penguins, the last being a low-event shootout victory over Pittsburgh. The <a class=\"text-secondary underline underline-offset-2\" hreflang=\"en\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dailyfaceoff.com\/news\/dallas-stars-tyler-seguin-out-long-term-acl-injury-nhl-new-york-rangers\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">likely season-ending injury of Tyler Seguin<\/a> is a major blow, especially when you consider he missed most of last season, too. Dallas will try to replace Seguin\u2019s production with his $9.5-million cap hit now available with long-term injured reserve.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Scott: With all due respect to Seguin, that cap space could be a game-changer for a Stars team looking to replenish their depth. I\u2019m excited to see what they try this time.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Record: 14-6-8, +5<br \/>Last Week: 5th (+2)\u00a0<br \/>Hunter\u2019s Rank: 3rd<br \/>Scott\u2019s Rank: 4th<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Hunter: Jack Eichel\u2019s overtime-winning goal against the Rangers may be what he needs to spark some desperately needed offense; the 2015 No. 2 overall pick had just three goals in his previous 17 games. Carter Hart won each of his games and looked quite capable in both appearances, making key stops when his team needed him to. If last week was any indication, the hockey gods we spoke of in our <a class=\"text-secondary underline underline-offset-2\" hreflang=\"en\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dailyfaceoff.com\/news\/nhl-power-rankings-goaltending-fueling-minnesota-wild-11-game-point-streak-kings-rangers-flyers-panthers-mammoth-kraken-avalanche-predators\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">previous edition of the power rankings<\/a> are real, and they mock the hockey pundits that question their methods. It doesn\u2019t make them any less cruel.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Record: 17-9-2, +12<br \/>Last Week: 3rd (-1)<br \/>Hunter\u2019s Rank: 6th<br \/>Scott\u2019s Rank: 3rd<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Scott: It was another week of inconsistency for the Hurricanes. While they took care of business against a struggling Predators team with ease, that win was bookended by two losses. The Leafs and Sharks are better teams than Nashville, but Carolina is far better than both of them, and yet they were outscored 9-2 despite dominating possession. I can\u2019t even blame the lack of Pyotr Kochetkov, because he was in net for the Sharks loss. I still back this team strongly, but they\u2019ve been experiencing a lot of these hiccups lately.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Hunter: You don\u2019t have to blame Kochetkov, but I won\u2019t pass up an opportunity to blame Frederik Andersen for a loss, as the former Leaf gave up four goals on 23 shots to Toronto. Typically when I watch Carolina, there\u2019s a moment when they\u2019re behind but score a late goal in the first or second frame that completely tilts the ice for the next period, but after Seth Jarvis scored with four minutes to go in the first, the Hurricanes didn\u2019t follow up. Still, it was nice to see Jackson Blake score twice on Saturday, as he had just three goals in his previous 16 games.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Record: 16-10-2, +15<br \/>Last Week: 4th (-1)<br \/>Hunter\u2019s Rank: 5th<br \/>Scott\u2019s Rank: 5th<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Scott: Apparently Hunter and I got a lot of flak from Lightning fans last week for *checks notes* not giving the Lightning enough attention, even though we ranked them in fourth. Well, just for that, we\u2019re dropping them one spot just to spite you guys. Be nice, and we\u2019ll move them back up. That said, I don\u2019t expect a reaction to this because, based on your comments, you didn\u2019t actually read our article.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">In all seriousness, this team is insanely good. They and the Hurricanes are the class of the Eastern Conference for me, and the Bolts have been doing that despite deploying a blueline of randomly generated EA NHL players (although shoutout to Darren Raddysh for putting together 15 points in 10 games before Victor Hedman\u2019s return). The Lightning are getting healthier (assuming that Nikita Kucherov and Andrei Vasilevskiy\u2019s injuries aren\u2019t long term), and it feels like they\u2019ll run away with the Atlantic Division when they do.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Record: 18-10-1, +12<br \/>Last Week: 7th (+1)\u00a0<br \/>Hunter\u2019s Rank: 4th<br \/>Scott\u2019s Rank: 9th<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Hunter: Joel Quenneville\u2019s old team, the Blackhawks, came into town Sunday night and he handed them the type of loss that will make Chicago\u2019s four-hour flight to New York dead silent, as the Ducks defeated Chicago 7-1. With three wins in their last four games, <a class=\"text-secondary underline underline-offset-2\" hreflang=\"en\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dailyfaceoff.com\/news\/teams\/standings\/2025\/division\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Anaheim is second in the Pacific Division<\/a> and all signs point to Quenneville winning his first Jack Adams Award since 2000. Also, now with 987 career wins, expect the Ducks bench boss to become just the second coach in NHL history to record 1,000 wins sometime in January.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Record: 18-9-3, +28<br \/>Last Week: 12th (+5)\u00a0<br \/>Hunter\u2019s Rank: 9th<br \/>Scott\u2019s Rank: 7th<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Hunter: In last week\u2019s edition of the power rankings, I said the Capitals were riding a hot hand but at some point, they were going to face a losing streak that would chop down their place in the Metropolitan Division. I went into 2025-26 thinking they overperformed the previous season, and their 8-8-2 start through Nov. 15 made me wonder if there was value in betting them to miss the playoffs. But like an election night pundit, I\u2019ve seen enough: they\u2019re a legitimate playoff team. Having won 10 of their last 12, including a 2-0 win over the Blue Jackets Sunday night, Washington is led by a rejuvenated Tom Wilson*, Logan Thompson\u2019s 19.7 goals saved above expected \u2014 second in the NHL \u2014 and, oh yeah, the greatest goal scorer in the history of the sport. With a last name like Crowther, I know when to eat crow, and this is one of those times.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">*Who will make the Olympic roster<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Scott: You know how to eat crow, and yet I hear nothing about how I was right once again?<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Hunter: We get it, everything is about you, Scott!!!!!<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Record: 13-8-7, +1<br \/>Last Week: 6th (+2)\u00a0<br \/>Hunter\u2019s Rank: 8th<br \/>Scott\u2019s Rank: 8th<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Hunter: The Kings had played ugly hockey in their three games before Saturday, scoring just once in regulation in each of those contests. That\u2019s why their 6-0 ass whooping of the Blackhawks over the weekend must have felt invigorating, especially for Warren Foegele, who has only scored five goals this season after a 24-goal debut with the Kings in 2024-25 (I know, injuries, but still). Here\u2019s a fact you can tell everyone at the water cooler on Monday: Darcy Kuemper has only given up more than two goals in two of his last 11 starts, which dates back to Nov. 4.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Record: 15-12-4, +2<br \/>Last Week: 10th (+1)\u00a0<br \/>Hunter\u2019s Rank: 7th<br \/>Scott\u2019s Rank: 12th<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Hunter: The Rangers started the week with two wins over the Stars and Senators, gave the first-place Avs a helluva fight in a losing effort, including a late-tying goal to force overtime, then lost in OT to the Golden Knights. With points in their four games since <a class=\"text-secondary underline underline-offset-2\" hreflang=\"en\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dailyfaceoff.com\/news\/new-york-rangers-adam-fox-out-week-upper-body-injury-long-term-injured-reserve\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Adam Fox was ruled out for at least a few weeks<\/a>, their recent results are all the more impressive. Don\u2019t overlook Artemi Panarim, who after taking a \u201cstep back\u201d last season with 89 points (ha!), now has five goals and 13 points in his last nine games.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Record: 14-7-6, +8<br \/>Last Week: 11th (+1)\u00a0<br \/>Hunter\u2019s Rank: 14th<br \/>Scott\u2019s Rank: 6th\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Scott: I think the league needs a liberation of the glorious turnaround that Dan Muse has undertaken with this Pens team. Maybe success this season was unintended by Kyle Dubas considering the situation he was forced into, but he shouldn\u2019t be ashamed of this start. Muse has been a guiding light for a core whose time was running out. Sidney Crosby seemed agitated to not be winning, fans were dead inside, and this core looked to be on the dark side, but this franchise\u2019s uprising has been bliss. The vets have found a way to dig down and overcome the pressure of missing the playoffs in recent seasons. Malkin is newborn, Crosby is feeling good and has looked like an assassin again, and Pens fans can be sober watching this team again.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">I know Joel Quenneville is easily the frontrunner for the Jack Adams and there may be some resistance to this take, but Muse should also get some consideration. Maybe it\u2019s unsustainable. Maybe there\u2019s a point where they start unraveling and are falling down the standings as the season drones on and on, but until the Pens lose the groove and cave, this isn\u2019t propaganda, the hysteria surrounding this team is real. They almost feel invincible. It\u2019s been madness watching the playoffs without Crosby and Malkin, so a return feels overdue. It\u2019d be a crying shame not to see them back in the big dance. Take a bow, Dan Muse.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">(If anyone gets what I did here, I have a lot of respect for you).<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Record: 14-12-2, -2<br \/>Last Week: 16th (+5)\u00a0<br \/>Hunter\u2019s Rank: 11th<br \/>Scott\u2019s Rank: 10th<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Hunter: The only way you could lose to the Leafs and follow it up with an overtime defeat to the last-placed Predators \u2014 and not make me panic \u2014 is if you had won the Stanley Cup in the previous two seasons. Oh look, it\u2019s the Panthers! They got a win out of a 7-6 OT barnburner against the Blue Jackets, then beat the Islanders on Sunday, so hey, points in three of four games ain\u2019t bad. Still, head coach Paul Maurice will want the group to tighten up defensively before half the team flies to Italy for the Olympics.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Scott: I know I sang Carter Verhaeghe\u2019s praises in the previous edition of the power rankings, but somehow he improved even more last week. After missing the loss to the Leafs due to the birth of his child, he proved the baby bump was real and scored four goals in his next three games. I think he might be back.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Record: 13-11-4, -5<br \/>Last Week: 9th (-3)\u00a0<br \/>Hunter\u2019s Rank: 13th<br \/>Scott\u2019s Rank: 11th<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Hunter: When it comes to expected goals and possession, the Senators had an exceptional week. They controlled play for the majority of their three games and they came out with \u2026 two out of six points. To paraphrase Michael Lewis, <a class=\"text-secondary underline underline-offset-2\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Moneyball:_The_Art_of_Winning_an_Unfair_Game\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\" hreflang=\"en\">hockey is an unfair game<\/a>. Still, Linus Ullmark looked strong through nearly all of November and through the first two games of December, despite losses filling up his statcard. While the offense may not be bursting at the seams, the underlying numbers suggest the goals will come.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Record: 15-10-3, -7<br \/>Last Week: 14th (+1)\u00a0<br \/>Hunter\u2019s Rank: 12th<br \/>Scott\u2019s Rank: 16th\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Hunter: If the Canadiens\u2019 week ended with the 2-1 overtime win over the Leafs, the outlook would be a shade brighter, a team laughing after back-to-back wins over Canadian teams with alleged playoff hopes. But dropping a regulation loss to the bottom-dwelling Blues on Sunday stings far worse than however good a win over a 100-year-old rival would feel. I say this after wanting to compliment Jakub Dobes, who looked strong in Montreal\u2019s wins over Toronto and Winnipeg but gave up four goals on 18 shots against St. Louis.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Record: 15-11-3, -11<br \/>Last Week: 17th (+3)\u00a0<br \/>Hunter\u2019s Rank: 16th<br \/>Scott\u2019s Rank: 13th\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Scott: While the Red Wings cooled down from their hot start a while ago, they\u2019re still hanging around in the playoff race, and this time, it feels a bit more legitimate (although their defense is a bit questionable). For the first time in years, they aren\u2019t throwing Moritz Seider to the wolves and it\u2019s actually paying off in their overall game. I know the hockey world wants Quinn Hughes to play with his brothers, but if he can\u2019t, I think he and Seider deserve each other as top-pair partners after what they\u2019ve had to endure in their careers, and we as fans deserve it too.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Record: 15-9-3, +4<br \/>Last Week: 15th (0)\u00a0<br \/>Hunter\u2019s Rank: 17th<br \/>Scott\u2019s Rank: 15th<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Scott: There was a brief stretch where this year\u2019s Flyers team was looking like the 2023-24 team that fell just short of a playoff spot with how they were playing over their heads while also putting together some excellent defensive hockey. However, those defensive metrics have slipped in recent weeks, so it feels like a matter of when, not if, their record slips with it, especially when their chance generation has been equally weak. They lost two of three games last week; is this the beginning of that?<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Record: 15-9-5, +1<br \/>Last Week: 13th (-3)\u00a0<br \/>Hunter\u2019s Rank: 10th<br \/>Scott\u2019s Rank: 22nd<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Scott: Look, I know I may get flamed for ranking Minnesota 22nd considering the run they\u2019ve been on in recent weeks. After all, they had a 12-game point streak before dropping back-to-back games to the Flames and Canucks. But a lot of that was on the back of their goaltending, which my model doesn\u2019t really incorporate outside of whatever it does to their record and goal differential. Otherwise, this is a Wild team that is solid at chance creation (although struggles at it on the power play) and is poor defensively both at even strength and shorthanded. This is far from a Stanley Cup contender, even if Filip Gustavsson and Jesper Wallstedt want you to think otherwise.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Hunter: There\u2019s a wiiiiiiiiiiide gap between \u201cStanley Cup contender\u201d and \u201c22nd-ranked team in the league,\u201d and you couldn\u2019t even put them within the gap! There\u2019s no doubt the 11-1-1 stretch of November inflated their place within the league, and yes they\u2019re getting top-notch goaltending from Gustavsson and Wallstedt, but they\u2019re closer to the top 10 than the bottom 10. I\u2019ll concede they need more production beyond Kirill Kaprizov and Matt Boldy (cough Joel Eriksson Ek cough) but having two stars like them paves the road back to the postseason.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Scott: Look man, I don\u2019t decide their ranking, the numbers do. The Wild did this to themselves! It\u2019s their own fault!<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Hunter: \u201cI didn\u2019t come up with the ranking, <a class=\"text-secondary underline underline-offset-2\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=pJ_Pfuj9wPE\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\" hreflang=\"en\">it was the numbers, I tell ya! The numbers!<\/a>\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Scott: I have the spreadsheets to prove it!<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Record: 14-13-3, +5<br \/>Last Week: 18th (+1)<br \/>Hunter\u2019s Rank: 18th<br \/>Scott\u2019s Rank: 14th\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Hunter: I had circled Anaheim-Utah on my \u201cmust watch\u201d schedule last week as both teams have a number of young players that are fast, highly skilled and entertaining. While there were plenty of goals, I wasn\u2019t expecting all seven to be scored by a Mammoth group starved for a victory. Credit to JJ Peterka for getting the offense going, as he had been held to just one goal in his previous six games, and Clayton Keller is getting back to the production that alluded him for most of November, but this Utah group still isn\u2019t consistent enough to make any noise in a Central Division that\u2019s just begging someone to steal the No. 3 spot from the Wild.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Record: 16-12-1, -5<br \/>Last Week: 8th (-10)\u00a0<br \/>Hunter\u2019s Rank: 15th<br \/>Scott\u2019s Rank: 20th<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Scott: It\u2019s incredible just how much the Devils have fallen off since Jack Hughes\u2019 injury. This team should still be a good one without him, and yet they look nothing like who we saw in October. I even watched them three times this week, and it felt like they couldn\u2019t create anything. It\u2019s weird, as they skate fast, but they don\u2019t play fast, you know? If there was ever a team worthy of a reactionary trade, it\u2019s New Jersey. I know their big connection with Nashville is Steven Stamkos, but I actually think Ryan O\u2019Reilly is a much better fit for them. The team has one glaring hole in their top six, and that\u2019s in that left wing spot currently occupied by Ondrej Palat, which O\u2019Reilly would do a much better job in, and he could fill the center gap while Hughes is out. It\u2019s a match made in heaven!<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Record: 16-11-3, +2<br \/>Last Week: 20th (+1)\u00a0<br \/>Hunter\u2019s Rank: 21st<br \/>Scott\u2019s Rank: 17th<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Scott: I feel like we aren\u2019t talking enough about how the Islanders are tied for seventh in the league right now. It\u2019s still early, and their games played total plays a role in that (they\u2019re only 13th in points percentage), but that\u2019s still a crazy turnaround from last season. Matthew Schaefer has been huge for them, but there\u2019s more to it than that: a healthy Mathew Barzal, Bo Horvat becoming an elite sniper again, Ilya Sorokin returning to form, among a few other things. The underlying numbers aren\u2019t great, so they\u2019ll probably slip eventually, but they\u2019ve still made for a great watch.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Hunter: I remember seeing Patrick Roy\u2019s name on a lot of \u201cWhich team will fire their head coach first?\u201d lists in the offseason, with some wondering if he should be the one steering the ship with Schaefer\u2019s arrival. But this team is giving a complete effort nearly every night and the odds are better than not that a game involving them will be one of the more entertaining ones on any given night.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Record: 13-11-4, +2<br \/>Last Week: 27th (+7)\u00a0<br \/>Hunter\u2019s Rank: 19th<br \/>Scott\u2019s Rank: 19th<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Hunter: It\u2019s time for just the second edition of the \u201cWe Are So Back O-Meter\u201d in 2025-26, starring the Toronto Maple Leafs. Sure, Scott and I argued over who the bigger hater was last week, like the old Chappelle sketch, minus the veneers and bad suits. But with commanding victories over two of the Eastern Conference\u2019s best overall teams in the Hurricanes and Panthers (yes, Florida is still there), the Leafs actually looked like a confident team this past week. Sure, the Canadiens outplayed them for chunks of time Saturday, but Toronto still came away with a point. Their goaltending situation is still in the air, and it\u2019s hard to imagine Joseph Woll making any type of comeback before Christmas, but at least fans are breathing a little easier as we enter the holiday season.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Scott: The Leafs\u2019 win over the Panthers was one of their best games of the season, but there were still a few too many inconsistencies in their game against Carolina and Montreal for me to be super confident in this team. At the very least, Dennis Hildeby won\u2019t be the problem. With a .927 save percentage and 5.22 5v5 GSAx, he\u2019s probably been their most consistent goalie this season, both in terms of play and availability. It makes the waiver claim of Caiden Primeau even more confusing, especially with the lack of confidence in actually playing him leading to them overplaying Anthony Stolarz and getting him hurt. Speaking of which, if Hildeby was playing this well, why wasn\u2019t he getting more starts? Why did they have to run Woll into the ground?<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Ah okay good, I\u2019m still a hater.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Hunter: Yeah but <a class=\"text-secondary underline underline-offset-2\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=1N5p8IXzNdc\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\" hreflang=\"en\">I\u2019m the biggest hater<\/a>!<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Record: 13-10-6, -9<br \/>Last Week: 23rd (+2)<br \/>Hunter\u2019s Rank: 23rd<br \/>Scott\u2019s Rank: 18th<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Hunter: Games like the Blue Jackets\u2019 6-5 shootout win over the Red Wings and 7-6 overtime loss against the Panthers are the type that fans will remember fondly but after which coaches will make you stand on the goal line and skate until you puke. It feels impossible to blow a three-goal lead in a five-minute span and still end a period with the lead, but Columbus found a way against Florida. Five out of a possible eight points ain\u2019t bad, but they\u2019ll need more if they want to <a class=\"text-secondary underline underline-offset-2\" hreflang=\"en\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dailyfaceoff.com\/news\/bill-simmons-calls-columbus-blue-jackets-most-irrelevant-franchise-in-pro-sports\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">prove Bill Simmons wrong<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Record: 13-11-5, -6<br \/>Last Week: 22nd (0)\u00a0<br \/>Hunter\u2019s Rank: 20th<br \/>Scott\u2019s Rank: 21st<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Scott: I think the Oilers got sick of all the \u201ccould have had Wallstedt\u201d jokes after he blanked them on Tuesday, because the rest of the week, they were playing angry hockey. They looked like the Oilers of old by scoring 15 goals in two wins over the Kraken and Jets, and while Connor McDavid (three goals, six points), Leon Draisaitl (two goals, six points) and Evan Bouchard (one goal, five points) were a driving force there, they also got a lot of depth scoring. Maybe, just maybe, the Oilers are finally turning things around.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Hunter: Why don\u2019t the Oilers, the team with two of the best players in the world, <a class=\"text-secondary underline underline-offset-2\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=n3APhrBqOVM\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\" hreflang=\"en\">not simply score more than the other team every night<\/a>?\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Record: 14-13-1, 0<br \/>Last Week: 21st (-2)\u00a0<br \/>Hunter\u2019s Rank: 22nd<br \/>Scott\u2019s Rank: 23rd<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Scott: If I had a time machine, I\u2019d go back to this time last year and let past me know that his pain will soon be over. Vindication will finally come for exposing the Jets as frauds; we just needed to see them without their mask (a.k.a. Connor Hellebuyck). Even then, I didn\u2019t think things would be this bad. They have two wins in nine games since Hellebuyck went down and despite the fact that they\u2019ve allowed 3.67 goals per game in that span, it\u2019s not even on Eric Comrie, as he has a 1.04 5v5 GSAx. This team is just that bad, and Hellebuyck isn\u2019t around to cover it up right now.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Hunter: Complete side note: All the credit in the world to <a class=\"text-secondary underline underline-offset-2\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=g8F8l3I14Kkh\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\" hreflang=\"en\">Adam Lowry for taking on Arber Xhekaj<\/a> after delivering\u00a0a huge hit on Alex Carrier last Wednesday. The game isn\u2019t what it used to be, but for a capable middle-six forward to square up with one of the game\u2019s toughest fighters takes guts. The Jets aren\u2019t in a good spot right now, and Scott\u2019s right in that those underlying numbers from last season are catching up, so anything this group can do to muster up points is desperately needed.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Scott: The funny thing is that their underlying numbers actually improved and justified their performance (mostly) last season, they just completely forgot all of that progress and have been even worse this season.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Record: 17-13-0, +2<br \/>Last Week: 26th (+2)\u00a0<br \/>Hunter\u2019s Rank: 24th<br \/>Scott\u2019s Rank: 24th<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Scott: I love Hunter and my coordinated refusal to accept the Bruins as for real. This team has held down a division spot for a while, and yet we just don\u2019t care. Fake team. I will say, Morgan Geekie has been an incredible story for them. Sure, he\u2019s riding shotgun with David Pastrnak for the most part, but he\u2019s chasing down MacKinnon for the Rocket Richard. Geekie\u2019s likely in his Jonathan Cheechoo era, but let\u2019s enjoy it for now.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Hunter: If this Bruins squad trips into a playoff spot, I will max out the credit card and buy a ticket to Vegas to personally hand the Hart Trophy to David Pastrnak*, because unless he turns into a turbo-charged version of 2011 Corey Perry, there\u2019s no way Boston does anything worth writing about.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">*Yes, Vegas. I would rather bring back obstruction and the two-line pass then watch some awkward, rehearsed sketch where they hand the player the trophy. Make them put the damn tuxedos on and attend an award show, damn it.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Record: 11-13-4, -12<br \/>Last Week: 25th (0)\u00a0<br \/>Hunter\u2019s Rank: 25th<br \/>Scott\u2019s Rank: 26th<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Hunter: The Sabres had some good mojo in the previous week after a win over the streaking Wild, then followed it with a decisive 5-1 win against the Jets last Monday. But back-to-back road losses wiped out any forward movement for a Buffalo team that\u2019s <a class=\"text-secondary underline underline-offset-2\" hreflang=\"en\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dailyfaceoff.com\/news\/teams\/standings\/2025\/division\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">last in the Atlantic Division<\/a>. That\u2019s just not good enough for a fanbase that\u2019s putting too much hope into Josh Allen\u2019s hands.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Scott: It\u2019s going to be funny when Allen finally gets gifted an AFC playoff picture without Patrick Mahomes, Lamar Jackson and Joe Burrow, only to either a) have Drake Maye and the Patriots reclaim the AFC East title or b) have the Bills finally make the Super Bowl only to lose for a fifth-straight time in their history.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Hunter: I have fully accepted that the Denver Broncos will somehow make it to the Super Bowl and get trounced by the Eagles or the Rams.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Record: 11-12-7, -27<br \/>Last Week: 28th (+2)\u00a0<br \/>Hunter\u2019s Rank: 26th<br \/>Scott\u2019s Rank: 27th<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Hunter: I think part of me wants to see the Blues succeed because it would serve as some sort of proof that offer-sheeting restricted free agents works. Instead, the Blues are among the league\u2019s worst teams, <a class=\"text-secondary underline underline-offset-2\" hreflang=\"en\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dailyfaceoff.com\/news\/teams\/standings\/2025\/division\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">seventh in the Central Division<\/a> and owners of the second-worst goal differential at minus-25. If you\u2019re Doug Armstrong, at what point do you fully focus on Hockey Canada and <a class=\"text-secondary underline underline-offset-2\" hreflang=\"en\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dailyfaceoff.com\/news\/the-st-louis-blues-believe-in-alex-steen\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">let Alex Steen start making trades<\/a>?<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Record: 11-15-4, -16<br \/>Last Week: 31st (+4)\u00a0<br \/>Hunter\u2019s Rank: 30th<br \/>Scott\u2019s Rank: 25th<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Scott: I feel like every season presents a couple examples of teams that have strong underlying numbers, but just lack the talent to keep up with that. Still, I don\u2019t think I\u2019ve seen a team with this much of a gap between performance and talent. They\u2019re sixth in 5v5 expected goals share, and yet have the seventh-worst 5v5 goals share, and while that would normally scream regression, that doesn\u2019t feel like something that will happen to Calgary outside of Dustin Wolf playing a bit better. This team just doesn\u2019t have the scoring talent, and should ownership finally use their heads and start selling, the Flames will have even less talent.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Record: 11-9-6, -13<br \/>Last Week: 19th (-9)\u00a0<br \/>Hunter\u2019s Rank: 28th<br \/>Scott\u2019s Rank: 28th\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Hunter: An open letter to Ron Francis, president of hockey operations for the Seattle Kraken:<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Hi Ron, hope you\u2019re doing well. Is it snowing out west in Seattle? Toronto saw some over the weekend. We\u2019ve made the transition from fall to winter jackets. I think I\u2019m going to ask for new gloves for Christmas.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">When it comes to the Kraken, I have one request: trade Shane Wright. Yes, that Wright, the one you selected No. 4 overall in the 2022 NHL Entry Draft while you served as general manager of the club. I know he hasn\u2019t developed at the rate you may have expected, but it\u2019s clear through his first two professional seasons in 2023-24 and 2024-25 that he is an exceptional talent and you are not utilizing him to his full potential.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Despite averaging less than 14 minutes of ice time per game, including just 11:24 in a 4-3 loss to the Red Wings on Saturday, he\u2019s tied for second in even-strength points and fourth on the teams in 5-on-5 expected goals. Also, for a team that\u2019s so desperate for offense, why you and the revolving door of a coaching staff you employ would choose to stunt the development of a 21-year-old top-five draft pick who recorded 44 points in his first full NHL campaign doesn\u2019t make sense to me, but here we are.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Please do hockey fans a favor, especially those of us who had the pleasure of watching him thrive in the OHL with the Kingston Frontenacs and Windsor Spitfires, and move him somewhere he can get more ice time, play with other skilled forwards and blossom into the 60-plus forward we all know he can be.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">You can reach out to me if you have any questions or comments. Thank you for your time.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Hunter Crowther \u2013 Daily Faceoff\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Record: 12-11-6, -5<br \/>Last Week: 24th (-5)\u00a0<br \/>Hunter\u2019s Rank: 27th<br \/>Scott\u2019s Rank: 29th<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Scott: When\u2019s the last time you\u2019ve seen a team go on a three-game road trip through California, but not play all three teams? Well, the Blackhawks just did that, playing back-to-back games in Los Angeles before finishing things up with the Ducks. I don\u2019t think I\u2019ve seen a back-to-back in the same building since the COVID season.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Overall, it was a forgettable road trip for Chicago. They now bear the ugly distinction of being Carter Hart\u2019s first win since his return to the league, and after winning 2-1 in the first L.A. game, they followed it up by dropping the next two games by a combined score of 13-1. Oof. I think regression may be kicking in here.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Record: 14-13-3, -13<br \/>Last Week: 29th (-1)\u00a0<br \/>Hunter\u2019s Rank: 29th<br \/>Scott\u2019s Rank: 30th<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Scott: Yesterday, Formula 1 saw what could have potentially been an exciting three-way title race in Abu Dhabi go out with a simmer, and the race felt like it was lacking something. Like the last time we saw a title race in Abu Dhabi, this one was in desperate need of an appearance from the infamous FIA director Michael Masi to create drama and controversy like in 2021.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">In unrelated news, Sharks top prospect Michael Misa may be close to making a return to the NHL (or maybe the World Juniors), as he\u2019s down in the AHL on a conditioning stint.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">(Was that too much of a stretch? I don\u2019t know what else to say, the Sharks were kind of meh last week.)<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Hunter: Who the hell is Michael Masi?\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Scott: The infamous FIA director whose decision during Abu Dhabi 2021 created drama and controversy. Did you even read what I said?<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Record: 11-15-3, -19<br \/>Last Week: 30th (-1)\u00a0<br \/>Hunter\u2019s Rank: 31st<br \/>Scott\u2019s Rank: 31st<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Scott: I keep forgetting that the Canucks have been doing this badly. Like, I know it\u2019s not going well, but then I look at the standings and I\u2019m surprised they\u2019re bunched up with the Calgarys and Nashvilles. Of course, a lot of that falls on the injuries the Canucks have had to deal with. David Kampf was their first-line center on Saturday, for Pete\u2019s sake! He wasn\u2019t even the first-line center on the Toronto Marlies! I do wonder how much better the Canucks will get once they get healthier, but will they have already started selling enough pieces by then that it won\u2019t matter?<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Record: 10-14-4, -26<br \/>Last Week: 32nd (0)\u00a0<br \/>Hunter\u2019s Rank: 32nd<br \/>Scott\u2019s Rank: 32nd<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Hunter: I can\u2019t explain it, but I feel like if the Predators eat half of Michael Bunting\u2019s $4.5-million cap hit, that\u2019s a really attractive acquisition. Save your letters to the editor (sorry Matt), I\u2019m not saying they\u2019re going to get a first-round pick for him. But a 20-goal winger who can be a rat and isn\u2019t afraid to give or take a hit? Every team in the league would pay a deadline premium for that.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Scott: He may only have one goal per playoff run in his two appearances, but let\u2019s be honest, that was with the Leafs. Zach Hyman did that for five years here, was still beloved and then somehow figured out how to score in the playoffs once he left. Because of course he did.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">_____<a class=\"text-secondary underline underline-offset-2\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/@The_Nation_Network\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\" hreflang=\"en\"><\/p>\n<p>PRESENTED BY OFF THE ROSTER\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><a class=\"text-secondary underline underline-offset-2\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/@The_Nation_Network\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\" hreflang=\"en\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/publish.theleafsnation.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2099\/08\/ROS-100-GRA_Promos-727x404_edit1.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"w-full\"\/><\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">Introducing Off The Roster\u2014Toronto Sports, Unfiltered! Toronto sports fans, your new favourite conversation has arrived. Hosted by Cabbie Richards, Lindsay Dunn, and Dan Riccio, Off The Roster dives into the city\u2019s legendary plays, brutal trades, OG jerseys, celebrity tweets, and everything in between. Raw, fun, and totally unfiltered, this is Toronto sports like you\u2019ve never heard it before. Tune in live every weekday morning on the <a class=\"text-secondary underline underline-offset-2\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/@The_Nation_Network\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\" hreflang=\"en\">Nation Network YouTube channel<\/a>, or catch episodes wherever you stream podcasts. Proudly brought to you by our founding partner, PROLINE. Off The Roster\u2014the new sound in the 6ix.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg\">_____<\/p>\n<p>Recent Power Rankings<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"With Hunter Crowther This massive slog of teams in the middle of the playoff hunt continues to be&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":332560,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[433],"tags":[49,48,448,82],"class_list":{"0":"post-332559","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-nhl","8":"tag-ca","9":"tag-canada","10":"tag-nhl","11":"tag-sports"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/332559","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=332559"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/332559\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/332560"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=332559"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=332559"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=332559"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}