NHL 4 Stars Dec 15-21: Non-Denominational Holiday Special

First, here is a treat from the San Jose Sharks…

Now onto this week’s four stars…

1) The Pacific Division: Anze Kopitar Of The Los Angeles Kings

Koping well from his Stanley Cup hangover

The Los Angeles Kings went 2-1-0 this week, winning one of two games against the St. Louis Blues and winning against the Arizona Coyotes. In their three games, Anze Kopitar led the team with 1G/8A, highlighted by a five point night against the Blues.

Although Kopitar might have had a slow start to the season, he is now starting to recover from his Stanley Cup hangover. In 31 games, he has 7G/15A, and he is 51% in the face-off circle. He is the type of player you can build a team around, as he is a great play maker to players like Marian Gaborik (who had 5 goals this past week).

The Kings have gone 17-11-6 and currently hold the second wild card spot, but I think I speak for everyone when I say the Kings have no worries about making the playoffs with players like Quick, Carter, Doughty, and others.

2) The Atlantic division: Alex Galchenyuk Of The Montreal Canadiens

Gally chipping into the Habs’ win total

The Montreal Canadiens went 2-1-0, losing to the Anaheim Ducks (2-1), but winning against the Senators and Hurricanes (both games were 4-1 for the Habs). The 20 year old center Alex Galchenyuk was a dynamic player for the Habs this week, earning at least a point in each of his games (4G/2A [+6] in three games), and netting his first career hat trick against Carolina.

The Habs have gone 21-11-2 and are first place in the Atlantic division. This is due to the depth of Montreal with solid players all across the board. The young superstar of the Habs who went 3rd overall in the 2012 draft is in his third year of professional hockey and will go to contract negotiations with the team to see how much and how long he will stay with the team. If I was the Habs GM, I’d sign him as soon as possible to ensure the team gets a good deal and to get a term that works for Galchenyuk.

Alex has 10G/14A (+5) in 34 games for the Canadiens and will only play once this week against the Isles on Tuesday.

3) The Metropolitan division: Henrik Lundqvist and Cam Talbot, the New York Rangers

King Henrik and his Rangers

The New York Rangers have won 6 in a row, including the three games they had this past week. The games were split by goaltenders Henrik Lundqvist (right) and Cam Talbot (left). They combined for a 1.33GAA and a .945 save percentage.

Talbot’s 18 shot shutout against the Hurricanes

Lundqvist’s solid performance against the Flames

Albeit, both goaltenders did not not stand on their head and steal games for the Rangers, but this goal-tending duo will propel the Rangers into the playoffs come April. They currently hold the third seat in the Metropolitan division and have gone 17-10-4.

This week, Henrik allowed two goals in both of his stars, but had a save percentage of .935 against Calgary and .900 against Carolina. Overall, Lundqvist is 14-7-3 in 24 games for the Rangers and have a 2.46GAA and a .912 save percentage. Cam Talbot shut out the Hurricanes on their back-to-back games this past weekend. The back-up goaltender this season, so far, has went 3-3-1 in eight games and has a 2.02GAA and a .928 save percentage.

4) The Central division: Tyler Seguin, the Dallas Stars

The Dallas Stars have won their last four games, including their three games this past week. Tyler Seguin had 2G/2A in the Stars’ three games – including a two goal night and a shootout goal against the Oilers in their 6-5SO win.

Seguin is currently dominating in NHL, as he has 25G/17A so far this season [not to mention, he leads the NHL in goals scored]. He defiantly has a chance to win some hardware this year – like the ‘Rocket’ Richard Trophy for most goals scored in the regular season, the Art Ross for the player who scores the most points (as he is currently second in points), and possibly league MVP.

However, the Stars are 14-13-5 this season and are currently seven points out of a wild card spot. The team needs to work a lot harder and play more sound defensive games – as they have a 3.4GAA this season.