Browsing: Overreactions

Just like everyone predicted at the end of the first week of the season, Pavel Dorofeyev and Shane Pinto are leading the league in goals, while the Boston Bruins are undefeated and the Tampa Bay Lightning are winless.

OK, so a lot is going to change as the year goes along, but itâ€s never too early for some overreactions. Letâ€s look at a few things happening in the NHL so far and see if they have staying power.

Bedard is headed for a 90-point season

Heâ€s on pace for only 82 points right now, but you can feel the dam about to burst for Connor Bedard. The 20-year-old Chicago Blackhawks star came out of the gates flying this season and if it looked like Bedard found another gear, he did. In his first game against the Florida Panthers, Bedard hit a max speed of 22.36 m.p.h., which was nearly a full m.p.h. faster than his highest speed from last season. Bedard didnâ€t end up finding the scoresheet, but he was dangerous all night and produced a handful of quality scoring chances as well as ringing one off the crossbar.

The points came a couple of nights later, when Bedard unleashed a lethal shot for his first of the season and added an assist against the Bruins. Again, Bedard was all over the ice and creating offence frequently, including in overtime, and the Blackhawks probably deserved a better fate than their second loss of the season. He followed that up by tallying a power-play goal on Saturday night against the Montreal Canadiens. Bedard looks like a different player this year and if he keeps it going, the 90-point mark doesnâ€t seem like an unrealistic goal.

Overreaction? – No

Going from 67 points a year ago to 90 is a tall order, but if anyone has the talent to do it, itâ€s Bedard. Heâ€s passing the eye test with flying colours right now and this Blackhawks lineup looks more capable of helping him out than it has in the past. New linemate Andre Burakovsky set up Bedard for that beautiful one-timer against the Bruins and they are starting to build some chemistry, while Frank Nazar is already up to five points on the year. Nazar gives them a solid threat at the second-line centre spot and that should help alleviate some of the oppositionâ€s focus on Bedard this season.

Tyler Bertuzzi and Ryan Donato also should be able to build on solid seasons in 2024-25 and youngsters Sam Rinzel and Artyom Levshunov should make the Blackhawks blue line more talented. Plus, despite a season to forget last year, Chicago still finished with the seventh-best power play in the NHL. If they can continue to have a top-10 man advantage, itâ€s only going to help Bedard fill the scoresheet.

The other thing that could be driving Bedard is motivation to earn a spot on Team Canada at the Olympics. It never truly felt like he was in the mix to crack the roster at the 4 Nations Face-Off, so Bedard should be playing with a chip on his shoulder to get back into the conversation. Even if the Blackhawks donâ€t win many games again this year, it doesnâ€t mean Bedard canâ€t rack up the points.

Sabres will be picking Gavin McKenna first overall

If Buffalo Sabres fans were hoping this was going to be the year that their team ended its lengthy playoff drought, they canâ€t be filled with confidence after the first two games. It took the Sabres five-and-a-half periods to score their first goal of the season and there are still looking for their first win.

Theyâ€ve also been decimated by injuries, as key players like Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, Michael Kesselring and now Josh Norris are slated to miss substantial time. They are currently running with a tandem of Alex Lyon and Colten Ellis between the pipes, so if expectations were low coming into the season, theyâ€ve quickly plummeted into further depths. If Buffalo isnâ€t careful, it could find itself in a race for the leagueâ€s worst record.

Overreaction? – Yes

I still think the Sabres have too much talent to finish in the leagueâ€s basement. Tage Thompson, Alex Tuch, Rasmus Dahlin and Co. make Buffalo more talented on paper than at least a handful of other teams. The Sabres are also not going to be sellers and coach Lindy Ruff and GM Kevyn Adams may very well be fighting for their jobs. The Pittsburgh Penguins, on the other hand, are expected to sell off pieces and are clearly starting a rebuild, so they may be a little more active in their pursuit of McKenna. Iâ€m not going to go out on a limb and say the Sabres are going to make the playoffs, but I donâ€t think theyâ€re a bottom-three team.Â

Itâ€s only been two games, but Schaefer sure looks the part of a legit NHL defenceman, doesnâ€t he? The 2025 No. 1-overall pick has two points in two games, is a plus-1 despite the New York Islanders giving up eight goals on the season, and notched his first career goal Saturday night. That game against the Washington Capitals saw Schaefer play more than 26 minutes and post eight shots on goal. You wouldnâ€t think Schaefer is a rookie defenceman that just turned 18 years old based on that stat line.

The Calder Trophy wonâ€t be handed out for another eight months and Schaefer is going to have growing pains at some point, but the fact that he doesnâ€t look out of place this early is impressive. If he keeps this up, the rest of the rookie class is going to have a difficult time wrestling the Calder away from Schaefer.

Overreaction? – No

Being the top pick gives Schaefer the inside track on the award and his strong start is only going to help build his case. The fact that Montreal’s Ivan Demidov has had an underwhelming start also is helping Schaeferâ€s cause. Demidov has just a single assist and one shot on goal in three games. There will obviously be other rookies that are going to shine throughout the season and it would be foolish to anoint someone after one week, but Schaefer leads the way for now.

Maple Leafs power play is in big trouble with Mitch Marner gone

If you flipped over to the Toronto Maple Leafs home opener during a Game 4 clinching victory by the Toronto Blue Jays on Wednesday night and caught a bit of their power play, you probably didnâ€t stick around. The Leafs won the game, but the power play was abysmal. Toronto struggled to get out of its own end and into the oppositionâ€s during the man advantage and even gave up a short-handed goal to the Canadiens, plus a few other quality chances. It looked a bit better Saturday night, but the Leafs went 0-for-2 again in a loss to the Detroit Red Wings.

You may have heard, but Mitch Marner, who quarterbacked the power play last season, has departed for Vegas, forcing Morgan Rielly back into the duties of running the unit up top. Rielly had a great opening night, but the power play struggled mightily and couldnâ€t generate much of anything. The group was effective with Marner at the helm, as he was very decisive with the puck and was great at taking advantage of the net-front presence of players like Matthew Knies and John Tavares. Marner didnâ€t always shoot to score, but he was efficient at getting pucks through for tips and rebound opportunities. Rielly seems just a tad more hesitant than Marner and so far, the top power play looks out of sorts. The biggest area where the Leafs may miss Marner could be on the man advantage.

Overreaction? – Yes

Letâ€s give Rielly some time here. Maybe heâ€s not the most ideal power-play quarterback because he doesnâ€t have a booming shot, but donâ€t forget, Rielly has done a solid job in the role before. Torontoâ€s power play ranked first in 2021-22 (27.3 per cent), second in 2022-23 (26 per cent) and seventh in 2023-24 (24 per cent), all with Rielly running things.

Marner may be gone, but the unit still boasts Auston Matthews, William Nylander, Tavares and Knies, so thereâ€s plenty of talent left to produce. Knies could be the key piece here, as Rielly never had him on the top group when he ran the power play before. Toronto moved Knies there last season to wreak havoc in front of the net and Rielly should be able to take advantage of his skillset. With Knies providing screens and taking up space near the blue paint, Rielly has the ability to sift pucks through and simplify his approach. If he does this enough, it should also create lanes to set up Matthews and Nylander for shots, too.

This isnâ€t all on Riellyâ€s shoulders, either. It’s also an adjustment for everyone going back to Rielly leading the puck up ice instead of Marner and making sure everyone is working in unison when it comes to zone entries. Itâ€s only been two games. If the power play is still floundering when the calendar flips to November, maybe itâ€s time to inch closer to the panic button.

Panthers will be fine without Barkov, Tkachuk

Many were quick to write the Florida Panthers off when Aleksander Barkov tore his ACL during training camp, with Matthew Tkachuk already slated to miss a few months recovering from off-season surgery. The Panthers captain was given a return timeline of seven to nine months, making it unlikely he returns in the regular season and putting the playoffs in jeopardy, too.

So far, the loss of either player hasnâ€t impacted the two-time defending Stanley Cup champions, as Florida is off to a 3-0-0 start. Granted, two of those were one-goal victories against Chicago and Philadelphia, two teams that figure to be near the bottom of the standings this year, but they capped the week by dominating the Ottawa Senators. Florida seems deep and experienced enough to withstand the loss of Barkov and Tkachuk.

Overreaction? – No

Of course, this isnâ€t an overreaction. Did anyone really expect this team fall apart after making three straight Stanley Cup Finals? The Panthers have too much depth not to hold the down the fort and weâ€re already seeing other players step up. Theyâ€ve picked up big goals from A.J. Greer and Jesper Boqvist, while Mackie Samoskevich has three points. Anton Lundell has scored twice as well and heâ€s taking on more minutes now that heâ€s been promoted to the top six after Barkovâ€s injury. Plus, if you remember late last season, the Panthers werenâ€t overly concerned about winning the division, opting instead to rest key players down the stretch to get ready for the playoffs. Expect a similar approach this year so they can be at maximum strength for the spring. Theyâ€ll be fine.

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