Weekend takeaways: Gauthier, Robertson pushing their method into Olympics speak

Is November offering a sneak peek right into a attainable American Olympic revolution?

Never thoughts the entire month, this previous weekend alone supplied additional proof that some extraordinarily gifted Yanks are pushing their method into the five-ringed dialog. 

Nobody is hotter than Jason Robertson, who went 1-1-2 through the Dallas Stars’ 3-2 shootout loss to Calgary on Saturday. The left winger has 19 factors in 11 November video games, greater than any American NHLer. The solely NHLers of any heritage who even have 19 factors within the month are Canadians Nathan MacKinnon and Connor McDavid. 

Another lethal American with 1-1-2 on Saturday was Cutter Gauthier, whose manufacturing got here as a part of a 4-3 time beyond regulation win for the Anaheim Ducks over the visiting Vegas Golden Knights. Gauthier has exploded for 13 objectives and the identical variety of helpers for 26 factors in 22 video games as a league sophomore. That’s extra factors than each American besides Robertson (28) and Team USA lock Jack Eichel (29).

We had a stirring comeback on Saturday, when the Atlantic-leading Detroit Red Wings popped two objectives within the second half of the third interval to tie the Columbus Blue Jackets. In time beyond regulation, Alex DeBrincat skated the size of the ice and whipped a seeing-eye shot over Jet Greaves’ left shoulder and beneath the bar for a 4-3 win. 

DeBrincat’s 39 objectives final season have been greater than all however three Americans — extra on that in a second — and he’s been on fireplace currently for a surging Wings staff with 9 factors in his previous half-dozen outings.

The man who led all Americans in objectives final season was Tage Thompson, who netted 44. Thompson is as much as 12 objectives this yr, together with one on Friday evening throughout a giant 9-3 win over Chicago, and one other into an empty web on Sunday afternoon to seal a 4-1 win over Carolina and make it a terrific 48 hours for the Sabres. 

It’s principally unattainable to see how Thompson — who has 9 factors in his previous six video games — doesn’t make Team USA this day trip, particularly after scoring the time beyond regulation marker that secured an American victory on the World Championship final May.

Like Thompson, Robertson, Gauthier and DeBrincat have been all left off America’s 4 Nations Face-Off roster final season. The similar might be stated for Cole Caufield, who has as many objectives as any American this season at 13, and Will Smith, who is sort of a point-per-game sophomore in San Jose whereas listening to all of the chatter about whether or not his Sharks teammate, Macklin Celebrini, will pressure his method onto Team Canada.

Will all these forwards whose calling card is offence make the squad? Certainly not. But it’s positive simple to surprise who’s going to make Team USA when each Tkachuk brothers, Auston Matthews and Jack Hughes are all harm. And whereas all 4 of these gamers are cemented on the staff if wholesome, the “if healthy” a part of that sentence carries extra weight than you’d like when discussing every of these guys.

Now ask your self if veterans Brock Nelson, Vincent Trochek and Chris Kreider — all guys who made the 4 Nations roster — are making the journey to Italy in February.

Understanding stability is required when making a roster meant to compete with the perfect nationwide groups on the planet, it’s protected to imagine some turnover up entrance for the Stars and Stripes.

And, proper now, there’s no scarcity of super-skilled gamers exhibiting why they deserve consideration for a spot.

• Make it 5 in a row, seven of eight and 9-1-1 in November for the scorching Minnesota Wild after they blanked the Jets in Winnipeg 3-0 on Sunday afternoon. That is the way you flip issues round from a 3-6-3 October. Jesper Wallstedt, a long-heralded goalie prospect, is making good on that promise. The whitewash in Winnipeg was his third shutout of the month and the Swede — all the pieces leads again to Olympic speak this yr, proper? — has a shocking .970 save share in his previous 5 outings. Mats Zuccarello made his season debut this month and rapidly amassed eight factors in eight video games, whereas Marcus Johansson continues to provide at an surprising clip. A purpose on Friday in Pittsburgh and an apple towards the Jets provides the veteran winger 15 factors in his previous 15 outings. Then there’s rookie centre Danila Yurov, who scored towards the Jets for his fourth level in his previous three contests. With the Avs hovering, Dallas as sturdy as ever and Minnesota now raging, the Central Division resides as much as its billing because the NHL’s Group of Death.

• Speaking of the Central, with the Wild leaping the Jets for third place this weekend, the leaves a single Canadian staff in possession of a playoff spot on Monday morning, and it’s the Ottawa Senators. 

• After a 1-4-2 begin — to say nothing of getting a number of crucial defencemen injured — the Tampa Bay Lighting are rolling. The Bolts’ 5-3 win in Washington on Saturday drove their document to 11-3-0 of their previous 14 video games. For all of the speak of turnover within the Atlantic — with Ottawa, Detroit and Montreal attempting to stand up — it might shock nobody to see cagey ol’ Tampa Bay again on the high of that group come April.

Red and White Power Rankings

1. Winnipeg Jets (12-9-0) Two begins, two L’s for Eric Comrie within the absence of Connor Hellebuyck, who’s sidelined 4 to 6 weeks after knee surgical procedure. That’s clearly not nice, however no goalie may have earned the W for Winnipeg on Sunday when the Jets failed to attain on the visiting Wild. 

2. Ottawa Senators (11-6-4) With one other help in Saturday’s 3-2 time beyond regulation victory in San Jose, Drake Batherson is producing at a 91-point tempo. 

3. Edmonton Oilers (10-9-5) The Oilers closed a troublesome seven-game roadie with a giant 4-3 win in Florida on Saturday. Now it’s time to make some hay, with six of their subsequent seven video games at residence. 

4. Montreal Canadiens (11-7-3) The Habs’ staff toughness quotient went up a number of ranges with Florian Xhekaj getting in a tilt (and chipping in an help) throughout his NHL debut in Saturday’s 5-2 win over the Leafs. Florian, large brother Arber and the remainder of the Habs now hit the street for a troublesome roadie via Utah, Vegas and Colorado.

5. Toronto Maple Leafs (9-10-3) Only 4 groups have a worse factors share than Toronto. It simply so occurs two of them are Canadian …

6. Calgary Flames (8-13-3) Make it three W’s in a row for Calgary after a convincing 5-2 defeat of the Canucks in Vancouver Sunday evening.   

7. Vancouver Canucks (9-12-2) Nobody is giving up extra objectives per recreation than Vancouver this season, which has surrendered 3.74 per contest to opponents. 

• It’s feast or famine when it comes to NHL video games this week, because the schedule is pushed by the actual fact Americans will likely be feasting all day on Thanksgiving Thursday. Tuesday’s lone recreation is an effective one, as Dallas visits Edmonton in a rematch of the previous two Western Conference finals, each gained by the Oilers. Glen Gulutzan, who was an assistant coach with the Oilers from 2018 till he turned the highest man in Dallas final summer season, makes his return to Northern Alberta.

• The second annual CHL/USA Top Prospects Challenge goes off this week, with the groups assembly Tuesday in Calgary, adopted by one other conflict 24 hours later in Lethbridge. The CHL staff is headlined by the likes of energy ahead Ethan Belchetz of the Windsor Spitfires and offence-minded blue-liner Xavier Villeneuve of the Blaineville-Boisbriand Armada. They’ll be taking over the U.S. National Team Development Program U-18 squad, which includes a potential first-rounder in large, right-shot defenceman Luke Schairer. 

• Sandwiched across the Thanksgiving blackout of video games on Thursday are two 15-contest slates on Wednesday and Friday. Celebrini leads the Sharks into Denver to face Nathan MacKinnon and the Avs on Wednesday evening, whereas Black Friday has a bevy of afternoon motion. The Bolts and Wings kick issues off with a giant Atlantic tilt in Detroit at midday ET, adopted by an Original Six duel in Boston between the Bruins and Rangers at 1 p.m. ET and a great Central battle between the Avs and red-hot Wild in Minny at 3:30 p.m. ET. 

• Clear somewhat house Sunday afternoon to look at a few of the brightest younger weapons within the recreation, as Gauthier, Leo Carlsson and the remainder of the Ducks go to Connor Bedard and the Blackhawks in Chicago.