NHL: 3 teams up, 3 down from last year

Written By Unknown on Kamis, 05 Februari 2015 | 21.22

Some things, it seems, never change in the National Hockey League, like Edmonton making frequent coaching changes, head coach Barry Trotz getting the most from his team and Toronto hitting a second-half rough patch to render talk of the playoffs useless.

Other teams have made great advances in the past calendar year and a few have taken a nosedive. Here are three teams that fit into each category, and the reasons for their rise or decline.

3 up

  • Last season: 51 points
  • This season: 72
  • Difference: Plus-21

Why: Pekka Rinne ranks second in goals-against average (1.96) and save percentage (.931) among goalies with 25 or more starts and is a league MVP candidate. Kudos to GM David Poile for three off-season moves: Signing free agent Mike Ribeiro, trading for fellow forward James Neal and hiring offensive-minded coach Peter Laviolette. Ribeiro is second in team scoring with 43 points, Neal has given scoring punch to a second forward unit and the Predators are averaging 2.98 goals per game, up from 2.61 last season.

  • Last season: 41 points
  • This season: 59
  • Difference: Plus-18

Why: First and foremost, the Flames are plus-18 in goals for/against this season, compared to minus-47 a year ago. Rookie general manager Brad Treliving deserves credit for signing free-agent goalie Jonas Hiller (2.35 GAA, .913 save percentage in 34 games) while Karri Ramo has also been solid. Calgary has received more than 30 goals from its defence, led by Dennis Wideman and Mark Giordano, while Jiri Hudler (41 points) and rookie Johnny Gaudreau (15 goals, plus-11) have been pleasant surprises up front.

  • Last season: 49 points
  • This season: 65
  • Difference: Plus-16

Why: The play of goaltender Jaroslav Halak, the steadiness of John Tavares, and the development of forwards Kyle Okposo, Ryan Strome and Brock Nelson stand out, along with the trades for defencemen Johnny Boychuk and Nick Leddy. Halak needs two wins to surpass his career high of 27, Tavares leads the team in points (49) and goals (23) and Okposo, Strome and Nelson are 2-3-4 in team scoring. Boychuk has a career-best 25 points in just 40 games and tops the Isles with a plus-15 rating, followed by Leddy (plus-13).

3 down

  • Last season: 67 points
  • This season: 55
  • Difference: Minus-12

Why: The Avalanche simply haven't received enough offence from their best players. Veteran forward Alex Tanguay, 35, is the top point-getter with 34, good for 68th in the NHL. Young guns Matt Duchene, Gabe Landeskog, Nathan MacKinnon and Ryan O'Reilly are on track to fall at least 20 points shy of last season's output.

  • Last season: 76 points
  • This season: 64
  • Difference: Minus-12

Why: It hasn't been a disappointing season despite the drop-off in points. The loss of forward Patrick Sharp to injury earlier this season no doubt cost the Blackhawks some points. Chicago has also scored 33 fewer goals than at this time last season and hasn't been as strong in road games with a 15-11-1 mark this season after going 14-5-5 last year.

  • Last season: 59 points
  • This season: 48
  • Difference: Minus-11

Why: A disastrous 1-11-1 January has put the Maple Leafs out of the playoff picture. A loss Tuesday also extended their losing streak to 10 games, matching a franchise record. A team that led the 30-team NHL in goals per game now ranks 13th, their top line is invisible, they can't play a consistent 60-minute game, are dreadful in road games (7-15-4 record) and their fans can't stop throwing jerseys on the ice (see picture above). Enough said.


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