Bruins defenseman Charlie McAvoy should be a Calder Trophy favorite …
Charlie McAvoy hasn’t been getting a lot of mainstream attention – most of it goes to flashy forwards like Brock Boeser, Mathew Barzal, Clayton Keller, and Nico Hischier – but he is quietly putting together a fantastic season.
Not only has he been one of the NHL’s best rookies in the early going, but a strong case can be made he’s been one of the NHL’s best defensemen.
The 19-year-old has tallied a very solid 15 points through 27 games, which ties him for 5th on Boston in scoring while taking on a workload *generally* assigned to experienced players who have proven they’re among the best, and most reliable, in the league.
What’s most impressive is that McAvoy hasn’t just logged a lot of very tough minutes – he has excelled in them.
Among the ten leaders in 5v5 ice time per game, only Erik Karlsson, Drew Doughty, and Seth Jones have averaged more points on a per 60-minute basis. McAvoy, like most of the group, has also shown the ability to drive possession.
Simply put, McAvoy has taken on a massive workload and put up numbers that rival the NHL’s best while doing so.
He may not be getting much hype in the Calder race, but it’s certainly not because he doesn’t deserve it. He should be a Calder favorite.
Evander Kane could be a trade deadline rental that’s worth paying the price for …
Stop me if you’ve heard this before: the Buffalo Sabres are bad again. Really bad.
Heading into the 2017-18 season, a little more was expected of the team than in recent years. They weren’t supposed to make the playoffs, but the hope was they’d at least be somewhat in the conversation. That hasn’t proven to be the case.
The Sabres rank 30th in wins, points, goal differential and no team has found the back of the net on fewer occasions.
As a result of their struggles, the Sabres are likely to sell off rental players (pending unrestricted free agents) before the trade deadline.
They possess a few interesting pieces, but none will be more attractive to buyers than Evander Kane.
If you look at the history of recent trade deadlines, there is usually a fair amount of activity. Most deals involve role players, though. Very rarely do difference makers get traded but there will (very likely) be at least one moved this year in Kane.
Not many really consider Kane a star, but the numbers suggest it may be time to start.
Since the beginning of the 2016-17 season, Kane has tallied 42 goals, 71 points, and 391 shots on goal in 102 games.
He is tied with Evgeni Malkin and Connor McDavid for 20th in goals – ahead of notables like Viktor Arvidsson, Cam Atkinson, Tyler Seguin, Jamie Benn, Logan Couture, Leon Draisaitl, and Phil Kessel – and ranks 8th in shots during that span.
On a per-game basis, he looks even better slotting in at 14th in goals/game and 3rd in shots/game.
He was really good in 2016-17, but he’s taken it up another gear this season and has developed into one of the best chance generators in the league.
That’s pretty good company to be keeping, huh?
Given how hard it is to score, and generate offense, in today’s NHL, there should be no shortage of suitors lining up for Kane’s services.
Trading quality assets, which Kane will no doubt cost, to acquire a player for playoff run can lead to more harm than good, but Kane just might be a guy worth paying for.
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