Since the American holiday is just one day away, let’s focus on some of the American players.
Jonathan Quick had a rough outing in Sin City while his Canadian counterpart shut the door on the luckiest team in the NHL. However, it’s not all bad news as American Hero Top Line Trevor Lewis tallied his sixth goal of the season to break the shutout bid.
Other American notables this week: Jonny Brodzinski scored his first NHL goal on a beauty of a backhanded shot. He was assisted by none other than fellow former Husky and Alabama native Nic Dowd.
Dustin Brown stayed hot with his 19th point in 21 games in LA’s win over Florida on Saturday afternoon. Alex Iafallo also picked up a point in that game while Nick Shore got an apple in the team’s loss to the Vegas Golden Knights. And finally, defensemen Derek Forbort and Alec Martinez were both +2 on Saturday afternoon.
MURRICA!
HIGHLIGHTS TO WATCH
As if there were any doubt it’d be anything other than Jonny B’s first goal.
KINGS WATCH
The injured Gabriel Vilardi (LA’s first round pick) is on the mend on his way back to juniors. [CBS Sports]
In other prospect news, the Ontario Reign wrapped up their road trip with a win over division rival San Jose Barracuda. [Ontario Reign Insider]
Here’s what the Vegas game looked like from the press box. [LA Kings Insider]
WORLD WATCH
Seems like seriously underrated defense Alex Pietrangelo is finally getting some Norris love. Could this be his year? [NHL]
It’s no secret the Montreal Canadiens are struggling big time this year. With some curious moves under his belt in the last couple of seasons, should GM Marc Bergevin stay or go? [Pension Plan Puppets]
Can’t enough of the comparisons between Connor McDavid and Auston Matthews? Well you’re in luck! [The Score]
In women’s hockey news, the Metro Riveters remained perfect with their rout of the Buffalo Beauts. [NWHL]
Meanwhile, across the border in Canada, the Toronto Furies and Markham Thunder had their own struggles. [PPP]
GAME TO WATCH
There are three games on the docket tonight featuring three teams that are struggling (Vancouver Canucks, Edmonton Oilers, and the Canadiens) against two teams that are surging. Or, well, I guess really the St. Louis Blues are staying hot while the Dallas Stars thumped the Oilers 6-3 on Saturday evening.
The Flyers are mired in a slump of their own with their last win coming against the Toronto Maple Leafs on October 28. (However, they have points in 4 games since October 30. Extra time has not been kind to them).
The Habs vs. Stars seems like it could be interesting with the potential for a high scoring game. Maybe. Or maybe the Oilers defensehahaha. Like the Oilers have an NHL quality defense.