Three Stars
1. Mitch Marner, Toronto Maple Leafs
Pity any hockey fan, but especially Leafs and Hurricanes fans, if they didn’t know it was an afternoon game. The two teams put on an epic show, with Toronto rally to win a game with 13 combined goals. This serves as the latest bit of evidence that the Maple Leafs are soaring under Sheldon Keefe.
Marner exploded for two goals and five assists, extending his point streak to eight games (six goals, 11 assists). The gifted playmaker improved his season total to 35 points in 27 contests. In generating five points, Marner matched his career-high for a single game.
Consider this a blanket top star for the most prolific point producers of that game. Martin Necas demands a mention, as the Hurricanes younger scored two goals and two assists. John Tavares (1G, 2A) and Zach Hyman (3A) both cracked three points. Auston Matthews authored the best play of the night with his assist, and also scored a goal. Check the highlights for more on this game, and also this.
2. Brayden Point, Tampa Bay Lightning
Point helped the Lightning bombard the Panthers 6-1 on Monday. The undersized star generated one goal and three assist for four points, managing a +3 rating and two shots on goal.
Even with that outburst, Point falls a bit short of a point-per-game (30 in 32). Climbing that mountain could be quite feasible if he stays as hot as he’s been. During the last six games, Point scored four goals and five assists, failing to score in just a single contest.
3. Craig Anderson, Ottawa Senators
On a jam-packed Monday, Anderson faced plenty of competition to reach Buzzer three-star status. Producing one of the highlights of the night counts as a nice tiebreaker, however.
Overall, Anderson finished with 43 out of 44 saves. While the 38-year-old endures more valleys than peaks lately, Anderson has won three of his last four decisions. He’s also taken four of five games.
If this continues, the Senators might need to trade Anderson to maintain an efficient tank-job.
Highlights of the Night
Matthews managing an outrageous spinning assist is the singular highlight, but enjoy the full deal because it’s a delight:
Anderson gives Matthews a run for his money by pulling a Dominik Hasek, though:
Factoids
- Monday wasn’t interesting just because none of the games went beyond regulation. NHL PR also notes that, with 91 total goals, this was the highest-scoring Monday in league history. That total blew away the previous record of 84 goals.
- NHL PR shared another interesting tidbit: the Blues became just the 10th team to reach 70+ wins in a calendar year. St. Louis extended its winning streak to six games on Monday.
- One might say that Antoine Roussel aired grievances with Darnell Nurse. Sportsnet explains that Roussel is the first Canuck to fight on “Festivus” since Kevin Bieksa in 2011. Check that fight out:
- Nikita Kucherov recorded his 500th point, which was also his 300th assist, according to the Lightning.
Scores
TOR 8 - CAR 6
MIN 3 - CGY 0
BOS 7 - WSH 3
TBL 6 - FLA 1
CBJ 3 - NYI 2
PHI 5 - NYR 1
OTT 3 - BUF 1
NSH 3 - ARI 2
MTL 6 - WPG 2
NJD 7 - CHI 1
STL 4 - LAK 1
VAN 4 - EDM 2
COL 7 - VGK 3
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James O’Brien is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @cyclelikesedins.