IN THE ZONE - Josi sets career high, Fiala outstanding

Central Division

Colorado Avalanche

Reto Berra manned the net for the third period in Colorado’s 5-2 win over Arizona. He made eleven saves on twelve shots on his net in his first game in over two months. The Avalanche’s 61 points in 59 games are only good for seventh and last in the Central Division.

Minnesota Wild

Nino Niederreiter had his best week in quite some time. He added two goals to his scoring account in the 2-3 loss to Vancouver along with a plus-2 rating and four shots on goal in 13:48. He played 15:32 but had no effect on the Wild’s 3-2 OT win in Calgary, before scoring another goal in a 4-0 rout of the Edmonton Oilers on Friday. He was a plus-1 on the night with two shots on goal in 16:00 worth of ice time. His Minnesota Wild have been playing very good lately and as a result have climbed in the standings. The Wild just sit one point out of a wild card (67 pts in 58 gms) spot with one game in hand on Calgary and three games in hand on Winnipeg (71 pts).

Nashville Predators

Predators D-man Roman Josi played 20:26 against Mirco Müller’s San Jose Sharks and was a plus-1 in a 5-1 win with two shots on goal. He set a new career high in points on Thursday, when he picked up assists number 31 and 32 in a 2-5 loss to the New York Islanders. He already has a career high in assists this season and is three goals shy of tying last years career high of 13 goals. He was a minus-1 on the night though, along with two shots on goal in 26:12 TOI. The Predators dropped Saturday’s decision to the Philadelphia Flyers 2-3 in a shootout and lost two consecutive games for only the third time this season. They are one of just two teams along with the Detroit Red Wings to never have lost two consecutive games in regulation this season. Josi played a monstrous 30:49 in the contest, but had no effects on the game. The Preds are still the NHL’s best team and lead the league with 85 points in 59 games.

Pacific Division

Calgary Flames

When the Flames beat Boston 4-3 in OT on Monday, Raphael Diaz only played 10:03 and had one shot on goal, while Jonas Hiller recorded a mini-shutout with 16 saves in a bit more than 44 minutes of playing time. Diaz went minus-1 with a shot on net in 12:17 in a 2-3 overtime loss to the Minnesota Wild on Wednesday, while Hiller saved 26 of 29 shots on goal. Hiller got shelled for five goals against his former team on Friday in a 3-6 loss, while Diaz in front of him was a minus-1 again and saw 15:53 of ice time. The Flames hold a wildcard spot with 68 points in 59 games.

San Jose Sharks

San Jose had a huge game scheduled for Saturday this week: They faced their state rivals LA Kings in San Francisco at Levi’s Stadium for the 2015 Coors Light Stadium Series. As in every game this week, Mirco Müller had to take a seat in the press box though and was listed as a healthy scratch. The Sharks have slipped out of a wildcard position and now sit third in the wild card race with 68 points in 61 games.

Vancouver Canucks

Ronalds Kenins (plus-1, two shots on goal, 14:09 TOI) and Yannick Weber (plus-1, two shots on goal, two penalty minutes, 22:17 TOI) both were kept off the score sheet by Nino Niederreiter’s Minnesota, while Luca Sbisa scored an assist in a 3-2 win and had one shot on goal in 19:09 TOI. The Canucks defeated the Rangers 5-4 in a shootout for their second straight win three days later. Kenins had a two-point night with two assists, but was a minus-1 with two penalty minutes in 13:18 time on ice. Luca Sbisa played 25:39, but went scoreless and had a plus-1 rating. Yannick Weber had a nightmare of a game and was a minus-3 in 19:21 of playing time. They travelled on to New Jersey for a game on Friday (2-4 loss). Kenins was a minus-1 in 13:12, Weber a minus-1 with three shots on goal in 19:51. Sbisa was the only Swiss Canuck to not finish the game with a negative rating and had two penalty minutes in 20:28. The Canucks are second in the Pacific with 69 points in 58 games, trailing the division-leading Ducks by twelve points. 

Metropolitan Division

Philadelphia Flyers

While Philadelphia had a decent week, going 2-1-1 in four games and collecting five of a possible eight points, Mark Streit’s week scoring-wise is summed in one short sentence – no goals, no assists, no points for the Swiss rearguard this week. He was plus-1 with two shots in 24:37 in a 1-0 win over Buffalo, then was a minus-2 the following game with four shots on goal in 23:49 in a 2-5 loss to Columbus. He was a minus-1 in a 2-3 shootout loss to the league’s 30^th placed team, the Buffalo Sabres. He had one shot in 23:23. He was a plus-1 in a duel with Roman Josi’s Predators with one shot on goal in a 3-2 win. The Flyers are fifth in the Metropolitan Division with 61 points and trail the Penguins by 14 points.

AHL – Quick Look:

After a big week scoring-wise, Sven Bärtschi had a quiet two games this week. He had no points or shots on goal and was a combined minus-1. Sven Andrighetto (Hamilton Bulldogs – MTL) racked up two goals and three assists in four games this week. He had a combined nine shots on goal and was a plus-4 on the week. Meanwhile, Kevin Fiala (Milwaukee Admirals – NSH) is getting praised (see tweet below) for his great play in North America after only two months in the AHL. He got on the scoresheet in every game this week, collecting seven points (4g, 3a) in four games. He was a combined plus-2 with 13 shots on goal. Tanner Richard (Syracuse Crunch – TBL) collected two helpers in two games this week, along with a plus-1 rating and four shots on goal. His swiss teammate Joel Vermin (Syracuse Crunch) had a goal and an assist in those two games, along with a plus-1 rating and four shots on goal.

5 goals/10 points in 13 AHL games for 18 YO Kevin Fiala. Arvidsson is another NSH prospect having big rookie yr. 42 pts 193 SOG in 53 gms.

— Corey Pronman (@coreypronman) 19. Februar 2015