The first weekend of the new season is in the books, and we already have plenty to talk about after a jam-packed schedule of games.
Here are my heroes from the opening salvo of the long campaign to Stanley Cup glory in the spring.
Jaromir Jagr
The great Penguin/Capital/Ranger just keeps on keeping on. He’s down in Florida now, with a Panthers squad looking for a playoff run this year, and the sheer amount that he can teach his young teammates about pro hockey actually boggles my mind.
Oh, and Jagr can still score, too. He scored twice – in the first period, if you don’t mind! – on Saturday in a 7-1 rout of Philadelphia. The old guy continues to get it done, and long may that continue!
New York Rangers
The Rangers are 3-0-0 to start the year. After going on the road to Chicago, where they spoiled the Blackhawks’ 2014-15 Stanley Cup championship celebrations winning 3-2, they moved on to Columbus, Ohio, dispatching the Blue Jackets behind a vintage Henrik Lundqvist performance. They did the same one night later at Madison Square Garden, again relying on the brilliance of Lundqvist to back up a flurry of early goals.
The most pleasing aspect for NYR fans is that there is so much young talent doing the scoring early. If this explosive youth movement continues, the Rangers aren’t going anywhere in the near future, as far as playoff appearances go. Also over the weekend, head coach Alain Vigneault notched a century of wins as head coach of the Rangers.
Detroit
The first edition of what I’m hoping will forever be known as the Babcock Bowl was a decisive victory for Babcock’s old squad over his new one. Joe Louis Arena was pumping before the game, and it only got louder when Justin Abdelkader barely took more than a period to notch an impressive hat-trick.
Speaking of impressive, highly-touted draft pick Dylan Larkin played a big role in the 4-0 demolition job of Toronto, and is definitely a guy to keep an eye out for into the future. Some around the league believe he’s the best Detroit first rounder since Steve Yzerman. High praise, indeed.
Jack Eichel
The second overall selection in the 2015 NHL Entry Draft had a goal and three shots on goal in his debut game in the League, but it wasn’t enough, as the Sabres fell to Ottawa. Still, I loved what I saw from Eichel. He’ll get better as he settles in – and then watch out!
Mike Babcock
He lost to his old team, but will forever be remembered for being the first coach to win a challenge. The successful review took a goal off the board for Montreal on Wednesday night, but the Canadiens still powered to a 3-1 lead. Regardless, Babcock will be a key part of NHL trivia going forward.
Dallas
The Stars opened with a 3-0 win over the Pittsburgh Penguins, and got to hear and see their new broadcast tandem of Dave Strader, the best American-born NHL play-by-play guy not named Mike Emrick, and Daryl Reaugh. Stars fans really are lucky to have had Strader drafted in to replace the retiring Ralph Strangis, and Reaugh is fantastic. These guys are probably just fractionally behind the Detroit combo of Ken Daniels and Mickey Redmond as far as best local broadcast teams go.
Montreal
The Canadiens opened with three straight wins, including a big one against their rivals from Boston, and look set to be a dominant force in the Atlantic Division. There’s a lot to like about the Habs this year.
Chicago
Off-ice controversy and player departures haven’t slowed the defending Stanley Cup champion Blackhawks. Controversial star Patrick Kane led all comers over opening weekend with three goals and six points, as questions continue to be asked regarding the criminal case he is mired in. None of that seems to trouble the Hawks, who won two of three out of the fate. Not that it’s exactly a major surprise, but they figure to be pretty good this year.
Minnesota
The Wild scored four goals in the space of just 5:07 in the third period, including a hat-trick for Zach Parise, to beat Colorado 5-4. Talk about opening your season with a bang!
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