It's around 11 a.m. in early March, moments after a morning skate, when Buffalo Sabres defenseman Mattias Samuelsson starts scanning the home team's dressing room inside KeyBank Center. He cranes his neck to see past the reporter blocking his view of the semi-circle wall where the forwards sit.

He's compiling a list of the squad's biggest "hockey nerds."

"Mittsy, Coz, Skinny, Quinner, OP - oh man, there's a bunch of them. Joster, for sure. Okie is when he has some free time with the family," Samuelsson says, smile widening. "Sometimes he's just busy. But on the road, man, Okie's always watching hockey and always has something to say about it."

Mittsy is Casey Mittelstadt. Skinny is Jeff Skinner. Coz is Dylan Cozens. Quinner is Jack Quinn. OP is Owen Power. Joster is Tyson Jost. Okie is Kyle Okposo. All of them "know every detail about everything" to do with hockey and the NHL, Samuelsson explains. "All the stats, stick curves, tape jobs … "

Samuelsson, 23, signed a seven-year contract extension on the eve of the season. He committed to the Sabres through 2029-30 partly because he feels strongly about the core's abilities on the ice and its makeup off it.

"Nobody's ego is too sensitive. Everybody kind of gives it to everybody," Samuelsson says. Yes, that includes 41-year-old goalie Craig Anderson, respected captain Okposo, and star forward Tage Thompson. "I can chirp him just as much as I chirp anybody else," Samuelsson says of "Thommer."

"You can also tell someone to get their head out of their ass, and they're not going to get mad at you for it," the blue-liner adds. "They know you're just looking out for them, and you're trying to do what's best for the team."

This open environment is shaped by time spent away from the rink - team dinners, golf outings, Xbox battles, NFL and UFC watch parties, shopping trips, and card games - plus the fact the Sabres' roster is the youngest in the league. "Sometimes," Samuelsson says, "it honestly feels like a college team."

That's what a "good room" looks and feels like for the Sabres. What about elsewhere? What are the pillars of a "good room" in cities across the NHL?

'Honest but not too harsh'

Colorado Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar has described Nathan MacKinnon's leadership style as "feisty." To maintain the Avs' high standard, the 100-point center has been known to be abrasive on occasion.

MacKinnon isn't a tyrant, though. His ears perk up when others take charge.

"We encourage guys to speak before games and voice to the group what they really think, regardless of how long they've been in the NHL," MacKinnon tells theScore. "That's really big as far as establishing and keeping a good room. It's simple in a way: Just be good to each other. Be honest but not too harsh."

Case in point: Perhaps Cale Makar, a force of nature on the ice but relatively shy off it, wouldn't speak up as much as he does had he not been encouraged to do so by MacKinnon or team captain Gabriel Landeskog.

"He's the best defenseman in the world, so he should be able to express his opinion," MacKinnon says. "This year, he's honestly been great in that department. It's been a tougher year for us with so many injuries, right, but he's been there to take the edge off that by being a little bit more vocal."

Alex Kerfoot subscribes to the same school of thought. The Toronto Maple Leafs forward thinks it's important for a room to be filled with unique individuals, 23 guys of varying nationalities, birth years, and career journeys.

"If your ultimate goal is to win the Stanley Cup, you want to have different opinions in the room," says Kerfoot, traded from Colorado to Toronto in 2019. "You want to have different experiences in the mix, people who have been through different scenarios. That is probably more valuable than having a bunch of guys who have been in similar circumstances."

The out-for-dinner test

It's fair to suggest Max Domi should be an expert in the study of hockey player dynamics. The Dallas Stars forward and son of longtime enforcer Tie Domi currently finds himself on his sixth NHL team in only eight pro seasons.

Insight No. 1 from Domi: He swears he's never been in a bad room, a toxic room, or one that's overly cliquey. "All of a sudden, you get a new guy coming in, and it's like butter," he says of the prevailing vibe. "He just fits right in."

(Side note: Domi's perspective isn't unique. All 16 of the players interviewed for this story were adamant they'd spent little to no time in a so-called bad room. If they have, they may prefer to forget those experiences or don't feel comfortable talking about them now.)

Insight No. 2: It helps to mingle. "We're all in the NHL for a reason. That's the easy part," Domi says. "But getting to know guys is key. Where are you from? Where did you play junior? What's your career been like? You get to know guys pretty quickly - it's not hard - and then it translates onto the ice."

Insight No. 3: There's a foolproof way to test the cohesiveness of a group, no matter the win-loss record. "If you can go out to dinner with anyone on the team, on any given night, you know you're in a good locker room," Domi says.

Carolina Hurricanes defenseman Calvin de Haan makes the point that "guys lead in different ways." Sure, fans and media know about the role of the rah-rah and lead-by-example types. But the other characters - the designated DJ, the collector of fines, the party planner - often lead too, just in covert ways.

Regardless of the talent level, de Haan says, hockey is a team-first sport.

"I go out and play with my friends in the summer, and no offense to them, but I'm better than all of them," de Haan says. "But we don't necessarily win every time, even though I play in the NHL. The teams who win have guys who use each other well and play like a team. That's a part of leadership, too."

Leaders lead (and read)

Mark Giordano's bona fides include captaining the Calgary Flames and Seattle Kraken and being the oldest skater in the NHL this season. He believes reading the room is a leader's most important job within the team setting.

Some teammates "need to get slapped," the Maple Leafs defenseman says, while others "need to get patted on the back and encouraged." Some are wired to beat themselves up too much; others are not self-reflective at all. And a bunch of guys fall between the two extremes.

"It's important to approach guys on a personal level and say, 'Hey man, I think you need to do this,'" Giordano explains. "That's for myself too. I like when guys come up and say, 'Hey, this is what I see about your game lately.' Sometimes you're caught off guard, and it gives you a different perspective."

"The biggest tell," the 39-year-old adds, "is when a group gets quiet. You know you're not in a good spot. But, when guys are chirping a lot, having fun but in a serious manner, I think that's when you know a team is rolling."

Alex Galchenyuk has bounced around the league enough to spend time in every kind of hockey market: big (Montreal, Toronto), mid-size (Pittsburgh, Minnesota, Colorado, Ottawa), and small (Arizona). The 2012 third overall pick finds standards are set by the captain and head coach, moods tend to rise and fall with wins and losses, and the "block out the noise" discussion can be useful.

Fan and media attention is so cranked up in Canadian markets - "more of a TMZ style," he puts it with a grin - that leaders need to do their best to downplay the hysterics.

"Especially the world we live in now, you try and not focus on social media and things like that. But everywhere you go, it's hockey, hockey, hockey," Galchenyuk says. "So it's, 'Hey, let's keep what we've got going on in the room and block out the noise.' That's definitely a thing in the huge markets."

Short and long memory

Through his various stops, Alex Chiasson has shared a room with five recent greats - Jaromir Jagr in Dallas, Erik Karlsson in Ottawa, Alex Ovechkin in Washington, and Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl in Edmonton.

"They're just like me. They love the game, they want to work, they want to compete. When you really go to the basics of it, their skills are slightly higher - OK, probably a little bit more than slightly higher - but that's the only real difference," says Chiasson, who's competed in 646 NHL games for seven teams, including 15 contests this year as a member of the Detroit Red Wings.

Chiasson's 32, so he's at the age where he'll run into retired teammates and reminisce. The winger snapped his fingers three times to illustrate how quickly he and former Star Ray Whitney recently rekindled their bond.

Victor Hedman is also 32. The Norris Trophy-winning defenseman practically grew up in the Lightning room, arriving in Tampa at 18, just two weeks after getting his driver's license. He's now a father of two with a pair of Cup rings.

Over the years, Hedman has learned to separate hockey from the rest of his life. If he's having a bad day at home or the rink, he can park the negativity.

"You can have stuff going on in your life, but when you get into the locker room, it's like a different world," he says with a sense of wonder. "Everything else, yeah, you put that aside for those few hours. You go in there and be with the boys. It's a great feeling and probably the thing I'm going to miss the most about hockey: the camaraderie that you have every day."

Hedman, who isn't retiring anytime soon, says contributing to a good room is all about having both a short memory - you can't hold grudges against a teammate for making a few mistakes on the ice - and also a long one.

You want to remember the pranks, the mindless banter, the intermission speeches, the player-of-the-game presentations. The blood, sweat, and tears.

"That brotherhood," Hedman says, "you can't get it anywhere else."

John Matisz is theScore's senior NHL writer. Follow John on Twitter (@MatiszJohn) or contact him via email (john.matisz@thescore.com).

Copyright © 2023 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Like most superstars, Auston Matthews' game appeals to the masses in part because what you see from the stands or the couch mirrors his statistical profile.

For example, Matthews didn't ride some unsustainably hot shooting percentage to 60 goals last season. The gaudy goal total was accompanied by excellent underlying numbers and a highlight reel documenting how cleanly he was beating goalies. Matthews, in peak form, was an offensive tornado.

Why bring all of this up? Well, the Toronto Maple Leafs center has looked like his 2021-22 self of late. His one-time blast Wednesday against the Florida Panthers gave him five goals in four games, the best seven-day stretch in a season that's produced "only" 37 goals. (Matthews' per-game rate has dropped from 0.82 last year to 0.55 this year. He's on pace for 41 goals in 75 games.)

The visual cues that were absent for a significant portion of the season - No. 34 marching through the neutral zone, dangling defenders in tight spaces, deceiving goalies with that all-world shot - have returned. Now healthy, Matthews' name has been climbing the charts in the various statistical categories in which he tends to rank highly. The moments of dominance are adding up.

At a basic level, Matthews has simply been firing more pucks. Three of his six highest shot-attempt totals this season were recorded in March. He had a career-high 19 last week against the Carolina Hurricanes, 13 on March 11 against the Edmonton Oilers, and 11 on March 2 against the Calgary Flames. Plus, he recorded either eight or nine attempts in four other March games.

At a granular level, Matthews has been terrorizing defenses.

According to Sportlogiq's Jan. 30 leaderboards, Matthews ranked first in the NHL in scoring chances generated off the cycle per game, fifth in slot shots per game, 10th in inner-slot shots per game, and 10th in chances off rebounds per game. He'd appeared in 47 games at that point in the season.

Obviously, impressive rankings. But not quite up to Matthews' lofty standards.

As of Thursday morning, exactly two months and 20 games later, the 25-year-old was still leading in chances off the cycle. Notably, he'd jumped to second in slot shots, fourth in inner-slot shots, and eighth in chances off rebounds while wiggling into the top 10 in chances off the forecheck (ninth).

Matthews has found good health and his version of beast mode. As a leader on a team desperate for a playoff series win, the timing couldn't be better.

Suter's penalty-killing clinic

The Detroit Red Wings are 17th in penalty-kill percentage. Yet they may have the NHL's best shorthanded forward in the versatile Pius Suter.

Suter, who at even strength can fill a top-six winger spot or center the fourth line, is among the league leaders in Evolving-Hockey's catch-all metric for shorthanded defense. Yanni Gourde (2.2 rating), Suter (2.1), Jake Evans (2.1), Ty Dellandrea (2.1), and Brandon Hagel (2.0) pace the 100 forwards who've logged at least 100 shorthanded minutes this season. (Dylan Larkin is the next Wing on the list. He ranks 49th out of 100 with a minus-0.2 rating.)

Detroit coach Derek Lalonde lauds Suter for his hockey IQ and hockey sense. His anticipation and positioning - both his body and his stick - are exemplary.

As for strategy, Suter tries to straddle the line between being passive and aggressive.

"You have to focus on the (other team's first zone) entry. You want to put pressure on them as soon as you get a chance," the Switzerland native told theScore. "Guys are so skilled, so good on the power play now that you want to at least make them go all the way down the ice and skate up again. Then they get a higher pulse, and, hopefully, more mistakes happen."

Cheating for offense is a deadly sin for NHL penalty killers, Suter added. It's a selfless - not selfish - role. "You can't blow the zone," he said. He's found that simply pressuring the puck carrier shift after shift leads to favorable bounces.

Like on Feb. 21 against the Washington Capitals, for example:

A shorthanded goal against can deflate one bench and fire up the other. "It gives you different momentum. You're trying to fend a goal off, and then you score. The crowd just loves it," said Suter, who's potted three in his career.

Suter, a pending unrestricted free agent who turns 27 in May, has 13 goals and 10 assists in 72 games. It's his third NHL season and second in Detroit.

"He likes it a lot in Detroit, but we will see after the season where things will go," Suter's agent, Georges Muller, said when asked about the forward's future.

New union boss introduced

The NHL Players' Association held a press conference in Toronto on Thursday to officially introduce Marty Walsh, the union's new executive director. While the gathering produced little news, it certainly set the tone for Walsh's tenure.

The 55-year-old Bostonian said all the right things: He pledged to represent not only the union's members but their families too. He vowed to help market players better. He promised to work with the league office to expand the sport's presence globally. He detailed how he's long been a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community but also believes every NHLer has the right to make a personal decision with respect to wearing a Pride Night warm-up jersey.

He touched on a few more topics, but you get the point.

"I bring a different perspective than probably every single one of my predecessors," said Walsh, a lifelong union guy who was the mayor of Boston for seven years and recently served as the U.S. Secretary of Labor.

The collective bargaining agreement between the league and its players doesn't expire until Sept. 15, 2026, so Walsh and commissioner Gary Bettman aren't starting their relationship with a stretch of contentious negotiations.

In this honeymoon period, Walsh needs to hammer home the importance of international hockey to Bettman and the 32 owners. It can't be just another agenda item during meetings. He spoke only in generalities Thursday, but Walsh did say that it's a high-priority issue for him.

I'm of the belief that it's absolutely essential for the NHL and the players' association to stage a World Cup tournament in 2025 (the ship has sailed on 2024). If it makes sense to ban Russia for geopolitical reasons, then do it. That's a separate matter. You can hold a World Cup without Russia. It won't be perfect - heck, the 2016 version certainly wasn't with Team North America and Team Europe - but the point is to not let the 2026 Olympics be the next opportunity for a big event.

Star players, including Connor McDavid, have been clamoring for best-on-best hockey - or something close to it - for years. Hockey fans across the world are equally annoyed by the wait. Enough excuses. Make it happen.

Point always 'knows where to be'

Brayden Point has a one-track mind - and that's a compliment, not an insult.

If the Tampa Bay Lightning gain possession and Point's on the ice, you can almost guarantee the 27-year-old center will be making a beeline to the inner slot. You'd be hard-pressed to find an NHLer - let alone one with a relatively small stature - more obsessed with wheeling to the net-front area at all costs.

Seriously, check out Point's five-on-five shot chart at Evolving-Hockey (goals are the yellow dots, shots on goal are green, and missed shots are orange).

Heavy action below the hash marks. Virtually nothing outside the middle lane.

"Undercover, one of the best players in the world," Lightning teammate Victor Hedman told theScore last week. The veteran blue-liner later added, "I don't think Pointer gets talked about enough. His edge work, his speed - it's out of this world, and he can really put the puck in the back of the net. I swear, 95% of the goals in his career have been from the slot. He knows where to be."

Point, who's tied for fourth in the NHL in goals, scored his 47th of the season Tuesday in a 4-0 victory over the Hurricanes. Hedman's bang-on: What a weirdly quiet march to 50 goals for a notable player who's never reached the milestone. This fast-break tally was a perfect example of his one-track mind:

Parting shots

Kent Johnson: The Columbus Blue Jackets rookie hit the proverbial rookie wall about three-quarters of the way through the regular season but is working on a strong finish (nine points in his last 11 games). Around the dressing room, Johnson has become known for being very coachable. He's a sponge. The 20-year-old's developed an on-ice reputation for being a "dangerous player who is very tough to read as an opposing player," Blue Jackets captain Boone Jenner said. "He's very shifty and elusive, and he creates a lot by just having the puck on his stick and drawing guys towards him and finding that open guy." Confident kid, too, as evidenced by last week's viral dangle and snipe:

2017 draft: Nico Hischier, Miro Heiskanen, Cale Makar, and Elias Pettersson were all top-five selections in 2017. None of them took particularly long to break through. Cody Glass (sixth overall) and Owen Tippett (10th), on the other hand, needed a few years of marination before announcing their arrival this season. The playmaker Glass, the first-ever draft pick by the Vegas Golden Knights, is thriving with the Nashville Predators, posting 12 goals and 18 assists in 64 games. He played AHL games in the previous four seasons while also grinding through a significant knee injury. The sniper Tippett was part of last year's Florida-Philadelphia trade involving Claude Giroux. After rounding out his game under coach John Tortorella, Tippett's enjoyed a career year, sitting second on the Flyers in goals (23) and third in points (42).

Erik Karlsson: The race to 100 points is most definitely on for the San Jose Sharks star defenseman. Karlsson's amassed an eye-popping 91 points through 75 games, which means he needs nine in his final seven games to hit the milestone. It's doable considering his rate of production this season, and you know San Jose will be peppering him with passes. The 29th-place Sharks don't have much else to play for down the stretch, anyway. Karlsson's point total is already tied for the 24th-highest in NHL history. The last blue-liner to reach 100 was Brian Leetch, who put up 102 in 80 games in 1991-92.

Takes, Thoughts, and Trends is theScore's biweekly hockey grab bag.

John Matisz is theScore's senior NHL writer. Follow John on Twitter (@MatiszJohn) or contact him via email (john.matisz@thescore.com).

Copyright © 2023 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

The next time you watch the Boston Bruins, fix your eyes on No. 37 and don't look away for the entire shift. Take a few mental notes. Then do the same thing when Patrice Bergeron hops over the boards again, and for a third time.

By the end of the third shift, you'll start to see the patterns of a hockey genius.

The Bruins captain will probably win a faceoff cleanly, and for the following 40 seconds, he'll stay within a few feet of the puck, never cheating for offense or defense. He won't be overbearing to teammates or suffocating to opponents; he'll just be nearby, lurking from the perfect spot. If Boston has the puck, he's a safety valve, and if the opposition has possession, he's a disruptive force.

As I discussed during the home stretch last season, Bergeron earns Selke Trophy votes through thousands of subtly smart plays. And the 2022-23 campaign, Bergeron's 19th in the NHL, has been no different. At 37, he remains a textbook 200-foot center and a front-runner for the award that honors "the forward who best excels in the defensive aspects of the game."

Bergeron's finished first, second, or third in voting in a staggering 11 straight seasons, claiming the trophy a record five times. He's arguably the greatest defensive forward ever, and until his play tapers off or he retires, the Selke is his to lose.

Yet voters don't blindly select Bergeron. It's a deep field this year, with Jordan Staal, Mikael Backlund, Joel Eriksson Ek, and Elias Pettersson among the dozen or so forwards vying for downballot votes.

Using data from Sportlogiq and Evolving Hockey, let's assess how three of them - Mitch Marner of the Toronto Maple Leafs, Aleksander Barkov of the Florida Panthers, and Nico Hischier of the New Jersey Devils - stack up against Bergeron. (All tracking statistics current through Monday's games.)

The Marner conversation

What's helping Marner's case: Marner leads the league in takeaways, with 97 in 73 games. Like a grandmaster chess player, he's elite at anticipating his opponent's next move. He takes efficient routes and won't be outhustled.

Marner, who's armed with remarkable hand-eye coordination, ranks second among everyday NHL forwards in blocked passes per game. He regularly knocks down clearing attempts and intercepts stretch passes before quickly turning the change of possession into a grade-A scoring chance for the Leafs.

Marner is both an offensive dynamo (28 goals and 66 assists for 94 points) and a workhorse (21:19 a night, including 2:20 on the penalty kill). He has Bergeron beat in both areas (57 points in 73 games; 17:36 and 1:46). And while the Selke is by definition reserved for defensive studs, there's logic in the old "the best defense is a good offense" argument. A strong two-way impact should be seen as a boon to - not a drag on - Marner's case.

What's hurting Marner's case: Centers have owned the Selke during the salary-cap era. In fact, 2002-03 was the last time a winger won (Jere Lehtinen). While it'd be nice to break the drought - Mark Stone has come close - the trend is grounded in reason: Wingers generally have it easier than centers on the defensive side of the puck. They don't help out as much deep in the zone or take faceoffs - two areas in which Bergeron absolutely crushes.

Bergeron's Bruins also boast the NHL's top penalty-killing percentage while the Leafs sit 14th. Quality of teammates is a major factor with a stat like PK%, and Boston has better personnel, but the 13-team gap is worth mentioning.

Meanwhile, Bergeron ranks second in goals against per 60 minutes among the 349 forwards who've logged 500 five-on-five minutes or more this season. His ludicrous rate of 1.31 trails only Stefan Noesen, a Carolina Hurricanes forward who's faced significantly weaker competition. Marner's tied with Jordan Staal for 90th, at 2.18 goals against per 60. Very good, but not Bergeron great.

The Barkov conversation

What's helping Barkov's case: For voters who fancy a pure defensive artist, Barkov would be a tantalizing candidate. Among everyday NHL forwards, he ranks first in puck-battle wins per game, second in stick checks per game, third in loose-puck recoveries per game, and fourth in blocked passes per game. What else could Panthers head coach Paul Maurice ask for?

Barkov, the 2020-21 Selke winner, plays a ton (21:15 overall, 2:04 shorthanded) and alongside less talented teammates than the others we're considering here. His two most common linemates at five-on-five this year have been Sam Reinhart and Carter Verhaeghe, while Gustav Forsling and Brandon Montour have been the defensemen who most often share the ice.

Bergeron's crew, by comparison, consists of Brad Marchand, Jake DeBrusk, Hampus Lindholm, and Charlie McAvoy. All but DeBrusk are star-caliber players.

What's hurting Barkov's case: Barkov's tracking stats are extremely impressive. But Bergeron ranks fairly high on various lists too - fifth in puck-battle wins, sixth in blocked passes, 16th in stick checks, and 49th in loose-puck recoveries. Barkov's edges in those categories aren't definitive.

Barkov's shot-based statistics - five-on-five shot attempts against, expected goals against, shots on goal against - grade out at 18th, 118th, and 134th out of 349 qualified forwards. While some of that is linked to Florida's middling five-on-five numbers, the low ranks still sour Barkov's Selke resume. Another thing: Barkov's appeared in only 60 games this year. Missing 14 games isn't cause for exclusion from the discussion, but it diminishes the body of work.

Lastly, a note on the quality of Barkov's opponents. Sportlogiq calculates a "strength of opposition" metric, which is the cumulative average of offense-generating plays by opposing forward lines. The higher the average, the more difficult the defensive assignment. Barkov, with a strength of opposition rating of 22.9, is 215th among everyday forwards. Bergeron, with a 24.5 rating, is fifth.

The Hischier conversation

What's helping Hischier's case: If Marner's the takeaway king and Barkov's the tracking-data wizard, Hischier's the do-everything, all-around guy. The Swiss center doesn't have a discernible weakness, posting good-to-excellent numbers in virtually every relevant defensive category, from expected goals against and faceoff win percentage to puck-battle wins and takeaways.

Penalty differential is an interesting separator, though. This season, Hischier's been assessed only four minor penalties but drawn 25 penalties for the league's third-best differential. This type of discipline isn't typically associated with strong defensive play or the Selke, but maybe it should be. Power plays are so lethal in the modern NHL that every man-advantage opportunity is valuable.

Something else that can't be discounted: Hischier is the defensive conscience of an upstart Devils team, leading the forward group in shorthanded ice time (New Jersey has the seventh-best PK%). In many ways, he's the yin to Jack Hughes' yang.

What's hurting Hischier's case: Awkwardly, what helps Hischier is also what hurts him. Bergeron is a do-everything, all-around guy like Hischier, except the Bruin gets better results. Take the faceoff circle: Hischier has won 53.6% of all draws, tying him for 30th in the league, and he's even better in the defensive zone, tying for ninth at 57.8%. Bergeron's 60.6% overall rate (third) and 61.3% D-zone rate (fifth) make Hischier's strong work appear, well, less stellar.

Hischier's versatility could certainly earn him a finalist nod. But, like Marner and Barkov, he cannot match the layers of Bergeron's dominance. Not only does Bergeron have a materially better goals against per 60 rate at five-on-five - a clear indicator of defensive prowess - but his strength of opposition is far higher than Hischier's (23.1 rating, 165th among everyday forwards).

Bergeron has been competing against the best of the best every shift this season, and still, his results are undeniably Selke-worthy. Even at 37, the man is essentially peerless.

John Matisz is theScore's senior NHL writer. Follow John on Twitter (@MatiszJohn) or contact him via email (john.matisz@thescore.com).

Copyright © 2023 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Getting a tough puck sucks. Back in the 1990s, when heat-seeking missiles Scott Stevens and Darius Kasparaitis roamed NHL rinks, a tough puck usually preceded a thunderous body check in the unclaimed ice of the neutral zone.

One glance down to corral a poorly placed pass and ... boom! Clobbered.

Getting a tough puck in open ice remains dangerous, even in an offense-first era. But it's a rare occurrence. In today's game, there's another, more common scenario where a winger is tasked with taming a fast, wobbly pass along the boards before attempting to exit the defensive zone.

"The difficulty is in getting the puck off the wall," Buffalo Sabres captain Kyle Okposo said earlier this season, describing a nightly challenge for all wingers.

"Getting a tough puck off a rimmed pass - as a winger, when the opposing defenseman is coming down at you, and you have to separate yourself and make a play to the middle of the ice, that can be really hard," he said. "But it's also nearly impossible for the other team to defend. So, if you can do it consistently as a winger, that quick breakout off the wall can be very useful."

Okposo, a 15-year veteran, was talking about tough pucks inside the Sabres' KeyBank Center dressing room following a morning skate. I had asked him a simple yet loaded question: What's the hardest skill to master, the most difficult thing for you to do on the ice, as a professional hockey player?

"Geez ... there's a lot," Okposo started. "Every year there's something new."

That was a popular reply when I asked six of Okposo's peers the same question as a follow-up to a 2020 article about skill mastery. But, like Okposo, all six managed to identify at least one especially hard skill, move, or trick.

Here are their answers and explanations.

Ditching long-held defensive tick

Matt Grzelcyk is a 5-foot-10, 176-pound defenseman who simply can't outmuscle most opponents. So he's been hardwired to issue cross-checks. At least you'll slow him down, he reasons. At least he'll know you're there.

Grzelcyk's trying to change his habits, however. There's a more effective and efficient way for him to defend.

"If I have a bigger guy in the corner, I want to steer him out of danger," said Grzelcyk, who's in his sixth season with the Boston Bruins. "I can put my stick on the ice, in a specific spot, and encourage him to move away from the net."

He's right. Every time Grzelcyk raises his stick to deliver a cross-check - one that's barely disrupting the opponent's flow - he's leaving himself exposed. The opponent can easily scoot the puck through or around Grzelcyk's legs.

John Tavares is one rival Grzelcyk's seen plenty of this year. The Toronto Maple Leafs center is listed as three inches taller and 40 pounds heavier.

"It's a natural habit to want to be physical in the corners and around the net," Grzelcyck said. "But when the guy's throwing his weight around, if he has 40 pounds on me, he can spin one way or another and I lose control. Countering that with the stick angling is something I always talk about with the coaches."

Turning slap shot into weapon

It's been well-documented that slap-shot usage is on a steep decline.

Yet one-timers are still relied upon in one particular game situation: the power play, where extra time and space facilitate clappers. For this reason, Kevin Hayes is motivated to do whatever he can to turn his into a legitimate weapon.

Building muscle memory through practice reps are important, the Philadelphia Flyers forward said. Developing chemistry with the right passer is, too, with John Carlson's influence on Alex Ovechkin's goal total being a prime example. Expanding one's wheelhouse and learning how to fire equally lethal slap shots from one's front foot and back foot are other pillars. Hayes has thought about tinkering with his stick specs, but it's complicated.

"I've been using a 95 flex since late high school," Hayes said in February. "And I made it to the NHL with a 95, right? So why am I even trying to change it? I don't really see myself changing anytime soon, so I'm trying to figure out how I'm going to make it work with what I'm using now."

Could Hayes, who's used his slap shot to score 12 of 154 career goals, grab a 95-flex stick for even-strength shifts and a whippier stick - say, one with a 75 flex rating - for power-play time?

"You could," he replied. "But what if you have a grade-A chance that calls for a wrist shot? Know what I mean? So it's hard to figure that out. I haven't really asked too many players about it, but it is something I'm trying to dig into."

Keeping opponents guessing

Adam Fox knows exactly what kind of player he is - one of the smartest and most agile defensemen in the world - and exactly what kind of player he isn't.

"I'm not going to kill people with speed or strength," Fox said with a smile.

This self-awareness gives Fox the agency to double down on the attributes that powered him to the 2021 Norris Trophy. The New York Rangers blue-liner is focused on refining the subtleties in his game - which can be a difficult undertaking.

Example 1: Improving edge work in tight spaces to open up his hips and mess with the forechecker's timing and positioning. "If it works, you're turning your feet one way and the forward coming at you is turning the same way," Fox explained. "Then, when he sets into a track, you quickly go the other way."

Example 2: Improving his capacity to act casually when slipping a puck to a Rangers center after curling deep in the defensive zone. He's working on this because the last thing he wants to do is telegraph breakout passes. In this case, deception flows from Fox's elusiveness and quick hands.

Example 3: Improving his blue-line trickery by incorporating more jukes, shakes, and head fakes. "It's all about working on deceptive plays," Fox said.

Fox, once again a candidate for the Norris, knows he must pick his spots.

"Feeling everything out, being in the league for a few years to see what works, is super important," he said. "There's a lot of smart guys in the league that you're just not going to fake out. Some guys might outsmart you, so holding that puck an extra second works sometimes and other times it doesn't. It's about feeling things out. In the end, there's a time and place for everything."

Finding faceoff-circle groove

Tage Thompson has followed up last season's 38-goal outburst with 43 in 70 contests this season. A highlight-reel regular, he's a bonafide NHL superstar.

It can be easy to forget that Thompson's in the middle of just his second season at center. However, his faceoff win rate of 43.1% is a giveaway that he's still learning the position.

"Right now, I'm trying to find one thing that works, something I can fall back on," Thompson said of overcoming his woes in the faceoff circle.

He later added, "A lot of people from the outside, those watching, think it's meat and potatoes, hack and whack. But there is an art form to it. Certain guys have made a living off it. There are little nuances to the process, lots of detail."

Thompson is being proactive. In the offseason, he worked with former NHLer Marty Reasoner, a 52.9% faceoff guy in his day, and during the season he's been leaning on Sabres assistant coach and resident faceoff guru Jason Christie.

"If I can dial that in, get good at it, that gives our team such an advantage, starting with the puck," said Thompson, who usually shares the ice with Jeff Skinner and Alex Tuch. "We won't have to chase it around for half of the shift."

He's been picking his teammates' brains about technique, watching video of the best active faceoff men, and studying linesmen to tease out tendencies.

"Linesmen have a certain routine," he said. "Some of them are quicker on the drop. Some of them make you really square up. Some let you cheat a little. You've got to know who you're working with in that respect, too."

Outdueling while under pressure

Sean Durzi didn't know what to make of the question when it was posed. He's learning loads "every single day," so the list of skills to master is long. Durzi's only appeared in 126 NHL games, after all.

A beat later, though, an answer came to the Los Angeles Kings defenseman.

The most difficult thing for Durzi is to shoot the puck while under pressure and at full speed. No, wait, he continued, honing his thought - it's shooting the puck to a specific spot while under pressure and at full speed.

"I can pick a spot from the point, no problem," Durzi said of outdueling goalies. "But when it's one-on-one with the goalie, can you be deceptive enough to beat him? Whether you turn your blade over or do something else. That's what I'm learning and, from what I've seen, you gain with experience."

Durzi knows he's capable of carrying the puck down the wall in the offensive zone, then, with defenders swarming, cut to the middle of the ice and beat the goalie cleanly. He's done it in practice. But the stakes are significantly higher in games, the intensity ratcheted way up. Nothing truly matches game action.

"Especially with all of the defenders on you," he said. "It's just a lot different."

Developing better puck poise

Cole Sillinger, the 12th overall pick in the 2021 NHL draft, turned heads last season as the league's youngest player. Conversely, Year 2 has been a bumpy ride. The 19-year-old has recorded just 11 points in 64 games.

Sillinger is still confident he can blossom into an impact, 200-foot center for the Columbus Blue Jackets. And one of the ways he'll come to earn that label, he insists, is by becoming fully comfortable operating below the hash marks in both end zones. Developing better poise with the puck is his top priority.

"Ultimately, you want to create more puck possession and O-zone time," Sillinger said. "It's the same mentality in the D-zone, as far as retrieving the puck and moving it out of the zone through possession and protection. You don't want to force anything."

He's trying to learn to be less predictable in those areas. Holding onto the puck a second or two longer can give him, as the puck carrier, more influence over the play. Defenders have no choice but to swarm, opening up teammates for a pass.

Right now, Sillinger's predictability makes him easier to shut down.

"If I can keep improving on the possession aspect, and then add it to my game permanently," Sillinger said, "I'll see myself have more opportunities and also whomever I play with will have more opportunities as well. Win-win."

John Matisz is theScore's senior NHL writer. Follow John on Twitter (@MatiszJohn) or contact him via email (john.matisz@thescore.com).

Copyright © 2023 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

That said, if the topic is right, he may share a pearl of wisdom with the world.

Take his appearance on a national TV broadcast in late November. Vancouver Canucks head coach Rick Tocchet, then an analyst for TNT, asked Yzerman about the astounding number of blown leads during the 2022-23 season.

"Yeah," Yzerman replied. "I wouldn't say I have a real scientific answer. But I think our game - the league, in general - is in a real transition."

In today's NHL, Yzerman continued, the attacking team prioritizes puck possession and motion within the offensive zone. Defensemen activate often, which creates confusion for the defending team and leads to goals against.

"The offensive side of coaching has overtaken the defensive side," the GM added. "Now teams, coaches are going to have to adjust and come up with better defensive techniques or systems to defend a little bit."

Traditionally, hockey coaches have obsessed over defensive structure and habits: backchecking, blocking shots, clogging passing lanes, battling along the boards, closing gaps, and clearing the front of the net. It's ingrained in coaches' collective identity to care deeply about defensive details.

With the NHL plunging deeper into an era of offensive dominance, where league-wide scoring continues to hover well above six goals per game, how are coaches adapting? How much credit do coaches deserve for the uptick?

theScore recently asked eight coaches - four currently running NHL benches and four with loads of experience in lower leagues - those exact questions.

Here's what we learned.

The modern mindset

As of Tuesday morning, the average NHL game this season featured 6.38 goals. If that rate holds until the end of the regular season, 2022-23 will count as the highest-scoring campaign since 1993-94, according to Hockey Reference.

"We want to score 10. Every night," Carolina Hurricanes head coach Rod Brind'Amour told theScore over All-Star Weekend. "Now, we don't want to give up any, but we're trying to score 10. I think where the game's really improved in that regard is that (most NHL) coaches think the same way now."

This season's power plays have been converting on 21.4% of all opportunities - an absurd rate reached only in the wide-open 1970s and '80s. Moreover, multi-goal, third-period comebacks have suddenly become fairly common, with 2022-23 having already set the record for most in a single campaign (53).

This chaotic, offense-first product is a continuation of last season when goals per game rose to 6.28 from 5.88 in 2020-21 and 6.04 in 2019-20. Power-play success rate rose to 20.6% from 19.8% in '20-21 and 20.0% in '19-20.

"The one thing I know for certain is that no one fears a defensive team," Buffalo Sabres head coach Don Granato said when asked about his overarching philosophy. "Coaches and teams have to strategize to put people on their heels when they know you can score, and that commands respect."

Granato, whose team ranks third in goals for per contest this season, said he doesn't diminish or overlook the defensive side of the game. In his mind, Buffalo's defensive issues (27th in goals against per game) can be traced back to a youthful lineup making too many poor decisions with the puck.

"But yes," Granato said of aggressively pursuing goals, "it is and will be a deliberate focus. Always. It's always been like that with my coaching. Guys want to score, and it's a lot more fun to watch. Fans want to be entertained. So from the outset, yes, a couple of years ago we were dead last in scoring in the NHL. Now we're very close to first in the NHL in scoring, just tiny percentage points away. And that's by design and by effort by our guys."

The uptick in goal scoring can be attributed to all kinds of macro changes over the past decade. The NHL cracked down on slashing and cross-checking. Expansion created roughly 50 new jobs, which means players who previously competed in the minors are now in the NHL. Skaters everywhere gained access to better stick technology while goalie equipment has been slimmed down. Most elite youth players train with skills and skating coaches, raising the baseline of offensive ability at all ages and levels.

"We have better athletes all across the board," Brind'Amour said. "They've pushed the bar up, and now everyone's getting better and faster and stronger and more skilled because they've worked on it 24/7 since they were 10 years old."

Added Dallas Stars head coach Pete DeBoer: "We've got so much young talent on rosters now that you didn't have before. You used to put out your third- and fourth-line checkers to lock down games as early as the second period if you've got a lead. Now you've got young, skilled players looking to score the entire game. That's why you see the swings. ... No lead is safe."

Coaches pull goalies earlier and more often, putting extra pucks in both nets. Power plays have been optimized by using four or five forwards, loading up the first unit with three or four deadly shooting threats, and disorienting the penalty kill with passes from the bumper spot and goal lines.

DeBoer, who's coached five different NHL clubs, noted that pro bench bosses are taking advantage of statistical and video analysis "more than they ever have in the history of the game" - especially during special-teams meetings.

"Players are a lot more inquisitive now. They do want to know the why and how things work," said Danton Cole, who's coached pro, junior, and college players for more than two decades, most recently at Michigan State. "The analytics of the game can help you offensively because you can show players how to attack through the middle of the ice or get off the wall in the offensive zone."

Teams have also altered how they operate at five-on-five - more carry-in zone entries, higher shot volume from the slot area, and a preference for east-west passing, just to name a few trends. The focus on maintaining possession and generating quality looks shows clearly in the five-on-five high-danger data:

James Richmond, GM and coach of the OHL's Mississauga Steelheads, said it's vitally important to frame defensive play in an incentive-rich way at the junior level. "The more we can pressure the player with the puck, the better chance we get it back and get it back soon," he tells his players.

"Every good junior player comes up through minor hockey having the puck a lot. That's not a new thing, but it's true," Richmond said. "As you go up levels, the puck is on your stick less and less. So, the goal is to get the puck back.

"How do we do that?" he continued. "We don't send five guys after the puck carrier, like a team of six-year-olds. There are certain areas you can occupy on the ice to make the puck carrier feel uncomfortable. You ideally want that player to pass or shoot it before they're really ready to pass or shoot. And if you can get somebody to do something out of their comfort zone, there's a good chance they're going to make a mistake, and you'll get the puck back."

Counterstriking - the act of turning defense into offense in the blink of an eye - is usually what follows a turnover in today's high-paced game. And you can't beat instant gratification in 2023.

It helps that modern defensemen are eager to start or join the attack to overwhelm the opposition. The stay-at-home archetype, which favors pucks off the glass and brute physicality over carry-out zone exits and effective stick checking, is essentially extinct. The job description for blue-liners has been rewritten for mobility, creativity, and problem-solving ability.

"Players now are interchangeable," said DeBoer, citing how frequently defensemen act like forwards and how often forwards must cover for them.

Ben Simon of the AHL's Grand Rapids Griffins maintains "the old adage of 'your best defense is a good offense' is so relevant" for today's players and coaches. Everybody's eager to push play in the right direction - with numbers.

"I have seen - probably in the last four or five years - defensemen being way more active in really all aspects offensively, whether that's off a faceoff or off the rush or off a breakout or off sustained O-zone play," Simon said. "They're coming through a hockey system now where they're being encouraged to be more involved with the puck. And there's a natural correlation with coaching."

The extreme approach

Creating offense is at the core of the Brooks Bandits' program. The Alberta-based junior A team that helped develop Colorado Avalanche superstar Cale Makar scouts offensive dynamos almost exclusively, centers recruiting pitches and practice drills around scoring, and plays a high-risk brand of hockey.

It's all part of "flipping the script" inside teenage players' heads.

"There aren't really any players who get excited about defending," longtime Brooks GM and head coach Ryan Papaioannou said of the "No. 1 challenge" in junior. "Instead of trying to fight that battle head-on," he added, "we just start on the offensive side, get everybody to buy into that, then go from there."

The Stanley Cup-winning Chicago Blackhawks teams of the 2010s inspired Papaioannou to go all-in on offense. He loved how Chicago's defensemen defied tradition by always being on the move and finding ways to get involved in the offensive zone. The Bandits covet defensemen with strong skating, high intelligence, and puck skills. Size and physicality are far down the priority list.

Brooks' emphasis on offense is partially based on the widely held belief that a team can achieve defensively sound hockey through old-fashioned hard work. "I think 85% of playing defense is just straight-up effort," Papaioannou said.

The program graduated Makar, arguably the world's best defenseman (and the best prototype for the playing style), and Columbus Blue Jackets first-rounder Corson Ceulemans to the NCAA. This year's Bandits, who won 53 of 60 regular-season games, are chasing a third consecutive junior A national title.

"To try and do this in the NHL - at the scale we are - might be a little extreme," Papaioannou said. "The players you turn the puck over to in the NHL are going to burn you. You'd get eaten up pretty good most nights. But you could find a balance and bring up the level of offense in many different ways."

The inevitable counterpunch

As Yzerman suggested during his TNT interview in November, a market correction will come at some point. Coaches will try to outsmart each other, and, perhaps within only a few years, NHL goal rates will stop trending up.

There are several factors out of coaches' control - such as changing officiating standards and the young player's mindset - but they still hold immense power. Look no further than three-on-three overtime, where the chaotic action from early seasons has slowly been replaced by a coaching chess match.

"There's always a counterpunch to these trends. Coaches will figure out a way to combat this latest jump in scoring, even if it's reined in just a little," said Cole, who started coaching in the middle of the so-called dead-puck era.

Richmond, who runs the OHL's Steelheads, likens hockey tactics to fashion.

"It goes out of style, and it comes back, it goes, and it comes back. Why does it leave? Well, people get tired of it," Richmond said, chuckling. "In hockey, when you're always doing something over and over to create scoring chances, the other team sees it and builds a defensive scheme against it. Then it becomes harder again. So, it'll slow down and then come back again."

Every spring provides a temporary shift. In the playoffs, games tighten up as players fight for every inch of ice, officials put their whistles away, and coaches can key in on the opposition during a series. While the offensive mindset doesn't vanish, defensive structure certainly takes over.

"I think it's in coaches' DNA. We'll try and coach the skill out of the game as much as we can," DeBoer said with a hearty laugh. "We'll try and defend. Come playoff time, you see everyone else buckle down."

Vegas Golden Knights head coach Bruce Cassidy recalled hearing Darryl Sutter of the Calgary Flames remark that the NHL has transitioned from being a 3-2 league to a 4-3 league. All things being equal, it's a nightly race to four goals.

That's fine with Cassidy. The NHL is in the entertainment business. Goals sell tickets. But he believes an all-offense approach would devalue the product.

"I just don't want it to become a 6-5 league," Cassidy said. "I don't think that's great for hockey. But I guess, until that happens, we'll see."

John Matisz is theScore's senior NHL writer. Follow John on Twitter (@MatiszJohn) or contact him via email (john.matisz@thescore.com).

Copyright © 2023 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Friday marks one week on the job for Daniel Briere, interim general manager for the Philadelphia Flyers. It's safe to say it's gotten progressively more stressful.

Philadelphia introduced Briere to the media and fans Sunday - normal and cool.

The former Flyers forward then traveled to Florida to mingle with his peers at the GM meetings. Normal and cool, too, though likely a whirlwind for the new guy.

By Wednesday, all of that normalcy and coolness vanished. Briere had to issue a statement condemning his second-oldest son's "inexcusable" actions at a bar after surveillance camera footage of Carson Briere shoving an unoccupied wheelchair down a flight of stairs went viral. (Carson, a 23-year-old junior forward at Mercyhurst University in Erie, Pennsylvania, apologized in his own statement.)

Carson's actions aren't directly related to the Flyers. But the entire situation reflects poorly on the Briere family and taints what ought to have been a heady first week at the helm. The proud Flyers fan base surely isn't pleased.

Mercyhurst suspended Carson Briere and two other athletes while continuing to investigate the incident. The matter is also in the hands of Erie police.

After dealing with that sideshow, Daniel Briere still has to figure out how to turn the Flyers around. He remarked during his press conference that a rebuild was on its way and warned it won't be a quick fix. He also said he didn't want to conduct a fire sale. Translation: The roster will be under heavy construction, but don't expect a Chicago Blackhawks-style strip down.

To be completely unambiguous, Briere has his work cut out for him.

On a recent episode of the Hockey PDOcast, host Dimitri Filipovic and I discussed which NHL franchises had the most depressing medium-term outlooks (roughly two to four years). We determined only the lowly Arizona Coyotes were in a worse spot than the Flyers.

Here's a high-level to-do list for Briere:

Acquire more 2023 draft capital

Failing to move pending unrestricted free agent James van Riemsdyk ahead of the trade deadline may have been the final nail in the coffin for Briere's predecessor, Chuck Fletcher. The Flyers, sitting 27th in points percentage, own their first-round pick in the upcoming draft. That's great. But they don't pick again until roughly halfway through the third round. That's unacceptable for a club in Philadelphia's position. Once the trade freeze lifts, Briere must find a way to acquire another 2023 first or, at the very least, an early second.

Define the long-term identity and core

Carter Hart, Travis Konecny, Joel Farabee, Owen Tippett, Cam York, Ivan Provorov, and Travis Sanheim are all under 27 years old and under contract or team control through next season (far beyond, in some cases). If Briere is serious about rebuilding, only some of those core pieces should be around for the long haul. Moving on from Provorov is a no-brainer, Sanheim appears to have fallen out of favor within the organization, whereas the decisions for guys like Hart and Konecny are complicated and carry more potential downside.

Search for stars and/or future stars

The Flyers' outlook seems so bleak partly because, aside from Konecny, the roster is devoid of anybody an objective observer might consider an NHL star or superstar. Hart, 24, is fairly young for a goalie, so there's still a chance he really pops. Prospect Cutter Gauthier could be a stud. Otherwise, the lack of star/future star talent is concerning, especially with uncertainty surrounding Sean Couturier's health. Proper drafting and developing are vital here, though it wouldn't hurt if Briere got creative on the free agency and trade markets.

Offload Hayes and Ristolainen contracts

Briere gave head coach John Tortorella a vote of confidence during his press conference. What does that mean for Kevin Hayes' future in Philly? Not only is he not Tortorella's favorite player, but Hayes is also a salary-dump candidate given his age and contract. A rebuild just doesn't mesh with Hayes' timeline as an effective NHLer. Rasmus Ristolainen's deal, which runs through 2026-27 at $5.1 million per year, is an even bigger eyesore on the Flyers' cap sheet. Similar to "search for stars," this task is far easier said than done for Briere.

Rantanen's MVP-caliber run

The last time the incomparable Connor McDavid collected all 100 first-place votes to win the Hart Trophy, Mikko Rantanen snuck into the top 10. The 26-year-old Colorado Avalanche winger earned a respectable 15 voting points for 2020-21 MVP thanks to one selection each for second, third, and fourth.

McDavid is going to win the Hart again, probably unanimously - again. The rest of the ballot is up for debate, though it's hard to envision Rantanen - whom teammate Nathan MacKinnon labels a "beast" one second and "horse" the next - finishing outside the top 10. The Finn will make the cut if he hits 50 goals (he's five away with 15 games remaining) and continues to play more than any forward not named McDavid (Rantanen is two seconds ahead of MacKinnon).

"You talk about value to a team and what he brings? Mikko's top three, top four, top five in the league," Avs forward Andrew Cogliano told theScore.

Cogliano's rationale: In his 16 years in the NHL, he's never played on a team that's encountered as much regular-season adversity as the 2022-23 Avs, and Rantanen has led them through the storm. The defending champions have dealt with a laundry list of injuries on top of having that title target on their backs. Yet they own the fifth-best points percentage in the Western Conference.

Gabriel Landeskog has been sidelined the entire season, while Josh Manson's missed 40 games, Bowen Byram's missed 38, Valeri Nichushkin 29, Cale Makar 13, and MacKinnon 11. Earlier this week, Colorado ruled Artturi Lehkonen out for four-to-six weeks. Rantanen is one of four Avs to appear in all 67 games.

"There were moments when it was Rants and maybe one more guy from the top six healthy. He was carrying the team," goalie Alexandar Georgiev said.

Added MacKinnon, who's also been incredible with 85 points in only 56 games: "Rants probably doesn't get all of the recognition that he deserves. Me and Cale were hurt, other guys were hurt, and he was getting hat tricks. He was leading our team to wins. He's been playing huge minutes all season."

Old-man Anderson still contributing

Quirky fact: The NHL's oldest player is on the league's youngest team.

Goalie Craig Anderson, who's in his 20th campaign in the league and second with the Buffalo Sabres, turns 42 in May. He has more than two years on Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Mark Giordano, the NHL's second-oldest player.

To put Anderson's elder statesman status in perspective, rookie teammates Owen Power and JJ Peterka were eight days and 10 months old, respectively, when the netminder made his NHL debut on Nov. 30, 2002.

The Sabres have kept Anderson's workload light this year with their three-goalie rotation. Still, there's no denying he's stopped pucks at an admirable rate, rocking a .917 save percentage in 23 games during a season in which the league average has drooped to .905. He's 13th in Evolving Hockey's goals saved above expected metric.

Teammates gush over how well Anderson, a leader in the dressing room and on the ice, processes incoming offense and how calm he is in the crease.

"He's so good at reading guys' eyes, reading guys' sticks, and figuring out where they're going to shoot," forward and 40-goal man Tage Thompson said.

"He makes it look like something is open," added Dylan Cozens, another young center with scoring chops. "But he takes it away right when you go to shoot. A lot of times, he knows exactly where you're going with the puck."

Parting shots

Max Domi: The Central Division-leading Dallas Stars needed offensive punch prior to the trade deadline, so they sent injured goalie Anton Khudobin and a second-round pick to the Blackhawks for Domi (and prospect Dylan Wells). Through seven games, the bet's looking solid with one goal, two assists, 17 shots, and 10 takeaways. Domi's averaged 16 minutes a night alongside five different linemates due to Dallas' injury woes. Domi's dad, Tie, and Stars bench boss Pete DeBoer were both selected by the Maple Leafs in the 1988 draft. Max is infinitely more skilled than dad, but Tie passed down a degree of grittiness. Are their personalities similar? Different? "I don't know if anyone's got a personality like Tie. I think Max is the best of his mom and his dad. That's a (good) way to put it," DeBoer said with a hearty laugh.

Kirill Marchenko: The Columbus Blue Jackets have positioned themselves quite nicely for the draft lottery in May. Better odds at picking Connor Bedard is a prize worth chasing, but the season's been miserable for a squad that aspired to make the playoffs in Year 1 of the Johnny Gaudreau era. A rare bright spot has been Marchenko's emergence on the wing. The 6-foot-3, 197-pound rookie started his NHL career by recording exclusively goals, 13 of them, before earning his first assist (16 straight to start a career is the record, set in 1917-18). Now with 17 snipes and two helpers in 44 games, Marchenko easily has the highest ratio. He's the Cy Young leader, if you will. Victor Olofsson (24 goals and nine assists) and Cole Caufield (26-10) trail him.

Fighting ban: As early as next season, the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League is moving toward an outright ban on fighting, commissioner Mario Cecchini said Thursday. The league is still determining disciplinary standards. I reached out to a few QMJHL contacts for reactions. One GM who is against the change is mostly curious about the motivation behind the ban. "Is it to reduce injuries?" the GM texted. "If so, the data should support this action. But, in my experience of late, most fights do not produce injuries. Thus, I believe this stance is for optics and politics rather than improving our game."

Takes, Thoughts, and Trends is theScore's biweekly hockey grab bag.

John Matisz is theScore's senior NHL writer. Follow John on Twitter (@MatiszJohn) or contact him via email (john.matisz@thescore.com).

Copyright © 2023 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Quick-hit analysis of big-league trades completed Friday, March 3.

Penguins bring back Bonino

Pittsburgh acquires: F Nick Bonino
San Jose acquires: TBD

Bonino, a member of the Stanley Cup-winning Penguins of 2015-16 and 2016-17, is headed back to Pittsburgh after a six-year hiatus in a reported three-way trade. Now 34, Bonino's not the player he used to be, but he's not entirely washed up. He can fill a bottom-six role and block shots on the penalty kill for the Pens, who currently occupy a playoff spot. Bonino's been hot and cold this year, recording one point in his first 20 games, then 18 in his past 39 games. There's nothing wrong with this move in isolation; the player is useful and the price is fair. However, the Penguins' approach to the deadline has been puzzling. Instead of pulling the trigger on deals that include difference-makers, general manager Ron Hextall has only acquired Bonino and Mikael Granlund. Simply put, neither veteran will move the needle down the stretch and into the playoffs.

Blues take chance on Vrana

St. Louis acquires: F Jakub Vrana
Detroit acquires: F Dylan McLaughlin, 2025 7th-round pick
(Red Wings retain 50% of Vrana's salary)

This trade is about giving Vrana a fresh start. The 27-year-old winger spent several months earlier this season in the NHL/NHLPA player assistance program dealing with an undisclosed issue. After returning to the Wings in December, Vrana played three NHL games (no points) and 17 AHL games (11 points). St. Louis is banking on the classic change-of-scenery bump while Detroit is offloading half of Vrana's $5.25-million cap hit this year and next. Vrana's shown flashes of 40-goal potential during previous stretches with Detroit and Washington. The Blues recently picked up Kasperi Kapanen, another project at forward, off waivers. Vrana and Kapanen are low-risk adds for a franchise trying to turn over most of its roster while remaining relatively competitive. It's worth a shot, though there's no guarantee either pans out.

Recapping weeks of activity

As we wait for trade activity Friday, below is a high-level recap of the past month - perhaps the wildest lead-up to a trade deadline in NHL history.

The first domino fell when Bo Horvat was shipped to the New York Islanders on Jan. 30. Between then and Thursday, 46 trades were registered with the league, according to the indispensable CapFriendly. The swaps involved 59 NHL players, as well as 38 minor leaguers and prospects. A whopping 62 draft picks were transferred, including 13 guaranteed first-rounders and three other potential firsts (if conditions are met). Four trades saw one team move "future considerations" to the other in lieu of a player or pick. Meanwhile, 15 of the 46 trades - or roughly 33% - featured salary retention of some kind.

The 48-8-5 Bruins, who became the fastest team in history to hit 100 points in a season on Thursday, bulked up with the acquisitions of defenseman Dmitry Orlov, and forwards Tyler Bertuzzi and Garnet Hathway. (For good measure, Boston threw in a $90-million extension for David Pastrnak.)

In an attempt to keep pace with their division rivals, the Maple Leafs added six pieces - Ryan O'Reilly, Noel Acciari, and Sam Lafferty up front, and Jake McCabe, Erik Gustafsson, and Luke Schenn on the back end. Out the door: forwards Pierre Engvall and Joey Anderson, and blue-liner Rasmus Sandin.

The Eastern Conference has owned the West on the ice this season, and on the trade market. The Devils won the Timo Meier sweepstakes. The Senators landed highly sought after Jakob Chychrun. And the Rangers double dipped by reeling in two impact forwards, Vladimir Tarasenko and Patrick Kane.

The Capitals and Predators have been the most compelling selling teams. Washington has been aggressive in unloading veterans as part of a retool, bidding farewell to Lars Eller, Marcus Johansson, Gustafsson, Orlov, and Hathaway. Nashville, a club cutting deep into its core, has flipped Mattias Ekholm, Mikael Granlund, Nino Niederreiter, and Tanner Jeannot.

That Jeannot trade - a middle-six winger moving from the Predators to the Lightning for defenseman Cal Foote and five draft picks, including a first-rounder - boggled minds across the league. Will anything top it Friday?

John Matisz is theScore's senior NHL writer. Follow John on Twitter (@MatiszJohn) or contact him via email (john.matisz@thescore.com).

Copyright © 2023 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

That's it?

That's all Jakob Chychrun fetched after more than a year on the trade market?

Really?!

The Arizona Coyotes traded Chychrun, a top-four, cost-controlled defenseman, to the Ottawa Senators on Wednesday in exchange for three draft picks - a 2023 first-rounder, a 2024 second-rounder, and a 2026 second-rounder. (The 2024 second-rounder becomes a first in 2024 or 2025 in the unlikely scenario that the Senators make the conference finals this season.)

Senators general manager Pierre Dorion emerges from this negotiation looking ingenious. Two firsts and a high-end prospect was the reported asking price from the Coyotes for several months, and Dorion cut that package roughly in half. By moving out Nikita Zaitsev's $4.5-million cap hit last week, Ottawa had the requisite cap space to absorb the entirety of Chychrun's $4.6-million hit.

Although slow-playing a negotiation for a player of Chychrun's caliber doesn't always pay off, it did this time. Dorion was incredibly patient. No matter how it's spun in Arizona, GM Bill Armstrong simply didn't get enough value back.

Chychrun, the best blue-liner available in the lead-up to the trade deadline, was such a desirable asset in part because he's under contract through the 2024-25 season. The 6-foot-2, 220-pounder has averaged 23 minutes a night the past three seasons for the Coyotes. He transitions the puck extremely well, boasts a booming shot, and squashes opposing attacks with physicality and stick work. In a nutshell, Chychrun is a modern two-way defenseman.

Sitting out the past eight Coyotes games for "trade-related reasons," Chychrun last played on Feb. 10. He's recorded seven goals and 21 assists in 36 games after starting the year on injured reserve. The shot-generation machine ranks fifth among all defensemen in shots on goal per 60 minutes.

On the season, Arizona outscored the opposition 35-25 at five-on-five when Chychrun was on the ice. Without him patrolling the blue line at five-on-five, the 21-30-9 Coyotes were outscored 105-71 for an ugly minus-34 rating.

Chychrun, who turns 25 later this month, will be a major boost to Ottawa's playoff push. The Sens were five points out of a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference heading into Wednesday's slate of games. They're in a six-team battle with the Detroit Red Wings, Florida Panthers, Buffalo Sabres, Pittsburgh Penguins, and New York Islanders for the conference's two wild-card spots.

This trade injects yet another key contributor to the Sens' impressive 26-and-younger core. Chychrun joins Thomas Chabot and Jake Sanderson on the back end, while Brady Tkachuk, Alex DeBrincat, Drake Batherson, Shane Pinto, Tim Stutzle, and Josh Norris comprise a stellar six-pack up front.

Dorion deserves an "A" grade for his work on Wednesday. Well done, Pierre.

Capitals trying to thread needle

Washington Capitals GM Brian MacLellan didn't make a single trade for seven-plus months. Over the past week, with his club sputtering on the ice, MacLellan's flipped the script, trading away five NHL regulars in four swaps.

The Caps selling, while a rare sight, isn't shocking. The Eastern Conference is stacked, and Washington, lacking finish and crushed by injuries all season, is too far back in the playoff hunt. Standing pat or buying would have made zero sense.

MacLellan actually took concrete steps toward a retool, as none of his deals were half measures. He was aggressive. He focused his moves on nothing but the future, and he didn't get greedy. The Caps acquired four draft picks and two NHL players, and one of the players - forward Craig Smith - is a pending unrestricted free agent who'll likely walk this coming summer.

The GM's next steps will be extra intriguing.

Franchise owner Ted Leonsis has been on record saying the Caps won't be rebuilding during the tail end of Alex Ovechkin's illustrious career. Fair. With that in mind, MacLellan must continue reshaping the roster beyond this past week's activity, which has seen Lars Eller, Dmitry Orlov, Garnet Hathaway, Marcus Johansson, and Erik Gustafsson depart, and Rasmus Sandin arrive.

Washington has loads of cap space and term tied up in Ovechkin, Nicklas Backstrom, Evgeny Kuznetsov, Tom Wilson, T.J. Oshie, Dylan Strome, John Carlson, Nick Jensen, and Darcy Kuemper. But the roster doesn't scream "imminent Stanley Cup contender!"

Perhaps Wilson and Oshie should be next to leave. Maybe top prospects and first-round picks can be flipped for more young NHLers like Sandin. These subsequent moves aren't necessarily urgent; they can wait until the summer. The main objective would be to enter 2023-24 with a younger, faster lineup.

It won't be easy, but MacLellan is trying to thread the needle with this retool.

Karlsson and the Norris

The description for the Norris Trophy is as follows: "An annual award given to the defenseman who demonstrates throughout the season the greatest all-round ability in the position."

The key phrase there, especially within the context of this season's Norris discussion, is "greatest all-round ability." Erik Karlsson, a two-time winner who has an eye-popping 77 points in 61 games, is firmly in the running for defenseman of the year, yet he falls way short of being a well-rounded player.

Karlsson is an offensive wizard - one of the best creators from the back end in NHL history, in fact - but his defensive play leaves something to be desired. Two stats help illustrate: The San Jose Sharks have scored 78 goals with Karlsson on the ice during five-on-five action - tops in the NHL. They've also surrendered 63 goals with No. 65 on at five-on-five - tops in the league, too.

Karlsson's extreme numbers raise a philosophical question, though: At what point is the offensive value so overwhelming that contributions on defense are more or less unimportant? Brian Leetch was the last defenseman to hit triple digits in points, way back in 1991-92, and Karlsson's on pace for a tidy 103.

Put another way, is Karlsson's "defense" actually his ability to generate offense for an 18-31-12 team? He's been everything to the Sharks, not only leading the club in ice time (25:34), assists (58), and points but also managing to pace every NHLer - even Connor McDavid - in even-strength points (53).

The Sharks have accounted for 53.7 of the expected goals during Karlsson's five-on-five minutes, which means he's more than offsetting his goals against with positive offensive impact. (That said, he's not exactly a world-beater in xGF%, ranking 47th among the 183 defensemen who've played at least 500 five-on-five minutes.)

Cale Makar, Rasmus Dahlin, Josh Morrissey, and Adam Fox are Karlsson's main competition, with roughly a quarter of the season remaining. If his production falls off, one of those other four could swoop in as the Norris favorite. If his production doesn't fall off, we've got a hot debate on our hands.

Parting shots

Ken Holland: I have no rooting interest in the NHL, but there are situations I feel passionately about. For example, the Oilers needing to do something significant ahead of the deadline. With McDavid and Leon Draisaitl at the peak of their powers and the Western Conference wide-open, general manager Holland most notably had to improve his blue line. On Tuesday, the famously conservative executive acquired Mattias Ekholm from the Nashville Predators. Does this trade solve all of Edmonton's issues? No, but it's a start for the Oilers to add a 6-foot-4 defensive defenseman who isn't a liability with the puck on his stick and has term left on his contract. So I'm happy to give Holland a thumbs up. Anxious to see what he has in store in the final days.

Mike 'Suitcase' Sillinger: Every year around this time, Sillinger's name surfaces as a historical reference point. The former forward played for 12 teams over a 17-year NHL career, getting traded a record nine times (twice at the deadline). Yeah, there's no mystery surrounding the "Suitcase" nickname. Sillinger's son, Columbus Blue Jackets center Cole Sillinger, says while he either wasn't born or doesn't remember any of his dad's trades because he was too young, he still gives it to Mike every now and then. "I always bug him," Cole said Tuesday in an interview. "It's like, 'Oh, no one wanted you!' And then he goes, 'Well, that's where you're wrong - everyone wanted me!'"

Jake Walman: What a glow-up 2022-23 has been for the 27-year-old Detroit Red Wings defenseman. Walman, who earlier this week signed a three-year contract extension carrying a $3.4-million annual cap hit, is flourishing in a top-pair role alongside Moritz Seider. An effortless skater with a bullet of a shot and good hockey sense, Walman's broken out in his sixth pro season. Most notably, the Wings have outscored the opposition 32-20 and own 54.7% of the expected goals in Walman's 653 five-on-five minutes this season. Walman, a 2014 third-round pick of the St. Louis Blues, was sent to Detroit in the Nick Leddy trade at last year's deadline. Nice find by GM Steve Yzerman.

Takes, Thoughts, and Trends is theScore's biweekly hockey grab bag.

John Matisz is theScore's senior NHL writer. Follow John on Twitter (@MatiszJohn) or contact him via email (john.matisz@thescore.com).

Copyright © 2023 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

The Patrick Kane saga has reached its conclusion. Finally.

The New York Rangers acquired Kane and minor leaguer Cooper Zech on Tuesday in a three-team trade with the Chicago Blackhawks and Arizona Coyotes.

Chicago is receiving a conditional 2023 second-round draft pick, a 2025 fourth-rounder, and minor leaguers Vili Saarijarvi and Andy Welinski while retaining 50% of Kane's $10.5-million salary. Arizona, meanwhile, is getting a 2025 third-rounder from New York for 25% retention.

The trade, which closes a chapter in Blackhawks history, is complicated and indicative of a wild trade market, so let's unpack some winners and losers.

Winner: Patrick Kane

In the end, "Showtime" got his way.

Kane negotiated a no-move clause into his contract back in 2014, and over the past few months, he exercised it to its full potential. The pending unrestricted free agent waited and waited before finally making a decision. It was well within his rights to take his time and select a landing spot (score for player empowerment!), and now he's joining forces with old pal Artemi Panarin and the rest of the 34-17-9 Rangers, a legitimate Stanley Cup contender.

Kane, 34, won three Stanley Cups over a 16-year run with the Blackhawks. He's one of the best offensive players of his generation, with a trophy case full of individual awards to prove it. And while he's no longer in his prime, Kane's going to benefit greatly from being surrounded by more talent in New York.

For the first time in a long time, he can be "A Guy," not necessarily "The Guy."

Loser: Kyle Davidson

Let's face it, Chicago's general manager was dealt a pretty crappy hand.

Davidson began 2022-23 with two legacy stars to dangle as premier deadline rentals. Trading both Kane and Jonathan Toews, while not an easy task thanks to no-move clauses and expensive contracts, would expedite a deep rebuild.

Health issues eventually removed Toews from the trade block. And now Kane has been shipped out for a less-than-ideal package: two draft picks, one of which might turn into a first-rounder. (The 2023 second-rounder becomes a first in 2024 or 2025 if the Rangers reach the Eastern Conference Final this season.)

No guaranteed first, no A-level prospect, and no young NHLer; not exactly a haul.

Yes, Davidson had little control over the situation. But it doesn't erase the fact that he lost the trade with the Rangers - who had all the leverage due to Kane choosing New York as his only destination - and couldn't trade Toews, period.

Winner: Gerard Gallant

The Rangers head coach officially has an embarrassment of riches up front.

This month alone, Gallant's been gifted forwards Kane, Vladimir Tarasenko, and Tyler Motte. Kane is having a down year by his lofty standards (45 points in 54 games) but has turned it on of late with eight points in his past three games. Despite his age, Kane remains a lethal setup man. He possesses silky hands and the requisite hockey IQ to execute extremely creative plays.

That revamped top six - Kane, Tarasenko, Panarin, Mika Zibanejad, Chris Kreider, and Vincent Trocheck - is as good as any in the NHL, and the usage and deployment possibilities are endless. The so-called "Kid Line" of Alexis Lafreniere, Filip Chytil, and Kaapo Kakko is an enviable third line. And a fourth line of Motte, Jimmy Vesey, and Barclay Goodrow is, well, laughably good.

Rangers GM Chris Drury also acquired defenseman Niko Mikkola for Gallant's third pair. Yeah, February has been very kind to the coach and his lineup card.

Loser: Jarmo Kekalainen

The Columbus Blue Jackets GM must be fuming right now.

Technically, the Kane trade didn't see a first-round pick change hands. But down the road, New York could fork over a first-rounder for Kane, so the deal represents yet another instance over the past month where a contending team included a first in a trade package. There are only so many.

In total, eight first-rounders over the next three drafts have been sacrificed (one of them twice in a matter of days) for the likes of Tarasenko, Ryan O'Reilly, Jake McCabe, Tanner Jeannot, Dmitry Orlov, Bo Horvat, Rasmus Sandin, Mattias Ekholm, and Timo Meier. (The Meier deal featured a guaranteed first and a conditional second that may turn into another first.)

Apparently, none of these clubs are overly intrigued by Vladislav Gavrikov, the rugged Columbus defenseman who on Tuesday sat out his eighth straight game for "trade-related reasons." A deal between the Blue Jackets and Bruins was reportedly very close, but Boston ultimately chose Orlov over Gavrikov.

Surely Gavrikov will be scooped up before the deadline. But for what?

Winner: Eastern Conference

The Kane deal added to the arms race well underway in the East.

The difference between the two conferences was striking prior to the first major move of this wacky trade period (Horvat to the New York Islanders on Jan. 30). A month later, the East occupies spots one through six on the points percentage leaderboard while dominating the West on the trade market.

Here's the list of notable NHLers who've been moved to or stayed within the East since that first domino fell with the Horvat swap: Kane, Tarasenko, O'Reilly, Orlov, Meier, Jeannot, McCabe, Jesse Puljujarvi, and Luke Schenn.

And the West: Ekholm, Nino Niederreiter, Ivan Barbashev, Evgenii Dadonov, and Tyson Barrie.

Keep in mind, too, the Carolina Hurricanes - who trail only the Bruins in points percentage - have only acquired Puljujarvi. There's no way Carolina's done.

Loser: 'Trade-related reasons'

The term "trade-related reasons" (and its cousin, "roster management reasons") is getting quite the workout this month. Kane, who missed his final two games in Chicago, became the first big name to actually get moved after being scratched out of fear of injury before a trade could be finalized.

Gavrikov (out eight games without a trade) and Arizona Coyotes defenseman Jakob Chychrun (eight games) are still waiting for news. Healthy and useful players sitting around doing nothing for weeks isn't a great look for the NHL, though the situation appeared worse when Jeannot, Schenn, Sam Lafferty, and Vitali Kravtsov had also watched at least one game from the press box.

The latest "trade-related" scratches? Blue Jackets goalie Joonas Korpisalo and Coyotes forward Nick Bjugstad were both sidelined Tuesday night.

Winner: Third-party brokering

Coyotes GM Bill Armstrong has joined Wild GM Bill Guerin in the 2022-23 third-party brokers club - and membership may grow in the coming days.

Guerin has taken on salary in two different trades, first receiving a 2025 fourth-round pick from Toronto for retaining 50% of O'Reilly's salary and then netting a 2023 fifth-rounder from Boston for eating 50% of Orlov's salary.

This mini-trend is a byproduct of the salary cap's minimal increase during the pandemic. Last season saw one third-party broker deal (Max Domi), while 2020-21 had three such deals (Mattias Janmark, Nick Foligno, David Savard).

Of course, a third team isn't always needed to retain salary. Over the past few weeks, we've seen plenty of selling teams eat a portion of a contract to make the money work for the buyer. Teams can retain on a total of three players.

Loser: Trade deadline shows

Let's keep this last one short: While it's awesome to see so much trade activity, TV executives in Canada and the United States can't be too pleased.

Friday won't be dead - there's always movement on deadline day, and this season definitely feels abnormally busy, in general - but a lot of the marquee names have already changed teams. Time to prepare the gimmicky segments.

John Matisz is theScore's senior NHL writer. Follow John on Twitter (@MatiszJohn) or contact him via email (john.matisz@thescore.com).

Copyright © 2023 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

On Saturday, New Jersey Devils fans chanted "We Want Timo!" during a 7-0 trouncing of the Philadelphia Flyers. Their wish was granted 24 hours later.

In a mammoth, 13-piece deal, the Devils acquired forwards Timo Meier and Timur Ibragimov, defensemen Scott Harrington and Santeri Hatakka, goalie Zachary Emond, and a 2024 fifth-round draft pick from the San Jose Sharks.

In exchange, the Sharks received forwards Andreas Johnsson and Fabian Zetterlund, defensemen Shakir Mukhamadullin and Nikita Okhotiuk, a 2023 first-round pick, a 2024 second-rounder, and a 2024 seventh-rounder.

To make the money work for New Jersey, San Jose is retaining 50% of Meier's $6-million salary and cap hit. (Meier is a pending restricted free agent.)

Two of the picks are conditional. The 2023 first-rounder going to San Jose transfers to a 2024 first-rounder in the extremely unlikely scenario that it becomes a first or second overall pick. The 2024 second-rounder transfers to a top-10-protected first-rounder if the Devils make the conference final this season or next and Meier appears in 50% of 2023 playoff games.

Got all of that?

Let's dig into the two perspectives of the deal and hand out some grades.

Devils' side of deal

Take a bow, Tom Fitzgerald.

The Devils general manager has reeled in the most desirable player on the trade market in 2022-23 while holding on to high-end youngsters Luke Hughes, Simon Nemec, Alexander Holtz, and Dawson Mercer. The kicker: Meier's and New Jersey's playing styles are a match made in heaven.

Meier, 26, is a play-driving, shot-producing power forward who can kill the opposition in so many ways, most notably off the rush and forecheck. He's third among all NHLers in shots on goal and fourth in shot attempts. The Swiss winger is a top-10 player at generating scoring chances off the rush, unleashing his deadly wrist shot often. He's also very effective at using his 6-foot-1, 220-pound frame to sustain zone time on the forecheck or cycle.

The Devils excel at the same things: Smart and speedy, they're a top-five team at generating chances off the rush and a top-five team at generating chances off the forecheck, according to Sportlogiq. What makes the fit even better is that Meier adds a physical, net-front element to a smallish top six.

Meier, who recorded 31 goals and 21 assists in 57 games for the woeful Sharks, will be paired with an elite playmaking center in New Jersey - either Jack Hughes or Nico Hischier. Meanwhile, the overqualified third wheel on Meier's new line will likely be one of Jesper Bratt, Ondrej Palat, or Mercer.

(As an aside, don't be surprised if offensive blue-liner Dougie Hamilton benefits from this trade. Meier and Erik Karlsson, a similar player to Hamilton, were electric together in San Jose, working the give-and-go game super well.)

The Devils sit second in the Metropolitan Division with a 39-15-5 record and plus-51 goal differential. They're a superb five-on-five team, dominating both offensively and defensively, and Meier will help a 19th-ranked power play.

Acquiring Meier allows Fitzgerald and coach Lindy Ruff to keep pace in a conference that's gone bananas in the lead-up to the trade deadline. The Boston Bruins, New York Rangers, Toronto Maple Leafs, and Tampa Bay Lightning have already bulked up (and could add again in the coming days), while the Carolina Hurricanes are primed to make a big splash of their own.

As complicated as this transaction may look on paper, for New Jersey it begins and ends with Meier. And through the lens of the 2022-23 season, there's minimal downside. Meier is a true difference-maker, and the package going the other way, while not nothing, is palatable. The Devils want to win now, and this is the kind of home run swing contending GMs must take.

And if Meier - an RFA with a giant $10-million qualifying offer - ends up signing a long-term extension, well, Fitzgerald will look like an A+ genius.

Grade: A

Sharks' side of deal

The 2023 first-rounder and Mukhamadullin - a 21-year-old who could blossom into a top-four NHL defenseman soon - are the jewels of the Meier return.

Zetterlund is a middle-six sniper, Johnson is a fringe NHLer, Okhotiuk seems destined to be a third-pair defenseman one day, and the other picks are nice-to-haves. (Of course, if that 2024 second becomes a first, now we're talking.)

Mix all of that together and I don't love or despise this trade for San Jose. The package doesn't blow me away - again, no Hughes, Nemec, Holtz, or Mercer - or feel like a complete ripoff. With a middle-of-the-pack prospect base and an NHL roster lacking star power and depth, Sharks GM Mike Grier went for the quantity-over-quality play. And if the first and Mukhamadullin both hit in a few years, he could look smart in hindsight.

Hired last July, this is Grier's second major trade after sending Brent Burns to the Carolina Hurricanes in another rebuild-focused deal involving salary retention in the offseason. A third such transaction doesn't seem likely anytime soon, as Grier told reporters Sunday night that he anticipates Karlsson will stay in San Jose for the rest of the season. His contract is simply too difficult to move.

That news puts a damper on the last few days before the deadline for Sharks fans, who are probably viewing the Meier return with a shrug or a "we'll see."

Or maybe some disappointment.

Grade: C+

John Matisz is theScore's senior NHL writer. Follow John on Twitter (@MatiszJohn) or contact him via email (john.matisz@thescore.com).

Copyright © 2023 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.