• Sam Bennett snaps goal drought
• It’s time to start talking about Leon Draisaitl
• Eddie Lack gets much needed shutout
Friday saw some bounce back performances from players who won’t count this season as one of their favourites.
Sam Bennett snapped a 10-game goalless streak in the Flames’ win over the Panthers. At the same time, Eddie Lack picked up a shutout for the Hurricanes in only his sixth start of the season.
Here are three things we learned in the NHL.
Bennett gets monkey off back
It’s been a rough season for Calgary’s Sam Bennett, to say the least.
The fourth overall pick in 2014, Bennett was expected to continue building on his strong play from a year ago. Instead, this season has been a disappointment, with him even being a healthy scratch late in January.
But on Friday, he finally had something go his way. He scored halfway through the first period, snapping a 10-game-goalless streak.
It was a gritty goal that could spark a strong finish to the season. Bennett now has 11 goals and 21 points in 2016-17.
And don’t forget. He’s only 20.
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Draisaitl: the other Oilers superstar
Hockey is a team sport, meaning the Edmonton Oilers can’t count on Connor McDavid to carry the offence every game.
Luckily for them, they have Leon Draisaitl who is having a breakout season of his own.
On Friday, Draisaitl’s 23rd goal of the season ended up being the Oilers’ only tally in a 2-1 loss to the Washington Capitals.
And it was a nice goal too, a hard wrist shot past one of the top goalies in the league.
According to DobberHockey.com, Draisaitl has skated with McDavid on 68.7 per cent of his even strength shifts. The natural centre has seemingly found a place on McDavid’s wing.
Draisaitl now has seven points in his last six games. McDavid has eight points (including an assist on Friday) over the same stretch, giving the Oilers a great one-two punch.
Coming into the season, Oilers fans were probably worried about who would provide secondary scoring after Taylor Hall was traded. That answer seems pretty clear now.
And said fans shouldn’t be too mad about the loss. The Oilers join a long list of teams who have left Verizon Center empty handed of late.
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Lack is back
Eddie Lack has had a frustrating season, missing 26 games with concussion symptoms. But on Friday, in only his sixth start of the year, Lack turned in a 34-save shutout against the Senators.
It was especially impressive considering his first start back from his injury, against the Capitals on Feb. 7, saw him give up five goals in a loss.
It’s starts like this that can give a team confidence, which is something the Hurricanes could certainly use from their goalies this season.
Cam Ward has carried the load most of the year and his 2.65 GAA and .904 save percentage has likely cost the team some wins. It’s one game, but Lack showed Friday that he may be ready to take the reigns back from Ward.
Friday was also “Hockey is for Everyone” night in Carolina, which made the win even more special for Lack.
