Red-Hot NHL Players Who Have Overcome Slow Starts to This Season
The stretch drive for the 2015-16 season has begun after the All-Star break, and plenty of big names are looking unstoppable at the moment, with Sidney Crosby, John Tavares and Erik Karlsson among those firing at all cylinders right now.
But not all of the players who are currently making waves have been doing so all season. A number of these guys are rebounding from slow starts to their campaigns and slowly gaining ground on the more consistent performances by those around them on the list of scoring leaders.
Some of these guys have been inspired by new linemates, earned fresh starts with new teams or overcome adversity or distraction to bounce back and play up to the levels they are capable of.
Whatever the reason may be, they're red-hot and looking to carry that play forward the rest of the way as the playoffs approach.
Click ahead to see what NHL players are currently on fire after slow starts to their season. And if any other names stand out to you, debate their worthiness in the comments.
Frederik Andersen, Anaheim Ducks
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Frederik Andersen was the Anaheim Ducks' starting goaltender to start the season, but his year didn't begin well. Despite being the team's best player on most nights, he lost seven straight starts to kick off the 2015-16 campaign.
He lost his starting gig to John Gibson after some struggles and a bout with the flu gave the Ducks a chance to see what the young netminder (22) had to offer, but an injury to Gibson opened the door for Andersen again, and he's taken advantage.
The impending restricted free agent has been stellar in going 6-0-2 in eight games started since taking over. Thanks to his strong play, he could be trade bait, according to Orange County Register writer Eric Stephens.
His value is definitely on the rise thanks to his winning ways, and with a higher paycheck being a difficult thing for the Ducks to consider when they've already made a long-term commitment to Gibson, getting shipped out of town might be the best thing possible for Andersen.
Ryan O'Reilly, Buffalo Sabres
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Offensively, Ryan O'Reilly has been hot and cold in his first season with the Buffalo Sabres. But he's been red-hot lately with nine points in his past seven games since the All-Star break, fresh off an in-person apology from former NHLer Jeremy Roenick.
Roenick called O'Reilly overpaid and overrated after he inked his big deal with the Sabres in the offseason but made amends at the All-Star event and let the Twitterverse know about the apology.
The controversial Roenick could have been smug about his comments in the early going. O'Reilly had three points in his first six games. He started November with five straight games without a point.
Overall, though, the solid two-way center has pulled things together, and those first half-dozen games are a distant memory now. He's earning his dough and is a key piece of the awful Sabres' rebuild.
David Perron, Anaheim Ducks
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As good as Ryan Getzlaf has been for the Anaheim Ducks, David Perron has had an even bigger recovery from an awful start to the year since his trade from the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Perron was having the worst season of his career with the Pens. Despite playing on a line with either Sidney Crosby or Evgeni Malkin for most of the year, Perron mustered just four goals and 16 points in 43 games. For a former 28-goal scorer who hit 57 points with the Edmonton Oilers three seasons ago, that's about as cool a start as you could expect.
His shooting percentage was 4.2, far below his career 11.9 average. With the Ducks, the former first-round draft pick is shooting at 20.8 percent—the highest he's posted in any season with any team so far.
Perron has five goals and 12 points in 12 games with his new team and has been cited as a difference-maker while playing with Getzlaf on the top line.
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Jordan Eberle, Edmonton Oilers
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What a difference a healthy Connor McDavid makes. The Edmonton Oilers' rookie superstar might be considered for a slide of his own, but his low total output this late in the season has nothing to do with a slow start and everything to do with the months he missed with a broken clavicle.
He has helped another teammate become one of the hottest in the NHL, however, with Jordan Eberle lighting it up with seven goals and 10 points in seven games since McDavid returned.
Eberle had a real slow start to his season after sitting out all of October with a shoulder injury of his own and struggling to produce three goals and no assists through 13 games in November. He was better in December, with five goals and 11 points in 14 games, but he has really ramped up his performance in recent weeks.
Unfortunately for the Oilers, all the chemistry between Eberle and McDavid will accomplish is the potential for a slightly better draft position.
Nikita Kucherov, Tampa Bay Lightning
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Nikita Kucherov is enjoying the month of February so far with three goals and seven points in six games with the Tampa Bay Lightning. In fact, things have been pretty good for the 22-year-old winger since mid-December, helping Kucherov into the top 20 in scoring in the NHL.
The climb has been steep. Kucherov started the year with an underwhelming October. He scored just a pair of goals and no assists through his first 11 games, adding a third on Halloween night to end the disappointing month. November was better, but he had a pair of three-game pointless streaks to pull his totals down, finishing with 10 points in 13 games.
Since then, Kucherov has accumulated 17 goals and 35 points in 30 contests to lead the team in scoring and help the Bolts into a wild-card position—something they couldn't claim when December began while languishing in sixth place in the Atlantic Division.
Jakub Voracek, Philadelphia Flyers
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In 15 games since January 13, Jakub Voracek has four goals and 18 points. By comparison, the Philadelphia Flyers star had no goals and just five points in his first 16 contests to start the year.
It's been a dramatic turnaround for the 26-year-old Czech. He ended the pre-All-Star schedule with three solid games and turned his point streak into a six-game stretch with points in his first three games after the break, putting up three goals and 11 points in those half-dozen contests.
Any panic over the eight-year extension Voracek signed in the summer should have subsided by now thanks to his play since about mid-December. He has 29 points in 26 games stemming back to Dec. 11 and told Comcast Sportsnet's Tom Dougherty he feels as good as he was last year since about the first 17 or 18 games. The numbers seem to back that up.
John Tavares, New York Islanders
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Out of the gates, John Tavares looked ready to follow up his 38-goal, 86-point season with another Art Ross-worthy year. He had five goals and 11 points in his first eight games.
Doesn't sound like a slow start, does it? Well, if you tack on the next 31 contests taking Tavares into the new year, the numbers dipped significantly. The New York Islanders captain managed 10 goals and 18 points in that dreadful span.
That's why even now, after a red-hot stretch that has seen him score four goals and 10 points in the past six games, and six goals and 17 points in the last 13 games, Tavares still ranks just 23th in league scoring with 21 goals and 46 points in 52 games.
If he can continue his pace since Jan. 9—a 1.31 per-game average—the rest of the way, he could be among the top 10 scorers by season's end.
Anze Kopitar, Los Angeles Kings
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Anze Kopitar is tied for 12th in NHL scoring with 50 points through 55 games so far. The annual Selke Trophy candidate was a long way from that ranking back in late December.
The Los Angeles Kings leader has three goals—the result of a hat-trick against the New York Rangers last week—and 10 points in his last eight games to propel him up the list. He's been one of the hottest NHL stars since Christmas with 30 points in his last 22 games.
Maybe the negotiations for his new eight-year deal with the Kings were weighing on his mind early. Kopitar had just one point in his first six games and three in his opening 10. He added 10 points in 13 games in November but has been gaining steam since.
Ryan Getzlaf, Anaheim Ducks
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The Anaheim Ducks are in a playoff position thanks to the resurgence of captain Ryan Getzlaf, who has nine points in his last five games and been held off the scoresheet just twice in his past 16 games—racking up 20 points in that span.
His recent stretch and generally stellar play since the calendar flipped to 2016 helps Ducks fans forget just how awful the start of the season was both for the team and player. Getzlaf was pointless in his first four games and held to a single assist in first eight. He had five helpers through his first 15 contests, and the Ducks were fourth-last in the Western Conference standings as of Nov. 22.
A five-assist night against the Calgary Flames a couple of nights later ignited the slow climb back. He has 35 points in 34 games including that breakout evening, and although he hasn't had a five-point game since then, he has been remarkably consistent and has seven multi-point games. Four of them came consecutively in the past five games.
Sidney Crosby, Pittsburgh Penguins
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The fact Sidney Crosby is sitting eighth in league scoring midway through the month of February is stunning when you consider his start to the season.
It was awful and extended as any slump of his career so far. The Pittsburgh Penguins captain was barely a month in when the Hockey News' Mike Brophy penned his concern. Crosby had two goals and six points in his first dozen games. Another month later, Helene Elliott of the Los Angeles Times talked to Crosby about his struggles.
With six goals and 18 points through 26 games, Crosby ranked 86th in the league scoring race. After averaging 1.36 points per game over his first 10 seasons, he had posted a .692 points-per-game average through the first two months.
If you separate the year into before and after Christmas, the numbers are very different. Through the first 32 games, Crosby had six goals and 22 points—a .688 point-per-game average. Since then, he has 18 goals and 31 points in 21 contests—a 1.48 average.
He has been especially hot since the All-Star break, grabbing 12 points in six games, all coming in the first four. If he keeps up this kind of pace, he could vault into the race for second in the Art Ross Trophy race behind Patrick Kane.
All stats via NHL.com unless otherwise noted.
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