"Ottawa fans are yelling, 'Who is he?!' They don't even know who he is. ... HE'S GOOD! DON'T WORRY! HE'S VERY GOOD!"
Pierre McGuire had two thumbs up and jumped out of his seat when he said those words at the 2008 NHL Draft. McGuire, of course, was talking about Erik Karlsson, back then a 157-pound skating defenseman scouts had really begun to fall in love with over the course of the year. NHL teams were going through a bit of a paradigm shift at the time, with teams starting to put more emphasis on mobility and puck control over size and muscle, especially when it came to defensemen. The Senators, of course, liked him enough to trade up three slots to draft him with the 15th overall pick.
The rest, as they say, is history, with Karlsson quickly establishing himself as a once-in-a-generation type of offensive defenseman, the closest thing to a modern-day Bobby Orr, a player who can change the course of a game with a single rush, changing how the position can be played and perhaps even paving the way for countryman John Klingberg to excel in Dallas. Karlsson's comparable at the time of the draft was Brian Rafalski, partly because both were undersized but highly skilled defenseman, except that Karlsson has become a far better player Rafalski ever was.
Just how good has Karlsson been this season? With 59 points in 53 games, he's now on pace for 91 points, which would be the highest total by a defenseman since Gary Suter in 1988 and Ray Bourque (at age 33!) in 1994. At age 25, Karlsson is in his prime, and given his skating ability he'll have plenty of time to set more records as well. Although their numbers were set in a different era, Bourque (four times!), Paul Coffey, Larry Murphy, Denis Potvin, Al MacInnis, Mark Howe and Larry Robinson are the only players who have managed to score at least 82 points at age 30 or older. That's Hall of Fame-caliber company, and by skill alone, Karlsson will be a shoo-in once he hangs up his skates.
What's also incredible is the ease with which Karlsson seems to be doing this. Karlsson is fast, but he's not fast all the time; instead, he uses his skating and mobility to create space.
There's a bit of an arrogance (or edge, if you want a nicer word) to Karlsson's game, from insisting on rushing the puck up the ice almost every play to his unapologetic admission that he does cough up the puck once in a while. That sort of cockiness may be what makes Karlsson so great -- he's so confident in his abilities that bad bounces and criticism just don't seem to deter him. He certainly seems to play with a chip on his shoulder that we haven't seen from previous Swedish captains such as Nicklas Lidstrom or Daniel Alfredsson. But hey, whatever he's doing is working very well, so you might as well sit back and enjoy his potentially record-setting season.
Last Week's Top 5
Erik Karlsson, OTT: He crushed the Leafs on national TV on Saturday with four assists in a 6-1 win, and enters the new week tied for second in league scoring with 59 points. I don't think anyone will argue against Karlsson when he walks away with the Norris Trophy after the season. Karlsson has a goal and seven assists in his past four games.
Hampus Lindholm, ANA: After a second-period collapse (a recurring theme for them this year) that led to a 3-2 loss at the hands of the Kings on Jan. 17, the Ducks have rattled off six straight wins and Lindholm is on a three-game goal streak. After a painfully slow start, the Ducks are now in playoff position and scoring in bunches, with 25 goals scored during their run. Lindholm and Sami Vatanen are both worth picking up if they're on the waiver wire thanks to impatient owners.
Shayne Gostisbehere, PHI: Gostisbehere's assist Sunday against the Capitals stretched his point streak to seven games, tying a club record for longest streak by a defenseman. He has scored two goals and eight assists during his hot run, serving as a model of consistency even though the Flyers keep alternating between winning streaks and losing streaks.
Shea Weber, NAS: He had back-to-back games with a goal and an assist, including a key 6-2 win over the Sharks that gave the Preds a little breathing room in the playoff race. Weber now has 14 goals (second), 21 assists (18th) and 126 shots on goal (12th) this season, making him a valuable fantasy contributor once again.
Kris Letang, PHI: The only minor blip came in a 6-3 loss to the Lightning on Friday, when Letang was held scoreless; otherwise, the Pens have been unbeaten when Letang records at least one point since Jan. 23. Letang and Sidney Crosby ran the table Saturday against Florida, with Letang scoring two goals (including the game-winner) on seven shots and adding an assist. Here's hoping he stays healthy for the rest of the season, because the Pens really need him.
Top 5 Trending Up
Matt Dumba, MIN: With two goals and two assists in his past three games, Dumba's making a great case for the Wild to keep him. He's still mostly playing third-pair minutes, but did play 20:29 against St. Louis on Saturday, just the fifth time this season he's played more than 20 minutes. The Wild are mired in a five-game slump and changes could be afoot; with the way Dumba's been playing, he could be in line for a larger role.
Alec Martinez, LA: He's steady but unspectacular and logs a lot of minutes, but Martinez has been filling the score sheet recently with three points in his past two games, including two power-play points against Arizona. He now has nine power-play points on the season, a career high, and is just three points short of his career mark in that category. The sixth-year veteran has yet to appear in more than 61 games in a season, but has not missed a game so far.
David Schlemko, NJ: To the one percent who picked him up in leagues during the last week to boost his ownership above zero and saw him collect two goals and an assist: Give yourself a pat on the back; you deserve it. The 28-year-old has been on a very productive stretch recently, though the same can't be said of the Devils, who have lost three of their past four games. John Hynes might keep giving Schlemko some big minutes (he played 25:37 against Washington) if he can keep up his magic touch, so maybe he's not so bad of an investment after all, at least in the short term.
Nick Schultz, PHI: Can you believe he has played more than 1,000 NHL games already? I don't have any memories of Schultz after he left the Wild, and images of him in an Oilers, Blue Jackets or Flyers uniform have been blended together with other countless forgotten names (Jim Vandermeer, Kurtis Foster and Rostislav Klesla, to name a few) who've had the (un)fortunate opportunity to play defense for those teams. Regardless, Schultz has popped up yet again with a goal and an assist over his past three games, giving him seven points in 50 games on the season. Bonus points for the recent uptick in scoring, but in leagues that count peripherals, his 52 hits and 112 blocked shots aren't too shabby either.
Jacob Trouba, WPG: Trade rumors concerning Dustin Byfuglien are heating up, which could make this a good time to pounce on Trouba, who's notched two power-play assists in his past three games, his first man-advantage points of the season. Because the Jets' defense is so deep, Trouba doesn't always get the best scoring opportunities and focuses on defense instead, but if Byfuglien gets traded, Trouba may be a beneficiary, especially when it comes to power-play time. Trouba has played just 65 games in each of his past two seasons, and having stayed healthy all of this year, he's on pace to set career highs in penalty minutes, hits and blocked shots.
Top 5 Trending Down
Rasmus Ristolainen, BUF: After scoring six points during the first three weeks of January, Ristolainen has just one assist in his past seven games, five of which were losses. The toughest thing for the Sabres this season is that they're losing a lot of close games, including back-to-back, one-goal losses against Boston. The bad news is that cold streaks from young players like Ristolainen are bound to happen, and there's no real way to tell when they'll snap out of it; the good news is that the Sabres are poised to be much better next year.
Kevin Shattenkirk, STL: Is it panic time in St. Louis yet? The Blues just can't seem to string many wins together, and Shattenkirk has been held without a point in his past six games, two of which were losses to division rivals. The Blues lack scoring, and yet they're willing to part with their best offensive defenseman, but given how Shattenkirk has played recently, maybe it's not such a flawed idea after all. Key players have been in and out of the lineup this year with injuries, but that's not exactly an excuse for the team's disappointing play lately.
Tyson Barrie, COL: Barrie hasn't scored a goal since Jan. 14 and has just three assists since then. He has posted a minus-7 rating over his past five games, four of which have been losses. The Avs are in the midst of a playoff race and have a three-point cushion thanks to Minnesota's own losing streak, but really need to win a few games to give themselves some breathing room. Upcoming games against Vancouver, Ottawa, Buffalo and Montreal are good opportunities for wins and for Barrie to score a few points.
Alexander Edler, VAN: The Canucks have lost four straight and Edler hasn't scored a goal since Dec. 9. One can only hope that the return of Dan Hamhuis can help take some pressure off Edler, who often struggles with the No. 1 role. More troubling for Vancouver, their top pairing of Edler and Chris Tanev hasn't been very good recently, including Edler posting a minus-4 rating in his past four games. They've got road games against high-scoring Colorado and upstart Arizona next, so knock on wood and try not to get your expectations too high.
Dennis Wideman, CGY: I don't disagree with his 20-game suspension, in part because rule 40.2 of the NHL rulebook clearly states that any physical act with an intent to injure an official carries a minimum 20-game ban. Wideman's not a dirty player; in my opinion, he was simply dazed after taking a (careless) flying elbow from Miikka Salomaki, which made him totally misjudge the distance between him, Don Henderson and the bench, so there's a very good chance his appeal will successfully shorten this sentence. Having a concussion is already enough punishment, but whether intentional or not, an official was abused, and since the NHL needs to enforce an established rule and protect (or at least, be seen capable of protecting) its officials from abuse, Wideman will still have to sit out some games. It's been a pretty tough season for him, that's for sure.
