Last night in the National Hockey League, only two teams had the night off, leaving the other 30 teams to put on a show, scoring a record 114 goals.
Saturday marks the second of four 15-game days this season, with the action starting at 3 p.m. ET when Leon Draisaitl, Connor McDavid and the @EdmontonOilers host Roman Josi, Filip Forsberg and the @PredsNHL on @Sportsnet.#NHLStats: https://t.co/G5OaCPW1QP pic.twitter.com/bSN1H9ViGf
– NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL) November 4, 2023
So here’s what we’re taking away from the evening.
1. Sharks give up 10 goals in second straight game
Wow.
We’re probably looking at one of the worst teams in National Hockey League history.
The San Jose Sharks are bad, but when I say bad, I mean really, really bad.
Last Thursday, they were humiliated by the Vancouver Canucks by allowing ten goals.
Giving up ten goals once in a season is very rare.
To allow ten in two consecutive games is almost unheard of.
Because yes, the Sharks played again last night, and once again allowed ten goals in a 10-2 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins.
This is the first time in 58 years that a team has allowed 10 goals in two consecutive games.
Sharks are the first team to allow 10 goals in back-to-back games since the Bruins on Dec 2-4, 1965
– Sportsnet Stats (@SNstats) November 5, 2023
In short, the Sharks now have a 0-10-1 record, and it’s not about to get any better for them.
It’s questionable whether they’d even win a game in the AHL right now.
Note that for this ten-goal thrashing, Mike Hoffman was in the line-up this time for the Sharks.
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2. The Golden Knights are simply too good
Now that we’ve talked about the worst of the NHL, let’s talk about the best.
The Golden Knights are the exact opposite of the Sharks in that they seem simply too good for the NHL.
Vegas had a 10-0-1 record before last night’s game against the Avalanche.
We all expected a close game between probably the two best teams in the West, but in the end, the Golden Knights handed the Avalanche a 7-0 thrashing.
Yes, yes, 7-0.
We’re not too far removed from the San Jose Sharks game.
Adin Hill turned away all 41 Avalanche shots in the win.
👏 HILL MASTERCLASS 👏@Adin_Hill collects his sixth career @pepsi shutout as the @GoldenKnights move to 11-0-1 on the season! pic.twitter.com/5YiB3dwaG1
– NHL (@NHL) November 5, 2023
Mark Stone also had fun with two short-handed goals.
The @GoldenKnights have two shorthanded goals tonight…
AND MARK STONE HAS SCORED BOTH! 😱 pic.twitter.com/A2kfo9d3AM
– NHL (@NHL) November 5, 2023
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3. Auston Matthews’ third hat trick of the season (already) got the crowd a little too excited.
Auston Matthews is a natural scorer as everyone knows, and he’s probably the NHL’s best maverick.
So he scores a lot of goals, and sometimes they come in groups of three per game.
Well, yesterday, Matthews already scored his third hat trick of the season.
Another hat trick for Auston Matthews(@AM34)!
Make that three in his first 11 games of the season! 🚨🚨🚨
Hat Trick Challenge presented by @AstraZenecaUS pic.twitter.com/EQ3bASbx0o
– NHL (@NHL) November 5, 2023
All three were scored at home, and it seems so, because Toronto fans seem to be running out of hats to send onto the ice.
So we’re organizing to find other things on the ice, like this Leafs fan who seems to have been very excited by Matthews’ hat trick.
Bruh. pic.twitter.com/EpBlF1X6CG
– xB Anth (@xBuffaloAnth) November 5, 2023
In short, Matthews has 11 goals in 11 games, but it wasn’t enough last night, as the Leafs lost 6-4 to the Buffalo Sabres.
The Leafs have exactly the same record as the Montreal Canadiens, 5-4-2.
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4. Connor Bedard scores his fifth goal of the season
The young sensation of the Chicago Blackhawks and the entire NHL demonstrated his talent last night with a perfect wrist shot for his fifth career goal.
The speed.
The shot.Connor Bedard. 🔥 pic.twitter.com/jFxk4qW8zO
– NHL (@NHL) November 5, 2023
The Blackhawks won 5-2 against the Florida Panthers.
Bedard has five goals and two assists for a total of seven points in 10 games.
5. Ryan O’Reilly completes hat-trick twice in the same sequence
Nashville Predators newcomer Ryan O’Reilly had a blast yesterday against the Edmonton Oilers.
He scored four goals, including two on the same sequence without a whistle.
The referees didn’t see the puck go in on the first opportunity, so play continued and O’Reilly put the puck back in the net.
Ryan O’Reilly just scored two goals* on the same shift
*- One counted, but both went in the net 😅 pic.twitter.com/1E3Sjl13WK
– B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) November 4, 2023
Of course, you’ll understand that only one of the two goals counted, and that O’Reilly actually scored three last night.
That makes seven this season.
The Oilers continue to struggle, especially in front of the net.
Extension
– Don’t worry, I haven’t forgotten the Ottawa Senators, and I’ll come back to them in another article.
Captain Brady Tkachuk didn’t appreciate the boo birds. #Sens pic.twitter.com/KAf4URkADq
– Bruce Garrioch (@SunGarrioch) November 5, 2023
– Things aren’t going too well for Johnny Gaudreau in Columbus. He has just one goal and four assists in 11 games this season.
Johnny Gaudreau played 11:55 tonight, no shifts in last 16:07 during 2-1 Columbus loss to Washington
– Elliotte Friedman (@FriedgeHNIC) November 5, 2023
– Here are yesterday’s results.
A record-setting 114 goals.
Four hat tricks.
Sidney Crosby skating in a milestone 1,200th game.
Two three-goal comebacks.
Many #NHLStats.That’s it for Saturday. See all notes from tonight: https://t.co/lxgootEEeX pic.twitter.com/l6DGyQpJXR
– NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL) November 5, 2023
– Here are yesterday’s top scorers.
– Today’s program on this Sunday evening: two games.