Zizing 'Em Up: Atlantic Division race gets frantic

NHL.com staff writer Mike Zeisberger has been covering the NHL regularly since 1999. Each Monday he will use his extensive network of hockey contacts for his weekly notes column, "Zizing 'Em Up.”

TORONTO -- The NHL schedule-makers are getting what they wanted, especially in the Eastern Conference.

Pure raw chaos.

Especially when it comes to the battle for first in the Atlantic Division.

With the Florida Panthers losing 4-2 to the Montreal Canadiens at home and the Toronto Maple Leafs winning 3-2 at the Anaheim Ducks on Sunday, the Maple Leafs lead the division with 94 points, three ahead of the Panthers and Tampa Bay Lightning. Florida and Tampa Bay hold a game in hand on Toronto.

The best is yet to come.

In an eight-day span from April 2-9, the Maple Leafs will play the Panthers twice (April 2, 8) and Lightning once (April 9). Tampa Bay and Florida will meet on April 15, the final regular-season game for the Panthers.

“Crazy, isn’t it?” said Maple Leafs forward Steven Lorentz, who scored the game-winning goal Sunday. “It really looks like it’s going to come down to the very end, so it makes it even more vital to take care of your own business.”

Indeed, winning these head-to-head matchups will go a long way for one of these three teams to finish in first in the division. Do that, and the odds favor a first-round matchup against the Ottawa Senators. The second and third-place teams, meanwhile, will have the unenviable task of playing each other.

In other words, all three teams hold their fates in their own hands, starting Wednesday when the defending Stanley Cup champions come to Toronto to play the Maple Leafs.

Florida has won both meetings against Toronto, including a 3-2 win on March 13. Panthers forward Sam Bennett was a handful enough for the Maple Leafs in that game, scoring twice. Now he has a new linemate in Brad Marchand, the long-time villain among Toronto fans who will be playing the Maple Leafs for the first time since being traded to the Panthers by the Boston Bruins on March 7.

With this three-team dogfight in the Atlantic coming to a head, no one understands how much the Panthers championship pedigree makes them a tough out more than Lorentz, who won the Cup with Florida a year ago before joining the Maple Leafs as a free agent.

“I’d say you’d be stupid not to know, but everyone’s aware of what’s going on and how much obviously is at stake, especially those two games and the one against Tampa too," Lorentz said

“Listen, in Florida last year, we learned how much of a game of inches it is. We went all the way to Game 7 of the Final against Edmonton and won by the smallest of margins, the smallest of inches, 2-1. Having been part of it, that team knows what it takes. It’s the little things that can cost you a goal and, ultimately, decide championships.

“Listen, they’re a bunch of good dudes over there but also know how intense they are. If Sam Bennett has me on his radar, he’s going to try to take my head off. There’s no taking prisoners over there against that group.”

Especially when rugged forward Matthew Tkachuk returns from a lower-body injury, something Panthers general manager Bill Zito is confident will happen by the playoffs.

Can you imagine a feistier forward line than a Tkachuk-Bennett-Marchand combination? Talk about a tone-setter for a game.

Zito, in fact, told NHL.com that his son Billy said at the time of the Marchand trade he hoped dad’s team put those three players together.

Opponents likely don’t feel the same way.

Of course, the East intrigue cuts much deeper than just the Maple Leafs, Lightning and Panthers.

With 18 days remaining in the regular season, the race for the second wild card features five teams legitimately in the hunt. The Canadiens, thanks to their huge victory against Florida, hold the spot with 77 points and are tied with the New York Rangers, who have played one more game, followed by the Columbus Blue Jackets with 75, and the Detroit Red Wings and New York Islanders, both with 74.

The way these teams continue to leapfrog each other, those standings will continue to change on a daily basis, especially with so many head-to-head games looming.

Consider, for example, the slate of games on April 17, the final day of the season.

The Islanders will be in Columbus. The Red Wings will face their Original Six rivals from Toronto, the Maple Leafs. The Rangers will host the Lightning.

Mass confusion in the standings, NHL style.

Right to the end.

Enjoy.

4 NATIONS MOMENTUM

There’s no doubt that some players experienced a hangover, both physically and mentally, from the emotional 4 Nations Face-Off, which ran from Feb. 12-20 and featured teams from the United States, Canada, Sweden and Finland playing in the first best-on-best hockey in nine years.

Edmonton Oilers star Connor McDavid, for example, went five games without a goal coming out of the tournament. That’s no surprise, given the high he was coming off after scoring the tournament-winning goal for Canada in a 3-2 overtime victory against the United States in Boston.

Having said that, there are players who have flourished since their 4 Nations experience five weeks ago and will be relied upon even more to help their NHL teams in what stands to be a wild final 18 days of the regular season.

With playoff races in both conferences reaching a fever pitch, especially in terms of wild-card spots, here is a look at the top scorers among 4 Nations participants since the tournament ended. Of note: each one of them has averaged a point per game or better in that span.

Roope Hintz, Dallas Stars (Finland)

28 points (five goals, 23 assists), 16 games

Has gone plus-12 in that span, showing just how dominant he’s been.

William Nylander, Toronto Maple Leafs (Sweden)

24 points (nine goals, 15 assists), 19 games

Set a career high of 42 goals with two in Toronto’s 6-5 shootout loss to the San Jose Sharks on Thursday.

Jack Eichel, Vegas Golden Knights (United States)

24 points (eight goals, 16 assists), 17 games

A key cog in the Golden Knights’ 12-3-2 run since the end of 4 Nations.

Auston Matthews, Toronto Maple Leafs (United States)

23 points (nine goals, 14 assists), 19 games

Has failed to register a point just four times in 19 games post-4 Nations.

Sidney Crosby, Pittsburgh Penguins (Canada)

23 points (10 goals, 13 assists), 18 games

Scored overtime goal against the Ottawa Senators on Sunday.

Nathan MacKinnon, Colorado Avalanche (Canada)

22 points (nine goals, 13 assists), 17 games

Cracked 100-point barrier for third consecutive season.

Jesper Bratt, New Jersey Devils (Sweden)

22 points (three goals, 19 assists), 18 games

Has established a career high with 86 points.

Kyle Connor, Winnipeg Jets (United States)

21 points (eight goals, 13 assists), 18 games

Had a goal and assist in 3-1 win against the Vancouver Canucks on Sunday.

J.T. Miller, New York Rangers (United States)

21 points (eight goals, 13 assists), 19 games

Will continued to be relied upon in Rangers' push for a wild-card berth.

Cale Makar, Colorado Avalanche (Canada)

21 points (five goals, 16 assists), 17 games

Needs one goal to equal his single-season high of 28.

Leo Carlsson, Anaheim Ducks (Sweden)

21 points (11 goals, 10 assists), 19 games

The 20-year-old got a huge confidence boost by being named to Sweden’s roster despite playing just one game in the tournament.

Mitch Marner, Toronto Maple Leafs (Canada)

20 points (seven goals, 13 assists), 19 games

Hasn’t missed a beat since being one of Canada’s best players at 4 Nations.

Brandon Hagel, Tampa Bay Lightning (Canada)

19 points (seven goals, 12 assists), 18 games

4 Nations showcased what the Lightning already knew -- that he’s a world-class player.

Connor McDavid, Edmonton Oilers (Canada)

19 points (four goals, 15 assists), 14 games

Currently sidelined with a lower-body injury.

Jake Guentzel, Tampa Bay Lightning (United States)

18 points (10 goals, eight assists), 18 games

His most impressive stat post-4 Nations might be his plus-10 rating.

THE MANY LAYERS OF TORTS

Those of us in the scrum at Scotiabank Arena on Tuesday were struck by the words and body language of the potentially bombastic John Tortorella after the Philadelphia Flyers’ 7-2 loss to the Maple Leafs.

The veteran coach, known for his fierce competitiveness, looked like a man who was at a loss for answers, a rare sight over his 1,620-game NHL coaching career. He pretty well said as much when his press conference started.

More than a few eyebrows were raised when part of Tortorella’s postgame comments included the line, “I’m not really interested in learning how to coach in this type of season, where we’re at right now.” That, coupled with a rift with Cam York in which the defenseman said he took “full responsibility” for his actions” in the disagreement, seemed to set the stage for Tortorella’s firing by the Flyers on Thursday.

Tortorella went 97-107-33 and failed to reach the postseason with Philadephia since being hired in June 2022. In the process, he came honestly by his career reputation of shooting from the lip, never shy to say what was on his mind or wear his emotions on his sleeve.

But for those who want to stereotype the veteran coach as being a combustible character consistently on the verge of snapping, former FOX NFL sideline reporter Erin Andrews revealed another side of Tortorella, one that portrayed him as a teacher and a mentor.

Two weeks ago, Andrews and fellow ex-FOX football broadcaster Charissa Thompson were the headliners at the She Is Football Women’s Summit in Tampa, where they took part in a fan forum. One of the questions asked to them: What was the best advice they’d ever received as they pursued their respective careers?

In the case of Andrews, it came from Tortorella.

Andrews recalled getting her first full-time job in the industry as a rink-side reporter for the Lightning at 22 years old in September 2001, one year after she’d graduated from the University of Florida. Trouble was, she admittedly knew very little about hockey going into the gig and told Tortorella exactly that.

Tortorella was preparing for his second season as coach of the Lightning, who’d gone 12-27-3 with one tie in 43 games after he’d taken over behind the bench midway through the 2000-01 season. While he acknowledged Andrews’ unwavering work to learn about the sport, he pushed her to be better.

Andrews remembered one particular flight on the team charter when Tortorella saw her weeping.

“I started reading a little thing called the Message Boards,” she told the gathering at the summit. “That’s before there were all these other websites. They were talking about my nose being too big, my voice being obnoxious, and not knowing anything about hockey. And he saw me there crying in my seat, and he said, 'I've got to be honest, you've got to have thick skin. If you want to do this, you have to have thick skin.’”

Andrews went on to develop exactly that.

In her year-long stint with the Lightning, Andrews would get quizzed by Tortorella on all things hockey while they were riding planes and buses. He taught her the best way to deal with jet lag was to go directly to the workout room after arriving at the hotel, not sitting or lying on the bed, which would balloon the drowsiness.

In March 2002, Andrews received an offer to join Turner Sports. It opened up the doors to a career path that led her to become one of the best in her profession, with stints at ESPN and FOX where she covered some of the marquee events in sports, none bigger than the Super Bowl.

Through it all, she’s never forgotten how Tortorella’s tutelage, along with the opportunity with the Lightning, served as a springboard to her success, efforts which she is grateful for to this day.

Just another example of the many layers of John Tortorella that fans don’t see during the clips of his many animated press conferences.

QUOTE/UNQUOTE

“It’s what we’re dealt, right? This is our schedule. We’ve got to find a way to get it done. It’s our job. I’ll tell you, it’s been fun hockey, it’s been fun coming together, time on the road, just practicing and building each game, coming back, and holding leads, this is the time of year you want to be playing this type of hockey and we’ve been doing a good job of it.”

-- St. Louis Blues goalie Jordan Binnington on his team’s impressive 10-games-in-17-days run, a span in which they’ve gone 9-1, including nine consecutive victories. Binnington is 10-2-0 with a 2.09 goals-against average and .917 save percentage since starring for Canada at the 4 Nations Face-Off.

THE LAST WORD

A look at four key games with Stanley Cup Playoffs implications in the coming week with less than a month remaining in the regular season.

-- Tuesday, Calgary Flames at Utah Hockey Club: Both teams are in danger of losing pace with the surging Blues for the second wild card in the West, so the loser of this game will have their playoff hopes greatly disrupted.

-- Wednesday, Florida Panthers at Toronto Maple Leafs: Florida is 2-0-0 against Toronto this season heading into this Atlantic showdown.

-- Thursday, Tampa Bay Lightning at Ottawa Senators: Potential first-round matchup.

-- Saturday, New York Rangers at New Jersey Devils: Devils would love to hamper the playoff aspirations of the rival Rangers, who are scrambling to squeeze into the postseason.