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THU. APRIL 17
Player to watch for a point and/or goal: Lucas Raymond, F, DET (at TOR)
The Detroit Red Wings wing leads the team with a career-high 80 points, 53 assists and 37 power-play points in 81 games this season. Raymond also has a career-high 191 shots on goal and 18:57 per game (compared to 17:45 last season). He has five points in his past two games and three points (two goals, one assist) in two games against the Toronto Maple Leafs this season. Per NHL EDGE stats, Raymond is tied for fourth in the NHL in midrange goals (17) and is 10th in power play time percentage (64.9) among forwards. Raymond also ranks highly in midrange shots (82; 94th percentile), total miles skated (241.25; 92nd percentile), offensive zone time percentage (45.6; 90th percentile) and 22-plus mph speed bursts (10; 89th percentile). -- Chris Meaney
Player to watch for shots on goal and/or point: Matvei Michkov, F, PHI (at BUF)
The Philadelphia Flyers rookie leads them with 25 shots on goal in eight games under coach Brad Shaw and is tied for the team-lead in points (nine) over that span. Michkov ranks third among rookies in points (60), second in goals (24) and SOG (193), and is first in even-strength points (44). He is tied with Lane Hutson and Macklin Celebrini for the rookie-lead in points since Mar. 22 (13 points in 11 games). Per NHL EDGE stats, Michkov is in the 94th percentile in long-range shots (25), 87th percentile in midrange SOG (58), 82nd percentile in midrange goals (seven) and 88th percentile in total miles skated on the power play (30.66). -- Meaney
Player to watch for assist and/or point: Kent Johnson, F, CBJ (vs. NYI)
The Columbus Blue Jackets wing has seven points (two goals, five assists) during a five-game point streak as the 22-year-old set career highs in goals (24), assists (33) and points (57) in 67 games this season. Johnson has nine assists in nine games since the start of April which is tied for fourth across the entire NHL over that span. Johnson has found chemistry with frequent center Adam Fantilli (eight goals in April, tied for first in NHL) as the duo have factored on the same Blue Jackets goal five times in the month, including four Fantilli goals. Per NHL EDGE stats, Johnson ranks among the forward leaders in midrange goals (10; 90th percentile) this season. Johnson has six points (three goals, three assists) in seven NHL games against the New York Islanders. -- Troy Perlowitz
Player to watch for point and/or shots on goal: JJ Peterka, F, BUF (vs. PHI)
The Buffalo Sabres wing has 11 points (four goals, seven assists) in his past 10 games and 25 points (11 goals, 14 assists) in 24 games since the 4 Nations Face-Off, second most on the team behind only defenseman Rasmus Dahlin (26) over that span. Peterka has at least one assist in each of his past five games against the Flyers and with one on Thursday would match Gilbert Perreault's all-time Sabres record for longest assist streak against Philadelphia (six games from Jan. 1974 to Feb. 1975). Peterka is an NHL EDGE standout who ranks among the forward leaders in average shot speed (64.79 mph; 94th percentile), midrange shots on goal (67; 90th percentile) and 20-plus mph speed bursts (153; 86th percentile). The Flyers are winless in 14 of their past 20 games (6-12-2) since March 4 and have allowed the second most goals per game (3.95) across the entire NHL over that span. -- Troy Perlowitz
Player to watch for point: Ville Koivunen, F, PIT (vs. WSH)
The Pittsburgh Penguins wing has an assist in each of his past four games and five assists in his past six games, tied with Bryan Rustfor the most on the team over that span (since March 31). Koivunen, who had 55 points (21 goals, 34 assists) in 62 games with the AHL's Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins this season, has been playing alongside Rust and elite center Sidney Crosby since making his NHL debut on March 30. Koivunen's four-game point streak is tied with defenseman Sam Rinzel of the Chicago Blackhawks for the longest active run by an NHL rookie; he is seeking to be the first Penguins rookie with a five-game point streak since defenseman John Marino in November 2019 (six games). Per NHL EDGE stats, Koivunen ranks in the league's 99th percentile in offensive zone time percentage at all strengths (49.1) while five of his 13 shots on goal have come from high-danger areas. The Washington Capitals are winless in seven of their past 11 games (4-6-1) and have been outscored 46-28 during that span (since March 25). -- Perlowitz
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Others to consider for point separately or together:
Sidney Crosby, F, PIT (vs. WSH)
Dylan Larkin, F, DET (at TOR)
Adam Fantilli, F, CBJ (vs. NYI)
Matthew Knies, F, TOR (vs. DET)
Others to consider for goal and/or SOG:
Tage Thompson, F, BUF (vs. PHI)
Brady Tkachuk, F, OTT (vs. CAR)
Bryan Rust, F, PIT (vs. WSH)
John Tavares, F, TOR (vs. DET)
Others to consider for assist:
Rasmus Dahlin, D, BUF (vs. PHI)
Erik Karlsson, D, PIT (vs. WSH)
Artemi Panarin, F, NYR (vs. TBL)
Others to consider for SOG separately or together:
Alex DeBrincat, F, DET (at TOR)
William Nylander, F, TOR (vs. DET)
Bo Horvat, F, NYI (at CBJ)
Nazem Kadri, F, CGY (at LAK)
Line combos to consider:
PIT: Ville Koivunen -- Sidney Crosby -- Bryan Rust
CBJ: Boone Jenner -- Sean Monahan -- Kirill Marchenko
BUF: JJ Peterka -- Ryan McLeod -- Jack Quinn
PHI: Matvei Michkov -- Sean Couturier -- Travis Konecny
DET: Jonatan Berggren -- Dylan Larkin -- Lucas Raymond
OTT: Brady Tkachuk -- Tim Stutzle -- Claude Giroux
