NHL Weekly: Kipper Kid meets idol Kiprusoff and who is the record transfer of the year?
Most productive player
A pair of players scored eight points this time, they were Edmonton's Connor McDavid and Los Angeles' Kevin Fiala. The Swiss forward scored more goals in four games (3+5), so he gets the priority. He didn't score in the clash between these two at the start of the week, but then added two points against Calgary and three against Vancouver and New Jersey.
He also had a total of 16 shots on goal and added six positive points to the +/- chart.
Goaltender of the Week
There has been speculation in recent weeks that Nashville's clear number one goalie Juuse Saros could be part of one of the trades. If that were indeed the case, Fin is properly spiking his price. He jumped into three games during the week, taking a single goal from Ottawa, Minnesota and Colorado each time and stopping a total of 82 shots.
Highlight of the week
The New Jersey Devils were the third best team in the Eastern Conference last season and their stock was rising, but now they are seven points behind the last relegation spot. Friday's game against Anaheim was very interesting, which the Californian team won 4-3 thanks to 52 saves by Lukas Dostal.
The Czech goalie was the hero thanks to a penalty shot with two seconds left, Jack Hughes didn't even shoot and Dostal celebrated afterwards. "Jack's face says it all, the Devils are done for the season. It's a shame he didn't get much help from anyone on the team," analyst Paul Bissonnette explained. And the other downside for New Jersey? Carolina, the New York Rangers, Florida and Dallas, to name a few, await them in the coming weeks. Nothing easy...
One more reason for the penalty shootout worth mentioning was Frank Vatrano, the creator of the game-winning goal, really couldn't get away with that...
Stat of the Week
Experienced defenseman Brent Burns from Carolina has been playing in the NHL since the 2003/04 season and thanks to that he managed to equal a very specific league record. He started five games in a transfer year (2004, 2008, 2016, 2020, 2024).
From social media
Under the roof of the Scotiabank Saddledome in Calgary, the jersey of popular Finnish goaltender Miikka Kiprusoff headed to the rink on Saturday, and it was a big celebration. Among others, Brendan Peters, the 27-year-old who is better known to the public as the Kipper Kid, arrived.
Years ago, when Kiprusoff was shining in Flames colours, he used to come into the stands in his gear and mask and mimic the goalie's every move. He even had red stubble drawn on his face in marker. Now the two have met in Calgary, and wouldn't you know it - Peters is now a guy who draws designs on goalie masks...
Photo of the week
Joe Sakic, president of the Colorado Avalanche hockey club and former long-time team captain, was also at the Denver Nuggets basketball game. The 54-year-old Canadian still looks the same.
Ladislav Smid's view
"I'll follow up on the Miikka Kiprusoff jersey hanging. I narrowly missed playing with Kipper in Calgary, but the team was still full of players who played with him. He was a hugely popular teammate, I'm told he was a lot of fun, but he was an incredible professional on the ice. It wasn't easy to score on him.
"I still remember him being traded from San Jose to the Flames in 2003, he immediately skyrocketed up there and everything fit him tremendously.
"His numbers were unreal from the start. The club narrowly made the playoffs and that's when the Flames went straight to the Stanley Cup finals, losing in seven games to Tampa. He's the main reason they made it this far. The fans in Calgary still love him and the ceremony clearly showed that."