Welcome to the NHL Star Power Index: A weekly gauge of the players who are controlling substantial buzz around the league. When a player is included on this list it may not be a good thing — it means that they are capturing a large amount of the hockey world’s attention.
These players are in no particular order when it comes to the amount of buzz that they’re creating. We’ll revisit the Star Power Index every week throughout the regular season.
Florida Panthers star Matthew Tkachuk tallied just five goals over the first two weeks of the season. His last two weeks, however, have shown a return to the elite form that helped lead the Panthers to back-to-back Stanley Cup Final appearances.
Tkachuk has racked up five goals and six assists in his last four games, and recently recorded a six-game point streak. The Panthers winger recently put together a two-goal performance in a 3-1 win against the San Jose Sharks on Saturday.
Tkachuk actually ended up scoring the game-winning goal against the Sharks, which was the 25th game-winning tally of his NHL career.
At the 10:05 mark of the second period, Tkachuk had initially dumped the puck into the offensive zone. The Sharks weren’t able to clear the zone, and Tkachuk ended up intercepting the puck. Tkachuk displayed tremendous puck-handling skills as he flipped the puck off of the shoulder of goaltender Mackenzie Blackwood’s for a tremendous goal.
Tkachuk’s goal ultimately was the game-winner due to the fact that the Sharks could only put one goal on the board throughout the contest.
Since Nov. 23, Tkachuk has registered 19 points (five goals & 12 assists) and recorded at least one point in seven of the nine games. He also has four multi-point performances, including two multi-goal games, during that span.
When the pressure mounts during the postseason, Tkachuk always seems to turn his game up to an extremely high level. In recent weeks, Tkachuk has done the same and it’s one of the main reasons that the Panthers are leading the Atlantic Division.
When the Philadelphia Flyers selected Matvei Michkov with the No. 7 pick in the 2023 NHL Draft, it was believed that the franchise would have to be patient since he still was under contract with Russia’s Kontinental Hockey League. While the wait didn’t end up being as long as expected, the Flyers still had to remain patient for their potential franchise cornerstone to come to North America.
Michkov signed his three-year, entry level contract this past summer, and it hasn’t taken long for the winger to showcase his star power in the NHL.
Entering Friday, Michkov ranks first among rookies in points (27) and goals (11). He’s also second among rookies in assists (16). In fact, the Flyers forward is the only NHL rookie that has already reached double-digit goals on the season.
Michkov has tallied two goals and six assists over his last four games. In last Saturday’s 4-3 overtime loss against the Boston Bruins, Michkov became the third teenager in team history to register three consecutive multi-point games as he joined Peter Zezel (1985) and Eric Lindros (1993).
In Saturday’s contest against the Bruins, Michkov registered a two-goal performance as he scored the opening two goals of the game.
At the 7:24 mark of the opening period, Flyers defenseman Emil Andrae let a shot go from the point that was blocked in the slot. Luckily for the Flyers, forward Sean Couturier was able to come up with the loose puck and shuffle it over to Michkov. The Russian certainly didn’t miss his opportunity as he deposited a one-timer into the back of the net for a power-play goal.
Michkov also got into the scoring column late in the first period when he was the beneficiary of a beautiful find from defenseman Travis Sanheim. The Flyers rookie scored on a bang-bang goal just to the left of Bruins goaltender Jeremy Swayman to give his team a 2-0 lead at the time.
Over the first two months of the season, it’s been clear that it’s a two-horse race for the Calder Trophy between Michkov and No. 1 pick Macklin Celebrini. Considering the pace that Michkov is on, the Flyers forward has to be viewed as the overwhelming favorite to earn that honor in June.
While Michkov has been the most impressive rookie from an offensive standpoint, Montreal Canadiens defenseman Lane Hutson has been turning heads on the defensive end of the ice.
Hutson recorded an assist in Monday’s 3-2 win against the Anaheim Ducks, and made history in the process. The 20-year old blue-liner extended his point streak to seven consecutive games, which is the longest by a rookie defenseman in franchise history. Hutson also is one of eight rookie defensemen in NHL history with at least 21 assists across his first 30 career games.
Hutson has racked up eight assists across his last eight games, and saw his point streak finally come to an end in Thursday’s 9-2 loss against the Pittsburgh Penguins.
In Monday’s win against the Ducks, Hutson helped get the scoring started for the Canadiens.
Just 2:36 into the opening period, Hutson was able to pinch the puck along the boards and keep it in the offensive zone. Hutson then fired the puck across to teammate Nick Suzuki, who set up offseason acquisition Patrik Laine for the sensational one-timer goal from the face-off circle.
Hutson has been nothing but a model of consistency recently as he tallied one assist in four consecutive games prior to Thursday. His playmaking skills on the blue line have been a breath of fresh air for a Montreal team that has been in need of an elite defenseman since Shea Weber left.
The Canadiens defenseman ranks second among rookies in points (19), while leading all rookies in assists (21). Hutson continues to provide the offensive support that the Canadiens need as they move towards rebuilding their roster.
Adin Hill was an integral part of the Vegas Golden Knights team that won a Stanley Cup back in 2023. As the regular season rolls along, Hill is starting to regain his elite form that made him a force during Vegas’ impressive Stanley Cup run.
Hill has been thriving across his last three games as he recorded wins in all of those contests. In addition, the veteran netminder has registered a 1.33 goals-against-average to go along with a .955 save percentage over that stretch.
Most recently, Hill provided a stabilizing presence in between the pipes in the Golden Knights’ 3-2 overtime win against the Winnipeg Jets on Thursday. In fact, Hill stopped 18 of the 20 shots that the Jets threw at him, including turning aside eight of the nine shots that he faced in the third period and overtime.
While Hill has been tremendous over the past three contests, he’s been having quite a successful run over the last month. Hill has allowed two or fewer goals in eight of his last nine games, while even registering a shutout during that span.
The Golden Knights have played Ilya Samsonov a fair amount in the crease this season, but it’s clear that Hill is the number one option in net at the current moment. Considering that Hill has done it when the lights are the brightest, his recent run isn’t exactly a huge surprise.
