NHL Who’s Hot, Who’s Not: Mighty Quinn, Canucks Defy Odds

Defenseman Quinn Hughes of the Vancouver Canucks and Toronto center Auston Matthews are among the players making the “Who’s Hot” list once again while a pair of former No. 1 overall draft picks landed on the “Who’s Not” list.

The Colorado Avalanche, New York Islanders and Vegas Golden Knights have the longest active winning streaks, with each winning four games in a row, while Anaheim, Arizona, and Calgary have dropped four straight games.

When looking at the NHL odds and predictions, the Colorado Avalanche (+800), Boston Bruins (+900), and the Vegas Golden Knights (+900) lead the way in the odds of winning the Stanley Cup. The New York Rangers (+1000) and the Dallas Stars (+1100) aren’t far behind in the championship odds.

Keep reading for information on the hottest forwards, defensemen and goalies, as well as players recently struggling, to help with your NHL spread picks.

Who’s Hot

Forwards

• Yegor Chinakov, Columbus Blue Jackets: Chinakov has scored in each of his last three games. He has four goals (on nine shots) and two assists in those games.
• Auston Matthews, Toronto Maple Leafs: Matthews has scored goals in each of his last four games. He has seven goals and three assists during that stretch to push his season totals to 23 goals and 12 assists.

AUSTON MATTHEWS ARE YOU KIDDING?! pic.twitter.com/CA67wRIaqK

— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) December 15, 2023

• Mark Stone, Vegas Golden Knights: Stone had two goals, including the game-winning score in overtime, and two assists in a 5-4 win over Calgary. In a four-game winning streak by the Golden Knights, Stone has three goals and five assists.

Defensemen

• Evan Bouchard, Edmonton Oilers: Bouchard has at least a point in 12 straight games. Over his last five games, he has three goals (two of them being game-winners) and seven assists as Edmonton has won four of its five.
• Noah Dobson, New York Islanders: Dobson has points in five games in a row with five assists over the last two games. In a four-game winning streak by the Islanders, Dobson has seven assists and a +8 defensive rating.
• Quinn Hughes, Vancouver Canucks: Hughes has three assists and a plus/minus rating of +7 over the last three games. One of the front-runners for the Norris Trophy according to the NHL odds, Hughes is on pace to score 25 goals and have 82 assists.

Goaltenders

• Connor Hellebuyck, Winnipeg Jets: Hellebuyck has stopped 108 of 115 shots while winning four starts in a row to propel Winnipeg to second place in the Central Division standings.
• Devon Levi, Buffalo Sabres: After a slow start, one of the top Calder Trophy candidates per the NHL Las Vegas odds is 2-0-1 in his last three games. He has a 1.62 goals-against average during that stretch.
• Juuse Saros, Nashville Predators: Saros is 5-0-0 with a goals-against average and a save percentage of .953 in December. He has allowed just one goal in four of those games and joins Hellebuyck as goalies making this list for the second consecutive week.

Who’s Not

Forwards

• Matty Beniers, Seattle Kraken: Beniers has no goals, one assist and a -5 defensive rating over his last eight games. Even when Seattle scored 11 goals over the last eight games to snap an eight-game losing streak, Beniers failed to register a point.
• Alexis Lafreniere, New York Rangers: The former No. 1 overall pick has no goals in his last 10 games. In six games in December, Lafreniere has no goals, two assists and a -4 plus/minus rating.
• Cole Perfetti, Winnipeg Jets: Perfetti has no goals and no assists over his last five games. He has been held to one shot on goal in two of those contests.

Defensemen

• Kaiden Guhle, Montreal Canadiens: Guhle has no goals and no assists to go with a -7 defensive rating over the last seven games as he makes this list for the second week in a row.
• Brandon Montour, Florida Panthers: After a breakthrough season that saw him record career highs of 16 goals and 57 assists, Montour has no goals and two assists in 13 games this season. He is -4 over the last two games as Florida has dropped back-to-back 4-0 games.
• Owen Power, Buffalo Sabres: Power, a former No. 1 overall selection, has no goals, no assists and a -2 plus/minus rating over his last seven games.

Goaltenders

• Joel Hofer, St. Louis Blues: Hofer is 0-3 with a goals-against average of 4.90 and a save percentage of .807 during that span is tied for the worst in the NHL.
• Jacob Markstrom, Calgary Flames: Markstrom has allowed 10 goals on 65 shots over his last three games.
• Antti Raanta, Carolina Hurricanes: Raanta is 0-3 with a 4.43 goals-against average and .807 save percentage in his last three games.

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