NHL Barometer: Risers and Fallers for the Week

This week's article includes Eichel hot in the Desert, Michkov and Hutson make Calder cases, Knies stays hot. Oettinger large in Big D, the Rat is back, and Faber's rough season continues. 

First Liners (Risers)

Jack Eichel, C, LV: Eichel has had good years in the past since being selected second overall in 2015. Injuries, though, have shortened nearly every campaign Eichel has played. This season, Eichel has missed just one game due to injury and his production has been elite. Eichel pushed his point streak to six games and 13 points (six goals, seven assists) with a helper Saturday and he sits fourth in NHL scoring with a career-high 93 points. He ranks fourth in assists (66) and sits in a 10-player tie for 39th in goals with 27 and is on pace for a 100-plus point campaign.

Matvei Michkov, RW, PHI: The Calder Trophy battle may go down to the last game of the season. Michkov, Lane Hutson – profiled below – and Macklin Celebrini are the three favorites with Dustin Wolf also in the mix. Michkov, who slid to seventh overall in the 2023 draft – is one goal shy of 25 and two points shy of 60 for the season. With interim coach Brad Shaw at the helm after replacing John Tortorella, look for the Flyers to play with a bit more of a wide-open down the stretch, which fits in well with Michkov's talent. 

Jordan Eberle, RW, SEA: Eberle, despite three periods of two scoreless contests in March, is still having a solid month. He has three goals and eight assists in 14 games after going scoreless for the first three contests following him missing 40 games due to pelvis surgery. Combining his pre- and post-surgery totals. Eberle is up to nine goals, 22 points, 52 shots on net and a minus-two rating over 34 appearances. Eberle is skating as the Kraken's top-line right winger, both at even-strength and on the man-advantage. 

Matthew Knies, RW, TOR: Knies had an up-and-down rookie campaign, yet still posted 15 goals and 20 assists in 80 games. He has taken a step forward this season and looks to be closing the season strong. Knies has racked up three goals and eight assists over 14 contests this month. He continues to thrive on the top power-play unit and first line at even-strength. Knies is up to 49 points (14 on the power play), 128 shots, 170 hits, 37 PIM and a minus-4 rating through 69 appearances this season.

Lane Hutson, D, MTL: Ho-hum, Hutson assisted on Montreal's first three goals Sunday. Those helpers upped Hutson's total on the season to 54, as he is the fifth blueliner in NHL history to record 50 assists in his rookie campaign, joining a list that includes Hall of Famers Chris Chelios and Larry Murphy – with Murphy's 60 being the all-time record. In addition, with 59 points, Hutson has a chance of matching or topping Chelios' 64 points from 1984-85 – Montreal's franchise mark for points by a rookie defenseman. 

Artyom Levshunov, D, CHI: The second overall pick in the 2024 Draft, Levshunov is getting a crash course on playing defense in the NHL. Chicago is rightfully using Levshunov heavily at even-strength and on the man-advantage, accelerating his learning curve. Levshunov had five goals, 22 points and 59 PIM in 50 minor-league appearances for AHL Rockford this season prior to his promotion. He has posted four assists in nine games, albeit with a minus-13 rating, though the latter is of little concern to Chicago given where they are in the standings and the purpose of why Levshunov is with the parent club.

Jake Oettinger, G, DAL: Oettinger has won 35 games for the second straight season and 30 for the fourth straight campaign, sitting just two victories shy of matching his career-high of 37, set in 2022-23. He is 35-15-3 with a 2.47 goals-against average (GAA) and a .911 save percentage over 53 appearances. Oettinger has been on a roll recently, winning five straight games, a span in which he's given up just nine goals on 161 shots, good for a .944 save percentage. That stretch of fine play has helped the Dallas stay within striking distance of Winnipeg for first place in the Central Division and Western Conference.

Anthony Stolarz, G, TOR: Stolarz continues to roll for the Maple Leafs, and maybe we all should have seen this coming. He was one of the best backup goalies in the NHL for Florida last season. Stolarz picked up 16 wins in 27 games (16-7-2) with a 2.03 GAA and .925 save percentage and lifted the Stanley Cup in June. He signed a two-year, $5 million contract with the Maple Leafs last July, which looks like a massive bargain. Stolarz has won three straight starts and is now 16-8-3 with a 2.35 GAA and .919 save percentage in 29 games played.   

Others include Leo Carlsson, Roope Hintz, Brayden Point, J.T. Miller.  Zach Hyman, Timo Meier, Artemi Panarin, Nikolaj Ehlers, Boone Jenner, Wyatt Johnston, Tony DeAngelo, Cale Makar, Victor Hedman, Jackson LaCombe, Adin Hill, Filip Gustavsson, James Reimer and Linus Ullmark.

Buy Low

Sean Couturier, C, PHI: Couturier saw his five-game point streak end Saturday, but that doesn't detract from the role and rebound campaign he has been having. The 32-year-old racked up four goals and eight points over that stretch, and he up to 40 points (14 goals, 26 assists) on the season in 72 appearances. After getting off to a hot start and slowing last season, Couturier is following the inverse path, closing the season strongly. With interim coach Brad Shaw at the helm. Couturier should remain productive the balance of the regular season. 

Training Room (Injuries)

Brad Marchand, LW, FLA: Marchand returned from an 11-game absence, a stretch that spans his time in Boston and trade to Florida, on Saturday. The Panthers are deploying him on the team's second line alongside Sam Bennett and Mackie Samoskevich. Marchand notched an assist in his Florida debut while skating 16:30. He is having a down year compared to his normal standards and may need a little bit of time to fit in with his new team and get back into game shape. But he should benefit from the talent around him as he settles in.

Others include Tomas Hertl (right arm, injured March 23, remains sidelined this week), Evgeni Malkin (upper body, missed third straight game Sunday), Jonathan Marchessault (lower body, day-to-day, sat against Philadelphia on Monday), Mattias Ekholm (undisclosed, will miss third straight game Tuesday), Charlie McAvoy (shoulder, practiced Monday, no timeframe for return), and Petr Mrazek (head, will miss at least next three games). 

Fourth Liners/Press Boxers (Fallers) 

Ryan Strome, C, ANA: Strome's inclusion here may be somewhat unfair. With 10 goals and 29 assists in 73 games, he sits just two points shy of both his 2023-24 and 2022-23 production. That output makes his 2021-22 campaign, his final one in New York where he posted 54 points, look like an aberration. He has just three assists his last 13 games and the five-year, $25 million contract he signed with the Ducks in July of 2022 is most certainly a slight overpayment. Anaheim needs to move Leo Carlsson and Mason McTavish up a line and make Strome the third line center. 

Carter Verhaeghe, LW, FLA: Verhaeghe ended a five-game scoreless drought with an assist Sunday, but he has failed to light the lamp in nine contests. During that timeframe Verhaeghe has notched just two helpers. After posting 73 and 72 points, respectively, the prior two seasons, Verhaeghe has seen his production tail off substantially in 2024-25, as he has been limited to just 17 goals and 30 apples in 73 contests. Verhaeghe signed an eight-year, $56 million contract extension with the Panthers last October, a contract that this year looks far less appealing than it did after his prior two campaigns. 

Brock Faber, D, MIN: Faber's sophomore slump continues to linger. He is scoreless in his last 12 games and has just seven goals and 17 assists (10 of his points coming on the power play) in 70 games. Those numbers are a far cry from the 47 points – 16 of which came on the man advantage – Faber posted last year as a rookie. The ice time is actually up this year slightly for Faber, with the main difference his significant decline in helpers, as he has fallen from 39 to 17 this season. Despite the rough campaign, the future is still very bright for Faber. 

Others include Michael Rasmussen, Alex Newhook, Brennan Othmann, Victor Olofsson, Mason Lohrei, Morgan Rielly, Marcus Hogberg and Tristan Jarry (despite shutout Sunday).   

Sell High

Jeremy Swayman, G, BOS: I promise I am not picking on Swayman. His inclusion in this week's column, like all others, is due to merit, or lack thereof, which is why he is on this side of the ledger. Swayman lost his fifth straight game Sunday, but there was a small glimmer of hope – he was able to allow fewer than four goals for the first time during the skid. His rough patch has lowered his season marks to 20-26-6 with a 3.10 GAA and an .893 save percentage over 52 outings. The wins are close to his output the prior three seasons, though that's only because he was sharing the net with Linus Ullmark. His ancillary stats are a far cry from what we have become accustomed to with Swayman.