Ridiculously Early 2017-2018 NHL look: Tyler Wong for the Hart Trophy?

We find ourselves 3 games into the preseason and I can’t help myself, I have to provide some insights. Hockey preseason is not that much different from any other sport, drawing conclusions is more art than science. Just because a player has an unbelievable preseason does NOT mean they will succeed in the regular season. Personally, I like to watch the games and draw my conclusions from the quality of play more than the box score and stat sheet. Below are a few things that I’ve ascertained from a way too early look into the season over the first 3 games of preseason.

Los Angeles Kings vs. Vancouver Canucks (4-3 Van) 9/16/2017

Stock up:

Brock Boeser scored a beauty in overtime, if he can maintain this quality of play he could be a force with Vancouver this year.

Jake Muzzin scored a nice goal, was very mobile alert and involved, if this start is any indication of his season he could have a great year for the Kings who appear to be looking for some goal scorers.

Stock down:

Vancouver Canucks defense – they were out of position, lackluster and repeatedly reaching instead of moving their feet. I don’t expect much out of them and they reaffirmed this with their play.

Generally both teams looked to be shaking quite a bit of rust off. I know it’s early and teams are figuring pieces out but the effort in general seemed low.

Las Vegas Golden Knights @ Vancouver Canucks (9-4 VGK) 9/17/2017

Stock up:

Cody Glass was moving his feet reading the ice and moving the puck around. I’m excited to see what he can do this year.

Tyler Wong – with a hat trick in your first outing with the team it’s hard not to be high on the player who has no NHL experience and all of 3 AHL games under his belt. All three on his goals close encounter around 5-10feet out from the net with minimal physical presence from the defense so keep that in mind. Given his size I wouldn’t be surprised if bigger defensemen can eliminate his presence altogether.

VGK Confidence – This is a young team and they played with a lot of energy. I feel confident saying we will see flashes of great play from this group of youngsters but when they lose a few or get down you will see their frustration boil over.

Brock Boesser had a hand in 3 of Vancouver’s four goals and is looking like their best player, his stock is ever increasing at this point.

Stock Down:

Vancouver looked almost tired from this game so perhaps they are getting into game shape? They are not looking like a full unit through the first two games, especially on defense and in net.

Any Vancouver backup goalie who might be ready to step up to become a star for them. Both Richard Bachman and Thatcher Demko were sub average in net.

Philadelphia Flyers @ New York Islanders (3-2 NYI) 9/17/2017

Stock up:

Fresh faces Mike Vecchione and Jori Lehtera scored early which is a promising addition to the team.

John Tavares scored two in the preseason opener to make a bold statement of his expectations of the year.

Mathew Barzal looked sharp on offense and he looked ready to fire often on net this year.

Stock Down:

Islanders defense, a unit that already has a few question marks, looked lackluster and rusty. Nothing they can’t overcome but not a good start.

Travis Sanheim, Phil Myers and Leland Irving combined for some positional misses that allowed Mathew Barzal and John Tavares goals in the matchup.

Looking forward to a great first full week of games!