McKenna’s Musings: Huberdeau’s MVP candidacy, Husso’s rise in St. Louis and more!

Mike McKenna
Mike McKenna(MikeMcKenna56)
McKenna’s Musings: Huberdeau’s MVP candidacy, Husso’s rise in St. Louis and more!

The Hart Trophy for league MVP: is Jonathan Huberdeau the clubhouse leader at the turn?

First, it was Connor McDavid as a lock to win, before the Oilers fell off the map.

Next up was Alexander Ovechkin, who’s been racking up assists just as easily as goals this year.

But lately, Jonathan Huberdeau has been putting up points at a torrid pace, including 25 in his last 12 games. He’s tied for first in NHL scoring and nothing seems to be slowing down the Florida Panthers. What impresses me so much about Huberdeau is that it took until his seventh NHL season for his game to really take off.

Aleksander Barkov has long been regarded as the best player on the Panthers, but Huberdeau is challenging that notion on a grand scale.

This is Patrick Kane and Jonathon Toews version 2.0. Maybe even better. Florida is scary good.

Could Ville Husso take over the crease in St. Louis?

The short answer is: yes. The long answer is: it’s complicated.

Here’s what I know.

Blues head coach Craig Berube will do whatever he thinks is necessary to win. Remember back to 2018-19, when Jordan Binnington stormed onto the scene and led St. Louis to the organization’s first Stanley Cup? Berube wasn’t afraid to run with the rookie goaltender. Not that Binnington gave the bench boss much of a choice. He was lights out.

Something similar is going on now. Husso has won five straight games. He started three in a row before Berube went back to Binnington against Calgary on Monday night. And earlier that day the NHL announced Husso as the second star of the week.

I don’t think Binnington’s past is forgotten. But there’s no denying that the Blues have played better in front of Husso this season. Will that change? Hard to predict. But I can’t see Binnington laying down and ceding his crease to his understudy.

The untold story is that Binnington has faced arguably the most difficult workload in the NHL. Some of the first periods he’s had to endure have been a nightmare in terms of the chances St. Louis has given up. Husso has had a slightly easier route.

I don’t see this storyline going away any time soon. It’s tricky. Husso is set to be an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season, while Binnington has five years remaining on his contract with a salary cap hit of $6 million. So Blues GM Doug Armstrong might have some stickhandling to do.

But it’s a good problem to have. Husso is on top of his game. Binnington is a proven Stanley Cup winner. A 1-2 punch in the crease is a luxury some teams don’t have. 

Will there be a bidding war for Ottawa Senators goaltender Anton Forsberg?

There will be no shortage of teams looking for goaltending towards the trade deadline. How many actually make a move, I’m not sure. But I do think the Senators have a valuable asset in 29-year old goaltender Anton Forsberg. On a team as poor as the Senators, it’s a minor miracle that Forberg has posted a .912 save percentage.

All eyes are on the Oilers right now to make a move in goal. I think Forsberg would be a low-risk gamble for them at a very affordable cap hit.

I played with Forsberg in the AHL, when he first came over from Sweden. I’ve seen his talent first hand. It’s always surprised me that he hasn’t been able to stick in the NHL, but I think he’s opened some eyes this year.

Forsberg is set to become an unrestricted free agent at the end of the 2021-22 season. At this point, he has leverage. GM Pierre Dorion will have to choose whether to extend him or get something in return. I suspect several teams will have interest.

How is Chris Kreider leading the NHL in goals scored?

Simple! He goes to the front of the net. The New York Rangers forward has 30 goals so far on the season. 24 of them have been scored directly in front of the net. 15 on the power play.

You’d think NHL teams would have clued in on how to stop this guy by now. But they haven’t. He’s riding a six-game goal-scoring streak – his longest of the season. He’s actually gotten better as the 2021-22 season progresses.

Not to take anything away from Kreider, but a lot of it has to do with the quality of his teammates, especially on the power play. Every player in the NHL would salivate at the chance to play with Adam Fox, Artemi Panarin, Mika Zibanejad and Ryan Strome on the power play. They can snap it around with the best of them.

It’s completely conceivable that Kreider pots 50 goals this year. The puck just seems to find him in front of the net. And at this point, there’s pride on the line. He’s leading the NHL in goals scored. Winning the Rocket Richard trophy is a huge feather in any player’s cap.

In some ways it reminds of Jonathon Cheechoo’s magical 2005-06 season, where he led the NHL with 56 goals. Everything lined up perfectly. But Cheechoo was never able to replicate that performance. His goals scored dropped rapidly and he ultimately found himself out of the NHL.

I don’t see that happening with Kreider. He skates so well and his game is built for today’s NHL. Will he be a perennial 50-goal scorer? I’d be surprised. I think 35-40 is a more realistic benchmark for the 30-year old winger. But who’s to say? The Rangers have most of their top players – Fox, Zibanejad, Panarin – on long-term contracts. And that’s good for Chris Kreider.

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