Quick Note: A ton of teams will have 4 or more new players on the roster (currently) for week 4. The Blue Jackets, Oilers, Kings, Islanders, Blues, and Capitals all have a good bit of roster turnover to start the new week. Check out some big trades including the Kings acquiring @Fn Waz and @The Gr8 Haxby and Islanders acquiring @l FreeStyle 7 l @Im Daddy Grizz and @FtB x Sauce . Also, enjoy the holidays Games of the Week Monday July 2nd - 10:00 PM EST Edmonton Oilers at New York Islanders The Oilers are coming off their worst week of the season, and the Islanders are coming off their best week. What do these two teams have in common despite their performances last week? They made a bunch of moves to hopefully strengthen their roster. The Oilers (currently) have new acquisitions in @l Bossy l x 22 @xJackz 71 @Mxtayer @l Stastny26 l and @N i n o 27x . The Islanders, aside from those I mentioned above, also added @PIZZA ROMO and @Banak . Based on how many new players there are, I'd have to assume at least one or two play in this game. So, let's see if any of them can be a difference-maker on their first night with their new team. Tuesday July 3rd - 11:00 PM EST Detroit Red Wings at Chicago Blackhawks I think both of these teams haven't quite yet come into their own this season. Regardless, both are sitting at 30 points and right on the playoff bubble. They might both be feeling the pressure a little to start squeezing out as many points they can get out of each game to avoid a dead heat to make the playoffs at the end of the season. Who's more dedicated to the regular season grind? No idea, but it's making for some good story lines so far. Thursday July 5th - 9:00 PM EST Toronto Maple Leafs at Montreal Canadiens The fourth best offense (82 GF for MTL) through three weeks meets the fourth best defense (56 GA for TOR) through three weeks. Not the reason I picked this game, though. Toronto and Montreal both started this season hot and are battling each other and the Senators for the first spot in the Atlantic. They both had, in my opinion, maybe a couple question marks on defense to start the season, and with what the league has seen so far any questions have probably been answered. In fact, Toronto appears to have even turned a weakness into a strength. They may not be separated by a single point by the time this game rolls around, but should be an electrifying game nonetheless. Players to Watch: Grinders Edition @Foote (LW) The Canadiens are rolling through the season, and maybe that's due to a great roster they put together. Nah, it's really because they've got a beauty slotted up at LW. Not only has he won 7 games and is a top 10 scorer this season with 28 points so far, he leads the league in hits. I mean, yeah, he got a major for trying to maim a Buffalo player in week one, but you can't teach this kind of dedication to the physical aspects of the game. Be careful admiring your pass when @Foote is on the ice or you might be admiring your own feet as your tossed into the air. In all seriousness, @Foote is a defenseman trying his hand at forward who hasn't played much LG on NHL 18, and he's having a phenomenal season through the first several weeks. Maybe we can keep an eye pointed towards him this week to see if he can keep it up. @Clarkkyyyy (C) After a tumultuous start on the Flyers, the prototypical "broad street bully" took his talents to Hollywood by way of Arizona. It's hard to argue with the results since he's gotten there. 6-0, 8 goals, 10 assists, 57% at the dot, and 25 hits. Now, the Kings aren't doing so hot; also, I have no idea what the trade to the Devils and back to the Kings for @J a IMI e S x22 means. Regardless, results speak for themselves, so hopefully we see some bone-crunching hits and a few twine-ticklers this week. @Fireph03nix46 (RD) A former first round pick had a tough time performing in the upper leagues and was formerly unable to live up to his CHL season that got him noticed to begin with. Maybe it's safe to say that he's finally arrived on the scene. A pretty good season nearly matching his previous highest win total and a plus player unlike his previous seasons. Like I said above, Toronto definitely had some question marks on defense with @Fireph03nix46 being one of them, and at this point in the season he has definitely performed. One thing that has lived on from previous seasons is his propensity to lay the body with 44 hits this season (and more than half of those coming just last week) he would smash his previous personal best at this pace. Maybe we'll see some other personal bests beaten this week. Milestone Watch Points: @KEAPPS is 1 point away from 500 career points @Duky is 2 points away from 500 career points @Iebren is 5 points away from 400 career points Goals: @cj142 is 3 goals away from 400 career goals @Sejje 19 is 2 goals away from 300 career goals @NEMZER is 2 goals away from 300 career goals Assists: @BigJayAyotte is 3 assists away from 600 career assists @Xx LoL xX 9 is 2 assists away from 400 career assists @jackD00P is 3 assists away from 400 career assists @gundamfreedomx is 1 assist away from 300 career assists @jewbawkka is 1 assist away from 300 career assists @BlG STlCK NlCK is 5 assists away from 300 career assists Hits: @TVK is 3 hits away from 1000 career hits Games Played: @Boany is 2 games away from 300 career games played @Dannyy Briere is 3 games away from 300 career games played @SteveB9211 is 4 games away from 300 career games played Saves: @Winston Payne is 53 saves away from 4000 career saves @JDoolus is 22 saves away from 2000 career saves The Hot Seat Dallas Stars - @Schlemko x 17 I think a lot of people expected Dallas to light it up to start the season. They have a ton of offense up front with @Gilleh @Stewkos @Berube 18 and @Eatchy who they had from the season debut, and they added @xTheos l7l to an already potent offense. @Schlemko x 17 himself was roughly a goal a game and 2 points per game player in NHL 18 before this season. Their defense was lacking post-bidding, but maybe a few trades and a high-scoring offense would remedy that situation. That hasn't really been the case, though. 64 goals for has them at around the 30th percentile. Their performance thus far has them at 6th in the Central, beating only the Jets so far in the standings. Like a lot of teams in the summer, availability probably dictates who they can throw out against any team, so maybe their performance has been compounded by some bad luck. The good news is, they are by no means out of the race. Just 5 points back of the Blues and Hawks, who coincidentally hold the 2nd wildcard spot in the West. Plenty of before even the trade deadline to catch up to the 3rd place in the Central, the Minnesota Wild. So far they haven't lived up to expectations, but that doesn't have much to do with how the rest of the season unfolds.
