1. DROUIN IT WELL
Since the start of Tampa Bay's West Coast trip, Jonathan Drouin has been the best player on the ice in each contest.
In the road trip opener against Los Angeles, Drouin feathered a pass from the right circle to the left circle, eluding the sticks of three different Kings, to put the puck perfectly on the tape of Tyler Johnson for a back door one-timer.
A night later in Anaheim, Drouin hit Nikita Kucherov with a fly pattern pass Jameis Winston would be proud of, lobbing the puck from halfway inside his own zone to a streaking Kucherov on the opposite blue line, the Russian never having to break stride as the puck settled on his blade.
Thursday night, Drouin added another jaw-dropper to the highlight reel.
After a puck eluded him at the point on a second period power play, Drouin had to retreat from the zone to regather. Frustrated by his lapse and sensing the Sharks had relaxed a bit, Drouin retrieved the puck and cut sharply, shifting into high gear and nearing a full out sprint as he re-entered the zone. Charging hard toward goal, Drouin switched the puck from his backhand to his forehand in tight on goal and then deposited it at the far post to beat Sharks goalie Aaron Dell.
Drouin shook three Sharks' defensemen and left Dell grasping at air while scoring his 14th goal of the season and team-leading seventh power-play goal of 2016-17.
Since December 1, Drouin has scored 11 goals and added 12 assists in 22 games, an average of 1.05 points per game, ranking tied for seventh for points per game over that span.
And with points in six of his last seven games, Drouin shows no signs of slowing down anytime soon.