Friday Four: Henrik Lundqvist back

Each Friday throughout the season Kevin Weekes will be bringing you his Friday Four. He will be blogging about four players, teams, plays or trends that have caught his eye.

Henrik Lundqvist returns

After serving as a backup to Antti Raanta for four straight games for the New York Rangers, Henrik Lundqvist returned to the net against the Dallas Stars on Thursday. He was outstanding and played the way I expected him to after the long layoff, making 27 saves in a 2-0 win. He should have gotten the shutout but missed some time in the first period after a hit by Cody Eakin. Eakin received a charging penalty and a game misconduct at 9:19 of the first period, and will have a hearing Friday with the NHL Department of Player Safety.
Also the reaction by Raanta after the game said a lot. He was so excited, high-fiving the coaches and then gave Lundqvist a big hug. That's a sign of selflessness and support right there since so many people made a big deal out of the situation.

Nashville Predators

Viktor Arvidsson arguably has been the Nashville Predators' most consistent forward. Clearly he's not the high-end explosive player like James Neal or not as much as a natural point producer as Ryan Johansen. But in terms of consistency, effort and production on a night-to-night basis, you'd have to give him a look.
Arvidsson had an assist in a 5-2 loss to the Minnesota Wild on Thursday and has nine goals and 20 points in 29 games this season, including a current five-game point streak. He's playing in all situations, making big plays and scoring big goals.
However it hasn't all been roses for the Predators, who were doing a lot of the right things in November but haven't yet in December. Goaltender Pekka Rinne was the NHL First Star for November but hasn't played well since that month ended. He's allowed at least three goals in each of his past seven starts, dating to Nov. 29. The Predators have been inconsistent all season, surprising for a team which made the second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs last season and was expected to compete for the Cup this season.

Maple Leafs kids

Every game one if not all of the young stars on the Toronto Maple Leafs has found his way onto the scoresheet: Mitch Marner, Auston Matthews, William Nylander. All of them can be stars, if not superstars, in the League. Matthews scored against his hometown team, the Arizona Coyotes, in a 3-2 shootout loss Thursday. Marner also scored in the game and Nylander had an assist. Matthews has to be in the top-five in the League in terms of shots from the slot. That tells you a lot as a young rookie center to be getting into that zone as often as he does.

Philadelphia Flyers

The Philadelphia Flyers have been incredible with 10 straight wins. And everyone is contributing. We know how good goaltender Steve Mason has been, but their defense has been better with the emergence of rookie defenseman Ivan Provorov, who has made them deeper. All their top forwards, led by Claude Giroux, Jakub Voracek and Wayne Simmonds, are rolling right now. Simmonds is the best net-front player in the League. Usually it's Corey Perry but now it's Simmonds. He's just been that good for them, which is why they are on this run.

HONORABLE MENTION

Chicago Blackhawks goalie Scott Darling didn't play his best game against the New York Islanders at Barclays Center on Thursday, allowing four goals on 28 shots, but he got the win and has played great in the absence of Corey Crawford, who has been out after having an appendectomy Dec. 3. Sticking with the Blackhawks, the League still hasn't found an answer for Patrick Kane and Artemi Panarin. They combined for four points and helped the Blackhawks win 5-4 after they were losing early.
The Minnesota Wild have won six in a row and are breathing down the neck of the Blackhawks in the Central Division. Devan Dubnyk stopped 34 of 36 shots in a 5-2 win against the Predators on Thursday and has a 1.62 goals-against average, a .947 save percentage and four shutouts in 24 games. He's a Vezina favorite for sure.