Flames-Ducks, Maple Leafs-Wild highlight weekend schedule

Each Friday, NHL Network and ESPN analyst Kevin Weekes will provide readers with three games he is looking forward to that weekend:

Calgary Flames at Anaheim Ducks (Friday, 10 p.m. ET; SN1, SNE, SNO, SNP, BSW, ESPN+, NHL LIVE)

This should be a great divisional matchup between two surprising teams this season. The Flames are playing much better defensively and are allowing an NHL-low 1.95 goals per game. Darryl Sutter should receive votes for the Jack Adams Award as NHL coach of the year for the way the Flames have responded this season after a tough season in 2020-21. Johnny Gaudreau (26 points), Elias Lindholm (23 points) and Andrew Mangiapane (16 goals) lead them offensively and Jacob Markstrom is the Vezina Trophy leader right now. He has a 1.76 goals-against average and .939 save percentage in 18 games, and five of his nine wins are by shutout.
John Gibson also is playing outstanding. The Ducks goalie has a 2.68 GAA, .915 save percentage and 10 wins in 18 games. Captain Ryan Getzlaf was looking rejuvenated before missing a 6-5 win against the Vegas Golden Knights on Wednesday because of a lower-body injury that will sideline him week to week. He has scored 20 points (one goal, 19 assists) in 23 games, already topping last season's total of 17 points (five goals, 12 assists) in 48 games. Troy Terry has played like a Hart Trophy candidate. The forward has scored 25 points (15 goals, 10 assists) in 23 games, including a 16-game point streak earlier this season. And rookies forward Trevor Zegras and defenseman Jamie Drysdale have added an exciting element to the Ducks.

St. Louis Blues at Florida Panthers (Saturday, 1 p.m. ET; NHLN, SN, BSFL, BSMW, NHL LIVE)

The Blues and Panthers each had huge comeback wins Tuesday. The Blues were losing 3-0 to the Tampa Bay Lightning and won 4-3 in a shootout. The Panthers came back from down 4-1 in the third period to win 5-4 against the Washington Capitals. Each team is a Stanley Cup contender.
St. Louis looks faster and quicker than in previous seasons. Jordan Binnington was placed into NHL COVID-19 protocol Thursday, but the goalie has been sharp. Young forwards Jordan Kyrou (23 points) and Robert Thomas (22 points) are leading the way and are the top two scorers on the team. And they still have center Ryan O'Reilly, who does everything offensively and defensively. Florida has gotten excellent goaltending from Sergei Bobrovsky (10-1-2, 2.38 GAA, .923 save percentage, 14 games) after a tough season in 2020-21. The return of defenseman Aaron Ekblad from a broken left leg he sustained in March has had a huge impact, and what they've been able to do without injured center Aleksander Barkov has been impressive.

Toronto Maple Leafs at Minnesota Wild (Saturday, 7 p.m. ET; CBC, SNO, SNW, SNP, BSN, BSWI+, ESPN+, NHL LIVE)

Toronto can set the longest road winning streak in its history with a victory in Minnesota, which would be its eighth straight. The Maple Leafs dominated the Colorado Avalanche at home in an 8-3 win Wednesday. They are 15-2-0 in 17 games since a 2-4-1 start to the season. The big four of forwards John Tavares, Auston Matthews, William Nylander and Mitch Marner, combined with the goaltending of Jack Campbell, have made the Maple Leafs one of the best teams in the League this season.
Minnesota is led by forward Kirill Kaprizov, who got off to a slow start in his second NHL season but has turned it on lately. He has scored 10 points (four goals, six assists) in his past four games and leads the Wild with 28 points (nine goals, 19 assists) in 23 games. Forward Marcus Foligno is an unsung hero for them who has provided not only leadership and toughness but offense as well with 15 points (nine goals, six assists) in 23 games. I also have liked what I've seen from Cam Talbot, who has taken the No. 1 goalie role and mentored backup Kaapo Kahkonen at the same time. The Wild have become a much harder team to play against.