On Thursday, without key players like Mike Matheson, Ivan Demidov and, most importantly, captain Nick Suzuki, the Montreal Canadiens found a way to beat one of the best teams in the NHL and a perennial Stanley Cup contender in the Dallas Stars for their fourth straight win. They won convincingly too, taking a 5-2 victory behind two-goal nights from Alex Newhook and Suzuki's regular winger, Cole Caufield.
The win also underlined how much Montreal has built around Suzuki. Before being sidelined, he had five goals and seven assists for 12 points in just nine games, and the Habs' rapidly improving top line has been a driving force in recent years.
Suzuki broke out this past season with 29 goals and 72 assists for 101 points in 82 games, and it now appears the 100-point mark was not an aberration but his new standard. The 29 goals were in line with his usual output, as he has scored 26 or more in four straight seasons. The biggest jump came in assists, where his 72 were 13 more than his previous career-high of 59 from the season prior.
That makes sense for a 27-year-old maturing into the player he is, and the same is happening for his regular linemates. Caufield finished with 51 goals and is on pace to surpass that mark again this season, while Juraj Slafkovský had a breakout year with 73 points in 82 games.
The trio is rounding into form as Slafkovský is 22 and Caufield is 25, both are becoming their best selves, and all three are signed long term, so this looks like only the beginning. The players behind them add to that picture. Impact players like Demidov, Noah Dobson and Lane Hutson are young and signed long term as well, which means that, barring a slew of unforeseen injuries, Suzuki will have help carrying the offensive load for quite some time.
Elite skating adds another dimension to his Suzuki's game
Suzuki's individual numbers are also very promising, as he remains one of the most elite skaters in the NHL. According to NHL Edge, he has 92 speed bursts between 29 and 32 kilometers per hour, which lands in the 71st percentile and is 23 above the league average.
His 24 bursts between 32 and 35 kilometers per hour rank in the 78th percentile and are eight ahead of the league average, all despite missing four of Montreal's games. His quick feet helped him skate as many as 6.63 kilometers in a game on October 10 against the Detroit Red Wings, a 1-0 Habs win, a total that lands in the 99th percentile for distance covered in a game this season.
The Canadian Olympian has proven time and again that he is not only a top-line center in the NHL but a clear difference maker whenever he is on the ice. His elite skating, consistent shooting ability that has him penciled in for roughly 30 goals a season, and his ability to eat minutes, averaging just under 22 this season, have made Suzuki a bona fide star and a 100-point player.
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