Reverse Retros and Some Early Parity
We’ve had some interesting parity in the NHL this past week as teams are beginning to show glimpses of their respective identities. In this week’s edition of The Puck Bulletin, we’ll highlight the announcement of this year’s Reverse Retro jerseys and look at our usual Weekly Roundup and Player Spotlight.
Reverse Retros have Arrived
This past week, the NHL and Adidas revealed their 2022-2023 Reverse Retro jerseys for all 32 NHL teams. Jersey collectors have long awaited the return of Reverse Retros after their successful first launch in the shortened 2020-2021 NHL season.
Having been born in the 90s, I love many of these retro jersey designs. Some initial favorites appear to be Washington, Tampa Bay, and the New York Islanders, while many fans seem to be critical of Chicago and Detroit. I’m sure many of our opinions will change once we see these jerseys on ice beginning this November!
The Weekly Roundup
Atlantic:
Boston Bruins (10 pts | 5-1-0)
LW: W 5-3 FLA, L 5-7 OTT, W 2-1 ANA, W 4-3 MIN
10/25 vs. DAL, 10/27 vs. DET, 10/28 @ DET
The Bruins lead the NHL in points.
Florida Panthers (9 pts | 4-1-1)
LW: L 3-5 BOS, W 4-3 PHI, OTL 2-3 TBL, W 3-2 NYI
10/25 @ CHI, 10/25 @ PHI, 10/29 vs. OTT
Aaron Ekblad is back on LTIR, but Florida still looks good.
Buffalo Sabres (8 pts | 4-1-0)
LW: W 4-2 EDM, W 6-3 CGY, W 5-1 VAN
10/25 @ SEA, 10/27 vs. MTL, 10/29 vs. CHI
The Sabres looked dominant in Western Canada this week.
Detroit Red Wings (8 pts | 3-0-2)
LW: OTL 4-5 LAK, OTL 3-4 CHI, W 5-1 ANA
10/25 vs. NJ, 10/27 @ BOS, 10/29 vs. MIN
The Tyler Bertuzzi injury hurts this team, but they picked up points in all 3 games this past week.
Toronto Maple Leafs (8 pts | 4-2-0)
LW: L 2-4 ARI, W 3-2 DAL, W 4-1 WPG
10/24 @ VGK, 10/27 @ SJS, 10/29 @ LAK, 10/30 @ ANA
Toronto’s tough loss to open the week cannot NOT be their highlight of the week.
Ottawa Senators (6 pts | 3-2-0)
LW: W 7-5 BOS, W 5-2 WSH, W 6-2 ARI
10/24 vs. DAL, 10/27 vs. MIN, 10/29 @ FLA
The Sens had a perfect week after an 0-2 start.
Tampa Bay Lightning (6 pts | 3-3-0)
LW: L 2-3 PHI, W 3-2 FLA, W 5-3 NYI
10/25 @ LAK, 10/26 @ ANA, 10/29 @ SJS
Tampa seems to be finding their game after a less than ideal first week.
Montreal Canadiens (6 pts | 3-3-0)
LW: W 3-2 PIT, W 6-2 ARI, L 2-5 DAL
10/25 vs. MIN, 10/27 @ BUF, 10/29 @ STL
Montreal had a nice win against the Pens but find themselves at the bottom of the competitive Atlantic division for the time being.
Metropolitan:
Pittsburgh Penguins (9 pts | 4-0-1)
LW: OTL 2-3 MTL, W 6-1 LAK, W 6-3 CBJ
10/24 @ EDM, 10/25 @ CGY, 10/28 @ VAN, 10/29 @ SEA
The Penguin offense continues to buzz for the most part.
Philadelphia Flyers (8 pts | 4-2-0)
LW: W 3-2 TBL, L 3-4 FLA, W 3-1 NSH, L 0-3 SJS
10/27 vs. FLA, 10/29 vs. CAR
Torts has fully arrived, benching Kevin Hayes and Travis Konecny for the entire 3rd period in their loss against San Jose.
Carolina Hurricanes (7 pts | 3-1-1)
LW: W 5-1 SEA, L 4-6 EDM, OTL 2-3 CGY
10/24 @ VAN, 10/28 vs. NYI, 10/29 @ PHI
The Canes’ PP woes appear to have carried over from last year’s playoffs.
New York Rangers (7 pts | 3-2-1)
LW: W 6-4 ANA, OTL 2-3 SJS, L 1-5 CBJ
10/25 vs. COL, 10/26 @ NYI, 10/29 @ DAL, 10/30 @ ARI
The Rangers had two surprising losses this week.
New Jersey Devils (6 pts | 3-2-0)
LW: W 4-2 ANA, W 4-1 NYI, W 2-1 SJS
10/24 vs. WSH, 10/25 @ NJD, 10/28 vs. COL, 10/30 vs. CBJ
New Jersey looked pretty bad the first week of the season but have gained some traction.
Washington Capitals (6 pts | 3-3-0)
LW: W 6-4 VAN, L 2-5 OTT, W 4-3 LAK
10/25 @ NJD, 10/27 @ DAL, 10/29 @ NSH
Still not sure what to think of this Caps team…
Columbus Blue Jackets (6 pts | 3-4-0)
LW: W 4-3 VAN, W 5-3 NSH, L 3-6 PIT, W 5-1 NYR
10/25 vs. ARI, 10/28 vs. BOS, 10/30 @ NJD
Some inconsistency to the Jackets game this week, but that is expected with this team.
New York Islanders (4 pts | 2-4-0)
LW: W 5-2 SJS, L 1-4 NJD, L 3-5 TBL, L 2-3 FLA
10/26 vs. NYR, 10/28 @ CAR, 10/29 vs. COL
A tough end to the week for the Isles getting swept in the Florida double.
Central:
Dallas Stars (9 pts | 4-0-1)
LW: W 4-1 WPG, OTL 2-3 TOR, W 5-2 MTL
10/24 @ OTT, 10/25 @ BOS, 10/27 @ WSH, 10/29 vs. NYR
The Stars have looked like perhaps the best team in hockey these past two weeks.
Colorado Avalanche (7 pts | 3-2-1)
LW: W 6-3 MIN, OTL 3-4 WPG, L 2-3 SEA, W 3-1 VGK
10/25 @ NYR, 10/28 @ NJD, 10/29 @ NYI
Gabriel Landeskog is expected to miss 12 weeks after undergoing knee surgery.
St. Louis Blues (6 pts | 3-0-0)
LW: W 4-3 SEA, W 2-0 EDM
10/24 @ WPG, 10/26 vs. EDM, 10/27 @ NSH, 10/29 vs. MTL
The Blues have played the fewest games in the NHL but remain the only undefeated team.
Chicago Blackhawks (6 pts | 3-2-0)
LW: W 4-3 DET, W 5-4 SEA
10/25 vs. FLA, 10/27 vs. EDM, 10/29 @ BUF, 10/30 vs. MIN
The young Blackhawks completed two comeback wins this past week.
Nashville Predators (5 pts | 2-4-1)
LW: L/SO 3-4 LAK, L 3-5 CBJ, L 1-3 PHI
10/27 vs. STL, 10/29 vs. WSH
Nashville has yet to beat any team in the NHL not named the Sharks.
Winnipeg Jets (4 pts | 2-3-0)
LW: L 1-4 DAL, W 4-3 COL, L 2-5 VGK, L 1-4 TOR
10/24 vs. STL, 10/27 @ LAK, 10/28 @ ARI, 10/30 @ VGK
Scoring has looked to be a bit of an issue for the Jets, but an OT win in Colorado showed this team can play.
Minnesota Wild (3 pts | 1-3-1)
LW: L 3-6 COL, W 4-3 VAN, OTL 3-4 BOS
10/25 @ MTL, 10/27 @ OTT, 10/29 @ DET, 10/30 @ CHI
The Wild had another not-so-great week but have a favorable schedule this week.
Arizona Coyotes (2 pts | 1-4-0)
LW: 4-2 TOR, L 2-6 MTL, L 2-6 OTT
10/25 @ CBJ, 10/28 vs. WPG, 10/30 vs. NYR
The Yotes ALWAYS get points in Toronto.
Pacific:
Calgary Flames (8 pts | 4-1-0)
LW: W 3-2 VGK, L 3-6 BUF, W 3-2 CAR
10/25 vs. PIT, 10/29 vs. EDM
Battle of Alberta Round 2 coming up this week.
Vegas Golden Knights (8 pts | 4-2-0)
LW: L 2-3 CGY, W 5-2 WPG, L 1-3 COL
10/24 vs. TOR, 10/25 @ SJS, 10/28 vs. ANA, 10/30 vs. WPG
The Golden Knights went 1-2 last week, but their game is looking good.
Seattle Kraken (6 pts | 2-3-2)
LW: L 1-5 CAR, OTL 3-4 TBL, W 3-2 COL, L 4-5 CHI
10/25 vs. BUF, 10/27 vs. VAN, 10/29 vs. PIT
Besides the Carolina game, the Kraken have been playing everybody close, which is a good sign for this team.
Los Angeles Kings (6 pts | 3-4-0)
LW: W 5-4 DET, W 4-3 NSH, L 1-6 PIT, L 3-4 WSH
10/25 vs. TBL, 10/27 vs. WPG, 10/29 vs. TOR
The Kings gave been a underwhelming to open the season, but I am confident they will find their game.
Edmonton Oilers (4 pts | 2-3-0)
LW: L 2-4 BUF, W 6-4 CAR, L 0-2 STL
10/24 vs. PIT, 10/26 @ STL, 10/27 @ CHI, 10/29 @ CGY
The Oilers offense flourished against a defensively-sound Carolina team, but struggled in their other games this week.
San Jose Sharks (2 pts | 2-6-0)
LW: L 2-5 NYI, W 3-2 NYR, L 1-2 NJD, W 3-0 PHI
10/25 vs. VGK, 10/27 vs. TOR, 10/29 vs. TBL
After a tough one on Long Island, the Sharks got to playing some competitive hockey.
Anaheim Ducks (3 pts | 1-4-1)
LW: L 4-6 NYR, L 2-4 NJD, L/SO 1-2 BOS, L 1-5 DET
10/26 vs. TBL, 10/28 @ VGK, 10/30 vs. TOR
The young Ducks had a tough week going 0-3-1 and next week’s schedule is only tougher.
Vancouver Canucks (2 pts | 0-4-2)
LW: L 4-6 WSH, OTL 3-4 CBJ, OTL 3-4 MIN, L 1-5 BUF
10/24 vs. CAR, 10/27 @ SEA, 10/28 vs. PIT
The Canucks continue to squander leads and are the only winless team in the NHL.
Player Spotlight
Dominik Kubalik, Detroit Red Wings
This week’s player spotlight is on Detroit Red Wings winger Dominik Kubalik. The 27-year-old Czech is the surprise leading scorer for the Red Wings through the first two weeks of the season. Kubalik has tallied 8pts (3g,5a) while taking advantage of increased ice time on Detroit’s 1st line as Tyler Bertuzzi is out with an injury.
Kubalik, who was drafted by Los Angeles in 2013, began his NHL career with the Chicago Blackhawks in the 2018-2019 season, where he put up an impressive 30 goals and 16 assists in his rookie season and ultimately finished 3rd in the Calder voting as the NHL’s top rookie. After two more seasons in Chicago where he tallied 17 goals and 15 goals, respectively, Detroit offered Kubalik a 2-year, $5 million contract on the opening day of free agency this past year. Early signs point to Kubalik getting back to the game his rookie season showed potential for. Even though players like Dylan Larkin, Mo Seider, and Lucas Raymond are the talk of the town in Detroit, don’t sleep on Dominik Kubalik… a potential unsung hero in Hockeytown.