Every NHL season comes with surprises, both good and bad, both with individual and teams successes and failures. This season is no different. Two teams, one in each conference, have been surprises and could win their division with continued solid play. The Anaheim Ducks and Detroit Red Wings are two teams that most may not see in first place but they have played well enoug to do so. How are they doing it?
Detroit Red Wings
The Red Wings have a record of 13-8-1 for 27 points and are in first place in the Atlantic Division despite having a minus goal differential of -4 (66-70). They have a winning record inside of the division, going 4-2-1 early in the season, and are 5-4-1 in their last 10 games. In the overall league standings, they are eighth and have the 11th best winning percentage of .614.
Rookie forward Emmitt Finnie has been a bright spot for the offense and is 10th in rookie scoring with 10 points. Captain Dylan Larkin leads the team in scoring, posting 24 points on 12 goals and 12 assists in 22 games. Goaltender Cam Talbot has been a star between the pipes. he has a record of 9-2 with a 2.66 goals against average and a save percentage of .899.
Anaheim Ducks
What an opening two months for the Ducks. Posting a 14-7-1 record for 29 points, good for first place in the tough Pacific Division. Anaheim has outscored their opponents 80-69 and has scored the most goals in the division and the second most goals in the league. They are 3-1 against the teams in the Pacific Division and are tied with the most wins in their last ten games with six. The Ducks are fourth in the overall league standings and have the fourth-best winning percentage with a .659.
The Ducks are third in goals per game (3.59), fourth in shots for per game (30.0), and seventh in shots against per game (30.1). Goaltender Lukas Dostal is second in the league with 11 wins and first in saves with 454. Young star Leo Carlsson is fifth in league scoring with 29 points and rookie Beckett Sennecke is second in rookie scoring with 16 points.
Nobody expected Detroit and Anaheim to be this successful this early in the season. Nobody expected them to be leading their respective divisions at any point this season. Yes, it is still early. However, you cant win your division this early but one team can surely lose it this early holds true to both teams getting off to good starts. Getting off to bad starts for both teams could have sunk them early.
Young players on both teams are holding their own for Anaheim and Detroit and are starting to prove they can hang with the big boys with their all-around play. Overall both teams are playing solid hockey and tme will tell if they can hold on to these division leads. Regardless, both teams deserve early success based on how they constructed their rosters in the offseason with veterans and youth.