Powers Detroit over Anaheim

By Chris Turner, Zetterbergfan.com, November 14, 2009

Superstar forward Henrik Zetterberg had a third-period hat trick and a career-high five point game, lifting his Detroit Red Wings to a big 7-4 victory over their conference rivals, the Anaheim Ducks, tonight on home ice at the Joe Louis Arena.

Zetterberg played the best regular-season game of his seven-season NHL career, centering a line with wingers Dan Cleary and rookie Ville Leino and going up against the Duck’s top forwards Corey Perry and Ryan Getzlaf.

Henrik started his point scoring off assisting on a late 1^st period power play goal by defenseman Brian Rafalski. With only 44 seconds left in the opening period, Zetterberg raced into the offensive end, forechecking in the left corner. Z managed to just tip an attempted clearing pass by Anaheim defenseman Nick Boynton. The deflected pass caromed through the slot to a wide-open Rafalski, who stepped into it with a booming slapshot that got through the five-hole of goalie Jonas Hiller. The goal gave the Wings a 2-0 lead heading into the 1^st intermission.

The rest of Zetterberg’s points would come in the 3^rd period. Just five minutes into the final period, Detroit had the man-advantage with the score tied 2-2. Again, Z was aggressively pursuing the puck in the offensive zone and deflected another clearing attempt by the Ducks. This time is was Perry. The deflected puck was gloved down by Red Wings Captain Nicklas Lidstrom at the blueline and sent along the right boards to Pavel Datsyuk. Zetterberg took a pass from Datsyuk in the right face-off circle and then backhanded a shot high over the net, hard off the glass, and around to Rafalski. Rafalski zipped a nice shot-pass to Datsyuk at the right side of the crease for an easy deflection into the open net. The whole play was due to Henrik’s pressure on the defender and keeping the puck in the offensive zone. On the play, Zetterberg collected his 2^nd assist of the game. It was his team-leading 14^th assist of the season.

Midway through the 3^rd, with the score knotted up at three apiece, Cleary battled the puck into the offensive zone along the left wing boards then dropped a sweet cross-ice pass to Z streaking into the play. Hank took the pass at the top of the face-off circles and fired a hard slapper that Duck’s defensman Ryan Whitney and bounces to Hiller’s left pad. The netminder makes the kick save, but Zetterberg follows his original shot into the slot, picks up the rebound, and lifts a back-handed shot over the sprawling goalies head.

Once more, the Wings had the go-ahead goal. However, just a few minutes later Zetterberg backchecked brilliantly, knocking the puck away from a breaking Anaheim forward by cleanly tapping the player’s stick. Z was nailed with a bogus slashing penalty, which was followed promptly by a too many men on the ice call. The Duck’s scored on the subsequent 5-on-3 power play with just over five minutes left in the match. But their momentum didn’t last long. Cleary carried the puck across the blueline and dished another pass across to Zetterberg on his right, setting up a one-timer from the top of the face-off circle. Henrik slapped a hard shot that waffled, glanced off of Hiller’s left shoulder, hit the right post, and found its way into the far side of the net. Zetterberg’s 2^nd tally of the night, with just 4:31 remaining on the clock, would end up being the game winner, his 4^th game-winning goal of the season.

But Z wasn’t done yet. There were only a few seconds left in the game with Detroit now up 6-4, when defenseman Niklas Kronwall picked up a loose puck in the Wing’s own end and sent it over to Zetterberg striding down the left wing side. Henrik skated it out of the defensive end and snapped a sharp wrister from just past center ice and into the empty net to seal the win and to earn his 4^th career hat trick and his first ever five-point game in his 450^th career NHL game. The hat trick was the first for a Red Wings in more than a full season, since Z scored the last one on March 19^th, 2008 versus the Columbus Blue Jackets.

The goal was also Hank’s team-leading 22^nd point. With 8 goals and 14 assists through 18 games, Zetterberg is on pace for 36 goals, a career-high 64 assists, and 100 points this year.

Henrik Zetterberg's Third-period Hat Trick Lifts Red Wings

By Chris McCosky, Detroit News, November 14, 2009

Lest there was any doubt about Henrik Zetterberg being among the ultra-elite centermen in the NHL hockey league, witness his five-point performance in leading the Red Wings to a rollicking 7-4 victory over the Anaheim Ducks on Saturday night.

"He's playing as good as he ever has right now," Niklas Kronwall said. "Shift after shift he's out there against the other team's top line. Z just kind of took it over tonight."

That he did. He scored three goals in the final 10:50 to keep the Wings on top of a wild seesaw ride in the third period.

 “It was just nice to get the two points," said Zetterberg, who now has eight goals and 14 assists on the season. "I had a lot of chances early. I think I had five shots on one shift in the first period and I knew I just had to keep going. I got two nice passes from Clears (Danny Cleary) and they ended up in the net. It was nice to finally get some."

Impressively, Zetterberg did most of his work playing against another elite center, Ryan Getzlaf, who figured in all four of the Ducks goals (one goal and three assists).

"I thought that whole line was great," coach Mike Babcock said of Zetterberg, Cleary and Ville Leino, a line that accounted for four of the seven goals. "I thought Cleary (goal and two assists) was fantastic. But whenever we play against the dominant players in this league, Zetterberg always lifts his game and he did that tonight."

…Zetterberg got his hat trick, his first since March 19, 2008, with an empty-netter with 0.7 seconds left.

Zetterberg's Big Night Helps Wings Outlast Ducks

ByJohn Kreiser, NHL.com, November 14, 2009

Henrik Zetterberg kept scoring until the Anaheim Ducks ran out of comebacks.

Zetterberg had a third-period hat trick and added a pair of assists for a career-high five-point night as the Red Wings held off the Ducks 7-4 on Saturday.

"It was pretty crazy back and forth," Zetterberg said after a game that featured eight third-period goals, five by the Wings. "Too much back and forth. But we won the game. That was most important."

The Wings led 2-0, 3-2 and 4-3, only to see the Ducks tie the game each time before Zetterberg put Detroit ahead for good with 4:31 left in regulation, beating Jonas Hiller with a one-timer from the right faceoff dot for his second of the night.

"He kind of took over," Detroit defenseman Niklas Kronwall said. "He's been playing really strong for us of late and he had some chances early. He stuck with it and he really came through when we needed him the most."

Zetterberg capped his hat trick by scoring into an empty net with a second.

Zetterberg's line was buzzing through the first two periods, though they weren't rewarded until the final 20 minutes.

"I had a lot of chances -- I think I had five shots in the first (period) on one shift," he said. "I've just to keep going. I got two nice passes from Clears (linemate Dan Cleary and they ended up in the net."

It was Zetterberg's fourth career hat trick and first since March 19, 2008. The five points were a career high.

"Any time we're playing the players in the League who are dominant players, whether it's (San Jose's Joe) Thornton or Getzlaf, Z always lifts his game, and he did tonight," Babcock said.

Z Scores Game Winner Over Canucks

By Chris Turner, Zetterbergfan.com, November 12, 2009

Henrik Zetterberg scored the game-winning goal, added an assist, and was on the ice for all three of the Detroit Red Wings goals as they defeated the Vancouver Canucks 3-1 at Joe Louis Arena tonight.

Z’s team-leading 12th assist was on Tomas Holmstrom’s late 1st period power-play tally, which gave the Wings a 1-0 lead. Zetterberg took a pass in the far right corner and fed a crisp pass through the legs of Canuck’s defenseman Willie Mitchell, onto the stick of Holmstrom, in goaltender Roberto Luongo’s crease.

The score was knotted-up at one-a-piece 8:00 into the 3rd period when Zetterberg skated past Vancouver forward Mason Raymond in the neutral zone, took a blue-line to blue-line pass from defenseman Brad Stuart, then split the defense, shifting the puck to his backhand out of the reach of defenseman Kevin Bieksa, then lifting a backhander top-shelf over Luongo's left shoulder. The goal gave Detroit a 2-1 lead that they would not surrender.

"I tried to follow it. He went from forehand to backhand and then put in right under the crossbar. Not a lot of guys can do that, only a few around the league," said Luongo after the game.

The goal was Zetterberg’s team-leading 17th point in 17 games played this season.

Henrik was also on the ice for Niklas Kronwall’s empty-netter to finish off the game. Zetterberg was a +2 (plus/minus) and had two points in the 2nd consecutive game.  

Setting ‘em Up

By Chris Turner, Zetterbergfan.com, November 11, 2009

Henrik Zetterberg assisted on two goals and was a +2 (plus/minus) in the Detroit Red Wings 9-1 blowout over their division rivals, the Blue Jackets, tonight in Columbus.

Zetterberg assisted on linemate Dan Cleary’s goal, just 1:05 into the game. Henrik stole a bad pass from Blue Jackets defenseman Fedor Tyutin just inside the blueline, and shot a puck that struck the right pad of goalie Steve Mason. Cleary picked up the rebound and lifted a puck into the net, giving Detroit a 1-0 lead.

Z’s second assist came 13:50 into the second period, with the Red Wings already leading 5-1. Again on a Columbus turnover, Zetterberg carried the puck into the offensive zone on a 2-on-1 with linemate Ville Leino. Hank threaded a nice pass in the gap, feeding Leino in the slot. Leino kicked the puck to his stick, deked back-hand and wristed one high over Mason.

The two assists were Zetterberg’s team-leading 10^th and 11^th of the season. He also leads the team with 15 points through 16 games played. Henrik is on pace for a career-high 56 assists at his current pace. However, with just for goals scored so far, he would have just 21 in 82 games played at the end of the year.

Zetterberg has 187 goals and 233 assists for a total of 420 career points in 448 career games. He remains 18^th on Detroit’s All-time Scoring Leaders list behind Syd Howe and current teammate (and fellow Swede) Tomas Holmstrom, who both have 435 points with the franchise.

Backchecking with Manny Malhotra

Fanhouse.com, November 6^th, 2009

What player would you most like to deliver a good, hard hit on?
 
Obviously a clean one. (Smiles.) Just in the heat of battle, whichever guy is deserving at that point. There's not really one guy.
 
I'd most like to get a good lick on every one of those skilled players, the slimy ones you think you have lined up but they get out of it somehow. I've never seen Pavel Datsyuk or Henrik Zetterberg get hit hard. Kristian Huselius, Mike Cammalleri. I want to know how to get one of those guys.

Red Wings-Sharks Wrap-up

By George Malik, Mlive.com, November 06, 2009

For a while, it looked as if that one goal might hold up. But early in the third period, defenseman Nicklas Lidstrom fired a shot from the point that Evgeni Nabokov thought he smothered. And though referee Wes McCauley appeared ready to blow the whistle, play continued and Zetterberg reached the puck before Nabokov could recover for Detroit's only goal at 5:38.

"It was underneath his pad, but the whistle didn't go, so I guess you can jab at it all you want," Todd McLellan said. "I've got my opinion on the call that wasn't made."

Nabokov agreed with McLellan's assessment...

"I could see in his eyes that he was just coming and shoving at it," Nabokov said of the only one of 36 shots to get past him Thursday night, a third-period goal that erased a 1-0 San Jose lead and led to a 2-1 shootout victory for the Red Wings.

But Zetterberg differed, as he told the Associated Press's Larry Lage:

November 5, Associated Press: Even though Detroit trailed 1-0 late in the second period and early in the third, captain Nicklas Lidstrom said the Red Wings remained calm.

"Even when you're behind, you can't panic and take chances," he said. "We stuck to the game plan,"

They were rewarded when Zetterberg tied it 1-1 at 5:38 of the third period. He poked a puck in from under Nabokov's pad for his fourth goal.

"The puck was laying there, I just hoped the referees didn't blow the whistle," Zetterberg said. "I came late from a change and no one saw me coming in there."

Zetterberg praised Osgood's play as well, as the Detroit Free Press's George Sipple noted:

November 6, Detroit Free Press: “Overall, we played a pretty good game,” said Zetterberg. “Ozzie played good back in the net and gave us confidence to play well in front of him. When they scored that goal, we came back.”

Zetterberg told Sipple that he emulated Pavel Datsyuk's backhand-to-forehand deke, backing Nabokov into his crease, because his previous shootout attempt whiffed:

“You have to be confident, otherwise you might as well not shoot,” Zetterberg said. “That’s a new move. I haven’t really tried it before. Just sometimes you have to try something different and it worked tonight.”

The Wings snapped the Sharks' six-game winning streak. The Wings have now won three in a row, a season high.

“We’ve been playing good lately and we played a good hockey team, so we had to play well to win and I think we did,” Zetterberg said.

November 5, DetroitRedWings.com:

Thursday was Zetterberg's night. The Wings were looking at a 1-0 deficit in the third period, until Zetterberg recorded his fourth goal of the season. Five minutes into the final regulation period, Zetterberg came charging through the slot, and found a rebound off captain Nicklas Lidstrom's blast from the point. He poked the puck into the open net, and sent the Joe Louis Arena crowd into a frenzy.  Zetterberg also had an impressive move to get the shootout winner, when he came in on Nabokov, deked to the right, then slammed on the brakes to cut to the left side and score.  On the night, he had 24:15 worth of ice-time, the most of any forward.  Zetterberg recorded three shots, won 10 face-offs, and was plus-one on the night.

Shark Hunter; Zetterberg Scores Tying and Shootout Goal as the Red Wings End the Sharks Six-game Win Streak.

By Chris Turner, Zetterbergfan.com, November 5, 2009

Henrik Zetterberg scored the game-tying goal and then the shoot-out winner in a huge home victory over the San Jose Sharks, who had been on a six-game winning streak.

Zetterberg’s game-tying tally came 5:38 into the third period and made it a 1-1 game. Future Hall-of-fame defenseman Niklas Lidstrom rifled a shot from the blueline that was stopped by Sharks goalie Evgeni Nabokov. Nabokov had the puck under his skate but not under control, as Zetterberg, who was coming off the bench on a line change, raced to the crease and banged in the puck to tie the game at one a piece.

The goal is Zetterberg’s second in as many games and third goal in the past four games, after having only scored one goal in the first ten games of the season. It was also his team-leading 13^th point through 14 games played.

With the match still knotted-up at 1-1 after overtime, Zetterberg cruised in on Nabokov in the shoot-out for the win. Z deked right, faking backhander and the brought the puck quickly to his forehand and up on its edge, flipping it high over Nabokov’s stick side.

Lost in the highlights is the fact that the line of Zetterberg, Dan Cleary, and Jason Williams played a superb game creating a bunch of scoring chances and shutting down the Sharks dangerous duo of Joe Thornton and Danny Heatley. Zetterberg played 24:15, was a +1 (plus/minus), and earned First Star of the Game honors.

Wings Praise Yzerman for his Qualities

By Michael Caples, DetroitRedWings.com, November 5th, 2009

His jersey hangs from the rafters at Joe Louis Arena, with the ‘C’ stitched into the upper-right corner. And while he’s no longer playing, his leadership still inspires his former teammates.

Steve Yzerman, now the Red Wings’ vice president, will be inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame this weekend, for his on-ice talent and leadership in the locker room.

Red Wings’ players discussed some of Yzerman’s qualities following Thursday’s morning skate.

Yzerman’s leadership skills covered all the ages of his teammates. Henrik Zetterberg, who spent his first three seasons with Yzerman, said it was an honor to learn from one of the game’s best.

“It was a huge honor to have a chance to play with him, especially in (his) last few years,” Zetterberg said. “I sat next to him in the locker room.  I learned a lot from him on and off the ice.  He always gave it his all, he was a huge inspiration for me and I will always remember him.”

Zetterberg, who is expected to be next in line for leading the Wings, said that Yzerman’s quiet leadership was complemented by his ability to perform when it mattered most.

“I think he always showed (leadership) on the ice,” Zetterberg said. “He was never big on speaking, but when he said something, everybody listened, and it was always the right words.  He always stepped up when we needed him in big games, whether the situation was defense or offense, he was always able to come through.”

Ceremony for 22 Triple Gold Club members on February 22

IIHF.com, November 4, 2009

The IIHF.com Olympic Page highlights “100 Days Left” by announcing the ceremonial induction of the 22 players who have won the Olympic gold, the IIHF World Championship and the Stanley Cup to the “Triple Gold Club”.

The induction ceremony for the Triple Gold Club will take place on February 22, 2010, on the off-day of the men’s tournament, one day before the start of the play-off round. The projected venue of the unique ceremony is the Molson Canadian Hockey House, which will be located just next to the Canada Hockey Place, the main venue of the Olympic ice hockey tournament.

The Triple Gold Club ceremony is a joint effort by the IIHF, the NHL and the NHLPA.

It was sixteen years ago, at the 1994 Olympic Winter Games in Lillehammer, Norway, that Swedes Tomas Jonsson, Mats Näslund and Håkan Loob became the first three players to complete the triple which included the three major team accomplishments in hockey.

Since then, the Triple Gold Club has grown to include 22 players from four nations. Sweden tops with nine members, Russia has six, Canada five and the Czech Republic two.

These twenty-two players form the unique group that has won the IIHF World Championship, the Olympic Ice Hockey tournament, and the Stanley Cup. Players are entered chronologically by date when the final championship of the triple has been achieved. If two or more players complete their triple on the same date, priority is given to the player who was the first to win one of the three titles. If two or more players have identical accomplishments, priority is given to the player who completes the triple at the younger age.

The current 22 Triple Gold Club Members as of 2009 represent four nations: Sweden (9), Russia (6), Canada (5) and the Czech Republic (2).

Legend: OG=Olympic Games; SC=Stanley Cup; WM=World Men’s Championship

1. Tomas Jonsson (b. Falun, Sweden, April 12, 1960)
SC 1982, 1983 (New York Islanders)
WS 1991 (Sweden)
OG 1994 (Sweden)
TGC member as of February 27, 1994, Olympic final win vs. Canada

2. Mats Naslund  (b. Timra, Sweden, October 31, 1959)
SC 1986 (Montreal Canadiens)
WS 1991 (Sweden)
OG 1994 (Sweden)
TGC member as of February 27, 1994, Olympic final win vs. Canada

3. Hakan Loob  (b. Roma, Sweden, July 3, 1960)
WS 1987, 1991 (Sweden)
SC 1989 (Calgary Flames)
OG 1994 (Sweden)
TGC member as of February 27, 1994, Olympic final win vs. Canada

4. Valeri Kamensky (b. Voskresensk, Soviet Union, April 18, 1966)
WS 1986, 1989, 1990 (Soviet Union)
OG 1988 (Soviet Union)
SC 1996 (Colorado Avalanche)
TGC member as of June 10, 1996, Stanley Cup win vs. Florida

5. Alexei Gusarov (b. Leningrad, Soviet Union, July 8, 1964)
WS 1986, 1989, 1990 (Soviet Union)
OG 1988 (Soviet Union)
SC 1996 (Colorado Avalanche)
TGC member as of June 10, 1996, Stanley Cup win vs. Florida

6. Peter Forsberg  (b. Ornskoldsvik, Sweden, July 20, 1973)
WS 1992, 1998 (Sweden)
OG 1994, 2006 (Sweden)
SC 1996, 2001 (Colorado Avalanche)
TGC member as of June 10, 1996, Stanley Cup win vs. Florida

7. Vyacheslav Fetisov (b. Moscow, Soviet Union, April 20, 1958)
WS 1978, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1986, 1989, 1990 (Soviet Union)
OG 1984, 1988 (Soviet Union)
SC 1997, 1998 (Detroit Red Wings)
TGC member as of June 7, 1997, Stanley Cup win vs. Philadelphia

8. Igor Larionov (b. Voskresensk, Soviet Union, December 3, 1960)
WS 1982, 1983, 1986, 1989 (Soviet Union)
OG 1984, 1988 (Soviet Union)
SC 1997, 1998, 2002 (Detroit Red Wings)
TGC member as of June 7, 1997, Stanley Cup win vs. Philadelphia

9. Alexander Mogilny (b. Khabarovsk, Soviet Union, February 18, 1969)
OG 1988 (Soviet Union)
WS 1989 (Soviet Union)
SC 2000 (New Jersey Devils)
TGC member as of June 10, 2000, Stanley Cup win vs. Dallas

10. Vladimir Malakhov (b. Ekaterinburg, Soviet Union, August 30, 1968)
WS 1990 (Soviet Union)
OG 1992 (Russia)
SC 2000 (New Jersey Devils)
TGC member as of June 10, 2000, Stanley Cup win vs. Dallas

11. Rob Blake (b. Simcoe, Ontario, Canada, December 10, 1969)
WS 1994, 1997 (Canada)
SC 2001 (Colorado Avalanche)
OG 2002 (Canada)
TGC member as of February 24, 2002, Olympic final win vs. United States

12. Joe Sakic (b. Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada, July 7, 1969)
WS 1994 (Canada)
SC 1996, 2001 (Colorado Avalanche)
OG 2002 (Canada)
TGC member as of February 24, 2002, Olympic final win vs. United States

13. Brendan Shanahan (b. Mimico, Ontario, Canada, January 23, 1969)
WS 1994 (Canada)
SC 1997, 1998, 2002 (Detroit Red Wings)
OG 2002 (Canada)
TGC member as of February 24, 2002, Olympic final win vs. United States

14. Scott Niedermayer (b. Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, August 31, 1973)
SC 1995, 2000, 2003 (New Jersey Devils), 2007 (Anaheim Ducks)
OG 2002 (Canada)
WS 2004 (Canada)
TGC member as of May 9, 2004, World Championship final win vs. Sweden

15. Jaromir Jagr (b. Kladno, Czechoslovakia, February 15, 1972)
SC 1991, 1992 (Pittsburgh Penguins)
OG 1998 (Czech Republic)
WS 2005 (Czech Republic)
TGC member as of May 15, 2005, World Championship final win vs. Canada

16. Jiri Slegr (b. Jihlava, Czechoslovakia, May 30, 1971)
OG 1998 (Czech Republic)
SC 2002 (Detroit Red Wings)
WS 2005 (Czech Republic)
TGC member as of May 15, 2005, World Championship final win vs. Canada

17. Nicklas Lidstrom  (b. Vasteras, Sweden, April 28, 1970)
WS 1991 (Sweden)
SC 1997, 1998, 2002, 2008 (Detroit Red Wings)
OG 2006 (Sweden)
TGC member as of February 26, 2006, Olympic final win vs. Finland

18. Fredrik Modin  (b. Sundsvall, Sweden, October 8, 1974)
WS 1998 (Sweden)
SC 2004 (Tampa Bay Lightning)
OG 2006 (Sweden)
TGC member as of February 26, 2006, Olympic final win vs. Finland

19. Chris Pronger (b. Dryden, Ontario, Canada, October 10, 1974)
WS 1997 (Canada)
OG 2002 (Canada)
SC 2007 (Anaheim Ducks)
TGC member as of June 6, 2007, Stanley Cup win vs. Ottawa

20. Niklas Kronwall  (b. Stockholm, Sweden, January 12, 1981)
OG 06 (Sweden)
WS 06 (Sweden)
SC 08 (Detroit)
TGC member as of June 4, 2008, Stanley Cup win vs. Pittsburgh

21. Henrik Zetterberg  (b. Njurunda, Sweden, October 9, 1980)
OG 06 (Sweden)
WS 06 (Sweden)
SC 08 (Detroit)
TGC member as of June 4, 2008, Stanley Cup win vs. Pittsburgh

22. Mikael Samuelsson  (b. Mariefred, Sweden December 23, 1976)
OG 06 (Sweden)
WS 06 (Sweden)
SC 08 (Detroit)
TGC member as of June 4, 2008, Stanley Cup win vs. Pittsburgh

Elusive is a fitting word to describe the challenge to win all three titles. Consider this:

More than 15,000 players have tried to win World Championship gold since 1930.
More than 9,000 players have tried to win the Stanley Cup since 1893.
More than 4,000 players have tried to win Olympic gold since 1920.
Only 22 players have won all three.

Zetterberg Scores Game-Winner in Osgood’s 50th Career Shut-out

By Chris Turner, Zetterbergfan.com, November 4, 2009

Henrik Zetterberg scored the eventual game-winning goal and goalie Chris Osgood recorded his 50th career shut-out, as the Detroit Red Wings defeated the Boston Bruins 2-0 last night, in an “Original Six” match-up at Joe Louis Arena.

Zetterberg’s goal came just two seconds into a power-play, 14:21 into the 1st period, when Pavel Datsyuk won a draw in the left face-off circle. Zetterberg stepped into the loose puck, roofing a bullet shot over Bruin’s netminder Tim Thomas.

“The puck was (tipped up on edge). That makes it hard to read where the puck is going to go. But where he put it, even if you did read where it was going, it’s tough to get to,” said Thomas.

The tally was only the third goal in 13 games so far this season for Zetterberg. Two of the three goals have been game-winners.

Henrik now has 3 goals and 9 assists for a team-leading 12 points (tied with Datsyuk). Z is still on pace for a career-low 18 goals and a career-high 56 assists this year.