NHL Rink Wrap: No stopping Gaudreau, Kadri, Kreider

Chris Kreider (2G, 1A) and Mika Zibanejad (3A) generated three points apiece during the NHL action on Friday. Both Rangers scorers stood out, and their numbers keep climbing.

With two goals on Friday, Chris Kreider reached 44 goals, tying him with Leon Draisaitl for second in the NHL. Kreider has a reasonable chance to catch Auston Matthews, who’s on top with 46. Remarkably, with those 44 goals, Chris Kreider matched his goal totals from the previous two seasons (20 last season, 24 in 2019-20).

For years, Kreider’s been a player whose overall play sometimes slipped under the radar because of iffy puck luck. Now he’s just rolling and rolling, to the point that we may just need to realize that Kreider’s found a new ceiling. (Overall, Kreider’s scored 61 points in 65 games, his first season at 60+ points.)

It’s one of the most surprising developments for what’s been a surprising Rangers team.

In the case of Zibanejad, he crossed the 500-point barrier in this one. The 28-year-old finished the night at 502 points in 669 career regular-season games. As far as this season goes, Zibanejad’s at 68 points in 65 contests.

If this isn’t the best season of Johnny Gaudreau’s already-impressive career, it’s close.

With a goal against Arizona, Gaudreau reached 30 goals for the third time in his career, and first since he registered a career-high 36 in 2018-19. By collecting two assists in a three-point game, Gaudreau’s at 85 points in 64 games this season.

Currently, Gaudreau’s on pace for about 108 points over an 82-game campaign. He’s never reached 100 in his career, falling just short with 99 points in 2018-19.

Gaudreau combining with Matthew Tkachuk won’t make either of them cheap to keep around, but it’s been a delight to watch