The Friday Four is a collection of thoughts and information on some intriguing player storylines from around the NHL. On deck this week:
• Why Suzuki is staking his claim as one of the best two-way players in the game
• Could a Landeskog return put Avs over the top?
• Byfield surging at the right time
• Norris bet not paying off for Sabres
Nick Suzuki, Montreal Canadiens
If someone said back in November, or even six weeks ago for that matter, that the Montreal Canadiens would be holding down a playoff spot in late March, no one would’ve believed them.
The Canadiens are making an improbable push to the post-season, despite being counted out on more than one occasion this season. In early November, Montreal lost 10 times in a 12-game stretch, plummeting the Canadiens to near the league’s basement, where it seemed impossible to recover from. Many questioned the direction of their rebuild and whether the team was taking a few steps backward. To their credit, though, the Canadiens pulled themselves out of it, winning 13 of 17 games from mid-December to mid-January.
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That temporarily put the Canadiens back in the mix, before they quickly proceeded to lose eight of nine heading into the 4 Nations and it looked like they would certainly be sellers at the trade deadline. General manager Kent Hughes chose to stand pat, though, and the team has responded to that vote of confidence by playing at a torrid pace coming out of the break, and miraculously putting itself into a playoff position. The Canadiens never seem to get too high or too low, perhaps taking on the mentality of their captain, Nick Suzuki.
As Montreal has endured a rollercoaster of a season, Suzuki has steadily climbed and continues to get better and better. In 2021-22, Suzuki finished with 61 points, then he jumped to 66 the next season, then 77 last year and now he has a real chance to surpass 80. He’s a stabilizing force on a team desperately searching for consistency. He’s now up to 19 points in 12 games since play resumed after the 4 Nations, maybe playing with a chip on his shoulder after being passed over for Team Canada.
Suzuki has developed into one of the league’s most underrated players and if you don’t watch him on a regular basis, it’s hard to appreciate how good he is. He manages to produce great offensive numbers while taking on significant defensive responsibilities. Among the top 20 scorers in the NHL, only four forwards start more shifts in the defensive zone than Suzuki and only two players in that group have fewer giveaways in the D-zone than he does. He’s also a plus-10 on a team with a minus-16 goal differential.
Montreal trusts Suzuki to regularly go up against the opposition’s top lines, which isn’t an easy thing to manage night in and night out, while still being able to create offence for yourself. Not only that, but it’s not like Suzuki is surrounded with veteran talent to help him navigate some of these tough matchups. Cole Caufield (24) and Juraj Slakfovsky (20) are still learning to navigate the NHL themselves and aren’t exactly known for being standouts in their own end. Caufield is a good goal scorer and Slafkovsky had made some real strides in the past two seasons and they both bring a lot to the table, but you’d have to say Suzuki is the anchor on that line and he’s done wonders for his linemates’ development.
People who appreciate Suzuki’s game will sometimes compare him to Patrice Bergeron. That’s lofty praise and Suzuki still has a long way to go to get to the level of a future Hall of Famer and a six-time Selke winner, but you can see some similar elements between the two. The subtleties and intelligence Suzuki plays with don’t always show up on highlight reels, yet are still very effective. He uses a great hockey mind to help him with positioning and reading the play.
I had Suzuki on my team when I was projecting Team Canada’s roster at the 4 Nations, though it’s tough to argue many of the selections with all the talent available, especially when the Canadians won the entire tournament. That said, Suzuki would be a perfect Swiss Army knife for Canada, with the ability to play lower down in the lineup against tough competition, but also providing you with a high-end offensive talent if you needed a goal. You could essentially play him any situation.
As Montreal continues to climb the standings, Suzuki’s game is only going to start turning more heads and earning more praise, and by the time the Olympics come around next February, something tells me his name won’t be left off the Canadian roster.
Gabriel Landeskog, Colorado Avalanche
I’m no doctor, but Gabriel Landeskog looks like he’s moving around pretty well. The Colorado Avalanche forward was spotted at practice this week, running through drills at a decent pace.
We’ve seen Landeskog skate several different times on his own over the past year or so, but lately it seems a little more purposeful. He’s still not ready for contact, but the fact that he’s participating in some team drills is a good sign. Landeskog is trying to work his way back from cartilage transplant surgery he had in his right knee in 2023 after having not played since the 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
It would be far too early to pencil Landeskog into the Avalanche lineup at any point this season, though the prospect of getting their captain back has to be very exciting for the team heading into the stretch run. Colorado had a very productive trade deadline following the departure of Mikko Rantanen, solidifying their centre depth with the additions of Brock Nelson and Charlie Coyle. Martin Necas has also been a great fit coming over from the Carolina Hurricanes and Mackenzie Blackwood has stabilized the crease. Without Landeskog, they’re very formidable, but with him they could potentially be even more dangerous.
That would all depend on what kind of Landeskog the Avs are getting. At his best, Landeskog was a great two-way player who could impact the game at both ends of the ice, but if he makes it back, it’s hard to imagine he’ll be able to regain the form he once had. It would be an incredible accomplishment for Landeskog just to return at all, given the seriousness of the injury, though it shouldn’t surprise anyone if he’s a different player than he was.
That said, even if Landeskog is 60 or 70 per cent of the player he once was, he could still make a big difference in a playoff run for the Avs. Colorado could activate Landeskog during the playoffs without cap implications if he’s ready, with nothing to lose and everything to gain. If Landeskog does finally make a comeback, you also can’t discount the emotional lift it will give the entire group watching their captain finally complete an arduous three-year journey.
Quinton Byfield, Los Angeles Kings
Better late than never for Quinton Byfield.
It was supposed to be a breakout season for the Los Angeles Kings forward after posting 20 goals and 55 points in 2023-24, but Byfield got off to an incredibly slow start this season. He didn’t score until Nov. 5 and managed just 11 points in his first 29 games. The Kings were counting on Byfield to take a big jump this season and help propel the offence, as well as possibly preparing to eventually take over the top centre spot from Anze Kopitar.
Byfield isn’t going to finish with that breakout season when you tally up his final totals, but he has been surging at the right time. He recently had goals in six straight games and he’s really picked it up over the past two months. Byfield has averaged nearly a point per game over his past 18 outings and now has six multi-point games on the season. With the Kings potentially headed for a fourth straight battle with the Edmonton Oilers in the first round, Byfield picking up the pace is a welcome sign for a team that lacks scoring.
The Oilers averaged 4.4 goals per game in their series with the Kings last year and have outscored them 74-45 in their three first-round victories. Los Angeles sits 21st in the NHL in goals for and if it can’t find some more goals come the postseason, expect another quick exit.
That’s where Byfield can potentially be a difference-maker. Byfield has just one goal in the three series against the Oilers, so if he can continue his recent offensive uptick into the post-season, he could end up being an X-factor for the Kings. We know the Oilers can score, but how well can they keep the puck out of their net? Stuart Skinner has had trouble against the Kings in the post-season before and he’s having a really down year. The Oilers netminder is sporting a save percentage below .900 and ranks 65th in goals saved above expected. Byfield and the other top scorers on the Kings have a huge opportunity to at least keep pace with the Oilers offensively this time around.
There’s a good chance Byfield is going to finish with a lower point total than he did last year, but the Kings won’t care if he makes a big impact in the opening round and gets Los Angeles to the next level in the post-season.
Josh Norris, Buffalo Sabres
It’s only been a handful of games, but the Buffalo Sabres trading away Dylan Cozens isn’t looking good at all so far.
Cozens has a point in six of his seven games with the Ottawa Senators and he’s been a huge catalyst in the team’s surge to the post-season. Meanwhile, the biggest piece of the return for Cozens, Josh Norris, is hurt again. It’s been a recurring theme for Norris, who just can’t seem to stay in the lineup.
There’s no denying Norris’ talent and it’s not hard to see why the Sabres may believe in him. He’s proved he can score with a 35-goal season to his credit and he’s already notched 21 in only 56 games this year. The 25-year-old also brings a lot of other elements to his game that Buffalo probably finds attractive. Norris has 135 hits this season and is good in the faceoff circle, giving him a blend of physicality and offensive skill that’s hard to find.
No one can question Norris’ ability, though as Ottawa knows all too well, and is probably the main reason the Senators were comfortable parting with him, he’s hard to count on. Norris has reached 60 games in a season only once in his career and has a long history of shoulder issues with multiple surgeries over the years. A similar pattern has already played out in Buffalo, with Norris impressing with a goal and an assist in three games before quickly landing back on the injured list.
The Sabres are taking on a fair bit of risk in the Cozens-Norris deal. Norris is a little older and has a bigger cap hit than Cozens. We’ve also seen what Cozens is at his best, a near 70-point, right-handed, top-six centre. That type of player is widely coveted around the league and, granted, the past two seasons didn’t go as well for Cozens, but for a team like Buffalo that’s looking to the future, he’s the type of talent that’s hard to give up on.
We won’t fully know who won this trade until at least a few years from now. Norris still has a chance to be a great player for the Sabres and put his injury woes behind him. It’s just hard to see that right now, given how Buffalo’s recent trade history has turned out and how discouraging the early returns of this deal look.
