What to Watch: Kaprizov leads Wild in two games against Ducks

Each Monday, we list the can't-miss games for the upcoming week. Grab your remote. This is "NHL What to Watch."

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Dollar Bill's a thrill

Anaheim Ducks at Minnesota Wild
Monday, 7:30 p.m. ET; NBCSN, FS-N+, FS-WI+, NHL.TV
Wednesday, 5:30 p.m.; NBCSN, FS-N+, FS-WI+, NHL.TV
Kirill Kaprizov is the favorite to win the Calder Trophy voted as the NHL rookie of the year. The forward leads rookies in goals (10), assists (15) and points (25), but more than that, he has made the Wild fun to watch with his speed, skill and smile.
He has three assists in four games against the Ducks, including two beautiful primary assists in a 5-1 win at Honda Center on Feb. 20. First, he threaded a pass from right to left across the offensive zone on a 2-on-1 with forward Mats Zuccarello. Later, he made a no-look, give-and-go dish to forward Victor Rask.
The Wild need to rebound after losing back-to-back games to the Colorado Avalanche by a combined score of 11-1. Before that, Kaprizov scored six points (four goals, two assists) during a five-game winning streak.

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More entertainment on the Vegas strip

St. Louis Blues at Vegas Golden Knights
Monday, 10 p.m. ET; ESPN+, ATTSN-RM, FS-MW, NHL.TV
These Stanley Cup contenders often play high-scoring, entertaining games.
The first time they faced off this season, the Golden Knights trailed 4-2 entering the third period and rallied to tie it 4-4, but the Blues won 5-4 in a shootout at T-Mobile Arena on Jan. 26.
The next time they played, the Golden Knights trailed 4-3 in the third, tied it 4-4 and won 5-4 in overtime at Enterprise Center on March 12. Vegas went on to win 5-1 there the following day.
Keep an eye on David Perron. One of the original "Golden Misfits," the forward led the Golden Knights in assists (50) during their inaugural season of 2017-18. Since signing with St. Louis as an unrestricted free agent July 1, 2018, Perron has scored seven points (four goals, three assists) in nine games against Vegas. He has scored three goals against them this season, plus a shootout goal.

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Central battle in Raleigh

Tampa Bay Lightning at Carolina Hurricanes
Saturday, 7 p.m. ET; ESPN+, FS-CR, SUN, NHL.TV
These aren't just two of the top teams in the Discover Central Division. They're two of the top teams in the NHL.
Tampa Bay (23-6-2) ranks first in points percentage (.774); Carolina (20-7-3) is third (.717). The Lightning are the defending Stanley Cup champions; the Hurricanes went to the Eastern Conference Final as recently as 2018-19. Together with the Florida Panthers (20-7-4), they're making the top of the Central incredibly competitive.
Carolina won the first two games against Tampa Bay this season, outscoring it by a combined 5-0. Tampa Bay has won the last three by a combined score of 10-3, but that's deceiving. Take the most recent one, a 3-1 win for the Lightning at Amalie Arena on Feb. 26. The Hurricanes outshot them 32-22.
"We were the better team tonight," Carolina coach Rod Brind'Amour said afterward. "This might have been our best game overall against them."

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McDavid, Matthews face off in Toronto

Edmonton Oilers at Toronto Maple Leafs
Saturday, 7 p.m. ET; NHLN, CBC, SN, CITY, TVAS, NHL.TV
Yes, of course. There's more to this matchup than Connor McDavid vs. Auston Matthews. But how can you not love this?
McDavid, the Oilers center and No.1 pick in the 2015 NHL Draft, is running away in the race for the Art Ross Trophy as the NHL scoring champion and challenging Matthews, the Maple Leafs center and No. 1 pick in the 2016 draft, in the race for the Rocket Richard Trophy as the NHL goal-scoring champion.
McDavid has scored 60 points, 10 more than anyone else, and 21 goals, tied with Matthews for the NHL lead. (McDavid has played 34 games, Matthews 29.) McDavid has won the Art Ross twice, in 2016-17 and 2017-18, but never the Rocket Richard. Matthews hasn't won it either. Yet.

Stat of the week

16 -- The number of points (five goals, 11 assists) McDavid has scored in 11 games against Matthews in his NHL career. Matthews has scored eight points (six goals, two assists) in those games. In four games against each other this season, McDavid has scored six points (two goals, four assists), while Matthews has scored three goals.

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Don't overlook Ovechkin

New York Rangers at Washington Capitals
Sunday, 12 p.m. ET; NBC, SN, TVAS
As McDavid and Matthews battle for the goal-scoring lead, let us continue to marvel at Alex Ovechkin.
The Capitals forward has won the Rocket Richard the past three seasons and nine of the past 13. The 35-year-old isn't currently in the top 10 in goal-scoring, but he has scored 14 goals, tied for 12th, and keeps climbing the all-time list.
At 720 goals, he's sixth in NHL history, 11 behind Marcel Dionne (731), 21 behind Brett Hull (741), 46 behind Jaromir Jagr (766), 81 behind Gordie Howe (801) and 174 behind Wayne Gretzky (894). Does Ovechkin catch Dionne this season? Does the Great Eight catch the Great One eventually?