Biggest surprises of 1st quarter this season debated

The 2023-24 NHL season has been a wild ride since it started Oct. 6.

There have been surprises, there have been disappointments. Personal milestones have been achieved. Rookies have surprised, as have cast-aside veterans.

Some teams have far exceeded expectations, others have fallen incredibly short of their preseason press clippings.

Storylines are abundant, for sure, but what are the biggest surprises in the first quarter of the season, which arrived during game play Tuesday?

We asked 10 NHL.com staffers. Here, in alphabetical order, are the things they found most surprising in the first 336 games of the season.

Battling for results in Alberta

A lot was expected out of the hockey teams in Alberta this season. The Edmonton Oilers were a hot pick for the Stanley Cup Final. The Calgary Flames were expected to make it back to the Stanley Cup Playoffs after missing out by two points last season. Instead, each team struggled mightily to start the season. Although there are signs that things might be turning around in the province, the Oilers (8-12-1) and Flames (9-10-3) are far from playoff locks. In Edmonton, an injury seemed to slow Connor McDavid for weeks, but with 15 points (four goals, 11 assists) during a five-game point streak, the defending Hart Trophy winner voted as most valuable player in the NHL might be turning around his season. Still, the Oilers have changed coaches, from Jay Woodcroft to Kris Knoblauch, and have the fifth-fewest points (17) in the NHL. The Flames started slowly and have seen their power play fail to do much of anything (11.3 percent, 27th). They're a team with a cadre of pending unrestricted free agents that needs to figure out who and what they are. -- Amalie Benjamin, staff writer

Panthers, Lightning persevere through injuries

When we made our preseason predictions, I didn't pick the Florida Panthers or Tampa Bay Lightning to make the playoffs, even though the Panthers went to the Stanley Cup Final last season and the Lightning made the Final three years in a row from 2020-22, winning the Cup in 2020 and 2021. My logic was simple: Each season since the NHL introduced the wild card format in 2013-14, five to seven teams have fallen out of the playoffs (not counting 2019-22 because of COVID-19 disruptions). The Panthers started the season without defenseman Aaron Ekblad and Brandon Montour because of injuries. The Lightning were without goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy. Well, Florida is second in the Atlantic Division, Tampa Bay holds the second wild card in the Eastern Conference, and each of the three players are back. -- Nicholas J. Cotsonika, columnist

The reemergence of Jonathan Quick

When Jonathan Quick signed a one-year contract with the New York Rangers on July 1, I thought he'd spell Igor Shesterkin for 15-20 games and otherwise sit on the bench and wait for retirement after an NHL career punctuated by winning the Stanley Cup three times (2023 with the Vegas Golden Knights, 2014 and 2012 with the Los Angeles Kings), the Conn Smythe Trophy in 2012 and a silver medal at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics. But the 37-year-old goalie is showing that he's still got game. He's 6-0-1 in eight games (seven starts) with a 1.99 goals-against average, .930 save percentage and two shutouts. He's second among NHL goalies in GAA, third in save percentage (minimum eight games), and tied for second in shutouts. -- William Douglas, staff writer

Capitals finding ways to win for solid start

Although the Washington Capitals (10-6-2) have lost two straight, they've been one of the surprise teams this season after missing the playoffs last season for the first time since 2013-14. And they've been winning despite struggling offensively at even strength and on the power play. Washington is last in the NHL on the power play (5.7 percent), 31st in 5-on-5 goals (28) and 31st in scoring (2.33 goals per game). Alex Ovechkin, who is second in NHL history with 827 goals, has scored five, but the Capitals have been able to overcome those shortcomings under first-year coach Spencer Carbery and are 9-3-1 since going 1-3-1 in their first five games. During that span, Washington is tied with Florida for third in the NHL allowing 2.38 goals-against game and its penalty kill had a run of 10 consecutive games from Oct. 25-Nov. 18, when it did not allow a goal (23-for-23) and scored two shorthanded goals. The Capitals are 5-1-2 in one-goal games for the season. -- Tom Gulitti, staff writer 

Touting Talbot in Los Angeles

Cam Talbot signed a one-year contract with the Los Angeles Kings on July 1 with visions of supplying leadership, being reunited with coach Todd McLellan from his days with the Oilers and, most importantly, competing for the starter's job with Pheonix Copley. As it turns out, the 36-year-old journeyman goalie, with his seventh team in his 11th NHL seasons, has been a major reason why the Kings are among the top five teams in the League. His resurgence includes a 2.02 GAA and .931 save percentage in 14 games (13 starts; 10-3-1). He's 7-1-0 with a 1.50 GAA and .949 save percentage in his past eight starts. On top of that, Los Angeles is an NHL-best 9-0-0 on the road and Talbot has led the way by winning eight of those games (1.40 GAA, .951 save percentage). -- Mike G. Morreale, staff writer

Reinhart racking up points

OK, it's not like Sam Reinhart doesn't have a scoring touch but the forward has been on a consistent roll this season. He leads the Panthers with 27 points (15 goals, 12 assists) in 22 games and is a big reason why they're three points behind the first-place Boston Bruins in the Atlantic Division. Reinhart is tied with Lightning forward Nikita Kucherov for second in goals behind Vancouver Canucks forward Brock Boeser (17). The 28-year-old had 67 points (31 goals, 36 assists) in 82 games last season, and he looks well on his way to perhaps equaling or eclipsing his NHL career-high 82 points (33 goals, 49 assists) in 2021-22, his first season with the Panthers. Reinhart's work has been big while Florida worked through some injuries through the first month and a half of the season. If he can keep it going, the Panthers, who lost the Cup Final in five games to the Golden Knights, could make a splash in the playoffs again this season. -- Tracey Myers, staff writer

Frank the Tank rolling in Anaheim

Anaheim Ducks forward Frank Vatrano is tied for sixth in the race for the Maurice Richard Trophy with 13 goals in 22 games. Who had that on their bingo card entering the 2023-24 season? Nobody, that's who. The 29-year-old, on his fourth NHL team in his ninth season, is on a 50-goal pace. He has never scored more than 24 in a season. Will it continue? Unlikely, but Vatrano has been a revelation for the Ducks, who started out red-hot and are on pace to win more than 30 games after winning 23 last season. -- Shawn P. Roarke, senior director of editorial

Wild lose their way, Evason loses job

The Minnesota Wild have done a 180 from last season. It cost their coach, Dean Evason, his job Monday. I did not see this coming, especially because it's a result of shoddy defense and goaltending that have left the Wild reeling. They relied heavily on each to make the playoffs last season. Their identity was built on being tough to play against, hard to score on. They were sixth in goals-against (2.67) and tied with the Nashville Predators for third in save percentage (.914). They were banking on relying on those same traits this season. There was no reason to believe they would go the other direction. They have the same goalies, Filip Gustavsson and Marc-Andre Fleury. They had the same coach. The same systems and style too. But the Wild are allowing 3.80 goals per game, second worst in the NHL. They are 68.5 percent on the penalty kill, which is last. Evason took the hit along with assistant Bob Woods. John Hynes is in charge now. He must help the Wild rediscover who they are. It won't be easy. -- Dan Rosen, senior writer

Canucks leading the way

The Canucks got off to one of the best starts in the NHL, which was unexpected and are now entrenched in the playoff race in the Western Conference. Vancouver won 10 of its first 13 games (10-2-1) and has been keeping pace with the Golden Knights and Kings at the top of the Pacific Division. Defenseman Quinn Hughes led the scoring race for a good portion of the season before being surpassed by Kucherov. Hughes has 33 points (eight goals, 25 assists) in 23 games. Forward J.T. Miller is also off to a strong start with 35 points (13 goals, 22 assists) in 23 games and center Elias Pettersson has 30 points (nine goals, 21 assists) in 22 games. Canucks coach Rick Tocchet also deserves credit for getting the most out of his players so far this season. -- Derek Van Diest, staff writer

Bruins believed when few others did

Here's the logic involved when examining why the Bruins were expected to regress this season. Their captain, Patrice Bergeron, retired. So, too, did fellow center David Krejci. Forward Taylor Hall was traded. That's 2,519 NHL points siphoned out of a roster. Surely such a talent drain would be reflected in a significant downward spike in the Bruins' record, right? Hardly, if at all. In fact, they've spent a good chunk of the 2023-24 season in first place in the standings and remain atop the Atlantic Division. How? Who saw this coming? Bergeron, of course. "I'm not surprised," he said in a recent phone interview. "I know the guys. I know they're people that rise to the occasion." The rest of us are quickly discovering the same thing. -- Mike Zeisberger, staff writer