Patrik Laine has been a force for the Jets ever since the first time he stepped on the ice in the 2016-17 season.
With another two goals against the Dallas Stars on Sunday night, he is tied for the league lead in goals with Alexander Ovechkin and has 18 goals in his last 15 games. A lot of the time it can take a little while for young players to get recognition around the league, but clearly that hasn’t been an issue for Laine, and rightfully so.
Where he might be getting the most recognition is in Dallas because he seems to absolutely dominate that team. He has now scored 14 goals in nine games against the Stars – which prompted Jamie Benn to say this.
Laine hasn’t even been in the league for two years and his name is already being used as an adjective.
It just goes to show you how much respect he is already attracting from around the league. There’s no doubt that he is getting circled by opposing coaches as a guy to focus on every night because you can’t give him any room to shoot.
It’s different than Ovechkin who has often scored his goals with an unprecedented shot volume, but Laine genuinely seems to be one of the rarest talents in the NHL that is actually able to consistently shoot at an above average shooting percent. He is shooting 20.1% this year or, put another way, converting one of every five shots into a goal.
This is what makes Winnipeg so dangerous this season, because with Laine attracting a lot of attention, their top line of Blake Wheeler, Mark Scheifele and Kyle Connor can still do a ton of damage. No wonder people are projecting them to win the Stanley Cup.
