Cole Caufield: 2nd leading scorer since being overlooked by Bill Guerin

Michaël Petit
Cole Caufield: 2nd leading scorer since being overlooked by Bill Guerin
Credit: Getty Images

In Montreal, when Cole Caufield and Lane Hutson were ignored by the U.S. Olympic team, it created a scandal.

With good reason…

When you don't watch them play, you just think they're small, one-dimensional players. It's only when you watch them closely that you realize that Caufield is much more than just a goalscorer, and Lane Hutson is much more than just a small, attacking defender.

As we know, Caufield has been scoring a lot of winning goals so far this season. At the time of writing, he is tied for 2nd on the list with seven game-winning goals, behind Steven Stamkos, who has eight.

(Credit: Screenshot | NHL.com)

It's not complicated: if you need a big goal, you need Caufield on the ice. Since his arrival in the NHL, he's been one of the most clutch players in the league. In a situation like the Olympics, you can't do without a player like him.

What's more, he's capable of defending well with his good positioning and active stick (without being a numerical disadvantage specialist). No, Caufield isn't the most physical of players, but that doesn't mean he can't be pushed around, as he's still pretty hard to compact despite his small stature.

However, what stands out the most is when you look at the statistics of the little American forward since Bill Guerin ignored him.

Since January 2, Caufield is tied for 2nd in NHL scoring with nine goals in just 12 games.

(Credit: Screenshot | NHL.com)

Only Mark Stone is ahead of him with ten in 12 games.

Just this afternoon, the Big Head Hockey page on Twitter published the rankings of the top American goal scorers this season.

Unsurprisingly, Caufield finds himself in this ranking, coming in 2nd, just behind Jason Robertson of the Dallas Stars.

Brock Nelson scored two goals this afternoon in the space of a minute and 11 seconds, moving him up the rankings. He added another late in the game to complete his hat trick. He now has 27 goals this season

Nelson was an excellent choice, as were Tage Thompson and Matt Boldy, but what emerges from this ranking is that the 1st, 2nd, and 4th best American scorers were all ignored by Bill Guerin.

Much like Caufield, Lane Hutson has little to envy from his overall game.

As I said earlier, he's not a one-dimensional defender. He's certainly capable of playing well defensively, and we've seen that on a few occasions when he's down a man.

Without being a Jaccob Slavin defensively, he's certainly not a defensive liability, as many (who don't watch his games) may believe.

He's so intelligent that he's often very well positioned and anticipates his opponent's plays well. What's more, he's still the 4th-highest scorer among defensemen so far this season… at just 21 (soon to be 22).

Since the announcement of the U.S. Olympic team, Hutson is tied for 5th in scoring and assists among defensemen, which is incredible considering his young age.

He was also fourth before Evan Bouchard's six-point game yesterday.

(Credit: Screenshot | NHL.com)

There wasn't a single critical late-game situation where the Habs had to come from behind and Hutson wasn't on the ice.

Like Caufield, for that matter.

In short, all Canadiens can rejoice that Team Canada won't have to worry about Caufield and Hutson, even if the American team is still very dangerous without them.

I can't wait to see the first Canada-U.S. showdown at the Olympics, and I'm clearly not the only one.


Overtime

– In Montreal, we're missing Carey Price more and more. Here's a compilation of his best career saves.

– Nelson is unstoppable these days. With his late goal, he now has 14 goals in his last 16 games.

– I wonder who that was for.

– Read on.

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