Doughty's staying power, Vezina front runners, and 5 other NHL items

The Los Angeles Kings opted for a roster reset a few years ago, adding speedy youngsters to replace plodding veterans and generally turning the page on the Stanley Cup triumphs of last decade. But management made it clear Drew Doughty, Anze Kopitar, and Jonathan Quick weren't going anywhere.

The plan was for those aging stars, with their lengthy and pricey contracts in tow, to be a part of the next era in L.A. Doughty's situation was the most complex because his deal was the longest (expires in 2027) and most expensive ($11-million cap hit).

It still stands out, actually. Doughty, now 33 years old, isn't quite as dynamic offensively as he was at 23. However, he remains highly effective in all three zones of the ice and is the unquestioned leader of a blue line featuring several under-25 defensemen: defense partner Mikey Anderson, plus Sean Durzi, Jordan Spence, and Brandt Clarke, who all shoot right-handed like Doughty.

Doughty's veteran-savvy play and hands-on leadership give him staying power as an organizational pillar. From afar, there doesn't appear to be a single person in the L.A. market criticizing Doughty's overall contributions. No one's calling him overpaid or underwhelming or lobbying for his departure.

"For those kids to have Dewey, it's hugely important," forward Alex Iafallo told theScore. "It's a mentorship, really, especially with defensive responsibilities."

Head coach Todd McLellan praised Doughty's dedication to the craft, rattling off habits younger Kings can absorb by studying No. 8's shifts. "The competitiveness, the precise passing, the ability to defend," McLellan said.

"Pride in defending is a big thing that isn't always found in young players anymore. Everybody's coming in, and they think they need (scoring) stats to stay. … Drew takes as much pride, or sometimes more, in the defending part. It's really good for our younger players, in particular, to see that."

The 2016 Norris Trophy winner and the runner-up in 2015 and 2018, Doughty's always been a first-pair guy. He's skating for 26:28 a night this season, the league's second-highest average but right around his career rate.

"He's very efficient," Durzi said. "If you watch him out there, he's not moving much. But he's always in a good spot. He puts himself in situations where he doesn't have to exert that much energy. That allows him to play that many minutes. One day, hopefully, I'll be able to incorporate that into my game."

Plenty of legit Vezina options

At the holiday break, roughly 40% through the season, one Russian, one Swede, and one American have emerged as Vezina Trophy front-runners.

If I were casting a vote right now, I'd have difficulty deciding between Ilya Sorokin of the New York Islanders, Linus Ullmark of the Boston Bruins, or Connor Hellebuyck of the Winnipeg Jets. All of them have fantastic numbers while shouldering substantial workloads. There's truly no wrong answer.

Gun to my head, though ... I'd go with Sorokin.

The Isles' transition from airtight defensive-zone play under Barry Trotz to leaky defense under new bench boss Lane Lambert hasn't affected the 27-year-old Russian. Ahead of Thursday night's games, Sorokin owned a league-leading goals saved above expected rate (0.49 per 60 minutes), according to Sportlogiq. This ability to rise to the occasion also shows in Sorokin's performance in high-leverage situations (.813 inner-slot save percentage, fourth among NHL starters) and night-to-night consistency (66.7% quality starts, tied for first among starters).

The case for Ullmark, meanwhile, revolves around his 18 wins and .937 save percentage, both tops in the league. The case against: One, wins are a team statistic, so take that data point with a grain of salt; Two, Boston is arguably the NHL's friendliest goalie environment, so his save rate is inflated.

The case for Hellebuyck, a native of Commerce, Michigan, revolves around dependability. He boasts similar basic and advanced stats to Sorokin and Ullmark while starting 25 of 32 games behind Winnipeg's league-average defensive environment. Hellebuyck's case is legit but missing any oomph.

A few Vezina dark horses to keep an eye on: Nashville's Juuse Saros (Finnish), the Rangers' Igor Shesterkin (Russian), and Colorado's Alexandar Georgiev (Bulgarian). I point out each goalie's nationality to highlight the diversity among the league's top stoppers. At the same time, it sure shines a light on the lack of standout netminders from Canada.

Hot backup goalie market

Young backup goalies Dan Vladar, Pyotr Kochetkov, and Stuart Skinner have all inked multi-year contract extensions over the past two months.

Is this a coincidence? A trend? A combination of both?

All three are between the ages of 23 and 25. All three were drafted outside the first round. All three are earning less than $1 million this season and had 33 games or fewer of NHL experience before inking the new deal. All three were scheduled to become restricted free agents this summer.

Most crucially to their respective clubs, Vladar, Kochetkov, and Skinner have all shown flashes of starter potential amid chaotic situations. Vladar re-upped with the Calgary Flames for two years at a $2.2-million cap hit as No. 1 Jacob Markstrom struggled. The Carolina Hurricanes secured Kochetkov for four years at a $ 2-million hit as regulars Frederik Andersen and Antti Raanta battled injuries. Skinner and the Edmonton Oilers agreed on a three-year deal at a $2.6-miilion hit Monday as starter Jack Campbell, under contract through 2026-27, tried to find his groove after a horrendous first two months.

Is this a matter of teams trying to find value by investing in these backups before they take over the crease full time? Or does this mini-trend say more about the goalies seeing an opportunity while their value is high?

"It's a give and take," is how an assistant general manager working for another NHL team put it to me earlier this week.

"From the team's perspective, you understand the risk when you do these deals. They are unproven guys. But you're also really focused on the upside."

For instance, if Skinner becomes the unquestioned No. 1 guy for the Oilers and the club wins a playoff round or two, his extension, which doesn't kick in until next season, will look team-friendly. For that reason, the AGM was a "little surprised" Skinner and his camp opted to sign this early in the season.

"I guess the give and take there was that the team was going to walk Skinner right into (unrestricted) free agency with that four-year extension, right?" the AGM said. "He'll be a UFA when this new deal expires, so there'll be money waiting for him if he continues to make progress and becomes a true starter."

On the other hand, all three goalies likely salivated at the prospect of gaining security in the form of a one-way, multi-year NHL contract that included a hefty raise. In total, the extensions will pay Vladar, who's 25, $4.4 million; Skinner, 24, $7.8 million; and Kochetkov, 23, $8 million.

Regardless of trajectory, it's hard to walk away from guaranteed money, the AGM said. "That's a lot of money for guys not making much right now."

Ducks in worst-of-era territory

Technically, the Chicago Blackhawks are the NHL's worst team with a league-low .290 points percentage from 18 points in 31 games.

Peel back the layers of futility, and the Anaheim Ducks emerge as not just the worst squad in 2022-23 but potentially of the entire salary-cap era.

Anaheim has earned 21 points through 34 games for a .309 points percentage - still a depressingly bad rate. But the shock value can be found in two places: goal differential (minus-62) and regulation wins (three). The Ducks are on pace for seven regulation wins over the full 82-game season, which would be the fewest among the 548 teams to compete in the NHL since 2005-06. (The 2013-14 Buffalo Sabres collected only 11 regulation wins in 82 games.)

What's more, the defense-deprived Ducks are surrendering the most shots per game (37.9) and goals per game (4.2) of the cap era, while their special teams rank 31st and 28th this season. If you prefer advanced statistics, how about this doozy: Anaheim currently has the lowest five-on-five expected goals share of the analytics era (2007-08 onward) at an unfathomable 38.9%.

All of this losing increases the likelihood of the Ducks landing the first overall pick and drafting Connor Bedard. But losing this way certainly isn't helping the psyche of young, long-term core players like Troy Terry and Trevor Zegras.

Parting shots

Steven Stamkos: An early salute to Stamkos, who enters the holiday break with 497 goals in 954 regular-season games. The hockey world has been enthralled by 800-goal man Alex Ovechkin, and for good reason, so Stamkos' milestone chase has flown under the radar. With 46 players in the 500-goal club, the accomplishment isn't as prestigious as it once was. Yet Stamkos reaching 500 in his early 30s (he turns 33 in February) suggests 700 is possible, and there are only eight 700-goal guys. He's also a likable star and has always been a tremendous ambassador for the sport. He sniped 60 goals in 2011-12, a season in which just three others hit 40, and he authored an all-time playoff moment in Game 3 of the 2020 Stanley Cup Final. Remember when Stamkos scored on his lone shot of the postseason?

NHL officials: Weird week for on-ice officials. First, we watched referee Brandon Blandina let Colorado Avalanche defenseman Cale Makar talk him out of a tripping penalty. Then, linesman Dan Kelly was caught roughhousing Toronto Maple Leafs forward Michael Bunting at the end of a period. Both sequences went viral. And hey, I applaud Makar's sportsmanship, and I'm all for getting calls right, but there's something supremely odd about a referee taking cues from a player. Bit of a slippery slope, no? As for Kelly, he didn't injure Bunting, so it's ultimately no big deal. The shoving was over the top, though. Sure, Bunting's a pest, but there's no need for hero behavior.

Rasmus Ristolainen: Almost everything is going sideways for the 11-16-7 Philadelphia Flyers. Forward Kevin Hayes, the club's leading scorer, was a healthy scratch last weekend. On Monday, the Flyers announced Cam Atkinson, another key forward, would undergo neck surgery and be shelved for the campaign. Meanwhile, defenseman Ristolainen, who's being paid $5.1 million a season to contribute at least some offense, has failed to record a single point through 27 games, despite skating for 18:29 a night. For context, 519 skaters have played 300 minutes or more this year, and Ristolainen and teammate Justin Braun are the only ones without a point. Heck, 14 goalies have recorded a point, and a couple of them even have two.

Takes, Thoughts, and Trends is theScore's biweekly hockey grab bag.

John Matisz is theScore's senior NHL writer. Follow John on Twitter (@MatiszJohn) or contact him via email ([email protected]).