NHL Barometer: Risers and Fallers

This week's article includes a new No. 1 center in the City of Brotherly Love, the other top winger in Winnipeg, a pair of veteran goalies enjoying new homes and a San Jose star off to a very slow start.

First Liners (Risers)

Sean Couturier, C, PHI – In the preseason, Philly moved Claude Giroux to left wing with Couturier sliding in as the top-line center. Many of us expected that to be a short-term change, but right now, that switch has benefitted both players and the team. Couturier scored twice and added an assist in the Flyers' 8-2 victory over the Capitals on Saturday, giving him three goals and three assists with a plus-8 rating in five games. Giroux potted two goals and added a pair of assists that evening and he now has three goals and four assists in the same five games. Keep an eye on Couturier's PPTOI, because if it ticks up just a bit, his value will rise accordingly.

Jonathan Toews, C, CHI – Toews had a solid but unspectacular season last year, notching 21 goals and 37 assists, matching his production of the prior season. The 21 goals were a career low for Toews, whose reputation was mainly based on his playoff and international record. Chicago brought back Brandon Saad in an effort to restore Toews to prior regular-season glory. That move has paid dividends initially, with Toews posting three goals and three assists in his first six games of the year.

Martin Frk, RW, DET – Tyler Bertuzzi's wrist injury opened the door for Frk to break camp with the parent club. He has made the most of that opportunity, posting three goals in five games. Frk's career has had several twists and turns, but his return to the Red Wings last season seemed to spur the Czech winger. He recorded a personal-best 50 points (27 goals, 23 assists) for AHL Grand Rapids, topping it off with the Calder Cup-winning goal. Frk is worth a look in deep leagues.

Nikolaj Ehlers, LW, WPG – Ehlers, selected ninth overall in 2014, had a solid rookie campaign in 2015-16 with 15 goals and 23 assists. He took a quantum leap forward last season, posting 25 goals and 39 assists while skating on a line with Mark Scheifele and Blake Wheeler. Winnipeg signed the Danish winger to a seven-year, $42 million extension in October. That big deal may prove to be a bargain, as Ehlers has gotten off to a monster start with five goals and a pair of assists.

Dustin Brown, RW, LA – Brown posted 36 points last season, the first time in four years he hit the 30-point mark. There were some rumblings that maybe L.A. should have bought out Brown, who signed an eight-year extension with the team in July 2013. That still may be the case, but Brown has turned back the clock to date, posting four goals and three assists in five games. The clock may still strike 12 on the former Kings captain, but enjoy the run while it lasts.

Aaron Ekblad, D, FLA – After a Calder Trophy-winning campaign and solid sophomore season, Ekblad had a year to forget last season. An injury in the World Cup started the downward trend, which was followed by a concussion during the season. Ekblad never could get going, finishing with career-worst marks in games played (68), points (21) and plus-minus rating (minus-23). Fully healthy, Ekblad looks like the player that seamlessly fit into the NHL as a rookie after getting selected first overall in 2014, as he has two goals and two assists in his first four games of the year.

Alex Pietrangelo, STL – The Blues' captain was counted on to raise his game following the trade of Kevin Shattenkirk last season. After the trade, Pietrangelo posted 18 points, including eight on the power play, in 20 games. Pietrangelo is showing that uptick in production was no fluke this year, notching two goals and six assists while seeing a career-best 26:15 in average ice time, including 4:39 on the man advantage. At this rate, it's possible that Pietrangelo could challenge his career high of 51 points.

Ben Bishop, G, DAL – Injuries limited the big goalie to 39 games last year. Now fully healthy, Bishop is the unquestioned starter in his new home after signing with the Stars last summer. Bishop has settled in nicely in Big D, stopping 91 of 97 shots his first four games, and should see somewhere close to 60 starts this season — health permitting, of course.

Mike Smith, G, CGY – Like Bishop, Smith has benefited from a change of scenery. Also like Dallas, Calgary had a solid offseason, aided by the acquisition of a new starting goalie. Smith's numbers the past three seasons suffered from playing behind a weak Arizona defense. Calgary's blue line is far superior, and Smith is off to a solid start, posting a .929 save percentage through his first four starts.

Others include Alex Killorn, Adam Henrique, Kyle Turris, Jack Eichel, Auston Matthews, Sidney Crosby, Matt Duchene, Brayden Point, Nicklas Backstrom, Nick Bjugstad, Jakub Voracek, Sven Andrighetto, Alexander Ovechkin, Nail Yakupov, Wayne Simmonds, T.J. Oshie, Artemi Panarin, Bryan Rust, Mikko Rantanen, Brandon Saad, Claude Giroux, Mike Hoffman, Jonathan Huberdeau, Will Butcher, Kris Letang, Dougie Hamilton, Zdeno Chara, Mike Green, John Klingberg, Jan Rutta, Connor Hellebuyck, Corey Crawford, Jonathan Quick, Semyon Varlamov and Braden Holtby.

Training Room (Injuries)

Leon Draisaitl, C, EDM – Draisaitl showed signs of breaking out during his sophomore campaign, but he really took a major step forward last year. Part of that rise can be attributed to playing alongside Connor McDavid, but Draisaitl – selected third overall in 2014 – is more than just a product of skating with a superstar. Edmonton clearly felt the same, as it signed the 21-year-old to an eight-year, $68 million deal last July. Draisaitl posted three points in his first three games before suffering what was originally reported as an eye injury that resulted in concussion-like symptoms. The combination of the two makes speculating on a specific return date difficult, especially since he was unable to practice again Sunday.

Others include Ryan Getzlaf (lower body, out again Sunday, has played only two of team's first six games), Patrice Bergeron (lower body, aiming to play Thursday), Nino Niederreiter (high-ankle sprain, expected to miss a minimum of three weeks), Charlie Coyle (broken fibula, out 6-8 weeks), Jonathan Marchessault (lower body, placed on injured reserve), Loui Eriksson (knee, will miss upcoming five-game road trip), Erik Karlsson (foot surgery, could play Tuesday), Alexander Edler (knee, out 4-6 weeks) and Marc-Andre Fleury (concussion, placed on injured reserve).

Fourth Liners/Press Boxers (Fallers)

Joe Pavelski, C, SJ – With Patrick Marleau in Toronto and Joe Thornton slowing, the Sharks now belong to Pavelski and Logan Couture up front. The Sharks have struggled, and Pavelski's slow start is a big reason why. He has just one point with a minus-3 through four games. The Sharks' captain has tallied at least 68 points in each of the last four full seasons, so there's no doubt he'll turn things around, but owners may want to consider benching him until he figures it out.

Alex Galchenyuk, RW, MTL – Galchenyuk was dropped from the first to the fourth line Saturday. Despite the change in lines, Galchenyuk remained on Montreal's second power-play unit and was able to score on the man advantage — snapping a four-game goal drought. The talented winger got off to strong start last season with 23 points his first 25 games, but he was never able to recover from a December knee injury. His name has been prominently mentioned in most recent Montreal trade rumors, and maybe a change of locale would help since he appears to be in coach Claude Julien's doghouse.

Damon Severson, D, NJ – Hockey, like all sports, can be a zero-sum game. If someone is rising, another player is falling. In this case, as Will Butcher rises, Severson has fallen. Butcher has been the flavor of the month with eight assists in five games, with five of those helpers coming on the man advantage. Severson is still seeing a copious amount of power-play time, but part of that is coming with the second unit. His six-year, $25 million contract signed this offseason shows what New Jersey thinks of him, but Butcher may need to hit some bumps in the road for Severson to see an uptick in value.

Cam Talbot, G. EDM – Talbot was viewed as a possible Vezina Trophy candidate before the season kicked off. That may still be the case, but after a breakthrough campaign in his second year as a starter in Edmonton, Talbot has struggled in 2017-18. Saturday was the second time this season that Talbot was pulled from the game, and at 1-3-0 with a 3.96 GAA and .880 save percentage, that's not what his owners or the Oilers — who expect to contend for the postseason — expected. It's still early, though, so don't panic yet.

Others include Bo Horvat, Christian Dvorak, Jordan Staal, Jakob Silfverberg, Rick Nash, Colin Wilson, Jack Johnson, Thomas Chabot, Jaccob Slavin, Tuukka Rask and Robin Lehner.