The NHL's best this week: Kyle Palmieri, 'hockey guy'

It was one of those plays that, if you described it to a hockey fan, they'd respond with "yep -- hockey guy."

On Friday, veteran forward Kyle Palmieri tore his ACL while chasing a puck in the offensive zone. He crumbled to the ice in visible pain while the play continued into the neutral zone.

Palmieri got up, hobbled toward the Isles bench, but along the way the Philadelphia Flyers brought the puck back into their own zone. Palmieri, somehow with the wherewithal to keep his mind in the game through what was no doubt excruciating pain, stripped the puck from Flyers defenseman Emil Andrae, passed it off and got an assist on the ensuing goal. Palmieri didn't even see the goal as he was off the ice and helped to the locker room. He will be out six to eight months due to the injury.

To recap: Palmieri tore his ACL. Got up by himself. Hobbled toward the bench. Made a takeaway in the offensive zone and made a (SAUCER!) pass that led to a goal.

That might be the most gangster way to leave a game due to injury in NHL history.

And again, if you told that story to a hockey fan, their response would be, "yep -- hockey guy."

In that moment, Palmieri exemplified one of the big reasons we love hockey: that natural toughness, stubborn unwillingness to give up in the face of adversity. We have a running hockey inside joke where we laugh, often bewildered, at the laundry list of injuries that come to light after a team gets eliminated from the playoffs.

Like in 2020, when Steven Stamkos came back from a lengthy injury for only two minutes and 47 seconds and scored on his first possession? Hockey guy.

Or when 42-year-old Zdeno Chara played with a broken jaw (and modified face mask) in Game 5 of the 2019 Stanley Cup Final? Hockey guy.

Or in 2017 when Joe Thornton played with a torn ACL and MCL through the playoffs? Hockey guy.

Veteran of over 1,000 NHL games and now-ESPN analyst T.J. Oshie reacted thusly when he saw Palmieri's effort:

That's the hockey culture. Torn ACL and still made his way to the bench without help. Oh and he stripped the puck and got an assist on the way. What a warrior. What a sport. Hoping for a full recovery. https://t.co/mASNyLeW1l

These kinds of heroics aren't exclusive to hockey, of course. Kirk Gibson will forever be a hero for his 1988 World Series home run for the Dodgers and hobbling around the bases, for example. But hockey seems to have the most publicly known cases of such examples. And, quite frankly, the most believable culture of athletes that would go to those lengths to compete and win. Hockey guys.

Jump ahead:
Games of the week
What I loved this weekend
Hart Trophy candidates
Social post of the week
Stick taps

Biggest games of the week

Chicago
Blackhawks at

Vegas
Golden Knights

Tuesday, 10 p.m. | ESPN+/Hulu

These are two teams that need a kick. The Golden Knights are 4-2-4 in their past 10, while the Blackhawks are 4-4-2. The two teams are separated by five points, which is not something many people would have expected at this stage of the season.

Plus, lots of star power on display in this one, including Connor Bedard vs. Jack Eichel at 1C. Let's go!

Pittsburgh
Penguins at

Tampa Bay
Lightning

Thursday, 7 p.m. | ESPN+

The Penguins head to Tampa to play the Lightning, and even though it's not a "return" per se, it's always fun to see a player play against many former teammates. Jake Guentzel against Sidney Crosby and the Pens will be interesting.

Colorado
Avalanche at

New York
Rangers

Saturday, 12:30 p.m. | ESPN+

The league's bulldozer, the Avalanche, head to Madison Square Garden on Saturday. The Rangers are still struggling at home but have picked up a couple of wins at the Garden recently. But if the vibes stay bad and the hottest team in the NHL is coming to your barn, that has the makings of a disaster. The Avs doubled up the Rangers the last time these teams played (in Denver on Nov. 20) 6-3.

Other key games this week

Pittsburgh
Penguins at

Philadelphia
Flyers

Monday, 7 p.m. | NHL Network

Washington
Capitals at

Los Angeles
Kings

Tuesday, 10:30 p.m. | ESPN+

Dallas
Stars at

New Jersey
Devils

Wednesday, 7 p.m. | ESPN+

Minnesota
Wild at

Edmonton
Oilers

Thursday, 9 p.m. | ESPN+

Chicago
Blackhawks at

Los Angeles
Kings

Thursday, 10 p.m. | ESPN+/Hulu

Washington
Capitals at

Anaheim
Ducks

Friday, 10 p.m. | ESPN+

New Jersey
Devils at

Boston
Bruins

Saturday, 7 p.m. | ESPN+

Chicago
Blackhawks at

Anaheim
Ducks

Sunday, 8 p.m. | ESPN+

What I loved this weekend

Many in the hockey world talk about growing the game, and this weekend included one excellent example of doing that courtesy of the Minnesota Wild.

For the first time in NHL history, in honor of Native American Heritage Day, the game between the Wild and Avalanche had Ojibwe-language commentary:

In speaking with fans who consume hockey games in their native languages, it means the world to them and particularly their family members who can fully experience and fall in love with hockey, surrounded by their family and friends. You absolutely love to see it.

Shout out to Jessi Pierce, who covers the Wild and also cohosts the "Bardown Beauties" hockey podcast for bringing this to my attention.

Hart Trophy candidates if the season ended today

Nathan MacKinnon might stay on this list for the rest of the season. He's building a sizable gap between him and No. 2 in the Art Ross (currently seven points ahead of Macklin Celebrini) and is battling with Morgan Geekie for the league lead in goals. He's a finalist every week and continues to build his case.

I hate to give two spots to one team, but I simply can't deny Scott Wedgewood. The veteran goaltender has a .920 save percentage to help drive his 13-1-3 record, and he has allowed only 36 goals in 18 starts this season. I'll admit that I love when goalies get some love in the Hart race, so that plays a factor. If the Blackhawks were in a playoff spot, I'd give the nod to Spencer Knight, because he has been incredible too, with the same save percentage as Wedgewood behind a much younger D corps.

And, since I love having some youth in this race, Celebrini is back in the third spot. He's second in the NHL in points. He had five points in four games this week, which is a slow week for him -- a somewhat wild thing to say about a second-year player.

Social media post of the week

Ice tennis has hit the NHL!

I first discovered this on Pavel Barber's social feed but ice tennis now has the honor of saying it was featured at the World's Most Famous Arena. Pretty cool!

Credit to Jonny Lazarus (who among many other things, calls college hockey games for ESPN+) for the video:

This is new, we've got Ice Tennis at intermission at MSG. pic.twitter.com/w8FEtd2FNA

Stick taps

Normally I reserve this space to show love to people who do great things in hockey and don't usually get credit for it -- reach out to me on social media with your nominees. But I'm going to empty my notepad for this week instead -- and it is a stick-related story, so it fits.

During last week's Blackhawks vs. Wild broadcast, John Buccigross and Cassie Campbell-Pascall discussed how P.K. Subban used to get a new stick for every power play and often switch back out. I asked P.K. why, and he explained that it was because he wanted a fresh twig with "less chance of breakage." New stick equals stiffer stick, so he was able to get the shots he wanted -- and often scored on. Mystery solved, thanks to the Subbanator!