Ever since New York Islanders captain Anders Lee went down with a season-ending injury back in March we knew that their best player, Mathew Barzal, would have to be just that.
He would have to step up in a big way in order to lead his team to the playoffs and then step up yet again during the playoffs.
Barzal had a strong regular season, recording 45 points in 55 games. With 17 goals, he might have set a career-high in that category had the season been longer (his record is 22 goals in his rookie season when he won the Calder Trophy).