What a difference a year makes for Mathew Barzal. In 2016-2017 Barzal played two games with the New York Islanders, before being shipped back to Seattle, and looked completely overwhelmed at the time.
Heading into last year, we knew he’d make the roster but we assumed Brock Nelson would be the second line center. Boy was everyone wrong.
Barzal burst onto the scene putting up 85 points in his rookie season taking home the Calder Trophy with ease. Last season yielded a lot of appreciation around the league for Matty Barzal. NHL.com decided to rank the top-20 centers in the league and that list included Barzal.