NHL Rookie Notebook: Lightning's Ross Colton keeps coming up clutch

Every week throughout the 2020-21 season, we’re highlighting a handful of rookie performances and milestones from around the league.

Bernard-Docker makes his NHL debut

When the Ottawa Senators traded veteran Erik Gudbranson to the Nashville Predators on Monday, it opened the door for another piece of the club’s rebuild to take his place on the blue line. Fresh off his seven-day quarantine and with just a single NHL practice under his belt, Jacob Bernard-Docker suited up for the Senators for the first time Wednesday night — a last-minute insertion into the lineup after defenceman Nikita Zaitsev was deemed unable to play due to injury.

Jacob Bernard-Docker gets his solo lap ahead of his @NHL debut tonight.

: @Senators pic.twitter.com/5bH4XxIvlC

— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) April 14, 2021

Despite being informed of his debut just an hour prior to lacing up his skates for the rite-of-passage solo lap pregame, Bernard-Docker looked poised out there, clearly getting more comfortable by the minute for all 15:33 against the Winnipeg Jets. As he suited up alongside Thomas Chabot for the most part, Senators fans got a first glimpse of what could be the club’s top pairing of the future.

“There were a couple of times on the point there, he made a couple of good offensive plays,” Senators head coach D.J. Smith said post-game (quotes via Wayne Scanlan). “With his head up. He’s a real smart player. He sees what’s going on, and as he learns the pace and adjusts to practice he’ll continue to get better.”

With all the impressive prospects still developing in the system, including Bernard-Docker’s UND teammate Jake Sanderson who opted to return for his sophomore year, so too will this young defensive core.

Bernard-Docker is the fourth NCAA player to make his NHL debut since the 2020-21 college season came to an end, and with Montreal announcing earlier Friday the call-up of Cole Caufield, he definitely won’t be the last…

Robertson makes history in Dallas

The 2020-21 season has not been kind to the Dallas Stars, and their place in the standings is reflective of the obstacles they’ve had to endure. Among the bright spots, however, is Jason Robertson. The rookie forward continues to put up points, is getting more top-line time alongside Roope Hintz and Joe Pavelski, and has the club shouting his name into Calder conversations — which is right where it belongs, considering his performance this year. He’s third in goals (12) and points (30) among his Stars teammates, behind Pavelski and Hintz, and fourth on the team in assists (18).

Those numbers, accrued in 37 games this year, thrust him into some pretty impressive franchise history.

They also have him sitting second in goals and points among all NHL rookies this year (Minnesota’s Kirill Kaprizov remains in the top spot in both categories) while his plus-13 rating is tops among all first-year players.

Shesterkin heats up with back-to-back shutouts

New York Rangers goaltender Igor Shesterkin started the week with a 10-9-3 record. Five days later, the rookie has two shutouts to his name after a pair of contests against the New Jersey Devils.

As noted in the graphic above, Shesterkin is the second rookie netminder to do so this season — New York Islanders goalie Ilya Sorokin registered two consecutive shutouts in February, though his starts came 12 days apart as the club was moderating his playing time.

Three other first-year goalies have posted at least two shutouts this season: Chicago’s Kevin Lankinen, Minnesota’s Kaapo Kahkonen and Carolina’s Alex Nedeljkovic, who leads his peers with three.

Tampa Bay’s Colton keeps coming up clutch

When it comes to cap management, it kind of feels like Tampa Bay Lightning general manager Julien BriseBois is out here playing chess while the rest of us are still dusting off the checkerboard. We can say the same thing about the Lightning’s ability to cash in on mid-round picks. The latest case in point: Ross Colton.

The 24-year-old’s NHL career got off to a hot start in February when he scored the game-winning goal against Carolina in his debut, and he hasn’t really cooled off since. Eight games in March brought four points (another game-winning goal and three assists) and April is already yielding some pretty amazing production. In eight games this month, Colton has scored six goals (including two more game-winners). That puts him in some pretty elite company:

Colton hasn’t been getting a ton of ice time — he’s currently averaging 10:03 per game through 17 appearances, with Thursday’s 13:38 against Florida his highest total to date — but he’s making a pretty big impact when he’s out there.

Drafted in the fourth round (118th overall) in 2016, he’s got teammates piling on the praise and drawing comparisons to another talented mid-rounder in Anthony Cirelli.

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