Greeted Friday by a good Twitter roast, the Vegas Golden Knights mascot is anything but a blight on the hockey landscape.

Prior to Friday's game against Detroit, the Golden Knights unveiled a Gila monster named "Chance" as their new mascot. For those unfamiliar with these creatures, "the venomous Gila monster is the largest lizard native to the United States," according to National Geographic.

Vegas, however, has given "Chance" a backstory that belies its poisonous nature.

From the team:

Most Gila Monsters live in seclusion their whole lives and have little interaction with the outside world. However, when Chance learned that major professional hockey was coming to Las Vegas he became energized.

Once (he found the rink), he learned how welcoming the hockey community is. Despite being shy and not knowing anyone at the rink, he was invited to come onto the ice and skate. Like many newcomers to the sport, he fell in love with hockey and the Golden Knights.

That's fun for the kids, but to their credit, the Golden Knights made a point of making sure "Chance" represents "the inclusive culture of hockey" where "everyone is welcome." It's with that in mind that he will interact with fans at games, and also be seen at local hospitals, charitable initiatives, youth hockey events, and other community activities.

The NHL has enacted a "Hockey Is For Everyone" initiative in recent years, and brought forth a Declaration Of Principles on top of that. The addition of Vegas to the mix has been a hit to date, and the introduction of the new mascot symbolizes good things off the ice as well.

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Their inaugural loss appears to have propelled the Vegas Golden Knights to bring in reinforcements.

Russian forward Vadim Shipachyov has been recalled from the Chicago Wolves, according to AHL transactions - though he never actually played a game with them.

Signed to a two-year, $9-million deal in May, Shipachyov impressed in Golden Knights training camp and during the preseason, but ultimately failed to crack the opening-night roster. General manager George McPhee later explained it was purely a roster move and not based on performance, and allowed Shipachyov to return to Nevada rather than report to the Wolves.

The Golden Knights have posted a record of 3-1-0 to start the season, suffering their first loss Friday to Detroit. It's an impressive feat for an expansion club, especially one without the services of the talented center who's looking to build on a successful KHL career in North America.

Vegas next plays Sunday at home against the Boston Bruins.

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The Vancouver Canucks will be without Alex Edler for at least a month.

The defenseman suffered an MCL sprain and will be out of the lineup for four-to-six weeks, head coach Travis Green announced Saturday.

As a result, the recently-acquired Derrick Pouliot will get a shot to impress his new club.

Edler recorded one assist and four shots while averaging 18:15 through three games this season.

Pouliot, meanwhile, was brought in prior to the start of the regular season via Pittsburgh in exchange for prospect Andrey Pedan and a 2018 fourth-round draft pick.

Drafted eighth overall in 2012, Pouliot registered two goals and 12 assists in 67 appearances with the Penguins.

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The Edmonton Oilers are dealing with a potentially serious early-season injury.

Ahead of Saturday's game against Ottawa, head coach Todd McLellan disclosed forward Leon Draisaitl is dealing with concussion-type symptoms, according to Ryan Rishaug of TSN.

Draisaitl missed practice the past few days after suffering en eye injury during the team's loss Monday against Winnipeg, a game in which he played over 18 minutes, and scored a goal.

He will therefore not play against the Senators and will be held out of the lineup until deemed clear of the concussion symptoms.

Draisaitl, who signed an eight-year, $68 million extension this past summer, recorded a goal and two assists in three games so far this season.

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The National Hockey League season is only 10 days old, meaning there's little reason to panic for teams off to slow starts - though for the Montreal Canadiens and Dallas Stars, things look rather discouraging.

Both teams, expected to be solidly in playoff contention, are off to 1-3-0 starts. They're at the bottom of the league standings in terms of goals per game; Dallas sits 30th with eight goals in four contests, while Montreal has managed only four goals, two of which came shorthanded.

The reality of the latter's situation leads to gulp-worthy stats like this:

Below the surface, however, there are signs of better days ahead for both clubs.

Corsi domination

As a refresher, Corsi is an advanced statistic used to measure shot attempt differential, and is generally best assessed during even-strength play. It's calculated by adding up a team's shots on goal, shot attempts gone wide, and blocked shot attempts, and then subtracting that number from the same types of shot attempts directed at that team's own net.

The difference is then calculated as a percentage of shot attempts for and against. A number greater than 50 percent signals a team's ability to control play.

In short, it's all about having the puck on your stick and sending it toward the other team's net more than it comes at your own goalie - not all that advanced a concept, really.

With that in mind, it's important to note Montreal and Dallas rank high in Corsi For at even strength.

Again, these teams are consistently shooting more than the opposition, and by a wide margin. This bodes well, but unfortunately, the puck just isn't crossing the goal line.

PDO in the basement

This is corroborated by looking at PDO, which is the sum of a team's shooting percentage and save percentage at even strength. It's believed that most teams will land close to 100, with a higher or lower number suggesting that luck - positive or negative, respectively - is playing a significant role.

In case you haven't guessed already, Montreal and Dallas rank at the unluckier end of this list.

As these devastatingly low shooting percentages make clear, despite strong shot-attempt differentials, these teams aren't producing offensive results.

To make matters worse for the Canadiens, opposing teams have found the back of their net all too frequently, and they've yet to score a goal on the power play.

What does it mean?

Heading into Saturday's action, the Canadiens and Stars can take heart in knowing their luck is bound to turn sooner than later. Shooting percentages simply won't remain that low over the course of a full season, especially in relation to high shot attempt differentials.

Even last's season's worst shooting team - the Los Angeles Kings - finished with an even-strength percentage of 6.21.

The Corsi For rating may may not stay as high either, but, at the very least, this information tells us the Canadiens and Stars have been extremely unlucky in the early going, and there's good reason to believe the puck will start bouncing their way.

(Statistics courtesy: Corsica Hockey)

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The National Hockey League season is only 10 days old, meaning there's little reason to panic for teams off to slow starts - though for the Montreal Canadiens and Dallas Stars, things look rather discouraging.

Both teams, expected to be solidly in playoff contention, are off to 1-3-0 starts. They're at the bottom of the league standings in terms of goals per game; Dallas sits 30th with eight goals in four contests, while Montreal has managed only four goals, two of which came shorthanded.

The reality of the latter's situation leads to gulp-worthy stats like this:

Below the surface, however, there are signs of better days ahead for both clubs.

Corsi domination

As a refresher, Corsi is an advanced statistic used to measure shot attempt differential, and is generally best assessed during even-strength play. It's calculated by adding up a team's shots on goal, shot attempts gone wide, and blocked shot attempts, and then subtracting that number from the same types of shot attempts directed at that team's own net.

The difference is then calculated as a percentage of shot attempts for and against. A number greater than 50 percent signals a team's ability to control play.

In short, it's all about having the puck on your stick and sending it toward the other team's net more than it comes at your own goalie - not all that advanced a concept, really.

With that in mind, it's important to note Montreal and Dallas rank high in Corsi For at even strength.

Again, these teams are consistently shooting more than the opposition, and by a wide margin. This bodes well, but unfortunately, the puck just isn't crossing the goal line.

PDO in the basement

This is corroborated by looking at PDO, which is the sum of a team's shooting percentage and save percentage at even strength. It's believed that most teams will land close to 100, with a higher or lower number suggesting that luck - positive or negative, respectively - is playing a significant role.

In case you haven't guessed already, Montreal and Dallas rank at the unluckier end of this list.

As these devastatingly low shooting percentages make clear, despite strong shot-attempt differentials, these teams aren't producing offensive results.

To make matters worse for the Canadiens, opposing teams have found the back of their net all too frequently, and they've yet to score a goal on the power play.

What does it mean?

Heading into Saturday's action, the Canadiens and Stars can take heart in knowing their luck is bound to turn sooner than later. Shooting percentages simply won't remain that low over the course of a full season, especially in relation to high shot attempt differentials.

Even last's season's worst shooting team - the Los Angeles Kings - finished with an even-strength percentage of 6.21.

The Corsi For rating may may not stay as high either, but, at the very least, this information tells us the Canadiens and Stars have been extremely unlucky in the early going, and there's good reason to believe the puck will start bouncing their way.

(Statistics courtesy: Corsica Hockey)

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A promising start to the regular season for the Washington Capitals has been potentially hindered by the loss of defenseman Matt Niskanen.

Niskanen, who left Friday's game against Tampa Bay after taking a slash to the left hand, has been placed on long-term injured reserve with what's being labeled an upper-body injury.

The veteran defenseman is considered week-too-week and is expected to be out a minimum of 10 games and 24 days by being placed on LTIR, per Cap Friendly.

Madison Bowey has been recalled from the Hershey Bears to fill Niskanen's spot in the lineup.

Niskanen averaged 21:09 of ice time through the first five games of the season, recording one assist and four shots on goal.

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The rest of Canada might not be willing to admit it just yet, but the Toronto Maple Leafs are legit.

And, despite losing the last 14 games to their bitter rival, the Montreal Canadiens, the Leafs are a team on the rise, while the Habs are struggling just to put the puck in the net more than once per game.

Although, that wasn't always the case.

Only a few short years ago, the Leafs' roster looked like a shell of its future self. Sure, the Canadiens have undergone their fair share of roster changeover, but their cornerstone pieces remain mostly the same (minus, of course, that Subban guy).

Simply put, Montreal has dominated Toronto over the past three-plus seasons. And, after you have a look at the Leafs' roster - both then and now - the team's transformation from pretenders to contenders becomes evident.

Take a peek at the Leafs' lineup from the last time they bested the Canadiens, a 5-3 victory Jan. 18, 2014:

(Lineup courtesy: Hockey Reference)

Fast forward to today, with the Buds and Habs set to meet for the first time this season, and you have two very different-looking teams than the ones that faced off almost four years ago.

No disrespect to guys like Tim Gleason, Carter Ashton, and Mason Raymond, but Toronto's roster shakeup has sprinkled elite talent up and down the lineup.

A lot of that has to do with a revamped front-office staff and Brendan Shanahan's commitment to building from within. Of course, a handful of draft picks in the top 10 is bound to improve any club.

The progression made by No. 1 overall pick Auston Matthews, No. 4 overall Mitch Marner, and No. 8 overall William Nylander over the past two years have the Maple Leafs primed to leave their rival from La Belle Province in the dust for the first time in a long time.

(Photo courtesy: Action Images)

Especially considering the Canadiens sit last in goals scored with four, while the high-flying Leafs are second in the NHL with 22. Mind you, Toronto is far from a perfect team, and has struggled in its own end, sitting tied for the third-most goals against at 16.

Four years of dominance compared to four games of high-scoring contests hardly seems like enough to deem the Leafs the next Cup champs.

However, when you compare the talent levels of these two bitter opponents, it's clear to see that the tide is turning in Toronto's favor. With a totally different lineup and fresh approach, the Leafs have transformed themselves from the hunted to the hunters.

It's still early, and the Canadiens have plenty of time to figure it out. But expect the lengthy losing streak to be snapped, much sooner than later.

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