Evaluating the impact of goals to the average NHL fan is rather simple: people like them. Goals are fun, goals are exciting, and more goals generally leads to a more exciting on-ice product for viewers.

The problem, though, is goals these days are hard to come by. In 2016-17, the team average for goals in a game was 2.77 (Hockey Reference), a number which, shockingly, is the highest season total since 2010-11, when the stat was a barn-burning 2.79.

If tight-structured defensive systems aren't your thing, we recommend keeping a close eye on the following five teams in 2017-18, as they're poised to ensure the NHL's goals per-game number continues its brief upward trend.

Dallas Stars

See this thick-bearded, toothless fellow above? He gets to join a forward corps that already features the likes of Tyler Seguin, Jamie Benn, and Jason Spezza.

Alexander Radulov was one of the Stars' prized offseason acquisitions, coming off a rebirth in Montreal in which he recorded 54 points in 76 games. Radulov provides Dallas another power play producer, and can slot in beside Seguin on a top line that, on paper, is simply unfair.

Dallas also bolstered it's attack by luring towering pivot Martin Hanzal to the club in free agency. The 30-year-old should nicely complement prospering depth contributors Devin Shore and Radek Faksa.

Toronto Maple Leafs

After netting the fifth-most goals in the NHL last season (250), year two of the youth movement in Toronto should warrant more of the same.

While the Maple Leafs sophomores surely won't be taking anyone by surprise this time around, Toronto added Patrick Marleau into the mix to solidify one of the deepest forward groups across the NHL.

Winnipeg Jets

Finding the back of the net certainly isn't what kept the Jets outside the playoff picture last season.

Winnipeg scored 246 goals in 2016-17, a sum good for seventh in the league. The Jets didn't make too much noise in the offseason in terms of adding personnel, mainly because they didn't have to. With a top six that includes Patrik Laine, Mark Scheifele, Blake Wheeler, and Nikolaj Ehlers, Winnipeg is primed to rack up gaudy offensive numbers for years to come.

Columbus Blue Jackets

Last season's Blue Jackets were sandwiched between the Maple Leafs and Jets in terms of goals, and on the heels of a historic breakout campaign, Columbus added yet another offensive weapon in Artemi Panarin.

Panarin, who's recorded 151 points in 162 career games, should adequately replace Brandon Saad's output, and joins a roster that had seven skaters, excluding the departed Saad, eclipse 40 points last season.

Tampa Bay Lightning

Who knows where Tampa Bay might have ended up last season with Steven Stamkos involved.

The Lightning captain had 20 points in 17 games before a knee injury ended his season, leaving the club without one of the game's purest scorers. However, Stamkos is expected to be fully ready for training camp, and should he stay in the lineup, will form an incomparable duo with 40-goal man Nikita Kucherov.

Behind the two big dogs, the Lightning have a formidable trio of Ondrej Palat, Tyler Johnson and Brayden Point to rely on offensively. Not to mention Victor Hedman, who anchored the blue line and put up a whopping 72 points in 2016-17.

(Photos Courtesy: Action Images)

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The initial rush of the NHL's free-agent frenzy has come and gone, and several big names are off the board. Despite hundreds of millions of dollars being shelled out in search of improvement, the spending spree isn't about to stop, as several impact players remain without a contract.

Below, we've compiled a list of the top free agents still available.

Alexander Radulov

After a stellar season with the Montreal Canadiens, Radulov is the top impact forward still on the board. The soon-to-be 31-year-old racked up 18 goals and 36 assists last season, and because of that, Radulov is reportedly seeking quite a lucrative pact to sign.

TSN's Pierre LeBrun reported the Canadiens and Dallas Stars were battling for his services, but several teams need top-six scoring, and the longer the clock is allowed to tick, more teams may become involved.

Patrick Marleau

Marleau's partner in crime, Joe Thornton, reportedly is staying put in San Jose on a one-year deal, but the hockey world awaits a decision from the veteran winger.

As a 37-year-old last season, Marleau played all 82 games, scoring 27 goals to go along with 19 assists. He was reportedly offered a two-year deal to stay with the club that drafted him second overall in 1997, but Marleau's drawn significant interest elsewhere as well, making his impending decision one to keep a close eye on.

Jaromir Jagr

(Photo courtesy: Action Images)

Jagr's agent announced his client will be hitting the open market, but the first day of free agency didn't warrant an immediate change of scenery for the 45-year-old.

The second most-prolific scorer in NHL history still has some game, notching 46 points last season for the Panthers.

Andrei Markov

Markov's spent the entirety of his 16-season career with the Canadiens, but with the arrival of Karl Alzner in La Belle Province, the writing could be on the wall for the end of the veteran's tenure in Montreal.

The 38-year-old reportedly asked for a two-year, $12 million contract, which doesn't exactly fit in the Canadiens books as of now. However, Markov is still a reliable top-four defender and decent point-producer, and shouldn't have to wait long to find some suitors.

Thomas Vanek

Vanek's skated for six teams since the start of the 2013-14 season, but a player with his skill set is always in high demand.

The 33-year-old winger netted 48 points in 68 games last season split between the Red Wings and Panthers, but shouldn't cost too much for teams to add adequate scoring depth.

Cody Franson

(Photo courtesy: Getty Images)

The market for defenseman is at an all-time high, but Franson can provide cheap value for a team looking to upgrade its blue line.

Franson's never been the flashiest defender, but he's consistently put up points in his career, with 205 points in 527 games. He also owned a respectable 50.4 corsi-for percentage at even strength for the defensively inept Sabres last season.

Jarome Iginla

The demand for Iginla was never expected to be too high, but the 40-year-old has expressed interest in playing this coming season, still in search of the championship that has eluded him his entire career.

Iginla endured the disaster that was the Colorado Avalanche for 61 games last season before being dealt to the Los Angeles Kings, where he produced nine points in 19 games.

Drew Stafford

Stafford proved to be one of the more valuable trade-deadline acquisitions last season, chipping in eight points in 18 games upon arriving in Boston from Winnipeg.

He's a middle-six winger with size and decent scoring touch, and should be able to find a landing spot sooner rather than later.

Shane Doan

(Photo courtesy: Action Images)

Doan, like Iginla, is in search of a ring to conclude an illustrious career. However, the demand for 40-year-old wingers isn't exactly skyrocketing at the moment.

The longtime Coyotes captain produced 27 points last season and is likely searching for a short-term offer from a contending team.

Jussi Jokinen

After reportedly being bought out by the Panthers, Jokinen needs a new home. The veteran winger was limited to 69 games and 28 points last season, but has proven to be a strong possession player throughout his career.

At even strength last season, Jokinen had a 53.4 corsi-for percentage, and could be a cheap, reliable pickup for a team in search of offensive depth.

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The Calgary Flames have acquired goaltender Eddie Lack, defensive prospect Ryan Murphy, and a 2019 seventh-round pick from the Carolina Hurricanes in exchange for defenseman Keegan Kanzig and a 2019 sixth-rounder, the teams announced Thursday night.

Carolina will retain 50 percent of Lack's salary in the deal, according to TSN's Pierre LeBrun.

Murphy was drafted 12th overall by the Hurricanes in 2011, but has struggled to make much of an impact at the NHL level, spending time in the AHL in each of the past five seasons.

Kanzig, meanwhile, was a third-round pick of the Flames in 2013, and has yet to play a game in the NHL.

After trading for Mike Smith earlier in the offseason, Lack will likely serve as a backup for the Flames. Last season, the 29-year-old posted a 8-7-3 record with a 2.64 goals-against average and .902 save percentage. He's evidently been ruled the odd man out from a Carolina crease that now features Scott Darling and Cam Ward.

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The Arizona Coyotes and head coach Dave Tippett have mutually agreed to part ways, the team announced Thursday.

"On behalf of the entire Coyotes organization, I would like to sincerely thank Tip for all of his hard work and the many contributions he made to our organization," said team owner Andrew Barroway. "Tip is a man of high character and we are very grateful for his leadership during his tenure as our head coach. Ultimately, we have some philosophical differences on how to build our team. Therefore' we mutually agreed that it is in everyone's best interest to have a coaching change in order to move our franchise forward."

Barroway bought out Coyotes' minority owners to become the sole owner of the club earlier in June.

Tippett, 55, took over the Coyotes bench in 2009-10, leading Arizona

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Connor McDavid had himself a night.

The Edmonton Oilers captain captured the Hart Trophy as the league's most valuable player Wednesday at the NHL Awards, earning the honor over Pittsburgh Penguins forward Sidney Crosby and Columbus Blue Jackets netminder Sergei Bobrovsky.

Here's the vote breakdown, which show McDavid won convincingly.

Fittingly, Oilers legend Wayne Gretzky announced the award, McDavid's second of the night, also capturing the Ted Lindsay Award as the league's most outstanding player voted by the NHLPA. The 20-year-old was also recognized for winning the Art Ross (top scorer) and was named the cover athlete for EA Sports NHL 18.

McDavid became the third player in NHL history to win MVP before turning 21-years-old, joining Gretzky and Crosby.

In his monstrous campaign, McDavid, 20, racked up a league-lead

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Marc Bergevin made yet another massive splash.

The Montreal Canadiens acquired forward Jonathan Drouin and a conditional 2018 sixth-round pick from the Tampa Bay Lightning in exchange for prospect Mikhail Sergachev and a conditional second-round pick in 2018, the team announced Thursday.

TSN's Pierre LeBrun clarified the conditions here:

Sergachev was one of the Canadiens' top prospects, drafted ninth overall by the club in 2016. The 18-year-old blue-liner spent the season with the OHL's Windsor Spitfires, notching 43 points in 50 games en route to winning the Memorial Cup.

Drouin, 22, is coming off his best NHL season, recording 21 goals and 32 assists for the Lightning. He grew into a more prominent role in the absence of Steven Stamkos, and consistently displayed his offensive flair as one of the most dynamic playmakers in the game.

However, Drouin is a restricted free agent, along with teammates Tyler Johnson and Ondrej Palat, and Tampa Bay general manager Steve Yzerman needed to make a choice, or risk losing one of them for nothing in the expansion draft.

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Jean-Gabriel Pageau's gameday began with what he thought was too much chicken parm. It ended with his name in the history books.

The Ottawa Senators forward performed in grand fashion Saturday in Game 2, netting four goals - including the overtime winner - to give his club a 2-0 series lead over the New York Rangers.

Pageau got the Sens on the board in the first, then cut his club's two-goal deficit in half with 3:19 to go in the third. He followed up with a hat-trick tally with 1:02 to go, and then iced it in double overtime.

Suffice to say, he was the hero.

"What can I say? The kid is a legend," defenseman Marc Methot told TSN's Ian Mendes postgame.

Methot wasn't alone:

"Four goals, that's absolutely sick," head coach Guy Boucher said, according to Bruce Garrioch of The Ottawa Sun. "It couldn't happen to a better person."

Pageau, who scored 12 goals in the regular season, and now has five in the playoffs, is already looking ahead.

"I will remember that for the rest of my life but I don't want to stop there," he said.

Pageau became just the second player in NHL history to score four goals including the overtime winner in a playoff game, and he'll look to somehow top the performance Tuesday in Game 3.

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Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Roman Polak will undergo surgery on his injured right leg Tuesday, head coach Mike Babcock announced.

Polak was forced to leave Game 2 versus the Washington Capitals on Saturday, after a hard hit from Brooks Orpik forced an awkward fall. He was declared done for the playoffs after the contest.

The 30-year-old appeared in 75 games through the regular season, registering four goals and seven assists, while playing a key role on Toronto's penalty kill.

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Columbus Blue Jackets rookie defenseman Zach Werenski will miss the remainder of the season after suffering a facial fracture, head coach John Tortorella announced Monday.

Werenski took a puck to the face in Game 3 on Sunday night, and after an attempt to come back, was forced to leave the contest for good due to impaired vision. To make matters worse, the Penguins scored mere seconds after he fell to the ice, bloodied as the result of a deflected Phil Kessel wrister.

Related: Werenski shares gruesome selfie after taking shot to face

How long the Blue Jackets will carry on without Werenski remains to be seen, as Columbus faces a 3-0 series deficit against Pittsburgh, with a possible sweep on the line Tuesday night.

The 19-year-old rearguard had a tremendous season with the Blue Jackets, constantly drawing praise from Tortorella, who admitted "Werenski's probably our best player," following the deflating Game 3 loss.

If he weren't competing against Auston Matthews, Patrik Laine, et al., Werenski would be a shoo-in for rookie of the year honors, as his debut NHL season saw him record 11 goals and 36 assists while averaging 20:55 of ice time in 78 games.

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Considering the well-documented magnificence of the Toronto Maple Leafs' rookie class this season, it's hard to imagine there's yet another dynamic freshman to add into the fold, right?

Wrong - enter Kasperi Kapanen, who's cemented his presence into Toronto's lineup, and his name into the minds of hockey fans everywhere in a mere matter of weeks.

Kapanen only played eight games for the Maple Leafs in the regular season, but those who follow the club closely knew his promotion from the AHL would help Toronto's balance in the stretch run, as the 20-year-old is a lightning-quick, offensively gifted winger who happened to rack up 43 points in 43 games with the AHL's Marlies in 2016-17.

Deployed on the fourth line alongside Brian Boyle and Matt Martin, Kapanen's full offensive potential appears untapped to this point, but he's undoubtedly staked his claim as a big-game player.

He earned the reputation first and foremost at the 2016 world juniors, where he clinched the gold medal on home soil for his native Finland with an overtime winner, and early in his NHL career, the clutch gene has transferred over.

With a playoff berth on the line, it was Kapanen that notched his first NHL goal versus the Pittsburgh Penguins to tie the game - setting the table for goals from fellow rookies Connor Brown and Auston Matthews to send the Maple Leafs to the dance.

Saturday night, it was Kapanen who stepped up again, first tying the game at 2-2, then following up with a double-overtime winner to send the series back to Toronto with a desperately needed split.

As the centerpiece of the Leafs' return in the Phil Kessel trade, Kapanen, drafted 22nd overall by the Pittsburgh Penguins in 2014, is expected to grow into a more prominent role in Toronto's quest to become a consistent contender, and based on his early impact, it may come sooner than later.

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