from Kevin Paul Dupont of the Boston Globe,

So it was little bit of a surprise Thursday, with the calendar flipped to November, that Colorado right winger Mikko Rantanen held the No. 1 spot (21 points), followed by Patrice Bergeron and Evgeny Malkin knotted at 19 points. Of the three, Malkin was the least surprising, because he has long been one of the league’s most electric, productive point-getters, ranking No. 4 in league scoring the last 10-plus seasons with 758 points.

Bergeron, as Bruins fans are well aware, doesn’t make points a priority, but he is front and center now with two sizzling wingers, Brad Marchand and David Pastrnak. Hub-centric hockey fans like to call it the hottest line in hockey, but that title, headed into weekend play, belonged to Rantanen and linemates Nathan MacKinnon and Gabriel Landeskog. As of Friday morning, they had combined for 55 points, a giant step better than Bergeron and Co. with 50.

Rantanen, 22, is a load, a strapping 6 feet 4 inches and around 230 pounds. He went home to Finland over the summer, after finishing No. 16 in league scoring last season (84 points) and worked deliberately on skating strength and balance, as well as conditioning. Effort rewarded. Unless the line’s dynamics change unexpectedly, he could remain in the hunt with the usual suspects for the scoring title.

The No. 10 pick in the 2015 draft, better known as the McDavid draft, Rantanen played all but nine games in 2015-16 at AHL San Antonio. He plugged right into the varsity lineup the following October and, with his hot start this season, has approached nearly a point per game ever since. Jack Eichel, the No. 2 pick in that draft, has averaged 0.86 points per game with Buffalo, and Rantanen 0.81 with the Avalanche. Toronto’s Mitch Marner, the No. 4 pick in that draft, has clicked at 0.85.

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