from Scott Burnside of ESPN,

Good Surprises

-Startling stoppers! OK, hands up those of you who thought Darcy Kuemper, Frederik Andersen and Jonas Hiller would be a combined 19-6 heading into the first full week of November.

Kuemper made noise about going to the Kontinental Hockey League before training camp and now backstops the stingiest team in the NHL in Minnesota. Andersen (who suffered a slight injury this week) was thought to be behind John Gibson among the Anaheim Ducks' two young star goaltenders but is third in the league in goals against average (1.60) and save percentage (.941).

Then there's Hiller, who left Anaheim because of the Andersen/Gibson duo and ended up in Calgary, where the Flames were expected to be a doormat from the jump. Hasn't turned out that way as Hiller's solid play (he's 6-2-1) has helped the Flames emerge as one of the surprise teams of the first month.

Bad Surprises

-Caps falling short: Things started out so well for the Washington Capitals -- earning at least a point in their first five games -- that it looked like they'd committed to a new era of team defense under head coach Barry Trotz. But the Caps have fallen into old patterns while losing five straight as we settle into November. During that time they've allowed a whopping 22 goals against.

Some of that is the fact Braden Holtby simply hasn't been good enough, turning in an .891 save percentage in nine games, while Justin Peters has just been meh. Brooks Laich, a heart-and-soul guy, has struggled again with injuries, playing in just five games. But it's a sobering reminder that installing a new coach doesn't automatically suggest a team can change its identity.

read on for four more in each category...