Teenage Mutant Ninja Hertl

 So Tomas Hertl is only 19 years old. Last night he played only his third NHL game, in addition to being his third game in North America. And he did this:

This just happened to be his 4^th goal of the game. Through his 3 games, he has 6 goals and 7 points. He’s the fourth youngest player ever to score 4 goals in a game. He’s playing on a line with Joe Thornton and (awesomely bearded) Brent Burns. And he has quickly become quite beloved. I watched the Sharks first game, where Hertl recorded an assist, and impressed with how he played considering it was his first NHL game. When he scored two goals the next game against Phoenix, I was mildly surprised. He looked exponentially better (in the two periods I watched) than game 1. Last night homework won, so I missed the game. But I can only assume he played that much better. I mean, 4 goals in just over 11 minutes of ice time!  

But the question now is, can Hertl keep it up? His season high in games played, 68, came last year between the Czech League, the WJC, and the World Cup. He’ll been on schedule to play at least 82 games this year. The Sharks should make the playoffs like they always do. And can we consider Hertl for the Olympics? That’s a lot of additional games for a 19 year old, even one that’s 6’2” and 210 lbs. The Sharks looked phenomenal to start the year last season too, before struggling later in the year. Remember Patrick Marleau scoring two goals in each of the Sharks first 4 games last year? Is Hertl gonna follow a similar pattern?

He’s sure to go through some bumps during his rookie season, that’s almost inescapable. But playing on such a talented team and playing on a line with Thornton and Burns will surely help the adjustment. The Sharks keeping his minutes down will help too. There’s no pressure for Hertl to be a game breaker, especially on a team with Thornton, Marleau, and Logan Couture. Nobody can keep up this pace. But it’s super entertaining, and it’s hard not to root for the kid. And feel bad that with all the attention that he has to deal with, he speaks so little English.