5 storylines that dominated the 1st half of the season

The first half of the 2016-17 campaign officially ended Tuesday night, with half the 1,230 games on the regular-season schedule now in the books.

Before you know it, it'll be spring, and you'll be talking about the playoffs, and dreaming of the Stanley Cup. We can't wait, either.

Here are five storylines that dominated the last quarter of 2016 and the first 10 days of 2017:

Auston and Patrik

The kids, they dominate the NHL so fast.

Grown men and women have been walking around Toronto and Winnipeg for the past few months saying "Auston Matthews" and "Patrik Laine" out loud, without reason, just because. It's weird.

But also understandable. Toronto and Winnipeg are two hockey-mad cities, and they've been gifted two remarkable talents, who will hopefully bring glory back to the Maple Leafs, and for the first time to the reincarnated Jets.

Hockey fans may have thought themselves spoiled when Connor McDavid and Jack Eichel came along last season, but Matthews and Laine are proving the encore's better than the original.

The top two picks in the 2016 draft are equal at 21 goals, good for a tie for third in the NHL, and are one-two in rookie scoring, Laine's 37 points are two more than Matthews, with the Toronto phenom holding three games in hand.

That Maple Leafs-Jets Stanley Cup Final, when it happens, is going to be something.

Columbus rising

These aren't your daddy's Blue Jackets.

After all, Columbus could find itself one day on "Jeopardy," in the "NHL team milestones" category for $600.

This team went on a 16-game winning streak from Nov. 29, 2016 to Jan. 3, 2017, one shy of the NHL record of 17 set by the 1992-93 Pittsburgh Penguins.

Who are the 2016-17 Columbus Blue Jackets.

Sixteen games. The Blue Jackets! Crazy, right?

John Tortorella's turned over a mellow leaf, and halfway through the season Columbus is the NHL's best team, and owns the league's best goal differential. The Blue Jackets are third in goals per game, third in goals against, and boast the league's top power play. They're for real.

Sid and the new kid

Connor McDavid's the heir apparent. But Sidney Crosby isn't ready to give up his throne.

Through the first three months of the season, No. 87 and No. 97 have delivered stellar performance after stellar performance, battling for the NHL scoring lead. And it's been damn fun to watch.

It's taken McDavid no time at all to prove himself as one of the league's best players. In fact, he'd probably own the title if it wasn't for Crosby, who is scoring goals at the highest rate of his career.

Crosby's played only 33 games and has 22 goals, good for a ridiculous 0.79 per game average. McDavid's got the Art Ross Trophy halfway through the season, his 48 points four more than Crosby, although he's played 10 more games.

Forget about the debate over who's better. Instead, sit back, relax, and enjoy watching these two generational talents do what they do.

Goalie gods

The goalies have figured this whole goaltending thing out.

Carey Price is healthy and has the Montreal Canadiens in first place. Devan Dubnyk is stopping pucks at almost a .940 clip, and the Minnesota Wild own the West's best goal differential (plus-38). Braden Holtby's .931 trails only Dubnyk, his five shutouts are tied for tops, and he's got the Washington Capitals within three points of Columbus.

The list goes on and on and on. Sergei Bobrovsky's healthy and is arguably the biggest factor in the Blue Jackets' success. Tuukka Rask is keeping the Boston Bruins alive, while Corey Crawford is quietly having one of the best seasons of his career in Chicago.

Roberto Luongo is not aging, at all, and Toronto and Edmonton have competent goalies in Frederik Andersen and Cam Talbot.

You can choose to look at the state of hockey and lament the lack of goals scored on a nightly basis. Or you can marvel at the golden age of goaltending we're in.

The Metro

Through play Tuesday, four teams in the Western Conference have 50 or more points - two in the Central and two in the Pacific. In the East, Montreal's 56 points pace the Atlantic. Then there's the Metropolitan Division.

Four Metro teams - Columbus, Pittsburgh, Washington, and the New York Rangers - have 57 points or more. And the Philadelphia Flyers will hit 50 with their next win.

Columbus sets the standard with 16 wins in a row, but each of the top Metro teams has gone streaking. The Flyers won 10 in a row from Nov. 27 through Dec. 14, the Penguins reeled off seven straight wins to open December (and are currently on a five-game run), and Washington's won six in a row twice since Dec. 5. The Rangers have managed a five-game win streak once, but have won three in a row six times.

On Wednesday, the Pens and Caps collide in D.C., in another Metro showdown. One streak's going to end, and one's going to continue. The division's never been better.

Here's to the second half.