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Maple Leafs' Kadri finally maximizing goal-scoring potential

John E. Sokolowski / USA TODAY Sports

After a snake-bitten 2015-16 saw Nazem Kadri post the NHL's 12th-most shots (260) and finish with only 17 goals, the young Toronto Maple Leafs pivot seems to finally be getting his due.

The 26-year-old has flipped the script in 2016-17, piling up goals at every turn after a year of seemingly doing everything right and finding little reward.

Through 45 games this season, Kadri has already bested last year's total with 20 goals - 11th-most in the league, and just a pair off elite snipers like Alex Ovechkin.

Barring anything unforeseen, Kadri will finish 2016-17 with a career-best goal total, as his 20 tallies through half a season have already matched his previous career high, set in 2013-14.

It's no surprise the young centreman is making waves on the goal-scoring scene. Especially after his performance in 2015-16, when he found a new gear and emerged as one of the game's most prolific shooters with an astounding 260 shots - adding 84 chances on net to his previous best sum.

And yet, that promising season saw Kadri's shooting percentage plummet to a career-worst 6.5 percent. He finished as the only NHL shooter with over 250 chances on net and fewer than 20 goals, watching veteran teammates like P.A. Parenteau and Leo Komarov tally more goals in fewer games.

This time around, Kadri's putting pucks in the net at a much-improved rate of 14.2 percent, while still on pace for roughly the same number of shots - returning to the promising offensive level he showed early in his career, even as he's emerged as a savvy two-way force in Toronto.

If his pace holds up, Kadri will finish the year with 36 goals and 60 points - career highs by a mile, and just the type of elite effort the Leafs faithful have been waiting for from the 2009 first-round pick.

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