Kukla's Korner Hockey

Kukla's Korner Hockey

NHL Short Notes

12/14/2018 at 7:04am EST

THURSDAY’S RESULTS

Home Team in Caps

BUFFALO 3, Arizona 1

COLUMBUS 4, Los Angeles 1

MONTREAL 6, Carolina 4

TAMPA BAY 4, Toronto 1

NASHVILLE 4, Vancouver 3 (OT)

MINNESOTA 5, Florida 1

WINNIPEG 5, Edmonton 4 (OT)

SAN JOSE 3, Dallas 2

NHL MORNING SKATE

McDAVID ECLIPSES 300-POINT MILESTONE

Connor McDavid collected two assists to extend his point streak to seven games (4-8—12) and eclipse the 300-point milestone (104-197—301 in 240 GP).

* McDavid (21 years, 334 days) became the ninth player in NHL history to reach the 300-point milestone before celebrating his 22nd birthday. He also became the fifth NHL player in the last 20 years (since 1998-99) to require 250 or fewer games to record 300 career points.


* McDavid has recorded at least one point in 174 of his 240 career regular-season games (72.5%), including 86 multi-point performances (35.8%). The longest he has ever gone without recording a point is only three games, from Dec. 29, 2017 – Jan. 2, 2018.

VASILEVSKIY RECORDS 48 SAVES AS LIGHTNING EXTEND WIN STREAK
Andrei Vasilevskiy
made 48 saves in his return to the crease, including several highlight-reel stops, as the League-leading Lightning (25-7-1, 51 points) extended their win streak to eight games, the longest active run in the NHL.

* The Lightning moved within one victory of matching the longest win streak in franchise history, a mark set from Feb. 18 – March 5, 2016 (9-0-0). Tampa Bay (33 GP) required its second-fewest games to reach 50 points in a season, one shy of the franchise record set in 2017-18 (32 GP; 24-6-2, 50 points).

* Vasilevskiy matched the franchise record for most saves in a regular-season game, a mark set by Ben Bishop on Jan. 19, 2014 (5-3 W at CAR). He previously established his career high (45) on Dec. 20, 2014 (3-1 L at NYI) and replicated the performance on March 6, 2018 (5-4 OT W vs. FLA).


SKINNER, LAINE SCORE 22ND GOALS OF THE SEASON

Sabres forward Jeff Skinner and Jets forward Patrik Laine each scored their 22nd goal of the season to move within three of tying Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin (25 G) for the most in the NHL.

* Skinner, who was acquired by the Sabres on Aug. 2, can become the fourth different player in franchise history to conclude a season among the League’s top three goal scorers. He would join Richard Martin in 1973-74 (52 G; 2nd) and 1974-75 (52 G; 3rd), Danny Gare in 1979-80 (56 G; t-1st) and Alexander Mogilny in 1992-93 (76 G; t-1st).

* Laine (born April 19, 1998) finished second place in the 2017-18 Maurice “Rocket” Richard Trophy race with 44 goals, trailing only Ovechkin (49 G). He can become the first player in NHL history to conclude a season among the League’s top three goal scorers multiple times before celebrating his 21st birthday.

AROUND THE RINKS
More highlights from Thursday:

* Home teams swept Thursday’s eight-game slate and improved to 273-153-60 overall this season (.623).

* Maple Leafs forward Patrick Marleau skated in his 738th consecutive regular-season game dating to April 9, 2009 and passed Jay Bouwmeester(737 GP; March 6, 2004 – Nov. 22, 2014) for the seventh-longest “Ironman” streak in NHL history.

* Pekka Rinne (19 saves) recorded the 325th regular-season win of his NHL career to help the Predators (21-10-1, 43 points) reclaim first place in the Western Conference standings and pass Sean Burke (324) for sole possession of 25th place on the NHL’s all-time list.

* Lightning forward Anthony Cirelli (1-1—2) scored his third shorthanded goal of 2018-19. The franchise record for most shorthanded goals in a season is eight, a mark set by Martin St. Louis in 2003-04 (82 GP), whereas the NHL record for most in a season by a rookie is seven (since 1933-34), a mark set by Jordan Staal in 2006-07 (81 GP w/ PIT).

* The Canadiens and Hurricanes combined for seven goals in the third period of their game at Bell Centre. It marked the fifth time this season in which seven or more combined goals were scored in a single period (486 GP) – an occurrence which happened 14 times in 2017-18 (1,271 GP).

* The Wild combined for 12 goals for in their last two contests (also 7-1 W on Dec. 11), two shy of the franchise record for most in a two-game span (14 GF; 8-4 W and 6-3 W from April 10-11, 2009).

* Canucks forward Jay Beagle (1-0—1) became the 24th different Vancouver player to score at least one goal this season, the highest such total among all 31 NHL teams.

QUICK CLICKS

* Road to the NHL Winter Classic returns Dec. 19

* NHL Network to provide coverage of 2019 World Junior Championship

* Top Prospects Game to feature 2019 NHL Draft prospects Raphael Lavoie, Dylan Cozens
* Golden Knights rediscover winning formula after slow start

SNEAK PEEK AT FRIDAY’S ACTION

RANTANEN, OVECHKIN LOOK TO EXTEND POINT STREAKS

Avalanche forward Mikko Rantanen (6-17—23 in 12 GP) and Alex Ovechkin (13-6—19 in 12 GP) each look to extend their point streak to 13 games on Friday. Rantanen (13-39—52 in 31 GP) and Ovechkin (25-14—39 in 30 GP), who own the longest active point streaks in the NHL, lead the League in points and goals this season, respectively.

* Rantanen aims to become the 14th different player in Avalanche/Nordiques franchise history to record at least one point in 13 or more consecutive team games and just the second to do so in the last 10 years. He would join teammate Nathan MacKinnon, who accomplished the feat from Jan. 25 – March 6, 2014 (5-13—18 in 13 GP) and Feb. 24 – March 22, 2018 (13-14—27 in 14 GP).

* Ovechkin, meanwhile, is one game shy of equaling the longest point streak of his NHL career, a mark he set from Jan. 1 – Feb. 1, 2007 (8-12—20 in 13 GP). The franchise record for most consecutive team games with at least one point by a Capitals player is 17, a mark set by Mike Gartnerfrom Feb. 26 – April 2, 1981 (17-7—24) and matched from Oct. 13 – Nov. 21, 1984 (12-16—28).

RANGERS AIM FOR 10TH CONSECUTIVE WIN AGAINST COYOTES

The Rangers host the Coyotes at Madison Square Garden and are 9-0-0 in their last game against Arizona dating to March 24, 2014 (ARI: 0-7-2), New York’s longest active regular-season win streak versus one opponent. The franchise record for longest regular-season win streak against a franchise is 15 games, a mark set against the Pittsburgh Pirates/Philadelphia Quakers from Jan. 24, 1929 – Feb. 22, 1931 (PIR/QUA: 0-15-0).

the information above was provided by the NHL PR department

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Paul Kukla founded Kukla’s Korner in 2005 and the site has since become the must-read site on the ‘net for all the latest happenings around the NHL.

From breaking news to in-depth stories around the league, KK Hockey is updated with fresh stories all day long and will bring you the latest news as quickly as possible.

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