BLACKHAWKS OVERCOME THREE-GOAL DEFICIT IN CLASSIC TUNE-UP . . .
Bryan Bickell scored the tying goal with 1:13 remaining in regulation and Jonathan Toews potted the lone marker in the shootout to lead the Blackhawks past the Predators in their final game before the 2015 Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic.

* At 25-10-2 (52 points), the Blackhawks moved three points ahead of the Predators (23-9-3, 49 points) for the top spot in the Central Division. They also moved within two points of the idle Ducks (24-8-6, 54 points) for first place in the NHL standings.

* Trailing 3-0 midway through the second period, the Blackhawks scored three goals in 7:10 to even game before ultimately forcing overtime. Per Elias, the Blackhawks last overcame a three-goal deficit to win on Oct. 12, 2009, when they rallied from a 5-0 hole for a 6-5 victory vs. CGY, capped by Brent Seabrook’s winning marker at 0:26 of overtime.

* The Blackhawks improved to 13-2-1 in their last 16 outings dating to Nov. 26. They also won their season series with the Predators (CHI: 3-1-0, NSH: 1-1-2) after dropping four of their five matchups in 2013-14.

* Toews improved to 36-for-74 (48.6%), with 12 game-deciding goals, in his shootout career. His 36 overall scores are two behind all-time leaders Mikko Koivu and Zach Parise.

* Duncan Keith posted three assists, his first such performance in the regular season since April 4 at CBJ (0-3—3).

* Skating in his 700th NHL game, Patrick Sharp recorded his 500th career point (239-261—500).

* Corey Crawford made a season-high 36 saves – and denied all three shootout attempts he faced – to improve to 14-6-2 this season, including a 3-1 mark in shootouts. He ranks fourth in the NHL with a 2.08 goals-against average and ninth with a .921 save percentage.

. . . CAPITALS ALSO RALLY FROM THREE-GOAL DEFICIT, BUT FALL IN OT
Also playing their last game before the 2015 Bridgestone NHL Classic, the Capitals rallied from a three-goal deficit in the third period – capped by Alex Ovechkin’s tying marker with 2:41 remaining in regulation – but ultimately fell to the Islanders when Johnny Boychuk found the back of the net at 2:53 of overtime.

* Despite the loss, the Capitals (18-11-7, 43 points) have earned points in 11 of their past 12 games dating to Dec. 4 (8-1-3). With the point, they leapfrogged the Rangers (19-11-4, 42 points) for third place in the Metropolitan Division.

* The Islanders (24-11-1, 49 points), meanwhile, moved into a tie with the Penguins (22-9-5, 49 points) – in terms of points – for the top spot in the Metropolitan Division. The Penguins, however, hold the ROW tiebreaker (PIT: 20, NYI: 18).

* Despite surrendering a three-goal lead for the second consecutive game, the Islanders picked up their 11th victory in their past 13 contests at Nassau Coliseum. The team is 14-4-0 overall at home this season; that surpasses their home win total from all of 2013-14 (13-19-9).

* Boychuk recorded his first career overtime goal. Fellow defensemen Lubomir Visnovsky and Calvin de Haan also found the back of the net. Via Elias, it marked the first time that three Islanders defensemen scored in the same game since Feb. 9, 2010, when Bruno Gervais, Freddy Meyer and Mark Streit did so in a 4-3 shootout win vs. NSH.

* de Haan posted his first career shorthanded tally, becoming the first Islanders defenseman to register such a goal since Oct. 16, 2010 (Milan Jurcina).

* The Islanders improved to 10-1 in games that have gone past regulation this season, including a 4-0 mark in overtime. Their 24 overall wins are one shy of the franchise record through the opening 36 games of one season, set in 1978-79 (25-4-7).

LIGHTNING, CANADIENS EACH PICK UP WINS TO KEEP PACE IN ATLANTIC
Both the Lightning (23-11-4, 50 points) and Canadiens (23-11-2, 48 points) earned wins on Monday to keep pace with each other for first place in the Atlantic Division.

* Down 2-0 after 20 minutes, the Lightning scored three unanswered goals – capped by Steven Stamkos’ winning marker at 11:05 of the third period – to post their third straight victory. With the win, the Lightning leapfrogged the Penguins (22-9-5, 49 points) for first place in the Eastern Conference.

* Stamkos (1-1—2) registered his 20th goal of the season, reaching the milestone for the seventh time in as many NHL campaigns. Per Elias, only Vincent Lecavalier (12 straight from 1999-11) and Martin St. Louis (9 straight from 2002-11) have recorded as many consecutive 20-goal seasons in Lightning history.

* Ryan Callahan also collected 1-1—2; the Lightning improved to 15-0-0 in games in which he has scored since his acquisition at the 2014 Trade Deadline.

* The Lightning won their fourth consecutive outing at home. They are 15-4-1 (31 points) at Amalie Arena this season, pacing the NHL in home wins and points.

* Carey Price made 28 saves, including 12 in the final period, to backstop the Canadiens to their third straight victory. With the win, they leapfrogged the Red Wings (19-9-9, 47 points) for second place in the Atlantic Division.

* Price improved to 20-9-1 this season, reaching the 20-win milestone in his 30th outing. Elias says he is the first Canadiens goaltender to record at least 20 wins in his first 30 games of one season since 1979-80, when Denis Herron went 23-3-1 through his first 30 appearances.

* Lars Eller notched his fifth game-winning goal of the season, extending his career high and matching Oliver Ekman-Larsson and Patrick Kane for the League lead.

* The Canadiens earned their fourth consecutive victory over the Hurricanes and have picked up points in nine straight matchups dating to April 5, 2012 (7-0-2).

BRODEUR, JAGR EXTEND NHL RECORDS IN VICTORIES
Former teammates Martin Brodeur and Jaromir Jagr both extended their NHL records in leading the Blues and Devils, respectively, to wins on Monday.

* Brodeur stopped all 16 shots he faced to collect his NHL-record 125th career shutout – first since Dec. 14, 2013 vs. TBL – and help the Blues snap a four-game skid (0-3-1). At 42 years, 237 days, Elias says Brodeur is the fifth-oldest goaltender in NHL history to earn a shutout, following Jacques Plante (last shutout at age 44), Johnny Bower (44), Dominik Hasek (43) and Gump Worsley (42).

* Jagr snapped a nine-game goal drought, scoring his NHL-record 126th game-winning marker to power the Devils to their fifth straight home-ice victory against the Penguins. Jagr now has 711 overall goals, sixth in NHL history and six behind Phil Esposito for fifth place. He also has 24-22—46 in 50 career regular-season games against the Penguins, the team that selected him fifth overall in the 1990 NHL Draft.

RYAN’S HAT TRICK POWERS SENATORS
Bobby Ryan recorded his fourth career hat trick – and first since Jan. 12, 2011 – to help the Senators overcome a 2-1 deficit and snap a three-game skid (0-2-1).

* Ryan registered the tying and winning markers, his 18th career game-winning goal and first since Dec. 28, 2013 vs. BOS. He also posted his first multi-goal game since Nov. 27, 2013 at WSH.

* Erik Karlsson added two assists. He (7-18—25 in 36 GP) and Ryan (10-15—25 in 33 GP) share the team scoring lead with 25 points apiece this season.

* Craig Anderson made 19 saves to improve to 11-3-1 with a 2.26 goals-against average, .931 save percentage and two shutouts in 16 career appearances against the Sabres; that includes a 9-2-1 mark since joining the Senators.

* The Senators picked up their fifth straight victory over the Sabres at Canadian Tire Centre dating to Feb. 5, 2013. They also have earned points in the last 10 head-to-head matchups in Ottawa dating to Dec. 4, 2010 (6-0-4).

VERMETTE, EKMAN-LARSSON LIFT COYOTES TO THIRD STRAIGHT WIN
Antoine Vermette posted 2-1—3 and Oliver Ekman-Larsson added his ninth marker of the season to power the Coyotes to their third straight victory.

* Vermette recorded his second three-point performance of the season, following 1-2—3 on Nov. 2 at WSH.

* Ekman-Larsson scored his sixth goal in December (12 GP). Elias says he is the first Coyotes defenseman to tally at least six goals in one calendar month since the franchise relocated from Winnipeg for the 1996-97 season. Phil Housley was the last defenseman to accomplish that feat for the franchise, registering seven goals for the Jets in January 1992.

* Ekman-Larsson also posted his fifth game-winning goal of the season (36 GP), one shy of his career high set in 2013-14 (80 GP). His five game-winning markers this year are tied for the League lead with Lars Eller and Patrick Kane.

* Devan Dubnyk made 30 saves to pick up his third straight victory. He is 7-1-1 when facing at least 30 shots on goal this season.

BEST OF THE REST
Highlights from the rest of Monday’s 12-game slate:

* Trailing 2-0 early in the second period, the Wild scored three unanswered goals – including Marco Scandella’s tiebreaking marker with 12 seconds remaining the middle frame – to earn a split of their home-and-home series with the Jets. Scandella extended his point streak to four contests (3-2—5); he has nine goals and four game-winning markers this season, both second among defensemen.

* Antoine Roussel scored the tiebreaking goal early in the second period to power the Stars to their sixth victory in their past seven outings and halt the Rangers’ winning streak at eight contests. Roussel recorded his third career game-winning goal and first since Feb. 4 at PHX. Kari Lehtonen made 28 saves to improve to 5-1-0 in his past seven appearances, while John Klingberg and Ales Hemsky chipped in the other goals for the Stars.

* Carl Soderberg notched 1-2—3, including the game-winning goal, to lift the Bruins to their third straight victory at TD Garden and sixth win in their past seven matchups with the Red Wings (regular season and playoffs). Chris Kelly (1-1—2) and Loui Eriksson (0-2—2) also registered multi-point games for the Bruins, while Tuukka Rask made 28 saves to pick up his 15th win of the season.

* Curtis Glencross and Markus Granlund scored 62 seconds apart in the first period to lead the Flames to their third straight victory. Jonas Hiller posted 26 saves, while Johnny Gaudreau (6-1—7) and Jiri Hudler (0-6—6) both extended their point streaks to four games. The Flames recorded their second win over the Kings in the past week (also 4-3 W on Dec. 22 at LAK) and earned their fifth victory in the last seven matchups between the clubs dating to Oct. 21, 2013.

LOOSE PUCKS
Predators forward James Neal (2-0—2) registered his third multi-goal game of the season and first since Oct. 31 . . . Flyers forward R.J. Umberger scored twice for his first multi-goal performance since Jan. 21 (w/ CBJ) . . . Maple Leafs forward Joffrey Lupul potted his ninth goal of the season. He has 7-7—14 in 16 games since returning from an injury on Nov. 26 . . . Wild forward Jason Pominville (2-5—7) and Sabres forward Chris Stewart (2-3—5) both collected one assist to stretch their point streaks to five games . . . Blues forward Vladimir Tarasenko notched his 22nd goal of the season, third in the NHL behind Tyler Seguin (25) and Rick Nash (23) . . . Hurricanes forward Eric Staal played in his 800th NHL game, while his brother, Jordan, made his season debut. The duo connected for the club’s lone goal . . . Kings defenseman Jeff Schultz (400) and Predators defenseman Mattias Ekholm (100) also played in milestone games . . . Coyotes forward Tyler Gaudet and Wild forward Tyler Graovac both made their NHL debuts . . . Rangers forward Mats Zuccarello (36-76—112 in 176 GP) posted one assist to surpass Espen Knutsen (30-81—111 in 207 GP) as the highest-scoring Norwegian-born player in NHL history . . . The Oilers acquired forward Derek Roy from the Predators in exchange for forward Mark Arcobello. They also claimed forward Matt Fraser off waivers from the Bruins . . . Flames forward Johnny Gaudreau, Predators forward Colin Wilson and Coyotes forward Sam Gagner were named the NHL’s “Three Stars” for the week ending Dec. 28 . . . ICYMI: The Devils honored forward Scott Gomez for playing in his 1,000th NHL game on Saturday.

SNEAK PEEK AT TUESDAY’S ACTION
All Times Eastern
Montreal @ Florida, 7:30 p.m., SNE, RDS, FS-F
St. Louis @ Nashville, 8:00 p.m., TVA, FS-MW, FS-TN
Los Angeles @ Edmonton, 9:30 p.m., FS-W, SNW
Vancouver @ San Jose, 10:00 p.m., SNP, CSN-CA

EPISODE THREE OF ROAD TO THE NHL WINTER CLASSIC
The third episode of Road to the NHL Winter Classic, a four-part series chronicling the Capitals and Blackhawks as they prepare for the 2015 Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic on New Year’s Day, airs tonight in both the United States and Canada.

The episode will air at 10:00 p.m. ET on EPIX in the U.S. and at 7:00 p.m. ET on SN Ontario, West and Pacific in Canada. Viewers in the United States also can stream the show for free on NHL.com, the NHL app and the official websites for each participating team as well as on EPIX.com and the EPIX mobile and connected device apps.

WINTER CLASSIC QUICK HITS
* To date, there have been 13 NHL regular-season outdoor games contested since 2003-04. Of those 13 games, seven have been hosted in football venues, while six have been hosted in baseball stadiums.

* This marks the second outdoor game appearance for the Capitals, who also participated in the 2011 Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic against the Penguins at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh (a 3-1 victory).

* The Blackhawks will be skating in their third outdoor game, following their appearances in the 2009 Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic at Wrigley Field (a 6-4 loss) and 2014 Coors Light NHL Stadium Series at Soldier Field (a 5-1 victory), both in Chicago.

* A total of 448 players and head coaches have participated in the League’s 13 regular-season outdoor games to date.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
* Capitals forward Jay Beagle and Blackhawks goaltender Antti Raanta posted their first player blogs for NHL.com in advance of the 2015 Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic.

* The NHL’s Ice Crew tested the ice for the New Year’s Day game, playing catch on the rink at Nationals Park.

* NHL Network, NHL.com and NHL Social announced their programming plans for the seventh edition of the Winter Classic.

* Former Capitals defenseman Rod Langway will sign autographs at the Official NHL Winter Classic Store at Nationals Park, located in the Center Field Plaza, from 1:00 – 2:00 p.m. ET today.

the NHL PR department supplied the above information