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* There’s a new benchmark for highest-scoring game of the 2022-23 season thanks to a 17-goal thriller between the Kraken and Kings that shifted back and forth with six tying goals (equaling a League record) before Seattle pushed its winning streak to six games.

* Alex Ovechkin scored twice in Vancouver to overtake Wayne Gretzky on the all-time road goals list and move within seven goals of joining him and Gordie Howe in the 800-goal club.

* A nine-game Tuesday saw a 3-1—4 performance by Blake Wheeler, the Bruins remain perfect at home since mid-April and Roman Josi climb the Predators all-time list with an overtime winner.

9 1/2 minutes to watch.

With 2 goals tonight, Alex Ovechkin passed Wayne Gretzky in career road goals with 403.

Below find the all-time list by adding one more goal for Ovechkin.

from Helene St. James of the Detroit Free Press,

Derek Lalonde made a few changes to his lines as the Detroit Red Wings try to start another winning streak.

One of the new looks at Tuesday's practice, as the Wings prepared to host the Buffalo Sabres Wednesday, had David Perron on a line with Tyler Bertuzzi (and Michael Rasmussen at center). Perron was enthusiastic about the possiblities.

"I love his game," Perron said. "I know he’s a hard worker, he always finds a way to be around the net, around the puck. He finds open areas of the ice.

"I haven’t played with him yet, so it’s going to be interesting for sure. I’m excited. He’s a guy that can make a lot more plays than he gets credit for, so I also have to be ready in those situations. I think he is a guy who will make those little plays and create that cycle game that I like to play as well."

In other changes, Lucas Raymond was moved back to Dylan Larkin's right wing (where Perron had been playing), with Dominik Kubalik on the left wing. Andrew Copp centered Oskar Sundqvist and Adam Erne, while the fourth line remained Joe Veleno with Jonatan Berggren and Pius Suter.

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added 12:17pm, Khan says differently...

FRISCO, Texas - Dallas Stars General Manager Jim Nill announced today that the club has signed center Roope Hintz to an eight-year contract extension, which begins in the 2023-24 season and runs through the 2030-31 season. The eight-year contract extension is worth $67.6 million and has an average annual value (AAV) of $8.45 million.

Hintz, 26, has skated in 22 contests this season with Dallas and is tied for third on the club with 24 points (8-16-24). Among team leaders, he shares first in shorthanded goals (1) and second in assists (16) and game-winning goals (2), while also third in plus/minus rating (+13). He also ranks second in TOI/G (17:01) and third in power play TOI/G (2:23) among team forwards.

from Larry Brooks of the New York Post,

We can pick at the line combinations, at the head coach’s allotment of ice time, at the regression of most of the kids who have been unable to use last year’s playoffs as a springboard to success, at the team’s lack of resilience.

We can and we have. More than once.

But that’s kind of like being unable to see the forest for the trees.

The primary reason the Rangers have not been able to replicate their performance from a year ago is that, 23 games into the season, last year’s Vezina winner would not get a single vote for the trophy if the balloting were conducted today.

Igor Shesterkin knows it and Igor Shesterkin is wearing it after surrendering another four goals in Monday’s depressing, but not unexpected 5-3 empty-net abetted defeat to the Devils at the Garden that left the Blueshirts a staggering 14 points behind New Jersey.

“The goalie played a s–t game again,” Shesterkin said without a translator after surrendering at least a couple of wonky ones in a game the Blueshirts actually led 2-0 after 3:01 of play. “I’m ashamed.”

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from Ansar Khan of Mlive,

The Detroit Red Wings experienced the same, old result Monday against the Toronto Maple Leafs, losing 4-2, but they came away with a different vibe.

As coach Derek Lalonde put it, “You want your overall game to look like that. If we replicate that performance, we’re going to win more times than not.”

The Red Wings outshot the Leafs 43-25, generated more scoring chances and spent more time in Toronto’s zone than their own. The difference was they didn’t capitalize on enough of their chances against Matt Murray while the Maple Leafs didn’t need many opportunities to chase Ville Husso from the game.

Husso, Detroit’s best player this season, had an off night, allowing four goals on 13 shots and getting replaced by Alex Nedeljkovic at 8:37 of the second period.

“I’m sure if you ask him, he’s going to want maybe three of the four back, but that’s a tough task to not face much action at all,” Lalonde said. “And then what we did give up was unfortunately too good of a look to too good of players.”

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from Helene St. James of the Detroit Free Press,

* The Devils and Golden Knights both earned their 10th road win of the season, with New Jersey becoming the third club in NHL history to reach the mark in 11 or fewer games (BUF: 10 GP in 2006-07 & BOS: 11 GP in 1929-30).

* Mitchell Marner and Jason Robertson each found the back of the net to extend their point streaks, both securing the second-longest run in their respective franchise’s history in the process.

* The Islanders and Kraken will both aim to extend win streaks Tuesday, with Seattle looking to establish a franchise benchmark with its sixth consecutive victory.

Derek Lalonde up first.

Below find Dylan Larkin, the game highlights and Mickey Redmond.

Offensively the Wins had an off night. They either could not hit the net, fanned on a shot or their shot could not get through to the goal.

Credit to the Leafs who capitalized on their chances and had a 4-1 lead after the second period.

Detroit scored with about seven minutes left in the third period to make it 4-2 but there was no more scoring. Toronto wins 4-2.

Detroit goals are below.

Team stats.

Buffalo visits Detroit on Wednesday night, the game is on TNT at 7pm.

from Ted Kulfan of the Detroit News,

Coach Derek Lalonde, though pleased with the 20-game start, wants to see more of a long-range view of his team.

To Lalonde, this still constitutes a small sample size. Get back to Lalonde around the midseason point, around 40 games.

"You start getting into that 40, even what we call dog days, into that 50-, 60-, 70-game range, now it’s a battle of attrition," Lalonde said. "Everyone is at the top of their game (at that juncture). We're still some time away from that."

The Wings have improved in every major statistical category compared to the end of last season. What pleases Lalonde most, is the progress defensively.

There have been three major blowout losses to New Jersey, Buffalo and the New York Rangers (22 goals allowed) which skew the Wings' defensive numbers worse than what they could be. The Wings entered 14th in goals-against, a dramatic improvement over last season's 31st xxx.

"We're not rolling out what these top teams are rolling out (offensively), which is fine," Lalonde said. "We know what we are and who we are, but for the most part, especially lately, our five-on-five defense has been pretty good."

Lalonde mentioned last week how the "vibe" in the locker room is good, what with a four-game win streak heading into Monday's game and the improvement in the standings.

more ($)

There is more to this thread, read Sean Shapiro's recent Twitter feed.

from Michael Traikos of the National Poat,

There are six teams that were in the Stanley Cup playoffs last year — Florida, Washington and the New York Rangers in the East, and Calgary, Minnesota and Nashville in the West — who wouldn’t be in the playoffs if the season ended today.

Luckily for them, the season doesn’t end after the first two months.

But it does raise a couple of questions: which teams currently on the outside looking in will be in the dance when the season ends? And more importantly, who will they unseat?

I can’t see the Panthers, who are two points back of the final wild card spot, missing out. Not after finishing with the best record in the NHL last year. The same goes for the Rangers, who are one point out of the playoffs after reaching the East final a year ago.

In the West, the Wild just need some consistent goaltending to get back in the playoff picture. Meanwhile, the Flames should be a playoff team once Jonathan Huberdeau finds chemistry with his new team.

As for who they replace, well this is where it gets tough.

continued plus more topics...

NEW YORK (Nov. 28, 2022) – Dallas Stars left wing Jason Robertson, Winnipeg Jets defenseman Josh Morrissey and New York Islanders goaltender Ilya Sorokin have been named the NHL’s “Three Stars” for the week ending Nov. 27.

from Jonathan Tovell of The Hockey News,

Former Vancouver Canucks employee Rachel Doerrie alleged the team and assistant GM Emilie Castonguay discriminated against her.

Doerrie filed a human rights complaint with the British Columbia Human Rights Tribunal on Nov. 22 and shared the document on Twitter Sunday evening. She alleged that her sex, mental and physical disabilities played a role in her termination on Sept. 27.

Castonguay is specifically named in the complaint “because of the central role she played in the termination of Ms. Doerrie’s employment,” said the document, written by Peter Gall, Doerrie's counsel. The Canucks are also named as a respondent.

Doerrie alleged that Castonguay grew “cold” towards her after Doerrie was promoted to the coaching staff as an analyst and assistant to the video coach. That eventually led to Castonguay allegedly saying to Doerrie, “I don’t know if you have what it takes to do the job, mentally.”

“Ms. Doerrie suffered damage to her dignity, self-esteem, and physical and mental health resulting from Ms. Castonguay's comments, and her subsequent treatment by Ms. Castonguay,” the document alleged. “She also suffered financial losses arising from her unexpected loss of employment.”

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via Ansar Khan tweet,

Ville Husso in starter’s net, so he’ll make his sixth consecutive start tonight vs. Leafs.

from Kevin Allen of Detroit Hockey Now,

Injured Elmer Soderblom won’t be available for tonight’s game against the Toronto Maple Leafs and still doesn’t appear to be close to returning. He suffered a lower body injury while shot-blocking on Nov. 8 against the Montreal Canadiens.

“I’m told maybe a week now,” Detroit coach Derek Lalonde said. “It’s been a little frustrating for me not knowing. This was day to day and now we’re in the 2-3 weeks, it’s lower body, it’s just going to take some time. I would not expect him on this homestand.”

The Red Wings have been unlucky when it comes to blocking shots. Tyler Bertuzzi, Filip Zadina and now Soderblom have all suffered injuries that have taken them out of the lineup.

But shot blocking makes teams harder to play against and the Red Wings are 11th in the NHL with 339 blocks. Lalonde views injuries as the price to be paid for a successful style.

“That’s what winning looks like,” Lalonde said. “If we would have told our guys we’d be sitting where we are right now and the sacrifice would have been some injuries over blocked shots, every single player would have taken
that, and that’s exactly where we’re at.”

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from Ryan Ford of the Detroit Free Press,

When the Detroit Red Wings take the ice on Monday against the Toronto Maple Leafs, they’ll be making history, of sorts: The franchise will wear black — or at least black stripes — for the first time in 95 seasons.

That’s part of Adidas’ “Reverse Retro” uniform program for the 2022-23 season. It’s the second iteration from the NHL’s official supplier, after a round of alternates during the 2020-21 season.

The Wings’ outfits that season were a little, uh, underwhelming — almost all-white jerseys with silver stripes supposedly paying tribute to the uniforms the franchise wore in 2017 for the NHL’s centennial celebration. This season’s outfit is anything but that, with a heavy red colorway broken up by black stripes and a thin block-lettered “Detroit” across the chest.

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See the sweater below.

* Josh Morrissey assisted on three of Winnipeg’s seven goals to match the franchise record for most in a game by a defenseman and continued his strong start to the 2022-23 season.

* While Erik Karlsson accomplished a franchise-first for the Sharks, his opponent Quinn Hughes guided the Canucks to an overtime victory Sunday.

* Matty Beniers outdueled Trevor Zegras and recorded his second three-point outing in three games to help the Kraken tie the franchise’s longest winning streak.

from Mark Lazerus of The Athletic,

All summer, and throughout the Blackhawks’ unexpectedly fun start, people around the league — other reporters, radio hosts across Canada, execs from other front offices, and in two surprising incidents, other NHL players — asked me what I expected Kane to do. And my answer was always the same — I really didn’t know. Everyone else was so sure he was a goner, but I wasn’t. Everything I had gathered from my own reporting and everything I knew about Kane, having covered him for a decade, told me that he was looking for a reason to stay. That he wanted to stay. That he wanted to be a Blackhawk for life and he wanted to play alongside Bedard or whichever other young superstar the Blackhawks draft and he wanted to still be here when the Blackhawks came out the other end of this process.

I still believe that.

But I no longer think it’ll happen. I can’t. It’s too real now, too bleak. And the losses, the hopelessness, seem to be weighing on Kane now. He’s not scoring at his usual pace, with just 16 points (and just three goals) in 21 games. He doesn’t have his usual jump. And he doesn’t seem to be having much fun out there. After Athanasiou’s ill-fated goal on Sunday — which was created when Kane, swarmed by three Jets, managed to muscle the puck to the low slot, where Athanasiou tipped it in — Kane pointed to Athanasiou and pumped his fist over his head, like he so often does when a teammate does something well. Nobody loves scoring and creating goals like Kane does. But the joy was short-lived. As it has been all season.

more ($)

Derek Lalonde first, Andrew Copp is below.

from Mike G. Morreale of the NHL website,

Lindy Ruff has found a way to adapt, listen and persevere in his 22 seasons as an NHL coach.

The 62-year-old still enjoys the traditional practice, the video work, game planning, and, most importantly, watching his players excel in big moments.

On Saturday he became the fifth coach in NHL history to reach 800 wins when his New Jersey Devils defeated the Washington Capitals 5-1 at Prudential Center. The others to reach the milestone are Scotty Bowman (1,244; 1967-2002), Joel Quenneville (969; 1996-2022), Barry Trotz (914; 1998-2022) and Ken Hitchcock (849; 1995-2019).

"I've got a lot of respect for all those names ... a lot of great coaches," Ruff said. "I obviously played for Scotty Bowman and I have a lot of respect for him. I still communicate with him on occasion. The reason you get there is you've found a way to adapt through the years and get to that point."

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