Articles in NHL Talk

* The two top teams in the Metropolitan Division skated to victories, with Artemi Panarin continuing his point-producing ways for the Rangers while rookie Pyotr Kochetkov planted himself on a short list in NHL history with a 44-save shutout.

* The Maple Leafs scored early and often at T-Mobile Arena, with Auston Matthews joining rare company in franchise history by scoring his 10th goal in a five-game span and teammate Mitchell Marner tying the second-longest stretch in NHL history with two or more assists.

* Pavel Buchnevich scored two goals in a span of 0:25 to help his club score the fastest three tallies in franchise history and added to the Hockey Fights Cancer Fund of the V Foundation thanks to AstraZeneca, who is donating $5,000 to the up to $500,000 for every hat trick this season. Click here for more information.

via the NHL Network's YouTube page,

It's trade season around the National Hockey League, and Elliotte Friedman joined NHL Tonight to talk about some hypothetical trades.

from Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet,

- Please recognize that this is manifesting purely in my head. But, as I watch Daniel Alfredsson on the bench in Ottawa, I can’t help but wonder if the Senators consider a Karlsson reunion. At least, brainstorm it. Yes, it’s complicated and yes, everyone would have to be on board. But no one mind-melds with Karlsson like Alfredsson, and, since it got into my head, I can’t stop thinking about the possibility of it.

- Doug Armstrong never talks about this stuff, but the price on Pavel Buchnevich is said to be very high. The versatile forward has another year under contract. Two firsts, or something like it?

- Interested parties do not believe David Savard wishes to leave Montreal.

- Teams have asked Buffalo about Alex Tuch, but the Sabres value him.

- There’s been a lot of speculation about the Lightning — which, on paper, makes a lot of sense — but look at the trade the Flames made for Elias Lindholm. Can the Lightning put together a similar package, knowing there will be competition? It’s hard to see. Toronto made a pitch, and would want to know the possibility of signing him, but Hanifin appears headed for the US on a long-term basis. Teams want to know where he’s willing to sign.

- At the last Board of Governors meeting, the NHL indicated it was thinking of something different with this year’s awards. The last possible day of the Stanley Cup Final is June 24, with the draft June 28-29. That’s not a lot of time. What’s possible here is a smaller, scaled-down event at the draft, with only a few of the major awards announced. The NBA reveals its winners during the opening rounds of the playoffs, so players get an ovation from the hometown crowd. I like the idea, we’ll see what the NHL does.

more Thoughts

* Auston Matthews made some NHL history against his hometown team by scoring twice to eclipse 50 goals on the season in just 54 games.

* Zach Werenski scored twice and established a franchise record in the process as the Blue Jackets survived a four-goal Ducks rally to earn a win Wednesday.

* Brandon Hagel and Alex Ovechkin will both look to extend their point streaks when the Lightning clash with the Capitals on ESPN during Thursday’s 11-game slate.

from Justin Bourne of Sportsnet,

As we move towards the NHL’s trade deadline, I see GMs of teams in the playoff mix being faced with two options given the league’s parity-wracked standings. I’ll lay them out before weighing in.

Option 1: This ain’t the year to burn assets, anything could still happen

If you’re a fan of a team with a more passive GM, I can guarantee you’re going to hear some of this rhetoric. They’ll recognize a flawed team, hope their goalie gets red hot at the right time, get a few bounces, and be the next surprising Cup champ (or, let’s face it for these GMs, just a deep run buys them years of employment). They’ll spin the wheel of fortune and come up bust.

The logic will be “In a year it could be won by anyone we’ve got a chip and a chair too, and we shouldn’t throw assets at our somewhat flawed roster.”

It’s the type of losing we allow in hockey – if you’re conservative and risk-free you can call it maturity and discipline, and you’ll get another job.

Option 2: In a wide-open year, every bit of improvement gives a team a better chance to be the lucky ones

NFL teams go for it on fourth down these days far more than they used to, because they’ve learned taking that risk gives them a better chance at victory.

At this year’s NHL trade deadline, every little place teams improve in could push them to that next fresh set of downs, the next round of the playoffs.

more

via the YouTube page of the NHL Network,

NHL Network insider Elliotte Friedman joins NHL Tonight for a Trade Deadline Roundtable discussing the latest rumors around the league, including potential options for the Calgary Flames, New Jersey Devils and Pittsburgh Penguins.

* The Rangers and Panthers – the top teams in the Eastern Conference – extended their winning streak to eight and six games, respectively.

* Quinton Byfield brought the fans at Crypto.com Arena to their feet with a highlight-reel goal en route to the Kings’ fourth straight victory.

* Auston Matthews enters Wednesday just one shy of his 50th goal of the season and is in striking distance from becoming the fastest player to reach the mark since Mario Lemieux in 1995-96. Click here for notes on his path to 50.

* An NHL on TNT and Max doubleheader between the Flyers and Blackhawks as well as the Bruins and Oilers highlight the rest of Wednesday’s five-game slate.

from Mike Vorkunov,

FuboTV, a live TV streaming platform, has launched a civil lawsuit against Disney, Fox and Warner Bros. Discovery, alleging that the media companies have engaged in anticompetitive practices for years and that they are continuing to do so through the combined sports streaming app they intend to launch later this year, according to court documents.

The lawsuit, filed in federal court in the Southern District of New York, also names ESPN and Hulu as defendants.

In the suit, FuboTV, which has been in business since 2015, alleges that the companies have engaged in a campaign that has resulted in suppressed competition in the U.S. sports-focused streaming market causing harm to FuboTV and its customers and the companies’ latest joint venture will continue to suppress competition.

continued ($)

via TSN's YouTube page,

TSN’s Hockey Insiders have more on Flames blueliner Noah Hanifin, how buyers are patiently waiting for the list of sellers to grow, and the latest on the Penguins, Stars and Panthers, the Coyotes in the market for more draft picks.

* Matinee madness! The Wild and Canucks combined for three hat tricks and 17 goals in the NHL’s highest-scoring game of the season so far.

* Kirill Kaprizov, Joel Eriksson Ek, J.T. Miller and Sean Monahan each potted hat tricks to raise AstraZeneca’s donation to the Hockey Fights Cancer Fund of the V Foundation by $20,000. After also seeing four three-goal performances on Nov. 4, the 2023-24 campaign became the first season to feature multiple days with at least four hat tricks since 2008-09 (4 on Dec. 11, 2008 & March 7, 2009).

* An eight-game Tuesday features a doubleheader on Sportsnet ONE and TVA Sports that closes with Ryan O'Reilly and the Predators clashing with the Golden Knights.

NEW YORK (Feb. 19, 2024) – Toronto Maple Leafs center Auston Matthews, Edmonton Oilers center Connor McDavid and Florida Panthers left wing Matthew Tkachuk have been named the NHL’s “Three Stars” for the week ending Feb. 18.

from Ryan Dixon of Sportsnet,

It’s the Age of Auston; the era of Crosby and the Connors; Kuch and Mac; Quinn and Cale.

And on the weekend that the Pittsburgh Penguins paid tribute to one of the game’s all-time greats, it’s impossible to deny these golden offensive days for hockey.

Until a very short time ago, the achievements of Jaromir Jagr and his ilk seemed like they were from a different sport. Seventy-goal seasons, 130-point campaigns; it almost seemed like a baby boomer’s exaggerated tale of the league they watched.

We just lifted No. 68 into the PPG Paints Arena rafters Sunday night and the entire weekend helped drive home the fact that seasons like the ones Jagr and his contemporaries used to put up are truly attainable again.

Auston Matthews netted his second consecutive hat trick and sixth three-goal game of the year on Saturday in Toronto’s trouncing of the Anaheim Ducks. It’s starting to feel inevitable that the 26-year-old American will give us our first 70-goal season since 1992-93 and if I told you he was going to bury 75, you’d probably nod along in I-could-see-it fashion.

The top two guys in the Art Ross chase — Nikita Kucherov and Nathan MacKinnon, the latter scoring in his team’s 4-3 win over Arizona on Sunday — are both on pace to hit 130 points. The league hasn’t seen two 130-point guys in the same campaign since Jagr and Mario Lemieux did it as teammates in 1995-96. Connor McDavid — No. 3 in the scoring race after his assist against the Stars on Saturday night — basically needs to play at a 130-point pace the rest of the year to hit that number, too. In his past 33 contests, he’s playing at a 160-point clip.

continued

* The Rangers won in overtime to become the first team to rally from a three-goal deficit to win an NHL outdoor game and did so by erasing a two-goal deficit in the final five minutes of regulation.

* More than 150,000 fans attended outdoor hockey at MetLife Stadium within a 24-hour period during the two games as part of the 2024 Navy Federal Credit Union NHL Stadium Series to push the total attendance across the NHL’s 41 outdoor games to over two million.

* Nathan MacKinnon became the second player to hit the 90-point mark in 2023-24 and extended his season-opening home point streak to 26 games – the second-longest run in NHL history.

* A busy 10-game Presidents’ Day in the U.S. and Family Day in Canada will see Auston Matthews aim to hit the 50-goal mark during a doubleheader on ESPN when the Maple Leafs visit the Blues at 1 p.m. ET.

NEW YORK (Feb. 18, 2024) – The New York Islanders will host the 2026 NHL® All-Star Weekend at UBS Arena, in Elmont, N.Y., the National Hockey League® announced today. Additional information on the League’s midseason showcase, including its dates, ticketing and broadcast information, will be announced when available. Fans can sign up to receive news and updates on the 2026 NHL All-Star Weekend here.

“The National Hockey League is thrilled to have the best and brightest of our game hosted at the spectacular UBS Arena for the 2026 NHL All-Star Weekend,’’ NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said. “We have been looking forward to UBS Arena playing host to one of our major League events since before construction of this wonderful arena began. We have every confidence that the Islanders organization, led by Scott Malkin and Jon Ledecky, will deliver a celebration that will make the greater New York region and the NHL proud.”

* Rookie goaltender Nico Daws (45 saves) set the record for most saves in an NHL outdoor game to help propel the Devils to a victory at MetLife Stadium in the first of two contests in the 2024 Navy Federal Credit Union NHL Stadium Series. The Rangers and Islanders will contest the second half of the event with an afternoon game Sunday.

* A second straight hat trick from Auston Matthews added to AstraZeneca’s donation to the Hockey Fights Cancer Fund of the V Foundation as the Maple Leafs and Panthers both scored nine goals and combined for a feat last achieved 17 years ago.

* The NHL announced the 2025 Navy Federal Credit Union NHL Stadium Series between the Blue Jackets and Red Wings at Ohio Stadium, home of the Ohio State University football team, on March 1, 2025.

* Sunday’s three-game slate also features the Penguins raising a franchise icon’s number to the rafters at PPG Paints Arena.

from Larry Brooks of the New York Post,

- The greatest spectacle on ice this weekend might not have taken place on a football field in New Jersey but instead in Toronto on Friday where 19,285 fans packed the house to set an all-time attendance record for women’s hockey.

The path forward for women’s professional hockey has been challenging and littered with obstacles that ultimately became immovable objects. Good people have tried and failed, perhaps by undermining their own efforts in senseless turf wars.

But this inaugural season of the Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL) represents the template that has the greatest chance of long-term success and that is a cause for celebration....

- All has been forgiven in Pittsburgh, where hockey’s Methuselah will have his No. 68 retired on Sunday almost a quarter of a century after he left town.

Jaromir Jagr, who celebrated his 52nd birthday Thursday and is still a part-time active player for the Kladno team in Czechia that he owns — four assists and no goals in 15 games this season — has come home again after having been mercilessly booed every time he played as a visitor in Pittsburgh for the final decade of his NHL career....

more on the above topics including this,

OK, which is the more famous goal?

The Wayne Gretzky shorthanded slapshot from the left circle that beat Mike Vernon in overtime to win Game 2 of the 1988 Smythe Division final or the Steve Yzerman slapshot from just across the blue line that beat Jon Casey in double overtime to win Game 7 of the 1996 Western Conference second round?

added 9:16pm, via Sportsnet,

In this edition of Saturday Headlines, Elliotte Friedman discusses the on-going rumours regarding the Flames, what the Blue Jackets are looking for in their new GM, and why Predators' Brunette cancelled their trip after a blowout loss.

* The 2024 Navy Federal Credit Union NHL Stadium Series gets started Saturday with a pre-game concert from the Jonas Brothers at 6:30 p.m. ET followed by the Flyers facing the Devils outdoors at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey (8 p.m. ET on ABC, ESPN+, SN1, TVAS-D).

* Jordan Martinook jumpstarted a five-goal outburst by the Hurricanes on Friday by scoring the ninth-fastest (tied) goal to start a game in franchise history.

* The NHL, ESPN and Disney Branded Television are once again teaming up to bring fans the second “NHL Big City Greens Classic,” a live, animated NHL game telecast featuring the Penguins and Bruins at 3 p.m. ET on March 9. Click here for details.

* Saturday’s 13-game slate also includes a matinee doubleheader on ABC, ESPN+ and Sportsnet as well as a three-pack of Hockey Night in Canada games including Auston Matthews, Alex Ovechkin and a showdown between Canada’s top two teams in the overall standings when the Jets visit the Canucks.

NEW YORK (Feb. 16, 2024) – The National Hockey League (NHL) today announced the full lineup of performers and special guests that will take part in the 2024 Navy Federal Credit Union NHL Stadium Series™, the two regular-season outdoor games at MetLife Stadium featuring the Philadelphia Flyers vs. New Jersey Devils on Saturday, Feb. 17, and New York Rangers vs. New York Islanders on Sunday, Feb. 18.

New York Giants stars Saquon Barkley, Sterling Shepard, Tommy DeVito and legend Carl Banks; New York Jets stars Breece Hall, Quinnen Williams and alumni Greg Buttle and Damien Woody; former NHL players Martin Brodeur, Adam Graves, Henrik Lundqvist, Mark Messier, Denis Potvin, Bryan Trottier, Mike Richter; and New Jersey Hall of Famer Max Weinberg are among the special guests expected to join more than 140,000 fans at MetLife Stadium this weekend.

from John Shannon at Global News,

The hockey world is never boring, that’s for sure. Suspensions, firings, injuries, the impending trade deadline — all of these things fill the airwaves, the internet, podcasts and good old-fashioned conversation every day, particularly in Canada, where hockey seeps out of the concrete, and there are millions who claim they can run a team.

But as someone who has been around the game for all too long, I find so much of any discussion today to be negative. And I wonder why that is. This is a game that appears to eat its own.

We all love the game, don’t we? We all feel the exhilaration of our team scoring and eventually winning. Why do we have to be so negative? It was the great Lester Patrick who said hockey is “a game of mistakes.” But does that mean we have to always be negative? It’s as if we can never do anything right in the game of hockey.

I will say one thing: it is much easier to be negative — to say no — than it is to be positive.

But why is there space in our hockey world for people to make fun of former Winnipeg Jet Patrik Laine, who is in the NHL/NHLPA Assistance Program? That should never happen. Laine should have our support, not our disdain.

continued

* The Panthers extended the League’s longest active road win streak to nine games and moved within two points of the Bruins for first place in the Eastern Conference standings with the help of Matthew Tkachuk, who became the sixth player to record 20 career three-point outings with the franchise.

* Connor Hellebuyck hit the 25-win mark for the seventh time in his career with a shutout performance and joined a short all-time list by allowing three goals or fewer for his 30th straight appearance.

* Thursday marks the first day in NHL history to feature five Stanley Cup Final rematches, with one involving the two Art Ross Trophy race leaders going head-to-head at Amalie Arena. The 12-game slate also features the Predators hosting the Stars on ESPN+ and Hulu.

from Ryan S. Clark of ESPN,

The Rangers are in a city that's relatively close to several teams within the Metropolitan Division and the Eastern Conference. Of their 12 back-to-back sets, eight have one home game and one road game while three have both games on the road. All but one of the back-to-back game sequences have at least one game in their home time zone, and their average flight time for the trips is one hour.

For the Panthers, playing in South Florida means they're the southernmost team in the NHL and have only one team -- the Tampa Bay Lightning -- that's less than an hour away by flight. Five of their eight back-to-backs are on the road, and only one has both games at home. Seven of those back-to-back sequences have at least one game in their home time zone, and their average flight time for the trips is 56 minutes.

Although the Blackhawks have a central location, they spend quite a bit of time in the air. Five of their 12 back-to-back sets have both games on the road, and six have at least one game in their home time zone. The Blackhawks' average flight time for back-to-backs is 84 minutes, which means they're going to spend nearly 30 more minutes on a plane in those situations than the Panthers and Rangers.

more

from Steve Dryden at TSN,

With Markstrom firmly already ensconced on the Trade Bait Board, his performance reaching the highest of levels, and news that New Jersey and Calgary were in serious – if failed for now – trade talks involving him, the 34-year-old Swede is first and foremost on the list.

Tanev is No. 2 and Hanifin, an impending UFA yet to re-sign, is No. 3.

Rounding out the Trade Bait top five are Pittsburgh left winger Jake Guentzel at No. 4 and the Edmonton Oilers’ 2024 first-round pick at No. 5.

Guentzel has been connected to Edmonton and it’s expected any substantive move by the Oilers – whether it’s acquiring the Penguin who has 34 goals in 58 career playoff games or someone else – will cost them their first pick in the draft.

New Jersey, Carolina, and Colorado are all believed to be seeking goalie upgrades.

Markstrom is having an excellent season, posting a 17-4-2 record, 2.50 goals-against average and .916 save percentage.

more, includes the Top 50 on the list...