Kukla's Korner Hockey

Kukla's Korner Hockey

NHL Short Notes

01/17/2022 at 3:17am EST

* Monday features five matinees as Martin Luther King Jr. Day is observed across the United States. Chris Pronger, a Hockey Hall of Fame member and one of the 100 Greatest NHL Players, will also have his No. 44 raised to the rafters at Enterprise Center.

* Quinn Hughes collected his 30th point in his 37th contest of 2021-22 and required the fourth-fewest games by a Canucks defenseman to reach the mark in a season – the list is paced by Paul Reinhart.

* Alex Ovechkin tied Leon Draisaitl for the most goals and points in the NHL this season.

FIVE NHL MATINEES FEATURED ON MARTIN LUTHER KING JR. DAY
A total of 16 teams are in action as Martin Luther King Jr. Day is observed in the United States, with the eight-game slate opening at 1 p.m. ET when the Sabres welcome the Red Wings to KeyBank Center.



BEST OF THE WESTERN CONFERENCE IN ACTION MONDAY

Monday is set to feature each of the six top teams in the Western Conference, including the Avalanche (24-8-3, 51 points) and Predators (24-12-3, 51 points) who are neck-and-neck for first place. Colorado and Nashville are both one win shy of 25 on the season, with the former able to reach the mark in the fewest games in franchise history – the Avalanche’s current best is 37 contests, set by the Quebec Nordiques in 1994-95 and matched last season.

* Colorado’s Nazem Kadri (14-35—49 in 32 GP) can become the fifth player in the NHL to record 50 points this season. It would be the fourth time he has reached the mark in his career (2013-14, 2016-17 & 2017-18 all w/ TOR) and his first in an Avalanche uniform.



* Nashville’s Roman Josi enters Monday one point shy of 40 on the season (13-26—39 in 37 GP). He can require the fewest games by a defenseman in Predators history to reach 40 points in a campaign, a mark he previously set in 2019-20 (39 GP).



BLUES TO RETIRE PRONGER’S No. 44 DURING PRE-GAME CEREMONY
St. Louis is set to retire the No. 44 of longtime Blues defenseman and former team captain Chris Pronger prior to their game against the Predators Monday.



* Pronger was traded by the Hartford Whalers to St. Louis for Brendan Shanahan on July 27, 1995 and was one of seven future Hockey Hall of Famers to appear in at least one game for the Blues during the ensuing campaign (also Glenn Anderson, Grant Fuhr, Wayne Gretzky, Dale Hawerchuk, Brett Hull & Al MacInnis).

* Pronger skated a total of nine seasons with St. Louis from 1995-96 to 2003-04 and occupies third place on the franchise’s all-time lists for goals (84), assists (272) and points (356) by Blues defensemen, trailing only MacInnis and Alex Pietrangelo in each category. Pronger had 14-48—62 in 79 games with a League-leading +52 during the 1999-00 campaign en route to winning the Hart Memorial Trophy and James Norris Memorial Trophy.

Photo via @HockeyHallFame





HUGHES, DEMKO HELP CANUCKS EARN WIN SUNDAY
Quinn Hughes (0-2—2) factored on two of Vancouver’s four goals to record his 30th point of the season (2-28—30 in 37 GP) and Thatcher Demko made 31 saves to earn his 50th career win (50-45-5) as the Canucks snapped a three-game slide. Since he entered the NHL in 2018-19, Hughes leads all Vancouver players with 22 multi-assist games.




* Demko (103 GP) required the fourth-fewest games to reach 50 career wins with the Canucks, trailing only Roberto Luongo (81 GP), Cory Schneider (88 GP) and Dan Cloutier (102 GP).

OVECHKIN CLIMBS LEAGUE’S ALL-TIME POINTS LIST IN #NHLSTATS: LIVE UPDATES
In the Sunday edition of #NHLStats: Live Updates, Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin scored to boost his 2021-22 totals to 26-28—54 (39 GP) and tied Oilers forward Leon Draisaitl (26-28—54 in 35 GP) for the most goals and points in the NHL. The last time Ovechkin led the League in points (outright or tied) at this stage of a season or later was through games played March 20, 2015.



QUICK CLICKS

* Chris Pronger talks Blues, family travel business in sit-down with NHL.com
* Willie O'Ree's jersey retirement will add to legacy of Bruins who wore No. 22
* Kyle Connor makes 2022 NHL All-Star Game after work ethic pays off with Jets
* Capitals celebrate #CapsKidsDay, show off kid-drawn portraits of players

Thanks to the NHL PR department for the information above.

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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.

Email Paul anytime at [email protected]

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