NHL Short Notes

* Saturday featured a combined attendance of nearly a quarter million fans who experienced the thrill of live NHL hockey on the first-ever 16-game slate in League history.

* Connor McDavid posted a three-point performance and became the sixth different player in NHL history to reach the 150-point mark in a season and the first since 1995-96.

* The Bruins tied the NHL record for most wins in a single season during a tripleheader on ABC and ESPN+. Boston is back in action Sunday, with the opportunity to take over the top spot.

* Sidney Crosby became the 15th player in NHL history to reach the 1,500-point milestone and became the sixth fastest among that cohort to achieve the feat.

McDAVID JOINS ELITE COMPANY WITH 150TH POINT OF 2022-23

Connor McDavid (2-1—3) matched a single-season high with his 45th multi-point game of the season en route to becoming the sixth different player in NHL history with a 150-point campaign (64-87—151 in 80 GP) and helping the Oilers (48-23-9, 105 points) secure home-ice advantage in the First Round of the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Photo via: @EdmontonOilers

* McDavid now sits one goal shy of matching Alex Ovechkin (65 in 2007-08) for the most by an active player in a single season. Meanwhile, his 87th assist tied Nikita Kucherov (87 in 2018-19) for the most by an active player in a campaign; the last skater with more was Joe Thornton (92 in 2006-07).

* Saturday also marked McDavid's 22nd three-point game of the season. Only three players in the past 30 years have had as many in a single campaign: Mario Lemieux (32 GP in 1992-93 & 29 GP in 1995-96), Jaromir Jagr (25 GP in 1995-96) and Sergei Fedorov (22 GP in 1993-94).

* McDavid, who has been held off the score sheet just seven times in 2022-23, will look to extend a point streak to 15 games for the third time in 2022-23 (also 17 GP from Nov. 26 – Dec. 30 & 15 GP from Jan. 3 – Feb. 11). He will become the first player in NHL history with three 15-game point streaks in a single season should he find the score sheet against the Avalanche on April 11.

BRUINS TIE NHL RECORD FOR WINS, JOIN RARE COMPANY WITH ANOTHER HOME VICTORY

With the help of Pavel Zacha (2-0—2) and Linus Ullmark (29 saves), Boston (62-12-5, 129 points) continued to add to its historic campaign Saturday by tying the NHL record for wins in a season, moving within reach of the most points in a campaign in League history and joining rare company with its 33rd home victory of 2022-23.

* The Bruins collected their 129th point of 2022-23 and tied the 1977-78 Canadiens (59-10-11, 129 points) for the third most in a season in NHL history, trailing only the 1976-77 Canadiens (60-8-12, 132 points) and 1995-96 Red Wings (62-13-7, 131 points).

* Ullmark earned his 39th win of 2022-23 and surpassed Tiny Thompson (38 in 1929-30) for the second most in a single season in Bruins history, behind only Pete Peeters (40 in 1982-83).

BATTLE FOR PLAYOFF POSITIONING WAGES ON

While 13 teams have clinched a berth into the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs, a number of them are still battling for position within their respective divisions:

* Mika Zibanejad factored on two of his team’s four goals and Igor Shesterkin made 20 saves to shut out the Blue Jackets and help the Rangers (47-21-12, 106 points) move within two points of the Devils (50-22-8, 108 points) for second place in the Metropolitan Division. Shesterkin earned his 37th win of the season, establishing a career high – only three goaltenders in franchise history have recorded more in a campaign: Mike Richter (42 in 1993-94), Henrik Lundqvist (39 in 2011-12 & 38 in 2008-09) and Ed Giacomin (38 in 1968-69).

* The Avalanche fended off a multi-goal comeback attempt by the Kings to extend their road win streak to nine games and match the longest such run in franchise history (also 9 GP in 2019-20). Colorado (48-24-6, 102 points) remained tied with Dallas (44-21-14, 102 points) in standing points atop the Central Division, with the Avalanche holding a game in hand.

* Jake Oettinger made 19 saves and was perfect in the shootout, helping the Stars keep pace with the Avalanche while also climbing a franchise list in the process. Meanwhile, the Golden Knights secured home ice in the 2023 First Round after collecting a point at American Airlines Center on Saturday.

* Ryan Hartman and Sam Steel scored shorthanded goals 20 seconds apart – the fastest pair of shorthanded tallies by one team since April 10, 2010 (BOS: 2 in 15 seconds) – to help the Wild (45-24-10, 100 points) stay within two points of the Avalanche and Stars.

* Jared McCann was one of seven different Kraken players to find the back of the net as Seattle (45-26-8, 98 points) moved within two points of Los Angeles (45-25-10, 100 points), which holds third place in the Pacific Division. Saturday marked the seventh time the Kraken have scored seven goals in a game this season, tied with the Oilers for the most among all teams.
WILD CARD RACE CONTINUES: SEVERAL CLUBS PICK UP WINS IN PURSUIT OF PLAYOFFS
The Wild Card race in both the Eastern and Western Conference remained tight as several clubs in pursuit of a playoff spot picked up wins Saturday:

* Sidney Crosby (550-950—1,500 in 1,188 GP) collected 2-1—3 and became the 15th player in League history with 1,500 career points as Pittsburgh (40-30-10, 90 points) earned a win to remain a point out of a Wild Card position. Crosby corralled the 170th three-point game of his NHL career and surpassed former Penguins defenseman Paul Coffey (169) for sole possession of the eighth most in League history.

* A go-ahead tally in the final minute of regulation helped the Panthers (42-31-7, 91 points) maintain the first Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference. The goal was scored by Matthew Tkachuk (40-68—108 in 77 GP), who became the third Panthers player to reach the 40-goal mark in a campaign, joining Pavel Bure (59 in 2000-01 & 58 in 1999-00) and Carter Verhaeghe (41 in 2022-23). With a three-point outing, he also surpassed Mark Messier (107 in 1991-92 w/ NYR) and Alexander Mogilny (107 in 1995-96 w/ VAN) for sole possession of the fifth-most points by a player in their first season with a franchise (NHL debut or otherwise).

* Pittsburgh got its hands on a Wild Card spot earlier in the afternoon, but Ilya Sorokin turned aside all 27 shots he faced to help New York regain the final playoff position in the Eastern Conference. Sorokin, who captured his 16th career shutout and first career 30-win season, and the Islanders now hold a one- and six-point cushion on the Penguins and Sabres, respectively – Buffalo (78 GP) is the only team with games in hand on New York (80 GP).

* Rasmus Dahlin (1-2—3) recorded three points to surpass the 70-point mark on the season and Tage Thompson (46-47—9 in 75 GP) tallied the game winner to improve his 2022-23 total to 46 goals as Buffalo (39-32-7, 85 points) kept its playoff hopes alive via a 4-3 victory versus Metropolitan Division-leading Carolina. Dahlin (15-57—72) became the second defenseman in franchise history to record a 70-point season, joining Phil Housley who did so three times: 21-60—81 in 1989-90, 31-46—77 in 1983-84 and 26-44—70 in 1988-89.

* Mark Scheifele reached the 40-goal mark for the first time in his career and matched a single-season franchise record for game-winning goals, while Connor Hellebuyck (28 saves) stifled the Predators for his 32nd career shutout as the Jets (44-32-3, 91 points) earned a crucial regulation win. Winnipeg opened up a three-point cushion on Nashville in the race for the second Wild Card spot in the Western Conference, while the latter will square off in a pivotal head-to-head game on April 10 against the Flames (37-27-16, 90 points) – who picked up a critical point against the Canucks on Saturday to remain in the hunt for the final Wild Card spot.

HUGHES, MARNER MAKE THEIR MARK ON #NHLSTATS: LIVE UPDATES
A 16-game Saturday provided plenty of notes for #NHLStats: Live Updates, including some on Jack Hughes and Mitchell Marner, who had notable performances for the Devils and Maple Leafs, respectively.

* Hughes collected an assist to record his 96th point of 2022-23 (42-54—96 in 76 GP), matching Patrik Elias (2000-01: 40-56—96 in 82 GP) for the most in a single season in Devils/Rockies/Scouts history.

* Marner had 2-1—3 en route to establishing a career high for points in a season (30-68—98 in 78 GP), surpassing his previous best of 97 set in 2021-22. Should Marner record two more points, Toronto will have a 100-point player in consecutive seasons for the second time in franchise history, following 1992-93 to 1993-94 (Doug Gilmour: 127 in 1992-93 & 111 in 1993-94).

QUICK CLICKS

* Luke Hughes signs 3-year entry level contract, joins Devils
* Steven Stamkos surprises young fan on video call before morning skate
* Connor McDavid talks legacy, goals in Part 1 of exclusive Q&A with NHL.com
* Jett Alexander lives dream, plays for Maple Leafs as emergency goalie
* Rod Brind'Amour bear hugs Quinnipiac hockey coach after NCAA championship

BRUINS EYE LEAGUE RECORD IN FIRST HALF OF NHL ON TNT DOUBLEHEADER SUNDAY

Sunday’s two-game slate features the Bruins (62-12-5, 129 points) visiting the Flyers (29-37-13, 71 points) and the Ducks (23-45-11, 57 points) hosting the Avalanche (48-24-6, 102 points), with Boston being able to surpass the 2018-19 Lightning (62-16-4, 128 points) and 1995-96 Red Wings (62-13-7, 131 points) for sole possession of the highest single-season win total in NHL history. Both games will be broadcast on TNT in the U.S. as well as on Sportsnet ONE and TVA Sports in Canada.

* The Bruins are 10-3-0 in the second half of back-to-back sets this season. The 2018-19 Lightning went 7-4-0 in the second half of back-to-back sets, while the 1995-96 Red Wings were 13-2-1.

Thanks to the NHL PR department for the information above.

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