STADIUM SERIES QUICK HITS
* The 2016 Coors Light NHL Stadium Series marks the first regular-season outdoor NHL game appearance for the Avalanche. The Red Wings will be skating in their third such game, having previously contested the 2009 Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic at Wrigley Field in Chicago (6-4 W vs. CHI) and the 2014 Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor (3-2 shootout L vs. TOR).

* All five players on the Avalanche active roster with previous experience in NHL outdoor games skated for winning clubs. Jarome Iginla and Alex Tanguay helped Calgary defeat Montreal in the 2011 Molson Canadian NHL Heritage Classic; Semyon Varlamovbackstopped Washington over Pittsburgh in the 2011 Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic;John Mitchell's New York Rangers defeated Philadelphia in the 2012 Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic and Francois Beauchemin's Anaheim Ducks were victorious over Los Angeles in the 2014 Coors Light NHL Stadium Series.

* Three current Red Wings players have appeared in the team’s first two regular-season outdoor NHL games: forwards Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterberg and defensemanNiklas Kronwall.

* With an appearance in today's game forward Brad Richards will become the first player to play in five outdoor NHL regular-season games. Richards already has skated in three such games for the New York Rangers (2012, two in 2014) and one with the Chicago Blackhawks (2015). Richards notched the game-winning goal in the Rangers' 3-2 comeback win over the Flyers in the 2012 Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia.

* Forward Henrik Zetterberg shares the record for career assists in regular-season outdoor NHL games, with four in two appearances.

* The NHL’s 17 regular-season outdoor games have drawn total attendance of 970,960 – an average of 57,115 per game. Outdoor game attendance will surpass the 1-million mark at today’s game.

OVECHKIN TALLIES 40TH IN CAPITALS WIN
Alex Ovechkin (1-1—2) tied the game with his 40th goal of the season early in the final frame and Dmitry Orlov used a between-the-skates move to score the go-ahead marker with 5:04 remaining in the third period to help the Capitals improve to 18-2-1 in their last 21 games at Verizon Center.

* Ovechkin – who leads the NHL in goals and power-play goals (16) – reached the 40-goal mark for the eighth time in his 11-season career. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, Ovechkin is just the 10th player in NHL history to record eight or more 40 goal seasons.

Players with eight or more 40 goal seasons
12 – Wayne Gretzky (1979-80 to 1990-91)
10 – Marcel Dionne (1972-73, 1974-75 to 1976-77, 1978-79 to 1982-83, 1984-85)
10 – Mario Lemieux (1984-85 to 1989-90, 1991-92, 1992-93, 1995-96, 1996-97)
9 – Mike Bossy (1977-78 to 1985-86)
9 – Mike Gartner (1980-81, 1983-84, 1984-85, 1986-87, 1987-88, 1989-90 to 1992-93)
8 – Phil Esposito (1968-69 to 1974-75, 1978-79)
8 – Brett Hull (1988-89 to 1993-94, 1995-96, 1996-97)
8 – Bobby Hull (1961-62, 1963-64, 1965-66 to 1968-69, 1970-71, 1971-72)
8 – Luc Robitaille (1986-87 to 1993-94)
8 – Alex Ovechkin (2005-06 to 2009-10, 2013-14 to 2015-16)

* Ovechkin also extended his point streak to five games (5-4—9) and, for the sixth time in his career, became the first player to reach 40 goals in a season. The only other players in NHL history who were first to 40 in at least six different seasons are Bobby Hull andPhil Esposito (six times each).

* At 45-11-4 (94 points), the Capitals are tied for the most victories through a team’s first 60 games of a season in NHL history (DET: 1995-96) and are also the first team to earn 94 points through its first 60 games since Detroit in 1995-96 (94 points).

DUCKS WIN SEVENTH STRAIGHT
Richard Rakell scored a highlight reel goal at 1:24 of overtime to lead the Ducks to a season-high seventh consecutive win and a 14-1-1 record in their last 16 games.

* At 33-19-8 (74 points), the Ducks now sit just two points back of the Kings (36-20-4, 76 points) for first place in the Pacific Division. The SoCal rivals meet Sunday in Anaheim.

* Ryan Getzlaf (1-1—2) extended his point streak to 10 games (5-10—15), the longest by a Ducks player since his own 14-game streak from Nov. 5 – Dec. 15, 2014 (10-13—23).

* Frederik Andersen made 17 saves to improve to 11-0-1 in his last 12 decisions (1.88 GAA, .931 SV%).

LIGHTNING, BRUINS MAKE GROUND IN ATLANTIC
The Lightning (35-22-4, 74 points) and Bruins (34-22-6, 74 points) – second and third in the Atlantic Division, respectively – both earned victories on Friday to move within three points of the idle Panthers (35-18-7, 77 points) for the division lead.

* Steven Stamkos (1-1—2) extended his point streak to five games (5-2—7) and Ben Bishop made 21 saves to earn his 15th career shutout (third this season) and lead the Lightning to their fifth consecutive win. Stamkos also extended his goal streak to five games, two off his personal best of seven from Feb. 13 – March 11, 2010 (9-5—14).

* Matt Beleskey (2-0—2) and Patrice Bergeron (1-1—2) led the way offensively andTuukka Rask made 39 saves to help the Bruins improve to 6-0-1 in their last seven games versus the Hurricanes. Rask – who improved to 24-17-5 this season (2.53 GAA, .918 SV%) – has won three consecutive starts overall and has made 80 saves in his past two appearances combined (also 41 SV on Feb. 24 vs. PIT).

MILESTONES & BENCHMARKS
* Patrice Bergeron skated in his 800th career NHL game, all with the Bruins.

* Mikko Koivu played in his 743rd career game with the Wild, tying Nick Schultz for the franchise record.

* Steven Stamkos played in his 553rd game with the Lightning, passing Brad Richards(552) for fourth in franchise history. He also collected his 244th career assist – all with the Lightning – tying Vaclav Prospal for fourth in franchise history.

COMMISSIONER BETTMAN STATEMENT ON THE PASSING OF ANDY BATHGATE
Commissioner Gary Bettman issued the following statement regarding the passing of Hall of Fame forward Andy Bathgate:

"Andy Bathgate was a strong leader, a consistently prolific scorer and a fierce competitor. Andy was an All-Star, a Hart Trophy winner, a Stanley Cup champion and a Hall of Famer who earned the respect of the entire hockey world. The NHL family sends heartfelt condolences to his family and his many friends."

LOOSE PUCKS
Trailing 1-0 in the second period, the Sabres scored three unanswered goals – led by 1-1—2 from defenseman Zach Bogosian – to improve to 9-1-1 in their last 11 games vs. San Jose… Capitals goaltender Braden Holtby (30 saves) earned his League-leading 39th win of the season... Wild forward Jason Pominville (0-2—2) has recorded 3-5—8 in his last six games... Bruins forward Brad Marchand scored his 32nd goal of the season, tied for third overall in the NHL... Lightning forward Ryan Callahan (0-2—2) has 3-5—8 in his last six games... Oilers forward Jordan Eberle scored to reach the 20-goal mark for the fourth time in his six-season NHL career... The Blues acquired goaltender Anders Nilsson from the Oilers in exchange for goaltender Niklas Lundstrom and a 2016 5th-round draft pick. The Blackhawks acquired defenseman Christian Ehrhoff from the Kingsin exchange for defenseman Rob Scuderi and also acquired forwards Tomas Fleischmann and Dale Weise from the Canadiens in exchange for forward Phillip Danault and a second-round pick in 2018…The Penguins signed defenseman Olli Maattato a six-year contract extension… The Lightning signed defenseman Braydon Coburn to a three-year contract extension... ICYMI: Penguins captain Sidney Crosby made asurprise appearance at a children's hockey clinic.

SNEAK PEEK AT SATURDAY'S ACTION
All Times Eastern
Arizona @ Philadelphia, 1:00 p.m., CSN-PH
St. Louis @ Nashville, 3:00 p.m., FS-MW, FS-TN
Winnipeg @ Pittsburgh, 3:00 p.m., ROOT, SN
Florida @ Columbus, 3:00 p.m., FS-F, FS-O
NY Rangers @ Dallas, 4:00 p.m., NHLN-US, MSG, FS-SW
Toronto @ Montreal, 7:00 p.m., CBC, CITY, TVAS
Detroit @ Colorado, 8:00 p.m., NBC, SN, TVAS2
Ottawa @ Calgary, 10:00 p.m., CBC
Buffalo @ Los Angeles, 11:00 p.m., BELL TV, MSG-B, FS-W

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PREDATORS MEET BLUES IN KEY CENTRAL DIVISION MATINEE
The Predators welcome the Blues to Nashville in a Central Division matchup. The Blues, just three points behind the division-leading Stars and two shy of the second-place Blackhawks, have won five in a row against the Predators dating to last season, outscoring Nashville 11-4 in the past four games. The Predators return to Bridgestone Arena to begin a three-game homestand having earned points in eight straight contests (5-0-3). They hold a three-point lead over the Avalanche for the first Wild Card spot in the Western Conference. The game could mark the return of star defensemen Alex Pietrangelo (STL) and Shea Weber (NSH), who have missed the past eight and two games, respectively, due to injury.

Thanks to the NHL PR department for the information above.