from Steve Simmons of the Toronto Sun,

You don’t want to face Andrei Vasilevskiy in the playoffs. In his past 10 starts, the Lightning are 8-1-1, his goals against average is right around 2 and his save percentage is .937 in that time … When the Leafs lost to Sergei Bobrovsky and the Florida Panthers in Round 2 last May, Bobrovsky had a save percentage of .940 in the series … Since the trade deadline, the Carolina Hurricanes are 11-3-1 and key pickup Jake Guentzel has 20 points in the 13 games he has played for the Canes … What a lame playoff race this has been in the Eastern Conference. Philadelphia has won five of its last 17 games and is still in a playoff position. Detroit has won four of its last 16 games and is one point out. Makes you wonder how Buffalo and Ottawa couldn’t make a playoff push.

more hockey talk including who wins the Hart Trophy...

* Auston Matthews added to his goal total to reach the 100-point mark for the second time in his career and tied Connor McDavid (64 in 2022-23) for the third-most goals in a campaign in the past 30 years – a list topped by Mario Lemieux (69 in 1995-96) and Alex Ovechkin (65 in 2007-08).

* Sidney Crosby reached the 40-goal mark for the third time in his career – and first in seven seasons – to propel the Penguins into a playoff spot for the first time since Nov. 14 after sitting nine points out just last week.

* Washington and Detroit can move back into a Wild Card spot as part of a busy nine-game Sunday – one that could also feature Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin make NHL history with his 18th career 30-goal season.

via Sportsnet's YouTube page,

On this edition of Saturday Headlines, Elliotte Friedman discusses Keith Pelley assuming the role of President and CEO of MLSE, the Vancouver Canucks not rushing Thatcher Demko back from injury, the latest on Mikko Rantanen's injury, and more.

from Larry Brooks of the New York Post,

Auston Matthews is coming up on 65 goals and has had the Rocket Richard locked down for weeks, Nathan MacKinnon and Connor McDavid are embroiled in an Art Ross race for the ages with Nikita Kucherov, and all of this probably means that Sidney Crosby won’t get a single vote as first all-star team center despite the fact that No. 87 is having one of the great seasons of his decorated career.

This serves as an explanation for why Peter Stastny never made a first- or second- all-star team during his career, why Pat LaFontaine made the second team once (first team, never) and Steve Yzerman was never so honored until his 17th season when he was voted onto the first team in 1999-2000.

That was life in the fast line for centers when the NHL was ruled by the Wayne Gretzky-Mario Lemieux hegemony. Now, there are McDavid, MacKinnon and Matthews and one of these three will not be voted onto either all-star team.

Crosby may not get a vote as an all-star, but he might be a factor in the Hart Trophy balloting. Tampa Bay’s right wing Kucherov, who entered Saturday with 133 points to MacKinnon’s 131 and McDavid’s 128, seems to be leading the polls....

continue for more on Crosby plus other topics like...

I wonder whether the Wild’s twin additions of Zach Parise and Ryan Suter on July 4, 2012, ultimately represent the most disappointing and perhaps destructive free-agent signings in NHL history even while at the same time at least partially filling their objective.

from Ansar Khan of Mlive,

“There’s great learning in this and it’s great for all of us to go through it, but we need more out of everyone,” Larkin said. “We need guys to be drivers and that’s what we’re going to need this week.”

The Red Wings host Washington on Tuesday and visit Pittsburgh on Thursday. The New York Islanders and Philadelphia also are in the mix for either third place in the Metropolitan Division or the second wild card spot.

“We have to get points. It doesn’t matter how we do it,” Larkin said. “We have to start winning hockey matches.”

The Red Wings (37-31-8, 82 points) feel good about their play in recent games but have left points on the table – losing 1-0 at Nashville, 4-3 in overtime at Washington, 3-2 in a shootout at Florida, and 4-3 in regulation to the New York Rangers on Friday.

“There’s a lot at stake and it’s the little details that count,” Larkin said. “It’s the first time in a long time that I’ve been a part of games like that and it’s what we ask for. I feel that we’ve figured it out and even going back to Washington, we had a lot of chances and didn’t convert on them. In Tampa (4-2 victory), we didn’t get frustrated when we didn’t convert on our chances, we just kept going. Last night it was a little bit of a different story where we just had costly mistakes at costly times.”

Coach Derek Lalonde said his message to the team is to stay on it.

“You got to stay even keeled and take care of what you can take care of,” he said. “I feel like we can still control our own destiny. We got a couple of four-point games coming up.”

read on

Tampa Bay/Pittsburgh 1pm ET on ABC/ESPN+

New Jersey/Ottawa 7pm

Philadelphia/Columbus 7pm

Nashville/New York Islanders 7:30pm

Full schedule for today is below.

* The Oilers, Maple Leafs and Lightning all clinched a berth into the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs, leaving just five more spots up for grabs – two in the East and three in the West – with 13 days left in the regular season.

* Connor McDavid became the fifth active player with eight-plus 30-goal campaigns, while teammate Leon Draisaitl joined a group of six other skaters this season to have reached the century mark for points.

* The Blues and Blues Alumni presented $600,000 to The V Foundation for Cancer Research to support projects at Siteman Cancer Center, with the donation including proceeds from Friday's “Puck Cancer” charity game at Centene Community Ice Center and a $200,000 commitment from this season's Hockey Fights Cancer initiative.

* Playoff races take center stage during the second-last Saturday of the regular season as all eight First Round matchups remain uncertain.

from Kevin Allen of Detroit Hockey Now,

With the game tied 3-3 midway through the third period, Perron was called for high sticking at 9:29 and Chris Kreider turned that into a game-winning power play goal.

“That was a tough penalty,” Detroit coach Derek Lalonde said. “The momentum felt good and we put their power play on for the third time and they cashed in.”

That wasn’t the only reason the Red Wings lost. Other veterans made mistakes that were just as costly, but Perron’s penalty will be remembered because it led to a goal.

“It’s magnified now on every play,” Lalonde said. “This is why it’s really good for our guys to be going through this. It’s just different this time of year. It’s amplified this time of year and you learn, especially against a really good team, we left some plays out there. Unfortunately, it cost us.”

This lost cost the Red Wings in a big way because other teams helped them out Friday. The Buffalo Sabres knocked off Philadelphia Flyers, 4-2 and the Carolina Hurricanes downed the Washington Capitals, 3-2. Even with the loss, Detroit is only one point behind the Flyers for the final wildcard spot in the Eastern Conference. The Capitals are also only one point back. The Pittsburgh Penguins are two behind.

The New York Islanders are now in third place in the Metropolitan Division, putting them in a playoff position. By winning, the Sabres are now only three points behind Detroit. Those teams meeting Sunday in a matinee at Little Caesars Arena....

“We played good enough to get a point, to get two points tonight,” Larkin said. “I think when you get to this time of the year, every time that you drop a game it feels like an opportunity missed. It’s been hard. The hockey’s been hard and tight. We’ve been talking about every play and making sure we make every play. We left a couple out there tonight, which makes it hurt more.”

more

Pretty evenly played first period but until the Rangers scored with 29 seconds left in the first. Rangers lead 2-1 after 20 minutes.

Wings actually had their first lead of the game at 3-2 in the second, but the NYR quickly tied it 3-3.

The teams started the third tied 3-3 and the only goal in the period was from the Rangers who win 4-3.

Team Stats

Detroit goals are below plus what is a cross check penalty.

Good evening and welcome to all. The Wings are coming into tonight’s game after a hard fought win against the Lightning, but, that was four days ago, and all 19 of us expect to see an even better game/effort tonight. There’s not much else to say about tonight’s game against the Rangers, except that it is an absolute must win if the Red Wings want to stay in it down the final stretch.

Lyon is in goal. Sprong is in. Rasmussen is out(upper body), Maatta is a healthy scratch. No other changes to the lineup have been announced.

It’s the Rangers vs the Red Wings in an Original Six matchup. The puck is set to drop around 7:00 PM and will be broadcast on Bally Sports Detroit Extra, and on the Red Wings Radio Network 97.1 (The Ticket in Detroit) for your listening pleasure. Also available on ESPN+/NHLPP, MSGSN, SPORTSNET+, and TVAS.

It’s a Live Blog!

Professional sports are no stranger to innovation, and hockey is no exception. With the rise of technology comes the opportunity for expansion and advancement. One such example is the adoption of cryptocurrency, more specifically Bitcoin, in the world of hockey. The explosion of Bitcoin across different sectors of the economy has not left the hockey arena untouched, and we dive deep to explore this innovation.

Below, Alex Lyon is Detroit's nominee for the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy.

Hey folks, an open birthday post for Paul. Feel free to send a wish or two.😉☘️

* Gabriel Vilardi scored a hat trick to cap off a night that saw the Jets become the eighth team to clinch a berth in the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs.

* Brad Marchand became the fifth player in franchise history to reach the 400-goal milestone as the Bruins were one of a trio of Atlantic Division clubs to pick up wins during Thursday’s nine-game slate.

* A six-game Friday will feature a TVA Sports doubleheader that pits Nathan MacKinnon and the Avalanche against Connor McDavid and the Oilers – the second- and third-ranked players in the 2023-24 Art Ross Trophy race.

Open post, feel free to discuss.

Washington (74 gp, 82 pts) is tied with the Wings (75 gp, 82 pts) for the 2nd wild card spot. They hold a one point lead on the Islanders (75 gp, 81 pts) and a three point lead on Pittsburgh (75 gp, 79 pts).

from Emily Kaplan of ESPN,

Bedard was anointed as the next face of the league before ever taking a shift, and the fanfare surrounding his NHL arrival has sometimes felt astronomical.

"Everyone is asking everything of him," Blackhawks president Jaime Faulkner said recently. "The league is asking for a lot. We are asking for a lot, the media, sponsors and fans. But he always responds with kindness, even when he doesn't need to. He is referred to as a robot because people only see his intensity. But both can be true. He can be driven and highly competitive, but grounded and gracious at the same time."

Bedard's veteran teammates like Taylor Hall cautioned against overexposure as the season began -- not out of jealousy, but protection for the teenager. "It can be a little much at times," Hall said. "He doesn't say that, but it feels like it is."

But Bedard has handled it all with professionalism, settling in on two to three media sessions a week, mostly in scrum settings. Even though he missed his first All-Star appearance because of his jaw, Bedard showed up in Toronto anyway (and, again successfully, still campaigned to participate, passing pucks to players in the skills competition).

"The number of directions he is pulled in, the attention and spotlight he receives in a new city -- it has to be taxing and exhausting," Davidson said. "But he rarely shows it."

It was full bore ever since he took his opening faceoff against his childhood idol, Crosby.

"Looking back," Bedard told ESPN recently, "it definitely was a lot. Kind of overwhelming, but fun at the same time. I just tried to take it all in and enjoy it."

much more

14 minutes of talk.

5 1/2 minutes to watch.

from Joe Smith of The Athletic,

Jesper Wallstedt wrapped up a local TV interview at Wells Fargo Arena last week and left the rink for the day.

The Minnesota Wild’s touted goalie prospect was asked during the segment about how the American Hockey League could also be called the “Always Hungry League,” and he had no disagreements.

“It really is,” he said.

It’s hard for every decision Wallstedt makes not to be about the next level right now. The 21-year-old Swede has rethought and rewatched his mid-January NHL debut countless times; a 7-2 loss will tend to stick with you. He was disappointed but not deterred. More so, he’s determined, especially after the pep talk he received from coach John Hynes on a plane ride home during a brief NHL stint this year.

Spend an afternoon with Wallstedt, and you’ll see the determination everywhere. Even his car: a humongous white Dodge Ram 4×4. He used to drive an Audi but notes that this will be better for inclement weather in the Twin Cities.

“Perfect in a snowstorm,” Wallstedt said.

“I’ll take anything to get up there.”

It shouldn’t be long.

continued

* Nikita Kucherov became the fifth player in the past 30 years to record 130 or more points in a single season and bested his own franchise record in the process as the Lightning defeated the Maple Leafs.

* Jason Robertson helped the Western Conference-leading Stars establish a franchise record with their eighth straight win while Quinn Hughes set a franchise mark of his own as the Canucks kept pace in second place.

* The Rangers earned a comeback win and maintained the top spot in the NHL standings as they continued to push for their first Presidents’ Trophy since 2014-15.

* A nine-game Thursday will feature pivotal matchups in both the Eastern and Western Conference Wild Card races, including the 69th all-time regular-season head-to-head between Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin, with the Penguins captain entering the night just three assists shy of 1,000.

from Mark Spector of Sportsnet,

The buzz word in hockey today is “mature.” As in, every team that weathers a storm or plays a solid third period talks about how “mature” a game they played.

So what do we call the game the Oilers laid down in Dallas Wednesday night, if not immature?

A veteran Oilers team folded up like a cheap tent in the second period of a 1-0 game, allowing four goals in a 5:48 span en route to a 5-0 loss.

“They get that second one and we completely go off script. That's just not our game,” said Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, after the Oilers’ third shutout effort of the season. “That's not how you're going to win at any point in the season, especially with nine games left against one of the best teams in the league.”

And the worst thing? Edmonton’s best players were their worst players, particularly assistant captains Leon Draisaitl and Darnell Nurse.

continued

Watch the highlights below.

We may wax lyrical about the absurd rate of point scoring of Nikita Kucherov, Nathan MacKinnon, and Connor McDavid. We can even be in awe of Auston Matthews’ return to scoring 60 goals. However, the goaltender is invariably the most important player on the ice.

So, the Vezina Trophy race is invariably one of great interest. This season, there have been several worthy contenders to the crown. With the season moving through to the playoffs, it’s time to explore where the trophy currently owned by Linus Ullmark may go.