A big night for Blues winger Brandon Saad, Oilers star Leon Draisaitl extends his points streak, and more in today’s NHL Morning Coffee Headlines.
RECAPS OF FRIDAY’S GAMES
NHL.COM: St. Louis Blues winger Brandon Saad tallied a natural hat trick as his club blanked the Ottawa Senators 4-0. Goaltender Jordan Binnington turned in a 20-save shutout for the Blues (42 points), who’ve won four of their last five to move within two points of the final Western Conference wild-card berth. The Senators (40 points) have dropped four of their last five but still cling to the final Eastern Conference wild-card spot.
St. Louis Blues winger Brandon Saad (NHL Images).
Edmonton Oilers forward Leon Draisaitl extended his point streak to 13 games by scoring the winning goal with 1:35 remaining in the third period in a 3-2 victory over the Anaheim Ducks. Oilers defenseman Darnell Nurse had a goal and an assist. Brett Leason and Jackson LaCombe replied for the Ducks as their three-game win streak ended.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Draisaitl leads the league with 28 goals. Oilers captain Connor McDavid saw his 12-game points streak end.
The Nashville Predators got a 27-save shutout by Juuse Saros to end a three-game losing skid by downing the Vancouver Canucks 3-0. Steven Stamkos, Gustav Nyquist and Colton Sissons were the goal scorers, with the last two being empty-net goals. Canucks netminder Kevin Lankinen stopped 16 of 17 shots as his club has lost three of their last four (1-2-1).
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Vancouver starter Thatcher Demko missed this game due to back spasms, forcing them to recall goalie Arturs Silovs on an emergency basis. The Canucks (44 points) hold a one-point lead over the Calgary Flames for the final Western wild-card spot.
Shootout goals by Sam Reinhart and Anton Lundell lifted the Florida Panthers to a 3-2 win over the Pittsburgh Penguins. Gustav Forsling and Matthew Tkachuk scored in regulation while Spencer Knight made 29 saves for the Panthers. Sidney Crosby and Rickard Rakell replied for the Penguins, who are tied with the Senators with 40 points.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Senators hold the final Eastern wild-card berth with two games in hand and two more victories (19 to 17) than Pittsburgh. Penguins forward Philip Tomasino left the game in the third period with an undisclosed injury.
The Chicago Blackhawks snapped a five-game losing skid by doubling up the Montreal Canadiens 4-2, ending the latter’s three-game win streak. Arvid Soderblom kicked out 38 shots and Nick Foligno tallied two goals for the Blackhawks. Canadiens winger Cole Caufield netted his 20th of the season.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Canadiens were the dominant team for most of this contest but Soderblom was outstanding and Foligno was clutch for the Blackhawks. Pat Maroon lost a scrap with Canadiens defenseman Arber Xhekaj in the first period but got the last laugh in the third with the game-winning goal.
The Blackhawks called up Colton Dach for this game. It was the first time he and his brother (Canadiens forward Kirby Dach) faced each other in NHL action.
HEADLINES
RG.ORG: Philadelphia Flyers rookie winger Matvei Michkov admits he’s still learning to adapt mentally and physically to the grind of his first NHL season. He said his English is improving and he is learning a lot from head coach John Tortorella despite the language barrier.
Michkov indicated he has a good relationship with his rival, Chicago Blackhawks star Connor Bedard. “He’s a good player and a good guy,” said the Flyers winger. “It’s exciting to watch players like him.”
NEW JERSEY HOCKEY NOW: Devils defenseman Dougie Hamilton was fined $2,000.00 for embellishment by the department of player safety. The incident occurred during a game against the New York Rangers on Dec. 23.
THE SCORE: The Colorado Avalanche hope goaltender Scott Wedgewood will only be sidelined for a couple of weeks. He suffered a lower-body injury on Thursday against the Buffalo Sabres. Avalanche coach Jared Bednar said Wedgewood is still being evaluated.
SPORTSNET: Winnipeg Jets center Mason Appleton (lower body) was placed on injured reserve retroactive to Dec. 28.
NBC SPORTS BOSTON: The Bruins signed forward Mark Kastelic to a three-year contract extension. The average annual salary is $1.567 million.
TORONTO SUN: The Maple Leafs signed defenseman Phillipe Myers to a two-year deal worth $850K per season.
SPORTS MEDIA WATCH: Tuesday’s NHL Winter Classic between the Blackhawks and Blues at Chicago’s Wrigley Field averaged 920,000 viewers, the smallest TV audience in the annual outdoor game’s history.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: The game involved two opponents not considered among this season’s elite teams. The Blackhawks are rebuilding while the Blues are battling for a wild-card spot. It was a lopsided affair with the Blues winning 6-2.
The league also staged this game on New Year’s Eve rather than New Year’s Day as it used to and did a poor job publicizing the event.
NHL.COM: Aleksander Barkov, Matthew Tkachuk and Hall-of-Fame goaltender Roberto Luongo highlighted the Florida Panthers’ Quarter-Century Team.
Joining Barkov, Tkachuk and Luongo on the First Team are winger Jonathan Huberdeau and defensemen Aaron Ekblad and Gustav Forsling.
Hall-of-Fame winger Pavel Bure joined forwards Sam Reinhart and Olli Jokinen, defensemen Jay Bouwmeester and Robert Svehla and goalie Sergei Bobrovsky on the Second Team.