When the Boston Bruins turned up at the Bell Centre to face the Montreal Canadiens on Thursday night, only seven of their dressed players were with the team at the end of the last season. No more Brad Marchand, no Charlie McAvoy (due to injury), and no more Linus Ullmark who was traded to Ottawa last offseason. It’s been a tough season in Boston, but before this final tilt, the Bs had managed to win their first two games against the Canadiens this year.

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Rough Stuff

The actors of past memorable battles may not be there, but as long as those two teams face each other, there will be extracurricular activities after the whistle, as sure as the sky is blue. In the first frame, 23 hits were thrown, 13 by Boston and 10 by Montreal.

Juraj Slafkovsky had some words with David Pastrnak, and it looked like the Czech was asking him to dance, but nothing came of it. Still, shortly after that, the former first-overall pick had to handle a punishing hit from Nikita Zadorov. As the Canadiens led 2-0 in the middle frame, the youngster was enjoying poking fun at several Bruins, the Slovak isn’t scared to poke the sleeping bear apparently.

As for Josh Anderson, he was his usual wrecking ball self, throwing three hits, second only to Emil Heineman, who had four in the first frame. He was tied with Zadorov for the most hits across both teams. Anderson and Heineman finished the game with five hits each while Michael Pezzetta, who played 7:47 recorded seven hits.

By the end of the game, the Canadiens had 33 hits and the Bruins 29, which was the only aspect in which the Bruins weren’t manhandled.

A Dominant Second

In the first frame, the Canadiens didn’t look like they were playing a team that had lost its last six games in regulation and nine in a row; they looked like they were playing down to the competition. They looked nervous, and couldn't execute properly in the offensive zone. Someone must have said something during the break because the Habs dominated the middle frame.

Boston struggled to get out of its own end and could only muster three shots on net in that frame—full marks to Samuel Montembeault for not falling asleep out there.

The Tricolore had complete control of the puck in Boston’s territory and took 18 shots on goal. Had it not been for Swayman, it could have been 5-0 for the Canadiens after 40 minutes. We’ve seen this team dominate in the past but struggle to separate itself from the opponent, but on Thursday night, the goals were there.

The Veteran Line

While some may not have noticed, the third line formed by Brendan Gallagher, Christian Dvorak, and Anderson has a goal in nine of the last 10 games, including five goals for the pivot. Asked for his thoughts about that line, Martin St-Louis said:

I think those are three vets who understand how we want to play, the moments of the game, and the momentum; they’re all on the same page. They are dedicated; they shoot, shoot, and shoot again. It’s a line that’s a good example of how direct they are in their play. They don’t take too many risks in the neutral zone and are efficient on the forecheck.

-

Gallagher was named the game's first star thanks to a goal and an assist, and he received a big ovation. There’s no doubt these fans are right there with the Canadiens’ biggest warrior as he navigates through the pain of losing his mother.

être travaillant, ça rapporte 👷

great forecheck, great shot, great goal#GoHabsGopic.twitter.com/XuD6qCVOb2

— Canadiens Montréal (@CanadiensMTL) April 4, 2025

The Canadiens won the game 4-1 in the end and remain in the second wild card spot with seven games to go. It was a big night for Nick Suzuki, who reached the 80-point mark, the first Canadiens player to do so since Alex Kovalev. As for Cole Caufield, he recorded his 35th goal of the season. While the 40-goal mark is in sight, it may be out of reach for this season, but it feels like he will get there sooner rather than later.

You can see the excitement in the coach's eye in his post-game pressers, St-Louis the player was a competitor and the coach wants to be as well:

Learning's over at this stage, we have to execute and that's what we did tonight. 

-

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The Pittsburgh Penguins' 5-4 overtime loss to the St. Louis Blues on Thursday - which gave the Blues their whopping 11th straight win - obviously wasn't the desired result.

But there were a lot of good things happening in this effort - particularly from the two youngest players on the team.

Penguins top prospect Rutger McGroarty scored his first NHL goal with 23.8 seconds remaining in regulation to force overtime and earn Pittsburgh a point. Fellow rookie Ville Koivunen earned the primary assist on the play, which was his first point in the NHL. 

“It was pretty cool, especially at that point in the game versus a team like that and how hot they are,” McGroarty said. “It was pretty cool for Ville and I to do that on the same goal. We might have to split the puck in half, I'm not sure.”

Koivunen saw the opportunity there for McGroarty, and he wasted no time distributing the puck to him. 

"I just saw Rutger open, and Rutger was doing his magic there," Koivunen said. "So, just give him the puck."

FIRST NHL GOAL FOR RUTGER 🙌
FIRST NHL POINT FOR VILLE 🙌 pic.twitter.com/q02wOvXjjD

— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) April 4, 2025

Both rookies have clearly earned the trust of the coaching staff, as head coach Mike Sullivan decided to deploy both of them in the six-on-five situation at the end of the game. They shared the ice with Rust, Sidney Crosby, Rickard Rakell, and Erik Karlsson - and they did not disappoint. 

Sullivan said they were "terrific," and he made a point to shout out a play that McGroarty made prior to the goal that helped prevent a Blues empty-net goal.

“Rutger chased the puck down prior to that, where, if we gave them the separation, they might have hit an empty net," Sullivan said. "They don't, because he puts pressure on it. I thought they were terrific in that circumstance."

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He also added that the two young forwards earned the opportunity through performance to get those critical minutes.

"If we didn't think they were deserving, we wouldn't put them out there," Sullivan said. "We think they're making a difference. They're earning their opportunities."

Early in the game, McGroarty also earned his first NHL point, setting up linemate Bryan Rust for one of his signature power-move goals. The Penguins took the 1-0 lead into the second period, which was a bit of a back-and-forth affair that saw Pittsburgh unravel a bit defensively.

Jake Neighbours scored just 39 seconds into the middle frame for St. Louis, but Penguins forward Connor Dewar - who has scored all four of his goals this season with the Penguins since being traded from the Toronto Maple Leafs on deadline day - gave the Penguins back the lead a few minutes later.

However, Pittsburgh gave up several odd-man rushes before the midway point of the period, and Pavel Buchnevich and Jordan Kyrou - on a breakaway - scored a minute and 17 seconds apart to give the Blues a 3-2 lead. Neighbours added his second of the game a little less than six minutes into the third period to put St. Louis up, 4-2, but the Penguins responded for the remainder of regulation.

Blues defenseman Justin Faulk went to the box for holding midway through the period, and Rickard Rakell - positioned in the slot - finished a feed from Sidney Crosby for his 33rd goal of the season, putting him just one goal shy of his career-high set in 2017-18. The assist also extended Crosby's point streak to 11 games, which is the longest active streak in the NHL and the longest by a player age 37 or older since Nikolas Lidstrom's with the Detroit Red Wings in 2010-11 (11 games).

Penguins Crosby Has Shot At Unofficial Gretzky RecordDuring Sunday's TSN broadcast between the Pittsburgh Penguins and Ottawa Senators, announcer Gord Miller pointed out that Sidney Crosby, who ranks 10th all-time in assists, has set up a player's first NHL goal on 14 occasions. 

Then, the kids were given the opportunity to make something happen in the waning seconds of regulation, and they didn't waste it. Suffice to say, it was quite the night for two of the best prospects in the Penguins' system, and particularly for McGroarty.

And he appreciates the coaching staff's trust in him and Koivunen to put them out on the ice in the game's most critical moment.

"It means a lot," McGroarty said. "I feel like that's something... a minute and a half left, six-on-five, a pulled goalie, down by one... it means a lot. It's pretty cool."

---

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A lot changed for Utah HC in 44 seconds. 

What had been a 1-1 game, one that seemed like Utah’s to take control of at any moment, thanks in large part to its 25-9 advantage in shots on goal through two periods, suddenly had turned into a 3-1 deficit that the team could never recover from.

With a quick, unassisted goal from Kings forward Kevin Fiala, Los Angeles would not only take the lead back, but would never give it up for the rest of the game. 

GO KEVIN GO pic.twitter.com/5ZdfpW7DRx

— LA Kings (@LAKings) April 4, 2025

With Utah defenseman John Marino attempting a dangerous cross-ice pass right after the faceoff, the puck went straight to Fiala’s stick, right in front of the net, leading to an immediate goal for the Kings.

The uncharacteristic mistake from Marino would prove to be fatal for Utah later in the game. 

After two penalties were called on Anze Kopitar for cross-checking Kevin Stenlund, and Stenlund was assessed an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty for going down a little too easily after the cross-check, a 4-on-4 situation was set up for both teams.

We've got 4-on-4 hockey at 3:47 of the third period. Anze Kopitar is called for cross-checking and Kevin Stenlund called for embellishment.

— Belle Fraser (@bellefraser1) April 4, 2025

But with Fiala’s goal coming just 19 seconds into the 4-on-4, play resumed with both Stenlund and Kopitar still in the box.

Without the extra man on the ice, Utah made yet another costly mistake.

This time, Trevor Moore knocked Utah's Sean Durzi to the ice, then took off on a breakaway and buried another goal for L.A. during the 4-on-4.

GET! OUT! THE! WAY! pic.twitter.com/z5KnB1dq4I

— LA Kings (@LAKings) April 4, 2025

“I think the first one was an unfortunate turnover," said coach André Tourigny. "Johnny (John Marino) doesn't do a lot of those... just happened at the wrong time. I think it was an unnecessary risk but that's happened. The other one, there's a few things on that. I think we didn't move our feet to get up ice... Veggie (Karel Vejmelka) could have, should have, gotten that puck."

The Kings would add one more with an empty-netter to go up 4–1, before conceding Utah’s only other goal—Jack McBain's first career power play goal—with under 30 seconds remaining and far too little time left to mount a comeback.

"We were in the driver's seat for the first two periods, and unfortunately, what happened on the four on four and they capitalized on two chances," said Utah's Lawson Crouse. "That's how quick the game can get away from you, and we were playing catch up from there." 

While the game ultimately ended in a convincing win for the Kings, it's hard not to look back at a few key moments in the first two periods that went Los Angeles' way. 

The first tough break for Utah came just two minutes in, when what looked like an early goal was called back.

Play was offside... no goal for Gunner. Boys are gonna work to get that one back. pic.twitter.com/YKMdEPEiPe

— Utah Hockey Club (@utahhockeyclub) April 4, 2025

Upon review, a pass from Utah’s Clayton Keller to Dylan Guenther, who was wearing a bubble after breaking his nose in Utah’s win over the Flames, never crossed back in front of the blue line and instead traveled along it.

As a result, Keller crossed the line before the puck, making the play offside. While it wasn’t initially called and it appeared as though Guenther had scored, a quick challenge by the Kings led to the play being overturned and play resumed shortly after.

Pics that go hard pt. 2 pic.twitter.com/cm6n15EDNx

— Utah Hockey Club (@utahhockeyclub) April 4, 2025

“I think [the team is learning] how every play matters...," said Guenther. "Every shift, no matter what happens, all you can do is go out there and try to win your shift so just take it a step at a time.”

While Utah never looked fazed, even after the unfortunate offside call, the team found itself on the wrong side of yet another goal

This time, the Kings scored their first goal of the night following a wild sequence in which L.A.'s Adrian Kempe collided with Vejmelka after being pushed by Utah’s Logan Cooley.

believe it or not, this is a goal highlight 🤷‍♂️ pic.twitter.com/0Rf0DGKskA

— LA Kings (@LAKings) April 4, 2025

Because it was deemed that Kempe ran into Vejmelka because of Cooley,  no goalie interference penalty was called against Kempe.

All of the sudden, what could have been a 1–0 lead heading into the second period instead turned into a 1–0 deficit.

Those breaks for the Kings were a big reason why the game stayed close early on, even with Utah's offense humming and controlling much of the play.

While Lawson Crouse scored Utah’s first goal of the game in the second to tie things up and keep it competitive, being on the wrong end of a two-goal swing early proved costly once Utah began making mistakes in the third.

Though Utah's playoff hopes are still statistically possible, the team can't seem to catch a break with each win the Blues get, this time with its second consecutive overtime victory coming against the Pittsburgh Penguins.

The win extended St. Louis' win streak to 11, tied for the longest in the NHL this season, and has singlehandedly snuffed Utah's hopes of making the playoffs. 

With only six games remaining and sitting nine points behind the Minnesota Wild, holders of the final Wild Card spot, Utah will need to win out the rest of its schedule if it has any hope of making the playoffs.

Minnesota has struggled recently, losing five of its last six games, but it would still take a remarkable collapse, like losing all six of its remaining games, for the Wild to fall out of playoff position.

So while tonight's loss has all but eliminated Utah from the race, the club will need to keep fighting while there's still a statistical chance, starting with its game against Winnipeg on Saturday, April 5.

Its Do or Die For Utah Hockey Club 

ST. LOUIS – The old adage that good teams find ways to win when they’re not at their best has found its way to the St. Louis Blues once again.

And in doing do on Thursday against the Pittsburgh Penguins, the same team that was last in the NHL to put together a three-game winning streak has now matched a franchise record 11 straight wins.

The Blues were not at their best, but they found a way for a second straight overtime game when Robert Thomas’ power-play goal at 2:12 won it, 5-4, after blowing a two-goal lead in the third period at Enterprise Center.

Jake Neighbours scored twice to surpass the 20-goal mark for the second straight season, and Thomas and Jordan Kyrou each had a goal and an assist for the Blues (42-28-7), who moved two points ahead of the Minnesota Wild for the first wild card in the Western Conference. They matched the Stanley Cup-winning team of 2018-19 for consecutive wins (Jan. 23-Feb. 19) and won their 10th in a row at home.

“It’s been a fun ride,” Thomas said. “We’ve beaten some really good teams and we’re playing really good hockey. We just got to consistently be there every single night and that’s what makes a great team and that’s what we’re on our way to be.”

Added forward Oskar Sundqvist, who was part of the 2019 team, “It's awesome. I was here for the last 11 straight wins. It's a good feeling in our group right now. Even if we haven't played our best games our last two games, but we're finding ways to win. That's what's important right now.”

Jimmy Snuggerud had an assist for his first NHL point in his second game, and Joel Hofer won his fifth straight start with 24 saves.

“Another one of those games where we didn’t think we played to our standard, but finding ways, goalies are playing well, guys are making big plays in big moments and keep finding ways,” Neighbours said.

Here are Thursday’s Three Takeaways --

* The power play finally connected – Even with the Blues scoring four times at 5-on-5, it was a game in which they could have put it away with better special teams.

Earlier in the game, they had a 38-second two-man advantage lumped in with a four-minute double minor for high-sticking and did nothing with it.

The Blues led the game 3-2 and had the chance to put the game away then but their unwillingness to be more direct allowed the Penguins to stay in the game despite Neighbours scoring at 5:56 on a great play by Snuggerud both defensively, then starting the transition offensively to make it 4-2.

St. Louis goal!

Scored by Jake Neighbours with 14:04 remaining in the 3rd period.

Assisted by Jimmy Snuggerud and Oskar Sundqvist.

St. Louis: 4
Pittsburgh: 2#PITvsSTL#stlblues#LetsGoPenspic.twitter.com/hmGJMc5Zlm

— NHL Goals (@nhl_goal_bot) April 4, 2025

But on the 4-on-3 in overtime, after Penguins defenseman Kris Letang was called for slashing Kyrou, the Blues had to be more direct, they had to take advantage of the open ice.

It wasn’t clean, but Thomas and Kyrou worked the puck off the left side and after corralling the puck, Thomas wired a wrister high glove on Tristan Jarry to end it.

Power play goal for St. Louis!

Scored by Robert Thomas with 02:48 remaining in the OT period.

Assisted by Jordan Kyrou.

St. Louis: 5
Pittsburgh: 4#PITvsSTL#stlblues#LetsGoPenspic.twitter.com/nvcmpKI032

— NHL Goals (@nhl_goal_bot) April 4, 2025

“They pressured hard and we weren’t able to beat it early,” Thomas said. “I missed a couple good looks. We did have some good looks. I think just more consistent on the 5-on-3 and the couple minutes, I think we had six minutes of power play 5-on-4. Got to find a way to do a better job early in the game, but it came through in the end.”

* Staying with it despite frittering away third-period lead – The first period was as poor as the Blues have played in quite some time, and coach Jim Montgomery attributed it to “energy.”

The Blues just weren’t connected on the ice, their puck play was passive, zone exits weren’t clean, and the Penguins (30-34-12) had something to do with it, but they finally turned the game around in the second period.

“We just don't seem to have juice, and it's going to happen, but it's a sign of a good team when you don't have our legs and we're still pulling out wins,” Montgomery said. “This is a hard league to win in, as we found out earlier in the year.

“I thought we were significantly better (in the second period), I thought we skated, I thought we worked better and I thought it led to a lot of opportunities.”

Neighbours tied the game 1-1 on a beautiful sequence with Philip Broberg, Pavel Buchnevich and Thomas, who fed Neighbours on the last pass 39 seconds in.

St. Louis goal!

Scored by Jake Neighbours with 19:21 remaining in the 2nd period.

Assisted by Robert Thomas and Philip Broberg.

St. Louis: 1
Pittsburgh: 1#PITvsSTL#stlblues#LetsGoPenspic.twitter.com/JT5p4qdztg

— NHL Goals (@nhl_goal_bot) April 4, 2025

After Pittsburgh took a 2-1 lead during a sequence that Thomas took a stick to the face on a follow-through shot by Rickard Rakell, Buchnevich tied the game 2-2 after Nathan Walker broke up a play in the neutral zone, and Buchnevich used his stick magic to lift a backhand in at 6:48 before Kyrou whipped a wrister past Jarry for their first lead at 3-2 at 8:05 on an incredibly strong flipper out of the zone in stride by Cam Fowler.

St. Louis goal!

Scored by Pavel Buchnevich with 13:12 remaining in the 2nd period.

Assisted by Nathan Walker.

St. Louis: 2
Pittsburgh: 2#PITvsSTL#stlblues#LetsGoPenspic.twitter.com/9aSGrJWcAO

— NHL Goals (@nhl_goal_bot) April 4, 2025

St. Louis goal!

Scored by Jordan Kyrou with 11:55 remaining in the 2nd period.

Assisted by Cam Fowler.

St. Louis: 3
Pittsburgh: 2#PITvsSTL#stlblues#LetsGoPenspic.twitter.com/mTZ1ssW58S

— NHL Goals (@nhl_goal_bot) April 4, 2025

“Got the perfect spin on it, English on it too, right,” Montgomery said. “So he could skate right into it. It was nice.”

But after the Neighbours goal, the Blues, who were 0-for-4 on the power play at the time, were not going to get any more man advantages unless it was something egregious, and the Penguins had yet to have a power play.

But when a failed clearance of a puck seconds later resulted in Justin Faulk taking a holding minor, the Penguins didn’t waste much time all of the sudden making a game of it when it didn’t have to be a game when Rakell scored from the high slot at 11:15 of the third period, using all of 30 seconds to score on their lone power play to make it 4-3.

The Blues didn’t do a good job of closing the game out the rest of the way either, and when Pittsburgh pulled Jarry, eventually it was Rutger McGroarty scoring his first NHL goal at 19:35 to tie the game 4-4.

“We have won all different kinds of games, but I am not happy that we were up 4-2 in the third and we went to overtime,” Montgomery said. “We have to close out games. We have to get better.

“Attention to detail, knowing your responsibilities. There’s a couple mistakes there in that (tying goal). It’s a wraparound goal, they make a power move, but we shouldn’t be that far from the net.”

* Holloway goes down, now what – When Blues forward Dylan Holloway left the game late in the first period with a lower-body injury, as a result of a McGroarty check in the Blues’ offensive zone along the wall at 17:09 and Holloway trying one more shift roughly a minute later, it would remove a 26-goal scorer and 63-point player from the Blues’ lineup.

Now what?

Who can jump into the top six and play with Kyrou and Brayden Schenn, or whoever it may be?

Well, Zack Bolduc comes to mind. Snuggerud, who made a strong defensive stick play that ultimately led to a beautiful pass to Neighbours for the Blues’ fourth goal, would get more ice time and more responsibilities.

Game management was important at that time, and those that handled the extra ice time handled the minutes effectively.

“It’s kind of just a little scrambly on the bench,” Neighbours said. “We’re trying to mix and match lines, get guys out there. Obviously that’s an elite player for us, someone who plays in all situations and a really important piece for our team. But we had to focus on the task at hand. We weren’t playing great and obviously it sucked losing Dylan. Just hope he’s OK and we get him back.”

Snuggerud finished with 16:22 of ice time, significantly more than the 10:43 he played on Tuesday in a 2-1 overtime win against the Detroit Red Wings.

“Really impressive. He’s been making a lot of plays,” Montgomery said of Snuggerud. “I think once he gets used to the speed, strength and less time and space in the NHL, he’s going to be a real good player for us. He’s already playing well.

“It gets a little difficult. It can, but we have a lot of players than can play all three forward positions. And I found out that Snuggerud can play left wing. It just worked out that I could manage the bench quite easily with the depth of the talented players that we have.

“I haven’t seen any egregious mistakes, and in the D-zone, surprisingly, because he’s never played our D-zone before, he’s executing really well. He cut the top off the one time, sprinted out, made sure they stayed on the same side of the ice and Sunny was able to get out and kill it. It’s a sign of a really smart player because our D-zone’s very different than man-on-man.”

The Winnipeg Jets picked up a much-needed win in emphatic fashion, defeating the Vegas Golden Knights for the first time this season, 4-0.

The Jets opened the scoring in the first period, thanks to Mark Scheifele's 37th goal of the season. Alex Iafallo made a phenomenal play, taking the puck off his face before sliding over to Scheifele to one-time the puck into the wide-open net. Adam Lowry extended the Jets lead, scoring his 15th goal with 1:45 remaining in the opening frame.

A 96MPH slap shot from Colin Miller on the power play gave the Jets a three-goal lead in the second period.  

With under a minute to go Cole Perfetti scored the Jets' fourth goal of the game into the Golden Knights' empty net.

Eric Comrie was solid from the second the puck dropped, turning away all 27 shots he faced, earning his second shutout of the season and fourth of his career. Adin Hill was pulled after the second period, allowing three goals on 19 shots. 

The Jets are back in action on Saturday when they take on a central division foe, Utah HC. 

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At the end of the 2016-17 season, the Colorado Avalanche finished dead last in a 30-team league, with a record of 22-56-4 and a total of 48 points.

The next season, Colorado made it back to the postseason. Though it was fruitless with a first-round bounce, it ended a three-year postseason drought.

Tonight, on April 3rd, 2025, the Avalanche secured a spot in the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the eighth consecutive season with a 7-3 win over the Columbus Blue Jackets.

Built for this. #GoAvsGopic.twitter.com/54zZ1dAMZJ

— x - Colorado Avalanche (@Avalanche) April 4, 2025

It was reported this morning by NHL.com that the Avalanche had an opportunity to secure their spot in this year's postseason run with any of the following scenarios: 

If they defeat the Columbus Blue Jackets in any fashion

OR

If they get one point vs. the Columbus Blue Jackets AND the Calgary Flames lose to the Anaheim Ducks in any fashion

OR

If the Calgary Flames lose to the Anaheim Ducks in regulation.

As of 8:45 pm Mountain Time, the Flames/Ducks game is tied at 1-1 in the second period. Not that it matters, as the Avalanche were able to check off scenario number 1.

The New Guys Showed UP

Long-awaited, forward Charlie Coyle netted his first goal in burgundy and blue to tie things up with the Blue Jackets. 

Charlie Coyle!

We love to CC it.#GoAvsGopic.twitter.com/CNpbyFW5Q4

— x - Colorado Avalanche (@Avalanche) April 4, 2025

This goal would be just one of three points on the night for the third-line center. The other two points came as assists on goals scored by Cale Makar and Miles Wood. He joins Makar and his defensive partner, Devon Toews, who also had three points apiece in tonight's win.

Brock Nelson, who slotted into Colorado's second-line center spot upon being traded, also notched a goal in tonight's win. This goal is his 10th point and 4th goal since being traded.

Every single center chipped in tonight. While it wasn't a goal, Jack Drury did provide the lone helper on Parker Kelly's game-winning goal in the second period. Since joining the Avalanche, Jack Drury has provided some much-needed depth to this team, providing not only vital help on the penalty kill, but crucial skill in the faceoff dot.

A Monumental Night for the Norris Trophy Favorite

Makar, as mentioned recorded a three-point night (1g/2a) in Colorado's win over Columbus. His goal, Colorado's fifth of the night, acted as his 30th of the season, making him the first defenseman in 16 years to achieve 30 goals in a season. He becomes the ninth defenseman to achieve a  30-goal season, joining the likes of Bobby Orr (5x), Paul Coffey (4x), Denis Potvin (3x), Doug Wilson, Phil Housley, Ray Bourque, Kevin Hatcher, and Mike Green, who was the last defenseman to notch the milestone in the 2008-09 season.

30 goals from a defenseman is absurd 😱 https://t.co/gWpORv6IYYpic.twitter.com/Li5RWUaDfL

— NHL (@NHL) April 4, 2025

With a primary assist on Toews' third-period goal, Makar also hit the 60-assist mark on the season. He becomes the first defenseman in Avalanche/Nordiques franchise history and the 20th defenseman in NHL history to record the milestone in multiple seasons. He is the fifth player, following Joe Sakic (7), Peter Stastny (7), Peter Forsberg (5), and Nathan MacKinnon, in franchise history to record multiple 60-assist seasons.

Makar's 90 points, reached tonight, ties his career high in points, set last year (2023-24) with 21g/91a in 77 games played.

What's Next?

The Colorado Avalanche only have five games remaining in their regular season campaign.

• AWAY: Saturday vs. St. Louis Blues @ 5:00 PM Mountain time
• HOME: Tuesday vs. Vegas Golden Knights @ 7:30 PM Mountain time
• HOME: Thursday vs. Vancouver Canucks @ 7:00 PM Mountain time
• AWAY: Saturday vs. Los Angeles Kings @ 2:00 PM Mountain time
• AWAY: Sunday vs. Anaheim Ducks @ 8:00 PM Mountain time

This Saturday's matchup against the St. Louis Blues will be Colorado's third game in four days before they return to Denver for their final two matchups at home until the postseason begins.

Linus Ullmark made 31 saves as the Ottawa Senators defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning 2-1 at Canadian Tire Centre on Thursday night. Ridly Greig set up both of the Ottawa goals, and was excellent on both sides of the puck, but it was Ullmark who stole the show in a crucial victory for the Sens.

Shane Pinto and Jake Sanderson provided the scoring for the Senators, who increased their seven point cushion above the Eastern Conference playoff cut line, and maintained their five point lead on the (WC2) Montreal Canadiens. The Habs defeated the Boston Bruins 4-1, the Columbus Blue Jackets were being manhandled late in the game by the Colorado Avalanche, and the New York Rangers were idle.

The Senators were fortunate to escape the first period with a 1-0 lead. Tampa Bay outshot Ottawa 13-8, but many of those shots were of high quality, and Ullmark had to be extremely sharp, a trend he continued throughout the game.

The Senators didn’t get many good looks in the opening frame, but Pinto finished off a three-on-two Ottawa rush with a wrist shot from the slot that beat Andrei Vasilevskiy to make it 1-0. Tampa Bay loudly protested, claiming that Oliver Bjorkstrand had been wronged in the Ottawa zone. Bjorkstrand laid on the ice for the entirety of the rush but didn't get a call.

Just over five minutes into the second period, after Tampa took a too many men call, Jake Sanderson's power play shot from the point made it 2-0.

But less than two minutes later, the Sens got burned by a lazy line change. Brandon Hagel then beat Tyler Kleven to the net to cash in on a rebound to cut the Ottawa lead to 2-1. 

Ullmark shut the door after that and was an easy choice as the game's first star, as the Senators were outshot 32-19. It was a fine bounce back for the Sens starter after an average performance against his old team, the Buffalo Sabres, on Tuesday night.

As pointed out by NHL Network analytics guru Mike Kelly, the Lightning outshot the Senators 26-5 from the slot and out-chanced them 11-1 off the rush.

As the Sens creep toward their first playoff spot in eight years, they'll host the Florida Panthers on Saturday night. We already know that Matthew Tkachuk will miss the game with an injury. It will be interesting to see if his brother his ready or not.

The Nashville Predators (27-41-8, 62 points) took an early 1-0 lead but gave up five unanswered goals – including four in the third period alone – in what would end up being a 5-1 loss to the Dallas Stars (50-21-4, 104 points) Thursday at American Airlines Center.

Steven Stamkos scored the only goal for the Predators, who have lost five straight and now have 10 losses in their last 12 games. Justus Annunen made 22 saves in the loss for Nashville, while Stars goaltender Jake Oettinger made 28 saves in the win.

Dallas now leads the season series, 2-1. The Stars earned a 4-3 Opening Night win over the Predators at Bridgestone Arena, and Nashville secured a 4-1 victory Dec. 12 in Dallas. The Central Division rivals will face off for a fourth and final time in the last game of the regular season April 16 in Nashville.

How the Predators Lined Up vs. Dallas

Bunting-O'Reilly-Evangelista
Forsberg-Stamkos-L'Heureux
Smith-McCarron-Vrana
Bellows-Svechkov-Wiesblatt

Skjei-Blankenburg
Del Gaizo-Barron
Englund-Oesterle

Annunen
Saros

Extra: Stastney (day-to-day, upper-body), Marchessault (day-to-day, lower-body), Sissons (week-to-week, lower-body), Wood
IR: Lauzon, Josi, Wilsby

The Predators announced prior to Thursday's game that defenseman Spencer Stastney would be out of the lineup and is considered day-to-day with an upper-body injury. Forwards Colton Sissons and Marchessault, who missed each of the previous two games with lower-body injuries, will also miss Thursday's contest against Dallas.

Forward Ozzy Wiesblatt, whom the Predators recalled from the AHL's Milwaukee Admirals Thursday morning, slots in on the fourth line with Kieffer Bellows and Fedor Svechkov. Wiesblatt adds depth to the Predators' injury-depleted forward group after Nashville was forced to ice 11 forwards and seven defensemen in each of their last two games.

Forward Matthew Wood, the Predators' 2023 first-round draft pick who signed his three-year, entry-level contract on Saturday, has joined the team in Dallas but has yet to make his NHL debut with the team.

Predators at Stars: Live Updates

First Period (NSH 0, DAL 0)

After the first 20 minutes, Nashville is outshooting Dallas, 17-5. Both goaltenders have been tremendous and kept the game scoreless after the first period.

Second Period (NSH 1, DAL 1)

The Predators finally scored on their 18th shot, and what a shot it was. Steven Stamkos scored in transition, taking a no-look wrist shot from the bottom of the right circle that beat Oettinger five-hole to give Nashville a 1-0 lead at the 4:37 mark of the second period.

The no-look shot 🤯

Steven Stamkos you are unreal pic.twitter.com/X63gKZ405z

— Nashville Predators (@PredsNHL) April 4, 2025

Two former Predators forwards combined on the game-tying goal late in the second period, as Mikael Granlund redirected a Matt Duchene shot for a goal to make it 1-1 with 36 seconds left in the frame.

Third Period (NSH 1, DAL 5)

It took just 39 seconds for the Stars to take the lead in the third period. Duchene won a puck battle along the boards and found Mason Marchment in the left circle for the score to give Dallas a 2-1 lead.

Then, Predators defenseman Andreas Englund got caught in a 3-on-1 in transition, and Roope Hintz finished off a tic-tac-toe passing play from Mikko Rantanen and Jason Robertson to extend the Stars' lead to 3-1 at the 5:47 mark of the third period.

Approximately four minutes later, Wyatt Johnston got a breakaway chance, deked around Annunen and scored to extend his own goal streak to six games and give Dallas the 4-1 lead.

The Stars got their fourth goal of the period scores from rookie defenseman Lian Bichsel, who broke a 28-game scoring drought with a shot from the left circle on a saucer pass from Rantanen to extend Dallas' lead to 5-1 at the 12:42 mark.

While the 2024-25 season has been another tough one for the Buffalo Sabres, they have been playing better hockey as of late. The Atlantic Division squad has won four out of their last five games and seven of their previous 10. 

Sabres forward Peyton Krebs has certainly stepped up during the team's recent strong stretch of play. The Calgary, Alberta native is currently sporting a five-game point streak, where he has three goals, six points, and a plus-6 rating over that span. This includes scoring a goal in each of the Sabres' last two games. 

With his ongoing hot streak, Krebs now has nine goals, 15 assists, and 24 points in 73 games this season. He also just needs one more goal and three more points to set new career highs in those stats. 

It is encouraging to see Krebs starting to heat up offensively. At 24 years old, there is still time for the 2019 first-round pick to hit a new level and become a more prominent force on the Sabres' roster. Perhaps this could be the start of him doing just that. 

It will now be intriguing to see if Krebs can stay hot in the Sabres' next contest against the Tampa Bay Lightning on April 5 from here. 

Recent Sabres News 

Buffalo Sabres Send First-Round Pick Back To AHL

Ex-Sabres Star Jack Eichel Rewarded For Incredible Month

Ex-Sabres Defender Expected To Be Done For The Season

Buffalo Sabres Send Defenseman Back To AHL

Buffalo Sabres Announce Exciting Rasmus Dahlin News

Sabres' Isak Rosen Records First NHL Point With Great Assist

With just seven games remaining in the regular season, the Pittsburgh Penguins will embark on their final road trip of 2024-25.

And it starts Thursday in St. Louis.

The Penguins will take on the St. Louis Blues, which happens to be the hottest team in hockey. After a rough start - and heading into the trade deadline - St. Louis was out of the playoff picture.

Now? An active 10-game winning streak has catapulted them to the second wild card spot in the Western Conference.

"They've gone a pretty good run here over the last month or month-plus," Penguins head coach Mike Sullivan said. "They're 10-0 in their last 10, and I don't think they've lost since the last time we played them. So, that's a pretty good run. [Blues head coach Jim Montgomery] is a good coach. He's done a good job with these guys."

Tristan Jarry will get the start in goal for the Penguins, and he has been very good against St. Louis in his career. He is 7-1-0 with a 2.00 goals-against average versus the Blues in his career.

Jarry is 5-3-1 since his return from a long stint in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton - the Penguins' AHL affiliate, which practiced in Pittsburgh on Thursday - and Sullivan is happy with what he's seen from his goaltender in that overall stretch.

'We Have A Close Team': WBS Penguins Practice In Pittsburgh, Talk Chemistry Of GroupThe Penguins took to the ice for practice on Thursday at the UPMC Lemieux Sports Complex in Cranberry, Pa.

"Jars has played extremely well for us since he's come back," Sullivan said. "And he's playing up to his capability. That was our hope when we brought him back up, and he certainly has done that for us."

As far as the rest of the lineup, young forwards Rutger McGroarty and Ville Koivunen - called up Friday prior to Pittsburgh's 1-0 overtime win against the Ottawa Senators on Sunday - figure to remain in their top-six roles. And forward Evgeni Malkin - despite making the trip and skating with the team on Thursday morning - will not be in the lineup.

Here is the rest of the projected lineup for the Penguins:

McGroarty-Crosby-Rust
Dewar-Rakell-Koivunen
Hayes-Acciari-Tomasino
Heinen-Lizotte-Bemstrom

Grzyleck-Letang
Timmins-Karlsson
Graves-Shea

Crosby Earns OT Winner For 1-0 Win Over Senators On Koivunen's DebutThere was hockey being played on Sunday at PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh, although one might not even know it for how low-event it was.

Heading into the game against St. Louis, Penguins captain Sidney Crosby is riding a 10-game point streak (8-7-15), which is the longest active streak in the NHL. The Penguins won the first of their matchups with the Blues on Mar. 13, which was a 5-3 victory that saw contributions from up and down their lineup - including five different goal-scorers.

Robert Thomas paces the Blues in scoring with 19 goals and 69 points in 65 games, while Jordan Kyrou leads the team with 32 goals.

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The Nashville Predators have announced that defenseman Spencer Stastney will be out of the lineup for the club's April 3 contest against the Dallas Stars due to an upper-body injury. In addition, the Predators shared that he is considered day-to-day. 

Stastney, 25, has appeared in 22 games this season with the Predators, where he has three assists, 24 blocks, and a minus-7 rating. He also has played in 23 games this campaign with the Milwaukee Admirals, posting two goals, 11 assists, 13 points, and a plus-3 rating. 

Stastney was selected by the Predators with the 131st overall pick of the 2018 NHL Entry Draft. In 50 career NHL games over three seasons with the Central Division club, the 6-foot defenseman has two goals, seven assists, nine points, and a plus-7 rating.

The Predators will now need to adjust without Stastney in the lineup against a very challenging Stars club from here. 

The Colorado Avalanche pulled out a come-from-behind, 3-2 shootout win over Chicago Wednesday night to improve their regular-season record to 46-26-4. The win was the Avs' fifth win in their past seven games, but with the Dallas Stars and Winnipeg Jets still playing well, Colorado is likely to finish the season in third place in the highly-competiive Central Division.

Still, the Avalanche need to thrive in their final six games in order to go into the Stanley Cup playoffs on a high note. And a look at their final six opponents demonstrates that the Avs will face a tough test before the post-season arrives.

Colorado has a desperate Blue Jackets team to deal with Thursday night in Columbus. The Blue Jackets have won three of their past four games, and they can move into a tie with Montreal for the second and final wild card berth with a victory over the Avalanche. The Avs lost to the Jackets 6-4 in their previous meeting this season, but that was in Colorado's second game of the year. The Avalanche should fare considerably better this time around.

The Avs get a day off after Thursday's tilt, but they're right back into the fire Saturday as they take on the white-hot Blues in St. Louis. The Blues have won 10 straight games, and on Thursday, they host the sad-sack Pittsburgh Penguins, so 11 straight wins is very possible for them. St. Louis doesn't want to take its foot off the gas, as they could overtake the Minnesota Wild for the first wild card spot in the Western Conference, so Colorado should expect a fierce fight from the Blues on Saturday.

Then, next Tuesday, the Avalanche host the Vegas Golden Knights. Vegas doesn't quite have first place in the Pacific Division locked up, with the Los Angeles Kings currently five standings points behind the Golden Knights. Vegas just had a six-game win streak snapped by the Edmonton Oilers Tuesday, so they'll be motivated to get back on the winning side of the ledger, but they have three road games against Winnipeg, Calgary and Vancouver before taking on the Avs.

A week from today, the Avalanche will host the Canucks, whose playoff dreams are all but dead after their latest loss to Seattle. Vancouver may be eliminated from playoff contention by the time Colorado takes them on, so this game may be relatively easy for the Avalanche to win.

Three Takeaways From Avalanche's 3-2 Loss To The Calgary FlamesThe Colorado Avalanche suffered their second straight loss Monday, falling to the Calgary Flames by a 3-2 score in a shootout. Here are three key takeaways from the Avs' loss, which dropped Colorado's season record to 45-26-4:

Finally, the Avs wrap up the regular season with back-to-back road games against the Kings on Sat. April 12, and Anaheim Sun. April 13. By then, it could be a tale of two different opponents for Colorado, as the Kings could be fighting off Edmonton for second place in the Pacifc -- or challenging Vegas for first place in the Pacific. But on the other hand, the Ducks will be eliminated from the playoffs well before that final game against the Avalanche, so you could see Avs coach Jared Bednar giving some rest to his veterans if there's nothing really to play for in that Sunday game.

As you can see, the road ahead for Colorado is not going to be easy. They may be stuck in third spot in the Central and be set to face the Stars in Round One. But they're going to be tested multiple times before then -- and the way they respond to those challenges could help determine how they perform when the playoff games arrive.

The Carolina Hurricanes announced they have recalled forward Justin Robidas from their AHL affiliate Chicago Wolves. 

Robidas is fourth in AHL rookie scoring with 17 goals and 31 assists for 48 points in 65 games this season.

The 22-year-old continues to work his way up the professional ranks after recording 12 goals and 27 points in 32 games with the ECHL's Norfolk Admirals last season. 

Originally a fifth round pick of the Hurricanes in 2021, Robidas is a crafty playmaker who won a QMJHL and Memorial Cup Championship with the Quebec Remparts in 2023. 

Son of long time NHL defenseman Stephane Robidas, Justin's first chance to make his NHL debut comes Apr. 4 in what will likely be a fiery game against the Washington Capitals. 

 This move comes as Hurricanes forwards Jordan Staal and Andrei Svechnikov are questionable with injuries. 

Keep an eye on The Hockey News' Carolina Hurricanes site for updates on the team's lines. 

Make sure you bookmark The Hockey News' AHL Page for the latest news, exclusive interviews, breakdowns and so much more.

New York Islanders left winger Anthony Duclair is taking some time off two days after coach Patrick Roy called him out in a press conference.

Roy told reporters Thursday that he and Duclair had a positive conversation, and he granted the player’s request to take some time away and reflect, according to The Hockey News’ Stefen Rosner.

This week’s news is a reminder that coaching NHL players is still an inexact science, and sometimes, the “old school” way of confronting players is still used. But it is tough to see the benefit in Roy’s comments on Tuesday night.

“He was god-awful. He was god-awful. He had a bad game," Roy said of Duclair’s play in the Islanders’ 4-1 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning. "That's why I didn't play him a lot. And he's lucky to be in the lineup. Sorry if I lose it on him right now, but that's how I feel…He's not skating, he's not competing, he's not moving his feet. He's not playing up to what we expect from him."

To be fair, Duclair is under pressure to produce. He’s in the first season of a four-year contract with an average annual value of $3.5 million, and the 29-year-old only has seven goals and 11 assists for 18 points in 44 games. Duclair also has a full no-trade clause until 2026, so he’s in control of his on-ice future to a degree.

However, is it really a good idea for Roy to call out one of his players the way he did with Duclair? Roy isn’t exactly John Tortorella-ish in his mannerisms and approaches to his job, but it’s hard to see how naming and shaming Duclair will lead to a guaranteed turnaround in his on-ice performance.

Perhaps the fact the Islanders are on a six-game winless skid that’s essentially taken them out of a playoff position caused some general frustration. It wouldn’t be the first time a coach has taken out their frustration with his team by scapegoating a player. 

While Duclair must own his role in the Isles’ struggles, there must be a solution that keeps him under the team’s umbrella, if that’s even in doubt in the first place.

Anthony Duclair Stepping Away From Islanders; Matt Martin To Play vs. WildEAST MEADOW, NY -- The New York Islanders will be making a lineup change out of necessity on Friday against the Minnesota Wild. 

The Islanders are the ninth team Duclair has played for in his NHL career, and the longest he’s been with one team is the two-and-a-half seasons he played for the Florida Panthers from 2020 to 2022. 

Having that job security with the Isles was no doubt a big factor in him signing with the team last summer, but Duclair even said Roy was a factor. His former QMJHL coach called him before he decided to join the Islanders.

That said, if Roy is calling out players like this, it’s either tough love that will end with Duclair improving, or it’s a huge mistake. In any case, Duclair’s play under Roy will now be under the microscope until further notice.

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The Carolina Hurricanes have announced that they have recalled center Justin Robidas from the Chicago Wolves. It is his first NHL callup.

Robidas, 22, has been terrific this year in his first AHL season, with 17 goals and 48 points in 65 games to show for his hard work.

The 5-foot-8 centerman is a relentless workhorse who has had a positive impact on the ice whether it's at 5v5, on the power play or on the penalty kill.

A perfect fit really to be a Hurricanes callup.

It also sets a good example for the younger guys down in Chicago that their hard work can result in opportunity as Robidas is the fourth different forward that the team has called up from the AHL this year.

The son of 15-year NHL veteran Stephane Robidas was a 2021 fifth-round pick by the Hurricanes and spent last season playing in the  ECHL with the Norfolk Admirals where he had 12 goals and 27 points in 32 games played.

However, while it's an exciting time for Robidas, it doesn't bode well for the availability of the Canes forwards who are currently questionable: Jordan Staal and Andrei Svechnikov.

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