Thought about holding it off for the official clinching of a playoff ticket by the Penguins, but it’s an off day and close enough. Here’s a doozy to revisit from only seven months ago in mid-September, though it seems so much longer ago now. The Pensburgh article is entitled: “Bigger surprise for Penguins: playoffs or last place?” Now that we know how the season played out, it’s fun to see.

“In actuality, there probably won’t be 15 elements of best case scenario to all hit, one after another.”

Is how the article wrapped up, and it still feels fairly unbelievable that just so much went right for the Penguins. In fact, you can even find 15 scenarios that worked out as just about the best possible way.

• Anthony Mantha has 31 goals and 61 points, scoring an eye-popping 2.62 points per 60 at 5v5
• Erik Karlsson has been playing at about a Norris caliber level, particularly in the second half of the season
• Dan Muse is in the conversation for the Jack Adams award
• Egor Chinakhov appeared out of thin air and has 17 goals and 33 points in 40 games with the Pens, producing at an almost unheard of 2.92 5v5 P/60 rate
• Ben Kindel did what almost never happens as a non top-10 draft picking stepping into the NHL at draft+1 and often being one of the better players on the ice as an 18-year old
• Parker Wotherspoon went from NHL bargain bin free agent signing to legitimately solid first pair defenseman
• Ryan Shea continued his progression into a steady and confident player
• Evgeni Malkin increased his statistical output from age-38 (50 points in 68 games) to his age-39 season (59 points in 54 games), taking his 5v5 P/60 from 1.65 in 2024-25 (a career-low) back up to 2.49 this year, his highest rate since 2019-20
• Justin Brazeau (17) set a career-high in goals, more than doubling his career total of 16 goals that he entered the season
• The fourth line became a massive positive difference maker; Connor Dewar notched highs in goals (14) and points (30), Acciari got back to double-digit goals for the first time since 2022-23, Blake Lizotte has been amazing when healthy.
• Tommy Novak shrugged off a bad 2024-25 and got back to his 2022-24 levels of a 40+ point season
• Sidney Crosby remained Sidney Crosby, even at age 38 (72 points in 66 games)
• The power play sits at 6th in the NHL at 24.7%, essentially holding status quo from finishing 6th last season (25.8%)
• Penalty kill is 8th in the NHL at 81.7%, after spending much of the season in the top-5, improving from 18th in 2024-25

OK, that’s 14, but you get the idea. Maybe in the preseason it could be hoped for a few of those bullet points working out, though some are beyond the realm of even dreaming up and counting on happening. Turns out, every single one of them did. That’s how a team becomes a shocking success story when so many over-perform realistic expectations.

Let’s see just how much the bright side hit, from the preseason prognostication:

On the bright side: Dan Muse’s coaching helps tightened up the defense a little better than the pure personnel would suggest, and that in turn helps Tristan Jarry have a bounce-back. Maybe the team even gets a surprise when Arturs Silovs figures things out at the NHL level and becomes a capable 1B type of goalie. The roster gets managed to the point where struggling veterans of the past (Kevin Hayes, Noel Acciari, Ryan Graves, Danton Heinen, etc) see their roles drastically reduced, if not taken off the NHL roster entirely via trades or waivers, and in their place young players like Owen Pickering, Ville Koivunen, Rutger McGroarty, Tristan Broz and Avery Hayes all form a 2016-ish type of wave of new talent to help the stars. And the stars shine, Sidney Crosby plays like Sidney Crosby, but the big surprise is that Evgeni Malkin doesn’t go gentle into the night and plays/produces more than last season. It also helps that across the division that none of the Islanders, Flyers or Blue Jackets are better than expected and the Rangers’ strife continues.

A lot of that came to pass, starting with Muse who infused a new energy and freshened up the place. Silovs has had his ups and downs but as technically still an NHL rookie (by league classification) he’s done well. Goaltending for the Penguins has been better than the previous year, but it’s really not carrying them or a leading reason they had a successful season. It’s been an offensively-led club, Pittsburgh’s 3.55 goals/game ranks second in the NHL and while everyone could see that the Pens had some quality forwards it would have been fairly crazy to predict they’d be a top-five goal generating team in the league this year, until it happened.

The Penguins may have collected bad contracts but the nuance is that they didn’t play bad players K. Hayes saw his games go from 64 in 2024-25 to just 25 this year, Dumba, Graves and Heinen were all waived. Acciari, as he’s destined to do, soldiered one and rightfully kept a spot in the NHL lineup through his play. Connor Clifton also settled into a regular spot when picked up for nothing.

The young player glow-up didn’t come from expected ways. Koivunen and McGroarty both disappointed, Pickering hasn’t been seen in the NHL. It took Kindel, Chinakhov, Avery Hayes and Elmer Soderblom to give the lineup some youthful flourishes. But the team didn’t succeed mainly because of youth, it remained older players in key roles. Malkin had a solid season, Sidney Crosby is Sidney Crosby. Bryan Rust has 64 points in 70 games, Rickard Rakell missed time with injury but still managed 24-goals and 48 points in 54 games. Mantha exploded, Karlsson played like a Hall of Famer. That’s the backbone of the team and besides the fading Kris Letang, almost every single 30+ year old veteran had incredibly awesome seasons (well, Graves is 30 too but everyone has long since given up hope for him, so you get the idea).

The other unknown element from September would be how Kyle Dubas would improve the team. Tristan Jarry started hot, but as he always does, plays worse in the second half of the season than the first and has now lost his starting job in Edmonton. Getting Stuart Skinner wasn’t a massive upgrade, but it did give a steadier goalie, plus Brett Kulak, who became Sam Girard. The Chinakhov find deserves every bit of praise and joy it gets, adding Soderblom also looks like a good call. Dubas has had that managerial magic touch lately where all his moves seemingly hit.

Here was our worst case scenario at the other end of the spectrum:

And the darker outlook: Dan Muse is Mike Johnston 2.0 as a coach who proves to be better at developmental levels than the NHL. The defensive personnel plays to their talent level, which is not a pretty picture. The goaltending doesn’t have much of a chance, but doesn’t prop the team much up either. Then either through practical purposes or slow markets, the Pens aren’t willing/able to make sweeping changes and drop multiple under-performing veterans, so the Graves/Hayes/Acciari class of players continues to amble along with uninspiring NHL play, blocking younger players to the minors for much of the season. The best players on the team, all 30+, have some injuries in their ranks and players like Bryan Rust and Rickard Rakell can’t replicate career-best seasons from last year. Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang’s play continues to diminish. It’s a long, cold winter in Pittsburgh and when it breaks they’re at the bottom of the division and among the lowest-performing teams in the league. That leads to a 7-9% chance of winning the lottery, but they don’t and draw the sixth overall pick

You never know the impact of a coach, it’s safe to say Muse has past the test to show a level of competency in his first season, to say the least. The other main element that you have to put yourself in shoes from seven months and almost 80 games ago is the defense. It did look horrible; Karlsson was spinning his wheels, Wotherspoon and Shea hadn’t earned trust or demonstrated their competency, Girard wasn’t even a trade rumor, etc. The defense still even might not be great, but well above passable compared to the perception it had coming into the year.

Not too much of the pessimistic case hit. Letang’s decline hasn’t been graceful but that’s about the single area that fits – besides Koivunen, McGroarty and Pickering all being in Wilkes-Barre for most the season. That says more about their own personal development at this point, unfortunately, than it does about being blocked by middling vets who don’t have any business blocking them out of NHL opportunities.

Add it all up and it was an unpredictable year of massive success for the Penguins. Their playoff spot is all but confirmed as they rocket along towards what looks like a second place finish in the division. It took a year of surprises and best case scenarios playing out to get to one of the more exciting and fulfilling seasons this team has had in a long time.

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Braden Schneider has been a blocked shot machine for New York, eating multiple pucks in eight of his last 10 games.

My Sabres vs. Rangers predictions expect his prowess in that area to be on full display in a pace-up spot against Buffalo.

Read more in my NHL picks for Wednesday, April 8.

Sabres vs Rangers prediction

Sabres vs Rangers best bet: Braden Schneider Over 1.5 blocked shots (-135)

Braden Schneider is a fearless shot blocker who has ramped it up a notch since the New York Rangers traded multiple players at the deadline, including fellow defensive defenseman Carson Soucy.

Schneider has blocked 35 shots over his last 16 games, clearing his 1.5 line 13 times. Only six defensemen have stepped in the way of more rubber during that time.

The matchup against the Buffalo Sabres should lead to multiple blocks once again. They rank 11th in shot attempts since the deadline and play at a very fast pace, creating a high-event game environment.

Sabres vs Rangers same-game parlay

The Rangers are working on two days of rest, which greatly benefits the team’s biggest minute-muncher.

Playing fresh has made a difference as Adam Fox attempted 4+ shots in all eight games after a couple of days off, averaging 5.6. He also had four shots on eight attempts in his only meeting with the Sabres this season.

New York has allowed just six goals over the last six games, Igor Shesterkin is in great form, and the Sabres sit fourth in team save percentage. Strong goaltending at both ends should lead to a lower-scoring affair.

Sabres vs Rangers SGP

• Braden Schneider Over 1.5 blocked shots
• Adam Fox Over 1.5 shots on goal
• Under 6.5

Sabres vs Rangers odds

• Moneyline: Buffalo -145 | New York +125
• Puck line: Buffalo -1.5 (160) | New York +1.5 (-190)
• Over/Under: Over 6.5 (+110) | Under 6.5 (-130)

Sabres vs Rangers trend

The Sabres have only hit the Over in 8 of their last 25 away games (-9.60 Units / -35% ROI). Find more NHL betting trends for Sabres vs. Rangers.

How to watch Sabres vs Rangers

Sabres vs Rangers latest injuries

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It is Wednesday, my dudes.

There are a few different ways of looking at the current state of the Boston Bruins:

• They’ve lost four games in a row.
• They’re on a two-game point streak.
• They’re a point or two away from clinching a playoff spot.
• They’re not looking terribly convincing at the moment.

The good news is that all of those things can be true at once, and last night’s 6-5 OT loss in Carolina was kind of a microcosm of all of them.

The Bruins looked OK early last night against Carolina, holding leads of 1-0 and 3-2 in the first period.

Then the wheels kind of fell off, with the Canes scoring three straight goals and, at times, skating circles around the Bruins.

However, the B’s bounced back, and while they ultimately lost, they left Raleigh with a point.

Your highlights from last night:

In the “good” column, Morgan Geekie broke his scoring drought in resounding fashion, recording a hat trick and pushing his season total to 37 goals.

Pavel Zacha also hit the 30-goal mark for the first time in his career, while David Pastrnak reached the 70-assist mark for the first time as well.

In the “bad” column, Jeremy Swayman got yanked in the second period after allowing five goals on 23 shots, though his removal was less about his individual performance and more about sparking the team in front of him.

Joonas Korpisalo played well again in relief, allowing just one goal on 17 shots (though that came in OT, so….).

If you look at last night’s game, I think you can be happy with some of the effort, concerned with some of the gaps, but ultimately, a point in Carolina isn’t a bad thing.

The B’s end their four-game road trip taking just two points out of a possible eight, leaving their playoff spot up in the air when it could have been done and dusted by now.

Ottawa, Columbus, and Philadelphia won last night, with Ottawa looking particularly impressive in scoring five times in the third period to beat Tampa.

Montreal won as well, meaning the Bruins can pretty much forget about any hopes of chasing a divisional playoff spot — it’ll be wild card or bust.

As of Wednesday morning, the B’s are in the WC1 spot, four points ahead of Ottawa in WC2.

In terms of falling out of the playoff picture, the B’s are six points ahead of Columbus (four games left) and seven points ahead of Detroit and the New York Islanders (four games apiece left).

While the B’s will now enjoy a nice stretch of three days without a game before they host Tampa on Saturday, they can clinch a playoff spot depending on other results.

Columbus plays Buffalo on Thursday, Detroit plays Philadelphia, and the Islanders play Toronto.

If all three of Columbus, Detroit, and the Islanders lose in regulation, the Bruins will clinch a playoff spot. That’s not likely to happen, but hey, it’s a scenario.

Basically, it boils down to this: if the Bruins get two points (in any fashion) over their last three games, they’ll be in.

The Red Wings and Islanders can’t get more than 97 points, and while Columbus can get 98 and equal the B’s in the first tiebreaker (regulation wins), they can’t catch the B’s in the second tiebreaker (regulation and OT wins).

My head hurts, and someone please correct me if I’m wrong.

Just get a couple of more points and save us all the trouble.

In other news, Charlie McAvoy was announced as the B’s nominee for the Masterton Trophy this morning, a deserved nod after he lost around 93 teeth over the course of the season.

What else is on tap for today?

The New York Islanders' night of scoreboard watching last night can be summarized by one singular word: Oof.

The Ottawa Senators beat the Tampa Bay Lightning in regulation. The Philadelphia Flyers pummeled the New Jersey Devils. The Columbus Blue Jackets knocked off the Detroit Red Wings in a shootout.

By the time the carnage ended, the Islanders sat in 11th place in the Eastern Conference, three points outside both third place in the Metropolitan Division and the final Eastern Conference Wild Card spot.

Moneypuck.com moved the Islanders' playoff odds down to just 19.4%.

That almost feels too generous.

The Islanders' tragic number is down to six.

The tragic number is a countdown to when the Islanders are mathematically eliminated from playoff contention. 

Every regulation loss moves the number down by two. From here on in, every time Ottawa and Philadelphia win, it also moves the number down by two.

The number sitting at six signifies just how close the Islanders are to elimination.

If the Flyers and Senators win three of the last four, the Islanders are out. That's also assuming New York wins out.

One loss and all they'd have to do is go 2-2-0, and they'd clinch over New York.

Yes, the Islanders do play the Senators on Saturday afternoon.

But, Ottawa's other opponents to close the year are the Florida Panthers, the Devils, and the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Not exactly a killer's row. That's three mathematically eliminated teams and the Islanders.

Philadelphia, meanwhile, heads on the road to take on the Red Wings Thursday night, then heads to Winnipeg to face the Jets. They close with a back-to-back at home against the Carolina Hurricanes and Montreal Canadiens.

They're much likelier to stumble down the final stretch. Of course, the Blue Jackets also passed the Islanders last night, so it's worth observing their final stretch, too.

Columbus visits Buffalo on Thursday, then Montreal on Saturday. They close with two home games against the Boston Bruins and Washington Capitals.

Again, like Philly, there's a chance they'll stumble.

Even with the potential for some stumbling ahead of them, the Islanders themselves will be playing with the pressure equivalent to that of walking on a tightrope from the Empire State Building to the Chrysler Building with no safety net.

One trip, one misplaced step, and they'll come crashing down with no chance of making it.

Essentially, the Islanders must go 4-0-0, and hope two of Philly, Columbus, and Ottawa all succumb to the pressure.

The odds are no longer in the Islanders' favor after the entirety of March saw them control their destiny.

New head coach Peter DeBoer has hands full immediately.

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The feelings of letdown inside the Detroit Red Wings' dressing room following their 4-3 shootout loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets were palpable.

Defenseman Justin Faulk, who scored twice, was very soft-spoken. Team captain Dylan Larkin, who scored in the first period and is also playing injured, was despondent.

The Red Wings were 16.1 seconds away from a badly-needed regulation victory, and instead, it was a pair of former Michigan Wolverines who snatched victory from the jaws of defeat. 

Adam Fantilli scored the game-tying goal late in regulation, followed by the shootout winner from Zach Werenski, giving the Red Wings their seventh setback in their last nine games, during which they've collected five of a possible 18 points. 

"Tough to let that one get away from us there at the end of the third and for them to get back in it," an obviously upset Faulk said afterward. "Obviously, a chance in overtime and (the) shootout is a coin flip. Tough to not seal that one up."

Faulk continued: 

“It’s tough," he said. "Like I said, it’s a tough time of year. It’s important to close out games, extend games. It’s not a good feeling right now to let that happen.”

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Faulk scored a beauty of a goal in the second period, cutting through multiple Blue Jackets and beating goaltender Jet Greaves on the glove side. It gave the Red Wings a 2-1 lead, only to have Columbus respond courtesy of Werenski on the power-play following a penalty to David Perron. 

He also scored off a one-timer later in the third period for what appeared to be the game-winning goal until the Blue Jackets spoiled the party late in regulation. The Red Wings iced the puck multiple times late in the frame with Greaves on the bench, leading to the game-tying goal. 

Larkin, who has endured both the seasons when Detroit fell well short of a playoff spot and the more recent years when they narrowly missed, hopes this loss didn’t signal the death blow for their centennial campaign.

“That’s a disappointing finish to that game. We’re going to have to find something," he said. "I hope that’s not the one, and I hope the Minnesota one isn’t the one that’s the final nail in the coffin. I hope we get some help and we have something to play for to get in.”

With a victory by the Ottawa Senators over the Tampa Bay Lightning on Tuesday, they moved three points ahead of the Red Wings for the final Wild Card postseason spot. 

The Red Wings have four games remaining, beginning Thursday against the visiting Philadelphia Flyers. 

Until then, it's not a good feeling that the players have right now. 

“Not much right now, not much," Larkin said when asked about positives from the game. "That’s a letdown and in tough fashion again. Played a good 57 minutes, I don’t know. Good overtime. Not much to say right now.”

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Buffalo Sabres team captain Rasmus Dahlin has endured a year of personal challenges related to his fiancée Carolina, but has maintained a high level of excellence as one of the best defenseman in the NHL and as a leader of the first Sabres club to qualify for the postseason in 15 years.  On Wednesday, the 25-year-old blueliner was announced as the Sabres nominee for the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy. 

Each NHL club’s chapter of the Professional Hockey Writers Association nominates a player who “best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship, and dedication to hockey". That group is narrowed down to three finalists, with the winner being announced during the postseason.   

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Dahlin has 70 points (18 goals, 52 assists) in 74 games, currently sixth in the NHL in defensive scoring, and was a stalwart on the blueline for Sweden at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milano-Cortina. He is on pace to set career-highs in points and goals, in spite of missing a few games traveling back to Sweden to see after Carolina, who is fully recovered from a heart transplant last summer. 

Follow Michael on X, Instagram @MikeInBuffalo

The Professional Hockey Writers Association has announced its 32 nominees for the Bill Masterton Trophy, which will go to the player who best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship, and dedication to hockey. 

Chicago’s chapter of the PHWA has selected goalie Spencer Knight as the nominee for the Chicago Blackhawks. 

Knight was the 13th overall pick by the Florida Panthers in the 2019 NHL Draft. After spending some time with the Boston College Eagles following a wonderful tenure with the United States National Team Development Program, he made his NHL debut with Florida in March of 2021. 

It was a strange decision for Florida to draft a goalie so high right before signing a future Hall of Fame goalie in Sergei Bobrovsky to a lucrative seven-year deal, but it worked out for them as they've won two Stanley Cups since. 

For a while, Knight had to work his way up. There were other goalies ahead of him on the depth chart besides Bobrovsky, so his playing time was limited outside of his first stint with Florida, where he appeared (and played great) in the postseason. 

There were some struggles for Knight on and off the ice along the way. For one, a decline in his play early on earned him a trip back to the AHL for a while.

In February of 2023, Knight entered the NHL Player Assistance Program to receive care. Since then, he has come back in a big way. 

On March 1st, 2025, Florida traded Knight to the Chicago Blackhawks, where he would be given a chance to start. Chicago quickly handed him the keys as the number one goaltender, and he has been incredible. 

Knight has kept the Blackhawks in a lot of games that they had no business competing in this year. His record of 18-23-11 reflects playing on a losing team, but he does have a 2.72 goals against average and .907 save percentage.

His ability to make high-danger saves and play the puck up to his defensemen makes him a valuable goaltender to have. His story of how he reached this point is inspiring. 

Team USA ultimately stuck with their same trio of goalies for the Olympics from the 4-Nations Face-Off, but Knight's name was in the mix. By 2030 in France, he will have a great chance to be their guy if he keeps on the same trajectory. 

For now, he should be proud of this nomination. He has clearly been dedicated to becoming an NHL goalie. Through all struggles on and off the ice, he persevered and is now one of the best in the game. This Masterton nomination proves it. 

Pit Martin (1970) and Bryan Berard (2004) are the only two Blackhawks to ever claim the Masterton Trophy.

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Brenden Dillon is the New Jersey Devils nominee for the 2025-26 Bill Masterton Trophy.

The trophy is awarded annually to the player who best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship, and dedication to the game. It is voted on by members of each chapter of the Professional Hockey Writers Association (PHWA). One player is appointed as a nominee for each of the 32 teams.

It is the first time in his 15-season career that he has been selected for the award. With the San Jose Sharks, he was the nominee for the King Clancy Memorial Trophy as a "National Hockey League player who best exemplifies leadership qualities on and off the ice and who has made a significant humanitarian contribution to his community."

Upon hearing the news of his nomination, the 35-year-old could not help but smile while sitting at his stall with The Hockey News, going as far as saying, “You got me all giddy, happy, and smiling.”

“I am honored,” he shared. “I am excited just to be recognized like that. I take a lot of pride in trying to represent those qualities every day.”

Dillon has appeared in all 78 games for the Devils this season, averaging 17:52 of ice time. He is credited with a team-leading 190 hits and five fighting majors. On the ice, he continues to play to his identity as a physical stay-at-home defenseman.

It is hard to believe that all of that was in question in late April of 2025.

It was then that Dillon found himself in a hospital in North Carolina after a collision with Carolina Hurricanes forward William Carrier in Game 1 of Round 1 of the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs. He recalled walking in and the doctor looking at him quizzically.

“He was like, What are you doing carrying a water bottle, let alone getting in and out of a car? That kind of scared me,” Dillon recalled.

The collision with Carrier led to Dillon getting artificial disc replacement surgery. Not knowing anything about neck or back injuries, Vegas Golden Knights forward Jack Eichel became a resource for the Devils’ defenseman, having undergone the same surgery, and gave him the confidence that he would be okay.

Of course, doubt still crept in.

“I am a different player than Jack Eichel,” Dillon said. “We have to play differently on the ice. For me, I only know how to play the game one way. I kind of told myself that if I am not able to play freely, how I would like to, there is not really going to be a future for me.”

With the support of his surgeons, the Devils’ medical staff, his teammates, and family, he persevered.

“There are a lot of incredible things about being in the NHL and being a professional athlete, but there are a lot of tough things, too,” Dillon said. “Your body is put on the line every single night. Some of them require surgeries or things to get fixed. You know, that not only affects you in the short term, but also 20 or 30 years down the line.”

“The mental side of things is a huge part, too,” he continued. “Even coming back this year, my first preseason game was a big mental test. Kind of, anxious and scared going into that. Then my first hit, and then my first fight. All these things are kind of being checked off the list. Here we are at game 78, and I feel like myself. I feel like I have been able to play the same way that I like to play.”

On Dec. 1, Dillon played in his 1,000th NHL game against the Columbus Blue Jackets. It was a milestone that meant more than anyone could imagine, especially for an undrafted player.

“Having that game, that situation, and looking back on the previous three, four months, it was pretty emotional for me,” he said. “Just from where I have come from, my path to get to the NHL and then to have even more adversity, like that injury.

“Adversity has kind of been the name of the game for me,” he continued. “Having to prove people wrong, having to show and prove to everyone that I am okay. Proving to the doctors that I could play, and proving to the medical staff that I can do this. I am extremely grateful.”

Award voters from all 32 PHWA chapters will select three finalists for the Masterton. The winner will be revealed at a later date.

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Why Bruins should call up James Hagens for much-needed offensive spark originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

After three consecutive games scoring just one goal, the Boston Bruins finally put together a decent offensive performance in Tuesday night’s road game against the Eastern Conference-leading Carolina Hurricanes.

The B’s lost in overtime, but they scored five goals. Morgan Geekie, who hadn’t scored in 17 straight games, netted a hat trick to give him a team-leading (and career-high) 37 goals.

Despite the uptick in goals, this game provided even more evidence for why the Bruins need to sign top prospect James Hagens and get him on the NHL roster as soon as possible.

Hagens, the No. 7 overall pick in the 2025 NHL Draft, recently signed an ATO deal with the Providence Bruins after his Boston College season ended a few weeks ago. Hagens has four points (one goal, three assists) in six games with the P-Bruins. He has played well, showing the creativity with the puck, speed and offensive instincts that made him a highly-coveted prospect.

Hagens’ high-end playmaking ability would be a huge boost to the Bruins’ bottom-six and power play for the rest of the regular season and the playoffs. (Boston has a 99 percent chance of getting in).

The Bruins rank 18th in goals scored per game since the Olympic break. They were sixth before the break. Aside from Geekie’s goal drought, one of the biggest reasons for the Bruins’ scoring output falling in recent weeks has been a lack of production from the bottom six.

Alex Steeves has one goal in his last 21 games. Michael Eyssimont has zero goals in his last nine games. Sean Kuraly has a 21-game goal drought. Mark Kastelic has gone 22 games without scoring. Tanner Jeannot has zero goals in 24 consecutive games. Lukas Reichel scored in his first game with the Bruins on March 19, but he hasn’t found the back of the net in his eight games since.

Sensing a theme here?

Here’s a look at the scoring for notable bottom-six players since the Olympic break:

Hagens isn’t a bottom-six talent. He has the potential to be a top-six forward for a long time. But putting him in a third-line role at this early stage of his career to give this Bruins team a much-needed spark offensively wouldn’t be a bad idea.

The power play is another area where Hagens’ offensive skill set could improve the Bruins’ attack. Whether it’s zone entries, creating scoring chances, etc., Hagens could bolster a power play that ranks 27th in success rate since the Olympic break. It was the league’s third-best unit before the Olympic break.

The Bruins went 0-for-2 with only one shot on net in four minutes of power-play time versus the Hurricanes on Tuesday. Some of the recent struggles stem from Geekie’s goal drought that ended Tuesday, but it’s larger than one player. It’s a team-wide issue.

Boston’s three most likely first-round playoff opponents are the Hurricanes, Lightning and Sabres. All three have good penalty kills. Buffalo and Tampa Bay both have top-seven PK units. The Bruins’ playoff run likely will be short if they don’t cash in on power-play chances.

The B’s just played four road games in six days. They aren’t practicing Wednesday, but they don’t play again until Saturday when the Tampa Bay Lightning come to TD Garden. So if they wanted, the Bruins could sign Hagens and get him a practice or two before his first game.

What would benefit Hagens more: a couple NHL regular season games and four-to-seven Stanley Cup Playoff games, or some more AHL regular season games and AHL playoff games? There’s a strong case for the former, especially if the expectation is Hagens starts the 2026-27 season on Boston’s roster.

Hagens doesn’t need to be a savior. He doesn’t need to dominate. His speed and offensive skill could give the Bruins a much-needed boost come playoff time. And why wouldn’t you take a chance on that? The East is wide open.

Welcome to this edition of the Vancouver Canucks post-game analytics report. This recurring deep dive breaks down the analytics behind each Canucks game as recorded by Natural Stat Trick. In this article, we look back on Vancouver’s most recent 2-1 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights. 

The Canucks were heavily outplayed by the Golden Knights on Tuesday. Vegas held a 28-14 even-strength scoring-chances advantage and won the even-strength high-danger scoring-chances battle 13-4. In the end, this looked like a game between teams from two different leagues, as Vancouver struggled to generate any offensive pressure at even strength. 

Few heatmaps look like the one from Tuesday night. The Canucks generated a total of 11 shots, which is why there is so much white on their side of the map. As for the Golden Knights, they crashed the net all night, which Vancouver had no answer for. 

To wrap up this game, the Canucks' best player was Nikita Tolopilo. Vancouver's goaltender allowed just two goals on 28 shots, and saved 1.74 goals above expected. In the end, Tolopilo was the only bright spot as he kept his team in the game until the final whistle. 

The Canucks hit the road for three straight in California, starting with a matchup against the Los Angeles Kings. Vancouver still has two more games against the Kings, with the second meeting being the Canucks' home finale. Game time is scheduled for 7:30 pm PT. 

Make sure you bookmark THN's Vancouver Canucks site and add us to your favourites on Google News for the latest news, exclusive interviews, breakdowns, and so much more. Also, don't forget to leave a comment at the bottom of the page and engage with other passionate fans through our forum. This article originally appeared on The Hockey News.

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Danton Heinen (6), Zach Werenski (22-PPG), and Adam Fantilli scored the goals for Columbus in regulation, and Jet Greaves stopped 34 of 37 Red Wings shots to pick up a huge two points. The win is Greaves 25th win of the year and breaks a four-game losing streak for the young goalie. 

The game would be won in overtime by Zach Werenski, who had previously gone 0-for-3 in his career in shootout attempts. Werenski would win it in round 5.

The Blue Jackets won the game and gave Detroit a point, but they're mathematically still in the playoff chase. They didn't get much help, though, as the Senators and Flyers, both teams who are directly ahead of the CBJ, also won. 

The Blue Jackets started the first period off as they have routinely, even during the losing streak, by scoring the first goal early in the period. But the Wings would strike back when Dylan Larkin tied it on the power play with 9:33 left. 

Detroit would score first in the second to take a 2-1 lead, but then with 9:01 left in the period, Superstar Zach Werenski potted his 22nd goal of the season on the power play to tie the game at two a piece. 

The third period played out like the second, with Justin Faulk scoring his second goal of the game to give the Red Wings a 3-2 lead. With just over four minutes left in the game, you could just feel that the CBJ were going to take another tough loss. 

But when Zach Werenski fed a pass to young Adam Fantilli while Jet Greaves was on the bench for the extra attacker, and he blasted it by John Gibson, the entire game shifted in a second.

The Blue Jackets and Red Wings would go to OT, and then on to a shootout where Zach Werenski would beat Gibson in round five to send the Jackets on to Buffalo with a massive win. 

Quotes   

• Zach Werenski - "My laces were all messed up, and I couldn't really skate, so when they called me, I was like, 'You guys sure? I’m kind of on one leg here.' My foot was in the skate but pretty wobbly. I was kind of thinking what I was gonna do when I went out there, and then I was like, 'What am I thinking, just shoot it.'"

• Zach Werenski - "I saw my parents after the game in the stands, and my brother up there. Those are the moments that you play the game for. It definitely ranks pretty high up there for moments in a regular season game for sure."
• Adam Fantilli - "We need all of them, and we're going to try to get every single one before the season is over and put ourselves in the best position to get in the playoffs for our fans and for our city."
• Charlie Coyle - "For the fans watching, hopefully not too many heart attacks out there. But it's nice to come out on the winning side. It's huge, too, with only a couple of games left to spring us and something we can feed off of."
• Detroit's Dylan Larkin - “I hope that’s not the one, and I hope the Minnesota one is not the one that’s the final nail in the coffin. That’s a letdown, in tough fashion again.”

Final Stats 

Player Stats & Notes  

• Danton Heinen scored his 6th goal of the season. He took 3 shots and was a plus-1.
• Zach Werenski scored his 22nd goal and picked up his 58th assist. With two points, Werenski is now the franchise leader in multi-point games in a season with 26. He also now has 80 points and has become just the third American-born defenseman with back-to-back 80-point seasons. He also played 33:26 minutes and took 6 shots.
• Adam Fantilli scored his 23rd goal of the season and took 3 shots.
• Mason Marchment picked up his 24th assist and was a plus-2.
• Denton Mateychuk recorded his 18th assist.
• Kirill Marchenko tallied his 39th assist and had 3 shots.
• Jet Greaves made 34 saves and got his 1st career assist on the Werenski power play goal.

Team Stats

• The Jackets went 1/4 on the power play.
• The Columbus gave up a goal on the only power play Detroit had.
• Columbus won 54% of the faceoffs - 34/63
• The Blue Jackets had 20 hits and 21 blocks.

Next Up For Columbus: The Blue Jackets are in Buffalo on Thursday to take on the Sabres. 

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After losing their first match in nine games on Sunday night, the Montreal Canadiens were hosting the Florida Panthers’ C or D team at the Bell Centre on Tuesday night. Matthew Tkachuk was out of the lineup because he was on baby watch. Sergei Bobrovsky was acting as the backup. Aleksander Barkov, Aaron Ekblad, Sam Reinhart, Brad Marchand, Anton Lundell, and Evans Rodrigues were all out of action.

Meanwhile, Montreal had some fresh reinforcements with Kirby Dach, Alexandre Texier and Adam Engstrom entering the lineup. Brendan Gallagher was a healthy scratch, Joe Veleno was dealing with the flu, and Kaiden Guhle was given a day of maintenance. With Texier’s return, Alex Newhook moved to center, and Oliver Kapanen was demoted to the fourth line alongside Josh Anderson and Phillip Danault.

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Underperformance

Against a lineup that looked strangely like the one the Canadiens beat 10-2 in Carey Price’s last game, the Habs severely underperformed. Over 40 minutes, they had only tested Danil Tarasov 14 times, despite getting three power-play opportunities, and their only goal came on the man-advantage.

Over the course of the last four games, the Canadiens’ level of play just hasn’t been the same, even in the games they did win. As the coach likes to say, it’s not all about the result; it’s about the process, and the process has been severely lacking lately. The Canadiens have been coming out flat, and Tuesday night was no exception.

Speaking to the media after the game, Martin St-Louis acknowledged that his team was having a dip in performance and explained:

There’s always a part of fatigue that goes into it, and not just physically; there’s an element of mental fatigue. We had a sequence when we really had to push and get some points, and we were pretty much perfect…that’s really demanding, you need to stay alert, there’s a pressure that comes with it, a stress as well, when you get that check next to your team, does that make you decompress a bit? Is that what’s missing to keep the pace you had? More than likely, but the goal remains to go back to that level, knowing it might have been impossible, difficult to keep that level.

Chasing The Milestone

With Cole Caufield still looking for his elusive 50th goal of the season, his teammates were once again desperate to find him with the puck, and just like on Sunday night, it resulted in poor execution. Nick Suzuki and Juraj Slafkovsky were constantly trying to feed him the puck, even if he was as covered as can be. At times, he was even covered by a couple of players, and they still looked for him.

The only one who wasn’t changing the way he was playing was Caufield himself, only taking shots when appropriate. He was even the one who fed Ivan Demidov for the Canadiens’ power play goal. Still in the second frame, we saw less of the first line. Caufield had 4:27, Suzuki 3:51, and Slafkovsky 4:04.

In the final frame, the Canadiens finally turned it on, so to speak, peppering the Cats’ net with 15 shots and scoring twice. In the frame, Caufield 5:54 of action, Suzuki 6:49, and Slafkovsky 7:12. Speaking after the game, the captain had this to say about the team not being very good tonight:

"It started with my line; I was pretty brutal all night until I had the easiest goal of probably my career there, so it started with us. We were a bit too casual and thought we were soft as a group...

About The Second Line

Putting Texier on the second line with Newhook and Demidov produced good results. St-Louis has often praised the Frenchman’s ability to extend the time spent in the offensive zone, and that’s exactly what he did, which allowed the Russian rookie to have more puck possession in the offensive zone. Spending more time there meant the defenders were more tired, and he proved quite a handful for them.

It’s also worth noting that Newhook took 14 faceoffs on the night and won 10 of them, a 71% success rate. The fact that he had been doing well in that aspect of the play of late was one of the reasons why the coach was comfortable putting him back at center.

De Lane à Nick, dans la dernière minute, contre la Floride, en avril...

Lane to Nick in the last minute against Florida in April...#GoHabsGopic.twitter.com/cxePTXdSGi

— x - Canadiens Montréal (@CanadiensMTL) April 8, 2026

In the end, the Canadiens did find a way to win with Lane Hutson manufacturing a last-minute Suzuki equalizer to take the game to overtime. While Montreal was unable to take advantage of the power play they got in the extra frame, they still came out on top in the shootout with Caufield and Texier finding the back of the net and Jakub Dobes shutting the door.

«NON!» -Jakub Dobes#GoHabsGopic.twitter.com/xIZifMB2mj

— x - Canadiens Montréal (@CanadiensMTL) April 8, 2026

With those two points, the Canadiens have now caught up to the Buffalo Sabres and the Tampa Bay Lightning points-wise, with all three teams being on 102 points. Still, the Bolts are first in the division, followed by the Sabres and then by the Habs because of their number of regulation wins and their number of wins not in the shootout.

On Thursday, the Canadiens will take on Tampa Bay, and with the stakes being so high, it would be shocking if they came out flat. Perhaps that’s exactly what the doctor would order, a match against a direct rival with added meaning.

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Here are your Pens Points for this Wednesday morning…

The Pittsburgh Penguins announced their 2025-26 regular season award winners on Tuesday. No, team MVP is not Sidney Crosby, but a Swedish defenseman who has been on “God Mode,” elevating his play and positioning the Penguins for a playoff berth. See the full list here. [PensBurgh]

The Penguins say forward Blake Lizotte is making progress from an upper-body injury and has resumed skating, raising hope he could return sooner than expected, possibly before the end of the regular season. [PensBurgh]

Pittsburgh officially recalled goaltending prospect Sergei Murashov from the AHL’s Wilkes-Barre/Scranton affiliate on Tuesday. [Trib Live]

Expectations should be tempered with Murashov once again on the NHL roster, and he very well could be Artur Silovs’ backup for a few games. However, with Stuart Skinner’s status still uncertain amid his injury, it is interesting to examine the possibility that Stuart’s misfortune turns into Murashov’s golden opportunity 10 years after Matt Murray arrived on the scene. [PensBurgh]

News and updates from around the NHL…

The New Jersey Devils are evaluating head coach Sheldon Keefe following the dismissal of general manager Tom Fitzgerald, with his future uncertain as the organization reassesses its direction. [Sportsnet]

The Toronto Maple Leafs have hired Neil Glasberg and PBI Sports to assist with their search for a new head of hockey operations, according to TSN hockey insider Chris Johnston. [TSN]

Typically, when NHL teams outshoot their opponent 28-10, they can expect to win. That is, in fact, what happened on Wednesday when the Vegas Golden Knights wrapped up their season series against the Vancouver Canucks with a 2-1 victory— but the win didn’t come easily.

“It certainly wasn’t pretty. But we found a way to lead, and we found a way to win,” said head coach John Tortorella postgame.

The Golden Knights took it to the Canucks right from puck drop. In the first period, they outshot Vancouver 10-2 and generated seven high-danger scoring chances while only allowing one.

“I think we started the game really well,” said Nic Dowd following the 2-1 win. “In my opinion, it’s probably one of those games where you want to jump on the team early. You get chances, you want to try and put those away and kind of step on them a little bit. And obviously we didn’t, right?

“But sticking with it, not getting bored, trying to stay consistent, understanding that the tough plays are the ones that are going to earn you offense and not make you play defense, we didn’t get away from that, and we were rewarded for it down the stretch,” Dowd finished.

The Canucks broke the ice at 12:50 in the second period. Linus Karlsson won a board battle, and Teddy Blueger came up with the puck. Blueger entered the offensive zone and found Max Sasson, who drove down into the right circle and beat Carter Hart far-side.

MAX OPENS THE SCORING! pic.twitter.com/wSY5fWfG6f

— Vancouver Canucks (@Canucks) April 8, 2026

The Golden Knights answered back just 1:56 later. Colton Sissons pressured Marcus Pettersson into a turnover behind the net, and Brandon Saad corralled the loose puck. Saad reset back for Shea Theodore at the blue line; Theodore worked the puck over to his defensive partner, Brayden McNabb, who stepped into his shot and scored from distance.

ya love to see it 😃 pic.twitter.com/hKjxrjqTER

— Vegas Golden Knights (@GoldenKnights) April 8, 2026

In the third, the Golden Knights locked it down defensively. It took the Canucks nearly 14 minutes to record their first shot of the period.The Golden Knights took their first lead of the game at 12:13 in the third. Cole Smith forced a turnover at the blue line, entered the zone, and left the puck for Nic Dowd. Dowd drove deeper in the zone and found Smith in the slot for the go-ahead goal.

all gas, no brakes 😮‍💨 pic.twitter.com/LfnHOBWCGr

— Vegas Golden Knights (@GoldenKnights) April 8, 2026

Rasmus Anderson was called for interference towards the end of the period, and the Canucks headed to the power play with 1:41 remaining in regulation. They pulled their goaltender for the extra attacker, but the Golden Knights held them to just one shot on goal and held on for the 2-1 win.

“It’s just one of those games that can get away from you. And that’s what I like about our team, they stayed with it,” Tortorella said postgame. “Good teams win those games.”

Three Takeaways of the Knight

1. On one hand, the Golden Knights need more from their top offensive performers. Vancouver leads the league in goals allowed, and this one came down to the wire. The only reason the Golden Knights won is that the Canucks are dead last in the league in scoring.

On the other hand, the Golden Knights are getting consistent depth scoring, which helps offset the need for more from top performers. They’ve gotten goals from a defenseman in three of their last four games. That matters.

2. It’s been a roller coaster of a season for the Golden Knights as far as the standings are concerned. They comfortably led the Pacific Division heading into the Olympic Break. Then, just last week, they were struggling to stay afloat as third in the division.

After tonight’s win, they’re tied for first in the Pacific once more, though the Oilers hold the tiebreaker.

3. Elsewhere, the Nashville Predators steamrolled the Anaheim Ducks, and the Utah Mammoth beat the Edmonton Oilers in overtime. Hence, the Golden Knights needed this win to keep pace in the standings. At this time of year, it doesn’t matter if two points come against the third team in the league or the 32nd. For the Golden Knights, all that matters is stacking wins and improving their chances of securing home-ice advantage in the postseason.