Of course, the four players were asked how it would feel to compete against each other at the Olympics, and they gave the standard answer through Suzuki: they’re already used to playing against friends and former teammates in the NHL, which isn’t any different. When the group was asked what they would choose between winning the Stanley Cup and an Olympic Gold medal, Texier made the crowd chuckle when he said the Cup would be more realistic for him, since he plays for France, but ultimately, all four players opted for the Cup. Kapanen added that it’s what he grew up dreaming about.
The Finn was also asked if he thinks about winning the Calder Trophy since he leads all rookies in goal scoring, and if there’s some teasing between him and Ivan Demidov. He replied that no, it’s not something he thinks about, while also praising his teammate as a special player. I thought that was a bit of an awkward question to ask. Anyone who follows the NHL closely knows that Kapanen is not in the Calder conversation.
That was just one of a few awkward moments, however. Another one came when Suzuki was asked which words he knew in French, and he replied that he knew how to say his name and ask someone how they are doing. While I do not believe it’s essential for the Canadiens’ captain to learn to speak French, it’s a bit weird to get that answer after much was made of Suzuki doing his first interview in French earlier this season with TVA Sports. While we know that the interview was rehearsed, you’d still expect Suzuki to see a bit more than those two basic phrases by now.
Lepage also asked the players if any of them had watched Crave’s hit show Heated Rivalry, and there was a long pause while they looked at one another to decide who would answer. Suzuki replied that they had all heard about the series and that it was great that it brought new fans to the game. Texier was then asked why homosexuality was still a taboo in hockey, and he replied that it wasn’t and that the team would be fine with one of its members coming out, that they’d be welcomed with open arms.
Those were the expected answers, really, but the embarrassed silence when the players were asked whether they had watched the show is evidence that there’s still a lot of work to be done in the NHL. If players are shy about being asked if they watched a show about two hockey players secretly having a relationship, it’s hard to imagine that a coming-out would go down well.
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 3-2 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Sunday's loss by the Canuck was close both on the scoresheet and from an analytics perspective. The even-strength scoring chances were tied at 25 while Vancouver held a slight edge in even-strength high-danger scoring chances by a count of 13-11. In the end, though, the Penguins were able to capitalize on their chances, leading to the victory.
Both teams did a good job of crashing the net in this game. Kevin Lankinen faced nine high-danger shots while Stuart Skinner faced seven. Once again, though, the Canucks collapsed in the third period, which is when Pittsburgh scored all three of its goals.
Vancouver Canucks vs. Pittsburgh Penguins, January 25, 2026, Natural Stat Trick
To wrap up this game, Filip Hroenk was one of Vancouver's top skaters from an analytics perspective. During his 26:55 of even-strength ice time, the Canucks held a 14-9 shots advantage while outscoring the opposition 2-0. Hronek also recorded an assist, which was the 98th of his career with Vancouver.
Jan 25, 2026; Vancouver, British Columbia, CAN; Pittsburgh Penguins forward Egor Chinakhov (59) pursues Vancouver Canucks defenseman Filip Hronek (17) in the third period at Rogers Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bob Frid-Imagn Images
The Canucks continue their homestand on Tuesday when they face the San Jose Sharks. While Kiefer Sherwood is injured, there is a chance he will make his Sharks debut on Tuesday. Game time is scheduled for 7:00 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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Stars, Avalanche reportedly among teams after Canucks’ Evander Kane. [The Province]
Penguins acquire Solovyov from Avalanche for Puustinen. [Sportsnet]
Avalanche honor members of 2001 Stanley Cup champions. [NHL]
Nelson, Blackwood pace Avalanche to 4-1 victory over struggling Maple Leafs. [Toronto Star]
Avs’ Bednar on Landeskog’s recovery ahead of Olympics: ‘It’s going to be tight’. [TSN]
Avalanche’s Nelson nets fifth-career hat trick vs. Maple Leafs. [Sportsnet]
News Around the League
Linus Ullmark discusses his absence for the Senators and the social media rumours that plagued him during said absence. [TSN]
Artemi Panarin’s trade cost from Rangers revealed by NHL insider. [Sporting News]
Oilers defenceman Evan Bouchard joins elite company with a 6-point game. [CBC]
Goyette remembered for clean living on and off ice. Late center who played 16 NHL seasons won Cup four times with Canadiens, Lady Byng with Blues. [NHL]
Seth Jones injury update: USA defenseman out of 2026 Olympics. [USA Today]
Los Angeles Kings - 21-16-13 - 55 Points - 4-2-4 in the last 10 - Won 2 - 5th in the Pacific
Columbus Blue Jackets - 24-20-7 - 55 Points - 6-4-0 in the last 10 - Won 2 - 7th in the Metro
Team Notes Per CBJ PR
CBJ set a season-high in goals scored in an 8-5 win over Tampa Bay on Saturday. The club has won six of its last seven games overall since Jan. 11 (5-1-0) and collected points in six of its past seven home contests since Jan. 3 (5-1-1).
The club continues a season-long five-game homestand on Monday and is in a stretch of seven-of-eight games played at Nationwide Arena from Jan. 13-28 (4-1-0).
The Jackets scored the first two goals on Saturday and have scored the first goal in 15 of the last 20 contests, 18 of the past 25, and rank T-third in the NHL in games scoring first in 2025-26 (30).
Columbus leads the NHL in goals by defensemen and ranks fourth in points with 38-90-128 in 51 contests.
Entering Sunday, the Blue Jackets (10-5-1) ranked T-fourth in the NHL in wins, seventh in team save percentage (.907), eighth in points pct. (.656) and 10th in goals-against per game (2.81) since Dec. 22.
Player Notes Per CBJ PR
Charlie Coyle, posted his fifth game of three or more points this season, including notching his 200th career goal on Saturday (1-2-3).
Entering Sunday's games, G Jet Greaves leads the NHL in saves and ranks fourth-T in wins and eighth in SV% since Dec. 22 (min. 7 GP) with an 8-3-1 record, 2.54 GAA, .915 SV% and 345 saves in 13 games.
Kirill Marchenko collected his eighth multi-point outings of the campaign with two assists vs. Tampa Bay and has notched points in 12 of the last 16 contests dating back to Dec. 22 (8-9-17).
Mason Marchment notched his third career hat trick on Saturday (3-1-4) and has posted points in seven of his nine contests with CBJ (8-3-11).
Mathieu Olivier ranks second in the NHL with 71 hits since returning from injury on Dec. 28.
Zach Werenski notched two assists in the win over the Lightning and leads NHL blueliners in goals (19), points (tied, 55) and multi-point efforts (18) this season entering play on Sunday. He has points in 26 of his past 31 contests overall to lead league defensemen in goals, points and points-per-game since Nov. 13 (15-27-42, 1.42).
Blue Jackets Stats
Power Play - 19.8% - 19th in the NHL
Penalty Kill - 75.4% - 28th in the NHL
Goals For - 153 - 19th in the NHL
Goals Against - 168 - 24th in the NHL
Kings Stats
Power Play - 15.2% - 32nd in the NHL
Penalty Kill - 77.3% - 25th in the NHL
Goals For - 130 - 30th in the NHL
Goals Against - 137 - 3rd in the NHL
Series History vs. TheKings
Columbus is 29-33-1-7 all-time, and 18-11-0-5 at home vs. LA.
The Blue Jackets are 4-0-2 in the last 6 at home and have earned points in 8 of 9 home games against the Kings.
The last 5 home games against the Kings have gone to OT, and the CBJ are 3-2 in those games.
Columbus has killed off 25 of 28 Kings' man advantages.
Who To Watch For TheKings
Adrian Kempe leads the Kings with 22 assists and 39 points.
Kevin Fiala leads LA with 18 goals.
Darcy Kuemper is 13-9-9 with a SV% of .902. His last start was on January 24th.
Former Blue Jackets Goalie Anton Forsberg is 58-6-4 with a SV% of .907. His last start was on January 20th.
CBJ Player Notes vs.Kings
Zach Werenski has 7 points in 13 career games vs. the Kings.
Boone Jenner has 7 points in his last 18 games against LA.
Charlie Coyle has 16 points in 32 games.
Injured Reserve
Brendan Smith - Lower Body - Missed 13 Games IR - Out for the rest of the regular season.
Miles Wood - Lower Body - Missed 12 Games - Week to week.
Denton Mateychuk - Lower Body - Missed 6 Games - Day to day and skating with the team.
TOTAL MAN GAMES LOST: 145
How to Watch & Listen: Tonight's game will be on FANDUEL SPORTS NETWORK. Steve Mears will be on the play-by-play. The radio broadcast will be on 93.3 The Bus, with Bob McElligott behind the mic doing the play-by-play.
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The Montreal Canadiens hoped that bringing Jacob Fowler up and sending Samuel Montembeault down to the AHL for a conditioning stint would sort out their goaltending issues, and for a time, it looked like it might have worked. Still, the wheels are starting to come off the wagon again.
After the Habs’ heartbreaking loss to the Boston Bruins, Martin St-Louis was asked whether he felt Montembeault was again fragile, and he replied:
No, no, I don’t think so. Listen, the last goal, the puck’s direction changes…No, I don’t think so.
- St-Louis on whether Montembeault seemed fragile lately
While the puck might have changed direction, the cold, hard facts remain: the coach decided to use Montembeault for two crucial divisional matchups in a row, and in both games, his save percentage was below .815. Whatever the context, that number is just not good enough. On the season, the Becancour native has a 9-8-2 record with a 3.46 GAA and a .869 save percentage.
While Jakub Dobes’ numbers aren’t exactly brilliant either ( 3.01 GAA and a .887 SV), the Czech netminder at least has a winning record, and it’s not even close. He’s 15-5-3 on the season. Whatever the reason is, the Habs seem to give Dobes more offensive support than Montembeault, and that plays into it as well.
When Kent Hughes met the media for his mid-season review, he said he didn’t like to put labels on people and that the goaltender playing the best would play the most, but that’s not what’s happening right now. Dobes has a 5-0-1 record in his last six games, while Montembeault is now 1-2-1 in his previous four starts.
The Canadiens have three games this week, they’ll take on the Vegas Golden Knights, the Colorado Avalanche, and the Buffalo Sabres. To win, they will need someone to stand up and make the saves, and right now, it doesn’t look like that someone can be Montembeault.
Cody Glass had three points, Lenni Hämeenaho tallied his first two NHL points and the Devils held on for a 5-4 win over the Canucks on Friday. [Devils NHL]
Then on Sunday, the Devils rounded out the road trip with a 4-2 loss to the Kraken. [Devils NHL]
“Almost any way you spin it, Glass has been one of the best third-line centers in the league — arguably the best. His goal-scoring production is league-best in that regard, and his underlying statistical profile is similarly high-end. Of all 32 third-line centers in the NHL, there is one (1) who has been above-average in every single metric listed above, from offensive impact to defensive impact to sG to RAPM to point production: Cody Glass.” [Devils’ Advocates]
“It’s no secret that the 2025-26 New Jersey Devils have struggled to score goals consistently. Per Natural Stat Trick, their 1.94 goals per 60 minutes (GF/60) at 5v5 ranks dead last in the league…and it’s not even really that close. Every other NHL team scores goals at least 6.2% more often.” [The Hockey Writers]
“After being scratched on Jan. 11 in a move that appeared to put his future with the New Jersey Devils in doubt, Dougie Hamilton might be set to stay put in the wake of Luke Hughes’ shoulder injury.” [Sportsnet]
Hockey Links
“Hours before his first game as a visiting player at Scotiabank Arena, Mitch Marner said he didn’t want to look back on the nine years he spent playing for the Toronto Maple Leafs.” [The Athletic ($)]
A look back at six ugly returns for NHL stars: [The Athletic ($)]
“In what was expected to be a retooling year, (Penguins GM) Kyle Dubas is in an interesting spot leading up to the trade deadline. Does he stay the course and continue to accumulate prospects and picks? Or will he consider adding to try to help the Pens secure a playoff spot? The second option has to be tempting. Any time you have Crosby on the roster playing at a high level, you don’t want to waste it, and if the Penguins get in, nobody would envy a first-round matchup against one of the game’s all-time greatest players.” [Sportsnet]
Feel free to discuss these and any other hockey-related stories in the comments below.
As the Winter Olympics come screaming into focus, the league has experienced a bit of a frenzy of moves to get assets before the great unknown of playing in Milan and/or Cortina potentially leaves them without stars for the last few months of the NHL season. Thanks to the truncated schedule, a bunch of teams are already beginning to make moves after looking at their upcoming schedules, their current records, and their current trends, and making painful decisions on whether or not they’ve got any real shot in the NHL Playoffs.
One such team is the Vancouver Canucks, who have been a never ending cavalcade of Drama, Woe, and Disaster for the better part of half a decade, and at the center of it all is their # 1 Center, who they are finally willing to listen to other teams about offers for.
According to Frank Seravalli, the Bruins have checked in on this player.
On the Surface
Oh boy this is a doozy.
Elias Pettersson is generally supposed to be Sweden’s big wunderkind player right now. Should be, anyway. He should’ve shown up with an “A” at minimum for Tre Kronor at the Olympics and we should all be looking at Sweden with him at the top of his game and going “oh they’re gonna medal and it’s gonna be a short game.” Still might be, too.
And yet!
Pettersson is by all accounts an extremely high skill forward, able to do a little bit of everything; he’s got incredible hands, he’s a damn strong skater, he’s willing to get into the dirty areas of the ice and cause a little havoc that way, his shot can feel like a game-warping moment, and when he is on his horse, he never, ever, ever gives up on a play. Even when he should, but he doesn’t need to; he can make something happen.
All of this can be yours…assuming the team around him isn’t actively self-injecting poison into itself in a desperate attempt to make their insane owner or alternate captain or general manager or fanbase happy.
Which unfortunately for Mr. Pettersson, is where the problem starts, and why he is reportedly available.
Pettersson is like Quinn Hughes, in that he has been part of propping up a Canucks team that was much farther back on their development curve than they believed, and struggled to really find a place for himself in multiple systems, and watched as his impressive point totals slowly fell into hell, and while he is rebounding this year and looks to be on pace for a 60ish point season, which has been around where his floor is, and what’s hoping to be a reasonably deep run in the Olympics, its a far cry from his 100 point ‘22-‘23 season and his 89 point ‘23-‘24, and trying to replicate those two seasons has been an active nightmare for the Canucks. They know he’s good!…they just gotta make JT Miller happy, or change coaches, or keep swapping deck chairs on the Titanic, or go through like six goalies in a month leading into the playoffs.
Elias Pettersson’s career has been a lot of really cool skill plays and solid work as an NHL center buried under a mountain of bulls#!t; some of it from his own team, some of it from slumps he made himself, some of it the natural consequence of a team riding the PDO wagon until it fell out from under them, all of it too much for both parties at this point. Vancouver needs to make major changes and make them fast, and they are reportedly okay with asking about just about anyone, and that does include Pettersson, who would likely fetch another big return after the Quinn Hughes trade.
Under the Hood
Look.
The big issue that Pettersson has faced throughout his career is that there’s been some horses#!t going on around him pretty much at all times. Anyone’s game would suffer because of that. Great players have had miserable years thanks to their organization making life difficult. Pettersson’s game has had a lot of that, and as a result he’s had a ton of linemates and a ton of revolving wingers and he’s never really been able to get a good bead on who he should be with coach after coach either loving or despising him. That’s forced him to play very into his game, very out of it, and it has messed with his analytics. I cannot definitively prove this, but I believe it contributes to the issues he faces.
The other big issue is that the Canucks committed a ton of money to him…and he’s struggled quite a bit to justify that since putting pen to ink, especially recently.
Pettersson has not been playing like a 1C for a very long time, and the Canucks have attached a nice big dead sea bird (of which it is bad luck to kill, Willem Dafoe said so.) to his neck, ensuring that every game where he doesn’t have a point feels worse and worse and piles doubt after doubt after doubt on this player.
And sure, that one viz is gonna maybe make people feel a little concerned, but I need to make it clear that this is a long-standing problem for him; over the last three years, he’s 12th among Canucks skaters in shot attempts and unblocked shot attempts for per 60 minutes, and 11th in expected goals-for per 60 minutes.
Hronek, Hughes, and Tyler actual Myers have better rates of unblocked shots than him. Nils Hoglander, a player the Bruins once checked in on fiercely before joining the NHL and is playing like 12 minutes a night in Vancouver, has objectively better rates of getting the puck up ice than Pettersson.
This does ignore however that, if we are being fair to him and acknowledging that he is also playing on a dogass team full of dog-ass players, he has improved. He is now 4th on the Canucks in expected goals for per 60, and 8th in shot attempts and unblocked shot attempts for. That is…maybe not worth the obscene price tag? But it is decidedly better than he’s been, and a trend in the right direction for him.
And to be mean, 51.09% on the year is a damn sight better than another center on the Boston Bruins who gets similar ice time to Pettersson. It may not be the most efficient use of money…BUT! he would be An Upgrade.
There is also the chance, especially given his skill ceiling and who his linemates would be, that the Bruins, with their world class wingers and culture of Making Players Feel Valued and Want To Give Back and the fabled “Bruins Bump” and all that…that he could in fact resurrect the player he was in his earlier years. This guy is still in here somewhere in theory; if you figure out where he is under what you will be hoping are years of mismanagement by Vancouver.
What would they need to part with?
The Canucks are in shambles. They are by far the worst team in the Pacific Division as well as the Western Conference, and that is stiff competition at the moment. You will be going for one of maybe players who’s getting anything done on the Canucks right now (and one of them is now in San Jose), and it will herald the beginning of a great big long down-to-the-studs rebuild for Vancouver.
That is a first round pick among many to begin with; especially for the Bruins, who will likely find themselves with a half-decent choice in the middle or top 10 of the draft.
That’s Alberts Smits. That’s Adam Novotny, Oscar Hemming, Caleb Malholtra, Ryan Lin that you are giving to the Canucks, which is not including the roster player and one of the vanishingly few prospects of note in the Bruins’ system.
They may not turn into anything! But they might become something, and you gave them that for an asset that they have well and truly spent a lot of time crushing the confidence of and now you gotta rehab and convince the Canucks to retain salary on, because there’s no way in hell they can fit his preposterous contract under their cap right now.
Should they do it?
The Boston Bruins under Don Sweeney are more than willing to gamble if given the opportunity. They have gambled frequently and sometimes it’s even worked.
Even then…This will be a hell of a gamble if they decide they wanna do it.
If the Bruins think they can rehab this player, and commit to making him work for the long haul, even knowing he may cost them one of their extremely first round picks, even knowing that the last guy you were hoping gets a Bruins Bump Did Not Actually Get One because the team isn’t nearly as good as it used to be, even knowing it may end up losing them one of the few in and out excellent players on the year or one of the potential future stars of the team because let me make it clear you are not sending Elias Lindholm back the other way, they need young guys and they need talented guys and the Bruins don’t really have a lot of either, if you are aware your fanbase and certain sections of this market’s media is gonna be on him from day one if he doesn’t show improvement…then I suppose my answer is go for it.
But you need to be sure. You need to be absolutely sure.
Because if you make this choice, you will be locked into it. His contract has an NMC. You may not pay all of it! But you will be paying some of it. And you will be stuck to it like glue.
The Islanders will try to rediscover their game, or at least their look, with a visit to Philadelphia tonight. The Flyers are just two points back with a game in hand, coming off a potential “statement” victory in Colorado. That third position in the Metro the Isles currently (and tenuously) hold has become more prominent lately, as the two current wild card holders are from the Atlantic, Montreal and Boston, each three or more points ahead.
Lots of season left to go, but the first-quarter narrative of the laughable Atlantic has shifted now that Boston has righted itself, Montreal has rebounded from a swoon and the Sabres continue to do whatever the hell they’ve been up to over the past 20 games ever since they started hanging around that Faust guy.
Isaiah George was thrilled to make his season debut Saturday, after missing out on previous callups due to his own injuries. [Isles | Newsday | Post | THN]
Takeaways from Saturday: the benched top line, the overturned goals (well, one was simply after the horn sounded), and “did it to themselves.” [Isles]
The Skinny: In WTF trivia, “Alex Lyon and Tristan Jarry are the only opposing goaltenders with two shutouts at UBS Arena.” [Isles]
Gross: It was the right call to sit Barzal-Duclair-Lee to uphold a standard for the team. [Newsday]
Elsewhere
Sunday scores included the Devils falling in Seattle (two goals for Jordan Eberle), the Senators blowing out Vegas and the Penguins survived a late push by the lowly Canucks.
Also, Brock Nelson completed a hat trick against the Leafs with an empty net goal. [NHL]
So do the Knights, at least for one game. Mark Stone blasted his team for playing “like a junior team” against his old squad. [Sportsnet]
Probably include the Leafs in that self-assessment, too. [Sportsnet]
Linus Ullmark didn’t start, but he was back in the lineup for the Sens after his personal leave for whatever your local tweeter rumored it was for. [TSN]
Sam Montembeault continues to…not inspire confidence in Montreal. [Sportsnet]
Here are your Pens Points for this Monday morning…
The Pittsburgh Penguins completed their Western Canada swing on Sunday evening, facing off against the Vancouver Canucks. It was a homecoming for rookie forward Ben Kindel, who led the way with two goals as the Penguins won 3-2. [Recap]
However, in the dying moments of the game, amid a Vancouver push for the tying goal, forward Bryan Rust hit Vancouver’s Brock Boeser on the ice as time expired Sunday. Video shows Rust appearing to hit Boeser up high with an extended elbow, an action deemed “dirty” by Vancouver players. [Sportsnet]
Big Justin Brazeau has been one of the many positive revelations this season. The winger has career highs in goals (14) and points (25) in 37 games after Sunday. He’s been able to cash in on his offensive opportunities by “playing the right way.” [Trib Live]
Every club in the league would take 13 goals and 40 points in 36 games for a 39-year-old forward who is set to be an unrestricted free agent at year’s end. However, those statistics belong to an NHL and franchise icon in Evgeni Malkin, who has now publicly said he is willing to take a discount to return to the Penguins next season. General manager Kyle Dubas, with his seemingly infinite pool of cap space, should listen and reward Malkin with the extension he has rightfully deserved. [Trib Live]
News and notes from around the NHL…
Toronto Maple Leafs forward William Nylander has apologized after he was seen on camera flipping the middle finger during Sunday’s game against the Colorado Avalanche. [TSN]
The Seattle Kraken are open to hearing trade offers for 22-year-old center Shane Wright, according to TSN’s Darren Dreger. [theScore]
The NHL may have gained a new fan base as viewers go crazy for the viral HBO streaming hit “Heated Rivalry.” The show, which centers around a romance between two hockey players, has driven a “noticeable spike” in demand for NHL tickets and revenue for the league, according to ticket website SeatGeek. [CBS News]
Vegas Golden Knights (25-14-12, in the Pacific Division) vs. Montreal Canadiens (28-17-7, in the Atlantic Division)
Montreal, Quebec; Tuesday, 7 p.m. EST
BOTTOM LINE: The Montreal Canadiens host the Vegas Golden Knights after Cole Caufield recorded a hat trick in the Canadiens' 4-3 loss to the Boston Bruins.
Montreal is 28-17-7 overall and 14-11-1 at home. The Canadiens have a 25-6-6 record in games they score three or more goals.
Vegas has a 13-7-6 record in road games and a 25-14-12 record overall. The Golden Knights are 24-5-7 in games they score at least three goals.
The matchup Tuesday is the second meeting between these teams this season. The Canadiens won 4-1 in the previous meeting.
TOP PERFORMERS: Caufield has 29 goals and 24 assists for the Canadiens. Alexandre Texier has four goals and four assists over the past 10 games.
Pavel Dorofeyev has 22 goals and 16 assists for the Golden Knights. Jack Eichel has seven goals and 11 assists over the past 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Canadiens: 5-4-1, averaging 3.6 goals, 6.3 assists, 4.8 penalties and 11.8 penalty minutes while giving up 3.1 goals per game.
Golden Knights: 7-3-0, averaging 4.3 goals, 7.2 assists, 2.2 penalties and 5.2 penalty minutes while giving up 3.2 goals per game.
INJURIES: Canadiens: None listed.
Golden Knights: None listed.
___
The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
The Calgary Flames saw a strong start unravel on Sunday night, falling 4–3 in overtime to the Anaheim Ducks at the Scotiabank Saddledome.
Calgary opened the game with pace and purpose, jumping out to a 2–0 lead in the first period and controlling long stretches of play, but Anaheim chipped away and eventually stole the extra point thanks to a hat-trick performance from rookie Beckett Sennecke.
Jonathan Huberdeau got the Flames on the board at the 6:17 mark of the opening frame, snapping an 10-game goal drought. After driving the net, Huberdeau stayed with a loose puck and poked it past Lukas Dostal to give Calgary an early advantage.
Just moments later, the Saddledome erupted again as Hunter Brzustewicz recorded his first career NHL goal. The defenceman fired a shot from the point that deflected off traffic in front and found its way into the net, doubling the Flames’ lead and capping a memorable milestone in his 17th NHL game.
Anaheim pushed back late in the first despite managing only three shots on goal through much of the period. A quick backdoor play found Sennecke, who buried his first of the night past Dustin Wolf to cut the lead in half.
Calgary dominated the shot clock early in the second period, outshooting Anaheim 25–7 at one point, but the Ducks found their footing. Crisp puck movement led to another Sennecke goal at the side of the net, tying the game at 2–2. The Ducks briefly thought they had taken the lead moments later, but a high-stick goal from Alex Killorn was immediately waved off and upheld after review.
The Flames regained the lead on the power play in the third period. Nazem Kadri worked the puck down low to Matvei Gridin who threaded a cross-seam pass to Matt Coronato, who elevated a quick shot over Dostal to make it 3–2.
Anaheim answered once again, tying the game on a 2-on-1 rush as Kris Kreider finished a one-timer to complete the hat trick and force overtime.
In the extra frame, Sennecke delivered the decisive blow, ripping a top-shelf shot over Wolf’s glove to seal the 4–3 Ducks victory. The rookie now leads all first-year players with 18 goals on the season.
After spending time as a healthy scratch, Hunter Brzustewicz made a strong case to stay in the lineup. His first NHL goal was the reward for a simple, confident play, and it marked a positive step for a player who has been trending in the right direction.
3. January continues to be difficult for Dustin Wolf
The loss marked Wolf’s sixth defeat in his last seven appearances, underscoring a challenging month for the young goaltender. Despite stretches of strong play, the results haven’t followed, adding to Calgary’s recent frustrations.
TORONTO (AP) — Brock Nelson scored twice in a 1:12 span in the first period and sealed his fifth career hat trick with an empty-netter in the Colorado Avalanche’s 4-1 victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs on Sunday.
Jack Drury also scored to help NHL-leading Colorado improve to 35-6-9. MacKenzie Blackwood made 32 saves.
Colorado became the fourth team in NHL history with six or fewer regulation losses through 50 games, joining the 1979-80 Philadelphia Flyers (35-3-12), 1943-44 Montreal Canadiens (38-5-7) and 1975-76 Canadiens (36-6-8).
The last team with at least 77 points through 50 contests was the 2022-23 Boston Bruins (38-7-5), who went on to set the NHL record for wins in a season with 65.
Max Domi had a late power-play goal for Toronto, and Joseph Woll stopped 33 shots. The Maple Leafs are 24-19-9.
The Maple Leafs had a 4-3 overtime victory in Denver on Jan. 12, but have dropped six of seven (1-4-2), including an ugly 0-3-1 start to their current five-game homestand following an 8-0-2 run.
DUCKS 4, FLAMES 3, OT
CALGARY, Alberta (AP) — Rookie Beckett Sennecke scored at 2:54 of overtime for his first NHL hat trick as Anaheim rallied to beat Calgary.
Sennecke’s winner came on a 2-on-1 in which he kept the puck and snapped a shot past Dustin Wolf, just inside the post.
Chris Kreider also scored for Anaheim (28-21-3), which extended its winning streak to seven games. Mikael Granlund and Alex Killorn each had two assists. Lukas Dostal made 32 saves and improved to 19-12-2.
Sennecke’s three-goal effort gives him 18 for the season and 41 points overall, which places him second in rookie scoring to Montreal’s Ivan Demidov, who has 11 goals and 32 assists for 43 points.
The Ducks moved to within one point of the second-place Edmonton Oilers in the Pacific Division. Anaheim holds one game in hand. The Ducks and Oilers play Monday in Edmonton.
KRAKEN 4, DEVILS 2
SEATTLE (AP) — Matty Beniers and Berkly Catton scored 18 seconds apart in the third period, Joey Daccord made 27 saves and Seattle beat New Jersey.
Ryker Evans and Jordan Eberle also scored for Seattle, which has won three of their last 10 games. Beniers was playing in his 300th career NHL game.
Dougie Hamilton and Jack Hughes scored for the Devils. Jacob Markstrom stopped 15 shots in his sixth start in New Jersey’s last seven games. The Devils conclude their four-game Pacific Division road trip with a 3-1-0 record.
Hamilton opened the scoring 8:11 into the first period with a clean shot on the power play. Scoring his sixth goal of the season, Hamilton now has eight points in his last nine games.
Evans tied the game at 7:37 in the second period. The shot hit Johnathan Kovacevic’s stick and slipped through Markstrom’s pads, who appeared to be heavily screened.
Beniers and Catton scored back-to-back for Seattle, with their goals coming at 7:04 and 7:22 in the third period, respectively.
SENATORS 7, GOLDEN KNIGHTS 1
OTTAWA, Ontario (AP) — Stephen Halliday had two goals and an assist, Dylan Cozens also scored twice and Ottawa routed the road-weary Vegas.
Senators goalie Linus Ullmark returned to to the active roster from a personal leave, backing up Mads Sogaard. Ullmark was the 2022-23 Vezina Trophy winner.
Halliday scored his second and third career goals, and added the assist for a three-point game in his first season in the NHL.
Fabian Zetterlund, Jordan Spence and Nick Jensen also scored, and Brady Tkachuk had three assists. Sogaard stopped 19 shots.
Rasmus Andersson scored in third period for Vegas, making it 7-1. It was the defenseman’s first goal in two games with the Golden Knights following a trade with Calgary.
PENGUINS 3, CANUCKS 2
VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP) — Rookie Ben Kindel scored twice in the second period to lead Pittsburgh to a win over Vancouver and a sweep of Pittsburgh’s four-game western Canada trip.
Kindel, from nearby Coquitlam, British Columbia, had a large contingent of supporters on hand for his second multi-goal game. The 18-year-old had gone 20 games without a goal after scoring eight in his first 28 and has 10 goals and 12 assists in 48 games.
Evgeni Malkin also scored for the Penguins (26-14-11), and Stuart Skinner stopped 19 shots and won for the seventh time in eight games.
Jake DeBrusk and Teddy Blueger scored in the third period for the Canucks (17-30-5), who failed to complete their comeback try and dropped their second straight. Kevin Lankinen stopped 21 shots.
PANTHERS 5, BLACKHAWKS 1
CHICAGO (AP) — Defenseman Tobias Bjornfot scored his first two goals this season — giving him just three over seven NHL seasons and 139 career games — and Florida defeated Chicago for their third straight win.
Mackie Samoskevich and Carter Verhaeghe connected 2:04 apart early in the third period and Sam Reinhart added an empty-netter as the Panthers won for the sixth time in eight. Daniil Tarasov made 19 saves and the two-time defending Stanley Cup Panthers moved eight games over .500 for the first time this season.
Tyler Bertuzzi scored his team-leading 25th goal for the Blackhawks. Spencer Knight, who started his career with Florida, made 20 saves and fell to 0-2 against his former team.
The teams generated only a handful of chances through the first and second periods and neither pressured with a territorial edge.
CALGARY, Alberta (AP) — Rookie Beckett Sennecke scored at 2:54 of overtime for his first NHL hat trick as the Anaheim Ducks rallied to beat the Calgary Flames 4-3 Sunday night.
Sennecke's winner came on a 2-on-1 in which he kept the puck and snapped a shot past Dustin Wolf, just inside the post.
Chris Kreider also scored for Anaheim (28-21-3), which extended its winning streak to seven games. Mikael Granlund and Alex Killorn each had two assists. Lukas Dostal made 32 saves and improved to 19-12-2.
Sennecke’s three-goal effort gives him 18 for the season and 41 points overall, which places him second in rookie scoring to Montreal’s Ivan Demidov, who has 11 goals and 32 assists for 43 points.
The Ducks moved to within one point of the second-place Edmonton Oilers in the Pacific Division. Anaheim holds one game in hand. The Ducks and Oilers play Monday in Edmonton.
Jonathan Huberdeau, Matt Coronato and Hunter Brzustewicz, who had his first NHL goal, scored for Calgary (21-25-6), which is winless in its last four games (0-2-2). Wolf, who had 17 stops, falls to 15-21-2.
Huberdeau’s ninth goal snapped a 10-game goalless streak. Brzustewicz’s first NHL goal comes in his 18th game.
Calgary entered the game having scored just once in each of its last three games since the trading away of defenseman Rasmus Andersson. However, goals less than two minutes apart by Huberdeau and Brzustewicz gave the Flames a 2-0 lead eight minutes into the first period.
Tied 2-2 entering the third period, Coronato broke the deadlock at 4:50 before Kreider tied it at 13:08 and forced the extra session.
Anaheim’s second seven-game winning streak of the season gives the Ducks multiple seven-game runs in a season for the first time since 2014-15, when they also had two.
Up next
Ducks: At Edmonton on Monday in fourth game of a five-game trip.
The Chicago Blackhawks had their point streak (3-games) snapped by the Florida Panthers on Sunday evening. After a special dedication ceremony for “Hockey Fights Cancer”, the product on the ice left a lot to be desired.
The first 45 minutes of the hockey game were scoreless. That was until 15:33 of the second period when Tobias Bjornfort gave Florida a 1-0 lead.
With 30 seconds remaining in the middle frame, Tyler Bertuzzi tied it thanks to a great play made by Wyatt Kaiser and Ilya Mikheyev to find him at the net-mouth.
In the third period, the Panthers took over. Mackie Samoskevich, Carter Verhaeghe, Sam Reinhart, and Tobias Bjornfort's second goal of the game made it four unanswered for Florida. The 5-1 mark stood as the final score.
This loss for Chicago snapped a three-game point streak. They weren't outplayed until the third period, but that ultimately cost them the game.
Part of their struggles as a team overall, including in some of their wins, is scoring goals. Their offense has been lackluster for a couple of weeks now. Connor Bedard isn't producing at the same rate that he was before his injury, and the rest of the team isn't picking it up.
The power play, which had a good first half of the season, has been struggling in recent games. After going 0-3 on Sunday, they are now 0-17 over their last seven games, which has plummeted the entire unit down to 16th in the league with 20.5 percent.
With the loss, the Blackhawks will stay at 50 points. They are wildly improved compared to where they were with 30 games to go last year, but they have a long way to go before the playoffs are a realistic possibility.
The Blackhawks are back in action on Tuesday night when they pay a visit to the Minnesota Wild. It's another game against one of the elite teams in the NHL, except this one is a divisional matchup.
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The Vancouver Canucks battled to the end but fell 3-2 to the Pittsburgh Penguins. Vancouver's goal scorers on Sunday were Jake DeBrusk and Teddy Blueger. As for Kevin Lankinen, he stopped 22 of the 25 shots he faced.
Sunday was another example of the Canucks going down by multiple goals and needing a big push in the third to try and tie the game. All three goals scored by the Penguins happened in the second period, which puts Vancouver's total to 67 goals against in the middle frame. Post-game, Head Coach Adam Foote spoke about the second period and why it has been an issue all year.
"It's we can't, we're fine and, you know, it seems like we don't get the first goal, or they get the first goal or the second, we kind of get off mentally," said Foote. "We get off our game a little bit, and we've discussed it. And once they get back on, you see what they can do. They just went out as a completely different team in the third. Controlled that game in the third. So we just got to not get frustrated at 0-0, or one, nothing. For a long time, we had a mistake. Just hang in there and just, you know, play."
The biggest storyline from this game came right before the final whistle as Brock Boeser took an elbow to the head from Bryan Rust. Boeser did skate off under his own power but was talking with the trainer on the way to the bench. While Foote did not give an update post-game, he did comment on the play.
"I don't have an update yet, but I just looked at the hit," said Foote. "It wasn't pretty. There was a headshot. A shoulder in his head. I'm sure the league will look at it. Even though he may have been desperate to get Bess down because it was a scrum at the net, I still think it was something that you had to be in control of your body. I thought it was a little bit vicious hit to the head.
As for a positive from the game, the Canucks were able to hold Sidney Crosby pointless and without a shot in this game. Foote and his staff mainly used Blueger and Elias Pettersson in the role to keep the future Hall of Famer in check. Post-game, Blueger spoke to the media about the matchup and how difficult it is to defend against Crosby.
"He's obviously one of the hardest matchups in the league," said Blueger. "So, you know, it's a very, very tough matchup. At the same time, you appreciate it. He's one of the all-time greats. And, yeah, going against him is, you know, a privilege in a way, too. So it's, it's hard work. But yeah, I think, Petey went against them a lot too, and did a good job against them."
Jan 25, 2026; Vancouver, British Columbia, CAN; Vancouver Canucks forward Filip Chytil (72) stick checks Pittsburgh Penguins forward Sidney Crosby (87) in the third period at Rogers Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bob Frid-Imagn Images
Ultimately, Sunday replicated so many other nights this season. Vancouver fell into an early hole, showed off their resiliency, yet still came up short in the end. Overall, the positive remains that the game featured entertaining moments while also helping the tank as the Canucks picked up zero points and extended their lead at the bottom of the standings.
Stats and Facts:
- Jake DeBrusk breaks his eight-game scoring drought
- Teddy Blueger scores for the second-straight game
- Conor Garland records his first point of 2026
- Elias Pettersson's 290th career assist ties him with Dennis Kearns for the ninth most in franchise history
Scoring Summary:
1st Period:
No Scoring
2nd Period:
5:24-PIT: Evgeni Malkin (13) from Tommy Novak and Egor Chinakhov 8:41- PIT: Ben Kindel (9) from Ryan Shea and Anthony Mantha 17:22- PIT: Ben Kindel (10) from Justin Brazeau and Brett Kulak
3rd Period:
6:29- VAN: Jake DeBrusk (13) from Elias Pettersson and Evander Kane 14:00- VAN: Teddy Blueger (3) from Liam Öhgren and Filip Hronek
Up Next:
The Canucks continue their homestand on Tuesday when they face the San Jose Sharks. While Kiefer Sherwood is injured, there is a chance he will make his Sharks debut on Tuesday. Game time is scheduled for 7:00 pm PT.
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