On Monday, Washington Capitals legend Alexander Ovechkin announced that the 2026-27 season will be his last one in the NHL. After 22 years on this side of the pond, the Great 8 didn’t say he would retire, just that it would be his last year in the NHL. In other words, he’ll likely head home and spend some time in the KHL, as so many Russians do when Father Time catches up to them.
At 41, the Capitals captain isn't as productive as he once was, but he remains a legend of the game and the all-time leading goal scorer. Once, people wondered whether he could beat Wayne Gretzky’s regular-season goal total of 894, and he did in 2024-25. He could still beat Gretzky’s all-time goal-scoring record. The Canadian has 1,016 goals if you include the playoffs, whereas the Russian has 1,006. It would take a fantastic postseason for the Caps, but it’s far from impossible. When Washington won the Stanley Cup in 2017-18, he scored 15 goals in 24 games.
As things stand, Ovechkin has 929 goals and 759 assists for 1688 points. In 22 seasons, he has faced the Montreal Canadiens 63 times, scoring 44 goals and adding 32 assists for 76 points. He's been a thorn in the Habs’ side over the years, and it’s fair to say the Sainte-Flanelle won’t miss him.
Fans may miss him, though, because he remains an impressive player to watch on the ice; who doesn’t remember his breakaway challenge at the All-Star Game in Montreal in 2009? The Tricolore will face him three times this season; the first two duels will be in Washington on October 14 and January 19, and once in Montreal on February 13, at 1:00 PM. As always on Superbowl weekend, the Bell Centre will host a couple of matinee games, and if you’ve yet to see Ovechkin play in person, this will be your very last chance to watch him take on the Habs. If your kid has never seen him play, there’s your chance.
Right now, very few tickets remain for that game, and the cheapest one is at $269. Secondary-market prices will likely rocket up. Still, Canadiens fans will no doubt salute the end of Ovechkin’s career beautifully in February, and it will be yet another marquee moment at the Bell Centre.
PITTSBURGH, PA - OCTOBER 05: Kyle Connor #81 of the Winnipeg Jets moves the puck in front of Nick Robertson #14 of the Pittsburgh Penguins at PPG PAINTS Arena on October 5, 2026 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Joe Sargent/NHLI via Getty Images) | NHLI via Getty Images
On Saturday night, the Pittsburgh Penguins surrendered three third period goals to squander a 5-1 lead, but they were ultimately able to recover and win in overtime. On Monday night against the Winnipeg Jets, the Penguins allowed another three goals in the final frame to once again give up a lead they began the period with, instead this time around, they were unable to bounce back, and as a result, dropped their first game of the season in a 3-2 home loss. [Pensburgh]
Pens Points…
It’s the first full week of the 2026-27 NHL season and the Penguins have four games on the schedule, including their first back-to-back set coming on Friday/Saturday. This week also features a pair of games against Metro opponents in Washington and Columbus. [Pensburgh]
You can read more about it below, but Alexander Ovechkin announced he will be retiring at the end of the season. Having been his chief rival for more than two decades, Evgeni Malkin and Sidney Crosby shared their thoughts on the announcement with the media. [Pensburgh]
The rivalry between the Penguins and Capitals was already well established before Crosby and Ovechkin came into the league, but their own personal rivalry just added to the intensity when the two teams met, and now they will get one final go around this season. [Penguins]
So much of Crosby’s career has been defined by his rivalry with Ovechkin, that when Ovie retires, there will seem like a piece of Sid is missing as well for however long he continues playing. [The Athletic $$]
A new season brings some new menu items available for fans to purchase at PPG Paints Arena and there will be plenty to choose from and try out during your visit. [PPG]
Coming into the season, all you had to do was look at the Penguins roster and you could see they had an abundance of forwards under contract and not nearly enough room to fit them all. That depth is vital in an NHL season, but it still takes some managing to make sure you have the right fit. [The Athletic $$]
NHL News and Notes…
This season will mark the final season for Alexander Ovechkin who announced he will be retiring at the end of 2026-27 after a 22-year career. His final regular season home game will fittingly come against the Penguins in April. [NHL]
It’s the first “Three Stars of the Week” of the NHL season and Igor Shesterkin leads the way following two wins in three starts to go along with a goal of his own and an assist. Joining Shesterkin among the honorees is Evan Bouchard and Paul Cotter who lit up the box score early in the season. [NHL]
SAN JOSE, CA - OCTOBER 1: Macklin Celebrini #71 of the San Jose Sharks takes the ice through the Shark Head before the game against the Florida Panthers at SAP Center on October 1, 2026 in San Jose, California. (Photo by Kavin Mistry/NHLI via Getty Images) | NHLI via Getty Images
good morning everyone!
October has begun and you know what that means: It’s the beginning of the NHL season!
And I can say that, after seven or so years, the San Jose Sharks might be near the end of a dark, dark tunnel.
The Sharks haven’t made the playoffs since 2019, when they gambled it all only to come up short.
Joe Thornton, Brent Burns, Joe Pavelski, Logan Couture, Erik Karlsson, Timo Meier and Logan Couture: They’re all gone.
The Sharks spent the last few years in the bottom of the league. But now we’ve got a new-look team fronted by Hart Trophy contender Macklin Celebrini, and Will Smith is another exciting player.
I think the big question for the Sharks is how Yaroslav Askarov will do in the goal. He’s a young goalie and was entrusted with the position last year.
Also, can we please take a moment to remember how great the Shark Tank is?
The San Jose Sharks have the greatest entrance in professional hockey – and much better than the Medieval Knights rip-off they feature in Las Vegas. These are ice hockey players entering the Shark Tank through a shark!
And what’s that? A bunch of sharks swimming underneath the tank? That’s one intimidating environment. This is a playoff hockey arena.
I really believe this is the year the Sharks make it back to the playoffs. I’ve waited a very long time to see them play meaningful hockey again. I can’t wait.
COYS(harks)!
Fitzie’s track of the day: BLACKOUT, by TURNSTILE
And now for your links:
Alasdair Gold: “Tottenham’s NFL boost – How much transfer cash they get and injury curse strikes again”
BBC: “England’s greatest international? Kane is now a serious contender”
After suffering yet another loss, a 4-1 decision at the hands of the Tampa Bay Lightning on Monday night, the Philadelphia Flyers are officially having a historically bad start to their 2026-27 season.
The Lightning out-shot the Flyers 36-14 in their dominant win, putting the Flyers in some, well, pretty bad company through their first four games of the season.
According to NBC Sports Philadelphia's broadcast team, only the 1970-71 Buffalo Sabres (-104) have had a worse shot on goal differential than the Flyers (-82) through the first four games of a season in NHL history.
The next two teams behind the Flyers were the 1991-92 Edmonton Oilers at -81, and the 2010-11 Anaheim Ducks at -80. In other words, it's been 16 years since the NHL has seen one of its teams outclassed by its opponents so badly to start a season.
Much like the games against Carolina and New Jersey, the Flyers looked like they might have had just enough juice to steal a point (or two), as a wonky deflection goal credited to Tyson Foerster pulled the Flyers within a goal, trailing 2-1 just under halfway through the second period.
That second period was the Flyers' best of the game, as they were outshot 10-3 and 15-4 in the first and third periods, respectively. Playing a few minutes of cohesive hockey isn't going to take any team, let alone the Flyers, very far.
Brayden Point opened the scoring for the Lightning on a deflection after beating Trevor Zegras on a faceoff in Zegras's defensive zone, and Pontus Holmberg gave the Lightning a 2-0 lead just 17 seconds into the second period with Cam York slipping up in the neutral zone.
The Flyers went 0-for-3 on the power play, though Travis Konecny and Trevor Zegras believed it was fine after the Carolina game because they generated "looks" and just didn't execute.
In a game where a Nikita Kucherov-led power play also went 0-for-3, special teams could have made the difference, but the Flyers had no spark or killer instinct to make it happen.
Some of that falls on coaching, yes, but pro athletes have to be natural competitors. Very few have looked the part four games into the season, giving away cheap standings points to Eastern Conference teams looking to make the playoffs.
The Lightning ended the game with exactly three minutes left, as David Jiricek made an ill-advised pass under pressure to turn the puck over, then got overzealous trying to defend Holmberg when Cam York was behind him in support.
Ilya Mikheyev scored the eventual wraparound after an awkward scramble, even with Travis Konecny and Sean Couturier in strong position to erase Jiricek's pair of mistakes defending Vladar's crease.
No matter, though, because even if the Flyers survived and were able to pull the extra attacker to go 6-on-5 down 2-1, they probably wouldn't have scored anyway. Their power play and poise with the puck have given us no reason to believe otherwise.
Flyers head coach Rick Tocchet dropped a rather damning quote on his team in his postgame media availability, claiming, "This team is way too comfortable and they did not compete tonight."
It's the fourth game of the year, and we're questioning compete level, team mentality, and readiness to play.
If this downward spiral continues, it will be interesting to see where things go from here.
The Ottawa Senators are 2-0 to start the new season, but for the second straight game, the good news came with an asterisk.
Tim Stützle scored twice and added an assist as the Senators turned in a highly efficient road performance Monday night, defeating the Boston Bruins 4-1 at TD Garden.
Michael Amadio had a goal and an assist, while Drake Batherson scored his first of the season as the Sens followed up Saturday’s 3-2 victory in Toronto with another road win. The Senators finished with 24 shots on goal and allowed just 19.
But once again, an injury took some of the shine off the result.
After losing top defenceman Jake Sanderson during the season opener, the Senators lost starting goaltender Linus Ullmark against his former team. Ullmark made 10 saves through two periods but was removed to start the third, having "tweaked something" as a result of a collision.
The Senators described the decision to pull him as precautionary, with Samuel Ersson taking over in goal.
For a team already dealing with the loss of its best defenceman, the status of its No. 1 goaltender will now be the next major storyline as the Sens play the second half of a back-to-back Tuesday in Detroit. That was a game that Ersson was likely to start in anyway.
Stützle opened the scoring at 7:39 of the first period, finishing a a great setup from Amadio to give the Sens their first shorthanded goal of the season and an early 1-0 lead.
Less than two minutes later, he struck again, this time using Amadio as a decoy. It didn't officially count as a shorthanded goal, but for all intents and purposes, it was.
That quickly put the Bruins in a 2-0 hole and gave the Senators control that they never relinquished.
Batherson extended the lead to 3-0 just 1:06 into the second period, with Stützle picking up the assist for his third point of the night. After a neutral zone turnover, Stützle picked up the puck and hit his linemate with a stretch pass for a breakaway. Batherson finished with a gorgeous backhand tuck behind Bruins goalie Jeremy Swayman.
Amadio then made it 4-0 at 5:19, converting a nice setup from Shane Pinto. Pinto's original shot was disrupted, so he whipped a blind backhand pass to the front of the net and Amadio swatted it home. That gave Amadio his second point of the game and second goal in as many games.
Amadio has been one of the Sens top players so far and it should be noted that, while he's not talked about as much, he's an important player who's in his contract year.
That was more than enough offence to get the W.
Boston finally broke through at 3:30 of the third period when James Hagens scored his second goal of the season. It was a fluky goal after Ersson tried to play the puck and whiffed on his pass attempt behind the Sens net.
But for the second straight game, the Sens played a highly structured third period and thwarted any comeback ideas.
The Senators won't have much time to enjoy the victory or assess the bumps and bruises. They'll travel to Detroit to face the Red Wings Tuesday night, looking to make it three straight wins to open the season.
In 1983, an American rock band called Styx released the lead single from an upcoming rock opera album titled Kilroy Was Here. The lead single–Mr. Roboto– enjoyed months of success on the Billboard Hot 100 despite contributing to the album’s concepts about fascism and the dangerous rise of technology.
The bridge of Mr. Roboto is where the payoff really comes in. The English lines begin:
“Thank you very much, Mr. Roboto, for doing the jobs that nobody wants to.”
When I think of Marc Gatcomb, the newest fourth liner for the Vegas Golden Knights, I think of those lyrics.
By nature, being a fourth liner in the NHL is all about doing thankless jobs. They sacrifice their bodies every night, finishing every check and eating pucks like rubber is part of the food pyramid. They make their living in the corners and around the net, often called the “dirty areas.” And they do all this for as low a salary cap hit as possible.
Through three games for the Golden Knights, Gatcomb, who previously played for the New York Islanders, is going above and beyond to do what is asked of him. He leads the team with 14 hits and has drawn a penalty.
In Saturday’s game against the Vancouver Canucks, Gatcomb demonstrated he can contribute offensively, too. After conceding the tying goal, Golden Knights head coach Ryan Craig sent the fourth line over the boards to provide a spark. And they did just that: they made their presence felt with a heavy forecheck, which immediately led to a Canucks turnover.
Just 34 seconds later, Gatcomb got to the front of the net and finished off a pass from Braeden Bowman to record his first goal in a Golden Knights sweater.
Marc Gatcomb buries the rebound to put Vegas back on top ⚔️
“You want to try to tilt the ice back in your favor for sure, and do anything you can,” said Gatcomb following the team’s 3-2 win. “A goal’s always great, but that’s not always going to happen. But I think you just gotta try to get the momentum back in your hands, and that’s what we did tonight.”
Gatcomb was thrilled to contribute offensively, but he was most proud of the identity the new-look fourth line is beginning to establish.
“As a 4th line, you like to have an identity and a role as to how you want to play each night, and try not to get away from it,” Gatcomb said. “Ultimately, the goal is to win hockey games and to do anything you can to contribute, and that’s not always going to be a [goal], but anytime you can chip in on the score sheet, it's great. We’re trying to build an identity here. And as we continue playing, and playing how we want, I think the chances are going to come in our favor.”
The fourth-liner’s role is the most selfless position in hockey. The job description requires doing the jobs no one really wants to do, while expecting nothing in return. And who better exemplifies that thankless job than Gatcomb, the Golden Knights’ very own Mr. Roboto?
After a roaring 2-0 start to the season that featured 13 goals scored, the Pittsburgh Penguins were probably due for a bit of a regression.
And that happened in the third game of the young season on Monday.
The Winnipeg Jets defeated the Penguins, 3-2, in what was a flat, sluggish effort for the home team in black and gold. Ben Kindel and Declan Carlile each recorded their second goals of the season, but it wasn't enough to stop a third-period push by Winnipeg or enough to overcome their sloppy play in all three zones.
Rookie Sergei Murashov was in goal for the first time this season, and he was largely outstanding and kept the game close, stopping 30 of 33 Jets' shots.
"I thought he played well," head coach Dan Muse said. "You look at that first period, especially in the last five to seven minutes, some of the saves that he made. I thought that we were not on point, and he made some huge saves to kind of weather some storms there.
"So, that’s [all] you can ask for."
A no-score stalemate carried into the second period, as both teams had a hard time generating anything and getting any sort of sustained pressure. Finally, Kindel broke through midway through the middle frame when he deflected a high shot by Carlile into the back of the net. It was ruled no-goal on the ice due to a high stick but was overturned on an official review afterward.
Then, the third period happened - as did several defensive breakdowns. Erik Karlsson lost possession of the puck at the net-front, and it trickled right to a completely uncovered Alex Iafallo on Murashov's left, who buried it to tie the game. A few minutes later, Adam Lowry capitalized after beating Sam Girard to a loose puck in the crease to give the Jets the lead.
Carlile tied the game back up shortly after. Ville Koivunen - back in the lineup after being a healthy scratch Saturday - worked hard to win a puck battle and keep possession in the offensive zone, and he fed Kindel below the goal line, who already knew he was going to throw the puck to Carlile in the slot immediately.
But that lead didn't last long at all. Nine seconds later, Cole Perfetti one-timed a perfect pass by Josh Morrissey off the rush, and the Jets came away with the 3-2 win.
It was ugly. It was sloppy. But it was also only game three.
As philosopher - er, netminder - Murashov says:
"You can think a lot, but there is a saying in Russian: 'Morning is wiser than evening.' So, just take a good sleep, rest, and calmly think about that tomorrow, so we can get better from this game. There is always something good, and there is always something to improve."
Here are a few takeaways from this one:
- To be clear, Murashov is not going to be a perfect goaltender this season, as wise as he is for a 22-year-old. He's a rookie, and there are games where he's going to be off the mark. That's going to happen to any goaltender in the league, young or old, on occasion.
But, man, the talent is so clear.
The Penguins had a 10-4 shot advantage midway through the first period, and the Jets really turned it on in the back half, ending the opening frame with 12 shots to Pittsburgh's 11. Murashov had to make several grade-A stops in that timeframe, with his most impressive, perhaps, being one that came as a result of his own mishap.
Murashov loves to play the puck. Sometimes, to a fault. He went to play the puck in the low slot with a lot of bodies coming into the attacking zone and in the vicinity, and he gave the puck away to a Jet at the blue line. Somehow, he scooted back and went full butterfly for an stop to his left on a one-timer, and he made it look effortless.
That's not a save most goaltenders make. I have no clue how he was able to stay graceful enough to scramble back that smoothly or how he was quick enough to get back and make that save.
Maybe he could have saved Perfetti's goal. But, at the end of the day, the Penguins were in this game because of the rookie, who is still adjusting to NHL speed after a phenomenal AHL playoff run.
Well, maybe not, actually.
"Puck's the same size, net's the same size, and we're playing five-on-five," Murashov said. "So, [it's] basically same thing I got to do. But we have great coaches who help a lot with adjustment. It all starts from preparation, from summer, from training camp. When you're practicing on this speed or even higher speed, and even in harder situations, you embrace it, and then you just go and play.
Another phrase which our psychologist gave to me is, "Train hard, fight easy." So that's the approach to be ready for the NHL."
This kid is special. Expect some growing pains, but there's something there.
- This was a really sluggish, flat start for the Penguins. They may have reached a double-digit shot total in the first period, but it didn't feel like it. They had a hard time getting sustained zone time, many chances were one-off, and none were particularly dangerous looks.
They also had far too many turnovers - a few by Erik Karlsson and one egregious one by Connor Dewar - and made Murashov work way too hard.
It took them a while to get find their footing in the middle frame, too, but they were at least able to start generating more offense. Still too many good looks for Winnipeg, but a much better job as the game went on.
Once again, though, it's going to take some time for everyone to mesh. There are plenty of new faces on this team, and it's not going to be smooth-sailing every night, especially in the earlygoing.
- This sentiment has been making some rounds, and I felt this game was an appropriate time to chime in on the Dewar discourse.
To be honest, I was a bit surprised when he was extended this summer. It's not as if he's a bad player. Dewar, 27, had a really solid season for the Penguins in 2025-26 - recording 14 goals and 30 points in 78 games to go along with an impressive plus-16 last season, the last number being rare for a fourth-liner - and he and Lizotte have good chemistry on that fourth line. He kills penalties, and he's a key energy guy.
But for those who are worried about the Bryan Rusts, the Rickard Rakells, and the Evgeni Malkins blocking younger players from the lineup, the guys like Dewar are the central culprits. Dewar played well enough to earn a contract this summer, but at the end of the day, he's a replaceable bottom-six player.
I have a feeling that we're going to see a large rotation of sorts in the bottom-six to begin the season, with many different players - Dewar included - in and out of the lineup. But, if we're going based on training camp and the three-game sample size up to this point, I think all of Filip Hallander, Ville Koivunen, and Elmer Soderblom have been better.
We'll see how things shake out. But I think both Hallander and Koivunen deserve to remain in the lineup right now. In any case, this "rotation" is probably serving as a tryout of sorts to see who separates himself and earns full-time minutes over the others.
- As I said after the last game, I think all the new Penguins' defensemen have done some good things through three games. Trevor van Riemsdyk is good in front of his own net and makes some high-level stick plays. Kaedan Korczak has been good in his own zone, by and large, and is a shot-blocking machine.
However, I have been most impressed by Carlile. He blocked three shots against the Jets. He scored his second goal of the season to seal career-highs in goals (2) and points (4). He is good in the neutral zone and is more fleet of foot than I thought.
Karlsson was a bit of a mess tonight, but Carlile - his partner - managed to hold it together. This could be a Parker Wotherspoon situation again, although Carlile appears to have more offensive upside.
- Speaking of Karlsson, his "bad games" are fewer and farther between these days.
But, when they're bad, they're bad.
This was the worst game I've seen him play in a while, and Sidney Crosby was the same way. Crosby had four giveaways, and his passing was a bit off. Karlsson straight-up passed the puck to Jets on a few occasions and also misplayed the puck on Iafallo's goal.
When Crosby is off, the Penguins can typically find ways around that. When Karlsson is off, though, the whole team seems to be off.
This might be what folks call a "hot take," but right now, Karlsson is the single-most important player on this team. The game goes as he goes, the team plays as he does, and the season is most dependent on his performance and health.
Hopefully, he has a short memory with this one.
- Wednesday, the Penguins will face the Washington Capitals for the first time this season. Alex Ovechkin announced Monday that this will be his final season in the NHL.
Celerbrini took part in warmups before the game against the Dallas Stars, but the team announced before puck drop that he wouldn't be playing. Alex Wennberg took his spot on the top line.
The Sharks fell 5-0 to the Stars, their first loss of the season. They had won their first two games with Celebrini picking up five assists.
Sharks coach Ryan Warsofsky didn't have an update on Celebrini after the game.
"We will evaluate tonight and tomorrow and see where he's at," Warsofky said, per the Bay Area News Group. "He's still being evaluated. He's in the building, so he's with the team."
DALLAS (AP) — Jake Oettinger stopped 14 shots and earned his 17th career shutout as the Dallas Stars beat the San Jose Sharks 5-0 on Monday night for their first victory of the season.
The Sharks were without star center Macklin Celebrini, who was scratched a few minutes before the start of the game due to a lower-body injury.
Jamie Benn had a goal and an assist, and Miro Heiskanen, Joel Kiviranta, Jason Robertson and Mikko Rantanen also scored for Dallas.
Heiskanen’s goal on a backhand shot with 1:09 left in the first period proved to be the winner.
Yaroslav Askarov had 21 saves for the Sharks.
Celebrini, who was recently named San Jose’s captain, took part in warmups but left the ice earlier than usual.
Former Stars forward Ty Dellandrea made his season debut in place of Celebrini, the 20-year-old face of the franchise who assisted on Igor Chernyshov’s overtime goal Saturday that made San Jose 2-0.
TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Pontus Holmberg and Ilya Mikheyev each had a goal and assist, Andrei Vasilevskiy stopped 13 shots to move into a tie for 20th place on the NHL career wins list, and Tampa Bay beat Philadelphia.
Vasilevskiy’s 372nd victory moved him into a tie with Andy Moog. Vasilevskiy needs two more wins to tie John Vanbiesbrouck for 19th place.
Brayden Point and Brandon Hagel also scored for the Lightning, who have won two games since an opening-night loss to the New York Rangers.
Tyson Foerster scored for Philadelphia and Dan Vladar finished with 32 saves.
The Flyers are winless (0-2-2) through four games to start the season for the first time since 2013-14. Philadelphia has been held to two or fewer goals in all four games.
Point scored his first goal of the season with a deflection off a wrist shot from John Carlson at 16:05 of the first period. Holmberg scored 17 seconds into the second period off the rush for a 2-0 lead.
Foerster wheeled a shot from the top of the left circle that hit Tampa Bay defenseman Charle-Edouard D’Astous in front of the net to bring Philadelphia with one at 7:22.
Mikheyev made it 3-1 with a wraparound with three minutes to play. Hagel added an empty-netter.
Nikita Kucherov picked up two assists and now has 1,128 career points to move past Mike Bossy and Joe Nieuwendyk for 67th place.
SENATORS 4, BRUINS 1
BOSTON (AP) — Tim Stutzle had two goals and an assist and goalies Linus Ullmark and Samuel Ersson combined to stop 18 of 19 shots as Ottawa defeated Boston.
Stutzle’s multi-point game moved him into sole possession of sixth place for most points in Ottawa history with 413.
Ullmark started in goal for Ottawa, but wasn’t on the ice at the start of the third period. The onetime Bruin netminder, who stopped all 10 shots he faced in the first two periods, was on the bench five minutes into the final period. Ersson made eight saves in the final period for the Senators.
Ottawa’s Michael Amadio had a goal and assist, and Drake Batherson also scored.
Boston rookie James Hagan spoiled Ottawa’s shutout bid with a goal in the third period. Jeremy Swayman made 20 saves for the Bruins, who have lost two straight after opening the season with two wins.
Boston was outshot 24-19 and failed to score on four power plays.
JETS 3, PENGUINS 2
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Alex Iafallo had a goal and an assist, Clay Stevenson made 29 saves, and Winnipeg beat Pittsburgh.
Pittsburgh’s Declan Carlile scored 8:53 into the third period to tie the game at 2-2, but Cole Perfetti scored the winner on a wrist shot just nine seconds later, assisted by Josh Morrissey, to put the Jets ahead to stay.
Adam Lowry also scored for the Jets, who have won two in a row after losing their season opener.
Benjamin Kindel also scored for the Penguins and Carlile added an assist. Sergei Murashov made 30 saves for the Penguins.
DALLAS (AP) — Jake Oettinger stopped the 14 shots and earned his 17th career shutout as the Dallas Stars beat the San Jose Sharks 5-0 on Monday night for their first victory of the season.
The Sharks were without star center Macklin Celebrini, who was scratched a few minutes before the start of the game due to a lower-body injury.
Jamie Benn had a goal and an assist, and Miro Heiskanen, Joel Kiviranta, Jason Robertson and Mikko Rantanen also scored for Dallas.
Heiskanen's goal on a backhand shot with 1:09 left in the first period proved to be the winner.
Yaroslav Askarov had 21 saves for the Sharks.
Celebrini, who was recently named San Jose's captain, took part in warmups but left the ice earlier than usual.
Former Stars forward Ty Dellandrea made his season debut in place of Celebrini, the 20-year-old face of the franchise who assisted on Igor Chernyshov’s overtime goal Saturday that made San Jose 2-0.
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Alex Iafallo had a goal and an assist, Clay Stevenson made 29 saves, and the Winnipeg Jets beat the Pittsburgh Penguins 3-2 on Monday night.
Pittsburgh's Declan Carlile scored 8:53 into the third period to tie the game at 2-2, but Cole Perfetti scored the winner on a wrist shot just nine seconds later, assisted by Josh Morrissey, to put the Jets ahead to stay.
Adam Lowry also scored for the Jets, who have won two in a row after losing their season opener.
Benjamin Kindel also scored for the Penguins and Carlile added an assist. Sergei Murashov made 30 saves for the Penguins.
The Jets outhit the Penguins by 12, 23 to 11.
Up next
Jets: Host the Colorado Avalanche on Wednesday night.
Penguins: Visit the Washington Capitals on Wednesday night.
PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA - OCTOBER 05: Goaltender Sergei Murashov #1 of the Pittsburgh Penguins makes a save during the first period against Winnipeg Jets the at PPG PAINTS Arena on October 05, 2026 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Josh Lavallee/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Pregame
The Penguins rotate Ville Koivunen back into the lineup and give Filip Hallander the night off. Sergei Murashov gets the start for his first appearance of the season.
The Jets bring the following lineup to the table, including ex-Penguin Jack St. Ivany who gets to make his debut for Winnipeg against his former club. In net, Clay Stevenson makes his first appearance for his new team.
Rookie Viggo Bjorck took a penalty two minutes into the game having to hook into Ben Kindel to deny a scoring chance, the Penguins don’t do much with the early power play.
Later on Murashov makes his first big save of the game following a failed clearing attempt by Connor Dewar ended up resulting in a nice chance on the doorstep for Gabe Vilardi before Murashov’s quick lateral move sealed up the bottom of the net.
An Erik Karlsson turnover gives Vilardi another look, his shot goes off maybe Murashov and then definitely the post and the score stays 0-0.
The Penguins assortment of defensive bumbles and getting out of their own zone keeps piling up. The Jets get a few more really good chances by picking off various passes and mishandlings but Murashov is reading the play beautifully and square to everything coming his way. He’s sharp and it’s a good thing because that’s the only reason the period ends as a scoreless one.
The Pens started pretty well, then things soured big time. Shots end up 12-11 WPG through 20 minutes. Pittsburgh played a little too casual and hurried in the early going to find much success.
Second period
The teams trade chances early, Sidney Crosby gets a redirection in front of the net and then Kyle Conner hits the iron and sets up Mark Scheifele but Murashov robs him with a glove save.
The Pens get the second power play of the night, Josh Morrissey is off for tripping. Even the officials are sloppy, messing up the time and causing a long delay to get it right. The Pens aren’t any better, as they continue to show no sharpness or ability to make a pass or hold the puck very well.
Pittsburgh is able to score the first goal after all that. Ben Kindel wins an offensive zone faceoff and gets to the front of the net. Declan Carlile sends in a fluttering shot where the puck started way high but then dipped down low enough for Kindel to deflect it past Stevenson. The refs wave the goal off at first but a video review overturns that iniital call since Kindel’s stick was below the crossbar of the goal. 1-0 Pens.
Blake Lizotte takes the first Pittsburgh penalty of the game with a boarding minor. Winnipeg gets some zone time and a few looks on quick passing plays but are unable to score.
The Pens hold on to get to the locker-room up by a goal. Another Dewar failed clearing attempt ended up on Neal Pionk’s stick, his shot going off the crossbar and out of play in the last minute.
Shots are 22-21 PIT after two, hasn’t been the prettiest (to say the least) yet they’re up by one goal after two periods.
Third period
The Pens’ first line has a good shift but can’t score. Winnipeg does soon after. They shoot on the rush, Murashov makes a save and kicks out a rebound that Karlsson can’t corral and ends up pushing back towards the net. Alex Iafallo is there to slam it home. 1-1 game with 15:17 to go.
Winnipeg is able to build on that momentum and take their first lead. Dylan DeMelo jams Nick Robertson up at the blueline, the Pens can’t clear the puck and are in trouble from then. Iafallo, having himself a period, drives hard to the net. Murashov sprawls to deny that effort but the puck ends up sitting in the crease for Adam Lowry to drive hard to the crease and put it in. 2-1 Jets.
Pittsburgh’s able to fight back and turn the table to tie the game. It’s another great play by Kindel, who knocks down the Winnipeg pass and Ville Koivunen collects it. Koivunen sends it down low to Kindel who makes a great touch pass back to Declan Carlile. Carlile picks his spot on the blocker side and it’s 2-2.
The tie game only lasts nine seconds before Winnipeg re-establishes their lead. Morrissey gets a pass over to Cole Perfetti and his shot beats Murashov. 3-2 now as the gates come open on the scoring in a hurry in the third.
Murashov gets pulled for an extra attacker with about two minutes to go. The Pens take a timeout with 1:21 remaining to rest their players for a final push. They get a few looks but can’t solve Stevenson before the clock runs out.
Some thoughts
Some interesting line matching, the Jets started the game with their checking line (Adam Lowry) so the Penguins kept Erik Karlsson off the ice at the beginning of the game so that he could match up against the top scoring line (Mark Scheifele). The Pens didn’t run from starting the Crosby line against the Jets’ top checkers.
Boy, this one was a slog, especially through the first two periods. And that’s putting it kindly. The Penguins were credited with 12 official giveaways in the first half of the game, which was charitable since it could have been double that. Nothing was working for them. Players who usually can move the puck like Erik Karlsson, Tommy Novak and Sam Girard (who combined for seven of the first 12 official giveaways) were in shambles. It wasn’t just those three, it was endemic all over the lineup. Once on the power play in the second period, Crosby won the draw but the puck slowly skidded back. Crosby pulled up and didn’t skate to the puck, neither did anyone else in a black jersey. Kinda crazy how a team clicking enough to score 13 goals over the first two games of season can look like a bunch of beer leaguers that have never played together in no time flat. The beautiful game!
Everything was a struggle for Karlsson in particular. It can be jarring on his off nights to see him fight the puck, the first goal against was a bit of bad luck but given how the first 40 minutes went, it’s no surprise the puck went off his stick with him unable to get it out of danger.
Did you check that line on the ice for the first goal of the game? Kindel was with Dewar and Lizotte, a little spot shift for all (and to help manage the minutes of players in this case of Lapierre, Kuzmenko and Koivunen from the bottom lines that weren’t up to much). Kindel won the faceoff, soon after the puck was in the net. Paid off to mix and match and get some of the more important/better-playing bottom six guys extra time. Always nice to see a little wrinkle by the coaching staff to search for a little something missing.
The success of that goal led to the change lasting a little longer, as you might expect, to shuffle combinations around for the rest of the night. Hendrix Lapierre and Koivunen got shifts with Crosby, Koivunen was out there with Kindel on the second goal due to a line change in progress.
Murashov did have a 21-save shutout in his second NHL start last season, so tonight might not be a clear-cut ‘best game ever’ for him so far, but it was pretty darn good. Maybe you’d like to see a save on the third goal in the situation just seconds after the team rallied to tie, though a goalie can only be expected to do so much on a given night.
Much like his run in Wilkes-Barre last spring, sometimes Murashov can be a little over-active in aggressively leaving his crease in the attempt to help the team when they’re struggling defensively, it didn’t burn him tonight due to his athleticism to recover. That’s something to watch for the future, though at this point it’s a hallmark in his game that he might try to do a little too much with good intentions to do what he can to help out.
Kindel had two really nice plays on his goal and assist, it’s early yet but man he looks well on his way towards taking that next step into becoming a really solid player in the league. That’s about where the positives stop on this game, though shoutout to Carlile for scoring a goal for the second game in a row, doubling his NHL career goal total in the last 48 hours.
Third periods still look like an adventure this season based on the last two games. Granted, the Pens were mighty fortunate to be up 1-0 (and not conceded a goal, thanks largely to Murashov) going into the third and it wasn’t a massive collapse tonight. Then again, they gave up three goals in the last period and lost because of it, which is a troubling continuation adter last year and especially last game’s 5-1 mess turning into 5-5. It’s not very comfortable for the Pens holding leads yet again, having given up six goals in the third periods of the last two games to get back into uncomfortably familiar territory.
Given the situation of playing a home game against what could be a lower level (or middle of the road) team, who were on the second-half of a back-to-back, the result is disappointing for the Pens. You can’t say it was an unworthy outcome either, which is where the disappointment hits hardest. The team was sloppy and surely left everyone from players to coaches to fans frustrated by being unable to play clean or even connect with simple, routine plays at times. Can’t say that was expected after the fast start of what they showed in the early games, though such is life sometimes as performances ebb and flow from night to night. It was pretty obvious that the Penguins weren’t on their A-game in this one and they end up with their first loss of the season as a result. Now with a first small taste of some adversity, we’ll look for how the bounce back goes in a rivalry game on Wednesday night on the road against the Capitals.
The NHL is putting its “Hot for Hockey” audiobook campaign on ice.
Less than a week after the NHL started releasing a series of short stories in audiobook form that feature current players in real-life NHL storylines through the lens of a romance novel, the league has discontinued the marketing initiative, Front Office Sports reported.
In fact, the NHL has wiped Spotify completely of the seven 30-to-90-second audio stories that had already been released last Thursday, most of which received negative feedback on social media.
The NHL was trying to capitalize on the popularity of the hockey-themed romance novel trend as well as the new interest from fans of the hit shows “Heated Rivalry” and “Off Campus.”
Initially, Sports Business Journal reported that the NHL planned to release these short stories throughout the season, but the league told Front Office Sports on Monday that the marketing campaign was only meant to be a one-week thing associated with the start of the season.
@HalfordBrough#WWL The NHL has launched the "Hot for Hockey" campaign in response to the popularity of Heated Rivalry and other hockey romances.
A league spokesperson did not explain why the stories were removed from Spotify.
“As a start of the season concept, these were matchup specific posts created by authentic authors, illustrators and voice actors designed to run during our opening games in the first week. Our marketing now is focused around many other activations including our Hockey Hits Different celebrity campaign, tune-in messages and other initiatives,” the league spokesperson said.
No actual romance was involved in the audio stories, but they did evoke a similar feel to the style that hockey romance novels are meant to convey.
The SBJ report announcing the campaign indicated that the league had contracted popular hockey romance authors to write and narrate the stories released by the NHL.
Among the first installments released was one featuring Jack Eichel and another that included Sebastian Aho.
Connor McDavid of the Edmonton Oilers looks on during warm-up prior to a game against the Vancouver Canucks at Rogers Place in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, Tuesday, September 29, 2026. Getty Images
NHL commissioner Gary Bettman told reporters in Pittsburgh that the “data is overwhelming in terms of new fans that we acquired last year who were first introduced to hockey either through Off Campus or Heated Rivalry” before adding that “since it seems to be a cultural phenomenon, we figured why not get on board.”
The NHL’s endeavor into the hockey romance novel or “BookTok” space shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise, considering the popularity Bettman noted, but the league’s somewhat checkered history with it does raise some eyebrows.
The NHL has iced its short-lived ‘Hot for Hockey’ marketing campaign. NHL/SpotifyHudson Williams and Connor Storrie are pictured in “Heated Rivalry” Season 1, Episode 1, on Monday, April 28, 2025. HBO
Three years ago, former Kraken forward Alex Wennberg, who now plays for the Sharks, and his wife, Felicia, had to put out a statement condemning the “BookTok” fan fixation on Wennberg that she described as “sexual harassment, inappropriate comments.”
“What doesn’t sit with me is when your desires come with sexual harassment, inappropriate comments and the fact that, with the Internet, we can normalize behavior that would never be OK if we flipped the genders around to a guy doing this to a female athlete,” she wrote at the time.
