The Hockey News' main site has revealed the top 10 players from their top 100 NHL-affiliated prospects list. Without any surprise, Philadelphia Flyers top prospect Porter Martone made the cut, as he was given the No. 4 spot.
It is entirely understandable that Martone has been ranked as one of the best NHL-affiliated prospects by THN. The potential for Martone to emerge as a star power forward at the NHL level is there, and it is exactly why Philadelphia selected him with the sixth-overall pick of the 2025 NHL Entry Draft.
Martone just had an excellent freshman season with Michigan State University, as he recorded 25 goals, 25 assists, 50 points, and 78 penalty minutes in 35 games. After a big season at the collegiate level, Martone signed his entry-level deal with the Flyers and is currently getting his NHL career started.
Martone has had a solid start to his NHL career, as he recorded his first career assist in the Flyers' most recent contest against the Detroit Red Wings on April 2. While he has yet to score his first NHL goal, he already has 14 shots in two games. This included him having nine shots against Detroit, which was the most out of any player on the ice.
As Martone continues to adjust to the NHL level, he should only get better. There is a lot to like about the 6-foot-3 forward's game, and it will be fascinating to see how he grows his game from here.
The New York Islanders continue to be saved by the out-of-town scoreboard as they continue their push toward the playoffs.
After dropping both games of their back-to-backs, the Islanders had to put their faith in the hockey gods on Thursday night before they got the chance to redeem themselves on Friday night against the Philadelphia Flyers.
The Islanders began Thursday's slate holding down the third seed in the Metropolitan Division, with a slim one-point lead over the Columbus Blue Jackets.
They woke up on Friday morning still sitting in third in the Metropolitan Division.
The Blue Jackets got steamrolled 5-1 by the Carolina Hurricanes.
The Flyers, who have to play the Islanders on the second leg of their back-to-back, fell 4-2 to the Detroit Red Wings.
The Pittsburgh Penguins, who sat just three points ahead of the Islanders, fell 6-3 to the Tampa Bay Lightning.
The Boston Bruins, holding down the top wild-card spot, lost 2-1 to the Florida Panthers.
And finally, the Washington Capitals, who had snuck their way back into the playoff conversation, fell 7-3 to the New Jersey Devils.
Now, we must mention that the Senators, the Red Wings, and the Flyers have all played fewer games than the Islanders. But, we must also mention that games in hand mean nothing unless that team wins them.
If the Islanders are able to beat the Flyers on Friday night -- no other Eastern Conference team is in action-- that will give Long Island 91 points with five games to go, increasing their lead for third place by three over Columbus.
Sam Ersson started for the Flyers, so we'll see if Dan Vladar gets the nod against Ilya Sorokin.
Focusing on the wild-card is still something that has to happen. However, it has always seemed like an "easier" route for the Islanders to finish in the top three of their division than to finish in one of the two wild-card spots.
It's imperative that the Islanders start to help themselves, regardless of how things have gone from their playoff-hopeful competitors.
After playing the Flyers on Friday, the Islanders have to play the Hurricanes in Raleigh on Saturday night. Then they have four off days before four games in six nights to conclude their season.
Mike Gillis is reportedly interested in the idea of attempting a retool with the Toronto Maple Leafs.
In an article from James Mirtle of The Athletic, he highlights a pitch Gillis wrote for the former owner, Mario Lemieux, and the Pittsburgh Penguins in 2021, and debates whether a similar layout would work in Toronto now.
He adds in the story that, "According to league sources and those who know Gillis well, however, he is on friendly terms with Pelley and is intrigued by the opportunity that attempting to retool the Leafs would present."
In the days after the hockey club fired Maple Leafs general manager Brad Treliving, MLSE (Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment) president and CEO, Keith Pelley, said the hope was to bring in a new "head of hockey operations" by the end of May.
"But if not, very early June," Pelley said, "because you need to prep for the draft."
There's no doubt a laundry list of names who'd want to throw their hat in the ring for an opportunity to try and lead one of the NHL's biggest franchises back to playoff success.
But Gillis' track record would make him a fascinating name for Toronto.
As general manager of the Vancouver Canucks from 2008 to 2014, Gillis led the organization to back-to-back Presidents' Trophies in 2010-11 and 2011-12, and the Stanley Cup Final in 2011.
It's arguably one of the best eras in Canucks history since their inception in 1970.
"That’s a name that they have kind of looked at, and I can see why," reported Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman on The Fan Hockey Show on Wednesday. " He took a team that was really struggling and took them to the edge of the Stanley Cup Final. I don't know that it's gonna be Mike Gillis, but I think that he is the kind of person that they've been looking at so far."
Since his Canucks tenure, Gillis' name hasn't been discussed too much in public circles. He served on the board of directors for Swiss National League team Genève-Servette HC from 2016 to 2018. According to Mirtle, Gillis also spent time as a business consultant for the NHLPA.
What we know is that the Maple Leafs' next head of hockey operations needs to be "data-centric," Pelley said.
"They have to really understand the importance of data and where data is moving," he continued. "We have just completed a complete rebuild of TFC, all using data combined with cultural checks. That's what we will do, and every single decision we make will be evidence-based.
"Evidence-based decisions are never wrong, and that's not to say there's not room for the heart, not to say there's no room to check culture, but it’s all evidence-based."
Whether it's Gillis or any of the other names out there, like Florida Panthers assistant GM Sunny Mehta or St. Louis Blues president and GM Doug Armstrong, the Maple Leafs need to get this hire right.
Because if not, the organization could be going from a quick retool to a full rebuild, which it seems nobody on the team wants.
In the fourth game of their five-game road trip, the Montreal Canadiens were taking on the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden on Thursday night. Martin St-Louis’ men were looking for a seventh win in a row, while the underperforming Rangers were looking for a fourth win in a row.
Despite Jakub Dobes being red-hot these days, the Habs elected to give the net to Jacob Fowler, who had last played on Saturday night against the Nashville Predators, backstopping the Canadiens to a 4-1 win.
The Habs have struggled all season when playing down a man, but the penalty kill has done good work since the start of the road trip, giving up a single goal on 10 opportunities against the Predators, the Carolina Hurricanes, and the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Juraj Slafkovsky could have put his team in deep trouble when he was assessed a four-minute penalty for high-sticking, but the penalty killers were up to the task and killed it. Fowler faced three shots in those four minutes, saving them all.
On the road, the Canadiens are 28th on the penalty kill with a 74.6% success rate, while they are much more efficient at home at 79.8%.
Playing Smart
Throughout 40 minutes, the Rangers only had 12 shots on goal and looked like what they are, a team that hasn’t got much left to fight for. While the Canadiens could have been tempted to open up the play and try to run up the score against weaker opposition, the Habs played it smart.
They stuck to the game plan and didn’t take any unnecessary risks. Still, when they had the opportunity for the fancy no-look passes in the appropriate setting, they grabbed it with both hands, and it led to Cole Caufield’s 48th goal of the season, which gave him 82 points on the year. It’s not 100, but it’s a point-per-game rhythm in an 82-game season. Mind you, he can only play 81 this year after missing a game due to illness.
While the Canadiens dominated through 40 minutes, the Rangers made a push in the final frame, and with plenty of traffic in front of Fowler’s net, they managed to tie the score. Montreal didn’t panic. St. Louis took a timeout to decide whether to challenge the goal. The coach elected not to challenge as he didn’t want to risk putting the Rangers on the power play. Those extra 30 seconds allowed his players to settle down and refocus.
It worked like a charm. The Canadiens noticed the Rangers lining up on one side for a one-timer, and once Montreal won the draw, they elected to launch the attack on the other side. Caufield scored his second of the game, and it would turn out to be the game-winning goal just 47 seconds after the Rangers' second goal. It’s the 12th time this season that the sniper scores the game-winner, and that was the 28th go-ahead goal he scored on the season, tying Pavel Bure for the second most in a season. Brett Hull has the record in that department with 39, a mark that is out of reach for now, but the way the Canadiens’ first line is evolving, who knows what could happen in the coming years…
Caufield now has 49 goals on the season, trailing Nathan MacKinnon by a single goal in the Rocket Richard race, and it looks like this one will go down to the wire. With assists on each of Caufield’s goals, Nick Suzuki now has 94 points on the year, and with seven games to go, he is on pace for a 103-point season. Meanwhile, Juraj Slafkovsky registered his 67th point and remains one goal shy of 30.
Fowler played a good game, even though he wasn't overly tested, but when the team needed him to make a save, he was ready. In one sequence, he made a big pad save and followed it with a big glove save seconds later with some added swagger. The youngster looked like he was in the zone.
That makes seven regulation wins in a row for the Canadiens, who will play the final game of their road trip on Saturday night against the New Jersey Devils before playing them again on Sunday at the Bell Centre.
TAMPA, FL - APRIL 2: J.J. Moser #90 of the Tampa Bay Lightning against Anthony Mantha #39 of the Pittsburgh Penguins at Benchmark International Arena on April 2, 2026 in Tampa, Florida. (Photo by Mark LoMoglio/NHLI via Getty Images) | NHLI via Getty Images
Here are your Pens Points for this Friday morning…
Thursday night brought with it a 6-3 loss for the Pittsburgh Penguins after they took an early lead but were eventually overwhelmed by the Tampa Bay Lightning, who surged with multiple goals to take control and earn two points. [Recap]
Penguins prospect Cruz Lucius will not be signing with the team, general manager Kyle Dubas announced on Thursday, choosing instead to become a free agent and seek a better opportunity with another organization. Dubas added that the decision was a personal one for Lucius. Still, from an external standpoint, it may also say something about the limited development opportunities within Pittsburgh’s suddenly crowded pool of young forwards. [PensBurgh]
The Penguins reassigned forwards Ville Koivunen and Rutger McGroarty to the organization’s American Hockey League affiliate in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton on Thursday. [Trib Live]
Not really directly Penguins-related, but a great Pittsburgh sports story nonetheless: Katie Stewart is an England-based Pittsburgh sports fan who has recently made her fifth annual trip to the Steel City to watch the teams and visit the city that she has fallen in love with. [Trib Live]
Jaromir Jagr has popped up again, seemingly to say he has put a stamp on his legendarily long pro hockey career. In a recent interview, he said that while he has not officially retired, he admits it’s likely the end of his career after 38 seasons, saying the physical demands, travel, and limited role at age 54 make continuing “not worth it.” [TSN]
News and updates from around the NHL…
Toronto Maple Leafs cornerstone William Nylander, 29, said that, barring a full-on rebuild, he wants to remain with the only team he’s ever played for. [TSN]
Take the skinheads bowling, take them bowling. | Getty Images
If the regular season ended this morning, the New York Islanders would qualify for the playoffs by virtue of having more points, thanks to having played one more game, than Detroit, Columbus, or Philadelphia.
Tonight that will not change but it can get either better or more fragile as they host the Flyers, who desperately need points to stay in the chase. So begins a back-to-back that concludes tomorrow in Carolina, where the Hurricanes have just clinched their playoff spot and hopefully went on a celebratory all-night bender.
Last night’s scores mostly broke in the Isles’ favor, though Ottawa won to leap into a wild card spot and show the Islanders that the Sabres can, in fact, be beaten (and handily, 4-1). The favorable scores included the Penguins losing to the Lightning in regulation (hallelujah!), the Blue Jackets losing to Carolina in regulation (amen!), and the Red Wings and Flyers also having the courtesy of finishing in regulation (Bossy is great!).
With Philly’s 4-2 home loss to the Wings, they are two points behind Ottawa, Columbus and Detroit and will want something from tonight all the more. Motivation should be extremely high for both sides, but that doesn’t stop three guys from chasing one Sabre behind the net now does it?
Practice updates: No updates on Tony DeAngelo or Simon Holmstrom injuries, no inclination to put Cal Ritchie back with Barzal and Schenn. [Isles | THN]
Victor Eklund was excited to get into action as quickly as possible when he reported to AHL Bridgeport. [Isles]
The Islanders’ offense is failing them at a critical time. [Newsday]
Yeah, but their defense is failing them worse. [Post]
Ex-Isle Mikhail Grabovski is charged in some assault around a youth hockey game. [TSN]
The instructions this time of year are simple: Win, and more often than the other guys. [Newsday]
Enter your personal data to respond to Matthew Schaefer trivia. [Isles]
Elsewhere
A pretty great interview with Jaromir Jagr on his career and the state of the game today. [NHL]
How Craig Berube is handling being a coach in limbo: the same as always. [Sportsnet]
Bourne: How to fix the Leafs quickly (including replacing Berube). [Sportsnet]
And Chris Pronger opines on the Ducks and whether Auston Matthews is long for the Leafs. [NHL]
Congratulations to the Canucks, who have clinched last place overall. [Sportsnet]
William Nylander wants to stay with the Leafs but isn’t interested in a teardown rebuild. [Sportsnet]
The Leafs under Keith Pelley make pretty much everything for sale. [Athletic]
What is the secret to the Sabres’ amazing turnaround? Actually deciding to play smart hockey, moment after moment, night after night. [ESPN]
Vegas Golden Knights (34-26-16, in the Pacific Division) vs. Edmonton Oilers (39-28-9, in the Pacific Division)
Edmonton, Alberta; Saturday, 10 p.m. EDT
BOTTOM LINE: The Edmonton Oilers host the Vegas Golden Knights as winners of five consecutive games.
Edmonton is 39-28-9 overall with a 14-5-3 record in Pacific Division play. The Oilers rank third in the league with 264 total goals (averaging 3.5 per game).
Vegas has a 12-5-5 record in Pacific Division play and a 34-26-16 record overall. The Golden Knights have gone 33-6-10 in games they score three or more goals.
Saturday's game is the fourth time these teams meet this season. The Oilers won 4-3 in overtime in the last meeting.
TOP PERFORMERS: Connor McDavid has 43 goals and 83 assists for the Oilers. Matthew Savoie has five goals and two assists over the past 10 games.
Jack Eichel has 25 goals and 54 assists for the Golden Knights. Mitchell Marner has scored four goals with five assists over the last 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Oilers: 7-2-1, averaging 3.1 goals, 4.9 assists, three penalties and 7.2 penalty minutes while giving up 2.3 goals per game.
Golden Knights: 4-4-2, averaging 2.6 goals, 4.3 assists, 4.1 penalties and 10.6 penalty minutes while giving up 2.6 goals per game.
INJURIES: Oilers: Leon Draisaitl: out (lower-body), Colton Dach: out (undisclosed), Zach Hyman: day to day (undisclosed), Mattias Janmark: out for season (undisclosed).
Golden Knights: William Karlsson: out (lower body), Jonas Rondbjerg: out (lower body).
___
The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
On Thursday, the Vegas Golden Knights picked up two much-needed points with a 6-3 win over the Calgary Flames.
The Flames broke the ice at 7:41 in the first period. Morgan Frost intercepted Kaedan Korczak’s pass intended for Tomáš Hertl at center ice and raced into the offensive zone on a 2-on-1 with Matt Coronato. Frost had all the time in the world to shoot and beat Carter Hart glove-side.
Morgan Frost elects to shoot on a 2-on-1. That’s probably the right decision, because he knows a thing or two about Carter Hart.
Despite trailing 1-0 after 20 minutes, the Golden Knights were the better team– they simply ran into a hot goaltender.
In the second period, they finally capitalized on the chances they were generating at will.
The Golden Knights answered back just 1:47 into the second period. Shea Theodore fired a shot through a screen from above the right circle, and Mitch Marner redirected it home.
The Flames pulled ahead at 4:38 in the second. Joel Farabee broke the puck out, and Mikael Backlund drove into the offensive zone on a 2-on-1 with Blake Coleman. Backlund got the pass across and Coleman fired a shot home.
There’s another 2-on-1. Farabee to Coleman to the back of the net.
The Golden Knights found the equalizer at 6:42 in the second. Jack Eichel threaded a cross-ice pass to Rasmus Andersson at the right dot. Andersson faked a shot and set up Mitch Marner in the slot for the equalizer.
Some really nice puck movement there. Andersson finds Marner in the slot and it’s a tie game.
The Flames took the lead again at 12:11 in the second. Blake Coleman jumped off the face-off, won a battle against Rasmus Andersson, and raced up ice on yet another 2-on-1 with Joel Farabee. Coleman bet on himself and ripped a shot past Carter Hart glove-side.
Blake Coleman is having the game of his life. Elects to shoot off yet another 2-on-1 and he’s got two tonight.
The Golden Knights tied it on the power play at 16:21 in the second. Mitch Marner held the line and set up Pavel Dorofeyev for his 35th goal of the season.
Marner hold at the line leads to a Dorofeyev one-timer. PPG. Tie game.
After a 27-minute delay for ice repairs, the dam broke for the Golden Knights in the third period. They generated seven scoring chances and capitalized on nearly half of them.
The Golden Knights took their first lead of the night at 12:20 in the third period. Shea Theodore caught up to Ivan Barbashev’s bank pass, pulled up to avoid Olli Määttä, and threaded a pass to Brett Howden in the slot. Howden picked his spot and beat Dustin Wolf blocker-side.
Marner finds Brett Howden all alone in the slot. First Vegas lead of the night.
The Golden Knights doubled their lead at 14:59 in the third. Dustin Wolf misplayed the puck after leaving the net, and Mitch Marner got to it first. Wolf recovered to make the save, but Ivan Barbashev banged in the rebound.
If you’re a goaltender… you know the rest. Dustin Wolf leaves the net, misplays the puck, and Ivan Barbashev bangs in Mitch Marner’s rebound.
The Golden Knights added to their lead at 18:31 in the third. Mark Stone won a foot race and found Mitch Marner in the slot. Marner moved in, danced around Morgan Frost, fooled Dustin Wolf, and completed the hat trick on the wraparound.
Throw the hats! Mitch Marner fools Dustin Wolf and tucks it home on the wraparound.
1. For nearly half an hour following the conclusion of the second intermission, a nine-man band consisting of four members of the ice crew, three officials, two captains (and a partridge in a pear tree) hovered over a divot in the ice. Meanwhile, DJ Joe Green continued his rave-esque ‘Knight Life,’ bumping EDM while the projector displayed images of a roulette wheel onto the ice. The nine individuals were highlighted by a spotlight, which stood out as a harsh contrast against the colorful ice.
It was all very dramatic.
There’s a lot going on in the entertainment capital of the world. This has been the longest— but also most comical!—delay for ice maintenance I’ve ever seen. pic.twitter.com/DJjSzEz2sI
New head coach John Tortorella did say that he wanted his team to be ‘more relaxed’ after Monday’s 4-2 victory over the Vancouver Canucks. Maybe this moment was just what the doctor ordered. The Golden Knights only went on to outshoot the Flames 6-3 in the third period, but they capitalized on their scoring chances and controlled 87.27% of the expected goal share.
2. Mitch Marner capped off a five-point night by completing his first hat trick as a Golden Knight. He recorded six shots on goal and nine total attempts. He’s back to being a point-per-game player with 76 points in 75 games played.
3. Carter Hart returned from injury tonight, playing his first game since January 8th. He made 19 saves on 22 shots and recorded his sixth win of the season. The delay put him in a less-than-ideal situation in the third period, but he battled through. When the team needed him most, Hart answered the bell and made several key saves.
On a night where Los Angeles was celebrating Anze Kopitar's legacy, this game between the Kings and Predators did not disappoint.
A playoff-like atmosphere saw the Los Angeles Kings (30-26-19) pull off an improbable comeback against the Nashville Predators (35-31-9) in the third period, forcing eight rounds of a shootout on Thursday, before falling short 5-4.
Los Angeles, once again, got off to a terrible start in the first period against a potential Western Conference playoff contender. Nashville jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first period and extended its lead to 4-1 in the middle of the second period. It looked like another blowout loss was on the horizon for Los Angeles, but the Kings played a valiant effort in the second period to cut the deficit to 4-3.
Turnovers, missed shots, and defensive lapses plagued the Kings from the jump, allowing the Predators to take the lead. Still, despite the mistakes Los Angeles made early on, they made up for it in the third period, but couldn't make up for it down the stretch.
Both teams struggled on the power play, combining to go 0-for-5, and Los Angeles won the faceoff battle 55.4% to the Predators' 44.6%.
It was a hot offensive start for the Predators early. The Kings had no answer to the rush, giving up goals on fast-break possessions and turning the puck over. Three minutes into the first period, Nashville jumped ahead to a 2-0 lead after a faceoff win and a beautiful puck play by forward Zachary L'Hereux to give Nashville the 2-0 lead after 20 minutes.
It was a terrible first period for the Kings, getting outshot 18-9, looking like one of those games where nothing goes right for them at home.
The second period began immediately, with Nashville continuing where they left off, scoring two minutes into the period after converting on the missed shot. Nashville scored on the rebound to hold a commanding 3-0 lead.
Los Angeles finally got a goal to go, a contact goal by Adrian Kempe pushed in after Artemi Panarin missed the shot; the puck deflected off Kempe and made its way into the net.
A lucky shot, but a good way for the Kings to get back in the game and avoid disaster.
Nashville, though, would answer once again, scoring on the beautiful 2-on-1 rush play, displaying beautiful puck movement to take another three-goal lead.
At this point, the game looked like it was a wash for Los Angeles. Down three in the second period with 11 minutes remaining, the Kings would make a valiant effort to get back in the game.
The momentum shifted after Adrian Kempe scored his second goal of the night at the 6:30-minute mark to get the crowd and players back in the game. Two minutes later, Los Angeles cut the deficit to one after a rebound goal by Scott Laughton, ending the second period down one.
LAK Goal - 30 for 🧃
Kempe buries his second of the night. Fourth time in five seasons he’s scored at least 30. Kings within 4-2.
It was a gritty third period, with both teams missing shots left and right off the crossbar; there was a lid on the net, and Nashville had multiple chances to end the game early in the final period.
Another missed shot from the Kings gave up Joel Armia the rebound to score on and clean up the goal, tying the score 4-4 with under 10 minutes to go in the final frame.
LAK Goal - Big. Goal. Joel.
Jared Wright's shot goes through the legs of Saros, Armia picks up the garbage to tie the game at four.
Everything seemed to be on the Kings' side, outshooting the Predators 13-5 in the third period, but they couldn't close the game in the period. Artemi Panarin had a very good chance to score, but the puck landed on the legs of the Predators' goaltender.
We were treated to another overtime game, the 30th of the season for the Kings. Another thrilling way to end the match. Neither team could score in overtime, setting up an exciting finish in the shootout.
Eight rounds saw the Kings miss shot after shot. Give credit to both goatkenders for giving their teams several chances to win, but it was the Predators who scored in the eighth round to hang on and stop the Kings' late comeback.
Credit the Armia-Wright-Laughton line, stepping up late in the match, to make this game close, despite the loss. All three forwards combined to score four points and two goals.
Kempe scored two goals and two points to notch his 30th goal of the season, the fourth time in five seasons he's accomplished this feat. After starting off slow, Darcy Kuemper played a big role in the third period and the extra periods, stopping key shots in the clutch, finishing with 30 saves on 34 shots.
The good news in the loss is that Los Angeles gets a point, now tied with the Predators and Sharks for the final playoff spot, making their next game against the Predators crucial.
The Kings' next matchup will be against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday at 4:00 PM PT.
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After sufficing a three-goal lead and needing to go to a shootout, Luke Evangelista scored in the eighth round of the shootout to give the Nashville Predators a critical 5-4 win over the Los Angeles Kings on Thursday at Crypto.com Arena.
In the winning shootout goal, and the only conversion by either team, Evangelista faked a shot on the forehand before pulling it to the backhand and beating goaltender Darcy Kuemper.
The Predators came out of the gate hot, outshooting the Kings, 18-9 in the first period and taking a 2-0 lead. Filip Forsberg netted his 35th goal of the season from an odd angle and Zach L'Heureux scored on the backhand.
L'Heureux had a goal disallowed in the first minute of the game as it was ruled that he had knocked down a Ryan O'Reilly feed with a high stick.
In the early second period, Jonathan Marchessault put away a Matthew Wood rebound to make it 3-0. Adrian Kempe scored four minutes later to get the Kings on the board, but Steven Stamkos responded with his 37th of the year.
Nashville was in a comfortable place up 4-1 halfway through the second period. However, it allowed three unanswered goals, two in the second and one in the third, allowing the Kings to force the game to overtime.
This was the 30th time the Kings have gone to overtime this season and 19th overtime loss, both of which are NHL records.
Nashville generated just two shots on net to LA's one in overtime. In the shootout, O'Reilly, Forsberg, Stamkos, Marchessault, Erik Haula, Tyson Jost and Roman Josi all missed on their attempts before Evangelsita scored.
Despite the Predators picking up the extra point, they are still not in the Wild Card position. San Jose also has 79 points but has played one fewer game than the Predators, giving it the tiebreaker.
Nashville does have the tiebreaker over the Kings in regulation wins.
Juuse Saros made 29 saves on 33 shots in the victory, shutting down every Kings shooter in the shootout.
This won't be the last time the Predators will see the Kings, as they will be back at Crypto.com Arena on Monday.
Nashville will face the Sharks next in San Jose on Saturday at 9 p.m. CST, a game that will break another tie in the Wild Card race.
LAS VEGAS -- Mitch Marner registered the fourth hat trick of his career and the Golden Knights improved to 2-0 under coach John Tortorella after coming from behind to defeat the Calgary Flames 6-3 on Thursday night.
Vegas two-game win streak comes at a perfect time, as the team will embark on its final road trip of the season, a four-game trek that begins in Edmonton on Saturday.
The Oilers and Anaheim Ducks lead the Pacific Division with 87 points, while the Knights sit third with 84. The Ducks have a game in hand on the Oilers and Knights.
Pavel Dorofeyev, Brett Howden and Ivan Barbashev also scored for the Knights, while Carter Hart made 19 saves in his first appearance since Jan. 8.
The Golden Knights hit the road on a four-game point streak.
KEY MOMENT
Though it would be easy to pinpoint Howden's game-winning goal with 7:40 left in the game, the key moment goes to Hart, who made a key stop on Blake Coleman, who had two goals for the Flames. He could have had three, but Hart stymied the left wing during a short-handed odd-man rush with 11:31 left in the game. Marner showed off his defensive skills there, too, as he batted the puck from the air off the rebound from Hart's save to help keep the game tied at 3-all.
KEY STAT
+3 ... The Hockey News colleague Hannah Kirkell makes an excellent point that the number of 2-on-1 situations Vegas gave Calgary could easily be the key stat. Unfortunately, the eye test doesn't give us an official stat for that. Instead, the +3 goal differential in the third period for the Knights was the difference, as they continued their domination in the final period. For the season, Vegas has outscored teams, 97-57.
WHAT A KNIGHT
Marner had his hand in five of the team's six goals, scoring three of them and assisting on two others. Tortorella said he planned on shaking things up with his forward lines, most notably moving Marner around in the lineup, including a potential top line of Jack Eichel, Mark Stone and Marner. For Thursday, Marner centered wingers Barbashev and Stone, a line that produced nine points (4 goals, 5 assists).
UP NEXT
The Golden Knights open a four-game road trip on Saturday, when they'll visit their Pacific Division rival, the Edmonton Oilers.
PHOTO CAPTION: Vegas Golden Knights right wing Mitch Marner (93) celebrates after scoring his third goal of the game against the Calgary Flames during the third period at T-Mobile Arena.
It's not often that the Detroit Red Wings pick up a victory in the City of Brotherly Love, but for just the fourth time since early 1997, they did just that - and at a most critical time of their season.
Detroit defeated the Philadelphia Flyers by a 4-2 final score at Xfinity Mobile Arena, moving into a three-way tie with the Ottawa Senators and Columbus Blue Jackets in the ultra-tight standings.
The Red Wings were paced by a pair of goals from Alex DeBrincat and a strong performance in net by goaltender John Gibson, who made his 13th straight start and rebounded from being pulled twice in a row.
While they were outshot by the Flyers, Detroit's intensity was far more apparent than it had been in three of their four previous outings, all regulation losses.
"Great effort, right from the start of the game, we knew it would be a tough road game," said Patrick Kane, who scored the game-winning goal in the third period. "It's hockey. Nothing is going to go perfectly throughout the game. We found a way to get some timely goals for sure."
Alex DeBrincat scored his team-leading 38th and 39th goals of the season, the latter of which came just 15 seconds after Travis Konecny scored to bring the Flyers back to within a single tally.
"Right from the start, we played hard and matched the physicality and their intensity," DeBrincat said. "I thought we played pretty well for the whole game. Obviously, in the third period, they came on us a little bit, and it took us a little bit to settle into that speed, but overall, right after their goal, we scored another one and got a big two points."
DeBrincat is now one goal away from becoming Detroit's first 40-goal forward since Marian Hossa in the 2008-09 NHL season.
As said by head coach Todd McLellan, the Red Wings need to make this winning feeling contagious as they head into another pivotal game on Saturday against the New York Rangers.
"Going forward, winning and losing is contagious: lose, and you get down and question yourself, maybe question your system or your linemates," McLellan said. "But a win can turn that and go the other way."
"We worked real hard tonight," he continued. "We had a formula we thought would give us a chance at success. And that shouldn't change as we head to New York. We'll get a quick practice in tomorrow and move on."
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The Calgary Flames dropped a 6-3 decision to the Vegas Golden Knights at T-Mobile Arena on Thursday night.
It was the first meeting with Rasmus Andersson since his departure from Calgary, while Zach Whitecloud was welcomed back with a standing ovation from the Vegas crowd. Connor Zary and Yan Kuznetsov returned to the lineup after missing time with injury, and Dustin Wolf got the start in goal.
Vegas controlled the early pace, but Calgary opened the scoring. Following a penalty kill, Morgan Frost forced a turnover, held the puck with time and space, and beat Carter Hart at 7:41 for an unassisted goal. The Flames couldn’t capitalize on a late 5-on-3 advantage and were outshot 14-7 in the first, with Wolf keeping the game in check.
The Golden Knights tied it early in the second. Mitch Marner tipped a Shea Theodore point shot past Wolf at 1:47, with Brayden McNabb adding an assist.
Calgary answered quickly after a key save from Wolf, who broke up a breakaway with a one-handed poke check. The Flames transitioned the other way, and Mikael Backlund found Blake Coleman in stride. Coleman finished the rush at 4:38 to restore the lead, with Joel Farabee picking up the secondary assist.
Vegas responded again. Jack Eichel found Andersson jumping into the play, and Andersson set up Marner for his second of the night at 6:42 to make it 2-2.
Coleman struck again midway through the period. After chipping the puck out of the defensive zone, he raced up ice and beat Hart with a shot off the post at 12:11 to give Calgary a 3-2 lead.
The Golden Knights pulled even before the intermission on the power play, as Marner set up Pavel Dorofeyev for a one-timer at 16:21 to tie it 3-3.
Vegas took control in the third. Brett Howden finished a rush from the high slot at 12:20 to give the Golden Knights their first lead, and Ivan Barbashev added insurance at 14:59.
Marner capped the night late, completing the hat trick with a wraparound tally at 18:31 to seal the 6-3 final.
Three Takeaways:
1. Coleman led the Flames offence with two goals, continuing his strong stretch and pulling into a share of the team lead with 19.
EDMONTON, Alberta (AP) — Connor McDavid set up Matt Savoie's power-play goal to pad his NHL-leading points total and help the Edmonton Oilers win their season-high fifth straight game, 3-1 over the Chicago Blackhawks on Thursday night.
Chicago lost its fifth straight to drop out of playoff contention, extending its postseason drought to six seasons. Edmonton matched Pacific Division-leading Anaheim with 87 points, but has played one more game than the Ducks.
Adam Henrique and Vasily Podkolzin also scored for the Oilers, and Tristan Jarry made 17 saves. They have won seven of their last nine, surging with star forward Leon Draisaitl out for the rest of the regular season because of a lower-body injury.
Nick Lardis scored for Chicago. Spencer Knight stopped 31 shots for Chicago, and Arvid Soderblom made four saves and allowed a goal while Knight dealt with an equipment issue.
McDavid's goals streak ended at five games. He has 43 goals and 83 assists for 126 points, two more than Tampa Bay's Nikita Kucherov for the NHL lead.
The Chicago Blackhawks traveled up to Alberta, Canada, to take on the Edmonton Oilers. With under two weeks remaining in the regular season, Jeff Blashill’s team is about developing habits that they can bring with them to training camp in September.
This is also a chance for roster bubble players to prove their worth heading into the summer. As the two-time defending Western Conference champions, the Oilers are playing meaningful hockey as they attempt to win the Pacific Division late in the year.
The last stretch of games has not been good for the Blackhawks. It continued with a 3-1 loss to the Oilers on Thursday night. They are now 2-5-3 in their last 10 games, and are officially eliminated from postseason contention.
The Blackhawks were outshot 38-18 in the game and were severely dominated in puck possession metrics throughout. Spencer Knight (and Arvid Soderblom) kept the score much closer than it should have been.
Soderblom had to come into the game because of Knight's equipment malfunction. During that time, he played well, but he did allow a breakaway goal to Adam Henrique, who buried his own rebound.
That goal was more of a fault on the team rather than Soderblom, as the defense failed him on the play. He also made a breakaway save on Connor McDavid during his stint in the game.
Knight came back in once the trainers got his gear right, and he only allowed 1 goal on 32 total shots faced. Overall, goaltending was more positive than negative.
Chicago's one goal was scored by Nick Lardis, who had a bounce go his way as he hit it into the net after Connor Bedard sent one on net. That is the 9th goal of the season for Lardis, who is slowly racking up goals to prove his abilities at the NHL level.
Late in the game, Lardis took a puck off his left hand. Clearly in pain, he left and didn't return. Jeff Blashill did not have an update, but it seems like he is going to be okay.
Whenever you play the Oilers, the top challenge is slowing down Connor McDavid. You don't stop him; you can only hope to contain him. In this game, the Hawks kept him to one assist, despite him having tons of grade-A chances.
This was the first time that the Blackhawks faced Jason Dickinson and Connor Murphy since the trade. They each assisted on Vasily Podkolzin's empty net goal, and they look extremely happy to be on a team with Stanley Cup aspirations going into the postseason.
For Chicago, no matter how the remaining six games of the season go, they are going to be focused on certain players playing well. They are a lock for top-five draft lottery odds, so it is more of a worry for them to have a strong finish on the ice.
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