Category: NHL

Pregame

Some line tinkering from the last game. Rutger McGroarty is back in the lineup and Ville Koivunen returns from injury. Hendrix Lapierre and Andrei Kuzmenko take a seat to make way. Tommy Novak bumps back to center and Nick Robertson is elevated up a couple rungs. Sergei Murashov gets the start.

The San Jose Sharks are bringing this lineup to the table and match the 22-year old Murashov with a 24-year old Russian starting goalie of their own in Yaroslav Askarov.

First period

Fun start with both teams exchanging scoring chances. Pittsburgh gets the first power play when Evgeni Malkin feeds Rickard Rakell up the middle and Rakell gets tripped. They don’t score on it but the second group plays active hockey in the zone for a minute. The power play expires and a forward peels off to change for Sam Girard to get on the ice for a second defenseman. Malkin spots Girard and bumps the puck over for Girard to lean into a long-range shot. It goes in. 1-0 Pens early.

Game continues along, Malkin gets whistled for hooking with 4:33 to go in the period to get a first look at the San Jose power play. The penalty kill holds up.

Fun period and a good one for the Penguins. Shots are 12-11 SJ, the Pittsburgh power play was the better of each team getting one chance on it, leading to a carryover goal at even strength.

Second period

San Jose starts the period strong, Ben Kindel takes an interference penalty as some rush chances for SJ start to mount. The Pens’ PK kills it off again, Murashov standing tall to take away the top of the net.

As we hit the first TV timeout, shots on goal for the period are 7-0 San Jose. Blake Lizotte did chip an attempt just wide but it’s been few and far between to start the second for the Pens holding pucks anywhere close to the net, and more often than not they don’t hold it anywhere at all.

Pittsburgh gets a shot, though no sustained pressure. A bit of inconsistent officiating has some things not being called, Girard does take a penalty when his holding goes a bit too far. He’s very unhappy and the team at-large looks to be getting frustrated by the refs.

The Sharks get a close call, Macklin Celebrini has a shot from right in front, Murashov makes a huge save. Ivar Stenberg drives to the net, knocks the fluttering puck off the top of the net and bats the puck into the goal with his hand. Officials rule no goal then go to a video review to take another look.

It takes a long time for them to eventually uphold the ruling of no goal. The PK does the work for the rest of the penalty time.

The Pens finally start making a push late in the period and Sidney Crosby draws the second Pittsburgh power play of the game. No dice.

Pittsburgh plays their best part of the period in the last minute or so. Egor Chinakhov and Kindel nearly hook up for a goal. Malkin was skating all over the ice against a tired defense virtually standing still. Clock runs out before there can be a payoff.

Shots in the period are 10-8 San Jose, and it felt more lopsided than that as far as which team was controlling the majority of play. Overall shots are 22-17 SJ. Somehow, the score is only 1-0 after 40 minutes.

Third period

Close call for a possible Penguin goal 20 seconds into the third. Crosby tried to pass it low, ended up hitting the end boards and going into Askarov’s feet as he jammed to the post. Rakell follows up trying to picklestab it in. It’s not clear the whole puck goes all the way over the line so the review comes up confirming the no goal call from the original play.

It’s mostly all Pens early, they draw a power play and score on it this time. Kindel hangs out on the farside as the puck gets worked around, Erik Karlsson hammers one on net, rebound gets to Kindel and he quickly whips it to the top of the net. 2-0 Pens with 16:32 to go.

Celebrini and Kaedan Korczak get tangled up, nearly fight. Korczak takes four minutes worth of penalties to only two for Celebrini. Pittsburgh PK improves to 4/4 on the night.

The Sharks start to fight the clock. Murashov robs Michael Kesselring from right in front on another sterling save, sadly seconds later concedes his first goal. It takes a quick pass and Celebrini double-clutching to change the angle to finally beat Murashov for the first time on the 33rd shot he saw. 2-1 Pens with 8:28 to go.

The Sharks stay after it and tie the game with 4:11 to go. The Pens just can’t get the puck out of the zone and Celebrini makes a play on a hard pass that Mason Marchment just has to hold his hands on the stick to knock the puck in. 2-2.

Regulation ends before anymore mayhem can ensue. Celebrini put his stamp on the game and helps get the Sharks some kind of result after 60 minutes.

Overtime

The Pens own the puck for the first 82 seconds of OT, Askarov stops Crosby and holds the puck to get a whistle and break that flow. They win that faceoff and hog the puck until the Sharks finally touch it with about 2:15 to play.

SJ gets an offensive zone faceoff and they burn their timeout with 2:08 to play to give their best players a rest.

Doesn’t work, the Big Three of the Pens get a 3-on-2 rush. They all touch the puck but the setup doesn’t go. That leads to a Sam Dickinson breakaway, he doesn’t score. The puck goes to the corner, Letang is trying to get a whistle on top of the puck, battling with Dickinson. He gets a penalty for holding the stick of a guy digging the stick into him aggressively. San Jose to a 4v3 power play with 42 seconds to play. They can’t beat the clock.

Shootout

Kindel starts the shootout, drifts to the left wall, cuts back in and snaps a quick, low shot by Askarov. 1-0.

The Sharks waste no time with Celebrini, his shot isn’t on target after Murashov out-waited him.

—

Crosby gets the chance to turn the pressure up, his move to the backhand doesn’t quite work.

Stenberg goes next, he’s stopped by Murashov.

—

Rakell has the chance to end the game. His high shot is stopped by Askarov.

Will Smith has to score, he can’t beat Murashov low.

Pens survive.

Some thoughts

• The last three games in California were good ones for Evgeni Malkin, six assists for the big guy. Quality stuff for him.
• How’s this for a crazy stat: the Sharks have dressed seven players this season (including five in the game tonight) born after Malkin was drafted by the Pens in 2004.
• Girard scored a goal after not even practicing Tuesday, coming after a day off for the whole team on Monday. That’s usually not a good sign and he’s been likely grinding through a minor injury/issue for a while now. Given the LD situation, it almost goes without saying but this team needs Girard right now in the lineup and they need him to be at his best.
• Really liked how the personnel changes ended up working for the power play. The first group was Crosby, Kindel, Novak, Rakell and Karlsson. Malkin joined Brazeau, Chinakhov, Koivunen and Letang for the second. The first goal was born from power play possession carrying over, the second goal was on the power play. More than that, both groups looked better in the movement of players and the puck. Maybe a base to build upon, if nothing else.
• Erik Karlsson racked up 12 official shot attempts (was even more, one shot/pass tipped on net I noticed didn’t count) coming after 19 shot attempts last game against Anaheim (eight of which were on goal). You can tell he’s making an obvious effort to put that booming shot towards the net at just about every possible opportunity these days. His play on the SJ tying goal wasn’t as lovely.
• Chinakhov was flying all night long. Four SOG, 10 total attempts. His skating was a lot more noticeable to pull up alongside a defenseman’s gap and then beat him with speed around the edge. You get the feeling the offensive breakout is coming at this rate.
• Tip of the cap for Murashov, he was excellent all game long. Had the look of a confident goalie, at times setting up to make saves about a foot in front of the crease. His point blank stop on Celebrini in the second period is a chance from that caliber of player that ends up in the net more often than not. It’s not hard to see how aggressive, active and athletic he is and at times see what looks like a young Marc-Andre Fleury back there. Also like Fleury, if Murashov can make it through the first part and build his confidence, it really shows and usually carries over into a good night. This one was better than good.
• Will Smith’s white skates, in my mind at least, are the spiritual successor for this generation’s Alex Kovalev. Always nice to see a flashy player add another little dash of flair.
• On one hand, another blown lead late in the game. We’ve all seen that before. This one doesn’t hurt as much, Murashov’s brilliance was the only reason Pittsburgh was in position to be up by two goals at any point, it was essentially an even game on the ice and the Pens were winning because of a great performance in net. Just turned out SJ got a great performance by one of the top players in the league to equal it. Sometimes it happens. Wrote this note even before the shootout happened for the record.
• We’ve said simply enough in previous recaps that the key to the shootout, of which the Penguins have struggled so mightily in recent years, would be simply employing better shooters and goaltenders. Kindel is great on them, scored tonight. Murashov’s athleticism and prowess means he should be pretty good too and he was perfect tonight in that regard. Not that complicated, just need the specialized players with those attributes, and the worm might be starting to turn in that department.
• Bob Grove pointed out tonight was the 4,600th regular season game in franchise history. Add up Mario Lemieux, Jaromir Jagr, Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin’s games for Pittsburgh and you get 4,466. Obviously there’s a lot of overlapping tenures there so it’s not like they’ve played in 97% of the total individual games but sometimes you gotta sit back and remember just how much high-level virtuosos we’ve gotten a front row seat to see for all these years.

The Pens go 2-1 in their swing through California and survive tonight to make it a successful trip. Now it’s time to go back to the ‘Burgh, next game coming up on Saturday night.

The Penguins got on the board early, as defenseman Samuel Girard scored his second of the season just moments after Jacob Trouba got done serving a tripping penalty and returned to the ice. Girard has always had success against the Sharks, as this was his sixth goal, and 18th overall point, in 26 games against San Jose.

Just after the halfway point in the second period, the Sharks thought they tied it up but the officials adamantly signaled no goal as the puck had been batted in by Ivar Stenberg's body rather than his stick. Following a very lengthy review, and a strange decision by the SAP Center's DJ to play 'Let It Be,' the call on the ice was confirmed. 

Egor Chinakhov nearly scored his fourth of the night in a scramble late in the second period, but found iron instead of nylon. The Sharks were tired as the Penguins sustained pressure for quite a while, but they were able to survive until the end of the period thanks to some big defensive plays and saves by Yaroslav Askarov.

There was a second review just 20 seconds into the third period, as the Penguins believed they had scored but it was impossible to tell whether or not the puck had fully crossed the goal line. After a much quicker review this time, the result was the same as the official confirmed the call of no goal.

Ben Kindel scored his fourth goal of the season as Zack Ostapchuk sat in the penalty box at 3:28 in the third period.

Macklin Celebrini denied Sergei Murashov of his second career shutout with just over eight minutes remaining in the third period, bringing energy back into the SAP Center.

BREAKING: Macklin Celebrini Becomes Fifth-Youngest Player to Record 200th Career PointMacklin Celebrini is now the fifth-youngest player in NHL history to record 200 career points. 

That energy was sustained as Mason Marchment redirected a pass from Celebrini past Murashov to tie things up with 4:11 remaining in regulation. It was the 100th goal of Marchment's career.

Once again, 60 minutes wouldn't be enough to decide a winner and the game ended up going to overtime. Kris Letang took a holding penalty with just 42 seconds remaining in overtime, giving the Sharks a very abbreviated opportunity to find a winning goal. 

The game would ultimately go into a shootout and the Sharks' comeback attempt was spoiled by Ben Kindel who had the lone goal.

Macklin Celebrini is now the fifth-youngest player in NHL history to record 200 career points. 

Late in the San Jose Sharks’ game against the Pittsburgh Penguins, Celebrini broke up Sergei Murashov’s shutout to bring the Sharks within one goal with just over eight minutes remaining in the third period. That goal marked the 200th point of Celebrini’s career, coming in his 171st game in the NHL.

At 20 years and 151 days, Celebrini became the fifth-youngest player in league history to hit the milestone. He trails only Sidney Crosby, Wayne Gretzky, Jimmy Carson, and Mario Lemieux. 

“That doesn't really happen without the guys in this room, the guys I play with, and all the plays that they make and all the work that they put in,” Celebrini said postgame. 

Celebrini also became just the 14th player in NHL history to pass the 200-point plateau before the age of 21 and is the fifth-fastest active player to reach the milestone.

Celebrini then went on to add his 201st point in the same game, assisting on Mason Marchment’s 100th career goal, which sent the game into overtime.

According to Sharks PR, Celebrini is the fastest player to start their career with the Sharks to hit the milestone as well beating out Logan Couture’s prior record of 273 games.

"We've seen it right since the moment we drafted him," Ryan Warsofsky said of Celebrini's milestone. "He's a special player, special person. Worked extremely hard at his craft and it's an honor that he did that. He's a big part of our team. I think he's probably more disappointed in not getting two points, and that just shows who he is."

Just three seasons into his career, Macklin Celebrini is barely scraping his potential ceiling, yet he’s continuing to make history.

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Mark Stone had an early assist to move within two points of breaking Vegas’ career scoring record, Ivan Barbashev scored twice in the second period and the Golden Knights beat the Utah Mammoth 5-3 on Wednesday night.

Stone helped set up Jack Eichel's power-play goal at 2:15 of the first period to push his Vegas total to 416 points, one off Jonathan Marchessault's mark.

Carter Hart made 14 saves to help Vegas open a five-game homestand with its fourth straight victory. Mitch Marner had three assists.

Victor Olofsson made it 2-1 on a power play at 3:07 of the second, then set up Barbashev's goals at 4:51 and 8:16 — the second on a breakaway.

After Dmitri Simashev pulled Utah to 4-3 at 9:07 of the third, Brett Howden slipped a shot through traffic 1:12 later to push the lead back to two goals.

Lawson Crouse scored for Utah in the first period and set up Jack McBain’s second-period goal.

Sebastian Cossa stopped 23 shots for the Mammoth.

Up next

Mammoth: Host St. Louis on Thursday night.

Golden Knights: Host Nashville on Friday night.

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See AP’s full NHL coverage here

BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — Nikita Kucherov had a natural hat trick and an assist — all in the third period — and the Tampa Bay Lightning beat the Buffalo Sabres 8-3 on Wednesday night for their fourth victory in five games.

Kucherov, the Russian star who requested a trade Oct. 30, had his eighth NHL hat trick after the Sabres scored three in a row to cut it to 4-3.

Brandon Hagel scored twice, John Carlson had a goal and four assists, and Scott Sabourin and Yanni Gourde also scored. Jake Guentzel had four assists, and Anthony Cirelli added three, and Andrei Vasilevskiy made 28 saves.

Josh Doan, Jason Zucker and Tage Thompson scored for the Sabres, who have lost three of their last four. Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen made nine saves on 14 shots and Colten Ellis stopped five of eight shots in relief.

Thompson cut it to 4-3 33 seconds into the third period, but Kucherov soon took over, scoring his first two in a 2:46 span.

RANGERS 3, FLAMES 1

CALGARY, Alberta (AP) — Mika Zibanejad scored twice in the second period, Joonas Korpisalo made 29 saves and New York beat Calgary for its fourth victory in five games.

Tye Kartye, into an empty net, also scored for New York (11-8-1).

Adam Klapka scored for Calgary (8-10-1). Devin Cooley stopped 21 shots.

Zibanejad opened the scoring 59 seconds into the second period.

Halfway through the second, Zibanejad fired a one-timer on a power play past Cooley after being setup on a cross-ice pass from Pavel Dorofeyev.

Glenn Gawdin, who broke into the NHL with the Flames, made his New York debut at fourth-line center. It was his 14th NHL game and first since March 6, 2024.

OILERS 3, FLYERS 2, OT

EDMONTON, Alberta (AP) — Evan Bouchard scored on a one-timer from the left side 47 seconds into overtime and Edmonton beat Philadelphia for its third straight victory.

Bouchard leads NHL defenseman with 11 goals.

Connor McDavid picked up an assist in the second period to extend his season-starting points streak to 20 games, tying his career high and becoming the eighth player in NHL history with multiple 20-game streaks. The Oilers captain leads the league with 49 points.

Zach Hyman scored twice for Edmonton (14-3-3), which matched its second-best start in franchise history through 20 games. The Oilers are 12-0-2 when they score first this season.

Tristan Jarry made 30 saves to improve to 5-1-3.

Tyson Foerster and Travis Sanheim scored for Philadelphia (5-10-6), which has lost four of its last five. Dan Vladar stopped 21 shots.

VEGAS 5, UTAH 3

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Mark Stone had an early assist to move within two points of breaking Vegas’ career scoring record, Ivan Barbashev scored twice in the second period and the Golden Knights beat Utah.

Stone helped set up Jack Eichel’s power-play goal at 2:15 of the first period to push his Vegas total to 416 points, one off Jonathan Marchessault’s mark.

Carter Hart made 14 saves to help Vegas open a five-game homestand with its fourth straight victory. Mitch Marner had three assists.

Victor Olofsson made it 2-1 on a power play at 3:07 of the second, then set up Barbashev’s goals at 4:51 and 8:16 — the second on a breakaway.

After Dmitri Simashev pulled Utah to 4-3 at 9:07 of the third, Brett Howden slipped a shot through traffic 1:12 later to push the lead back to two goals.

Lawson Crouse scored for Utah in the first period and set up Jack McBain’s second-period goal.

Sebastian Cossa stopped 23 shots for the Mammoth.

PREDATORS 4, DUCKS 2

ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Shane Wright, Nils Hoglander and Jayden Struble had a goal and an assist apiece, and Nashville extended its winning streak to six games with a victory over Anaheim.

Hoglander put Nashville ahead with a remarkable between-the-legs goal in the second period, and Justus Annunen made 27 saves to win his fourth consecutive start. Steven Stamkos also scored late in the third period.

One night after a comfortable shutout in Los Angeles, the Predators completed the Southern California sweep by cooling down the surging Ducks, whose five-game winning streak ended.

Cutter Gauthier extended the NHL’s most prolific seven-game goal scoring binge in more than three decades with a first-period score for Anaheim. Captain Mikael Granlund also had a goal and an assist for the Ducks, who had been the first team since the 1988-89 Los Angeles Kings to score at least five goals in eight consecutive games.

Laurent Brossoit stopped 18 shots in his first loss in his five starts for Anaheim. The Ducks’ power play went 0 for 3 after scoring in eight consecutive games since Oct. 22.

PENGUINS 3, SHARKS 2, SO

SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) — Ben Kindel scored in regulation and had the lone shootout goal and Pittsburgh beat San Jose after blowing a two-goal lead in third period.

San Jose star Macklin Celebrini scored with 8:28 left, and set up Mason Marchment’s tying goal with 4:11 remaining.

The Penguins then survived a San Jose power play for the final 43 seconds of overtime after Kris Letang was sent off for holding Sam Dickinson’s stick.

Sergei Murashov made 34 saves for the Penguins through overtime, then ended the tiebreaker by stopping Will Smith in the third round. Kindel scored on the first attempt of the shootout.

Samuel Girard opened the scoring for Pittsburgh on a slap shot at 8:57 of the first period, and Kindel connected on a power play at 3:28 of the third.

Yaroslav Askarov stopped 33 shots for San Jose.

EDMONTON, Alberta (AP) — Evan Bouchard scored on a one-timer from the left side 47 seconds into overtime and the Edmonton Oilers beat the Philadelphia Flyers 3-2 on Wednesday night for their third straight victory.

Bouchard leads NHL defenseman with 11 goals.

Connor McDavid picked up an assist in the second period to extend his season-starting points streak to 20 games, tying his career high and becoming the eighth player in NHL history with multiple 20-game streaks. The Oilers captain leads the league with 49 points.

Zach Hyman scored twice for Edmonton (14-3-3), which matched its second-best start in franchise history through 20 games. The Oilers are 12-0-2 when they score first this season.

Tristan Jarry made 30 saves to improve to 5-1-3.

Tyson Foerster and Travis Sanheim scored for Philadelphia (5-10-6), which has lost four of its last five. Dan Vladar stopped 21 shots.

Philadelphia defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen returned after missing seven games after aggravating an upper-body injury he suffered against Anaheim on Oct. 24.

Up next

Flyers: At Columbus on Saturday night.

Oilers: At Toronto on Saturday night.

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See AP’s full NHL coverage here

The Vancouver Canucks seem to have developed a fondness for former Ottawa Senators.

Both players the Senators have lost on waivers this season are now members of the Canucks organization, following Vancouver's claim of defenceman Cameron Crotty from the Minnesota Wild this week.

The Senators placed Crotty on waivers in late October, hoping to send him to Belleville. Instead, the Minnesota Wild claimed the 27-year-old Ottawa native, bringing his time with his hometown club to an end.

But Crotty's NHL stay in Minnesota turned out to be brief.

This week, the Wild attempted to send him to their own AHL affiliate by placing him back on waivers. That's when the Canucks stepped in, putting in a successful claim of their own.

Crotty was originally selected by the Arizona Coyotes in the third round of the 2017 NHL Draft. The 6-foot-3, right-shot defenceman appeared in six games for the Senators last season and another three this season before being placed on waivers.

He was primarily a depth option for the Senators, providing insurance on D while splitting his time between the NHL and AHL.

In hindsight, the Sens might have been wise to keep Crotty around as their seventh D instead of 21-year-old Carter Yakemchuk, who's been a healthy scratch in five the past six games.

As for Meriläinen, the Canucks got him directly from the Senators on September 25 after the Senators exposed him to waivers during training camp. Meriläinen will best be remembered here for his fantastic run as the club's emergency starter two years ago. 

In 12 appearances in relief of injured goalies Linus Ullmark and Anton Forsberg, Meriläinen went 8-3-1 with a 1.99 goals against average and a .925 save percentage. Without him, the Sens probably would have missed the playoffs for an eighth straight season.

That led the Sens to believe he was ready for full-time backup duty last season, but things didn't pan out. He appeared in 20 NHL games, posting an 8-10-1 record with a 3.51 goals-against average and an .860 save percentage. He was eventually sent back to Belleville and replaced with free agent backup James Reimer.

Crotty and Meriläinen weren't expected to play a major role in Ottawa this season, but losing both assets for nothing wasn't ideal. That's how it goes when you have a team with depth. The rules are set up to make sure NHL-level players don't get buried in the minors.

Of course, both men are glad to be wanted in the NHL, but at 3-16-1, they're now hoping the Canucks have better days ahead.

By Steve Warne
The Hockey News Ottawa 

With Erik Karlsson returning to the SAP Center once again on Wednesday night, it seems apropos to take a look back at the trade that sent him out of the Bay Area and to the Steel City.

The initial trade was completed on August 3, 2026 and was as follows. Erik Karlsson ($1.5 million retained), Dillon Hamaliuk, and a 2026 third-round draft pick to the Pittsburgh Penguins with Mikael Granlund, Mike Hoffman, Jan Rutta, and a 2024 first-round pick heading to the San Jose Sharks. 

Penguins' Half of the Tree

First, we'll address the Penguins side of things, simply because it's a little quicker.

Erik Karlsson is still patrolling the Penguins' blue line and is still performing at a point-per-game pace. With that being said, he's going to continue being in the rumor mill for the foreseeable future unless the Penguins either trade him or start performing at a higher level to compete for a playoff spot.

Hamaliuk, the Sharks' 55th overall selection in the 2019 NHL Draft, wasn't offered a qualifying offer at the end of the 2023-24 season and became a free agent. Currently, he is unsigned and most recently played for the ECHL's Fort Wayne Komets last season.

The third-round pick was then traded to the Detroit Red Wings for Elmer Soderblom in March of 2026. It continued to be a trade asset when the Red Wings then sent it to the St. Louis Blues as part of a deal to bring Justin Faulk to the Motor City. Last but not least, the Blues traded the pick to the Toronto Maple Leafs as a part of a package for Brandon Carlo. The Maple Leafs selected Zac Olsen with the pick.

The Sharks' Tree

Now, we'll take a look at how the trade broke down for the Sharks. First off, Jan Rutta and Mike Hoffman's contracts expired. Hoffman's at the end of the 2023-24 season and Rutta's the following summer.

Granlund was traded to the Dallas Stars along with defenseman Cody Ceci ahead of the 2025 Trade Deadline. The Sharks got the Stars' 2025 first-round pick and a 2025 fourth-round pick that originally belonged to the Winnipeg Jets in return. The Sharks used the picks to select Joshua Ravensbergen and Zack Sharp respectively.

The Sharks then packaged the first-round pick which ended up being 14th overall with a second-round pick that originally belonged to the New Jersey Devils to move up to the 11th overall selection in the 2025 NHL Draft which they used to select Sam Dickinson. The Buffalo Sabres, who received the two picks, selected Konsta Helenius and Adam Kleber.

The Sharks still have $1.5 million of Karlsson's cap hit, but his current contract is set to expire at the end of the season.

All-in-all, the Karlsson trade directly resulted in the addition of two of the Sharks' top young assets in Dickinson and Ravensbergen. It's safe to say three years down the line, things seem to have worked out for the Sharks.

CALGARY, Alberta (AP) — Mika Zibanejad scored twice in the second period, Joonas Korpisalo made 29 saves and the New York Rangers beat the Calgary Flames 3-1 on Wednesday night for their fourth victory in five games.

Tye Kartye, into an empty net, also scored for New York (11-8-1).

Adam Klapka scored for Calgary (8-10-1). Devin Cooley stopped 21 shots.

Zibanejad opened the scoring 59 seconds into the second period.

Halfway through the second, Zibanejad fired a one-timer on a power play past Cooley after being setup on a cross-ice pass from Pavel Dorofeyev.

Glenn Gawdin, who broke into the NHL with the Flames, made his New York debut at fourth-line center. It was his 14th NHL game and first since March 6, 2024.

Up next

Rangers: At Vancouver on Friday night.

Flames: At Los Angeles on Saturday night.

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See AP’s full NHL coverage here

CALGARY, Alberta — Mika Zibanejad scored one of the biggest goals of his hockey career inside the Scotiabank Saddledome. 

There were other notable moments here that followed, like the time he recorded a natural hat trick in 2 minutes, 38 seconds to set a franchise record for the fastest hat trick in Senators history in February 2016. 

But the golden goal he scored at 18 years old in overtime for Sweden in the 2012 World Junior Championship to end his country’s 31-year gold medal drought at the tournament was a defining moment of his career. 

So to say farewell to the rinky-dink barn in its last season as home to the Flames, Zibanejad did what he does best in this building and scored twice in a 3-1 win. 

“Yeah, I don’t mind [playing here],” No. 93 said with a smile. “It’s too bad that they’re moving.” 

The Blueshirts have desperately needed more 5-on-5 production from their top two centers. 

Zibanejad (1) and captain J.T. Miller (3) entered Wednesday’s game combining for approximately 11 percent of the Rangers’ total 5-on-5 goals (35). 

The two are also key pieces of the power play, which went 0-for-5 in Edmonton and hasn’t quite found a groove yet. 

While Zibanejad’s play away from the puck has been effective and Miller has generated an abundance of scoring chances as one of the hardest-working Rangers below the hash marks, the team has suffered at times without the necessary scoreboard impact from those two. 

The 33-year-old Zibanejad registered his first multigoal game of the season and his 43rd as a Ranger to tie Andy Bathgate for the fifth most in franchise history Wednesday night. 

Intentionally banking the puck off Flames goalie Devin Cooley off the rush, Zibanejad put the Rangers up 1-0 less than a minute into the second period. The Swedish center then blasted a one-timer from his sweet spot in the left circle on the Rangers power play just over 10 minutes later. 

The power-play goal was his second of the season and first since Game 2. It also tied Zibanejad with Daniel Sedin for the second-most power-play goals (138) in NHL history among Swedish players. 

Plus, with two goals in the second period, Zibanejad tied Steve Vickers for the second-most multigoal periods in Rangers history (26). 

“He’s so important to our team,” head coach Mike Sullivan said of Zibanejad. “He drives offense in so many ways. He drives his line. He drives offense on the power play. He just impacts the game in so many different ways. Obviously, when he’s scoring goals, it’s good for him, it’s good for us.” 

Rangers goalie Joonas Korpisalo, appearing in his second game of the season, made the standout play of a scoreless opening 20 minutes. Quite frankly, it was the play of the game. 

Zayne Parekh was showing off some wizardry with the puck, dangling Glenn Gawdin in his Rangers debut before skating around all the traffic in the zone. 

As the 20-year-old Calgary defenseman attempted to score on a wraparound, Korpisalo purposely dropped his stick and stretched his whole body across the crease to get his blocker glove in front of the puck. 

It was one of just three high-danger chances for the Flames through the first period, but the Rangers only had four of their own, according to Natural Stat Trick. 

Korpisalo ultimately stopped 29 of the 30 shots he faced in his second victory of the season. 

“That was a heck of a play by him,” Korpisalo said of Parekh, who was a menace with the puck more than once throughout the night. “He got me swimming. It’s just straight desperation. Dropped my stick to get my leverage, get my blocker there and I got lucky.”

The Pittsburgh Penguins have begun their three-game California road swing an even 1-1, and Wednesday, they will look to come away with a winning record when they take on the San Jose Sharks.

And, presumably, they'll be doing so with a different lineup. 

On Tuesday, the Penguins held a practice in Anaheim before heading to San Jose, and they debuted some new line combinations. The top line of Rickard Rakell, Sidney Crosby, and Evgeni Malkin remained untouched, but the other three lines saw a little bit of an overhaul. 

Nick Robertson earned a promotion to the second line with Ben Kindel and Egor Chinakhov, while Tommy Novak slid back to the center position on the third line between Ville Koivunen and Justin Brazeau, with Hendrix Lapierre out. In addition, forward Rutger McGroarty appears to be taking Lapierre's spot in the lineup, and he was placed on the fourth line with Blake Lizotte and Connor Dewar. 

Head coach Dan Muse also confirmed that rookie goaltender Sergei Murashov, who earned his first victory of the season in a 5-2 win over the Los Angeles Kings Saturday. Sam Girard, who missed practice with a "maintenance day" Tuesday, will probably slot back in. 

Here are the projected lines and pairings for Sunday's matchup:

Forwards
Rickard Rakell-Sidney Crosby-Evgeni Malkin
Egor Chinakhov-Ben Kindel-Nick Robertson
Ville Koivunen-Tommy Novak-Justin Brazeau
Connor Dewar-Blake Lizotte-Rutger McGroarty

Defensemen
Spencer Stastney-Erik Karlsson
Sam Girard-Kaedan Korczak
Declan Carlile-Kris Letang

Penguins' Nick Robertson Primed To Get Another Shot In Top-Six, Where He Never Should Have LeftThe 25-year-old Penguins' forward has been one of the team's best forwards all season despite playing in a limited role

The Sharks have not exactly come out the gate on fire to start the season, as they are 8-11-1 and are 3-7 in their last 10. They added some veterans to complement their youth this summer to try to take the next step toward playoff contention, including defensemen Darnell Nurse and Jacob Trouba, who are a combined minus-11 this season.

Of course, the player to watch is always 20-year-old superstar Macklin Celebrini, who has seven goals and 21 points in 18 games this season for the Sharks. Their next-closest point producer is center Will Smith with 13 points in 20 games. 

This sheds light on the Sharks' minus-20 goal differential, which is the fourth-worst mark in the league behind only the Philadelphia Flyers, Chicago Blackhawks, and Vancouver Canucks. 

Puck drop is set for 10:00 p.m. ET on SportsNet Pittsburgh. You can also listen to the game on 105.9 'The X."

Former Penguins 64-Point Forward Placed On LTIR After Scary PlayThis former Penguins forward is going to be out long-term.

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Why Sharks fans must be patient amid disappointing start to 2026-27 NHL season originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

• Editor’s note: Sheng Peng is a regular contributor to NBC Sports California’s Sharks coverage. You can read more of his coverage on San Jose Hockey Now, listen to him on the San Jose Hockey Now Podcast, and follow him on Twitter at @Sheng_Peng.

Macklin Celebrini, no doubt, accelerated the Sharks’ timeline last year.

I don’t know if anybody expected the then-19-year-old to put up an MVP-caliber campaign, and in the season before he was eligible for a July 1 extension.

So it makes sense that Sharks general manager Mike Grier cashed some chips in to acquire expensive veterans like Mason Marchment, Kiefer Sherwood, Jacob Trouba, Darnell Nurse and Michael Kesselring, in part to help Celebrini.

The early returns, a quarter into the 2026-27 NHL season, aren’t great though: The Sharks are 8-11-2, with just two regulation wins so far this season.

That’s on the veterans. But it’s also on the Sharks’ cavalcade of recent high draft picks, all of them showing flashes of elite talent, but still not quite reliable every night contributors.

That’s a tall order, of course, for any young player. There’s pretty much no one like Celebrini … except, perhaps, his counterpart on Wednesday night, Sidney Crosby.

In 2006-07, Crosby won the Hart Trophy as a 19-year-old, leading the Penguins to their first Stanley Cup playoff appearance since 2001.

Last year, Celebrini was almost just as great, finishing fourth in the MVP voting, and leading the Sharks within four points of the playoffs.

The next year, Crosby led the Penguins to the 2008 Stanley Cup Final.

The differences between the 2007-08 Penguins and this year’s Sharks aren’t, full credit to Celebrini, really between Crosby and Celebrini, though. Both are transcendent players, already among the best in the league.

But look at the rest of those Pens: Evgeni Malkin, 21, finished second in the Hart Trophy voting. Jordan Staal, 19, was already a playoff-caliber middle-six center. Marc-Andre Fleury, 23, was one of the better goalies in the league. Along with Crosby, these were all top-two picks who were already true NHL stars or high-level contributors.

In addition, Pittsburgh had a legit No. 1 defenseman, the underrated and should-be in the Hall of Fame Sergei Gonchar. And their depth, up and down the lineup, was superior. San Jose’s depth, speaking on Grier’s behalf, was the problem that he was trying to solve when he acquired Sherwood and company. No one is under any illusions that Nurse or Trouba are bona fide No. 1 defensemen in this league.

Celebrini, and this is no disrespect to the likes of high picks like Will Smith, Michael Misa, Ivar Stenberg, Sam Dickinson, and Yaroslav Askarov, doesn’t have Crosby’s kind of help…yet.

He will, I think.

Askarov, the oldest of the bunch, is already starting to show more consistency than he did last year, his first full season as starter. Twenty-one-year-old Smith, 19-year-old Misa and 20-year-old Dickinson are clearly better than they were last year, even if their numbers aren’t there. And the best of the bunch could be the most recent top pick, 2026 second-overall Stenberg, who has put together some of his best games in the NHL recently. They’re not Fleury, Malkin, Staal, and Gonchar yet, but there’s a good chance that at least of couple of these young guns could get close.

So be patient, Sharks fans. This season so far has been a little bit of a disappointment, considering all the hype, generated in part by Celebrini’s incredible sophomore season.

But the kids clearly are getting better, that’s the important thing. Celebrini is getting high-level help soon, and it’s going to come from within. It just might take a few more months or another year longer than you’d like.

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You can be doing a lot of things in Las Vegas on Wednesday evening. Go gambling, eat some good food, and watch a show. Yet no one in the city will be thinking of that, as all eyes will be on T-Mobile Arena. It’s fight night.

For the first time since late April, when Brett Howden scored the double-overtime winning goal in Game 5, giving the Vegas Golden Knights a 3-2 lead in the first round, the Utah Mammoth will return to Sin City, where the beginning of the end of their 2025-26 season happened.

BRETT HOWDEN CALLS GAME!!! ✅

VEGAS WINS GAME 5 IN @ENERGIZER DOUBLE OT! #StanleyCuppic.twitter.com/5xiFHLANGU

— NHL (@NHL) April 30, 2026

After the dramatic Game 5 victory, the Golden Knights beat the Mammoth 5-1 in Game 6 in Salt Lake City to punch their tickets to Round 2. The Golden Knights went on to be within just two games of the Stanley Cup. Meanwhile, the Mammoth players went home, bitter and frustrated that they still weren’t playing. That feeling, six months later, still lingers a bit.

“We know the task at hand, but we just got to take it one game at a time,” Lawson Crouse said. “It’s a great opportunity to get a little redemption. I’d say everyone knows what happened, but just looking forward to it.”

It’s clear that the Mammoth’s rivalry with the Golden Knights is the biggest one they currently have. While battles between the Minnesota Wild and the Colorado Avalanche have heated up, it’s obvious the relationship with the Golden Knights is special. Once you fight a team in the playoffs, especially if it’s as intense as the series was between these two, it’s just different.

For people who don’t remember, the first-round series in the last playoffs between these two was close until Game 6. The first five games were decided by at most two goals. Game 4 and Game 5 both went into overtime. There were crazy hits and viral moments, headlined by the Logan Cooley and Nic Dowd spat in Game 1. The Mammoth are expecting something like that physicality and bad blood to resurface on Wednesday night.

Nic Dowd had some choice words for Logan Cooley after being bloodied late in the third 👀 pic.twitter.com/K4wqH7gnzR

— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) April 20, 2026

“I'm sure there'll be some stuff, but we just have to keep our emotions in check and keep things between the whistles and be smart and disciplined,” O’Brien said.

Yet, there was a sense of calmness on Wednesday morning, hours ahead of the rematch. The Mammoth held an optional practice, with smiles and chirping going around the team. 

This is a different Mammoth team than the one the Golden Knights faced back in April and May. The team added quite a few new faces, like Anders Lee, Vincent Trocheck, Andrew Peeke, and Sebastian Cossa, who is projected to start on Wednesday. Former faces who played a big role in the series, like Ian Cole, are gone.

Even players like Kailer Yamamoto, who led the Mammoth in postseason scoring, probably won’t play on Wednesday. The team is pretty banged up, with John Marino, Nate Schmidt, Dylan Guenther, and Yamamoto all injured. Coming off a long, rough five-game road trip, the Mammoth needed a break. Luckily, going into this game, they did have three days off, some much-needed time away from playing games.

“It was huge,” head coach André Tourigny said. “At the end of the trip, I think everybody was tired. I like the way our guys fought and everything. But mentally, physically, we were a little bit drained. The way we managed it with two short practices, with a lot of energy, a lot of pace, a lot of smiles. I think that was good. We all feel good today. Talk to the players, talk to myself, the coaches. We feel energized.”

However, it’s due to the departures, the injuries, and the new faces that surround the Mammoth that make Tourigny think there won’t be a lot of spillover from the playoffs. However, like everyone else, the longtime head coach wouldn’t mind seeing some of that drama, physicality, and competitiveness return from last spring.

“I would not mind,” Tourigny said. “We will play a hard game. I think they will play a hard game. It's a good team. We will go at each other. We need the two points. They need the two points. I think there will be a lot of pride. But normally, those things when you expect something, there's nothing that happens, and when you don't expect it, something is happening. We'll be watching.”

A lot of people will be watching, as the game will be nationally televised on TNT. The anticipation is high. Will someone like O’Brien or Jack McBain make a massive physical play early on to continue that rivalry we saw in the postseason, or will this turn out to be a mild game, letting down the fans who will be tuned in to this one? Don’t be disappointed if this isn’t the all-out brawl it’s hyped up to be.

Regardless of how many fights, goals, and saves there are on Wednesday, there’s no doubt that by the end of the 60 minutes, these two teams will be reminded that they are two of the best teams in the Western Conference for a reason. The second game in early December between them could be more of a return to the level we saw in the playoffs, depending on what happens in this one.

At the end of the day, as Tourigny said, there are two points on the line. That is the Mammoth’s priority. Coming out early and stunning the energetic crowd in Las Vegas is the goal.

“Coming out flying with pace, that's our strength,” O’Brien said. “We just need to fly and skate, and that's when we have success. It's when we're at our best.”

Wednesday might be a different battle than most expect, with new faces on both teams and some familiar faces gone. It should be a very good hockey game nevertheless. Don’t worry, though. Knowing these two teams, they’re ready to rumble. No matter what their rosters look like, there should be some fireworks and flaring tempers.

The Buffalo Sabres are having an okay start to the season, as they have an 8-6-3 record and are sixth in the Atlantic Division. 

Yet, with the Atlantic Division being so competitive, the Sabres should be looking to add to their roster through the trade market. When looking at trade candidates around the NHL, Washington Capitals forward Ivan Miroshnichenko is standing out as an intriguing potential target to consider. 

Miroshnichenko was recently given permission to seek a trade from the Capitals, and the Sabres would be wise to kick tires on him because of it.

Miroshnichenko has had trouble breaking out at the NHL level, but a change of scenery could be what helps him change that. The 2022 first-round pick has good potential and skill, so he would be a fascinating player for a Sabres club that needs more offense to take a gamble on. 

In three games this season with the Capitals, Miroshnichenko has scored one goal. This is after he had two goals and three points in 13 games this past season for the Capitals. While he has not taken off offensively yet, perhaps getting a fresh start on a team like the Sabres would help him do so. 

Ultimately, with the Sabres being a team focused on both the present and the future, they would be wise to consider targeting the 22-year-old. It will be interesting to see if they do just that from here. 

The Vegas Golden Knights return home after an Eastern Conference road trip where they won three in a row and picked up seven of eight points. They’ll look to continue their winning ways at home as they begin a five-game homestand against the Utah Mammoth.

Puck drop is scheduled for 6:38 p.m. PST. 

The Golden Knights last played on Sunday against the Buffalo Sabres. The Sabres were the better team early, but Adin Hill kept the game tied 0-0 after the first period. In the second, Mitch Marner broke the ice shorthanded, and Jack Eichel scored the eventual game-winner; after Buffalo struck in the third, Hertl scored a pair of goals to secure a 4-1 victory for the Golden Knights.

This will be the final game of a six-game road trip for the Mammoth, who last played on Saturday against the Ottawa Senators. They chased the game all night and gave up a late third-period goal, leading to a 4-2 loss.

Carter Hart was the first goaltender off the ice, and he’ll start in net for the Golden Knights. Hart has a 5-3-2 record and an average save percentage of .900 in 10 games played this season.

Sebastian Cossa is projected to start in net for the Mammoth. Cossa has a 4-1-1 record and an average save percentage of .871 in seven games played this season.

Golden Knights Lines

Trevor Connelly — Jack Eichel — Mark Stone

Brett Howden — William Karlsson — Mitch Marner

Ivan Barbashev — Tomáš Hertl — Victor Olofsson

Marc Gatcomb — Nic Dowd — Braeden Bowman

Defense

Brayden McNabb — Shea Theodore

Jeremy Lauzon — Rasmus Andersson

Parker Wotherspoon — Dylan Coghlan

Goaltenders: Carter Hart / Adin Hill

Projected Mammoth Lines

Anders Lee — Barrett Hayton — Clayton Keller

Logan Cooley — Vincent Trocheck — Lawson Crouse

Jack McBain — Nick Schmaltz — Dylan Guenther

Michael Carcone — Kevin Stenlund — Liam O’Brien

Defense

Mikhail Sergachev — Mackenzie Weegar

Dmitri Simashev — Andrew Peeke

Artem Duda — Nick DeSminome

Goaltenders: Sebastian Cossa / Karel Vejmelka

Special Teams

VGK power play: 26.3%, 9th

VGK penalty kill: 76.5%, 19th

Mammoth power play: 37.1%, 2nd

Mammoth penalty kill: 69.6%, 27th

Game Notes

Last year, the Golden Knights lost two of three games against the Mammoth during the regular season, finishing 1-2-0. They are 3-3-0 against Utah all time in the regular season.

The Golden Knights and the Mammoth matched up in the first round of the playoffs, and Vegas won the series in six games.  

Jack Eichel leads the Golden Knights in scoring this season with 24 points in 19 games. Eichel has two goals and six points in six career regular-season games against the Mammoth. 

Clayton Keller leads the Mammoth in scoring this season with 24 points in 18 games. Keller has 10 goals and 26 points in 34 career regular-season games against the Golden Knights.

This will be Carter Hart’s first career regular-season game against the Mammoth.

This will be Sebastian Cossa’s first career game against the Golden Knights. 

We’re on Milestone Watch! Brayden McNabb is one point away from 200 career points.

Milestone alert! Shea Theodore skated in his 600th game as a Golden Knight on Sunday against the Buffalo Sabres.

Milestone alert! On Sunday against Buffalo, Mitch Marner recorded his 100th point as a Golden Knight, becoming the fastest player to do so in just 98 games.

The Golden Knights are 6-3-0 at home this season; the Mammoth are 6-5-1 on the road.