The 52-21-4 Winnipeg Jets have returned home for a one-off home game vs. the red-hot St. Louis Blues (43-28-7).
St. Louis has won 12 games in a row and are 19-2-2 in their last 23 outings.
It will most definitely be a challenge for Winnipeg, which currently holds down first place across the league, as well as the Central Division.
But with Dallas, Colorado and St. Louis all coming in hot over the past month, the Jets' edge has slipped to just a point here and there. And those points are making a huge different as the season wanes out and becomes postseason play.
Connor Hellebuyck will get the start in goal for Winnipeg, while local product Joel Hofer will backstop the Blues on Monday.
Colin Miller will miss Monday's game due to illness, while Nikolaj Ehlers is considered a game-time decision due to the lower body injury he sustained two games back that forced him to miss the contest against Utah on Saturday.
Jaret Anderson-Dolan remains in the lineup, while Logan Stanley and Haydn Fleury are expected to work together as the third defensive pair in Miller and Neal Pionk's absence.
Winnipeg Jets' expected line combinations for Monday, April 7 vs. St. Louis:
It's the latest episode of the Sens Nation Podcast, now up on all podcast apps. Hosted by our site editor, Steve Warne, the boys discuss the Senators' 4-0 win over the Columbus Blue Jackets on Sunday. They can officially clinch their first playoff spot in eight years on Tuesday with a win or regulation loss back in Columbus.
Sunday's win was their third straight, and they allowed just one goal in the process. With the potential to catch the Florida Panthers for third place, we explore what that would mean for the Sens' playoff hopes. The Panthers lead Ottawa by two points, and each team has five games left to play.
Other topics include:
- Three Senators snapped long goal-scoring slumps in the past two games. That includes Nik Matinpalo who's never scored in the league until now.
- Jake Sanderson has emerged as one of the NHL’s top offensive defencemen.
- We dive into the latest injury updates on Brady Tkachuk and Nick Cousins—will they be ready before the playoffs? Who will come out of the lineup when they return?
- And we look back at Alex Ovechkin’s milestone weekend as he breaks the NHL career goal-scoring record. Hit the YouTube version of the show at the link below or listen on your favourite podcast app.
St. Louis Blues center Robert Thomas was named the NHL's third star of the week for the ween ending April 6.
Thomas had two goals and seven assists in three games, each a game-winning goal helping the Blues (43-28-7), who are on a franchise-record 12-game winning streak, go 3-0-0 last week with wins over the Detroit Red Wings (2-1 in overtime), Pittsburgh Penguins (5-4 in overtime) and Colorado Avalanche (5-4).
"I can't say enough good things about Robert Thomas's game since 4 Nations," Blues coach Jim Montgomery said after the win against the Avalanche. "He must be one of the top three scorers in the NHL in that time.
"I think what people aren't recognizing is how good he's been defensively. We're using him against [Nathan] MacKinnon's line all night [Saturday] and he just does a good job. His brain is high-end offensively and defensively."
Since Feb. 1, Thomas is No. 1 in the league with 39 points (nine goals, 30 assists) in 26 games, two points ahead of Tampa Bay Lightning forward Nikita Kucherov and three ahead of MacKinnon and Boston Bruins forward David Pastrnak.
Thomas follows in the footsteps of goalie Jordan Binnington, who was named the NHL's third star of the month for March after going 8-2-0 with a 2.21 goals-against average and a .910 save percentage.
Washington Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin, who broke Wayne Gretzky's record for goals in NHL history with 895, was the first star and Montreal Canadiens captain Nick Suzuki (four goals, three assists in four games) was named second star.
There weren't high expectations for Ilya Mikheyev this season with the Chicago Blackhawks after being acquired in the offseason. The Vancouver Canucks paid to get rid of his contract, allowing the Blackhawks to upgrade from a fourth-round pick to a second-round pick in 2027.
Typically, anytime a player's contract is dumped, they aren't going to play at the level in which they are paid to. That hasn't been the case for Mikheyev as, even though Chicago has ample cap space, he has been worth the $4.037 million AAV cap hit due to his overall play at both ends of the ice.
Mikheyev is a 20-goal scorer this season, tied for third on the team with Connor Bedard. Mikheyev has accomplished this without any power-play goals either while Bedard (20 goals) and Tyler Bertuzzi (21), each have nine goals on the man advantage this season. The Russian winger has also scored three of his goals on the penalty kill due to his strong ability to kill penalties and use his speed.
Mikheyev doesn't have the most assists with just 14, but with a two goal effort in the Blackhawks' last game, he set a new career high in points with 34. He ranks fifth on the team in points this season. On a team that has a -69 goal differential, he leads the team at +2.
At this point, the Blackhawks must be very happy that the team has Mikheyev signed for another season as his play and hard work sets a good example for the younger players. I wouldn't take the team re-signing him to a similar contract to keep him around out of the question either.
It's quite the remarkable feat in front of the Blues, who came out of the 4 Nations Face-Off break eight points behind the Vancouver Canucks for the second wild card from the Western Conference. But they currently sit in the first wild card, two points ahead of the Minnesota Wild and in line to face the Vegas Golden Knights in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs should they start today. The Wild, who currently hold the second wild card, would face the Jets should the standings hold up.
"Staying in the moment, worrying about our next game and getting prepared for it, our day to day habits have been excellent," Blues coach Jim Montgomery said. "Not discussing where we are in the standings and not talking about who's injured. They haven't talked about any of them [Colton Parayko, Dylan Holloway] as a group together."
The Blues trip will then move on against the Edmonton Oilers on Wednesday and wrap up where it all began on Oct. 8, against the Seattle Kraken on Saturday before their regular season ends April 15 against Utah Hockey Club.
"That's been a key to this whole operation." goalie Jordan Binnington said of living in the moment. "Just keeping our focus on what's in our control. That's winning hockey games and getting points and building our game to playoff time."
- - -
* The teams will wrap up their season series tonight. Winnipeg has won two of the three, winning 3-2 on Oct. 22 in St. Louis and 4-3 in a shootout Feb. 22 at Enterprise Center. The Blues won 4-1 at Canada Life Centre on Dec. 2, so each of the three games has been won by the road team.
* Blues center Robert Thomas is riding an eight-game point streak (three goals, 14 assists) but he also has seven points (three goals, four assists) in three games against the Jets this season.
* Blues defenseman Cam Fowler has six points (one goal, five assists) in a three-game point streak and nine points (two goals, seven assists) the past six games.
Joel Hofer will start in goal; Jordan Binnington will be the backup.
Healthy scratches include Matthew Kessel and Dalibor Dvorsky. Colton Parayko (knee), Dylan Holloway (lower body) and Alexandre Texier (upper body) are all out. Torey Krug (ankle) is out for the season.
Connor Hellebuyck will start in goal; Eric Comrie will be the backup.
Healthy scratches include Ville Heinola and David Gustafsson. Neal Pionk (lower body), Gabriel Vilardi (upper body) and Rasmus Kupari (concussion) are out. Colin Miller (illness) and Ehlers (foot) each is a game time decision.
The Toronto Maple Leafs will be without defenseman Jake McCabe and forward David Kampf for the next two games, as both are set to miss the club’s brief two-game road trip through Florida after participating in Monday’s optional skate.
According to TSN’s Mark Masters, the two skaters hit the ice before the team departed for Fort Lauderdale ahead of a back-to-back set against the Florida Panthers and Tampa Bay Lightning on Tuesday and Wednesday. Head coach Craig Berube told reporters both players are officially ruled out for the trip and are still listed as day-to-day.
“They won’t play either game, the next two,” Berube told reporters including Masters.
Jake McCabe and David Kampf back on the ice today, but won’t play the next two games, per Leafs coach Craig Berube @TSN_Sportspic.twitter.com/q5eGDh3N1y
Berube also mentioned on Monday that the pair will stay back in Toronto and continue to recover, not travelling with the team.
“They’ll stay home. They’re skating today, which is good, but they’ll be out the next two games,” he said.
Kampf exited Wednesday’s game against Florida in the second period with an upper-body injury and did not return. McCabe, whose injury is undisclosed, was seen heading to the dressing room with just over a minute left in the third period after crashing awkwardly into the boards following a hit from Carter Verhaeghe. The 31-year-old blueliner also collided with a linesman after a Matthew Knies goal.
Both players also sat out Saturday’s home game against the Columbus Blue Jackets.
“I'm not sure when it happened, to be honest with you. I really don't know,” said Berube on Friday.
Jake McCabe went to the Leafs dressing room with 1:10 left
Toronto has a small cushion at the top of the Atlantic Division with a four-point lead over the Tampa Bay Lightning and a six-point lead over the Florida Panthers. With just six games remaining on the regular-season schedule, the team can afford to rest McCabe and Kampf with bigger goals set on the playoffs – already locked into their ninth consecutive postseason appearance.
Kampf, who has tallied five goals and eight assists for 13 points through 59 games this season, is averaging a career-low 12:24 of ice time per game. McCabe, meanwhile, has been a cornerstone of Toronto’s defense, contributing two goals and 21 assists while averaging a career-high 21:31 per night across 66 appearances.
No official timetable has been given for either player’s return.
"I can't really comment on that too much about how long it's going to be,” Berube said on Friday.
For now, Toronto will prioritize health ahead of their hopes of a postseason run, looking to get McCabe and Kampf ready for the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs at the latest.
Stay updated with the most interesting Maple Leafs stories, analysis, breaking news and more! Tap the star to add us to your favorites on Google News to never miss a story.
Here's today's NHL Nugget – this Milestone Monday rewinds to April 7, 1982, when the Edmonton Oilers hosted the Los Angeles Kings in a wild first-round opener.
Both teams kicked off the playoffs with full throttle on offense. It was 4-3 for the Oilers after the first period and 8-6 for the Kings after the second.
The Kings won 10-8, but both teams set an NHL record no other teams matched since.
Brian T. Dessart takes fans on a distinctive ride through the historic-laden NHL with the #NHLNugget. Check out NHLNugget.com to find where to follow NHL Nugget on social media. And for past NHL Nuggets, click here.
The Winnipeg Jets return home to take on the St. Louis Blues, who have won 12 games in a row.
The Jets could receive reinforcements tonight with the addition of Nikolaj Ehlers. The 29-year-old blocked a shot and was later hit by a Cole Perfetti shot against the Vegas Golden Knights on Thursday, forcing him to miss Saturday's loss to Utah HC.
His offensive creativity was thoroughly missed despite his absence spanning just one game. His 24 goals and 63 points in 67 games have him ranked fourth and third on the team. If his game-time decision status is upgraded, he'll return alongside his usual linemates, Vladislav Namestnikov and Perfetti, and will also retake his spot on the first power play unit.
Coming out of the lineup would be David Gustafsson, as Jarrett Anderson-Dolan has left a lasting impression on HC Scott Arniel.
On the backend, Colin Miller did not participate in this morning's skate, replaced by Haydn Fleury. Miller has recorded four goals and 14 points in 59 games, but is also deemed a game-time decision with an illness.
If he is unable to play, Fleury will check back into the lineup, paired with Logan Stanley. Fleury has played 37 games this season, registering seven assists. Without Neal Pionk, Fleury will take Miller's placeholder spot as the quarterback of the second power play unit.
It'll take a team effort and a stellar night in goal from Connor Hellebuyck to defeat the Blues tonight. They are by far the hottest team in the NHL and have continuously found ways to win hockey games.
Stay updated with the most interesting Jets stories, analysis, breaking news and more! Tap the star to add us to your favourites on Google News to never miss a story.
Montreal Canadiens's prospect Ivan Demidov’s season ended in the KHL on Sunday. SKA St. Petersburg lost to Dynamo Moscow 5-2, losing its first-round series in six games. In game five, the right winger shone brightly with a goal and an assist, but he was kept off the score sheet on Sunday.
While SKA’s KHL team is now eliminated, its lower-league affiliates aren’t, and according to RG.org’s Marco D’Amico, that’s where the talented forward is likely to be headed for now. St. Petersburg owns his rights until May 31st, and when Roman Rotenberg was asked what was next for the prospect, he replied:
I don’t know about Montreal. He’s a SKA player Honestly, we haven’t thought about Montreal, Quebec, or Toronto. Everything will happen in its time… It would be better for both Nikishin and Demidov to stay in Russia with SKA.
- Coach Roman Rotenberg on what's next for Ivan Demidov
That certainly doesn’t sound like the organization is about to cut ties with the player and allow him to cross over to this side of the pond. This shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone. Canadiens GM Kent Hughes has always been clear that he didn’t expect his Russian wonder to come over this season.
As mentioned in the past, SKA’s organization wants to win championships at every level. Considering his age, he’s still eligible to play in the MHL, their junior level. Adding a player of his caliber to the roster could make a huge difference.
While Canadiens fans are sure to be displeased with the news, if the roles were inverted and Demidov could help the Canadiens organization win a championship in the AHL, they would assign him to the Laval Rocket. It’s the nature of the business. Demidov’s contract with SKA is valid until the end of May, and it’s normal for them to want to use the player as long as possible.
Ivan Demidov’s KHL season has come to an end as SKA is eliminated from the playoffs.
In 70 total games in the regular season & the playoffs, he had:
- 22 goals - 32 assists - 54 points
He surpassed Kirill Kaprizov for the most points scored by a U-20 player in KHL history. pic.twitter.com/PsSxS3M7LY
However, a final decision has yet to be made, and the Demidov clan will meet with SKA in the coming days to discuss the next steps, but Canadiens fans shouldn’t hold their breath. Hopefully, Demidov doesn’t sustain any injury in lower-level play. Last year, in 17 playoff games, he tallied 28 points before suffering a lower-body injury. Still, according to RG.org, he came close to suffering an injury in Sunday’s game.
Hopefully, whatever is decided, Demidov steers clear of injury and is 100% ready when the Canadiens’ development camp kicks off at the end of June or in early July, I can already picture the Brossard facility filled to the brim with fans eager to catch a glimpse of the next franchise cornerstone.
Canadiens stories, analysis, breaking news, and more! Tap the star to add us to your favorites on Google News, never to miss a story.
The Boston Bruins had a nice run among the NHL's top teams.
From 2017-18 to 2023-24, the Bruins were consistently among the top 10 teams, reaching the Stanley Cup final in 2019, winning the Presidents' Trophy twice, and setting single-season records with 65 wins and 135 points in 2022-23.
However, it all unravelled quickly this season. They failed to suitably address the departures of core veterans, leaving them battling to remain in the wild-card race.
Management waved the white flag by the March 7 NHL trade deadline, shipping out Brad Marchand, Charlie Coyle, Brandon Carlo and Trent Frederic. Those moves sent the Bruins to the bottom of the Eastern Conference standings for the first time since 1996-97, eliminating them from the 2025 post-season race.
The Bruins still have high-scoring superstar right winger David Pastrnak, stud defenseman Charlie McAvoy and starting goaltender Jeremy Swayman under long-term contracts. Fluto Shinzawa of The Athletic believes they should build around that trio going forward.
Shinzawa cited the Washington Capitals as a template for Bruins management to stage a quick roster turnaround. They were trade deadline sellers two years ago but also made several notable additions over the past two years.
Those additions included center Pierre-Luc Dubois, defensemen Jakob Chychrun and Rasmus Sandin, and goaltender Logan Thompson. They have become key factors in the Capitals' surprising rise to the top of the Eastern Conference this season.
Appearing on Daily Faceoff last week, Ty Anderson of Boston's 98.5 The Sports Hub said he believed the Bruins could be aggressive in this summer's free-agent market.
The Bruins have a projected salary-cap space of $27.1 million with 13 active roster players under contract for next season, with RFA Morgan Geekie as the only core player to be re-signed. They can afford to re-sign Geekie and their other five RFAs and have enough left to make a splash in this summer free-agent market.
Despite their cap room, the Bruins could face a bidding war with other teams for those players. They could consider the offer-sheet route in hopes of prying away a talented young RFA from another club. Targets could include Minnesota Wild center Marco Rossi, Toronto left winger Matthew Knies and Buffalo Sabres left winger JJ Peterka.
Bill Clement, a Hockey Hall of Fame broadcaster and 11-year NHL player, is a good person to ask.
Clement played against Gordie Howe, Bobby Orr and Wayne Gretzky and broadcasted countless games played by Ovechkin. Those four are among the best skaters in NHL history, though Mario Lemieux, Sidney Crosby and Maurice ‘Rocket’ Richard also receive mention.
Ovechkin is sixth on Clement’s all-time list. That’s not a slight, he said, adding that the left winger’s ability to get into a shooting position is “second to none.”
Make no mistake, said the analytical Clement, that Ovechkin is one of the greatest players ever. But he ranks players based on several categories, including Stanley Cup titles, finals appearances, goals, assists, playmaking and puck-carrying ability.
The Super Six
Here is Clement’s all-time list:
1. Wayne Gretzky, C: 894 goals, 2,857 points, four Stanley Cups
2. Bobby Orr, D: 270 goals, 915 points, two Stanley Cups
3. Gordie Howe, RW: 801 goals, 1,850 points, four Stanley Cups
4. Mario Lemieux, C: 690 goals, 1,723 points, two Stanley Cups
5. Sidney Crosby, C: 622 goals, 1,682 points, three Stanley Cups
6. Alex Ovechkin, LW: 895 goals, 1,619 points, one Stanley Cup
“If someone said to me, ‘Who is the greatest goal-scorer?’ I would say Alexander Ovechkin,” said Clement, who is enjoying retirement after 30-plus years as a Philadelphia Flyers and national broadcaster. “But if you ask for a list of the greatest players, there’s more that goes into it than just scoring. Things like Stanley Cups, scoring. All of those guys (he ranked ahead of Ovechkin) won multiple Stanley Cups.”
Ovechkin, now in his 20th season, won one Cup in 2018, though his Washington Capitals are strong contenders this year.
“The one thing that keeps me from putting Ovi higher on that list is that he’s not a good puck carrier, and everyone else on that list could just dance when they had the puck,” Clement said. “Gordie would hold guys off with just one arm, and he was a great puck carrier.”
In Clement’s Super Six, he said Howe, Ovechkin and Pittsburgh Penguins captain Crosby had the most power and strength in the group and that Lemieux made it look like “it was a one-man ballet out there. He was so graceful, so fluid. He had it all – speed, size, reach.”
Clement noted that Ovechkin frequently has more goals than assists – this will be the 14th time out of his 20 seasons.
“I think half of Ovi’s assists are on rebound goals off his shots,” he said. “I look at the ability to make plays, too. I have Ovi as the sixth-best player ever, but I have five guys ahead of him just because of the puck carrying and the playmaking.”
Records Galore
Clement, who won two Stanley Cups with the Flyers, was asked why he gave Gretzky the nod over Orr.
“At one time, Gretzky had 61 records. For goals, assists, five-point games, six-point games. The list was endless,” said Clement. “And many of them, I don’t know if they’ll ever be broken.”
He added that it’s “always difficult to compare a great defenseman with a great center. Orr did revolutionize the position. He won eight Norris Trophies” – given to the NHL’s best defenseman.
On the flip side, because of injuries, Orr only played a total of 36 games over his last four seasons, Clement pointed out.
“He only played nine full seasons in the NHL, and the only season he didn’t win the Norris, he finished second to Harry Howell when Orr was 18 years old,” Clement said.
If Orr had been healthy, “there’s no question he would have been in that No. 1 slot” as the best player in history, Clement said. “All the other guys we’re talking about played 15 to 20 seasons. Or more. And Sid and Alex are still going. The great thing about Alex is his durability.”
As for Gretzky, “I would never call Wayne dynamic because he didn’t have much of a shot, and he wasn’t really fast, and he certainly wasn’t strong,” Clement said. “But nobody has ever thought the game the way Wayne thought and processed the game. When he was on the ice, he was the quantum computer of his era. He was way ahead of everything that was happening on the ice. It was almost as if he could see into the future.”
Ovechkin isn’t a Gretzky, “but from the blueline in, he’s as smart a player who has ever played,” Clement said. “Nobody ever expected him to come close to winning the Selke as the best defensive forward, but his offensive sense of the game and his position – he has lived off the one-timer from the off wing – (is amazing).
“He created an art form out of finding dead spots, soft spots, in the offensive zone. And he had guys good enough to get him the puck. I mean, Nick Backstrom is one of the most underrated centers ever, I think. He assisted on more Ovechkin goals than anybody.”
Clement, who ranks Bobby Clarke, Bryan Trottier and Anze Kopitar as the best-ever two-way centers, said Ovechkin has been a master at getting his body in a deadly shooting position.
“Every pass that come to him in that shooting hole on the off wing is not perfect,” Clement said. “Everybody doesn’t make a perfect pass. But if you watch his feet, he has quick little steps, and he gets a read on the pass almost as it’s leaving the passer’s stick, and he knows if he has to adjust by a couple of feet, he’ll quickly move and get down on a knee if he has to. His ability to adjust to a powerful shooting posture – even when the pass isn’t perfect – is second to none.”
Here’s a summary of everything that happened in the world of the Red Wings from March 31st to April 6th.
For starters, it was revealed that top goaltending prospect Trey Augustine wasn’t going to be signed by the Red Wings. At least, not at this point in time. All this means is that the goalie is going to go back to Michigan State for one more season.
Players cannot be signed to NHL contracts while playing in the NCAA.
The same night that information came out, the Red Wings took on the scorching hot St. Louis Blues. The Blues would get the better of them in overtime, but they walked away from the 2-1 loss with a point. That’s still huge at this point in the season.
With the hulking forward back in the mix, the Red Wings handed the Hurricanes a decisive 5-3 loss. In the process, they gained another two points for themselves in the Eastern Conference Wild Card race that’s coming down to the final hour.
With the victory, forward Patrick Kane reached some milestones. He became the US-born skater with the most 20-goal seasons ever, passing Mike Modano. Kane also recorded his 100th point as a member of the Red Wings.
The Boston Bruins’ season is nearing its conclusion.
The B’s have just four games remaining on their regular season schedule, including next Tuesday’s finale against the New Jersey Devils in Boston.
The Bruins halted their 10-game losing streak with an impressive 5-1 win over the Carolina Hurricanes at TD Garden on Saturday night, then followed it up with a 6-3 loss to the Sabres in Buffalo on Sunday. The B’s have a 31-38-9 record entering Monday.
Even though there will be no playoff hockey at the Garden for the first time since 2016, there are still a couple of interesting storylines to follow over the next eight days.
Here’s a look at what Bruins fans should be watching for in the final stretch of the 2024-25 season.
First-round draft pick positioning
With each week that passes, the Bruins’ odds of winning the 2025 NHL Draft Lottery have improved. That’s what happens when you lose nine of your last 10 games late in the season.
The Bruins are officially eliminated from playoff contention and entered Monday with the worst record in the Eastern Conference — a spot they haven’t found themselves in since 1997. As a result, Boston has the fourth-worst record in the league and the fourth-best odds of winning the No. 1 pick.
Here are the Bruins’ lottery odds right now, per Tankathon:
No. 1 pick: 9.5 percent chance
No. 2 pick: 9.5 percent
No. 3 pick: 0.3 percent
No. 4 pick: 15.4 percent
No. 5 pick: 44.6 percent
No. 6 pick: 20.8 percent
There’s a 34.4 percent chance the Bruins earn the No. 1, No. 2 or No. 4 pick. The last time their own first-round pick was in the top four was the 1997 draft, when the B’s selected future Hall of Fame center Joe Thornton with the No. 1 overall pick.
The Bruins’ margin for error is slim, though. They share the fourth-worst record with the Philadelphia Flyers and the Seattle Kraken are just one point above both teams. The Sabres, Anaheim Ducks and Pittsburgh Penguins are all just three points above the Flyers and Bruins.
One or two wins for the Bruins over the final week of the season could result in them moving from the fourth-best lottery odds to the sixth-best, and that would be a very bad outcome for Boston.
The No. 1 goal for the Bruins through next Tuesday’s finale should be to lose games and get the best lottery odds possible.
David Pastrnak’s quest for 100 points
The one bright spot amid this awful Bruins season has been the play of David Pastrnak. His on-ice performance and leadership have been tremendous.
Pastrnak has 13 points in the last six games, including a five-point night against the Hurricanes on Saturday that saw him score a hat trick to reach 40 goals for the fifth straight season. On Sunday against the Sabres, Pastrnak became the first Bruins player ever to tally a point on 10 straight goals scored by the team, per NESN.
The superstar right wing now has 97 points (40 goals, 57 assists) through 78 games. He’s three points away from his third consecutive 100-point season. At this rate, it would be pretty surprising if Pastrnak didn’t reach the century mark.
One interesting development the last month or so has been the chemistry between Pastrnak and center Elias Lindholm. The Bruins hoped these two forwards would form a strong chemistry on the top line when Lindholm was signed last summer, but for whatever reason, it just wasn’t a fit early in the season.
But since the beginning of March, Pastrnak and Lindholm have played 104:09 minutes together at even strength, and the Bruins have a 162-88 lead in shot attempts, a 73-44 advantage in shots on net, an 82-37 edge in scoring chances and a 15-11 goal differential during that ice time, per Natural Stat Trick.
This recent success between Lindholm and Pastrnak is something for the Bruins to be encouraged by heading into next season.
Morgan Geekie’s value going up
The only interesting contract situation for the Bruins this summer involves Morgan Geekie. The veteran forward has tallied career highs with 51 points and 29 goals. His 22 assists are tied for a career high.
If Geekie does score 30 goals, he’ll be the first Bruins player not named Pastrnak, Brad Marchand or Patrice Bergeron to do it since Loui Eriksson in the 2015-16 season.
Geekie has posted career highs in goals and points in back-to-back campaigns with the Bruins. His emergence as a likely 30-goal scorer is a fantastic development for the B’s, but it also could cost them a pretty penny.
The good news for Boston is Geekie will be a restricted free agent, so he can’t hit the open market and the team can match any offer he receives.
Geekie’s current contract is a two-year, $4 million deal. He deserves a huge raise from the $2 million AAV he’s been earning. Will it take between $4-5 million to sign Geekie long term? Maybe more than $5 million? It will be fascinating to see how this unfolds.
Geekie has made himself a key part of the Bruins’ future as a productive, versatile forward who’s just 26 years old.
The 2022 second-round pick is a well-rounded center who is responsible defensively, kills penalties and has an improving offensive skill set. He scored a hat trick for the AHL’s Providence Bruins shortly after the trade.
Minten made his Bruins debut Saturday versus the Hurricanes and played well. The Bruins are desperate for help at center, so it’s important that Minten not only proves he belongs in the NHL but also make a meaningful impact at both ends of the ice. That’s why the reps he’s getting toward the end of the season are so valuable.
In an ideal world, Minten would be the Bruins’ No. 3 center next season, but there will be plenty of competition for that role.
Daniel Bochner knew of Matvei Michkov because the gaudy 2019-20 scoring totals made it impossible to miss him.
As a burgeoning star in Russia, Michkov averaged almost three points per game on the under-16 international stage. He racked up an incomprehensible 109 points (70 goals, 39 assists) in only 26 games at the Russian under-16 level. He was producing offense at a rate rarely if not ever seen in his country.
“So he was pretty well-known,” Bochner said.
Bochner was the player development coach for the Russian national teams and SKA St. Petersburg, one of the most prominent clubs in the KHL, Russia’s top pro league. He first met Michkov when the prospect was 15 years old.
“I had no doubt that he was going to come in there and, as long as he was given opportunity and ice time, he was going to be impactful scoring,” Bochner, now a player development coach for the Hurricanes, said in a mid-January phone interview with NBC Sports Philadelphia. “At the same time, I knew that there were other areas that he was going to have to get better at and I think that’s no different than any rookie coming into the NHL. It’s a big jump for anybody.”
From the start, Bochner saw special talent in Michkov. But as a development coach, his job wasn’t to pump up Michkov’s strengths; it was to identify a weakness and hope Michkov would want to attack it.
“He’s an extremely competitive person and within that competitiveness is that need to want to be better than other people,” Bochner said. “Then obviously within that is, ‘I need to get better at stuff, I’m not naturally better than everybody. I may be in some areas, but there are going to be other areas where I’ve got to outwork people.'”
Bochner approached Michkov with an area to refine.
“There was some knock on his skating early,” he said. “I never saw it as bad as other people saw it. I always thought that he was never going to be explosive with linear speed. But what I did want to improve with him was his lateral movement because I think that’s really important off the rush and it’s really important to be deceptive once you get into the offensive zone, which is sort of his bread and butter — his ability to create separation in the offensive zone, find open ice and then be able to capitalize on that with his scoring ability.
“That was really, when I first met him, something I picked up and that became a focus, retooling his crossovers, his edge work and just try to get him more comfortable in tight areas and then more comfortable with lateral movement when he has got the puck on rush offense. Making sure that he wasn’t just pushing with his outside leg, but he had that inside leg driving through, which is going to create more lateral force as he’s skating up the ice.”
Bochner worked closely with Michkov in SKA St. Petersburg’s development camps, which would run for about two and a half weeks. He was pleased with the youngster’s devotion to a monotonous and meticulous part of his game.
“Not only was he receptive, but he was also self-aware,” Bochner said. “We came up with a game plan and obviously when you try to make any adjustments with your technical skating, it’s sort of a boring process. There’s a lot of boring repetition, it’s not a ton of fun, especially with guys who want to play with the puck and shoot on goalies.
“It’s usually isolated movement patterns. So if you’re not interested and you’re not committed to making that better, you’re not going to be very receptive. And he was. We would go out there early, work on his crossovers, work on his skating. He was super receptive.”
The work wasn’t to make Michkov’s stride look more aesthetically pleasing; it was to make him stronger and more efficient in his movements.
“When you look at him, the skating technique doesn’t stand out where you’re saying, ‘Wow, what a beautiful skater,'” Bochner said. “But what he does is he’s able to skate off his check quickly, he’s agile, he can control the puck very well in tight spaces, he’s sturdy and strong on the puck. It’s not easy to take the puck off of him.”
“I am going to put that into practice because that’s what brings him joy, so you want that as a motivating factor, you want him to stay sharp there,” Bochner said. “But you want to identify the things where he’s having a low success rate. And that’s how I went about it with him.”
The Flyers have seen Michkov’s sheer competitiveness this season.
“Oh yeah, definitely,” Sean Couturier said last Friday. “Anything he does. Even in practice sometimes.”
The Flyers’ captain recalled a recent 2-on-2 drill in which Michkov thought he scored, but for some reason the goal didn’t count. As a result, Bobby Brink and Tyson Foerster ended up scoring on Couturier and Michkov.
“I think he didn’t talk to them for the next day,” Couturier said. “He’s that kind of guy, really competitive. … I think that’s what makes him special. Those elite athletes always have that competitive edge and he definitely has that.”
Despite some slumps and learning moments, Michkov has had a highly promising rookie season. The offensive gifts have been as advertised. He entered Monday leading all rookies in goals (24) and even strength points (43). He’s tied for first in power play goals (seven), second in overall points (58) and tied for second in assists (34). And he’s the only player in the NHL with both three or more overtime goals and three or more shootout goals.
Canadiens defenseman Lane Hutson is the likely front-runner for the Calder Trophy, while Sharks center Macklin Celebrini and Flames goalie Dustin Wolf also stand as Michkov’s competition.
Michkov’s 58 points are the most by a Flyers rookie since Mikael Renberg had 82 in 1993-94. Renberg’s mark is a franchise record for most points by a rookie in a season. Michkov is ninth on the Flyers’ all-time rookie single-season scoring list.
“You want to let him play his game, but once in a while, kind of remind him that there are certain things at certain times you’ve got to take care of,” Couturier said. “How to manage a game, you can’t always cheat for offense when you’re playing with a lead, sometimes it’s better off to just defend. But I don’t want to be in his ear every shift, I kind of just let him play. I try to also encourage him when I see improvement and when he’s doing the right plays. It’s definitely a balance.”
At the start of November, Brad Shaw mentioned how Michkov liked to play on the move and, because of that, he’d sometimes drift out of good position. Essentially, Michkov likes to read and react for when the play may shoot up ice. He’s thinking offense.
“You might ask the coach who’s here in 10 years and [Michkov] might still have a little drift to his game,” Shaw, now the Flyers’ interim head coach, said last Friday with a laugh. “But I think it’s one of the reasons that he’s a great player, I think it’s a reason why he’s dangerous, is his ability to anticipate. And we’re just trying to get him smarter in that anticipation — ‘this one was good and this one was not so good.’ That’s all part of the process.
“He’s a very willing student of the game, which I love. He’s a guy that wants to get better as soon as possible, wants extra, not afraid of being shown mistakes. It doesn’t really affect him like some other young players. That’s a real asset to have for a guy his age, for a guy who kind of has his style of play, because he’s going to butt heads with coaches, he’s going to be stubborn in some aspects of how he would like to play.”
Bochner worked with Artemi Panarin the summer before the Rangers’ star became one of three finalists for the 2019-20 Hart Trophy (NHL’s MVP). He has also trained Canadiens prospect and 2024 fifth overall pick Ivan Demidov, Blue Jackets winger Kirill Marchenko, former Flyer and current King Andrei Kuzmenko and Oilers winger Vasily Podkolzin.
With Michkov, he could sense the clutch gene.
“He is a guy that when the game is on the line, he doesn’t run away,” Bochner said. “He’s the guy that wants the puck on his stick. There is an innate confidence that comes with that mentality. And when you have confidence and you have scoring ability, even if there are issues in other areas, you’re going to find the back of the net. Those two things combined, if you have confidence and you have scoring ability, that’s a deadly combo. And he definitely has that.”
As this season has gone on, Michkov has shown more and more of his personality.
“He’s very serious and stoic at times, but at the same time, he can quickly come out of that and make a joke or just lighten up the mood with something,” Bochner said.
Bochner will keep him in touch with Michkov through an occasional text message.
“I try not to bother him too much,” Bochner said, “but if I see him score a nice goal or something, I will send him a little note and he usually sends me back a nice emoji or a thumbs up.”
Those moments probably don’t happen without Michkov wanting to sharpen a weakness at a young age back in Russia. The boring work has made big goals and unreal highlights the expectation in Philadelphia.
“Even outside of him scoring, just his body language, you see that he wants the puck, you see that he wants to be the guy to make a difference in those situations,” Bochner said. “It’s pretty remarkable.”
