COLUMBUS, Ohio — Far too many times over the past few years, the Islanders have been in the same position the Blue Jackets were Saturday night: playing a four-point game, long before the end of the season, where it felt like their lives were on the line.
Rarely have they been in the opposite chair, but there they were Saturday. Columbus came into the evening six points behind the Islanders — the playoff team closest to them — and with two games in hand. An Islanders win wasn’t going to eliminate the Blue Jackets, but surely a growing standings deficit the week of the trade deadline would point Columbus general manager Don Waddell in a certain direction.
Now, Waddell has a hard week in front of him. His team tossed away a 2-0 lead in a game it was dominating through 30 minutes, and the Islanders walked out of Nationwide Arena with a 4-3 overtime victory on Simon Holmstrom’s game-winning goal that left the Blue Jackets seven points out of a playoff spot and gasping for air.
It was the second game of two on this road trip in which the Islanders trailed by two goals in the second period, and the second game of two in which their resiliency, along with some timely adjustments from coach Patrick Roy, made that forgettable.
Simon Holmstrom (right) celebrates with teammates after scoring the game-winning overtime goal in the Islanders’ 4-3 win over the Blue Jackets on Feb. 28, 2026 in Columbus, Ohio. Aaron Doster-Imagn Images
“We just needed to be better with our puck management, that’s all it was,” Roy said. “When our ‘D’ were in [the offensive zone], we have to cover for them, and we didn’t do a good job. And they took advantage of it.
“… I thought we started putting more pressure on our neutral zone instead of sitting back. We had more pressure on our forecheck and we pressed more on the D-Zone coverage. I thought that created the game we had towards the end.”
There was also something more simple: throwing pucks and bodies to the net. That was how Anders Lee, off a Scott Mayfield rebound, and Jean-Gabriel Pageau, off his own rebound, scored 22 seconds apart to tie the game just after its halfway point. And it was how Mayfield made it 3-2 off a shot that ricocheted, taking a hard left turn off Kirill Marchenko and hitting Zach Werenski before crossing the goal line at 17:10 of the second.
Ilya Sorokin makes a save on Boone Jenner during the first period of the Islanders’ overtime road win over the Blue Jackets. NHLI via Getty Images
Columbus came back down and re-tied it on Adam Fantilli’s deflection from Werenski to set up a 3-3 game entering the last 20 minutes, but the damage was done and the game had shifted.
“We saw what was working,” Pageau said. “Low to high, get pucks at the net, crash the net. That’s what created most of our goals. Other than the OT winner, all the goals were created like that.”
Just like two nights prior in Montreal, the Islanders got better as the game went on. The third period was their best, and if not for some good work by Jet Greaves, the Blue Jackets would have lost this game before overtime.
Undefeated in games that end in 3-on-3 play, though, the Islanders weren’t about to let their perfect record slip. They barely let the Blue Jackets touch the puck, and Holmstrom eventually put away Tony DeAngelo’s outlet pass to seal the win.
Anders Lee (right) battles for position with left wing Danton Heinen during the Islanders’ road overtime win over the Blue Jackets. Aaron Doster-Imagn Images
“I think we proved the last two games we’re very resilient,” Holmstrom said. “We don’t quit. We stay with it.”
The Islanders had started this one slowly. Their puck management was less than great, and aside from Cal Ritchie’s line, there weren’t many chances to speak of. Even Ilya Sorokin made a rare error, letting the puck trickle through him 2:30 into the game on Isac Lundeström’s tip from Dante Fabbro.
Mason Marchment, the villain last time these teams played, made it 2-0 early in the second off Charlie Coyle’s feed to the right circle that seemed to make its way through the Islanders’ defense in slow motion.
Lee and Pageau — who scored the tying and winning goals on Thursday in Montreal — pulled the Islanders back into the game, and this is a team that doesn’t tend to let those opportunities go to waste.
They didn’t Saturday.
And they may have just pushed Columbus’ season to the brink.
DENVER, COLORADO - FEBRUARY 28: Gavin Brindley #54 of the Colorado Avalanche celebrates after a goal against the Chicago Blackhawks. (Photo by Michael Martin/NHLI via Getty Images) | NHLI via Getty Images
In continuation of the Central Division showdowns, the Colorado Avalanche moved on in their busy schedule in hosting the Chicago Blackhawks in a Saturday afternoon affair hoping to erase the bitter taste of defeat from two nights ago. It wasn’t a masterful effort but still Colorado found enough to end up with a 3-1 win over Chicago.
The Game
It wasn’t the start to the game the Avalanche were hoping for. Devon Toews took a hooking penalty six minutes into the match and Connor Bedard converted for Chicago on the power play for the game’s first score. For the rest of the first period the two teams would trade fruitless power plays while the Avalanche crafted a 14-4 shot advantage.
The second period wasn’t much better and was a slog to get through. Colorado took a too many men penalty early and then Chicago was called for three straight infractions after that. Colorado capitalized on none of them, gaining only a 9-5 shot advantage in the period in the process.
A sign of life, though, emerged after the fourth failed power play of the game for Colorado as Cale Makar found the back of the net with nine seconds left in the period. It wasn’t even a clean pass from MacKinnon as a Blackhawk tipped it on the way to Makar but he was able to find an open look much closer to the net that he has been and fired his favorite shot from the top of the right circle to tie the game 1-1 heading into the second intermission.
A shorthanded 3-on-1 happened early in the final frame but the Avalanche over-passed their way out of it to keep the game tied. Who knew the fourth line would bail out the Avalanche in their third minute of time on ice in the game? That’s exactly what happened midway through the third period to give Colorado their first lead of the contest when Gavin Brindley cleaned up some loose change at the net front.
Nothing else happened in this game except for an empty net goal scored by Makar after just seconds after Nathan MacKinnon and Martin Nečas over-passed themselves into a turnover when they had a chance at securing the victory. A 3-1 Colorado win was recorded after this sloppy game.
Takeaways
Joel Kiviranta remained absent from this game with Zakhar Bardakov participating in his place. Prior to the game Jared Bednar admitted on the radio that the Finn is going through concussion protocol.
It was nice to see Brindley as the hero of the game but it’s troubling he still ended with 3:26 time on ice and not a second more after he scored the game winning goal. It’s fair to wonder how much of the current bottom six forward group will remain on the roster after the upcoming NHL trade deadline on Friday.
Upcoming
A busy March schedule kicks off with the first of a back-to-back in California against the LA Kings at 8:30 p.m. MT on Monday, March 2nd.
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Simon Holmstrom scored 1:50 into overtime as the New York Islanders beat the Columbus Blue Jackets 4-3 on Saturday night for their fourth straight win.
Holmstrom got the feed from Tony DeAngelo and had a clear path up the right side of the ice before cutting toward the net with a wrist shot to beat Columbus’ Jet Greaves.
It was Holmstrom’s 14th goal of the season and his second in overtime. The Islanders are 8-0 in overtime games this season, the only team in the league that hasn’t lost in the extra period.
Scott Mayfield had a goal and assist for the Islanders. Anders Lee and Jean-Gabriel Pageau scored 22 seconds apart in the second period to erase a two-goal deficit. Ilya Sorokin stopped 27 shots.
Columbus’ Zach Wereneki, who had the assist on Jack Hughes’ goal in the United States’ gold-medal victory over Canada at the Olympics, had a pair of assists and extended his points streak to a nine games, the longest run by a defenseman in franchise history.
Werenski, second among NHL defensemen with 65 points, has 13 in his last nine games (two goals, 11 assists). It was Werenski’s 21st multipoint game this season and the 100th of his 10-year career. With 621 games played, he’s the fifth-fastest active defenseman to reach the mark.
Isac Lundeström, Mason Marchment, Adam Fantilli had Columbus’ goals. Greaves made 22 saves.
Columbus is seven points behind the Islanders for third place in the Metropolitan Division and five back of Boston for the second wild card in the Eastern Conference.
Marchment, whose goal 3:58 into the second gave the Blue Jackets a 2-0 lead, has 10 goals in 16 games with the Blue Jackets since being acquired in a trade from Seattle on Dec. 19. That’s the fewest games a Columbus player has needed to reach double-digit goals.
Feb 28, 2026; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; New Jersey Devils right wing Timo Meier (28) is congratulated after scoring a goal against the St. Louis Blues in the second period at Enterprise Center. Mandatory Credit: Joe Puetz-Imagn Images | Joe Puetz-Imagn Images
First Period
In the first period, the Devils had a very disjointed effort. Despite not generating a ton of scoring chances (three high-danger), the team had several giveaways. Per Natural Stat Trick, Dawson Mercer (2), Connor Brown, Nick Bjugstad, Nico Hischier, Simon Nemec, and Timo Meier were all credited with giveaways on bad passes. Having seven giveaways in a game can be bad enough, but the Devils made other mistakes with the puck, too. Sometimes, they recovered well, and sometimes, they did not.
My least favorite moment of the first period was on the penalty kill, after Dougie Hamilton took a trip. Luke Hughes, who does not get a ton of penalty killing time, made an excellent read to intercept a pass in the defensive zone and skated it out himself. After gaining the center ice line, Hughes looked to feed it across to Nick Bjugstad. Those two and Jesper Bratt entered the zone, but one too many passes back between Bjugstad and Bratt led to a chance the other way. Bratt could have put pressure on Binnington with a one-timer on the rush, but he was too much of a perfectionist.
I will disagree with Bryce Salvador’s commentary on that play, as he praised Luke for having the responsibility to get back on defense rather than press the attack too much. I get it — it’s the penalty kill. But Luke Hughes made a perfect read on a bad pass and had good legs going into the offensive zone, and we know he is skilled enough to score. I do not think he should be coached in a way to automatically defer to the forwards there. If Luke Hughes thinks he can take the puck to the net himself, he should do it. If he thinks he has a shot, he should take it. We are talking about someone whose skillset should make him a 60+ point defenseman (or better) if his speed/hands combo are used right. We’ve seen him go nearly end-to-end, we’ve seen him score on the rush, and while I think he made a great pass to Nick Bjugstad, I would have had no issue if he went up on offense by himself. That’s who he has to be if he wants to reach his full potential.
Second Period
Jesper Bratt drew a penalty to start the second period. Unfortunately, the first unit looked rather rough without him or Meier, as Connor Brown and Arseny Gritsyuk were on the top wave. Their first shot of the power play came from a play off the faceoff from Luke Hughes to Simon Nemec, who found Timo Meier to the side of the slot. His shot was saved by Binnington, and St. Louis cleared the puck off the glass and out of play as the penalty expired.
Not long after Jack Hughes set up Connor Brown for a potential one-timer that was fanned on after Jack had spun around the zone to create a passing lane, Brett Pesce fired a shot off the iron. But the Devils did not get down on themselves, and Timo Meier roofed a shot on the rush to give them a lead! Coming down the right wing on the rush, Timo Meier looked like a true difference maker, putting the puck over Binnington’s blocker arm.
Unfortunately, he would take a high sticking penalty with three minutes to play in the period. Prior to the penalty, the Devils were doing a great job of controlling the pace of play in the second period, generating eight high-danger chances throughout the period to zero by St. Louis at five-on-five. And it was a rough penalty to take, too, as the Devils were pressuring in the offensive zone at the time. Thankfully, the Devils had a good kill, and the temporary loss of momentum did not come back to bite them.
Brett Pesce got tripped up at the end of the penalty kill, gutting the play out to go into the corner, drawing another trip as his knee seemed to be bothering him going off the ice. The Devils had another chance, but St. Louis cleared early on. But Dougie Hamilton drop passed to Jack in the neutral zone, and Jack Hughes went all the way around the net before teeing up a one-timer for Dougie, who ripped it past Binnington for a 2-0 lead!
That might have been the #NJDevils best second period since October. At 5v5 (14:56):
The Devils ran into trouble early when Jack Hughes took an uncharacteristic delay of game penalty. Again, the Devils had a great penalty kill, almost creating a scoring chance when Nick Bjugstad took on a few Blues and came away with the puck in the offensive zone, firing a shot that was blocked. Dougie Hamilton looked for Jack coming out of the box at the end of the kill, but the puck off the boards just missed Jack’s stick.
Back at even strength, the pace of play was very slow in the third period. The Devils, who dominated the second period, sat back more in the third period. The Blues emptied the net with over three minutes to play, as they were struggling to create offense. Bratt iced the puck looking for a long empty netter with 2:48 to play, but the Devils did a good job of slowing play down on the boards after the icing faceoff to draw another whistle, giving them the chance to change with 2:38 to play. After keeping the Blues to the outside on the following shift, Dawson Mercer got the puck in the slot and cleared it down the ice, just missing the left post by a foot or so.
Markstrom tried to go for the full-ength empty netter and was promptly scored on by Pavel Buchnevich with just over a minute to play. It could have been called for goaltender interference, as Buchnevich prevented Makrstrom from returning to the crease after his clearing attempt was knocked down, but the Devils chose not to challenge. I understand not wanting to take a penalty for delay of game if the challenge failed, but it seemed like clear interference in not allowing the goalie a path back to the crease.
After the Devils iced the puck with 40 seconds to play, the Blues called timeout. Nico Hischier won the draw, but Dougie Hamilton’s chip up the ice was blocked back to Hischier. Hischier was held up, but he iced the puck with 33 seconds to play. They won the puck back again in the defensive zone after the next draw, and Connor Brown deflected the puck a good 25 feet into the air at the blueline to get it out to center ice. But Brown and Bratt pressured the puck more, and Jesper Bratt passed up an empty netter to set Nico Hischier up for the Devils’ third goal of the game, as they beat the Blues 3-1.
The Devils won this game with a great second period effort. They had as many shots in the second period at five-on-five as the other two periods combined (14), while they had eight of their 11 high-danger scoring chances. So, while the Devils went into a bit of a prevent defense, parking the bus in the third period, the St. Louis Blues were already tired. Per Natural Stat Trick, the St. Louis Blues had 15 “extra long” shifts during the game to only 10 for the Devils, while they had 51 total long shifts to the Devils’ 55. While I cannot break Natural Stat Trick’s data on a by-period level (unless I look before the end of the game), I am going to take a guess that most of St. Louis’ “extra long shifts” came in that second period. The Devils dominated the puck that period, and it was very difficult for St. Louis to get full changes as a result. You can see this on the Meier goal, as Justin Faulk was one of the Blues who were unable to change off after Pesce’s shot rang iron, and he was unable to block Meier’s shot.
This is something I have hated from the Devils this season. All too often, it seems like they are losing the second period shift battle. So, a good start in the first period turns to them getting tired down the stretch until they play an entire uncompetitive third period. Instead of falling into that trap today, they inflicted it on St. Louis. I think it made a big difference in St. Louis being unable to crack the Devils in the third period, even though the forwards dialed it back.
A Change in the Offensive Approach and Olympic Markstrom
Two huge things have stood in the Devils’ way this season: their very conservative in-zone offense and the inconsistency from Jacob Markstrom in goal. Both looked a lot different today.
On offense, the Devils have often only kept one or two forwards around the net this season, working around the perimeter and along the blueline. Sometimes, this gets so bad that the Devils have four skaters above the faceoff dots hunting for the infinitesimal chance of that one skater in front getting deflecting the puck with three or four opponent skaters clogging the slot area. When the Devils were at their best today, they were cycling three or even (shockingly) four skaters attacking below the dots.
Were there some miscues? Yes. Jonas Siegenthaler’s scorpion-style kick block at the end of the first period after Dougie Hamilton went for an aggressive pinch on Brayden Schenn was a good example of that. But that is why the Devils pay mobile shutdown defensemen like Siegenthaler and Dillon a lot of money. They are paid to cover for when the offensive playmakers put the team in a difficult spot. Siegenthaler earns his paycheck with plays like that. Players like Hamilton (who scored the game-winning goal), Nemec, and Hughes are going to need to take risks to maximize their offensive potential.
Thankfully, Sheldon Keefe did not send a message to play more safely in the second. Their execution was simply better. Going for more aggressive plays led to better offense, and I would love to see more of this kind of play moving forward.
On the other end of the ice, Jacob Markstrom continued to look like OLYMPIC MARKSTROM rather than the iteration we saw from him between October and January. He stopped 25 of 26 shots with 1.67 expected goals against in all situations, though I still think he should have had a shutout. In two games since playing for Team Sweden in Milan, Markstrom is 1-1-0 with a .935 save percentage. In his last four NHL appearances, going back to January 29, Markstrom is 2-2-0 with a .931 save percentage and a goals against average just over 2.00. Markstrom’s best statistical stretch this season came from December 19 to January 3, when he was 2-2-0 with a .941 save percentage — the only four-game stretch with a better save percentage than this one for Markstrom. If he can sustain it this time, it would go a long way to easing concerns over the team’s goaltending over the next year or so.
Your Thoughts
What did you think of today’s game? Did you think the Devils played well? How do you think this game will impact their personal confidence in the next few weeks? Leave your thoughts in the comments below, and thanks for reading.
At 1:47 of the overtime frame, Simon Holmstrom collected a stretch pass from Tony DeAngelo before cutting across the crease to beat a sprawling Jet Greaves for the game-winning goal:
With the win, the Islanders now hold a seven-point lead on Columbus for third place in the Metropolitan Division and now sit tied in points with the Pittsburgh Penguins for second.
Here's how we got there.
For a second straight game, the Islanders found themselves down 2-0 but, in short order, found themselves back even.
After Matthew Schaefer needed 55 seconds on Thursday against the Montreal Canadiens to score twice and tie that hockey game, the Islanders needed just 22 seconds to do the same on Saturday.
First, it was Islanders captain Anders Lee batting a puck out of the air off a Scott Mayfield backhand at 11:37 of the second:
Then, at 11:59 of the second, Jean-Gabriel Pageau followed up his own rebound, before the puck bounced in past Blue Jackets' netminder Jet Greaves. Columbus head coach Rick Bowness would challenge for goaltender interference, but the call on the ice stood:
So what kind of reaction would Matthews get in the Canadian city? Would country or NHL team be the determining factor?
When the words "gold medalist" were said, there seemed to be a mixed reaction, but when Matthews' Leafs position and name were mentioned, the cheers reigned and people stood and clapped.
Watch the video below:
The Maple Leafs salute their Olympians Oliver Ekman-Larsson, William Nylander and Auston Matthews 🫡 pic.twitter.com/nsJNBgnelr
Feb 28, 2026; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Flyers right wing Travis Konecny (11) reacts with goalie Dan Vladar (80) after the game against the Boston Bruins at Xfinity Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Ross-Imagn Images | Kyle Ross-Imagn Images
In a tightly played contest, it ended up being Dan Vladar who made a few extra saves.
The former Bruin out-dueled Jeremy Swayman, stopping 26 of 27 shots and leading the Flyers to a 3-1 win.
Vladar was at his best in the second period, when he stopped all 16 shots he faced.
This game was tied through two periods, with Travis Konecny breaking the deadlock four minutes into the third period on a fortuitous bounce.
Charlie McAvoy scored the lone goal for the Bruins, who dropped their fifth road game in a row.
Konecny’s goal came on a funky bounce off a stanchion, with Swayman caught in “should I get it or not?” land. Christian Dvorak deserves credit for a great pass too. 1-0 Flyers.
Unfortunately for the B’s, that’s all the offense they could muster. Sean Couturier would add an empty-netter with just under a minute to play, and that was that.
Bruins lose, 3-1.
Game notes
The Bruins appeared to take a lead in the third period in this one, only to have a Hampus Lindholm goal called off due to goalie interference on Mikey Eyssimont. The goal was waved off on the ice, meaning it was always a longshot to get overturned and switched to a goal. It might have been worth a punt from Marco Sturm given how well Vladar was playing, but he ultimately decided against challenging.
While there were no goals scored, the Bruins let this game get away from them in the second period. The B’s were handed two power play opportunities just over four minutes apart, landed 16 shots on Vladar, and came up empty.
Swayman’s final stat line of two goals allowed on just 16 shots doesn’t look great, but he was good in this game — with a highlight reel stop of his own as well. I suppose you might like to see a bit more decisiveness on that weird bounce, but you can probably chalk that up to just one of those things that happens.
If you’re a fan of the rough stuff, Tanner Jeannot and Nic Deslauriers gave you quite a bout in the first period. Deslauriers landed a couple of punches early, but I’d give the edge to Jeannot — especially since Deslauriers ended up cut after the fight.
It was an uncharacteristically quiet afternoon for David Pastrnak, who landed just two shots on goal.
The B’s will be back in action on Tuesday night, hosting the Pittsburgh Penguins.
They took a 1-0 lead just 2:08 into the first period thanks to Anthony Mantha's 21st goal of the season. Mantha redirected an Erik Karlsson slap shot from the point on the power play.
It looked like the Penguins were going to be up 2-0 just three minutes into the game thanks to Bryan Rust, but the goal was called back due to goaltender interference. The Penguins held on to that 1-0 lead for the rest of the period and limited the Rangers to only two shots.
The Rangers' lifeless play continued into the second period when Ryan Shea made it 2-0 at the 1:59 mark. He made a nice play along the blue line and fired the puck past Igor Shesterkin to double the lead. The puck bounced off Rangers defenseman Scott Morrow, who was tangled up with Penguins forward Noel Acciari in front of the net.
However, after that goal, the Penguins' play really dipped, and they allowed the Rangers to control the game for the last 30+ minutes. Mika Zibanejad cut the lead in half at the 10-minute mark of the second period before Taylor Raddysh tied the game for the Rangers early in the third period.
The Penguins were able to hang on for dear life during the rest of the third period to secure a point before falling in a shootout. Vincent Trocheck scored the lone shootout goal for the Rangers, while the Penguins' shooters went 0-for-3.
Here are some of my takeaways from Saturday's setback:
- It looked like the Penguins were going to cruise to a win until they stopped playing. They let the Rangers back into the game and let them do whatever they want for a decent chunk of the second period and the entire third period. It's an unacceptable effort against a team that is at the bottom of the Eastern Conference and has already waved the white flag on the season.
The Penguins struggled to get out of their own zone in the final two periods and couldn't even string together two consecutive passes. Nobody should panic because the Penguins will still enter March in second place in the Metropolitan Division, but this was still a bad loss.
Pittsburgh Penguins center Evgeni Malkin (71) waits for the face-off against the Buffalo Sabres at KeyBank Center. Mandatory Credit: Timothy T. Ludwig-Imagn Images
- Evgeni Malkin was a man on a mission in this game and was the Penguins' best skater. He was galloping each time he was out there, setting up some good scoring chances, and even getting some chances of his own. He was robbed twice by Shesterkin at the end of overtime and had a nice chance during the third period.
I've really liked his game since NHL play resumed this week, and the Penguins will need this version of Malkin to keep showing up if they want to make the playoffs.
- Rickard Rakell struggled again at center on Saturday, and if I were Dan Muse, I'd seriously consider moving him back to wing.
He was cleaned out at the faceoff dot again, and as a team, the Penguins won only 23.1% of their draws, which, according to Bob Grove, is the lowest mark since 1996-97, when the NHL began charting the stat.
I know Malkin has been great on the wing since returning, but if he's closer to 100%, he may need to go back to center. Having Malkin, Novak, Kindel, and Lizotte as centers until Crosby returns is better overall and makes the Penguins stronger down the middle.
- The shootout problems continued for the Penguins, even with new shooters. All three attempts were laughable and had no chance of beating Shesterkin. They even practiced shootouts multiple times at the end of practices this week, but nothing seems to be working.
- Ryan Shea played another fantastic game on the blue line and should be promoted to the second pair with Kris Letang. I understand trying Sam Girard with Letang to at least test it out, but it's been too chaotic. They were both hemmed in their own zone quite often again on Saturday, and don't look comfortable together.
I think the pairings should be Wotherspoon-Karlsson, Shea-Letang, and Girard-Clifton at least for a little bit.
- The Penguins will have an opportunity to quickly rebound from this performance since the Vegas Golden Knights are coming to town for a Sunday afternoon showdown.
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - NOVEMBER 23: Linesperson CJ Murray #68 drops the puck for a face-off between the Colorado Avalanche and the Chicago Blackhawks in the second period at the United Center on November 23, 2025 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Bill Smith/NHLI via Getty Images) | NHLI via Getty Images
With two of five games in a seven day stretch now behind them, it’s safe to assume that the Colorado Avalanche were looking forward to the weekend.
This afternoon, the visiting Chicago Blackhawks will make their only regular season appearance in Denver, as the Avs face their third consecutive Central Division opponent in four days.
Colorado Avalanche (38-10-9)
The Opponent: Chicago Blackhawks (22-27-9)
Time: 4:00 P.M. MST/6:00 P.M. EST
Watch: ALT, ALT+ (Avalanche Broadcast Area), CHSN (Blackhawks Broadcast Area), ESPN+, NHL Center Ice (Outside Regional Broadcast Areas – US), SN+, NHL Centre Ice (Canadian Broadcast Areas)
Listen: Altitude Sports Radio KKSE-FM 92.5 FM
Colorado Avalanche
The Avalanche currently sport a .500 record for the month of February, going 2-2 in that time frame. This would sound a lot more alarming if it weren’t for the extended Olympic pause that led to playing only four games through the month. A victory today would keep them from posting their second consecutive sub-500 month of hockey, and would certainly provide a lift after losing 5-2 to the visiting Minnesota Wild this past Thursday. Mackenzie Blackwood stopped 31 of 34 shots in a contest that featured an impressive goalie duel between him and Filip Gustavsson—who stopped 45 of 47 shots in his own right—only to be overshadowed by questionable judgement (see Brent Burns launching the puck into the crowd during an Avalanche penalty kill that was already down not one, but two skaters) and officiating (poke checks are penalties now?).
Coach Jared Bednar lamented his team’s inability to widen the gap on both Minnesota and the idle Dallas Stars. “It’s the standings at the end of the year is what matters, right? So, that [game] was a missed opportunity; that’s what that was. Nine points if we win, two games in hand, that’s a long road to try and catch you, and now it’s tight. Five [points] with two [games] in hand, and there’s lots of hockey to be played. We’ve just got to take care of our business.”
The loss allowed Minnesota—playing in a first game of a back to back pair of their own—to leapfrog over Dallas to second place in the Central Division, closing to within five points of the Avs. However, just like the Avs, Minnesota failed to seize the moment in their second half of back to back games, as they lost to the Utah Mammoth by a score of 5-2 at Delta Center on Friday evening. The loss prevented them from closing to within three points of the Avalanche, who can now restore their seven point cushion with a win this afternoon.
Hockey giveth, and hockey taketh away.
Nathan MacKinnon returned to the lineup against Minnesota for the first time since returning from the Olympics, and while he did not add to his NHL goal scoring total—he remains at a League best 40 goals—he did reach the 95 point plateau (Edmonton’s Connor McDavid leads all skaters with 100 points). Martin Nečas, who scored his 24th and 25th goals of the season on Thursday evening, trails Brock Nelson (30) for third place in team scoring, and is three goals shy of tying his career high (28). While the loss to Minnesota may look lopsided by box score alone, Blackwood’s play to keep his team close for the majority of the contest ought to merit a return to the crease today.
The Avs still remain the undisputed leader across the Central Division, Western Conference, and League standings. Coming into this afternoon’s game, they have a game in hand on Dallas (who will be in action at American Airlines Center tonight against the Nashville Predators), and three games in hand on Minnesota.
Today’s game is the second in the three game series with Chicago. The Avs won the previous matchup on November 23, a 1-0 decision.
Projected Lineup
Forwards: Gabe Landeskog – Nathan MacKinnon – Martin Nečas Artturi Lehkonen – Brock Nelson – Valeri Nichushkin Ross Colton – Jack Drury – Victor Olofsson Joel Kiviranta* – Parker Kelly – Gavin Brindley
Defense: Devon Toews – Cale Makar Josh Manson – Brent Burns Brett Kulak – Sam Malinski
Between the Pipes: Mackenzie Blackwood Scott Wedgewood
Kiviranta, who was injured during the second period after taking a hit from Minnesota’s Zach Bogosian, is uncertain for today’s game at the time of this writing.
Chicago Blackhawks
Chicago had a great start to 2026, winning five of their first six games in January. However, they followed up that effort by losing nine of their next twelve games prior to the Olympic break. Currently occupying seventh place in the Central Division standings with 53 points, they remain two points ahead of last place St. Louis (51). They kicked off a five game road trip prior to the Olympics, with their most recent effort being a 4-2 loss to the Nashville Predators at Bridgestone Arena on Thursday evening.
Like Colorado, Chicago also had representation in Italy at the Olympics, but to a significantly smaller scale. Center Teuvo Teravainen won the bronze medal alongside Kiviranta as a member of Finland’s roster. The notable absence is center Connor Bedard, who was not invited to participate as a member of Canada’s Olympic roster. Bedard, who scored his twenty-fourth goal of the season against Nashville on Thursday night, currently leads all Chicago skaters in assists (30) and points (54), and ranks second to left wing Tyler Bertuzzi in goals (26).
While Bedard’s solid sophomore campaign led many to believe that he was on the short list to be selected to the Olympics by Hockey Canada, he was ultimately left off the roster once the final selections were announced. Bedard missed twelve games with an upper body injury sustained in a literal last second face-off sequence against St. Louis Blues captain Brayden Schenn back in December, leading many to speculate if the injury was a key factor in leaving Bedard off the Canadian Olympic roster.
Goaltender Spencer Knight is three wins away from tying his career high (19) in his first full season with Chicago. He will likely start today against Colorado. Despite leading all Chicago goaltenders in wins (Arvid Soderblom has five wins on the season and Drew Commesso has one), Chicago has given up more than two goals in fourteen of ninteen games played in since the start of the New Year. That has contributed to the third worst goal differential (-33) in the NHL; only St. Louis (-52) and Vancouver (-62) rank lower.
Today’s match-up against Colorado marks their only regular season visit to Denver, and marks the first game of a back to back weekend. They will finish the weekend in—where else?—Salt Lake City against the Mammoth on Sunday afternoon. The season series against Colorado will conclude on home ice at United Center on March 20.
Projected Lineup
Forwards: Ryan Greene – Connor Bedard – Andre Burakovsky Oliver Moore – Frank Nazar – Tyler Bertuzzi Ryan Donato – Jason Dickinson – Ilya Mikheyev Teuvo Teravainen – Nick Foligno – Landon Slaggert
Defense: Alex Vlasic – Louis Crevier Connor Murphy – Sam Rinzel Matt Grzelcyk – Artyom Levshunov
NEW YORK (AP) — Vincent Trocheck scored the shootout winner and Igor Shesterkin made 31 saves and the New York Rangers rallied to defeat the Pittsburgh Penguins 3-2 on Saturday.
After an overtime in which each team had several good scoring chances, Trocheck beat Penguins goaltender Stuart Skinner with the only goal of the shootout as the Rangers snapped a five-game losing streak. Shesterkin made five saves in overtime.
Mika Zibanejad and Taylor Raddysh also scored for the Rangers. The last-place Rangers are 7-15-5 at home this season.
Anthony Mantha and defenseman Ryan Shea scored for the Penguins, who had their two-game winning streak stopped. Pittsburgh is 8-1-2 since Jan. 17.
Mantha beat Shesterkin at 2:08 of the first with his 21st goal of the season. Shea made it 2-0 at 1:59 of the second with his fourth goal.
Zibanjead scored his team-leading 24th goal on the power play at the 10-minute mark of the second.
Raddysh tied it with his ninth at 2:57 of the third with assists to Vladislav Gavrikov and Brendan Brisson. It was Brisson’s first point as a Ranger.
Forward Tye Kartye, claimed off waivers from Seattle on Friday, made his Rangers debut.
Shesterkin made his second straight start since returning for Thursday’s 3-2 home overtime loss to Philadelphia. Shesterkin had suffered a lower-body injury suffered on Jan. 5
Skinner made 23 saves in defeat.
The Penguins under first-year head coach Dan Muse – a former Rangers assistant — lead the Rangers by 20 points in the Metropolitan Division.
The Rangers, coached by former Penguins coach Mike Sullivan, are last at 23-29-7.
The Penguins were without captain Sidney Crosby who suffered a lower-body injury at the Winter Olympics in Milan. The 38-year-old center leads Pittsburgh with 27 goals and 59 points. He is expected to miss four weeks.
The Buffalo Sabres were expected to be a team in the seller category after starting the season at the bottom of the Eastern Conference standings, but the Sabres surge since December has them in position to end their 14-year playoff drought, which has made GM Jarmo Kekalainen re-evaluate the club’s options.
Based on the Sabres positioning themselves to be in the top three of the Atlantic Division, it seems highly unlikely that they will deal pending unrestricted free agent winger Alex Tuch, but in the days leading up to the NHL trade deadline on March 6, there are a number of potential trade options on the table for Kekalainen that make sense.
Speculation has seemed to focus on the Sabres investing in defensive depth on the right side with Michael Kesselring sidelined numerous times this season, and Conor Timmins recovering from a broken leg. The name of former Sabres blueliner Rasmus Ristolainen has been swirling in trade speculation for most of the season, but gained some momentum after his impressive performance for Finland partnering with Florida’s Niko Mikkola at the Winter Olympics earlier this month.
The 31-year-old spent eight seasons with Buffalo, logging massive amounts of ice time for a subpar dysfunctional Sabres squad, and was traded to Philadelphia for a 2021 first-rounder (Isak Rosen), a 2023 second-rounder (Anton Wahlberg) and defenseman Robert Hagg in 2021 and his last three seasons have been plagued by a variety of injury issues. Those issues may have Flyers GM Danny Briere willing to retain some of Ristolainen’s $5.1 million salary for this and next season to increase his return.
Rasmus Dahlin - Norris contender?
The chatter got mentioned on WGR 550’s Schopp and Bulldog afternoon show on Friday, and maybe is gaining some steam after a Sabres scout was spotted at Saturday’s Flyers - Bruins game in Philadelphia. Based on the fact that Ristolainen has another year left on his deal, it is more likely that GM Jarmo Kekalainen would opt for a rental defenseman like Connor Murphy or Luke Schenn, but his familiarity with the Finnish blueliner might make a difference as 3 pm next Friday approaches.
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - FEBRUARY 28: Kris Letang #58 of the Pittsburgh Penguins skates with the puck while being chased by Will Cuylle #50 of the New York Rangers during the second period of a NHL game at Madison Square Garden on February 28, 2026 in New York, New York. (Photo by Andrew Mordzynski/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Pregame
Same players for the Penguins, Stuart Skinner gets back into the lineup for the visiting team.
Lots of penalty trouble early for the Rangers, Braden Schneider is the first to go 1:28 into the game. The Pens make them pay quickly. Anthony Mantha gets a great redirect on Erik Karlsson’s point shot, 1-0 Pittsburgh.
Soon after, Vincent Trocheck is very unhappy with the officials and abuses them enough to take a penalty and get a 10-minute misconduct tacked on. Pittsburgh scores again, Evgeni Malkin makes a great pass over for Bryan Rust, Rust sends it home.
Penguins were up 2-0 quick… until the second tally was taken away 😡
The Rangers make a desperation challenge for goalie interference and…somehow it works to get the goal disallowed based on the most minimal of contact by Mantha on goalie Igor Shesterkin. Even though it didn’t really alter the ability to make the save seconds later from the other side. Refs making sure a nationally televised game doesn’t get out of hand? Or not wanting to call a third penalty on NYR three minutes into the game? Or giving Mike Sullivan a bail-out for the Trocheck penalty in the first place? Or just seeing what they decide to see? Who can say.
The rest of the period is pretty good for Pittsburgh, though they don’t score again, Rust hits a post on another close call. The Rangers barely have a pulse for this game. Shots are 10-2 PIT after one.
Second period
Ryan Shea gets his Sergei Gonchar on early in the second when it comes to dancing along the blueline and throws a puck on net. It hits off Ranger defenseman Scott Morrow and changes direction enough to beat Shesterkin. 2-0 for real this time.
NYR gets a long-range shot on Skinner with 14:09, it’s the Rangers’ first shot of the period and in almost 20 game minutes, the crowd responds with the sarcastic cheer, but even that is half-hearted.
A bit later, Rickard Rakell goes to the penalty box for hooking and opens the door for countryman Mika Zibanejad. Trocheck sets Zibanejad up for the big shot, NYR scores to make it 2-1 exactly halfway through the period and game.
The Rangers sustain some energy for the first time all game, Gabe Perreault nearly ties the game when his shot flies off the post. The Pens are the ones suddenly caught on long shifts and standing around like their skate blades are out.
It’s a lot more disjointed of a period for the Pens (shots are 13-11 PIT in the second) but they do get out of there without giving up any more goals.
Third period
New York scores early, some good luck when the puck clicks off Rust and goes to Vladislav Gavrikov and then a nice play by Gavrikov to find the open stick of Taylor Raddish for the tip in. 2-2 game.
The Pens now become the team to take only one shot halfway through the period and have shifted Ben Kindel to play with Rakell and Rust to shake lines up in an effort to get something, later Malkin will skate with Rust and Rakell on shifts starting on the fly.
Neither team can score again in regulation.
Overtime
Kindel-Malkin-Karlsson start it out for the Penguins. Pittsburgh ices the puck. Rakell (0-for-9 on the night on faceoffs) loses another and the Rangers take possession of the puck for quite a while, though they’re not in much of a hurry to create.
OT drags along with neither team being overly aggressive, finally in the closing seconds Malkin is able to attack the net and generate a few shots.
Shootout
Mantha is the first shooter, he loses the handle on a deke attempt and doesn’t even get a shot away.
Trocheck is up for the Rangers, he beats Skinner five-hole.
—
Egor Chinakhov’s turn, he tries for the five-hole but Shesterkin closes it up.
J.T. Miller gets the chance to end the game, Skinner stops him.
—
It’s down to Tommy Novak to keep the game going. He doesn’t, his shot goes well wide.
Some thoughts
Another rough day on faceoffs, at one point in the second period the Pens had won just 21% of the faceoffs! The team only had six wins on 29 draws, take out Malkin (who won two, lost two at that point) and the rest of them were 4-for-25 (16%). Didn’t prove to be too disadvantageous today, but it’s a big issue for a team down their best and most frequent faceoff taker in Crosby.
Other than the starts of play, some line changes are being tinkered with already and bound to happen for tomorrow. Beyond just losing all 10 faceoffs, Rakell didn’t have any shots on goal today. Rust only had two shots and got real quiet after a nice start. Avery Hayes hasn’t been able to show much alongside them. Whether it ends up being Kindel or Malkin – and both took a shift or two with Rakell/Rust today – as the next look there, something’s gotta give in that area immediately.
The Pens’ first 20 minutes: sublime! Very, very good. The Rangers woke up at the first intermission and started playing a lot better. Pittsburgh was acting like they couldn’t or shouldn’t have to follow in kind, instead staying more at the level when NYR wasn’t very good. Didn’t make for a strong finish.
As a result, it didn’t look like Pittsburgh squandered opportunities early in the game (most notably on Rust’s disallowed goal, and then Rust hitting the post). Turns out they could have used a little more out of the portion of the game that they dominated than more than just a 1-0 lead.
Pens fall to 1-8 in the shootout on the season. They at least used new faces, but the results were the same in terms of their shooters not being able to do much of anything and the goaltending hardly being great either. They make it easy for the other team when they’re not even getting 2/3 of the shootout attempts even on net as it happened this time.
Given how hard the schedule is about to get — starting with first place Vegas tomorrow — letting a point slip away against a last place team hurts in the moment. Up 2-0 and against a bad team that didn’t look interested in playing, the Pens should have been able to get a full result in this one. But when NYR started to get better, as noted above, the visitors didn’t up their games too. Disappointing outcome and last couple of periods here.
In good news, the Pens don’t have to dwell on this very long. The Golden Knights are waiting in Pittsburgh for an afternoon game tomorrow.
With the 81st overall pick of the 2025 NHL Entry Draft, the Montreal Canadiens selected defenseman Bryce Pickford. This was after the right-shot blueliner recorded 20 goals and 47 points in 48 games with the Medicine Hat Tigers during this past season. He also had 13 goals and 24 points in 18 playoff games for Medicine Hat in 2025.
With numbers like these, there is no question that Pickford demonstrated that he is a skilled offensive defenseman last season. However, the 6-foot-1 defenseman has taken his game to an entirely new level this season with Medicine Hat.
Pickford has been simply fantastic for Medicine Hat this season, and the truth is in his stats. In 45 games this season with the Western Hockey League (WHL) club, he has recorded 35 goals, 32 assists, 67 points, and a plus-44 rating. He has simply been dominating the WHL offensively, and it is even more impressive when noting that he is a defenseman.
With the way Pickford is producing offensively in the WHL, it is hard not to feel optimistic about his future with the Canadiens. The young defenseman has the tools to become a solid offensive defenseman at the NHL level, and his play this season certainly shows that.
It will now be interesting to see what Pickford does as the season carries on. It has already been a special year for the Canadiens prospect.
The Ottawa Senators (28-22-8) will try to get back on a winning track on Saturday night when they face the Toronto Maple Leafs (27-23-9) at Scotiabank Arena (7 pm Sportsnet, CBC, TVAS).
The Sens gathered a point in their first game back from the Olympic break, a 2-1 overtime loss at home to Detroit on Thursday. The Leafs have also stumbled out of the break with losses to Tampa and Florida, losing by a combined scored of 9-3.
Toronto won the season's first meeting between these two teams, 7-5, back on Dec. 27. That was the night when Linus Ullmark was pulled after experiencing anxiety during the game while allowing four goals on 14 shots.
Ullmark stepped away from the team for the next month to deal with mental health issues. Between that and the Olympic break, Ullmark has only played three games since the December loss to Toronto. He'll get the start on Saturday night.
Leevi Merilainen, Ullmark's replacement that night, was sent to the AHL on Jan. 20 and has since been replaced on the roster by veteran free agent signing James Reimer, who was probably the sentimental choice in Toronto to start against his old team. But Reimer will wear the ball cap on the bench on Saturday.
These two teams enter play on Saturday well out of playoff contention at the moment.
With the Boston Bruins holding the final Wild Card spot in the East, the Senators are seven points behind them, while the Leafs, who led the Atlantic Division this time last year, are eight points behind the Bruins.
By game time, the playoff deficit may grow even larger for both teams with Boston playing at Philadelphia on Saturday afternoon at 3 pm.
Here's how the line combinations are expected to look, based on the game day skates. As was the case at Thursday's skate, Tim Stutzle was absent (illness) but will play in the game.
Senators Line Combinations
Drake Batherson – Tim Stützle – Claude Giroux Brady Tkachuk – Dylan Cozens – Ridly Greig Nick Cousins – Shane Pinto – Michael Amadio Stephen Halliday – Lars Eller – Fabian Zetterlund
Jake Sanderson – Artem Zub Thomas Chabot – Nick Jensen Tyler Kleven – Jordan Spence
Linus Ullmark James Reimer
For Toronto, the biggest change is the insertion of rookie forward Easton Cowan into the lineup. He's been a healthy scratch for the Leafs for the past five games. Cowan has 17 points in 43 games.
Leafs Line Combinations (as per The Hockey News Toronto's David Alter)
Dan Vladar delivered a magnificent performance in net, spearheading the Flyers to a 3-1 win Saturday afternoon over the Bruins at Xfinity Mobile Arena.
The 28-year-old didn’t crack until there were just 6:57 minutes left in the game.
“He has just had a great year for us,” Rick Tocchet said. “Another outstanding effort from him.”
Travis Konecny broke a scoreless tie 3:41 minutes into the third period. Jamie Drysdale provided critical insurance over eight minutes later.
Sean Couturier iced things with an empty-netter, snapping his 31-game goal-scoring drought.
“I’ll take them any way I can,” the Flyers’ captain said. “It feels good, but the wins are more important right now. That’s all my focus.”
The Flyers (27-21-11) won consecutive games for the first time since Jan. 3-6. That was the season’s halfway mark, when the Flyers were in playoff position after beating the Ducks, 5-2, to take over third place.
“We’ve been pretty resilient, but we’ve got to string consistency together,” Tocchet said before the game. “We’ve been chasing that all year.”
The Bruins (33-21-5) hold one of the Eastern Conference’s two wild-card spots. This was just their third regulation loss in the last 20 games (13-3-4).
“I think [general manager] Don Sweeney has done a great job in they have an identity, they’re big, they’re tough, they play to who they are,” Tocchet said before the game. “I know we played them in Boston, they’re a big team. That’s a team that has an identity when you play them, so it’s a good challenge for us.”
• Two goalies that played in the Olympics put on a pretty good show.
Vladar, who represented Team Czechia, was terrific for the Flyers. He converted 26 saves on 27 shots.
After making a series of big stops with the Flyers on the penalty kill late in the second period, he received a standing ovation from the fans behind his net.
“The fans have been awesome the whole year,” Vladar said. “We really feel that they have our back. … We just don’t want to waste this opportunity, we want to play well, especially for them, especially for ourselves, as well. We need them. Great job by them and we wouldn’t be here without them.”
Vladar bailed out the Flyers twice in the first period. He denied Michael Eyssimont on a semi breakaway and later stopped Mark Kastelic when the Flyers’ power play gave up a look.
The Flyers repaid Vladar in the third period.
“He does so much for us off the ice, as well,” Drysdale said. “In the locker room in between periods, he’s always talking, just saying whatever’s on his mind and usually it’s awesome stuff coming out of his mouth. Real positive guy.”
Bruins netminder Jeremy Swayman, who played for Team USA, made 14 saves on the Flyers’ 16 shots.
The 27-year-old robbed Christian Dvorak in close during the second period to keep the game scoreless. That came 53 seconds after Vladar turned away Morgan Geekie right around the doorstep.
• The Flyers have 23 games left and two to go before next Friday’s 3 p.m. ET trade deadline.
They entered Saturday eight points behind the third-place Islanders in the Metropolitan Division race. They’re six points back of the Bruins in the wild-card hunt.
“We’re a confident group, we knew we have it in us,” Vladar said. “We had it at the beginning of the year, then it kind of slipped away. We’ve just got to find the swagger back because we have it here.”
General manager Danny Briere is not expected to be a major seller. After all, the Flyers didn’t want this season to be about subtraction. But we’ll see if Briere looks to make a future-centric move for the rebuild.
• Dvorak was quietly effective all game. He had a good stick defensively a couple of times and picked up helpers on both of the Flyers’ goals.
The Flyers needed that from him. Over the previous nine games, Dvorak had recorded only two points (both assists).
“Just stay within yourself, we’re not looking for anything more; just who he is,” Tocchet said. “He had a solid game.”
The 30-year-old has been playing as the Flyers’ first-line center. He earned a five-year contract extension with a strong a first half, but the Flyers just hadn’t gotten the same guy recently.
But on Saturday, he looked like the first-half Dvorak.
“Try to not get frustrated, it’s not an easy game,” Dvorak said. “You’ve just got to stick with it, stay positive and turn it around. I thought it was a step in the right direction.”
• Denver Barkey was a healthy scratch as Nicolas Deslauriers drew into the lineup.
The Flyers were playing a physical, tight-checking Boston team. Meanwhile, Barkey has hit a little bit of a wall recently, so this wasn’t a terrible time to let the 20-year-old rookie watch a game.
Deslauriers and Tanner Jeannot had a chat in warmups, setting up a first-period fight. It was a heavyweight bout.
• The Flyers are back in action Monday when they visit the Maple Leafs (7:30 p.m. ET/NBCSP).
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