Category: Ice Hockey

During the 2025 NHL off-season, the New Jersey Devils re-signed former Montreal Canadiens goalie Jake Allen to a five-year $9 million contract. 

So far, the decision to keep Allen around is looking like a good one for the Devils. In nine games so far this season with the Devils, the former Canadiens goaltender has a 6-2-0 record, a 2.29 goals-against average, and a .914 save percentage. He has also had a .900 save percentage or better in six out of his nine appearances this season, which shows that he has been consistent.

Allen also just put together his best start of the season so far against the Pittsburgh Penguins on Nov. 8. During it, the former Canadiens goaltender stopped 33 out of 34 shots, which equated an impressive .971 save percentage of the night. 

Allen’s goal from here will be to continue to provide solid goaltending for the Devils. If he does, it will only make the Devils a more challenging team for opponents to face off against this season. 

In 127 games over four seasons with the Canadiens from 2020-21 to 2023-24, Allen recorded a 41-68-15 record, a .899 save percentage, a 3.30 goals-against average, and three shutouts. 

One of the newest members of the Florida Panthers has been helping provide some stability on the back line while the team’s oldest forward is pacing the group offensively.

Their contributions come at a time when the team has struggled to find dependability in their game amid a myriad of injuries to everyday players.

Considering the incredible career Brad Marchand has had, it’s probably less surprising to see him collecting points as rapidly as he has been than it has been to see the emergence of young defenseman Donovan Sebrango.

Florida claimed Sebrango off waivers from the Ottawa Senators earlier this season on the heels of losing Dmitry Kulikov to a labrum injury that will keep him out of the lineup for five months following surgery.

Sebrango arrived in South Florida with all of four NHL games of experience under his belt, but the 6-foot-2, 223-pound blueliner had a set of skills that caught the eye of the Cats’ front office.

He moves well and has a quick burst of speed that he can use to jump up into plays or quickly close a gap. He’s shown a keen sense of when to jump into plays and when to sit back, an indication that he’s quickly grasping the concepts of Florida’s five-man defensive systems.

On Monday, Sebrango’s fifth game since joining the Panthers, he picked up a pair of assists in Florida’s 3-2 victory in Las Vegas.

They were his first points in the NHL.

While the sample size remains small, it appears Florida may have found themselves another viable player that fits well in their physically-demanding systems.

“I think he's played the same game, and that's a really impressive thing because he's he doesn't have a lot of NHL experience,” said Panthers Head Coach Paul Maurice. “He's still a young man, but he has been very, very consistent in his style of game and what we expect from him, and that is highly unusual in a young player, especially a defenseman. There are so many different reads, and we play a different game than he's been experiencing, so we're really impressed with his composure in the game, and we like his bite.”

As for Marchand, the 37-year-old has been performing like he’s 10 years younger.

Regardless of what line he’s on or who he’s skating with, Marchand has been Florida’s most consistent point producer so far this season, but lately he’s taken things to another level.

After logging three goals and three assists over his first seven games, Marchand has exploded over his past eight outings.

He’s racked up eight goals and 12 points during his eight-game scoring streak, but it gets even better than that.

Marchand has scored goals in five straight games, with six total tallies over that span, some of which were highlight-worthy.

“It's almost more fun to watch the guys who haven't played here, who didn't see it in the playoffs, react to that,” Maurice said after Marchand scored a gorgeous backhand goal during Monday's win in Vegas. “He's special in tight, his hands are so quick. It would be the thing about Brad that…you know he's a good player when you coached against him for years, but you get on the ice in practice and you see those goals, it's just an exceptional set of hands.”

While an unlikely pair, both Marchand and Sebrango have done well lately bringing their unique brands of hockey to a Panthers team that was in need of steadiness and reliability.

How long they can keep it going remains to be seen.

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Three takeaways: Panthers end road trip looking more like themselves, power play snaps cold spell

Photo caption: Nov 1, 2025; Sunrise, Florida, USA; Florida Panthers left wing Brad Marchand (63) celebrates with defenseman Donovan Sebrango (6) after the game against the Dallas Stars at Amerant Bank Arena. (Sam Navarro-Imagn Images)

On Thursday morning, the NHL's Department of Player Safety announced that "New Jersey Devils defenseman Brenden Dillon has been fined $5,000, the maximum allowable under the Collective Bargaining Agreement, for boarding Chicago Blackhawks forward Tyler Bertuzzi during NHL Game No. 268 in Chicago on Wednesday, Nov. 12."

The hit  occurred at 17:16 of the first period while the Blackhawks were on the power play. The 35-year-old was assessed a minor penalty for boarding.

The money goes to the Players’ Emergency Assistance Fund.

Make sure you bookmark THN's New Jersey Devils site for THN's latest news, exclusive interviews, breakdowns, and so much more.

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Brayden Schenn resurfaced in the rumor mill earlier this week as his St. Louis Blues remain mired near the bottom of the NHL standings.

Since then, the Blues have a three-game points streak going, sitting only five points out of a wild-card berth in the Western Conference approaching Friday's game against the Philadelphia Flyers.

Nevertheless, Schenn remains the focus of media trade chatter.

On Tuesday, Jeremy Rutherford of The Athletic confirmed a report by Bleacher Report's Frank Seravalli last week that Blues GM Doug Armstrong had informed his peers that he's “open for business.” However, he pointed out that Armstrong has done this regularly in recent years without making a significant subtraction from his roster, suggesting it may be more to motivate his players to improve their performance.

Rutherford mentioned Schenn as a trade possibility. He pointed out that the 34-year-old center attracted plenty of attention leading up to last season's trade deadline, but he told the Blues he wanted to stay put. Rutherford wondered if Schenn might reconsider, given the club's recent struggles. He no longer has a full no-trade clause, as it reverted to a 15-team no-trade list on July 1.

Jordan Kyrou also came up as a trade candidate. Rutherford reminded us that the 27-year-old right winger was the subject of trade conjecture last June before his no-trade clause kicked in on July 1.

Rutherford cited a league source who claimed that a team contacted the Blues about Kyrou after he was scratched from their lineup for their game last Thursday against the Buffalo Sabres. However, it's not known if the Blues are shopping Kyrou or what the interested club might have offered up.

Seravalli considered Schenn the more likely to be traded. He pointed to the interest in the Blues captain at last season's trade deadline and the limited number of available centers in the trade market. If the Blues make a trade, Seravalli believes it should be to bolster their blueline.

Turning to the Buffalo Sabres, Matthew Fairburn of The Athletic wondered if GM Kevyn Adams might turn to the trade market to boost his injury-ravaged team. He doesn't anticipate a major move and acknowledged the difficulty of making trades this early in the season, but he felt that Adams should at least try to do something.

Meanwhile, some teams are checking to see if Adams is ready to become a seller.

RG.Org's Marco D'Amico reported Wednesday that the Vancouver Canucks and Montreal Canadiens were among several teams to contact the Sabres about the availability of Tage Thompson. However, Adams has informed those clubs that the high-scoring forward isn't available.

TVA Sports' Renaud Lavoie claimed the Canadiens never spoke to the Sabres about Thompson. He doesn't see Adams moving out any of his core players.

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The New York Islanders are out in Las Vegas for Thursday's matchup against the Golden Knights.

Meanwhile, the team had a pro scout busy on Wednesday night, taking in Chicago Blackhawks vs New Jersey Devils game.

Stefen Rosner (@stefen_rosner) on X#Isles one of a handful of teams who have a scout in Chicago tonight.

While it's still early in the year, it's always interesting to see which teams are watching which others. In this case, it's almost certain the Islanders are watching Chicago, as it would be far easier and cheaper for the franchise to scout the Devils back in New Jersey -- a team the Islanders just beat 3-2 in overtime on Monday. 

The Islanders have a glaring need on the right side of their defense, and Chicago has a pair of players who could be acquired to join New York's defense corps.

First, Louis Crevier is thought to be available. He's a 6'8 monster, drafted in the 7th round of the 2020 NHL Draft, and has 72 games under his belt. He posted two assists last night, and through 16 games this season, has two goals and eight points total. 

He could very easily jump right into New York's lineup, perhaps as an ideal partner for Alexander Romanov or Adam Pelech, with Ryan Pulock now stapled alongside Matthew Schaefer.

Crevier's just 24, and with his size, why would Chicago be looking to trade him?

For starters, they have too many defensemen. Last night, they ran an 11-forward, 7-defensemen set-up, something far from ideal. 

Chicago also wants to add an NHL forward to the mix of their roster, as they continue to plow along in their rebuild. The Islanders are flush with NHL forwards and would likely be open to flipping a forward to improve their defense.

The other option thought to be available in Chicago is Connor Murphy, a 32-year-old veteran right-shot blue liner and steady presence for all 762 games of his career. He's spent the last 9 years of his career with the Blackhawks, remaining loyal throughout the long rebuilding process that's gone on.

Murphy's even worn a letter since the 2020-21 season, showcasing how much his leadership means to the team.

He's available for the same reasons Crevier is, just too many defensemen pushing and not enough spots. If Chicago gets the right forward or pick package in return, Murphy, a pending UFA, will be available.

He's expected to be dealt ahead of the NHL Trade Deadline, but it's never too early to make an early run.  

The Toronto Maple Leafs announced that they have called up goaltender Artur Akhtyamov from the Toronto Marlies.

Leafs PR (@LeafsPR) on XThe Maple Leafs have recalled G Artur Akhtyamov. F Scott Laughton has been placed on injured reserve retroactive to November 8.

The Maple Leafs fell to the Boston Bruins 5-3 at TD Garden on Tuesday. Starting goaltender Anthony Stolarz was unable to finish the game, getting pulled after 20 minutes due to what the team said was a lower-body injury.

Stolarz allowed three goals on 11 shots in the game. He was pulled for performance-related reasons in his previous match, which was also against the Bruins, where he allowed four goals on 19 shots faced.

Following Tuesday's game, Craig Berube didn't feel Stolarz' upper-body injury was serious.

Toronto's next option in goal, Joseph Woll, is unavaiable to the Leafs as the goaltender continues his conditioning stint with the Marlies. Woll made 25 saves on 28 shots in a 3-2 overtime loss to the Grand Rapids Griffins.

In all likelyhood, Dennis Hildeby is set to make his fourth consecutive NHL appearance when the Leafs host the Los Angeles Kings at Scotiabank Arena on Thursday. Despite an 0-2-0 record, Hildeby has posted a .909 save percentage under difficult circumstance as the club tries to snap a 3-game losing streak. In six games with the Marlies, Akhtyamov has a 4-2-0 record with an .894 save percentage.

To be updated....

Simon Nemec scored a hat trick and Jacob Markstrom made 17 saves on 20 shots in the New Jersey Devils' 4-3 overtime victory over the Chicago Blackhawks on Wednesday night at the United Center. 

"He showed the forwards how to do it,” head coach Sheldon Keefe said of Nemec. "All three goals he is in forward positioning and finishing it. But good on him to find those spots and to finish. We worked this morning about activating our D and getting our defense involved and he certainly was paying attention.”

"That was probably the first hat trick in my career," Nemec told NJD.TV. "I was never a shooter or a scoring guy. I’m glad for that, but obviously a great team win."

Blackhawks star Connor Bedard opened the scoring with 1:25 remaining in the first period while Chicago was on a five-on-three power play with Luke Hughes and Brenden Dillon in the penalty box. 

More important than the 1-0 score after 20 minutes was the Devils losing two forwards, Cody Glass and Zack MacEwen, with apparent injuries. 

At the 7:27 mark, MacEwen got hit by Connor Murphy behind Chicago's goal. The 29-year-old looked to be in pain as he made his way to the bench and down the tunnel. In the final seconds of the period, Glass crashed into the boards and was holding his arm as he skated off the ice into the Devils' locker room. 

Glass came out for the second period and was on the ice for one 17-second shift before disappearing back to the locker room. MacEwen did not return. 

Per reporters in Chicago, there is no update on Glass or MacEwen. The club will be off on Thursday, so any news will wait until Friday. 

Even with a depleted lineup, the Devils tied the game with 14 seconds remaining in the middle frame. Nemec's backhand shot beat Blackhawks' goaltender Spencer Knight for a tied 1-1 score entering the second intermission. It marked the first time in the 21-year-old's career that he scored in back-to-back games. 

With the Devils down to 10 forwards, Chicago regained the lead in the opening minutes of the third period. Landon Slaggert, who was recalled from the American Hockey League on Wednesday morning, scored his first goal of the season on a tip-in.

For a second time, New Jersey tied the game. The Devils' new-look top line delivered, with Dawson Mercer scoring his ninth goal of the season. Jack Hughes and Arseny Gritsyuk collected the assists. 

Sam Lafferty gave Chicago their third lead of the night, but it was short-lived as Nemec scored his second of the night less than three minutes later. Hughes picked up his second assist of the period. 

Nemec called the game 3:26 into overtime for his first career NHL hat trick. Markstrom picked up the primary assist for his second point of 2025-26. 

"He was waving for it with his stick, he was wide open, " Markstrom told NJD.TV. "A little soft pass, he had to wait for it a little bit, but it was his night tonight. Huge game for him and to top it off with the OT hat trick is huge.”

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After a resounding defeat against the Los Angeles Kings on Tuesday evening, the Montreal Canadiens will try to bounce back on Thursday night when they take on the Dallas Stars at the Bell Centre. If the Habs have struggled against the Kings for the last few years, they’ve not done much better against the Texans, only winning three of the last 10 duels. They were victorious in the previous game, a 3-1 win last January.

Tonight’s tilt will be the first of two meetings between the two sides; the second will take place in Dallas on January 4. The Stars are currently second in the Central Division and fourth in the league with 23 points, just one point ahead of the Sainte-Flanelle, but they have played one more game. The visitors are currently enjoying a three-game winning streak and are flying high after winning their first game in Ottawa in nearly a decade.

Canadiens: Dobes Speaks To The Media
Canadiens: A Wasted Opportunity
Canadiens: Caufield Wouldn’t Make Team USA Right Now

After sitting out the last two games, Jakub Dobes will be back in the net for the first time since his emotional reaction to the 4-3 overtime defeat against the New Jersey Devils. The rookie goaltender has faced the Stars only once in his young career, in the win mentioned above. He had stopped 32 of the 33 shots he faced and was named the second star of the tilt behind Alex Newhook, who had scored the game-winning goal. Historically, Samuel Montembeault has also had success against the visitors with a 2-2-1 record with a 2.58 goals-against average and a .933 save percentage.

The Stars’ starter has not been announced yet, but Jake Oettinger has played 12 of their 17 games. The netminder is expected to be named to Team USA for the upcoming Olympics, even though his stats have not been as good as they usually are. Against Montreal, he’s got a 5-2-0 record, with a 2.48 GAA and a .907 GAA. As for backup Casey DeSmith, he’s 3-2-2 with a 2.38 GAA and a .921 SV.

While captain Nick Suzuki wasn’t at practice yesterday, he’s expected to play tonight, which is good news for the Canadiens since he’s got 14 points in 10 games against the visitors. Brendan Gallagher is the Habs’ second most productive player with seven points in 17 games, while Noah Dobson completes the top three with six points in eight games.

Tyler Seguin is the Stars’ most productive forward against the Tricolore with 31 points in 35 games, but he has slowed down considerably in the last few years and only has seven points in 17 games this season. Matt Duchene comes in second place with 22 points in 27 games, but an upper-body injury currently sidelines him, and he has only played four games this season. Top scorer Mikko Rantanen has 14 points in 15 duels with the Canadiens and is having a great season so far with 23 points in 17 games. Montreal will also want to keep a close eye on Jason Robertson, who has seven points in eight games against the Habs.

This game will be a good measuring stick for the Canadiens, given the Stars’ ranking and the fact that they’ve made the Western Conference final for the last three seasons. The Canadiens will also need to be disciplined, as the visitors have the second-best power play in the league, with a 32.8% success rate. Their penalty killing unit is nowhere near as good as they’ve got the seventh-worst success rate in the league at just 73.6%.

This could be just what the doctor ordered for the Habs’ man-advantage since it hasn’t produced a single goal in the last three games. While the top unit can move the puck with ease, lately, they’ve tended to pass the puck too much for too long instead of just shooting the puck. A goal doesn’t always have to come from a spectacular build-up, and the young Habs would do well to keep it simple at times.

Puck drop is set for 7:00 PM, and you can catch the game in French on RDS and in English on TSN2 and Victory +.

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The Columbus Blue Jackets are at home tonight to face the Edmonton Oilers at Nationwide Arena.

The Blue Jackets will have one thing on their mind tonight - Revenge. The good news for Columbus is that they have played Edmonton very tough at home in their history, going 18-13-3-1 inside the friendly confines of Nationwide Arena. The other good news is that Edmonton played last night in Philadelphia and had to go to overtime, so hopefully they're nice and worn out. 

The bad news? The Jackets lost their Captain, Boone Jenner, to an upper-body injury against Seattle on Tuesday night, and his status is uncertain. The fact that the PR team announced that he wouldn't return just a few minutes after he left the game is not a good sign. The Cleveland Monsters also called up forward Chongmin Lee from the ECHL's Bloomington Bison on Wednesday night, which means the CBJ might call up an extra forward before tonight's game. 

The Blue Jackets currently sit 8th in the Metro, 14th in the East, and 26th in the league. 

Blue Jackets Stats

• Power Play - 15.0% - 29th in NHL
• Penalty Kill - 72.7% - 27th in NHL
• Goals For - 48 - 20th in NHL
• Goals Against - 51 - 21st in NHL

Oilers Stats

• Power Play - 32.6% - 3rd in NHL
• Penalty Kill - 82.6% - 9th in NHL
• Goals For - 54 - 13th in NHL
• Goals Against - 60 - 26th in NHL

Series History vs. Oilers

• Columbus is 27-37-3-3 all-time, and 18-13-3-1 at home vs. Edmonton.
• The Jackets are 5-2-1 in the last 8 games against the Oilers.
• The CBJ went 1-1 vs. the Oilers last season.

Who To Watch For The Oilers

• Connor McDavid leads the Oilers with 17 assists and 24 points. He also has 36 points in 19 career games vs. Columbus.
• Leon Draisaitl leads Edmonton with 10 goals.
• Calvin Pickard is 5-2-2 with a SV% of .836.

CBJ Player Notes vs. Oilers

• Zach Werenski has 9 points in 13 games against the Oilers.
• Sean Monahan has 28 points in 46 games.
• Adam Fantilli has 5 points in 4 games against Edmonton

Injuries - Gudbranson on IR

• Erik Gudbranson - Upper Body - Missed 8 games - IR

TOTAL MAN GAMES LOST: 20

How to Watch & Listen: Tonight's game will be on ESPN+ & HULU. John Buccigross will be on the play-by-play. The radio broadcast will be on 97.1 The Fan, with Bob McElligott behind the mic doing the play-by-play.

Stay updated with the most interesting Blue Jackets stories, analysis, breaking news, and more!

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Nearly a week after breaking down in front of the media following a 4-3 overtime loss to the New Jersey Devils, Montreal Canadiens’ netminder Jakub Dobes spoke to the media after practice on Wednesday.

The 24-year-old netminder was all smiles as he explained his reaction to the loss. Turns out that the youngster had lost to them last season and had promised himself that it wouldn’t happen again. The fact that it did, but that it also was in the same fashion in overtime, was the final drop in the bucket, and it pushed him over the edge.

For those who thought there might have been some lasting damage to the goaltender’s mood or confidence, rest assured that it’s already in the past. In fact, he said he was just fine when the team got on the plane back from New Jersey that night and confessed that his teammates had some fun with it at his expense. While he says he has no intention of changing his personality, he does concede that he may get better at handling results as he matures.

After watching Samuel Montembeault play the last two games, Dobes will be back in action on Thursday as the Canadiens will host the Dallas Stars. He took them on once last season and was named the second star of the game in a 3-1 win, posting a .970 save percentage.

The rookie netminder still hasn’t lost in regulation this season and has a 6-0-1 record with a 2.25 goals-against average (second in the league amongst goaltenders who have played at least seven games) and a .920 SV (fourth in the league amongst players who have played in at least seven games). His stats also make him the best rookie goaltender this season, edging Arturs Silovs from the Pittsburgh Penguins, who has a 2.45 GAA and a .916 SV with a 4-2-3 record.

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The Florida Panthers are ready to kick off an extended stretch of home games after a very road-heavy opening schedule.

Only seven of Florida’s first 16 games have come at Amerant Bank Arena, but those numbers are going to be skewed in the opposite direction in the not-too-distant future.

That’s because in the coming weeks, the Panthers will play 11 of their next 12 games on home ice.

The fun will start on Thursday night when they welcome the Washington Capitals to Sunrise for the first of their two visits to South Florida.

So far this season, the Capitals, much like the Panthers, are making their way through a so-so start to their campaign.

Both teams hold identical 8-7-1 records through 16 games.

Florida has been great at home but didn’t start playing consistency well on the road until the past week.

After starting the season with three straight home wins, the Cats have meandered around the .500 mark since.

Similarly, the Capitals got off to a great start as well, winning four of their first five and six of eight to jump out to a 6-2-0 mark.

Since then, however, Washington has struggled.

They went through a stretch where they lost six of seven before picking up a big road win on Tuesday in Carolina.

One constant bright spot for the Caps throughout the young season has been the play of goaltender Logan Thompson.

He holds a respectable 7-4-0 record, but his statistics – a 1.56 goals against average and .935 save percentage – are Vezina-worthy.

It wasn’t until his tenth start of the season, last Saturday in Tampa, that Thompson allowed more than two goals in a game.

He’s expected to patrol the crease for the Caps on Thursday, and his likely opponent will be Sergei Bobrovsky.

Here are the Panthers projected lines and pairings for Thursday’s matchup with Washington:

Carter Verhaeghe – Evan Rodrigues – Sam Reinhart

Eetu Luostarinen – Anton Lundell – Brad Marchand

Jesper Boqvist – Sam Bennett – Mackie Samoskevich

A.J. Greer – Cole Schwindt – Luke Kunin

Gus Forsling – Aaron Ekblad

Niko Mikkola – Seth Jones

Dominic Sebrango – Jeff Petry

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Photo caption: May 5, 2022; Sunrise, Florida, USA; Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin (8) covers Florida Panthers defenseman Aaron Ekblad (5) during the third period in game two of the first round of the 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs at FLA Live Arena. (Sam Navarro-Imagn Images)

Almost a quarter of the way through the 2025-26 season, it's becoming clearer that the Philadelphia Flyers are still a far cry from the Stanley Cup-contending team they aspire to be.

Yes, the Flyers are in a playoff spot at the time of this writing, but they're also two points away from being the second-worst team in the Eastern Conference.

Teams like the Toronto Maple Leafs, Columbus Blue Jackets, Tampa Bay Lightning, and Florida Panthers have too much talent to lay dormant forever, though injuries are certainly taking their tolls on those teams.

And, when it comes to tiebreakers, the Flyers are tied with Buffalo for the fewest regulation wins (4) and have the second-fewest regulation and overtime wins (5).

If the team isn't currently thinking about the postseason, they'd be in the right frame of mind.

The Flyers aren't a bad team, necessarily, but they are painstakingly boring and still haven't found a way to consistently generate offense.

In the Rick Tocchet era thus far, the Flyers are dead last in the NHL in shots per game (24.6), tied for the third-fewest goals per game (2.56), and more generally have seen very little improvement from many of their core players.

Franchise player Matvei Michkov is at the heart of those issues, and it's not all his fault.

Porter Martone Doing Everything Flyers Needed to See in NCAAThe Philadelphia Flyers have to be thrilled with how Porter Martone has been developing on the ice and in the gym.

At 5-on-5, Michkov, 20, leads the Flyers in on-ice goals for per 60 minutes (3.15) and on-ice shooting percentage (12.05%) and ranks second in on-ice goals percentage (58.82%) and expected on-ice goals for per 60 (2.63), according to Natural Stat Trick.

The problem, however, is that Michkov is averaging just 11:55 a night at 5-on-5, which ranks ninth on the Flyers behind Travis Konecny, Sean Couturier, Owen Tippett, Noah Cates, Tyson Foerster, Christian Dvorak, Trevor Zegras, and Bobby Brink.

To put all of that information into layman's terms, the Flyers are generating and scoring the most with their Russian talisman on the ice, but he's barely playing third-line minutes.

And to wrap it up, Michkov is sixth in scoring amongst his 2023 draft classmates, while players like Leo Carlsson, Connor Bedard, and Will Smith have all taken off this season with 17 or more points. Michkov, on the other hand, is stuck at nine points and pacing for 47 on the year.

After hot starts, Foerster and Tippett have all but faded into obscurity, too.

The former, returning from an 11-day layoff due to injury, has managed just one goal and one point in his last five contests.

Foerster is on pace for 46 points, narrowly besting his career-high of 43 from last year, despite playing nearly two minutes more on average going from 16:52 a night to 18:24.

If the 23-year-old continues to feature exclusively as a checking-line forward, then he'll only ever be a checking-line forward who doesn't reach his full potential offensively. It's a self-fulfilling prophecy.

As for Tippett, his game has completely stalled out after scoring five times in the first six games of the season. Since then, he has one assist in his last 10 games.

Tocchet admitted recently that Tippett needs to "stay a little bit more focused in the game," but Tippett immediately went offside on what would've been a game-winning Konecny goal with 26 seconds left in a 1-1 game against the Edmonton Oilers on Wednesday night.

Flyers: Are We Headed Towards a Goalie Controversy?The push and pull between Sam Ersson and Aleksei Kolosov may force the Philadelphia Flyers into having an uncomfortable conversation about goaltending.

That goal, of course, didn't stand, and the Flyers lost 2-1 in overtime on an unfortunate and uncharacteristic error from Cam York.

Zegras's point-per-game pace and Konecny's resurgence are things to be happy with, as is Dan Vladar's .919 save percentage.

As for the young players, and the ones who didn't just arrive in Philadelphia this summer? It hasn't been perfect.

York and Jamie Drysdale look improved, but, as mentioned above, York did just lose them a game with a turnover, and Drysdale's game still lacks end product with seven points in 16 games.

Rookie forward Nikita Grebenkin, who has flashed promise and his playmaking chops at various times throughout the nascent season, didn't even play against the Oilers on Wednesday night.

That came at the cost of 6:59 of ice time for Nick Deslauriers, 7:50 of ice time for Garnet Hathaway, and 6:21 of ice time for Rodrigo Abols, who also went 0-for-5 on faceoffs.

Overall, the way the Flyers are developing their current players and the direction of the rebuild overall has clearly taken a downward turn.

Whether that is temporary or not remains to be seen, and the sky isn't falling.

As far as reinvigorating interest and excitement in the Flyers? The progress amongst the fans, at least those with voices on social media, has been inscrutable.

CHICAGO - The Chicago Blackhawks came into Wednesday's matchup with the New Jersey Devils having lost six consecutive matchups. With both of these teams on the rise, it was expected to be a tight game throughout. 

For the most part, however, the Devils outplayed the Blackhawks, but Spencer Knight's goaltending and some timely goal scoring kept Chicago in it. 

In the first period, the Blackhawks outshot the Devils 12-10 and had a 1-0 lead. In the second and third, New Jersey outshot Chicago 23-8 and outscored them 3-2 to force overtime. The Blackhawks relinquished three leads in the process. 

In overtime, New Jersey almost exclusively controlled play. On their fourth shot of the extra period (the Blackhawks had 0), the Devils won it on a hat-trick goal scored by Simon Nemec. 

The Blackhawks collected a standings point, which they can thank Spencer Knight for. Knight made 33 saves on 37 shots in the loss. 

Connor Bedard's Point Streak

One of Chicago's goals was scored by Connor Bedard. This pretty 5-on-3 goal was the first goal that put them up 1-0. Bedard's point streak is now up to nine games. His 26th point also ties him with Leo Carlsson and Macklin Celebrini for second in the league. 

Landon Slaggert Makes Quick Impact Upon Return

In addition to Frank Nazar and Jason Dickinson, who were already expected to be out, Andre Burakovsky's game-time decision turned out to be an absence against the Devils.  After the game, head coach Jeff Blashill confirmed that Burakovsky had an illness. 

"I think he'll be back Saturday, knock on wood," Blashill said of Burakovsky.

In his place, they had Landon Slaggert called up, ready to go. He made an impression upon his return, as he tipped in a Louis Crevier shot for their second goal of the game. His time in Rockford seems to have served him well, as he was noticeable on many occasions. 

Sam Lafferty also scored a beautiful goal. With three very important forwards out of the lineup, a guy like Lafferty needs to take advantage of his opportunity to draw back in. 

Watch Every Blackhawks Goal

Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) on Xhey siri could you play Chelsea Dagger pls🎶Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) on Xback and better than ever😎Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) on Xa Sam Lafferty Chicago Blackhawks goal🙂‍↕️🙂‍↕️

Next Up For Chicago

The Toronto Maple Leafs are going to be in town to play the Chicago Blackhawks on Saturday night. The Blackhawks will be seeing an 8-8-1 Maple Leafs team that is not playing up to their standard that they've created during the Auston Matthews era. That game will come at 6 PM CT on CHSN in Chicago and as a part of Hockey Night in Canada. 

Visit The Hockey News Chicago Blackhawks team site to stay updated on the latest news, game-day coverage, player features, and more.

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CHICAGO (AP) —Defenseman Simon Nemec scored his third goal of the game at 3:28 of the overtime to lift the New Jersey Devils to a 4-3 win over the Chicago Blackhawks on Wednesday night.

Dawson Mercer also scored and Jack Hughes had two assists for Eastern Conference-leading Devils, 3-0-1 in their last four. Jacob Markstrom stopped 17 shots.

Chicago’s Connor Bedard scored for the fourth straight game and extended his points streak to a career-high nine games, with eight goals and 11 assists in the run. Landon Slaggert connected after being recalled from Rockford of the AHL on Wednesday, Sam Lafferty added a highlight reel goal for his first point of the season and Spencer Knight made 33 saves.

In the extra period, the 21-year-old Nemec took a stretch pass from Markstrom, raced in and beat Knight high on the glove side for his first career hat trick. Nemec connected for the second straight game and recorded his first multi-goal outing after not scoring in his first 15 contests this season.

The Devils extended their winning streak against the Blackhawks to seven games.

Bedard opened the scoring with a 5-on-3 power-play goal with 1:25 left in the first period, firing with Markstrom down.

Knight sparkled in the second when New Jersey outshot Chicago 14-3 and 11-0 to close out the period. But Nemec broke in from the left side and tucked a backhander inside the post to tie it 1-all on the Devils’ 24th shot with 15 seconds left in the period.

Slaggert’s deflection at 3:05 of the third put Chicago back ahead. Mercer fired in a one-timer off Hughes’s pinpoint feed to tie it at 2 at 10:13

Lafferty sped in and put Chicago ahead 3-2 with 6:28 left in the third period. Set up by Hughes, Nemec tied it at 3 with a one-timer from the left side with 4:46 left in regulation.

Chicago’s Ryan Donato skated in his 500th NHL game.

Up next

Devils: At Washington on Saturday.

Blackhawks: Host Toronto on Saturday.