During the stretch after Adam Fox first returned from long-term injured reserve following the Olympic break, head coach Mike Sullivan was controlled when asked about the Rangers’ star defenseman.

His production, Sullivan said March 18, was getting better. Fox, he added, was building his game again. The ceiling for a point-per-game, Norris Trophy-winning member of the blue line had already been established, but Sullivan acknowledged it would take time for Fox to return to that point due to his extended absences this season.

But Wednesday night, from the bowels of the Garden during his postgame press conference, Sullivan didn’t hesitate when asked about Fox, who’d just recorded a multipoint game for the third consecutive match. His goal and assist against the Sabres gave Fox 15 points in his past eight games, 24 in his past 22 and 52 in the 52 contests he has skated in this season.

“Well, I think he’s captured his game that he started the season with,” Sullivan said.

There’s no question the Rangers are a better team with Fox in the lineup, but with the offseason lingering after a three-game road trip to close the season, the future of the defenseman remains one of their most pressing questions. His cryptic comments from late February, when asked about whether he wants to remain with the Blueshirts through their retool, still loom. And that remains their dilemma: Fox, in the most injury-plagued season of his career, has once again shown his peak value, but what happens if he wants out?

“When you miss a stretch of time, it could take a little bit,” Fox said after Wednesday’s game when asked about his eight-game point streak, “but I think over the last month or so, I feel really good about my game.”

The uncertainty with Fox stemmed from an answer following the Rangers’ Feb. 26 game against the Flyers when, after another loss in his first game back from injury, Fox fielded a question about his thoughts on The Letter 2.0 — which president and general manager Chris Drury dropped during his time on long-term injured reserve.

Fox said he felt “a little helpless” after seeing the public commitment for a retool, but when asked if he wanted to remain with the Rangers through this next stage, Fox, in part, said, “I think that’s a conversation when we’re done playing games.”

In a normal Rangers season, there wouldn’t even be a doubt about Fox’s future with the team. He’s a Long Island native who never masked his desires — or dreams — to play on Broadway. He’s a defenseman regarded as one of the top power-play quarterbacks in the league. His contract lasts through the end of the 2028-29 season, and the Blueshirts’ top priority last offseason involved signing left-handed defenseman Vladislav Gavrikov to pair with Fox.

And the benefits of having Fox in the lineup have once again become apparent. The Rangers have collected the most power-play goals in the NHL since Feb. 28 (20) — a stretch beginning the game after Fox returned — and are tied for the league lead in power-play percentage (33.3) since that juncture, according to the team. They have the No. 3 power play this year after watching their constant strength crater to the No. 28-ranked unit in 2024-25.

“He obviously is an elite player offensively,” Sullivan said of Fox. “He sees it so well. The poise he has with the puck. He drives offense in so many ways.”

The Rangers didn’t have that luxury for a chunk of their season. Fox skated in just three games between Nov. 29 and Feb. 26, with a pair of stints on long-term injured reserve surrounding the midseason break — the Olympics that Fox wasn’t selected to participate in for Team USA — to create the prolonged absence. He’d never played in fewer than 70 games across a full 82-game campaign. This year, if he appears in all of the Rangers’ remaining games, he’ll log just 55.

But after recording just 61 points in 74 games last season, Fox has again matched the production level that made him an annual part of the Norris conversation. If there were concerns about injuries contributing to a production drop-off, he eliminated those worries. The Rangers, though, still need to figure out if they can depend on it for next season.

Even a vintage production tear from Fox isn’t enough to change that reality.

The Florida Panthers could very easily lose a pair of their assistant GMs this off-season, and that process is already beginning.

On Thursday, the Panthers granted the Toronto Maple Leafs and the New Jersey Devils permission to speak to assistant GM Sunny Mehta, according to The Athletic’s Pierre LeBrun. 

On Saturday, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reported that Mehta would be a major factor in the Maple Leafs’ GM search, given his background and current involvement in the Panthers’ analytics department. 

MLSE CEO Keith Pelley felt the Maple Leafs were underutilizing their resources. With Mehta’s success with analytics, he could likely be considered a favorite to land the Maple Leafs job. 

But in came the Devils, who fired their GM, Tom Fitzgerald, on Monday. Mehta received his first NHL gig with the Devils, where he worked as an analyst for four years, from 2014-18. 

In addition to Mehta, Lebrun mentions Brett Peterson, who has been involved in interviews for the Nashville Predators vacancy. LeBrun wonders whether the Maple Leafs and Devils will approach Peterson as part of their process, but at the moment, they haven’t. 

Panthers Assistant GMs Reportedly Garnering Plenty Of Interest Around The NHLThe Nashville Predators and the Toronto Maple Leafs have emerged as teams that could sweep away Florida Panthers assistant GMs Brett Peterson and Sunny Mehta.

With the Panthers’ recent success, it’s no surprise that teams around the NHL want to pry the Panthers’ management group away. 

If the Panthers lose both Mehta and Peterson, they’ll need to look for assistant GMs to join Bill Zito and Gregory Campbell’s staff. 

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BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — Buffalo Sabres goalie Alex Lyon could miss the start of the playoffs due to a strained lower-body muscle.

Coach Lindy Ruff provided the update on Thursday, a day after Lyon was hurt during the team's pre-game skate ahead of Buffalo's 5-3 win at the New York Rangers. Ruff said the initial prognosis is the goalie missing a week, while adding there is a chance he won't be available for the start of the playoffs, which are scheduled to open April 18-19.

The Sabres, who host Columbus on Thursday night, are contending for the Atlantic Division title after clinching their first playoff berth in 15 seasons.

The 33-year-old Lyon has gone 20-10-4 in his first season in Buffalo while sharing the starting duties with Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen. Buffalo is carrying a third goalie, Colten Ellis, who was scheduled to face Columbus in his first start since a 31-save outing in a 4-3 overtime loss at Tampa Bay on Feb. 3.

Ellis entered the day with a 7-4-1 record, and would serve as Luukkonen's backup while Lyon is sidelined.

___

AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl

The Carolina Hurricanes have just four games left to play on their 2025-26 regular season schedule and with their division and playoff spot already locked up, it seems like certain guys will start getting a bit of rest.

The Hurricanes made four AHL callups on Wednesday, recalling forwards Bradly Nadeau, Skyler Brind'Amour, Josiah Slavin and defenseman Charles Alexis Legault from the Chicago Wolves.

Every team is allowed to make just five non-emergency, AHL callups following the trade deadline and with one already burned a few weeks ago in Montreal, Carolina was only able to recall these four players.

Nadeau and Legault have already seen NHL action this season, with both playing in eight games, but neither Brind'Amour nor Slavin have been recalled this year.

Brind'Amour made his NHL debut last season, scoring his first NHL goal in Montreal. Slavin has played in the NHL before, but that was back in 2022, appearing in 15 games for the Chicago Blackhawks.

Nadeau led the Wolves in goals again this season, scoring 26 goals along with 27 assists, in 51 games.

Brind'Amour was third on the team in goals (16 goals, 34 points in 66 games) and Slavin, who captained the Wolves this year, had six goals and 25 points in 66 games.

Legault had three goals and seven points in 22 games with the Wolves and saw limited action due to a hand injury he suffered while up with Carolina.

There's no confirmation yet on who will come out of the lineup, but the Hurricanes have plenty of bodies to throw in to give some of their top guys rest. 

We've already seen Jordan Staal and Jordan Martinook get a game off earlier in the week, so look to them to perhaps draw out.

Jalen Chatfield was also injured on Tuesday so I wouldn't expect him to play and we may also see Sebastian Aho and Seth Jarvis sitting as well due to their importance to the team.

But again, we'll just have to wait and see.

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The Vancouver Canucks will take on the Los Angeles Kings for the second-last time this season tonight. Vancouver last faced Los Angeles on March 26, during which the Canucks lost by a score of 4-0. The Canucks will play the Kings one more time this season after tonight on April 14 at home. Here are the lineup notes for April 9, 2026. 

Vancouver is not expected to change their lineups too much today, meaning that Ty Mueller will sit out of his second-straight game. The forward was called up last Wednesday and played in two games before being healthy-scratched on Tuesday against the Vegas Golden Knights. 

Nikita Tolopilo will start in net for the Canucks tonight, with this being the goaltender's third consecutive start since Kevin Lankinen was held out of the lineup on a day-to-day basis. In his last start, Tolopilo stopped 27 of 29 shots faced for a .931 SV%. 

Projected Lineup: 

O’Connor-Pettersson-DeBrusk

Öhgren-Rossi-Boeser

Sasson-Blueger-Karlsson

Höglander-Räty-Douglas

Buium-Hronek

M. Pettersson-Willander

E. Pettersson-Mancini

Tolopilo

Patera 

Game Information: 

Start time: 7:30 pm PT 

Venue: Crypto.com Arena 

Television: Sportsnet 

Radio: Sportsnet 650 

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With only three more games on the Blueshirts slate – all away – it's time now to compare two of the NHL's most contrasting teams and understand which went up and which went down. 

And more importantly why the Blueshirts are a sorrowful mess while the Sabres could win The Stanley Cup.

RELATIVE VALUE: The Rangers are valued at $4.5 BILLION. Sabres at $1.5 Billion.  Blueshirts have a $3.0 Billion lead and look how it "helped" them. (DIDN'T!)

OCTOBER 2025: At the start of the season, The Hockey News Yearbook picked the Rangers to finish fourth in the Metropolitan Division. Buffalo was picked seventh in the  Atlantic. Blueshirts are in the non-playoff pits -- again. The Sabres are now among the NHL's elite.

STARS: The Rangers have one – Igor Shesterkin – who is supposed to "carry" the team. Here are just a few aces who've carried the Sabres to the top: Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, Rasmus Dahlin, Tage Thompson and Alex Tuch. 

GM: Chris Drury it is to laugh; Jarmo Kekalainen merely turned the Sabres into winners.

Coach: Mike Sullivan is hell bent to miss the playoffs for the fourth straight year; Lindy Ruff is in the process of pulling off one of the miracle bench jobs in NHL history.

Anyone who doubts the above should merely check the standings.

After signing top center prospect Jack Berglund, the Philadelphia Flyers received quite a big organizational boost at the forward position, aiding them both now and in the future.

Berglund, 19, signed a three-year, entry-level contract with the Flyers on Thursday morning, which will take effect starting with the 2026-27 season.

For now, the 6-foot-4 Swede will join the AHL Lehigh Valley Phantoms for their Calder Cup playoff push, and he should be able to immediately establish himself as a top-nine forward on the team in the absences of Denver Barkey and Alex Bump, who are now full-time NHL players.

The Flyers have brought aboard a number of forwards for the Phantoms in recent weeks, with players like Noah Powell, Cole Knuble, and Riley Thompson preceding Berglund's signing.

Berglund's place in the depth chart depends greatly on whether or not the Flyers see him as a center at the NHL level; his development plan will change accordingly.

Flyers Cruising Towards NHL Playoffs on Strength of Young TalentNEWARK, N.J. -- Contrary to recent precedent, the <a href="https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/philadelphia-flyers">Philadelphia Flyers</a> are beginning to prove that teams can compete with a core of elite, talented young wingers. Look at the shell-shocked Prudential Center as proof.

In the future, and accounting only for players under contract or team control, Berglund should slide in comfortably as the sixth center behind draft classmate Jett Luchanko, Trevor Zegras, Christian Dvorak, Noah Cates, and Sean Couturier.

Veterans like Rodrigo Abols, Jacob Gaucher, Lane Pederson, and Boris Katchouk are all on expiring deals, and RFA Karsen Dorwart has yet to meaningfully insert himself into the NHL conversation.

Berglund, who turns 20 on Friday, will be granted every opportunity to make the Flyers out of training camp in the fall.

If he doesn't, the expectation is that he'll be sent back to Farjestad BK of the SHL on loan, as he has one year remaining on his contract overseas. In that case, Berglund's debut in the Orange and Black will wait until this time next year.

The Flyers' winger logjam is well-documented at this point, Alex Bump, Barkey, and Porter Martone overtaking NHL roles combined with the team already having Matvei Michkov, Owen Tippett, Travis Konecny, Tyson Foerster, and the injured Nikita Grebenkin, who is due for a new contract this summer.

Flyers Linked to 6-foot-3 KHL StarOne area the <a href="https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/philadelphia-flyers">Philadelphia Flyers</a> still need to address, regardless of a successful playoff push, is the center position. By the sounds of it, they'll be one of many teams queueing up to sign a burgeoning KHL star.

With that in mind, it is difficult right now to see Berglund with the Flyers as a left wing, unless he does so in a complementary fashion alongside someone like Zegras.

The Karlstad native has produced seven goals, five assists, and 12 points in 40 SHL with Farjestad as a teenager, which ranked fourth amongst all D+2 skaters in Sweden's top hockey league.

Only Lucas Pettersson (20, Anaheim), Valter Lindberg (17, undrafted), and Leo Sahlin Wallenius (13, San Jose) were more productive than Berglund in that aspect.

By next spring, should he not just make the Flyers outright, Berglund will be towards the top of Philadelphia's list of potential call-ups, given his size, skill, and pro experience.

He's well past many of his peers in the organization and will be in the NHL in no time at all.

The Pittsburgh Penguins will play their first game since Sunday on Thursday against the New Jersey Devils.

It's a big game for the Penguins, who have an opportunity to clinch a playoff spot for the first time in four years. A win in any fashion gets them in, but they can also clinch with one point against the Devils and a Columbus Blue Jackets loss to the Buffalo Sabres in any fashion. 

Even if the Penguins lose in regulation, they'd still get in with a Toronto Maple Leafs win over the New York Islanders and a Blue Jackets regulation loss. 

The @penguins will clinch a playoff berth tonight if any of the following events happen:

- The Penguins win tonight in any fashion
OR
- The Penguins get one point versus the Devils AND the Sabres defeat the Blue Jackets in any fashion
OR
- The Maple Leafs defeat the Islanders in… pic.twitter.com/z1trVVcmoP

— Penguins PR (@PenguinsPR) April 9, 2026

The easiest way to clinch is to win, and they'll have a chance to do that against a team that is already eliminated from playoff contention. The Devils got eliminated on Tuesday following a 5-1 loss to the Philadelphia Flyers. The loss came one day after general manager Tom Fitzgerald was dismissed. 

Even though it's been a miserable 2025-26 season for the Devils, they still have some players who can score at will. Jack Hughes, who scored the Golden Goal for Team USA at the 2026 Winter Olympics, has 25 goals and 72 points in 57 games this year. He's been on fire as of late, racking up nine points in his last four games.

Jesper Bratt has also been great this year with 20 goals and 68 points in 78 games. Nico Hischier is still a really strong two-way center with 26 goals and 62 points in 78 games. 

Don't forget about Timo Meier, Dawson Mercer, Cody Glass, and Connor Brown, too. They have 24, 18, 18, and 17 goals, respectively, this year.

Jake Allen will start in goal for the Devils. He has a .906 save percentage and a 2.70 goals-against average this year. 

The Penguins are expected to keep their lines the same for this game. Here's a look at the projected lineup:

Forwards

Chinakhov-Crosby-Rust

Novak-Rakell-Malkin

Mantha-Kindel-Brazeau

Soderblom-Dewar-Acciari

Defensive pairs

Wotherspoon-Karlsson

Girard-Letang

Shea-Clifton

Stuart Skinner will start in goal for the Penguins after missing Sunday's game with an eye injury. 

Puck drop is set for 7 p.m. ET on SportsNet Pittsburgh. Fans can also listen to the game on 105.9 'The X.'

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The Chicago Blackhawks are back at the United Center for a four-game homestand to close out their 2025-26 season. They will not be going to the Stanley Cup Playoffs, but there is still plenty to play for over the final handful of games. 

The Hurricanes clinched the Metropolitan Division last time out against the Boston Bruins, and now they have their eyes on winning the top seed in the Eastern Conference. 

Scouting Carolina 

The Hurricanes brought up a few players from the Chicago Wolves, including Skyler Brind'Amour, Bradly Nadeau, Josiah Slavin, and Charles Alexis Legault. 

Are they going to rest players to stay fresh for their pending trip to the Stanley Cup Playoffs? Maybe, but they still have something to play for with the seeding. Matching up against whoever sneaks into the 8th seed may be more favorable than playing the Boston Bruins in Round 1. 

Svechnikov-Aho-Jarvis

Hall-Stankoven-Blake

Ehlers-Staal-Martinook

Carrier-Jankowski-Deslauriers

Slavin-Gostisbehere

Miller-Chatfield

Nikishin-Walker

Bussi

Andersen

This was their lineup from the overtime win over the Bruins before inserting any of their AHL players, which won't be known until closer to the game. 

If he plays, Sebastian Aho is the one who drives this Hurricanes offense. He doesn't change games the way that some of the highest-tier players do in the league, but he is one tick below. With star wingers right beside him in Seth Jarvis and Andrei Svechnikov, they form an A+ top line. 

Logan Stankoven and Taylor Hall play together on the second line with Jackson Blake. Stankoven and Hall were both involved in trades that included Mikko Rantanen during the 2024-25 season. 

Carolina's third line with Jordan Staal, Nikolaj Ehlers, and Jordan Martinook is one of the best shutdown lines in the NHL. Staal has never won the Selke Trophy, but he is in the mix year after year. It is a trip that could also put the puck in the net when they get opportunities. 

On defense, the Hurricanes are loaded. It starts and ends with Jaccob Slavin, who is the best pure defender in the NHL on the back-end. His lack of offense, although he scored the overtime winning goal against Boston earlier this week (his first goal of the season), keeps him from being known as a true number one in the NHL, but he is an elite player nonetheless.

Shayne Gostisbehere does cheat for offense from time to time, which is okay, playing on the top pair with Slavin. With K'Andre Miller and Alexander Nikishin on the middle and bottom pairs, they get plenty of offense from their defense. 

In goal, whether it's Brandon Bussi or Frederik Anderson, the Hurricanes play a style that gives them a chance to win regardless of who is in net. It is the most physically demanding system in the NHL, led by head coach Rod Brind'Amour, but it works for them. It is a group that's in shape, which is a must for systems like this. 

Projected Lines, Defense Pairs, & Goalie For Chicago

The Blackhawks will need their skating legs in a matchup like this. If they don't have them, they might be run out of their own building by the Hurricanes. 

Teravainen-Bedard-Lardis

Bertuzzi-Frondell-Mikheyev

Donato-Nazar-Burakovsky

Mangiapane-Greene-Slaggert

Vlasic-Crevier

Kaiser-Rinzel

Korchinski-Del Mastro

Knight

Soderblom

There is more experimenting going on with Jeff Blashill and his lineup, especially with the forwards. It is likely to be another game with Connor Bedard, Anton Frondell, and Frank Nazar down the middle in the top nine, while Ryan Greene will be the fourth line center. 

Andre Burakovsky will be back in the lineup after being a healthy scratch in the last game. Andrew Mangiapane, who was inserted for Burakovsky, will also play, likely meaning that Sacha Boisvert will be the healthy scratch. 

Boisvert has yet to play a home game since signing with the Blackhawks, but that is likely just how the schedule works out with the Blackhawks wanting him to take one game off after every one or two played. With every game remaining being at home, he'll have his chance to skate in front of a United Center crowd. 

Spencer Knight did not attend the optional skate for the Blackhawks on Thursday, and Arvid Soderblom did. That means that Knight is going to get the nod in goal against the Hurricanes. Coming off his Masterton Trophy nomination, he is ready to have a strong finish to a great year. 

How To Watch

The game can be heard locally on AM 720 WGN in the Chicagoland area. To view this game, it is available locally on CHSN. Nationally, it is available to stream on ESPN+. The puck will drop shortly after 7:30 PM CT. 

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

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The Florida Panthers will be without Seth Jones tonight against the Ottawa Senators as the veteran defenseman suffered a break in his foot against the Montreal Canadiens.

The injuries truly won’t stop coming for the Panthers. On Tuesday, they witnessed Dmitry Kulikov, who was already playing with a broken nose, suffer a broken finger, ending his season.

Jones has now suffered a break in his foot, which will likely end his 2025-26 campaign. Jones missed 26 games earlier this season when he was hit in the face with a puck during the Winter Classic. In 52 games, the 31-year-old’s season finishes with seven goals and 32 points, averaging 23:42 of ice time, a full minute more than the next closest player. 

With Jones and Kulikov now out of the lineup, Ludvig Jansson and Marek Alscher will make their NHL debut. 

Jansson is a 22-year-old defenseman who the Panthers selected in the fourth round (125th overall) in the 2022 NHL draft. The six-foot, right-handed defenseman has notched three goals and 10 points in 29 AHL games in his rookie season.

Alscher is also a 22-year-old defenseman who the Panthers selected in the third round (93rd overall) in the 2022 NHL draft. The 6-foot-3, left-handed defenseman has posted three goals and 11 points in 51 games in his second AHL season. 

The Panthers take on the red-hot Senators tonight, and it will be a tough task for these young rookies to slow down the Sens offense. 

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The NHL's playoff makeover continues on Thursday, April 9 with three teams possibly clinching after missing the postseason in 2024-25.

The Edmonton Oilers, who went to the Stanley Cup Final the past two seasons, could also clinch. They could be joined by the Pittsburgh Penguins, Boston Bruins and Utah Mammoth.

The Bruins last made the playoffs in 2024 and the Penguins have missed the last three seasons. The Mammoth technically are a second-year franchise but the players who came over from the Arizona Coyotes last made the playoffs in 2020.

The division, wild-card and Presidents' Trophy races also are in play on Thursday.

The Sabres (104 points), who took the Atlantic lead on Wednesday and have ended a record 14-season playoff drought, are in action. Their closest pursuers, the Tampa Bay Lightning and Montreal Canadiens (102 each), are facing each other.

The Vegas Golden Knights (88) and Anaheim Ducks (87) will look to narrow their gap against the idle Pacific-leading Oilers (90).

In the race for the Eastern Conference's second wild-card spot, the leading Ottawa Senators (92) are playing, as are the Columbus Blue Jackets (90), Detroit Red Wings (89) and New York Islanders (89). Peter DeBoer will make his debut as Islanders coach. The Blue Jackets could move into third place in the Metropolitan Division with a win and a Philadelphia Flyers regulation loss.

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The Montreal Canadiens host the Tampa Bay Lightning in an Atlantic Division heavyweight bout on Thursday, April 9.

This potential playoff matchup is perhaps the most important game of the season for both teams, with the division title up for grabs.

My Lightning vs. Canadiens predictions and NHL picks suggest that Cole Caufield, laden with the ever-looming 50-goal plateau, will find other ways to hit the scoresheet in front of the Bell Centre faithful.

Lightning vs Canadiens prediction

Lightning vs Canadiens best bet: Cole Caufield Over 0.5 assists (+100)

The elephant in the room regarding Cole Caufield has overshadowed a particularly generous stretch for the Montreal Canadiens' 25-year-old.

He's racked up three assists in three games since his latest tally, and 10 over his last 12 games. This plus-odds pricing is perhaps as egregious as his Olympic omission.

Caufield's natural goal-scoring ability outshines his playmaking, but he’s tied his career-high assist total and has been playing at a 68-assist pace since mid-March.

Lightning vs Canadiens same-game parlay

Rookie sensation Ivan Demidov is quickly becoming a focal point of the Canadiens' stacked offense, only one year removed from his contract signing late last season.

The 20-year-old has a point in seven of his last eight games, notably racking up a power-play point (+215) in four of them. He leads all rookies with 61 points.

On the topic of red-hot Habs rookies, Jakub Dobes has been the best goaltender in the league over the last month. He's won six straight games and boasts an astounding 28-8-4 record.

Dobes has allowed three goals or fewer in 11 consecutive starts, holding Tampa to a lone goal as he stopped 36 of 37 shots on March 31.

Lightning vs Canadiens SGP

• Cole Caufield Over 0.5 assists
• Ivan Demidov Over 0.5 points
• Tampa Bay Under 3.5 goals

Lightning vs Canadiens odds

• Moneyline: Lightning -115 | Canadiens -105
• Puck Line: Lightning -1.5 (+200) | Canadiens +1.5 (-245)
• Over/Under: Over 6.5 (-105) | Under 6.5 (-115)

Lightning vs Canadiens trend

The Over has hit in three of the last four head-to-head meetings. Find more NHL betting trends for Lightning vs. Canadiens.

How to watch Lightning vs Canadiens

Lightning vs Canadiens latest injuries

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ELMONT, NY -- On Wednesday afternoon, NHL insider Frank Seravalli reported that some New York Islanders players were getting "fed up" with Patrick Roy bringing up his Stanley Cup wins. 

"There's so much talk about his Stanley Cups and the Stanley Cups he won," Seravalli said on 'Frankly Hockey'.  'Players are really tired of hearing that. It's a great relic to hang onto, and it's a nice flex to have on your resume, but you haven't won as a coach. And you're not a goaltender anymore, even though you're in the Hall of Fame. You're just a head coach, and you have to be able to park that. Players told me that they were tired of hearing that from Patrick Roy."

Seravalli has not been in the Islanders' locker room once this season nor attended a game. 

"That couldn't be more untrue," Islanders forward Mathew Barzal said. "If anything, we love hearing stories about the teams that he was on that won the cups, especially his team in Montreal. He'd always bring up just how they were underdogs all year, and that kind of stuff fueled us.

"So that report is just, it's completely ridiculous.”

The Hockey News asked team captain Anders Lee for a comment on the report: 

"I don't even know what to say," a dumbfounded Lee said. "We're definitely not frustrated with Patty talking about that kind of thing. When he did, it was very relevant to the situation, and only him trying to help and tell a story.

"No one was walking away with those feelings.”

Roy's time on the island came to a close on Sunday when he was relieved of his duties after four straight losses, with the Islanders falling out of a playoff spot. 

General manager Mathieu Darche and the players made it clear that Roy never lost the room, with the first-year general manager citing that the hiring of Pete DeBoer was about what was best for the team going forward.

The Islanders continue their push for the playoffs on Thursday night againt the Toronto Maple Leafs, with puck drop at 6:45 PM ET. 

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The Calgary Flames are in Denver to take on a Colorado Avalanche team that has only played to the Over in six of their last 25 games.

With both teams dealing with recent departures and/or key injuries, my Flames vs. Avalanche predictions expect that trend to continue.

Let’s dive into my NHL picks for Thursday, April 9.

Flames vs Avalanche prediction

Flames vs Avalanche best bet: Under 6.5 (-125)

The Colorado Avalanche have been surprisingly generous to Under backers this season, posting an O/U record of 33-42-2.

Five of their past seven games have featured six goals or fewer, including three straight. That may be a common theme down the stretch with offensive dynamo Cale Makar sidelined, not to mention former Calgary Flames center Nazem Kadri.

The Flames traded multiple key weapons prior to the deadline (Kadri, Rasmus Andersson) and lost Jonathan Huberdeau to injury, making them more reliant on preventing goals than scoring them.

That sets up well for a reasonably low-scoring matchup.

Flames vs Avalanche same-game parlay

The Flames traded multiple minute-munching defensemen and lost a couple more to injury, opening the door for others to take on expanded roles.

Yan Kuznetsov has blocked multiple shots in 15 of his last 20 games, and two of three since returning from injury, while Olli Maatta has stepped in the way of at least a couple of pucks in seven of his past 10.

Colorado plays fast and shoots a lot, which should create plenty of opportunities for these blueliners to pile up the blocks.

Flames vs Avalanche SGP

• Under 6.5
• Yan Kuznetsov Over 1.5 blocked shots
• Olli Maatta Over 1.5 blocked shots

Flames vs Avalanche odds

• Moneyline: Flames +260 | Avalanche -330
• Puck Line: Flames +1.5 (+110) | Avalanche -1.5 (-130)
• Over/Under: Over 6.5 (+105) | Under 6.5 (-125)

Flames vs Avalanche trend

The Colorado Avalanche have hit the Game Total Under in 15 of their last 25 games (+8.70 Units / 32% ROI). Find more NHL betting trends for Flames vs. Avalanche.

How to watch Flames vs Avalanche

Flames vs Avalanche latest injuries

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