For a few years now, Alex Turcotte has never been close enough to see opportunity, never close enough to grab it with significant playing time on ice. Buried on the fourth line and seeing pretty inconsistent playing time on ice for years, the former No. 5 overall pick hasn't gotten what he expected. 

But that will all change now with Phillip Danault's departure. It's no longer about patience with Turcotte; it's now about whether all the waiting was worth it and whether he will now be a great player with an elevated role. 

Ken Holland's Latest Move May Force Him Into AnotherAfter Los Angeles Kings GM Ken Holland sent Phillip Danault back to the Montreal Canadiens, there will be a gaping hole down the middle when next season rolls around

The Door was never open

Even though people will say that Turcotte should have gotten more minutes and a bigger role because he was a top 5 draft pick back in 2019, the Kings still went with consistency and reliability over potential and projection. 

The Kings were deep down the middle for a few years now since before even drafting Turcotte and that's what they went with for the most part. Danault just had to be patient and ready for when his time will come and now the Kings are trusting him in this new role. 

Fourth-line minutes that only had him playing about 10 to 11 minutes a game on ice, and even this season saw a decrease in his minutes, with nine on the ice. Danault averaged the best numbers of his career last season with nine goals, 16 assists, and 25 points, but this year he's off to a slow start with a diminished role to start the season.

Breaching the Surface: Alex Turcotte and the Phillip Danault DilemmaTAMPA BAY, FL – In a place that has been a house of horrors for the Los Angeles Kings, the team was able to squeeze out a 2-1 win in sixty minutes of play, no more, no less, at Amalie Arena. For anyone following closely, that was the 23rd game this season for the Kings in which the game was decided by just one goal. Scaling down, it was also the fourth consecutive game the Kings were without defensive linchpin Phillip Danault, who has been battling the flu. In those four games, the Kings have been outscored at even strength 8-4.

Playing about nine minutes on ice this season, Turcotte only has two goals and six points in 30 games. Now, to be fair to Turcotte, he obviously hasn't given a fair shot at a big role on the ice, so it's hard to expect someone to be an elite player when they're playing just under 10 minutes a game on ice. 

But now the question is: will his numbers and play jump with a bigger role all of a sudden, coming in the middle of the season when the Kings are fighting for a playoff spot? Those questions can't be postponed anymore; they have to be answered, and they will when we see Turcotte playing on the third line with Quinton Byfield and Anze Kopitar. 

Alex Turcotte gave his thoughts on now moving up to the third line,

"Great opportunity for me.....I'll be ready for it. I'm confident in myself," Turcotte said. "Just going to go out there, work as hard as I can, do the best that I can, hopefully produce more and show them what I've got."

-

The Uncomfortable truth, he still might not be ready

Despite everything said, with Turcotte having solid numbers playing limited minutes, it's still unknown whether he will truly live up to playing significant minutes for a team looking to compete for the Stanley Cup. 

By moving Danault, the Kings are now also thin at center, and if Turcotte doesn't play up to his potential, that will become a problem. If that happens, the Kings will have to make another deal before the deadline to strengthen their depth at the center position for a player who can help them right away.

Now, this doesn't mean the Kings shouldn't give Turcotte a try; he should still be given this opportunity before any significant moves are made. The biggest gamble the Kings are making right now is betting that Turcotte's development can replace veteran dependability. Still, if that bet doesn't pay off quickly, they may be forced back into the market. 

A team that's looking to contend in the playoffs, especially this being Kopitar's final season in Los Angeles, they can't afford any weakness down the middle, particularly in a tough Western Conference where depth and matchups often decide playoff series. 

No more waiting

The 24-year-old has spent long enough playing in the shadows with a limited role; this is the moment every top prospect dreams of, works towards, and fears. And now, Turcotte has to decide what he's going to do with it in a big market playing for a franchise that's starving for a Stanley Cup on the biggest stage. 

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Jonathan Lekkerimäki is on a heater down in the AHL. The Vancouver Canucks forward has goals in five straight and has multi-point efforts in each of his last two outings. Overall, this year, Lekkerimäki has points in seven of his eight games, totalling 10 on the season. 

While Lekkerimäki's point totals are impressive, so is the number of shots he is getting on goal per game with the Abbotsford Canucks. Over his eight games, he has 38 shots, which averages out to 4.75 per game. Lekkerimäki has at least six shots in four games this year and recorded nine on December 14 against the Calgary Wranglers. 

One positive to note about Lekkerimäki is that his goals are not restricted to just the power play. He has only two power play goals so far this season, which shows that he can generate chances at even strength. At this point, it appears that Lekkerimäki is rounding out his game and looks more confident when the puck is on his stick than he did last year. 

Lekkerimäki is projected to play a significant role for Vancouver in the near future. The 21-year-old has a dynamic shot and has shown he can be a goal-scoring machine at the AHL level. The question now is whether Lekkerimäki can translate his success to the NHL, where he has just eight points in 32 games. 

One factor that could help Lekkerimäki once he is called up again is reuniting with Liam Öhgren. The duo played together both in Djurgårdens IF youth program and for Sweden internationally. If the two can continue to build their chemistry in the NHL, they could become a dynamic duo for the foreseeable future. 

As for Lekkerimäki's immediate future, he will most likely spend more time in the AHL. This is not a reflection of his recent play, but more due to the current construction of Vancouver's roster. If the Canucks start moving some unrestricted free agents and get picks and prospects back instead of roster players, it may open up a spot for Lekkerimäki to finish the year in the NHL. 

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The Pittsburgh Penguins will finish their two-game trip in Montreal against the Canadiens on Saturday night, hoping to snap their seven-game losing streak.

The losing streak reached seven after the Penguins got blanked by the Ottawa Senators 4-0 on Thursday night. The Penguins were lethargic all game and didn't really threaten the Senators with many prime scoring chances. They did have one goal called back for goaltender interference, but other than that, there wasn't much in the form of offensive creation.

They'll face a Canadiens team that is 18-12-4 and is coming off a 4-1 win over the Chicago Blackhawks on Thursday. The Canadiens beat the Penguins 4-2 back on Dec. 11 in Pittsburgh and will try to win the season series at home on Saturday before the two teams play again on Sunday in Pittsburgh. 

Penguins head coach Dan Muse is making some lineup changes after Thursday's 4-0 loss. Tommy Novak will be back on the top line with Sidney Crosby and Bryan Rust, while Rickard Rakell will center the second line. Anthony Mantha and Justin Brazeau will be Rakell's linemates.

The "kid" line will also be back, and Brett Kulak will be paired with Kris Letang on the second pair. Stuart Skinner is set to start in goal for the Penguins.

Sidney Crosby is also looking to make history since he's one point away from tying Mario Lemieux for the most points in the Penguins' franchise history and two away from breaking the record. 

Here are the full expected lines and pairs:

Forwards:

Novak-Crosby-Rust

Brazeau-Rakell-Mantha

Koivunen-Kindel-McGroarty

Dewar-Hayes-Acciari

Defensive pairs:

Wotherspoon-Karlsson

Kulak-Letang

Shea-Clifton

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

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ST. PAUL, Minn - The Minnesota Wild's (21-9-5) is back in action today against the Edmonton Oilers (17-12-6) for a day game.

Here are today's news and notes for the game.

Minnesota is 64-33-10 all-time against the Oilers and 33-17-3 on home ice. The Wild’s 64 wins and 31 road wins all-time against the Oilers are its most against any team and the Wild’s 33 victories at home are the second-most against any franchise (COL, 35).

Connections:

President of Hockey Operations and General Manager Bill Guerin recorded 79 goals, 82 assists, 161 points and 354 PIM in 211 games with Edmonton in parts of four seasons.

Defenseman Jared Spurgeon is from Edmonton.

Forward Tyler Pitlick was selected by Edmonton in the second round (No. 31 overall) of the 2010 NHL Draft and collected 11 goals, three assists and 14 points in 58 games across parts of three seasons (2013-15, 2016-17) with the club.

Stats:

Mats Zuccarello leads Minnesota with 28 points in 25 career contests vs. Edmonton. Newly acquired defenseman Quinn Hughes owns 27 points in 29 games against the Oilers and RW Vladimir Tarasenko leads the Wild in goals with 13. He has 23 points as well in 31 career games.

Filip Gustavsson starts for the Wild. He is 2-2-0 with a 4.41 GAA and a .880 SV% in four career starts vs. Edmonton.

Forward Connor McDavid (26 GP) is tied with Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (40 GP) with 32 points against the Wild. Leon Draisaitl leads the team in goals with 16 and also has 31 points in 27 games against the Wild.

Calvin Pickard will start for Edmonton. He is 4-4-0 with a 2.58 GAA, a .917 SV% and one shutout in eight games (seven starts) against Minnesota.

Milestones:

Gustavsson posted his third shutout of the season against the Washington Capitals for his 14th of his career. He is one shy of tying Dwayne Roloson (15) for third most shutouts in franchise history.

Joel Eriksson Ek owns an active six-game point streak (4 goals & six assists), which is tied for the third longest of his career. He was named the NHL’s Third Star of the Week for the period ending 12/14 after collecting three goals and seven points to help the team to a 4-0-0 record.

Kirill Kaprizov is currently tied for second in franchise history with 145 power-play points (70-75=145).

Per NHL Stats, Kaprizov is the only player among all 32 NHL clubs to hold the franchise record (outright or tied) for all three scoring milestones: goal streak, assist streak and point streak.

Kaprizov and Matt Boldy can each extend their goal streaks to four games. There’s been one instance in Wild history of teammates with a simultaneous four-game goal streak: Pavol Demitraand Marian Gaborik from Feb. 10-18, 2007.  

Both Boldy and Kaprizov have 20 goals this season. They are the only team in the NHL to have multiple players hit that mark.

Records:

Since the start of the 2010-11 season, Minnesota is 20-5-0 in 25 games at Edmonton, including an eight-game win streak (2/21/13-1/31/17) – the longest road win streak in team history.

Minnesota has won six of its last eight games against Edmonton at Grand Casino Arena dating back to 10/22/19.

The Wild won 17 straight games against the Oilers in Saint Paul (2/25/07-10/13/11) - the longest home win streak against an opponent in franchise history.

Minnesota is 21-9-5 which is third in the Central Division and fourth in the NHL.

Minnesota is 7-2-1 in its last ten games and 18-3-2 since Nov 1. ranking first in the NHL in wins, points (38), team GAA (1.75) and team SV% (.940) while ranking second with a plus-34 goal differential in that span.

Minnesota has won six consecutive games, the longest active streak in the NHL, the team’s second-longest of the season.

Edmonton is 17-12-6 which is third in the Pacific Division and 15th in the NHL.

Edmonton is 7-2-1 in its last ten games and 12-8-3 since Nov 1. Ranks 12th in the NHL in that span. They have a 32.8 percent power play since then which ranks second in the NHL. Minnesota's PK (87.9) ranks second in the NHL since Nov 1.

Since Dec 1, the Oilers lead the NHL in goals scored with 38. The Wild are first in fewest Goals Allowed per game in that span.

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Recent Minnesota Wild Stories

Quinn Hughes ‘Extremely Open-Minded’ About Future With Wild After First Night In MinnesotaHughes arrives in Minnesota, impressing immediately with his calm demeanor and on-ice performance, fueling excitement for his future with the Wild.

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The Florida Panthers will look to run their season-long winning streak to five games when they complete the second leg of a back-to-back set on Saturday in Sunrise.

Fresh off Friday night’s exhilarating comeback victory over the Carolina Hurricanes, Florida will welcome the St. Louis Blues for their only visit to Amerant Bank Arena this season.

The Panthers have been playing some solid hockey over the past several weeks, and the results are showing in the standings.

Entering play Saturday, Florida had risen all the way to second place in the Atlantic Division, their 19-13-2 record good for 40 points.

There are actually three teams with 40 points in the division, but Florida has more regulation wins (16) than both Montreal (11) and Boston (14), and the Carts have also played one less game than the Bruins and the same amount as the Canadiens.

That’s what happens when you win four straight games and seven of eight in an extremely tightly packed Eastern Conference.

Now they’ll try to keep the good times rolling when they face former Bruins coach Jim Montgomery and the Blues.

To this point, the season has been a struggle for St. Louis.

The Blues have yet to recover from a 3-7-2 start, currently holding a 13-15-8 mark that has them three points back of San Jose for the second Wild Card spot in the Western Conference.

St. Louis arrives in South Florida with points in two straight (1-0-1) but only two wins over their past six games overall.

In goal, the expected matchup will be Joel Hofer for the Blues and Daniil Tarasov for Florida.

Hofer has received the bulk of the work for St. Louis of late, including each of their past two wins, while on the Florida side, starter Sergei Bobrovsky was in goal for the Cats’ epic comeback on Friday so it makes sense that Tarasov would get the nod on the second night of a back-to-back.

Here are the Panthers projected lines and pairings for Saturday’s battle with the Blues:

Eetu Luostarinen – Anton Lundell – Sam Reinhart

Carter Verhaeghe – Sam Bennett – Brad Marchand

Mackie Samoskevich – Evan Rodrigues – A.J. Greer

Jesper Boqvist – Noah Gregor – Luke Kunin

Gus Forsling – Aaron Ekblad

Niko Mikkola – Seth Jones

Uvis Balinskis – Jeff Petry

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Photo caption: Dec 17, 2025; Sunrise, Florida, USA; Florida Panthers left wing Noah Gregor (18) celebrates with goaltender Daniil Tarasov (40) after the game against the Los Angeles Kings at Amerant Bank Arena. (Sam Navarro-Imagn Images)

The Philadelphia Flyers have made a roster move ahead of their Dec. 20 contest against the New York Rangers. 

The Flyers have announced that they have recalled goaltender Aleksei Kolosov from their American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Lehigh Valley Phantoms, under emergency conditions. 

The Flyers calling up Kolosov is in response to goaltender Dan Vladar being out due to an upper-body injury. The Flyers announced that Vladar is currently considered day-to-day with his injury. 

Kolosov has made two appearances for the Flyers this season, where he has a 0-1-0 record, a .929 save percentage, and a 1.62 goals-against average. This is after he posted a 5-9-1 record, a .867 save percentage, and a 3.59 goals-against average in his first 17 NHL games this past season with the Flyers. 

Down in the AHL this season with the Phantoms, Kolosov has posted a 6-8-1 record, a .900 save percentage, a 2.77 goals-against average, and one shutout in 15 games. This is after he had a 5-6-1 record, a .884 save percentage, and a 3.11 goals-against average in 12 games for the Phantoms this past season. 

Kolosov was selected by the Flyers with the 78th overall pick of the 2021 NHL Entry Draft. 

On Friday night, the Los Angeles Kings moved on from center Phillip Danault in return for a second-round pick from the Montreal Canadiens, which the Columbus Blue Jackets own.

While it seems like the team and player were heading in this direction, this move by the Kings' GM, Ken Holland, may put them in a tough spot as soon as next season.

Danault wasn't all that effective this year. In 30 games, he had just five assists to show for it, with no goals and an average of 16:19 of ice time per game.

For the remainder of this campaign, the Kings should be able to hold down the fort to some degree with Anze Kopitar, Quinton Byfield, Alex Turcotte and Samuel Helenius down the middle.

However, with Kopitar retiring at the end of the season, they'll be thin at the center position if Holland doesn't add at some point, or if the Kings grow internally.

In a perfect world, Los Angeles would love to see Byfield become a true No. 1 center and for Turcotte, the fifth overall pick of the 2019 draft, to elevate into a top-six role. But the truth is, there's no certainty in that plan.

Breaching the Surface: Alex Turcotte and the Phillip Danault DilemmaTAMPA BAY, FL – In a place that has been a house of horrors for the Los Angeles Kings, the team was able to squeeze out a 2-1 win in sixty minutes of play, no more, no less, at Amalie Arena. For anyone following closely, that was the 23rd game this season for the Kings in which the game was decided by just one goal. Scaling down, it was also the fourth consecutive game the Kings were without defensive linchpin Phillip Danault, who has been battling the flu. In those four games, the Kings have been outscored at even strength 8-4.

Furthermore, Byfield and Turcotte's production this season hasn't proved that they're both ready for a heavier workload.

In addition, the Kings are in a mode to compete for the playoffs, with an intention of getting past the first round for the first time since they won their second-ever Stanley Cup in 2014. 

Shipping Danault to Montreal for a second-round pick doesn't feel like a move for a contending team, unless there is a plan to pivot off that trade. 

Holland has the assets to play with to look for another boost on the roster. 

With Danault's $5.5-million cap hit off the books, Los Angeles has $9.3 million in salary cap space. With that, the Kings have three first-round picks and four second-round picks for the next three drafts.

While Holland has suitable assets in his pocket, it won't be very simple to acquire a notable center in the trade market. 

Report: Three Kings Scouts Take In Maple Leafs and Blackhawks, Looking For Scoring WingerThe Fourth Period has reported that the Los Angeles Kings had three scouts watching the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Chicago Blackhawks on Tuesday. Who could the Kings be looking at in terms of a scoring winger?

Danault, in the slow season he's had, and a relatively high cap hit in relation to his role, earned the Kings a second-rounder. That could be looked at as an overpay by the Canadiens.

That trade proves how middle-six centers are not easy to come by, and if they do become available, they come at a high price.

There are several questions surrounding the Kings' lineup after the changes that were made. Those questions could be answered over the next little while of action, whether the holes are effectively filled internally, or a run of poor performances that requires Holland to make an aggressive move.

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In a recent article for The Athletic, Jeremy Rutherford and Chris Johnston looked at eight St. Louis Blues who could be traded, with the Central Division club being open to making moves. One of the players discussed was forward Jake Neighbours. 

In the article, the Pittsburgh Penguins were named as a team that could have interest in Neighbours. 

If the Blues end up making Neighbours available for trade, it would make a lot of sense for the Penguins to make a push for him. At 23 years old, he would have the potential to be an excellent long-term fit on a retooling team on the Penguins. Furthermore, he would also help them immediately, which would be a good thing when noting that Pittsburgh is still in the playoff race even with their recent struggles. 

In 24 games so far this season with the Blues, Neighbours has recorded eight goals, seven assists, 15 points, and 64 hits. This is after he had 22 goals, 46 points, and 173 hits in 82 games this past season with the Blues. With numbers like these, he would give the Penguins an impactful power forward to work with in their top nine if acquired.

It will be interesting to see if the Penguins end up making a push for Neighbours, but the fit looks good on paper. 

Barkey impresses in NHL debut, but Flyers blow lead and suffer shootout loss originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

NEW YORK — Denver Barkey didn’t look out of place Saturday afternoon at Madison Square Garden.

Not at all.

Playing his first career NHL game, Barkey made a major impact, but it was spoiled by a blown lead as the Flyers stumbled to the Rangers, 5-4, in a shootout.

The Flyers were on the power play for 2:51 minutes in overtime and failed to convert.

“You’ve got to come up with a goal for the team there,” Trevor Zegras said. “Just not good enough.”

Artemi Panarin and Vincent Trocheck scored in the skills competition for New York. Zegras and Travis Konecny came up empty for the Flyers.

Rick Tocchet’s club scored two power play goals, an even strength goal and a shorthanded goal, all in the second period.

But the Flyers couldn’t nail down a 4-2 third-period lead. Mika Zibanejad tied the game for the Rangers with just 2:34 minutes left. It was a power play goal after Rasmus Ristolainen was penalized for hitting the puck over the glass.

“We’ve just got to learn how to handle pressure,” Tocchet said. “We knew at the beginning of the year it was something we were going to have to do. But we’ll take the point when we thought we should have had two.”

Zegras, Travis Sanheim, Owen Tippett and Rodrigo Abols provided the Flyers’ markers. Abols’ tally came on the penalty kill as the Flyers were nursing a one-goal lead. Sanheim made a great play to find him.

In the third period, Sanheim was left bloodied after taking a puck to the face. The 29-year-old defenseman had to exit before eventually returning.

The Flyers (17-10-7) finished their road trip 1-1-2. They couldn’t rebound from a bad 5-3 loss Thursday night to the Sabres. But they avoided dropping consecutive games in regulation, something they’ve done just once this season (Nov. 1-2).

“We’re only just past a third of the way in, so there’s still lots of hockey to be played,” general manager Danny Briere said an hour before puck drop. “We saw last game, a little bit of a bump in the road in Buffalo, didn’t have our best game, it’s going to happen, there are going to be ups and downs. We’re trying to stay even-keeled as much as possible.”

The Rangers (18-15-4) improved to just 5-10-3 at home.

“Metro Division matchup, you obviously want to get as many points as you can and not give any up,” Tippett said. “It’s one point. We’d like to have two, but there are things to work on.”

• Barkey made his NHL debut after being called up Friday from AHL affiliate Lehigh Valley.

“He won a lot of battles,” Tocchet said. “He’s a good player. I like him a lot.”

The 20-year-old’s parents and brother were in attendance after they arrived around 3 a.m. ET.

“I think there was a bunch of Toronto snow and their flight got delayed,” Barkey said, “but thankfully they’re here.”

In just a 23-second span of the second period, the winger picked up two assists as the Flyers flipped a 1-0 deficit into a 2-1 lead. Barkey had a primary helper on Sanheim’s game-tying power play goal before recording another one on Tippett’s go-ahead goal.

“A super skilled player,” Tippett said. “Brings a lot of energy.”

A little over three minutes later, Barkey drew a penalty and Zegras then padded the Flyers’ lead to 3-1 on the ensuing power play.

“I thought he was great,” Zegras said. “Obviously the offense was good, but he’s a really smart player, made a lot of plays, so I was very impressed.”

Not even three and a half minutes into the game, Barkey nearly scored his first goal. He had back-to-back looks right in front, but was denied by New York netminder Igor Shesterkin.

Barkey played on a line with Tippett and Sean Couturier. The 2023 third-rounder is just 5-foot-9 and around 170 to 175 pounds, but his hockey IQ and motor are excellent. He has opened eyes in Year 1 with the Phantoms.

“He came in, he played extremely well,” Briere said. “I think the biggest thing from the reports was his consistency. He was good night after night and has earned a look.”

Denver Barkey takes rookie lap ahead of his NHL debut at Madison Square Garden. Not a bad place to do it. pic.twitter.com/pW57G56uQE

— Jordan Hall (@JHallNBCS) December 20, 2025

• Samuel Ersson was in net for the Flyers as Dan Vladar missed the game with an upper-body injury.

The Flyers don’t believe the injury is serious. Briere even jokingly called it a “boo-boo.”

“He should be back, we hope, by Monday,” the Flyers’ GM said. “We don’t know for sure, but that’s what we’re hoping for.”

Ersson had 23 saves on 27 shots against the Rangers and wasn’t sharp in the third period.

Trocheck trickled one past him to make it 4-3. It was a shot that the 26-year-old goaltender knew he should have denied.

Panarin beat Ersson twice in regulation. He had the game-opening goal with 36 seconds left in the first period and then drew New York to within 3-2 during the second period before Abols scored at shorthanded.

Shesterkin stopped 28 of the Flyers’ 32 shots.

• The Flyers were also without key center Christian Dvorak. The 29-year-old is considered day to day with a lower-body injury.

“Just needs a few days,” Briere said. “He won’t be able to dress today, but we don’t expect him to miss, hopefully, no more than today.”

Garnet Hathaway was a healthy scratch for the first time this season.

It couldn’t have been an easy decision for Tocchet, even with the veteran winger’s drought offensively. Hathaway hasn’t recorded a point in 33 games.

“I think he’s had some tough moments, he’s trying to find his game,” Tocchet said. “But it’s not just him. He’s good when he plays with speed guys, so we’ve also got to help him, too.”

• The Flyers return home for a matchup Monday with the Canucks (7:30 p.m. ET/NBCSP).

Tocchet came to the Flyers from Vancouver, where he spent parts of the last three seasons.

A former Chicago Blackhawks forward is on the move.

The Montreal Canadiens have announced that they have acquired former Chicago Blackhawks forward Phillip Danault from the Los Angeles Kings in exchange for a 2026 second-round pick.

Danault had been one of the NHL's top trade candidates, and the Canadiens were one of the clubs that he was heavily linked to. Now, with this move, the former Blackhawks forward is set to begin his second tenure as a member of the Canadiens.

Danault will be looking to bounce back with the Canadiens, as he has had a tough start to the 2025-26 season. In 30 games so far this campaign, he has recorded zero goals and five assists. This is after he had eight goals and 43 points in 80 games this past season with the Kings. 

Danault kicked off his NHL career with the Blackhawks, as the Central Division club selected him in the first round of the 2011 NHL Entry Draft with the 26th overall pick. From there, Danault played two seasons with the Blackhawks from 2014-15 to 2015-16, where he recorded one goal and five points in 32 games.

Danault's time with the Blackhawks ended during the 2015-16 season when he was traded to the Canadiens with a 2018 second-round pick in exchange for Dale Weise and Tomas Fleischmann. He would break out and become a solid top-six two-way center with the Canadiens following the move. 

The Columbus Blue Jackets are at Honda Center to take on the Anaheim Ducks at 10 PM.   

Anaheim Ducks - 20-12-2 - 42 Points - 5-4-1 in the last 10 - 2nd in the Atlantic

Columbus Blue Jackets - 14-14-6 - 34 Points - 3-5-2 in the last 10 - 8th in the Metro  

Blue Jackets Stats

• Power Play - 18.1% - 18th in the NHL
• Penalty Kill - 72.0% - 30th in the NHL
• Goals For - 98 - 20th in the NHL
• Goals Against - 119 - 31st in the NHL

Ducks Stats

• Power Play - 17.7% - 21st in the NHL
• Penalty Kill - 76.3% - 27th in the NHL
• Goals For - 120 - 3rd in the NHL
• Goals Against - 120 - 25th in the NHL

Series History vs. The Ducks

• Columbus is 32-29-1-8 all-time, and 15-16-1-3 on the road vs. Anaheim.
• The Jackets are 2-1-2 in the last 5 games against the Ducks.
• The CBJ have gone 5-of-19 on the PP in the last 6 games.
• The Blue Jackets have killed off 46 straight Ducks man-advantages.

Who To Watch For The Ducks

• Leo Carlsson leads the Ducks 41 points.
• Troy Terry and Leo Carlsson lead the team with 24 assists each.
• Cutter Gauthier leads Anaheim with 18 goals.
• Lukáš Dostál 12-6-1 with a SV% of .905. He started and won last night against the Rangers.
• Goalie Carter Ville Husso is 5-3-1 with a SV% of .884. He started and lost against the Jackets this past Tuesday.

CBJ Player Notes vs. Ducks

• Zach Werenski has 13 points in 15 games against Anaheim
• Boone Jenner has 9 points in his last 16 games against the Ducks.
• Sean Monahan has 29 points in 36 games vs. Anaheim.

Injuries 

• Erik Gudbranson - Upper Body - Missed 26 Games - IR - No timeline for a return
• Mathieu Olivier - Upper Body - Missed 11 Games - IR- No timeline for a return - He is skating

TOTAL MAN GAMES LOST: 67

How to Watch & Listen: Tonight's game will be on FANDUEL SPORTS NETWORK. Bob Wischusen 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. 

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With only three games left before the Christmas break, the Montreal Canadiens will host the Pittsburgh Penguins at the Bell Centre on Saturday night before heading to Pennsylvania for the second part of the back-to-back on Sunday.

The big story for the weekend, aside from the fact that Kent Hughes brought back Phillip Danault, will be Sidney Crosby’s chase for the Penguins' all-time scoring lead. As things stand, the Penguins’ captain sits on point behind Mario Lemieux with 1,722 points; the “kid” needed 1,385 games to get there, while Lemieux recorded 1,723 points in just 915 games. In other words, in Saturday night’s tilt in Montreal, Crosby could tie the Montreal native Lemieux’s point total or even set a new record.

Pittsburgh was shut out in its last game against the Ottawa Senators, but Crosby has an excellent record against the Canadiens with 70 points in 53 career games. Tying or breaking Lemieux’s record in the province where Crosby played his junior hockey would be a great scenario.

Canadiens: Hughes Brings Danault Back
This Canadiens Move Is Looking Very Good Right Now
Canadiens: Montembeault Loses First Game With the Rocket

The Penguins have been struggling of late; they are 2-4-4 in their last 10 games and are currently 12th in the Eastern Conference. They are still without Evgeni Malkin, who’s on injured reserve, and Kris Letang is having an awful season, becoming the target of the Pens’ fans' ire with only 16 points in 33 games with two more years left on his contract and a full no-movement clause.

Meanwhile, the Canadiens are 5-4-1 and still struggling with consistency. Martin St-Louis has yet to confirm who the starter will be for the tilt, but both goalies should see a game, given that the Habs are playing two games in two days. Jakub Dobes has never taken on the Pens, but he had a good game on Thursday against the Chicago Blackhawks. The Czech netminder has a 12-5-2 record with a 2.91 goals-against average and a .893 save percentage this season. As for Jacob Fowler, he made his NHL debut a little over a week ago against the Pens, and he signed a 4-2 win, saving 36 of the 38 shots he faced for a .947 SV.

As for the Penguins, they recently traded Tristan Jarry to the Edmonton Oilers for Stuart Skinner. The latter has played only one game since the trade, and he allowed five goals on 22 shots against his former team. However, he has a 4-1-0 record against the Canadiens with a 2.75 GAA and a .898 save percentage. He’s 11-9-4 on the season with a 2.93 GAA and a .887 SV. As for Arturs Silovs, he has never taken on the Habs in his young career, and he has 4-5-6 record with a 3.26 GAA and a .890 SV on the season.

Up front, Brendan Gallagher is the Canadiens’ most productive player against the Pens with 16 points in 32 games, followed by Nick Suzuki, who has 12 points in 16 games and Mike Matheson with 10 points in 20 games. The defenseman missed the last two games with an upper-body injury, but he did skate on Friday while the team was off.

The Canadiens have acquired forward Phillip Danault from the Los Angeles Kings in exchange for a 2026 second-round pick.

News release ↓ #GoHabsGohttps://t.co/u7S9L9pJnb

— Canadiens Montréal (@CanadiensMTL) December 20, 2025

At the other end of the ice, Crosby is unsurprisingly the Pens most productive player against the Habs with 70 points in 53 games, as mentioned above. Erik Karlsson comes in second place with 43 points in 53 games, followed by Letang with 40 points in 48 games.

Pittsburgh has won six of the last 10 duels between the two sides, including a whooping 9-2 triumph the last time they met in Montreal. Still, the Habs have won the sole meeting this season, and the Penguins have lost their last seven games, not all in regulation, but still, they haven’t pocketed two points since December 4.

The referees will be Peter MacDougall and Frederic L’Ecuyer, with Devin Berg and Andrew Smith acting as linesmen.

The Canadiens will be celebrating Christmas at the Bell Centre tonight. The first 7,500 fans through the doors will receive a Christmas ornament exclusively designed for the event, and there will be a tailgate at La Cour Rio Tinto, where you can grab a free hot chocolate from the Tim Hortons food truck. If you’re watching the game at home, it’s scheduled for 7:00 PM, and you can catch it on TVAS, CITY, SNE, and SN-PIT.

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The Chicago Blackhawks are set to play an afternoon matinee against the Ottawa Senators on Saturday. Losers of four straight, they have fallen out of favor in the Western Conference. At 13-15-6, they sit five points behind the playoff line. 

As for Ottawa, winners of two straight, they are now 16-13-4. It's been an up-and-down season for them, as they are four points out of a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. The difference between the two conferences is evident in this matchup. 

Scouting Ottawa

The Ottawa Senators have the expectation of being a playoff team in 2025-26. They were a playoff team last year and gave the Toronto Maple Leafs all they could handle in the first round. Now, they'd like to take another step, but there is some work to do. 

Their captain, Brady Tkachuk, was injured for some time during this season, but he's back and starting to light it up. Around him is a ton of talent at every position. 

Tkachuk - Stutzle - Zetterlund

Perron - Cozens - Batherson

Amadio - Greig - Giroux

MacDermid - Halliday - Cousins

Sanderson - Zub

Kleven - Spence

Matinpalo - Jensen

Ullmark

Merilainen

Linus Ullmark started in goal for Ottawa in their last game, which means that Leevi Merilainen could get the nod in this one, but Ullmark is no stranger to making two starts in a row.

The trick for the Senators is that they play again on Sunday, so each of them is going to get a start. Ullmark is more likely to go against the team he won the Vezina Trophy with in the Boston Bruins, leaving Merilainen for the Chicago game one day prior. 

Outside of Tkachuk, Tim Stutzle is the catalyst for all offense on this team. That top line is as good as it gets in the NHL. Ottawa needs some of their depth to start showing out a little more. 

On defense, Jake Sanderson is an elite player. When he is on the ice, you can expect the Blackhawks to pay extra close attention to him. 

Projected Lines, Defense Pairs, & Goalie For Chicago

The Chicago Blackhawks are trying to change up all sorts of things in order to get back on track. That includes their line combinations. 

Burakovsky - Nazar - Bertuzzi

Mikheyev - Dickinson - Moore

Donato - Greene - Teravainen

Lafferty - Dach - Lardis

Vlasic - Crevier

Grzelcyk - Levshunov

Kaiser - Murphy

This is entirely different from the lineup that they used against the Montreal Canadiens on Thursday night. After practice on Friday, head coach Jeff Blashill wouldn't confirm that these lines would stick for the game. Warmups will be very telling in this regard. 

Ethan Del Mastro and Dominic Toninato were the extras in practice, but their status for this game against Ottawa is still unknown based on Blashill's lineup comments.

Following this game, the Blackhawks don't play until Tuesday night, so it is hard to predict what the goaltending situation will be. Arvid Soderblom has been struggling a bit lately, but this is a typical situation he encounters. If Blashill wants to change it up and use Knight with two days of rest and the holiday break upon them, that wouldn't be much of a surprise either. 

How To Watch

The game can be heard locally on AM 720 WGN in the Chicagoland area. To view this game, it can be found locally on CHSN. It can be streamed nationally on ESPN+. The puck will drop shortly after 2:00 PM CT. 

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

For action-packed issues, access to the entire magazine archive and a free issue, subscribe to The Hockey News at THN.com/free. Get the latest news and trending stories by subscribing to our newsletter here. And share your thoughts by commenting below the article on THN.com or creating your own post in our community forum.