The Philadelphia Flyers still very much need star talent, especially on defense, but, sometimes, risk outweighs reward, and trying to trade for Vancouver Canucks captain Quinn Hughes is one of those risks.

The Canucks would be wise to move on from Hughes, 26, as soon as they know for certain the superstar defenseman won't remain with the club beyond 2027, when he's expected to hit free agency and join brothers Jack and Luke on the New Jersey Devils.

Now, if the Devils wanted to get Hughes for two early pushes at a Stanley Cup before they need to sign the eldest brother to a new contract that far exceeds his current $7.875 million cap hit, it makes all the sense in the world for them to pursue a trade.

Blue chip defense prospects like Anton Silayev (2024 No. 10) and Seamus Casey (2022 No. 46) would be attractive pieces for the Canucks to chase, and the Devils, who are now trying to compete annually, still have their 2026 and 2027 first-round picks.

What would the Flyers need give up to match a package of that caliber? And would it be worth it at this stage?

Too much, and no, it wouldn't be.

The links to the Flyers have been obvious, given Hughes's strong relationship with Flyers head coach Rick Tocchet and his two brothers playing locally.

Missed Opportunity? Ex-Flyers Prospect Reaching Heights of NHL Superstars After Controversial TradeThe Flyers and Flyers fans have to be feeling pretty bad about how good Cutter Gauthier has been playing for the Ducks this season.

Even NHL insider Frank Seravalli has made that connection, but that is just about the only perspective from which this has any legs for the Flyers.

Franchise forward Matvei Michkov has had an underwhelming sophomore season - at least partially due to his significantly decreased average ice time - and other young players have regressed in lockstep.

The core of the defense has not changed at all, and the goaltending picture is improved but still curious; Sam Ersson has struggled, and, can Dan Vladar maintain this level of play past the winter?

Plus, top 2025 draft choice Porter Martone is not on the NHL roster yet and is only 19 years old.

Because Hughes cannot sign an extension with the Canucks, Flyers, Devils, or any other NHL team until July 1, 2026, the Flyers would be, at worst, parting ways with significant assets to get two seasons, including this one, out of Hughes without a new deal in place.

When accounting for lost assets, like draft picks and roster players (Tyson Foerster? Michkov? Jett Luchanko or Oliver Bonk?), the Flyers may not even have a good enough team left over to make those two seasons worthwhile.

At the time of this writing, Noah Cates and Christian Dvorak are the team's de facto top-six centers, with a combination of Owen Tippett, Travis Konecny, Trevor Zegras, and Foerster flanking them.

Michkov has been saddled with third-line minutes next to Sean Couturier and Bobby Brink, and Nikita Grebenkin has, for better or for worse, failed to displace Nick Deslauriers and Garnet Hathaway in the lineup after a promising start to his first season with the Flyers.

NHL Trade Rumors: Flyers Forward Not Out of the Woods Yet?The Philadelphia Flyers are reportedly not thrilled with another season of inconsistent scoring contributions from Owen Tippett.

These pre-existing issues, on top of trading the farm and having to outbid the Devils or other contenders for Hughes, make such an endeavor wholly unworthwhile in the big picture.

Hughes, like Michkov, was drafted seventh overall; the Flyers are best off drafting and developing their own players and adding talent in other ways.

For example, buying low on disgruntled Anaheim Ducks defender Pavel Mintyukov, who is supremely talented himself, would be a suitable alternative, especially if the Flyers can bring the Russian to or near his full potential as a player.

The Flyers can then allocate their high-value draft picks, or other prospects, to bring in proven talent if they wish.

Martone and Michkov are two top-six wingers for the future, and it's all but guaranteed Zegras and Foerster are part of that conversation, too.

Center and defense are still two questions the Flyers must address, and they need to come up with a solid plan before doing anything rash, such as trading for Quinn Hughes with no way of protecting themselves.

After winning their last two games, the Montreal Canadiens will continue their western road trip with a duel with the Vegas Golden Knights at the T-Mobile Arena on Friday afternoon. The weekday matinee stems from the fact that it’s a Thanksgiving bank holiday for our neighbours to the south.

Martin St-Louis has already shown his hand when it comes to his goaltenders, and Samuel Montembeault will be on duty against the Knights. Jakub Dobes was on duty for the last two games, but the coach has to use both netminders for the back-to-back. The Becancour native has a 1-2-2 record against Vegas with a 3.65 goals-against average and a .900 save percentage. As for Dobes, he has never taken on the Knights, and given his goaltenders’ recent form, it makes sense to keep the Czech fresh to take on the red-hot Colorado Avalanche, who have won their last 10 games, including three by shutout.

Canadiens Goalie Prospect Ranked Among Best Young Players
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Meanwhile, Bruce Cassidy hasn’t confirmed who will man the net for the host. The Knights have been without starter Adin Hill for most of the season. He has only taken part in five games and hasn’t played since October 20 because of a lower-body injury. Right now, they are making do with Akira Schmidt and Carl Lindbom, but they are expected to call up Carter Hart soon, since he’ll be eligible to play from December 1.

Schmidt has seen most of the action for the Knights this season, and he won the only game he ever played against the Habs, giving up a single goal and posting a .958 SV. Lindbom has never faced the Canadiens, and since the Knights are also playing a back-to-back, either goalie could get the nod.

Since the Knights’ inception, the Canadiens have a 6-6-2 record against the Nevada outfit, and the host has won seven of the last 10 duels while outscoring the Habs 44-34, but they haven’t been in great form of late; they are 3-2-5 in their previous 10 games and will be trying to put a halt to a three-game losing streak. As for the Tricolore, they are 3-4-3 in their last 10 games.

When he suits up this afternoon, Brendan Gallagher will skate in his 857th game with the Sainte-Flanelle, tying Tom Johnson for the 16th most games played with Montreal. The alternate captain is the Canadiens’ second most productive forward against Vegas with eight points in 11 games, second only to captain Nick Suzuki, who has 10 points in as many games. Mike Matheson rounds up the top three with seven points in 12 duels, while Cole Caufield is a point-per-game player against the host with five points in as many tilts.

Martin St-Louis has yet to confirm if he’ll make any changes to his lineup this afternoon. Still, TVA Sports’ Renaud Lavoie believes that he could see Alexandre Texier make his debut since Jared Davidson didn’t see a single second of action in the third frame against the Utah Mammoth on Wednesday night. The newcomer has three points in as many games against the Knights. We’ll also keep an eye on Adam Engstrom, who could play his second game at the expense of Arber Xhekaj, even though the rookie blueliner didn’t see much action in the final frame on Wednesday.

Speaking of newcomers, it’s a new member of the Knights who has the best record against the Canadiens. Former Toronto Maple Leafs winger Mitch Marner has 39 points in 38 games against the Habs. As for Jack Eichel, he has 24 points in as many duels, and captain Mark Stone completes the top three with 23 points in 27 games. Eichel is the seventh top-scorer in the NHL with 31 points on the season, and he has seven points in his last four games.

You can catch the game on SCRIPPS, RDS and TSN 2 at 4:00 PM ET. At the end of the match, the Canadiens will take off for Denver and are set to arrive at 12:30 AM, 12 hours or so ahead of Saturday’s game against the Avalanche, who will have taken on the Minnesota Wild on Friday.

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DENVER — Two weeks ago, coach Jared Bednar was singing a very different tune when it came to Mackenzie Blackwood. 

Blackwood got off to a rough start in Colorado’s 6-3 victory over the Buffalo Sabres on November 13. The first period saw two early goals slip past him: the first from former Avalanche defenseman Bowen Byram, who punched in a failed cover-up attempt, and the second a mix of shaky goaltending and defensive breakdowns. Buffalo’s Owen Power lobbed the puck into the zone, allowing Jordan Greenway to outskate two defenders and beat Blackwood with a clean shot.

Bednar Put Blackwood on Notice 

After the 28-year-old goaltender told reporters that he needed more minutes to get back to being his vintage self, Bednar provided a bit of tough love in the post-game press conference. 

"I hate to sound cruel, but that's a Blacky problem at this point," he stated. "It's not a problem for me; I have lots of confidence in Blacky and I know there's lots of minutes between here and the end of the season, but (Scott Wedgewood) is playing great, so I'm not gonna not play Wedge to play Blacky at this point, so those minutes come in practice and hard work he's been doing that and he'll get his games.” 

“I'm not gonna not play him because Blacky needs minutes. There's plenty of time to give him minutes. Right now, we're gonna play a rested goalie and play the goalie that gives us a really good chance." 

Blackwood told The Hockey News the following day that he agreed with Bednar’s take on the matter, as uncomfortable as it was to address publicly, and acknowledged it was up to him to fix the problem. And in the weeks since, he clearly has. 

Blackwood Earns Bednar’s Praise 

During their recent road trip, the Avalanche offense never fully found its rhythm, yet Colorado still escaped with wins over the Nashville Predators and Chicago Blackhawks. And in Nashville, it was Blackwood who carried them, delivering a 35-save shutout to secure a 3-0 victory and effectively willing the team across the finish line. Scott Wedgewood, who filled the void for Blackwood while he recovered from offseason surgery to repair a lower body injury and who currently leads all NHL goaltenders with 13 wins, followed with a shutout of his own in a 1-0 victory over the Blackhawks. 

But if there was any question about whether Blackwood’s performance in Nashville was merely a one-off, he put that notion to rest on Wednesday night. Facing his former San Jose Sharks, Blackwood delivered another shutout in a commanding 6-0 win, erasing any remaining doubt about his form. 

We asked Bednar just how impressed he has been with Blackwood since challenging him to regain his sharpness. 

“Yeah, I’m really impressed,” he stated. “The Nashville game was lights out. Tonight, good again. And part of it is just, like I’ve talked about before, knocking the rust off. We have a lot of faith in this guy. Obviously it’s why we signed him. It’s why he’s our guy.”

The Avs are an unstoppable force. With Wednesday's win over San Jose, Colorado's winning streak is up to 10 games. They're now 9-0-2 in home games this season.

Check out Jared Bednar's full press conference following a 6-0 win over the Sharks. pic.twitter.com/ZAO16RLw0T

— DNVR Avalanche (@DNVR_Avalanche) November 27, 2025

Before Blackwood went on this impressive streak, Bednar told reporters that he expected more from his netminder. At the same time, he acknowledged Blackwood’s offseason injury, his slower-than-anticipated recovery, and the fact that he missed most of training camp and the preseason in stages. That measured critique was likely intentional, aimed at keeping Blackwood from becoming complacent. Now that he’s back to full strength, Bednar took this moment to speak about his recovery in detail. 

“But (when) you don’t play since the end of last year, you have a procedure in May, and that’s a long time off the ice. It’s a long time where you’re not getting reps and going through camp. You’re gonna expect him not to be at his best right away, but since he’s been healthy, putting in a lot of extra work with (goaltending coach) Jussi (Parkkila) and (Scott Wedgewood), it was a matter of time in our opinion before he was going to get to where he wanted to be and where we wanted him to be. 

“You kind of got to play him through that a little bit, you got to get him the practice time, so it took a little bit longer than what we would have liked, but we’re fortunate the way Wedge is playing, so now we got two guys at the top of  their game. It’s great for us and I’m really happy for both of those guys for what they’re accomplishing.”  

Civil War 

At the start of the season, it appeared the Avalanche might once again be derailed by injuries, with both Blackwood and defenseman Samuel Girard sidelined. Yet after Bednar described this team as the best he had seen since the 2022 Stanley Cup run, that assessment has aged remarkably well. While Wedgewood was outstanding for the Avalanche last season, few could have predicted that he would play at such a high level that Team Canada would place him on their Olympic long list for the upcoming Milan Games. Now, with Blackwood back to form, we could see both men vying for an Olympic spot at the same time—or, as our own Michael Traikos has suggested, Jon Cooper could simply bring both. 

The best team in the NHL also happens to have the 2 best goalies in the NHL.

If you’re the Avs, who have seen Wedgewood and Blackwood combine for 3 straight shutouts, this is a great problem. If you’re Team Canada, it poses a complicated questionhttps://t.co/r08UAt8KtE

— Michael Traikos (@Michael_Traikos) November 27, 2025

If Blackwood can shine tonight, I can’t recall another time in NHL history when two goaltenders from the same country, playing on the same team, were simultaneously vying for an Olympic roster spot.

Captain Canada: Civil War, but in the friendly competition sense. #goavsgo#avs…

— Ryan O'Hara (@OHaraSports) November 26, 2025

Thankfully for the Colorado Avalanche, there is no civil war, as catchy as that might sound. The real battle is against the rest of the NHL. This team is a true juggernaut, and with Mackenzie Blackwood back at the peak of his abilities, a squad that was already formidable has become downright intimidating.

And it wasn’t just a response to the critics—Blackwood made history in the process. He is the seventh goaltender in Colorado Avalanche/Quebec Nordiques history to record consecutive shutouts, joining an elite group that includes Patrick Roy, Clint Malarchuk, David Aebischer, Pavel Francouz, Darcy Kuemper, and Justus Annunen. Until Wednesday night, only Roy and Kuemper had managed to do it twice with Colorado. With his latest performance, Blackwood became the third to achieve the feat.

The rust is gone. Case closed.

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Connor Clattenburg is probably heading back to Bakersfield soon. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins is close to returning, having practiced on Thursday and is expected to play Saturday in Seattle. When that happens, there simply won’t be room for the 20-year-old winger who spent the last week showing the Edmonton Oilers what they’ve been missing.

And that’s fine. That’s how it goes. But man, did Clattenburg make the most of his time.

Called up last Friday to replace Noah Philp, who was placed on LTIR, Clattenburg made his NHL debut Saturday night against Florida. Two games later, he’d scored his first NHL goal, racked up eight hits, dropped the gloves when needed, and given the Rogers Place crowd something to cheer about in an otherwise miserable 8-3 loss to Dallas.

Clattenburg scored his first career goal at 14:21 of the second period against the Stars, poking home a loose puck and celebrating like every kid dreams of doing. The Oilers were down 4-1 at the time. The game was already lost. But watching Clattenburg light up after burying that goal reminded everyone why these moments matter, regardless of the score.

A former 10th-round pick in the OHL Draft and captain with the Flint Firebirds, Clattenburg isn’t a prospect anyone expected to see in the NHL this quickly. He’d appeared in just 15 games for the Condors this season, scoring a goal and an assist while adding 59 penalty minutes—25 of which came from five fights. He’s not here to put up points. He’s here to finish checks, go to the net, and make the opposition think twice about taking liberties.

In two games, that’s exactly what he did.

Saturday in Sunrise, Clattenburg played with spice and was ready to square off with anyone willing. He finished checks. He got under people’s skin. He played with the kind of energy this team desperately needed, especially heading into a rematch with the Panthers for the first time since last year’s Cup Final.

Oilers Prospect Featured On Top Young Players ListThis Oilers prospect is being viewed as one of the top young players in hockey.

Against Dallas, he kept doing the simple things right. Finishing every check. Going to the net. Playing with enthusiasm. Even in limited ice time, Clattenburg made an impact that was hard to ignore.

The reality is that Clattenburg was never going to stick long-term. He doesn’t project as a high-scoring player—he brings mostly physical play. In a perfect world, the Oilers have enough healthy bodies that they don’t need to lean on a 20-year-old AHL enforcer to provide energy. But this hasn’t been a perfect world for Edmonton this season.

Nugent-Hopkins has been out since November 8th with an undisclosed injury, and his absence left a hole in the lineup that went beyond just skill. The Oilers needed someone to bring something different, and Clattenburg did exactly that.

Draisaitl Said Everything Everyone's Been ThinkingThe <a href="https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/edmonton-oilers#google_vignette">Edmonton Oilers</a> came home from a gruelling road trip, got a few days to rest and practice, and then lost 8-3 to the Dallas Stars on Tuesday night at Rogers Place.

Now Nugent-Hopkins is back, or close enough. He centered the third line at practice Thursday with Andrew Mangiapane and Clattenburg on his flanks. When he’s officially cleared to play, Clattenburg will almost certainly be on his way back to Bakersfield. The math just doesn’t work otherwise.

And that’s okay. Clattenburg got his shot. He got his first NHL game. He got his first NHL goal. He showed that he belongs in the conversation, even if it’s not quite time yet. His ascension to the NHL was quick, and there’s no reason to think he won’t be back at some point down the line.

For now, though, his value was in reminding the Oilers what physicality and enthusiasm look like. In a season where this team has spent most nights playing soft, reactive hockey, Clattenburg spent two games finishing every check and creating energy out of nothing. That’s not a small thing.

Pickard And Skinner Timing Brutal As Insider Links Oilers to Blues In Big TradeNick Kypreos has linked the Oilers to St. Louis goalie Jordan Binnington in a potential blockbuster. The timing by Skinner and Pickard on Tuesday couldn't have been worse.

He did everything he could. He showed up, played hard, scored a goal, and made himself impossible to ignore. When the Oilers needed a spark, he provided one. When they needed someone to throw hits and go to the net, he did that too.

Sometimes a player’s value isn’t measured in games played or points scored. Sometimes it’s measured in what they remind a team they’re supposed to be. Clattenburg did that in two games. That’s a pretty good run.

So when Clattenburg gets sent back down—likely in the next few days—it won’t be because he failed. It’ll be because the roster got healthy and the numbers didn’t work. That’s hockey. But the Oilers are better for having had him around, even if it was brief.

Connor Clattenburg got his moment, and he made it count. 

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