On Friday night, Angus Crookshank became the Belleville Senators' all-time leading goal scorer. He scored his team-leading 22nd goal of the season, helping the Senators defeat the Toronto Marlies 3-2. This goal was Crookshank's 77th career goal, moving him past Egor Sokolov as the franchise's all-time leader in goals.

"Yeah, it's cool to think about it," Crookshank told the Belleville Senators Entertainment Network after the game. "I mean, at the end of the day, I wouldn't be able to call myself a record holder without my teammates that I've played with over the past three years. So I'm very thankful for them, and yeah, hopefully, I can score a few more down the stretch here."

Despite his continued success in the American Hockey League (AHL) and strong support from his head coach, David Bell, Crookshank’s future with the Sens organization is unknown at the moment. Based on just his time served, he'd typically be on track to be an RFA this summer.

But because he checks all the right boxes, he will be a Group 6 unrestricted free agent. A player earns that status if he's 25 (check), has completed three or more professional seasons (check), has a contract expiring (check), and has played less than 80 NHL Games (check).

Crookshank appeared in 13 NHL games last season, so when he re-signed with the club, it seemed like he might have a chance at a full-time NHL spot this season. But Ottawa general manager Steve Staios completely shuffled the deck in his first summer on the job, which appears to have pushed Crookshank down several spots on the depth chart.

The Sens moved out bottom-six regulars like Mathieu Joseph, Parker Kelly, Mark Kastelic, and Dominik Kubalik. But their roles were scooped up by new Staios additions like David Perron, Noah Gregor, Nick Cousins, Michael Amadio, and Adam Gaudette. Not only that, but with a new coaching staff in Ottawa, some of Crookshank’s AHL teammates that he outplayed last season were suddenly being favoured for NHL opportunities this season – guys like Zack Ostapchuk, Cole Reinhardt, and Matthew Highmore.

But Crookshank's head coach is still in his corner.

“He’s grown his game,” Bell told TSN 1200 Radio last month. “Before, his defensive game was probably a deficiency. He kills penalties for us now. He plays center for us sometimes. Now he’s playing right wing with Reinhardt down here. So he plays all three positions. He’s on the ice at the end of the game. He’s consciously rounded out his game to be more reliable defensively and more reliable on the walls.”

Crookshank’s work ethic and versatility continue to make him a key contributor for Belleville, and a future in the show remains a strong possibility. It's just a question now of whether that NHL opportunity lies in Ottawa or somewhere else.

By Steve Warne
Site Editor at The Hockey News Ottawa

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The Pittsburgh Penguins only have 11 games left in their 2024-25 season. Although this year's club most likely won't qualify for the Stanley Cup playoffs, many players in the lineup still have milestones to play for.

Today, we look at those milestones and which Pittsburgh skater is closest to reaching a new personal best. 

Sidney Crosby

All eyes are on captain Sidney Crosby, who is only a few points shy of 80, which would establish a new NHL record for consecutive seasons with a point-per-game average. Meanwhile, at 25 goals, he's just five lamplighters short of recording his 13th 30-goal season. 

Penguins: Sidney Crosby's Chase Of Wayne Gretzky's NHL Point-Per-Game RecordPittsburgh Penguins captain Sidney Crosby is on pace to break a Wayne Gretzky record many people thought would never fall; most seasons (19) averaging a point-per-game average. 

Rickard Rakell

Through 70 games, Rickall Rakell has scored 32 goals and is two shy of matching a personal best of 34 that he collected in 2017-18. Meanwhile, at 791 career games, if he skates in nine of the final 11 contests, he'll surpass 800 to become the 44th Swedish-born player to reach the plateau.

Bryan Rust

Bryan Rust has already scored 20 goals for the sixth consecutive season, bringing him to 195 for his career. If he scores five more goals, he'll reach 200 and become the ninth player in Penguins history to score that many goals. 

Erik Karlsson

After 1,073 games, Erik Karlsson is sitting on 199 career goals. If and when the 34-year-old scores 200, he'll become only the second Swedish-born defenseman to reach the milestone behind Hall of Famer Niklas Lidstrom (264). 

Evgeni Malkin

Evgeni Malkin may not reach 20 goals for the 16th time in his career, but at 1,341 points, the future Hall of Famer can collect nine points in the final 11 games to reach 1,350. He's already the second-highest scorer from Russia, behind Alex Ovechkin (1,607).

Kris Letang

Kris Letang is already the highest-scoring defenseman in Penguins history, and after 1,151 games, he's collected 596 assists and needs only four more helpers for 600. If and when he picks up those four assists, he'll join Crosby, Mario Lemieux, Malkin, and Jaromir Jagr as the only Pittsburgh players with 600 assists.

5 Best Penguins Performances In MarchIn March, the Pittsburgh Penguins are usually entrenched in a playoff race, battling for the division's top spot or home-ice advantage. 

Philip Tomasino

In 42 games with the Penguins, Philip Tomasino has ten goals and 20 points. He's one goal shy of matching a career-high of 11, which he set in 2021-22 with the Nashville Predators. At this point, he's closer to setting a personal best in goals, but if he manages nine points in the last 11 games, Tomasino will reach 100 in his career.

Kevin Hayes

Kevin Hayes has ten goals and 20 points during his first season with the Penguins. He's tallied four power-play goals and is just two-man advantage lamplighters away from tying a career-high in the category, which he set in 2017-18 and duplicated in 2022-23. 

Noel Acciari

Noel Acciari wears his heart on his sleeve and bleeds black and gold. This year, the bottom-six center leads the Penguins with 93 blocked shots. He's on pace to match or surpass his career-high of 103, which he set as a member of the Florida Panthers in 2019-20. 

Danton Heinen

Although Danton Heinen won't duplicate his 17 goals from last season, he's at eight and has two since rejoining the Penguins in a January trade. If he can light the lamp five more times, he'll collect his 100th NHL goal.

Penguins On Collision Course With Franchise History In Salary Cap EraThe Pittsburgh Penguins have 12 games left in the 2024-25 season. Through 70 games, the team has averaged 2.90 goals a game while surrendering 3.56. Based on their totals, the Penguins are on pace for 228 goals scored and 291 against. 

Connor Timmins

In 51 games with the Toronto Maple Leafs, Connor Timmins had just eight points. Since coming to Pittsburgh at the NHL Trade Deadline, he's already collected four in six games. If he can get seven more in the final 11 games, he'll reach 50 career points.

Bokondji Imama

Recently, Bokondji Imama scored his first goal in three years and has two career goals in 29 career games. Interestingly, the 28-year-old has never recorded an assist at the NHL level and could collect his first before the end of the season.

Tommy Novak

If Tommy Novak can return from his injury and score one more goal before the end of the regular season, he'll net his 50th career goal. He had 13 goals in 52 games with the Predators before a trade and is pointless in just two games with the Penguins. 

Alex Nedeljkovic

After his recent victory over the Columbus Blue Jackets, Alex Nedeljkovic is sitting at 73 career wins and is just two more away from 75. Moreover, if he can record one more shutout, he'll reach ten in his career.

Tristan Jarry

Just like Nedeljkovic, Tristan Jarry is two victories and one shutout away from new milestones. If Jarry can win two more games, he'll reach 150, and with one more shutout, he'll get 20, becoming only the third Penguins goalie to record that many behind Marc-Andre Fleury (44) and Tom Barrasso (22). 

Can Penguins Achieve Goal Scoring Feat For Second Time In Crosby Era?Pittsburgh Penguins prospect Joona Koppanen scored his first NHL goal on Tuesday night against the New York Islanders.

The Winnipeg Jets have been one of the most impressive NHL teams in the 2024-25 regular season. Currently, they’re the Western Conference’s best team – and the second-best team in the league – with a record of 48-18-4. But there’s a nagging element to the Jets – and that’s their sub-par Stanley Cup playoff performances in recent memory. Since 2018-19,  Winnipeg has won exactly one playoff round, and they have yet to win a single second-round series game in that span.

It should be clear, then, that there are skeptics with legitimate cause for concern that the Jets will be able to change that in the upcoming playoffs. Winnipeg is probably going to get a showdown against the second and final wild-card team in Round One, but they haven’t been perfect against any of their likely first-round opponents.

For instance: the Jets are 2-1-0 against St. Louis this season, with one of their two wins coming in a shootout. Winnipeg is 1-1-0 against the Vancouver Canucks this year, 2-1-0 against the Calgary Flames and Winnipeg is 2-1-0 against Utah. Clearly, the Jets have been a mortal group, and that could spell doom for them in the opening round.

But here’s the bigger problem with Winnipeg’s playoff aspirations this spring – in the second round, they’re almost certainly going to be pitted against the mighty Dallas Stars or Colorado Avalanche. The Jets are 2-1-0 against Dallas this season, and they’re 3-1-0 against the Avalanche – although one of those wins against the Avs was a 1-0 shutout on Nov. 7, and another win against Colorado came in a 3-2 overtime win.

But forget about the Jets’ regular-season record against Central Division teams. Instead, just bear in mind the fact that both Dallas and Colorado have made major roster improvements since their early-season games against Winnipeg. If the playoff series against the Stars or Avalanche began right now, do you think the Jets would be a heavy favorite to win it? Or any kind of favorite, for that matter? No, we’re betting Winnipeg would be an underdog against Dallas or Colorado. And that’s because their performance in the post-season with their same core of talent simply hasn’t been up to snuff. 

This isn’t to say the Jets absolutely aren’t going to shake off the demons of the past and figure out a way to go on a deep playoff run. Winnipeg GM Kevin Cheveldayoff doubled down on his roster last summer, and at this year’s NHL trade deadline, he added only a bottom-six forward in Brandon Tanev and a third-pairing defenseman in Luke Schenn. And we agreed with Cheveldayoff’s minor tinkering; the Jets have been so dominant that they didn’t need drastic changes to the lineup.

Still, that nagging element is going to be there with Winnipeg until they show they’re a different group than the disappointing team that was flushed out with ease in recent years. Remember, in the past two post-seasons, the Jets couldn’t even put up an admirable fight in the first round, winning just one game against Vegas two years ago, and winning only a single game last year against Colorado. Winnipeg’s defeats were quick and painful, and we’re still unsure whether anything is going to be different in that regard this time around.

Being an excellent regular-season team has its benefits. The Jets are going to have home-ice advantage as long as they’re alive in the Western Conference playoffs. And Winnipeg’s 25–5-4 home record will be something to draw on as the Jets try to get at least as far as the Western Conference final. Nevertheless, Winnipeg could once again falter early on in this year’s playoffs. And if they do, Cheveldayoff will no longer have any reason to keep coming back with the same core year after year. And massive changes will be in order if they let down their fans yet again.

It’s the Western Conference final or bust for this Jets team. They’re either going to make people forget about their sub-par past or underscore it as they fizzle out and the biggest fears of their fan base and management become reality.

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