Going into the 2025-26 season, there were a lot of expectations for the Pittsburgh Penguins. They had missed the playoffs three seasons in a row, they had a lot of youth talent pushing for the NHL roster, and - by many measures, even by the expectations of their own general manager - playoffs were probably going to be a longshot as they prioritized development.

However, as the Penguins sit second in the Metropolitan Division in mid-March, it’s hard to deny at this point that this is, simply, a good hockey team. Whether by design or by accident, Dubas set his team up to be a playoff contender, and his players have taken advantage of every opportunity to keep themselves in that conversation. 

But, unfortunately, a pretty big curveball was thrown when captain Sidney Crosby was injured while representing Team Canada at the 2026 Olympic Winter Games, and he was originally set to be out of the lineup until late March - near the end of a schedule gauntlet that includes 17 games in 31 days against 15 current playoff teams. Then, with Crosby already out, they were thrown yet another curveball when veteran forward Evgeni Malkin earned himself a five-game suspension for slashing the head of Buffalo Sabres defenseman Rasmus Dahlin.

With no Crosby and no Malkin, it would have been easy for the Penguins to fall off. To mail it in. To use the excuse of missing their two best players - plus, a few other key injuries - as reason enough for piling losses, should they happen. 

But no such thing happened. Although things haven’t been perfect, Pittsburgh has earned four out of eight possible points since Malkin exited the lineup, and they are 3-3-3 without Crosby - also earning exactly half the available points. It’s not as if the points have come easy, either. 

And there is one thing that separates this Penguins’ team from the team that missed the playoffs three seasons in a row. 

There is no quit in these Pittsburgh Penguins.

'Find A Way To Write Our Own Story': After Quiet Deadline, It's Time To See What These Penguins Are Made OfKyle Dubas and his Pittsburgh Penguins were relatively quiet at the NHL trade deadline - which speaks to the GM's belief in his current group of players.

We saw it earlier this season against the Columbus Blue Jackets, when they came back from three goals down and won it on a Crosby overtime goal. We saw it Sunday against the Boston Bruins, when they erased another 3-0 deficit to take down the Bs in dramatic fashion courtesy of Egor Chinakhov and Tommy Novak in overtime. We saw it Tuesday against the Carolina Hurricanes, when the Penguins scored twice with the goaltender pulled to even the score and force extra time, even if they eventually lost again in the shootout. 

The truth is that these Penguins have a backbone. They don't back down. They never stop fighting, tooth and nail, for every single point they can get their hands on. And that has earned praise from general manager and president of hockey operations Kyle Dubas himself, who said this team’s resilience is his favorite thing about the group. 

"I think, especially since we've come back from Christmas, it's not just been the wins, but the way that the team has gone about winning that shows that, when we're at our best, it's a very good team,” Dubas said.

"For me, the greatest thing about the team the whole year has been the way that we've weathered times that haven't been great. The way that the team responds when things don't go well... the team always finds a way to respond, even with guys out of the lineup."

Egor Chinakhov's Stock With The Penguins Continues To RiseEgor Chinakhov's play with the Pittsburgh Penguins has been outstanding.

And that fighting spirit speaks to a locker room and organizational culture that has not necessarily been as prevalent in years past. This team refuses to go out quietly, and they refuse to let any of the outside noise or what others are saying dictate how their season is going to go. There’s something special about not just a group mentality like that but also the ability to back it up. 

The fact that the Penguins are still staying afloat and haven’t moved standings-wise without their two best players in the lineup speaks volumes about this team’s resilience and mental fortitude. Unlike in years past, when things don’t go their way, they don’t crumble. They don’t fold. They simply get back up and continue to throw punches.

Players like Erik Karlsson, Chinakhov, Rickard Rakell, and Anthony Mantha have stepped up, and they’re all different players in vastly different situations. Karlsson is a future hall-of-fame defenseman who is having his best all-around season since his days as an Ottawa Senator. Chinakhov is the newest, shiniest toy who has been the Penguins’ best goal-scorer since his Penguins’ debut on Jan. 1 and has shown flashes as an elite goal-scorer with his devastating wrist shot.

4 Penguins Who Have Stepped Up Big Without Crosby, MalkinOne look at the <a href="https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/pittsburgh-penguins/">Pittsburgh Penguins</a>' schedule in the month of March was enough for a whole lot of people to question whether or not a team that was - according to outside noise - supposed to be a lottery team would be able to sustain playoff-level hockey.&nbsp;

As for Rakell, he’s one of the longer-tenured faces in the room who has long been a sniping winger for Crosby and Malkin, and he’s - all of a sudden - been asked to play the biggest role on this team as its first-line center when he hasn’t regularly played center in a decade. And Mantha is a 31-year-old winger coming off of ACL surgery who has managed to score some of the biggest goals for the Penguins and is having a career year.

The mix works. These players aren’t just fighting for the playoffs, they’re fighting for each other. And that’s evident with every comeback and every response game and every hard-earned win without their star players. It’s the mark of a team that has differentiated itself in a way that few other teams can.

And that’s why this team just feels different. The air is changing in Pittsburgh this season, and if they can follow through and play hockey into late-spring, this is a team that folks are going to talk about for a very long time.

Penguins Forward Closing In On Career High In GoalsAnthony Mantha is three goals away from a new career-high.

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Mark Stone made his return to the lineup Thursday night for the Vegas Golden Knights after missing five games with an upper-body injury that landed the team captain on injured reserve.

Stone’s absence began following a March 1 matchup against the Pittsburgh Penguins, when he absorbed a hard check from veteran defenseman Kris Letang. The hit forced Stone to leave the game and ultimately sidelined one of Vegas’ most important players for nearly two weeks.

Ironically, Stone’s return came against the very same Penguins team involved in the play that caused the injury. His presence was immediately felt, as he resumed his usual spot on the Golden Knights’ top line at right wing alongside star center Jack Eichel and power forward Ivan Barbashev.

The Golden Knights struggled to maintain momentum during Stone’s absence, posting a 1–4 record over the five games he missed. The slide in form proved costly in a tightly contested National Hockey League Pacific Division race. Vegas dropped to third place during that stretch, falling behind the division-leading Anaheim Ducks and the second-place Edmonton Oilers.

Stone’s return comes at a critical point in the season as the Golden Knights attempt to regain ground in the standings and solidify their playoff positioning.

Before the injury, the 31-year-old captain was in the midst of another highly productive campaign. In just 43 games, Stone had already recorded 21 goals and 39 assists for 60 points, continuing to demonstrate the elite two-way play and offensive creativity that have defined his career. Beyond the numbers, Stone’s leadership, defensive instincts, and puck-retrieval ability remain central to Vegas’ identity.

When healthy, Stone forms one of the league’s most dangerous top-line trios with Eichel and Barbashev. The combination of Eichel’s speed and playmaking, Barbashev’s physical presence, and Stone’s hockey IQ gives Vegas a balanced and difficult matchup for opposing teams.

With their captain back in the lineup, the Golden Knights will hope the return of their emotional leader provides a spark as they push toward the final stretch of the regular season.

The Edmonton Oilers followed up two solid performances against the Vegas Golden Knights and Colorado Avalanche with a dud. Playing the Dallas Stars on Thursday night, Edmonton allowed a goal in the first few seconds of the game, then allowed six more to lose 7-2 in a feisty affair.

Zach Hyman, "We didn't have the greatest puck play tonight. We gave them a lot of free offense." 

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When it was clear Edmonton didn't have it offensively, and they weren't about to stop the Stars from scoring, the game got physical. There were several dust-ups and altercations. The closest thing to a fight was Connor McDavid, who got into a near-scrap with Justin Hryckowia. 

When asked about McDavid standing up and throwing hands, "He's the last guy who should be doing that, to be honest," said Hyman. He added, "You saw him trying to pull our group back into the fight, Leon as well. We can do a better job as a team to push back... Obviously, when it's like that, you're frustrated.... We just got to be a lot better."

Knoblauch said McDavid was frustrated, and the Oilers' captain didn't like the slap shot taken at Draisaitl. The Oilers didn't love that McDavid felt the need to step up, and a few players made sure to back him up. Things really got interesting when Josh Samanski made a dangerous trip in a corner battle, and that got things going again.

The officials pulled players from both sides whenever the dust-ups broke out, probably saving the game from getting out of hand.  

The Oilers Were Not Ready To Play

The Oilers weren’t ready to play, a fact reflected in the 10–4 shot advantage Dallas held in the first period. Edmonton’s early plays were riddled with mistakes and led to preventable goals against. The opening 20 minutes were an embarrassment for a team that looked completely unprepared.

Some will point the finger at Tristan Jarry, and it’s understandable given how poor his numbers look. You could even argue they’re atrocious. At the same time, blaming Jarry for the loss alone and the early deficit isn’t a fair assessment of the opening frame either.

The combination of Jarry allowing goals he probably could have stopped and not being ready to go, just like his teammates, is why Dallas took control early, and any thoughts the Oilers might stage a comeback were fleeting. Edmonton leaked scoring chance after scoring chance. 

It started when Miro Heiskanen fired a point shot that ricocheted off the end boards, and Jarry couldn't find it in front before Jamie Benn, stashed it backhand for an early 1-0 lead. The second goal was a great pass by Duchene to Sam Steel. The third goal bounced off the post, then off the back of Jarry and in. 

It was a quick three goals against, and things never really got better outside of a brief moment where the Oilers made it 5-2. That was as close as things got. 

The reality is it was a combination of both. Jarry allowed goals he likely should have stopped and, like the rest of his teammates, didn’t look ready to start the game. That mix is exactly why Dallas seized control early and why any hope of an Oilers comeback quickly faded.

Was This Loss to the Stars A Minor Setback?

As far as the second of a back-to-back against St. Louis, Hyman said they played two good games, but tonight was an off one. He hinted that things would be different on Friday night. 

Jason Strudwick said on the Got Yer’ Back podcast after the game that he doesn’t think the Oilers are trying as hard as they can. “I think they’ve got their governor on,” he said. He admitted that might be an optimistic view, and that it gives what has looked like a mediocre team a lot of credit. Oilers fans are certainly hoping he’s right.

If Edmonton can rebound and beat the Blues, this loss to Dallas might look like a blip in an otherwise solid week. However, if Edmonton loses to St. Louis and fails to show up again, the two games against Vegas and Colorado might be seen as the outliers. 

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BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — Jakob Chychrun scored with 1:33 left to play, Charlie Lindgren made 29 saves, and the Washington Capitals beat Buffalo 2-1 on Thursday night to snap the Sabres’ eight-game win streak.

Chychrun’s goal came when forward Aliaksei Protas passed to the defenseman in the circle and he fired it past Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen for his 23rd goal of the year.

Ryan Leonard also scored for the Capitals, who won for the second time in the past three games.

Sam Carrick scored for the Sabres and Luukkonen made 20 saves.

Carrick’s second goal in three games gave the Sabres a 1-0 lead at 6:02 of the first period after a no-look backhand pass from Beck Malenstyn.

Leonard tied the game at 2:14 of the second period when he fired a shot past Luukkonen while on a two-on-one.

Chychrun won it for the Capitals at 18:27 of the third.

BLUES 3, HURRICANES 1

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Jimmy Snuggerud scored twice to lead St. Louis to a win over Eastern Conference-leading Carolina.

Snuggerud scored a tying goal in the second period and added a go-ahead score in third for the Blues, who were coming off an overtime loss to the New York Islanders on Tuesday.

Jordan Binnington starred for St. Louis, stopping 31 of the 32 shots he faced. Pavel Buchnevich scored his 15th of the season into an empty net in the final minute and Dylan Holloway assisted on both goals by Snuggerud, who has been on a offensive tear recently as the Blues won for the sixth time in eight games.

Snuggerud had his fourth straight multi-point game and scored in his fourth straight. The 21-year-old forward had a goal and two assists against the Islanders after recording a goal and assist in wins over Anaheim and San Jose. He has 15 goals and 19 assists in 53 games.

Mark Jankowski scored for the Hurricanes, who had their 12-game home points streak halted. Brandon Bussi made 14 saves.

SHARKS 4, BRUINS 2

BOSTON (AP) — Colin Graf scored a short-handed goal and Alex Nedeljkovic stopped 38 shots to help San Jose win and hand the Bruins their first loss in Boston since Christmas.

Tyler Toffoli assisted on Michael Misa’s goal in the first period and was credited with their second when Macklin Celebrini’s shot bounced off Jeremy Swayman’s blocker, off Toffoli and into the net. Graf made it 3-0 at 3:13 of the third period when Alexander Wennberg led him through the neutral zone for the breakaway.

William Eklund gave the Sharks a 4-0 lead with 12 minutes left, batting his own rebound out of the air and past Swayman. Fraser Minten’s goal 10 seconds later spoiled Nedeljkovic’s shutout, and David Pastrnak cut the deficit to 4-2 with Swayman pulled for an extra skater in the final minute.

Swayman stopped 24 shots for Boston, which had won 13 straight at the TD Garden since their last loss on Dec. 23.

LIGHTNING 4, RED WINGS 1

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Jake Guentzel and Gage Goncalves each scored twice, Andrei Vasilevskiy made 23 saves and Tampa Bay beat Detroit.

Tampa Bay won for just the third time in the past nine games since the Olympic break to move within two points of Buffalo for the Atlantic Division lead. Brayden Point and Nikita Kucherov each had two assists.

J.T. Compher scored for the Red Wings, and John Gibson stopped 24 shots. Detroit has just one win the past five games (1-3-1), but remained in the No. 1 wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference standings.

Tampa Bay started the second period on a carryover power play and wasted little time taking advantage of it when Guentzel took a backhand pass from Kucherov and had a lane toward the net. Guentzel got to the middle of the zone and beat Gibson at 49 seconds.

PANTHERS 2, BLUE JACKETS 1, OT

SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) — Sam Reinhart scored 2:20 into overtime to lift Florida over Columbus.

Sam Bennett also scored for the Panthers. His power-play wrist shot 1:28 into the third period sent the game to overtime. Sergei Bobrovsky made 30 saves in the win for the Panthers.

Adam Fantilli scored for the Blue Jackets, and Elvis Merzlikins had 19 saves.

The Blue Jackets dominated the first two periods, outshooting the Panthers 24-10. Florida came back strong in the third period and dominated in overtime.

Reinhart scored his team-leading 29th goal of the season on the power play. Matthew Tkachuk assisted on Reinhart’s goal, giving him three goals and four assists over his last four games.

The Panthers played without Brad Marchand, Anton Lundell and Carter Verhaeghe.

FLAMES 5, DEVILS 4

NEWARK, N.J. (AP) — John Beecher scored his first two goals for Calgary, and Mikael Backlund recorded his 600th career NHL point with a third-period goal in the Flames’ 5-4 win over New Jersey.

Former Devils Kevin Bahl and Yegor Sharangovich each also scored for Calgary. Dustin Wolf made 26 saves, and the Flames blocked 21 shots, claiming just their second win in their past eight games.

Luke Hughes had one goal and one assist, and Jack Hughes, Maxim Tsyplakov and Simon Nemec each scored for New Jersey. Jacob Markstrom made 24 saves and had an assist.

Beecher, who was a healthy scratch the past two games, had his first career short-handed goal less than one minute into the second period.

With Calgary up 2-1, he stole the puck from Jack Hughes in the neutral zone then banked his rebound in off Markstrom after the Devils goalie stopped Beecher’s initial shot.

MAPLE LEAFS 6, DUCKS 4

TORONTO (AP) — William Nylander broke a tie on a power play 36 seconds into the third period and Toronto beat Anaheim to end an eight-game losing streak.

The victory was tempered by the loss of captain Auston Matthews on a knee-on-knee hit from Ducks defenseman Radko Gudas with four minutes left in the second period. Matthews stayed down favoring his left leg before being helped to the locker room. Gudas was assessed a major penalty and game misconduct.

Matthews scored earlier to end a 12-game goal drought.

Matias Maccell had a goal and two assists, and John Tavares and Benoit-Olivier Groulx also scored. Matthew Knies had three assists to go along with an empty-net goal, and Nylander added two assists. Joseph Woll made 36 saves.

Cutter Gauthier, Ian Moore, Pavel Mintyukov and Alex Killorn scored for Pacific Division-leading Anaheim. Lukas Dostal stopped 22 shots.

STARS 7, OILERS 2

DALLAS (AP) — Jason Robertson had two goals and two assists to tie a career high in points and Jamie Benn also scored twice as surging Dallas beat Edmonton.

The Stars are 13-0-1 in their last 14 games. The franchise’s only longer point streak is a 15-game run during the 1998-99 season (12 wins, three ties).

Wyatt Johnston had a power-play goal and two assists, and Sam Steel had a goal and an assist. Matt Duchene closed the scoring for Dallas with 1:03 left.

Jake Oettinger stopped 30 shots for his 27th win, third most among NHL goaltenders.

Johnston’s goal was his NHL-best 22nd power-play score, tying Dino Ciccarelli’s franchise-record total for the 1986-87 Minnesota North Stars.

Robertson has 36 goals and Johnston 35, both among the NHL’s top 10. They scored 33 seconds apart early in the second period for a 5-0 lead.

FLYERS 3, WILD 2, SO

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — Travis Konecny scored the lone goal in a shootout to give Philadelphia a victory over Minnesota.

After Flyers goalie Dan Vladar stopped all three Wild attempts, Konecny ended it with a wrister over Jesper Wallstedt’s shoulder.

Emil Andrade and Owen Tippett scored in regulation, and Vladar made 21 saves for the Flyers. They’ve have won six of eight.

Matt Boldy and Kirill Kaprizov scored for Minnesota. Quinn Hughes had two assists, and Wallstedt made 24 saves. The Wild are 3-0-2 in their last five.

Philadelphia outshot Minnesota 10-2 in the first period and scored the first goal when Andrae took a feed from Trevor Zegras in the high slot, skated in and fired a wrister that slipped between Wallstedt’s pads with 1:24 to go in the period.

RANGERS 6, JETS 3

WINNIPEG, Manitoba (AP) — Alexis Lafreniere had a goal and an assist to lead New York to a victory over Winnipeg.

Adam Edstrom, Gabe Perreault, Tye Kartye and Adam Fox also scored, and Noah Laba added an empty-net goal for New York, which scored five goals on only 16 shots. Igor Shersterkin stopped 24 shots.

Gabriel Vilardi, Kyle Connor and Isak Rosen scored for Winnipeg. Connor Hellebuyck made 11 saves as the Jets slipped to 3-2 on their eight-game homestand.

The Rangers scored goals 4:11 apart in the third to take a 5-3 lead. Perreault gave New York the edge when he shoveled the puck past Hellebuyck at 6:57. Edstrom beat Hellebuyck from in front at 11:08.

The Rangers led 1-0, 2-1, 3-2 and 4-3. Every time Winnipeg tied the score, New York re-took the lead, taking advantage of getting players in front of the net.

WINNIPEG, Manitoba (AP) — Alexis Lafreniere had a goal and an assist to lead the New York Rangers to a 6-3 victory over the Winnipeg Jets on Thursday night.

Adam Edstrom, Gabe Perreault, Tye Kartye and Adam Fox also scored, and Noah Laba added an empty-net goal for New York, which scored five goals on only 16 shots. Igor Shersterkin stopped 24 shots.

Gabriel Vilardi, Kyle Connor and Isak Rosen scored for Winnipeg. Connor Hellebuyck made 11 saves as the Jets slipped to 3-2 on their eight-game homestand.

The Rangers scored goals 4:11 apart in the third to take a 5-3 lead. Perreault gave New York the edge when he shoveled the puck past Hellebuyck at 6:57. Edstrom beat Hellebuyck from in front at 11:08.

The Rangers led 1-0, 2-1, 3-2 and 4-3. Every time Winnipeg tied the score, New York re-took the lead, taking advantage of getting players in front of the net.

The Rangers opened the scoring 68 seconds into the game. Only nine seconds after Winnipeg’s Gabe Vilardi took a hooking penalty, Fox scored on a shot from the blue line.

Rosen tied it at 1 early in the second with his first goal as a member of the Jets, deflecting a shot from the point past Shesterkin.

Lafreniere gave New York a 2-1 lead when he deflected a point shot from Will Borgen past Hellebuyck.

Connor tied it at 2 late in the second, taking a pass from Mark Schiefele, then beating Fox and lifting the puck over Shesterkin.

New York took a 3-2 lead early in the third when Kartye deflected a pass from Matthew Robertson past Hellebuyck 1:15 into the period.

Vilardi made it 3-all about three minutes after New York had taken the lead, scoring on a backhanded shot off an Adam Lowry rebound.

Up next

Jets: Host Colorado on Saturday afternoon.

Rangers: At Minnesota on Saturday.

___

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

WINNIPEG, Manitoba — The Rangers are playing some of their best hockey at the worst time. 

Development and draft lottery odds should be the name of the Rangers’ game with just 17 contests remaining on the 2025-26 season schedule, but the meaningless matchups — like their 6-3 win over the Jets Thursday night — have seemingly done wonders for the team psyche. 

Despite a tight 60-minute affair at Canada Life Centre, the Rangers pulled away with a three-goal third period to pick up their fifth win in their last seven games and their third in a row for the first time since November. 

Gabe Perreault extended his point streak to three games with the game-winning goal. 

Adam Edstrom scored his first goal since returning from a 33-game absence due to injury to add insurance.

The Rangers haven’t felt this good about their game maybe all season long.  

For the second time in the last three games, the Rangers were the team to strike early. 

A hooking call on Jets forward Gabriel Vilardi brought a relatively hot Rangers power play out onto the ice less than a minute into the game.

Adam Fox then opened the scoring with a shot from the top of the zone, marking his first power-play goal since Dec. 31. 

The Rangers went on to finish 1-for-2 with the man-advantage on the night. 

One of the newest Jets players, Isak Rosen, responded for Winnipeg early in the second period. 

After landing in Winnipeg as part of the deal that sent Luke Schenn to the Sabres, Rosen scored his first as a Jet on Thursday to even up the score against the Rangers. 

Alexis Lafrenière continued on the heater he’s been on since Artemi Panarin was first scratched before his eventual trade to Los Angeles.

Tipping in a Will Borgen shot for the 2-1 lead, Lafrenière notched his sixth goal in the last five games, as well as his ninth in the last 10. 

The Rangers had a third one-goal lead squandered early in the third period. 

Tye Kartye redirected a feed from Matthew Robertson for his fifth goal of the season and second as a Ranger, but the advantage only lasted just over three minutes.  

Vilardi made up for the power-play goal that was scored on his team when he was in the box earlier in the game, burying a rebound past Rangers goalie Igor Shesterkin for the 3-3 score.