NHL Winter Classic highlights week ahead

The 2019 Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic between the Boston Bruins and Chicago Blackhawks, and the gold-medal game of the 2019 IIHF World Junior Championship are among the highlights of the week ahead.
Here's a look at 5 things to watch:

1. NHL Winter Classic

The NHL will host its 26th regular-season outdoor game when the Chicago Blackhawks and Boston Bruins face off in the 2019 Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic at Notre Dame Stadium in South Bend, Indiana, on Tuesday (1 p.m. ET; NBC, SN, TVAS).
The Blackhawks (15-20-6) will participate in their fourth Winter Classic (0-3-0). They appeared in the second Winter Classic, a 6-4 loss to the Detroit Red Wings before 40,818 at Wrigley Field in 2009, and last played in 2017, a 4-1 loss to the St. Louis Blues before 46,556 at Busch Stadium.
The Bruins (21-14-4) are 1-1-0 in the Winter Classic. They defeated the Philadelphia Flyers 2-1 in overtime before 38,112 fans at Fenway Park in 2010 and lost 5-1 to the Montreal Canadiens in front of 67,246 at Gillette Stadium in 2016.

2. Goodbye 2018

2018 will go out with a bang. A total of 13 games fill the NHL's New Year's Eve schedule, beginning with the reigning Stanley Cup champion Washington Capitals playing the 2017-18 Presidents' Trophy-winning Nashville Predators at Capital One Arena (12:30 p.m. ET; NHLN, SN, TVAS, NBCSWA, FS-TN, NHL.TV). Capitals forward Alex Ovechkin is one goal from becoming the second player in NHL history to score at least 30 goals in each of his first 14 seasons; Mike Gartner holds the record with 15.
Connor McDavid and Patrik Laine, the top two picks in the 2016 NHL Draft, go head to head when the Edmonton Oilers host the Winnipeg Jets at Rogers Place (9 p.m. ET; SNW, TSN3, NHL.TV). The games between the Jets and Oilers, and the San Jose Sharks and Calgary Flames (9 p.m. ET; SN1, SNE, SNO, SNP, NBCSCA, NHL.TV) are the last ones on the NHL calendar in 2018.
New Year's Eve 2018 is also the
30th anniversary of Mario Lemieux
becoming the only player in NHL history to score five goals in five different ways in the same game. Lemieux scored at even strength, on the power play, while shorthanded, on a penalty shot and into an empty net for the Pittsburgh Penguins in an 8-6 win against the New Jersey Devils at Civic Arena.

3. Lightning strikes

The Tampa Bay Lightning have their sights set on extending their 14-game point streak (13-0-1) beginning against the Anaheim Ducks at Honda Center on Monday (8 p.m. ET; PRIME, SUN, NHL.TV).
The Lightning (30-7-2, 62 points) are the first team to 30 wins this season; they did it in 39 games, breaking their previous record of 42 set in 2017-18 (30-9-3, 63 points). Forward Nikita Kucherov is on a 10-game point streak (21 points; six goals, 15 assists) and leads the NHL with 63 points (18 goals, 45 assists).
Tampa Bay also visits the Los Angeles Kings on Thursday and San Jose Sharks on Saturday, when nine games mark the halfway point of the 2018-19 season.

4. Going for the gold

The 2019 IIHF World Junior Championship concludes Saturday with the bronze medal game (4 p.m. ET; NHLN, TSN) and gold medal game (8 p.m. ET; NHLN, TSN) at Rogers Arena in Vancouver.

5. Milestone watch

* John Tavares, the No. 1 pick in the 2009 NHL Draft, is two goals from 300 in the NHL. The Toronto Maple Leafs play home games against the Minnesota Wild on Thursday (2 p.m. ET; SNO, FS-N, FS-WI, NHL.TV) and Vancouver Canucks on Saturday.
* Anze Kopitar is one goal from the 300 in the NHL with the Kings, who visit the Colorado Avalanche on Monday (8 p.m. ET; ALT, FS-W, NHL.TV) and the Vegas Golden Knights on Tuesday before returning home to play the Lightning on Thursday and Oilers on Saturday.
\ Justin Williams is expected to play his 1,200th NHL game when the Carolina Hurricanes face the Philadelphia Flyers at PNC Arena on Monday (6 p.m. ET; FS-CR, NBCSP, NHL.TV). The 37-year-old forward, a three-time Stanley Cup champion, is also four goals from 300.
\ John Tortorella is three wins from becoming the 19th coach with 600 in the NHL. The Columbus Blue Jackets play the Ottawa Senators at Nationwide Arena on Monday (7 p.m. ET; FS-O, RDS2, TSN5, NHL.TV), then visit the Hurricanes on Friday and the Florida Panthers on Saturday.
Tortorella, a two-time Jack Adams Award winner (2004, 2017) given to the top coach in the NHL, is 597-475-104 with 37 ties in 1,213 NHL games with the New York Rangers, Lightning, Canucks and Blue Jackets.
Montreal Canadiens coach Claude Julien (603) is 18th in all-time wins.
* Mike Smith is two shutouts from 40 in the NHL. The Calgary Flames are home against the Sharks on Monday and on the road at the Detroit Red Wings on Wednesday, the Bruins on Thursday and Flyers on Saturday.