McDavid vs. Laine, Ducks retiring Kariya number highlight week ahead

Connor McDavid going head to head with Patrik Laine, and the Anaheim Ducks retiring Paul Kariya's No. 9 are among the highlights of the week ahead in the NHL.
Here's a look at 5 things to watch:

1. McDavid vs. Laine

Connor McDavid and Patrik Laine will go head to head for the seventh time in the NHL when the Edmonton Oilers play the Winnipeg Jets at Bell MTS Place on Tuesday (8 p.m. ET; TSN3, SNOL, NHL.TV).
McDavid, the No. 1 pick in the 2015 NHL Draft, has been involved on all five Oilers goals this season (two goals, three assists). Four others in NHL history have factored on more than five consecutive team goals to begin a season: Adam Oates (seven, 1986-87 Detroit Red Wings), Aurel Joliat (six, 1929-30 Montreal Canadiens), Bill Cowley (six, 1938-39 Boston Bruins) and Andre Boudrias (six, 1973-74 Vancouver Canucks).

McDavid has eight assists and is minus-1 in eight games against the Jets, with three assists coming when Laine was on the ice.
Laine, the No. 2 pick in the 2016 NHL Draft, has three points (two goals, one assist) and is minus-7 in six games against the Oilers. The forward scored each of his goals on the power play during a 6-3 loss at Bell MTS Place on Dec. 1, 2016.
The Oilers are 3-3-0 against the Jets since Laine entered the NHL in 2016-17. Their first head-to-head game was the 2016 Tim Hortons NHL Heritage Classic at Investors Group Field in Winnipeg, a 3-0 Edmonton victory Oct. 23, 2016.

2. Shining stars

Auston Matthews and Morgan Rielly each can extend a historic scoring streak for the Toronto Maple Leafs (5-1-0) to start a season.
Matthews leads the NHL with 14 points (10 goals, four assists). He's the sixth player in NHL history to have multiple points in each of the first six games of a season. He is the 15th NHL skater and fifth since 1943-44 to score at least 10 goals through his team's first six games. He has at least one point in each of his past 16 regular-season games since Feb. 22 (17 goals, seven assists).
Rielly is second to Matthews with 13 points (three goals, 10 assists) in six games. He has the longest season-opening point streak by a defenseman in Maple Leafs history. He also is the third defenseman in NHL history with at least 13 points in his team's first six games. Harry Cameron had 15 points (nine goals, six assists) for the Toronto Arenas in 1917-18, and Paul Reinhart had 14 points (five goals, nine assists) with the Vancouver Canucks in 1989-90.
The Maple Leafs play three games this week, all at Scotiabank Arena, against the Los Angeles Kings on Monday (7:30 p.m. ET; SNO, FS-W, NHL.TV), the Pittsburgh Penguins on Thursday (7 p.m. ET; TVAS, TSN4, ATTSN-PT, NHL.TV) and the St. Louis Blues on Saturday (7 p.m. ET; NHLN, CBC, SN1, FS-MW, NHL.TV).

3. Kane is able

Evander Kane will face the Buffalo Sabres at SAP Center on Thursday (10:30 p.m. ET; NBCSCA, MSG-B, NHL.TV) for the first time since he was traded by the Sabres to the San Jose Sharks on Feb. 26. The forward has been a good fit in San Jose. He has five points (four goals, one assist) in six games this season and had 14 points (nine goals, five assists), including a four-goal game against the Calgary Flames on March 16, following the trade to help the Sharks go 11-5-1 with him in the lineup last season. Kane had five points (four goals, one assist) in nine Stanley Cup Playoff games.
Chosen by the Atlanta Thrashers with the No. 4 pick in the 1999 NHL Draft, Kane played three seasons in Buffalo, where he had 118 points (68 goals, 50 assists) in 196 games.

4. Ducks to honor Kariya

Hockey Hall of Fame forward Paul Kariya will have his No. 9 retired by the Anaheim Ducks before their game against the Sabres at Honda Center on Sunday (8 p.m. ET; FS-W, MSG-B, NHL.TV). Kariya was the Ducks' first-ever pick when he was selected No. 4 in the 1993 NHL Draft. He had 669 points (300 goals, 369 assists) in 606 games with Anaheim and helped it advance to the Stanley Cup Final in 2003.

5. Milestone watch

Eric Staal will become the seventh active NHL player to play 1,100 games when the Minnesota Wild visit the Dallas Stars on Friday (8 p.m. ET; NBCSN, NHL.TV). The 33-year-old forward also is four goals from 400 in the NHL.