Welcome to the NHL On Tap. Three NHL.com writers will share what they are most looking forward to on the schedule each day. Today, their choices from the 13 games Thursday.
Bedard on Broadway
The latest generational hockey player is coming to the bright lights of New York City living up to all the hype, and then some. Connor Bedard leads the Chicago Blackhawks to Madison Square Garden for the first time to play the New York Rangers (7 p.m. ET; NBCSCH, MSG). His 33 points (15 goals, 18 assists) in 37 games leads the Blackhawks and all rookies and he can become the third 18-year-old in NHL history to lead his team in scoring at the end of a season (Sidney Crosby, 102 points in 2005-06; Steve Yzerman, 87 in 1983-84). Beyond Bedard, it's been a major struggle for the rebuilding Blackhawks (11-24-2) with a .324 points percentage better than only the San Jose Sharks (.276). Then there are the Rangers (25-10-1), second in the NHL with a .708 points percentage behind the Boston Bruins (.722). Rangers forward Artemi Panarin (51 points; 23 goals, 28 assists) is building a Hart Trophy resume with a point in 30 of his 36 games this season, behind only Colorado Avalanche center Nathan MacKinnon (31 games) and Toronto Maple Leafs forward William Nylander (32) for most in the NHL. -- Jon Lane, staff writer
Sidney Crosby bears down on Ray Bourque
Joe Thornton, down. Ray Bourque, up next. Sidney Crosby continues to make his way up the all-time NHL points leaderboard, having surpassed Thornton's 1,539 points to move into 12th place all-time. He will get a chance to gain on the next player -- No. 11 Bourque -- when the Pittsburgh Penguins visit one of Bourque's former teams, the Boston Bruins, on Thursday (7 p.m. ET; ESPN, SNO, SNE). Crosby, who has 1,540 points (571 goals, 969 assists) in 1,226 games could catch Bourque, who had 1,570 points (410 goals, 1,169 assists) in 1,612 games, later this season. The Penguins captain already moved ahead of No. 15 Paul Coffey (1,531 points) and No. 14 Mark Recchi (1,533 points) on the all-time list. It has not been an easy season for the Penguins (18-14-4), who are two points behind the second wild card into the Stanley Cup Playoffs from the Eastern Conference, with several teams ahead of them, and it won't get any easier against the NHL-leading Bruins (23-7-6) who are on a four-game winning streak coming out of the NHL holiday break. -- Amalie Benjamin, staff writer
Kraken look to extend win, point streaks
The Seattle Kraken return indoors to Climate Pledge Arena still basking in the glow of their 3-0 win against the Vegas Golden Knights before 47,313 fans at the 2024 Discover NHL Winter Classic at T-Mobile Park on Monday. The Kraken (15-14-9) will look to extend a five-game winning streak and nine-game point streak (7-0-2) when they host the Ottawa Senators (10 p.m. ET; ROOT-NW, TSN5, RDS). The Seattle surge has been spearheaded on the back end by goalie Joey Daccord, who is 6-0-2 in his last eight appearances with a 1.35 goals-against average, .956 save percentage and two shutouts. Meanwhile, the Senators (14-19-0) look to regroup after a 6-3 loss at the Vancouver Canucks on Tuesday, when Vancouver scored five goals in the first period. Ottawa is 3-4-0 since Jacques Martin took over as interim coach after D.J. Smith was fired Dec. 18 and had won three of its previous four games before Tuesday. Senators forward Brady Tkachuk has six points (two goals, four assists) in his past five games but no goals in his past three. -- William Douglas, staff writer
Thursday games
Pittsburgh Penguins at Boston Bruins (7 p.m. ET; ESPN, SNO, SNE)
The Penguins were 5-0-1 in their past six games before losing 4-3 to the Capitals on Tuesday. With a three-point night Tuesday in his 34th game with Boston, forward James van Riemsdyk became the fastest player to record his first 25 points with the Bruins since Marc Savard in 2006-07 (19 games). Jake DeBrusk has six points (two goals, four assists) in a four-game point streak for Boston.
Buffalo Sabres at Montreal Canadiens (7 p.m. ET; RDS, TSN2, MSG-B)
Sabres coach Don Granato returned to practice Tuesday after missing the previous two games with an illness and will be back behind the bench Thursday. Seth Appert, the coach of Buffalo's American Hockey League affiliate in Rochester, filled in and the Sabres (15-19-4) and won one game and lost one game in Granato's absence. The Canadiens (16-16-5) ended a three-game losing streak with a 4-3 win against the Dallas Stars on Tuesday. Montreal forward Nick Suzuki recorded his 58th multi-point game. Only six players in franchise history have had more multi-point games at age 24 or younger: Guy Lafleur (119), Stephane Richer (91), Henri Richard (84), Steve Shutt (79), Bernie Geoffrion (68) and Mario Tremblay (61).
Chicago Blackhawks at New York Rangers (7 p.m. ET; NBCSCH, MSG)
Bedard (19 points; 11 goals, eight assists in 20 games) is averaging 0.95 points per game on the road and can become the second rookie in Blackhawks history (minimum 20 games) to finish with a scoring rate of at least 1.00 as a visitor (Panarin, 1.05 in 2015-16). Rangers forward Chris Kreider's seven-game point streak (three goals, seven assists) ties his NHL career high from Jan. 27 to Feb. 17, 2023. He scored his 166th goal at Madison Square Garden in a 6-1 loss to the Carolina Hurricanes on Tuesday to pass Rod Gilbert for most in the current building's history.
Columbus Blue Jackets at Philadelphia Flyers (7 p.m. ET; BSOH, NBCSP)
The Blue Jackets (12-19-8) have lost five of six (1-2-3). Adam Fantilli, who has 23 points (11 goals, 12 assists) in 38 games, can become the second-fastest player to record 25 points with the Blue Jackets behind Zach Werenski (36 games in 2016-17). The Flyers (19-13-5) are coming off a 1-2-2 road trip, when Travis Konecny extended his road point streak to nine games (six goals, seven assists).
Colorado Avalanche at Dallas Stars (8 p.m. ET; BSSW, ALT)
The Avalanche (24-11-3) have won three in a row and are 5-0-1 in their past six games. Nathan MacKinnon has 20 goals this season, the ninth time in his NHL career that he's hit the mark. Only four players in Avalanche history have done it more: Joe Sakic (17), Milan Hejduk (11), Peter Stastny (10) and Michel Goulet (10). The Stars (22-10-4) are 7-2-1 in their past 10 games, though they lost Tuesday to the Canadiens. With Wyatt Johnston's 10th goal on Tuesday, the Stars now have seven players with at least 10 goals, the most of any team in the NHL this season.
Tampa Bay Lightning at Minnesota Wild (8 p.m. ET; BSWI, BSN, BSSUN)
The Lightning (18-16-5) are 1-3-0 in their past four games, coming off a 4-2 loss to the Winnipeg Jets on Tuesday. Nikita Kucherov, the leading scorer in the NHL with 63 points (27 goals, 36 assists) has a four-game point streak (four goals, two assists). The Wild (16-16-4) have lost three straight games. Marc-Andre Fleury is one win shy of tying Patrick Roy (551) for second all-time among goalies in NHL history. Wild forward Marcus Foligno missed a 3-1 loss to the Calgary Flames on Tuesday because of a lower-body injury.
Calgary Flames at Nashville Predators (8 p.m. ET; BSSO, SNW)
Jonathan Huberdeau ended an 18-game goal-scoring drought Tuesday, scoring his first goal since Nov. 20. He now has two points (one goal, one assist) in the past two games after he was without a point for 12 straight games. The Flames (16-16-5) have won two in a row and five of seven (5-2-0). The Predators (21-16-1) are 2-0-1 in their past three games. Nashville goalie Juuse Saros is coming off his second shutout of the season in a 3-0 win against the Blackhawks on Tuesday.
Vancouver Canucks at St. Louis Blues (8 p.m. ET; BSMW, SNP)
Elias Pettersson has seven points (four goals, three assists) in his past six games, including two goals in a 6-3 win against the Ottawa Senators on Tuesday. The Canucks (24-10-3) are 8-1-2 in their past 11 games. Canucks defenseman Quinn Hughes has a five-game point streak (one goal, six assists). The Blues (18-17-1) have not played since a 4-2 loss to the Penguins on Dec. 30. They've lost two straight following a three-game winning streak. Blues defenseman Justin Faulk remains day to day with a lower-body injury and isn't expected to play against the Canucks.
New York Islanders at Arizona Coyotes (9 p.m. ET; SCRIPPS, MSGSN)
The Islanders (17-10-10) have lost three of four (1-2-1). Islanders goalie Semyon Varlamov left in the first period Tuesday against the Avalanche with an undisclosed injury after allowing one goal on 12 shots. New York defenseman Robert Bortuzzo was placed on injured reserve Wednesday with a lower-body injury after also leaving the game early Tuesday. The Coyotes (19-15-2) had won two straight and six of seven (6-1-0) before losing 4-1 to the Florida Panthers on Tuesday.
Ottawa Senators at Seattle Kraken (10 p.m. ET; ROOT-NW, TSN5, RDS)
Defenseman Vince Dunn has six points (two goals, four assists) during a four-game point streak for the Kraken. Senators forward Vladimir Tarasenko needs two points for 600 in the NHL (278 goals, 320 assists).
Florida Panthers at Vegas Golden Knights (10 p.m. ET; SCRIPPS, BSFL, SNO, SNE, TVAS)
The Panthers (23-12-2) have won five straight games, making them and the Edmonton Oilers the only NHL teams this season with multiple winning streaks of five-plus games. During the streak, Florida center Aleksander Barkov has six goals and nine assists. The Golden Knights (22-11-5) have not played since being shut out 3-0 in the 2024 Discover NHL Winter Classic on Monday. They have lost five of six games, each in regulation.
Detroit Red Wings at Los Angeles Kings (10:30 p.m. ET; BSW, BSDET)
The Red Wings (18-16-4) have six third-period comeback wins this season, tied for the most in the NHL with the Flames, Rangers, Stars and Anaheim Ducks this season. The Kings (20-9-5) have lost three straight (0-2-1) and were shut out on Tuesday by the Toronto Maple Leafs. Kings defenseman Drew Doughty is one game shy of 1,130 in the NHL and would pass Brian Leetch for 10th all-time in games played among defensemen with one franchise.
Winnipeg Jets at San Jose Sharks (10:30 p.m. ET; NBCSCA, TSN3)
The Jets (23-9-4) have a nine-game point streak (7-0-2) and are 11-1-2 in their past 14 games. They are the third team in the NHL's expansion era (since 1967-68) to allow three or fewer goals in at least 26 consecutive games, after the Wild (35 games in 2014-15) and Blues (27 games in 2011-12). The Sharks (9-26-3) have lost nine straight games in regulation. It is their second losing streak of at least nine games, after they started the season 0-10-1, the first time they've done so since 1993-94.
