NHL On Tap: Penguins to host Bruins without Crosby, Malkin

There are seven games on the NHL schedule for Sunday, with four nationally televised in the United States. Here are five things to watch today, along with the complete game schedule:

Big one for Boston

The Boston Bruins need to seize an opportunity when they visit the Pittsburgh Penguins (4:30 p.m. ET; HBO MAX, truTV, TNT, SNW, TVAS). Boston (35-22-5) holds the second wild card into the Stanley Cup Playoffs from the Eastern Conference, two points ahead of the Columbus Blue Jackets. Pittsburgh (31-17-14), third in the Metropolitan Division, won’t have Sidney Crosby or Evgeni Malkin. Crosby is recovering from a lower-body injury sustained with Team Canada at the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026. Malkin is serving the second of a five-game suspension for slashing Buffalo Sabres defenseman Rasmus Dahlin on Thursday.

Fight for first

The Sabres and the Tampa Bay Lightning will play for first place in the Atlantic Division (6 p.m. ET; The Spot, MSG-B). Tampa Bay (39-18-4) and Buffalo (38-19-6) are tied with 82 points each. The Lightning added forward Corey Perry ahead of the Trade Deadline, and he scored in his debut, a 5-2 win at the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday. The Sabres also added depth up front, acquiring forwards Sam Carrick and Tanner Pearson. They have won six straight and have gone 27-5-2 since Dec. 9, the best record in the NHL in that span.

Red alert

The Detroit Red Wings added defenseman Justin Faulk and forward David Perron ahead of the Deadline, and Faulk will make his Red Wings debut at the New Jersey Devils (7 p.m. ET; ESPN). But Perron is still about two weeks away from playing as he recovers from sports hernia surgery, and Detroit won’t have captain Dylan Larkin, who sustained a lower-body injury in a 3-1 loss to the Florida Panthers on Friday. The Red Wings (35-21-7) hold the first wild card in the East and are trying to qualify for the playoffs for the first time in a decade. The Devils (32-29-2) are nine points behind the Bruins for the second wild card, but they’ve won four in a row. Jack Hughes had a hat trick in a 6-3 win against the New York Rangers on Saturday.

Slipping in the Pacific

Both the Edmonton Oilers and the Vegas Golden Knights badly need this one at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas (9:30 p.m. ET; ESPN, SNW). The Golden Knights (29-20-14) are 1-4-0 in their past five games and have fallen one point behind the Anaheim Ducks for the lead in the Pacific Division. The Oilers (30-25-8) are 2-6-0 in their past eight and sit third in the Pacific, four points behind Vegas. The Seattle Kraken, who hold the second wild card in the Western Conference, are only one point behind. The San Jose Sharks, the first team below the cut line in the West, are only two points back.

Central showdown

Two of the top teams in the NHL will meet when the Minnesota Wild visit the Colorado Avalanche (2 p.m. ET; HBO MAX, truTV, TNT, TVAS). Colorado (42-10-9) leads the NHL with 93 points; Minnesota (37-16-10) is fourth with 84. Each Central Division rival got stronger ahead of the NHL Trade Deadline on Friday. The Avalanche added centers Nazem Kadri and Nicolas Roy, after defenseman Brett Kulak last month. The Wild acquired defenseman Jeff Petry and forwards Bobby Brink, Robby Fabbri, Nick Foligno and Michael McCarron, after defenseman Quinn Hughes earlier this season.

The schedule

Minnesota Wild at Colorado Avalanche (2 p.m. ET; HBO MAX, truTV, TNT, TVAS)

Boston Bruins at Pittsburgh Penguins (4:30 p.m. ET; HBO MAX, truTV, TNT, SNW, TVAS)

Tampa Bay Lightning at Buffalo Sabres (6 p.m. ET; The Spot, MSG-B)

Chicago Blackhawks at Dallas Stars (6 p.m. ET; Victory+, CHSN)

Detroit Red Wings at New Jersey Devils (7 p.m. ET; ESPN)

St. Louis Blues at Anaheim Ducks (9 p.m. ET; FDSNMW, Victory+, KCOP-13)

Edmonton Oilers at Vegas Golden Knights (9:30 p.m. ET; ESPN, SNW)