Top moments of 2022 discussed by NHL.com

The memories from 2022 in the NHL are almost limitless.

The year started with a chilly 2022 NHL Winter Classic and is coming to a close with Alex Ovechkin climbing the all-time goals list.
It is impossible to chronicle each of the iconic moments from this year. Instead, we asked 10 NHL.com staffers for their favorite moments from the year that was.
Here, in chronological order, are their selections.

Jan. 1 -- Blues hit the beach

The St. Louis Blues got the year off to the perfect start, arriving to Target Field for the 2022 Winter Classic in beach attire. In case you have forgotten, the game was in Minneapolis with a game-time temperature of minus-8 Fahrenheit and a "feels like" temperature of minus-22. But that didn't stop the Blues from busting out the shorts, Hawaiian shirts, beach towels and coolers. "Everyone was talking about how cold it is, we thought it would be good to come in just ready to catch some sun and enjoy it," Blues captain Ryan O'Reilly said. "It was good. We got a good laugh." Not only did the Blues defeat the Minnesota Wild 6-4 in the first outdoor game of the season, they set the bar for awesome outdoor game arrivals. The Tampa Bay Lightning and Nashville Predators met that bar Feb. 26 when they showed up at Nissan Stadium for the 2022 Stadium Series in Nashville. The Predators dressed in jeans, black rock 'n' roll band T-shirts, custom-made Outlaws-themed leather jackets and trucker hats from designer Travis Austin. The Lightning arrived with an all-denim "Canadian tuxedos" look with jean jackets, shirts and pants. -- Bill Price, Editor-in-Chief

Feb. 4 -- Fountains of youth in Vegas

With the All-Star Game in Las Vegas, you knew things would be grandiose and the Skills Competition did not disappoint. Specifically, the NHL Fountain Face-off on the famed Bellagio Fountains and the NHL 21 in '22 card game which closed the Las Vegas strip for a few hours. Seeing these events live was quite a treat. Players like Roman Josi, Zach Werenski and Claude Giroux got to shoot pucks at nets and targets on the fountains with an incredible backdrop. Seattle Kraken forward Jordan Eberle summed it up best. "You know the hardest shot, you know the fastest skater, the shooting, but to do something unique like that is pretty cool, so it was fun to do, and I hope the fans enjoyed it," he said. Others, like Joe Pavelski and Steven Stamkos, got to show their accuracy trying to hit playing cards on The Strip. The unique events were one of the most memorable parts of the weekend, and for the players as well. "I don't think we realized how big of a deal it is, " said Pavelski, who finished first in the event. "As you're doing it and start hearing stories about the Strip's really not been closed down besides for a few movies and in the middle of the night, so it was pretty cool. " -- David Satriano, staff writer

April 28 -- Hat trick, 400th goal for Bergeron

At the time, it felt tenuous. Like it could be the farewell from Patrice Bergeron to the Boston Bruins, to the fans, to TD Garden. In the final regular-season home game of 2021-22, against the Buffalo Sabres, Bergeron entered the game three goals away from 400 in his illustrious career. He hadn't yet decided if he would return the next season and signs were not entirely pointing toward the captain re-signing with the Bruins, the only team he had played for in his 18 seasons in the NHL. With 2:20 left in the 4-0 game, then-coach Bruce Cassidy put Bergeron out for an offensive-zone face-off, figuring if the third goal didn't happen quickly, Bergeron would exit the ice. But seven seconds later, Bergeron turned and fired the puck in to complete the hat trick, earn his 400th goal and send hats flying in what some believed might be a goodbye to Boston. It wasn't, but it doesn't make the moment any less memorable. -- Amalie Benjamin, staff writer

May 3 -- Spicy pork and broccoli

Louis Domingue
was hungry. I mean, could you blame him? Midnight was approaching, and the Pittsburgh Penguins and New York Rangers still were playing Game 1 of the Eastern Conference First Round at Madison Square Garden. Domingue, the Penguins backup goalie that night behind starter Casey DeSmith, had sat on a chair right against the glass at the Zamboni doors for four periods. In between the first and second overtimes he needed food. So he ate what was supposed to be the postgame spread: Spicy pork and broccoli. He didn't think anything of it. This was DeSmith's game. But then it wasn't. DeSmith was injured in the middle of the second OT and Domingue had to go in. He did his job, made 17 saves and the Penguins pulled out a 4-3 win. After the game, I sat front row of the press conference as Domingue told the story of what he ate. "Not great," he said, deadpanned. It was hilarious and a look inside what it was like for him during that marathon Game 1. The meal became the talk of the NHL. The Penguins even had it on the menu for their media meal prior to Game 3. I had some. It was pretty good. So was Domingue. -- Dan Rosen, senior writer

May 27 -- Helm repeats history in Avalanche playoff win

Darren Helm's goal with 5.6 seconds remaining in regulation to help the Colorado Avalanche eliminate the St. Louis Blues 3-2 in Game 6 of the Western Conference Second Round at Enterprise Arena sticks out to me. The goal came 13 years to the day he did the same for the Detroit Red Wings against the Chicago Blackhawks in Game 5 of the 2009 Western Conference Final. Much of the attention last season went to Colorado's top young players, including Cale Makar, who won the Norris Trophy as the League's top defenseman and the Conn Smythe Trophy for most valuable player in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. But for me, seeing Helm, the 35-year-old forward, come through with such a big goal proved memorable. -- Tracey Myers, staff writer

June 26 -- MacKinnon, Johnson overcome with emotion after Cup win

After the Colorado Avalanche clinched the Stanley Cup with a 2-1 win against the Tampa Bay Lightning in Game 6 of the Cup Final at Amalie Arena, Nathan MacKinnon caught Erik Johnson in his arms and tackled him to the ice. Johnson hit his head, MacKinnon cut his hand, and they never felt better. They lay there together, embracing amid the discarded sticks and gloves as their teammates celebrated. Eventually, MacKinnon pulled Johnson to his feet and they embraced again. In 2016-17, they were part of a Colorado team that finished last in the NHL with 48 points. Now, five years later, they were Cup champions. "We did it!" Johnson screamed. Man, can you imagine that feeling? -- Nicholas J. Cotsonika, columnist

July 7 -- Magic at Bell Centre

Montreal finally got its opportunity to host the NHL Draft at Bell Centre after two consecutive postponements due to the coronavirus pandemic, and boy was it memorable. Canadiens coach Martin St. Louis got the party started when he took the podium and had fans hanging on every word when he spoke from the heart prior to the beginning of the draft. "Forty-seven years. It took me 47 years to finally be at my first draft. And it was worth the wait. These last two days, the energy in this city has been awesome," said St. Louis, an undrafted college free agent when he joined the League for the 1998-99 season. Montreal then made 11 picks, including the surprise selection of Slovakia-born forward Juraj Slafkovsky with the No. 1 choice. Earlier in the day, Montreal also acquired forward Kirby Dach in a trade with the Chicago Blackhawks for two 2022 NHL Draft picks. It was quite the memorable day. -- Mike G. Morreale, staff writer

Nov. 4 -- Rantanen a national hero in Tampere

Mikko Rantanen was excited to play in Finland when the Avalanche and Columbus Blue Jackets played two games in Tampere for the 2022 Global Series. But his experience exceeded even his wildest dreams. He scored three goals and added an assist in a 6-3 victory at Nokia Arena in the first game. Rantanen finished his hat trick with 1:04 remaining, shooting into an empty net. After the hats were cleared from the ice, the sold-out crowd serenaded Rantanen, who grew up less than 100 miles away, with a sing-song chanting of his name. "It was really cool, I didn't expect it," Rantanen said. "I thought the crowd was really good the whole game. I was happy there. I was surprised and it gave me chills, you know." It proved to be the signature moment in what was an unforgettable weekend in the first NHL trip to Tampere. -- Shawn P. Roarke, senior director of editorial

Nov. 11 -- An unforgettable goodbye

Borje Salming, we were told, could not really show his emotions, a side effect from his valiant battle with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). That is, until he did. And it made for one of the most memorable moments of my three decade-plus career as a sportswriter, let alone for the capacity crowd in attendance at Scotiabank Arena to see the 71-year-old honored prior to the Hall of Fame game between the Pittsburgh Penguins and Toronto Maple Leafs. With the fans standing, Salming's arm was raised to wave with help from Maple Leafs great Darryl Sittler. Flanked by Sittler and another Toronto icon, Mats Sundin, each welling up with emotion, Salming cracked what looked to be a smile and let out a screech of appreciation. It was his way of saying goodbye to us, and our way of saying goodbye to him. One night later, as the Toronto organization prepared to pay tribute to him, he was in a wheelchair when he saw me in a hallway and managed to give me a fist pump, one I'll never forget. He died 12 days later. Rest In Peace, Borje. -- Mike Zeisberger, staff writer

Nov. 12 -- Star quality of Summit Series legends

As they have done for a half-century, the five legends took the breath out of the room. Brothers Frank and Peter Mahovlich, Yvan Cournoyer, Guy Lapointe and Serge Savard, stars of Canada from the historic 1972 Summit Series, gathered at a Toronto liquor store for an autograph signing. For a few hours during Hockey Hall of Fame Weekend, they would sign autographs for star-struck fans, the vast majority of whom weren't alive when Canada played an eight-game tournament against a Soviet all-star squad. These winners of a combined 34 Stanley Cup championships happily mingled with a seemingly endless queue of fans, as they have done for 50 years. The five legends never have grown tired of telling their stories, and it was clear on this magical day that their fans never have grown weary of hearing them. -- Dave Stubbs, columnist

Dec. 1 - The emergence of Jason Robertson

I've really enjoyed watching Dallas Stars forward Jason Robertson blossom into a bona fide star, a status that crystalized for me with his hat trick in the Stars' 5-0 win against the Anaheim Ducks. His first goal, at 4:13 of the first period, a bank shot from behind the net off Ducks defenseman Urho Vaakanainen, extended his point streak to 17 games (the streak ended at 18 games) and made him the first player to reach 20 goals this season. The second came on the power play at 7:45 of the second period, a low wrist shot from the slot just past the right pad of goalie Anthony Stolarz. Hats came raining onto the American Airlines Center ice after Robertson scored his third goal, on the power play at 1:23 of the third period, in a similar fashion to the second, a pinpoint wrist shot from near the slot that beat Stolarz low to the right side, just under his blocker. -- William Douglas, staff writer

Dec. 13 -- Ovechkin scores hat trick in Chicago to reach 800

Alex Ovechkin has had a flair for the dramatic throughout his 18 NHL seasons, so it was no surprise when the Washington Capitals captain joined Gordie Howe (801) and Wayne Gretzky (894) in the 800-goal club in style during a 7-3 win against the Chicago Blackhawks at United Center. Ovechkin entered the game with 797 goals and scored 24 seconds into the first period. After Ovechkin scored a power-play goal at 8:14 of the first for goal No. 799, you knew it was only a matter of time before he'd score another to reach 800. He did that 6:34 into the third period to complete his 29th NHL hat trick. Although Ovechkin was a visiting player, hats rained down from the United Center stands and many fans chanted "Ovi! Ovi!" Ovechkin was greeted by his teammates in the postgame locker room with a beer shower to cap an emotional and unforgettable night. -- Tom Gulitti, staff writer