Sidney Crosby, Connor McDavid and Connor Bedard are among the several stars set to hit the ice as nearly half of Saturday’s 15 games will be carried by Sportsnet programming, including five Hockey Night in Canada contests.
* Nikita Kucherov and Scott Laughton can follow up their historic performances from Thursday when the Lightning and Flyers visit the Kraken and Wild, respectively.
* Linus Ullmark stopped all 32 shots he faced to extend his point streak to six games and put his name on a pair of short lists among Senators goaltenders.
SATURDAY’S SCHEDULE STACKED WITH SPORTSNET GAMES FROM START TO FINISH
Saturday’s 15-game slate is highlighted by five Hockey Night in Canada contests and a pair of nationally-televised matinees on Sportsnet.
* Sidney Crosby and the Penguins follow up their nine-goal night in Montreal on Thursday when they’re pitted against Brady Tkachuk and the Senators at Canadian Tire Centre. Bryan Rust (3-1—4 on Dec. 12) and Drake Batherson (3-1—4 on Dec. 11) had hat tricks within the last three days for Pittsburgh and Ottawa, respectively.
* William Nylander can reach the 20-goal mark when the Maple Leafs visit his 4 Nations Face-Off teammate Lucas Raymond and the Red Wings at Little Caesars Arena. Nylander (18-11—29 in 29 GP) can become the 16th Swedish player in NHL history to record seven 20-goal seasons, with that list topped by former Toronto captain Mats Sundin (17).
* Kyle Connor and the Jets (21-9-1, 43 points) look to maintain their hold on first place in the NHL standings when they play Patrik Laine and the Canadiens at Canada Life Centre. Nikita Chibrikov (3-1—4 in 3 GP) collected a goal in each of his first two games this season after tallying during his League debut on April 18.
* Jonathan Huberdeau and Matthew Tkachuk take on their former teams when the Flames host the Panthers at Scotiabank Saddledome. Huberdeau (3-2—5 in 3 GP) can record his second career four-game goal streak following March 24 to April 2, 2016 (5 GP), which was six years before he was swapped with Tkachuk in the NHL’s second trade exchanging 100-point scorers.
* Quinn Hughes and the Canucks can build on blanking the reigning Stanley Cup champions Thursday when they battle Brad Marchand and the Bruins. Jake DeBrusk (14-9—23 in 28 GP) leads Vancouver with 14 goals this season, including the game winner during the first contest against his former team on Nov. 26.
* Connor Bedard and the Blackhawks face fellow No. 1 pick Jack Hughes and the Devils at Prudential Center followed by Connor McDavid and the Oilers jousting Jack Eichel and the Golden Knights at Rogers Place. McDavid (10-18—28 in 22 GP; 10-8-4 record) and Eichel (10-18—28 in 22 GP; 12-7-3 record) have identical stat lines through their first 22 career head-to-head games (regular season & playoffs).
KUCHEROV, LAUGHTON SET TO FOLLOW UP SIX-POINT, FOUR-GOAL PERFORMANCES
Nikita Kucherov (1-5—6 on Dec. 12) and Scott Laughton (4-0—4 on Dec. 12) logged six points and four goals, respectively, in their last game and are back in action when Tampa Bay takes on Seattle at Climate Pledge Arena and Philadelphia faces Minnesota at Xcel Energy Center.
* Kucherov owns the franchise mark for most points in a two-game span, achieved from Nov. 4-6, 2023 (3-6—9), April 24-26, 2022 (3-6—9) and Dec. 22-27, 2018 (2-7—9). He can become the fourth player in the last 20 years with more than nine points over a stretch of two contests, following Nick Schmaltz from March 5-8, 2022 (4-7—11), Sam Gagner from Feb. 2-4, 2012 (6-5—11) and Sidney Crosby from Dec. 13-15, 2006 (2-8—10).
* Laughton can become the first player in franchise history to score five consecutive team goals. His current run of four is tied with John LeClair (2x; last: Oct. 15, 2002), Rick Tocchet (2x; last: Oct. 8-12, 1989), Tim Kerr (2x; last: Nov. 20, 1986), Mike Knuble (Feb. 2-5, 2008) and Jiri Dopita (Jan. 8, 2002).
ULLMARK BLANKS HURRICANES, EXTENDS POINT STREAK TO SIX GAMES
Shane Pinto scored two of three Ottawa goals while Linus Ullmark stopped all 32 shots he faced to backstop the Senators (14-13-2, 30 points) to victory and extend his point streak to six games (5-0-1). Ullmark, who is one of three goaltenders set to represent Sweden at the 4 Nations Face-Off in February, recorded his 10th career shutout and became the seventh Swedish netminder in NHL history to reach the benchmark.
* Ullmark, who leads all goaltenders with four wins and a .961 save percentage in December, held the opposition to one goal or fewer for his fourth straight appearance. He became just the third different netminder in Senators history to post a run of that length, following Ron Tugnutt (7 GP from Jan. 4-21, 1999 & 4 GP from Dec. 8-16, 1999) and Craig Andersen (4 GP from Jan. 19-27, 2013).
NHL PODCASTS WEEKLY ROUNDUP
* NHL Fantasy on Ice (Dec. 12): Week 10 mailbag; impact of Mackenzie Blackwood trade
* NHL Unscripted with Virk and Demers (Dec. 12): Don Granato talks NHL coaching carousel
* NHL @TheRink (Dec. 12): Mike Rupp joins; Jacob Trouba trade, Leafs respect
* La Tasse de Café LNH (Dec. 11): La marmite est bouillante chez les Rangers
* NHL Schlagschuss (Dec. 11): Episode 13 – Siegenthaler: „Wir wollen mehr!“
* NHL Fantasy on Ice (Dec. 9): Week 10 pickups; Blackhawks coaching change
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* Sam Bennett’s selection to Canada 4 Nations roster ‘a bit of validation,’ Panthers GM says
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* Friday’s edition of #NHLStats: Live Updates
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