In the words of Baseball Hall of Famer Yogi Berra, "How can you think and hit at the same time?"Carolina Hurricanes forward Seth Jarvis is apparently adopting the same mindset as the legendary catcher - famous for his "Yogi-isms" - during his recent hot streak. It's been like deja vu all over again lately for Jarvis, who has scored in four straight games."I haven't been really thinking, so that's been good," Jarvis said Thursday, according to The Hockey News' Ryan Henkel. "I've just had a clear mind. I just go out there wanting to have fun, and usually when I want to have fun, I play my best hockey. Everything just kind of flows well. I just keep a pretty spaced-out head. Nothing going on in there. Just go on the ice, have fun, and let the rest take care of itself."Jarvis has formed good chemistry with key deadline acquisition Jake Guentzel on the top line with Sebastian Aho, as the trio has totaled 12 points in the two games since being put together. You can observe a lot just by watching, so it's possible Jarvis' teammates will take notice of his new mentality.The future ain't what it used to be, but at 22 years old, Jarvis' appears to be bright, as he's already shattered his previous career highs with 25 goals and 30 assists in 69 games this season.Copyright (C) 2024 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Find year-round coverage of betting news and insights for all sports by visiting our Betting section and subscribing to push notifications.Wednesday wasn't kind to our unders. Charlie Lindgren allowed seven goals on 29 shots, while the Kings scored six times on 27 shots against the Wild, sinking both bets with shockingly bad goaltending.We'll look to get back on track with a pair of plays for Thursday night.Islanders (-110) @ Red Wings (-110)There's limping to the finish line, and then there's whatever the Red Wings are doing. Once firmly holding onto a playoff spot, the Red Wings now seem as likely to miss the dance as make it.They've won only two of the past 10 games. Those wins came against the Sabres and the Blue Jackets, with the Wings needing to tie the game in the dying seconds to avoid disaster against the latter.They're not getting results, and their underlying process suggests that's no coincidence. Detroit sits 29th in expected goal suppression over the last 10 games and dead last in limiting shots.A lot is being put on the plates of Alex Lyon and James Reimer, and that's clearly not a recipe for success.The Islanders have cooled off of late, dropping five consecutive games. But they're still 5-5 over the last 10, and the numbers under the hood aren't half bad.They've controlled better than 53% of the expected goals in that span, good for 10th in the NHL.New York has done a good job limiting chances in that span, conceding the fourth-fewest. The goaltending hasn't been as good as it needs to be, which generally isn't a concern with Ilya Sorokin.I think the Islanders will get the better chances in this game. With Dylan Larkin still sidelined for the Red Wings, the Isles are probably better equipped to capitalize, with 29-goal-scorers Bo Horvat and Brock Nelson leading the charge.Look for the Islanders to grind out a road win against direct competition for a playoff spot.Bet: Islanders (-110)Flyers (+200) @ Hurricanes (-240)The Hurricanes are starting to look like a powerhouse. They've played air-tight defensive hockey this month as they continue to gear up for what should be a lengthy playoff run.They've won seven of their past eight games, conceding two goals or fewer in all but one of them. Taking things a step further, the Hurricanes gave up only one goal in the game they lost.All told, they've allowed only 13 goals over the past eight. That's 1.62 per game, and four came on one night against the Maple Leafs.I expect another stingy defensive effort from them on Thursday night. The Flyers are struggling to generate quality chances, sitting 25th in high-danger opportunities over the last 10.They don't have a lot of dynamic offensive talent on their roster and are generally a team that needs plenty of volume to score consistently. That's problematic when going up against the Hurricanes.The Hurricanes are so good at sticking to their structure and making teams work themselves into the ground in order to generate anything of value. And, again, the Flyers don't have the talent to be as opportunistic as they'll probably need to be.I don't see the Flyers scoring more than a couple in this game, meaning the Hurricanes would have to put up a big number to send it over the number.Bet: Under 6.5 (-130)Todd Cordell is a sports betting writer at theScore. You can follow him on X at @ToddCordell.Copyright (C) 2024 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Find year-round coverage of betting news and insights for all sports by visiting our Betting section and subscribing to push notifications.We had a nice rebound night with our player props on Wednesday, cashing two of three plays. Wyatt Johnston failing to record a point on any of the Stars' five goals was our only miss.We'll set our sights on a perfect card with three more props for Thursday's massive NHL slate.Shane Pinto: Over 2.5 shotsPinto has been a consistent shot-generator since returning from suspension, especially on home ice.The Senators center recorded three shots or more in eight of 11 games played in Ottawa. Pinto fell only one shot shy in two of the three failures, giving himself a fighting chance almost every time.The shots should be there Thursday night against the Blues, who have given up a lot of volume all season and don't seem to be improving. Only five teams conceded more shots per game over the last 10 games, and each of those clubs may miss the playoffs.The Senators should comfortably surpass 30 shots versus the Blues. Given Pinto's usage as the top-line center, he figures to get his fair share.Odds: -122 (playable to -135)Timo Meier: Over 3.5 shotsI don't generally like to target shooters playing against the Jets, but this is a good time to make an exception. Winnipeg has given up a surprising amount of shots to wingers lately. Only the Blues have conceded more on a per-game basis over the last 10.Meier is firing on all cylinders right now, playing on the Devils' top line with Nico Hischier and Jesper Bratt and skating on the No. 1 power-play unit.At five-on-five, Meier averages well over 23 shot attempts per 60 minutes playing with Hischier and/or Bratt, which is top-tier production. He leads the Devils in shot attempts on the man advantage since being promoted to the top group following Tyler Toffoli's departure.Meier has gone over this total in seven of the past 10 games. I don't see him slowing down in this sneaky good matchup.Odds: -102 (playable to -125)Evander Kane: Over 2.5 shotsKane might be my favorite play on the board. He was humming along with a hit rate well over 60% before the trade deadline. Then the Oilers acquired Adam Henrique and opted to use him at center, pushing Kane down to the third line to try to balance things out.It didn't work; Kane's shot volume and production rates dipped in a depth role without Leon Draisaitl or Connor McDavid by his side. Realizing as much, the Oilers have promoted Kane back into the top six next to the best player in the world.Kane averages well over 22 shot attempts per 60 minutes with McDavid also on the ice at five-on-five. That's the kind of rate you'd look for from someone with a total of 3.5 or 4.5 shots, not 2.5.Kane is a trigger-happy shooter, is most efficient at home, and is now centered by a pass-first player who's got 82 assists through 64 games. This is a great opportunity for Kane to get back on track.Todd Cordell is a sports betting writer at theScore. You can follow him on X at @ToddCordell.Copyright (C) 2024 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Predators general manager Barry Trotz singled out his captain as Nashville's MVP amid the team's surprising season."I don't think there is a better defenseman on the planet - and that's this year, right now - than Roman Josi," Trotz said, according to NHL.com's Nicholas J. Cotsonika. "That's saying a lot because there's some terrific defensemen. But for our team, he's just carried us all year. It shows in his stats night in and night out."The 33-year-old ranks second on the Predators with 70 points in 69 games this season, while his 18 goals are the most among all NHL blue-liners. He also places in the top three in his position group in wins above replacement (2.9) and goals above replacement (18), per Evolving-Hockey.Josi has been fueling Nashville's recent red-hot run, too. The Predators last lost in regulation on Feb. 15 and have gone 13-0-2 over their last 15 games. The veteran has chipped in with 21 points over that span and is a plus-20 while averaging a team-high 23 minutes of ice time per contest.The Preds failed to make the playoffs last season, ending an eight-year run, but they seem set to start a new streak this campaign. They currently have a strong grip on the first wild-card spot in the Western Conference with a 40-25-4 record.Trotz conceded that he didn't know what to expect out of Nashville during his first season as general manager."I thought we could have a rough season," he said. "It could be not a real strong team. Or, we could be sneaky good."The executive also probably didn't foresee canceling a trip to see a U2 concert at The Sphere in Las Vegas to punish the Predators for their poor play in mid-February, but they've been lights out ever since.Nashville's turnaround forced Trotz to change his strategy heading into trade season."The trade deadline was very difficult for me," he said. "I had to balance a couple things. Going into it, probably a month before, I was making all the calls to all the general managers here, saying, 'Hey, I'm probably going to be a seller. It doesn't look like we're going to make it, so here's some of my options, and if you're interested in any of these ...'"And then as we got to the trade deadline, I said to the players, 'Show me, and I'll add.' And then they did."If the Predators beat the Florida Panthers on Thursday, they'll set a record for the longest point streak (16 games) in franchise history. Puck drops at 7:30 p.m. ET.Copyright (C) 2024 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Ottawa Senators general manager Steve Staios knows his team fell short of the fan base's hopes for improvement this season, and he isn't rushing to promise anyone a playoff berth next spring, either."I think the expectations were something that were a bit debilitating for us," he said in an interview with TSN's Gino Reda. "We have a young team, a very good, talented group of players. I think that we'll see how the offseason goes and what we can add, but there has to be growth from within as well."Ottawa was once again an active player this past offseason, adding Joonas Korpisalo in an attempt to stabilize the crease, and looping in Vladimir Tarasenko to mitigate the loss of Alex DeBrincat. Couple that with another year of experience for the squad's young core, and the Senators seemed primed to push for a playoff spot.Instead, Ottawa has plummeted to last place in the Atlantic Division and is projected to finish the campaign with around 75 points - 11 fewer than its total last season.Part of the issue has been goaltending and defense. The Senators have surrendered 3.57 goals against per game this season, good for the fifth-highest clip in the league. Korpisalo, meanwhile, ranks dead last among all netminders in goals saved above expected (minus-18.33) and second-last in goals saved above average (minus-18.84) at all strengths, per Evolving-Hockey.Ottawa was reportedly open for business at the trade deadline - barring a handful of untouchables - but only ended up dealing Tarasenko. The Senators appeared to be interested in more than just selling, though, as they also expressed interest in acquiring coveted veteran defenseman Chris Tanev.For Staios, it's the conversations he had leading up to March 8 that'll set the tone for the summer."It's important, the work that we did through the deadline, to establish what we were looking for, what the market would bear," he said. "We have an idea and a game plan and a process going into the offseason, but I think a lot of those discussions over the deadline were important."Staois will also need to find a new head coach for the Senators, as the 71-year-old Jacques Martin isn't interested in staying behind the bench on a full-time basis. Martin replaced the fired D.J. Smith in December."The process has started. We have a list of people," the executive said. "We want to be patient with our approach because things do change into the offseason."Copyright (C) 2024 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

The NHL continues to downplay the link between repeated blows to the head and chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE)."No," NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly said Wednesday when asked if the league has changed its views in light of medical studies showing a correlation, according to Daily Faceoff's Frank Seravalli. "I think the science is still lacking."Daly's comments come following the death of former NHL enforcer Chris Simon on Tuesday. Simon, who was just 52, accrued 1,824 penalty minutes over his 782-game career. His family confirmed he died by suicide."The family strongly believes and witnessed firsthand that Chris struggled immensely from CTE which unfortunately resulted in his death," Simon's former agent, Paul Theofanous, said in a statement on behalf of the family, per ESPN.Commissioner Gary Bettman addressed Simon's death Wednesday."Chris' passing is tragic, it's sad. We extend our deepest condolences to his family and friends. And, you know, on all of these matters, we wait to see what the medical experts tell us," Bettman said. "Having said that, I think it's well documented with all of the progress that we've made over the last couple decades to make the game as safe as possible."Copyright (C) 2024 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

New York Rangers enforcer Matt Rempe pledged to dial back on reckless hits after serving the first suspension of his young career.The 21-year-old was handed a four-game ban earlier this month for elbowing New Jersey Devils blue-liner Jonas Siegenthaler in the head. Rempe has also drawn criticism for hits on Nathan Bastian and Ilya Lyubushkin during his short NHL tenure but is adamant the latest incident was a lesson learned."More control of my body, just stuff like that. If a guy is pulling out of a hit, just got to be careful," he told Mollie Walker of the New York Post. "It was an accident. I thought I was going to hit the wall ... Never want to see a guy get hurt or anything like that. I'm still going to play super hard, play the same way. I'm just going to make sure my hits are clean, like, keep everything compact, keep everything tight. It will be good. Just live and learn."He added: "Obviously, watching back, I did. I made a mistake ... I thought I hit the wall, but I ended up hitting him. That was unfortunate. I'm sorry about that."Rempe was called out by Siegenthaler's teammate, Kurtis MacDermid, for not fighting after the hit, but the New York rookie said he had instructions not to drop the gloves. Rempe's already recorded four fights since joining the Rangers for his first game on Feb. 18.Head coach Peter Laviolette said he hopes Rempe remains physical - within the rules - when he draws back into the lineup."He likes to hit," Laviolette said. "He's a good hitter. So he's got to make sure he's doing things the right way. That one got away. Every other hit has been pretty good. They've been heavy and physical, and he brings that presence to the team."The Rangers drafted Rempe 165th overall in 2020. He's chipped in two points and 30 hits in 10 games so far as an NHLer.Copyright (C) 2024 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

The San Jose Sharks are signing forward Akim Aliu to an AHL tryout deal for the remainder of the season, general manager Mike Grier confirmed Wednesday, according to Daily Faceoff's Frank Seravalli."We wanted to give him an opportunity to see what he can do," Grier said.The Sharks expect him to join their AHL affiliate, the San Jose Barracuda, within the next day or two, per The Mercury News' Curtis Pashelka.Aliu hasn't played professional hockey since 2019-2020 in the Czech Extraliga. He suited up for just six games for HC Litvinov, totaling three points.The 34-year-old's last taste of AHL action came in 2016-17 when he logged three goals and five points in 13 games for the Cleveland Monsters.The Chicago Blackhawks selected Aliu in the second round of the 2007 draft, but he never played in an NHL game for the organization. He appeared in seven games with the Calgary Flames split between the 2011-12 and 2012-13 seasons, chipping in with two goals and one helper.Aliu is well-known for his activism off the ice. In June 2020, he spearheaded the formation of the Hockey Diversity Alliance alongside six other players with the aim of fighting racism within the sport.In total, the 34-year-old has amassed 76 points (46 goals, 30 assists) and 423 penalty minutes in 245 career AHL games. He's also appeared in eight Calder Cup playoff games.Copyright (C) 2024 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Don't start filling up the moving boxes just yet.NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly said Wednesday that the league "probably" wouldn't have enough time to relocate the Arizona Coyotes for the 2024-25 campaign if owner Alex Meruelo doesn't win June's land auction, per NHL.com's Nicholas J. Cotsonika."At this point, there's no call to make yet on Arizona," he said. "We're satisfied with ... where we are. ... If they win the auction, that's the first step in the process. They've got their land. They have the ability to build on it. I think the actual auction itself will provide that certainty, I think."He added: "I'm focused on, currently, (that) they're going to play hockey games in Arizona next year."The Coyotes signed a three-year agreement with Arizona State University in February 2022 to play their home games at Mullett Arena.They've since been looking for an alternative to the 5,000-seat NCAA facility that's served as the NHL club's home for the past two seasons. The organization's hopes of building an arena in Tempe were dashed last May after residents voted against building a $2.1-billion entertainment district in the area.Now, the Coyotes are eyeing a tract of land in North Phoenix. The Arizona State Land Department Board of Appeals approved the $68.5-million appraisal of the 95-acre plot last Thursday, clearing the way for the organization to bid on it.The Coyotes' future in Arizona has long been in flux, especially since their lease agreement with Gila River Arena expired at the end of 2021-22. Despite the years of uncertainty, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman once again threw his support behind the Grand Canyon State."Well, we would have preferred to be in a new arena by now, but there are certain things that couldn't be controlled. ... So, we deal with what we can deal with. Having said that, we believe Arizona, particularly the greater Phoenix area, is a good NHL market."It's a place we want to be."Neither Bettman nor Daly gave a deadline on when a possible relocation decision would come down, but Daly conceded that "it's getting late," per TSN's Chris Johnston.NHLPA executive director Marty Walsh said in February that he was "extremely disappointed" in the Coyotes' failed pursuits to find a new home, as well as the organization's failure to communicate with the union.Copyright (C) 2024 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Find year-round coverage of betting news and insights for all sports by visiting our Betting section and subscribing to push notifications.We split our best bets on Tuesday night. The Avalanche took care of business within 60 minutes, but the Maple Leafs were unable to overcome a slow start against the Flyers.Let's take a look at the best ways to attack Wednesday's card as we set our sights on a mini-sweep.Maple Leafs (-135) @ Capitals (+115)Playing the under in a game featuring the best goal-scorer in the league (Auston Matthews) and arguably the best goal-scorer of all time (Alex Ovechkin) isn't appealing on the surface, but I see value in doing so.The Maple Leafs continue to be without one of their best weapons in Mitch Marner and are in the latter half of a back-to-back.They haven't fared well offensively in those situations over the past few months. In the second game of back-to-backs since the holiday break, they've scored one, two, two, and seven goals while consistently generating fewer shots than the game before.Outside of the Vegas game, where the Golden Knights couldn't get a save and were playing without a handful of key players, we haven't seen a ton of life in Toronto's offense.I don't see that changing against a red-hot Charlie Lindgren. He's conceded only eight goals over his past six starts, five of which featured six total goals or fewer.He's quietly played well all season, and his game has clearly hit another level of late.On the flip side of things, the Capitals rank 29th in goals per game and don't have much in the way of high-end talent.They win a lot of low-scoring affairs, and I expect them to be more than comfortable grinding it out against a team that should show some fatigue as the game wears on.Bet: Under 6.5 (-125)Wild (+130) @ Kings (-155)If you hate goals, you've come to the right place, because this is another game where there's value on the under.The Kings are under machines. They've played to the under in five of the last six games, with Tuesday's win over the Blackhawks serving as the lone exception. Los Angeles played a low-event game and didn't generate a whole lot offensively. The Kings managed to score six on 24 shots, good for an absurd 25% clip.The story is the same for the Wild. They've played to the under in five of the last six, with a game against the high-paced Predators being the exception in that span.Both teams play slow, ranking near the bottom of the league in five-on-five pace (attempts generated plus allowed per minute) over the last 10 games.They're also excellent defensive sides. The Kings have conceded just 15.78 expected goals at five-on-five over the last 10 games, which is the best mark in the NHL.Right on their heels are the Wild, who've allowed 16.16 over the same period of time.In short, these are two slow teams playing extremely stingy defensive hockey. Given the success they're having while doing so (Minnesota is 6-2-2 over the last 10, while the Kings are 6-3-1), I don't see any reason to expect them to get away from that - especially given each side is playing for the second time in as many nights.Bet: Under 5.5 (+100)Todd Cordell is a sports betting writer at theScore. You can follow him on X at @ToddCordell.Copyright (C) 2024 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

It was 2006 and the legend of Brent Burns and his assortment of hobbies had infiltrated the Minnesota Wild front office. General manager Doug Risebrough, who drafted Burns 20th overall in 2003, had to see what all the fuss was about."Come on over," Burns, then in his early 20s, told his boss.Risebrough found out early on a tour of Burns' house that, yes, his young defenseman did in fact have an area sectioned off for snakes. Burns knew "everything" about the limbless reptiles and hired a local snake expert to care for them."This whole thing was the most organized zoo you've ever seen," Risebrough recently recalled with a laugh.Risebrough's interest was piqued again when the tour led to three high-end bicycles. Burns explained how one was built for speed, another for climbing hills, and the third for paved roads. The GM's eyes widened further when he spotted multiple electric guitars upstairs - seriously?!What made Burns remarkable then - and still to this day - is that his off-ice interests don't fully define him. He's far from a sideshow, winning the Norris Trophy in 2017 and finishing in the top three in voting two other times. Now a member of the Stanley Cup-contending Carolina Hurricanes, Burns hit 1,400 games played this past weekend. The 39-year-old ranks sixth among NHL defensemen in career shots on goal, 10th in goals scored, 14th in points, and 15th in games played.Throughout the season, theScore tried to speak with Burns about his accomplished career, his personality, and his many interests, which fascinate teammates and fans alike."Do you understand why people think you're interesting?""No. No. I think, no. No, I don't," Burns said with a sheepish laugh. Josh Lavallee / NHL / Getty ImagesThis reflection came at the end of a three-minute walk and talk from the visitor's locker room at Toronto's Scotiabank Arena to the Hurricanes' team bus. His answers were short, and it's an understatement to say he's reluctant to talk about himself.That's not true about those who know him, though. We asked almost 20 people who've been around Burns throughout his hockey journey to explain and describe what makes him unique. As Alex Stalock, a former San Jose Sharks teammate, put it, "I'll always have endless things to say about him."(Note: Quotes have been edited for clarity and length.)'He's always playing so aggressive'Burns has long been viewed as a rover because of his playing style. He helped revolutionize shots from the point, favoring half-slap shots, snap shots, and wrist shots over full-windup slap shots before his peers did. Burns' 64.5 mph average shot speed this season is in the 90th percentile across the league.Jaccob Slavin, Hurricanes teammate: Pretty much every shot comes off his stick hard.Doug Wilson, former Sharks GM: His snapshot from the point is as powerful as most slap shots.Micheal Haley, Sharks: In hockey, we say, "Put it in your pocket." His pocket, apparently, is huge. Whether his arms are extended, whether the puck is closer to his feet, he has the ability to get it off so quickly and with such power.Brenden Dillon, Sharks: We'd always joke in San Jose that he didn't have a safety on his hockey stick. That thing was shooting no matter where the puck was on his stick. John Russell / NHL / Getty Images David E. Klutho / Sports Illustrated / Getty ImagesStalock: Leaving the rink, there were some days when your collarbone was sore because he wasn't holding back when he shot. When he scored, everybody in the rink knew. He'd come up to me after practice and, in classic Burnzie fashion, he'd be like, "You know you're not playing dodgeball, right? You know you're trying to stop the puck?"Risebrough: Back then, it was slap shots, half-slap shots. Nobody was wristing the puck from the blue line. Nobody. Only Burnzie. It was because of the velocity and the quickness. And now, how many guys take a slap shot from the point? Nobody does anymore. They're all wristers.Sebastian Aho, Hurricanes: He has a very powerful shot for a guy with a short release. From the same position, he can do a shot-pass where he's looking for your stick. Sometimes, you read him and deflect or tip the puck. Sometimes it's luck, where you're in the right place at the right time. It's good to be aware when he's out there, because you know it's coming.Paul Martin, Sharks: He's the best I've seen as far as getting pucks through to the net.Todd Reirden, Houston Aeros (AHL): If the puck is coming from low to high in the offensive zone, he has the ability to one-time pucks or change shot lanes to wrist pucks through.Stalock: He can pick the puck up off the wall and shoot it in one motion. Him and (former Sharks teammate Joe) Pavelski had such a unique chemistry, with him finding his stick in the slot.Jari Byrski, longtime offseason skills coach: I built these custom boards so that when you pass off of them, the puck is coming to you in different locations. Almost from the beginning, we didn't practice the perfect pass or shot. Then he worked on quickly adjusting the body and releasing the puck.Matt Irwin, Sharks: It's a rare combination of skills that he has. Some people might have the size but not the skating, or the skating but not the size, or not the hands and the shot to go with all that. He's got the whole package.Risebrough: You can really get the wrong impression of Brent in some ways. He plays this enthusiastic game. He does unusual things because of his athletic ability and can recover because of his skating ability. He looks a little bit undisciplined, so to speak. But he's not that way at all. He's super focused on whatever he is doing.Several interviewees noted how Burns' offensive exploits overshadow his strong defensive work.Kurtis Foster, Wild: One thing as a defenseman that's tough to do is play super aggressive. A lot of guys are worried about getting beat all the time. I watched Burnzie play the other night. In Year 20, he doesn't hold back.Dillon: If he's going to pinch, he's all-in. If he gaps up on a forward, he's all-in. If he's going to the corner to get into a physical battle, he's all-in. Combine that with being 6-foot-5, 230 pounds. His long stick. As a defenseman, you appreciate how hard it is to play against a big guy like that. Grant Halverson / Getty ImagesReirden: He's like Chris Pronger in terms of how (Pronger) used his stick and the range and ability he had to cover large amounts of space on the ice.Nick Schultz, Wild: For those guys who play so many minutes, your positioning is so important. I think a lot of that came from having Jacques Lemaire as a coach earlier in his career. Being a recent expansion team, we had to play well defensively. Stick positioning was big - where you were on the rink and taking away passing lanes.Martin: By the end of my time in San Jose, he was a shutdown D-man. He gets attention for being an offensive defenseman. Maybe he doesn't get the recognition as a solid, shutdown defender.Wilson: He took great pride in competing and trying to stop the other team's top players. I don't think he gets enough credit for that.Martin: Sometimes he will run outside the dots or make a risky defensive play you don't expect. But more often than not, he ends the play early by causing a turnover.Foster: Everything has a thought and a reason why he's doing it. He won't necessarily crush guys, but he's always playing so aggressive that guys don't have time to make a play.Haley: As a coach now in junior, I reference aspects he brings. A lot of times with the D, I'll say: If you guys turn on a Carolina game, you can hear Burnzie calling with his little Tarzan scream when he wants the puck.Slavin: He talks a lot off the ice - and doesn't stop talking when he's on the ice. He's always trying to help me out.Martin: Heck, I think the whole rink could hear him call for the puck. He's always hooting and hollering.Slavin: Sometimes he's talking, and sometimes he's yipping like a coyote. It depends on what mood he's in.Martin: Sometimes I had to be like, "Hey, quit yelling! I know you're over there."'He could have played either position'A multipositional, late-blooming skater out of the Toronto area, Burns spent his NHL draft season as a member of the Brampton Battalion. He began the 2002-03 Ontario Hockey League season far down the lineup.Stan Butler, Battalion coach: My thought process was simple: It's hard to find good right wingers. Big kid, good hands, can skate well. Why not right wing?Adam Henrich, Battalion: His story's actually amazing. He was on the fourth line. Our team was pretty good, and then we had a lot of injuries going into the playoffs. He jumped onto the first or second line. When you talk about making the most of an opportunity, that's what this kid did.Butler: People thought he might go in the second or third round.Risebrough: The debate I had with the chief scout was why we should pick him high. He said, "Athletic. Tall. I don't know if he's going to get heavier, but he has great skating ability." There was a brief mention about him formerly playing defense, in the context of, if there's something you don't like about him as a forward, it's probably teachable.Burns meets Wild management at the 2003 draft. Doug Pensinger / Getty ImagesButler: Then, as the biggest surprise of all, he makes the NHL as an 18-year-old right winger.Foster: What gave him the ability to stick as such a young guy and play both roles was his skating power. He was a big man who could really move, and he had this confidence with the puck. He wasn't afraid to make a mistake.Risebrough: He was playing forward for us and he was doing alright. We were happy with him. Big, strong guy going up and down the wings. We were near the end of the season and our team wasn't going to make the playoffs. We had an injury on defense. You'd normally call somebody up, but our minor-league team was right in the playoff hunt. I'm thinking, "Am I going to take the best defenseman off their team before a critical game?"Risebrough discussed the issue with Lemaire. "Well, don't call anybody up, I'll just put Burnzie on defense," Lemaire told the GM - and that, right there, was the catalyst for a permanent role.Risebrough: Jacques didn't even know about the history of Brent's time on defense. He just assessed the player and figured he should put Burnzie on defense. And he was great. At the end of the year, Jacques said, "We should think about keeping this guy on defense. He'll develop more because of the minutes he's going to play." It's history now.Though Burns has been a D-man for the majority of his NHL career, he occasionally subbed in at forward over his 11-year run with the Sharks and rarely, if ever, looked out of place.Wilson: The only reason we moved him up is he had an injury at the time. He had trouble pivoting and had to get his groin and hip area fixed. He wanted to keep playing. He didn't want to let the team down. But he could have played either position. There are very few guys who could do it to the level he does.Schultz: He's just a versatile player. He can skate. He can be physical. He can handle pucks. He has a little bit of everything.Byrski: I always saw him as a defenseman because of his mobility, size, agility, demeanor, personality, passion.Scott Hannan, Sharks: You look at how he plays on the blue line and the aggressiveness he portrays. He pinches a lot. He's in people's faces. That allowed him to play forward with the same type of mentality.Foster: He made stuff happen that left you speechless on the bench. I remember there was a game where he had a shootout goal. He did a move like Pavel Datsyuk. We were all blown away. Len Redkoles / NHL / Getty ImagesFew players switch from forward to defense as young pros. Even fewer dominate for decades at that new position. In his late 30s, Burns continues to log serious minutes (21:46 per night). He's played in 830 consecutive games, tying him with Andrew Cogliano for seventh on the all-time ironman leaderboard.Haley: When I think of ironmen like Burnzie and Keith Yandle and Patty Marleau - guys I played with - it's their conditioning. Burnzie likes to try different stuff. He's not always conventional. He likes to do a lot of grappling. He's always stretching. He's doing Pilates. He's always taking care of his body.Tomas Hertl, Sharks: I can say the same thing about Jumbo (Joe Thornton), Marleau, Pavs. They do massages. They work out every day. They try to eat healthy. You need some luck to avoid big injuries. All of these guys did everything to be in great shape and play in the league for a long time.Stalock: At his house in San Jose, he had a facility in his backyard that had a sauna, cold tub, therapy room, gym.Devan Dubnyk, Sharks: He's very methodical in his routine.Stalock: People see him at 7 p.m. every night. He's the finished product then. They probably think he must be blessed with talent, which he is. But every day he's shooting a couple hundred extra pucks, scooting around, and getting better at whatever he wants to get better at on the ice.Butler: He's right up there with another defenseman I coached a long time ago in Prince George of the Western League: Zdeno Chara, who's running marathons now. Both of those guys, I don't want to say they're "freaks of nature," but you know what I mean.Wilson: Elite-level fitness. Nobody trains harder than him. And then his toughness and fortitude. He was like Jumbo and Marleau: He didn't want to miss games. Their love for the game is they didn't want to let their teammates down.Schultz: Anybody who's played understands how much of a grind it is to play an 82-game season. In San Jose, they had good teams and played deep into the playoffs a lot of years. That's a lot of miles on the body.Haley: It's not like he's playing on the outside. He's a D-man who's bumping and grinding. He plays with his body, blocking shots.Hertl: The best leadership he shows is his work ethic.Aho: He's an older guy who's gone through a lot in his career, and yet he's still one of the first guys out there for practice.Dillon: It's insane. This is a guy who plays 25-plus minutes a night. He plays against the other team's top line. D-zone. O-zone. A physical guy. He's really checking all the boxes. For him to stay as healthy as he's been, that's a tribute to how he takes care of himself.Burns sports a Chewbacca mask at the 2016 All-Star Skills Competition Dave Sandford / NHL / Getty Images'So childish in a good way'Not many NHLers would pose naked alongside a teammate for a magazine photoshoot. Or cheerfully refer to themselves as a "goofy donkey." Or, in a crazy turn, find themselves fighting off a biting cheetah during a special behind-the-scenes zoo experience on a day off on the road. But that's Burnzie, a character known to amuse and befuddle teammates and coaches.Dubnyk: Our first day, we were in Scottsdale, Arizona, for training camp. Everyone's showing up at different times. Burnzie had driven there. He's set up in the parking lot. He's got a Traeger grill in the back of his truck. He's sitting on a lawn chair smoking meat. That was Day 1 of camp. He'd ride his bike to the rink. A lot of quirky stuff.Foster: He's got a magnetism about him. Guys gravitate toward him. He really can be a guy in a dressing room (who) everybody respects and wants to be around.Hannan: He's messing around with you all the time. He's such a character in the room.Dillon: I sat beside him for six years. In the morning, he'd talk about the politics from the night before or the basketball game or the football game or the hockey highlights. We had so many things that we were able to chat about.Stalock: He didn't change his personality at the rink or away from the rink. Brent Burns is Brent Burns 365 days a year.Wilson: He was just real. Every day, I'd walk into the building and I'd hear Burnzie and Jumbo. The energy, it was almost childlike.Stalock: Their voices carried, and it just put a smile on your face. You can go through bag skates, you can get yelled at by coaches, but if you have a tight group that likes to have fun, you can get through those trying times. And, of course, when you're winning, it makes everything so much better.Schultz: He's probably one of the most interesting guys you'll ever talk to or come across.Slavin: But he's also one of the nicest. He truly cares about all of the guys. He wants what's best for everybody.Stalock: What I found from him that I try to impress on young guys is to be yourself. Don't try to be anything that you're not. That's one thing Brent has such a good feel for. He is who he is. What you see is what you get. There's 23 different personalities in a locker room, so to go into a room and feel like you can be yourself and act like a kid at times but also be a professional, to me, as a young pro, it was very refreshing to see.Burns is restless and insatiably curious. He reads, surfs, cycles, camps, and noodles on the guitar. Other passions include knives, pirates, reptiles, tattoos, wine, pizza, and the military. Friends struggle to keep track of his hobbies.Stalock: Oh, God. There's 100.Dillon: I lived at his house for four months while his wife was renovating my condo. I got to see in-depth the everyday life of the Burns family. Karate. Cold tubbing and (a) sauna in his backyard. Pool days. Video games. There wasn't an activity that we didn't cover together.Schultz: One summer, he traveled around in his six-wheel camper and was riding his bike out of the back. He's open to anything.Burns plays golf at an NHL event in 2015 Jeff Vinnick / NHL / Getty ImagesDillon: You'd tell him, "Hey, we're going to golf as a team tomorrow." He's like, "Ah, I haven't golfed in over a year." He'd come out and have the best clubs, the best outfit, a hilarious get-up, and he'd shoot really well.Byrski: When he commits his interest in something, there's no halfway through it. He'll get down to the core.Dillon: It was similar with martial arts. How much can a guy who plays hockey for a living really know about it? But we'd be joking around on the trampoline with the kids, and then he'd have me in a headlock in the backyard on the grass with our shirts off.Haley: Our soccer warmups were intense. I was a fighter, but most of my bruises came from soccer balls to the head. You couldn't do anything with Burnzie that doesn't turn into a competitive game.Slavin: He loves to learn. He loves to have fun. He loves to grow as a person.Wilson: He's fascinated by things. He's accomplished a lot of different things in his life that you wouldn't say would be typical of a hockey guy.Dubnyk: I'd sit on the stationary bike with him after the game and ask him questions about the ranch he has in Texas. He's got zebras and wildebeests.Irwin: He seems to have an unbelievable setup with exotic animals. Things you wouldn't think you would have as a pet, so to speak. I'm not quite sure if "pet" is the right term.Dillon: Most people on their off day watch TV shows. He's looking up what new animal he wants to get for his ranch.Hannan: You'd talk to him about what he has to do to feed and breed them to help the livestock maintain stability. It's amazing, the depth at which he goes into it.Wilson: We got him a special gift (two antelopes) for his 1,000th game. It was the first time we bought an animal for a player to celebrate 1,000 games.Foster: He had a little Komodo dragon (at his Minnesota home) at one point. He was feeding it different animals. It made going to visit suspenseful and interesting.Henrich: Guys in the OHL would go to movies. Burnzie would go home and read "Harry Potter." Now he's into snakes. He beat his own drum, which I respected.Foster: You know what's funny? All the pictures and videos I see of him now, he always has an Army backpack. I don't know what he's got in it.Burns arrives at a Hurricanes game this season. Josh Lavallee / NHL / Getty Images Stalock: I'm sure he has all of his rehab tools in his bag. He never let us take a peek in there.Irwin: It was a mystery, always. When I was in San Jose, it was a big, green camo backpack. I know he had a coffee machine. A foam roller.Seth Jarvis, Hurricanes: No matter the road trip - like, if you go to New York for one day - he has six luggage bags. He's got his coffee machine. He's got his blender.Stalock: We sat close to each other on the plane. The seat next to him was for his luggage. We'd be flying somewhere close - to L.A. or something - and he'd walk up with the fruit tray from the back. Guys would be playing cards, and all of a sudden, you'd hear the grind: Aaaaaaarrrrrrrrrr. You look over and Burnzie's blending a smoothie in his seat. It's like, "You have to be kidding me! What do you have in that bag?"Jarvis: He's got bags I can probably fit in. I don't even want to know what's in there. Yeah, he's a character.Haley: A giant, hairy kid. His outlook on life is so childish in a good way. I think that's played a huge part in his longevity and why he's so good at his age. He loves to play the game of hockey and games in general.Risebrough: He gets personal satisfaction in the process of doing things, not just the end result. Some people who are detail-oriented can drive you crazy because they're so intense and they want everything in a perfect way. Burnzie's not like that. There's a detail element, but he's doing it with a spirit of improvement and enjoyment.Irwin: He's interested in so many things outside of hockey. It makes him a unique individual you want to be around. You want to hear the stories. You want to have an ear to the ground on what makes Burnzie tick.Burns' hairiness is iconic. Fans can spot his bushy beard from the nosebleeds. His eccentric look, intensified by a wide gap in his teeth, is symbolic of his goofiness and rugged playing style.Hannan: When you look at that, you're like, "That's a hockey player."Risebrough: He looks like an unkempt bed.Foster: Everybody knows who he is because of the beard and the teeth.Dubnyk: That's him in a nutshell. Missing teeth and the big beard, it fits his personality. He's always smiling and making jokes.Hannan: He's such a big personality and guy. The beard became a persona. Almost like a superhero.Dubnyk: It's really weird to see a picture of him early on in Minnesota with no facial hair. Claus Andersen / Getty Images Brandon Magnus / NHL / Getty ImagesDillon: After we went to the Cup Final in 2016, he'd been growing that beard for two months in the playoff run. Maybe Mrs. Burns was a big fan. He kept it as a lifestyle beard.Dubnyk: I don't know if he'll ever get rid of it. His kids would probably cry if he shaved it off. They'd think he's a different person.Foster: He looks scary with the big beard, but he's the farthest thing from it.Hannan: He's a guy who takes the day as it comes. He has a lot of energy and zest for life. That was contagious with the Sharks.Butler: When I watch him now, he's the same person he was when he was 17, minus a few tattoos and a lot less hair on his head.Stalock: He's got the hair that changes every year. With Brent, something that hasn't changed in 20 years is his love of not only the game, but also his teammates. Every teammate from Minnesota to San Jose to Carolina would say how incredible a person he is. It extends to his family, too.Foster: He's a family man who cares about other people. My older boys are 12 and 10. They love the NHL. When they have friends over, it's one thing they show them right away: "Look who sent us a Christmas card!" They're like, "Oh, my God. Why does Brent Burns send you a Christmas card?" It shows how good he and his wife, Susan, are. We were lucky to call them friends for a long time. Brandon Magnus / NHL / Getty ImagesSchultz: Most kids, you're a byproduct of your parents. Burnzie's mom and dad are wonderful people. I remember his dad coming into the Xcel Energy Center during practice. His dad was running stairs with a black leather Minnesota Wild bomber jacket on. Absolutely leaking.Slavin: His dad came to the rink as he was settling in here in Raleigh. His dad's sitting there riding the bike in the workout room. He's got his headphones on and he's air-drumming the heck out of that bike. I guess he's a drummer? So he was just at home. He was having a concert there by himself.Dillon: He loves his family so much. The time he puts in at home with his two daughters and son, I feel like he's there as much as he possibly can be.Henrich: You look at a video of his 10-year-old son's team in Carolina. He went on the ice, wore his full equipment from the NHL, and was doing the drills with them. I started laughing because most guys wouldn't do that.Slavin: Two summers ago, his boy Jagger was with us, and we're out there during one of the captain's skates. We're working on tipping pucks. Jagger gets in front of the net, and I'm thinking Burnzie will just float them into him. No, he ripped them as hard as he would have if Jordan Staal was standing in front of the net.Haley: He only has one speed, and it's "go."Slavin: Jagger got in front of one shot in the wrong way, and it hit him right in the private parts. You're thinking, "Oh, man, here come the tears." But Jagger just popped back up and was like, "Gimme more!" That's exactly how Burnzie would react, too. He plays through everything. He just grinds.'Lots of hockey left in him'Burns, the NHL's third-oldest defenseman, is the only active skater who debuted before the 2004-05 lockout. A championship still eludes him. Deep postseason runs with the 2016 Sharks (reached Cup Final), 2019 Sharks (lost in West final), and 2023 Hurricanes (swept in East final) didn't deliver the ultimate prize.Wilson: When we acquired him, I said, "Brent, there's a couple of goals we have for you. One is to win a Stanley Cup and one is to win a Norris Trophy." He's won the Norris Trophy. I wanted to see Jumbo and Patty and Burnzie win because of everything they've done for the game.Martin: 100%. He'd be at the top of the list. Pavelski is another one. As far as guys who I played with and enjoy watching, Brent definitely has earned the right to raise the Cup.Risebrough: A lot of good players don't get that moment. A lot of them are in the Hall of Fame. Ray Bourque played how many years, and then finally got the Stanley Cup. You hope it happens. But it can't overshadow what you've accomplished throughout your career.Brian Babineau / NHL / Getty Images Josh Lavallee / NHL / Getty ImagesReirden: He's going to be remembered as one of the most physically gifted defensemen to play in this era. He's opened the eyes of the NHL in terms of creating offense from the blue line. You see that in the up-and-coming defensemen who are high-end offensively, whether we're talking about Cale Makar or Quinn Hughes. One person who started that transition was Brent Burns.Hannan: I think it's going to be harder to reproduce his longevity moving forward. The game's gotten faster and quicker. You get to a certain age and it's hard to keep playing in the league, let alone contribute at a high level. Obviously, he's a physical specimen.Wilson: He's got lots of hockey left in him.Dubnyk: He's still one of the best defensemen in the league. There's no reason he won't continue to play.Henrich: I did the same training as him in junior. Burnzie would stay on the ice for five hours to do drills he was taught. If you love hockey and stick with it and don't let your position in the lineup or external things bother you, Burnzie's a good indication that anyone can have an opportunity to make it.Stalock: There are people who shape you and steer you in the right direction as a young pro, as far as what's acceptable and how to have a long career, and Brent's one of those players.Martin: I enjoyed my time with Brent. I was fortunate to play with Scott Stevens, Scott Niedermayer, Kris Letang, Brian Rafalski - a lot of really good defensemen. That's probably why I got to play for as long as I did. (Laughs) He's up there with some of the best to ever lace 'em up.Hannan: I like to tell the story of the last game of my career. It enveloped everything. We had a lot of camaraderie. In the last game I played in the NHL, we were going back behind the net. I was yelling at him, "Time! Time! Time!" He thought I said, "Man on!" He turned, ripped the puck out of the zone, and accidentally hit me in the face.Stalock: There were so many Burnzie stories where you're just like, "What the hell are you doing?" There's story after story with that guy.Hannan: I had a goal in that (last) game from Burnzie passing me the puck back door for a tip-in. After the game, he and his wife called me on FaceTime. There were always jokes about the size of my head. He was like, "I can't believe I missed that thing." I'm like, "Burnzie, you cracked my orbital bone in three spots!" His wife starts punching him in the arm and calling him an idiot. He starts laughing.Haley: He's a 6-foot-5 sasquatch, but he's like a child.Hannan: That's the type of guy he is: He wanted to call me right afterward and see how I was doing because I was at the hospital. We still had that goofiness. That was my last year in the league. I got a chance to play with Burnzie and that brought a lot of joy to the game for me.John Matisz is theScore's senior NHL writer.Nick Faris is a features writer at theScore.Copyright (C) 2024 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

It's been a down year for Jake Oettinger, but the Dallas Stars goaltender is certain he can turn things around down the stretch."I could let in 10 goals a game for the next five games, and I'll never stop believing in myself," he said, according to The Athletic's Saad Yousuf. "I know what I'm capable of. No matter what happens, what people think about me or say about me, I believe in my heart that I'm one of the best goalies in the world."It's up to me to show it now. I know I can do it. I know I can be one of the best."Oettinger finished fifth in Vezina Trophy voting last season after an outstanding campaign in which he logged a .919 save percentage to go along with a 37-11-11 record. As a result of that performance, theScore considered him one of the front-runners to contend for the hardware prior to the start of the 2023-24 season.However, Oettinger hasn't been able to repeat that success. His .896 save percentage through 43 outings ranks 47th out of 60 goaltenders to appear in at least 20 games this season. He also sits near the bottom of the league in goals saved above average (minus-10.15) and goals saved above expected (minus-7.76), per Evolving-Hockey.Despite his struggles, Oettinger's 25 wins are the eighth-most in the NHL.Though the 25-year-old missed 12 games with a lower-body injury earlier this season, he said he's grappled the most with the mental side of the game."It's been probably the hardest season, mentally, that I've had in my life," he said. "I feel like I'm putting a lot of pressure on myself and letting outside factors get to me and take the fun out of it."He added: "If I can get back to being a kid and having fun in there, just compete and be more desperate and aggressive, that's what I'm working on right now. I'm trying to do my job and let guys around me do their job. It's been tough."Dallas is once again one of the top teams in the Central Division, boasting a 41-19-9 record. Oettinger has started all 26 playoff games for the Stars over the past two seasons, and they'll need him in tip-top shape once again this spring.Head coach Peter DeBoer said he believes Oettinger will be able to rise to the challenge."This happens to every elite goalie in the league," he said. "I'm glad it's happening now and not a month from now. I'm very confident that he's going to find his elite level again, at the most important time."Copyright (C) 2024 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Find year-round coverage of betting news and insights for all sports by visiting our Betting section and subscribing to push notifications.Tuesday was a disappointing night for shot props. We split our plays in the early games but Adrian Kempe was unable to bring us home, failing to record a shot over the final 30 minutes against Chicago and losing by the hook.We'll look to get back in the win column with a few more props for Wednesday's NHL card.Dylan Strome: Over 0.5 points Strome is quietly having another very nice season for the Capitals. He has 53 points through 67 games and has produced consistently throughout the campaign.Strome has registered at least one point in 56% of his games this season. He's played particularly well in Washington, where his success rate is flirting with 60% and he's hit in 11 of his past 15 (73%).Strome and Tom Wilson have meshed well together at even strength. They've helped a mediocre Capitals team control 56.4% of the expected goals and 55.8% of the high-danger chances.The 27-year-old Strome should be able to help facilitate plenty of chances at even strength and on the top power play, where he sits first on Washington in assists and second to Alex Ovechkin in points.The Maple Leafs aren't a great defensive team, and Joseph Woll has conceded 10 goals on 84 shots since returning from injury. The Capitals should be able to net at least a couple in this spot, and I like Strome's chances of being involved.Odds: -115 (playable to -130)Wyatt Johnston: Over 0.5 pointsJohnston is playing his best hockey of the season alongside Jamie Benn and highly touted prospect Logan Stankoven. The 20-year-old Johnston has produced 1.3 points per contest over the past 10 games while finding the scoresheet in eight of them. His shot rates are way up as well, as he's averaging 3.9 shots in that span (his season average is 2.6).Johnston finds himself in a great matchup to stay hot against the Coyotes. They're playing poor defensive hockey, ranking dead last in expected goal suppression over the last 10 games.Making matters worse is that their goaltending has tailed off. Connor Ingram was great for much of the season but owns a .888 save percentage and 3.52 goals against average over his last 10 starts.Karel Vejmelka hasn't fared much better, posting an .897 save percentage in his past 10 games.With Johnston at the top of his game, he should be able to find the scoresheet against a bad defensive team with two struggling goaltenders.Jason Robertson: Over 2.5 shotsRobertson hasn't generated shots as prolifically this season as last, but I like his chances of making noise in this spot.He's fared better at home this season, generating three shots per game on 6.2 attempts. That compares favorably to the 2.6 shots on 5.5 attempts he's produced when playing on the road.It's all about the matchup for Robertson, though. He's feasted on the Coyotes in the past, recording an average of 4.6 shots over his last five meetings against them. That includes a seven-shot performance when the two sides last met back in November.The Stars are in an air-tight battle with the Jets and Avalanche for the top two seeds in the Central Division. They need every point they can get, which means they won't take the Coyotes lightly.Robertson should see a full workload in this game and be pushing to produce offense so long as it's remotely close. Three shots isn't a lot to ask for in a top-tier matchup.Odds: -145 (playable to -160)Todd Cordell is a sports betting writer at theScore. You can follow him on X at @ToddCordell.Copyright (C) 2024 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Detroit Red Wings head coach Derek Lalonde couldn't be more relieved to see Lucas Raymond stepping up with Dylan Larkin sidelined."He's been excellent of late. Thank God," the bench boss said after the forward's two-goal performance during Tuesday's emotional 4-3 overtime win against the Columbus Blue Jackets."At this time last year, (Raymond) was tiring," Lalonde added. "He was not very good. We were worried how much we could play him down the stretch. ... With Dylan being out, he's literally driven us to stay in this battle."Larkin has missed the last eight games with a lower-body injury, and though Detroit owns a paltry 2-6-0 record in the captain's absence, Raymond has been a bright spot. The 21-year-old leads the Red Wings with seven goals and eight points, all of which have come in his last five outings.Raymond is just the third player in franchise history to record a five-game goal streak before turning 22, joining Steve Yzerman and Norm Ullman, per Bally Sports Detroit.The Red Wings have stabilized following a seven-game losing streak, winning two out of their last three games.Tuesday's victory didn't come easy, though. Lalonde admitted he was "flabbergasted" by his team's abysmal first period in which the Blue Jackets took a 2-0 lead while outshooting Detroit 20-5."We talked it through in the first (intermission), how much adversity and bounce back this group has shown this year. ... And they didn't quit, obviously," he said. "Huge credit to the guys."It was Raymond who fueled the turnaround. He got the Red Wings on the board in the second period and forced overtime in the dying seconds of regulation to set the table for Patrick Kane's winner in the extra frame.The Red Wings have reclaimed the second wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference and now have a 24.7% chance of making the playoffs, per MoneyPuck. The Washington Capitals are in hot pursuit, though, sitting one point behind Detroit with two games in hand.Lalonde is hoping Tuesday's victory can serve as a turning point for the rest of the season."So many emotional narratives this time of year," he said. "Obviously, if we lose, there's a big narrative. ... (The win is) huge, but it means nothing if we don't get a little more battle to start and stop feeling sorry for ourselves."It's got to come from everyone."The Red Wings will face the New York Islanders on Thursday.Copyright (C) 2024 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Former NHL grinder and Stanley Cup champion Chris Simon died at the age of 52, the league confirmed Tuesday.Simon played 15 seasons in the NHL through 2007-08, racking up 1,824 penalty minutes, 144 goals, and 161 assists over 782 games with seven organizations."The family strongly believes and witnessed firsthand that Chris struggled immensely from CTE, which unfortunately resulted in his death," his former agent, Paul Theofanous, said in a statement on behalf of Simon's family, per ESPN."We are grieving with the loss of our son, brother, father, partner, teammate, and friend. The entire Wawa community is sharing in our grief. We will not be releasing any further details at this time and ask for privacy during this very difficult time. We appreciate everyone who shares in our tragic loss."Simon spent his first three seasons with the Quebec Nordiques and his fourth with the Cup-winning Colorado Avalanche after Quebec moved there in 1995-96. He got back to the championship round two years later with the Washington Capitals, scoring a goal in Game 2 of a series they ultimately lost to the Detroit Red Wings.The 6-foot-3, 233-pound winger led Washington with a career-high 29 goals across 75 games in 1999-2000 and played parts of seven campaigns in America's capital. He was a key contributor in a playoff run with the Calgary Flames in 2004, producing five tallies and two assists in 16 playoff games during their run to the Cup Final, which they lost to the Tampa Bay Lightning.While he had his moments on offense, Simon was also known for his on-ice transgressions. He was suspended eight times, and two of those were among the longest bans in NHL history. Simon sat 25 games (the rest of the regular season and playoffs) as a member of the New York Islanders for cross-checking Rangers forward Ryan Hollweg in the face in March 2007.Nine months later, the league suspended him 30 games for stomping on Pittsburgh Penguins forward Jarkko Ruutu's leg.The Philadelphia Flyers drafted Simon with the 25th overall pick in 1990. However, he never suited up for the Flyers, with the club trading him to the Nordiques as part of the Eric Lindros blockbuster deal in 1992.The Avalanche were among the teams that offered condolences Tuesday.

Minnesota Wild defenseman Jonas Brodin suffered an apparent leg injury in the third period of Tuesday's 4-0 win against the Anaheim Ducks and didn't return.Brodin's leg got caught under him and bent awkwardly when Alex Killorn threw him down to the ice.

Philadelphia Flyers captain Sean Couturier was left out of the lineup as a healthy scratch for Tuesday's clash against the Toronto Maple Leafs.Couturier, 31, has four assists and is a minus-14 in his last 15 games. He last scored a goal Feb. 10."Control what I can control, it is what it is," Couturier said before the game, according to PHLY Sports' Charlie O'Connor.He added, "Just gotta leave my ego aside, I guess, and hopefully the team finds a way to get a win here tonight, and I can get back into it soon."The 31-year-old was named the Flyers' captain Feb. 14.Couturier returned to action this season after missing nearly two years with a back injury. The 2020 Selke Trophy winner has 11 goals and 36 points in 64 games.Philadelphia is third in the Metropolitan Division with 76 points.Copyright (C) 2024 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Hockey Canada announced Tuesday that Rick Nash will serve as general manager for the 2024 World Championship.Nash was tabbed by Doug Armstrong, Canada's GM for the 2025 4 Nations Face-Off and 2026 Olympics, to select the roster."Hockey Canada has meant a lot to me throughout my career, and I couldn't be more excited to lead our team at the World Championships in May," Nash said. "Representing Canada has been a great source of pride for me throughout my career, and I am looking forward with our staff to put together a team that will work extremely hard towards our goal of winning a gold medal in Czechia."The 39-year-old was an assistant GM for Canada's silver medal-winning World Championship team in 2022. He's been in the Columbus Blue Jackets' front office since 2019 and has been the team's director of player development for three seasons."Rick is an outstanding person to lead Canada's national men's team at this year's World Championship, as he brings a wealth of international and NHL experience from his playing career and his time as an executive," Armstrong said.Nash represented Canada at three Olympics and four World Championships as a player. He won gold at the 2010 and 2014 Olympics, as well as the 2007 Worlds.The first overall pick in the 2002 draft, Nash accumulated 437 goals and 805 points with the Blue Jackets, New York Rangers, and Boston Bruins. He retired in 2019 due to lingering concussion issues.Copyright (C) 2024 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Six rule changes will be proposed to the NHL's competition committee and board of governors ahead of the 2024-25 season, according to Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman. Another will take immediate effect coming out of the general manager meetings in Florida.Two new coach's challenges are being proposed to review puck-over-glass and high-sticking penalties.Teams would be able to challenge if they believe the puck hit something on the way out on a puck-over-glass call. Additionally, a team could ask to review a high-sticking penalty if it's believed there wasn't an offense committed by its player.In both cases, the team would go down to a five-on-three if the call on the ice stands.A rule change taking immediate effect is a ban on players having legs over the bench while not on the ice. A team will first be warned before a bench minor is assessed.No changes are being proposed to the current overtime format. There was consideration of extending the extra period to seven minutes, but the idea didn't gain traction, according to Friedman.Here are the rest of the potential rule changes:

Find year-round coverage of betting news and insights for all sports by visiting our Betting section and subscribing to push notifications.We finished last week very strongly with our best bets, going 2-0 back-to-back nights to end on a high.We'll look to pick up where we left off with two more plays for a busy Tuesday night in the NHL.Maple Leafs (-135) @ Flyers (+115)The Flyers are a great story this season, but their game has fallen off a cliff, especially following the trade deadline.They own a 1-3 record since deadline day, with their lone victory coming against the Sharks. It's not just that the Flyers have lost - it's how they've done so.We haven't seen the stingy defense that's been their calling card all season. They've only controlled 31% of the high-danger chances at five-on-five while being outscored 14-5 since the deadline, and Samuel Ersson hasn't shown the ability to mask their mistakes.That's led to problems against quality competition. Philadelphia gave up seven goals to the Lightning, six to the Bruins, and six to these same Maple Leafs.Sean Couturier hasn't played well as of late, but he owns some of the best defensive metrics on the team. The Flyers have made him a healthy scratch, which takes out one of the players best equipped to slow down some of Toronto's best weapons.I expect Philadelphia to put up a better fight than last time, but given the team's defense struggles, I think the more talented Maple Leafs are more likely to come out on top once again.Bet: Maple Leafs (-135)Avalanche (-210) @ Blues (+175)The Avs are firing on all cylinders. They've won six straight games and eight of their last 10. All the numbers under the hood suggest it's no fluke.Despite facing the Maple Leafs, Stars, Predators, Canucks, and Oilers during a rather difficult string of games, Colorado has controlled 55% of the expected goals at five-on-five over its last 10 contests. That's a top-five rate.The Avs are scoring at will, the goaltending has been excellent, and Valeri Nichushkin is healthy again. It's hard to overstate his importance to the team.Colorado is 30-11-3 with Nichushkin in the lineup and 13-9-2 without him. His ability to score goals, create chances, and defend makes the Avalanche much harder to play against.Although the Blues have won four straight, they continue to post concerning defensive metrics.Only three teams have conceded Grade A chances at a higher rate than St. Louis over the last four games. That's been masked by .954 goaltending, which isn't sustainable.This high-powered Avalanche team will give a wobbly Blues defense all it can handle and then some. If Jordan Binnington isn't astronomically good, Colorado should be able to grab another win within 60 minutes.Bet: Avalanche in regulation (-130)Todd Cordell is a sports betting writer at theScore. You can follow him on X at @ToddCordell.Copyright (C) 2024 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Find year-round coverage of betting news and insights for all sports by visiting our Betting section and subscribing to push notifications.We have an exciting 13-game slate ahead of us on Tuesday night. Let's waste no time getting to a few of my favorite player props.David Pastrnak: Over 4.5 shotsPastrnak has been unusually quiet at home, going over his total in just two of the past 10 games. That stems from a string of opponents that excel defensively or lean toward low-event hockey.Against the Lightning, Kings, Stars, Oilers, and Flyers, Pastrnak struggled to generate volume.That shouldn't be an issue against the Senators. They rank 28th in five-on-five shot suppression over the last 10 games and are not good on the penalty kill, where they'll have to deal with one of the league's most feared snipers in Pastrnak.Even when accounting for Pastrnak's recent rut in terms of shooting the puck, he's still averaging 4.9 shots on 9.5 attempts when playing in Boston this season. Those are remarkably strong numbers.Look for him to get back on track in an advantageous matchup against the Senators.Odds: +107 (playable to -125)Alex Nylander: Over 2.5 shotsNylander has been the biggest beneficiary of the Blue Jackets trading Jack Roslovic on deadline day. He has logged no fewer than 16 minutes in five games since that point while playing a prominent role on the top line and power play.He's taking full advantage of his ice time, averaging 4.2 shots on goal per game while going over his total in four of five. The lone exception came against a stingy Jets team in a contest where Nylander still had two shots with more than a period to finish the job.He should be able to get right back on the horse against the Red Wings. They have stumbled lately and are giving up tons of shots at even strength and while killing penalties. The Red Wings have also taken a lot of penalties, which greatly benefits opposing shooters.That is important to note as Nylander has led the Blue Jackets in power-play shots and chances since deadline day.Odds: -114 (playable to -130)Adrian Kempe: Over 3.5 shots Kempe is piling up the shots. He has gone over his total in seven of the past 10 contests, averaging a healthy 4.5 shots per game in that span.Although he let us down the last time he faced the Blackhawks, the process was strong. He attempted seven shots but had four blocked by defenders. If a couple of those had made their way through, he would've cashed the over once again.The Kings also won the game in the first period, going up 4-0 within 14 minutes. They sat on a lead for 57 minutes and a multi-goal lead for 55, and Kempe still generated more than enough attempts to get there.The Blackhawks give up a ton of shots and, with any luck, the game will be competitive for more than five minutes. That should result in more ice time for Kempe when the Kings are pushing for offense, raising the floor and ceiling for shooting the puck.Odds: -125 (playable to -140)Todd Cordell is a sports betting writer at theScore. You can follow him on X at @ToddCordell.Copyright (C) 2024 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Pittsburgh Penguins general manager Kyle Dubas doesn't just want Sidney Crosby to finish his career with the team. He wants the club to compete for a Stanley Cup in the process."I think everyone's been pretty clear on where they stand on the fact everyone would like to see him end his career in Pittsburgh," Dubas told The Athletic's Pierre LeBrun, "And it's my intention that in those years that we're back and definitely contending."Amid a disappointing campaign that sees Pittsburgh on the outside of the playoff picture, the Penguins traded Crosby's long-time linemate Jake Guentzel before the deadline.The deal left Crosby searching for answers, and his comments began to draw into question his future in Pittsburgh."It's tough when you have to make those decisions," Dubas said about trading Guentzel. "But you have to always do what you believe is best for the long term of the organization and my sights were set on giving the team as long as possible to assert itself more in the race."Dubas understands Crosby's uncertainty about the trade."I would never expect for us to move a key player from our team and have any of those guys, including (head coach Mike Sullivan), Sid, Kris Letang, (Evgeni) Malkin, Erik Karlsson, Bryan Rust, to think that that's a good thing."Crosby's voice remains vital, but Dubas admits there are decisions he makes as a GM that his star captain may not like."I think you'd be remiss not to seek his opinion and how he's feeling," he said. "Obviously he's done so much for the city of Pittsburgh and for the Penguins ... I want his opinion, I value his opinion."He added: "We may not always agree and I might have to do things in the short run he disagrees with."Dubas noted that a private conversation between himself, Crosby, and his agent Pat Brisson would occur after the season regarding the future and the team's next steps.The Penguins are sixth in the Metropolitan Division and are six points out of the second wild-card spot.Copyright (C) 2024 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Alex Ovechkin scored his 20th and 21st goals of the season on Monday against the Calgary Flames, reaching the 20-goal mark for the 19th consecutive campaign.

After discussing potential tweaks to three-on-three overtime at Monday's general managers meetings, the NHL appears content to leave things as is.League executive Colin Campbell revealed in November that GMs are exploring changes to the current overtime format to prevent teams from continuously exiting the offensive zone with puck possession. Possible solutions included a shot clock or implementing an over-and-back line, but the ideas apparently haven't gained much traction."I think it's working," New York Islanders GM Lou Lamoriello said of the system in place, per NHL.com's Nicholas J. Cotsonika. "I don't think there's any need to make changes. I think if the regroups were causing it to go into a shootout, then you'd have to."Dallas Stars general manager Jim Nill said potential changes could overcomplicate OT."All of a sudden, now I've got the puck at center ice, and you come and poke it. Did it go over the line? Did it not go over the line? Do we have a video replay on that? It just opens up a can of worms," Nill said."Now we're going to have another clock? It's not worth it."The NHL is on pace to have 70% of its games this season end in overtime, which would mark a new record. In 2014-15, the final campaign before the league implemented three-on-three, 44% of games finished in the extra frame."We've looked at it, and we've looked at the percentage, and it hasn't been a problem, we think," Campbell said. "And we think it's exciting."Copyright (C) 2024 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Florida Panthers defenseman Dmitry Kulikov was handed a two-game suspension for his check to the head of Tampa Bay Lightning forward Conor Sheary on Saturday night, the NHL's Department of Player Safety announced Monday.The officials handed Kulikov a match penalty for the hit, which negated a Panthers goal.

Find year-round coverage of betting news and insights for all sports by visiting our Betting section and subscribing to push notifications.We're in the throes of March Madness elsewhere in the sports world, while the NHL is truthfully a little sleepy, with a wild-card race that hasn't been turned all the way up yet.So, while we wait for next month's Stanley Cup Playoffs, let's have some fun and play a "What if" for the NHL, while simultaneously checking in how each team is playing down the stretch.If the NHL had a midseason tournament like the NBA, only it was one-and-done style like the NCAA Tournament, what would it look like?Let's find out. Our theoretical bracket's based on the standings through March 17, and we'll use a different core element of hockey handicapping to advance teams in our made-up tournament.Below are the 16 first-round matchups for what we're calling "Ice Insanity." Like the Stanley Cup Playoffs, teams need to come in playing "playoff-style hockey," since we're picking this round's winners based on teams playing the best since the All-Star break, using a tried and true metric: even-strength expected goals share (ES xG%).The Red Wings advance thanks to getting one of two matchups that would give them a better xG% since Feb. 1. The Kings and Jets weren't so lucky, as they suffered the biggest theoretical upsets in this not-real exercise. The 2-seed Rangers probably should have suffered the type of upset the actual Stanley Cup Playoffs are known for, but their 46.4% expected goals share was good enough to get past the Ducks. The Golden Knights, the defending Cup champions, weren't so lucky, unable to get away with recent lackluster play.With the playoffs only a month away, this exercise shines light on teams that may be vulnerable early relative to the betting market, depending on the matchup.On Friday, we'll look at the Sweet 16 matchups, asking teams: "Is your recent play sustainable beyond a good first-round matchup?"The cheat sheetThe betting world's dirty little secret is that while there are no bad bets at the right price, the process of discovering a good price is hidden.Each week, we balance market information from regular-season point totals and in-season advanced metrics - with an even-strength focus - to determine the win probability for each team and the moneyline needed to bet on either side. The idea is to remove the cognitive bias of win-loss records, which can be skewed by outliers like special-team results, poor goaltending performances, and other unreliable events.You can use whatever parameters you like to decide how much of an edge you need to trigger a bet, but here are mine:

Wayne Simmonds announced his retirement from the NHL on Monday.Simmonds, 35, will sign a one-day contract with the Philadelphia Flyers on April 13, the team announced. He played eight years with the Flyers, racking up 203 goals and 378 points in 584 games."It's hard to describe my emotions on a day like this, but one of my very first thoughts as I look back is my life in Philadelphia and playing for the Flyers," Simmonds said. "Taking the ice in a Flyers sweater is a special feeling and it's one that I'm truly proud of. The history of this franchise and standard of being a Flyer that was set is unique and one that I hold in the highest regard."Perhaps the biggest reason for that is the way the fans embrace this team. It was a thrill to play for you all these years, and you mean so much to me."The Scarborough, Ontario native spent the last three seasons with the Toronto Maple Leafs. He was an unrestricted free agent and hadn't played a game this campaign.Simmonds was a lethal presence on the Flyers' power play in his prime. From 2011-12 through 2017-18, only Alex Ovechkin scored more than Simmonds' 86 power-play goals.The power forward eclipsed the 30-goal mark twice and reached a career-high of 60 points on two occasions. His best campaign came in 2015-16, when he scored 32 goals, 60 points, and racked up a career-most 147 penalty minutes.Simmonds was drafted 61st overall in 2007 by the Los Angeles Kings. After three seasons in L.A., he was dealt to the Flyers in the Mike Richards trade.His Flyers tenure ended in 2019 when he was traded to the Nashville Predators before the deadline. Simmonds signed with the New Jersey Devils that offseason and was moved to the Buffalo Sabres at the 2020 trade deadline.Simmonds finished his career with his hometown Maple Leafs. He played 128 games with Toronto over three seasons, totaling 12 goals, 27 points, and 190 penalty minutes.Over his 1,037-game career, Simmonds accumulated 263 goals, 526 points, and 1,313 penalty minutes. He won the Mark Messier Leadership Award in 2019.Copyright (C) 2024 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Poor Felix Sandstrom.The Philadelphia Flyers goalie thought he had Thursday off but was called into action against the Maple Leafs after Samuel Ersson allowed three goals on 12 shots in the first period. Sandstrom survived the second, plus the opening minutes of the third, before his life flashed before his eyes.With both Flyers defensemen somehow on one side of the ice, Auston Matthews, the NHL's greatest goal-scorer, accepted a neutral-zone pass: Broadcast screenshot / ESPNMatthews entered the Flyers zone on the breakaway, deked, and fired a snap shot from the high slot for goal No. 55. What a haunting sequence for a backup goalie.Despite scoring only four goals in his past 10 games, Matthews is certain to pass his career high of 60 and is on pace to finish with 70 goals - technically 69.66 - in 81 games (he missed one tilt in mid-December).The 26-year-old seems to have his third Rocket Richard Trophy locked up. Former teammate Zach Hyman and division rival Sam Reinhart are tied for second with 46 goals while Nathan MacKinnon (42) and David Pastrnak (41) are the only others in the 40s.Matthews doesn't have a lot of padding in his goal tally, either. He's yet to score an empty-net goal and 40 of his 55 goals have come at even strength. But he creates goals at a far higher rate than expected: Sportlogiq credited him with only 37.1 individual expected goals ahead of the 6-2 win over Philly. Icon Sportswire / Getty ImagesAs in years past, Matthews ranks high in many key offensive categories tracked by Sportlogiq. Before Thursday's game, Matthews on a per-game basis ranked first in the league in slot shots (2.76), sixth in inner-slot shots (1.40), first in scoring chances generated off the cycle (2.19), first in chances off the forecheck (0.63), and eighth in chances off the rush (1.14).It's possible Matthews doesn't dress for all 17 remaining games, given Toronto's comfortably in a playoff spot and needs No. 34 at his best for the postseason. If he does play all 17, the competition isn't particularly overwhelming: Toronto has three games left against New Jersey; two each versus Carolina, Washington, Florida, and Tampa Bay; and one against Philly, Edmonton, Buffalo, Montreal, Pittsburgh, and Detroit.Matthews has twice this season recorded back-to-back hat tricks; six goals in two games at any point over the final month would go a long way toward reaching 70. Teemu Selanne and Alexander Mogilny - who both scored 76 in 1992-93 - were the last NHLers to reach the mark.More insight on hockey analyticsMy in-depth feature on the NHL's decade of data published Thursday involved interviews with around 20 people. Even though the story stretched to 4,000 words, plenty of interesting insights ended up being edited out.Here are a few nuggets:Nugget 1: Expand the time horizon to 15-20 years and you truly get a sense of how much the NHL's changed with respect to access to cutting-edge technology and statistics. Brant Berglund, the Bruins' video coach from 2002-10, recalls popping tapes into a VHS player to scout future opponents. Berglund, now the NHL's senior director of coaching and GM technology, is amazed to see job postings for roles commonly associated with tech start-ups. In 2024, teams have so much data to collect, organize, and analyze that some front offices are hiring database architects and software engineers. What a stark contrast. Ethan Miller / Getty ImagesNugget 2: The league's working on the next iteration of NHL Edge, the long-awaited advanced stats hub launched earlier this season. Fans can expect to have access to puck possession, passing, defensive, and special-teams data. The visualizations and sorting filters at NHL Edge will also improve over time. "Part of what we want to do here is present information and allow people to draw their own conclusions from it," said Russell Levine, the group VP of statistics and information. "I think you're going to see much deeper insights as that data set grows and grows more complex."Nugget 3: OK, this may be surprising: the rise of advanced stats hasn't impacted contract negotiations in any significant way. Games played, time on ice, role, goals, and assists remain the standard talking points, according to one NHLPA agent. Why? Well, only stats on NHL.com can be used in arbitration cases. Negotiations are about the big picture and basic stats often tell a concise story. Teams also have more manpower and access to better data than agencies, so by bringing up advanced stats, the player's side risks "opening Pandora's box" because teams can present more sophisticated data. The agent also stressed that negotiations in the first few days of free agency largely revolve around supply and demand. If a team's desperate, it'll overpay. If a player's desperate, he'll settle for less money or shorter term.Kings of right-handed D-men Icon Sportswire / Getty ImagesOn July 1, 2018, the Kings signed Drew Doughty to an eight-year contract extension. The deal slotted Doughty, then 28, on the right side of Los Angeles' top pair for the foreseeable future, and he remains there today.Around this time, Matt Roy was beginning to show signs of future top-four potential. He also shoots right. If all went according to plan, the Kings would theoretically have enough talent on the right side to take a conservative approach to right-handed defensemen over the next handful of years.What they've done instead is acquire righties with NHL potential and then figure out later on what to do with such rare assets. For instance, after the Doughty extension, the Kings signed undrafted free agent Sean Walker and added prospect Sean Durzi in a trade with Toronto. Gary A. Vasquez / Getty ImagesThe Kings then selected seven righties over the next five drafts - not an absurdly high rate but high nonetheless. The kicker is they hit on four of them: Jordan Spence, Brock Faber, Helge Grans, and Brandt Clarke.Spence and Clarke are future pillars of L.A.'s blue line; Faber and a first-rounder were traded to Minnesota for Kevin Fiala; Grans and Walker left in a three-team, eight-piece swap; and Durzi was sent to Arizona for a second-rounder.You can certainly quibble with the results of those trades. No major wins.But the takeaway is that the Kings have continued to covet a hot commodity across the league, which is a clever way of approaching the draft and develop process. It also makes me wonder what's in store for Otto Salin and Matthew Mania, righties with NHL potential drafted by L.A. in 2022 and 2023.Parting shotsNasty Nate: The Hart Trophy race will be a treat to watch down the stretch. Matthews, MacKinnon, Connor McDavid, Nikita Kucherov, and Connor Hellebuyck all have strong cases with four weeks left. Here's one stat that isn't necessarily relevant to the MVP discussion but highlights the absurdity of some of these performances: MacKinnon has at least one point in every Avalanche home game. In 32 games at Ball Arena, he's racked up 71 points (26 goals, 45 assists), which is more than all but 18 NHLers' season-long total.MacKinnon's streak is tied with Guy Lafleur (1978-79, Montreal) for third-longest in league history. Wayne Gretzky - obviously - sits first and second on the list. Gretzky snagged a point in all 40 Kings home games in 1988-89. The modern 82-game season gives MacKinnon one extra date, so he'll become the new record holder if he goes wire to wire.

Relocation will be a possibility for the Arizona Coyotes if they lose a land auction scheduled for June.The Coyotes' ownership is keen to win the auction, Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman reported on "Saturday Headlines.""However, there is also an admission that the status quo cannot continue," according to Friedman."(It's unclear) what the timeline would be if they do win it, and how long it would take," he added. "As a result of that, especially if the Coyotes don't win the auction, relocation will be on the table."The franchise is reportedly preparing for both scenarios.On Thursday, the Arizona State Land Department Board of Appeals unanimously approved a $68.5-million appraisal for a 95-acre plot of land in Phoenix, clearing the way for the Coyotes to bid on it. That price will be the starting point in the auction, and it must be advertised for 10 weeks beforehand.The Coyotes' potential relocation has been a talking point for years. However, it's reached a boiling point this season as they've been looking for an alternate plan to avoid remaining at Mullett Arena, the 5,000-seat NCAA facility they were forced to move into starting in 2022-23.They had a plan to build an arena in Tempe, but a public referendum squashed that possibility last spring.In January, Utah Jazz owner Ryan Smith made a formal request to bring the NHL to that state. Then in February, NHLPA executive director Marty Walsh lambasted the Coyotes over the uncertainty of their situation. He said he was "extremely disappointed" in the ownership of the club, that he had "serious concerns" about it, and asked, "How long do you wait to get a home?"The original Winnipeg Jets relocated to become the Phoenix Coyotes in 1996.Copyright (C) 2024 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Sebastian Aho scored twice in the final two minutes of regulation to force overtime before the Carolina Hurricanes defeated the Toronto Maple Leafs 5-4 in a shootout Saturday.Aho brought the Canes within a goal at the 18:28 mark of the third period while Carolina was sporting a six-on-four advantage.

Canadiens head coach Martin St. Louis is taking an indefinite leave from the team for family reasons, Montreal announced Saturday.Assistant coach Trevor Letowski will handle head coaching duties in St. Louis' absence.St. Louis joined the Canadiens as bench boss in his first NHL coaching role of any kind when they fired Dominique Ducharme in February 2022. The rebuilding squad has gone 70-94-21 with St. Louis at the helm.Montreal entered Saturday 25-30-11, tied for last place in the Atlantic Division by points percentage (.462) with the Ottawa Senators.St. Louis had a Hall of Fame playing career primarily with the Tampa Bay Lightning. He racked up 1,033 points over 1,134 games, helping the Bolts win the Stanley Cup in 2004. The Hall inducted him in 2018.Letowski is a former NHL forward who spent 10 years behind OHL benches following his on-ice career. He also coached in three World Junior Championships as an assistant, winning gold on Ducharme's staff in 2018.Copyright (C) 2024 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Saturday's clash between Connor McDavid's Edmonton Oilers and Nathan MacKinnon's Colorado Avalanche is one the reigning MVP is looking forward to."I'm always motivated to go up against the league's best, and he would certainly fall under that category," McDavid said of MacKinnon on Friday."A bunch of them would over there: (Mikko) Rantanen, (Cale) Makar, (Devon) Toews. They've got an elite group over there, and I love testing myself against those types of guys."McDavid and MacKinnon are two consensus front-runners for the Hart Trophy but haven't faced each other yet this season. MacKinnon is considered by many to be the favorite to capture his first career MVP, as he leads the league with 115 points. McDavid, who won for the third time in his last seven seasons in 2023, currently ranks third in the scoring race at 106 points.On top of individual brilliance from their top players, the Oilers and Avalanche enter the contest as two of the hottest teams in the NHL. Both clubs have won seven of their last 10 games, and Colorado will roll into Edmonton on a five-game winning streak.McDavid said the matchup will be a good test for the Oilers."I think it's a great thing," he said. "Of course, these guys are as good as anyone in the league. It's good to test where your team's at and where your game's at against one of the league's best."Copyright (C) 2024 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

An intriguing MVP battle has gotten significantly tighter in recent weeks. A remarkable run earlier in the winter briefly made Auston Matthews a Hart favorite in some circles, but he's come back down to earth since then.Numerous metrics continue to favor a certain player in Colorado who's led this race for a while despite the Herculean efforts of some other superstars.Here are our top five candidates now that we're more than three-quarters of the way through this NHL season with just over a month to go until the 82-game slate concludes.xGF% = Expected goals for percentage5. David Pastrnak Steph Chambers / Getty Images Sport / GettyGPGAATOIxGF%68415419:5952.52Pastrnak has been productive since our last edition of these rankings on Feb. 9, notching eight goals and 12 assists in 17 games. But others both on and off this list have been more impactful lately, so he's become a fringe MVP candidate despite having a commendable season.The Boston Bruins winger sits in the top five in the NHL in goals and points on the campaign, both in all situations and at even strength. He's posted 14 more goals, 21 more assists, and 36 more points than his closest teammates. These disparities represent the strongest argument in his favor.Pastrnak's underlying numbers have been favorable both for the season as a whole and more recently. He boasts a 56.25 xGF% since our last edition, along with expected goals for percentages around 52% in both timeframes. The fact that he's slid further down these rankings is mostly due to his competition.4. Auston Matthews Mark Blinch / National Hockey League / GettyGPGAATOIxGF%64552721:0254.66It's time to acknowledge two things: Matthews belongs among the most worthy Hart contenders, but he's not one of the front-runners. The Toronto Maple Leafs sniper is on pace for 70 goals (rounding up from 69.6) this season, and he was the MVP with "only" 60 tallies in 2021-22. Fast-forward two years and Matthews now leads the "Rocket" Richard Trophy race by nine.The American center has been scoring at a white-hot pace for much of the campaign. From Jan. 16 through Feb. 29, he lit the lamp 20 times in 18 games while adding 10 assists before managing only two goals and two assists in his last six contests. Matthews' two-way game has been stellar, though. He ranks fourth in the NHL in standings points above replacement, wins above replacement, and goals above replacement for the season. So it's not just the goal-scoring rate that's inserted him into the Hart conversation.Matthews has also put the Leafs on his back in 2023-24, scoring 20 more goals than William Nylander, who sits second on the squad. Matthews has buried 40 of his goals at even strength, which leads the league. However, he's only registered about half as many assists as club leaders Nylander and Mitch Marner, who have 51 apiece. It's hard to justify a Hart case for someone who doesn't even lead his team in points, but he's done enough at both ends of the ice to be a contender.3. Nikita Kucherov Winslow Townson / Getty Images Sport / GettyGPGAATOIxGF%65397321:5251.87Kucherov racked up another five points Thursday night, and it was the sixth time this season he's collected at least four in a game. The Tampa Bay Lightning forward is tied for second in the league in assists and occupies that spot outright in the points race. He also sits third in even-strength points in 2023-24.The Russian has 19 more assists and an impressive 39 more points than any other Lightning skater on the campaign but only has three more goals. To Kucherov's credit, he's tied for sixth in the NHL in SPAR, he's tied for seventh in WAR, and he ranks seventh in GAR.The Bolts haven't been dominant lately, but Kucherov keeps producing in bunches. If the MVP race was exclusively about underlying numbers, Matthews might have the edge over Kucherov for this spot. He ranks higher than the Lightning catalyst in all the key metrics, particularly since our last edition. But we all know it's about more than that, and the majority of Hart voters will likely (and understandably) prioritize counting stats - points specifically - over analytics.2. Connor McDavid Andy Devlin / National Hockey League / GettyGPGAATOIxGF%62258121:3162.33McDavid remains a serious candidate due to his elite play, but he's still not doing quite enough to lead the race. The Edmonton Oilers superstar tops all NHL skaters in assists and points since our last edition by wide margins (14 and eight, respectively), though he's scored only four times in those 18 games. McDavid leads all NHL skaters in helpers on the season, ranks third in the Art Ross Trophy race, and sits second in even-strength points despite having played fewer games than his rivals.In addition to his offensive exploits, McDavid's underlying figures have been almost supernatural. Only teammate Evan Bouchard has a better five-on-five xGF% (62.73) among NHL skaters who've logged at least 1,000 minutes in those situations in 2023-24, and McDavid's SCF% on the season is also north of 60 (61.79). He's up over 60% in both categories since our last edition, too.McDavid ranks second in SPAR, WAR, and GAR behind only our No. 1 contender. The Oilers captain and three-time MVP won't come anywhere close in 2023-24 to matching the 64 goals and 153 points he piled up last season. But he impacts the game in myriad ways, and that's reflected in statistics across the board.1. Nathan MacKinnon Michael Martin / National Hockey League / GettyGPGAATOIxGF%67427322:5056.74MacKinnon has come very close to claiming the Hart several times, but it's becoming more and more clear that this is his year. The Colorado Avalanche dynamo is pacing the league in points - both in all situations and at even strength - but his status as the front-runner goes far beyond that.The Nova Scotian center isn't just leading the three "above replacement" categories; he's doing so handily. Simply put, he has been by far the best all-around skater in the NHL this season. Need more evidence?

Find year-round coverage of betting news and insights for all sports by visiting our Betting section and subscribing to push notifications.Since we figured out how much a goal matters to the likelihood of victory earlier this week, you can turn to the person you're watching the game with, high-five, and yell "12.5%!" in celebration amid the horn and your favorite team's goal song.Scoring is an obvious way to boost a team's chances of winning, but while we know a big save helps, it's harder to quantify how much - as you exhale after a breakaway stop or a turned-away one-timer.Last week, we listed the goaltenders who matter within their team - where there's a difference from the theoretical No.1 to the backup - measured by advanced metric GSAx. We made our arbitrary cutoff a differential of 0.2, but what does that mean to a team's likelihood of winning?Goaltending ValuationIf the primary aim is to score four goals, the other part of the equation should be to prevent the opponent from getting four themselves. Therefore, every goal saved above expected (GSAx) contributes 12.5% toward a team win in the same way a goal scored improves a team's chances by 12.5%. As a primer, let's look at some of the best individual goaltending efforts this week.Daniil Tarasov was great, but Cayden Primeau was better Tuesday in Montreal. Sam Montembeault did everything he could as the Canadiens forced overtime against the much better Bruins. Karel Vejmelka deserved better, but Wild skaters dominated the Coyotes with a 70% expected goal share and a 12-3 high-danger chance ratio at five-on-five. The other five games where a goaltender stood out led to the Blues beating the Kings and Bruins, the Devils blowing out the Stars, and the Senators snapping a seven-game skid.That's a change of pace in Ottawa, as they've gotten the worst goaltending this year with a collective -31.22 GSAx in 62 contests (as of March 11). Allowing a half-goal per game more than a replacement-level goalie, Joonas Korpisalo, Anton Forsberg, and Mads Sogaard have hurt the Senators' win probability by an average of 6.25% before the puck drops. Theoretically, at -6.25% implied win probability, they've hurt Ottawa's chances more than all but six skaters help their team's cause, according to market evaluations of NHL stars.Since the betting market couldn't have predicted it would be that bad, Ottawa bettors have been buying the Sens at a -EV (expected value) price. With tax time around the corner and no relief for the nearly $10 million the Sens have spent on goaltenders against the salary cap, the only write-off coming in Ottawa is this season as a whole.The cheat sheetThe betting world's dirty little secret is that, while there are no bad bets at the right price, the process of discovering a good price is hidden.Each week, we balance market information from regular-season point totals and in-season advanced metrics - with an even-strength focus - to determine the win probability for each team and the moneyline needed to bet on either side. The idea is to remove the cognitive bias of win-loss records, which can be skewed by outliers like special-team results, poor goaltending performances, and other unreliable events.You can use whatever parameters you like to decide how much of an edge you need to trigger a bet, but here are mine:

Toronto Maple Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe announced Friday that forward Calle Jarnkrok is week-to-week with a hand injury, according to the Toronto Sun's Lance Hornby.Jarnkrok sustained the injury after crashing hard into the boards during the second period of Thursday's 6-2 win over the Philadelphia Flyers.

Find year-round coverage of betting news and insights for all sports by visiting our Betting section and subscribing to push notifications.Thursday was a monster night on the ice. We swept the entire board, cashing all three player props and both sides en route to a 5-0 night.Let's take a look at a couple plays I like on Friday.Kings (-270) @ Blackhawks (+220)Arvid Soderblom might be the worst goaltender in the NHL. He owns an .879 save percentage and ranks dead last in goals saved above expected per game among the 51 netminders with more than 20 played.He has lost 10 of his past 12 starts, only picking up a pair of wins against a banged-up Coyotes team that sold several pieces ahead of the deadline.Multiple goals decided every one of his 10 defeats suffered in this stretch. Soderblom has routinely given up crooked numbers, and the Blackhawks have struggled to give him goal support the occasional time he's held up his end of the bargain.I expect another ugly performance versus the Kings. Los Angeles is fighting tooth and nail to try and catch the Oilers and earn home ice in the opening round.Jordan Binnington stole the show against the Kings last time out, stopping 40 of 41 shots and stealing two deserved points. L.A. will be champing at the bit to get back on track and knows it has a golden opportunity to do just that against Chicago.I don't think the Blackhawks' defense - nor Soderblom - will hold up against Adrian Kempe, Kevin Fiala, and some of the Kings stars who are heating up offensively.Look for the Kings to cover the puck line in Chicago.Bet: Kings -1.5 (-105)Ducks (+310) @ Jets (-390)Earlier in the week, we backed the Jets, citing how well they respond to seemingly every poor showing. They came through in a big way, putting their foot down against the Capitals in a 3-0 victory.We'll use the same line of thinking, yet take a slightly different approach, versus Anaheim.The Ducks are one of the league's worst teams. They struggle to score goals, give up plenty of scoring chances, and can't stay out of the penalty box. They are also in the latter half of a road back-to-back, having played in Minnesota on Thursday night.This is a spot where the Jets - fresh off an ugly loss where they trailed by multiple goals early and never contended - will be looking to pounce on a vulnerable team. And they should have little problem doing so.The Ducks have conceded 72 goals in the opening period, third most in the NHL. Conversely, the Jets have allowed only 46 goals in the first period, one of the league's best marks.They should have no problem tightening the screws on the Ducks' weak offense while getting their share of opportunities at the other end.The Jets are -390 to win this game, indicating they're a far superior team, and they likely take care of business.Backing Winnipeg to start strong by winning the first period is a creative way to get involved at a more profitable price.Bet: Jets first period -0.5 (-105)Todd Cordell is a sports betting writer at theScore. You can follow him on X at @ToddCordell.Copyright (C) 2024 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

The Philadelphia Flyers have been one of the league's biggest surprises this season, but Scott Laughton believes his team needs to pick up the pace to secure its first playoff berth since 2020."At this time of year, you've got to be ready to play," the forward told reporters following the Flyers' 6-2 shakedown at the hands of the Toronto Maple Leafs. "You can't just go out there and put your stick on the ice and hope for the best. The last three games haven't been good enough. ... Everyone's got to look in the mirror here and figure out what we need to do collectively as a group here to get better."Thursday's resounding defeat marked Philadelphia's second loss in three games since the March 8 trade deadline. The Flyers lost 7-0 to the Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday and narrowly beat the basement-dwelling San Jose Sharks 3-2 on Tuesday."It's hard at this time of year. It's hard to win hockey games," Laughton said. "Everyone's trying to get (into the playoffs), everyone's trying to solidify their spot. We've gotta realize in this room, we've gotta make a push here."It's been tough sledding for the Flyers of late. With one eye on the future, general manager Danny Briere dealt pending unrestricted free-agent rearguard Sean Walker to the Colorado Avalanche before the deadline and didn't spend major assets to bolster his squad. The team is also trying to make do with a battered blue line, with Rasmus Ristolainen, Jamie Drysdale, and Nick Seeler all sidelined with injuries.Philadelphia is still third in the Metropolitan Division at 34-25-8 with an 82.7% chance of making the postseason, per MoneyPuck. However, the New York Islanders are four points behind with two games in hand.Further complicating things for the Flyers is their upcoming schedule. Their next six opponents are all playoff contenders, including the Maple Leafs in another clash Tuesday.Associate coach Brad Shaw - who's filling in for the suspended John Tortorella - hopes Thursday's loss can serve as "a good lesson.""Toronto's got a battle-hardened group there that's been through some hard knocks. ... We've got a lot of guys that still have to learn all that," he said. "They have to recognize how hard you have to play to have any chance at this time of year."Copyright (C) 2024 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Find year-round coverage of betting news and insights for all sports by visiting our Betting section and subscribing to push notifications.We had a perfect night on the ice Thursday, going 3-0 with player props and 5-0 overall.We'll look to keep the ball rolling and end the week on a high note, with three props for a light Friday card.Adrian Kempe: Over 3.5 shotsKempe has taken his shot volume up a couple notches of late. He has gone over his total in five of the past six games, averaging 5.33 shots on goal in that span. Kempe isn't just squeaking by; he's blowing by.I don't expect him to slow down against the Blackhawks. They continue to struggle defensively, ranking 27th in shot suppression and goal prevention over the past 10 games.The Blackhawks are also playing at a high pace. They rank eighth in total pace (attempts generated plus allowed per 60) over the last 10 games, often finding themselves in high-event affairs where shots fly from everywhere. That kind of environment should greatly benefit a speedy shooter like Kempe.It's also worth noting Kempe has a track record against the Blackhawks, who've been quite bad over the last couple of years. He has generated 19 shots over his past four meetings, going over his total in each.That trend should continue Friday.Odds: -125 (playable to -140)Seth Jones: Over 2.5 shotsJones is one of the NHL's hottest shooters. He was a consistent target for the under earlier in the year, routinely landing on one or two shots while attempting only a few.He's shifted to more of a shooting mentality in recent weeks. Jones has gone over his total in 12 of the past 15 games and is often getting the job done with room to spare.A massive increase in attempts suggests his soaring hit rate is no coincidence. He has averaged 7.2 shot attempts over this 15-game heater, far above his season average of 5.8, which is also propped up by this stretch.The Kings are generally not a team I target for shots but I like Jones in this spot. They have played faster of late, ranking 10th in five-on-five pace. They have also struggled to stay out of the penalty box, opening the door for plenty of extra offensive zone time for Jones to generate shots.Odds: -106 (playable to -125)Drew Doughty: Over 0.5 pointsDoughty has hit another gear offensively of late, recording at least a point in eight of his past 10 games.This isn't a matchup where I'd expect Doughty to slow down. Both teams rank top 10 in total five-on-five pace over the last 10 contests, creating a good environment for offense.The Blackhawks also struggle mightily to keep the puck out - especially with Arvid Soderblom between the pipes.Soderblom owns a putrid .879 save percentage on the year and has conceded nearly four goals per game. He's showing no sign of improvement, having allowed 28 goals over his last seven starts.Doughty plays massive minutes in all situations for the Kings. If Soderblom is conceding goals by the handful, Doughty has a strong chance of getting involved with at least one.Odds: -132 (playable to -150)Bonus round: Mark Scheifele over 0.5 assists (playable to -110). He's expected to return to the lineup tonight, but no lines are available because he missed the last game. The Ducks give up a ton of shots and can't stay out of the box. There is no reason to expect any different in the latter half of a back-to-back. Scheifele should have plenty of the puck in the offensive zone and is surrounded by a handful of excellent shooters - be it at even strength or on the power play - in Kyle Connor, Nik Ehlers, and Tyler Toffoli. Look for him to set one up.Todd Cordell is a sports betting writer at theScore. You can follow him on X at @ToddCordell.Copyright (C) 2024 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

St. Louis Blues executive Doug Armstrong was officially named general manager of the 2026 Canadian Olympic men's hockey team on Friday.Anaheim Ducks icon and 17-year NHL veteran Ryan Getzlaf will aid Armstrong in preparing for the Olympics as a player relations advisor.Armstrong has also been tasked with choosing the GM for Canada at the 2024 World Championship and the 2025 NHL 4 Nations Face-Off.The 59-year-old Sarnia, Ontario, native has served as Blues GM since 2010. The club won the Stanley Cup in 2019 and has only missed the playoffs four times under his reign.Armstrong has been involved with Hockey Canada on several occasions, most notably serving as assistant GM for the 2010 and 2014 Olympic teams and GM for the 2016 World Cup of Hockey and 2023 World Championship. Armstrong was also set to serve as GM of Canada's 2022 Olympic team before the NHL bowed out due to COVID-19 issues.The NHL 4 Nations Face-Off is a new event set for February 2025 featuring teams from Canada, the United States, Sweden, and Finland.The 2026 Winter Olympics will take place in Milan and Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy. The 2024 Worlds will be in Czechia in May.Canada has been victorious at the last three best-on-best international hockey tournaments: the 2010 and 2014 Olympics and the 2016 World Cup of Hockey. Canada also won gold at the 2023 Worlds.Copyright (C) 2024 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Brayden Point is optimistic the Tampa Bay Lightning's 6-3 victory over the New York Rangers on Thursday will provide a shot in the arm amid the team's scrap for playoff positioning."I think it gives us confidence, especially coming back against a team like New York, a very good hockey team," he told reporters postgame. "I think it hopefully gives us some belief down the stretch here that we're not out of games, we can still climb back."The Bolts headed into the first intermission down 2-0, and Point was on the ice for both goals against. He responded by putting up a hat trick and three assists, including four points in the final frame.The 28-year-old tied a franchise record for most points in a game. Nikita Kucherov accomplished the feat in 2023, while Doug Crossman pulled it off in 1992."It's very cool," Point said. "Just one of those nights where everything kind of seems to work out."Jack Roslovic broke the 2-2 tie in the Rangers' favor early in the third period, but Point responded less than two minutes later for the first of four unanswered goals for Tampa Bay.The Lightning currently hold the first wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference with a four-point edge over the New York Islanders and Detroit Red Wings. They have a 93.4% chance of making the playoffs for the seventh straight season, per MoneyPuck.Despite that, head coach Jon Cooper isn't allowing the Lightning to rest on their laurels."We have a group that wants to make the playoffs, and they believe they can," he said. "By no means is one win putting us in the playoffs. We still have a long way to go, but early in the year, I think with this group, and with so many new faces that we had, we probably found a way to lose that game."And now, with under 20 (games) left, this team is finding a way to win those games."Next up for the Bolts is a clash against the Florida Panthers on Saturday.Copyright (C) 2024 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Carolina Hurricanes forward Evgeny Kuznetsov felt the love from his new fans after burying his first goal with the club in Thursday's win over the Florida Panthers.Kuznetsov fired a wrister past Sergei Bobrovsky in the second period and broke out his patented bird celebration in front of a raucous PNC Arena. He was named the game's first star after the victory.

The Chicago Blackhawks and former forward Corey Perry reached a settlement after the player and NHLPA alleged his contract was improperly terminated, according to Daily Faceoff's Frank Seravalli.The Blackhawks are expected to receive a small charge to their salary cap, Seravalli adds. Perry was eligible to file a grievance but didn't.Chicago signed Perry to a one-year, $4-million deal last June but terminated his contract after only 16 games, citing unacceptable conduct. After taking time off to receive help, Perry signed a one-year pact with the Edmonton Oilers for the remainder of the current season.The 38-year-old has recorded seven points in 20 games since joining the Oilers.Copyright (C) 2024 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Pittsburgh Penguins blue-liner Erik Karlsson doesn't seem too convinced by recent speculation linking him back to the Ottawa Senators."Yeah, that's Canada for you," he told reporters Thursday, including The Hockey News' Nick Horwat. "I played there for a long time so I kinda know how that game works. They've got a lot of things to talk about every day because they've got a lot of airtime, but very few things to actually discuss."They like to make up these what-if scenarios, and that's just the way it is. It's not something that I really look into or worry too much about."Karlsson spent the first nine seasons of his NHL career with the Senators after Ottawa drafted him with the 15th overall pick in 2008. He skated in 627 games with the franchise and is still its all-time leader in goals (126) and points (518) among defensemen.The Senators made the playoffs five times during Karlsson's tenure, including a trip to the conference finals in 2017. The puck-moving Swede amassed 18 points in 19 games and was a plus-13 during that particular run.In a recent column, Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman wondered if the Senators would consider a Karlsson reunion because of his ties to Daniel Alfredsson. A fellow Swede, Alfredsson currently serves as an assistant coach in Ottawa and was a teammate of Karlsson for four seasons. The insider broached the topic again during Monday's edition of "32 Thoughts: The Podcast."Though the Penguins have stumbled during Karlsson's first season in Pittsburgh, their flashy offseason addition leads the defense corps with eight goals and 44 points in 64 games.The Senators were reportedly interested in adding veteran rearguard Chris Tanev as a foundational piece to aid their young blue line. The pending unrestricted free agent ended up getting traded to the Dallas Stars.Karlsson has three more years remaining on his current deal, which includes a full no-move clause. His salary is $11.5 million, but the San Jose Sharks are retaining $1.5 million as part of the agreement that sent Karlsson to Pittsburgh in August.Copyright (C) 2024 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Blue Jackets goaltender Elvis Merzlikins isn't quite sure what the future will hold once Columbus names its new general manager, but he's certain things will be different.A lot different."I'm expecting there's going to be big changes," he said, according to The Athletic's Aaron Portzline. "Huge changes, because we can't keep going like this. There has to be change. We're in the National Hockey League. This is a professional league - the best players in the world."The organization is, I believe, going to do what's best, and we'll see during the summertime."The Blue Jackets are on track to finish at the bottom of the Metropolitan Division for the second straight campaign despite adding Johnny Gaudreau, Ivan Provorov, and Damon Severson over the last two offseasons. Columbus last made the playoffs in 2020.The organization fired GM Jarmo Kekalainen after 12 seasons at the helm in February. President of hockey operations and alternate governor John Davidson has taken over the duties on an interim basis.Merzlikins himself could potentially be on the outs in a few months time with the looming front office change. He has three years remaining on his deal with a $5.4-million cap hit, which also comes with a 10-team no-trade list."I'm definitely not feeling threatened or scared," he said. "It's not just about my future, it's about everyone's future."The 29-year-old has rebounded from last season as he's improved his save percentage and goals against average from .876 and 4.23 to .901 and 3.29, respectively. He's also saved 5.92 goals saved above expected at all strengths, per Evolving-Hockey, after ranking dead last among all goalies in GSAx (minus-26.74) in 2022-23.Merzlikins made waves in January when he said he was in pursuit of "a new scenario." However, the veteran goaltender - who's started 12 of the Jackets' last 23 contests after taking a backseat to Daniil Tarasov - told Portzline that he successfully got his "different scenario."The Blue Jackets will square off against the Ottawa Senators on Thursday with Merzlikins between the pipes.Copyright (C) 2024 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

The curly-haired chemist is working away in a San Jose lab. He's wearing a white lab coat, safety goggles, and nitrile gloves. Flasks are stirring on a hot plate with temperature monitors nearby. The lab, run by the electric car battery company QuantumScape, stores various solvents and inorganic powders - any material that might mix to make a lithium ion battery.The chemist's cell phone rings. He finds a quiet area of the lab to take the call.Hockey Hall of Fame forward Ron Francis is on the line. It's the 2014-15 season, Francis' first as general manager of the small-market Carolina Hurricanes. Francis asks the chemist - who's assumed a part-time consultant role with the NHL team - about a few players. How would you rank them?The call is short. The chemist slides his phone into his pocket, slips his gloves on, and walks to his work station. Back to the day job for Eric Tulsky.Hurricanes assistant GM Eric Tulsky Supplied / Carolina HurricanesIf Hollywood were to produce hockey's equivalent of "Moneyball," that scene would surely make the final cut. It feels scripted - yet isn't. Tulsky, an Ivy League-educated, Ph.D.-wielding scientist with a well-paying Silicon Valley job, was caught between two worlds a decade ago. He was thriving as an inorganic chemist and in his side hustle as a data-driven hockey analyst."I felt like, from the start, that they wanted to hear what I wanted to say," Tulsky said of the Hurricanes. "I still had to earn their confidence in trusting my opinions. But they wanted to hear it from the outset. And that was big."Tulsky, now 49, left California and science for North Carolina and a full-time position with the Hurricanes ahead of the 2015-16 season. Since then, he's ascended to assistant GM under GM Don Waddell (who replaced Francis in 2018) and interviewed for GM openings in multiple other markets.Below is the story of Tulsky's evolution from outsider to insider, as well as the rise of statistical analysis within NHL teams and the greater hockey universe.Kyle Dubas (right) with Brendan Shanahan at the 2015 NHL Draft Bruce Bennett / Getty ImagesPrimitive advanced statistics like Corsi, PDO, and zone starts were developed and evangelized on blogs and social media websites in the mid-to-late 2000s.These stats and the insights gleaned from them went mainstream in the early 2010s, capturing the imagination of NHL owners and executives. The analytics movement reached a tipping point in the 2014 offseason as thought leaders like Tulsky, lawyer Tyler Dellow, engineer Tim Barnes, and stock trader Sunny Mehta were snapped up by teams looking for an edge. They wanted exclusive access to minds publishing probing hockey analysis online.The Toronto Maple Leafs made the splashiest hire of the so-called "Summer of Analytics" when president Brendan Shanahan named 28-year-old Kyle Dubas assistant GM. Despite his deep roots in the game, Dubas had been billed the Theo Epstein of hockey - a stats-loving rising star. He soon formed a "research and development" group within the hockey operations department.Before the 2014 hiring spree, about 15 people were working in analytics roles. The headcount for analytics staffers has since exploded to nearly 150.According to online staff directories, 2023-24 media guides, and additional reporting by theScore, 22 of 32 teams - or 69% of the league - currently employ between two and five people in a hockey data-related capacity.The Chicago Blackhawks employ a league-high 11 analytics staffers under 35-year-old GM Kyle Davidson. The Leafs and Dubas' new team, the Pittsburgh Penguins, employ nine staffers each. And the New Jersey Devils employ eight, including Dellow as senior vice president of hockey strategy and analytics.Mat Sells, the Minnesota Wild's VP of hockey strategy, frames the current investment in analytics this way: some franchises hired a stats person in the mid-2010s for the sole purpose of signalling to fans that they had a pulse on the space. Now, he said, "every single team understands at least the most basic usage of statistical information and applies that to their operation."The appetite for statistical analysis varies from person to person, and especially in hockey, given the sport's speedy, flowing, and chaotic nature. Still, it's increasingly rare to find someone working in hockey who dismisses it."Analytics, at the end of the day, is just a fancy word for information," one team's director of hockey analytics said. (Some sources for this article were granted anonymity because they're not permitted to speak with reporters.)Golden Knights head coach Bruce Cassidy Dave Reginek / Getty ImagesVegas Golden Knights head coach Bruce Cassidy sees a parallel between the early days of analytics and the early days of texting. Texting was originally scoffed at in his social circle - "Just call me, what are you texting me for?" he recalls a friend saying in the mid-2000s - but it slowly became part of daily life. People realized texting's an efficient way to communicate and adjusted their habits."Players determine success, not numbers," Cassidy said. "But it sure can help you coach your players. I think the data itself has come a long way, and the coaches I think who are current will use analytics to their advantage."Corsi, which quantified overall shot attempts, including those that were blocked or missed the net, has been replaced by nuanced expected-goal models. Scoring chances can now be broken down by type: forecheck, cycle, rush, rebound, deflection. Shot speed, skating distance, puck-battle wins, strength of opponent, zone denials, and goals saved above expected are among countless metrics.We've learned to lean on data in our personal lives, Cassidy notes, so why not in hockey? "You use good data," he said, "and all of a sudden you can make better decisions on how to eat, how to exercise, how to raise your kids."Cassidy's conversations with Vegas' stats people often revolve around 10-game segments. Director of hockey analytics Dustin Walsh and director of hockey ops Tom Poraszka will share their thoughts on, say, the struggling power play. Maybe the defending Stanley Cup champions aren't generating enough offensive-zone time. Or zone-entry and puck-recovery rates have fallen off a cliff. Or they're too often losing the draw to start a power play.Golden Knights defenders swarm an opponent Ben Jackson / Getty ImagesNumbers can also be a check on team identity for Cassidy. Vegas famously packs the middle of the ice on defense to limit shots from prime scoring spots, so it's OK if the club ranks high in defensive-zone time. It's not OK, however, if it ranks high in high-danger scoring chances against."I can look at certain areas and say, 'Yeah, that number's no good. That's one of the reasons our game has slipped a little bit,'" Cassidy explained. "Other numbers could be there - high or low - and they do not go hand in hand at all with what's going on on the ice because it's not relevant to how we play."Pete DeBoer of the Dallas Stars likes how advanced stats can help him and his staff "get into the deep layers" of a player's game. He'll take a nugget of data and combine it with video clips and his own intuition as head coach to deliver a message to a player that's both comprehensive and individualized."The ability to compare when a player was playing at a really good level to when he's slumping, and to show them some data about it - other than just listening to a coach drone on about his opinion and why he's not playing well - can be really helpful," said DeBoer, an NHL coach since 2008.Young players are part of tech-savvy Generation Z. They want information."Their faces are buried in their phones all day long," DeBoer laughed. "They expect data. They expect engagement. They expect feedback. It's changed coaching. It's definitely made us more accountable as coaches to the messaging we're giving. You have to go another layer beyond just your opinion, and I'll be honest with you, sometimes that changes your opinion, too, when you dig into it. So, that's a good thing."Blues center Robert Thomas scans the ice for open teammates Icon Sportswire / Getty ImagesSt. Louis Blues center Robert Thomas is a self-described "hockey nerd" who tunes into NHL games in his spare time. He'll watch for pleasure or to study players or teams. At the rink, the 24-year-old is treated to regular presentations from Blues goaltending coach David Alexander, who uses data to break down recent goal-scoring trends to a group of curious players."This year a lot of tipped goals have gone in. A lot of back of the net, to-the-slot plays," Thomas said of two examples. "Those types of things. There's probably like 25 different categories you want to look at, and it really tells a big story about the way goal scoring has changed over the last two, three years."Engaging directly with the data didn't come as naturally to Travis Konecny. But towards the end of the 2021-22 season, the Philadelphia Flyers winger took the advice of then-special assistant to the GM (now current GM) Daniel Briere and dove into details of his game with video clips and advanced stats.Briere and director of hockey analytics Ian Anderson identified troubling patterns: Konecny was too frequently firing pucks from the perimeter, and wasn't funneling the puck to the interior enough as a passer. He needed to overhaul his offensive-zone habits to increase Philly's odds of scoring."It wasn't that I wasn't working hard. It was just that I was going to the wrong areas of the ice," Konecny said of what he learned.It ultimately helped Konecny, a 2015 first-round pick, get back on track. He recorded 31 goals in 60 games in 2022-23 and earned an All-Star nod this season. "It kind of turned me into a different player," the 27-year-old said.Konecny drives to the net Mitchell Leff / Getty ImagesWhile Thomas, Konecny, and others have benefited from statistical analysis, there's danger in overexposing athletes who perform best on instinct. Front offices and coaching staffs pick their spots on both the individual and team level. As one assistant coach explained, an analytics staffer will provide the coaches with a handful of insights ahead of a game, and then the coaches relay one or two of those data-driven points to the players. Less is more."Let's get on them on the forecheck," the coach said of the phrasing he might use if the opponent ranks bottom five in puck retrievals.Vegas operates similarly. Cassidy throws strategies, not data, at his group."I don't think players are ready for that," he said.Dubas and former Arizona Coyotes GM John Chayka are often viewed as the ambassadors of the analytics movement. What's usually overlooked is that both had skin in the game long before the spotlight. Dubas was a stickboy and scout for an OHL team and became a certified NHLPA player agent in his early 20s. Chayka, prior to co-founding the analytics company Stathletes, was an OHL-drafted junior-A forward who dabbled in video and fitness coaching.In contrast, Tulsky never played organized hockey and had no institutional ties for the first 35 years of his life. His entry point wasn't glamorous, either. He wrote about aging curves, penalty differential, draft slot value, and neutral-zone play. To a lot of the analytics staffers in the league today, it's Tulsky's nontraditional path - not Dubas' or Chayka's - that's relatable and inspiring."Of the people in his lane, Eric is probably furthest ahead," said one team's director of hockey analytics. The director cited Tulsky's climb in Carolina: hockey analyst, to manager of hockey analytics, to VP of hockey management and strategy, to assistant GM of analytics and professional scouting.Eric Tulsky in 2023 and as a sports-loving child Josh Lavallee / Getty Images & SuppliedBorn in Port Huron, Michigan, Tulsky moved to Philadelphia at age four. He was a diehard fan of Philly's sports teams, including the Flyers, though he gravitated toward baseball. The family had partial season tickets to Phillies home games, and young Tulsky devoured books by baseball analytics pioneer Bill James and obsessed over the stats-centric Strat-O-Matic board game."He's had his own internal drive forever," said Tulsky's dad, Rick, a Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative journalist. His mom Kim, a retired commercial lawyer, likes to tell a story about her four-year-old waking her up one Sunday morning to pass along a bit of urgent news and analysis: He'd learned the sum of five plus four."It's nine! Do you want to know how I know?!" young Tulsky asked his mom."Sure, honey," Kim responded."Well, five plus five is 10, and four is one less than five. So that means five plus four must be one less than five plus five. So, nine!" he exclaimed.Eric went on to earn a degree in chemistry and physics from Harvard and a Ph.D. in chemistry from the University of California, Berkeley. He conducted a two-year postdoctoral study at the Naval Research Lab in Washington, D.C., then spent 10 years working for several innovative companies as a scientist and manager. Tulsky was tasked with solving problems in DNA sequencing, solar energy, displays, and energy storage. He currently holds 26 U.S. patents."Eric can get deep into the details but also will have a higher-level view of everything going on at the company and even the industry," said Craig Stolarczyk, one of Tulsky's former coworkers at Life Technologies (which was later acquired by Fortune 500 biotech company Thermo Fisher Scientific).Eric Tulsky (right) with Hurricanes owner Tom Dundon (center) and assistant GM Darren Yorke Bruce Bennett / Getty ImagesAram Yang, who worked with Tulsky at QuantumScape, also has chemistry degrees from Harvard and the University of California. He notes that Tulsky is exceptionally bright, even compared to their high-achieving peers. He excels at translating technical concepts into plain language, Yang adds, and is "full of empathy.""If you were to make a list of the brightest people you know, and then make a list of the most empathetic people you know, how many people would be on both of those lists?" Yang asked rhetorically. "Not many, right? But Eric is."Tulsky's current gig pulls him in every direction. He's involved in all Hurricanes player personnel decisions, assists with contract negotiations and salary-cap compliance, and oversees 10 people working in analytics or pro scouting.Carolina is one of several clubs to build an internal platform to serve as a one-stop shop for scouting reports, stats, and video. "We try to house all of the information we have in there, no matter what form it is or wherever it came from," Tulsky said about CHIP, the Carolina Hurricanes Information Portal.The team's analytics group (the "hockey information group," officially) is large relative to the overall size of the hockey ops department, with a senior developer, two data scientists, a software developer, and a data engineer reporting to Tulsky. Waddell credits hands-on owner Tom Dundon, who purchased the Canes in 2018 and runs a private investment firm, for doubling down. "The analytics group was already up and running, but Tom brought a different mentality," Waddell said. "We want to be the best we can be, and make the best decisions we can, so we've put resources into that group."Hurricanes players celebrate a victory Josh Lavallee / Getty ImagesUnlike many other clubs, the Hurricanes have distinct team characteristics.They play a forecheck-heavy style and fill their roster with players suited for it. They seem to place a strict value on every asset (each player, pick, prospect) and rarely move off those valuations. They let veterans walk in free agency, swap picks more than anyone else, and prioritize upside in the draft.This well-defined identity and strategic vision paid off when a player tailor-made for coach Rod Brind'Amour's system recently became available. Contending Carolina was able to acquire star forward Jake Guentzel because the front office stockpiled enough salary, picks, and prospects to take that big swing.One advantage to having a lean operation is that every executive feels heard. That inner circle includes Dundon, Waddell, Brind'Amour, Tulsky, and Darren Yorke, the assistant GM in charge of amateur scouting. It turns out disagreeing, or challenging the status quo, is another distinct characteristic."Every person on our staff is comfortable telling their manager and their manager's manager that they disagree with them," Tulsky said."I remember somebody I worked with telling me once, 'If you're just going to agree with everything I say, there's no reason for me to pay you. I already know what I think. The only reason to have you here is because sometimes you'll tell me something that I didn't think about. That's what you're getting paid for: to disagree.'"The NHL has evolved over the past 10 years at the macro and micro levels.Take power-play deployment. All but four top units in the league currently feature four forwards, according to Daily Faceoff's lineup tool. Did the shift from using two defensemen to one occur in response to undeniable statistical evidence? Or did the numbers simply accelerate the shift?"Honestly, it's hard to say what's data driven and what's data reinforced," one team's director of hockey analytics said of a decade in which the NHL goals-per-game rate has jumped from 5.46 to 6.22 for a variety of reasons.Blackhawks forward Connor Bedard unleashes a shot from the slot Ethan Miller / Getty ImagesYet one macro trend seems strongly influenced by analytics. Mike Kelly, an NHL Network analyst and Sportlogiq's director of hockey analytics and insights, believes the industry-wide understanding of shot quality can be linked directly to a change in tactics. Point shots are out and point-blank shots are in thanks to heat maps and expected goals models.The 2015-16 season was the first that Sportlogiq tracked NHL games. That year, 30% of all shot attempts were categorized as "slot shots," or attempts originating from the most dangerous area of the ice. The number rapidly increased to 40% by 2018-19 and hasn't dipped below 37% over the past five seasons."What the data has done is open people's eyes," Cassidy said. "You used to think, OK, you've got a two-on-one, come down on the goalie, and, 'Shoot! Shoot! Shoot!' Then the data says, well, most of the time goals are scored with the goalie moving. So now we're going down on a two-on-one break, and we're like, 'Look for a play. Try to freeze the goalie. Look for an east-west play.'"Another team's director of analytics brought up aging curves. Front offices have a firmer grasp on performance peaks and valleys and are anticipating players' declines. The veteran so integral to dressing-room culture isn't getting extended and is aging out of the league earlier than prior eras."The NHL is an efficiency contest. It's about finding value," said Kent Wilson, who's been writing about hockey through a statistical lens for nearly 20 years.Infrared emitters used to capture new-age data NHL / Video screenshotIn 2024, NHL teams have access to mountains of data through third-party providers like Sportlogiq, Stathletes, Clear Sight Analytics, and SportsMedia Technology (SMT). Shots, hits, time on ice, and other traditional stats continue to be logged by off-ice officials, but anything remotely complicated - like zone entries and exits - is handled by tracking and artificial intelligence.NHL rinks are equipped with up to 20 cameras while player jerseys and pucks are tagged with infrared emitters to create X, Y, and Z coordinates throughout the game. This raw location data collected by SMT is fed straight to teams. It also helps generate the "measurable" stats found on NHL Edge, the player- and puck-tracking hub launched by the league earlier this season.We now know, for instance, this season's hardest shooter (Colin Miller) and fastest skater (Owen Tippett). The NHL views this product as a key engagement vehicle for fans and media that'll become more sophisticated over time."One of the challenges with hockey in general is that it's a very chaotic sport with lots of substitutions and where the best players play less than half the game," NHL group VP of statistics and information Russell Levine said. "We're hopeful that people can take the sort of information we're presenting and use it to better understand what makes certain players and teams effective."Oilers Leon Draisaitl and Tyson Barrie review a play on an iPad Jonathan Kozub / Getty ImagesA few people interviewed for this article wondered if the third-party providers will eventually be able to unearth data insights that can help better separate individual player performance from coaching systems. Others are interested in one day accessing data that can help better quantify hockey sense and hockey IQ.For example, if there was a skating route efficiency metric, the analysis around slow but incredibly smart players could become more nuanced."To be able to say, well, we've got this prospect we might want to draft or this NHLer on the free-agent market we might want to sign, and skating's been a bit of a detriment, but he is just so clearly elite at getting to the right spots that it doesn't matter - that for sure would be massively valuable," Kelly said.Wilson would like to get his hands on data relating to player types and teammate chemistry. Corey Sznajder of the All Three Zones manual tracking project is keen on learning about the efficacy of specific special-teams formations, and which players can handle disruptive shooting environments."I'd like to see a lot more data on how much space a player has around him and which players can score when they're being covered," Sznajder said.theScore floated a few of these ideas, plus the expected impact of AI on data and also productivity within organizations, to one director of hockey analytics. The director offered his two cents, and then added, partly in jest, "OK, now you understand why we have so much to do."At this point, most clubs have access to the same, or close to the same, raw data. "How you weaponize that information for insights, and how you communicate it, is the biggest competitive advantage right now," Kelly said.Wild VP of hockey strategy Mat Sells NHL Images / Getty ImagesSpeaking to his own experience, Sells - who heads Minnesota's two-person analytics group - says that the amount of data or the number of staffers working with it is irrelevant if the rest of hockey ops doesn't take you seriously."You could have people doing groundbreaking work in the industry," Sells said. "But if amateur or pro scouts, or development people, or the coaches, or the people managing the salary cap don't understand the information or see how it's applicable or valuable, then it probably won't be used properly."Traditional and nontraditional hockey people finding common ground may be the biggest development of the past 10 years. Tulsky, once a complete outsider, now supervises scouts whose deep experience and feel for the game combine with stats to make key decisions. The eye test is essential, he says.Tulsky, who interviewed for previous GM openings in Pittsburgh and Chicago and is surely being considered for Columbus' current opening, is happy in Carolina. And, no, the husband and father to a teenage son doesn't dwell on what life would look like in a lab coat. He's a hockey guy."I liked chemistry well enough. But I was doing hockey analysis for free in my spare time. I have not set up a chemistry lab in my garage," Tulsky said with a laugh.John Matisz is theScore's senior NHL writer. Follow John on Twitter (@MatiszJohn) or contact him via email (john.matisz@thescore.com).Copyright (C) 2024 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Find year-round coverage of betting news and insights for all sports by visiting our Betting section and subscribing to push notifications.We're coming in on a mini-sweep with our best bets. The Oilers pounded the Capitals while the Avalanche and Canucks played to the over in Vancouver.Senators (-125) @ Blue Jackets (+105)The Senators aren't playing great hockey, but bad luck has made things look a lot worse than they are.They've generated 205 scoring chances (fourth-most in the league) and 19.75 expected goals (11th-most) in March. But that's only translated to 12 goals - nearly eight below expectation.With the likes of Brady Tkachuk, Tim Stutzle, Drake Batherson, Claude Giroux and Shane Pinto, Ottawa has enough talent to convert these opportunities into goals at a much higher clip.But the Sens could have the perfect opponent to change that bad luck in the Blue Jackets. They've conceded more goals than all but the Sharks this season, and both their goaltenders - Elvis Merzlikins and Daniil Tarasov - grade negatively in terms of goals saved above expectation.The chances will be there for Ottawa and, with any luck, the goals should follow.Meanwhile, in Columbus, the youth movement continues. The Jackets are giving young journeymen like Alex Nylander and Trey Fix-Wolansky a lot of opportunities to show off what they can do. I just don't see enough play-driving ability or high-end talent on the roster to generate a win here.Bet: Senators (-125)Panthers (+105) @ Hurricanes (-125)The Hurricanes are gearing up for the playoffs, and it shows. They've tightened the screws on opposing offenses, allowing one even-strength goal or less in nine of the past 13 games. Moving the floor to two goals, that becomes 12 of 13 contests.Carolina has the best penalty kill in the league, so the club's an absolute nightmare to deal with in all scenarios. There's simply no easy way for teams to create offense.The Hurricanes' offense is also slowly rounding into form. On a per-minute basis, they rank third in expected goals and fifth in actual goals since Feb. 29.With Evgeny Kuznetsov and Jake Guentzel joining the mix, Carolina now has enough high-end talent to turn their chances into results more often.Although the Hurricanes were blanked in their last game, they did generate 3.36 expected goals. Rangers netminder Igor Shesterkin put on an impressive performance, which is customary from one of the league's best goaltenders.The Panthers are exceptional, but their underlying metrics have dipped a little lately. They're also playing without star defenseman Aaron Ekblad, and forward Evan Rodrigues is banged up.The Hurricanes are worth backing thanks to home ice, full health, and better five-on-five metrics.Bet: Hurricanes (-125)Todd Cordell is a sports betting writer at theScore. You can follow him on X at @ToddCordell.Copyright (C) 2024 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Avalanche star Nathan MacKinnon gave a glowing review of his team's 3-0 comeback to beat the Vancouver Canucks in overtime Wednesday."Best win of the year for sure," he said. "Really happy with our game. Tough start ... but we didn't quit. I thought we really dominated in the third period, which is always what you want to do. ... Really excited about that win tonight."Mikko Rantanen got Colorado on the board with three seconds remaining in the second period, setting up a dominant final frame in which the Avalanche outshot the Canucks 17-3. MacKinnon and Ross Colton scored to tie the game 3-3 before MacKinnon's shot deflected off Valeri Nichushkin's visor and in to end the contest in the extra frame."MacKinnon said, 'I'm taking this game,'" Canucks bench boss Rick Tocchet said. "We need(ed) a couple of guys to counteract that, and I thought we didn't."He added: "We just couldn't get anybody to grab hold of a puck - whether it's on a forecheck or a breakout - just to kind of slow things down. We were a little hot potato, and we were kind of soft on the puck, mostly in the third. I hate to say it, but (it's) a learning lesson. We need some guys to dig in on certain situations."The Canucks were outshot 34-21 on Wednesday, and the Avalanche dictated 69.6% of the expected goals at five-on-five, according to Natural Stat Trick.The victory marked Colorado's 21st comeback win this season, which came as no surprise to MacKinnon."We've always been a really good group (when we're) down a couple," he explained. "Even when we won the Cup (in 2022), it was almost better when we were losing for some reason. We just push harder, be more aggressive."Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar thought the performance was an important one for newcomers Sean Walker, Casey Mittelstadt, Brandon Duhaime, and Yakov Trenin."We did all the right things, which leads to the victory," he said. "It's a good message for our guys, it's good for all of our new guys to come in and feel that in this group because they were all a big part of it."That's the sort of confidence that you want to instill in your group. Hopefully, they keep remembering that."The Avalanche will square off against the Edmonton Oilers on Saturday.Copyright (C) 2024 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Find year-round coverage of betting news and insights for all sports by visiting our Betting section and subscribing to push notifications.One win, one loss, one void. That's how the Wednesday prop card played out as Mark Scheifele was an unforeseen late scratch and took my favorite play off the board.We'll set our sights higher with three props for a monster Thursday night in the NHL.Michael Bunting: Over 2.5 shotsBunting is red-hot shooting the puck. He's gone over his total in eight of the past 10 games and all three since becoming a member of the Penguins.Head coach Mike Sullivan has thrown him right into the fire, playing him at least 18 minutes every night while using him on the top line and first power-play unit.Bunting has been a gold mine whenever he's seen that kind of usage. He's hit the over in nine of the 11 games he's logged at least 18 minutes of ice time this season, including successful nights against the Stars, Oilers, Bruins, Avalanche, and many of the league's top teams.Bunting should be an active shooter once again Thursday in the most desirable matchup imaginable. The Sharks continue to bleed shots and chances each and every night. They're also especially bad when playing on the road, which is the case in this game.Look for Bunting to pile up the shots.Odds: -125 (playable to -150)Alex Nylander: Over 2.5 shotsThe younger Nylander brother has been somewhat of a revelation in Columbus. He's getting legitimate minutes to showcase himself with the Blue Jackets and taking full advantage.Nylander has generated at least three shots in six of the past eight games, often landing on four or five.His usage has steadily risen as well. He's seen steady minutes at even strength as well as reps on the top power play with Jack Roslovic departing on deadline day.Nylander has put together his two best shooting performances since Roslovic's departure, generating five shots on 10 attempts in both games while logging more than 18 minutes in each.Nylander has proven to be very trigger-happy. He loves to shoot the puck, and, with such a large role, he's getting a ton of opportunities to do just that.The Blue Jackets play extremely high-event games, and the Senators tend to play in plenty as well. This should be a good environment for Nylander to make some noise.Odds: +120 (playable to -110)John Tavares: Over 2.5 shotsSheldon Keefe put a bit of a leash on Tavares in recent weeks, often playing him 15 minutes a night on the third line. Those days appear to be over, at least for now.Keefe has moved Tavares back up to his familiar spot as the team's second-line center. That should lead to an uptick in usage and, thus, shots.Tavares averages 3.8 shots per game when logging 16-plus minutes. His success rate is astronomically high, with the Maple Leafs captain going over in 38 of the 52 games he's seen such usage (73%). If you up the floor to 18 minutes, Tavares has gone over in 25 of 30 games (83%).With Mitch Marner expected to be out once again, and Tavares back in the No. 2 hole, I don't think it's a stretch to say that kind of usage could be in the cards. Toronto will need his offense.Even against a strong shot-suppression team in the Flyers, there's real value in backing Tavares at this price.Odds: -134 (playable to -155)Todd Cordell is a sports betting writer at theScore. You can follow him on X at @ToddCordell.Copyright (C) 2024 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

The Pittsburgh Penguins were forced to call off a Jaromir Jagr bobblehead promotion after the shipment was stolen ahead of Thursday's game against the San Jose Sharks.The Penguins announced Thursday morning that they learned they'd been the victims of cargo theft after the bobblehead shipment failed to arrive as scheduled. There's now an open investigation as state and federal authorities try to locate the stolen items.Fans attending the game will receive a voucher to redeem a bobblehead at a later date."We were shocked to be a victim of cargo theft, and we are working closely with local and federal authorities on the investigation," Penguins president of business operations Kevin Acklin said in a statement. "While this unfortunate incident adds to the legend of Jaromir Jagr, who will be in attendance as our guest at tonight's game, we look forward to resolving this theft and delivering the prized Jagr bobbleheads to their rightful homes, with our fans."Some of the bobbleheads have already started appearing on eBay, according to Jennifer McAndrews of WCHS-TV.

Edmonton Oilers forward Connor Brown has scored some memorable goals over the course of his nine-year NHL career, but he said Wednesday's tally, his first of the 2023-24 campaign, "would take the cake."A standing ovation (and a thrown hat or two) from those in attendance at Rogers Place likely has something to do with it."It meant a lot," a smiling Brown told reporters postgame when asked about the crowd's reaction. "I mean, you play in a big market like this and they're aware of the storylines, and it means a lot. It's been a struggle this year offensively."I haven't been able to get one to go, and so for their kind of support to shine through there, obviously they're rooting for me. It was a good feeling."Brown's goal was the highlight of the Oilers' 7-2 rout of the Washington Capitals. Evander Kane found his snake-bitten teammate in front of the net on a two-on-one, and Brown was able to direct it home.