NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – December 22, 2023
A milestone game for the Avs’ Nathan MacKinnon, the Sabres rebound from a nine-goal loss with a nine-goal victory, the Canucks move into first place in the overall standings, and more in today’s NHL Morning Coffee Headlines.
NHL.COM: Colorado Avalanche center Nathan MacKinnon scored four goals )including his 300th career tally) and collected an assist in a 6-4 win over the Ottawa Senators. MacKinnon extended his points streak to 17 games while Mikko Rantanen scored twice for the 20-11-2 Avalanche, who sit second in the Central Division with 42 points. Drake Batherson had a goal and an assist for the Senators (11-17-0) as they dropped their sixth straight game and their second under interim coach Jacques Martin.
Colorado Avalanche center Nathan MacKinnon (NHL Images)
SPECTOR’S NOTE: With 53 points, MacKinnon sits four behind Tampa Bay’s Nikita Kucherov for the league scoring lead. Meanwhile, the constant losing by the Senators is frustrating team captain Brady Tkachuk. “It’s a pretty s****y feeling, and I don’t think I’ve felt worse in my life. This is not fun right now,” said Tkachuk.
After losing 9-4 to the Columbus Blue Jackets in their previous game, the Buffalo Sabres bounced back by thumping the Toronto Maple Leafs 9-3. Jeff Skinner scored two goals and set up another in his return from injury, Kyle Okposo tallied twice, Tage Thompson had a goal and two assists while Alex Tuch collected four helpers for the 14-17-3 Sabres. Auston Matthews netted his league-leading 26th goal of the season for the Leafs (16-8-6) as they sit second in the Atlantic Division with 38 points.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Matthews called this loss “the worst game since I’ve been here”, calling his club’s performance “embarrassing.” It was a rough night for the Leafs goaltenders. Ilya Samsonov got the hook in the second period after giving up five goals on 19 shots. Martin Jones fared little better, allowing four goals and 15 shots.
Meanwhile, Sabres defenseman Rasmus Dahlin was still fuming over Sabres fans chanting for head coach Don Granato to be fired during their last game. He considered that criticism of Granato unfair, blaming that lopsided loss on himself and his teammates. “We really wanted to back Donnie, that was the main focus today and he got way too much heat the other game, he didn’t deserve it,” said Dahlin.
An overtime goal by Matt Duchene lifted the Dallas Stars over the Vancouver Canucks 4-3. Duchene and Thomas Harley each finished with a goal and an assist for the Stars (19-8-4) as they vaulted over the Avalanche and Winnipeg Jets to regain first place in the Central. Conor Garland and Dakota Joshua each had a goal and an assist for the Canucks (22-9-3), who moved past the Vegas Golden Knights into first place in the overall standings with 47 points.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Canucks have the same amount of points as the Golden Knights but hold first place as they have one more regulation win. Meanwhile, Dallas and Colorado also have the same amount of points (42) but the Stars hold two games in hand.
Canucks winger Andrei Kuzmenko was a healthy scratch for the second straight game. While his agent recently said his client loves playing in Vancouver and there’s a plan with the club to improve his game, his ongoing absence from the lineup will ensure the trade rumors keep swirling.
Speaking of the Golden Knights, they dropped a 5-4 decision to the Tampa Bay Lightning as Nick Paul potted the game-winner late in the third period. Paul and Nikita Kucherov each had a goal and two assists, Brayden Point scored two goals and set up another while Victor Hedman had three assists for the 16-13-5 Lightning (37 points), who sit one point behind the Carolina Hurricanes for the final Eastern Conference wild-card berth.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Lightning defenseman Mikhail Sergachev missed this game as he’s listed as day-to-day with a lower-body injury.
Pittsburgh Penguins captain Sidney Crosby’s shootout goal lifted his team past the Carolina Hurricanes 2-1. Crosby also scored in regulation while Alex Nedeljkovic stopped 23 shots for the win as the Penguins improved to 15-13-4. Teuvo Teravainen replied for the 17-12-4 Hurricanes.
An overtime goal by Alex Ovechkin gave the Washington Capitals a 3-2 victory over the Columbus Blue Jackets. Anthony Mantha scored twice for the Capitals (17-9-4) as they hold the first wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference with 38 points. Cole Sillinger and Yegor Chinakhov scored for the 11-17-6 Blue Jackets.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: That was Ovechkin’s first goal in 15 games. Emotions boiled over during the overtime period as Blue Jackets goalie Elvis Merzlikins and Capitals winger Tom Wilson traded blows during a tangle-up in the Jackets net. The Capitals and Hurricanes have the same amount of points but the Capitals hold three games in hand.
The Edmonton Oilers tallied four unanswered goals led by Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl in a 6-3 victory over the New Jersey Devils. McDavid and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins each had a goal and an assist while Ryan McLeod tallied twice for the 14-15-1 Oilers. Dawson Mercer had a goal and an assist for the 16-13-2 Devils.
St. Louis Blues winger Pavel Buchnevich scored two goals and set up another as his club downed the Florida Panthers 4-1. Robert Thomas collected three assists while Joel Hofer made 37 saves for the 16-15-1 Blues. Eetu Luostarinen scored for the Panthers (18-12-2), who’ve dropped four of their last five games but remain in third place in the Atlantic Division with 38 points.
The Nashville Predators doubled up the Philadelphia Flyers 4-2 on two goals by Philip Tomasino, snapping the Flyers’ nine-game points streak. Juuse Saros turned aside 29 shots for the Predators (19-14-0) as they hold the first Western Conference wild-card spot with 38 points. Morgan Frost and Sean Couturier replied for the 18-11-3 Flyers as they sit in second place in the Metropolitan Division with 39 points.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Predators forward Yakov Trenin was ejected from this game for boarding Frost during the second period. Frost spent several minutes in the Flyers dressing room but returned to finish the game.
An overtime goal by Kirill Kaprizov gave the Minnesota Wild a 4-3 victory over the Montreal Canadiens. Kaprizov and Marco Rossi each finished with a goal and two assists for the 14-13-4 Wild while Nick Suzuki and Juraj Slafkovsky each had a goal and an assist for the 14-13-5 Canadiens.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Wild played without forward Ryan Hartman as he’s day-to-day with an upper-body injury.
Calgary Flames goaltender Jacob Markstrom kicked out 25 shots to shut out the Anaheim Ducks 3-0. Elias Lindholm had a goal and two assists for the Flames (14-14-5) as they’ve won three straight games. The Ducks dropped to 12-20-0 on the season.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Ducks welcomed back Mason McTavish and Jamie Drysdale following their lengthy absences due to injuries. However, they also lost rookie Leo Carlsson to what could be a serious injury to his right leg after he and Flames defenseman MacKenzie Weegar became entangled during the third period.
The Arizona Coyotes picked up their fourth straight win by downing the San Jose Sharks 5-2. Clayton Keller and Alex Kerfoot each had a goal and two assists for the 17-13-2 Coyotes, who hold the final Western wild-card spot with 36 points. Mackenzie Blackwood made 25 saves for the Sharks (9-21-3) as they made forward Alexander Barabanov a late scratch due to illness.
Leaf’s are a mess every loss can’t be blamed on goalie. Time to blow it up trade 2 of their big 4 and get a number one goalie and 2 stud D. Build from backend out I’d move Marner and Nylander and wouldn’t resign Tavares unless a year at a time for peanuts.
Obe thank you for your critical comments on the Leafs when they lay an egg. Judging a team by one game is the smartest move a fan can do. Keep up the good original comments, they never get tiresome.
Thank you Ron. Your consistency with being overly sensitive about leafs comments is a gift that keeps on giving. Keep up the good work.
Habs D-man Justin Barron got a brutal hit to the numbers AGAIN, this guy has to learn to shoulder check and take care of himself, angling his body and preparing for a hit that might come.
Earlier, Wild D-man Zach Bogosian went to the boards, shoulder checked and shifted his body to take a shoulder to shoulder hit.
Barron better start doing that or his career will be shortened.
I didn’t see the latest hit, HF30, and agree that players have to anticipate hits.
With that in mind, blaming players for getting hit in the numbers is like blaming shop owners for being robbed.
If the clown that nailed Barron in the numbers the first time had gotten a several games suspension, Barron would likely not have gotten hit again in the #s.
And my opinion is not just a sensitivity about the Habs (note to Ron Moore), it’s a concern for every player’s safety. Hard hits are part of the game. Face planting players into the glass from hits to the back is not – or should not be.
Here’s a clip with some dangerous hits, none of which resulted in a suspension by the perp, which is why we are still having these hits now, and will into the future:
https://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/nhl/
Exactly LJ. The mandate from both the NHL and the NHLPA should be to eliminate these kinds of hits. All they need to do is make the suspension long enough and the players will adapt… unless, of course, you don’t actually want to get rid of these kinds of hits.
Re; The Edmonton Oilers🍁
Good game in the first 2 periods the NJD & Oil
Pickard looked a little shaky at times but he has not played much. …5 Games in 6-7 weeks..
for a Respectable
GA-2.99 SV% 0.898 that quite good back up numbers
The Oil Came out flying in the 3rd 3 Goals in under 3 Minutes at the start of the 3rd… 👌
Then Ryan McLeod deceded to score his 2nd of the game at last…, if he want to hold on to the 3rd line centre job in Edmonton he better start Scoring only his 4th goal if the year
Vitek Vanecek dose not look like the Answer in Goal for the NJD this year…. But whats avalable in Goal
not much better than Vanecek, unless they could get LU out of Boston it would cost them a 1st pick and a Very Good Prospect…❓
@Obe – Lol !
Leafs R a hard team to figure out – 4 Sure!
I really do like Joseph Woll – He’s not there yet, but I really do think he will be an elite goaltender soon!
A mentor goaltender might be ideal …
Cliff Fletchers formula to build from the goaltender out figured to be ideal – they should have won a cup back then …
Definition of insanity is doing same thing over and over and over and expecting a different outcome. Pretty sure that describes the Leaf’s since Matthews Marner Nylander reached puberty. It’s not about jumping on them after one game it’s been since 1967 my God
Merry Christmas everyone take care and God Bless
This is the actual definition of insanity:
inability to think and behave in ways considered to be normal and rational, especially on account of serious mental illness. Not sure that is what is happening with Leaf MGT.
Re the Leafs – I would argue and did at the time that signing Tavares was the wrong approach, as speeding up a rebuild rarely works and they were good at 2C with Kadri. The NYR may prove that wrong shortly, as they did speed it up and are looking strong again. Leafs also got burned more than most teams by the flat cap due to when they signed all of their big contracts, plus ones like Marner were an overpay in hindsight.
Not sure if you are just trolling Leaf fans Obe, but blowing it up seems pretty darn extreme. If you can give me one NHL team in the recent or cap era that has blown it up when consistently making the playoffs, easily, I’d love to hear it.
Folks need to remember that the average rebuild takes 7 years, and anyone who suggests that you can just sign a stud D-man or tender because you have cap space, hasn’t been paying attention. Has it happened, ya. Often, hell no.
If Leafs are out of a playoff spot and Nylander isn’t signed, he likely moves him, and other pending UFA’s. But I think the Leafs will be in a playoff spot and give it another go.
Who really cares about a regular season win or loss. You could have the best regular season in the history of the NHL and lose in the first round of the playoffs.
Ouch. Lol. But true indeed 😢
Just make playoffs usually the. Most healthy wins the war in the end
Never said rebuild said blow it up by trading Nylander and Marner and trade them for a stud goalie and 2 Really good D men. Would still have Matthews and Johnny down the middle and some good wingers. If I’m Leaf’s management first call I’d make would be to Long Island and than probably Nashville. Merry Christmas you filthy animals
I think Willie would be gone already for a stud tender or a really good d-man. Stud tenders don’t get traded. And not for a pending UFA.
I guess that’s my point, easy to type it, but not sure it’s reality.
And if the Leafs traded those 2 guys with Johnny being over 35 with a year left, looking pretty lean up front IMO. Trade one and keep the other is an option. Which one depends on what Willie wants for a deal to sign.
Hey Caper,
Were you thinking Maple Leafs talking about
1st round knock outs…😳
The East looks like a Horror Show lots of good teams
some teams with with GREAT Goaltending,
( Not the Leafs )
Top-3
Tampa, NYR, Boston, going to be very hard to beat
Next level
NYI, Philly, Florida, and Carolina, when Andersons comes back…❓
Maple Leafs Not going far again this year…. with there Goaltending Trio…….🙈