NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – March 24, 2025
The Kings set a franchise record and overtook the Oilers in the standings, another milestone for Penguins captain Sidney Crosby, and more in today’s NHL Morning Coffee Headlines.
RECAPPING SUNDAY’S GAMES
NHL.COM: The Los Angeles Kings extended their home points streak to a franchise-record 14 games (11-0-3)by thumping the Boston Bruins 7-2. Quinton Byfield had a goal and an assist to extend his home goal streak to seven games and his home points streak to nine. Tanner Jeannot, Adrian Kempe, Joel Edmundson and Brandt Clarke each collected two points as the Kings moved ahead of the Edmonton Oilers into second place in the Pacific Division with 87 points. Elias Lindholm and Morgan Geekie replied for the Bruins, who’ve lost six in a row.
Los Angeles Kings forward Quinton Byfield (NHL Images).
SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Kings and Oilers each have 87 points but the former has a game in hand.
Pittsburgh Penguins captain Sidney Crosby collected two assists for his 16th season with 20-plus multi-point games in a 4-3 loss to the Florida Panthers. Aleksander Barkov scored in the shootout as Florida overcame a 3-1 deficit. Sam Reinhart scored twice for the Panthers, who took over sole possession of first place in the Atlantic Division with 89 points. Brian Rust scored two goals and added an assist for the Penguins.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Crosby is tied with Hall-of-Famer Marcel Dionne for the second-most seasons with 20 or more multi-point games. Wayne Gretzky is the leader with 18.
The Vegas Golden Knights got a 35-save performance from goaltender Ilya Samsonov to double up the Tampa Bay Lightning 4-2. Vegas forward Tomas Hertl scored his 31st of the season before leaving in the third period with an upper-body injury. Nikita Kucherov scored his 30th of the season for the Lightning, who remain third in the Atlantic Division with 85 points. The Golden Knights are first in the Pacific Division with 92 points.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Hertl was hit from behind by Lightning defenseman Emil Lilleberg into the end boards, injuring his right arm. He will be reevaluated on Monday and an update on his status could follow on Tuesday.
A hat trick by winger Taylor Hall powered the Carolina Hurricanes to a 5-2 victory over the Anaheim Ducks. Frederik Andersen stopped 35 shots for the Hurricanes, who’ve won nine of their last 10 games and sit second in the Metropolitan Division with 90 points. Alex Killorn and Trevor Zegras scored for the Ducks.
St. Louis Blues winger Jordan Kyrou reached the 30-goal plateau for the third straight season in a 4-1 win against the Nashville Predators. Robert Thomas had three assists and Jordan Binnington made 31 saves as the Blues (81 points) picked up their sixth straight victory to move four points ahead of the Calgary Flames in the final Western Conference wild-card berth. Filip Forsberg scored for the Predators.
The Buffalo Sabres upset the Winnipeg Jets 5-3. Ryan McLeod had a goal and three assists and James Reimer turned aside 33 shots for the Sabres. Nino Niederreiter, Colin Miller and Nikolaj Ehlers replied for the Jets (100 points), who remain two points behind the Washington Capitals for first place in the overall standings.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Jets need one point to become the second team to clinch a playoff spot. Sabres winger Jordan Greenway left this game in the first period with a lower-body injury.
Chicago Blackhawks sophomore Connor Bedard reached the 20-goal plateau for the second straight season in a 7-4 win over the Philadelphia Flyers. Ryan Donato scored two power-play goals and Tyler Bertuzzi had a goal and two assists for the Blackhawks. Travis Konecny and Jamie Drysdale each had a goal and an assist for the Flyers, who’ve lost five straight games.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: The 19-year-old Bedard joined Eddie Olczyk as the second Blackhawks teenager to record multiple 20-goal seasons.
IN OTHER NEWS…
SPORTSNET: Vancouver Canucks goaltender Thatcher Demko could return to action for Monday’s game against the New Jersey Devils. Demko has been sidelined for a month with a lower-body injury.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Canucks need all the help they can get after going 1-2-1 in their last four games, dropping them out of the final Western wild card. They have recalled Aatu Raty on an emergency basis with forwards Elias Pettersson and Nils Hoglander questionable for Monday’s game after injuries forced them from Saturday’s game against the New York Rangers.
DAILY FACEOFF: The slumping Columbus Blue Jackets will get a boost with center Sean Monahan and defenseman Erik Gudbranson set to return from injuries. Monahan missed 28 games with a wrist injury while Gudbranson’s been out since Oct. 15 with a shoulder injury.
DETROIT HOCKEY NOW: Red Wings coach Todd McLellan is questioning the commitment level of his players.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: With two wins in their last 11 games, the Wings are mired in a lengthy slump that sent them tumbling in the standings, sitting five points out of the final Eastern wild card.
NEW JERSEY HOCKEY NOW: Devils coach Sheldon Keefe singled out defenseman Johnathan Kovecevic following his club’s 3-2 loss to the Ottawa Senators on Saturday. “Kovacevic just needs to play better, that would help,” he told reporters. The 27-year-old defenseman recently signed a five-year, $20 million contract extension.
EDMONTON JOURNAL: US tariffs against Canada could affect the value of the Canadian dollar, which would affect the hockey-related revenue earned by the seven Canadian NHL franchises. That would also impact the league’s salary-cap projections going forward.
Players on Canadian teams are paid in US dollars. NHL commissioner Gary Bettman recently acknowledged the fluctuating currency exchange brought on by the tariffs could affect the seven Canadian franchises. He said the league is prepared to make adjustments if necessary but they’re hopeful that their current projections will remain on track.
I am unsure of Gary Bettman” relationship with the President. Can he not call him up and have him rescind the tariffs? From one businessman to another.
I strongly dislike Jeremy Swayman and his dumb antics. There’s 8.25 million reasons to stop the friggin’ puck and stop with the cool guy act. Bush league nonsense from a 2nd string tender.
McQueen ’25
McKenna ’26
Dupont ’27………unless there’s another “Mcsomeone” that’s better.
I’ll take all the Scotsmen if it helps us rebuild properly.
Ya, not a fan of goalies doing the tough guy act either SOP, basically because they know their mates will protect them if it is a skater they are hot and bothered with. And yes Kuemper got it wrong, and Gavrikov stepped in and calmed it down.
If you actually want to fight Kuemper, skate all the way down the ice and fight him, instead of stopping at the center ice talking sh*t behind the linesman. Not a good look.
A lot of us on here were concerned about Swayman getting big $ for long term without ever being a clear cut #1 and could he handle it.
We have the answer for year 1, we’ll see how the rest of his contract plays out, for another 7 years.
One could argue he is playing behind a team that is worse, and that’s true, but he has also been worse than Korpisalo ($3M AAV) behind that same team.
I know you’re being pragmatic with McQueen, but let’s get lottery lucky this year and get Schaeffer.
Ray, that’s the first time I wanted to see a Bruin get his lunch fed to him since Zac Rinaldo “played” for us.
Count me in as one who said he was a platoon goalie not a number 1 . My opinion was Bruins needed to keep both, platooning them and using that in arbitration.
Together they hid the weaknesses of the team. If they were platooning this year this watered down team would be in the playoffs.
Ray if Swayman skates across the centre ice line he gets a penalty, that`s why goalies meet at centre.
Hi Yogi, yes I was aware of the rule and I took that into account in my post.
Mc = Irish Mac = Scottish
😃
I never know that Ron, and I’m pretty old.
I have been enlightened. Thanks, Ron. That’s even better.
Mc is more prevalent in Irish and Mac more prevalent in Sottish but they are not exclusively belonging to either one. :0)
Mcqueen looks like a beast in the making and would be my choice if still available this draft
Boston has10 games left. Hope they split it 50/50 between Korpisalo and Swayman! Monty is recovering nicely in St.Louis!Going to start researching the draft heavily today!
Mrbruin4. McQueen is currently ranked 5th in the draft despite missing a good chunk of the season due to injury in October (since returned to the line-up). Same with the consensus # 1 Matthew Schaefer who broke his collarbone at the World Junior and isn’t expected back until April
For what it;s worth, here is the current top 10 showing size details, position, current team, birth place and current stats
1. Matthew Schaefer 6′ 2″ 185 lb LD Erie, OHL Stoney Creek ON 17gp 7g 15a 22pts
2. James Hagens 5′ 10″ right-shot C Boston College Hauppauge NY 35gp 10g 25a 35pts
3. Michael Misa 6′ 1″ 185 lb LW Saginaw, OHL Oakville, ON 65gp 62g 72a 134pts
4. Porter Martone 6′ 3″ 210 lb RW Brampton OHL Peterborough, ON 57gp 37g 61a 98pts
5. Roger McQueen 6′ 5″ 200 lb C Brandon WHL Saskatoon, Sask 17gp 10g 10a 20pts
6. Radim Mrtka 6′ 6″ 210 lb RD Seattle WHL Havlickuv, Czech Rep. 43gp 3g 32a 35pts
7. Caleb Desnoyers 6′ 2″ 180 lb left-shot C Moncton QMJHL Saint-Hyacinthe, PQ 56gp 35g 49a 94pts
8. Jake O’Brien 6′ 2″ 175 lb right-shot C Brantford OHL Toronto, ON 66gp 32g 66a 98pts
9. Jackson Smith 6′ 3″ 195 lb RD Tri-City WHL Calgary, Alta 68gp 11g 43a 54pts
10. Logan Hensler 6′ 2″ 195 lb RD Wisconsin Big 10 Woodbury MN 32gp 2g 10a 12pts
Here are those ranked 11 – 20. It will be interesting to see how these rankings will change by draft day (and some will). I’ll keep the lists for comparison purposes. And for the record, Carter Bear is Ethan Bear’s cousin, while Justin Carbonneau is not related to Guy.
11. Carter Bear 6′ 0″ 180 lbs left-shot C Everett WHL West Saint-Paul, Man 56gp 40g 42a 82pts
12. Lynden Lakovic 6′ 4″ 190 lbs LW Moose Jaw WHL West Kelowna, BC 47gp 27g 31a 58pts
13. Justin Carbonneau 6′ 1″ 195 lbs RW Blaineville-Boisbrande QMJHL Levis, PQ 62gp 46g 43a 89pts
14. Malcolm Spence 6′ 1″ 205 lbs LW Erie OHL Mississauga, ON 65gp 32g 41a 73pts
15. Kashawn Aitcheson 6′ 2″ 200 lbs LD Barrie OHL Toronto, ON 64gp 26g 33a 59 pts
16. Jack Nesbitt 6′ 4″ left-shot C Windsor OHL Sarnia, ON 65gp 25g 39a 64pts
17. Brady Martin 6′ 0″ 180 lbs C Sault Ste. Marie OHL Elmira ON 57gp 33g 39a 72pts
18. Sascha Boumedienne 6′ 1″ 175 lbs L D Boston U. H-East Stockholm, Sweden 36gp 3g 9a 12pts
19. Henry Brzustewicz 6′ 2″ 205 lbs RD London OHL Washington, MI 67gp 10g 32a 42pts
20. Benjamin Kindel 5′ 10″ 176 lbs right-shot C Calgary WHL Coquitlam, B.C. 65gp 35g 64a 99pts
Just to round it off, here are the 21 to 32 ranked players – all 32 taken from the NHL.com site
21. Braeden Cootes 5′ 11″ 185 lbs right-shot C Seattle WHL Sherwood Park, Alta 60gp 26g 37a 63pts
22. Cullen Potter 5′ 10″ 175 lbs left-shot C Arizona State NCHC Minneapolis MN 35gp 13g 9a 22 pts
23. Haoxi Wang 6′ 6″ 215 lbs LD Oshawa OHL Beijing, China 32gp 0g 2a 2 pts
24. Blake Fiddler 6′ 4″ 210 lbs RD Edmonton WHL Frisco, TX 64gp 10g 23a 33pts
25. Jack Murtagh 6′ 1″ 200 lbs LW USA Under-18 NTDP-USHL East Greenbush, N.Y. 21gp 7g 10a 17pts
26. Peyton Kettles 6′ 5″ 200 lbs RD Swift Current WHL Winnipeg, MAN 53gp 5g 9a 14pts
27. Cameron Reid 6′ 0″ 195 lbs LD Kitchener OHL Aylmer, ON 67gp 14g 40a 54pts
28. William Horcoff 6′ 5″ 190 lbs left-shot C Michigan Big 10 Bllomfield Hills, MI 18gp 4g 6a 10pts
29. Bill Zonnon 6′ 2″ 190 lbs RW Rouyn-Noranda QMJHL Montreal, P.Q. 64gp 28g 55a 83pts
30. Cameron Schmidt 5′ 7″ 161 lbs RW Vancouver WHL Prince George, B.C. 61gp 40g 38a 78pts
31. Nathan Behm 6′ 2″ 192 lbs RW Kamloops, WHL Calgary, Alta 59gp 31g 35a 66pts
32. William Moore 6′ 2″ 175 lbs left-shot C USA U-18 NTDP-USHL Ithaca, N.Y. 21gp 9g 9a 18pts
George, your list seems to be missing prospects playing in Europe. The reason is that it didn’t include Frondell, a C sitting at #5 on Sportsnet’s list from last week.
https://www.sportsnet.ca/nhl/article/sportsnets-2025-nhl-draft-rankings-march-edition/
If he slides, due to injury earlier this year, kind of like McQueen, he could also be the high end C that has eluded Boston in the draft for a decade plus.
Safe to say I will be paying more attention to top prospects this year than in a long time.
Ray, NHL.Com’s rankings are based on who they believe will go in the 1st round of the 2025 draft – regardless of where they are playing, and his absence is explained this way:
“Anton Frondell’s absence from the NHL.com’s 2025 NHL draft rankings likely stems from ongoing injury issues and a recent dip in performance, despite a strong start to the season. ”
As I say, there are seemingly countless lists from everybody and Uncle MacKenzie and no doubt, by the day of the draft, the above 1st Round projections could look very different.
As for Frondell – he could be a dark horse pick that high in the draft … then again, he could also be another Mr. Brittle.
It would take a GM with stones of brass to gamble on that at # 5.
George at the risk of being over persistent on this topic, Frondell is on every top 10 list or 1st round list I have looked at over last week or so. And he is playing again, and playing well. And Eklund is inside or near the top 10 on all of them too, not mentioned even in the first round.
Just saying something is up, or the list on NHL.com is the big anomaly. Not a great year for the euro’s, but zero is pretty weird.
IE McKenzie has Frondell at 5, Eklund at 8.
Well, Ray, all we can do at this stage I guess is to develop a wait-and-see approach and examine the lists again as the draft approaches. For now, I’ll put my faith in the NHL Central Scouting Bureau’s consensus picks for NHL.Com.
Been on this site for several years now SOP, and first time I’ve seen you upset.
Are you unhappy with Swayman’s play specifically, or the Bs in general?
SOP,Sweeney did an awful job in the negotiation of Swayman and the trading of Ullmark! Once he traded Ullmark,Swayman had him over a barrel.He also grossly overestimated his team from a talent standpoint of view! Then when he put the team together for this year he chose size over speed and skill. Would really like to see a new GM and President to turn this around!. And to think 2 years ago this team won 65 games.
Ya, I cut Sweeney some slack on the timing of the trade of Ullmark. You can argue he would have lost leverage on potential trade partners once he signed Swayman too, as he needed to get it done before July 1 and UFA season, as soon as he is over the cap, then he is over a barrel too.
Plus Swayman needed to agree, need to have a dance partner. And his agent was playing chicken.
Hindsight is 20/20 so easy to say now, but the B’s had leverage over Swayman as he wasn’t playing and wasn’t getting paid. Would he really take it to Dec and risk losing the entire season?
I dunno, and again, easy from here, but I might call that bluff.
So Keefe finally develops a pair of stones and criticized Kovecevic without stepping back his criticism like he did in Toronto when he criticized the core 4. Maybe if he showed this bravado in Toronto, he may still be coaching there with more playoff success.
You got that right
I wonder if it’s still his coaching philosophy that matching lines – especially n playoff hockey – is not necessary?
He maintained that thought to the day he was fired, can`t see him changing that quick. Matching lines requires changing on the fly. Toronto did lead the league in too many men on the ice penalties. Maybe that was his idea of matching lines
George O. He must get his cues from another great philosopher who once mused that there is no need to worry about the budget, as the budget will balance itself 🤣
Heh. Still waiting for that to happen … going on 8 years!
And thankfully he never opted to become an NHL GM as he would have likely approached the cap the same way “I pay no attention to totals … the cap will adjust itself …”
Quite the misrepresentation, a snippet of an interview turned into an attack ad that was repeated ad nauseum to have a life of its own.
As for Keefe, he managed to lose the room pretty quickly.
Coach has no reason to throw a player under the bus in public especially a guy like Kovacevic who is an honest player with a good work ethic, not to mention well liked in the room.
MMM … no. When your qualifications end at being a drama teacher and only claim to fame is your surname. Similar to Bowman or Ferguson regarded as viable GMs … based on their surnames.