Panthers winger Brad Marchand nets his 1000th point, the Senators re-sign Shane Pinto, Scott Wedgewood signs an extension with the Avalanche, remembering hockey pundit Larry Brooks, and more in today’s NHL Morning Coffee Headlines.

RECAPPING THURSDAY’S NHL ACTION

NHL.COM: Florida Panthers winger Brad Marchand collected two assists, including his 1,000th career NHL regular-season point, in a 6-3 victory over the Washington Capitals. Sam Reinhart, Anton Lundell, and Eetu Luostarinen each had three points, and Danill Tarasov made 37 saves for the 9-7-1 Panthers. Rasmus Sandin had a goal and an assist for the struggling Capitals (8-8-1), who have two wins in their nine games.

Florida Panthers winger Brad Marchand (NHL Images).

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Marchand is off to a sizzling start to this season. The 37-year-old winger leads the Panthers with 11 goals and 20 points in 16 games.

The Ottawa Senators got two goals and an assist from Tim Stutzle to defeat the Boston Bruins 5-3, snapping the latter’s seven-game win streak. Claude Giroux and Dylan Cozens each had a goal and an assist for the Senators (9-5-4), who’ve won three of their last four contests. David Pastrnak and Morgan Geekie each had a goal and an assist for the 11-8-0 Bruins.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Before this game, the Senators announced Shane Pinto had agreed to a four-year contract extension with an average annual value of $7.5 million. The 25-year-old center was slated to become a restricted free agent with arbitration rights next July. This contract doubles Pinto’s AAV and will enable him to become eligible for unrestricted free agent status at age 29.

Colorado Avalanche forward Martin Necas scored twice and collected two assists to lead his club over the Buffalo Sabres 6-3. Nathan MacKinnon collected an assist to extend his points streak to 11 games as the Avalanche (12-1-5) holds first place in the overall standings with 29 points. Tage Thompson had a goal and an assist as the 5-8-4 Sabres are winless in their last five games (0-4-1).

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Before this game, the Avalanche announced that Scott Wedgewood agreed to a one-year contract extension worth $2.5 million. The 33-year-old backup goalie played well as he filled in for sidelined starter Mackenzie Blackwood, leading the league with 10 wins in 14 contests.

Before this game, the Avalanche activated defenseman Samuel Girard off injured reserve. He’d been sidelined for the past 15 games.

The Dallas Stars thumped the Montreal Canadiens 7-0. Jason Robertson scored two goals and picked up an assist, Radek Faksa collected three assists, and Casey DeSmith stopped 24 shots for the shutout as the Stars (11-4-3) picked up their third straight win. Jakub Dobes got the hook after giving up five goals on 13 shots for the 10-5-2 Canadiens, who have one win in their last five games (1-2-2).

SPECTOR’S NOTE: This was the second straight lopsided loss for the Canadiens against a bigger, more experienced Western Conference team. They still hold first place in the Atlantic Division over the Senators and Bruins based on games played, but this promising club has more work to do to compete against Stanley Cup contenders such as the Stars. In the meantime, they could be without forward Alex Newhook for a while. He left this game in the second period when he injured his right leg after he was sent crashing into the end boards.

An overtime goal by Quinton Byfield lifted the Los Angeles Kings to a 4-3 victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs. Byfield and Drew Doughty each finished with two points for the 9-5-4 Kings, who’ve won three straight games. John Tavares scored two goals and Dennis Hildeby turned aside 33 shots for the Leafs (8-8-2), who are winless in their last four games (0-3-1).

SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Leafs played without captain Auston Matthews and goaltender Anthony Stolarz. Matthews will be sidelined for at least a week with a lower-body injury, while Stolarz is day-to-day with a lower-body injury. Earlier in the day, the Leafs placed center David Kampf on unconditional waivers for the purpose of terminating his contract.

Kings captain Anze Kopitar was held scoreless in his last regular-season game in Toronto. He has never scored against the Leafs on their home ice.

Detroit Red Wings forward Alex DeBrincat had two goals and an assist to beat the Anaheim Ducks 6-3. Patrick Kane collected two assists to reach the 1,350-point milestone as the Red Wings (10-7-0) snapped a five-game winless skid (0-4-1). Leo Carlsson’s point streak ended at 11 games as the 11-5-2 Ducks (23 points) have lost two straight games, holding a one-point lead over the Kings for first place in the Pacific Division.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Red Wings goaltender John Gibson left this game after the second period with an upper-body injury. Meanwhile, the Ducks activated Ryan Strome from injured reserve for this game. It was his season debut after suffering an upper-body injury during training camp.

Columbus Blue Jackets forwards Mathieu Olivier and Charlie Coyle each had three points to nip the Edmonton Oilers by a score of 5-4. Winger Kirill Marchenko picked up an assist to extend his points streak to 10 games as the Blue Jackets picked up their second straight win and improved to 9-7-1. Leon Draisaitl scored two goals and Connor McDavid had two assists for the Oilers, who slipped to 8-7-4.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Blue Jackets captain Boone Jenner did not play in this game. He’s out with an upper-body injury and could be sidelined for a while. “It’s not short-term,” coach Dean Evason said.

The Seattle Kraken got two goals from Jordan Eberle as they rallied to a 5-3 win over the Winnipeg Jets. Vince Dunn had a goal and two assists for the Kraken as they improved to 8-4-5. Mark Scheifele had a goal and an assist for the 10-7-0 Jets, who’ve lost four of their last five contests.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Kraken winger Kaapo Kakko left this game in the first period with an upper-body injury. Meanwhile, the Jets activated defenseman Dylan Samberg off injured reserve for this game. He made his season debut after being sidelined for six weeks.

A shorthanded overtime goal by Jean-Gabriel Pageau gave the New York Islanders a 4-3 victory over the Vegas Golden Knights. Rookie defenseman Matthew Schaefer had a goal and an assist as the Islanders (9-6-2) picked up their third straight victory. Shea Theodore, Tomas Hertl, and Reilly Smith replied for the 7-4-5 Golden Knights, who are winless in their last four (0-2-2).

The Calgary Flames got a 16-save shutout from goaltender Dustin Wolf to blank the San Jose Sharks 2-0. Blake Coleman and Samuel Honzek were the goal scorers for the 5-12-2 Flames as they ended a three-game losing streak. Yaroslav Askarov gave up one goal on 34 shots for the 8-7-3 Sharks as their four-game win streak ended.

HEADLINES

NEW YORK POST: Long-time hockey pundit Larry Brooks passed away on Thursday at age 75 following a brief bout with cancer.

Brooks spent 38 years with the Post, covering the Rangers, Islanders, and New Jersey Devils. In 2018, he received the Elmer Ferguson Award from the Hockey Hall of Fame in recognition of his achievements in covering the game. Brooks also served as president of the Professional Hockey Writers Association from 2001 to 2003.

Brooks’ passing prompted an outpouring of tributes throughout the NHL from past and present players, coaches, general managers, league executives, and pundits. Among them was former Rangers head coach John Tortorella, who had a sometimes testy relationship with Brooks. Tortorella called him an icon, adding he would be missed by the hockey community.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: My sincere condolences to Brooks’ family, friends, and his colleagues at the Post. I followed his work regularly since 1998, when I started this website. I didn’t always agree with what he wrote, but I respected his work. There was no denying that he was a well-connected, entertaining, old-school hockey scribe whose passion for the game shone through in every article that he wrote. His Sunday “Slap Shots” column was a must-read.

THE PROVINCE: Vancouver Canucks captain Quinn Hughes skipped practice on Thursday, but head coach Adam Foote remains hopeful he’ll be able to suit up on Friday against the Carolina Hurricanes. He’s currently listed as day-to-day with an undisclosed injury.

NEW JERSEY HOCKEY NOW: Devils defenseman Brenden Dillon was fined $5,000.00 by the NHL department of player safety for boarding Chicago Blackhawks winger Tyler Bertuzzi on Wednesday.

CBS SPORTS: Speaking of the Devils, they placed forward Zack MacEwen (lower body) on injured reserve.

DETROIT HOCKEY NOW: Hall of Fame defenseman Chris Chelios is selling his Malibu beachfront mansion. The list price is nearly $60 million.