The Canadiens nip the Senators, the Flyers defeat the Capitals, the Mammoth re-sign Nick Schmaltz, and more in today’s NHL Morning Coffee Headlines.

RECAPS OF WEDNESDAY’S GAMES

NHL.COM: Montreal Canadiens winger Ivan Demidov had a goal and an assist, and Jacob Fowler made 32 saves for a 3-2 victory over the Ottawa Senators, ending the latter’s seven-game points streak. Demidov snapped a 2-2 tie in the third period for the Canadiens (36-18-10), who’ve won three straight and sit third in the Atlantic Division with 82 points. Drake Batherson tallied twice for the 32-23-9 Senators (73 points), who remain five points out of the final wild-card berth in the Eastern Conference.

Montreal Canadiens goaltender Jacob Fowler (NHL Images).

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Juraj Slafkovsky also scored for the Canadiens, setting a franchise record for the most points by a player before the age of 22 (164 points), passing Hall of Famer Henri Richard.

Recalling Fowler from the farm team in Laval and naming him the starter for this game was a surprising move by the Canadiens. It’s a clear sign that the Habs have run out of patience with struggling Samuel Montembeault, who lost his role as starting goalie to Jakub Dobes

Canadiens winger Cole Caufield missed this game with the flu, ending his consecutive games streak at 227.

The Philadelphia Flyers tallied four unanswered goals to defeat the Washington Capitals 4-1. Owen Tippett had a goal and an assist for the 30-23-11 Flyers. Ryan Leonard replied for the 32-27-7 Capitals.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Flyers winger Travis Konecny celebrated his 29th birthday with a goal, marking the second time that he’s done so in his NHL career. He joined Eric Lindros, Ross Lonsberry, Daniel Briere, Rick Tocchet, and Bill Clement among the Flyers to score multiple times on their birthdays.

HEADLINES

THE SALT LAKE TRIBUNE: The Utah Mammoth signed forward Nick Schmaltz to an eight-year, $64 million contract extension.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Scratch another notable name from this summer’s depleted list of unrestricted free agents.

Schmaltz, 30, is in the final season of a seven-year contract with an average annual value of $5.85 million. PuckPedia indicates he’ll earn an AAV of $8 million on his new contract, with full no-movement protection during the first two years, a full no-trade clause for the next two years, a 16-team NTC for two years after that, followed by an eight-team NTC for the final two years.

Schmaltz has consistently been among the Mammoth’s leading scorers. As their first-line center, he’s played a crucial role in turning this rising young team into a playoff contender this season.

Given Schmaltz’s role, the annual average value of his new contract isn’t unreasonable, especially with the projected significant increases of the NHL salary cap in the coming years. However, this deal won’t age well as his performance inevitably declines in the final four years.

Nevertheless, the Mammoth are willing to bank on Schmaltz being productive enough in the first half of this new contract to make it worthwhile if it elevates them into Stanley Cup contenders.

THE SEATTLE TIMES: Kraken winger Jaden Schwartz is on the road to recovery after being accidentally struck in the face by the skate of Ottawa Senators forward Nick Cousins on Saturday.

Schwartz is sidelined indefinitely and could miss the Kraken’s remaining 19 games of the regular season.

THE ATHLETIC: Speaking of the Kraken, recently-acquired winger Bobby McMann said Toronto can be a difficult market to play in, especially when the Maple Leafs are struggling as they have this season.

The Kraken acquired the 29-year-old winger from the Maple Leafs before last Friday’s NHL trade deadline.

“Yeah, it can be (difficult). When things aren’t going well, it’s that much harder to play there, I think,” McMann said. “We’re all human, and I think that all NHL players at times get put on a pedestal. Everybody lets things get to them to a certain extent, some more than others.”

McMann said players are already self-critical when things aren’t going well, but it becomes amplified when it comes from the media and fans, especially in a big hockey market like Toronto.