NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – March 25, 2026
Oilers captain Connor McDavid reaches two scoring milestones, the Blue Jackets, Senators, and Predators keep climbing in the playoff standings, the Panthers’ Paul Maurice reaches a coaching milestone, and more in today’s NHL Morning Coffee Headlines.
NHL.COM: Connor McDavid scored twice to reach his 400th career regular-season goal and his 1,200th career regular-season assist in a 5-2 victory over the Utah Mammoth. Jack Roslovic also tallied two goals while Evan Bouchard collected three assists for the 35-28-9 Oilers, who sit second in the Pacific Division with 79 points. Alexander Kerfoot and Lawson Crouse replied for the Mammoth (37-29-6), who hold the first Western Conference wild-card berth with 80 points.
Edmonton Oilers captain Connor McDavid (NHL Images)
SPECTOR’S NOTE: McDavid is the third-fastest player to reach the 1,200-point plateau, doing so in 784 games. Wayne Gretzky is the fastest (504 games), followed by Mario Lemieux (593 games).
As for the Mammoth, they signed prospect forward Caleb Desnoyers to a three-year entry-level contract on March 23. The 18-year-old center was chosen fourth overall by the Mammoth in last year’s draft. He’s hoping to earn a spot on their roster and one day play a top-six role.
The Columbus Blue Jackets (38-22-11) rose to second place in the Metropolitan Division (87 points) by holding off the Philadelphia Flyers 3-2. Zach Werenski and Mason Marchment each had a goal and an assist for the Blue Jackets, who are 19-3-4 since hiring Rick Bowness as head coach on Jan. 12. Sean Couturier and Jamie Drysdale replied for the 34-24-12 Flyers (80 points), who remain five points out of the final wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Couturier, Denver Barkey, and Luke Glendening returned to the Flyers lineup after being sidelined by injuries.
Ottawa Senators defenseman Carter Yakemchuk had a goal and an assist in his NHL debut in a 3-2 win over the Detroit Red Wings. Brady Tkachuk also had a goal and an assist, and Linus Ullmark stopped 32 shots as the Senators (38-24-9) have won 15 of their last 20 games to move into the final Eastern Conference wild card with 85 points. Dominik Shine and Dylan Larkin each scored for the struggling Red Wings (38-25-8), who’ve dropped two games in a row and sit one point behind the Senators.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Larkin was returning from a seven-game absence with a lower-body injury.
The Nashville Predators widened their lead for the final Western Conference wild card by defeating the San Jose Sharks 6-3. Filip Forsberg had a goal and two assists while Jonathan Marchessault collected three assists for the 34-28-9 Predators (77 points), who picked up their fifth straight win. Will Smith had two goals for the fading Sharks (32-31-6), who’ve lost five straight games.
Florida Panthers head coach Paul Maurice reached the 2,000-game coaching milestone in a 5-4 win over the Seattle Kraken. The Panthers (35-32-3) blew a 4-1 lead, but got the win on a shootout goal by Vinnie Hinostroza. Jordan Eberle had a goal and an assist for the 31-29-10 Kraken (72 points), who sit five points back of the Predators.
The league-leading Colorado Avalanche got two goals from Martin Necas to beat the Pittsburgh Penguins 6-2. Scott Wedgewood made 30 saves for the win while Nathan MacKinnon tallied his league-leading 46th goal of the season for the 47-13-10 Avalanche, who hold a seven-point lead over the Dallas Stars in the overall standings with 104 points. Egor Chinahkov and Rickard Rakell scored for the Penguins (35-20-16), who slipped to third place in the Pacific Division with 86 points.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Penguins defenseman Kris Letang picked up an assist to reach 800 career regular-season points. He’s the highest-scoring blueliner in franchise history, sitting fifth among their all-time points leaders. Teammate Evgeni Malkin missed this game as he’s day-to-day with an upper-body injury. Meanwhile, Avalanche forward Logan O’Connor made his season debut after being sidelined by offseason hip surgery and an undisclosed issue.
Montreal Canadiens goaltender Jakub Dobes kicked out 41 shots in a 5-2 victory over the Carolina Hurricanes. Cole Caufield, Juraj Slafkovsky, and Ivan Demidov each had a goal and an assist for the 39-21-10 Canadiens, who hold third place in the Atlantic Division with 88 points. Nikolaj Ehlers and Jordan Staal scored for the Hurricanes (45-20-6), who hold first place in the Eastern Conference with 96 points.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Caufield tallied his 44th goal of the season, sitting two behind MacKinnon in the race for the Maurice Richard Trophy as this season’s top goal scorer.
Three unanswered third-period goals by Erik Cernak, Brandon Hagel, and Pontus Holmberg gave the Tampa Bay Lightning a 6-3 win over the Minnesota Wild. Darren Raddysh had a goal and two assists for the Lightning (44-21-5) as they sit in second place in the Atlantic Division with 93 points. Vladimir Tarasenko had a goal and an assist for the 40-20-12 Wild, who sit third in the Central Division with 92 points.
New Jersey Devils center Jack Hughes scored two goals as his club held off the Dallas Stars 6-4. Jesper Bratt had a goal and an assist for the 36-32-2 Devils. Wyatt Johnston and Jason Robertson each had three-point performances for the Stars (43-17-11), who sit second in the West with 97 points.
Anaheim Ducks center Mason McTavish scored his first goal in 15 games to snap a 3-3 tie as his club went on to defeat the Vancouver Canucks 5-3. Mikael Granlund tallied twice for the 40-27-4 Ducks, who hold first place in the Pacific Division with 84 points. Center Elias Pettersson and defenseman Filip Hronek each had two assists for the 21-41-8 Canucks.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Ducks defenseman Radko Gudas returned to action after serving a five-game suspension for kneeing Toronto Maple Leafs captain Auston Matthews, who is out for the season as a result. Gudas expressed remorse for injuring Matthews, claiming he “felt terrible about the outcome.”
Actions speak louder than words, and Gudas’ actions definitely speak louder than his empty words. The fact that he got off with a five-game suspension remains a disgraceful decision by the league’s so-called “department of player safety”.
Meanwhile, the Canucks are raising ticket prices for next season by 10 percent. Teams charge what they believe their market will bear, but they might be unwilling to bear that increase when the team is coming off a dreadful season as they rebuild their roster.
Winnipeg Jets center Mark Scheifele had a goal and two assists in a 4-1 triumph over the Vegas Golden Knights. Kyle Connor had a goal and an assist for the 30-29-12 Jets, as they sit five points back of the Predators with 72 points. Rasmus Andersson scored for the 32-26-14 Golden Knights, who hold third place in the Pacific Division with 78 points.
The Toronto Maple Leafs (30-29-13) got two goals from Matthew Knies to double up the Boston Bruins 4-2. Anthony Stolarz made 18 saves in his return to action after being struck in the throat by a puck during warmups on Saturday. Elias Lindholm and Charlie McAvoy replied for the 39-24-8 Bruins, who hold the first Eastern wild card with 86 points.
Chicago Blackhawks rookie Anton Frondell collected an assist in his NHL debut as his club upset the New York Islanders 4-3. Nick Lardis had a goal and two assists for the 27-31-13 Blackhawks. Anders Lee, Simon Holmstrom, and Calum Ritchie scored for the Islanders (40-27-5), as they slipped out of the final Eastern wild card with 85 points.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Senators hold that wild card with a game in hand. Islanders rookie Matthew Schaefer set an NHL record for the most single-game ice time by a teenager at 31:59. Isles defenseman Tony DeAngelo left the game in the first period with a lower-body injury.
A shootout goal by Yegor Sharangovich lifted the Calgary Flames to a 3-2 upset of the Los Angeles Kings. Olli Maatta and Zayne Parekh scored in regulation for the 30-34-7 Flames. Quinton Byfield netted both goals for the Kings (28-25-18), who set three points behind the Predators.
The St. Louis Blues got a 21-save shutout from Joel Hofer in a 3-0 win over the Washington Capitals. Jimmy Snuggerud, Otto Stenberg, and Jordan Kyrou scored for the Blues (29-30-11). Logan Thompson stopped 24 of 26 shots for the 35-28-9 Capitals.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Capitals center Pierre-Luc Dubois received a match penalty for a deliberate attempt to injure Blues center Robert Thomas. The two collided, and Dubois appeared to grab Thomas as they fell to the ice, with the latter’s head striking the ice. The Blues center left the game, but head coach Jim Montgomery said afterwards that Thomas was fine and had passed the concussion protocol.
The D-depleted Senators helped their own cause with that unexpected (to me anyway 🙂 ) win last night in Detroit, with coach Green doing an excellent job managing their minutes. In 12:46 of ice-time, Yakemchuk managed a goal and an assist while the other call-up, Donovan, played just 4:42. The bulk of the game – almost half in each case – was handled by Kleven (28:11), Spence (26:24) and Zub (25:10 – who also got into a fight and so could have added a minute or two – while Matinpalo effectively handled 19:57. Good all-round effort, including Ullmark who stopped all but 2 of 34 shots.
Meanwhile, they got a boost from the Leafs who upset the Bruins in Boston and Chicago downed the visiting Islanders, and when the dust had cleared Ottawa had climbed over 2 teams (Detroit and NYI) to reach the 2nd WC slot. Now, if Buffalo does their part tonight against the visiting Bruins, that sets the stage for Ottawa to also climb past Boston (who they trail by 1 point – both with 11 games left) with a win over the visiting Penguins (who they also trail by just 1 point and again, both will 11 left) Thursday night.
Other good news – for Ottawa anyway – is having Jake Sanderson skating in practices and projected to return to action in less than a week. Gilbert is also getting close to a return.
I thought (expectedly) both Donovan and Yakemchuk looked like deer on the opening day of hunting season at times. More so Donovan who i’ll be surprised if he ever becomes a permanent NHL’er. He’s a tough kid but he essentially amounts to a favor draft, bounced around the O and is a depth guy in the A. I mean, we’ll see. There’s been less skilled folks carving out careers in the NHL but it’s a tough slog for those individuals.
Regarding the Canucks raising ticket prices. There is your issue. A completely out-of-touch ownership.
I think it was much less a look of a “deer on the opening day of hunting season” and more one of marked concentration on not getting caught out of position or doping something stupid with the puck.
As for Donovan, a LD was need and it boiled down to him, Andonovski, Hamara or Bolduc. Obviously, the recommendation from the coaches at Belleville was Donovan.
Bruins … how does a team playing on its home ice which has been good to them this year come out with the playoffs on the line actually every game is a playoff game ROS and play a game like that last night against a very fragile TML team . Right from the start even with a 1-0 lead they looked bad giving up two
2 on 1 .. I believe they gave up 4 of those on the night .. Bruins were out shot..out hit .. out skated .. 0-5 on the PP . This offseason playoffs or not they need to trade Lohrei this coming offseason the kid can’t play D at all .. 6’5” 220 lbs with 30 hits on season is the 2nd coming of B Carlo … Sabers tonight hope Bruins will be ready to play
If Lohrei IS Brandon Carlo, TML has a 1st round pick for the Bruins! (silver lining discovered) 😉
Can you get the Leafs twice .. maybe they would trade Matthews to the Bruins for Lohrei this offseason
That Bruins team looks bad. All the talk of a quick retool is a joke. The Leafs are a god awful team but somehow the Bs looked worse. For all the fans that look at the Bs as a standard to retooling, need to take a closer look.
It’s hard to win without good players.
Even as much as month ago I thought it would be a tall task for the bruins to make the playoffs I excepted that fact but, having all those pp’s lastnight and not able to connect on even one was frustrating I’m also angry why the bruins fans who should have the right to see one of the highest drafted players since Sequin not playing with the big club. This Reichel kids playing and Hagens potential far exceeds Reichels.
On the Thomas play PLD came from behind wrapped both arms around Thomas pinned his right arm with his hand and threw him face first onto the ice then landed on him. It looked more like a WWE move than a hockey play hence the match penalty. At first they were worried that Thomas’s jaw was broken. The only thing worse was not a single Blues player responded much like the Leafs with Matthews. Wonder if the lack of respect from his teammates will change Thomas’s mind about waiving his no trade clause.
Times are definitely different. Also sometimes as a player it’s hard to see everything but as a player sitting on the bench, I’d want to know what went down and take numbers. There is a reason the saying is, revenge is best served cold.
Bruins… different hockey style played back in the day … but could Hagens and C Janney be similar players … both from BC .. both same size .. both drafted 1st rd ( 7th & 13th ) .. both a center ..
Bruins fans .. remember this trade
Craig Janney and Stephane Quintal for Adam Oates ?
If you’re a fan of an Eastern team currently among the 9 locked in a playoff dogfight (just 9 points separating 4th place Montreal and 12th place Washington with 10 to 12 games – or a potential 20 to 24 points – left), perhaps a comparison between their half-way record (41 gp) and their record so far in the 2nd half will help shed some light on their current situation.
This is the way they stood after 41gp, showing their Conference position:
2. Det 24 14 3 51 .622 131 128 -7
4. Pha 22 12 7 51 .622 129 118 +11
5. Mtl 22 13 6 50 .610 137 138 -1
6. Pitt 20 12 9 49 .598 135 131 +4
8. NYI 22 15 4 49 .585 116 117 -1
10. Was 21 15 5 47 .549 220 211 +9
12. Ott 20 16 5 45 .549 136 134 +2
14. Bos 21 18 2 44 .537 130 134 -4
16. Clb 18 16 7 43 .524 127 137 -10
This is their record over the 2nd half (so far), showing their Conference position:
5. Clb 20 6 4 44 .733 104 80 +24
6. Bos 18 6 6 42 .700 106 87 +19
8. Ott 18 8 4 40 .667 103 82 +21
4. Mtl 17 8 4 38 .635 112 92 +20
9. NYI 18 12 1 37 .597 93 89 +4
7. Pitt 15 8 7 37 .617 108 94 +14
10. Det 14 11 5 33 .550 76 73 +3
12. Wsh 14 13 4 32 .516 87 93 -6
11. Pha 12 12 5 29 .500 75 96 -21
Boston actually shows a marked improvement in their % pace over the 2nd half … so, what the Hell were some of you actually expecting???
Quite interesting, George. Tempting to say your 5, 6, 8, 4 are the playoff teams but things are so tight that a key injury at this stage means the team falls out of contention.
Which is why the Sens’ win over the Wings (thank you) is impressive, and the Bruins loss to the Leafs pleasing if mystifying.