NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – November 11, 2025

NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – November 11, 2025

The Oilers stage a comeback win, the Rangers finally win at home, Zdeno Chara, Joe Thornton, and Duncan Keith highlight the 2025 Hockey Hall of Fame inductions, the 3 stars of the week are announced, and more in today’s NHL Morning Coffee Headlines.

RECAPS OF MONDAY’S GAMES

NHL.COM: Connor McDavid scored twice, Jake Walman netted the tying goal, and Jack Roslovic scored in overtime as the Edmonton Oilers overcame a 4-2 deficit to defeat the Columbus Blue Jackets 5-4. Walman finished with three points (including two goals) for the Oilers, who snapped a three-game winless skid (0-2-1) and improved to 7-6-4. Adam Fantilli and Boone Jenner each had a goal and an assist for the 7-7-1 Blue Jackets, who are winless in their last four (0-3-1).

Edmonton Oilers captain Connor McDavid (NHL Images)

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Before this game, the Oilers placed center Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (undisclosed) on injured reserve, moved winger Kasperi Kapanen (undisclosed) on long-term injury reserve, and activated forward Mattias Janmark off injured reserve.

The New York Rangers picked up their first home win of the season by beating the Nashville Predators by a score of 6-3. Artemi Panarin tallied twice, and Alexis Lafreniere had a goal and two assists for the Rangers (8-7-2). Rookie forward Matthew Wood scored all three goals for the Predators, who are winless in five games (0-3-2) and dropped to 5-9-4 on the season.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Rangers center Vincent Trocheck collected two assists as he returned to action after missing 14 games with an upper-body injury. Meanwhile, Wood is among the few bright spots for the struggling Predators. The 20-year-old rookie winger sits third among their scorers and fifth among NHL freshmen with 10 points in 11 games.

An overtime goal by Mathew Barzal lifted the New York Islanders over the New Jersey Devils 3-2. Ilya Sorokin made 33 saves as the Islanders, who improved their record to 8-6-2. Timo Meier had a goal and an assist for the Devils (11-4-1), who collected a point and sit in first place in the Eastern Conference with 23 points.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Devils forward Zack MacEwen returned to the lineup after missing 13 games with an upper-body injury.

Florida Panthers winger Brad Marchand extended his goal streak to five games in a 3-2 win over the Vegas Golden Knights. Jesper Boqvist and Sam Reinhart also scored, and Sergei Bobrovsky stopped 30 shots for the 8-7-1 Panthers. Tomas Hertl and Ivan Barbashev replied for the Golden Knights (7-4-4), who are winless in their last three games (0-2-1).

HEADLINES

NHL.COM: Former NHL stars Zdeno Chara, Joe Thornton, Duncan Keith, and Alexander Mogilny were among those officially inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto on Monday.

Former women’s stars Jennifer Botterill and Brianna Decker were also inducted into the Players’ category. Jack Parker and Daniele Sauvageau were inducted into the Builders’ category.

Chara thanked fellow Hall of Fame defenseman Nicklas Lidstrom for inspiring him as a player. He also thanked several of his Boston Bruins teammates, including Patrice Bergeron, with whom he won the Stanley Cup in 2011.

Keith thanked his mother for taking him to practices when he was a child. He also thanked Trent Yawney, his first coach with the Blackhawks, his long-time defense partner Brent Seabrook, and his son, Colton Keith.

Thornton thanked several Hall of Famers for inspiring him as a child and during his NHL career, including Gordie Howe, Bobby Orr, Wayne Gretzky, Pat LaFontaine, Cam Neely, Eric Lindros, and Steve Yzerman. He got emotional as he thanked his wife and children.

Mogilny didn’t attend the ceremony, but sent a video message thanking the teams he played for and their fans. He also joked that he had a shot of Russian vodka to celebrate, as he was unable to return to sleep after getting the call from the Hall at three in the morning.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Congratulations to the HhoF Class of 2025. You can watch the full induction speeches by following the link above.

NHL.COM: Colorado Avalanche center Nathan MacKinnon, Chicago Blackhawks center Connor Bedard, and Anaheim Ducks center Leo Carlsson were the league’s three stars for the week ending Nov. 9.

TSN: Buffalo Sabres forward Jiri Kulich will miss a significant period of time this season due to a blood clot issue that is described as serious. Head coach Lindy Ruff expects Kulich to return later this season, depending on how things go over the next several weeks.

NESN: Boston Bruins center Casey Mittelstadt is listed as week-to-week with a lower-body injury.

CBS SPORTS: San Jose Sharks defenseman Nick Leddy has been activated off injured reserve. He’s been sidelined since late October with an upper-body injury.

DAILY FACEOFF: Former Montreal Canadiens general manager Marc Bergevin has been named GM of Canada’s 2025 Spengler Cup team. Bergevin is currently an advisor with the Los Angeles Kings.










NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – June 25, 2025

NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – June 25, 2025

Zdeno Chara, Duncan Keith, Alexander Mogilny and Joe Thornton will be inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame, updates on Connor McDavid and Jonathan Marchessault, the Islanders won’t part with the 2025 first-overall draft pick, and more in today’s NHL Morning Coffee Headlines.

NHL.COM: The Hockey Hall of Fame will induct former NHL stars Zdeno Chara, Duncan Keith, Alexander Mogilny and Joe Thornton in a ceremony in November.

Former Canadian women’s national team forward Jennifer Botterill and former United States women’s national team forward Brianna Decker will also be inducted into the players’ category.

Zdeno Chara, Joe Thornton, Duncan Keith & Alexander Mogilny are part of the HHoF Class of 2025.(NHL.com)

Former Boston University coach Jack Parker and former Canadian women’s hockey coach, general manager and consultant Daniele Sauvageau will be inducted into the builders’ category.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Congratulations to the inductees for this well-deserved honor.

Regarding the NHLers, Chara was one of the dominant defensemen of his era. He won the James Norris Memorial Trophy in 2008-09 and was a six-time finalist. Chara captained the Boston Bruins to the 2011 Stanley Cup. He is seventh all-time in games played (1,608) with the New York Islanders, Ottawa Senators, Boston Bruins, and Washington Capitals.

Keith was one of the greatest players in Chicago Blackhawks history, helping them win three Stanley Cups between 2009-10 and 2014-15. He was a two-time Norris Trophy winner (2009-10, 2013-14), took home the Conn Smythe Trophy in 2015, and won Olympic gold playing for Canada in 2010 and 2014.

Mogilny was finally inducted after 16 years of eligibility. Defecting from the Soviet Union in 1989 to play in the NHL, he had 1,032 points in 990 regular-season games (including a career-high 76 goals in 1992-93) with the Buffalo Sabres, Vancouver Canucks, New Jersey Devils and Toronto Maple Leafs. He won the Stanley Cup with the Devils in 1999-2000 and the Lady Byng Memorial Trophy in 2002-03.

Thornton was among the greatest playmakers in NHL history, sitting seventh overall with 1,109 assists and 14th with 1,539 points. He’s also sixth in games-played (1,714) with the Bruins, San Jose Sharks, Maple Leafs, and Florida Panthers. Thornton won the Art Ross Trophy and the Hart Memorial Trophy in 2005-06.

TSN: Former Boston Bruins center Patrice Bergeron and former Montreal Canadiens goaltender Carey Price are among those who could be inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame next year. It will be Bergeron’s first year of eligibility and Price’s second.

It will also be the first year of eligibility for forwards Phil Kessel and Eric Staal. Patrick Marleau, Henrik Zetterberg and Ryan Getzlaf join Price among the recently eligible. Other potential candidates include Rod Brind’Amour, Sergei Gonchar, Jason Spezza, Curtis Joseph, Keith Tkachuk and Ryan Miller.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Some Canadiens fans were surprised that Price wasn’t inducted into this year’s class. In my opinion, Chara, Keith, and Thornton were more deserving candidates, and Mogilny had been passed over for far too long.

Price stands a good chance of induction in 2026. Given the longstanding rivalry between the Bruins and Canadiens, it would be fitting if he and Bergeron joined the Hall in the same year.

TSN: Edmonton Oilers general manager Stan Bowman and CEO of hockey operations Jeff Jackson travelled to Ontario to meet with Connor McDavid’s agent, Jeff Moldaver, on Tuesday. The meeting was intended to discuss the broader directions of the organization rather than focusing on contract numbers.

McDavid has a year left on his contract with a salary-cap hit of $12.5 million and will become eligible for unrestricted free-agent status next July.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Oilers have understandably made signing McDavid to an extension their top issue this summer. They’re also giving their captain some time to decide when he wants to start those discussions.

McDavid made it clear following the 2025 Stanley Cup Final that winning the Cup is his priority. He’ll want to know how the Oilers intend to remain a Cup contender before agreeing to an extension. The fact that management is already meeting with his agent is a positive step.

NASHVILLE POST: Predators GM Barry Trotz said there is no substance to recent rumors suggesting he’s trying to trade Jonathan Marchessault. He confirmed that all was good with the winger’s camp, saying the veteran winger will return with the Predators next season.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Marchessault was one of three major free-agent signings by Trotz last summer. His production dropped with the struggling Predators this season, prompting speculation that he might welcome a trade.

THE TENNESSEAN: Speaking of the Predators, they hired former Blackhawks head coach Luke Richardson as an assistant coach. He replaces Todd Richards, who won’t be returning with the organization.

THE SCORE: New York Islanders GM Mathieu Darche said he has no intention of trading the first-overall pick in the upcoming 2025 NHL Draft. Defenseman Matthew Schaefer of the OHL’s Erie Otters is considered the top prospect in this year’s draft, but Darche declined to tip his hand on who he’ll select.

NEW YORK POST: Darche admitted that trading for a second first-rounder in this draft is a possibility. The dream scenario for Islanders fans is their club selects Schaefer and somehow acquires another high first-round pick to use toward drafting center (and Long Island native) James Hagens.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: It would be quite the coup if Darche can pull that off.

NYI HOCKEY NOW: Speaking of the Islanders, long-time forward Matt Martin hung up his skates and moved into the front office as a special assistant to Darche. He played in 987 regular-season games over 15 seasons with the Islanders and the Maple Leafs, 13 of those with the Isles, finishing with 178 points.

NEW YORK POST: The New York Rangers will send their 2025 first-round pick (12th overall) to the Pittsburgh Penguins. They had included that pick (top-13 protected) as part of the return to the Vancouver Canucks in the J.T. Miller trade. The Canucks subsequenty flipped it to the Penguins as part of the return for defenseman Marcus Pettersson.

Mollie Walker reports that next year’s draft class is considered to have a much deeper pool of talent. It would also have more value in the 2026 trade deadline if the Rangers attempt to upgrade for next year’s playoffs.

THE PROVINCE: The Dallas Stars could be eyeing Abbotsford Canucks head coach Manny Malhotra to fill their vacant head-coaching position. Malhotra guided the Vancouver Canucks’ AHL affiliate to the 2025 Calder Cup.

ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH: Inspired by their previous Winter Classic jerseys, the Blues unveiled their new uniforms and primary logo.

THE ATHLETIC: Nationwide Arena owners are planning $400 million in upgrades to the Columbus Blue Jackets’ 25-year-old home.