NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – January 24, 2024
NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – January 24, 2024
The Oilers win their 14th straight game, Nikita Kucherov regains the scoring lead, the Devils re-sign general manager Tom Fitzgerald, and more in today’s NHL Morning Coffee Headlines.
GAME RECAPS
ESPN.COM: The Edmonton Oilers picked up their 14th consecutive win by downing the Columbus Blue Jackets 4-1. Warren Foegele and Evander Kane each had a goal and an assist for the 27-15-1 Oilers, who sit third in the Pacific Division with 55 points. Dmitri Voronkov scored for the Blue Jackets (14-23-9) as they dropped to the bottom of the Eastern Conference standings with 37 points.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Oilers need just three more wins to tie the league record of 17 straight wins currently held by the 1992-93 Pittsburgh Penguins.
Tampa Bay Lightning winger Nikita Kucherov regained the league in the NHL scoring race (80 points) with a hat trick and an assist in a 6-3 victory over the Philadelphia Flyers. Anthony Cirelli collected two assists for the Lightning (25-18-5) as they moved past the idle Toronto Maple Leafs into third place in the Atlantic Division with 55 points. Cam Atkinson had a goal and an assist for the 25-17-6 Flyers, who have lost three straight but remain in second place in the Metropolitan Division with 56 points.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Kucherov sits three points ahead of Colorado Avalanche center Nathan MacKinnon in the scoring race…Earlier in the day, the Lightning announced forward Austin Watson is listed as week-to-week with a lower-body injury.
Meanwhile, the Flyers announced before this game that goaltender Carter Hart was on an indefinite leave of absence for personal reasons…They also placed winger Owen Tippett on injured reserve.
The Vegas Golden Knights nipped the New York Islanders 3-2 thanks to a 40-save performance by Adin Hill. Ivan Barbashev and Nicolas Roy each had a goal and an assist for the 28-14-6 Golden Knights as they sit second in the Pacific Division with 62 points. Brock Nelson and Jean-Gabriel Pageau replied for the 20-16-11 Islanders (51 points) as they sit two points behind the Detroit Red Wings for the final Eastern Conference wild-card berth.
Speaking of the Red Wings, they dropped a 5-4 decision to the Dallas Stars. Roope Hintz tallied twice and collected an assist while Wyatt Johnston collected three assists for the Stars (28-13-6) as they sit in third place in the Central Division with 62 points. Dylan Larkin and Lucas Raymond each had two points for the 24-18-5 Red Wings.
An overtime goal by Tomas Hertl gave the San Jose Sharks a 3-2 upset victory over the New York Rangers. Mackenzie Blackwood stopped 29 shots for the 13-31-4 Sharks (30 points). Adam Fox had a goal and an assist for the Rangers (29-15-3), who hold first place in the Metropolitan Division with 61 points but have won just three of their last 10 games.
The Minnesota Wild picked up their third straight win by dropping the Washington Capitals 5-3. Marcus Johansson tallied twice while Filip Gustavsson made 30 saves for the 21-21-5 Wild (47 points) as they move within four points of the final Western Conference wild-card spot. Anthony Mantha scored two goals for the 22-17-6 Capitals (50 points) as they sit three behind the Red Wings for the final Eastern wild-card berth.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Capitals defenseman Ethan Bear was a healthy scratch from this game as Rasmus Sandin returned from injury.
St. Louis Blues winger Brandon Saad scored twice, including the winning goal as his club rallied to a 4-3 win over the Calgary Flames. Nick Leddy picked up three assists while Jordan Binnington turned aside 32 shots for the Blues (23-20-2) as they sit three points out of a Western wild-card spot with 48 points. Yegor Sharangovich had a goal and an assist for the 21-21-5 Flames (47 points) as they dropped their third straight contest.
The Anaheim Ducks doubled up the Buffalo Sabres 4-2. Jakob Silfverberg tallied two goals while John Gibson made 28 saves for the 16-30-0 Ducks. Jordan Greenway had a goal and an assist for the 20-23-4 Sabres.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Ducks rookie Olen Zellweger collected an assist in his NHL debut. Meanwhile, the Sabres announced before this game that defenseman Erik Johnson would miss this contest and Wednesday’s matchup with the Los Angeles Kings.
Ottawa Senators goaltender Joonas Korpisalo made 24 saves in a 4-1 victory over the Montreal Canadiens. Shane Pinto scored his first goal of the season for the 18-24-1 Senators while Johnathan Kovacevic replied for the 19-21-7 Canadiens, who have lost three straight games.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Kovacevic returned to the Canadiens lineup after being out of the lineup for the last three games. Winger Tanner Pearson played his first game since being sidelined on Dec. 9 with an upper-body injury while defenseman Arber Xhekaj was recalled from their AHL affiliate in Laval.
HEADLINES
NEW JERSEY HOCKEY NOW: The Devils yesterday announced they’d reached an agreement with general manager Tom Fitzgerald on a multi-year contract extension. He’s also been promoted to president of hockey operations.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Fitzgerald has done a good job rebuilding the Devils back to respectability despite their struggles this season. He signed Jack Hughes and Jesper Bratt to reasonable long-term contracts, acquired Timo Meier, Dougie Hamilton, Tyler Toffoli and Ondrej Palat and drafted Luke Hughes and Simon Nemec. His biggest challenge remains addressing his club’s inconsistent goaltending.
THE SCORE: Los Angeles Kings head coach Todd McLellan has called out center Pierre-Luc Dubois. “At the end of the day, whether PL gets four minutes or 24 minutes, he has to be a difference-maker,” said McLellan.
The Kings acquired Dubois from the Winnipeg Jets last summer and signed him to an eight-year contract worth an average annual value of $8.5 million. He’s managed just nine goals and 19 points in 44 games this season.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: That’s not the kind of positive impact the Kings envisioned when they traded for Dubois. It’ll be interesting to see whether McLellan’s remarks light a fire under the 25-year-old center.
CBS SPORTS: The Seattle Kraken activated goaltender Philipp Grubauer off long-term injury reserve and sent Chris Driedger to their AHL affiliate in Coachella Valley.
DAILY FACEOFF: The Toronto Maple Leafs activated winger Ryan Reaves from injured reserve and designated winger Tyler Bertuzzi as a non-active roster player as he and his wife await the birth of their child.