* Josh Morrissey’s three assists, Kyle Connor’s eighth career overtime goal and Connor Hellebuyck’s 33 saves helped the Jets prevail in overtime and move into second place in the Central Division.
* Matt Boldy’s two-goal night led the Wild past Leon Draisaitl, Connor McDavid and the Oilers as Minnesota jumped two spots in the Western Conference standings and now sit only two points back of a Wild Card spot.
* The Wild Card race in both conferences will be a focus when the Blues visit the Red Wings to open an ABC Hockey Saturday doubleheader this afternoon, which closes with the red-hot Rangers aiming to match a franchise record by extending their lengthy winning streak against the Flyers.
* Saturday’s four-game Hockey Night in Canada slate is set to feature Maurice “Rocket” Richard Trophy race leader Auston Matthews looking to continue his 77-goal pace as well as the top two teams in the NHL standings going head-to-head in Vancouver.
JETS, WILD WITHSTAND LATE RALLIES TO EARN WINS AND CLIMB STANDINGS
The Jets (35-15-5, 75 points) and Wild (27-24-6, 60 points) each withstood third-period rallies from their opponents to earn wins and improve their positioning in the Western Conference. Winnipeg moved past idle Colorado (35-18-5, 75 points) for second in the Central Division, while Minnesota leapfrogged a pair of teams to move two points back of St. Louis (30-24-2, 62 points) for the final Wild Card spot.
* Josh Morrissey (0-3—3) first assisted on both of Nikolaj Ehlers’ goals to give Winnipeg a 2-0 lead, before Chicago levelled the game with 43 seconds left in regulation, and then he collected the only helper on Kyle Connor's eighth career overtime goal to lift the Jets to victory in what marked Connor Hellebuyck’s 135th career win with 30-plus saves.
* Matt Boldy (2-0—2) opened the scoring and later found the back of the net again in the third period to give the Wild a 3-1 lead. Leon Draisaitl (1-1—2) and Connor McDavid (0-2—2) managed to bring Edmonton within one with roughly five minutes left in regulation before Filip Gustavsson (41 saves) sealed the deal in his 100th NHL game. Boldy’s 11 career multi-goal outings are the second most among Wild players, age 22 or younger, and trail only Marian Gaborik (14).
McDAVID AND DRAISAITL’S PROLIFFIC TANDEM FEATURED IN #NHLSTATS: LIVE UPDATES
The Friday edition of #NHLStats: Live Updates featured notes from all three games, including Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl combining on the power play to achieve notable feats. McDavid extended his home point streak to a career-best 21 games (also 21 GP in 2022-23), while Draisaitl overtook Mark Messier (283) for the third-most power-play points in Oilers history
QUICK CLICKS
* NHL EDGE stats: Auston Matthews’ historic goal-scoring start
* Seven-time Cup winner Jean-Guy Talbot passes away at age 91
* Dylan Larkin heart and soul of Red Wings’ push to make Stanley Cup Playoffs
* Sabres capture fifth straight road win
* Will Cuylle finding home with Rangers, Vincent Trocheck family during rookie season
SATURDAY HIGHLIGHTED BY ABC TWO-PACK, FOUR HOCKEY NIGHT IN CANADA GAMES
Today’s schedule is highlighted by an ABC Hockey Saturday doubleheader featuring the Blues battling the Red Wings and the Flyers facing the Rangers, which is followed by a four-game Hockey Night in Canada slate. The two matiness will also be available on ESPN+ and Sportsnet 360
* Pavel Buchnevich scored each of the Blues’ last three tallies Thursday and can become the first player since David Backes (4 on Jan. 6, 2015) to account for four or more consecutive team goals with St. Louis, which enters the matinee occupying the second Wild Card spot in the Western Conference.* Patrick Kane* (3-5—8 in 6 GP) can extend his point streak to seven games, which includes scoring the overtime goal Thursday to help the Red Wings move into the first Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference.
* Colton Parayko, who leads the Blues in scoring by defensemen since he entered the NHL in 2015-16, is spotlighted for his philanthropic efforts ahead of Saturday’s efforts. Parayko launched his own foundation, Project 55, which has helped the lives of children in need of medical care and their families in St. Louis. His mom and sister, who both are professionals in the medical field, sparked Parayko’s passion through their work with pediatric patients.
* Artemi Panarin and the Rangers enter Saturday with victories in each of their last nine games dating to Jan. 27 and can match the franchise record for longest winning streak, achieved twice in club history (10 GP from Dec. 19, 1939 – Jan. 13, 1940 & Jan. 19 – Feb. 10, 1973). The Flyers have snapped an opponent’s run of nine-plus contests four times in franchise history (12 GP by PIT on Dec. 14, 2010, 11 GP by PIT on March 18, 2012, 9 GP by TBL on March 7, 2016 & 9 GP by BUF on Dec. 15, 1979).
* Auston Matthews (10-3—13 in 5 GP) can extend his goal streak to six games during his 14th career head-to-head contest with Nathan MacKinnon, who sits two points back of Nikita Kucherov in the Art Ross Trophy race. Mitchell Marner (0-15—15 in 6 GP) can become the second player in NHL history with multiple assists in seven or more consecutive games played, following Wayne Gretzky (8 GP from Nov. 17 – Dec. 7, 1984).
* The Golden Knights (299-166-47 in 512 GP) begin a five-game road trip in Canada’s capital city when they go head-to-head with the Senators. Vegas enters the contest one victory shy of 300 in their history and can require the fewest contests by a franchise in NHL history to reach the mark. Just the Oilers (542 GP), Canadiens (586 GP) and Bruins (597 GP) have currently done so in 600 or fewer games.
* David Pastrnak (36-46—82 in 58 GP) enters Saturday fourth in overall scoring this season and within one point of 700 in his career (337-362—699 in 650 GP). The team’s first round pick (No. 25) in the 2014 NHL Draft can become the 10th player in franchise history to reach the milestone and the fifth to do so in fewer than 700 games (Phil Esposito: 447 GP, Bobby Orr: 518 GP, Rick Middleton: 639 GP & Ray Bourque: 660 GP).
* The Oilers enter the latest rendition of the Battle of Alberta with four straight wins against the Flames, one that also includes the 2023 Tim Hortons NHL Heritage Classic. Edmonton can become the first of either team to register a winning streak of at least five games in the rivalry (spanning seasons or otherwise) since they posted seven straight victories from Oct. 12, 2016 to Jan. 25, 2018. The longest stretch of consecutive victories in the history of the Battle of Alberta is held by the Flames (9-0-0 from Oct. 16, 2010 – Jan. 21, 2012).
