NHL On Tap: Coyotes face Sharks seeking 4th straight win

Welcome to the NHL On Tap. Three NHL.com writers will share what they are most looking forward to on the schedule each day. Today, their choices from the 12 games Thursday.

Coyotes anything but ugly

Don't look now, but as we approach the NHL holiday break the Arizona Coyotes are in playoff position. Yes, if the season ended today, they would be the second wild card into playoffs from the Western Conference, and though we still have about four months to go, the fact that they are in the race is a big deal. They will try to extend their three-game winning streak when they visit the San Jose Sharks at SAP Center (10:30 p.m. ET, HULU, ESPN+). The Coyotes (16-13-2) have gotten a huge lift from goalie Connor Ingram, who is 12-6-0 with a 2.55 goals-against average, .919 save percentage and three shutouts. The Sharks, in turn, will try to snap a three-game skid, which started with a 1-0 loss to Arizona on Dec. 15. -- Bill Price, Editor-in-Chief

Flyers look to extend win, point streaks

It's a rebuilding season for the Philadelphia Flyers, but are they also building the case for a postseason appearance? The Flyers (18-10-3) have won three in row, are 7-0-2 with points in nine straight games and are second in the Metropolitan Division behind the New York Rangers. They'll look to keep things rolling when they host the Nashville Predators (7 p.m. ET; NBCSP+, BSSO). Goalie Samuel Ersson is building a case to be a starter. He's won three of four games filling in for an ailing Carter Hart, and is 7-0-1 in his past eight starts, including a 24-save performance in 3-2 overtime win at the New Jersey Devils on Tuesday. The Predators (18-14-0) are coming off a 5-2 loss to the Vancouver Canucks on Tuesday that ended their four-game winning streak. Still, they're 7-3-0 in their past 10 games. Roman Josi has seven points (one goal, six assists) in his past five games. -- William Douglas, staff writer

Oilers attempt to end recent slide

The Edmonton Oilers looked as though they had climbed out of an early hole with an eight-game winning streak but are starting slide back in the wrong direction, losing three in a row. Edmonton lost the first game of a three-game road trip to the New York Islanders on Tuesday (3-1) and face the New Jersey Devils (16-12-2) in the first game of a back-to-back set at Prudential Center on Thursday (7:30 p.m. ET; HULU, ESPN+, SNW) before facing the New York Rangers on Friday. Edmonton (13-15-1) does not want to return the gains made during its winning streak but are two missteps away from five straight losses. The Oilers offense has gone cold with two goals in their past two games. Connor McDavid had his 12-game point streak end against the Islanders. He had 28 points (seven goals, 21 assists) during the streak. The Devils have points in six of their past eight games (5-2-1) and are playing the third of a five-game homestand. New Jersey has been better on the road (10-5-0) than at home (6-7-2) this season. Jack Hughes has four goals in his past four games. He has 38 points (14 goals, 24 assists) in 25 games. -- Derek Van Diest, staff writer

Thursday games

Toronto Maple Leafs at Buffalo Sabres (7 p.m. ET; MSG-B, SNO)

Auston Matthews has 11 goals in his past seven games for the Maple Leafs (16-7-6). The forward sat out a 7-0 win against the Pittsburgh Penguins on Saturday with an illness but returned and scored two goals in a 5-2 loss to the New York Rangers on Tuesday. Matthews leads the NHL with 25 goals. Buffalo (13-17-3) has lost three of its past four games (1-3-0). Forward Casey Mittelstadt has five points (two goals, three assists) in his past three games.

Washington Capitals at Columbus Blue Jackets (7 p.m. ET; MNMT, BSOH)

Alex Ovechkin looks to end a 14-game goal drought for the Capitals (16-9-4). Ovechkin has not scored since Nov. 18 in a 4-3 win against the Blue Jackets; his longest previous stretch was 10 games from Feb. 22 to March 12, 2017. He has five goals in 28 games this season for Washington, which is coming off a 3-2 overtime win against the New York Islanders on Wednesday. The Blue Jackets (11-17-5) won 9-4 against the Buffalo Sabres on Tuesday and have two wins in their past three games. Columbus will be going for a second consecutive win for the third time this season; it has yet to win more than two straight.

St. Louis Blues at Florida Panthers (7 p.m. ET; BSMW, BSFL)

The Blues (15-15-1) are 2-1-0 under interim coach Drew Bannister, who took over for Craig Berube on Dec. 12. St. Louis won against the Ottawa Senators (4-2) and Dallas Stars (4-3 in OT) in Bannister's first two games, but lost 6-1 at the Tampa Bay Lightning on Tuesday. Florida (18-11-2) will play at home for the first time following a five-game road trip in which it was 2-3-0 on the trip, which ended with a 3-1 loss at the Calgary Flames on Monday.

Nashville Predators at Philadelphia Flyers (7 p.m. ET; BSSO, NBCSP)

The Predators are moving up the Western Conference standings with a 7-2-0 record in their past nine games. They are 13-4-0 since a 5-10-0 start to the season. Nashville had a four-game win streak end in a 5-2 loss against the Vancouver Canucks on Tuesday. Flyers forward Owen Tippett, who scored in overtime against the Devils on Tuesday, has three goals in his past five games.

Carolina Hurricanes at Pittsburgh Penguins (7 p.m. ET; SN-PIT, BSSO, SNE, SN1)

Sebastian Aho has eight points (four goals, four assists) in his past five games. He had three assists for Carolina in a 6-3 win against the Vegas Golden Knights on Tuesday. The Hurricanes (17-12-3) have points in each of their past five games (3-0-2) following a four-game losing streak. The Penguins (14-13-3) have won three of their past four games (3-1-0). They bounced back from a 7-0 loss at the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday with a 4-3 win against the Minnesota Wild on Monday.

Vegas Golden Knights at Tampa Bay Lightning (7 p.m. ET; SCRIPPS, BSSUN)

Nikita Kucherov is pulling away in the NHL scoring race with 54 points (22 goals, 32 assists) in 32 games. He is four points ahead of Colorado Avalanche forward Nathan MacKinnon, who has 48 points (14 goals, 34 assists) in 32 games. Kucherov had two goals for the Lightning (15-13-5) in a 6-1 win against the St. Louis Blues on Tuesday. Golden Knights forward Jack Eichel will look to score in his fourth consecutive game. Eichel has 37 points (15 goals, 22 assists) in 33 games for Vegas (21-7-5), which lost at the Carolina Hurricanes, 6-3 on Tuesday.

Edmonton Oilers at New Jersey Devils (7:30 p.m. ET; HULU, ESPN+, SNW)

Defenseman Evan Bouchard does not have a point in his past two games following a 13-game point streak (20 points; five goals, 15 assists). The streak was second longest by an Oilers defenseman. Paul Coffey, now an Edmonton assistant coach, had a record 28-game streak (55 points; 16 goals, 39 assists) in 1985-86. Devils forward Michael McLeod, 25, will play younger brother Ryan McLeod, 24, of the Oilers for the sixth time in the NHL.

Vancouver Canucks at Dallas Stars (8 p.m. ET; BSSW, SNP)

Quinn Hughes continues to lead defensemen in scoring with 41 points (nine goals, 32 assists) in 33 games, four points ahead of Colorado Avalanche defenseman Cale Makar who has 37 points (eight goals, 29 assists) in 27 games. Hughes had two assists in a 5-2 win at the Nashville Predators on Tuesday for Vancouver (22-9-2), which has won six of its past seven games (6-0-1). Forward Matt Duchene has seven points (four goals, three assists) on a four-game point streak for the Stars (18-8-4).

Montreal Canadiens at Minnesota Wild (8 p.m. ET; BSWIX, BSNX, TSN2, RDS)

The Wild (13-13-4) are 8-3-0 under coach John Hynes, who took over for Dean Evason on Nov. 27. Minnesota won 4-3 in overtime at the Boston Bruins on Tuesday getting two goals from Kirill Kaprizov. He is second on Minnesota with 27 points (10 goals, 17 assists) in 30 games, one behind injured forward Mats Zuccarello, who is week to week with an upper-body injury. The Canadiens (14-13-4) have points in four of their past five games (3-1-1). Forward Josh Anderson has three goals in his past two games after scoring one in his first 29 this season.

Ottawa Senators at Colorado Avalanche (9 p.m. ET; ALT, TSN5, RDSI)

Nathan MacKinnon has an opportunity to extend his point streak to 17 games when the Avalanche (19-11-2) host the Senators at the Ball Arena. MacKinnon has 28 points (eight goals, 20 assists) on his 16-game streak, which is a career high and the longest active streak in the NHL. The Senators (11-16-0) are looking for their first win under interim coach Jacques Martin, who replaced D.J. Smith on Monday. Ottawa lost its first game with Martin, 4-3 at the Arizona Coyotes on Tuesday extending its losing streak to five games.

Calgary Flames at Anaheim Ducks (10 p.m. ET; BSSC, SNW, SNO, SNE, SN1)

The Ducks are looking to win three straight for the first time since winning six in a row from Oct. 24 to Nov. 5. Since then, Anaheim has won five games in total (5-13-0). The Ducks defeated the New Jersey Devils 5-1 on Sunday and the Detroit Red Wings 4-3 on Monday in the final two games of a four-game road trip. Calgary has won two straight and has points in its past four games (2-0-2). The Flames defeated the Florida Panthers 3-1 on Monday.

Arizona Coyotes at San Jose Sharks (10:30 p.m. ET; HULU, ESPN+)

Arizona has an opportunity to extend its winning streak to four games. The Coyotes have won three straight following a four-game losing streak, including a 4-3 win against the Ottawa Senators on Tuesday. San Jose is on a three-game losing streak after earning points in each of its previous four games (3-0-1). The Sharks lost 4-1 against the Los Angeles Kings on Tuesday.