NHL On Tap: McLellan to make debut as Red Wings coach

Welcome to the NHL On Tap, a daily look at the games on the NHL schedule. There are eight games on the schedule for Friday, including two televised nationally in the United States and one in Canada.

Games of the day

Toronto Maple Leafs at Detroit Red Wings (7 p.m. ET; FDSNDET, SNO, TVAS)

Todd McLellan will make his debut as coach of the Red Wings (13-17-4) when they host the Maple Leafs (21-12-2) at Little Caesars Arena. The 57-year-old, who replaced Derek Lalonde on Thursday, was an assistant coach with the Red Wings from 2005-08, including winning the Stanley Cup in 2008. Detroit, which has not qualified for the Stanley Cup Playoffs since 2016, has lost three straight (outscored 13-4). The Maple Leafs assigned goaltender Dennis Hildeby to the American Hockey League on Thursday and recalled Matt Murray, who won his first NHL game in almost two years by making 24 saves in a 6-3 victory against the Buffalo Sabres last Friday. The big question looming over Toronto, however, will be the availability of captain Auston Matthews, who has missed the past two games -- both losses -- with an upper-body injury.

Chicago Blackhawks at Buffalo Sabres (7 p.m. ET; ESPN2, SNP, SNW, SNE)

The Sabres (12-19-4) will be looking to build on their 7-1 victory at the New York Islanders on Monday, a win that ended their 13-game losing streak (0-10-3). Now they’ll attempt to win their first game at home since they defeated the St. Louis Blues 4-3 in overtime on Nov. 14. Chicago forward Connor Bedard has 11 points (four goals, seven assists) in his past nine games and will try to help the Blackhawks (12-21-2) end their modest, in comparison, two-game losing streak. This will be Chicago’s first of two games prior to hosting St. Louis in the Discover NHL Winter Classic at Wrigley Field on New Year's Eve.

Colorado Avalanche at Utah Hockey Club (9:30 p.m. ET; ESPN2, SN1, SN, TVAS)

The Avalanche (21-15-0) will look to extend their winning streak to four games when they visit the Utah Hockey Club (16-12-6) at Delta Center. Colorado is 8-3-0 in December and is tied for the second-most road wins (12) in the NHL this season, behind only the Winnipeg Jets (13). Forwards Nathan MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen have led the way for the Avalanche. MacKinnon has 16 points (five goals, 11 assists) in his past seven games, and Rantanen has 17 points (four goals, 13 assists) during a nine-game point streak. Utah is 6-2-2 in December, including a 4-1 victory at Colorado on the 12th. In that win, Utah got two goals from Dylan Guenther, who leads the team with 16 on the season.

Other Friday games

Boston Bruins at Columbus Blue Jackets (7 p.m. ET; FDSNOH, NESN)

All eyes will be on forward David Pastrnak, who leads the Bruins (19-13-4) with 35 points (12 goals, 23 assists) in 36 games. The right wing’s availability is up in the air after he left Boston’s 4-1 victory against the Washington Capitals on Monday with an upper-body injury. Defenseman Zach Werenski of the Blue Jackets (14-15-6) ranks third among defensemen in the NHL with 35 points (11 goals, 24 assists) in 35 games.

Carolina Hurricanes at New Jersey Devils (7 p.m. ET; FDSNSO, MSGSN)

The Devils (23-11-3) have been led this month by forward Jack Hughes, who has 15 points (six goals, nine assists) in 10 games. Meanwhile, goalie Jacob Markstrom has earned a shutout in his past two starts, making 12 saves in a 3-0 win against the Pittsburgh Penguins on Saturday and another 12 saves in a 5-0 win against the New York Rangers on Monday. The Hurricanes (21-12-1) are just 5-5-0 in December and 1-2-0 on their road trip, which will conclude in New Jersey.

Nashville Predators at St. Louis Blues (8 p.m. ET; FDSNMW, FDSNSO)

The Predators (11-17-7), who are finally trending in the right direction, hit the road after going 3-0-1 on a four-game homestand. Blues forward Dylan Holloway scored his first career hat trick in a 4-0 victory against the Detroit Red Wings on Monday, which ended a three-game losing streak for St. Louis (16-16-4).

Minnesota Wild at Dallas Stars (8 p.m. ET; FDSNWI, FDSNNO, Victory+)

The Wild (21-10-4) got a boost by the return of Filip Gustavsson, who made 28 saves in a 4-3 win against the Blackhawks on Monday after missing four games with a lower-body injury. The Stars (20-13-0) defeated Utah 3-2 on Monday to avoid losing three consecutive games in regulation for the first time in 2 1/2 seasons under coach Pete DeBoer.

Vegas Golden Knights at San Jose Sharks (10:30 p.m. ET; SCRIPPS, NBCSCA)

Golden Knights (23-8-3) forward Tomas Hertl will return to San Jose for the first time since he was traded to Vegas on March 8. Hertl, who ranks sixth in Sharks history with 484 points (218 goals, 266 assists), had two assists against his former team in a 7-3 victory in Vegas on Oct. 26. Rookie Macklin Celebrini has earned at least one point in six of his past seven games for the Sharks (11-20-6), amassing 10 (three goals, seven assists) in that span.