NHL On Tap: Ovechkin to return for Capitals against Maple Leafs

Welcome to the NHL On Tap, a daily look at the games on the NHL schedule. There are 11 games on the schedule for Saturday, including one nationally televised in the United States and three in Canada:

Games of the day

Washington Capitals at Toronto Maple Leafs (7 p.m. ET; CBC, SNE, SNO, SNP, NHLN, MNMT2)

Alex Ovechkin will resume his pursuit of Wayne Gretzky’s NHL goal record after missing 16 games with a fractured fibula for the Capitals (23-9-2). Ovechkin has 868 career goals, 26 shy of Gretzky’s 894. This is the second half of a back-to-back for the Maple Leafs (22-12-2), who won 5-2 against the Detroit Red Wings on Friday. Auston Matthews will miss his fourth straight game for Toronto because of an upper-body injury.

Pittsburgh Penguins at New York Islanders (7:30 p.m. ET; SN-PIT, MSGSN)

It’s the first of a home-and-home set between the teams. Sidney Crosby needs one more assist to become the all-time leader in that category for the Penguins (16-15-5); he’s tied with Mario Lemieux with 1,033 after he had three assists in a 7-4 win against the Philadelphia Flyers on Dec. 23. The Islanders (13-15-7) have lost three of their past four games.

Calgary Flames at San Jose Sharks (10 p.m. ET; NBCSCA, CITY, SN, TVAS, CBC)

The youth movement continues for the Sharks (11-21-6), who lead the NHL in goals by teenagers with 17. Macklin Celebrini (18) has 11, and Will Smith (19) has six for San Jose, which has lost six in a row (0-5-1), including 6-3 to the Vegas Golden Knights on Friday. The Flames (16-11-7) went 2-1-2 during a five-game homestand before the holiday break. Jonathan Huberdeau has 13 goals in 34 games this season after having 12 in 81 in 2023-24.

Other Saturday games

Montreal Canadiens at Florida Panthers (1 p.m. ET; SCRIPPS, TSN2, RDS)

Patrik Laine could return for the Canadiens (14-17-3) after the forward sustained an upper-body injury during a 5-4 loss at the Columbus Blue Jackets on Dec. 23. The Panthers (22-12-2) had a four-game winning streak end in a 4-0 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning on Dec. 23.

Seattle Kraken at Vancouver Canucks (4 p.m. ET; SNP, KONG, KING 5, KHN)

The Kraken (15-19-2) will look to end a five-game losing streak. The Canucks (17-10-7) will be without defenseman Quinn Hughes and forward Elias Pettersson, both of whom have undisclosed injuries.

Philadelphia Flyers at Anaheim Ducks (4 p.m. ET; Victory+, NBCSP, KCOP-13)

The Flyers (15-16-4), who lost four of five entering the holiday break, begin a five-game road trip. Rookie center Cutter Gauthier will play against Philadelphia for the first time since being traded to the Ducks (13-16-4) on Jan. 8.

Edmonton Oilers at Los Angeles Kings (4 p.m. ET; FDSNW, SNW, SNO, SNE, TVAS)

Zach Hyman has scored seven times during a six-game goal streak for the Oilers (21-11-2), who have won three straight and eight of nine. It’s the start of a five-game homestand for the Kings (19-10-5), who are 10-2-1 at Crypto.com Arena this season.

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

It’s the second of a home-and-home set between the Blue Jackets (15-15-6) and Bruins (19-14-4); Columbus won 6-2 against Boston on Friday and is 3-0-1 in its past four games. Bruins captain Brad Marchand has an 11-game point streak (14 points; seven goals, seven assists).

New York Rangers at Tampa Bay Lightning (7 p.m. ET; FDSNSUN, MSG 2)

The Rangers (16-17-1) have lost 13 of their past 17 games and look to start fresh after the holiday break. The Lightning (19-11-2) have won seven of 10.

New Jersey Devils at Carolina Hurricanes (7 p.m. ET; FDSNSO, MSGSN2)

It’s the second half of a home-and-home set between the Devils (24-11-3) and Hurricanes (21-13-1); New Jersey won its third straight Friday, 4-2 against Carolina at Prudential Center. The Hurricanes have lost three of four.

Ottawa Senators at Winnipeg Jets (7 p.m. ET; TVAS, SN360, CITY, SNW)

The Senators (18-14-2), who had their six-game winning streak end in a 3-1 loss at the Edmonton Oilers on Dec. 22, will be without goalie Linus Ullmark because of a lingering back injury. The Jets (25-10-1) have won their past two games and four of five.