Colorado, as the Avalanche host the Vegas Golden Knights. Marc-Andre Fleury and Semyon Varlamov man the nets. Colorado began in the first period with a Carl Soderberg power play goal, his sixteenth of the season, powered by J.T. Compher and Alexander Kerfoot. Vegas tied it in the third period with a Jonathan Marchessault goal, his twenty-fourth of the year, guided in by Shea Theodore. The tie went to a shootout, where Gabriel Landeskog gave the Avalanche the 2-1 win on his lone tally. The three stars went to Varlamov (39 for 40 in saves), Landeskog, and Fleury (29 for 30 in saves).
Out in California, the San Jose Sharks welcome the Calgary Flames. David Rittich and Martin Jones are in the creases. San Jose led off in the first period with a Brenden Dillon goal, his fourth of the season, passed from Chris Tierney and Timo Meier. The Sharks added on with a Jannik Hansen goal, his second of the year, courtesy of Brent Burns and Barclay Goodrow. Calgary got on the board with a Michael Stone goal, his third of the season, made possible by Micheal Ferland and Chris Stewart. San Jose replied in the second period with a shorthanded Evander Kane goal, his twenty-sixth of the year, set up by Tierney. The Sharks extended the lead in the third period as Justin Braun scored his fourth of the season, thanks to Logan Couture and Melker Karlsson. San Jose padded the lead on another Kane goal, his second of the game and twenty-seventh of the year, assisted by Joe Pavelski and Dillon. This made it 5-1, the final, with the three stars given to Kane, Dillon, and Jones (37 for 38 in saves), while Tierney gets an honorable mention.
At the regular time, the Montreal Canadiens bring in the Washington Capitals. Philipp Grubauer and Carey Price are set to start in goal. Montreal opened in the first period with an Alex Galchenyuk goal, his seventeenth of the season, assisted by Jacob De La Rose. Washington tied it on an Evgeny Kuznetsov power play goal, his twenty-second of the year, powered by John Carlson and Nicklas Backstrom. The Capitals took the lead with a Tom Wilson goal, his twelfth of the season, with a lone assist from Backstrom. Washington added on with another Wilson goal, his second of the game and thirteenth of the year, made possible by Backstrom, who got a natural sock trick, and Andre Burakovsky. The Capitals extended the lead in the second period as Jay Beagle scored his seventh of the season, thanks to Dmitry Orlov and Alex Chiasson. The Canadiens got one back with a Charles Hudon goal, his ninth of the year, helped along by Jordie Benn and Logan Shaw. Washington replied in the third period with another Kuznetsov power play goal, his second of the game and twenty-third of the season, guided in by Backstrom and Carlson. The Capitals padded the lead on a T.J. Oshie goal, his seventeenth of the year, fueled by Jakub Jerabek and Burakovsky. Montreal chipped back with Hudon's second of the game and tenth of the season, passed from Mike Reilly and Shaw. The Canadiens edged closer on a Jonathan Drouin power play goal, his thirteenth of the year, with assists provided by Jeff Petry and Galchenyuk. This only made it 6-4, the final, with the three stars belonging to Backstrom, Wilson, and Kuznetsov, while Hudon, Carlson, Burakovsky, Galchenyuk, and Shaw get the honorable mentions.
Down in New Jersey, the Devils host the Tampa Bay Lightning. Andrei Vasilevskiy and Keith Kinkaid are in the blue paint. New Jersey started in the first period with a Nico Hischier goal, his eighteenth of the season, assist by Will Butcher and Mirco Mueller. The Devils added on in the second period with a Kyle Palmieri goal, his twenty-first of the year, coming off of Pavel Zacha and Taylor Hall. Tampa Bay got on the board in the third period with an Ondrej Palat power play goal, his ninth of the campaign, powered by Mikhail Sergachev and Brayden Point. This led to the 2-1 final score, with the three stars given to Kinkaid (35 for 36 in saves), Palmieri, and Hischier.
In Brooklyn, the New York Islanders welcome the Chicago Blackhawks. Anton Forsberg and Jaroslav Halak are between the pipes. Chicago got going in the second period with a Patrick Kane power play goal, his twenty-sixth of the season, powered by Patrick Sharp and Erik Gustafsson. The Blackhawks added on with a Brandon Saad goal, his seventeenth of the year, made possible by Jordan Oesterle and Jan Rutta. New York got on the board in the third period with a John Tavares goal, his thirty-third of the season, guided in by Anders Lee and Thomas Hickey. Chicago iced it at 3-1 with an unassisted Brent Seabrook empty net goal, his sixth of the year. The three stars were Forsberg (31 for 32 in saves), Saad, and Kane.
Along to Manhattan, as the New York Rangers bring in the Buffalo Sabres. Robin Lehner and Alexandar Georgiev are the backups in goal. New York struck first in the first period with a Chris Kreider goal, his fifteenth of the season, passed from Mika Zibanejad and Jesper Fast. The Rangers added on with a Jimmy Vesey goal, his sixteenth of the year, assisted by Mats Zuccarello. New York extended the lead as Neal Pionk scored in the second period, with the help of Vesey and Kevin Hayes. The Rangers padded the lead on a Zibanejad power play goal, his twenty-seventh of the season, powered by Kreider and Pionk. Linus Ullmark relieved Lehner in goal. New York continued with a Vesey power play goal, his second of the game and seventeenth of the year, with assists provided by Ryan Spooner and Hayes. Buffalo got on the board with a Sam Reinhart power play goal, his twentieth of the campaign, with helpers from Kyle Okposo and Ryan O'Reilly. This made it 5-1, the final, with the three stars being Vesey, Pionk, and Zibanejad, while Hayes, Kreider, and Georgiev (43 for 44 in saves) get the honorable mentions.
Up in Ottawa, the Senators host the Carolina Hurricanes. Cam Ward and Mike Condon receive the green light to play in goal. Carolina was first to score in the first period with a Phillip Di Giuseppe goal, his fourth of the season, made possible by Valentin Zykov. Ottawa tied it with a Bobby Ryan goal, his ninth of the year, helped along by Ryan Dzingel and Erik Karlsson. The Hurricanes retook the lead with a Brock McGinn goal in the second period, his fourteenth of the season, via Klas Dahlbeck and Jordan Staal. Carolina added on in the third period with a Noah Hanifin goal, his ninth of the year, passed from Sebastian Aho and Zykov. The Hurricanes extended the lead as Jeff Skinner scored his twenty-third of the season, thanks to Di Giuseppe. The Senators got one back on a Thomas Chabot goal, his seventh of the year, coming off of Mike Hoffman and Magnus Paajarvi. Carolina iced it at 5-2 with a Staal empty net goal, his seventeenth of the campaign, set up by Justin Williams and Elias Lindholm. The three stars were Di Giuseppe, Zykov, and Ward (34 for 36 in saves), while Staal gets an honorable mention.
Also in Ontario, the Toronto Maple Leafs welcome the Detroit Red Wings. Jimmy Howard and Frederik Andersen protect the nets. Toronto kicked off the scoring in the first period with a Kasperi Kapanen goal, his seventh of the season, courtesy of Tyler Bozak and James van Riemsdyk. Detroit tied it on a Dylan Larkin goal, his twelfth of the year, coming off of Anthony Mantha in the second period. The Red Wings gained the lead with a Tyler Bertuzzi goal, his third of the season, via Danny DeKeyser and Henrik Zetterberg. The Maple Leafs tied it again with a Connor Brown goal, his fourteenth of the year, fueled by Travis Dermott and Morgan Rielly. Detroit pulled ahead in the third period with a Frans Nielsen goal, his fifteenth of the season, passed from Luke Witkowski and Niklas Kronwall. Toronto evened it on a William Nylander goal, his seventeenth of the year, guided in by Auston Matthews. The Maple Leafs pulled ahead on a Nazem Kadri goal, his twenty-ninth of the campaign, made possible by Patrick Marleau and Mitchell Marner. This held for a 4-3 win, with the three stars given to Kadri, Andersen (38 for 41 in saves), and Nylander.
Far to the south, the Florida Panthers bring in the Arizona Coyotes. Darcy Kuemper and James Reimer are making spot starts in goal. Arizona drew first blood in the first period with a Clayton Keller goal, his twenty-second of the season, made possible by Richard Panik and Derek Stepan. The Coyotes added on in the second period with a Panik power play goal, his eleventh of the year, powered by Stepan and Keller. Florida got on the board in the third period with a Vincent Trocheck goal, his twenty-ninth of the season, helped along by Jamie McGinn and Keith Yandle. The Panthers tied it on another Trocheck goal, his second of the game and thirtieth of the year, via Mark Pysyk and Jonathan Huberdeau. Florida took the lead on a Denis Malgin goal, his eleventh of the season, passed from Colton Sceviour and Maxim Mamin. The Panthers iced it at 4-2 with a McGinn power play empty net goal, his twelfth of the year, set up by Aleksander Barkov and Trocheck. The three stars were awarded to Trocheck, McGinn, and Keller, while Panik and Stepan get the honorable mentions.
Back north, the Columbus Blue Jackets host the St. Louis Blues. Jake Allen and Sergei Bobrovsky guard the cages. St. Louis cracked the scoresheet in the first period with an Alexander Steen goal, his fifteenth of the season, coming off of Patrik Berglund and Kyle Brodziak. The Blues added on in the second period with a Vladimir Tarasenko goal, his twenty-ninth of the year, assisted by Brayden Schenn and Jaden Schwartz. Columbus got on the board with an unassisted Cam Atkinson goal, his nineteenth of the campaign. This produced the eventual 2-1 final score, with the three stars given to Allen (33 for 34 in saves), Tarasenko, and Steen.
Northwest to Minnesota, as the Wild welcome the Nashville Predators. Pekka Rinne and Devan Dubnyk tend the twines. Nashville got started in the first period with a Ryan Johansen goal, his thirteenth of the season, coming off of P.K. Subban and Filip Forsberg. Minnesota tied it on a Joel Eriksson Ek goal in the second period, his fifth of the year, via Marcus Foligno and Daniel Winnik. The Wild took the lead with a Nino Niederreiter goal, his eighteenth of the season, made possible by Jason Zucker and Ryan Murphy. Minnesota added on in the third period with a Zucker goal, his thirtieth of the year, passed from Eric Staal. The Wild capped it at 4-1 with a Zach Parise empty net goal, his tenth of the campaign, set up by Mikael Granlund. The three stars were Zucker, Dubnyk (19 for 20 in saves), and Niederreiter.
Finally, the Edmonton Oilers bring in the Los Angeles Kings. Jonathan Quick and Cam Talbot are the solid goalies. Edmonton dented the scoreboard in the first period with an unassisted Pontus Aberg goal, his fourth of the season. The Oilers added on with a Connor McDavid goal, his thirty-seventh of the year, assisted by Ty Rattie and Adam Larsson. Los Angeles got on the board with a Jake Muzzin goal, his eighth of the season, coming off of Tanner Pearson and Jeff Carter. Edmonton replied in the second period with a McDavid goal, his second of the game and thirty-eighth of the year, passed from Anton Slepyshev and Andrej Sekera. The Kings got one back with a Carter goal, his ninth of the season, helped along by Tobias Rieder and Pearson. They couldn't even it up, as the Oilers won 3-2, and the three stars went to McDavid, Carter, and Pearson.
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