Nathan MacKinnon became the newest member of the 1,000-point club as he extended his home point streak to 20 games and helped the Avalanche skate to their eighth straight win at Ball Arena.
* Dylan Cozens scored his first goal in a Senators uniform while Linus Ullmark stopped 48 shots, including all 27 in the second period, to help Ottawa leap into the first Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference.
* Alex Ovechkin begins a California road trip with The Gr8 Chase at single digits during Tuesdayâs 11-game schedule, which also features the Hurricanes hosting the Lightning on ESPN+, Hulu and Disney+. Ovechkinâs most goals on a three-game California road trip is four, achieved from Feb. 14-18, 2019.
MACKINNON JOINS 1,000-POINT CLUB, PUSHES HOME POINT STREAK TO 20 GAMES
Nathan MacKinnon (0-2â2) became the 100th player in NHL history â and 10th active skater (min. 1 GP in 2024-25) â to reach the 1,000-point milestone as the Avalanche extended their home winning streak to eight games and matched the sixth-longest run in franchise history.
* MacKinnon pushed his home point streak to 20 games for the second time in his career (also 35 GP in 2023-24) and became the seventh player in NHL history to record multiple runs of that length. The others: Wayne Gretzky (8x; longest: 40 GP in 1988-89), Guy Lafleur (2x; longest: 32 GP in 1978-79), Mario Lemieux (2x; longest: 31 GP in 1995-96), Connor McDavid (2x; longest: 26 GP in 2023-24) and Bobby Orr (2x; longest: 25 GP in 1974-75) and Mike Bossy (2x; longest: 21 GP in 1981-82).
COZENS SCORES FIRST GOAL WITH OTTAWA AS SENATORS TOP RED WINGS
Dylan Cozens (1-0â1) scored his first goal with the Senators with just over five minutes remaining in regulation while Linus Ullmark stopped 48 of 49 shots, including all 27 in the middle frame, to help Ottawa earn its third straight win. The Senators (33-25-5, 71 points) overtook the idle Blue Jackets (31-24-8, 70 points) for the first Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference and hit the 70-point mark in 63 games â their fastest pace since 2016-17 (58 GP), when they last made the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
* Cozens (1-1â2 in 2 GP), who was acquired by Ottawa at last week’s NHL Trade Deadline, became the first Senators player to record a point in each of their first two games with the franchise since Artem Zub (2 GP in 2020-21).
* Ullmark tied the seventh-highest save total in a game by a Senators goaltender and became the seventh netminder since 1997-98 (when shots by period were first tracked) to make 27-plus saves in a period without allowing a goal. The others: Craig Anderson on March 2, 2008 (29 in P2 w/ FLA), Juuse Saros on Jan. 5, 2023 (28 in P3 w/ NSH), Matt Murray on Feb. 11, 2019 (28 in P2 w/ PIT), Michael Neuvirth on Jan. 9, 2015 (27 in P2 w/ BUF), Jimmy Howard on Jan. 7, 2010 (27 in P2 w/ DET) and Mike Dunham on Oct. 21, 1998 (27 in P2 w/ NSH).
* ICYMI: Drake Bathersonâs sister, Mae, dropped the puck before the game and was interviewed during the broadcast on Prime Monday Night Hockey. Mae is in her rookie season with the Minnesota Frost of the PWHL.
DRAISAITL, MCDAVID CONNECT IN #NHLSTATS: LIVE UPDATES
Mondayâs edition of #NHLStats: Live Updates featured Leon Draisaitl (0-2â2) join Connor McDavid (0-1â1) at 50 assists in 2024-25. The pair have each recorded 50 helpers in seven straight seasons dating to 2018-19 â only one other pair of teammates in NHL history have recorded as many consecutive 50-assist campaigns together: Wayne Gretzky and Jari Kurri (7 from 1981-82 to 1987-88).
QUICK CLICKS
* Aaron Ekblad of Panthers suspended 20 games
* Brad Marchand excited to join Panthers ‘incredible group’ after trade from Bruins
* Adam Fantilli, Jake Christiansen, Kent Johnson visit NHL office in New York City
* Jonathan Toews has âsomething left in tank,â wants to explore return to hockey: report
* Nathan MacKinnon, Steven Stamkos, Tom Wilson named NHLâs âThree Starsâ of the Week
TUESDAY Headlined BY THE GR8 CHASE, LIGHTNING-HURRICANES ON ESPN+
Tuesdayâs 11-game slate is highlighted by Alex Ovechkin approaching The Gr8 Chase finish line when the League-leading Capitals (42-14-8, 92 points) begin a California road trip, Sebastian Aho and the Hurricanes (38-22-4, 80 points) hosting Nikita Kucherov and the Lightning (37-22-4, 78 points) on ESPN+, Hulu and Disney+ as well as several teams looking to gain ground in Wild Card races.
* Ovechkin needs just nine goals to pass Wayne Gretzky for the most in NHL history when Washington is welcomed to Anaheim, where Teemu Selanne played parts of 15 seasons and scored 457 of his 684 career markers with the Ducks. Ovechkin overtook Selanne on the Leagueâs all-time goals list when he tallied twice against the Hurricanes on Jan. 13, 2020 â that gave Ovechkin the second most in NHL history among players born outside North America and he went on to top that leaderboard by passing Jaromir Jagr via a third-period marker versus the Islanders on March 15, 2022.
* Aho can help Carolina extend its winning streak to five games and strengthen its grip on second place in the Metropolitan Division, while Kucherov can inch closer to his fifth career 100-point season as Tampa Bay looks to improve to 12-2-1 in its last 15 contests dating to Jan. 30. The Lightning occupy third place in the Atlantic Division and sit three points back of the second-ranked Maple Leafs (39-22-3, 81points), who they faced in the 2022 and 2023 First Round.
* Adam Fantilli is coming off his second career hat trick for the Blue Jackets (31-24-8, 70 points), one of several teams in the thick of a tightly-contested Wild Card race that play Tuesday. Fantilli can join a rare NHL list with another three-goal performance over the teamâs final 19 contests and Columbus can inch closer to its opponent New Jersey (34-25-6, 74 points), which occupies third place in the Metropolitan Division.
* David Pastrnak and the Bruins (29-28-8, 66 points) look to snap the six-game winning streak held by the Atlantic Division-leading Panthers (40-21-3, 83 points) during a nationally televised contest on Sportsnet and TVA Sports. The reigning Stanley Cup champions made several moves ahead of the NHL Trade Deadline last Friday including a blockbuster deal to acquire former Boston captain Brad Marchand, who spoke during an introductory press conference yesterday and is week-to-week with an upper-body injury.
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