It’s NHL Trade Deadline Day! With extremely close playoff races in each conference, where the playoff line is 0 points in the East and one point in the West, teams will have until 3 p.m. ET today to bolster their roster ahead of the final six-week push to the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
* A high-flying outing for the Avalanche saw Cale Makar become the third defenseman in the past 30 years with a six-point game and the fifth-fastest blueliner in NHL history to 300 assists, while teammate Nathan MacKinnon tied the second-most five-point outings in franchise history.
* Jake Guentzel scored his seventh career hat trick – tied for the third most among active U.S.-born players – in a contest that saw 11 combined goals, four tying tallies and the Lightning overcoming a multi-goal deficit.
* Alex Ovechkin enters the homestretch of The Gr8 Chase needing just 10 goals to pass Wayne Gretzky for the NHL record when the Capitals clash with the Red Wings tonight. Ovechkin is also on the brink of reaching the 1,600-point milestone.
COUNTDOWN IS ON TO 3 P.M. ET TRADE DEADLINE
With extremely close races for playoff spots in both conferences, teams will look to add some final pieces to the puzzle ahead of today’s 2025 NHL Trade Deadline at 3 p.m. ET.
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* NHL Network will have seven consecutive hours of coverage beginning at 10 a.m. ET with a simulcast of Sportsnet’s Hockey Central coverage which also begins at 10 a.m. in Canada. ESPN+ will stream Trade Deadline Day coverage from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. ET with ESPN2 also airing coverage from 2-4 p.m. ET.
* As outlined on NHL.com’s Trade Tracker, the trade winds have been swirling since the calendar turned to March, including the reigning Stanley Cup champion Panthers acquiring defenseman Seth Jones (March 1), goaltender Vitek Vanecek (March 5) and forward Nico Sturm (March 6) as they prepare for a run at back-to-back championships. Their division rival, the Lightning, brought back two-time Stanley Cup champion Yanni Gourde and added five-time 20-goal scorer Oliver Bjorkstrand (March 5), while the team they faced in the Stanley Cup Final in 2024, the Oilers, added veteran forward Trent Frederic (March 4).
* With less than 24 hours until the Trade Deadline, the Golden Knights brought back Reilly Smith in a trade with the Rangers. Smith, one of the original Vegas “Misfits,” helped the franchise reach the Stanley Cup Final twice (winning in 2023). Another major move Thursday included Brock Nelson being traded to the Avalanche after spending the first 12 years of his career with the Islanders. Nelson was selected by the club 30th overall in the 2010 NHL Draft and amassed 295-279—574 in 901 games.
TRADE DEADLINE RESOURCES
* #NHLStats Pack: 2024-25 NHL Trade Deadline (historical notes/charts)
* #NHLStats: Live Updates – Trade Deadline (coverage starts March 7)
MAKAR, MACKINNON MAKE MAGIC WITH SIX- AND FIVE-POINT OUTINGS
Cale Makar (2-4—6) and Nathan MacKinnon (2-3—5) filled the score sheet and established the fourth instance this season – and second by Colorado – of teammates registering at least five points in the same contest. The duo helped the Avalanche (37-24-2, 76 points) tie the Central Division’s third-place Wild (36-22-4, 76 points) in terms of standings points, yet remain in the first Wild Card spot in the West due to games played.
* Makar established a franchise record for most points in a game by a defenseman, besting the previous mark set by Tyson Barrie (1-4—5 on Feb. 20, 2018). Makar also moved his name atop a franchise list after just his fourth point of the night when he surpassed Sandis Ozolinsh (4) for the most four-point games by an Avalanche/Nordiques blueliner.
* Makar (110-300—410 in 378 GP) became the fifth-fastest defenseman in NHL history to 300 career assists, behind Bobby Orr (346 GP), Brian Leetch (368 GP), Quinn Hughes (376 GP) and Paul Coffey (377 GP). His performance Thursday also saw him boost his season totals to 24-50—74 (63 GP), which allowed him to become the first defenseman in Avalanche/Nordiques history to record consecutive 50-assist campaigns (69 in 2023-24).
* MacKinnon, who extended his home point streak to 18 contests, recorded his 10th career five-point outing and became the second active player with a double-digit total, joining Connor McDavid (11). In doing so, he tied Joe Sakic (10) for the second-most five-point games in Avalanche/Nordiques history, trailing Peter Stastny (12).
GOALS APLENTY FOR GUENTZEL IN LIGHTNING’S HIGH-SCORING WIN
Jake Guentzel (3-0—3) scored a second-period hat trick with goals that tied the game 3-3 and then 5-5 after his club fell behind by two – a performance that saw AstraZeneca donate $3,000 to the Hockey Fights Cancer Fund of the V Foundation, which they do for every hat trick this season up to $300,000. The Lightning (37-21-4, 78 points) completed their third multi-goal comeback win of 2024-25 and moved within one point of the idle Maple Leafs (38-21-3, 79 points) for second in the Atlantic Division.
* Guentzel scored his 30th, 31st and 32nd tally of 2024-25 and became the second-fastest player in Lightning history to 30 goals with the club (61 GP), trailing Brian Bradley (42 GP in 1992-93). He also became the third Tampa Bay player to reach the plateau in their first season with the club, alongside Bradley (42 in 1992-93) and Dino Ciccarelli (35 in 1996-97).
* Guentzel completed a hat trick in a period for the second time in his career and became the fifth U.S.-born player to achieve the feat multiple times, alongside Jimmy Carson, Joe Mullen, Joe Pavelski and Blake Wheeler (all w/ 2). He also became the second player in franchise history to record multiple hat tricks in their first season with the Lightning (also Wendel Clark: 3 in 1998-99).
* Andrei Vasilevskiy (28 saves) became the third goaltender in NHL history to record eight or more consecutive 30-win seasons. He joined Martin Brodeur (12 from 1995-96 – 2007-08) and Patrick Roy (8 from 1995-96 – 2002-03).
LEAGUE-LEADING JETS, ATLANTIC DIVISION-LEADING PANTHERS COLLECT WINS
The Central Division-leading Jets (43-16-4, 90 points), who also top the NHL standings, and Atlantic Division-leading Panthers (39-21-3, 81 points) skated to victories Thursday:
* Mark Scheifele (1-2—3) put up a three-point performance and Nikolaj Ehlers scored to record his eighth 20-goal season as Winnipeg earned its 90th point of 2024-25 and became the fourth Canadian-based team in the past 30 years to be the first to reach the mark in a campaign, following Vancouver (2011-12 & 2010-11) and Ottawa (2002-03). The Jets required their fewest games in franchise history to 90 points (63 GP), eclipsing their previous best by four contests (67 GP in 2023-24 & 2017-18).
* Sam Reinhart – who climbed into fifth place on the franchise’s all-time goals list – and captain Aleksander Barkov each posted 1-2—3, while Sergei Bobrovsky turned aside all 16 shots he faced to earn his 423rd career win and lift the Panthers (39-21-3, 81 points) to their fifth straight victory. Florida regained a two-point cushion on idle Toronto (38-21-3, 79 points) for top spot in the Atlantic Division.
LATE-GAME HEROICS LEAD OILERS, HURRICANES TO VICTORY
Evan Bouchard and Seth Jarvis both scored late game-winning goals in overtime and the third period, respectively, to lift their teams to victory.
* Leon Draisaitl (1-1—2), who extended his point streak to 13 contests, and Connor McDavid (0-2—2) both factored on Bouchard’s game winner with seven seconds remaining in overtime – the third latest in franchise history behind McDavid (4:57 on Jan. 18, 2017) and Andrew Cogliano (4:55 on March 11, 2008). With his assist in the extra frame, the Oilers captain passed Patrick Kane (42) for the third-most overtime points in NHL history, trailing Sidney Crosby (47) and Evgeni Malkin (44).
* Sebastian Aho (1-0—1) opened the scoring with his 20th career shorthanded goal but with a tie game late in the third period, Jarvis (1-0—1) scored the winning goal with 19 seconds left on the clock to help the Hurricanes improve to 37-22-4 (78 points). Jarvis tied Aho (59:41 on Feb. 22, 2024) for the fifth-latest go-ahead goal in franchise history, behind Ray Whitney (59:59 on Oct. 13, 2006), Ron Francis (59:58 on Dec. 3, 1986), Blaine Stoughton (59:51 on March 29, 1983) and Justin Faulk (59:43 on Dec. 6, 2015).
HINTZ, ROBERTSON HELP STARS SKATE TO SEVENTH STRAIGHT HOME WIN
After Calgary jumped out to a 2-0 lead, Roope Hintz (0-2—2) factored on Jason Robertson’s (2-0—2) game-tying goal and overtime winner to help Dallas (41-19-2, 84 points) extend its home winning streak to seven games and keep pace with Winnipeg (43-16-4, 90 points) in the Central Division standings.
* Hintz boosted his totals over his past four games to 2-11—13 and became the first player in Stars team history with 13 or more points over a span of as many contests. He also became the first player in Stars/North Stars history with multiple assists in four straight games.
QUICK CLICKS
* Tuesday’s #NHLStats: Live Updates
* Carter Mazur makes Red Wings debut, fulfilling predicted childhood dream
* Carson Soucy traded to Rangers by Canucks for 3rd-round pick in 2025 NHL Draft
* Body Check Cup challenge encourages proactive cancer screenings
* NHL and NHLPA enhance ‘Women’s Hockey Advancement Committee’
FRIDAY FEATURES THE GR8 CHASE ENTERING HOMESTRETCH AT CAPITAL ONE ARENA
Friday’s six-game slate is highlighted by The Gr8 Chase continuing in Washington, D.C., when Alex Ovechkin and the Eastern Conference leading Capitals (40-14-8, 88 points) host Patrick Kane and the Red Wings (30-26-6, 66 points) on Sportsnet 360 and TVA Sports. Ovechkin, who has spent half his life climbing the NHL’s all-time goals list, needs just 10 to pass Wayne Gretzky (894) and conquer the summit of a mountaintop long believed to be unreachable. Click here to visit NHL.com’s microsite dedicated to covering The Gr8 Chase, which features news, highlights and a timeline of the League’s goals leaders throughout history (min. 100 goals).
* Ovechkin owns a goals-per-game rate of 0.70 this season, which puts him on pace to pass Gretzky against the Islanders at UBS Arena on April 6, while Ovechkin’s career average of 0.60 has him tracking to break the record versus the Blue Jackets at Nationwide Arena on April 12. The fewest games that Ovechkin has required to score 10 goals at any point in a season is five, achieved at age 34 from Jan. 13-31, 2020.
* Ovechkin could complete The Gr8 Chase around some notable anniversaries from Gretzky’s career. March 23 marks 31 years since Gretzky scored his 802nd career goal to pass Gordie Howe (801) for the NHL record, while March 29 will be 26 years since Gretzky had his 894th and final tally. Gretzky skated his 1,487th and final game on April 18, 1999, with Ovechkin set to reach 1,487 career contests against the Islanders on April 6.
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