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NHL Preview: Arizona Coyotes (27-33-12) at Colorado Avalanche (41-23-6)

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NHL Preview: Arizona Coyotes (27-33-12) at Colorado Avalanche (41-23-6)

ARIZONA COYOTES NOTES:

3 HARD LAPS
• Arizona dropped its second consecutive game on Wednesday, this time in OT, but is 6-2-3 since the NHL’s trade deadline (March 3) and 11-5-6 since the All-Star break

• Clayton Keller (10-10-20) and Barrett Hayton (6-9-15) have tallied a combined 16-19-35 in March (12 GP), ranking T-3rd and T-16th in the NHL in that span, respectively. Keller is on an 10-game point streak, tied for the longest of his career, while Hayton has rung up a career-high nine-game point streak. A point of any kind tonight for Keller would tie the Coyotes record (since 1997-96) for the longest point streak, held by Shane Doan and Jeremy Roenick

• Keller also enters tonight with 78 points (34-44-78) on the campaign. He looks to become just the second Coyote (since 1996-97) to reach 80+ points in a season. He’s turned in a multi-point performance in four of his last six games overall and has two career multipoint games against the Avalanche (12/27/22 and 3/8/21)

LAST GAME
Oilers 4, Coyotes 3 (OT) – March 22, 2023 – Rogers Place
ARI Goals: Moser (6), Keller (33, 34)
EDM Goals: McDavid (59, 60), Nugent-Hopkins (32, 33)
ARI Goalie: Ingram (O) – 27 svs on 31 shots
EDM Goalie: Skinner (W) – 14 svs on 17 shots
PP: 1-2 PK: 2-4
Notes: ARI fell to EDM 4-3 in overtime but picked up at least a point for the ninth time its last 10 GP…Clayton Keller registered two goals to extend his point streak to a career-high-tying 10 games; Keller also enters tonight on an eight-game road point streak dating back to 2/10…Wednesday marked Keller’s eighth multi-goal game of the campaign and is two pts shy of reaching the 80-point threshold for 2022-23…Keller’s second goal came in the third period, his 15th third-period goal of the season to rank T-7 th in the NHL in that criteria…Barrett Hayton extended his point streak to nine games with an assist and has registered 5-9-14 over that run…Nick Schmaltz chipped in two helpers and reached 200 points (70-130-200) with the Coyotes…Matias Maccelli recorded an assist to become the third NHL rookie to reach 40 pts this season (Beniers, McTavish)…JJ Moser scored his sixth goal of the season and has found the scoresheet in two of his last three games…Jack McBain played in his 82nd career NHL game and has produced 13-9-22 with 61 PIM and 287 hits…Lawson Crouse tallied an assist and is one point from reaching 40 this season as well as 150 for his career…Connor Mackey tied his career-high for shots in a game with 3 (12/16/22)…Brett Ritchie missed the game due to an upper-body injury

MAN GAMES LOST (Name/Roster Status/Injury Type/Games Missed/Last Game Played)
Josh Brown…Day-to-Day…Lower-Body (4 / 3/14)
Zack Kassian…Day-to-Day…Upper-Body (2 / 3/18)
Brett Ritchie…Day-to-Day…Upper-Body (1 / 3/21)
Total man games lost: 135 games
Liam O’Brien – 23 (12/17 – 2/6) – Upper-Body | 2 (2/11 – 2/13) – Upper-Body
Jakob Chychrun – 16 (10/13 – 11/17) – Upper-Body
Matias Maccelli – 16 (12/27 – 1/24) – Lower-Body
Nick Schmaltz – 15 (10/15 – 11/17) – Upper-Body | 1 (12/31) – Upper-Body | 3 (3/12 – 3/16)
Zack Kassian – 9 (11/1 – 11/21) – Lower-Body
Connor Timmins – 9 (10/15 – 11/5) – Upper-Body
Shayne Gostisbehere – 8 (1/26 – 2/18) – Upper-Body
Andrew Ladd – 6 (N/A) – Undisclosed
Josh Brown – 3 (11/23 – 11/27) – Upper-Body | 4 (2/26 – 3/3) – Upper-Body
Ben McCartney – 3 (10/13 – 10/17) – Lower-Body
Juuso Valimaki – 1 (11/23) – Upper-Body
Lawson Crouse – 1 (12/1) – Illness | 4 (1/19 – 1/24) – Upper-Body
Christian Fischer – 1 (3/3) – Illness | 1 (3/12) – Lower-Body
Connor Ingram – 1 (1/8) – Illness
Patrik Nemeth – 1 (3/14) – Lower-Body

RECENT TRANSACTIONS
-3/22 – Recalled F Bokondji Imama and F Milos Kelemen from Tucson (AHL)
-3/21 – Recalled D Michael Kesselring from Tucson (AHL)
-3/19 – Assigned D Michael Kesselring to Tucson (AHL)
-3/18 – Recalled D Michael Kesselring from Tucson (AHL)
-3/17 – Assigned F Bokondji Imama and D Michael Kesselring to Tucson (AHL)
-3/16 – Signed F Josh Doan to a three-year entry-level contract, beginning with the 2023-24 NHL season

UPCOMING SCHEDULE
DATE TIME (AZ) OPPONENT VENUE TV RADIO
Sun, March 26 12pm vs COL Mullett Arena Bally Sports Arizona ESPN 620
Mon, March 27 7pm vs EDM Mullett Arena Bally Sports Arizona Extra ESPN 620
Fri, March 31 7:30pm vs DAL Mullett Arena Bally Sports Arizona Extra 92.3 FM

YOTES & AVS

  • Tonight is the third of four ARI-COL contests this season. The Yotes beat the Avs 6-3 on 12/27 at Mullett Arena, but the Avalanche captured the most recent matchup 3-2 in OT on 3/11 in Denver
  • The final game of the season series will be Sunday at Mullett Arena
  • Arizona enters tonight with a 4-game point streak (3-0-1) against Colorado. That’s the team’s longest such run versus COL since 12/22/18 – 11/2/19 (2-0-2)
  • Lawson Crouse has chipped in 4 pts (1-3-4) over the two games against the Avs this season, including an assist in the last head-to-head meeting. He’s found the scoresheet in each of the last three times he’s played at Ball Arena
  • Clayton Keller and Jack McBain scored for ARI in the 3/11 matchup. Keller enters tonight with a 4-game point streak against the Avs, collecting 2-3-5 in that span
  • The 6 goals in the 12/27 game was the second of four instances Arizona has scored 6 goals this season, the team’s single-game high in 2022-23
  • Crouse registered 3 pts (1-2-3) in the 12/27 meeting, while Nick Schmaltz and Keller each chipped in a goal and an assist
  • Keller and Crouse have each tallied 6 pts against the Avs in 6 GP since the start of 2021-22
  • Excluding the COVID season, the three ARI-COL games in March will represent the first time the Coyotes will play a team three times in a month since March of 2017 when the team played St. Louis 3x
  • Coyotes franchise vs Avalanche/Nordiques
    • All-Time: 61-60-12-13
    • Home: 32-29-7-5
    • Road: 29-31-5-8
    • L10: 4-4-2
    • STRK: OT1

SCORING NOTABLES AGAINST THE AVALANCHE
Nick Schmaltz…5-7-12…25 career GP
Clayton Keller…4-12-16…22 career GP
Lawson Crouse…4-7-11…22 career GP
Brett Ritchie…7-1-8…19 career GP
Juuso Valimaki…0-2-2…4 career GP
Career Leaders
Goals (Ritchie, 7)… Assists (Keller, 12)…Points (Keller, 16)
Career Leaders Among Defensemen
Goals (Moser, 1)… Assists (Valimaki/Nemeth, 2)…Points (Valimaki/Nemeth/Moser, 2)

COLORADO AVALANCHE NOTES:

UPCOMING GAMES

Date Opponent Time (MT) TV Radio
Fri, Mar. 25 ARIZONA 7 p.m. Altitude 92.5 FM
Sun, Mar. 26 at Arizona 1 p.m. Altitude, NHLN 92.5 FM
Mon, Mar. 27 at Anaheim 8 p.m. Altitude 2 950 AM

TONIGHT’S GAME
COLORADO AVALANCHE (41-23-6, 88 PTS) vs. ARIZONA COYOTES (27-33-12, 66 PTS)
7:08 p.m. – Ball Arena, Denver, Colorado
Altitude TV / Altitude Radio (92.5 FM)
The Colorado Avalanche wraps up their three-game homestand tonight against the Arizona Coyotes at Ball Arena … This evening’s contest is the first half of a home-and-home between the Avalanche and Coyotes, who will face off again on Sunday afternoon in Tempe … The Avs are coming off a 5-2 loss to the Penguins on Wednesday, snapping their six-game winning streak… Despite the loss, Colorado is still 13-4-1 in its last 18 contests and 21-6-3 (.750) in its last 30 games … Only Boston (23- 6-1, .783) has a better record since January 14 … The Avs are 10-4-2 in their last 16 home games and 11-2-1 in their last 14 road contests … Colorado is in a busy stretch of 15 contests in 26 days from March 4-29.

ON THE CALL
Altitude: Marc Moser (play-by-play), Mark Rycroft (analyst), Katie Gaus (reporter)
Altitude Radio: Conor McGahey

LAST GAME
March 22 – Pittsburgh 5, Colorado 2 at Ball Arena
The Penguins snapped the Avalanche’s six-game winning streak with a 5-2 victory at Ball Arena … J.T. Compher notched a goal and one helper for the Avs, Devon Toews also scored and Alexandar Georgiev made 41 saves … Jeff Carter scored twice for Pittsburgh, and Jake Guentzel and Bryan Rust each had a goal and one assist.
SF: 30 SA: 45 PP: 1-3 PK: 2-4

MacKinnon extended his point streak to 10 games (6g/11a), his longest streak of the season and the longest by an Avalanche player in 2022-23 MacKinnon extended his assist streak to seven contests (10a), the longest by an Avalanche player this season and one shy of his career high set April 5-24, 2021 MacKinnon extended his home point streak to 18 games (14g/15a), the second-longest such streak in franchise history MacKinnon reached the 90-point mark for the fourth time in his career, tying Peter Forsberg and Joe Sakic for the most 90-point campaigns in Avalanche history (since the team relocated) Colorado’s power-play unit scored for the ninth consecutive game, their longest streak of the season and tied for the second-longest stretch in Avalanche history (since 1995-96) Georgiev had his five-game winning streak snapped, which tied a season and career high Georgiev’s shutout streak ended at 134:16, the longest by an Avalanche netminder this season and the 10th longest scoreless streak in the NHL in 2022-23

RECENT TRANSACTIONS
Mar. 22 – Darren Helm activated from Injured Reserve
Mar. 21 – Jared Bednar signed to three-year contract extension through 2026-27
Mar. 14 – Alex Galchenyk recalled from the Colorado Eagles (AHL)

CURRENT INJURIES
Pavel Francouz – lower body (Feb. 14 – present)
Erik Johnson – ankle (Feb. 14 – present)
Gabriel Landeskog – knee (Oct. 12 – present)
Artturi Lehkonen – finger (March 15 – present)
Cale Makar – lower body (March 20 – present)
Josh Manson – lower body (March 4 – present)
Evan Rodrigues – head (March 22 – present)
Total Man-Game Lost: 402

TONIGHT’S OPPONENT – ARIZONA COYOTES
The Avalanche and Coyotes close out the season series with a home-and-home tonight in Denver and Sunday afternoon in Tempe … Tonight is the third of four matchups between Arizona and Colorado in 2022-23 … Arizona won the first meeting 6-3 at Mullett Arena on Dec. 27 and Colorado won the second 3-2 in overtime on March 11 here at Ball Arena

SCHEDULE vs. COYOTES
Dec. 27 @ Arizona (L, 3-6)
Mar. 11 vs. ARIZONA (W, 3-2 OT)
Mar. 24 vs. ARIZONA
Mar. 26 @ Arizona

RECORD vs. COYOTES
THIS SEASON 2021-22 ALL-TIME SINCE 1995-96 PLAYOFFS
Overall: 1-1-0 Overall: 2-1-1 Overall: 73-53-20 Overall: 56-33-12 Series: 2 (2-0)
Home: 1-0-0 Home: 1-0-1 Home: 39-24-10 Home: 29-14-7 W-L Record: 8-2
Road: 0-1-0 Road: 1-1-0 Road: 34-29-10 Road: 27-19-5 Last: 2020 R1 (W, 4-1)

GRAND CENTRAL
Colorado is 14-5-1 against Central Division teams this season, 7-1-1 at home and 7-4-0 on the road … The Avs have won their last five home games versus division opponents.

PICK SIX
The Avalanche have posted three different six-game winning streaks this season, all since the calendar flipped to 2023 … The club had a six-game winning streak in January, another in February and one in March … Only Boston (four) has more 6+ game winning streaks in 2022-23.

THAT’S THE POWER OF LOVE
Colorado’s power-play unit has scored in nine consecutive games, tied for the second-longest streak in Avalanche history (since the franchise relocated to Denver) … The record is 14 straight contests in 1995-96 … Colorado is 11-for-29 (37.9%) during this nine-game stretch … The Avs rank fourth in the league in power-play percentage at 24.9% (55-221).

FIRST AND FOREMOST
The Avalanche have scored the first goal of the game on 44 occasions this year, tied with Carolina for the most of any team … The Avs have lit the lamp first in 44 of their 70 games (63%) … Colorado is 33-7-4 when scoring first, tied for the third-most wins when potting the first goal behind Boston (36) and Carolina (35).

BACK-TO-BACK
The Avalanche just swept a back-to-back in Toronto and Ottawa last week … Colorado has swept five of its last seven sets of back-to-back games … The Avs are 13-5-2 overall in back-to-back contests this season, going 6-3-1 in the first game and 7-2-1 in the second …. The Avalanche had a stretch of three consecutive sets of back-to-back games from Feb. 14-25, with the club earning 11 of a possible 12 points during that span … All three back-to-backs required travel in between (either home/road or road/home) and all three opponents on the second half of the back-to-back were waiting for the Avs, with Colorado sweeping all three games … The Avalanche posted a 15-5-2 (.727) record in back-to-back games last season, the second-best mark behind Minnesota (.732, 19-6-3) … The Avs were 7-3-1 in the first game and 8-2-1 in the second.

MLS Preview: Toronto FC (1-1-2) at San Jose Earthquakes (2-2-0)

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MLS Preview: Toronto FC (1-1-2) at San Jose Earthquakes (2-2-0)

The San Jose Earthquakes have not lost to Toronto FC in their last five home games (W2 D3), with Toronto FC’s most recent victory coming in May 2010. The two teams last met in California in the 2020 season opener, which ended in a 2-2 draw with San Jose scoring the tying goal in extra time.

With victories over the Vancouver Whitecaps FC and the Colorado Rapids, the San Jose Earthquakes have won both of their home games this season, which is tied for the second-longest home win streak in MLS history. An MLS-record 10-game home win streak to begin the 2002 season was the only such streak in team history.

With a 2-0 home victory over Inter Miami FC on Saturday, Toronto FC ended a nine-game winless streak that began last season. It was also Toronto FC’s first shutout in its last ten games, the fewest among MLS teams with the exception of St. Louis City SC’s four since the start of the season.

Cade Cowell had four shots, two on target, and an xG of 1.37 in the San Jose Earthquakes’ 3-0 loss to St. Louis City SC on Saturday. Since Chris Wondolowski’s xG of 1.45 in September 2015 against Real Salt Lake, that was the highest xG by a San Jose player who did not score in a game.

In Toronto FC’s victory over Inter Miami FC, Federico Bernardeschi had two assists, making it his first MLS game with multiple assists after having three in his first 16 games. Before Saturday, Bernardeschi’s last association coordinate with numerous helps was on February 4, 2018, for Juventus against Sassuolo in Serie A.

MLS Preview: FC Dallas (2-1-1) at Los Angeles Football Club (2-0-1)

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MLS Preview: FC Dallas (2-1-1) at Los Angeles Football Club (2-0-1)

The Los Angeles Football Club has won all four of its home games against FC Dallas (W3 D1), including the three victories it has recorded at BMO Stadium. Seven of Los Angeles Football Club’s eight home goals against FC Dallas have been scored or assisted by Carlos Vela.

The Los Angeles Football Club lost its last home match, a 2-1 loss to Costa Rican side Alajuelense in the second leg of the Concacaf Champions Association Round of 16 (won, 4-2, on total). In the club’s history, Los Angeles Football Club has never lost consecutive home games in any competition.

After conceding the first goal, FC Dallas has won both of its 2023 victories after coming from behind. Since the beginning of 2022, only CF Montreal Impact (7) has won more games when conceding the first goal than Dallas (6).

On Saturday in Seattle, Los Angeles Football Club’s perfect start to the regular season came to an end with a scoreless draw against Seattle Sounders FC. The longest streak in MLS history, Los Angeles Football Club’s 115 straight regular season matches without a scoreless draw came to an end with their first scoreless draw since a 0-0 draw with the Chicago Fire in May 2019.

Jesus Ferreira scored in both of FC Dallas’ victories this season, including Saturday’s victory over Sporting Kansas City. In the 14 games in which Ferreira has scored since the beginning of the previous season, FC Dallas has a record of W11 D2 L1, which ranks second in MLS among the 23 players who have scored in at least 10 games during that time (D. Gazdag – Philadelphia Union – W17 D2 L0).

MLS Preview: St. Louis City SC (4-0-0) at Real Salt Lake (1-2-0)

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MLS Preview: St. Louis City SC (4-0-0) at Real Salt Lake (1-2-0)

Real Salt Lake has won nine of its 14 home games against expansion teams (D3 L3), including two victories against Chivas USA and other newcomers in 2005. The only three expansion teams to win a Real Salt Lake are Atlanta United FC (2017), Los Angeles Football Club (2017), and Toronto FC (2007).

After opening the season with a 2-1 victory over the Vancouver Whitecaps FC, Real Salt Lake has lost in a row. Since the last three games of the 2020 season, Real Salt Lake hasn’t lost three straight in any competition.

As the first expansion team in MLS history, St. Louis City SC has won four games. In MLS history, only two teams have scored 15 points in their first five games: Sporting Kansas City in 2012 and Los Angeles Galaxy in 1996.

This season, Justen Glad has scored two of Real Salt Lake’s three goals, including the lone goal on March 11 against Austin FC. Glad has scored seven goals since the start of the 2021 season, ranking third in MLS behind R. Hollingshead (9 goals) and W. Zimmerman (8 goals).

This season, Joao Klauss has scored at least one goal in each of St. Louis City SC’s four games. In the past two decades, only four players have scored a goal in each of their first five games: Alan Pulido (Donning Kansas City, 2020), Brian Fernandez (Portland Woods 2019), Blerim Dzemaili (CF Montreal initial 6 of every 2017). Federico Higuain (Columbus Crew SC, 2012) and Nicolas Lodeiro (Seattle Sounders FC, first 7 in 2016).

MLS Preview: FC Cincinnati (2-0-2) at Nashville SC (2-1-1)

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MLS Preview: FC Cincinnati (2-0-2) at Nashville SC (2-1-1)

Although the most recent meeting between Nashville SC and FC Cincinnati ended in a 1-1 draw in FC Cincinnati in July, Nashville SC is undefeated in their previous four encounters (W2 D2). In the two Nashville SC victories over FC Cincinnati in July and October 2021, C. J. Sapong scored four goals, and Hany Mukhtar assisted on five of the nine goals.

Nashville SC returns home after suffering its first defeat of the season, a 1-0 defeat at New England on Saturday. New England, on the other hand, defeated Nashville SC 2-0 in its first two matches. Since last season, Nashville SC has won five of its last seven home games (D1 L1), outscoring opponents 17-4.

At the Chicago Fire on Saturday, FC Cincinnati came back from a 3-1 deficit in the final ten minutes to earn a 3-3 draw. It marked the first time FC Cincinnati had earned a point in a MLS match in which it had trailed by more than one goal at any given time; the club had previously lost all 49 of these matches.

Only 15 times has Nashville SC turned the ball over within 40 meters of its own goal this season, the fewest in MLS. One of only two teams this season, along with St. Louis City SC, that has not had a shot after committing a high number of turnovers this season, had none of those 15 turnovers result in a shot.

Since the Portland Timbers’ 10-game road streak from October 2012 to June 2013, no team has gone unbeaten in nine consecutive road games since FC Cincinnati’s come-from-behind draw with the Chicago Fire on Saturday. Their road streak now extends to eight regular season games (W2 D6).

MLS Preview: Vancouver Whitecaps FC (0-2-2) at Minnesota United FC (2-0-1)

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MLS Preview: Vancouver Whitecaps FC (0-2-2) at Minnesota United FC (2-0-1)

Minnesota United FC was successful in both of its matches against the Vancouver Whitecaps FC last season. The Houston Dynamo FC were the only other team Minnesota defeated twice last season; In contrast, Vancouver did not lose to any other team twice in MLS play last season.

With both of this season’s victories coming on the road, the Loons have seven points through their first three games, their second-best start to a season after earning all nine possible points in 2020. Along with St. Louis City SC, Minnesota is one of two teams with two road victories thus far.

The Vancouver Whitecaps FC have only won two of its first four games (D2 L2), with both of its last two games ending in draws. nonetheless, the Whitecaps have scored in each game this season, with the 2016 season being the last time the Whitecaps scored in every one of their initial four association rounds of a season (W2 L2).

On Saturday, Miguel Tapia scored the game-winning goal against the Colorado Rapids in the 82nd minute, earning Franco Fragapane his first assist of the season. Fragapane played provider for Robin Lod’s opening goal in September 2021 against Houston, a 2-0 victory. This was the last time he assisted on a game-winning goal.

Julian Gressel has recorded the essential help on 12 put forth piece objectives starting from the beginning of the 2021 MLS season, including Vancouver’s solitary objective against the Los Angeles Universe on Saturday. Gressel is ahead of Carles Gil and Hany Mukhtar, who each have nine of these assists, with three more than any other player in that span.

MLS Preview: Seattle Sounders FC (2-1-1) at Sporting Kansas City (0-2-2)

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MLS Preview: Seattle Sounders FC (2-1-1) at Sporting Kansas City (0-2-2)

Since the start of the 2019 season, Sporting Kansas City has won five of its seven matches against the Seattle Sounders FC (L2). Only the Portland Timbers have more regular season victories over the Sounders than Sporting Kansas City (W9 D3 L4 in 16 meetings) since 2015.

Sporting Kansas City is off to the second-worst start in the club’s history, trailing only by zero points through four games in 1999. Sporting Kansas City has only conceded one goal in its last five games played at Children’s Mercy Park, and the team is unbeaten in its last seven matches played at home (W1 D1).

The Seattle Sounders FC have lost nine of their last ten road games (D1 L9), including five consecutive defeats. The team has gone 10 consecutive away games without winning, which is the longest such streak in MLS history. Seattle has only lost seven consecutive away games on the road, and that was in June-August 2015.

Sporting Kansas City’s first goal of the season came on a shot from outside the box that was deflected by Daniel Salloi against FC Dallas on Saturday. One of only two teams (Minnesota United FC) that attempts more than half of its shots from outside the box, Sporting Kansas City has attempted 36 of its 69 shots from outside the box (52.2 percent).

Ten Seattle Sounder FC players have started all four of their MLS matches this season. So far in 2023, only 13 starters have been used. Seattle had 19 starters after four games last season, but only four players started all four. This week, Nouhou and Alex Roldan, two of the 10, are on national team duty.

NHL Preview: New Jersey Devils (45-18-8) at Buffalo Sabres (33-31-6)

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NHL Preview: New Jersey Devils (45-18-8) at Buffalo Sabres (33-31-6)

NEW JERSEY DEVILS NOTES:

Last Game:
Minnesota Wild 2 (OT) New Jersey Devils 1
(41-22-8 – 90 PTS) (45-18-8 – 98 PTS)
SCORE 1ST 2ND 3RD OT SO FINAL
Minnesota 0 0 1 1 – 2
DEVILS 0 0 1 – – 1
Three Stars: 1. M. Boldy 2. T. Meier 3. V. Vanecek
Goals:
MIN: M. Shaw, M. Boldy (OTG)
NJD: T. Meier

INJURIES/ILLNESS
PLAYER INJURY OUT SINCE GAMES MISSED
Jonathan Bernier – LTIR Lower-body, hip 2021-22 71
Mackenzie Blackwood I.R. Lower-body 2/21/23 15
Nate Bastian Upper-body 3/13/23 5
Curtis Lazar Undisclosed 3/19/23 2
2022-23 Total Man-Games Lost to Injury/illness: 197

TRANSACTIONS
DATE PLAYER ACTION
3/17/23 Nolan Foote Recalled from Utica

WHAT TO KNOW
The Devils enter Friday night’s contest two points shy for 100 in the standings. The Devils finished a regular season with 100, or more, points 13 times in franchise history. The last time that the Devils finished a regular season with 100, or more, points was 2011-12, when New Jersey also advanced to the Stanley Cup final. The most points that Jersey’s team earned in a single season was 111, which was earned in 2000-01. The Devils enter Friday’s contest with a 1-2-2 record in their last five games dating to Mar. 14, vs Tampa. The Devils enter Friday’s contest six wins shy of tying the franchise record (51) for the most wins in a single season, which was earned in 2008-09. The last time that the Devils earned more than 45 wins in a season was in 2011-12 (48-28-6). The team earned more than 45 wins in a season 11 times for franchise history. The Devils open their 11th back-to-back set for 2022-23. Jersey’s team is 5-4-1 in first half games played for back-to-back sets this
season, and 8-2-0 in second half games played.

RUNNING WITH THE DEVILS (ON THE ROAD)
New Jersey enters Saturday’s contest tied with Boston for the most road wins in the NHL this season with 26. New Jersey is 26-5-4 away from the Rock this season, while the team’s points% (.800) on the road ranks first in the NHL – Boston is second at .750. New Jersey logged 28 road wins (28-10-3) in 1998-99, which marked the most road victories in franchise history. The Devils are scheduled for five more road games, after Friday night’s contest.

MARCH MADNESS
The Devils’ schedule for March entails 16 games, which marks the most contests that the team plays in a single month this season. The second most games played in a single month this season was 14 in November, after the team posted a 13-1-0 record. New Jersey’s schedule entails six more games vs Divisional opponents, while the next MET contest is on Mon. Mar. 27, at NYI.

VS CONFERENCE/DIVISION
The Devils are 21-4-5 vs the Western Conference this season. The franchise record for most wins vs the Western Conference was 18, which was logged in 2000-01.. The Devils enter Sunday’s contest with a 24-14-3 record vs the Eastern Conference and 10-9-1 vs the Atlantic Division.

BACK-TO-BACK GAMES
Overall: 13-6-1
First game: 5-4-1 | home: 0-1-0 | road: 5-3-1
Second game: 8-2-0 | home: 3-2-0 | road: 5-0-0

BUFFALO SABRES NOTES:

LAST GAME
Tuesday, March 21
Nashville 7 at Buffalo 3
Goals: Cozens, Thompson, Skinner
Goalies: Anderson (14 saves/20 shots); Luukkonen (6 saves/6 shots); 1 ENG
PP: 1/4; PK: 3/3; Shots: Buffalo 31 – Nashville 27

CURRENT INJURIES – (Man Games Lost: 131)
Player (injury, first game missed) – total games missed
Eric Comrie (lower body, March 10) – 6 games
Mattias Samuelsson (upper body, March 13) – 5 games
Jordan Greenway (upper body, March 21) – 1 game

TRANSACTIONS IN PAST SEVEN DAYS
N/A

UPCOMING GAMES
Saturday, March 25: Buffalo at NY Islanders, 5:00 p.m.
Monday, March 27: Montreal at Buffalo, 7:00 p.m.
Friday, March 31: NY Rangers at Buffalo, 7:00 p.m.
Saturday, April 1: Buffalo at Philadelphia, 7:00 p.m.
Tuesday, April 4: Buffalo at Florida, 7:00 p.m.

TODAY’S GAME
DEVILS AT SABRES
• This is the second of three meetings between the Sabres and Devils this season.
• Last meeting: New Jersey defeated Buffalo 3-1 in Buffalo on Nov. 25, 2022.
• Next meeting: Tuesday, April 11 in New Jersey
• The Sabres are 4-4-2 in their last 10 games against the New Jersey; 4-5-1 at home.
• This is the 172nd game all-time between Buffalo and New Jersey; Buffalo has a 83-60-28 series record.
• The Sabres are 44-31-12 at home against the Devils all-time.

THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW
• A win tonight would give Buffalo 34 wins on the season, two more than they earned in 82 games in 2021-22.
• The Sabres last earned 34 or more wins in a season in 2015-16 (35).
• Alex Tuch has recorded 10 points (6+4) in his last 10 games dating back to Feb. 15 at Anaheim.
• Tage Thompson has recorded 38 points (17+21) in his last 37 games, including 19 points (8+11) in his last 18 games.
• Thompson needs one goal in tonight’s game to become the first Sabres skater to record 44 or more goals in a season since Pat LaFontaine (53) and Alexander Mogilny (76) in 1992-93.
• Jeff Skinner has notched 18 points (10+8) in his last 18 games.
• JJ Peterka has notched four points (1+3) in his last four games.

BACK-TO-BACK
• Today’s game opens Buffalo’s 12th of 15 sets of back-to-back games this season, which concludes with a road matchup with the New York Islanders tomorrow. The Sabres are 5-5-1 in the first game of back-to-back sets and 3-7-1 in the second game so far this season. Buffalo’s point breakdown in back-to-back sets this season is: four points (3), three points (0), two points (2), one point (2) and zero points (4).

NHL Preview: New York Islanders (37-27-8) at Columbus Blue Jackets (22-41-7)

NHL Editor
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NHL Preview: New York Islanders (37-27-8) at Columbus Blue Jackets (22-41-7)

NEW YORK ISLANDERS NOTES:

LAST GAME
DATE NYI RESULT SCORE NYI SCORERS IN GOAL
Tuesday, March 21 Win NYI 7 vs. TOR 2 Parise, Fasching,
Clutterbuck (2),
Holmstrom, Dobson, Lee
Sorokin (25/27)
Cal Clutterbuck recorded his first career three-point game, while Jean-Gabriel Pageau, Anders Lee and Noah Dobson
each recorded multi-point contests as the New York Islanders defeated the Toronto Maple Leafs, 7-2, on Tuesday night at
UBS Arena. Hudson Fasching and Simon Holmstrom each scored, while Ilya Sorokin captured his third win in his last
three starts to help the Islanders improve to 7-2-1 in their last ten games.

RECENT TRANSACTIONS
Mar. 20 Otto Koivula has been returned on loan to Bridgeport. Samuel Bolduc has been recalled from loan.
Mar. 14 Jean-Gabriel Pageau has been activated off the team’s IR list.
Mar. 11 Cal Clutterbuck has been activated off the team’s IR list.

INJURIES GAMES MISSED

3 Adam Pelech Dec. 9 – Jan. 21

8 Noah Dobson Jan. 23 – Jan. 28

10 Simon Holmstrom Dec. 23 – Jan. 6

12 Josh Bailey Nov. 29, Feb. 18 – Feb. 24

13 Mathew Barzal Jan. 6, Feb. 20 –

15 Cal Clutterbuck Oct. 13, Nov. 8, Dec. 2- Dec. 6, Dec. 17 – Jan. 3, Jan. 21 – Mar. 9

20 Hudson Fasching Jan. 19 – Jan. 28

21 Kyle Palmieri Nov. 23 – Dec. 13, Dec. 17 – Jan. 21

25 Sebastian Aho Oct. 13 – Oct. 20, Mar. 21 –

26 Oliver Wahlstrom Oct. 13, Dec. 29 –

36 Otto Koivula Mar. 11 – Mar. 15

40 Semyon Varlamov Dec. 19 – Jan. 1

44 Jean-Gabriel Pageau Feb. 14 – Mar. 11

Man Games Lost: 182

RECENT RESULTS
Tuesday, Mar. 21 vs. Toronto W (7-2)
Saturday, Mar. 18 at San Jose W (4-1)
Wednesday, Mar. 15 at Anaheim W (6-3)
Tuesday, Mar. 14 at Los Angeles L (5-2)
Saturday, Mar. 11 vs. Washington L (5-1)
Thursday, Mar. 9 at Pittsburgh W/OT (4-3)

VS. COLUMBUS:
Last five meetings (5-0-0)
Dec. 29, 2022 UBS Arena W (2-1)
Nov. 26, 2022 Nationwide Arena W, 3-2
Nov. 12, 2022 UBS Arena W/OT 4-3
Mar. 31, 2022 UBS Arena W, 5-2
Mar. 29, 2022 Nationwide Arena W, 4-3

Franchise History 25-16-1-7
NYI Home 16-4-0-4
NYI Away 9-12-1-3

SEASON SERIES
DATE LOCATION RESULT/TIME
Nov. 12, 2022 UBS Arena W/OT, 4-3
Nov. 25, 2022 Nationwide Arena W, 3-2
Dec. 29, 2022 UBS Arena W, 2-1
Mar. 24, 2023 Nationwide Arena 7:00pm

TEAM NOTES
TONIGHT’S MATCHUP
Tonight, the New York Islanders visit the Columbus Blue Jackets in the fourth and final matchup between the two clubs this season. The last time these teams met was December 29, 2022, when Jean-Gabriel Pageau tallied a goal and an assist in the 2-1 Islander win. The Islanders enter tonight’s matchup with a six-game win streak against the Blue Jackets, and an 8-1-1 record in their last ten meetings against them. The Islanders improved to 7-2-1 in their last ten games on Tuesday night. They matched their season-high seven goals (Oct. 15 vs. Anaheim) in a 7-2 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs. The Islanders have also won their last three straight games and have a 5-1-1 record in their last six road games.

COLUMBUS BLUE JACKETS NOTES:

Mar. 24, 2023 Game No. 71 (22-41-7, 51 pts.)
vs. New York Islanders (37-27-8, 82 pts.), Nationwide Arena Home Game No. 36 (13-20-2, 28 pts.)
The Blue Jackets Press Box website, which includes game notes, stats, releases and video/audio clips as well as the 2022-23 Media Guide can be accessed at bluejackets.com/pressbox. Follow @BlueJacketsPR on Twitter for comprehensive information and updates on the team.

THE LAST GAME: MAR. 21, 2023 – CBJ 7 at WSH 6 (OT)
CBJ Goal Scorers: Robinson (9), Boqvist (4), PP – Roslovic (8), Boqvist (5), Bemstrom (6), Jenner (24), OT – Roslovic (9)
WSH Goal Scorers: Ovechkin (40), Oshie (19), Sheary (13), Milano (11), Jensen (3), Jensen (4)
Goalies: CBJ – Tarasov (31/37); 62:07); WSH – Lindgren (32/39; 62:43)
CBJ PP: 1/1; PK: 1/1 | Shots: CBJ: 39 / WSH: 37
3 Stars: 1. Roslovic, CBJ; 2. Ovechkin, WSH; 3. Jensen, WSH
Noteworthy: CBJ went 1-2-1 in their season series vs. WSH… CBJ scored a season-high 7 goals, with 12 skaters recording a point and 7 skaters registering multiple points… CBJ earned their 11th comeback victory of the season, trailing 3-1 after the 1st period and 5-3 after the 2nd period… Laine recorded his 7th multi-assist/16th multi-point effort of the campaign (0-2-2) and has now registered multiple points in 3-straight contests (1-5-6)… Gaudreau tallied 2 assists for his 13th multi-assist/17th multi-point effort of the season… Roslovic notched his 3rd multi-goal contest of the season with 2-0-2… Boqvist notched his 3rd career multi-goal game with 2 goals.

OhioHEALTH INJURY REPORT
Danforth (torn labrum); Placed on Injured Reserve (Oct. 25); 6 months (64 games)
Werenski (torn labrum); Placed on Injured Reserve (retro to Nov. 10); rest of regular season (57 games)
Bean (shoulder); Placed on IR (retro to Nov. 15); out indefinitely (55 games)
Kuraly (left oblique strain); expected 6 weeks (9 games)
TOTAL MAN GAMES LOST: 454

RECENT TRANSACTIONS
Mar. 23 Loaned Sillinger to Cleveland (AHL)
Mar. 22 Assigned Tarasov to Cleveland (AHL)
Mar. 20 Signed McKown to three-year, entry level contract beginning in the 2022-23 season
Mar. 18 Assigned Pyyhtia from TPS (Liiga) to Cleveland (AHL)
Mar. 16 Signed Butler to a three-year entry level contract beginning in the 2023-24 season
Mar. 10 Added Tarasov to the roster on emergency recall from Cleveland (AHL)

TONIGHT’S GAME BROADCAST INFO
7pm ET | Bally Sports Ohio | 97.1 The Fan

AGAINST THE ISLANDERS
2022-23 Series: 0-2-1 (0-1-0 vs. NYI)
2021-22 Series: 1-3-0 (1-1-0 vs. NYI)
All-Time Series: 23-18-1-7 (15-5-1-4 vs. NYI)
Last 10 (Overall | Home): 2-6-2 | 5-4-1
All-Time GF/GA: 141/137
All-Time SF/SA: 1,604/1,517
All-Time PP: 37-of-165
All-Time PK: 116-of-138
THE LAST GAME VS. NYI: DEC. 29, 2022 – CBJ 1 at NYI 2
CBJ Goal Scorers: Bemstrom (3)
NYI Goal Scorers: Pageau (8), PP – Barzal (8)
Goalies: CBJ – Korpisalo (34/36; 57:47); NYI – Sorokin (20/21; 60:00)
CBJ PP: 0/2; PK: 2/3 | Shots: CBJ: 21 / NYI: 36
3 Stars: 1. Pageau, NYI; 2. Sorokin, NYI; 3. Barzal, NYI
Noteworthy: CBJ lost their 7th-straight game… NYI scored 2 goals in the 2nd period while CBJ scored lone goal with 22 seconds left in the game… Bemstrom scored to give him 2-1-3 in his last 4 appearances… Bjork registered an assist for the 2nd-straight game (1-2-3)… Gaudreau tallied his team-leading 25th assist of the season.

SEASON SERIES LEFT: Series is complete.

NOTED (Team Highlights vs. NYI)
CBJ are 9-11-2 vs. NYI since the start of 2016-17 but NYI has won the last 6 outings (CBJ; 0-5-1)… The home team is 8-3-1 in the last 12 meetings of the series dating back to 3/11/19… CBJ have killed off 24-of-29 NYI power play attempts over last 14 games (82.8 pct.)… NYI have posted 7 of the 11 shutouts in the all-time series, including the most recent occurrence on 3/10/22 at NYI… NYI has recorded all 3 hat tricks in the all-time series with the most recent recorded by Anders Lee in a 6-0 Isles win at NYI last season on 3/10/22.. Most goals scored vs. NYI: 7 – 2x (MR: 2/25/17)… Most goals allowed vs. NYI: 5 (1/10/15).

NOTED (Player Highlights vs. NYI)
Bayreuther tallied his 1st career assist on 11/18/18 at NYI… Gudbranson made his NHL debut on 10/8/11 at NYI… Jenner notched his 200th career NHL point (goal) on 10/19/19 vs. NYI… Laine skated in his 400th career NHL game on 3/31/22 at NYI… Peeke skated in his 100th career NHL game on 3/29/22 vs. NYI… Robinson skated in his 200th career NHL game on 11/12/22 at NYI.

SCORING NOTABLES vs. NYI
• Bemstrom – 3-1-4 in 6 career GP, including goals in both of his games against the club this season (2-1-3)
• Gaudreau – 4-11-15 in 14 career GP, including 3 multi-point outings in the last 5 games against NYI (1-6-7), and points in 10 of the last 11 games played (3-11-14)
• Jenner – 5-7-12 in 27 career GP, including points in 3 of his last 4 home games against New York (2-1-3)
• Laine – 2-5-7 in 13 career GP, including points in his last 2 home games against the Isles (1-2-3) and 1-5-6 in 6 career home outings

PLAY OF LATE
The Blue Jackets improved to 6-7-3 in their last 16 games following a 7-6 overtime victory at Washington on Tuesday. The club has registered points in 10 of its last 18 contests (7-8-3), with wins against four of the top-14 teams in the League in points (Toronto-5th; Dallas-8th; Edmonton-10th; Winnipeg-14th). The club has collected points in 11 of its last 18 games away from Nationwide Arena dating back to January 23 (7-7-4).

2022-23 TEAM QUICK HITS
• CBJ, who picked up their 11th comeback victory of the season (5 by multiple goal deficits) with a 7-6 OTW at WSH on Tue., have come-from-behind to win in 6 of their last 9 victories
• CBJ have killed off 59-of-75 opponent power play attempts over the last 30 games since Jan. 12 (78.7 pct.)
• CBJ blueliners have collected 7-23-30 in the last 20 games and have now recorded 28-79-107 in 70 games
• CBJ finished with a season-high 12 skaters recording a point on Tuesday at WSH (also on Nov. 17 vs. MTL)
• CBJ have had 38 different players play in a game this season (34 skaters, 4 goaltenders)
• CBJ have recorded 44 multi-goal periods this season, including scoring 2 goals in the 2nd period and 3 goals in the 3rd on Tue.
• CBJ were tied for 3rd-youngest team in the NHL (ARI and NJD) to start the season at 25.9, trailing only BUF (25.0) and OTT (25.7)

NHL Morning Skate – March 24, 2023

NHL Editor
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0
NHL Morning Skate – March 24, 2023

* The Hurricanes are officially headed back to the Stanley Cup Playoffs by virtue of the Panthers’ regulation loss Thursday.

* The League-leading Bruins defeated the Canadiens to reach 55 wins and 115 points with 11 games remaining this season.

* The Devils can join the Bruins and Hurricanes as the third team to clinch a berth in the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs when they square off with the Sabres on Friday.

HURRICANES HEADED TO PLAYOFFS FOR FIFTH STRAIGHT SEASON
The Hurricanes are headed to the playoffs for a fifth straight season, 10th time since relocating to Carolina in 1997-98 and 18th time in franchise history. Carolina became the second team to clinch a berth in the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs by virtue of the Panthers’ regulation loss Thursday.

* Click here to read more #NHLStats about the Hurricanes, whose five consecutive berths into the Stanley Cup Playoffs stand as the second-longest run in franchise history behind a seven-year stretch achieved more than 30 years ago as the Hartford Whalers.
 


BRUINS CLOSE IN ON FRANCHISE RECORDS, ATLANTIC DIVISION TITLE

David Pastrnak (1-1—2)potted his 49th goal of the season and Tyler Bertuzzi (1-1—2) tallied for the first time in a Bruins uniform as League-leading Boston (55-11-5, 115 points) inched closer to clinching a first-place finish in the Atlantic Division for the third time in the last 10 seasons (also 2019-20 & 2013-14).

* Pastrnak (49-46—95 in 71 GP) established a new career high for markers and moved within one of becoming the first 50-goal scorer in 29 years for the Bruins, who need at least eight wins and 18 points over their final 11 games to establish new single-season NHL records.
 


MAPLE LEAFS, RANGERS INCH CLOSER TO PLAYOFF BERTH WITH VICTORIES
The Maple Leafs (43-19-9, 95 points) and Rangers (42-20-10, 94 points) increased their chances of joining the Bruins and Hurricanes in the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs with victories Thursday. Toronto opened up a five-point cushion on Tampa Bay (42-25-6, 90 points) for second place in the Atlantic Division and New York moved within four points of second-seeded New Jersey (45-18-8, 98 points) in the Metropolitan Division.

* Auston Matthews (293-237—530 in 471 GP) scored twice to move within six of his fourth consecutive 40-goal campaign and within seven of 300 in his NHL career. Thursday marked Matthews’ 58th career multi-goal game – three shy of tying Mats Sundin (61 GP) for the third most in Maple Leafs history and two shy of equaling Pat LaFontaine (60 GP) for the most in NHL history by a U.S.-born player age 25 or younger.


* After Artemi Panarin (1-1—2) scored the tying goal, Adam Fox found the back of the net with the winner to help the Rangers defeat the Metropolitan Division-leading Hurricanes at PNC Arena. Fox’s goal marked his 12th career game winner, tied with Ott Heller, Dan Girardi and Harry Howell for fifth place on the franchise’s all-time list among defensemen.

23-YEAR-OLDS HELP DALLAS MAINTAIN DIVISION LEAD

Twenty-three-year-olds Jason Robertson (0-2—2) and Miro Heiskanen (0-1—1) helped the Stars (39-19-14, 92 points) fend off the Penguins and retake top spot in the Central Division from the Wild (41-22-9, 91 points), who briefly moved into first place after collecting a point against the Flyers on Thursday.

* Heiskanen (4-16—20 in 12 GP) extended his career-high point streak to 12 games and established a new franchise record for longest by Stars/North Stars blueliner, besting Craig Hartsburg (11 GP in 1986-87). Only two other defensemen have registered a point streak of at least a dozen contests this season: Erik Karlsson (14 GP) and Vince Dunn (12 GP). 

* Robertson(41-50—91 in 72 GP), skating in his 200th career NHL game, reached the 50-assist mark for the first time and became the fourth different player in franchise history with 40 goals and 50 helpers in a single season. The feat was last achieved by Dino Ciccarelli in 1986-87 (52-51—103 in 80 GP).
 


CAPITALS, SENATORS COMBINE FOR 13 GOALS IN #NHLSTATS: LIVE UPDATES
Thursday’s edition of #NHLStats: Live Updates featured more notes from the 12-game slate, including the Capitals (34-31-8, 76 points) and Senators (35-32-5, 75 points) securing high-scoring wins to gain ground on the Penguins (35-27-10, 80 points) for the final Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference.

* Washington defenseman John Carlson collected 1-1—2 in his return to the lineup after recovering from an injury which occurred on Dec. 23, 2022. The Capitals clash with the Penguins at PPG Paints Arena on Saturday, March 25 (8 p.m. ET on ABC, ESPN+).
 

QUICK CLICKS

* Connor McDavid gets to 60 goals for Oilers with words, passes from Leon Draisaitl

* Connor McDavid‘s 60th goal felt like a video game sequence (and kind of looked like one too)
* 60-goal scorers in NHL history

* NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman talks technology, sports betting in sit-down with Bloomberg TV

*Eli Manning spotted in background of Wild celebration photo

CLINCH IN THE CARDS FOR DEVILS DURING THREE-GAME FRIDAY
The Devils (45-18-8, 98 points) travel to Buffalo on Friday in search of their 100th point of the campaign as well as an opportunity to clinch a berth into 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs. New Jersey, which can hit a triple-digit point total for the first time since 2011-12 (48-28-6, 102 points), will qualify for the postseason with a win against Buffalo in any fashion.
 

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