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CFB: Texas Bowl Preview – Texas Tech Red Raiders (7-5) at Mississippi Rebels (8-4)

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CFB: Texas Bowl Preview – Texas Tech Red Raiders (7-5) at Mississippi Rebels (8-4)

TEXAS TECH RED RAIDERS NOTES:

RED RAIDERS SET FOR 40TH BOWL GAME
Texas Tech will take part in its 40th bowl appearance in program history Dec. 28 when the Red Raiders face Ole Miss in the TaxAct Texas Bowl hosted at NRG Stadium in Houston. This is the fifth time in program history the Red Raiders have participated in the Texas Bowl and the sixth time for a bowl game in the city of Houston.

The Red Raiders will have plenty of support backing them in Houston as Texas Tech quickly sold out of its allotment of 6,000 tickets for the game. The city is home to several prominent Red Raiders, including Tony Bradford Jr., Adrian Frye, Dennis Wilburn, Mason Tharp and Trey Wolff.

TECH, OLE MISS FAMILIAR BOWL FOES
There is not a more-familiar bowl opponent for the Red Raiders historically than Ole Miss as the Texas Bowl will mark the fourth time the two schools have met in the postseason. The Rebels are one of only four schools in program history Texas Tech has faced multiple times in its now
40 all-time bowl appearances.

The Red Raiders will be facing a school from the state of Mississippi in a bowl for a second-straight season as Texas Tech previously routed Mississippi State, 34-7, to close the 2021 campaign to improve to 15-23-1 all-time in bowl games.

BUILDING OFF SUCCESSFUL DEBUT YEAR
Texas Tech will look to build off a successful first season under Joey McGuire in the Texas Bowl as the Red Raiders will be searching for their first eight-win season since 2013. Texas Tech is one of only two power-five programs in the state of Texas returning to a bowl in consecutive years.

The Red Raiders wrapped Big 12 play at 5-4 record, marking their most wins against conference opponents since 2009 and the first time Texas Tech has defeated both Texas and Oklahoma in the same season. The successful debut made McGuire the first head coach since David McWilliams in 1986 to post an above-.500 conference record.

TEAM NOTEBOOK SERIES HISTORY
RED RAIDERS, REBELS MEET FOR SEVENTH TIME
Texas Tech and Ole Miss will face each other for the seventh time in history at the TaxAct Texas Bowl as the Rebels control a 4-2 all-time record versus the Red Raiders, including a perfect 3-0 mark in bowl games. The two schools previously met in the 1986 and 1998 Independence Bowls as well as the 2009 Cotton Bowl.

Texas Tech’s two victories all-time in the series versus the Rebels came in a home-and-home agreement during the 2002-03 seasons. The Red Raiders topped Ole Miss, 42-28, behind 270 passing yards and two touchdowns from Kliff Kingsbury to defeat a Rebels team quarterbacked by Eli Manning at the time in Lubbock. B.J. Symons followed a year later with 661 passing yards – a Texas Tech and Big 12 record at the time – and six touchdowns to lead the Red Raiders past Manning and the Rebels again in Oxford.

This will be a rematch of the 2018 AdvoCare Texas Kickoff that started the 2018 season at NRG Stadium in Houston. The Rebels topped the Red Raiders that afternoon, 47-27, to improve to 4-0 in neutral-site games between the two schools.

Adrian Frye is the only Red Raider remaining on the roster who participated in the 2018 contest against Ole Miss. Frye, who was making his collegiate debut versus the Rebels as only a true freshman, went on to earn Freshman All-America accolades that season by the FWAA as well as All-Big 12 first team honors.

TEXAS TECH ALL-TIME VERSUS THE SEC
Texas Tech will be facing an opponent from the Southeastern Conference in a bowl for a second-consecutive season after routing Mississippi State, 34-7, a year ago in the AutoZone Liberty Bowl. It will be only the 13th time the Red Raiders have faced an SEC opponent since becoming a Big 12 Conference member in 1996.

The Red Raiders are 7-17-2 all-time against members of the SEC, excluding former Big 12 Conference members Missouri and Texas A&M, who both departed the league following the 2011 season. Missouri faced the Red Raiders only one time as non-conference foes – a 41-14 rout for Texas Tech early in the 1995 season – before joining the Big 12 prior to the 1996 campaign. Texas A&M and Texas Tech, meanwhile, were longtime Southwest Conference and Big 12 rivals from 1960 up until the Aggies departed for the Big 12 in 2011.

The Red Raiders are 4-8 against SEC members since joining the Big 12 with two of those three victories coming against Ole Miss. Texas Tech swept a home-and-home agreement with the Rebels during the 2002 and 2003 seasons and then topped Arkansas in Fayetteville early in the 2015 campaign as well as Mississippi State in the 2021 AutoZone Liberty Bowl.

This will be the 11th time in history where the Red Raiders have faced an SEC opponent in a bowl as Texas Tech is 3-6-1 all-time in those games. In addition to its win over Mississippi State, Texas Tech topped No. 17 Auburn in the 1953 Gator Bowl and No. 20 Tennessee in the 1973 Gator Bowl.

THE LAST MEETING…
OLE MISS 47, TEXAS TECH 27
Date: Sept. 1, 2018
Location: Houston, Texas | Attendance: 40,333
Recap: Texas Tech suffered its first season-opening loss since 2002 when the Red Raiders faced Ole Miss last to start the 2018 season at the Texas Kickoff in NRG Stadium. Ole Miss led 24-7 after one quarter and never looked back as Texas Tech was unable to cut the deficit to any lower than 10 points from there.

RUSHING: Ole Miss-S. Phillips 16-204; Jordan Ta’amu 6-7; Isaiah Woullard 4-2; Tylan Knight 1-minus 1; TEAM 1-minus 2.
Texas Tech-Ward, Da’Leon 17-90; King, Tre 13-31; Bowman, Alan 3-19; Carter, McLane 3-13; Carter, KeSean 1-10; Bowman, De’Quan 1-4;
TEAM 1-minus 3.

PASSING: Ole Miss-Jordan Ta’amu 22-32-0-336. Texas Tech-Bowman, Alan 29-49-0-273; Carter, McLane 4-7-0-49.

RECEIVING: Ole Miss-A.J. Brown 7-93; DaMarkus Lodge 6-96; D.K. Metcalf 4-81; Braylon Sanders 4-60; Dawson Knox 1-6.
Texas Tech-Wesley, Antoine 6-65; Vasher, T.J. 4-66; High, Ja’Deion 4-62; Carter, KeSean 4-35; King, Tre 4-23; Austin, Zach 3-27; Rigdon, Dalton 2-19; Ward, Da’Leon 2-5; Felton, Dem. 1-8; Collins, Seth 1-7; Ezukanma, Erik 1-4; Henry, Ta’Zhawn 1-1.

RED RAIDERS AND THE CITY OF HOUSTON
The Texas Bowl was a welcome selection for many members of Texas Tech’s roster as there are 14 Red Raiders who hail from the Houston area. That list includes regulars such as defensive back Adrian Frye (Houston), linebacker Tyrique Matthews (Houston), place kicker Trey Wolff (Spring), offensive lineman Dennis Wilburn (Humble), tight end Mason Tharp (Klein) and defensive lineman Tony Bradford Jr. (Houston).

This will be Texas Tech’s 10th trip to the city of Houston since joining the Big 12 Conference in 1996 as the Red Raiders are 5-4 in those games. It will be the Red Raiders’ fifth visit to the city in an eight-year span. Texas Tech will soon become a steady traveler to the city as the University of Houston will become a Big 12 member starting in July 2023.

For offensive coordinator Zach Kittley, he returns to the city of Houston where he spent three seasons in a similar role at Houston Christian (previously Houston Baptist). Kittley was the Huskies’ offensive coordinator from 2018-20, his first fulltime role after serving as a graduate assistant and student assistant at Texas Tech for the previous five seasons under head coach Kliff Kingsbury. While there, Kittley mentored future NFL Draft selection and the NCAA single-season passing leader Bailey Zappe before the two later went to Western Kentucky together.

Texas Tech associate head coach Kenny Perry is a graduate of the University of Houston where he was a four-year letter-winner from 1988-91 as a defensive back. He began his coaching career with the Cougars shortly after as a graduate assistant for his alma mater during the 1992-94 seasons.

TEXAS TECH ALL-TIME IN BOWL GAMES
The Red Raiders advanced to a bowl game for the 40th time in school history after closing the regular season with three-consecutive wins over the likes of Kansas, Iowa State and Oklahoma. Texas Tech ranks tied for 21st among NCAA FBS teams with its Texas Bowl opponent Ole Miss as well as BYU and Notre Dame for the most bowl appearances in history.

Among Big 12 programs, Texas Tech is now in sole possession of third place in all-time bowl appearances, trailing only Texas (58) and Oklahoma (55). The Red Raiders will enter the 2023 football season tied for third place with incoming Big 12 member BYU for the most all-time bowl appearances.

Texas Tech is 15-23-1 all-time in bowl games with wins in 10 of its last 14 contests. The Red Raiders are making consecutive bowl appearances for the first time since the 2012-13 seasons when Texas Tech took part in the Meineke Car Care Bowl (2012) and the Holiday Bowl (2013), both victories.

The Red Raiders are no stranger to bowl games in the state of Texas as this will be Texas Tech’s 33rd all-time bowl appearance inside the Lone Star State, including its fifth at the TaxAct Texas Bowl. The Red Raiders are 5-17 all-time in bowl games held in the state of Texas, which includes a 2-2 record at the Texas Bowl.

Texas Tech’s two wins all-time in the Texas Bowl came in 2003 with a 38-14 rout of Navy in the formerly named Houston Bowl as well as a 34-31 victory over Minnesota in the 2012 Meineke Car Care Bowl. The Red Raiders made their first-ever appearance in the Texas Bowl in 2000, falling to East Carolina, 40-27, in what was called the GalleryFurniture.com Bowl at the time. Texas Tech’s last visit to the Texas Bowl came in 2015 in a 56-27 loss to No. 22 LSU.

Among its all-time bowl destinations, Texas Tech’s now five trips to the Texas Bowl ranks second only behind its nine appearances in the Sun/John Hancock Bowl. The Red Raiders have also made four appearnces in their history at both the Gator Bowl and Cotton Bowl.

While this will be Texas Tech’s fifth all-time appearance in the Texas Bowl, it will be its sixth bowl trip to the city of Houston as the Red Raiders faced No. 9 Nebraska in the 1976 Bluebonnet Bowl held in the Astrodome. Nebraska edged the Red Raiders, 27-24, in that game to end one of Texas Tech’s most memorable seasons at 10-2 overall.

Ole Miss is Texas Tech’s most frequent bowl opponent in program history as this will be the fourth bowl game between the two schools. Texas Tech has only faced three other schools – Minnesota, Iowa and Georgia Tech – multiple times in a bowl game in its history.

Texas Tech will be facing an SEC opponent in a bowl game for the third time in its last four bowl trips and for the 11th time in program history. The Red Raiders are 3-6-1 all-time in bowl games versus SEC schools.

THERE’S SOME HISTORY WITH THE TEXAS BOWL
Joey McGuire will be making his second trip to the Texas Bowl as he was part of the Baylor staff that traveled to Houston in 2018. The Bears defeated Vanderbilt, 45-38, in what was McGuire’s first bowl experience at the collegiate level after joining the Baylor staff in 2017 from Cedar Hill High School.

This will be Dimitri Moore’s second career trip to the Texas Bowl as he was on the opposite sideline of McGuire with Vanderbilt for the 2018 contest. Moore, who played for McGuire at Cedar Hill High School, recorded five tackles in the loss, including one tackle for a loss.

Tim DeRuyter will be taking part in a bowl game for the 19th time in his coaching career, which includes his second career trip to the Texas Bowl. In his last visit to Houston, DeRuyter was the interim head coach for Texas A&M, leading the Aggies to a 33-22 victory over Northwestern. It was his final game with the Aggies prior to beginning a five-year run as the head coach at Fresno State.

In addition to McGuire, tight ends coach Josh Cochran and offensive analyst Kirk Bryant were both offensive graduate assistants for Baylor’s 2018 appearance in the Texas Bowl.

Texas Tech’s last appearance in the Texas Bowl, meanwhile, featured a few current members of the Red Raiders’ staff, including offensive coordinator Zach Kittley (graduate assistant), offensive line coach Stephen Hamby (graduate assistant) and passing game coordinator and wide receivers coach Emmett Jones (director of player development).

NEWS & NOTES HEADING INTO BOWL WEEK
The victory over Oklahoma improved the Red Raiders to 6-1 at home this season, marking their most wins at Jones AT&T Stadium since Texas Tech had a similar record in front of its fans in 2009. It is the 11th time in program history Texas Tech has won six or more home games in a season and the fifth time as a Big 12 member (2000, 2005, 2008, 2009, 2022).

Texas Tech closed the regular season with three-consecutive victories for the first time since 1995 as the Red Raiders topped Kansas, Iowa State and Oklahoma. The Red Raiders closed that 1995 season with four-straight wins after a 55-41 victory over Air Force in the Copper Bowl.

Texas Tech closed the regular season with its third-consecutive Big 12 victory, its longest streak since opening the 2013 conference slate with four-straight wins.

With a win over Ole Miss, Texas Tech will secure its first eight-win season since 2013, which marked the debut season of then head coach Kliff Kingsbury. It would mark Texas Tech’s 12th season as a Big 12 member with eight or more wins.

Texas Tech’s win over Oklahoma to close the regular season helped the Red Raiders lock in consecutive winning seasons for the first time since the 2012-13 campaigns. The Red Raiders will enter 2023 looking to extend that streak to three-straight years, which would mark Texas Tech’s longest successful run since boasting a .500 or better record over 18-consecutive seasons from 1993-2011.

Texas Tech has become a regular at NFL stadiums, especially in the state of Texas, as this will be Texas Tech’s sixth visit to NRG Stadium. The Red Raiders have made 14 visits to NFL stadiums since 2009 alone as Texas Tech previously faced Baylor nine times at AT&T Stadium in Arlington from 2009-18 as well as Arizona State at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego for the 2013 Holiday Bowl.

Texas Tech closed the regular season having played nine bowl teams this season, including two in non-conference play in Houston and N.C. State. The Red Raiders were 4-5 in those games with wins over Houston, Texas, Kansas and Oklahoma.

Texas Tech has had 42 different players start a game this season, which currently ranks tied for 10th nationally in the FBS and fourth among power-five schools. Of the 11 schools with at least 42 different starters this year, the Red Raiders are joined with SMU and BYU as the only schools with at least seven wins entering bowl season.

Texas Tech has only had two true freshmen play more than four games this season in defensive lineman Joseph Adedire and linebacker Wesley Smith. Adedire has appeared in 11 of 12 games, recording 17 tackles, including 3.0 for a loss, while Smith has been inserted into six games, normally on special teams. Fellow true freshmen Bryson Donnell, Coy Eakin and Ty Kana have played in three games each.

MIDDLE EIGHT GOING THE RED RAIDERS’ WAY
One of the key components of Joey’s McGuire’s official “Plan to Win” at Texas Tech is for the Red Raiders to win the middle eight minutes (last four of second half, first four of third quarter). The Red Raiders were successful in doing so during the regular season, especially during the final minute before halftime where Texas Tech found the end zone twice and took advantage of four Trey Wolff field goals, including three as time expired.

The Red Raiders scored a touchdown heading into the half in five different games – Murray State, Houston, N.C. State, Kansas State and Oklahoma (twice). Texas Tech rallied form an 18-point deficit against Oklahoma thanks in part to its efforts prior to halftime as the Red Raiders used touchdown runs from SaRodorick Thompson and Donovan Smith before a Wolff field goal as time expired. The touchdowns versus both Houston and N.C. State came with less than a minute remaining and were the result of explosive plays from Myles Price, who went 54 yards to the end zone against the Cougars and 24 yards versus the Wolfpack.

Texas Tech went into the half feeling good at Kansas State after 10 quick points before the clock ran out as Nehemiah Martinez caught a six-yard touchdown pass with 1:24 remaining and Trey Wolff nailed a 51-yard field goal as time expired. The field goal from Wolff marked the longest of his career.

Points isn’t the only thing that matters in McGuire’s metrics as Texas Tech’s ability to force turnovers helped the Red Raiders pull away from West Virginia. Texas Tech went into the half rolling after a Dadrion Taylor-Demerson interception with 13 seconds remaining and proceeded to pick off another after the break thanks to a Malik Dunlap interception of his own. That led to an Xavier White 55-yard touchdown strike from Behren Morton just two plays later to give the Red Raiders a 24-3 lead with 13:14 remaining in the quarter. Taylor-Demerson added another interception to pull Texas Tech even closer before the half against Oklahoma as well.

KEEP THOSE FLAGS IN YOUR POCKET
Texas Tech has, for the most part, avoided hurting itself with penalties this season as the Red Raiders have been flagged 71 times for 561 yards entering the Texas Bowl. That marks the second-lowest number of penalties and resulting yardage in a season dating back to 2000, excluding the COVID-shortened 2020 season that was limited to only 10 games. The Red Raiders’ current numbers trail only the 59 flags for 492 yards the Red Raiders were penalized with a year ago.

It is quite the improvement for a Red Raider football program that ranked no higher than 101st in the FBS from 2011-18 and then 73rd in 2019 and 90th in 2020 for fewest penalties per game. The Red Raiders also ranked in triple digits over six-consecutive seasons from 2004-09 as well as 94th in 2003.

The Red Raiders enter bowl season ranked 38th in the FBS for fewest penalty yards per game (46.8) and 61st in fewest penalties per game (5.6). If the season ended today, Texas Tech’s 46.8 penalty yards per game would rank as its third-best finish since the NCAA began tracking penalties in its national rankings in 2000.

Texas Tech’s one penalty against Iowa State matched the school record that had been previously set five times in program history. The Red Raiders previously had only one penalty in 1988 versus Arkansas, 1991 versus Rice, 1992 versus Texas A&M, 2016 at TCU and 2021 at Kansas.

FOURTH DOWN SUCCESS
Much has been said about Joey McGuire’s aggressive approach to fourth downs this season as Texas Tech is 28-of-46 on conversion attempts already this season. The philosophy is one he gained an appreciation for while at Baylor last season as the Bears were among the most aggressive teams in college football, going 22-of-35 on fourth down attempts en route to a run to the Big 12 title. Baylor closed the 2021 season ranked tied for 10th nationally in most successful fourth-down conversions, which resulted in 86 points compared to only 17 points allowed for failed attempts.

Texas Tech enters bowl season as the FBS leader with 28 successful fourth-down conversions as the Red Raiders lead Baylor with 27, Navy with 23 and then the trio of Buffalo, Tennessee and West Virginia with 22. The Red Raiders’ 46 attempts this season are easily the most in the FBS, five more than Baylor and six ahead of Northwestern.

Texas Tech’s 28 successful fourth down conversions are already the highest total during the Big 12 era (1996-present). Texas Tech previously moved the sticks 25 times on fourth down in 2002 when the Red Raiders were 25-of-40 overall.

Texas Tech has converted 60.9 percent of its fourth down tries, resulting in 106 points. Failed fourth downs have only resulted in 51 points for opponents thus far, with seven of those not being the fault of the Red Raider defense as N.C. State took a fourth down interception back for a touchdown.

McGuire’s aggressive nature was a key reason for Texas Tech’s victory in its Big 12 opener against Texas as the Red Raiders were 6-of-8 on fourth downs, marking their most conversions in a game dating back to 2000. The Red Raiders matched that total by going 6-for-7 on fourth downs against West Virginia, which were all in the first half.

Dating back to 2013 when the NCAA began tracking single-game highs for fourth down conversions, Texas Tech is the only school to successfully move the sticks six times on fourth downs in two separate games in a season. Only UTEP, South Alabama and UCF have converted the same number of fourth downs in an FBS game this year as the Miners were also 6-of-8 on Oct. 8 against Louisiana Tech. South Alabama was a perfect 6-for-6 on fourth down attempts Nov. 12 in its victory over Texas State, while UCF was 7-for-10 on Dec. 3 against Tulane.

Texas Tech turned its six successful fourth down conversions into a season-high 27 points against the Longhorns, while its two failures did not hurt the Red Raiders as Texas was unable to convert into scoring drives of its own. The Red Raiders were 4-for-6 on fourth down tries in the second half of that game, which led to 20 key points down the stretch leading into an overtime victory.

Texas Tech is 7-1 this season when it is tied or leading the plus/ minus scale on its fourth-down decisions with the lone loss coming at Oklahoma State. That loss came despite the Red Raiders gaining 24 points on drives continued via a successful fourth down with only seven points against due to an inability to convert. The plus-17 advantage marked Texas Tech’s second-highest clip this season.

MISSISSIPI REBELS NOTES:

WHAT TO WATCH FOR
• Ole Miss is making its third straight bowl appearance under Lane Kiffin.

• The Rebels are 12-3 in its last 15 bowl games on the field dating back to the 1992 Liberty Bowl.

• This will be the seventh meeting between Ole Miss and Texas Tech … Ole Miss leads the all-time series 4-2.

• The Texas Bowl will mark the fourth time the Rebels and Red Raiders have met in a bowl game … Ole Miss is 3-0 vs. Texas Tech in bowl games.

• The Rebels lead the SEC and rank No. 6 in the FBS with 82 plays of 20 yards or more.

• Ole Miss ranks top 20 nationally in total rushing yards (3,139), rushing attempts (571), yards per rush (5.5) and rushing TDs (31).

• The Rebels average 491.3 total yards per game, the fifth-best single-season mark in school history … Three of the top five offensive seasons in program history have all come under Kiffin.

• The Rebels are second in the SEC and No. 11 nationally converting on third downs 47.7 percent of the time.

• RB Quinshon Judkins earned numerous postseason awards including CBS National Freshman of the Year and SEC Newcomer of the Year … Judkins is also a finalist for the Shaun Alexander Freshman of the Year Award.

• Judkins leads all SEC running backs in both rushing yards (1,476) and rushing touchdowns (16).

• Zach Evans ranks seventh in the SEC in rushing yards (899).

• WRs Jonathan Mingo and Malik Heath are only the second set of Rebel teammates to both surpass 800 yards receiving in the same season.

• OL Jeremy James has started every game for the Rebels and hasn’t allowed a sack in 387 pass blocks.

• K Jonathan Cruz is 15-for-17 on field goal attempts and ranks second in the SEC in field goal percentage (.882).

SERIES HISTORY
Series Record. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Ole Miss leads 4-2
In Bowl Games . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Ole Miss leads 3-0
In Regular Season . . . . . . . . . Texas Tech leads 2-1
At Neutral/Other Site . . . . . . . . Ole Miss leads 4-0
In Oxford . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Texas Tech leads 1-0
In Lubbock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Texas Tech leads 1-0
Last Meeting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2018, in Houston
First Meeting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1986, in Shreveport
Largest Win . . . OM: 35-18, 1998 | TT: 42-28, 2002
Longest Win Streak . . . . . . . . . . . . . OM: 2 | TT: 2

LAST FIVE GAMES AGAINST TEXAS TECH
9/1/18 • Houston, Texas • Ole Miss 47, Texas Tech 27:
It took just 33 seconds for Ole Miss to score its first points of the 2018 season, and from there, the Rebels were off to the races, mounting a 24-7 lead in the first quarter to cruise to victory in the AdvoCare Texas Kickoff at NRG Stadium in Houston. Scottie Phillips ran for 204 yards, while Jordan Ta’amu racked up 336 through the air in the blowout Rebel win.

1/2/09 • Dallas, Texas. • #20 Ole Miss 47, #8 Texas Tech 34:
Jevan Snead threw for three touchdowns, and the dominant running back duo of Dexter McCluster and Brandon Bolden did the rest in the Rebels’ upset victory in the Cotton Bowl. McCluster amassed a combined 180 yards rushing and receiving to go along with two touchdowns. Bolden matched
those two scores and added 114 yards from scrimmage to create a one-two punch that the Red Raiders simply couldn’t match. The Rebels overcame an early deficit and left Dallas with a decisive Cotton Bowl victory.

9/27/03 • Oxford, Miss. • Texas Tech 49, Ole Miss 45:
Eli Manning passed for more than 400 yards, and the Rebels scored on seven of eight drives, but couldn’t hold off a late Texas Tech rally. The Rebels led 45-34 with 8:01 left in the game when Texas Tech quarterback B.J. Symons led his team on two solid scoring drives to seal the deal.

8/14/02 • Lubbock, Texas • Texas Tech 42, Ole Miss 28:
Texas Tech scored touchdowns on offense, defense and special teams en route to a 42-28 win over Ole Miss in the first-ever regular-season meeting between the two teams. The loss was also the Rebels’ first in 25 regular-season games against non-conference opponents. Eli Manning engineered two Rebel TD drives in the fourth quarter to pull within seven, but the Red Raiders iced the game with a touchdown with 3:21 left.

12/29/98 • Shreveport, La. • Ole Miss 35, Texas Tech 18:
In Matt Luke’s final game in a Rebel uniform, Ole Miss cruised to a 35-18 win over Texas Tech in head coach David Cutcliffe’s coaching debut. RB Deuce McAllister scored a touchdown rushing, receiving and on a kickoff return. McAllister put the Rebels up for good when he took a Romaro Miller pass 32 yards for a score to break a 7-7 tie in the second quarter.

RED RAIDERS SCOUTING REPORT
Entering their TaxAct Texas Bowl matchup with the Rebels with a record of 7-5 overall and a 5-4 mark in Big 12 play this season, Texas Tech will look to their pass-heavy offensive playbook to navigate the Ole Miss secondary. Leading the Red Raider offense will be senior quarterback Tyler Shough, the team’s opening day starter who missed most of the season with a shoulder injury but returned late in the year to lead the team to a 3-0 record in the final three games of the year. Shough will aim to connect with Texas Tech’s leading receiver and All-Big 12 Honorable Mention honoree Jerand Bradley, who enters the team’s bowl game matchup with 656 receiving yards and five receiving touchdowns on the year. The Red Raider defense is anchored by the presence of first team All-American (FWAA) Tyree Wilson, with the senior outside linebacker leading Texas Tech and ranking third in the Big 12 in total sacks on the year with seven. A projected top 10 pick in the upcoming NFL Draft, Wilson also leads the Red Raiders and the Big 12 with 14 TFLs this season. Wilson is accompanied by senior defensive back and Second-Team All-Big 12 selection Malik Dunlap, who ranks the best in the conference with 11 pass breakups in the 2022 season.

TEXAS TECH SERIES HISTORY
• This marks the seventh all-time meeting between Ole Miss and Texas Tech, with the Rebels leading 4-2 overall.

• This will be the fourth bowl meeting between the Rebels and Red Raiders … Ole Miss leads 3-0 with bowl wins in the 1986 Independence Bowl (20-17), the 1998 Independence Bowl (35-18) and the 2009 Cotton Bowl (47-34).

• The last meeting between Ole Miss and Texas Tech actually came at NRG Stadium to open the 2018 season, where the Rebels prevailed 47-27 in the AdvoCare Texas Kickoff

OLE MISS BOWL HISTORY
The 2022 TaxAct Texas Bowl will be Ole Miss’ 40th bowl appearance in program history, as well as the first ever appearance in the Texas Bowl. The Rebels’ all-time bowl record stands at 24-14, excluding a vacated victory in the 2013 BBVA Compass Bowl. The Rebels lead the SEC and rank third in the NCAA in bowl win percentage at .632. Elsewhere in the bowl record book, Ole Miss is 15th nationally in bowl wins and 25th in bowl appearances. Ole Miss is 12-3 in its last 15 bowl games, including a streak of six straight victories from 2002 to 2013. The 2022 Texas Bowl will also mark the 16th time the Rebels will take on a current Big 12 opponent in their bowl history.

RECENT BOWL SUCCESS
• Ole Miss is 12-3 on the field in its last 15 bowl games dating back to a 13-0 win over Air Force in the 1992 Liberty Bowl.

• The Rebels had a streak of six straight bowl wins snapped at the 2014 Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl with a loss to TCU.

• Ole Miss’ only other losses in the last 15 came during the 2000 Music City Bowl, falling 49-38 to West Virginia, and the 2022 Sugar Bowl, 21-7, to Baylor.

REBELS VERSUS BIG 12 OPPONENTS
• Ole Miss has a 15-13 record against current members of the Big 12 Conference.

• The Rebels will take on a current Big 12 school for the 16th time in their bowl history … Ole Miss is 10-5 in such games.

• Ole Miss is 3-0 against Texas Tech in bowl games, with wins over the Red Raiders in the 1986 Independence Bowl (20-17), the 1998 Independence Bowl (35-18) and the 2009 Cotton Bowl (47-34)

OFFENSE FLYING HIGH IN KIFFIN ERA
The Rebels under head coach Lane Kiffin have sported one of most dynamic offenses in the NCAA, as well as within the Ole Miss record book. Kiffin’s Ole Miss teams are each responsible for three of the five best offensive seasons in school history, led by 555.5 total yards per game (5,555 yards) by the 2020 squad that ended the season ranked No. 3 in total offense nationally. His 2021 team ranks fourth in school history at 492.5 yards per game (6,402 yards) and finished the season No. 6 in the FBS, and the 2022 Rebels currently rank fifth in school history and No. 8 in the FBS at 491.3 yards per game (5,895 yards). Impressively, Kiffin’s Ole Miss teams have done so with a balanced offensive attack, ranking seventh in the FBS in passing in 2020 (344.9 ypg) before shifting toward the running game in 2021 with the No. 12 ground game (217.6 ypg) and this season’s powerful 261.6 yards per game average that leads Power-5 and ranks No. 3 in all of the FBS.

POUND THE ROCK
Ole Miss isn’t just running the ball well, it’s running the ball a lot. The Rebels stand as one of two Power-5 teams with 5,000 yards of total offense (5,895, No. 16 FBS) and 3,000 yards rushing (3,139, No. 4 FBS) alongside Michigan. The Rebels’ No. 4 rushing attack only ranks behind the triple-option oriented service academies Air Force (3,971), Army (3,473) and then Michigan (3,159), which has played one more game due to the Big 10 Championship Game. Ole Miss also ranks tied for 16th among FBS schools in rushing touchdowns with 31. Removed one year from having one of the most feared passing attacks in college football, Ole Miss now sits as one of just two Power-5 programs (alongside Michigan) to have 5,000 yards of total offense with at least 50 percent of its yards coming on the ground. Ole Miss sits fourth among Power-5 schools in both rushing offense percentage (53.2 percent) and percentage of rushing plays against total plays (62.3 percent).

NO SACKS FOR YOU!
The Ole Miss offensive line ranks third in the SEC and 21st in FBS, yielding just 1.8 sacks per game. Only four opponents — Alabama, LSU, Arkansas and Mississippi State — have been able to get to the Rebel quarterback multiple times, doing so in Ole Miss’ lone losses of the season. The Rebel offensive line unit has been recognized as one of the top in college football as a member of the Joe Moore Award Midseason Honor Roll for its efforts in protecting the quarterback.

SACKS APLENTY
Ole Miss ranks third in the SEC and No. 28 in the FBS with 2.8 sacks per game. DE Tavius Robinson leads with 6.0 sacks, including two games with multiple sacks against Auburn (2.0 for loss of 16 yards) and Mississippi State (2.0 for loss of 18 yards). LB Khari Coleman ranks second at 4.5, followed by DE Cedric Johnson’s 4.0 and Jared Ivey’s 3.5. A total of 12 different Rebels have at least 1.0 or more sacks for Ole Miss this year. Ole Miss has recorded at least three sacks in eight of the 12 games played this season, and at least two in nine of 12 contests.

CFB: Holiday Bowl Preview – North Carolina Tar Heels (9-4) at Oregon Ducks (9-3)

NCAAFB Editor
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CFB: Holiday Bowl Preview – North Carolina Tar Heels (9-4) at Oregon Ducks (9-3)

NORTH CAROLINA TAR HEELS NOTES:

HEELS BOWLING FOR FOURTH-STRAIGHT YEAR
• North Carolina has now qualified for a bowl for the fourth straight year and the 37th time overall. The Tar Heels are 15-21 in bowl games.

• Carolina has played in 10 straight bowl games with Mack Brown as its head coach.

• This will be the first time UNC plays a bowl game in California.

• This year marks the second time an ACC team will play in the SDCCU Holiday Bowl. The bowl game will match teams from the ACC and Pac-12 through at least 2025. The last time a current ACC school played in San Diego was in 1992 when the Miami Hurricanes (then in the Big East) defeated San Diego State, 63-17.

• This will be the first football game ever played in downtown San Diego’s Petco Park.

• With a victory in the Holiday Bowl, Carolina would claim its ninth 10-win season, with Brown-led teams accounting for four of them.

TAR HEELS AND DUCKS
• UNC will face Oregon for the first time in the 2022 SDCCU Holiday Bowl.

ACC COASTAL CHAMPIONS
• North Carolina is the final winner of the ACC Coastal Division with the ACC removing divisions heading into next season. The Tar Heels finished 6-2 in conference play and 9-4 overall.

• Carolina has won nine games for just the second time since Mack Brown’s first stint in Chapel Hill with 2015 being the other. It is UNC’s sixth ninewin season since 1982 with Brown-led teams accounting for five of them.

• UNC finished the season 6-0 on the road for the first time in school history. UNC and TCU are the only schools in the country with six road wins. The six consecutive road wins is tied for the second-longest active streak in the nation.

BROWN AND HOLIDAY BOWL / OREGON
• North Carolina head coach Mack Brown is 3-2 in five Holiday Bowl appearances. He secured wins in 2011, ’07 and ’01.

• Brown has posted an 0-2 record versus Oregon. Texas fell 30-7 in the 2013 Alamo Bowl, which would be Brown’s final game with the Longhorns.

• Texas met Oregon in the 2000 Holiday Bowl as well.

TAR HEELS’ TICKING ON OFFENSE
• Carolina’s offense is once again among the top units in college football and ranks among the top programs nationally in numerous stat
categories.

FOCUSED ON 4TH DOWN
UNC has been one of the most effective offenses on fourth down in the nation in 2022. The Heels have converted 21-of-31 fourth downs (67.7%). The 21 conversions include five TDs, 10 that led to TDs, one that led to a FG, and one that ended a game. Drake Maye has gone 11-of-17 for 159 yards and five TDs on fourth down. He’s also produced four rushing conversions, totaling 46 yards. Meanwhile, the Carolina defense has only allowed 13-of-26 fourth-down conversions (50%).

600+/700+ YARDS OF TOTAL OFFENSE
• North Carolina has eclipsed the 600-yard mark seven times since the start of the 2019 season. The most recent occurrence came on Aug. 27 when UNC posted 608 yards vs. FAMU.

• The Tar Heels reached 700-plus yards twice during the 2020 season. Carolina had 742 yards against Wake Forest and set a program record with 778 yards at Miami.

500+ YARDS OF TOTAL OFFENSE
• North Carolina has recorded 500-plus yards of total offense 23 times in 51 games dating back to the start of the 2019 season, including five of the 13 games in 2022. Carolina’s offense recorded 500-plus yards five times in 2021, eight times in 2020 and five times in 2019.

400+ YARDS OF TOTAL OFFENSE
• North Carolina has notched 400-plus yards of total offense 37 times in 51 games dating back to the start of the 2019 season, including nine of the 13 games in 2022. Carolina’s offense recorded 400-plus yards 10 times during both the 2019 and 2020 seasons and eight times in 2021.

30+ POINTS IN 32 OF LAST 51 GAMES
• North Carolina’s offense has scored 30 or more points in 32 of the last 51 games dating back to the start of the 2019 season. The Tar Heels have reached 30-plus points in nine of 13 games in 2022.

40-OR-MORE POINTS SINCE 2019
• North Carolina has scored 40 or more points 18 times since the start of the 2019 season. The Tar Heels have reached 40-plus points in four
games in 2022. UNC scored 40 or more points six times in 2020 and three times in 2021.

50-POINT GAMES SINCE 2019
• Carolina has scored 50 or more points in 11 games since the start of the 2019 season. UNC scored 56 points in the 2022 season opener against Florida A&M and 63 the following week at App State.

OFFENSE CONTINUES TO SHINE
• Carolina has posted three of the top five total offense performances in program history since head coach Mack Brown and offensive coordinator Phil Longo arrived in Chapel Hill in 2019.

• The 2022 version of Carolina’s offense is currently putting up 473.6 yards per game, the fifth-highest average in program history.

• The Tar Heels set the school record in 2020 with 556.6 yards per game behind an offense that featured five future NFL play makers: QB Sam Howell, running backs Michael Carter and Javonte Williams, and wide receivers Dyami Brown and Dazz Newsome.

DON’T BLINK
• North Carolina has produced the top two single-game total offense figures in program history and seven of the top-21 since Brown and Co. returned in 2019

EXPLOSIVE PLAY OFFENSE
• In 2021, Carolina led the ACC with eight plays of 60 or more yards, 13 plays of 50+ yards, 22 plays of 40+ yards and 42 plays of 30+ yards.

• Between 2019 and 2021 under the direction of offensive coordinator Phil Longo, UNC’s offense led the ACC in plays of 20+ yards (257),
30+ yards (124), 40+ yards (66) and 50+ yards (38).

• Carolina ranks in the top-2 in the ACC thus far in 2022 in all aforementioned long scrimmage play categories.

THE MARVELOUS MR. MAYE
• Drake Maye ranks second nationally in total offense (366.8), ranks fifth in passing yards per game (316.5), tied for fifth in passing TDs (35) and 13th in passing efficiency (160).

• The redshirt freshman is tied for fourth nationally and second in the Power 5 with Oregon’s Bo Nix with 42 total touchdowns (35 pass, 7 rush) and 254 points accounted for in 2022.

• Maye leads the ACC in all five categories.

MAYE ON FOURTH DOWN
• Maye is 11-of-17 passing for 159 yards and five touchdowns on fourth down this season. He also has four conversions on the ground for 46 yards.

MAYE IN THE RED ZONE
• Maye’s 23 touchdown passes in the red zone rank third in the Power 5. He has also added seven rushing scores in the red zone for 30 total TDs.

MAYE’S MASTERCLASS
• Maye has posted five games with 5 or more TDs responsible for in the first 13 starts of his career. That figure is already the UNC all-time
record and he is the only player to do it in one season.

• Maye has produced five games with 350 pass yards and three pass TDs. The rest of the ACC has four combined.

• Out of Maye’s 35 TD passes, nine have come with the game tied and 15 have come when the Heels were trailing.

• Maye has gone 197-of-292 (67.5%) for 2,535 yards and 24 TDs when UNC was tied or trailing this season.

• Maye leads the nation in second-half comeback victories with six.

• Maye has gone 84-of-134 for 1,175 yards and eight TDs when tied or trailing in the second half.

IMPRESSIVE COMPANY
• Drake Maye has thrown for 4,115 yards and 35 TDs to go along with 653 yards rushing and 7 TDs. He is just the sixth QB since 2010 to post
4,000 pass yards, 35 pass TDs, 650 rush yards, and 7 rush TDs in a season. The others are Kyler Murray (2018), DeShaun Watson (2015, ’16),
Marcus Mariota (2014), Johnny Manziel (2013) and Robert Griffin III (2011). Each one of those players either won the Heisman Trophy or finished as the runner-up.

A LIST OF ONE
• In the past 15 years, Drake Maye is the only QB to have three-straight games with 3 TDs, 0 INT, 70% completions, 250 passing yards and 50 rushing yards.

• The only QBs to do it in back-to-back games are Bo Nix, Jalen Hurts, JT Barrett, Marcus Mariota, Robert Griffin III and Joe Webb.

• Maye is the only ACC player in the last 25 years with four-straight games with at least 300 passing yards and 50 rushing yards. He did it
against Virginia Tech, Miami, Duke and Pitt, and was seven passing yards away from doing it for a fifth-straight game against UVA. Maye accomplished the feat again at Wake Forest.

PFF GRADES MAYE NO. 1
• Drake Maye is currently the highest graded quarterback in the Power 5 according to Pro Football Focus (PFF) with a 91.6 mark.

• According to PFF, his 41 big-time throws are 12 more than any other Power 5 quarterback, while his 512 rushing yards after contact are the second-most among Power 5 QBs.

ON THE ACC LISTS
• Drake Maye currently ranks fifth on the ACC single-season list with 4,768 yards of total offense. The only two QBs to produce more total offense are Lamar Jackson and DeShaun Watson. Maye’s 366.8 total yards per game rank fourth.

• Maye’s 4,115 passing yards rank eighth on the ACC’s single-season list and his 35 TD passes are tied for eighth.

DUAL THREAT
• Drake Maye is currently averaging 316.5 passing yards per game and leads UNC in rushing with 653 yards (50.2 ypg). The last two QBs who averaged over 300 passing yards per game, while leading their team in rushing were Patrick Mahomes in 2016 and Johnny Manziel in 2013.

280+ PASSING YARDS, 2+ TDS
• Drake Maye threw for 280+ yards & 2+ TDs in the first 10 games of this season. Since 2004, no other ACC QB has done that in any 8-game stretch, much less 10, and no true or redshirt freshman has done it at any FBS school.

• Only two QBs (playoff era) had longer streaks: Bailey Zappe (W. Kentucky) 14 (2021) Baker Mayfield (Okla.) 12 (2016-2017)

CAROLINA RECORDS
• Maye’s 4,115 passing yards set the UNC single-season record, formerly held by Mitch Trubisky at 3,748 yards in 2016. His 35 passing TDs currently rank second in a single-season behind Sam Howell’s 38 in 2019.

• Equaled the UNC freshman record with 5 TD passes against FAMU, Notre Dame and Pitt.

• His 34 completions against Pitt are the most ever by a Tar Heel freshman QB and the highest figure by a UNC signal caller since Nathan Elliott had 34 at Syracuse in 2018. The previous rookie record was 33 by Sam Howell in 2019.

• Maye is the second UNC QB to ever have 380 passing yards and 70 rushing yards in a game. The other was Marquise Williams who went for 390 passing yards and 73 yards on the ground versus Georgia Tech in 2014.

• There have been nine games when a QB threw for 300 and ran for 70 in program history. Maye has four of them in 2022 (App State, Virginia Tech, Duke, WF). Sam Howell did it three times in 2021 (Georgia State, Virginia, Notre Dame) and Marquise Williams twice (the aforementioned
GT game and Notre Dame in 2014).

MAYE’S FIRST TWO GAMES
• Drake Maye is one of only four QBs over the last 15 years to post nine TD passes and 0 INTs in their first two career starts.

• The others are Cole McDonald (Hawaii, 2018), Nic Shimonek (Texas Tech, 2017) and David Johnson (Tulsa, 2008).

• Maye’s 9 TD passes were the most through a team’s first 2 games by any ACC player since 2000.

• The only ACC player in the last 15 years with more TD responsible for through 2 games than Maye’s 10 was Lamar Jackson in 2016 with 13.

• Maye’s nine TD passes were the most ever by a UNC QB in the first two games of a season.

Most TD Passes by P5 Frosh in 1st 2 Games of
Season – Since 2000*
2022 Drake Maye, UNC 9
2020 Spencer Rattler, OKLA 8
2007 Sam Bradford, OKLA 8
2000 Philip Rivers, NCST 8
*Includes true and redshirt freshmen

ALL IN THE FAMILY
• The Maye family is starting to stake claim as the first family of Carolina Athletics.

• Drake Maye’s father, Mark started 22 games at quarterback from 1986-87.

• Brother, Luke, was a star basketball player at UNC from 2016-19 that famously hit the game-winning jump shot with 0.3 seconds left to topple Kentucky in the 2017 NCAA Elite 8.

• Additionally, brother, Cole, won an NCAA baseball title at Florida, while Mom, Aimee, attended UNC and brother, Beau, is currently enrolled at the university and will play basketball for the Tar Heels in 2022-23.

JD & AG
• Josh Downs and Antoine Green were a lethal wide receiver combination in 2022. Downs has decided to not play in the bowl game and focus on the NFL Draft process.

• Downs is tied for second in the ACC and is tied for seventh nationally with 11 receiving touchdowns.

• Downs’ 94 receptions lead the ACC and rank third among Power 5 receivers.

• Downs tops the conference with six games of 100 or more receiving yards, while his 166 yards at Virginia is the fifth highest single-game total this season.

• Downs 15 catches at Virginia is the most in the ACC in a game in 2022.

• Downs set the ACC record for most receptions in a three-game span with 37 over the last three games, passing Ervin Phillips of Syracuse, who
had 36 over three in 2017.

• Green’s 180 yards against Pitt is the third-highest single-game total in the ACC this fall, and he ranks third with three games of 100+ receiving yards.

• Green’s seven receiving TDs are tied for fifth in the ACC.

• Green leads the ACC and is tied for second nationally with five catches of 50 or more yards and his 18.6 yards per catch ranks fourth nationally among receivers with at least 40 catches.

1K RECEIVERS
• North Carolina has had five 1,000-yard receivers over the last four seasons, which is tied for the most nationally with Alabama. Dyami Brown did it two times in 2019 and ’20, while Dazz Newsome reached the mark in 2019. Josh Downs eclipsed 1,000 yards in 2021 and ’22.

10+ CATCHES BY 2 PLAYERS IN SAME GAME
• Josh Downs and Antoine Green became the first pair of receivers in North Carolina program history to have 10 or more catches in the same game against Pitt on Oct. 29.

• Downs had 11 catches for 102 yards and two touchdowns, while Green had 10 receptions for 180 yards and two TDs.

• They are also the first set of UNC receivers to notch 100 yards in back-to-back games.

• Downs had 126 yards, while Green added 112 yards at Duke on Oct. 15.

JOSH “TOUCH” DOWNS
• Downs had 21 touchdowns over his last 25 games going back to the Orange Bowl at the end of the 2020 campaign.

• His 22 career receiving touchdowns rank second in program history. He needed just three more TDs to tie Quinshad Davis’ school record of 25.

• In 2021, Downs registered at least eight catches and a TD in eight-straight games. That was the longest streak since Fresno State’s Davante Adams did it in nine-straight games in 2013.

• Downs’ streak of eight-straight games with a receiving TD was tied for the third longest stretch in ACC history.

• Clemson’s DeAndre Hopkins set the record with 10 in a row in 2012 that broke the mark of nine that was set by Virginia’s Herman Moore in 1990. Wake Forest’s Sage Surratt (2018-19) and NC State’s Bryan Underwood (2012) also put together eight-game streaks in the last decade.

TALENTED TIGHT END TRIO
• Carolina is blessed with an outstanding tight end room in 2022 and are led by the threesome of John Copenhaver, Kamari Morales and Bryson Nesbit.

• The trio have combined for 73 receptions, 1,026 receiving yards and seven receiving TDs.

• Nesbit has 32 catches for 470 yards and three TDs, while Morales has 29 catches, 358 yards and four touchdowns. Copenhaver averages 16.5 yards on 12 catches for 198 yards.

MORALES SETS UNC TIGHT END TD RECORD
• Kamari Morales has scored more touchdowns than any other Carolina tight end in program history. He set the record with his 10th career TD at Duke on Oct. 15.

FANTASTIC FRESHMEN
• Omarion Hampton’s seven total TDS (six rush, one rec) are the most among all freshman in the ACC.

• WRs Gavin Blackwell and Kobe Paysour have combined to catch 40 passes for 465 yards and four TDs. Paysour has 22 catches for 226 yards and three TDs, while Blackwell has made 18 catches for 239 yards and a score.

• DB Will Hardy has 33 tackles and joins Cedric Gray as the only two players on the team with an interception, a fumble recovery and a forced fumble. Hardy earned his first start in the ACC Championship game and led the team with 13 tackles.

JUST CALL HIM “AWESOME” RICHARDS
• UNC left tackle Asim Richards leads all ACC tackles with 624 pass-blocking snaps this fall and has only allowed two sacks this season.

• Richards’ two sacks allowed are tied for the fewest among ACC tackles with at least 400 pass-blocking snaps and his 18 pressures allowed are the fifth fewest.

GRAD TRANSFERS
• North Carolina added three graduate transfers that have made immediate impacts during the 2022 season.

• OL Corey Gaynor played in 38 career games at Miami, starting 28 along the interior offensive line. He had a string of 27 consecutive starts snapped after suffering a season-ending injury in the third game of the 2021 season. He has started every game at center in 2022.

• OL Spencer Rolland joined the Tar Heels this summer after graduating from Harvard with a degree in mechanical engineering and a minor in astrophysics. He started 20 games on the offensive line at Harvard. He has started 12 games at right tackle for the Tar Heels.

• JACK Noah Taylor played in 44 career games at Virginia, making 31 starts. Taylor posted 170 tackles, 13.5 sacks, 30 TFL, two forced fumbles, three INTs and 13 PBU over the last three seasons in 35 games.

• Taylor started the first eight games before suffering a season-ending injury in the Pitt game. He played a key role in making the game-saving stop at the goal line on App State’s two-point attempt that secured a 63-61 UNC win. He contributed 3.5 sacks and 6.0 TFL in 2022.

FIND A WAY
• UNC’s defense is giving up 31.0 ppg over all games this season, but they tightened up during conference play. The Heels allowed 25.8 ppg in
league play.

• Carolina’s D gave up just 76 points in the second half during ACC play (9.5 ppg). It was even better when it got to the fourth quarter, when it only allowed 42 points in the eight league games or 5.3 ppg in that quarter.

GRAY LEADING THE WAY
• Junior linebacker Cedric Gray leads the Power 5 with 10.5 tackles per game and his 137 total tackles are the most by a player in the Power 5
conferences. His 76 solo tackles also lead the Power 5.

• His career-high 16 tackles at Virginia is tied for the most in the ACC this season. Ryan Smenda Jr. of Wake Forest and Charlie Thomas of Georgia Tech also have 16 stops in a game.

• Gray has six games this season with 13 or more tackles, leads Carolina with 10 TFL and also has five breakups, four hurries, two interceptions, three forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries and a sack to his credit in 2022.

ROAD WINS
• After not picking up a road win in 2021, Carolina was a perfect 6-0 on the road this fall. The Tar Heels won back-to-back road games three times this year. First, it was non-conference games against App State and Georgia State, later it was games against Miami and Duke and they
finished with wins at Virginia and Wake Forest.

• UNC is 6-0 in true road games for the first time in program history.

• The six consecutive road wins is tied for the second-longest active streak in the nation with TCU and Michigan, trailing Georgia’s streak of
11.

• The current six-game winning streak is the longest on the road for UNC since winning nine in a row between 2014-16.

CLOSE CALLS
• Since Mack Brown returned to take over the UNC program in 2019, Carolina owns a 30-21 overall record.

• 13 of the 21 losses have been by seven points or less with four setbacks coming in overtime.

• Carolina went 6-2 in games decided by seven or less in 2022, including five wins by three points or less.

• The first two losses in 2020 came by a mere three points at FSU and at Virginia.

• Nine of Carolina’s 13 games in 2019 were decided by seven points or fewer. That was the most by any team in the AP Poll era going back to 1936.

• UNC lost 43-41 in six overtimes at Virginia Tech in the longest game in ACC history.

• The Tar Heels also lost twice in overtime on the road at Pitt, 34-27 (2019) and 30-23 (2021).

OREGON DUCKS NOTES:

TALKING POINTS
HOLIDAY BOWL BOUND
The No. 15 Ducks will wrap their first season under head coach DAN LANNING against North Carolina in the SDCCU Holiday Bowl at Petco Park in San Diego. Oregon went 9-3 overall and 7-2 in conference play in the regular season, and is looking to secure its second straight 10-win season and 13th since 2000. It will be the Ducks’ fourth appearance in the Holiday Bowl, and first since a 42-31 win over Oklahoma State in 2008. This is the first-ever meeting on the gridiron between Oregon and North Carolina.

BO IS BACK
Oregon will bring back one of the nation’s top quarterbacks in 2023, with BO NIX announcing his decision to return to Oregon for his final season of eligibility. Nix was in the thick of the Heisman Trophy race before being slowed by a late-season injury. He is among the nation’s leaders in total touchdowns with 42, and his 14 rushing touchdowns are the most among all FBS quarterbacks. Nix is No. 2 in the nation with a 71.5 completion percentage, and his 8.41 total yards per play rank third in the country.

EXPLOSIVE OFFENSE
Oregon’s dynamic offense has been the story of the 2022 season, led by BO NIX and a dominant offensive line. The Ducks are one of just four FBS teams to score 40-plus points at least eight times, along with Ohio State (9), USC (9) and Tennessee (8).

QUICK HITS: QB BO NIX
2022 SEASON
» Announced he will return to Oregon in 2023 for his final season of eligibility.

» Tied for No. 3 in the FBS with 42 total touchdowns (27 passing, 14 rushing, 1 receiving).

» No. 2 nationally with a 71.5 completion percentage, and No. 7 with a 166.93 passer rating.

» No. 1 among all FBS quarterbacks with 14 rushing touchdowns, tied for No. 2 in the Pac-12 and No. 15 in the nation.

» 14 rushing TDs are second-most in a season by an Oregon quarterback, just one shy of Marcus Mariota’s record of 15 (2014).

» One of just 12 FBS quarterbacks since 2000 with at least 27 passing touchdowns and 14 rushing touchdowns in a season.

» Joined Bowling Green’s Josh Harris (2001) as the only FBS players since at least 1996 to have two passing TDs, two rushing TDs and a receiving TD in the same game (at Colorado).

» One of just three FBS QBs with at least 3,000 passing yards and 500 rushing yards (Drake Maye & Frank Harris).

» One of just eight FBS QBs with double-digit TDs both passing and rushing.

» The only FBS quarterback this season with three games of three rushing touchdowns (vs. BYU, at Arizona, at Cal).

» No. 8 in the nation with 324.3 yards of total offense per game, and No. 3 with 8.41 total yards per play.

» 300-plus passing yards three times this season, including a career-high 428 yards at Washington State.

» Multiple passing TDs in nine of 12 games, including a career-high five passing TDs vs. both Eastern Washington and UCLA.

» No. 4 nationally with 16 passing plays of 40-plus yards, tied for No. 4 with eight of 50-plus yards, and tied for 10th with 54 of 20-plus yards.

» No. 3 in UO single-season history with 271 completions, No. 5 with 3,388 passing yards and tied for No. 9 with 27 passing TDs.

» Three-time Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Week (Weeks 8, 9 & 10); just the third player ever to win it three weeks in a row.

TEAM NOTES
OWNING THE MIDDLE EIGHT
The Ducks have had great success during the “middle eight” – the last four minutes of the first half and the first four minutes of the second half. Oregon leads the nation in scoring differential in the middle eight minutes of the game at +7.8 points per game.
» No. 2 in the nation in scoring differential in the last four minutes of the first half (+4.7), and No. 1 in the first four minutes of the second half (+3.2).

» Dominant in the second quarter this season with 15.00 points per game, No. 2 in the nation.

» No. 4 nationally in first-half scoring (21.50 PPG) and No. 2 in third-quarter scoring (11.25 PPG).

» 21 points in the third quarter vs. Washington on Nov. 12, Oregon’s eighth quarter of 20-plus points this season.

» Five of the eight 20-plus points quarters have come in the second quarter.

ALL ABOUT THE BALL
» Tied for No. 12 nationally in fewest turnovers committed (11).

» Tied for 28th with 21 takeaways, including 16 in the last seven games and three in each of the last two games.

» Tied for No. 10 nationally with a plus-10 turnover margin.

» Tied for No. 6 in the FBS with just three lost fumbles.

» Zero lost fumbles through the first nine games of the season.

DUCKS DOMINATE PAC-12 WEEKLY AWARDS
Oregon won a whopping 13 Pac-12 weekly honors during the regular season, tied with Washington for the most in the conference. BO NIX was the Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Week three times in a row from weeks eight to 10, becoming just the third player ever to win the honor three weeks in a row. The Ducks led the conference with four Pac-12 Offensive Lineman of the Week winners – T.J. BASS won it twice in a row in weeks five and six, ALEX FORSYTH was the winner following week eight, and MALAESALA AUMAVAE-LAULU took it home after week nine. Oregon’s four Pac-12 Defensive Lineman of the Week winners also tied for the league lead, with BRANDON DORLUS winning it twice and both MASE FUNA and DJ JOHNSON taking it home once. CHRISTIAN GONZALEZ was the Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Week after his two-interception performance against Colorado, and BENNETT WILLIAMS earned the honor after leading Oregon with 14 tackles and two interceptions in its win over No. 10 Utah. .

» Since the Pac-12 Offensive Lineman of the Week award started in 2019, the Ducks lead the league by a wide margin with 16 winners.

» Bass has won the honor four times in his career, tied with former Duck Penei Sewell for the most in the award’s history.

» Forsyth has won the award twice in his career, also winning last season after Oregon’s historic win at No. 3 Ohio State.

» Four of UO’s primary starters on the O-line have won the Pac-12 award at least once – RYAN WALK won it once in 2020.

THIRD TOP-15 WIN FOR OREGON
With its win over No. 10 Utah on Nov. 19 at Autzen Stadium, Oregon is one of only five teams in the nation with three wins over opponents ranked in the top 15 of the Associated Press at the time of the game. The Ducks also defeated No. 12 BYU and No. 9 UCLA earlier in the season. The Ducks are also one of just 15 teams to play at least four top 15 teams (No. 1 Georgia), and they faced six total top-25 opponents. UO’s win over Utah also made it one of seven teams to have two wins over top-10 teams this season, and one of eight to play at least three top-10 opponents. Oregon is the only Power 5 team to play two top-12 nonconference opponents this season.

HOME WIN STREAK ENDS AT 23
Oregon’s impressive home win streak came to an end at 23 games with last week’s loss to Washington. The streak had tied a program record and was the third-longest active home win streak in the nation. UO’s first home loss since Sept. 22, 2018, also snapped a 17-game home conference win streak, a program record and the fourth-longest active streak in the country. Oregon still holds a 30-game nonconference home win streak after September wins against Eastern Washington and BYU, good for the second-longest active streak in the nation.

RAZZLE DAZZLE IN BOULDER
Oregon never trailed in its 49-10 win at Colorado on Nov. 5, with the offense getting off to a hot start with three unique touchdowns. BO NIX opened the scoring with a TD pass to freshman offensive lineman JOSH CONERLY JR. Nix then reversed roles with BUCKY IRVING when the running back took a pitch threw an 18-yard TD pass back to the quarterback. Linebacker

NOAH SEWELL made his collegiate debut on offense early in the second quarter, rushing for a one-yard touchdown to make it 21-0. Oregon is the first FBS team in history to have an offensive lineman catch a touchdown, a quarterback catch a touchdown and a defensive player rush for a touchdown in the same season, let alone the same game.

WITH ALL EYES ON EUGENE, DUCKS A MAKE STATEMENT
October 22 was one for the history books in Eugene, beginning at 6 a.m. with ESPN College GameDay on campus and culminating in Oregon’s statement win over No. 9 UCLA in front of 59,962 fans, the fourth-largest crowd in Autzen Stadium history. Behind a stellar five-touchdown day from quarterback BO NIX, the Ducks notched their first win over a top-10 team in Autzen since 2018 and tied a program record with their 23rd straight home victory. Oregon used a 28-point second quarter to take a 31-13 halftime lead, with a surprise onside kick executed and recovered by kicker ANDREW BOYLE providing a huge momentum swing. Nix found TROY FRANKLIN eight times for 132 yards and two touchdowns, and BUCKY IRVING surpassed 100 rushing yards for the first time as a Duck while also catching a 37-yard touchdown pass.

EPIC COMEBACK IN PULLMAN
Oregon’s comeback win at Washington State On Sept. 24 was one for the record books. The Ducks scored an incredible 29 points in the fourth quarter alone, the most Oregon has scored in a fourth quarter since at least 1971. Trailing 34-22 with under four minutes to play, BO NIX found CAM MCCORMICK for a 1-yard touchdown, and then hit TROY FRANKLIN for a 50-yard score to put Oregon up three with 1:21 to play. On WSU’s next offensive play, MASE FUNA jumped a screen pass and sealed the game for the Ducks with a 27-yard pick-six. Oregon’s 29 points are the most the program has scored in any quarter since putting up 30 in the second quarter vs. Bowling Green on Sept. 1, 2018. UO erased a 12-point fourth-quarter deficit, the largest fourth-quarter comeback win in program history and largest since Sept. 16, 2006. The Ducks won their Pac-12 opener for the fourth straight season.

YOUTH MOVEMENT
The Ducks entered 2022 as one of the youngest teams in the country, tying for the fourth-most underclassmen of any FBS team with 96 on its roster. That number was comprised of 53 freshmen and 43 sophomores, and made up 76.2 percent of Oregon’s initial 126-player roster. The only teams with more underclassmen to start the season were Navy (117), Army (108) and Nebraska (110), with Wyoming tied with the Ducks at 96. Colorado ranks second in the Pac-12 with 91 total underclassmen. Through 11 games, 14 true freshmen have seen the field for the Ducks, with OL JOSH CONERLY JR. the lone rookie to play in every game.

FRESH FACES
In addition to having 53 freshmen on the roster, Oregon added 21 players via transfers over the offseason to give the program 74 total newcomers. 15 of those 21 transfers came from FBS programs, and combined to make exactly 100 starts before arriving in Eugene. Oregon also boasted an entirely new coaching staff under head coach DAN LANNING.

PILLARS OF THE PROGRAM
Head coach DAN LANNING got right to work building the program’s culture after taking over in Eugene, establishing four program pillars that the Ducks strive to embody every day – Connection, Toughness, Growth and Sacrifice. Lanning had those four pillars posted on Oregon’s practice fields at the Hatfield Dowlin Complex.

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NHL Preview: Toronto Maple Leafs (21-7-6) at St. Louis Blues (16-16-2)

TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS NOTES:

LAST GAME
Score: Toronto 4 vs. Philadelphia 3
Date: Thursday, December 22, 2022
TOR Goals: Järnkrok, Marner, Bunting, Nylander
PHI Goals: DeAngelo, Frost, Farabee
TOR Goaltender: Samsonov, 16/19, .842 SV%
PHI Goaltender: Hart, 30/34, .882 SV%
TOR Power Play: 1-for-4
TOR Penalty Kill: 4-for-5
Player Notes: – Mitch Marner scored on a Toronto power play opportunity at 19:23 of the second period and added an assist during Toronto’s win. Marner has recorded three points through his last two games (1G, 2A). Marner recorded his 10th multi-point game of the season. Marner is currently on a 14-game point streak on home ice where he has posted 21 points (5G, 16A). Per NHL Stats, “Marner extended his home point streak to 14 games (5-16—21), tied with Doug Gilmour (Jan. 30 – April 3, 1993), Dave Keon (Dec. 11, 1965 – Feb. 12, 1966), Busher Jackson (Dec. 31, 1931 – March 19, 1932) and Babe Dye (Dec. 3, 1924 – Feb. 28, 1925) for the fourth longest in Maple Leafs history.” – William Nylander scored for Toronto at 11:39 of the third period and added two assists throughout the game. Nylander has scored in three-consecutive games. Nylander is currently on a three-game point streak where he has posted six points (3G, 3A). Nylander recorded his ninth multi-point game of the season, and second game of the season with three or more points. – Pierre Engvall skated in his 200th career NHL game and posted an assist.

  • Ilya Samsonov stopped 16 of 19 shots he faced in Toronto’s win. Samsonov is 9-0-0 on home ice this season. Per NHL Stats, “Samsonov has won each of his first nine home games of the season with the Maple Leafs and tied Bruce Gamble (9-0-0 from Oct. 25, 1967 – Jan. 20, 1968) for the longest such run in Maple Leafs history.

TONIGHT’S GAME
2022-23 Matchups vs. St. Louis: First of Two
2021-22 Record vs. St. Louis: 1-1-0
Toronto Season Record: 21-7-6
Toronto Road Record: 8-5-3

TONIGHT’S STORYLINES
The Maple Leafs will face-off against the St. Louis Blues tonight at Enterprise Center in the first of two matchups between the clubs this season. Their second game of the season will be played on January 3rd, 2023 at Scotiabank Arena. Toronto has earned at least one point through their last three road games against St. Louis. The Maple Leafs have posted a 6-2-1 record through the month of December. Tonight marks the first matchup of a three-game road trip for Toronto, with the team continuing on to Arizona (Dec. 29) and Colorado (Dec. 31).

NEXT GAME
Date: Thursday, December 29, 2022
Opponent: at Arizona Coyotes
Time: 9:00 pm ET
Broadcast Information: Sportsnet Ontario (TV), Sportsnet 590 (Radio)

RECENT TRANSACTIONS
December 20, 2022 The Maple Leafs have loaned defenceman Mac Hollowell to the Toronto Marlies (AHL).
December 19, 2022 The Maple Leafs acquired forward Dryden Hunt from the Colorado Avalanche in exchange for forward Denis Malgin

INJURY REPORT
Carl Dahlström Shoulder (IR)
Victor Mete Lower Body (IR)
Jake Muzzin Neck (LTIR)
Morgan Rielly Knee (LTIR)
Nick Robertson Shoulder (IR)
Rasmus Sandin Neck (IR

ALL-TIME VS. ST. LOUIS BLUES:
First Matchup between Clubs: December 10, 1967 (Toronto 1 at St. Louis 2)
All-Time Record: 95-97-25-6 (223 Games)
All-Time Record at Home: 60-34-11-5 (110 Games)
All-Time Record on the Road: 35-63-14-1 (113 Games)
Last Road Win vs. Opponent: January 15, 2022 (Toronto 6 at St. Louis 5)

THE MAN ADVANTAGE IN 2022-23
Power Play: 23.9%
Power Play Goal Leader: 8 – Matthews
Power Play Point Leader: 16 – Tavares (7G, 9A)
2021-22 Power Play: 63/231 (27.3%)

ON THE PK IN 2022-23
Penalty Kill: 79.8%
Shorthanded Goal Leader: 1 – Järnkrok, Giordano, Marner
Shorthanded Point Leader: 2 – Marner (1G, 1A), Kämpf (2A)
2021-22 Penalty Kill: 192/234 (82.1%)

FAST FACTS
Tuesday games 6th of 13 (6 home, 7 road)
Back-to-Backs played 5 of 14
Record in first game of back-to-back 2-3-0
Record in second game of back-to-back 4-0-1
December games 10th of 12 (5 home, 7 road)

ST. LOUIS BLUES NOTES:

CURRENT INJURIES
Scott Perunovich – Shoulder (Re-evaluated in 6 months, announced on Oct. 4)
Marco Scandella – Right Hip (Re-evaluated in 6 months, announced on Sep. 20)
2022-23 Total Man Games Lost: 123

Recent Transactions
December
19 – Activated forward Logan Brown from injured reserve
18 – Recalled forward Logan Brown from the Springfield Thunderbirds (AHL)
18 – Assigned forward Will Bitten to the Springfield Thunderbirds (AHL)
17 – Signed defenseman Marc-Andre Gaudet to a three-year, entry-level contract
15 – Assigned forward Logan Brown to the Springfield Thunderbirds (AHL) on a conditioning assignment

BLUES VS. MAPLE LEAFS

  • This will be the 1st of 2 matchups between the Blues and Maple Leafs this season
  • The Blues will visit the Maple Leafs on Jan. 3 to finish the season series
  • The Blues went 1-1-0 against the Maple Leafs last season, with each team winning on the road
  • In their last 10 games against Toronto, the Blues are 8-2-0, including a 7-game win streak from Feb. 2, 2017 to Oct. 7, 2019
  • The Blues have lost back-to-back games against Toronto at Enterprise Center, but are 3-2-0 in their last 5 home games against the Maple Leafs
  • The Blues have scored at least 3 goals in 5 of their last 6 games against Toronto, outscoring the Maple Leafs 23-19 over those 6 games (4-2-0 record)
  • The Blues are 4-1-2 in their last 7 games overall since Dec. 11 vs. Colorado, outscoring their opponent 22-18 during that stretch
  • The Blues’ 4 wins since Dec. 11 share 7th in the NHL (1. Carolina, 7), while their 10 points share 5th in the NHL (1. Carolina, 14 points)
  • Pavel Buchnevich is expected to dress in his 400th career game

UPCOMING SCHEDULE
12/29 – vs. Chicago
12/31 – vs. Minnesota
1/3 – at Toronto
1/5 – at New Jersey
1/7 – at Montreal

A LOOK AHEAD

  • The Blues have 2 games remaining in December, both of which are at Enterprise Center
  • The Blues will finish the calendar year off with a three-game home stand before starting 2023 on a 4- game road trip, 3 of which will come against the Eastern Conference
  • 4 of the Blues’ next 6 games will come against teams who currently hold a playoff spot
  • After their 4-game road trip ends against Minnesota on Jan. 8, the Blues will be at the exact halfway point of the 2022-23 season

BLUES HAVE SUCCESSFUL ROAD TRIP BEFORE HOLIDAY BREAK

  • The Blues went 3-1-1, completing a season-long 10-day, 5-game road trip on Dec. 23 in Vegas before the holiday break
  • The Blues earned 7 of a possible 10 points on their 5-game trip
  • The Blues went 5 for 15 (33.3%) on the power play over their 5-game road trip, which shares the 6th best power play in the NHL since Dec. 15, when their road trip started (1. Vegas, 6 for 13, 46.2%)
  • The Blues scored 20 goals on their road trip (including shootout deciding goals), marking just the 5th time in franchise history the Blues have scored 20 or more goals on a road trip of exactly 5 games (first time since the 1995-96 season)

SPECIAL TEAMS STARTING TO HEAT UP

  • The Blues have scored a power play goal in 4 straight games, going 5 for 11 (45.5%) on the power play over those 4 games
  • Since Dec. 16, the Blues 45.5% power play ranks 1st in the NHL, while their 5 power play goals share 2nd in the NHL (1. Dallas, 6)
  • From the beginning of the season through Dec. 15, the Blues had a power play percentage 20.5%, which ranked 23rd in the NHL
  • From Dec. 16 to now, the Blues have improved their season power play percentage to 23.4%, which shares 11th in the NHL (1. Edmonton, 32.3%)
  • The Blues have also not allowed a power play goal in 5 of their last 7 games (21 for 24, 87.5%), which is the 5th best penalty kill in the NHL in that span (since. Dec. 11) (1. Pittsburgh, 16 for 16, 100%)

DEFENSEMEN CONTRIBUTING OFFENSE FOR BLUES

  • The Blues defensemen have combined for 14 goals this season
  • The Blues are 8-2-1 this season when a defenseman scores
  • The Blues’ defense has contributed 5 power play goals this season, which shares 2nd in the NHL (1. Ottawa, 6)
  • They have also contributed 5 game-winning goals, which shares 3rd in the NHL (1. Carolina/Winnipeg, 6)
  • Torey Krug and Justin Faulk share the lead among Blues d-men with 5 goals, which also shares 16th in the NHL among all defensemen (1. Karlsson, 13)
  • Torey Krug’s 4 power play goals rank 3rd on the Blues (1. Kyrou, 6 / 2. Buchnevich, 5) and share 2nd in the NHL among all defensemen (1. Chabot, 5)
  • Justin Faulk’s 2 game-winning goals share the 8th most among all defensemen in the NHL (1. R. Andersson/Morrissey, 4)
  • Colton Parayko has 49 career goals and with his next goal, he will become the 7th defenseman in franchise history to score 50 goals with the Blues

BLUES CONSISTENT UNDER ARMSTRONG

  • Since Doug Armstrong took over the reigns as the Blues General Manager in 2010-11, the Blues have posted a 537-309-101 record
  • Their 537 wins since then rank 5th in the NHL (1. PIT, 561)
  • The Blues have made the postseason 10 out of the 12 seasons since Armstrong became GM, 1 of 5 teams in the NHL to clinch 10 or more playoff berths since 2010-11 (PIT, 12/WSH, 11/BOS & NSH, 10)
  • Armstrong is also just 1 of 2 GMs to clinch 10 or more playoff berths since 2010-11 (David Poile, 10)
  • Since 2010-11, the Blues rank 7th with 2.92 goals per game (1. VGK, 3.20) and rank 3rd in the NHL with 2.59 goals against per game (1. BOS, 2.45)
  • The Blues also have the 3rd best penalty kill (82.7%) under Armstrong (1. BOS, 83.4%), and have the 6th best power play (20.8%) in the league (1. WSH, 21.5%)

BLUES STAY STRONG UNDER BERUBE

  • Since taking over on Nov. 18, 2018, Berube has led the Blues to a 172-96-38 record (382 points)
  • The Blues 382 points since Nov. 21, 2018 (Berube’s first game), rank 9th in the NHL (1. BOS, 418), while their 172 wins rank 10th (1. TBL, 198)
  • Their 3.24 goals per game rank 7th in the NHL under Berube (1. TBL, 3.54)
  • The Blues have posted a mark of 2.88 goals against per game under Berube, which shares 10th in the NHL (1. BOS, 2.49)
  • The Blues also have the 4th best power play in the NHL at 23.9% since Berube became head coach (1. EDM, 27.2%)
  • On Dec. 11 vs. Colorado, Berube became the 4th Head Coach in Blues history to reach 300 games behind the bench (1. Quenneville, 593 / 2. Hitchcock, 413 / 3. B. Sutter, 320)
  • Last season on Dec. 29 vs. EDM, Berube became the 7th different coach in NHL history to win 200 games and play in at least 1,000 career games

Wins as Coach / Games Played
Craig Berube – 247 / 1,054
Randy Carlyle – 475 / 1,055
Bob Pulford – 363 / 1,079
Craig MacTavish – 301 / 1,093
Red Kelly – 278 / 1,316
Brent Sutter – 215 / 1,111
Larry Robinson – 209 / 1,384

BINNINGTON REACHES CENTURY MARK

  • On Dec. 12 vs. Nashville, Binnington stopped all 25 shots he faced for his 100th career win and his 12th
    career shutout
  • Binnington became the 6th goaltender in franchise history to record at least 100 wins with the club (Liut/Allen/Joseph/Fuhr/Elliott)
  • Binnington recorded his 100th win in his 184th career game, becoming the 3rd fastest in franchise history to reach 100 wins with the team
  • With his shutout in his 100th career win, Binnington also moved into a tie for 6th on the Blues all-time franchise list with 12 shutouts, 1 of just 7 goaltenders to record at least 12 shutouts with the Blues
  • Since Nov. 10, Binnington has 9 wins, which shares 5th in the NHL (1. Jarry/Shesterkin, 11)
  • In his last 5 starts (since Dec. 11), Binnington is 3-0-2, with a 2.12 GAA, a .926 SV%, and 1 shutout
  • Binnington has appeared in 25 games this season, which shares the 3rd most games played by a goaltender in the NHL (1. Hart, 27)

Fastest to 100 career wins with the Blues:

  1. Brian Elliott – 175 GP
  2. Jake Allen – 176 GP
  3. Jordan Binnington – 184 GP

BUCHNEVICH STEPPING UP FOR BLUES

  • Pavel Buchnevich ranks 2nd on the Blues with 12 goals (1. Kyrou, 16) and shares 4th with 26 points (1. Kyrou, 32)
  • Buchnevich has points in back-to-back games (2g, 1a) and has 10 points in his last 8 games (6g, 4a)
  • Buchnevich also has 24 points in his last 19 games (11g, 13a), recording at least 1 point in 15 of those 19 games
  • Buchnevich ranks 2nd on the Blues this season with 5 power play goals (1. Kyrou, 6)
  • Buchnevich recorded 4 points (2g, 2a) on Nov. 19 vs. Anaheim, the 2nd 4-point game of his career (also: Mar. 17, 2021 w/ NYR: 2g, 2a vs. PHI)
  • Buchnevich set career-highs with 30 goals, 46 assists, and 76 points last season

BRAYDEN IS SCHENN-SATIONAL

  • Brayden Schenn shares 4th on the Blues with 26 points this season (1. Kyrou, 32)
  • He also ranks 2nd on the Blues with 19 assists (1. Thomas, 23)
  • Schenn has an assist in back-to-back games (2a) and has 6 points in his last 6 games (1g, 5a)
  • Schenn shares 2nd on the Blues with 20 even-strength points this season (6g, 14a) (1. Thomas, 21)
  • Schenn scored the overtime winner on Dec. 12 vs. Nashville, the 9th overtime goal of his career
  • Schenn has 24 power play goals since the start of the 2019-20 season, which ranks 2nd among all Blues in that span (1. Perron, 26)
  • Schenn dressed in his 800th career NHL game on Dec. 3 at Pittsburgh
  • Schenn recorded his 300th point as a Blue on Friday at Calgary

NHL Preview: Minnesota Wild (19-12-2) at Winnipeg Jets (21-12-1)

NHL Editor
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NHL Preview: Minnesota Wild (19-12-2) at Winnipeg Jets (21-12-1)

MINNESOTA WILD NOTES:

SERIES NOTES
WINNIPEG JETS
All-Time Wild Record: 26-17-5 (16-6-3 at Xcel Energy
Center, 10-11-2 at Winnipeg)
2022-23: Minnesota won the series opening game, 6-1, at Xcel Energy Center (11/23)…LW Matt Boldy (1-2=3) led Minnesota with three points…D Calen Addison (1-1=2), D Matt Dumba (0-2=2), C Joel Eriksson Ek (0-2=2), LW Marcus Foligno (2-0=2) and LW Kirill Kaprizov (1-1=2) each posted two points…G Filip Gustavsson stopped 28 of 29 shot faced for the Wild…LW Kyle Connor scored Winnipeg’s lone goal, assisted by C Michael Eyssimont and D Josh Morrissey…G Connor Hellebuck stopped 33 of 39 shots faced for the Jets.

WILD LEADERS: Foligno (9-9=18 in 28 games) and RW Mats Zuccarello (10-8=18 in 22 games) lead the Wild with 18 points against Winnipeg…D Alex Goligoski owns 16 points (2-14=16) in 40 contests…D Jared Spurgeon owns 14 assists in 36 games…Dumba has 12 points (4-8=12) in 27 contests.

WILD GOALIES: G Marc-Andre Fleury is 22-10-0 with a 2.59 GAA, a .909 SV% and one shutout in 32 career games (31 starts) against the Jets…G Filip Gustavsson is 3-0-0 with a 1.33 GAA and a .954 SV% in three starts.

JETS LEADERS: RW Blake Wheeler leads Winnipeg with 40 points (14-26=40) in 42 games vs. Minnesota…C Mark Scheifele has 30 points (12-18=30) in 34 contests…RW Sam Gagner owns 20 points (4-16=20) in 46 matches…Connor owns 16 points (7-10=17) in 18 games.

JETS GOALIES: Hellebuyck is 9-8-2 with a 2.83 GAA, a .912 SV% and three shutouts in 22 games (21 starts) against the Wild…G David Rittich is 3-0-1 with a 2.89 GAA and a .917 SV% in four starts.

FAST FACTS: Minnesota has earned points in 24 of its last 38 games against Winnipeg (21-14-3)…The Wild is 10-2-0 in the last 12 contests at Xcel Energy Center…Minnesota’s sweep of the Jets in 2018-19 (5-0-0) marked the third time in franchise history Minnesota swept a season series of more than four games: 5-0-0 vs. Chicago (2015-16) and 6-0-0 vs. Edmonton (2010-11)…The Wild fell, 4-1, in its first-ever postseason meeting against the Jets in the 2018 First Round.

INJURIES
Dec. 16, 2022 – Dec. 26, 2022
12/26/22 Recalled F Adam Beckman and F Sammy Walker from
Iowa
12/23/22 Reassigned F Steven Fogarty to Iowa
12/20/22 Recalled F Steven Fogarty from Iowa
12/17/22 Reassigned F Sammy Walker to Iowa

ON THE POWER PLAY
• The Wild have converted 32.1 percent (18 of 56) of power-play opportunities at home this season, second-best in the NHL.

• The Wild have registered a PPG in 12 of its last 15 games. Since Nov. 23, Minnesota ranks 10th in the NHL with a 26.9 power-play percentage (14 of 52).

• Minnesota recorded a power-play goal in a season-high six consecutive games from Nov. 23 – Dec. 4, going eight-for-19 (42.1 pct.) during that span. The streak tied for the fifth-longest in franchise history.

PENALTY KILLERS
• Since Nov. 8, Minnesota is third in the NHL with a 82.5 penalty-kill percentage (66 for 60).

• Minnesota is eighth in the NHL with a 82.1 penalty-kill percentage (46 of 56) on the road this season.

TOTAL TEAM EFFORT
IN THE HOLIDAY SPIRIT
• The Wild hold an active seven-game home win streak, the NHL’s longest active streak and tied for second-longest in the NHL this season.

• Since Oct. 25, the Wild is tied for fourth in the NHL with 18 wins and tied for seventh with 37 points.

• Since Oct. 25, Minnesota is giving up 2.39 goals per game (tied for third in NHL), allowing 27.9 shots per game (fourth in the NHL) and recording a .914 save percentage (sixth in the NHL).

SHORT (HANDED) KINGS
• Minnesota is tied for first in the NHL with six shorthanded goals this season.

• The total is the team’s highest in franchise history through a
season’s first 31 games.

KIRILL THE THRILL
• Entering games on December 27, Kirill Kaprizov ranks tied for eighth in the NHL with 43 points (19-24=43).

• Kaprizov’s nine power-play goals are tied for sixth-most in the NHL this season.

• Kaprizov’s 18 power-play points rank tied for 11th in the NHL this season.

• Kaprizov’s 19 goals rank tied for 11th in the NHL this season.

• Kaprizov ranks tied for fifth in the NHL in scoring since Nov. 23 with 23 points (9-14=23) in 15 games and tied for fourth in the NHL in scoring since Nov. 9 with 30 points (11-19=30) in 21 games.

• Kaprizov reached the 40-point mark in 31 games this season. Per NHL Stats, he required the fewest games by a Wild player to reach the 40-point mark in a single season. He reached 40 points in one fewer game than he did in 2021-22 (32 GP).

• Playing in his 167th game of his NHL career vs. OTT (Dec. 18), Kaprizov scored three points (1-2=3) to reach 201 points (93-108=201) for his career. He became the 23rd player in NHL history to collect 200 points in 167 games or less.

• Per NHL Stats, only three active players have reached 200 career points in fewer games than Kirill Kaprizov (167 GP): Sidney Crosby (142 GP), Alex Ovechkin (165 GP) and Evgeni Malkin (166 GP).

• Kaprizov is the first player in Wild history to record his first 200 career points with the franchise in fewer than 200 games.

• Per NHL Stats, Kaprizov reached 100 career assists in the 158th game of his career vs. Edmonton (Dec. 1). Among players to make their NHL debut with the Wild, none have reached the 100-assist milestone in fewer contests (previously Mikko Koivu: 230 GP).

• Since the start of the 2021 season, Kaprizov ranks third in the NHL with 151 points and sixth with 66 goals.

STONE-COLD KIRILL-ER
• Kirill Kaprizov’s game-winning goal in overtime vs. VAN (Oct. 20) marked his third overtime goal since the start of the 2021-22 season, tied for fifth-most in the NHL during that span (Connor McDavid, five; Steven Stamkos, five; Alex DeBrincat, four; Shea Theodore, four).

• Kaprizov currently stands at nine career overtime points in a Wild sweater, tied with Kevin Fiala for fourth-most in franchise history

THE GUS BUS IS ROLLING
• Filip Gustavsson recorded a six-game win streak from Nov. 19 to Dec. 18, the longest of his career and tied for the third-longest streak in the NHL this season.

• Since Nov. 19, Gustavsson leads the NHL with a 1.84 goals-allowed average (GAA) and ranks fourth with a save percentage (SV%) of .930 (minimum seven games played).

• Gustavsson is 7-2-1 with a GAA of 2.07 and a .927 SV% in his last 10 games.

• Since Nov. 9, Gustavsson ranks fourth in GAA (2.07) and seventh in SV% (.927) (minimum eight games played).

WINNIPEG JETS NOTES:

Scene Setter
After the three-day Christmas break, the Winnipeg Jets host the Minnesota Wild on Tuesday night in the first of two home games this week. Winnipeg also entertains the Vancouver Canucks on Thursday. Jets entered the break after a pair of road loss in a back-to-back to Boston and Washington last week.

Last Game
Washington Capitals 4
Winnipeg Jets 1
Jets Scorers: Stenlund (2)
Capitals Scorers: Ovechkin (21, 22), Milano (5), Dowd (8)
Jets Goaltender: David Rittich (23 sv, 3 ga)
Capitals Goaltender: Charlie Lindgren (25 sv, 1 ga)
Jets PP: 0-for-2
Jets PK: 4-for-4
Recap: The Jets fell 4-1 to the Washington Capitals on Friday night. Kevin Stenlund scored his second goal of the season for Winnipeg’s only tally. Dylan DeMelo and Mark Scheifele led Winnipeg with four shots each, while Adam Lowry had a team best five hits. David Rittich made 23 saves in his third start in the past four games.

Above .600
The Jets are ninth in the NHL with a .632 points percentage, which also ranks second in the Central Division and third in the Western Conference… Winnipeg’s best points percentage in franchise history was in 2017-18 when the team finished at .695… The franchise has finished a season with a points percentage better than .600 four times.

Consecutive Losses
The Jets have lost consecutive games for just the third time this season, but second time in December… Winnipeg hasn’t lost three games in a row since a four-game losing streak from Apr. 15-21/22… The Jets are one of 10 teams in the NHL this season to not have lost three consecutive
games this season.

Busy Time of Year
Winnipeg plays 16 games in 30 days from Dec. 2-31… The stretch includes three back-to-backs… The Jets only consecutive days off in December were from Dec. 24-26 for the Christmas break… Winnipeg’s 13 games so far in December is tied with the Calgary Flames for the most in the NHL… The Jets only played eight games in December last season due to COVID-related postponements, going 4-3-1.

NHL and AHL Success
The Jets and AHL’s Manitoba Moose have combined for a .650 points percentage, which is seventh among NHL teams and their affiliates… The Moose are sixth in the AHL with a .673 points percentage… The Jets and Moose are one of five NHL/AHL affiliate pairings that are each in the top 10 for points percentage in their respective league.

Central Rivals
The Jets are 11-2-0 against their Central Division counterparts this season, with both losses coming on the road… Winnipeg has won six consecutive games against Central Division teams… This is the Jets only game against a Central Division team in a span of 14 games… Winnipeg went 14-6-6 against their Central Division rivals last season and have a winning record against the Central in each of the past five seasons in which the Jets have been in the Central Division… Josh Morrissey (3G, 15A) leads the Jets in scoring against their divisional foes this season with 18 points in 13 games, while Kyle Connor has 16 points (5G, 11A) in 13 games… Four Jets players are averaging a point per game or better against the Central Division this season.

Home Comforts
The Jets are 12-5-0 at Canada Life Centre to start the season… Winnipeg has won 16 of their past 21 home games dating back to last season…Kyle Connor (10G, 14A) leads the team with 24 points in 17 home games… Mark Scheifele’s 12 goals at home is halfway to the career high 24 goals he had at home during the 2018-19 season… Connor Hellebuyck has been stellar on home ice this season, going 10-4-0 with a 1.78 goals-against average, .942 save percentage and three shutouts… Winnipeg is 241-154-36 all-time at Canada Life Centre and have posted a .500 record or better at home in six consecutive seasons.

Road Record
The Jets are 9-7-1 on the road this season… Winnipeg has lost three consecutive road games for the first time this season after matching a franchise record five-game road winning streak… Defenceman Josh Morrissey (1G, 19A) leads the Jets in scoring on the road with 20 points, but his franchise-tying 10-game road point streak ended in Washington… Pierre-Luc Dubois has a team leading eight goals.

Up to 27
The Jets have used 27 skaters this season, which is tied for fifth in the NHL and seven behind the Columbus Blue Jackets for most in the NHL…It matches the 27 players Winnipeg used during the 2020-21 season, which is the fewest in franchise history… The Jets are averaging 30 skaters per season since relocation… The franchise record for most skaters used in a season is 39 during the 2001-02 season when the team was in Atlanta… Conversely, the Jets have had just two goaltenders see game action in each of the past four seasons.

Top 5 PK
Winnipeg is fifth in the NHL with a penalty kill successful 81.9% of the time… The Jets have played 156:03 on the penalty kill this season, which is sixth fewest in the NHL… The last time the Jets had a penalty kill better than 82% was in 2013-14 when they finished the season at 83.2%… The franchise record for penalty kill percentage in a season is 85.2%, which occurred in Atlanta during the 2003-04 season.

Mr. Norrissey
Defenceman Josh Morrissey leads the Jets in scoring with 39 points (6G, 33A) in 34 games, which is a career high for points… He has also established a new career high with 33 assists… He’s halfway to the career best 12 goals he had in 79 games last season… Morrissey had 13 assists during his franchise record 11-game assist streak, which ended on Friday… He has a point in 28 of his 34 games this season and hasn’t gone consecutive games without a point… Morrissey is second in the NHL among defencemen in scoring, while his 33 assists rank first among NHL defencemen and fourth overall… Morrissey is on pace for 80 assists and 94 points this season… Morrissey is on pace to become the first defenceman to lead the team in scoring in franchise history… The franchise record for points by a defenceman in a season is 56, which Dustin Byfuglien did in 2013-14… Byfuglien (4 times), Toby Enstrom (twice), and Jacob Trouba (once) are the only defencemen in franchise history to post 50 points or more in a season.

December Leaders
Pierre-Luc Dubois (5G, 12A) and Kyle Connor (7G, 10A) led the Jets and are tied for the fifth in the NHL in scoring in December with 17 points in 13 games… Dubois’ 12 assists are also tied for seventh in the league in December… Neal Pionk has blocked 30 shots in December, which is fifth in the NHL.

Helle
Goaltender Connor Hellebuyck is tied for second in the NHL with a .928 save percentage this season… His 16 wins is third among the league’s netminders and he’s one of four NHL goalies with three shutouts this season… Hellebuyck owns a 2.36 goals-against average this season, tied for fifth in the NHL, while the Jets are averaging 3.48 goals per game when he’s in net… He has stopped more than 90% of the shots he’s faced in nine of his past 11 starts.

KEVIN!
Kevin Stenlund has three points (2G, 1A) in seven games since being recalled from the Manitoba Moose… His two goals have come in the past three games… Stenlund had career high 10 points in each of the 2019-20 and 2020-21 seasons with the Columbus Blue Jackets.

Shooting Streak s
Kyle Connor has a shot in all 34 games this season… It’s the 15 th time in franchise history a player has had a shot in 34 games to start a season, including three times by Connor… He leads the Jets with 118 shots this season… Mark Scheifele has a shot in 15 consecutive games, while Dylan DeMelo has a shot in 13 consecutive games, which is the longest of his career.

20 X 8
Mark Scheifele is the 10th player to reach 20 goals this season… It’s the eighth consecutive season he’s reached 20 goals, which ties Ilya Kovalchuk for most 20 goals in franchise history with eight… Scheifele has a pair of 30-goal seasons, but has never hit the 40-goal mark… He’s on pace for a career best 49 goals this season.

Extra Time
The Jets are 7-1 in overtime this season… Winnipeg has won five consecutive OT games, which is one game shy of the franchise record in a season (Oct. 22/18-Jan. 13/19)… Winnipeg’s eight OT games are tied for the second most in the NHL this season and the Jets are the only team with seven wins in overtime… Winnipeg is one of five teams to not play in a shootout this season.. Five of Winnipeg’s seven OT winners have come in the first two minutes of the extra session… Mark Scheifele holds the franchise record with 12 OT winning goals… The seven wins is two better than the five overtime wins Winnipeg had last season in 12 games decided in OT… During the past three seasons, Winnipeg is 18-9 in games decided in overtime… The franchise record for OT wins is 10, set in 2010-11.

Zeros
The Jets have registered three shutouts this season, which is tied for second in the NHL… Winnipeg’s first two shutouts were by 4-0 scores (Oct. 24 vs. STL and Nov. 5 vs. CHI), while the Nov. 29 5-0 shutout against Colorado gives the Jets all three shutout wins by at least four goals… The Jets had five shutouts last season, which is two shy of the franchise record.

Taking the Challenge
Head Coach Rick Bowness has made three challenges this season, resulting in two calls being overturned… Both challenges resulted in goals being overturned to no goals – one for offside and one for a stoppage… The Jets are 2-0-0 in games this season when they have made a successful coach’s challenge… Opposing coaches have made two challenges in games this season against the Jets, going 1-for-2.

Jets vs. MIN Notes
Season Series
Tuesday’s game is the second of four meetings between the Jets and Wild this season… The Jets lost 6-1 to the Wild in St. Paul on Nov. 23… The Jets host the Wild for a second time this season on Mar. 8, while Winnipeg makes another trip to St. Paul on Apr. 11.

Recent History
The Jets are 4-2-2 in their past seven games against Minnesota, including winning the past two of the past three meetings.

In Winnipeg
Winnipeg has won three consecutive games against the Wild at Canada Life Centre and six of the past eight games…The Jets are a perfect five-for-five on the penalty in the past three games against Minnesota in Winnipeg.

Player Notes
Blake Wheeler is averaging nearly a point per game against the Wild in his career with 40 points (14G, 26A) in 42 games…Five of Wheeler’s goals are game-winning goals… Mark Scheifele has 30 points (12G, 18A) in 34 career games against Minnesota… The only two players on Winnipeg’s roster with shootout attempts against Minnesota are Sam Gagner (2-for-5) and Blake Wheeler (1-for-3)

Jets vs. MIN Past 10 Games
Date Opp Res G GA S PPO PPG PIM SA PPOA PPGA PIMA
02/26/2019 Min L 2 3 32 4 1 4 40 2 2 8
04/02/2019 @Min L 1 5 33 2 0 4 28 2 0 4
10/10/2019 Min W 5 2 32 2 0 6 40 2 0 6
12/21/2019 @Min W 6 0 31 4 1 13 31 3 0 15
01/04/2020 @Min OTL 2 3 21 5 2 12 44 5 1 10
10/19/2021 @Min OTL 5 6 30 6 2 17 44 5 3 19
11/26/2021 @Min L 1 7 31 3 1 10 38 4 0 8
02/08/2022 Min W 2 0 29 4 1 17 27 1 0 23
02/16/2022 Min W 6 3 31 2 1 4 36 2 0 4
11/23/2022 @Min L 1 6 29 2 0 19 39 5 2 13

NHL Preview: Dallas Stars (20-9-6) at Nashville Predators (14-13-5)

NHL Editor
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NHL Preview: Dallas Stars (20-9-6) at Nashville Predators (14-13-5)

DALLAS STARS NOTES:

LAST DALLAS STARS GAME
Dec. 23, 2022 – STARS 4 vs. CANADIENS 2
Trailing by two goals in the second period, the Stars reeled off four unanswered goals to complete a 4-2 comeback victory over the Montreal Canadiens at American Airlines Center on Friday, Dec. 23. The Stars tied a season high with three power-play goals in the game (also Nov. 11 vs. LA) and won 60% of the draws. Led by Roope Hintz’ two-goal performance (2-0—2) and a go-ahead/game winner from rookie Wyatt Johnston (1-0—1), the Stars entered the holiday break with four wins in their past six games (4-1-1) and a three-point cushion on the Winnipeg Jets for first place in the Central Division. Jason Robertson (0-2—2) earned two assists, Joel Kiviranta (1-0—1) added an insurance marker and Jamie Benn (0-1—1), Joe Pavelski (0-1—1) and Ryan Suter (0-1—1) recorded assists in the win. Goaltender Jake Oettinger stopped 22 of 24 shots to give the Stars victories in both games against the Canadiens this season (also a 5-2 W on Oct. 22 at Bell Centre).
PP: 3-5 | PK: 1-2 | SF: 36 | SA: 24 | DAL TOI: Heiskanen (24:18) | Attendance: 18.532 (sellout)
Three Stars: 1. DAL – R. Hintz 2. DAL– J. Robertson 3. MTL – M. Pezzetta

UPCOMING GAME SCHEDULE
Date Opponent Time (CT) Location TV/Radio
Tue., Dec. 27, 2022 Nashville Predators 7 p.m. Bridgestone Arena BSSWX/KTCK
Thu., Dec. 29, 2022 Minnesota Wild 7 p.m. Xcel Energy Center BSSWX/KTCK
Sat., Dec. 31, 2022 San Jose Sharks 7 p.m. American Airlines Center BSSWX/KTCK
Tue., Jan. 3, 2023 Los Angeles Kings 9 p.m. Crypto.com Arena ESPN/KTCK
Wed., Jan. 4, 2023 Anaheim Ducks 9 p.m. Honda Center BSSW/KTCK

RECENT TRANSACTIONS
Nov. 22 – Recalled forward Fredrik Karlstrom from Texas (AHL)
Nov. 29 – Loaned forward Fredrik Karlstrom to Texas (AHL)
Dec. 12 – Recalled forward Riley Tufte from Texas (AHL)
Dec. 15 – Acquired defenseman Oskari Laaksonen from the Buffalo Sabres in exchange for defenseman Joseph Cecconi
Dec. 23 – Loaned forward Riley Tufte to Texas (AHL)
Dec. 27 – Recalled forward Fredrik Olofsson from Texas (AHL)

INJURIES
Man-games lost, 2022-23: 14
NAME INJURY # OF GAMES DATES
D Miro Heiskanen Upper body 3 Oct. 25-29
G Jake Oettinger Lower body 4 Nov. 1-8
F Denis Gurianov Upper body 6 Nov. 11-21
F Roope Hintz Lower body 1 Nov. 19

DALLAS STARS NOTES
TONIGHT’S GAME: The Stars return from the holiday break with a two-game road trip beginning tonight against the Nashville Predators at Bridgestone Arena. (7 p.m. CT, TV: Bally Sports Southwest Extra, Radio: The Ticket 96.7-FM/1310-AM). This is the third of four meetings between the Central Division rivals and the final visit to Music City during the regular season. Dallas has won both games against Nashville thus far, outscoring the Preds 9-2. Tonight’s contest opens a stretch that sees the Stars play four of their next five on the road. They’ll close out their two-game road trip on Thursday against the Minnesota Wild at Xcel Energy Center.

I KNOW I’VE DONE THIS BEFORE

  • Dallas is 2-0-0 vs. Nashville this season, outscoring the Predators 9-2 with 4-1 and 5-1 victories in the first two games of the season, respectively (Oct. 13 at Bridgestone Arena and Oct. 15 at American Airlines Center).
  • Forwards Roope Hintz (2-2—4) and Jason Robertson (1-3—4) pace the Stars in scoring this season against the Preds with four points apiece in two games.
  • Forward Mason Marchment (3-0—3) leads the club with three goals in two games against Nashville, including a multi-goal effort in the season opener.
  • Marchment’s first goal, just 2:31 into his Stars debut, was the fourth-fastest goal by a Stars/North Stars player from the start of their franchise debut, behind Bob Barlow (1:08 on Oct. 11, 1969), Mattias Janmark (1:39 on Oct. 8, 2015) and Warren Peters (2:22 on Nov. 21, 2009).
  • Marchment became the seventh player in franchise history (1967-present) to score multiple goals in his Stars/North Stars debut, following Mark Parrish (3 G on Nov. 7, 2008), Fabian Brunnstrom (3 G on Oct. 15, 2008), Jaromir Jagr (2 G on Jan. 19, 2013), Dave Archibald (2 G on Oct. 10, 1987), Marc Habscheid (2 G on Jan. 27, 1986) and Jean Potvin (2 G on Nov. 1, 1978).
  • Forwards Joe Pavelski (1-2—3) and Tyler Seguin (0-3—3) have three points apiece in the two games against Nashville this season, while defenseman Miro Heiskanen (1-1—2) has a goal and an assist.
  • With a goal (1-0—1) in the season opener on Oct. 13, Wyatt Johnston became the youngest player in franchise history to score a goal in his NHL debut (19 years, 151 days) and second youngest in franchise history with at least one goal in his NHL debut, behind Dave Archibald (18 years, 179 days on Oct. 10, 1987). Mike Modano (19 years, 120 days on Oct. 5, 1989) scored in his first regular-season NHL game but had debuted during the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
  • Goaltender Jake Oettinger is 2-0-0 with a 1.00 goals-against average and .968 save percentage against Nashville this season, stopping 60 of 62 shots. In six career appearances vs. the Preds, Oettinger is 3-1-2 with a 1.80 GAA and .929 SV%.
  • Netminder Scott Wedgewood has yet to face Nashville in his NHL career.

2022-23 REGULAR SEASON SCHEDULE
Oct. 13 at Nashville – W, 4-1
Oct. 15 vs. Nashville – W, 5-1
Dec. 27 at Nashville
April 3, 2023 vs. Nashville

I WATCHED A MOVIE SCENE, GOT DÉJÀ VU

  • With a goal (1-0—1) on Dec. 23 vs. Montreal, Stars rookie Wyatt Johnston (19 years and 223 days) became the youngest player in Dallas Stars history (1993-present) with a goal streak of three consecutive games. He also became the youngest player since Ottawa’s Tim Stutzle in 2020-21 to score in three consecutive games. Stutzle was 19 years and 20 days at the end of his streak.
  • In addition, Johnston became the fourth fastest player in Dallas Stars history to score his first 10 career goals with the organization.

PLAYER SEASON SPAN TEAM START DATE CHECKPOINT DATE GP G A P
Alex Chiasson 2012-13 to 2013-14 DAL 4/3/2013 10/24/2013 16 11 5 16
James Neal 2008-09 DAL 10/10/2008 12/23/2008 28 11 3 14
Fabian Brunnstrom 2008-09 DAL 10/15/2008 12/23/2008 30 10 4 14
Wyatt Johnston 2022-23 DAL 10/13/2022 12/23/2022 35 10 5 15

  • If Johnston scores tonight against Nashville, he’ll become the youngest player in franchise history (1967-present) to have a goal streak of four consecutive games (19 years and 227 days). As of today, the only player in franchise history to record a goal streak of 4+ games as a teenager is Dave Archibald in 1988-89. He had a four-game goal streak from March 14-20, 1989, starting at age 19 years, 334 days and ending at 19 years, 340 days.
  • Johnston trails only Seattle’s Matty Beniers (11) for the league lead in goals among rookies.
  • Johnston has goals in three consecutive games (3-0—3), eight points (5-3—8) in his past 13 and 15 points (10-5—15) in 35 games overall.
  • At 19 years, 173 days, Johnston became the first teenager in franchise history to record a three-game goal streak on the road with his goal on Nov. 3 at Arizona. The last teenager to have a longer road run was Carolina’s Andrei Svechnikov (4 GP in 2019-20).
  • With a goal (1-0—1) in the season opener on Oct. 13, Johnston became the youngest player in Dallas Stars history to score a goal in his NHL debut (19 years, 151 days) and second youngest in franchise history with at least one goal in his NHL debut, behind Dave Archibald (18 years, 179 days on Oct. 10, 1987). Mike Modano (19 years, 120 days on Oct. 5, 1989) scored in his first regular-season NHL game but had debuted during the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

LIKE HANDPRINTS IN WET CEMENT

  • With an assist in the second period against Edmonton on Dec. 21, captain Jamie Benn recorded career point No. 800 (342-458—800). He became the third player in franchise history (1967-present) to reach the mark, joining Mike Modano (557-802—1,359) and Neal Broten (274-593—867).
  • On Dec. 19 at Columbus, Benn reached the 30-point mark in his 33rd game of the season. He required the third fewest games of his career to reach the 30-point mark in a campaign, trailing 2015-16 (22 GP) and 2014-15 (32 GP). Benn finished those two seasons among the top two in points at season’s end, including an Art Ross Trophy win in 2014-15.
  • Benn’s riding a five-game point streak (2-3—5) and has 32 points overall (13-19—32) in 35 games this season.
  • With 342 career goals, Benn is tied with Brian Bellows for second place on the franchise’s all-time goals list. Mike Modano is the franchise leader with 557.
  • With the most points in a single month in his career (10-13—23), Benn trailed only Jason Robertson (15-11—26) for the most points by any player in the NHL during the month of November. He also ranked fifth during that time in goals (10).
  • Benn registered his 10th multi-point game of the season with a two-assist night (0-2—2) against St. Louis on Nov. 28.
  • Benn recorded the 45th multi-goal game of his NHL career on Nov. 11 vs. San Jose and moved within two of tying Bill Goldsworthy (47) for fourth place on the Stars/North Stars franchise’s all-time list.
  • Benn (7) trails only Dino Ciccarelli (14) and Bill Goldsworthy (8) for the most three-goal outings in franchise history. Note: Tyler Seguin and Mike Modano also have seven hat tricks with the Stars/North Stars franchise.
  • Among team leaders, the 33-year-old ranks third in goals (13), fourth in points (13-19—32) and fifth in assists (19). He also leads the Stars in power-play goals (7) and ranks second in power-play points (15).

HEY, YOU, SAME TIME AND THE SAME PLACE

  • In his 100th career NHL game, goaltender Jake Oettinger improved to 54-27-11 (2.44 GAA, .915 SV% and 4 SO) with a 27-save performance in dallas’ victory over Columbus on Dec. 19.
  • Only one goaltender in franchise history has recorded more wins in their first 100 games as a member of the Stars/North Stars franchise: Ed Belfour (60-21-16).
  • Oettinger’s 45-save performance against Washington on Dec. 15 was one shy of tying his career mark for saves in a regular-season game (46) set Feb. 15 at Colorado (4-1 W).
  • Oettinger improved to 3-0-0 when making 40+ saves in a regular-season game (also: 41 saves on April 3 at Carolina).
  • Among goalies who have made 10 starts or more this season, Oettinger shares seventh in wins (14-5-3), ranks 11th in goals-against average (2.45) and shares 10th in save percentage (.919). He also shares fifth in shutouts (2).

Y’ALL SAID I SWITCHED GENRES, I SAW THE LIMIT AND TOOK IT FARTHER

  • Pavelski leads NHL forwards and ranks second overall in plus-minus (+22) and has finished with a plus or even rating in 31 of 35 games this season.
  • Only once in his 17-year NHL career has he finished a season with a minus rating (-4 in 2018-19 with San Jose; 75 GP).
  • Pavelski (0-3—3) assisted on three of Dallas’ four third-period goals on Dec. 4 vs. Minnesota to match the franchise record for most in a single period – a feat last achieved by Tyler Seguin on April 2, 2022 (0-3—3 in the first period).
  • Pavelski (38 years, 146 days) also became the third player in franchise history (1967-present) to register three points in a period at age 38 or older, joining Dean Prentice (40 years, 65 days) on Dec. 9, 1972 and Sergei Gonchar (39 years, 245 days) on Dec. 14, 2013.
  • He passed Chris Chelios (948) for 12th all-time in points among American skaters with an assist against the Ducks on Dec. 1.
  • With 432 career NHL goals, Pavelski needs three more to tie Patrick Kane (435) for sixth all-time in goals among U.S.-born skaters. Kane is also the only active U.S.-born skater with more goals than Pavelski.
  • Pavelski has eight multi-point games on the season and 44 since joining the Stars in 2019-20.
  • Only two Stars have notched more multi-point games for the franchise than Pavelski over that span: Jason Robertson (52) and Roope Hintz (50).
  • Pavelski has points in two consecutive games (0-2—2), 26 points (7-19—26) in his past 27 games and has earned at least one point in 21 of 35 overall (11-22—33).
  • Through 35 games this season, the Plover, Wisconsin native shares second in assists (22), ranks third in points (11-22—33) and
    fourth in goals (11). He also ranks third in even-strength points (5-16—21) and shares sixth in even-strength goals (5).

LET ME OCCUPY YOUR MIND, WENT A MILLION MILES AN HOUR

  • On Dec. 23 vs. Montreal, forward Jason Robertson had a multi-point effort (0-2—2) to reach the 50-point mark this season (24-26—50).
  • Robertson (35 GP) required the fewest games to reach 50 points by a Stars/North Stars skater since Dino Ciccarelli in 1987-88 (35 GP). Ciccarelli also holds the franchise benchmark, recording 50 points in 28 contests during the 1986-87 season.
  • With 24 goals, Robertson ranks third behind Connor McDavid (30) and Tage Thompson (26) in goals and shares third in points (24-26—40).
  • He recorded his sixth three-point game (0-3—3) and 15th multi-point effort of the season on Dec. 17 at Carolina and followed it up with his team-leading 24th goal of the season on Dec. 19 at Columbus.
  • With 55 goals dating to Jan. 1, Robertson trails only David Pastrnak (56) and Auston Matthews (57) for the most goals in the 2022 calendar year so far.
  • Robertson has recorded three hat tricks since his debut season in 2019-20, surpassing Jamie Benn (2) for the most by a Stars player over that span.
  • Robertson recorded his third career hat trick (3-0—3) in a 5-0 victory vs. Anaheim on Dec. 1 at American Airlines Center. He joined Kirill Kaprizov, Auston Matthews, Alex Ovechkin, Paul Kariya, Teemu Selanne, Eric Lindros, Pavel Bure, Joe Nieuwendyk and Mario Lemieux as players to score at least 80 goals in the first 152 career NHL games.
  • Robertson had 21 goals and 34 points (21-13—34) over a career-best 18-game point streak (Oct. 27-Dec. 4), which went down as the longest point streak in Dallas Stars history (1993-present) and the second-longest point streak in franchise history (1967-present). Only Brian Bellows’ 20-game point streak from Jan. 11-Feb. 21, 1986 with the Minnesota North Stars is longer.
  • Only two active players recorded a longer point streak age 23 or younger: Paul Stastny (20 GP in 2006-07) and Sidney Crosby (19 GP 2007-08 & 16 GP in 2008-09).
  • He had goals in 15 of those 18 games and had 12 multi-point efforts over that span, including three consecutive multi-goal performances (Nov. 21 vs. Colorado, Nov. 23 vs. Chicago and Nov. 25 vs. Winnipeg).
  • Robertson had goals in six consecutive games from Oct. 27-Nov. 8, becoming the fifth player in franchise history to have a goal streak of six games or more before turning 24, and the second player in Dallas Stars history (1993-present) to do so. Robertson followed Neal Broten from Jan. 23-Feb. 4, 1982 (7-12—19 in 7 GP), Jamie Benn from March 1-11, 2011 (6-1—7 in 6 GP), Mike Modano from Feb. 29-March 10, 1992 (7-2—9 in 6 GP) and Danny Grant from Oct. 16-29, 1969 (6-1—7 in 6 GP).
  • Robertson has been named the NHL’s First Star of the Week twice already this season for the weeks ending Nov. 6 and Nov. 27.
  • The Arcadia, California native is averaging better than a point-per-game pace through his four NHL seasons (82-93—175 in 163 GP).

PEDAL TO THE FLOOR, YEAH, I CAN’T BRAKE

  • Forward Roope Hintz (2-0—2) recorded his fifth multi-goal game and 10th multi-point performance of the season on Dec. 23 vs. Montreal.
  • Hintz ranks second on the club in goals (16) and points (16-22—38) in 34 games. He also shares second in assists (22) and ranks second in game-winning goals (3).
  • His goal against New Jersey on Dec. 13 represented his 19th career game-winning tally, the most by a Stars player since he entered the NHL in 2018-19.
  • Hintz has five goals and eight points (5-3—8) in his past nine games and 14 points (8-6—14) in his past 12.
  • He recorded his second career hat trick (3-1—4) and tied his career high for points in a game on Dec. 4 vs. Minnesota.
  • Hintz’ three-goal effort gave the Stars two consecutive games with hat tricks this season (also Jason Robertson, Dec. 1 vs. ANA).
  • He had a 10-game point streak from Oct. 27-Nov. 17, tallying 15 points (6-9—15) over that span including four multi-point efforts.
  • With two goals on his 26th birthday on Nov. 17 at Florida, Hintz became just the second player in franchise history to score multiple goals on his birthday (also Dave Gagner, Dec. 11, 1990).
  • Hintz ranks third on the team in multi-point games (10) behind Jason Robertson (16) and Jamie Benn (10).
  • Hintz is one of four players on the Stars to have a shorthanded goal this season (also Radek Faksa, Luke Glendening and Joel Kiviranta).
  • Hintz and Robertson became the third pair of Stars/North Stars teammates with simultaneous 10-game point streaks, joining Brian Bellows and Neal Broten (10 GP from Jan. 23-Feb. 13, 1986) as well as Steve Payne and Bobby Smith (10 GP from Feb. 10-28, 1980).
  • On Nov. 29 the Stars signed Hintz to an eight-year contract extension, which begins in the 2023-24 season and runs through the 2030-31 campaign. The eight-year contract extension is worth $67.6 million and has an average annual value (AAV) of $8.45 million.
  • In five NHL seasons, Hintz has earned 208 points (96-112—208) in 273 career NHL games. He’s tied for sixth in Dallas Stars history (1993-present) with six career shorthanded goals and ranks 12th with 19 career game-winning goals.

DROP ME OFF AT AAC ON VICTORY

  • Defenseman Miro Heiskanen skated in his 300th career NHL game on Dec. 10 vs. Detroit.
  • Heiskanen ranks 13th among Dallas Stars (1993-present) defensemen in games played (307) and is 26 away from tying Nicklas Grossmann (333) for 12th.
  • The 23-year-old ranks fifth on the Stars and shares 13 th among NHL defensemen in points (5-20—25). He also paces the Stars and ranks sixth in the league in TOI/GP (25:15).
  • He potted the first two goals of the game in the first period on Dec. 8 vs. Ottawa to become the seventh defenseman in franchise history (1967-present) to record two goals in an opening frame.
  • Heiskanen’s two-goal night represented his third career multi-goal game. Among blueliners in franchise history, only Craig Hartsburg (6) and Brad Maxwell (3) had as many before age 24.
  • Heiskanen’s two goals were scored in a span of 1:48 – the fifth-fastest two tallies by a defenseman in franchise history. Sergei Zubov holds the franchise mark (0:57 on Nov. 25, 2001).
  • Heiskanen had a season-high three points (0-3—3) in the Stars’ win over Anaheim on Dec. 1.
  • Heiskanen has 38 goals, 118 assists and 156 points in 307 career NHL games while averaging 24:13 TOI over that span.

THERE’S A LOT THAT I WANNA SAY

  • On Dec. 10 vs. Detroit, rookie defenseman Nils Lundkvist (1-0—1) became the 10th rookie in franchise history (1967-present) to score an overtime goal and just the fourth rookie defenseman to do so, joining Julius Honka (April 4, 2017), Esa Lindell (Dec. 23, 2016) and John Klingberg (March 28, 2015).
  • Lundkvist became the third rookie to score an overtime goal this season, joining New Jersey’s Fabian Zetterlund (Nov. 5 at CGY) and Seattle’s Matty Beniers (Dec. 1 vs. WSH).
  • Lundkvist had a career-best three-game point streak (2-2—4) from Dec. 8-12 and has 10 points (3-7—10) in 32 games with the Stars.
  • Selected by the Rangers in the first round (28th overall) of the 2018 NHL Draft, Lundkvist was acquired by the Stars for a conditional first-round selection in the 2023 NHL Draft and a conditional fourth-round selection in the 2025 NHL Draft on Sept. 19.
  • Lundkvist shares second among Dallas d-men in points (3-7—10), shares third in goals (3) and assists (7) and ranks second among club blueliners in shots on goal (53).

LET’S GET BACK IN THE CAR, IT’S TIME TO DO IT AGAIN

  • With the game-winning goal in sudden death on Dec. 8 vs. Ottawa, forward Tyler Seguin (1-0—1) scored his 10th career overtime goal to surpass Mike Modano for sole possession of second place in franchise history behind only Jamie Benn (11).
  • The OT tally marked Seguin’s 47th game-winning goal with Dallas. Only two players in franchise history have more: Modano (92) and Benn (52).
  • The Brampton, Ontario native enters tonight’s matchup against Nashville with nine points (3-6—9) in his past 16 games and 24 points (7-17—24) in 35 games overall this season.
  • With his first of two assists (0-2—2) on Nov. 19 against the New York Islanders, Seguin recorded career point No. 700, becoming the first player from the 2010 NHL Draft to reach the 700-point mark.
  • Seguin leads the 2010 draft class in points (312-398—710), ranks second in goals (312) and ranks fifth with a +65 rating. He also leads the class with 56 game-winning goals and shares second with 10 overtime markers.

NASHVILE PREDATORS NOTES:

RECENT TRANSACTIONS
− Dec. 24: Reassigned forward Tommy Novak to Milwaukee (AHL).
− Dec. 21: Activated defenseman Ryan McDonagh from IR.
− Dec. 20: Reassigned defenseman Jordan Gross to Milwaukee (AHL).
− Dec. 19: Recalled forward Tommy Novak from Milwaukee (AHL).
− Dec. 18: Reassigned defensemen Kevin Gravel and Roland McKeown to Milwaukee (AHL).
− Dec. 12: Recalled defensemen Kevin Gravel and Roland McKeown from Milwaukee (AHL). Forward Eeli Tolvanen claimed on waivers by Seattle.
− Dec. 5: Recalled defenseman Jordan Gross from Milwaukee (AHL). Placed defenseman Ryan McDonagh on IR (upper body).
− Nov. 23: Assigned forward Zach Sanford to Milwaukee (AHL).

RESCHEDULED GAMES
− The NHL announced new dates and start times for the two Predators home games that were postponed due to flooding at Bridgestone Arena.

− Nashville vs. Colorado, originally scheduled for Nov. 25, will now be played on April 14 at 7 p.m. CT.

− Nashville vs. Columbus, originally scheduled for Nov. 26, will now be played on Jan. 17 at 7 p.m. CT.

HEAD COACH JOHN HYNES
− John Hynes won his 100th game as Predators head coach on Nov. 17 vs. the Islanders.

− Hynes won his 100th game in his 183rd contest in charge of the Predators. Peter Laviolette hit the 100-win mark as Nashville’s head coach in his 189th game (Dec. 6, 2016); Barry Trotz reached it in his 274th game (Dec. 6, 2001).

− He’s up to 256 career NHL wins, placing him tied for 63rd (Jim Schoenfeld) on the NHL’s all-time list.

RECORD-BREAKING JOSI
− Roman Josi recorded his 566th and 567th career points on Dec. 21 at Chicago to pass David Legwand (566) for the most in Predators history. Josi became the second defenseman to lead an active NHL franchise in points, joining Boston’s Ray Bourque. His 567 career points were the 27th-most by a defenseman through his first 791 career games in NHL history.

− He has 25 points (7g-18a) in his last 24 games after recording an assist on Dec. 23 vs. Colorado. His goal on Dec. 21 at Chicago was the 27th game-winner of his career, moving him past Martin Erat for sole possession of third place on Nashville’s all-time list.

− Since Oct. 27, Josi is tied for third among NHL defensemen in goals (7); fifth in points (25); and tied for eighth in assists (18).

− He scored his seventh career overtime goal on Nov. 29 vs. Anaheim, tying him with Shea Weber for the third-most in franchise history.

− Tallying four assists on Nov. 17 vs. the NY Islanders, Josi notched the seventh four-point game of his NHL career, the most among active NHL defensemen. He led all NHL blueliners with four four-point games in 2021-22. In that same game, he Goals

Rk. Player G
1 Filip Forsberg 229
2 David Legwand 210
3 Shea Weber 166
4 Martin Erat 163
5 Craig Smith 162
6 Roman Josi 147
7 Viktor Arvidsson 127
8 Mike Fisher 111
9 Jason Arnott 107
Ryan Johansen 107

Assists
Rk. Player A
1 Roman Josi 421
2 David Legwand 356
3 Martin Erat 318
4 Shea Weber 277
5 Filip Forsberg 265
6 Ryan Johansen 245
7 Kimmo Timonen 222
8 Mattias Ekholm 201
9 Ryan Suter 200
10 Ryan Ellis 195

Points
Rk. Player P
1 Roman Josi 568
2 David Legwand 566
3 Filip Forsberg 494
4 Martin Erat 481
5 Shea Weber 443
6 Ryan Johansen 352
7 Craig Smith 330
8 Kimmo Timonen 301
9 Ryan Ellis 270
10 J-P Dumont 267

NASHVILLE PREDATORS GAME NOTES
Dec. 27, 2022 vs. Dallas Stars

Became the ninth different defenseman in NHL history to record three assists in the first 10 minutes of a contest; he also became the fourth active blueliner to record three points in the opening 10 minutes of a game.

− He recorded at least five shots on goal in five straight games from Nov. 17-29. It was tied for the fifth-longest such streak by an NHL defenseman since 2000-01.

− The 2020 Norris Trophy winner has scored 95 goals since the 2016-17 campaign, the most among NHL blueliners in that
time span.

Where Josi ranks among NHL defensemen
Category Total Rank
Shots on Goal 140 1st
Average TOI 25:25 5th
Goals 7 Tied for 6th
Points 26 Tied for 11th
Assists 19 Tied for 14th

JUICE IS LOOSE
− Goaltender Juuse Saros is 8-3-4 with a 2.41 goals-against average and .927 save percentage in his last 14 games dating back to Nov. 12.

− He’s made at least 30 saves in nine of his last 15 games; he’s faced at least 30 shots in 11 of those outings. He made a season-high 43 saves on Dec. 23 vs. Colorado.

− Additionally, Saros owns a 11.18 goals saved above average (GSAA) since Nov. 12, the second-best mark in the League (per Natural Stat Trick). GSAA measures the goals a goalie prevented given his save percentage and shots faced vs. the NHL average save percentage on the same number of shots.

− Per Natural Stat Trick, Saros has made 186 high-danger saves this season, the seventh-most among League netminders.

NUMBER NINE
− Filip Forsberg (483) passed Martin Erat (481) and moved into sole possession of third place on the Predators’ all-time points list on Nov. 8 at Seattle. He is six points from becoming the third player in team history to reach the 500-point milestone.

− Forsberg is third on Nashville in points with 25 (9g-16a).

− Forsberg has 22 points (7g-15a) in his last 25 games dating back to Oct. 22 vs. Philadelphia. He’s recorded two three-point games in that time frame – Oct. 27 vs. St. Louis (3a) and Nov. 1 at Edmonton (1g-2a).

− Nov. 1 at Edmonton was Forsberg’s 32nd career three-point game, the most in Predators history.

QUICK HITS
− The Predators have allowed 2.67 goals-against per game since Nov. 12, the eighth-best mark in the League.

− The Predators are tied for seventh in the NHL in face-off percentage (52.7 percent).

− Among NHL players who have taken at least 400 faceoffs, Ryan Johansen is fourth at 61 percent.

− Johansen won at least 50 percent of his faceoffs in a franchise-record 23 consecutive games, a streak that came to an end on Nov. 23 at Detroit. The previous record was held by current Predators Assistant GM Scott Nichol, who did so in 17 straight games during the 2006-07 season.

− Colton Sissons is second in the NHL in shorthanded faceoffs won (64).

− Forward Juuso Parssinen, 21, who made his NHL debut on Nov. 12 vs. the Rangers, has seven points (3g-4a) in his first 18 career NHL games. He tallied two assists on Dec. 21 at Chicago.

o He became the first Predators player to make his NHL debut this season.

o He is the only rookie in Predators history to score three goals in his first four career NHL games. He is one of three rookies in team history to record five points in his first four career NHL games, joining Denis Arkhipov (2g3a in 2000-01) and Marek Zidlicky (2g-3a in 2003-04).

o On Nov. 17 vs. the NY Islanders (2g-1a), Parssinen also became the 15th rookie in franchise history to record a three-point game and is one of three to do so within his first three career NHL games, joining Smith, who did so in his second on Oct. 8, 2011 at St. Louis (1g-2a), and Tommy Novak, who did so in his third on Oct. 23, 2021 at Winnipeg (3a).

o Scoring his first career NHL goal on his first shot, Parssinen joined an exclusive group of Predators players. He became the fifth Nashville skater to score in his NHL debut, joining Miikka Salomaki (2014-15), Kevin Henderson (2012-13), Smith (2011-12) and Mikko Lehtonen (2006-07).

NASHVILLE PREDATORS GAME NOTES
Dec. 27, 2022 vs. Dallas Stars
o The No. 210 overall pick (seventh round) in the 2019 NHL Draft became the sixth player in the last decade to score in his first career NHL game after being selected in the seventh round.

− Nashville’s 4-3 OT win on Dec. 1 at New Jersey came in dramatic fashion.

o Mikael Granlund tied the game at 3-3 with 10 seconds remining in the third period, the third-latest game-tying goal in franchise history. It was also the third time in Predators history the team has tied a game with 10 seconds or less remaining in the third period and went on to win in overtime or a shootout; the last time was Feb. 27, 2020 vs. Calgary when Granlund tied the game with one second remaining and went on to score the OT winner.

o Additionally, Ryan Johansen opened the game’s scoring just 11 seconds into the first period. It tied the Predators record for fastest goal to begin a game (David Legwand – April 5, 2007 vs. St. Louis) and was the fastest goal to begin a road game in franchise history. Nashville became the fifth team in the past 24 years to score goals in the first 15 seconds and final 15 seconds of the game and first since Boston on Feb. 3, 2021.

− Mark Jankowski was selected by Calgary in the first round (21st overall) of the 2012 NHL Draft. That pick was initially held by Nashville but was traded to Buffalo on Feb. 27, 2012 for Paul Gaustad and a fourth-round pick in the 2013 NHL Draft, with which the Predators used to select Juuse Saros. To close the pick history, Buffalo traded the 21st overall choice in the 2012 NHL Draft to Calgary with a second-round pick in the 2012 NHL Draft (Patrick Sieloff) for the 14th overall pick (Zemgus Girgensons).

− The Predators have three prospects competing in the 2023 World Junior Championship, which runs from Dec. 26-Jan. 5 in Halifax, Nova Scotia, and Moncton, New Brunswick.

o Ryan Ufko (fourth round, 115th overall in 2021) will skate for the United States (Smithtown, N.Y.).

o Jack Matier (fourth round, 124th overall in 2021) will skate for Canada (Sault Ste. Marie, Ont.).

o Joakim Kemell (first round, 17th overall in 2022) will skate for Finland (Jyväskylä).

NHL Preview: Pittsburgh Penguins (19-9-5) at New York Islanders (19-14-2)

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NHL Preview: Pittsburgh Penguins (19-9-5) at New York Islanders (19-14-2)

PITTSBURGH PENGUINS NOTES:

LAST 2 GAMES
Dec. 22: Carolina 4, Pittsburgh 3 (OT) – PPG Paints Arena
PIT Goals: Crosby (PP), McGinn (SH), Rust
Multiple Points: None
Goalie: Jarry (32 saves/36 shots)
Key Stats: The Penguins picked up a point for the 10th time in the last 11 games (8-1-2) heading into the holiday break.
PP: 1-3
PK: 5-5

Dec. 20: Pittsburgh 3, NY Rangers 2 – PPG Paints Arena
PIT Goals: Malkin (PP), Rust (PP), Crosby
Multiple Points: Crosby (1G-1A)
Goalie: Jarry (26 saves/28 shots)
Key Stats: Sidney Crosby recorded his team-leading 12th multi-point game of the season as the Penguins took down New York.
PP: 2-3
PK: 3-3

INJURIES
Position Player Status Consecutive Games Missed Total Games Missed
D Jeff Petry Upper-Body 5 5
F Josh Archibald Lower-Body 2 3
F Ryan Poehling Upper-Body 1 3
2022-23 Total Regular-Season Man-Games Lost: 47

RECENT TRANSACTIONS
Date Transaction
Dec. 27 D Mark Friedman recalled from the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (AHL).
Dec. 23 D Mark Friedman re-assigned to the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (AHL).

Pittsburgh’s All-Time Record vs. Islanders: 130-102-34
In Pittsburgh: 74-41-19
In New York: 56-61-15
OT Record vs. Islanders: 22-5-20
Shootout Record vs. Islanders: 7-10

2021-22 Results: Pittsburgh went 2-0-1.
Penguins All-Time Point Leaders vs. ISLANDERS:
Mario Lemieux: 72 GP, 131 PTS (50G-81A)
Sidney Crosby: 78 GP, 128 PTS (40G-88A)
Evgeni Malkin: 70 GP, 84 PTS (32G-52A)

TONIGHT’S GAME

  • The Pittsburgh Penguins take on New York Islanders for the first of four matchups this season at UBS Arena (TV: AT&T SportsNet; Radio: 105.9 The X).
  • Last season, the Penguins went 2-0-1 against the Islanders. Jake Guentzel led the team with eight points (4G-4A) in three games played.
  • The Penguins are 4-0-1 in the last five games versus New York. Going back further, the Penguins are 8-1-1 in their last 10 games against the Islanders.
  • Pittsburgh has just two regulation losses in its last 17 matchups versus New York dating back to Nov. 1, 2018 (11-2-4).
  • Tonight, the Penguins conclude a four-game stretch versus divisional opponents. Pittsburgh is 5-1-2 against Metropolitan Division foes this year, outscoring their opponents by a combined 28-18 margin.

QUICK HITS
1) Since the beginning of 2018-19, Jake Guentzel has the most points in the NHL versus the Islanders with 23 points (6G-17A) in 18 games played. He has an active three-game point streak (4G-4A) versus them.

2) Jeff Carter has 50 points (23G-27A) in 54 career games versus the Islanders, which is his highest point total against any one team (Edmonton – 38 PTS). His 23 goals, nine power-play goals and seven game-winners are the most he has versus any one team.

3) Danton Heinen currently sits one assist shy of 100 in his career. Heinen, who was drafted in the fourth round (116th overall) in the 2011 NHL Draft, is looking to become the 21st member of his draft class to register 100 assists. Of the 20 players with 100 assists, only six players (Christian Dvorak and Brandon Montour, 2nd Round; Brayden Point, 3rd Round; Viktor Arvidsson and Devon Toews, 4th Round; Kevin Lebanc, 6th Round) were selected outside of the first round.

4) Jeff Carter enters tonight’s game one assist away from 400 in his career. He’s set to become the sixth player from the 2003 draft class to collect 400 goals and 400 assists along with Eric Staal, Patrice Bergeron, Joe Pavelski, Corey Perry and Zach Parise. He would become the 100th player in NHL history to accomplish this feat.

5) Kris Letang leads all active defensemen in goals (13), assists (28) and points (41) against the Islanders.

TEAM NOTES
‘TIS THE SEASON
Pittsburgh comes out of the holiday break as one of the hottest teams in the NHL. Dating back to November 9, Pittsburgh has points in 18 of its last 21 games overall (15-3-3). Since this 21-game stretch began, only Boston (34) has picked up more points than the Penguins (33), and they have vaulted from 27th in the league standings to eighth. Excluding a stretch where the Penguins were winless for seven games (0-6-1) from Oct. 24-Nov. 5, Pittsburgh has gone 19-3-4 on the year and have points in 10 of its last 11 games (8-1-2). Head Coach Mike Sullivan and the team are looking to extend their record-setting playoff streak to 17 seasons, and have put themselves in prime position to do so coming out of the break. Over the last five full seasons dating back to 2015-16 (excluding 2019-20 and 20-20 campaigns), nearly 79% of teams that held a playoff spot on December 25 qualified for the postseason (63-80).

CHASING HISTORY
Tristan Jarry enters tonight’s game having picked up points in each of his last 14 games (11-0-3), which is the longest point streak of his career. He is currently one game shy of tying Tom Barrasso, who holds the team record of points in 15-consecutive starts from Mar. 9-Apr. 14, 1993 (14-0-0-1).

DECEMBER TO REMEMBER
In the month of December, the Penguins are 8-1-1 and are tied for fourth in the NHL in wins. Over the last five years (2018-22), Pittsburgh has gone 36-7-2 in games during the month of December. Pittsburgh’s .850 points percentage this month is on pace to be one of the highest in the calendar month of December in team history

20 SOMETHING
Penguins Captain Sidney Crosby enters tonight’s game one goal shy of 20 on the year. When he accomplishes this feat, he would become the 29th player in NHL history to reach the 20-goal plateau in 15 or more seasons. His 14 seasons with 20 or more goals is already a franchise record (Evgeni Malkin, 13), and only Alex Ovechkin (18) has more such seasons among active players.

PENALTY KILLIN’ IT
The Penguins’ penalty kill was perfect for a sixth-straight game last Thursday against Carolina (5-for-5) and chipped in with a shorthanded goal from Brock McGinn. Pittsburgh’s four shorthanded goals this season are tied for fourth in the NHL and trail only Vegas (6), Minnesota (6) and Philadelphia (6). The team’s penalty killing unit has made massive strides over the last 18 games, which has coincided with Teddy Blueger’s return from an upper-body injury that kept him sidelined for the first 15 games of the season. With Blueger, Pittsburgh has allowed a power-play goal in only two of 18 games, and have climbed from the league’s 24th-ranked penalty kill to a tie with San Jose for first in the NHL.

POWERED-UP POWER PLAY
Pittsburgh’s power play converted for the 10th-consecutive game last Thursday, going 1-for-3 on the night. The Penguins power play has gone 14-for-38 (36.8%) in the past 10 games, a figure that is fourth in the NHL in that span. The Penguins’ stretch of 10-consecutive games with a power-play goal is the longest active, and total, such streak in the league. Since coming out of the 2004-05 lockout, there have only been 30 instances in the NHL where a team tallied on the power play in 10-straight games, and only 14 of those 30 streaks went 11 games or longer. This stretch marks the first time the Penguins have scored on the power play in 10-consecutive games since Pittsburgh scored on the man advantage in 12-consecutive games from Feb. 3-26, 2013 (16 PPG).

CROSBY VERSUS NYI
Throughout his career, Sidney Crosby has played dominant hockey against the New York Islanders. In 78 career games, Crosby has recorded 128 points (40G-88A) against the Islanders, helping Pittsburgh to a 49-19-10 record in those games. He has more than double the amount of multi-point games against them (38) as opposed to games with no points (18). Only Jaromir Jagr (155) and Mario Lemieux (131) have more points against the Islanders in NHL history than Crosby’s 128. Crosby’s 128 points versus the Islanders are also the most that any active player has against one single team.

NEW YORK ISLANDERS NOTES:

LAST GAME
DATE NYI RESULT SCORE NYI SCORERS IN GOAL
Fri., Dec. 23, 2022 Win NYI 5 vs. FLA 1 Beauvillier (2),
Pulock, Raty, Parise
Sorokin (22/23)
Florida’s Matthew Tkachuk opened the score, then Anthony Beauvillier scored the first of five unanswered Islander goals as the New York Islanders defeated the Panthers, 5-1, Friday night at UBS Arena. Anders Lee tallied two assists, while Aatu Raty scored his first career NHL goal. Ryan Pulock found the back of the net for the second time this season, and netminder Ilya Sorokin turned away 22 of 23 shots he faced, earning his 11th win of the 2022-23 campaign.

TONIGHT’S MATCHUP
Tonight, the New York Islanders host the Pittsburgh Penguins in the first of four matchups between the two teams this season. The Penguins last visited UBS Arena on April 12, 2022, when Josh Bailey and Zach Parise each scored twice to help the Islanders earn a 5-4 win in a shootout. The Islanders earned their tenth home ice victory of the season on Friday, and look to improve upon their 7-4-0 record against Metropolitan opponents tonight. They enter tonight’s matchup with points in five of their last six home matchups against Pittsburgh.

RECENT TRANSACTIONS
Dec. 23 Kyle Palmieri (Dec. 16) and Semyon Varlamov (Dec. 17) have both been placed on IR, retroactive to their dates. Aatu Raty and Parker Wotherspoon have been recalled from loan (Bridgeport).
Dec. 21 Cal Clutterbuck has been placed on IR (retroactive to Dec. 16).
Dec. 18 Cory Schneider has been emergency recalled from loan (Bridgeport).
Dec. 17 Cal Clutterbuck and Kyle Palmieri are both day to day with upper body injuries.
Dec. 16 Kyle Palmieri has been activated off the team’s IR list.
Dec. 15 Adam Pelech has been placed on IR (retroactive Dec. 6).

INJURIES GAMES MISSED

3 Adam Pelech Dec. 9 –

12 Josh Bailey Nov. 29

15 Cal Clutterbuck Oct. 13, Nov. 8, Dec. 2- Dec. 6, Dec. 17 –

18 Anthony Beauvillier Dec. 10 – Dec. 13

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

25 Sebastian Aho Oct. 13 – Oct. 20

26 Oliver Wahlstrom Oct. 13

40 Semyon Varlamov Dec. 19 –

Man Games Lost: 42

RECENT RESULTS
Friday, Dec. 23 vs. Florida W (5-1)
Thursday, Dec. 22 at NY Rangers L (5-3)
Monday. Dec. 19 at Colorado L/SO (1-0)
Saturday, Dec. 17 at Vegas W (5-2)
Friday, Dec. 16 at Arizona L (5-4)

UPCOMING GAMES
Dec. 29 vs. Columbus UBS Arena (Belmont Park, NY) 7:30pm
Jan. 1 at Seattle Climate Pledge Arena (Seattle, WA) 8:00pm
Jan. 3 at Vancouver Rogers Arena (Vancouver, BC) 10:00pm
Jan. 5 at Edmonton Rogers Place (Edmonton, AB) 9:00pm
Jan. 6 at Calgary Scotiabank Saddledome (Calgary, AB) 9:00pm

SEASON SERIES
DATE LOCATION TIME
Dec. 27, 2022 UBS Arena (Belmont Park, NY) 7:30pm
Feb. 17, 2023 UBS Arena (Belmont Park, NY) 7:00pm
Feb. 20, 2023 PPG Paints Arena (Pittsburgh, PA) 7:00pm
Mar. 9, 2023 PPG Paints Arena (Pittsburgh, PA) 7:00pm

LAST FIVE MEETINGS AGAINST PITTSBURGH:
Apr. 14, 2022 PPG Paints Arena (Pittsburgh, PA) Loss (6-3)
Apr. 12, 2022 UBS Arena (Belmont Park, NY) Win (SO) (5-4)
Nov. 26, 2021 UBS Arena (Belmont Park, NY) Loss (1-0)
Mar. 29, 2021 PPG Paints Arena (Pittsburgh, PA) Loss (2-1)
Mar. 27, 2021 PPG Paints Arena (Pittsburgh, PA) Loss (6-3)

vs. THE PENGUINS:
2021-22 1-2-0
Last 5 meetings 1-4-0
Franchise History 114-110-22-20
NYI Home 68-43-8-13
NYI Away 46-67-14-7

TEAM NOTES
HOSTING THE PENGUINS
Tonight, the Islanders host the Pittsburgh Penguins for in the first of four meetings between the two clubs this season. The Islanders will host the Penguins twice this season. The last time these teams met was April 14 in Pittsburgh, a 6-3 decision in Pittsburgh’s favor. The Islanders have collected points five of the last six times they have hosted the Penguins at home. The last time was April 12 of last season, a 5-4 shootout win for the Islanders. Josh Bailey and Zach Parise each found the back of the net twice. Forward Zach Parise enters tonight’s game with 45 career points against the Penguins, sixth -most of any active NHLer. He has 22 career goals against them (including three in his last two matchup with Pittsburgh), good for fourth amongst all active skaters. Islanders forward Josh Bailey leads the Islanders in assists against the Penguins, with 28. It is the most Bailey has registered against a single opponent in his career. His 28 career assists against Pittsburgh are tied with Steven Stamkos and Patrice Bergeron for sixth-most amongst all active skaters.

OPENING THE SCORE
Friday night’s victory against the Panthers was the seventh time this season that the Islanders have won when allowing the first goal (7-10-2). The Islanders have opened the score in seven of their last nine victories, dating back to November 14 in Ottawa. This season, they are 12-4-0 when scoring the first goal.

FIRSTS
Islanders forward Aatu Raty made his NHL debut on Friday, December 23 when the Islanders hosted the Florida Panthers. Raty recorded his first career NHL goal to help the Islanders earn a 5-1 win over Florida. He becomes the first Islander since Alan Quine (2016) to score his first career NHL goal in his NHL debut. Current Islander captain Anders Lee also scored his first NHL in his first career NHL game. Islanders defenseman Parker Wotherspoon made his NHL Debut on December 23 as well. Wotherspoon logged 14:47 TOI and recorded two shots on goal in the 5-1 victory before the three-day holiday break.

100
Friday night against Florida, Islanders forward Anthony Beauvillier tallied his 100th and 101st career NHL goals, in his first two goal game since May 1, 2021. Beauvillier is the 11th member of his 2015 NHL Draft class and the 11th active Quebec native to reach the milestone. Beauvillier finished the game with two goals and an assist, his first three-point outing of the season (last: Mar. 10, 2022 vs. Columbus). Beauvillier is the fourth Islander to record a three-point game this season and the first since November 26 (Ryan Pulock, four assists).

50
Islanders netminder Ilya Sorokin made 22 saves on Friday night to earn his 50th career win in his 96th career start. It was his 11th win this season and first since November 25 against the Columbus Blue Jackets. Sorokin is the 13th netminder in club history to record 50 wins with the Islanders, and he is currently the only active netminder with 50 wins and less than 100 games played. Sorokin enters tonight’s game with a. 925 save percentage in 25 games played so far this season, second-highest amongst Metropolitan Division netminders. He is also one of four NHL goaltenders to record three shutouts this season, joining Pyotr Kochetkov (CAR), Ville Husso (DET) and Connor Hellebuyck (WPG).

AGAINST THE METRO
The Islanders enter tonight’s matchup with a 7-4-0 record against Metropolitan Division opponents this season. They are second only to Carolina (9) in intra-division victories. Tonight’s game is the Islanders’ fourth division matchup of the month, and their last Metropolitan win was on December 9, when they collected a 6-4 victory over the New Jersey Devils.

HOME ICE
Friday night against the Panthers’ was the Islanders’ tenth home win of the 2022-23 campaign. Last season, the Islanders did not collect their tenth home win of the season until February 17. The Islanders’ penalty kill has been particularly successful on UBS Arena ice so far this season. Entering tonight’s game, the Islanders lead the league with 88.4% penalty kill on home ice. They have allowed just five power play goals in 43 times shorthanded on home ice so far this season.

DEFENSEMEN
Islanders defensemen have scored a league-high 25 goals so far this season. Noah Dobson, who leads Islanders defensemen in goals (10), assists (13) points (23) has recorded five points in his last six games. Dobson scored his tenth goal of the season on December 16, tying Rasmus Dahlin for second-most amongst all NHL defensemen. Dobson enters tonight’s game five points shy of his career 100th. The Summerside, PEI native is fourth on the Islanders in goals, behind Brock Nelson’s 15 tallies and Anders Lee and Zach Parise’s 11. Dobson is also one of just two Islander defensemen in franchise history to record 27 goals before their 23rd birthday (joining Denis Potvin). He enters tonight’s matchup three goals shy of his career-best, 13, set last season.

ASSISTS LEADER
Like Parise, Mathew Barzal has also found the scoresheet each of the last two times these teams have met. Barzal recorded his team-high ninth multi-point game of the season Thurdsday night against the Rangers, including his fifth goal of the season and 28th assist. The Coquitlam, BC native leads the Islanders in assists. His 28 assists are seventh-most in the league (tied with Quinn Hughes and Adam Fox). Amongst Metropolitan Division skaters, only Artemi Panarin (32) and Adam Fox have as many assists as Barzal so far this season.

POINTS LEADER
Brock Nelson leads the Islanders in goals (15) and points (34), and is second on the team in assists (19). Nelson also leads the Islanders in game-winners (5) and is one of just seven NHLers to tally five GWGs so far this season. Only Sidney Crosby (6) and Leon Draisaitl (8) have tallied more. Five GWGs also matches Nelson’s single-season career-high, which he first recorded during the 2019-20 season, and again in 2021-22. Nelson tallied an assist the last time these teams met on October 23.

NHL Preview: Washington Capitals (19-13-4) at New York Rangers (19-11-5)

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NHL Preview: Washington Capitals (19-13-4) at New York Rangers (19-11-5)

WASHINGTON CAPITALS NOTES:

LAST GAME
Washington 4, Winnipeg Jets 1
December 23, 2022 * Capital One Arena * Washington, D.C.
Shots: WSH: 27; WPG: 26
Power Plays: WSH: 0/2; WPG: 0/4
Three Stars: 1. Ovechkin (WSH), 2. Lindgren (WSH), 3. Sheary (WSH)

RECENT TRANSACTIONS
Loaned defenseman Lucas Johansen to AHL Hershey, 12/19
Loaned goaltenders Zach Fucale and Hunter Shepard to AHL Hershey, 12/19
Recalled goaltender Zach Fucale from AHL Hershey, 12/17

INJURIES/ILLNESSES
Nicklas Backstrom: 10/12/22-12/23/22 (36 games)
Carl Hagelin: 10/12/22-12/23/22 (36 games)
Tom Wilson: 10/12/22-12/23/22 (36 games)
Connor Brown: 10/20/22-12/23/22 (32 games)
Beck Malenstyn: 11/3/22-12/23/22 (25 games)
Martin Fehervary: 12/5/22-12/23/22 (10 games)
T.J. Oshie: 10/31/22-11/19/22, 12/19/22-12/23/22 (14 games)
John Carlson: 10/31/22-11/9/22 (6 games)
Dmitry Orlov: 11/7/22-12/9/22 (16 games)
Erik Gustafsson: 12/11/22 (1 game)
Lars Eller: 12/13/22 (1 game)
Sonny Milano: 12/15/22 (1 game)
Darcy Kuemper: 12/5/22-12/17/22 (7 games)
Nic Dowd: 12/17/22 (1 game)
Hunter Shepard: 12/17/22 (1 game)
Alex Alexeyev: 12/11/22-12/19/22 (5 games)
Man Games Lost: 228

UPCOMING SCHEDULE
Dec. 29, 7 p.m. ET vs. Ottawa (NBCSW, 106.7 The Fan/Caps Radio 24/7)
Dec. 31, 4 p.m. ET vs. Montreal (NBCSW, 106.7 The Fan/Caps Radio 24/7)
Jan. 3, 7 p.m. ET vs. Buffalo (NBCSW+, 106.7 The Fan/Caps Radio 24/7)
Jan. 5, 7 p.m. ET at Columbus (ESPN, 106.7 The Fan/Caps Radio 24/7)
Jan. 6, 7 p.m. ET vs. Nashville (NBCSW, 106.7 The Fan/Caps Radio 24/7)

TONIGHT’S GAME
The Capitals visit the New York Rangers on Tuesday at Madison Square Garden for the first of four meetings between the teams this season. Washington is 113-97-18-8 all-time vs. New York and 12-7-1 in their last 20 games against the Rangers dating back to the 2017-18 season. Alex Ovechkin (3g, 2a in 2 GP) and Evgeny Kuznetsov (0g, 5a in 3 GP) led the Capitals with five points each against the Rangers last season.

AWAY vs. NEW YORK RANGERS
Record Goals For Goals Against Streak
51-55-9-4 388 421 2 NYR wins (2/24/22-4/29/22)

CAPITALS vs. RANGERS ALL-TIME (Career Totals)
Games Goals Assists Points
Ovechkin (68) Ovechkin (42) Backstrom (37) Ovechkin (64)
Backstrom (58) Backstrom (12) Carlson (28) Backstrom (49)
Carlson (47) Oshie (11) Ovechkin (22) Carlson (35)

POINT STREAKS
Erik Gustafsson – 4 game point streak (4g, 3a), 3 game assist streak (3a)
Alex Ovechkin – 3 game point streak (2g, 4a), 3 game assist streak (4a)
Evgeny Kuznetsov – 2 game point streak (1g, 2a), 2 game assist streak (2a)
Sonny Milano – 2 game point streak (2g, 0a), 2 game goal streak (2g)

TOP CAPS FACTS
The Great 802

  • Alex Ovechkin scored his 21st and 22nd goals of the season and the 802nd of his career on Friday vs. Winnipeg, passing Gordie Howe (801) for second place on the NHL’s all-time goals list.
  • Ovechkin now only trails Wayne Gretzky (894) for the most goals in NHL history. On Dec. 13 against the Chicago Blackhawks, Ovechkin recorded his 29th career hat trick to become the third player in NHL history to reach the 800-goal mark.
  • Ovechkin scored his 802nd goal in his 1,310th career game, passing Howe (1,767 GP) on the all-time goals list in 457 fewer games played.
  • Ovechkin has averaged 0.61 goals-per-game during his 18-year career, the seventh-highest rate in NHL history among players with at least 200 goals. Howe averaged 0.45 goals-per-game during his career, while Gretzky averaged 0.60.
  • Ovechkin scored his 801st career goal on David Rittich, marking his first career goal against the Jets goaltender. Ovechkin has scored on 166 different goaltenders in his career. Only Jaromir Jagr (178) and Patrick Marleau (177) have scored on more goaltenders in NHL history.
  • Since turning 35-years-old on Sept. 17, 2020, Ovechkin has maintained his career goals per game average, scoring 96 goals in 158 games played (0.61 G/GP). That marks the highest rate among players following their 35th birthday in NHL history.
  • Ovechkin passed Howe on two other all-time lists earlier this season. Ovechkin scored his 787th career goal on Nov. 5 versus Arizona, passing Howe (786 goals with Detroit) for the most goals with one franchise in NHL history and scored his 122nd career game-winning goal on Oct. 24 at New Jersey to pass Howe for the second-most game-winning goals.
  • In NHL history, Ovechkin ranks first in power-play goals (292), overtime goals (25), road goals (409), game-opening goals (137), game-tying goals (140) and go-ahead goals (271), second in game-winning goals (124), empty-net goals (54) and multi-goal games (163), and fourth in even strength goals (505).
  • Ovechkin has reached the 20-goal mark in each of his 18 NHL seasons and his 18 20-goal seasons are the sixth-most in NHL history. Ovechkin is on pace to score 50 goals this season. Should Ovechkin reach the 50-goal mark, it would mark his 10th career 50-goal season, passing Gretzky and Mike Bossy (9) for the most in NHL history. In addition, Ovechkin would pass Gretzky (12) for the most 40-goal seasons in NHL history and tie Mike Gartner (17) for the most 30-goal seasons in NHL history.
  • Since entering the NHL in 2005-06, Ovechkin leads the NHL in goals (802) and ranks second in points (Sidney Crosby: 1,452; Ovechkin: 1,451) and games played (Ryan Suter: 1,315; Ovechkin: 1,310). Since 2005-06, he holds a 266-goal lead over the next closest player in goals (Crosby: 536).

Team Turnaround

  • The Capitals will play their 37th game of the season Tuesday.
  • Washington enters Tuesday’s game with a record of 19-13-4 (42 points). The Capitals currently sit in seventh place in the Eastern Conference and in the East’s second wild card spot.
  • Entering their game on Nov. 23 against Philadelphia, the Capitals had a record of 7-10-3 and sat in 13th place in the Eastern Conference.
  • Since then, the Capitals have gone 12-3-1 (.781 point percentage) and have improved their overall point percentage from .425 to .583.
  • The Capitals have earned 25 points over the last 35 days, the second-most points in the NHL during that span (Carolina: 26 points).
  • Since Nov. 23, the Capitals rank tied for first in the NHL in wins (12) and rank in the top-10 of nearly every major statistical category
  • Nine of the Capitals’ next 10 games following the NHL’s holiday break will come against Eastern Conference opponents, including six Metropolitan Division games.

Metro Matchup

  • Tuesday’s game marks Washington’s seventh game against a Metropolitan Division opponent this season (3-2-1). The Capitals have earned at least one point in four of their six division games.
  • The Capitals have played the second-fewest division games among all teams this season (Arizona: four games played against Central Division opponents).
  • Including Tuesday’s game, Washington has 20 games remaining against Metropolitan Division opponents over their final 46 regular season games.
  • Last season, the Capitals tied for the second-best record (16-9-1, .635 point percentage) among Metropolitan Division teams in division games.

Shooters Shoot

  • Alex Ovechkin recorded six shots on Dec. 22 at Ottawa, passing Ray Bourque (6,209) for the most shots in NHL history.
  • Ovechkin has led the League in shots in 11 of his 17 completed seasons and has ranked in the top-three in 16 of his 17 completed seasons.
  • Ovechkin has averaged 4.75 shots per game in his career, while Bourque averaged 3.85 (6,209 shots in 1,612 career games).
  • Since entering the NHL in 2005-06, Ovechkin leads the League in shots, holding a 2,398-shot lead over the next-closest player (Eric Staal: 3,820 shots).
  • Ovechkin has a career shooting percentage of 12.9 percent, the fourth-highest percentage in the NHL since 2005-06 (min. 3,000 shots).

Star-Studded

  • Alex Ovechkin was named the NHL’s First Star for the week ending Dec. 25, after recording six points (2g-4a–6p) in three games. Ovechkin has been named the NHL’s First Star for the second consecutive week and for the 21st time in his career (s/t Ben Sumner).
  • It’s the first time in franchise history that the Capitals have had players named First Star/Player of the Week in three consecutive weeks. Capitals goaltender Charlie Lindgren was named the NHL’s First Star for the week ending Dec. 11, becoming the 10th different Capitals goaltender to earn the honor and the first since Braden Holtby in 2011 (for the week ending March 14) (s/t Mike Vogel).
  • Ovechkin ranks fourth in the NHL in scoring (9g-9a–18p) since Dec. 1, trailing only Connor McDavid (12g-13a–25p), Tage Thompson (12g-9a–21p) and Leon Draisaitl (6g-14a–20p).

Gus Bus

  • Erik Gustafsson recorded an assist on Friday vs. Winnipeg, extending his point streak to four games (4g, 3a).
  • Gustafsson has recorded 17 points (4g, 13a) in 35 games this season, which ranks second among Capitals defensemen (John Carlson: 8g-13a– 21p in 30 GP).
  • Gustafsson has recorded a 54.3 shot attempt percentage at five-on-five (628 shot attempts for, 527 shot attempts against) this season, which is the second-highest rate on the team (min. 15 GP).
  • Gustafsson has recorded a team-high +10 plus/minus rating over Washington’s last six games.
  • Gustafsson recorded his first career hat trick on Dec. 17 vs. Toronto. Gustafsson became the third defenseman in franchise history to score a hat trick, joining Kevin Hatcher (Jan. 13, 1993) and Sergei Gonchar (Jan. 4, 2000).
  • Gustafsson’s three-goal game was the 147th regular season hat trick in franchise history and the second hat trick by a Capitals player in a three-game span, following Alex Ovechkin’s 29th career hat trick on Dec. 13 at Chicago. It’s the 15th time in franchise history that the Capitals have recorded multiple hat tricks over a three-game span (per NHL Stats).
  • Gustafsson is one of two defensemen to record a hat trick this season (San Jose’s Erik Karlsson: Nov. 1 vs. Anaheim).

Like It Orlov It

  • Since returning to the Capitals’ lineup on Dec. 11 at Winnipeg, Orlov has recorded five points (2g, 3a) in seven games.
  • Orlov scored the game-winning goal in overtime on Dec. 19 vs. Detroit, marking his fourth career overtime goal.
  • With the goal, Orlov passed Al Iafrate (58) for the ninth-most goals by a defenseman in franchise history.
  • It also marked Orlov’s 15th career game-winning goal, passing Scott Stevens and Sylvain Cote for the sixth most in franchise history among defensemen.
  • Since the start of the 2019-20 season, Orlov leads the Capitals in overtime goals (4).
  • Orlov, who missed 16 consecutive games due to injury prior to his return, has averaged 23:30 of ice time in Washington’s last seven games, which leads the team

O From D

  • Capitals defensemen have combined for 21 goals this season, which is tied for the second-highest total in the NHL (New York Islanders: 25, Florida Panthers: 21).
  • Washington defensemen have also combined for 76 (21g, 55a) of the team’s 302 points (25.2%), which is the 10th-highest percentage in the NHL.

Terrific Tandem

  • Darcy Kuemper has posted a record of 4-0-1 with a 1.77 goals-against average, a .939 save percentage and one shutout in his last six starts, dating back to Nov. 23.
  • In seven career games against the Rangers, Kuemper has a record of 6-1-0 with a 2.44 goals-against average, a .908 save percentage and one shutout.
  • Over his last nine starts, Charlie Lindgren is 8-1-0 with a 1.89 goals-against average and a .933 save percentage.
  • Lindgren leads the NHL in wins (8) in December.
  • This season, Lindgren has a record of 10-4-2 with a 2.60 goals-against average and a .912 save percentage. The Capitals have earned at least one point in 12 of the 15 games Lindgren has started (10-3-2). Among goaltenders with 15 or fewer starts this season, Lindgren ranks tied for first in the NHL in wins.
  • The Capitals are the only team in the NHL to have two goaltenders with nine or more wins.

Special Teams

  • The Capitals have killed off 75 of 90 power plays (83.3 percent) over their last 31 games, dating back to Oct. 22. During that span, Washington’s 83.3 penalty kill percentage ranks second in the NHL.
  • Through games played Dec. 23, the Capitals’ 80.8 penalty kill percentage ranks tied for seventh in the NHL.
  • On average, the Washington is shorthanded 2.89 times per game, which is the fourth-lowest rate in the NHL.
  • Since Nov. 23, the Capitals have scored 11 power play goals on 46 opportunities (23.9 percent). During that span, Washington’s 23.9 power play percentage ranks tied for 13th in the NHL.
  • The Capitals went seven-straight games with a power play goal from Dec. 1 – December 13, which marked Washington’s longest stretch of consecutive games with at least one power play goal since the 2009-10 season (seven-straight games: March 6 – March 18, 2010).
  • The Capitals have had 120 power play opportunities this season, which are the seventh most in the NHL.
  • Washington has drawn 148 penalties this season – the seventh most in the NHL – and their +22 net penalty differential ranks first in the NHL.

Kuz Control

  • Evgeny Kuznetsov recorded the lone assist on Alex Ovechkin’s historic 802nd career goal.
  • Kuznetsov has recorded an assist on 104 (65 primary, 39 secondary) of Ovechkin’s 802 goals. That’s the third-highest total among Ovechkin’s teammates all-time (Nicklas Backstrom: 278 assists; John Carlson: 142 assists).
  • Kuznetsov leads the Capitals with 23 assists in 35 games this season has recorded 12 points (2g, 10a) in his last 12 games.
  • With an assist on Dec. 13 at Chicago, Kuznetsov passed Calle Johansson (361) for the seventh-most assists in franchise history. Kuznetsov passed Bengt Gustafsson (359) for the eighth-most assists in franchise history on Dec. 7 at Philadelphia.
  • Kuznetsov is on pace for 53 assists this season. Should he maintain his scoring pace, it would mark Kuznetsov’s fifth career 50-assist season.
  • Among Washington’s top-10 assists leaders all-time, Kuznetsov’s 0.58 assists per game rate ranks second, trailing only Nicklas Backstrom (0.71 A/GP).
  • Since entering the NHL during the 2013-14 season, Kuznetsov has recorded 1.52 assists per 60 minutes at five-on-five. That’s tied for the fifth-highest rate in the NHL among players with at least 200 five-on-five assists during that span (Connor McDavid: 1.77; Artemi Panarin: 1.69; Ryan Getzlaf: 1.54; Nikita Kucherov: 1.54; Johnny Gaudreau: 1.52).

No Dowd About It

  • Nic Dowd scored his eighth goal of the season on Friday vs. Winnipeg, marking his fourth goal in his last five games.
  • Dowd recorded three points (2g, 1a) in Washington’s 4-3 overtime win over the Detroit Red Wings on Dec. 19, including two goals 11 seconds apart in the second period to erase a two-goal deficit.
  • Dowd’s back-to-back goals marked the second-fastest back-to-back goals scored by one player in franchise history (Stephen Leach: 10 seconds, Nov. 23, 1990 vs. Pittsburgh).
  • Dowd, who also assisted on Dmitry Orlov’s game-winning goal in overtime, recorded three points in a game for the third time in his career.
  • Dowd has recorded 14 points (8g, 6a) in 35 games this season. Dowd, who set a career high in points (24) last season, is on pace to record a career-high 18 goals and 32 points this season.
  • Dowd ranks first among Capitals forwards in shorthanded time on ice per game (2:14) and fourth on the team in hits (74).
  • Dowd ranks second on Washington and tied for 16th in the NHL in penalties drawn (15).

Shot Advantage

  • The Capitals recorded 40 shots on Dec. 22 at Ottawa, marking their sixth game this season with 40 or more shots.
  • Washington allowed just 19 shots on Dec. 19 vs. Detroit, marking the lowest single-game shot total by a Capitals’ opponent this season. The Capitals’ +23 shot differential against the Red Wings also marked their highest shot differential in a single game this season.
  • Over their last 10 games, the Capitals are averaging 36.4 shots for per game and allowing 27.8 shots against.
  • Since Dec. 5, Washington has recorded a 53.6 shot attempt percentage at five-on-five (504 shot attempts for, 437 shot attempts against), tied for the sixth-highest rate in the NHL during that span.

Did You Know?

  • The Capitals are 19-1-1 when scoring three or more goals this season.
  • Washington’s 893 hits this season are the seventh most in the NHL, through games played Dec. 23.
  • The Capitals rank seventh in the NHL in blocked shots (564), through games played Dec. 23.
  • Since Nov. 1, the Capitals have won 51.6 percent of their faceoffs, which is the 11th-highest win percentage in the NHL during that span

NEW YORK RANGERS NOTES:

LAST GAME
New York Rangers 5, New York Islanders 3 – December 22, 2022 – Madison Square Garden
NYR Goals: A. Panarin (9), J. Gauthier (5), B. Goodrow (8), K. Kakko (9), V. Trocheck (12)
NYI Goals: A. Lee (11), M. Barzal (5), A. Romanov (1)
NYR Goalie: I. Shesterkin (W – 15/18)
NYI Goalie: I. Sorokin (L – 29/33)
NYR Shots: 34
NYI Shots: 18
NYR PP: 1/6
NYR PK: 2/2

RECAP/NOTES: The Rangers headed into holiday break with a 5-3 home win against the Islanders last Thursday. The Blueshirts won after trailing 1-0, 2-1, and 3-2. The team scored three goals in the third to pull out the victory and were led by Barclay Goodrow’s fifth three-point game of his career (1G-2A) and second of the season (Nov. 10 vs. DET).

RANGERS RUNDOWN

  • The New York Rangers skate at Madison Square Garden for the final time in 2022, when they host the Washington Capitals (7:00 PM ET – TV: MSG 2 – Radio: ESPN 1050 AM). Tonight is the first of four meetings between the Metropolitan Division foes.
  • The Blueshirts have won eight of their last nine games and are 9-2-1 over their last 12 games. The Rangers carry a four-game win streak on home ice.
  • Tonight is the third of three-straight games the Rangers will play against Metropolitan Division opponents and the third of eight-straight the team will play against a team from the Eastern Conference. The next game New York will play from a team in the Western Conference is Minnesota on January 10. The next time the Blueshirts travel to a Western Conference city is February 15 against Vancouver.
  • The Rangers have a 8-2-1 record in December with two games to go. If they win their next two, it would be the second most they’ve won in December in team history (11 – 3x).
  • New York has scored five or more goals in three of their last four games. The Rangers have seven occurrences of six or more goals this year, which are tied for the second most in the NHL (BUF – 8). Their three games with seven or more goals this season are tied for the most in the league, also with Buffalo.
  • The Rangers defensemen group has collected 85 points, the second most in the NHL. New York’s 64 assists by defensemen are the third most in the league.
  • New York’s nine comeback victories this year are tied for the seventh most in the NHL.
  • The Blueshirts have 11 players with five goals this season, tied for the second most amount in the NHL. Five Rangers have 25 or more points this year (Zibanejad, Fox, Panarin, Kreider, Trocheck), tied for the third most in the NHL.
  • The Rangers’ plus-14 goal differential in the third period is the fourth highest in the NHL.
  • New York ranks third in the NHL in hits with 969.
  • When tied after two periods, the Rangers have a league-high nine wins (9-1-5).
  • Tonight for the sixth of eight times, New York will wear it reverse retro jerseys.
  • The Rangers have five prospects represented at the World Junior Championships in Halifax: Brennan Othmann (Canada), Noah Laba (United States), Kalle Väisänen (Finland), Jaroslav Chmelar (Czechia), and Adam Sykora (Slovakia).

UPCOMING GAMES (ALL TIMES ET)
DATE/TIME OPPONENT/LOCATION TV RADIO
Dec. 29/7:00 PM Tampa Bay/Amalie Arena MSG 2 ESPN 1050 AM
Jan. 1/5:00 PM Florida/FLA Live Arena MSG Network/NHLN TBD
Jan. 3/7:00 PM Carolina/MSG MSG Network TBD
Jan. 5/7:00 PM Montreal/Bell Centre MSG Network TBD
Jan. 7/1:00 PM New Jersey/Prudential Center MSG Network/NHLN TBD

LAST FIVE GAMES
DATE OPPONENT RESULT
Dec. 22 vs. NY Islanders W, 5-3
Dec. 20 at Pittsburgh L, 3-2
Dec. 18 at Chicago W, 7-1
Dec. 17 at Philadelphia W, 6-3
Dec. 15 Toronto W, 3-1

RECENT TRANSACTIONS
December 9 – Ryan Carpenter re-assigned to Hartford.
December 5 – Jonny Brodzinski recalled from Hartford
December 4 – Jonny Brodzinski re-assigned to Hartford.
December 3 – Recalled Ben Harpur and Jonny Brodzinski from Hartford. Re-assigned Zac Jones to Hartford.
November 23 – Acquired fifth round pick in 2025 NHL Draft in exchange for Ryan Reaves

ALL-TIME RECORD 105-102-18-11 (239 PTS)
2022-23 0-0-0
2021-22 2-1-0
NYR HOME 59-46-9-5 (132 PTS)
NYR AWAY 46-56-9-6 (107 PTS)
LAST FIVE MEETINGS 2-3-0
LEADING SCORER(S) – CURRENT RANGERS IN CAREER G: Zibanejad (15) – A: Panarin (16) – Pts: Zibanejad (27)
LEADING SCORER(S) – ALL-TIME IN GAMES W/NYR G: Graves (23) – A: Leetch (58) – Pts: Leetch (71)

TEAM NOTES
RANGERS ON A ROLL
On December 4, the Blueshirts were 11-10-5 and had suffered losses in four of their previous six games. Since then, the Rangers have notched wins in eight of their last nine games and now have a 19-11-5 record. Since December 5, the Rangers rank among the best in the NHL:

CLOSING OUT 2022
The Rangers will play two more games in 2022, tonight against Washington and then at Tampa Bay on Thursday. The Blueshirts have a 51-27-7 regular season record for 109 points during the calendar year, ranking tied for seventh in the league in wins and ninth in points. Below are New York’s leaders over the course of 2022:

TROCHECK-ING THE BOX SCORE
Vincent Trocheck has a point streak of six games (3G-7A), has three multi-point performances in his last five games, and has 13 points (4G-9A) in his last nine games. It is the seventh time in his career he has posted a point-streak of six or more games and tied for the third longest of his career. Trocheck is one of only three NHL players who have registered 25+ points and 80+ hits this season (along with Alex Ovechkin and Brady Tkachuck). In 32 of 35 games this season, Trocheck has had either 1+ points, 3+ hits, or a 50.0%+ faceoff win percentage; he has hit two of the three categories in 20 of the 35 games, and he hit all three categories in the same game three times (Dec. 15 vs. TOR, Dec. 5 vs. STL, Nov. 8 vs. NYI).

SHESTERKIN IN NET
Igor Shesterkin is 17-5-4 on the season, his 17 wins are the second most in the NHL behind Boston’s Linus Ullmark’s 19. Shesterkin is 7-1-1 in his last nine starts with a .922 save percentage and 2.19 GAA. Shesterkin has allowed one goal or fewer in four of his last seven games. In the calendar year, Shesterkin ranks first in wins (39), first in save percentage (.928) and first in GAA (2.20). His six shutouts are tied for the third most in 2022.

KREIDING TO MAKE HISTORY
Chris Kreider has 16 goals on the year and has nine in his last 16 games. Kreider is one goal from tying Steve Vickers for the eighth most in Rangers history.

In the calendar year 2022, Kreider has scored 49 goals, the eighth most in the NHL in that span and two behind Mike Gartner (51) for the most in franchise history. In addition, Kreider has 36 career game-winning goals, tying him with Adam Graves for the seventh most in franchise history.

PANARIN PUTTING UP POINTS
Artemi Panarin has points in nine of his last 11 games (3G-13A) and multi-point games in five of his last 10 contests. Panarin has points in 12 of his last 15 games (4G-15A) and 41 points (9G-32A) in 35 games this season. Panarin ranks sixth in the NHL in assists (32) and since December 2, Panarin’s 13 assists are tied for the second most in the NHL.

MIKA’S MISSION
Mika Zibanejad has notched five assists in his past four games. He has points in 10 of his last 13 games (5G-10A), 15 of his last 19 games (6G-14A) and in 22 of his last 27 contests (11G-19A). On the Rangers, Zibanejad ranks second in goals (15), third in assists (23) and second in points (38).

WHAT DOES THE FOX SAY?
Adam Fox is two points away from recording 200 points in his career. Since 2019-20, Fox would become the fifth defensemen in the NHL to record 200 points. Fox has points in seven of his last 11 games (1G-9A) and 18 of his last 24 games (5G-21A). Fox has recorded at least one point in 24 of 35 games this year. When Fox records multiple points, the Rangers are 7-0-0. Fox has skated over 20:00 minutes in every game this season, over 25 minutes in 17 contests and his season-high was 30:04 against the Devils on Nov. 28.

BLUESHIRT BULLETS

  • Braden Schneider’s four goals since November 22 are tied for the most among NHL defensemen in that span.
  • Jacob Trouba has 109 hits and 86 blocked shots. He is the only player in the NHL with both 100+ hits and 75+ blocked shots. Trouba ranks seventh in the NHL in hits and second in blocked shots.
  • K’Andre Miller has points in six of his last nine games (2G-6A). Miller’s 29 takeaways this year are tied for the fourth most for a defensemen.
  • Sammy Blais ranks third in the NHL (min. 25 games played) in hits per 60 (20.19).
  • Among players who have skated in 20 games this year, Julien Gauthier ranks third in penalties drawn/60 (2.55).
  • Kaapo Kakko has five goals in his last eight games and is one goal from tying his career-high of 10 set in his rookie season (2019-20).

SPECIAL TEAMS

  • The Blueshirts have scored on the power play in seven of their last 10 games and eight of their last 13 contests.
  • The Rangers’ penalty kill has been perfect in their five of their last six games.

NHL Preview: Chicago Blackhawks (8-20-4) at Carolina Hurricanes (22-6-6)

NHL Editor
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NHL Preview: Chicago Blackhawks (8-20-4) at Carolina Hurricanes (22-6-6)

CHICAGO BLACKHAWKS NOTES:

TONIGHT’S BROADCAST INFORMATION
TV: NBCSCH – Chris Vosters (PxP) and Troy Murray (analyst)
RADIO: WGN-AM 720 – John Wiedeman (PxP) and Caley Chelios (analyst)

UPCOMING SCHEDULE
Thursday, Dec. 29 at STL, 7:00 p.m. CT (NBCSCH, WGN Radio)
Saturday, Dec. 31 at CBJ, 12:00 p.m. CT (NBCSCH, WGN Radio)
Sunday, Jan. 1 vs. SJS, 6:00 p.m. CT (NBCSCH, WGN Radio, Univision (Spanish))
Tuesday, Jan. 3 vs. TBL, 7:30 p.m. CT (NBCSCH, WGN Radio, Univision (Spanish))
Friday, Jan. 6 vs. ARI, 7:30 p.m. CT (NBCSCH+, WGN Radio, Univision (Spanish))

RECENT TRANSACTIONS
Dec. 19 – Activated Alex Stalock off IR and assigned Arvid Soderblom to Rockford … Placed Jarred Tinordi on IR and recalled Isaak Phillips from Rockford … Dec. 13 – Activated Tyler Johnson off IR and assigned Filip Roos to Rockford … Dec. 12 – Activated Petr Mrazek off injured reserve and assigned Jaxson Stauber to Rockford … Dec. 7 – Assigned Lukas Reichel to Rockford … Dec. 6 – Recalled Lukas Reichel and placed Petr Mrazek on IR … Dec. 1 – Recalled Ian Mitchell from Rockford and placed Jarred Tinordi on IR.

LAST TIME OUT
Score: Chicago (5) vs. Columbus (2) – Fri., Dec. 23 – United Center
CHI Goals: Kane (5), Domi (11), Athanasiou (7), Raddysh (10), Toews (11; PP)
CBJ Goals: Marchenko (4; PP), Bjork (3)
Goalies: CHI – Stalock (27/29, 60:00) CBJ – Tarasov (16/20, 23:24), Korpisalo (17/18, 36:22)
CHI PP: 1/5; PK: 3/4
CBJ PP: 1/4; PK: 4/5
Recap: The Blackhawks defeated the Blue Jackets 5-2 on Friday night at the United Center, outshooting the club 38-29 … Patrick Kane (1G, 2A) and Jonathan Toews (1G, 2A) each registered three-point nights in the victory … Max Domi posted two points (1G, 1A) … Kane posted a game-high seven shots … Seth Jones skated in a game-high 25:13 of ice time … Alex Stalock saved 27 of 29 shots he faced in his first game back since Nov. 1.

TONIGHT’S OPPONENT – CAROLINA HURRICANES
The Blackhawks play host to the Carolina Hurricanes in the final of two matchups scheduled between the two teams in 2022-23 … Chicago fell to the Hurricanes 3-0 in their first meeting on Nov. 14 … Patrick Kane enters Tuesday’s contest having notched points (1G, 3A) in two of his last four games against Carolina, while he’s logged 15 points (4G, 11A) over his last 11 games against them … Kane has also registered points (1G, 4A) in two of his last four games at PNC Arena … Philipp Kurashev comes into Monday’s tilt having earned assists (2A) in two of his last three games against the Hurricanes … Seth Jones has 10 points (3G, 7A) over his last 10 games against Carolina, including points in the last two straight (2A).

2022-23 Schedule/Results: HOME: Nov. 14 (0-3) | AWAY: Dec. 27
All-Time Record: 39-41-10 | Home: 23-17-5 | Road: 16-24-5
Last Home Win: March 30, 2021 (2-1) | Last Road Win: May 6, 2021 (2-1 OT) | Last Home Loss: Nov. 14,
2022 (0-3)| Last Road Loss: Oct. 29, 2021 (3-6)

ACTIVE BLACKHAWKS VS. CAR ALL-TIME
GOALS: Tyler Johnson, 14; Jonathan Toews, 6; Patrick Kane, 6
ASSISTS: Patrick Kane, 16; Seth Jones, 14; Tyler Johnson, 9
POINTS: Tyler Johnson, 23; Patrick Kane, 22; Seth Jones, 17

TEAM NOTES
ROCK YOU LIKE A HURRI-KANE: Patrick Kane recorded his third three-point game (1G, 2A) and sixth multi-point effort of the season on Friday against Columbus … It was his 103rd career game with three-plus points and tied Mike Modano for the second most by a U.S.-born player (Pat LaFontaine, 116) … It was the 320th multi-point game of his career, the third most in franchise history behind Stan Mikita (403) and Denis Savard (326) … Kane enters Friday’s contest having registered nine points (2G, 7A) over his last 11 games and 12 points (3G, 9A) in his last 15 … The forward paces the Blackhawks with 20 assists and 25 points this season … Kane posted three points (1G, 2A), including the 1,200th point of his career, on Dec. 3 … He is the third active player to reach the mark, joining Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin, while he’s just the second Blackhawks player to accomplish the feat (Stan Mikita – 1,467 points) … Kane posted three-straight multi-point efforts from Oct. 23-27 (2G, 5A).

O CAPTAIN! MY CAPTAIN!: Jonathan Toews registered three points (1G, 2A) on Friday against Columbus, his first multi-point effort of the season … The captain currently paces the NHL with a 65.6% faceoff win percentage this season … He is tied for first on the Blackhawks with 11 goals and shares 11th in the League and first on the team with seven power-play goals in 2022-23 … Toews also ranks third on the team with 20 points (11G, 9A) … Toews skated in his 1,037th career game on Dec. 3, moving him past Bobby Hull and into sole possession of fifth place in franchise history … The 34-year-old recorded an assist on Nov. 23 at Dallas for the 500th of his career … His 504 career assists are good for eighth in franchise history … Toews logged a seven-game point streak (5G, 2A) from Oct. 23 – Nov. 3 … His seven-game point streak is tied for the third-longest of his career while it marks his longest point streak since the 2018-19 season when he also tallied points (4G, 6A) in seven-straight games from Feb. 14 – 27 … Toews scored the overtime goal on Nov. 3 for the 16th of his career, which is tied for sixth in NHL history.

STAY STRONG: Alex Stalock turned away 27 of the 29 shots he faced on Friday against Columbus, earning his fourth win of the season … It was his first game since Nov. 1 vs. NYI … Stalock is 4-2-1 this season with a 2.78 goals-against average and .917 save percentage through eight games.

TWO FOR THE SHOW: Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane played in their 1,000th career regular-season game together on Dec. 18 vs. NYR … They became the 11th pair of teammates in NHL history to have skated in at least 1,000 regular-season games together and the second pair of Blackhawks players to have done so, joining defensemen Brent Seabrook and Duncan Keith who skated in 1,069 career games together … In the 1,002 games Toews and Kane have played in together, the Blackhawks own a record of 531-348-123 … The two have also both combined to factor into 300 total goals in their careers, with Toews having scored 117 goals that Kane has assisted on, Kane having scored 102 goals that Toews has assisted on and both earning an assist on 81 goals.

MR. JONES AND ME: Seth Jones played in his 100th career game with the Blackhawks on Friday against his former club and has compiled 60 points (6G, 54A) in that span … Only four defensemen have more points through their milestone contest with the franchise: Chris Chelios (15G,66A), Gary Suter (24G, 45A), Dick Redmond (19G, 47A) and Brian Campbell (8G, 53A) … The defenseman currently ranks 13th in the NHL and paces the Blackhawks with 24:40 TOI/G … Jones is now tied for fifth on Chicago and shares first among club blueliners with eight assists this season … He also shares first among Blackhawks defensemen with nine points (1G, 8A) in 2022-23.

TO THE MAX: Max Domi posted two points (1G, 1A) on Friday … Domi has now logged five goals and nine points (5G, 4A) in his last 11 games … He notched three points (2G, 1A) against the Rangers on Dec. 3 for his second three-point outing of the campaign … The Winnipeg, Man. native is tied for first on the team with 11 goals, while he ranks second in assists (12) and points (23) so far this season … He also shares 22nd in the NHL and second the Blackhawks with six power play goals in 2022-23 … The forward scored two power play goals on Nov. 30, marking the second time he’s notched two power play goals in a game … Domi registered a four-game point streak from Oct. 21-27 (3G, 3A) … It marked his first streak of at least four games since the 2020-21 campaign when he also logged points in four-straight games (2G, 3A) from April 6 – 12.

MURPH’S UP: Connor Murphy matched a career high with two points (1G, 1A) on Dec. 21 against Nashville … It marked the 12th time in his career that Murphy has registered multiple points in a game and the first time since Dec. 11 at Toronto (1G, 1A) … The native of Dublin, Ohio also posted a team-high six blocked shots and shared the team lead with five hits on Wednesday … Murphy ranks second on Chicago with 65 blocked shots in 2022-23 and is third on the team with 62 hits on the season … He also leads club blueliners with three goals and is tied for fourth among team defensemen with five points (3G, 2A).

TAYLOR MADE: Taylor Raddysh scored his 10th goal of the season on Friday … The forward has now recorded seven points (6G, 1A) in his last 13 games … Raddysh ranks third on Chicago with 10 goals and four power play goals this season … The native of Caledon, Ont. also shares fourth on the team with 14 points (10G, 4A) in 31 games … Raddysh skated in his 100th career NHL game and scored a goal on Dec. 9 … He also scored goals in back-to-back games from Nov. 25 – 27 (2G) … It’s the fourth time in Raddysh’s career that he’s scored goals in consecutive games and the first since April 12 – 14, 2022 (2G, 1A).

LONG STORY SHORTHANDED: The Blackhawks have scored four shorthanded goals this season, all of which came in a three-game span from Oct. 15 – 23 … Chicago’s four shorthanded tallies in 2022-23 are tied for fourth in the NHL … The team’s three-game streak of scoring a shorthanded goal tied the longest in franchise history, which has happened six times previously, most recently from Feb. 5 – 11, 2009 … Chicago is the first club to score a shorthanded goal in three-straight games since the Ottawa Senators accomplished the feat during the 2019-20 campaign … Sam Lafferty scored two shorthanded goals against the Sharks on Oct. 15 … He is just the seventh Blackhawks player since 1933-34 (when goals by type officially began being tracked) to score two shorthanded goals in a single period, joining Rene Bourque (Feb. 28, 2008), Patrick Sharp (Nov. 3, 2007), Steve Sullivan (Jan. 26, 2001), Rick Paterson (Jan. 16, 1985), Chico Maki (Dec. 9, 1970) and Pep Kelly (Dec. 26, 1940).

BLACKHAWKS RECORD ON…
One-Day Rest: 6-8-1
Two-Days Rest: 0-4-0
Three+ Days Rest: 1-1-1
First Game of a B2B: 1-3-1
Second Game of a B2B: 0-4-1

BLACKHAWKS RECORD BY DAY
Monday: 0-1-0
Tuesday: 1-3-0
Wednesday: 0-5-0
Thursday: 1-3-1
Friday: 2-2-1
Saturday: 3-2-1
Sunday: 1-4-1

CAROLINA HURRICANES NOTES:

LAST GAME
The Hurricanes earned a 6-5 win over the Philadelphia Flyers at PNC Arena on Friday, extending their point streak to a franchise-record 14 games and extending their win streak to eight games. Jordan Martinook (1g, 2a) and Jordan Staal (3a) each posted three points, while Jesper Fast (2g), Martin Necas (2a), Brett Pesce (2a) and Andrei Svechnikov (1g, 1a) added multi-point games of their own. Jesperi Kotkaniemi and Stefan Noesen both scored on the power play, as Kotkaniemi played his 100th game with Carolina. Antti Raanta made 26 saves in net to improve to 4-0-0 in his last four decisions.

INJURY REPORT
Frederik Andersen, lower-body, missed 22 games (11/9-12/23)
Jake Gardiner, upper-body, missed 34 games (10/12-12/23)
Ondrej Kase, concussion, missed 33 games (10/14-12/23)
Max Pacioretty, torn Achilles, missed 34 games (10/12-12/23)
2022-23 Man-Games Lost Due to Injury: 142

RECENT TRANSACTIONS
Dec. 19 Recalled Dylan Coghlan from conditioning stint with Chicago (AHL)

STREAKS
Jesper Fast has tallied a point in four straight games (12/18-12/23: 2g, 3a)
Jordan Staal has registered a point in four consecutive games (12/18-12/23: 3g, 4a)
Jesperi Kotkaniemi has posted a point in three straight games (12/20-12/23: 2g, 1a)
Martin Necas has earned a point in back-to-back games (12/22-12/23: 1g, 2a)

UPCOMING GAMES
DATE OPPONENT TIME TV RADIO
Dec. 27 Chicago 7 p.m. BSSO HRN
Dec. 30 Florida 7:30 p.m. ESPN+/Hulu HRN
Jan. 1 at New Jersey 3 p.m. BSSO HRN
Jan. 3 at NY Rangers 7 p.m. BSSO HRN
Jan. 5 Nashville 7 p.m. BSSO HRN

  • All times are Eastern | BSSO = Bally Sports South | HRN = Hurricanes Radio Network

UPCOMING PRACTICE SCHEDULE
DATE DAY LOCATION TIME
Dec. 27 Tuesday PNC Arena 10:30 a.m.
Dec. 28 Wednesday PNC Arena 12 p.m.
Dec. 29 Thursday PNC Arena 11 a.m.
Dec. 30 Friday PNC Arena 10:30 a.m.
Dec. 31 Saturday PNC Arena 12 p.m.

  • All times are local. Times and locations are subject to change.

HURRICANES vs. BLACKHAWKS SERIES NOTES
— The Hurricanes are facing the Blackhawks in the second and final meeting between the teams during the 2022-23 season.

— Carolina and Chicago are meeting for the 91st time in their regular-season histories. Carolina holds a 44-35-7-4 overall record, including a 25-13-4-3 home record and a 26-9-1-4 record since relocation.

— The Hurricanes lead the season series 1-0-0 in 2022-23 (Blackhawks: 0-1-0), and they are now 13-2-1 in the teams’ last 16 matchups dating back to 3/8/18.

— Carolina earned a 3-0 win over Chicago at United Center on 11/14. Brent Burns (2a), Jordan Martinook (1g, 1a) and Jordan Staal (1g, 1a) each tallied two points, while Pyotr Kochetkov stopped all 27 faced in net for his first career shutout.

— Sebastian Aho has posted 18 points (8g, 10a) in 19 career regular-season games against Chicago.

— Martin Necas has registered nine points (6g, 3a) in 13 career regular-season games against the Blackhawks.

— Paul Stastny has recorded 35 points (13g, 22a) in 50 career regular-season games against Chicago.

— Andrei Svechnikov has earned 18 points (11g, 7a) in 15 career regular-season games against the Blackhawks.

— Calvin de Haan spent the past three seasons (2019-22) with Chicago, posting 24 points (6g, 18a) in 142 games with the Blachawks. He was traded to Chicago by Carolina along with Aleksi Saarela in exchange for Anton Forsberg and Gustav Forsling on 6/24/19.

— Jack Drury was raised in Winnetka, Ill., about 20 miles north of Chicago, and played youth hockey with Chicago Mission.

— Antti Raanta signed with the Blackhawks as an undrafted free agent on 6/3/13 and registered a 20-9-5 record, 2.41 goals-against average, .912 save percentage and three shutouts in 39 games with Chicago from 2013-15.

— Jaccob Slavin played three USHL seasons with the Chicago Steel from 2010-13, earning 64 points (9g, 55a) in 139 games.
His younger brother, Josiah, is also a prospect in the Blackhawks organization.

— Max Domi was acquired by Carolina as part of a three-team deal with CBJ and FLA on 3/21/22 and registered seven points (2g, 5a) in 19 games with the Hurricanes in 2021-22. He also posted six points (3g, 3a) in 14 games during the playoffs, including three points (2g, 1a) in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference First Round vs. BOS.

— Jack Johnson was selected third overall by Carolina in the 2005 NHL Draft, but he was traded to LAK along with Oleg Tverdovsky in exchange for Eric Belanger and Tim Gleason on 9/29/06 before playing a game with the Hurricanes.

— Petr Mrazek played 92 games with Carolina from 2018-21, registering a 50-32-8 record, 2.48 goals-against average, .911 save percentage and 10 shutouts.

— The Chicago Wolves are the Hurricanes’ AHL affiliate.

WE’RE GOING STREAKING
With a win vs. PHI (12/23), the Hurricanes earned a point in a franchise-record 14 consecutive games (11/25-12/23: 12-0-2), marking the second-longest point streak by any NHL team this season (TOR, 11/12-12/13: 12-0-3 in 15 GP). Carolina has now also won each of its last eight games (12/10-12/23), the league’s longest active win streak, and the Hurricanes are now just one win shy of tying the franchise record. Carolina leads all Metropolitan Division teams with 50 points (22-6-6) through 34 games, tied for the fewest contests needed to reach the 50-point mark in any season in franchise history (24-8-2, 50 points).

HOME COOKIN’
Carolina has won each of its last six games at PNC Arena (11/26-12/23), tied for the seventh-longest home win streak in franchise history (11/26/17-12/29/17, 4/15/21-5/4/21: 6 GP). With a win over the Blackhawks on Tuesday, the Hurricanes would tie for fourth on that list (10/7/05-11/5/05, 11/12/16-12/13/16, 2/18/22-3/12/22: 7 GP). Carolina has posted the third-highest points percentage of any NHL team both at home (10-3-1: .750) and on the road (12-3-5: .725) in 2022-23, and with a win over the Flyers on Friday, the Hurricanes became the fourth team this season to register double-digit wins both at home and on the road (also DAL, NJD and VGK).

ALL THE STAAL THINGS
After scoring a goal in three straight games (12/18-12/22), Jordan Staal registered three assists against the Flyers on Friday, marking his first multi-assist game and fourth multi-point game in 2022-23. Staal posted one three-point game last season, scoring a hat trick (3g) against ANA on 4/10. He earned an assist on both of Jesper Fast’s goals in the first period as Fast (2g, 3a) and Staal (3g, 4a) each extended their respective point streaks to four games (12/18-12/23). Staal leads the team with six goals and 10 points in 11 December games after posting just seven points (4g, 3a) in 23 games in October and November. He has now registered 380 points (148g, 232a) in his Hurricanes career, passing Jeff Skinner (2010-18: 204-175—379) for the eighth-most points in franchise history and the fourth-most points since relocation, and Friday’s game marked his 695th game with the Hurricanes, passing Rod Brind’Amour (2000-10: 694 GP) for the fifth-most games played in franchise history and the third-most games played since relocation.

DEFENSE TO OFFENSE
Brett Pesce tallied two assists vs. PHI (12/23) for his first multi-assist game and second multi-point game in 2022-23 (also 11/29 at PIT: 1g, 1a). The Hurricanes’ win over the Flyers marked the fifth straight game that Carolina’s blue line combined for multiple points, with a different defenseman posting two points in each of those contests (Brent Burns, 12/17 vs. DAL: 2a; Brady Skjei, 12/18 vs. PIT: 1g, 1a; Jaccob Slavin, 12/20 vs. NJD: 2a; Dylan Coghlan, 12/22 at PIT: 2a; Brett Pesce, 12/23 vs. PHI: 2a). Despite ranking tied for 20th in the NHL in points from defensemen this season (16-51—67 in 34 GP), the Hurricanes have now gotten 37 points from the blue line in the team’s last 14 games (11/25-12/23: 9g, 28a; 2.6 points/game), and Carolina trails only WPG (8-38—46 in 16 GP), NYR (7-34—41 in 14 GP) and EDM (8-31—39 in 15 GP) for the most points from defensemen over that span.

TRIPLE J
Jesper Fast (2g), Jordan Martinook (1g, 2a) and Jordan Staal (3a) each posted multi-point outings vs. PHI (12/23), and the trio has combined for 16 points in Carolina’s last four games (12/18-12/23: 6g, 10a) and 26 points in 11 games in December (12g, 14a). Fast scored twice in the first period against the Flyers, marking his second multi-goal game with the Hurricanes (also 2/22/21 vs. TBL: 2g) and the second multi-goal period of his NHL career (also 11/22/17 at Carolina: 2g in 3rd w/ NYR). Martinook increased his point total to 18 in 2022-23 (8g, 10a in 34 GP), topping his output from last season in 25 fewer games (6-9—15 in 59 GP).

FORCE OF NECAS
Martin Necas registered two assists against the Flyers on Friday, marking his team-high 10th multi-point game of the season. He has now also posted five multi-assist games in 2022-23, tied with Sebastian Aho for the team lead. Necas paces the Hurricanes with 33 points (14g, 19a) this season, and he also leads the team with 18 points (6g, 12a) at PNC Arena with six more assists on home ice than any other Hurricanes skater (Jordan Martinook, Andrei Svechnikov, Teuvo Teravainen: 6a).

FINNISH MAFIA
Jesperi Kotkaniemi skated in his 100th game with Carolina vs. PHI (12/23), scoring his fifth goal of the season. The tally came on the power play, and his two goals on the man-advantage in 2022-23 rank tied for fourth on the team and mark his new career high. Teuvo Teravainen tallied an assist on the goal and has now posted 85 power-play assists in his Hurricanes career, passing Sami Kapanen (1995-03: 84) for the eighth-most in franchise history and the most by any Finnish skater. Sebastian Aho also played his first game since missing seven consecutive games (12/10-12/22) due to a lower-body injury. Despite his time out of the lineup, he ranks third on the team with 27 points (11g, 16a) in 27 games this season. Antti Raanta made 26 saves in net to record his second win in as many nights and improve to 4-0-0 in his last four decisions (11/26-12/23).

SLAVIN’ THE DAY
Jaccob Slavin scored his third career NHL/Hurricanes overtime goal at PIT (12/22), tying Anton Babchuk (2006-10) and Dougie Hamilton (2018-21) for the most by any defenseman in franchise history. He is the third different Hurricanes defenseman to score an overtime goal in 2022-23 (Brent Burns, 10/29 at PHI; Brett Pesce, 11/29 at PIT), and Carolina is one of two NHL teams with three overtime goals from the blue line this season (WPG) but the only team with overtime winners from three different defensemen. Slavin’s goal came at 0:23 of the extra frame, tied for the fourth-earliest overtime goal in franchise history and marking Hartford/Carolina’s earliest overtime tally away from home (previously 0:25, Jeff O’Neill at PHX on 2/7/01). He also became the 13th different Hurricanes skater to score a game-winning goal this season, tied with BOS for the second-most of any NHL team (TOR: 14). Carolina is 6-6 in games going past regulation and 4-6 in games decided in overtime in 2022-23, and the team’s 10 overtime decisions lead the league.

PYOTR THE GREAT
After Antti Raanta went 2-0-0 on the Hurricanes’ recent back-to-back set (12/22-12/23), Pyotr Kochetkov could return to the crease against the Blackhawks. He is 8-0-2 in his last 10 games (11/25-12/20), and among NHL goaltenders with at least five games played since 11/25, he ranks tied for first in wins (8) and shutouts (2), third in goals-against average (1.80) and save percentage (.937). His 10-game point streak is tied for the longest by any netminder in franchise history, and he has joined Cam Ward (three times: 9-0-1 from 3/14/09-4/7/09, 6-0-4 from 1/4/16-2/19/16, 8-0-2 from 12/2/17-1/4/18) as the second Whalers/Hurricanes goaltender to earn a point in 10 straight games. According to NHL Stats, Kochetkov is just the sixth rookie goaltender in the last 20 years to record a point streak of double-digit games, joining Michael Garnett (ATL, 12/9/05-1/2/06: 7-0-3 in 10 GP), Antero Niittymaki (PHI, 12/17/05-1/6/06: 9-0-2 in 11 GP), Jimmy Howard (DET, 3/11/10-4/11/10: 13-0-2 in 15 GP), Sergei Bobrovsky (PHI, 10/26/10-11/15/10: 9-0-1 in 10 GP) and Jeremy Swayman (BOS, 2/12/22-3/12/22: 9-0-1 in 10 GP).

NHL Preview: Boston Bruins (27-4-2) at Ottawa Senators (14-16-3)

NHL Editor
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NHL Preview: Boston Bruins (27-4-2) at Ottawa Senators (14-16-3)

BOSTON BRUINS NOTES:

TONIGHT’S GAME

  • The Bruins visit the Senators tonight in the 2nd of 4 games between these teams this season and the second of two Boston visits to the Canadian Tire Centre.
  • They are 27-4-2 overall this season and are 9-4-0 on the road … They are 15-3-0 vs. Eastern Conference opponents.
  • The Bruins are playing their 5th of 14 sets of back-to-back games tonight in Ottawa and tomorrow in New Jersey … They are currently 4-0-0 in the 1st game of those sets and are 3-1-0 in the 2nd games so far.
  • The Bruins returned from the holiday break to play in Ottawa tonight and in New Jersey tomorrow … They will return to Boston to host Buffalo on 12/31 in closing out 2022 and will open 2023 hosting Pittsburgh on 1/2 in the Winter Classic at Fenway Park.

RECENT GAMES:

  • The Bruins are 6-0-1 in their last 7 games with wins vs Vegas (3-1 on 12/11), vs NY Islanders (4-3/SO on 12/13), vs Columbus (4-2 on 12/17), 7 vs Florida (7-3 on 12/19), vs Winnipeg (3-2 on 12/22) and in New Jersey (4-3 on 12/23) and 3-2 shootout setback to Los Angeles on 12/15.
  • They are 10-1-2 in their last 13 games and are 17-2-2 in their last 21 games.
  • They are 18-0-2 in their 20 home games, including a 14-game home win streak, the longest from the start of a season in league history … That is the 2nd longest point streak from a season’s start in Boston annals to 1973-74’s 21-game stretch at 19-0-2 … This is their fifth longest home point streak overall in team history (4x) with their club mark a 26-0-1 stretch in 1970-71.
  • Boston 7 vs Florida 3 … Patrice Bergeron had 2-2=4 totals, Brad Marchand added 3 assists, and Brandon Carlo, Connor Clifton (1-1=2 each), Hampus Lindholm and Taylor Hall (2A each) had 2-pt nights … Charlie Coyle, David Krejci and David Pastrnak had single goals … Linus Ullmark earned the win … SOG: Bos 26, Fla 39 … PP: 2/4 … PK: 0/3
  • Boston 3 vs Winnipeg 2 … The Bruins went down 0-2 after the 1st period before tying the score on goals by David Pastrnak (1-1=2 totals) and Jake DeBrusk (his 200th NHL point) … Nick Foligno had 1-1=2 totals with the GWG in the 3rd period … Jeremy Swayman took his 2nd straight win in net … SOG: Bos 39, Wpg 27 … PP: 1/4 … PK: 0/2
  • Boston 4 at New Jersey 3 … The Bruins scored 4 straight 2nd period goals en route to the 4-3 victory with goals by Patrice Bergeron, David Pastrnak (2) and Jake DeBrusk (GWG+A) and 2A from David Krejci … Linus Ullmark extended his pt streak to 11-0-1 … SOG: Bos 23, NJ 40 … PP: 0/1 … PK: 1/2

INJURIES (Total man-games lost in 2022-23: 36)

  • None

BOSTON vs OTTAWA, LIFETIME SERIES

  • The Bruins and Senators are meeting for the 151st time in their histories with the Bruins having a 87-44-8-11 record and 477-374 scoring advantage in those games.
  • The Bruins are 41-23-3-7 lifetime in Ottawa with a 218-181 scoring edge in those 74 contests.

NUMBERS
1 / 2: Boston’s rank in win percentage (.848) and fewest goals against per game (2.18) while 2nd in goals for per game (3.88).

2 / 3: Boston’s special teams ranking in the penalty-kill at 84.7% (19/124, tied) and power play at 29.3% (36/123) … The Bruins are 35.0% on the power play over their last 6 games (7/20).

2: Player on the current roster new to the Bruins organization this season – A.J. Greer (free agent) and Pavel Zacha (trade).

3: Season series completed – ARI (1-1-0, snapping a 19-gm win streak which was the longest by an opponent in club history), COL (2-0-0), VGS (1-0-1).

4: Defenseman points in a game this season by Hampus Lindholm (1-3=4 vs PIT on 11/1) and Charlie McAvoy (4A vs CHI on 11/19).

4: Points by David Pastrnak (1-3=4 totals) on 10/12/2022 in Washington in the 2022-23 season opener … That is the most points in a Boston opener since Brad Marchand (2-3=5) and Pastrnak (2-2=4) in 10/13/2016.

5: Game-winning goals by Taylor Hall (tied for 3rd in the NHL), including three straight deciding goals from 10/20-25/2022 – deciding shootout goal vs. Anaheim on 10/20, OT goal vs. Minnesota on 10/22 and GWG vs. Dallas on 10/25.

7: Straight 20-goal seasons by David Pastrnak, including his 3rd-fastest 20 in his 30th game (22 gms in 2019-20 and 28 gms in 2018-19).

9: New career-best win streak by Linus Ullmark from 11/7-12/13/2022 … That bested his 8-game stretch from 10/12-11/3/2022 which was his previous mark and it also tied the longest win streak by a Boston goaltender from the start of a season (Tim Thomas, also 8-0-0 in 2010-11).

9: Players on the Bruins current roster who played college hockey – Connor Clifton, Charlie Coyle, Derek Forbort, Trent Frederic, AJ Greer, Matt Grzelcyk, Charlie McAvoy, Craig Smith and Jeremy Swayman.

10: Former first round draft picks on the current roster – Charlie Coyle, Jake DeBrusk, Derek Forbert, Trent Frederic, Taylor Hall, Hampus Lindholm, Charlie McAvoy, David Pastrnak, Pavel Zacha and Jakub Zboril

11: Game point streak by David Pastrnak (10-5=15) from 12/3-23 (current), which is his 6th career stretch of at least 10 gms … Pastrnak had a 9-game streak from 11/7-25 with 6-7=13 totals in that span earlier this season.

14: Straight home wins to open this season, which is the longest such streak in NHL history … That also tied as Boston’s longest home win streak overall since a 14-game stretch in 2008-09.

20: Current home point streak at 18-0-2 … That is the 2nd-longest from the start of a season in club history and is tied for the 5th-longest home point streak overall in team history with their club mark a 26-0-1 stretch in 1970-71.

56: Points by the Bruins after 33 games this season at 27-4-2 … That is the 2nd-best mark after 33 games in team history (28-4-1).

+56: Boston’s league-leading goal differential (Toronto is 2nd at +29), including an NHL-best 3rd period goal differential at 47-21 and +26.

102: Points by David Pastrnak in this 2022 calendar year … That ranks 7th in club history (Ray Bourque is next with 103 points).

396-25-21: Boston’s record since 2011-12 in games in which they have had a 2-goal lead in a game … That extends to 259-2-6 over that span when they have led by 3 goals

557: Consecutive Bruins games (regular season & playoffs) currently sold out at TD Garden … Their last non-sellout game was on 12/2/2009 when a Wednesday game vs. TB drew 16,553

FUN FACTS

  • The Bruins currently have 22 players on their roster … 10 were drafted by the team, 4 were acquired in trade and 8 were signed as free agents.
  • The Bruins play 16 matinees this season (local start time 4:00 pm or earlier) … They have a 3-0-0 record in afternoon games so far.
  • The Bruins play 14 sets of back-to-back games this season … They are currently 4-0-0 in the 1st game of those sets and are 3-1-0 in the 2nd games so far.
  • The Bruins are playing game 12 of a 14-game December schedule tonight (8 hm/6 rd, 8-1-2) … They will play 14 games in January (5 hm/9 rd), 10 in February (3 hm/7 rd), 15 in March (9 hm/6 rd) and 7 in April (3 hm/4 rd) … They went 8-1-0 in October and 11-2-0 in December.

RECENT TRANSACTIONS:
Dec. 20: Craig Smith assigned to Providence/AHL (cleared waivers 12/19).
Dec. 21: Craig Smith recalled from Providence/AHL.

OTTAWA SENATORS NOTES:

LAST GAME: Dec. 22, 3-2 OT loss vs. Washington: Johansson scored at 2:04 of the extra session to send Washington to a 3-2 overtime win at Canadian Tire Centre. The game saw Ovechkin record the lone multi-point effort (two assists) despite the home side preventing the forward from equaling Howe for the second most regular-season goals in NHL history (801). Kuznetsov and Milano also found the back of the net for the Capitals as Ovechkin provided six shots-on-goal to eclipse Bourque for sole possession of most by an NHL skater (6,211) since tracking began in 1959-60 while the 408th multi-point game of his career tied him with Coffey for 12th on the league’s all-time list. DeBrincat became the sixth Ottawa skater to reach double digit goal totals with his tenth of the season and Batherson provided his ninth power-play goal to move into sixth leaguewide while extending his point streak to 10 games for the home side. Kuemper earned the win for Washington in making 23 saves while Talbot took the loss making a season-high equaling 37 saves on a season-high 40 shots. Scratch: Brassard; Injuries: Bernard-Docker, Brannstrom, Joseph, Norris, Zub; Shots: OTT – 25, WSH – 40; PP: OTT – 1-6, WSH – 1-3.

BROADCAST INFORMATION: This evening’s game against Boston will be broadcast regionally on TSN5 and RDS. On the radio, the game will be available locally via TSN 1200 (English) and 94,5 Unique-FM (French).

WHAT’S NEXT: Ottawa begins a two-game road trip against Washington on Thursday at 7 p.m. The contest will mark the third of three regular-season meetings and the lone matchup at Capital One Arena.

INJURY REPORT: D Bernard-Docker, RW Joseph, C Norris and D Zub are on IR and will not oppose the Bruins this evening. D Brannstrom missed Thursday evening’s game with a lower-body injury. Total man-games lost: 95.

RECENT TRANSACTIONS: Recalled D Heatherington and C Lucchini from Belleville (AHL) on Dec. 27.

OTTAWA vs. BOSTON – History:
2022-23 (1-0-0): Oct. 18 @ Ottawa (7-5 win), Dec. 27 @ Ottawa, Feb. 20 @ Boston, March 21 @ Boston
2021-22 (1-2-1): 11/9/21 @ Boston (3-2 loss), 2/12/22 @ Ottawa (2-0 loss), 2/19/22 @ Ottawa (3-2 OT loss), 4/14/22 @ Boston (3-2 win)
Series record: Overall: 55-79-8-8; Home: 30-36-3-5; Away: 25-43-5-3
Last Ottawa win: @ Ottawa: Oct. 18 (7-5); @ Boston: 4/14/22 (3-2)
Last Boston win: @ Ottawa: 2/19/22 (3-2 OT); @ Boston: 11/9/21 (3-2)
Last OT result: 2/19/22 (3-2 OT loss) @ Ottawa
Last shootout: 4/6/17 (2-1 SO win) @ Boston
Most goals, game: Scored: 7, (Oct. 18, 7-5 win); Allowed: 8, (4/13/94, 8-0 loss); Both teams: 12, (Oct. 18, 7-5 win)

Last Game: Oct. 18, 7-5 win @ Ottawa; OTT Goals: Giroux, Tkachuk, Batherson, Pinto, Stützle, Kastelic, Zub; BOS Goals: Bergeron, Krejci, Greer, Foligno, Pastrnak; OTT Scratches: Brassard, Gambrell, Zaitsev; OTT Injuries: Talbot; OTT Goalie: Forsberg; BOS Goalie: Swayman (6 GA, L, 40:00), Ullmark (1 GA, 20:00); OTT PP: 0-2; BOS PP: 1-3; Shots: 31-34.

Career vs. Boston: Giroux leads all players in career games played (51), in goals (11), in assists (26), in points (37) and in penalty minutes (28) against Boston.

SWEATER WEATHER: The Senators enter their third season of wearing a primary logo which sees the organization return to its roots with the implementation of the modified original “2D” logo. The team has earned a 68-82-14 all-time record (13-15-3 this season) while wearing its current sweater. Ottawa unveiled their Reverse Retro jersey on Oct. 20 and will wear the sweater on five occasions in 2022-23 (1-1-0 this season). The Senators hold an all-time record of 113-76-7-25 when wearing an alternate; 27-19-2-5 when wearing a red alternate, 85-56-5-19 when wearing a black alternate and 1-1-0-1 when wearing a cream alternate.

HOME ON THE RANGE: Ottawa has a record of 8-8-1 at home this season … Drake Batherson and Claude Giroux are the Senators leaders with eight goals at home while Tim Stützle maintains the club lead with 14 assists at Canadian Tire Centre … Through 17 home games, Stützle leads the team with 20 points on home ice … The Senators earned a record of 15-22-4 at home through 41 home contests in 2021-22.

ROAD SCHOLARS: The Senators have a record of 6-8-2 on the road this season … Giroux and Tkachuk lead with six goals on the road this season while Tkachuk ranks first with 12 assists while the Senators serve as visitors … Through 16 road games this season, Tkachuk maintains the club lead with 18 points … The Senators registered an 18-20-3 record over 41 road contests in 2021-22.

FRANCHISE RECORD: Ottawa has posted an all-time record of 1,018-998-115-179 over 2,310 games … The Senators are 556-443-60-98 through 1,157 all-time home games and 462-555-55-81 through 1,153 all-time road games.

BACK-TO-BACK GAMES: Ottawa will play back-to-back games on 12 occasions in 2022-23 and will open their third set of the season on Saturday when the team visits Detroit ahead of welcoming Buffalo to Canadian Tire Centre the following evening … The Senators played 17 back-to-back sets last season and earned a record of 6-9-2 in the first half of contests on consecutive nights (2-0-0 this season) while posting an 8-8-1 record (1-1-0 this season) in the second half of games on consecutive days.

ON THE POWER PLAY: The Senators are 36 for 129 (27.9%) on the power-play in 2022-23 … Batherson leads with nine power-play goals while Alex DeBrincat maintains the club lead with 19 points while the team enjoys a man advantage … Ottawa has recorded multiple power-play goals 10 times in an individual contest in 2022-23 after having done so 11 times in 2021-22.

ON THE PENALTY KILL: Ottawa has overcome 96 of the 120 occasions the team has been shorthanded in 2022-23 to maintain an efficiency of 80.0% through 33 regular-season games … The team has registered two (Joseph, Motte) shorthanded markers this season after recording nine such goals in 2021-22.

INDIVIDUAL NOTES
COACH SMITH: D.J. Smith was introduced as the Senators’ 14th head coach in franchise history on 5/23/19. A native of Windsor, Ont., Smith spent the four previous NHL seasons as an assistant coach with the Toronto Maple Leafs. Prior to joining the Maple Leafs (which was also the team for which he made his NHL playing debut in 1996-97), Smith guided the Ontario Hockey League’s Oshawa Generals to a record of 135-53-3-13 over three campaigns which included his having been recognized as the OHL’s Coach of the Year in 2013-14. One year later, he helped the team capture the Mastercard Memorial Cup. His 95 head coaching victories with Ottawa see him rank in a tie for fourth in franchise history.

SECOND SEASON AS CAPTAIN FOR CHUCKY: Two-time NHL All-Star Brady Tkachuk was appointed the 10th captain in Senators franchise history on 11/5/21. A native of St. Louis, Tkachuk succeeded Erik Karlsson who served in the role for four seasons from 2014-15 to 2017-18. The bronze medal winner with Team U.S.A. at the 2018 IIHF World Junior Championship is the first American-born skater to serve as team captain. Tkachuk is assisted by full-time alternates Thomas Chabot and Claude Giroux.

DOUBLE-DIGIT SCORING: With one of two goals in Thursday’s 3-2 overtime defeat vs. Washington, Alex DeBrincat joined Claude Giroux, Brady Tkachuk, Drake Batherson, Tim Stützle and Shane Pinto in recording at least 10 goals on the campaign. The six players with double-digit goal totals sees Ottawa join Buffalo as the lone two squads with at least as many 10-goal scorers. The team has tallied an even 100 goals to this point in the campaign while their 36 total goals on the power-play place the Senators in a tie for second in the NHL behind Edmonton (41). The team has seen significant contributions from Batherson as of late as the Fort Wayne, Ind. native extended his career-long point-streak to 10 games to mark the first double-digit point streak by an Ottawa player since Mark Stone from 2/17/18 to 3/8/18 (two goals, 13 assists in 10 games). The streak is tied for the third-longest active run (David Pastrnak) trailing only Connor McDavid (14) and Josh Morrissey (11).

ALL-TIME LEADERS: Chris Phillips is the Senators’ all-time leader in games played (1,179) … Daniel Alfredsson leads in goals (426), assists (682) and points (1,108) … Following Phillips is Alfredsson (1,178), Chris Neil (1,026), Wade Redden (838), Radek Bonk (689), Jason Spezza (686) and Mike Fisher (675) … Neil leads in penalty minutes (2,522) while Patrick Lalime holds the lead in shutouts (30) and ranks second (283) to Craig Anderson (435) in games played among goaltenders. Anderson leads in wins (202).

NBA Preview: Denver Nuggets (21-11) at Sacramento Kings (17-14)

NBA Editor
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NBA Preview: Denver Nuggets (21-11) at Sacramento Kings (17-14)

The Denver Nuggets made their appearance on Christmas Day a memorable one, but they have to pivot quickly to the road after winning a thriller over the Phoenix Suns.

The Nuggets’ 128-125 overtime win anchored the Christmas schedule and turned into the Aaron Gordon show with a seven-dunk performance that overshadowed Nikola Jokic’s seventh triple-double of the season. Denver now plays a pair of games at Sacramento, starting with a Tuesday night matchup against the Kings.

The Nuggets have won four in a row and seven of their last eight to move atop the Western Conference standings. Jokic has been the catalyst for the surge, but he has had plenty of help from Jamal Murray and Gordon, who finished with 28 points and 13 rebounds against Phoenix.

Gordon has come on strong this season, especially in December, during which he is averaging 19.8 points and 6.6 rebounds in 11 games. Denver acquired him at the 2021 trade deadline and signed him to a contract extension this fall, but he is finally now playing alongside Murray and Michael Porter Jr. for an extended time.

The Nuggets had hoped trading for Gordon was the final piece for a championship team in 2021, but Murray got hurt soon after and missed all of last season.

Now with everyone back, Denver is seeing what Gordon adds to the lineup, and he gets high praise from Jokic, the two-time reigning league MVP.

The Kings bounced back from an 0-4 start to the season to sit three games above .500 and a half-game behind the fifth-place Suns in the Western Conference. Sacramento is coming off a tough home loss to the Washington Wizards on Friday night that may have been more costly than just in the standings.

Domantas Sabonis sustained a right hand injury late in Sacramento’s 125-111 defeat. He had notched his second straight triple-double and 10th consecutive double-double in the contest, and he is averaging 17.9 points, 12.4 rebounds and 6.7 assists this season.

The team announced Monday that Sabonis has an avulsion fracture of the ulnar collateral ligament in his thumb.

Sacramento guard Kevin Huerter added, according to the Sacramento Bee, “(Sabonis) is a huge part of what we do. There’s no secret to that. Over the past couple weeks, the triple-doubles and the 20-rebound games, it’s hard to replace that kind of production. …

Losing Sabonis for any amount of time would put more responsibility on De’Aaron Fox and the other starters as well as the bench. The reserves, outside of 16 points from Malik Monk and 14 from Trey Lyles, weren’t much of a factor in the loss to Washington.

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