* The NHL and NHLPA announced plans to celebrate Black History Month with 28 days of storytelling, a new original content series and the return of the NHL Presents the American Legacy Black Hockey History Tour.
* A number of players heading to the 2022 Honda NHL All-Star Weekend left their mark Tuesday, including the League’s leading goal scorer Chris Kreider.
* Mitchell Marner extended his goal streak to seven games as the Maple Leafs netted at least six goals for the third straight contest.
* The NHL announced that Faouzia and Blanco Brown will perform the anthems prior to the 2022 Honda NHL All-Star Game, while celebrity judges for the 2022 NHL All-Star Skills presented by DraftKings Sportsbook will include Jon Hamm, Terry Fator, Paul Coffey and Mark Messier. Click here for the full lineup of entertainment.
NHL, NHLPA ANNOUNCE PLANS TO CELEBRATE BLACK HISTORY MONTH
The NHL and NHLPA announced plans to celebrate Black History Month by highlighting the contributions and stories of Black trailblazers in hockey with 28 days of storytelling across their social and digital platforms. Other initiatives include:
* On Feb. 10, the NHL will release the first episode of ‘NHL Bound,’ an original content series that follows Duante’ Abercrombie and Nathaniel Brooks, two Black hockey coaches chasing their dream to work in the NHL. The weekly series chronicles their participation in the Coyotes’ first-ever coaching internship program, dedicated to creating a deeper pool of diverse talent.
* Returning for the third season is the NHL Presents the American Legacy Black Hockey History Tour, a uniquely-curated, 525-square-foot mobile museum honoring Black founders, trailblazers, history makers and Stanley Cup champions; and celebrating the next generation of young stars, NHL Officials, broadcasters and women in the game. The tour will visit 28 NHL cities, the most since it was launched.
WILLIE O’REE TO RECEIVE CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL
U.S. President Joe Biden signed the “Willie O’Ree Congressional Gold Medal Act” into law Tuesday, the final step of the process to award O’Ree, the first Black player in the NHL, with the prestigious honor, the White House announced yesterday.
WRAPPING UP AN 11-GAME TUESDAY
A number of players headed to 2022 Honda NHL All-Star Weekend had notable performances in their final contest before departing for Las Vegas.
U.S.-BORN ALL STARS CONTINUE SCORING WAYS IN 2021-22
In their final contests before taking part in the 2022 Honda NHL All-Star Weekend, Rangers forward Chris Kreider (Boxford, Mass.) and Maple Leafs forward Auston Matthews (San Ramon, Calif.) each found the back of the net Tuesday. Kreider (33 in 47 GP) and Matthews (29 in 39 GP) sit first and third (tied) in goals, respectively, this season.
* Three of the NHL’s top five goal scorers in 2021-22 are comprised of U.S.-born skaters, including fifth-ranked Alex DeBrincat (26 in 45 GP; Farmington Hills, Mich.) who will join his fellow countrymen in Las Vegas.
ONWARDS TO ALL-STAR: PLAYERS SHINE IN FINAL GAME BEFORE LAS VEGAS
* Juuse Saros, who will be making his first appearance at an NHL All-Star Game, made 30 saves to earn his 100th career win, joining Pekka Rinne and Tomas Vokoun as the third goaltender in Predators history to reach the milestone. Coincidentally, Rinne (4x) and Vokoun (2x) are the only other netminders to have represented Nashville at an NHL All-Star Game.
* Nazem Kadri (1-0—1) became the third player to record 60 points this season (19-41—60 in 41 GP). Kadri, who was voted in as the 2022 NHL All-Star Last Men In for the Central Division, will head into his first NHL All-Star appearance riding a five-game point streak (4-5—9).
* Kyle Connor scored his 25th goal of 2021-22 (42 GP) and sits tied for the sixth most in the NHL this season. Only one player in Jets/Thrashers history required fewer games to reach the mark in a single campaign: Ilya Kovalchuk, who did so with Atlanta (32 GP in 2007-08, 35 GP in 2009-10 & 37 GP in 2005-06).
* Johnny Gaudreau scored the game-tying goal to help the Flames become the tenth team to overcome a multi-goal, third-period deficit to win in regulation this season and the fifth since Jan. 1. Gaudreau will be making his seventh NHL All-Star Game appearance – the most among members of the Pacific Division team.
* Victor Hedman (1-1—2) scored his eighth career overtime goal – the third most in Lightning history behind only Martin St. Louis (10) and Steven Stamkos (10). Hedman will be headed to Las Vegas with his teammates Stamkos, who also found the score sheet Tuesday, and Andrei Vasilevskiy, who earned his NHL-leading 25th win.
MARNER, MAPLE LEAFS MOUNT SEVEN-GOAL OUTING IN NEW JERSEY
Mitchell Marner (2-2—4) led the Maple Leafs with his ninth career four-point outing and extended his career-high goal streak to seven games as Toronto (29-10-3, 61 points) tallied seven times, after scoring six against New Jersey on Monday.
* The Maple Leafs scored 13 goals against the Devils over the past two days, tied for the third most by one team against a single opponent on back-to-back days in the past 25 years: Atlanta (15 vs. WSH on Oct. 7-8, 2005), Detroit (14 vs. NYR on March 26-27, 2000) and Washington (13 vs. NYI in March 15-16, 2018).
QUICK CLICKS
* #NHLStats: Live Updates for Feb. 1, 2022
* Anton Lundell named “Rookie of the Month” for January
* Jonathan Huberdeau, Juuse Saros, Bryan Rust named “Three Stars of the Month”
* Alex Tuch scores in return to Vegas with his dad in the stands
* #NHLStats Pack: 2022 Honda NHL All-Star Game
TEN TEAMS IN ACTION ON LAST DAY OF GAMES BEFORE ALL-STAR BREAK
Ten teams will hit the ice Wednesday in the final slate of games before the NHL season shifts to Las Vegas for 2022 Honda NHL All-Star Weekend. In a game broadcast nationally in the U.S. (TNT) and Canada (Sportsnet, TVA Sports), four All-Stars are expected to share the ice when Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl and the Oilers visit Alex Ovechkin, Evgeny Kuznetsov and the Capitals.
