NHL Morning Skate – Feb. 25, 2022

* On the night his former teammate Pekka Rinne had his No. 35 honored at Bridgestone Arena, Juuse Saros helped the Predators enter the 2022 Navy Federal Credit Union NHL Stadium Series on a winning note.

* For the first time in over 13 years, the NHL has a new all-time leader in games played by a defenseman as Zdeno Chara moved into the top spot with his 1,652nd career contest.

* NHL Bound: Episode 3 – Game Day is Monday. Who is Going to Win? is now available on the NHL’s YouTube Page. The series follows Duante’ Abercrombie and Nathaniel Brooks, two Black hockey coaches chasing their dream to work in the NHL. In the latest episode, the duo showcases their personalities during on-ice sessions with Coyotes prospects.

SAROS SHINES FOR NASHVILLE ON FRANCHISE’S SPECIAL NIGHT. . .
On the night Pekka Rinne’s No. 35 became the first in franchise history to be raised to the rafters and general manager David Poile appeared for his 3,200th game (regular season and playoffs combined), Juuse Saros (27 saves) backstopped the Predators to victory in their final contest before the 2022 Navy Federal Credit Union NHL Stadium Series.

. . . WHILE PREDATORS, LIGHTNING SET TO PRACTICE OUTDOORS ON FRIDAY

With just one sleep remaining before the 2022 Navy Federal Credit Union NHL Stadium Series between the Predators and Lightning (Saturday: 7:30 p.m. ET on TNT, SN360, TVA Sports), the two teams are scheduled to hit the ice today for an outdoor practice at Nissan Stadium. Nashville is slated to practice at 3:30 p.m. CT, followed by Tampa Bay at 5:30 p.m.

* Also on Friday, the NHL Black Hockey History Tour will make a pair of stops in Nashville: Tennessee State University (10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. CT) and Bridgestone Arena (4:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. CT).

CHARA SETS NHL RECORD FOR MOST GAMES PLAYED BY A DEFENSEMAN
Islanders defenseman Zdeno Chara skated in his 1,652nd career game and surpassed Chris Chelios (1,651 GP) for the most in League history by a blueliner. Chara also moved into a tie with Mark Recchi for seventh place on the NHL’s all-time games played list – the only active player with more is Joe Thornton (1,704 GP).

* Chara is skating in his 24th season (1997-98 to 2021-22), which trails only Chelios (26 from 1983-84 to 2009-10), Gordie Howe (26 from 1946-47 to 1979-80) and Mark Messier (25 from 1979-80 to 2003-04) for the most campaigns in NHL history.

* ICYMI: Chelios congratulated Chara for breaking his NHL record on ESPN+, while NHL all-time games-played leader and Sharks icon Patrick Marleau also honored him in a video message at SAP Center.
QUICK GOALS HELP BLUE JACKETS TAKE DOWN ANOTHER TOP TEAM
Patrik Laine extended the NHL’s longest active point streak to 11 contests (13-8—21), while Cole Sillinger and Justin Danforth scored two of four Blue Jackets goals in the third period – doing so in a span of 10 seconds – to help Columbus (27-23-1, 55 points) become just the fifth team to defeat Eastern Conference-leading Florida (35-12-5, 75 points) at FLA Live Arena this season.

* J-F Berube (39 saves), who went 1,418 days between wins in the NHL until he defeated the Sabres on Feb. 20, has now strung together three consecutive victories. The 30-year-old joined Steve Mason (3-0-0 in 2008-09) as the second goaltender in franchise history to start his tenure with three straight wins.

* After defeating the Atlantic Division-leading Panthers on Thursday, the Blue Jackets head to Raleigh with a 9-2-0 record in their past 11 games dating to Jan. 27 – the second-most wins in the NHL during that span. Set to face Carolina, the top team in the Metropolitan Division and winners of three straight, Columbus will face different division leaders (min. 40 GP) on consecutive days for the third time in club history and first time in nearly a decade.

MATTHEWS POSTS MULTI-GOAL GAME, TAKES LEAD IN “ROCKET” RACE

Auston Matthews scored his 35th and 36th goal of the season to record his 48th career multi-goal game and surpassed Leon Draisaitl (35) in the NHL’s 2021-22 Maurice “Rocket” Richard Trophy race. The Maple Leafs (33-14-4, 70 points) moved within two points of the idle Lightning (33-11-6, 72 points) for second place in the Atlantic Division.

CANUCKS SCORE EARLY AND OFTEN TO OUST FLAMES STREAK
J.T. Miller (2-2—4), Elias Pettersson (2-1—3) and Bo Horvat (2-0—2) each scored twice as Vancouver (25-22-6, 56 points) brought an end to Calgary’s 10-game win streak. The Canucks witnessed a streak of consecutive team goals end at 11, the franchise’s longest stretch since Dec. 4-6, 2011 (11 G).

THIRD EPISODE OF “NHL BOUND” AVAILABLE NOW
The third 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 – premiered today at 3 p.m. ET on YouTube.com/NHL. The four-episode series chronicles their participation in the Coyotes’ first-ever coaching internship program, dedicated to creating a deeper pool of diverse talent.

* “NHL Bound” is part of the NHL and NHLPA’s Black History Month celebration of the contributions and stories of Black trailblazers in hockey with 28 days of storytelling across their social and digital platforms.

QUICK CLICKS

* Thursday edition of #NHLStats: Live Updates
* Maple Leafs forward Michael Bunting fined for diving/embellishment

* 2022 Navy Federal Credit Union NHL Stadium Series “By The Numbers”

* NHL announces start time updates involving six teams for Sunday, March 13

* Ducks to host Ducks x Disney Night on Feb. 27 at Honda Center

SPORTSNET DOUBLEHEADER KICKSTARTS FINAL WEEKEND OF FEBRUARY

Friday will feature a doubleheader involving four clubs looking to continue recent strings of success as the Blue Jackets (27-23-1, 55 points) visit the Metropolitan Division-leading Hurricanes (35-11-4, 74 points) followed by the second 2021-22 instalment of the Freeway Face-Off between the Kings (27-17-7, 61 points) and Ducks (25-19-9, 59 points).

* Los Angeles (3-0-0) and Anaheim (2-0-0) each head into Friday’s Freeway Face-Off with consecutive wins as they jockey for positioning in the Western Conference playoff race. The Kings have only one regulation loss in the past month (6-1-1 since Jan. 25) – with five players averaging at least one point-per-game across those eight contests – and will take on a Ducks team that features the club’s highest-scoring rookie in more than a decade.