* Alex Ovechkin has The Gr8 Chase down to the number he has worn on the back of his Capitals jersey for the past 20 seasons, needing eight goals over the club’s next 15 games to put his name atop the all-time goals list during the 2024-25 season.
* There was plenty of movement in the Eastern Conference standings as the Senators continued their string of success, while the Lightning and Rangers each collected two pivotal points. Tampa Bay moved into a top-two spot in the Atlantic for the first time in more than four months.
* The Kings, who moved back into second place in the Pacific Division standings, and Canucks, who moved into the second Wild Card, were two of three Western Conference clubs to skate to wins Saturday. Vancouver now meets with Utah Hockey Club tonight in another crucial clash in the standings, which follows a doubleheader on TNT (simulcast on Sportsnet and TVAS) that includes Mikko Rantanen’s return to Colorado in a potential First Round preview.
OVECHKIN, CROSBY CONTINUE PURSUITS OF GRETZKY RECORDS
The Great 8 is now just eight goals shy of setting an NHL record as Alex Ovechkin scored his 887th career goal to inch closer to The Great One, Wayne Gretzky (894). The Gr8 Chase shifts back to D.C., where the Eastern Conference-leading Capitals (44-15-8, 96 points) will contest a three-game homestand to kickstart their final 15 games of the season, a schedule that culminates with a showdown April 17 in Pittsburgh against longtime rival Sidney Crosby, who is pursuing a Gretzky record of his own.
* Ovechkin’s goal came on the third anniversary of when he moved into third place on the all-time NHL goals list and in his first-ever meeting versus both Patrick Giles, a Maryland native who met Ovi as a kid, and Georgi Romanov, an undrafted netminder who became the 182nd different goaltender to yield a regular-season goal to Ovechkin. The 39-year-old has scored 668 of his goals since 2009-10 when shots by type were first tracked, with Saturday’s tally standing as his 30th logged as a tip-in during that span.
* Ovechkin is donating to pediatric cancer research for each goal he scores through the end of his career, and his donations will be matched by Monumental Sports & Entertainment. Click here to help make The Gr8 Chase mean even more by joining Ovechkin in donating – 100% of funds raised go to lifesaving childhood cancer research through the V Foundation and Hockey Fights Cancer.
*Crosby (0-1—1) factored on one of his club’s seven goals in a high-scoring matinee on ABC Hockey Saturday to secure his 12th career 50-assist season – tied for the eighth most in NHL history – and match Gretzky on the list for most points with a single franchise, one that features two Red Wings and two Penguins among the top four. Crosby (23-50—73 in 67 GP) is zeroing in on passing Gretzky on another list: the most point-per-game seasons in NHL history. They are tied at 19, with Crosby currently needing only seven more points in 2024-25 to become the first player in NHL history with 20 point-per-game campaigns.
SHUFFLE IN EASTERN CONFERENCE STANDINGS FOLLOWING SATURDAY’S ACTION
There was no shortage of movement in the Eastern Conference standings following an 11-game Saturday as the Lightning (38-23-5, 81 points) leapfrogged the Maple Leafs (39-24-3, 81 points) into second place in the Atlantic Division, the Rangers (33-28-6, 72 points) climbed into the second Wild Card position and the Canadiens (32-27-7, 71 points) moved within striking distance of a playoff spot.
* Nick Paul (1-1—2) was one of six Lightning players with multiple points and became the team’s sixth 20-goal scorer this season – tied for the most Tampa Bay has ever had in one season (also 6 in 2023-24, 2021-22, 2017-18, 2005-06 & 2003-04). This is the first time the club has had six 20-goal scorers at this stage of a campaign (66 GP).
* Artemi Panarin (1-1—2) extended his point streak to eight games and Igor Shesterkin (21 saves) registered his 20th career shutout as the Rangers rebounded from a 7-3 defeat to the Blue Jackets six days ago and took hold of a playoff spot for just the second time since mid-December (also March 4, WC2). Shesterkin (262 GP) became the sixth-fastest among active goaltenders to reach 20 career shutouts (a list topped by teammate Jonathan Quick: 214 GP).
* Lane Huston and Juraj Slafkovský each potted 0-1—1 to accomplish notable achievements as the Canadiens became the sixth team to defeat the reigning Stanley Cup champion Panthers multiple times in 2024-25. Slafkovský, with six points in his past three games (3-3—6), tallied his 63rd career assist and surpassed Mario Tremblay for the most by a Canadiens player before the age of 21, while rookie scoring leader Hutson (4-48—52 in 2024-25; 66 GP) hit a career milestone of his own.
HURRICANES, SENATORS AND KINGS BANK ANOTHER TWO POINTS
The Hurricanes (41-22-4, 86 points), Senators (36-25-5, 77 points) and Kings (36-20-9, 81 points) each continued recent strings of success Saturday: Carolina extended the NHL’s longest active win streak to seven games, Ottawa captured its sixth straight victory and moved to 7-0-1 since March 1, and Los Angeles improved to 9-0-3 in its past 12 home games (one shy of the franchise record).
* In a contest that saw Brent Burns tie former teammate Patrick Marleau for the fifth longest ‘Ironman’ streak in NHL history, Mark Jankowski scored two of his team’s five goals and Pyotr Kochetkov turned aside all 26 shots he faced for his 10th career shutout. The Hurricanes have allowed two goals or fewer in each contest during their seven straight wins – the franchise’s longest stretch since one of equal length in 2020-21.
* Tim Stützle (0-1—1) factored on one of two tying goals by Ottawa to extend his road point streak to eight games, and David Perron (1-0—1) scored the first of three straight Senators goals as the club swept the 2024-25 rendition of the “Battle of Ontario.” Ottawa has won five straight games against Toronto (spanning regular seasons or otherwise) for the fourth time in the history of their provincial rivalry. The others: March 23, 2000 to Nov. 17, 2001 (8 GP), Oct. 5, 2005 to March 4, 2006 (7 GP) and Oct. 10, 2015 to Oct. 12, 2016 (5 GP).
* Entering play March 1, Ottawa sat four points out of a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference, as well as 14 points back of first-place Toronto and 10 points back of third-place Tampa Bay within the Atlantic Division. The Senators now occupy the first Wild Card spot (with a five-point cushion on Wild Card 2) and trail both the Lightning and Maple Leafs by four points.
* Quinton Byfield (1-0—1) scored the contest’s only goal with 1:40 remaining in overtime to extend his goal streak to six games and Darcy Kuemper turned aside all 24 shots he faced to become the first goaltender to register consecutive shutouts with the Kings since he did so in 2017-18. Kuemper, who secured his 200th NHL win and extended his home point streak to 13 games (setting a new franchise benchmark for a goaltender), helped Los Angeles regain second place in the Pacific Division. He also pushed his shutout streak to 151:23 which stands as the third-longest run of his career and fifth-longest by any netminder this season (tops: Logan Thompson at 198:22 from Jan. 11-18).
CANUCKS AND BLUES IN THE MIX FOR A WILD CARD SPOT IN THE WEST
The Canucks and Blues collected two crucial points in the Western Conference Wild Card race as Vancouver continued the back-and-forth trend of switching positions with Calgary, while St. Louis improved to 7-2-1 in its past 10 contests and continues to chase its first postseason berth since 2021-22.
* Nils Aman, who converted a highlight-reel pass from Kiefer Sherwood, and Pius Suter scored eight seconds apart in the third period to match the second-fastest two goals in franchise history and help the Canucks (31-24-11, 73 points) reclaim Wild Card 2 in the Western Conference from the idle Flames (30-24-11, 71 points). One of either Vancouver or Calgary has occupied the second Wild Card spot in the Western Conference every day since Dec. 29. The last team other than the two Canadian clubs to do so was Dallas (Dec. 28).
* Jordan Kyrou (3-0—3) scored his fifth career hat trick to help the Blues (32-28-7, 71 points) earn two points and tie the Flames (30-24-11, 71 points) in terms of standings points just outside the final playoff spot in the Western Conference. Kyrou tied Vladimir Tarasenko, Jorgen Pettersson and Brendan Shanahan for the sixth-most hat tricks in franchise history. With every hat trick this season, AstraZeneca will donate $3,000 to the Hockey Fights Cancer Fund of the V Foundation up to $300,000.
TOP FOUR FINALISTS ANNOUNCED FOR KRAFT HOCKEYVILLE 2025
Saturday’s Hockey Night in Canada coverage also included the unveiling of the top 4 finalists contending to be crowned Kraft Hockeyville 2025. From west to east, the finalists are: Crossfield, Alberta (Pete Knight Memorial Arena); Honeywood, Ontario (Honeywood Arena, North Dufferin Community Centre); Saint-Boniface, Québec (Aréna de Saint-Boniface); and Lower Sackville, Nova Scotia (Sackville Arena). There have been 19 winning Canadian communities for Kraft Hockeyville.
* The NHL, NHLPA and Kraft Heinz will once again team up to deliver a grand prize of $250,000 for arena upgrades and an opportunity to host an NHL preseason game (along with $25,000 for arena upgrades to the three runner-up communities). All four communities also will receive $10,000 in brand new hockey equipment to help more children play the game, courtesy of NHLPA Goals & Dreams.
* Voting will be conducted on krafthockeyville.ca from Friday, April 4, at 9 a.m. ET, until Saturday, April 5, at 5 p.m. ET. The winning community will be announced during Hockey Night in Canada on April 5.
QUICK CLICKS
* Saturday edition of #NHLStats: Live Updates
* Mikko Rantanen says return to Colorado with Stars ‘going to be emotional’
*Patrick Kane still performing at high level for Red Wings after hip surgery
* Wyatt Johnston ‘living the dream’ as 21-year-old with Stars
*Jordan Kyrou scores hat trick, leads Blues past Wild
RANTANEN’S RETURN, POTENTIAL PLAYOFF PREVIEW CAPS TNT DOUBLEHEADER
If the Stanley Cup Playoffs were to have started any day since March 7, the Stars and Avalanche would be clashing in the First Round. The bracket will once again be pointing to that when Mikko Rantanen makes his return to Denver as the teams close out a doubleheader on TNT, Max and truTV (simulcast on Sportsnet & TVAS in Canada).
* The Red Wings (31-29-6, 68 points) host the Golden Knights (39-19-8, 86 points) for a matinee at Little Caesars Arena to kick off the first matchup of an NHL on TNT doubleheader. The Golden Knights look to maintain their position atop the Pacific Division, a spot they have held for 22 consecutive days since Feb. 22, when play resumed from the 4 Nations Face-Off break. Meanwhile, the Red Wings look to earn crucial points as they are one of six teams within six points of the second Wild Card spot in the East, a position currently held by the Rangers (33-28-6, 72 points).
* One goal shy of his sixth career (and fifth consecutive) 30-goal season after scoring 25 times with Colorado, twice with Carolina and in his first two games with Dallas, Rantanen will skate as a visitor at Ball Arena for the first time. He also sits one assist shy of 400 in his career, with 394 of those accumulated in an Avalanche uniform (seventh in franchise history). Including playoffs, Rantanen ranks third in career goals (166), assists (237) and points (403) at Ball Arena (formerly Pepsi Center) – with longtime teammate Nathan MacKinnon (230-364—594) topping each of those lists. Check out the March 16 edition of #NHLStats: Live Updates for notes on their time as teammates.
* After the two matinees, a seven-game Sunday will close with crucial points on the line in both conferences including pivotal matchups in the Western Conference Wild Card race, where five teams are separated by eight points. Four of those teams will go head-to-head as Anaheim (8 points out) visits St. Louis (2 points out) and Utah (4 points out) travels to Vancouver (Wild Card 2).
