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Ryan Nugent-Hopkins Edmonton Oilers. Photo: Tim Jarrold - In Play! magazine
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins celebrated his 1,000th career game in memorable fashion by scoring against the Blues. The Oilers forward joined rare company in NHL history by scoring in his League debut and his 1,000th career contest. File photo: Tim Jarrold - In Play! magazine
19
Jan

NHL JANUARY 18, 2026 – NUGENT-HOPKINS IGNITES OILERS OFFENSE IN 1,000TH CAREER GAME

Ryan Nugent-Hopkins – whose teammates celebrated the longtime Edmonton forward with celebratory shirts upon his arrival and imitated his pre-game warmup routine – opened the scoring in his 1,000th career game with the Oilers and contributed to his club’s second high-scoring shutout win in as many days following a victory against the Canucks on Saturday (6-0).

  • Nugent-Hopkins became the second player in Oilers history to reach the 1,000-game milestone (also Kevin Lowe), the second player to score in his 1,000th career game this season (also Nazem Kadri: 1-0—1 on Nov. 5, 2025) and the 10th player in NHL history to score in both his League debut and 1,000th contest.
  • The Oilers became the third team in NHL history to post a shutout win by a margin of five-plus goals in consecutive days, following the 2022-23 Rangers (March 18, 2023 & March 19, 2023) and 1970-71 Bruins (Oct. 31, 1970 & Nov. 1, 1970).
  • Edmonton’s run of 11 consecutive goals tied the franchise’s second-longest stretch since 2000-01, alongside April 12-20, 2022 (11), March 28 to April 1, 2013 (11), Dec. 7-11, 2002 (11) and March 2-11, 2001, and trail Nov. 16-21, 2013 (14).

VASILEVSKIY JOINS ELITE COMPANY WITH 10TH STRAIGHT 20-WIN SEASON

Andrei Vasilevskiy (19 saves) reached the 20-win mark for the 10th consecutive season to backstop the Atlantic Division-leading Lightning (30-13-4, 64 points) to their 30th win and extend the NHL’s longest active point streak to 13 games (12-0-1). Tampa Bay matched its fourth-longest point streak in franchise history (also 13 GP in 2019-20 & 2002-03), trailing 2003-04 (18 GP), 2018-19 (16 GP) and 2018-19 (14 GP).

  • Vasilevskiy became the second goaltender to 20 wins this season (also Karel Vejmelka) and joined Sergei Bobrovsky (12) as the second active netminder (min. 1 GP in 2025-26) to record at least 10 career 20-win campaigns. Vasilevskiy also secured his sixth point streak of 10-plus games, which tied Connor Hellebuyck for the most among active goaltenders.
  • The Lightning have five games remaining before they clash with the Bruins at the 2026 Navy Federal Credit Union NHL Stadium Series (Feb. 1, 6:30 p.m. ET). Vasilevskiy, who also backstopped the club to victory at the 2022 Stadium Series, can become the sixth goaltender to win each of his first two career outdoor appearances; he would join Henrik Lundqvist (4-0-0), Craig Anderson (3-0-0), Jordan Binnington (2-0-0), Igor Shesterkin (2-0-0) and Braden Holtby (2-0-0).

DIVISION-RIVAL RED WINGS RALLY AND KEEP PACE WITH OVERTIME WIN

The Senators built a 2-0 lead within the opening 5:05 but Patrick Kane (0-1—1) helped initiate a Detroit Red Wings comeback with his 1,372nd career point – two back of tying Mike Modano’s all-time record among U.S.-born skaters – and Alex DeBrincat (1-1—2) capped the rally with the winner 36 seconds into overtime as Detroit (30-16-4, 64 points) recorded its fastest pace to 30 wins in a seasons since 2011-12 (46 GP).

  • DeBrincat, with a team-best 26 goals through 50 games in 2025-26, leads a Red Wings team in pursuit of their first berth into the Stanley Cup Playoffs since 2015-16. Detroit, which has gone on to qualify for the postseason each time it has collected 30+ wins through their first 50 games of a season (11x), has held a top-three position in the Atlantic Division for 74 days in 2025-26 – the third most among Eastern Conference clubs behind Carolina (98 days) and Montreal (80 days).

JAM-PACKED MONDAY FEATURES 20 TEAMS IN ACTION

As Martin Luther King Jr. Day is observed across the United States, the NHL’s schedule ramps up with a matinee TNT doubleheader that will include two of the top three teams in the League since Dec. 1 – the Sabres (16-5-1, 33 points; 2nd over that span) and Avalanche (15-4-2, 32 points; 3rd) – as Buffalo visits Carolina before Colorado welcomes Washington. The slate will also include Jonathan Toews returning to Chicago for the first time when the Jets visit the Blackhawks.

  • The Metropolitan Division-leading Hurricanes (30-15-4, 64 points) will take on the Sabres (26-16-5, 57 points), who occupy the second Wild Card spot in the East, in a contest that will feature multiple streaks on the line. Carolina, which has seen a hat trick in its past two contests, has earned wins in each of its previous 12 home games against Buffalo, which is tied for the NHL’s longest active home win streak against a single opponent alongside Colorado (12 GP vs. SJS) and Dallas (12 GP vs. DET). Meanwhile, Tage Thompson, who reached the 50-point plateau for the fifth consecutive season in his last game, will look to match a career high point streak (8 GP in 2024-25) in what will be his last match up against his Team USA teammate, Jaccob Slavin, before the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026.
  • The League-leading Avalanche (33-5-8, 74 points) will have the opportunity to become the NHL’s first team to 20 home wins for the second time in franchise history (also 2023-24). They will be doing so against Washington’s John Carlson, who is two helpers shy of becoming the third Capitals player – and first defenseman – to 600 career assists. He can also become the fifth active defenseman to reach the plateau behind Erik Karlsson (699), Brent Burns (665), Victor Hedman (635) and Kris Letang (619).
  • Toews will return to Chicago where he played 1,067 games, won three Stanley Cup championships and concluded his tenure atop a number of franchise lists. Toews recorded 372-511—883 with the Blackhawks and remains sixth in franchise history for goals and points, as well as eighth in assists. He also has 11 game-winning goals in the playoffs – which is tied for the most in franchise history. Toews spent 15 seasons as their captain, which is currently tied for the fifth-longest tenured captain in NHL history.

NATIONAL GAMES ON THE RADAR THIS WEEK

Five storylines you need to know about other national broadcasts this week:

  1. Prime Monday Night Hockey: Auston Matthews enters play with nine goals in January (9-4—13 in 9 GP) and can pass Pat LaFontaine (11) for the most 10-goal months by a U.S.-born player in NHL history.
  2. Devils visit Oilers on TNT (Tuesday): Connor McDavid enters Tuesday with a 17-game point streak against New Jersey and can match his longest against a single opponent (18 GP vs. SJS). Only two other active players have posted an 18-plus game run against another franchise: Leon Draisaitl (21 GP vs. VAN & 20 GP vs. CHI) and Sidney Crosby (19 GP vs. BUF).
  3. Red Wings on Sportsnet on back-to-back days (Wednesday, Thursday): Patrick Kane enters the week three points shy of passing Mike Modano for the most by a U.S.-born player in NHL history and will have multiple opportunities to do so on the national broadcast when the Red Wings play the Maple Leafs on Sportsnet and TVA Sports followed by the Wild on Sportsnet One. Kane has a 1.28 points-per-game average against Toronto (18-23—41 in 32 GP), his fifth highest against any opponent, and Minnesota is tied for his fourth-highest goal total against any club (25).
  4. Marner returns to Toronto on Sportsnet (Friday): Exactly a week after Mitch Marner played the Maple Leafs for the first time since being traded in the off-season and helped the Golden Knights record a multi-goal, third-period comeback against his former club, he will return to Scotiabank Arena for the first time. Marner recorded 289 assists and 392 points in Toronto as a member of the Maple Leafs, which stands as fourth in assists and sixth in points on the franchise’s all-time lists at home.
  5. Ovechkin, McDavid Clash on Hockey Night in Canada (Saturday): Alex Ovechkin will continue his pursuit of 1,000 goals (regular season & playoffs) when the Capitals visit Connor McDavid and the Oilers. Ovechkin enters the week six goals from that plateau and would join Wayne Gretzky (1,016) as just the second player in NHL history to achieve that feat. Ovechkin will play three games prior to facing McDavid on Hockey Night in Canada.

Thompson, Josi and Vejmelka Named NHL ‘Three Stars’ of the Week

Buffalo Sabres center Tage Thompson (United States), Nashville Predators defenseman Roman Josi (Switzerland) and Utah Mammoth goaltender Karel Vejmelka (Czechia) – three players selected to represent their respective countries at the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026 – have been named the NHL’s “Three Stars” for the week ending Jan. 18.

FIRST STAR – TAGE THOMPSON, C, BUFFALO SABRES

Thompson led the NHL with 3-6—9 in four contests to power the Sabres (26-16-5, 57 points) to a 2-1-1 week. He collected one assist in a 4-3 loss to the Florida Panthers Jan. 12 before picking up a pair of helpers in a 5-2 triumph over the Philadelphia Flyers Jan. 14. Thompson then registered 3-2—5, notching his third career five-point performance, ninth career hat trick, 22nd career game-winning goal and 200th career goal, in a 5-3 victory against the Montreal Canadiens Jan. 15. He added one assist in a 5-4 overtime loss to the Minnesota Wild Jan. 17. The 28-year-old Thompson, who owns 5-8—13 during a seven-game point streak dating to Jan. 6, shares seventh place in the League with 25 goals and tops Buffalo with 50 points through 47 total appearances this season (25-25—50). More than half of those points have come in Thompson’s past 18 games dating to Dec. 9 (12-15—27), during which the Sabres have compiled an NHL-best 15-2-1 record (31 points) to climb into the final Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference.

SECOND STAR – ROMAN JOSI, D, NASHVILLE PREDATORS

Josi recorded 2-5—7 in three outings to lift the Predators (23-21-4, 50 points) to a 2-1-0 week and within one point of the final playoff position in the Western Conference. He scored twice, capped by his 10th career overtime goal, in a 4-3 win against the Edmonton Oilers Jan. 13. Josi then produced his 17th career three-assist game as Nashville became the first visiting team to earn a regulation victory at Ball Arena this season, triumphing 7-3 over the Colorado Avalanche Jan. 16. He picked up two more helpers in a 7-2 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights Jan. 17, Josi’s fourth consecutive multi-point performance dating to Jan. 11 (3-7—10). The 35-year-old Predators captain, who is two games shy of 1,000 for his NHL career (198-554—752 in 998 GP), owns 8-20—28 through 36 total contests in 2025-26.

THIRD STAR – KAREL VEJMELKA, G, UTAH MAMMOTH

Vejmelka went 3-0-0 with a 1.67 goals-against average and .926 save percentage to guide the Mammoth (25-20-4, 54 points) to a perfect week as they moved into the first Wild Card spot in the Western Conference. He yielded one goal in each of his first two starts, making 19 saves in a 6-1 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs Jan. 13 and turning aside 26 shots in a 2-1 triumph versus the Dallas Stars Jan. 15. Vejmelka then stopped 18 shots, including 11 in the first period, in a 6-3 victory against the Seattle Kraken Jan. 17. The 29-year-old Vejmelka, who has won each of his last six appearances dating to Jan. 5 (1.66 GAA, .935 SV%), tops the NHL with 23 victories – three more than the next-closest goaltender – through 37 total games this season (23-11-2, 2.55 GAA, .902 SV%, 1 SO).

Guest Writer