NHL NEWS MARCH, 2023 – NUGENT-HOPKINS POSTS FIVE-POINT NIGHT FOR OILERS

Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (1-4—5) matched a career high for points in a game when he factored on five of seven Edmonton goals – reaching the 60-assist mark and extending his point streak to nine contests in the process – while Connor McDavid (0-3—3) surpassed 70 road points to help the Oilers (43-23-9, 95 points) defeat the Golden Knights (46-22-6, 98 points) and make ground on first place in the Pacific Division.

• Nugent-Hopkins (35-61—96 in 75 GP) joined McDavid and Leon Draisaitl as Edmonton’s third 60-assist player this season. The last campaign to feature three Oilers skaters hit the mark was 1985-86 (Wayne Gretzky: 163, Paul Coffey: 90 & Jari Kurri: 63).
• Nugent-Hopkins now sits four points shy of his first 100-point season and can become the sixth player in NHL history to reach the milestone for the first time in his 12th campaign or later. He would join Gordie Howe (23rd season, 1968-69), Johnny Bucyk (16th season, 1970-71), Steven Stamkos (14th season, 2021-22), Jean Ratelle (12th season, 1971-72) and Bobby Hull (12th season, 1968-69).

RUSH TO THE PLAYOFFS CONTINUES FOR PREDATORS, FLAMES

Both the Flames and Predators earned pivotal wins to inch closer to the final Wild Card spot in the Western Conference:

• Andrew Mangiapane and Walker Duehr scored both of Calgary’s goals to help the Flames (34-26-15, 83 points) move within two points of the Jets (41-31-3, 85 points), who suffered a loss Tuesday, for the Western Conference’s final Wild Card position. Calgary has collected at least a point in nine of its last 12 games (7-3-2 dating to March 6).
• Juuse Saros made 35 saves to backstop the Predators past the Bruins, halting Boston’s ability to clinch the Presidents’ Trophy on Tuesday. Nashville (37-28-8, 82 points) moved within three points of the Jets for a postseason position, while holding two games in hand over Winnipeg.

RANGERS CHASE HOME ICE ADVANTAGE A DAY AFTER CLICHING POSTEASON BERTH

A day after his team qualified for the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs, Mika Zibanejad (1-1—2) recorded his 80th point of 2022-23 by combining on a goal with Artemi Panarin (1-1—2), who already reached the mark this season. New York (44-20-10, 98 points) now sits two points back of New Jersey (46-20-8, 100 points) for second place in the Metropolitan Division as the two teams continue to jockey for home-ice advantage in the First Round. The Rangers sit five points back of the Hurricanes (47-17-9, 103 points) for top spot in the division.

POINT APPROACHES FIRST 50-GOAL SEASON AS COOPER HITS 10 YEARS BEHIND BENCH

Brayden Point tallied 2-1—3 to move within three of his first career 50-goal season – and the first by a Lightning player in more than a decade – to help the Lightning avoid their longest losing streak since 2012-13. Tampa Bay (0-4-0 entering Tuesday) have not had a losing streak longer than four games during Jon Cooper’s tenure as head coach – which began with his first contest behind the bench exactly 10 years ago today.

EAST WILD CARD RACE, BATTLE FOR CENTRAL DIVISION CROWN FRONT AND CENTER

The Rush to the Playoffs stays in high gear Wednesday, with every team in action part of the picture entering the final 17 days of the regular season. Hitting the ice for the first time since clinching a spot in the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs, the Maple Leafs (44-20-9, 97 points) will continue their push for home ice when they welcome last year’s Presidents’ Trophy winners on Sportsnet. The Panthers (36-31-7, 79 points) are embroiled in a Wild Card race that currently is led by the Islanders (38-28-9, 85 points), who will open a doubleheader against the Capitals (34-32-8, 76 points) on TNT.

• The marquee race in the Western Conference is in the Central Division where the Wild (43-22-9, 95 points), Avalanche (44-23-6, 94 points) and Stars (40-20-14, 94 points) are separated by one point in the battle for first place. Colorado could overtake Minnesota for the top spot when they play the nightcap on TNT, Sportsnet One and TVA Sports.

Tonight’s individual storylines include: Toronto Maple Leafs‘ Mitchell Marner riding a 10-game point streak as he closes in on a 30-goal and 100-point season; Florida’s Matthew Tkachuk sitting three away from consecutive 100-point seasons; New York’s Brock Nelson approaching his first career 70-point campaign; Washington’s Alex Ovechkin on a six-game point streak; Minnesota’s Matt Boldy with 11 goals in nine games; and Colorado’s Nathan MacKinnon ranking eighth in League scoring despite playing in at least nine fewer games than the rest of the top 10.

RED WINGS ASSIGN TARO HIROSE TO GRAND RAPIDS

The Detroit Red Wings have assigned left wing Taro Hirose to the American Hockey League’s Grand Rapids Griffins.

Hirose, 26, made his season debut with the Red Wings on March 28 vs. Pittsburgh, recording one shot in 7:57 time on ice. The 5-foot-10, 162-pound forward has also skated in 64 games with the Griffins this season and ranks among the team leaders with 15 goals (2nd), 39 assists (1st), 54 points (1st), three power play goals (6th) and 136 shots (2nd). Hirose split the 2021-22 campaign between Detroit and Grand Rapids, notching four points (1-3-4) in 15 appearances with the Red Wings while tallying 53 points (15-38-53) in 59 games with the Griffins. In all, Hirose has logged 20 points (4-16-20) and 12 penalty minutes in 58 games with the Red Wings since making his NHL debut in 2018-19. He has also accumulated 162 points (40-122-162) and 40 penalty minutes in 187 games with the Griffins over the last four seasons. Originally signed as an undrafted free agent by the Red Wings on March 12, 2019, Hirose posted seven points (1-6-7) in 10 contests during his first NHL stint in 2018-19.