NHL Review – February 15, 2022

MARNER’S MILESTONE NIGHT LIFTS MAPLE LEAFS

Mitchell Marner (1-2—3) factored on half of the Toronto Maple Leafs’ six goals and hit 400 career points to help Toronto (31-12-3, 65 points) move within three points of Tampa Bay (31-11-6, 68 points) for second place in the Atlantic Division standings while having two games in hand.

• Marner (120-281—401) joined Connor McDavid (219-419—638) as the second player from the 2015 NHL Draft to reach the 400-point milestone. The only player drafted after 2015 to reach the mark is teammate Auston Matthews (231-177—408) who achieved the feat on Jan. 31.

ROOKIE BOLDY NETS HAT TRICK AND FOUR-POINT OUTING

Matt Boldy (3-1—4) factored on four of the Wild’s seven goals Monday to record his first NHL hat trick and help Minnesota (30-11-3, 63 points) earn its sixth straight victory at Xcel Energy Center – the club’s second home win streak of as many games this season. It also marked the fifth time in 2021-22 the Wild scored seven-plus goals on home ice – the most among all teams.

• Boldy, who had never recorded a three-goal game while playing in the American Hockey League or in the NCAA, became the fourth rookie this season to score a hat trick, joining Michael Bunting (Jan. 29), Rem Pitlick (Nov. 13, 2021) and Lucas Raymond (Oct. 24, 2021).
• Boldy established a franchise record for most points by a rookie in a single game and improved his career totals to 7-7—14, which is the fourth most by a Wild player through their first 15 games with the franchise, despite only skating in 13 contests. He trails Cliff Ronning (5-12—17 in 15 GP; 2002-03), Ryan Donato (4-11—15 in 15 GP; 2018-19) and Andrew Brunette (7-8—15 in 15 GP; 2001-02).

NURSE SCORES GOAL NO. 50, SKINNER POSTS SHUTOUT

Darnell Nurse became the fourth defenseman in franchise history to record 50 goals, and Stuart Skinner (23 years, 105 days), became the fourth-youngest goaltender at the time of his first shutout with the Oilers.

• Earlier on Monday, Darnell’s cousin, Sarah, helped Team Canada earn a win with a four-point outing and secure the sixth gold-medal showdown between Canada and the United States in women’s hockey. Sarah currently leads all players with 4-12—16 and has matched Hayley Wickenheiser (12 in 2006) for an Olympic record for the most assists in a tournament and is one shy for the most points (Wickenheiser w/ 5-12—17 in 2006).

BLACK HOCKEY HISTORY SPOTLIGHT: VAL JAMES

Val James, who celebrated his 65th birthday Monday, became the first Black American player to appear in an NHL game when he suited up for the Sabres on Nov. 1, 1981. On the 40th anniversary of his NHL debut in 2021, the Sabres honored James prior to their game against the Detroit Red Wings. James, who was born in Ocala, Fla., had NHL stops in Buffalo and Toronto.

COLORADO CAN EXTEND OVERALL POINT STREAK TO 20 GAMES TUESDAY

The League-leading Avalanche (34-8-4, 72 points) can extend their franchise-record point streak to 20 contests when they complete their home-and-home set with the Stars (25-19-2, 52 points) during a nine-game slate Tuesday. Colorado can become the 12th team in NHL history with a point streak of at least 20 contests and first since Chicago from Jan. 19 – March 6, 2013 (21-0-3).

• The Avalanche are also 20-0-2 in their last 22 games at Ball Arena dating to Oct. 30, 2021, which marks the longest home point streak in franchise history. Only three teams have had a longer run since the franchise began play in Colorado: NY Rangers from Oct. 24, 1995 – Feb. 15, 1996 (18-0-6), Detroit from Nov. 5, 2011 – Feb. 23, 2012 (23-0-1) and Ottawa from Dec. 18, 2003 – March 20, 2004 (17-0-6).