This Week in the NHL: Two possible Stanley Cup previews, one night
So many games. So little time. What should you focus your NHL hockey fandom on if your favorite team’s games don’t scratch the itch enough?
Welcome to This Week in the NHL. From now until April, we’ll lay out a collection of key games, events and deadlines to watch on the league calendar each week.
So what’s on tap for Jan. 8-14?
Jan. 8: Four of NHL’s top five teams compete
Vancouver Canucks @ New York Rangers, 7:00 p.m. ET
Thirty years ago this June, the Rangers ended a 30-year Stanley Cup drought in an unforgettable seven-game series against the Canucks. Could we get a rematch between the two this June? They lead the Pacific and Metropolitan Divisions, respectively, and go head to head at Madison Square Garden Monday night.
Boston Bruins @ Colorado Avalanche, 9:00 p.m. ET
Can anyone slow the Nathan MacKinnon freight train right now? Positively possessed, he has 56 points in his past 30 games. Unstoppable force meets immovable object when the stingy Bruins visit Ball Arena.
Jan. 12 or 15: NHL Central Scouting midseason rankings released
With the World Juniors in the rearview mirror, Central Scouting is set to release its midterm player rankings for the 2024 NHL Draft, divided into North American and European prospects, as soon as this Friday and as late as early next week. The NHL listed the release date as “Jan. 12 or 15” before the 2023-24 season began. Boston University center Macklin Celebrini, the projected No. 1 overall pick, will top the North American rankings. On the European side, it’s a bit more wide open. It’ll likely be SKA St. Petersburg center Ivan Demidov or a defenseman such as Artyom Levshunov or Anton Silayev, with center Konsta Helenius in the mix, too.
Jan. 13: A 16-game slate for the third time in NHL history
All 32 teams compete on a loaded Saturday schedule. The Rangers and Washington Capitals kick it off in D.C. at 1:00 p.m. ET, while the Vegas Golden Knights host the Calgary Flames at 10:00 p.m. ET in the final game of the day.
Marc-Andre Fleury’s chase for second on NHL’s all-time wins list
For so long, it seemed like no longer goaltender could come anywhere close to Martin Brodeur’s NHL-record 691 wins or even Patrick Roy’s second-place mark of 551. In this load-management era, netminders simply don’t play enough. But future Hall of Famer Fleury is a holdover of the previous era and, at 39, has accumulated the numbers to pass Roy any day now. Fleury got win 551 over the weekend to pull into a tie for second. He’ll keep getting opportunities to hit the benchmark given starter Filip Gustavsson is on injured reserve, but the depleted Wild are struggling to win games at the moment.
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