Sharks center Macklin Celebrini extends his points streak, remembering the late Glenn Hall, the Mammoth will host the 2027 Winter Classic, and more in today’s NHL Morning Coffee Headlines.
RECAPS OF WEDNESDAY’S GAMES
NHL.COM: San Jose Sharks center Macklin Celebrini extended his points streak to 12 games by rallying his club to a 4-3 overtime victory over the Los Angeles Kings. Celebrini had three points, including the tying goal and assisting on William Eklund’s game-winner for the 22-18-3 Sharks. Alex Turcotte and Kevin Fiala each had a goal and an assist for the Kings (18-14-10).
San Jose Sharks center Macklin Celebrini (NHL Images).
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Celebrini is third in the NHL scoring race with 67 points. The Sharks (47 points) hold the first Western Conference wildcard berth, sitting one point out of first place in the Pacific Division. Kings winger Corey Perry missed this game as he’s been granted leave to deal with an illness in his family.
Utah Mammoth goaltender Karel Vejmelka made 32 saves, and Clayton Keller collected two assists in a 3-1 win against the Ottawa Senators, improving their record to 21-20-3. Ridly Greig replied for the struggling Senators (20-17-5), who have two wins in their last seven games.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Earlier in the day, the league announced that the Mammoth will host the 2027 Winter Classic against the Colorado Avalanche at Rice-Eccles Stadium in Salt Lake City. A date will be announced at a later time.
The Dallas Stars snapped a six-game winless skid by defeating the Washington Capitals 4-1. Sam Steel had a goal and an assist, and Casey DeSmith stopped 23 shots for the Stars (26-10-8). Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin scored his 915th career regular-season goal as his club (22-16-6) has one win in its last four games (1-2-1).
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Stars forward Matt Duchene collected an assist to record his 900th career NHL regular-season point. Before this game, the Capitals announced that winger Aliaksei Protas was placed on injured reserve.
Montreal Canadiens winger Alexandre Texier had a goal and two assists in a 4-1 victory over the Calgary Flames. Cole Caufield had a goal and an assist for the Canadiens, who improved their record to 24-13-6 to sit one point out of first place in the Atlantic Division. Joel Farabee scored for the Flames (18-21-4) as they’ve lost three straight games.
The Chicago Blackhawks picked up their fourth straight win by dropping the St. Louis Blues 7-3. Oliver Moore, Landon Slaggert, Connor Murphy, and Louis Crevier each had a goal and an assist for the 18-18-7 Blackhawks. Blues rookie Otto Stenberg scored his first NHL goal as his club dropped to 17-19-8.
HEADLINES
NHL.COM: Hall of Fame goaltender Glenn Hall passed away on Wednesday at the age of 94.
Nicknamed “Mr. Goalie,” Hall holds the league record for consecutive games played by a netminder with 502 (552 including playoffs), and was the innovator of the butterfly style of goaltending.
Hall played 906 regular-season games with the Detroit Red Wings, Chicago Blackhawks, and St. Louis Blues from 1952-53 to 1970-71, winning 407 games with a career 2.50 goals-against average and 84 shutouts. He won the Stanley Cup with the Blackhawks in 1960-61, the Calder Memorial Trophy in 1955-56, the Conn Smythe Trophy in 1967-68, and the Vezina Trophy in 1962-63, 1966-67, and 1968-69.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Hall was among the greatest goaltenders in NHL history and a star with the Red Wings, Blackhawks, and Blues. Given the way the position has changed, his consecutive games record for NHL goalies will never be broken. My condolences to his family, friends, and former teammates.
NHL.COM: Edmonton Oilers center Leon Draisaitl, Detroit Red Wings defenseman Moritz Seider, and Ottawa Senators center Tim Stutzle are among the NHL players selected to Germany’s 2026 Men’s Olympic Hockey team. Others include Utah Mammoth forward JJ Peterka, Minnesota Wild forward Nico Sturm, and Seattle Kraken goaltender Philipp Grubauer.
Switzerland’s Men’s Olympic roster will include Nashville Predators defenseman Roman Josi, New Jersey Devils forwards Nico Hischier and Timo Meier, Los Angeles Kings winger Kevin Fiala, Winnipeg Jets winger Nino Niedereitter, St. Louis Blues center Pius Suter, San Jose Sharks winger Philipp Kurashev, Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman JJ Moser, New Jersey Devils blueliner Jonas Siegenthaler, and Vegas Golden Knights goaltender Akira Schmid.
Carolina Hurricanes winger Nikolaj Ehlers, Tampa Bay Lightning winger Oliver Bjorkstrand, Ottawa Senators center Lars Eller, Hurricanes goaltender Frederik Andersen, and Senators netminder Mads Sogaard were named to Denmark’s Men’s Olympic team.
EDMONTON JOURNAL: Oilers center Adam Henrique was placed on injured reserve and isn’t expected to return until after the Olympic break in February.
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH: Blue Jackets winger Mason Marchment (upper body) was placed on injured reserve and is listed as week-to-week.
DAILY FACEOFF: The Winnipeg Jets placed defenseman Haydn Fleury on injured reserve with a broken nose and bruised back.
CBS SPORTS: Anaheim Ducks goaltender Petr Mrazek (lower body) was placed on injured reserve.
PITTSBURGH HOCKEY NOW: Penguins forward Rutger McGroarty has been diagnosed with a concussion and is on injured reserve. They also returned defenseman Harrison Brunicke to the WHL’s Kamloops Blazers.