NHL AT TOP: Red Wings host Lightning, look to continue playoff push

Red Wings’ playoff momentum will continue

Don’t look now, but the Detroit Red Wings (28-21-8) are back in the Eastern Conference wild card race. Well, watch it now, because it’s a treat to see the Red Wings fight for a Stanley Cup playoff spot after sitting out the previous six seasons. Detroit, 7-2-0 this month, hosts the Tampa Bay Lightning (36-17-4), the 2020 and 2021 Stanley Cup champions, on Saturday at Little Caesars Arena (8 p.m. ET; BSDET, BSSUNX, ESPN+ , SN NOW ). red wings goalkeeper ville huso 8-2-0 in his last 10 starts, and the captain dylan larkin With 25 games to go, he leads them with 22 goals. Tampa Bay forward brydon point The four-point (one goal, three assists) performance comes in a 6-5 overtime loss to the Buffalo Sabers on Thursday. The Red Wings won their first two games against the Lightning this season, with Husso winning both with a .929 save percentage. — Dave Stubbs, columnist

The stars are trying to align

The Dallas Stars are 2-0-3 in five games before the All-Star break and have won their first two games since. However, since then, Dallas (30-16-12) has failed. The Stars are 0-3-2 in their last five games when they blew a 3-0 lead in a 4-3 loss to the Chicago Blackhawks on Wednesday. On Saturday, they visit the Vegas Golden Knights (35-18-5) at T-Mobile Arena (10 pm ET; ATTSN-RM, BSSW, ESPN+, SN NOW). Forward joe pavelskiThe Stars’ top scorer with 81 points last season hasn’t scored twice against the Calgary Flames since January 14 (14 games). Tyler SeguinHis first goal against Chicago after scoring twice against the Los Angeles Kings on January 19, and jason robertsonWednesday was Dallas’ first power play goal since Jan. 27. The talent of the stars is put to the test. Let’s see how they respond. — Tracy Myers, staff writer

Devils to honor the 2003 Stanley Cup team

New Jersey Devils The New Jersey Devils will celebrate the 20th anniversary of their 2003 Stanley Cup champion team before the puck drops against the Philadelphia Flyers at the Prudential Center (7 pm ET; MSGSN, NBCSP, ESPN+, SN NOW). The players, coaches and managers of the team will be honored in a special ceremony. “It’s going to be great,” said Hockey Hall of Fame goaltender Martin Brodeur, who won three championships (1995, 2000, 2003) with the Devils. “Every time we meet, I bring back great memories. It was a great race in 2003, so I’m definitely looking forward to it and it will be great to spend time together again.” New Jersey (38-15-5) is 7-2-1 in its last 10 games and ranks second in the Metropolitan Division, three points behind the Carolina Hurricanes. Forward travis konecny The Flyers (23-27-10), who are 1-5-1 in their last seven games, are in doubt after missing the last two games with an upper-body injury. –Mike G. Morel, staff writer

saturday games

Edmonton Oilers at Columbus Blue Jackets (12:30 p.m. ET; SN360, SNW, BSOH, ESPN+, SN NOW)

The Oilers (32-19-8) have won their last two games. Connor McDavid He set an NHL career high when he scored his 46th goal in his 59th game in Edmonton’s 7-2 win over the Pittsburgh Penguins on Thursday. McDavid scored 44 goals in 80 games last season. The Blue Jackets (18-35-5) are 3-5-2 in their last 10. Forward Johnny Cowdreau He hit three shots in 20:51 of a 2-0 win over the Minnesota Wild on Thursday, his first game back after missing the previous two with a lower-body injury.

New York Rangers at Washington Capitals (1 p.m. ET; ABC, ESPN+)

The Capitals, (28-26-6) who have lost six in a row, switched to defense Dmitry Orlov and forward hathaway garnet to the Boston Bruins in a three-team trade that included the Minnesota Wild. alex ovechkin Five shots in 21:36 of ice time in Thursday’s 4-2 win over the Anaheim Ducks; He had missed the previous four games following the death of his father on February 15. The Rangers (33-16-9) have lost three in a row (0-2-1).

Pittsburgh Penguins at St. Louis Blues (3:30 p.m. ET; ABC, SN360, SNW, ESPN+)

It was a straight first half for the Penguins (27-21-9), who have lost four in a row. They have gone 21-10 during the streak. The Blues (26-28-4) have lost four in a row (0-3-1) since trading forwards Ryan O’Reilly to the Toronto Maple Leafs on February 17. Forward brandon sath He returned to the Vancouver Canucks in a 3–2 overtime loss to St. Louis after missing the previous four games with an upper-body injury.

Boston Bruins at Vancouver Canucks (7 pm ET; CITY, SNW, SNP, NESN, ESPN+, SN NOW)

Orlov and Hathaway will each make their debuts for the Bruins (44-8-5), who have won five straight and are in the second of a four-game road trip. Forward Elias Peterson 11 points (three goals, eight assists) on four-point streak, forward miller He has a streak of four points and six points (two goals, four assists) while the striker anthony beauvillier He has five points (two goals, three assists) in a four-game skid for the Canucks (23-30-5), who are 2-0-1 in their last three games.

Anaheim Ducks at Carolina Hurricanes (7 pm ET; BSSO, BSSC, ESPN+, SN NOW)

defensive player Cam Hunter Anaheim (18-34-7) has seven points (two goals, five assists) in its last five games, ending a six-game losing streak with a 4-2 win at Washington on Thursday. andrei svechnikov He has eight points (two goals, six assists) in his last four games for Carolina (39-10-8), which has won five straight and is 14-1-1 in its last 16 games.

Ottawa Senators at Montreal Canadiens (7 pm ET; NHLN, CBC, SNE, SNO, TVAS, ESPN+, SN NOW)

claude giroux The Senators (27-26-4) have four points (two goals, two assists) in their last four games and have won four in a row against the Canadiens. Montreal (25-29-4) beat the Philadelphia Flyers 5-2 on Friday and completed a four-game road trip with two straight wins.

Philadelphia Flyers at New Jersey Devils (7 p.m. ET; MSGSN, NBCSP, ESPN+, SN NOW)

Forward Mercer Dawson He has seven goals during a career-high five game streak in the NHL for New Jersey. rookie forward gates of noah He has four points (three assists) in his last five games with Philadelphia.

Tampa Bay Lightning at Detroit Red Wings (8 p.m. ET; BSDET, BSSUNX, ESPN+, SN NOW)

The Lightning have eight points in their last 10 games (5-2-3); The Red Wings are 7-3-0 in that same stretch. Detroit, with three straight home wins, has 16 points (seven goals, nine assists) in its last 11 games to keep an eye on the point.

Dallas Stars at Vegas Golden Knights (10 p.m. ET; ATTSN-RM, BSSW, ESPN+, SN NOW)

The Golden Knights are riding an eight-game point streak (6-0-2). defensive player shea theodore Five point streak with two goals and six assists. stars ahead jamie benn He has scored four goals in the last six games. Penn’s tally of 23 goals in 58 games is his most since 2018-19 (27 in 78 games).

Chicago Blackhawks at San Jose Sharks (10 p.m. ET; NBCSCA, NBCSCH, ESPN+, SN NOW)

patrick kaneThe subject of trade rumors of late, he returned to Chicago and was ruled out by “roster management” for the four-time winning Blackhawks (20-32-5). eric carlson He has 14 points (three goals, 11 assists) in his last 11 games with the Sharks (18-30-11), who have lost four of five.

Calgary Flames at Colorado Avalanche (10 p.m. ET; CBC, SN, CITY, ALT, ESPN+, SN NOW)

Nathan MacKinnon The Avalanche (32-19-5) has 14 points (six goals, eight assists) during a six-game multipoint streak, has won four in a row and is 5-0-1 in his last six games. michael backlund Eight points during a five-game skid (four goals, four assists) and four goals during a four-game skid for Calgary (27-20-12), which is three points behind Colorado for the second wild card. Western Conference Stanley Cup playoffs.