Player of the Night: Nathan MacKinnon, Colorado Avalanche
Mikael Granlund already got his moment in the sun for his second career hat trick, yet you could reasonably argue that he’s the true player of the night.
There were some other strong nights, with Claude Giroux collecting three assists to help the Flyers win, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins’ three points in a losing effort, and wins being triggered by two-goal nights from Jack Eichel and Alex Radulov.
It was quite a night, and has been quite a season, for MacKinnon, however. His goal and two assists are joined by a +3 rating and five shots on goal. About the only thing he struggled with was faceoffs (7-12).
His goal was pretty nifty:
MacKinnon now has 43 points in 37 games this season. It’s been a blast to observe an already-strong player breakthrough to a star level.
Highlight of the Night: Patrick Kane’s delirious overtime game-winner, and Jeff Glass becoming a first-time NHL-winner at age 32.
How slick is this?
And how sweet is this?
Glass, by the way, joins Ed Belfour in an interesting bit of Blackhawks history, to get you primed for factoids. Also:
13 years ago tonight, Jeff Glass and Brent Seabrook were roommates w/ @HockeyCanada at the World Juniors; tonight Glass & Seabrook are officially reunited as teammates in Jeff's NHL debut #Blackhawks
— Adam Rogowin (@AdamRogowin) December 30, 2017
Factoids
Frans Nielsen continues to pump his teams up during the shootout.
Frans Nielsen of the @DetroitRedWings is the NHL’s all-time leader in shootout goals (47) and game-deciding goals (21). #NHLStats #NYRvsDET pic.twitter.com/VteEdvsXAX
— NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL) December 30, 2017
Did You Know: Jaromir Jagr has played a lot of NHL games. Shocking.
Jaromir Jagr of the @NHLFlames is skating in his 1,732nd career regular-season game and passed Ron Francis (1,731) for sole possession of third place on the NHL’s all-time list. #NHLStats #CGYvsANA pic.twitter.com/h5floTqIj6
— NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL) December 30, 2017
Hey, Josh Bailey’s blossoming can’t be ALL John Tavares, right? The Islanders aren’t complaining either way.
Though it came in a loss, @NYIslanders Josh Bailey (once a centre, now a winger) kept up his incredible pace of assists- one that has him tied for 6th on this notable list pic.twitter.com/OZcLBTyfZ3
— StatsCentre (@StatsCentre) December 30, 2017
Scores
Sabres 4, Devils 3 (OT)
Senators 5, Blue Jackets 4
Red Wings 3, Rangers 2 (SO)
Flyers 5, Lightning 3
Hurricanes 2, Penguins 1
Wild 4, Predators 2
Jets 4, Islanders 2
Stars 4, Blues 2
Avalanche 4, Maple Leafs 3 (OT)
Blackhawks 4, Oilers 3 (OT)
Ducks 2, Flames 1
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James O’Brien is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @cyclelikesedins.
