Daily Nuggets: Golden Knights Milestones; Own Goal, McDavid’s Fate

The Vegas Golden Knights rolled to a dominant win on Thursday against the Boston Bruins. William Karlsson played for the first time since January 20th, and several Golden Knights players hit personal milestones. Unfortunately for the Golden Knights, the other Pacific Division teams just keep winning.

Elsewhere in the Daily Nuggets, one team clinched a playoff berth while another was eliminated from contention. The Edmonton Oilers lost captain Connor McDavid to injury, and the New Jersey Devils might have a goaltending controversy. Also– records, expansions, and dangits, oh my!

Golden Knights News

On Thursday, the Golden Knights enjoyed a feel-good, get-right game against the Boston Bruins. They overcame a slow start to roll to a 5-1 win, and three players– Jack Eichel, Pavel Dorofeyev, and Ivan Barbashev– set personal milestones.

The Golden Knights earned two pivotal points in the standings on Thursday, but other Pacific Division rivals followed suit. The Edmonton Oilers lost in overtime to the Winnipeg Jets, securing a point. And the Los Angeles Kings beat the Chicago Blackhawks, officially eliminating them from playoff contention.

William Karlsson played on Thursday for the first time in exactly two months. He and his old linemate, Reilly Smith, were reunited. Earlier in the day, Karlsson gushed about how excited he was to play with Smith again.

NHL Rumors News, & National Hockey Now

Sportsnet: The Edmonton Oilers managed to take the Winnipeg Jets to overtime on Thursday down Leon Draisaitl.Unfortunately, they also lost captain Connor McDavid, who exited the game due to a lower-body injury.

Sportsnet: The Washington Capitals became the first team to clinch a spot in the playoffs on Thursday after beating the Philadelphia Flyers. Alex Ovechkin scored goal number 888 in the victory; he’s just six goals away from tying Wayne Gretzky’s record and seven from passing it.

Sportsnet: The NHL could have two more teams added in the next few years. The league has had talks with a potential owner in Houston, and multiple groups in Atlanta have expressed interest– yes, please!

The Athletic ($): The NHL’s playoffs are broken. We’re on pace to have two of the top teams in the Western Conference– the Dallas Stars and the Colorado Avalanche– meet in round one. Worse, it looks like this will be the fourth consecutive Kings-Oilers series. Shayna Goldman suggests several changes to the playoff format– personally, I’d like the league to return to the 1v8 format.

New Jersey Hockey Now: Jacob Markstrom hasn’t regained his form since returning from injury. On the other hand, Jake Allen has been fantastic in net. Do the Devils have a goaltending controversy? 

Gotta See It: The Buffalo Sabres took on the Utah Hockey Club at Delta Center on Thursday, and the Sabres accidentally put the puck into the wrong net on a delayed penalty. Oops!

NHL History: On March 21st, 2013, Martin Brodeur was credited with a goal against the Carolina Hurricanes. Brodeur made a save, and the Hurricanes sent the puck back into their own net. Since the Buffalo Sabres scored an own goal on Thursday, I thought choosing this historical nugget was only right.