Connor McDavid factored on all four Edmonton goals en route to his fifth consecutive 70-assist campaign and helped the Oilers clinch a playoff berth for the sixth straight season.
* Jake Sanderson and Thomas Chabot each hit milestones and helped the Senators build a five-point lead over the Canadiens for the first Wild Card spot in the East.
* An 11-game slate features a doubleheader on ABC, ESPN+ and TVA Sports involving the Capitals and Blue Jackets as well as the Rangers and Hurricanes as Wild Card races take center stage during the final Saturday of the regular season.
OILERS CLINCH SIXTH STRAIGHT BERTH INTO STANLEY CUP PLAYOFFS
Connor McDavid (0-4—4) collected his 11th career four-assist game to hit the 70-assist mark and help the Oilers (46-28-5, 97 points) clinch a berth into the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the sixth straight season.
* McDavid factored on a game-opening goal for the 165th time in his career and passed Wayne Gretzky (164) for the most instances in Oilers history. The Oilers captain also notched his fifth straight 70-assist season and became the fourth player in NHL history to post a run of that length, following Gretzky (13 from 1979-80 – 1991-92), Bobby Orr (6 from 1969-70 – 1974-75) and Adam Oates (5 from 1989-90 – 1993-94).
* Edmonton will take another crack at hoisting the Stanley Cup after making it to the Final last season. The Oilers look to become the seventh team in the NHL’s expansion era (since 1967-68) to reach the Stanley Cup Final the year after losing in the championship series, following the 2024 Panthers, 2009 Penguins, 1984 Oilers, 1978 Bruins, 1970 Blues and 1969 Blues. Florida, Pittsburgh and Edmonton all went on to win the Stanley Cup.
* The Oilers have 41 all-time series wins, which are the second most by a non-Original Six franchise behind only the Flyers (44). Their series win percentage is also the second highest in NHL history at .661, trailing only the Golden Knights (.688).
SENATORS TIGHTEN GRIP ON FIRST WILD CARD SPOT IN EAST
Shane Pinto (2-0—2) opened the scoring just 28 seconds into the contest and added an empty netter while Jake Sanderson (0-1—1) and Thomas Chabot (0-1—1) each hit milestones as the Senators defeated the Canadiens in a matchup between the two clubs currently occupying Wild Card spots in the Eastern Conference. Ottawa (43-30-6, 92 points) built a five-point lead over Montreal (39-31-9, 87 points) as the first Wild Card team and moved within four points of idle Florida (46-29-4, 96 points) for third place in the Atlantic Division.
* Sanderson became the sixth defenseman in Senators history to collect 100 assists with the club as well as the first blueliner from the 2020 Draft class to reach the milestone. Meanwhile, Chabot became the third defenseman to reach the 300-point mark with Ottawa.
FLAMES, RED WINGS KEEP PLAYOFF HOPES ALIVE
The Flames and Red Wings each earned crucial wins Friday to keep their postseason hopes alive in their respective playoff races:
* Nazem Kadri scored his 32nd goal of the season to match his career high (also 32 in 2017-18 & 2016-17) and help the Flames defeat the Wild, who occupy the first Wild Card spot in the West. Calgary (38-27-14, 90 points) moved within three points of both Minnesota (43-30-7, 93 points) as well as St. Louis 43-30-7, 93 points) and can become the second team in NHL history to overcome a five-point deficit within their final four games to qualify for the playoffs, following the 1958-59 Maple Leafs.
* After the Lightning battled back from a 2-1 deficit to take a 3-2 lead, Marco Kasper (2-0—2) scored the tying tally – with Patrick Kane (1-1—2) picking up the assist – to set the stage for his own overtime winner as the Red Wings kept their playoff hopes alive. With the victory, Detroit (37-35-7, 81 points) gained ground on Montreal (39-31-9, 87 points) for the final Wild Card spot in the East while Tampa Bay (45-26-8, 98 points) clinched a top-three finish in the Atlantic Division (‘Atlantic 1,’ ‘Atlantic 2’ or ‘Atlantic 3’ playoff berth) by virtue of a point.
* Kasper (21 years, 3 days) became the fourth-youngest player in Red Wings history at the time of his first career overtime goal, behind Steve Yzerman on Oct. 26, 1983 (18 years, 170 days), Lucas Raymond on Nov. 27, 2021 (19 years, 244 days) and Moritz Seider on Nov. 6, 2021 (20 years, 214 days).
CROSBY, MALKIN SPOTLIGHTED IN #NHLSTATS: LIVE UPDATES
The latest edition #NHLStats: Live Updates featured several noteworthy performances from across the five-game slate, including Penguins veterans Sidney Crosby (1-1—2) and Evgeni Malkin (1-1—2) each finding the back of the net, with the former notching the game winner, to help Pittsburgh earn a multi-goal comeback victory.
HOWARD WINS 2025 HOBEY BAKER MEMORIAL AWARD
Michigan State forward Isaac Howard won the 2025 Hobey Baker Memorial Award on Friday as the top men’s player in NCAA ice hockey. Howard, who was selected 31st overall by Tampa Bay in the 2022 NHL Draft, led Michigan State in points this season (26-26—52 in 37 GP) and also played a critical role in the team winning the Big Ten Tournament, scoring the decisive goal in double overtime and being named tournament MVP.
Photo courtesy of @HobeyBakerAward
QUICK CLICKS
* EDGE stats: Miles Wood reaches top skating speed of tracking era
* Alex Ovechkin handed goat by Nicklas Backstrom at NHL career goals celebration
* Penguins, Devils wear special helmet decals in memory of Ray Shero
* Alexander Nikishin signs with Hurricanes, ‘has all the tools’ to succeed in NHL
* Gabriel Landeskog suits up for Colorado Eagles of AHL
WILD CARD RACE TAKES CENTER STAGE ON FINAL SATURDAY OF REGULAR SEASON
The final Saturday of the regular season features the Eastern Conference-leading Capitals (50-19-9, 109 points) clashing with the Wild Card-chasing Blue Jackets (36-33-9, 81 points) in the first game of a doubleheader on ABC, ESPN+ and TVA Sports, followed by the Rangers (37-35-7, 81 points) continuing their hunt for a playoff spot against the Hurricanes (46-27-5, 97 points). Further north, a three-game Hockey Night in Canada features an Original Six showdown between the Maple Leafs (48-26-4, 100 points) and Canadiens (39-31-9, 87 points), the League-leading Jets (54-21-4, 112 points) battling the Blackhawks (23-46-10, 56 points) and the Canucks (37-29-13, 87 points) hosting the Wild (43-30-7, 93 points).
* Two of the League’s highest scoring defensemen, Zach Werenski and Jakob Chychrun, are set to face off Saturday when the Blue Jackets host the Eastern Conference-leading Capitals. Werenski, who alongside Chychrun, is one of three defensemen with 20-plus goals this season and can become the first American blueliner to eclipse that mark since Mathieu Schneider (21) in 2005-06.
* The Hurricanes (30-8-1) lead the League (tied) in home wins this season and will attempt to match their franchise record Saturday, which was set in 2005-06 (31-8-2) en route to the club’s first Stanley Cup. Seth Jarvis (24-18—42 in 37 GP) and Sebastian Aho (16-26—42 in 38 GP) lead all Carolina players in points at home this season with 42 each.
* Kyle Connor (40-54—94 in 79 GP) leads the Jets into Chicago as they continue their pursuit of their first-ever Presidents’ Trophy. Connor, whose 94 points are already the most in a single season in Jets team history, needs only three points to match Marc Savard (97 in 2005-06) for the third most in a campaign in franchise history behind only Marian Hossa (100 in 2006-07) and Ilya Kovalchuk (98 in 2005-06).
* The Maple Leafs enter Saturday with a 9-0-0 record against the Canadiens at Scotiabank Arena dating to April 7, 2021, which is their longest active home win streak versus an opponent. Auston Matthews, who paces Toronto with the most goals, assists (tied) and points over its nine-game home win streak versus Montreal (8-7—15), has recorded a point in 14 straight home contests against the club (16-11—27) – tied with Nikita Kucherov (14 GP vs. BUF) and Patrick Kane (14 GP vs. VAN) for the League’s longest active run versus an opponent.
* Quinn Hughes (16-58—74 in 65 GP), who has the second-most assists (tied) and third-most points among defensemen this season despite having missed 14 contests, will look to record his fourth straight 60-assist campaign when the Canucks host the Wild. The Vancouver captain can become the fourth defenseman in NHL history to record at least that many consecutive 60-assists seasons.
NHL PODCASTS WEEKLY ROUNDUP
100% Hockey with Millard & Shannon (April 11): Ron Francis on the Kraken’s Season, Shane Wright & Remembering Greg Millen
NHL Unscripted with Virk and Demers (April 10): Barrett Hayton’s Utah adventure: Canada will finally bring home the Cup, Demidov’s arrival and DeNiro’s latest
NHL Fantasy on Ice (April 10): Keeper / dynasty preview for 2025-26 and beyond
La Tasse de Café LNH (April 9): Demidov s’amène à Montréal; le record pour Ovechkin
100% Hockey with Millard & Shannon (April 9): Connor Bedard, Rebuild Talk & Chicago’s Future with Kyle Davidson
NHL @TheRink (April 9): Jean-Francois Chaumont joins; Ovechkin breaks goal record, Canadiens playoff push, Trophy tracker
Never Offside with Julie and Cat (April 8): Mandy & Karl Alzner join; Congrats to Alexander Ovechkin
Energy Line with Nate and JSB (April 8): Bruce Boudreau talks Alexander Ovechkin breaking all-time goals record
100% Hockey with Millard & Shannon (April 7): Old-School Stories, Hockey History & Playoff Talk with John Garrett
NHL Fantasy on Ice (April 7): Ovi breaks goal record; fantasy championship round
NHL Schlagschuss (April 7): Episode 21 – Kölzig: „Ovechkin hat mir das beste Geburtstagsgeschenk gemacht“
