Edmonton Oilers forward Connor McDavid had his 117th and 118th points in 2021-22 and broke his personal best for points in a single season.
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The 25-year-old superstar provided assists on the plays of Evander Kane and Leon Draisaitl in a 5-2 loss to the Blue Jackets in Columbus on Sunday afternoon.
McDavid now has 43 goals and 75 assists for 118 points in 78 games. He previously had 116-point campaigns in 2018-19 and 2020-21.
The first-ever pick in the 2015 draft is the National Hockey League’s (NHL) leading scorer so far. He is four points ahead of Florida Panthers forward Jonathan Huberdeau. The Quebecer and his teammates will compete in the 79and game of their season later that night.
Going back to the matchup against the Blue Jackets, the game slipped out of the hands of the Oilers in the third period. Indeed, the crowd favorites hit the target four times in the last period.
Oliver Bjorkstrand first tied the score with his 25th of the season. Moments later, Nick Blankenburg scored the winning net. It was the 23-year-old defenseman’s first NHL goal, playing his sixth career game there.
“It’s a dream come true,” said the young skater during the press conferences following the game. It’s very special to have just scored a goal. I did it at home against Edmonton to take a 3-2 lead with 10 minutes left in the game.
“I feel really good,” said Bjorkstrand, who also provided an assist on Blankenburg’s goal. I was going through a bit of a bad streak. When that happens, I try to keep my game simple and get small wins.
Jack Roslovic and Cole Sillinger confirmed the victory for the Blue Jackets late in the game, while Eric Robinson was the first to register for the club from Ohio.
A costly victory for the “Canes”
The Carolina Hurricanes defeated the New York Islanders 5-2 but lost goaltender Antti Raanta on Sunday at UBS Arena.
The masked man was forced out of the game in the second half after sustaining an injury while making a save. This is very bad news for the “Canes”, who already have to manage without Frederik Andersen. With two games to go in its regular season, the Carolina club could be forced to start the playoffs with young Pyotr Kochetkov in goal.
Coming in relief in Raanta against the “Islands”, the 22-year-old goalkeeper gave in on one of his rivals’ first shots. On the power play, Ryan Pulock tied the game before the end of the second period.
The Hurricanes, via the stick of Max Domi, however, regained the lead in the third period. Forgotten at the mouth of the net, the former Montreal Canadiens benefited from a fine relay from Teuvo Teravainen to thwart Semyon Varlamov.
Derek Stepan and Seth Jarvis had scored the first two goals for the winners, while Jesper Fast and Brendan Smith moved the ropes into an empty net. Ross Johnston also hit the mark on the losers.
The “Canes” now have a date with the Rangers in New York on Tuesday night. These two clubs are still fighting for the first rung in the standings of the Metropolitan section.
The Devils flat
At the Prudential Center, the New Jersey Devils fired just 17 shots and were shut out 3-0 against the Detroit Red Wings.
The crowd favorites had also challenged Alex Nedeljkovic just nine times after two periods. The Wings goaltender took the opportunity to sign his fourth shutout of this campaign. It was also his second shutout in his last five starts.
In front of the Devils cage, Andrew Hammond was foiled by a shot from Oskar Sundqvist in the first period. Tyler Bertuzzi and Michael Rasmussen completed the scoring in a net left empty by a sixth skater late in the game.
Bertuzzi picked up two points in that duel, bringing his tally to 60 this season. It is the first time in his career that he has reached this mark.
Flyers win Battle of Pennsylvania
The Pittsburgh Penguins are having a much better season than the Philadelphia Flyers, but lost 4-1 to arch-rivals Pennsylvania on Sunday at the Wells Fargo Center.
The Pens, who sit third in the Metropolitan Division, were hoping to increase their lead over the Washington Capitals. The Flyers, however, had other plans in mind on Sunday.
Noah Cates was the unexpected hero of this meeting, he who scored his fourth and fifth career goals. This former fifth-round pick has nine points in his first 13 games on the Bettman circuit.
The other big contributor to the Broadstreet Bullies’ win was Martin Jones, who was amazing with 37 saves on 38 pitches.
In his second start of the season and his first since January, Quebec keeper Louis Domingue was excellent in front of the Penguins’ net in the loss. He made 39 parries.
Travis Konecny and Morgan Frost were the other players who managed to deceive his vigilance.
Sidney Crosby provided the reply for the Pittsburgh team at the end of the third period, helped by his usual accomplices Jake Guentzel and Evgeni Malkin.