NHL Previews

It will be a matchup of teams desperately needing a win when the Calgary Flames play host to the Ottawa Senators on Tuesday. While the Senators sit last in the Eastern Conference having lost four of their past five games, the Flames return home after a humbling 4-3 loss to the Chicago Blackhawks on Sunday to end a four-game road trip. Calgary, which is on a two-game skid after dropping weekend afternoon games on consecutive

Streakiness continues to define the Edmonton Oilers this season, only lately, it’s for the good. Edmonton, which fired coach Jay Woodcroft in November and slumped through skids of four, four and three games before Thanksgiving, is rolling now. The Oilers have won seven in a row entering Tuesday’s visit to the Chicago Blackhawks to vault back into the Western Conference playoff race. A victory will match the club’s longest winning streak this season (eight games,

The Winnipeg Jets will look to stay red-hot when they host the Columbus Blue Jackets on Tuesday night. The Jets enter the game on a torrid pace and setting franchise records, currently rolling through a six-game winning streak and a 12-game points streak. Center Mark Scheifele cannot find many negatives in his team’s play as it sits atop the NHL standings with 56 points entering Monday, two points ahead and holding the tiebreaker on the

The Florida Panthers cruise into St. Louis with a seven-game winning streak and considerable offensive momentum. “When you can get on a roll like this, it takes some pressure off some other times throughout the season when it’s not going well,” Panthers winger Sam Reinhart said. “I think we were kind of struggling a bit, both mentally and physically through the grind, kind of getting back from those two long road trips in December. It

Toronto Maple Leafs forward William Nylander will be a wealthier man when he takes the ice Tuesday night against the visiting San Jose Sharks. The Maple Leafs announced Monday that Nylander has signed an eight-year, $92 million contract extension with the team. Nylander had two goals and an assist Saturday when the Maple Leafs defeated the Sharks 4-1 in San Jose. Nylander has 21 goals and 33 assists for a team-high 54 points this season.

After failing to take advantage of one of their longest homestands in franchise history, the Anaheim Ducks will kick off a difficult six-game road trip beginning Tuesday night against the Nashville Predators. The Ducks went 1-6-1 on the recently concluded homestand, which tied for the second-longest in team history. They were held to two goals or fewer in those seven losses, dropping them to 0-21-1 this season when failing to score at least three goals.

At their season’s midpoint, the Tampa Bay Lightning find themselves in the curious position of possibly playing golf in April instead of competing for a fourth Stanley Cup. When they play the Los Angeles Kings on Tuesday night to open a four-game homestand, the Lightning will be looking for a positive change to the season’s direction. Through 41 games, the Lightning continue to underachieve, especially considering their elite standard. Over the first half of last

Last January, the Seattle Kraken became the first NHL team to ever sweep a seven-game road trip. The Kraken won’t be able to match that this year as their Eastern swing, which begins Tuesday in Buffalo, lasts only six games. But the Kraken are certainly headed in the right direction as they hit the road, having won six consecutive games and earning points in a franchise-record 10 straight (8-0-2). “I’m happy to just keep this

The Colorado Avalanche are in the midst of a tough portion of their schedule, and they passed the first two tests with comeback overtime wins over the New York Islanders and Dallas Stars. They failed miserably against a hot Florida Panthers team on Saturday. Next up are the Boston Bruins, who are tied for the most points in the Eastern Conference, on Monday night in Denver. Colorado is 7-2-1 in its last 10 games but