* A trio of goaltenders helped their teams to wins on Monday, including Andrei Vasilevskiy, who shut out the darting Mammoth to help the Lightning back to first place in the Eastern Conference standings.
* A Tuesday with 10 games will be the Stars And Blues on ESPN+ and the second of four episodes of the Foligno Face-Off as Nick Foligno and the Blackhawks visit Marcus Foligno and the Wild.
EKHOLM’S HATTRICK, DEFENSE COMMAND VIOLATION OILERS TO VICTORY
Just two days later Evan Bouchardthe historic six-point night, Matthias Ekholm (3-0-3) scored his first career hat trick Darnell nurse (1-0-1) and Spencer Stastney (1-0-1) also found the back of the net from the blue line to score the Oil squirters to victory. The trio scored four consecutive goals in a span of 3:49 during the middle frame, marking the fastest four goals by defensemen in NHL history.
* The Oil squirters was responsible for the sixth time in NHL history in which defensemen scored four goals in a period, and the first since the Blues on November 29, 2000. It was also the third time that defensemen scored four consecutive goals, following an earlier instance of the Oil squirters (March 31, 1985) and the Flyers (March 4, 1972).
* Ekholm and Mikael Granlundwho had his own three-goal performance for the Ducksrecorded January’s 26th and 27th hat-trick. There have only been three other months in NHL history with as many: December 1985 (29), February 1981 (28) and December 1981 (27). The Oil squirters recorded a hat trick in consecutive regular season games for the first time since March 20-22, 1995, while the Ducks also did so for the second time in franchise history, after January 8-10, 2012.
EASTERN CONFERENCE COAL TENDERS GO BIG ON MONDAY NIGHT
Andrei Vasilevskiy, Jonathan Snel And Ilya Sorokin each played a crucial role in helping their respective teams to victory during Monday’s four games:
* Nikita Kucherov both of Tampa Bay’s goals were taken into account reach the 80 point mark and Vasilevskiy saved all 28 shots he faced to win the Lightning (33-14-4, 70 points) held off the streaking Mammoth and returned to first place in the Eastern Conference. Vasilevskiy, who on Monday topped the elite list of goaltenders born outside North America, can also join a short list of netminders to win each of their first two career outdoor appearances when the Lightning take over the Browns in the 2026 Navy Federal Credit Union NHL Stadium Series on Sunday, February 1. More comments on that can be found here.
* After Will Borgen (1-0-1) pulled the Rangers even their goaltender in the third period Fast (0-1—1) installation Matthew Robertson (1-0-1) in overtime to lift New York to a comeback victory at Madison Square Garden. Quick, who made 21 saves, earned his 408th career win and surpassed Glenn Hall for exclusive possession of 12th on the League’s all-time list among goaltenders.
* Sorokin stopped all 21 shots he faced to record his third shutout of January and sixth of the season – one fewer than the Islanders record for the the most in a campaign. The Islanders have recorded a league-leading eight shutouts in the 2025-26 season. The only seasons where they have booked more are 2018/19 (11), 2020/21 (10), 1975/76 (10) and 2021/22 (9).
PASTRNAK’S MILESTONE MENTIONED IN #NHLSTATS: LIVE UPDATES
The Monday edition of #NHLStats: live updates put a milestone evening in the spotlight David Pastrnak (0-3-3), which is the sixth player in Browns history to reach 900 career points and the second fastest of that cohort (412-488-900 in 804 GP). Pastrnak, who will represent Team Czech Republic at the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, was also named the third Czech player in NHL history to record 900 career points, next Jaromir Jagr And Patrick Elias.
QUICK CLICKS
* Kirill Kaprizov, Nikita Kucherov and Lukas Dostal called NHL’s “Three Stars” of the week
* Rogers unveils final design for ‘Great Canadian Jersey’
* Auston Matthew says the US has what it takes to win gold at the 2026 Winter Olympics
* Macklin Celebrini which makes it look easy Sharks in the 2nd NHL season
* William Nylander of Maple Leafs fined for inappropriate gesture
STARS, BLUES CLASH ON ESPN+ AS PART OF 10-GAME TUESDAY
A 10-game Tuesday will feature a number of Central Division matchups, including the Stars And Blues on ESPN+ and the second of four episodes of the Foligno Face-Off when Nick Foligno and the Blackhawks visit Marcus Foligno and the Wild.
* Mikko Rantanen (19-44-63 in 49 GP), who is just over two weeks away from representing his country at the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, falls one goal short of the equalizer on Tuesday I am Sebastian (9) for the fourth most twenty-goal season by a Finnish player in NHL history, behind Teemu Selanne (17), Jari Kurri (13) And Alexander Barkov (10). The match between the Stars And Blues will also feature the final head-to-head showdown Thomas Harley, Colton Parayko And Jordan Binningtonall of whom will represent Team Canada in Italy after winning the 4 Nations Face-Off together.
* Marcus and Nick are proud Hockey fights cancer champions and turn their sibling rivalry into a season-long showdown for life-saving breast cancer research in honor of their late mother Janis Folignowho they lost to breast cancer. Fans can participate in the Foligno Face-Off and donate $17, or any amount, to v.org/FolignoFaceoff. 100% of donations go to groundbreaking breast cancer research supported by the V Foundation for Cancer Research, so every dollar contributes to a future with more survivors and fewer families affected by this disease.
#NHLSTATS MEMOS TO MILAN: YOUNG CANADIANS TO BOOM IN TOURNAMENT OPENER
With the opening game of the men’s hockey tournament at the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics just over two weeks away, #NHLStats takes a look at some of the NHL players who will take the ice in the first game – a matchup between medalists from the 2022 Games.
* Juraj Slafkovskynow one goal shy of his second 20-goal NHL season, was just 17 years old when he claimed tournament MVP, Best Forward and a spot on the All-Star Team at the 2022 Winter Olympics. Slafkovsky led the event in goals (7) and points (7; tie), totals including the bronze goal that gave Team Slovakia its first medal of any color in Olympic ice hockey. Four months later, Slafkovsky became the highest NHL Draft pick in that country’s history (No. 1).
* Slafkovsky will face NHL teammate Oliver Kapanenwho is about to become the first rookie to win the Canadians at the Winter Olympics, where he aims to help Team Finland defend its 2022 gold medal. Defender Yannick Weber played five games for Montreal in 2009-10, but was in the AHL in the weeks leading up to donning the Team Switzerland jersey in Vancouver.
* Kapanen is the youngest player on Team Finland’s roster, but not the youngest Canadians player heading into the event as Slafkovsky has him beat on that list.
*The NHL debuted a series of pages later Records.NHL.com which provide statistics and information on the League’s participation in the Winter Olympic Games ahead of February’s tournament in Milano Cortina, Italy. Click here for more information.
Related
#NHL #Recap #January #Pro #Hockey #News