NHL Recaps: Sunday, Dec 31, 2023

9 games: what happened that matters for your fantasy team, built from the play-by-play and shift charts.

Game recaps

Final

Full report

Winnipeg Jets

Minnesota Wild

Winnipeg Jets edge Minnesota Wild 3–2

Winnipeg Jets beat Minnesota Wild 3–2 at MIN. Frederick Gaudreau (MIN) led the scoring with 1G 1A. New look for MIN: Johansson–Eriksson Ek–Boldy skated 12:58 together at 5v5 as the L1 trio (70% of the shot attempts), a combination not used in the team's last 5 games.

•Frederick Gaudreau had a goal and an assist (2 points) on 3 shots in 13:43.
•New look for MIN: Johansson–Eriksson Ek–Boldy skated 12:58 together at 5v5 as the L1 trio (70% of the shot attempts), a combination not used in the team's last 5 games.
•New look for MIN: Hartman–Petan–Rossi skated 10:24 together at 5v5 as the L2 trio (54.2% of the shot attempts), a combination not used in the team's last 5 games.

Full report: shot map, shifts, lines, box score →

Boston Bruins beat Detroit Red Wings 5–3

Boston Bruins beat Detroit Red Wings 5–3 at DET. Trent Frederic (BOS) led the scoring with 2G 1A. New look for BOS: Heinen–Frederic–Merkulov skated 5:02 together at 5v5 as the L3 trio (44.4% of the shot attempts), a combination not used in the team's last 5 games.

•Trent Frederic had two goals and an assist (3 points) on 2 shots in 15:51.
•Charlie McAvoy had 3 assists (3 points) on 1 shot in 24:08.
•David Pastrnak had 2 assists (2 points) on 4 shots in 19:46.

Full report: shot map, shifts, lines, box score →

Ottawa Senators rout Buffalo Sabres 5–1

Ottawa Senators beat Buffalo Sabres 5–1 at home. Thomas Chabot (OTT) led the scoring with 0G 2A. Anton Forsberg (OTT) faced 46 shots and stopped 45 (.978), +21 against a season average of 25.5; the win.

•Thomas Chabot had 2 assists (2 points) on 2 shots in 21:01.
•Anton Forsberg (OTT) faced 46 shots and stopped 45 (.978), +21 against a season average of 25.5; the win.
•Zack MacEwen (OTT) played 11:31, +5:18 up on his 6:13 season average over 29 games.

Full report: shot map, shifts, lines, box score →

Pittsburgh Penguins beat New York Islanders 3–1

Pittsburgh Penguins beat New York Islanders 3–1 at home. Lars Eller (PIT) led the scoring with 2G 0A. New look for NYI: Palmieri–Nelson–Fasching skated 11:25 together at 5v5 as the L1 trio (44% of the shot attempts), a combination not used in the team's last 5 games.

•Lars Eller had two goals (2 points) on 2 shots in 14:41.
•New look for NYI: Palmieri–Nelson–Fasching skated 11:25 together at 5v5 as the L1 trio (44% of the shot attempts), a combination not used in the team's last 5 games.
•Alex Nedeljkovic (PIT) faced 38 shots and stopped 37 (.974), +11 against a season average of 27.3; the win.

Full report: shot map, shifts, lines, box score →

Tampa Bay Lightning edge Montreal Canadiens 4–3

Tampa Bay Lightning beat Montreal Canadiens 4–3 at home. Nikita Kucherov (TBL) led the scoring with 1G 1A. Erik Cernak (TBL) played 6:39, −12:43 down on his 19:22 season average over 68 games.

•Nikita Kucherov had a goal and an assist (2 points) on 3 shots in 25:05.
•Victor Hedman had 2 assists (2 points) on 3 shots in 29:52.
•Erik Cernak (TBL) played 6:39, −12:43 down on his 19:22 season average over 68 games.

Full report: shot map, shifts, lines, box score →

Edmonton Oilers rout Anaheim Ducks 7–2

Edmonton Oilers beat Anaheim Ducks 7–2 at ANA. Warren Foegele (EDM) led the scoring with 2G 3A. New look for ANA: Killorn–Vatrano–McTavish skated 10:36 together at 5v5 as the L1 trio (51.9% of the shot attempts), a combination not used in the team's last 5 games.

•Warren Foegele had two goals and 3 assists (5 points) on 6 shots in 15:13.
•Leon Draisaitl had a goal and 2 assists (3 points) on 4 shots in 16:42.
•Ryan McLeod had a goal and an assist (2 points) on 2 shots in 15:54.

Full report: shot map, shifts, lines, box score →

Calgary Flames edge Philadelphia Flyers 4–3

Calgary Flames beat Philadelphia Flyers 4–3 at home. Andrew Mangiapane (CGY) led the scoring with 0G 3A. New look for CGY: Backlund–Coleman–Mangiapane skated 12:13 together at 5v5 as the L1 trio (50% of the shot attempts), a combination not used in the team's last 5 games.

•Andrew Mangiapane had 3 assists (3 points) on 1 shot in 17:38.
•Blake Coleman had a goal and an assist (2 points) on 2 shots in 20:34.
•Dennis Gilbert had a goal and an assist (2 points) on 3 shots in 13:52.

Full report: shot map, shifts, lines, box score →

Colorado Avalanche beat San Jose Sharks 3–1

Colorado Avalanche beat San Jose Sharks 3–1 at home. Valeri Nichushkin (COL) led the scoring with 1G 1A. COL's first power-play unit (MacKinnon, Drouin, Nichushkin, Rantanen and Makar) scored 1 power-play goal on 14 attempts in 5:39 together.

•Valeri Nichushkin had a goal and an assist (2 points) on 4 shots in 22:59.
•Nathan MacKinnon had 2 assists (2 points) on 3 shots in 25:50.
•COL's first power-play unit (MacKinnon, Drouin, Nichushkin, Rantanen and Makar) scored 1 power-play goal on 14 attempts in 5:39 together.

Full report: shot map, shifts, lines, box score →

Dallas Stars rout Chicago Blackhawks 8–1

Dallas Stars beat Chicago Blackhawks 8–1 at home. Mason Marchment (DAL) led the scoring with 3G 1A.

•Mason Marchment had a hat trick and an assist (4 points) on 5 shots in 15:36.
•Tyler Seguin had a goal and 2 assists (3 points) on 6 shots in 14:57.
•Sam Steel had a goal and an assist (2 points) on 2 shots in 16:09.

Full report: shot map, shifts, lines, box score →

Goal of the night

The hardest tracked shot of the night: Zack MacEwen for OTT vs BUF, 85.7 mph. Full game report →

Zack MacEwen (OTT vs BUF): Rush, carried in, 2 passes, 85.7 mph shot.

Top performers

Player	Game	G	A	P	SOG	Hits	Blk	TOI	PP
Warren Foegele EDM	at ANA	2	3	5	6	2	0	15:13	—
Mason Marchment DAL	vs CHI	3	1	4	5	0	0	15:36	—
Trent Frederic BOS	at DET	2	1	3	2	1	1	15:51	—
Tyler Seguin DAL	vs CHI	1	2	3	6	0	1	14:57	—
Leon Draisaitl EDM	at ANA	1	2	3	4	0	0	16:42	—
Andrew Mangiapane CGY	vs PHI	0	3	3	1	1	1	17:38	—
Charlie McAvoy BOS	at DET	0	3	3	1	1	0	24:08	—
Lars Eller PIT	vs NYI	2	0	2	2	2	1	14:41	—
Valeri Nichushkin COL	vs SJS	1	1	2	4	0	1	22:59	—
Frederick Gaudreau MIN	vs WPG	1	1	2	3	2	1	13:43	—
Nikita Kucherov TBL	vs MTL	1	1	2	3	2	1	25:05	—
Dennis Gilbert CGY	vs PHI	1	1	2	3	1	2	13:52	—

Line changes

New look for MIN: Johansson–Eriksson Ek–Boldy skated 12:58 together at 5v5 as the L1 trio (70% of the shot attempts), a combination not used in the team's last 5 games. Report →
New look for MIN: Hartman–Petan–Rossi skated 10:24 together at 5v5 as the L2 trio (54.2% of the shot attempts), a combination not used in the team's last 5 games. Report →
New look for MIN: Duhaime–Dewar–Lucchini skated 8:39 together at 5v5 as the L4 trio (45% of the shot attempts), a combination not used in the team's last 5 games. Report →
New look for BOS: Heinen–Frederic–Merkulov skated 5:02 together at 5v5 as the L3 trio (44.4% of the shot attempts), a combination not used in the team's last 5 games. Report →
New look for BUF: Okposo–Girgensons–Krebs skated 4:57 together at 5v5 as the L4 trio (78.6% of the shot attempts), a combination not used in the team's last 5 games. Report →
New look for NYI: Palmieri–Nelson–Fasching skated 11:25 together at 5v5 as the L1 trio (44% of the shot attempts), a combination not used in the team's last 5 games. Report →
New look for NYI: Clutterbuck–Martin–Cizikas skated 6:05 together at 5v5 as the L4 trio (61.5% of the shot attempts), a combination not used in the team's last 5 games. Report →
New look for MTL: Gallagher–Anderson–Evans skated 6:22 together at 5v5 as the L2 trio (47.1% of the shot attempts), a combination not used in the team's last 5 games. Report →
New look for ANA: Killorn–Vatrano–McTavish skated 10:36 together at 5v5 as the L1 trio (51.9% of the shot attempts), a combination not used in the team's last 5 games. Report →
New look for CGY: Backlund–Coleman–Mangiapane skated 12:13 together at 5v5 as the L1 trio (50% of the shot attempts), a combination not used in the team's last 5 games. Report →
New look for SJS: Kunin–Studnicka–Barabanov skated 8:57 together at 5v5 as the L2 trio (40% of the shot attempts), a combination not used in the team's last 5 games. Report →

Goalie notes

Goalie	Game	Dec	SA	GA	SV%
Anton Forsberg OTT	vs BUF	W	46	1	.978
John Gibson ANA	vs EDM	L	39	7	.821
Alex Nedeljkovic PIT	vs NYI	W	38	1	.974
Ilya Sorokin NYI	at PIT	L	37	2	.946
Samuel Ersson PHI	at CGY	L	32	3	.906
Kaapo Kahkonen SJS	at COL	L	32	2	.938
Jacob Markstrom CGY	vs PHI	W	31	3	.903
Petr Mrazek CHI	at DAL	L	31	6	.806
Jeremy Swayman BOS	at DET	W	30	3	.900
Devon Levi BUF	at OTT	L	30	4	.867
Calvin Pickard EDM	at ANA	W	30	2	.933
Marc-Andre Fleury MIN	vs WPG	L	29	3	.897
Jonas Johansson TBL	vs MTL	W	29	3	.897
Laurent Brossoit WPG	at MIN	W	26	2	.923
Scott Wedgewood DAL	vs CHI	W	24	1	.958
Alex Lyon DET	vs BOS	L	22	3	.864
Samuel Montembeault MTL	at TBL	L	20	4	.800
Alexandar Georgiev COL	vs SJS	W	11	1	.909
Arvid Soderblom CHI	at DAL	—	10	2	.800

Next up: tonight's starting goalies, today's line combinations and today's games. Takeaways are generated from the numbers with fixed rules; nothing is written by a language model.