There were 12 games on the schedule last night in the National Hockey League, so there was plenty of action to watch and analyze.
Without further ado, here are the highlights that attracted the most attention.
1. Marc-André Fleury makes a miraculous save
The Wild are currently in the thick of a playoff battle in the Western Conference, with several teams in the race for the final playoff spots.
Every point is extremely important, and Marc-André Fleury understands this.
True to form, the Quebec goaltender was simply sparkling and spectacular last night for the Wild against the Blue Jackets in Columbus.
With the Wild trailing 3-2 with less than two minutes left in the game, Fleury began to retreat to his bench in favor of a sixth skater.
However, the Blue Jackets quickly regained possession of the puck, forcing Fleury back to his net.
He saved the day in spectacular fashion, robbing Justin Danforth of an empty net.
The action then moved directly to the other end, where Marcus Johansson tied the game for the Wild.
I never want Marc-Andre Fleury to retire pic.twitter.com/GoXsU7blPW
– Charlie Roumeliotis (@CRoumeliotis) January 7, 2024
So thanks to Fleury, instead of trailing by two goals, the Wild found themselves in overtime.
And of course, the Marc-Andre Fleury show wasn’t over, as he made another miraculous save against the Blue Jackets.
On a night where Marc-Andre Fleury tied Patrick Roy for second all-time in goalie wins with No. 551, he’s still pulling off stuff like this.
Just incredible. 🌸 pic.twitter.com/GlsQOJAqvx
– NHL (@NHL) January 7, 2024
And finally, seconds later, Marco Rossi gave the Wild the win.
🚨 ROSSI ENDS IT 🚨
The @mnwild complete the comeback on an @Energizer overtime winner from Marco Rossi! pic.twitter.com/Kp1ixTVTR8
– NHL (@NHL) January 7, 2024
With this victory, Fleury joined Patrick Roy (551 wins) as the second most-winned goaltender in NHL history.
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2. Jonathan Drouin scores his 9ᵉ goal of the season
Jonathan Drouin has been on fire in Colorado for some time now.
He really seems to have settled into this market where the pressure is much less than in Montreal, and that’s clearly helping him.
Last night, he scored his ninth goal of the season, bringing his point total this season to 21 in 38 games.
JONATHAN DROUIN STAYS HOT! 🔥
He’s got 13 points in his last 12 games! pic.twitter.com/y0LSuTTkmq
– NHL (@NHL) January 6, 2024
He has 13 points in his last 12 games, and five points in his last three games.
He’s just eight points shy of matching his point total from last season, despite playing 20 fewer games.
With nine goals already, Drouin is just one shy of the ten he scored in his last three seasons with the Habs.
In short, things are going very well for the Quebecer currently in Colorado, and all the better for it.
Note that the Avalanche lost this game 8-4 to the Florida Panthers, with Sam Reinhart scoring a hat trick.
🐱 Reinhart
🐱 Reinhart
🐱 ReinhartHe has his seventh career hatty!
Hat Trick Challenge presented by @AstraZenecaUS pic.twitter.com/138CLU8UkA
– NHL (@NHL) January 6, 2024
The Panthers forward now has 28 goals and 50 points.
He’s having quite a season.
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3. Zach Hyman puts the Oilers in the playoffs with a hat trick
The Edmonton Oilers are back on track after their horrendous start to the season, and they’re quietly inching closer to the playoffs.
With yesterday’s win over the Ottawa Senators, the Oilers clinched their first playoff berth since the start of the season, and Zach Hyman understood that.
He scored all three of his team’s goals in a 3-1 Oilers victory.
That’s the THIRD hat trick of the season for @ZachHyman! 🔵🟠
Hat Trick Challenge presented by @AstraZenecaUS pic.twitter.com/12wqaUELOI
– NHL (@NHL) January 7, 2024
This is a huge win for the Oilers, who are now in 8ᵉ place in the Western Conference.
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4. Jon Cooper lashes out at Lightning bench referees
The Tampa Bay Lightning aren’t having the incredible season they’ve been accustomed to in recent years.
It’s not horrible, but so far, it’s not enough to cement a playoff spot.
Every point is therefore very important, which makes everyone even more tense, as demonstrated by the following sequence where we see Lightning head coach Jon Cooper getting angry at the referees on the bench.
Jon Cooper was just given a bench minor after the Bruins made it 3-1 😳 pic.twitter.com/Ocq8oA5iWO
– B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) January 7, 2024
In short, the Lightning are struggling this season, and yesterday’s 7-3 loss to the Boston Bruins certainly doesn’t help the situation.
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5. Martin Jones has another strong game for the Leafs
With the injury to Joseph Woll, the Leafs had to rely on Ilya Samsonov in front of their net, which wasn’t a great experience by any means.
Samsonov was sent back to the AHL, so the Leafs had to rely on Martin Jones.
Well, Jones has been having some excellent games since being given the net.
See this post on Instagram
He’s helping the Leafs win games and rack up points by being very solid in front of the net.
Let’s see if that lasts much longer, but for now, Jones seems to be the short-term solution in Toronto.
Extension
– I remind you of this incredible save by Samuel Montembeault in the shootout.
Nice move. Better save.
Sam Montembeault. 😮💨 pic.twitter.com/k8BajLVMTP
– NHL (@NHL) January 7, 2024
– Heavyweight fight in the American League.
Early candidate for FIGHT OF THE YEAR 🥊
An absolute tilt from Boko Imama and Tyrel Bauer 👏 https://t.co/BRJ6qeNcis pic.twitter.com/RZIH89kUyX
– Belleville Senators (@BellevilleSens) January 6, 2024
– Here are all the results from the previous day.
A pair of hat tricks played crucial roles in helping the @FlaPanthers and @EdmontonOilers each extend their win streaks to seven games – the longest active runs in the NHL.#NHLStats: https://t.co/rbZZjjn5TK pic.twitter.com/mDj5WMsGVm
– NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL) January 7, 2024
– Here are the night’s top scorers.
– On today’s NHL schedule: four games.