Tonight's NHL Games

Here's the thing about this back-to-back situation: Detroit just absolutely smoked Washington 5-2 on Saturday night, and now the Caps have to turn around and face the same Red Wings team less than 24 hours later. Moritz Seider was a beast in that first game with a goal and an assist, while Dylan Larkin, James van Riemsdyk, and Alex DeBrincat all found the back of the net. The Wings are clicking right now, sitting atop the Atlantic Division at 20-13-3.

Alex Ovechkin has been productive with 8 points in his last 10 games, including goals in four of Washington's last five road games against Detroit. But here's the problem for the Capitals: their power play is absolutely brutal at 14.85%, ranking 29th in the league. Meanwhile, Detroit's power play is humming at 23.21% with DeBrincat leading the charge with 9 power play goals, tied for second in the NHL. Tom Wilson leads Washington with 34 points, but one player can't carry the load when the special teams are this lopsided.

The Capitals are 19-12-4 and still in good shape in the Metro standings, but back-to-backs against the same team rarely favor the squad that got beaten the night before. Detroit's home ice advantage at Little Caesars Arena gives them the edge here, and Lucas Raymond's playmaking ability (27 assists) creates problems for tired defenders.

This is the premier matchup of the night, folks. Nathan MacKinnon versus Kirill Kaprizov. The two best players in the Central Division going head-to-head. MacKinnon is tied for the NHL points lead with 59 points (28 goals, 31 assists) in just 34 games, and he's been on an absolute tear with at least one assist in each of the Avalanche's last six games. Against Minnesota specifically, MacKinnon has 65 career points in 52 games. The man just owns this matchup.

But don't sleep on the Wild. Kaprizov answered with two goals when these teams met in November, leading Minnesota to a 3-2 shootout victory. He's got 22 goals and 19 assists on the season, and he's been even better at home lately, scoring in eight of his last nine home appearances. Matt Boldy has quietly been one of the best players in the league with 22 goals and 21 assists, giving the Wild a legitimate 1-2 punch that can match Colorado's firepower.

The Avalanche at 25-2-7 with a league-leading +61 goal differential are playing on another level right now. They score 4 goals per game and allow just 2.2. Minnesota's defense is no joke either though, giving up just 2.5 goals per game with a +21 goal differential. The Wild also have the third-most power play goals in the NHL (29) at a 24.17% clip. This is going to be a chess match between two elite teams, and the total of 6.5 reflects just how much offense is expected.

Ottawa has been absolutely on fire lately, winning four of their last five games including a dominant 6-4 victory over Chicago where Tim Stutzle went off for 3 points. Even more impressive? The Senators already beat this Bruins team earlier this season, snapping Boston's seven-game winning streak with a convincing 5-3 win back on November 13th. Stutzle has been outstanding with 36 points (16 goals, 20 assists), and Drake Batherson is right there with him at 32 points (13 goals, 19 assists).

Boston's been struggling, coming off a 5-4 shootout loss at home to Vancouver and sitting just a percentage point outside a playoff spot. David Pastrnak is still producing with 37 points (13 goals, 24 assists), and Morgan Geekie has been a revelation with 25 goals, second only to MacKinnon in the entire NHL. But the Bruins are allowing over 3.10 goals against per game, and that's a problem against Ottawa's potent offense that averages 3.18 goals per game.

The books have Ottawa as slight favorites at -142 on the road, and that tells you everything you need to know about these teams right now. Two of the three meetings between these squads this season have gone over the total, so expect fireworks at TD Garden. The Senators are playing with confidence, and when you combine that with their recent head-to-head success against Boston, Ottawa looks like the play here.

This is a fascinating matchup because both teams are riding momentum into this one. Buffalo just won their fifth straight game, squeaking out a 3-2 shootout victory over the Islanders on Saturday. That win moved them to two games above .500 for the first time since the end of the 2022-23 season. Tage Thompson has been absolutely unconscious, racking up 10 points (6 goals, 4 assists) in his last nine games, including goals in six consecutive games, tying a career high. He leads the team with 30 points.

But here's the headline for New Jersey: Jack Hughes is back. After missing six weeks with an injury, Hughes returns to the lineup tonight alongside Timo Meier and Arseny Gritsyuk. Hughes himself said it could have been season-ending, so this is huge news for a Devils team that's already won four of their last six games. New Jersey has climbed back into a playoff spot with 41 points and holds the final Wild Card position in the East.

The Devils' goaltending has been stellar lately. Jake Allen and Jacob Markstrom have allowed just five goals total in the last four games. Allen stopped 30-of-31 in a win over Anaheim and 36-of-37 in a shootout win at Vegas. However, New Jersey's penalty kill has been a weakness in December at just 56%, so Buffalo's heating-up power play might catch them at the right time. The Devils are 7-3 in their last 10 against Buffalo, but with Hughes returning and Thompson on fire, this one feels like a coin flip.

This is the back half of a home-and-home set, with these two teams meeting Saturday night in Montreal. The Canadiens have been the surprise team in the East, sitting tied for second in the Atlantic Division just one point behind Detroit. Montreal has won six of their last 10 games including two straight, and they've already beaten Pittsburgh twice this season by scores of 4-0 and 4-2. Nick Suzuki is putting together a breakout campaign with 40 points (10 goals, 30 assists), while Cole Caufield leads the team with 17 goals.

Pittsburgh, on the other hand, is in freefall. The Penguins have lost their last 8 games and 14 of their last 20. That's catastrophic for a team with Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin on the roster. Speaking of Crosby, he sits just one point shy of tying Mario Lemieux's franchise record of 1,723 points. He's got 35 points (19 goals, 16 assists) this season, but the supporting cast just isn't holding up. Malkin, Blake Lizotte, and Seth Jones are all out with injuries, making this an even steeper climb.

Here's the interesting wrinkle: Pittsburgh's power play is cooking at 29.47%, third-best in the league, and Montreal's power play is fourth at 26.32%. So discipline is going to be huge in this one. The Pens historically dominate the Canadiens at home (11-1-3 in Montreal dating back to 2014), but that was a different Pittsburgh team. With the Habs' momentum and the Penguins' injury-depleted roster, Montreal should sweep this home-and-home set.

Both of these teams are coming off wins last night and looking to build on some positive momentum. The Rangers squeaked out a 5-4 shootout victory over the Flyers for their second straight win, though it's worth noting that their last three victories have all required at least overtime. Nashville got back in the win column with a convincing 5-3 win over Toronto on Saturday, with the Preds averaging four goals per game over their last five outings.

Artemi Panarin leads the Rangers with 13 goals and 36 points, while Mika Zibanejad has 12 goals and 27 points. Igor Shesterkin has been solid in net at 15-11-3 with a 2.54 GAA and .908 save percentage. The big concern is the injury bug that's hit New York hard. Adam Fox is out with an upper body injury, and that's a massive blow to their blue line. For Nashville, Ryan O'Reilly leads the scoring charge with 28 points (10 goals, 18 assists), while Filip Forsberg has 27 points (15 goals, 12 assists).

The historical matchup slightly favors New York, with Nashville going 2-3-0 in the last five meetings at home. In November, Alexis Lafreniere had three points in a 6-3 Rangers win over Nashville. Juuse Saros has struggled a bit this season at 12-11-3 with a 2.95 GAA, while Jonathan Marchessault remains out for the Preds. With both teams on back-to-backs, fatigue could be a factor, but the Rangers have the edge in depth and goaltending.

This is a brutal spot for Toronto. The Leafs are on the second night of a back-to-back after losing 5-3 to Nashville on Saturday, and now they have to walk into the American Airlines Center against the hottest team in the Central Division. Dallas just obliterated Anaheim 8-3 on Friday, scoring four goals in the first period and never looking back. Jason Robertson led the way with three points (two goals, one assist), and the Stars have won three straight to improve to 24-7-5.

Look at that line: Dallas -218. The books are basically saying this isn't even close, and honestly, it's hard to argue. Toronto ranks 31st in defensive zone time, meaning they simply cannot get the puck out of their own end. On Saturday, a tying goal in the final seconds of the second period crushed their momentum, and they collapsed in the third. The Leafs are 5-10-0 on the road this season. That's atrocious for a team with Auston Matthews and William Nylander on the roster.

Matthews has been in a funk lately, going -6 over his last two games, though he has recorded at least one point in 12 straight meetings against Dallas. The problem is Dallas is averaging 3.47 goals per game with Mikko Rantanen and Robertson controlling possession. This is the first meeting between these teams this season, and unless Toronto gets a miracle performance from their goaltender, the Stars should roll at home.

Winnipeg has hit a rough patch, and the timing couldn't be worse. The Jets have won just one of their last five games, including back-to-back one-goal losses to St. Louis (1-0) and Colorado (3-2). At 15-17-2, this is not where anyone expected the Jets to be at this point in the season. Connor Hellebuyck remains one of the NHL's most reliable goaltenders, but even he can't single-handedly carry an offense that's gone cold. Kyle Connor and Mark Scheifele continue to produce in 5-on-5 situations, but the secondary scoring has disappeared.

Utah, meanwhile, has been quietly solid at 17-17-3, winning three of their last five games despite playing without young star center Logan Cooley. JJ Peterka has been a revelation on the top line, and Mikhail Sergachev anchors the defense as the number one blueliner. The Mammoth are favorites at home at -122, which tells you the books see value in Utah's aggressive forechecking style against a Winnipeg team that prefers to play a patient, counter-attacking game.

This is a clash of styles that could go either way. Utah likes to push the pace and pressure with their forecheck, while Winnipeg is more methodical. The Jets came in after a tough loss to the Avalanche, so fatigue and frustration could be factors. Utah is fighting hard for a Central Division playoff spot and has the home crowd behind them at Delta Center.

This is the nightcap of the evening, and it's a rematch of last season's Western Conference Second Round, where Edmonton eliminated Vegas in five games. The rivalry between these two Pacific Division contenders has only intensified, and now Mitch Marner is wearing a Golden Knights sweater after being traded to Vegas over the summer. Talk about adding fuel to the fire. Marner has contributed 6 goals and 26 assists since joining Vegas, while Jack Eichel leads the team with 12 goals and 29 assists.

Connor McDavid is doing Connor McDavid things, leading Edmonton with 22 goals and extending his point streak to nine games (23 points: 11 goals, 12 assists). Leon Draisaitl has 33 assists, and Evan Bouchard has 91 shots on goal. The Oilers have been rolling lately, going 6-1-1 in their last eight games with road wins over Pittsburgh (6-4) and Boston (3-1). Edmonton's power play is lethal at 31.9%, second-best in the league.

Both teams are on the second night of back-to-backs, so fatigue could be a factor. Vegas is coming off a 6-3 loss to Calgary on Saturday but is still 6-2-2 in their last 10 and just two points behind Anaheim for the Pacific Division lead with three games in hand. The books have Edmonton as favorites at -135, giving them about 59% win probability. With Rogers Place rocking and McDavid on a heater, this should be an electric finish to the NHL slate.