As Nikita Kucherov crossed the blue line along the right wing and collected a pass from Victor Hedman, he surveyed the ice in front of him. And like few players can, he made a remarkably difficult play look simple while leaving an entire arena astonished.

Kucherov scored a goal Saturday in a 3-2 overtime loss to New Jersey.

All these years later, the descriptions practically write themselves. Brayden Point? He glides. Nikita Kucherov? He creates. Anthony Cirelli? He bleeds. Those are all compliments, by the way. Shorthand for a signature style of play.

Connor McDavid gets tangled with Conor Garland, and McDavid delivers a cross-check to the head that gets him sent off with seconds remaining.

McDavid scored a power-play goal in Tuesday's 4-0 win over Boston. McDavid was sent in on a breakaway and made a couple quick moves before snapping it on his forehand past Jeremy Swayman. It was his first goal in eight games and first point in three.

We are firmly into the second half with a neck-and-neck-and-neck race for the top of the fantasy podium. Connor Hellebuyck will surely start getting some additional rest later in the season, so ...

We are one month away from Sidney Crosby and Connor McDavid sharing the ice as teammates for the first time at the 4 Nations Face-Off but before we get to that, the two best players in the world will go head-to-head again Thursday night on Sportsnet.

Konecny has been on a steady rise. He has led the Flyers in scoring each of the last three seasons and four of the past five. An All-Star last February, he finished the 2023-24 season with a career high in goals (33) and points (68), and he’s on pace to shatter his best numbers with 35 goals, 59 assists and 94 points this year.

Saturday’s game between the Toronto Maple Leafs and Montreal Canadiens provided hockey fans with one of the more exciting games of the season, while giving both fan bases a free ride on an emotional roller coaster.

Patrik Laine scored the overtime winner to help the Canadiens outlast the Rangers while rookies Lane Hutson and Jakub Dobes put their names on notable all-time lists. \* The Senators and Stars each extended lengthy streaks to improve their positioning in their respective playoff races.

Isn’t this it for Mark Shapiro and Ross Atkins, champions of lost chases in the free-agent world of baseball? Isn’t this it, after last season’s disaster, after the previous season’s playoff blunder,