Kyle Cushman

Columbus Blue Jackets forward Sean Monahan had a difficult time navigating the emotions of the team's home opener on Tuesday."It's hard, to be honest," Monahan, a longtime friend of Johnny Gaudreau, said postgame.The Blue Jackets and visiting Florida Panthers ran 13 seconds off the clock to commence the contest, representing Johnny's jersey number. Monahan took the opening faceoff as one of four skaters on the ice, with Gaudreau's spot on the wing left vacant."It was a special, special moment that I'll remember forever," Monahan added. The puck was dropped on the @BlueJacketsNHL's home opener with a spot vacant on left wing and a 13-second pause in play in honor of Johnny Gaudreau. 💙❤️ pic.twitter/nV5Uef7m7g— NHL (@NHL) October 15, 2024 Blue Jackets head coach Dean Evason was also moved by the moment."I didn't know they were gonna shoot the puck over there and put it right where Johnny would've been," Evason said. "As soon as that happened, I think it hit everybody. Hit me, 'cause then you kinda visualize him standing there, right? ... What a fantastic gesture. I don't know, I'm sure (Monahan) set that up."Panthers defenseman Adam Boqvist was teammates with Gaudreau last season in Columbus and was similarly moved by the tributes."When I saw Meredith and the kids, my old teammates out there, it was pretty hard actually," he said, according to team reporter Jameson Olive. "I think they did a beautiful ceremony. Johnny is one of the best teammates I've ever had. It's hard, but they're strong, the Gaudreau family."The start of the game was one of multiple ways the Blue Jackets and Panthers remembered the lives of the Gaudreau brothers. View more of the pregame tributes here.In the second period, Monahan scored his first goal at home with Columbus. He pointed to Gaudreau's banner in celebration. SEAN MONAHAN SCORES!And he immediately points to the banner honoring Johnny Gaudreau. ❤️💙 pic.twitter/ADQVSIXESp— NHL (@NHL) October 16, 2024 "I felt like Johnny was watching down on us today," Monahan said. "I had a feeling I was gonna get one. Fortunately enough, I did. We lost, which sucks, but I definitely could feel John today."Evason praised his team for their performance despite his team's loss."The players handled it exceptionally well," Evason said. "Man, it was tough, and I can't imagine knowing (Gaudreau) as well as they did. And to handle how they handled it, then to go play a game against the Stanley Cup champions and play that game very well. Would we want the two points? Of course. But very proud of our team."Johnny and Matthew Gaudreau were killed by a suspected drunk driver while riding bicycles in their home state of New Jersey on Aug. 29, the night before their sister Katie's wedding.

The Calgary Flames are off to a perfect 4-0 start and are looking to bolster their roster.General manager Craig Conroy has been talking to teams in recent days in search of a middle-six center, Daily Faceoff's Frank Seravalli reported on Prime Video's Coast to Coast.The Flames prefer a right-handed player who fits with the team's age, Seravalli adds.Nazem Kadri, Mikael Backlund, Martin Pospisil, and Justin Kirkland were Calgary's centers in their 3-1 win against the Chicago Blackhawks on Tuesday. All four are left-handed.Calgary was expected to be a bottom-feeder coming into the campaign. The Flames have dealt forwards Elias Lindholm and Andrew Mangiapane, defensemen Noah Hanifin, Chris Tanev, and Nikita Zadorov, and goaltender Jacob Markstrom in the past year.The Flames are the only 4-0 team in the NHL and are one of three teams that are still undefeated, alongside the 3-0 Tampa Bay Lightning and Winnipeg Jets.Rookie forward Samuel Honzek is out week-to-week after sustaining an upper-body injury Tuesday.Calgary has almost $19 million of cap space, according to PuckPedia.

Bobrovsky surpasses Lundqvist as fastest goalie to 400 career wins

Sergei Bobrovsky made history Thursday, becoming the fastest goaltender to reach 400 career wins with the Florida Panthers' 3-1 victory against the New York Rangers.Bobrovsky accomplished the feat in his 707th contest, surpassing Rangers legend Henrik Lundqvist, who needed 727 games to reach the milestone.Bobrovsky is also the first Russian goaltender to reach the mark. He passed Evgeni Nabokov to become the nation's all-time winningest goaltender in 2023.The victory is Bobrovsky's 145th with Florida. He accrued 213 wins with the Columbus Blue Jackets and 42 with the Philadelphia Flyers.The Flyers signed Bobrovsky as an undrafted free agent in May 2010. He's a two-time winner of the Vezina Trophy, claiming the award in 2013 and 2017 during his time with the Blue Jackets.Bobrovsky inked a seven-year, $70-million contract with the Panthers in 2019 as an unrestricted free agent.

Marcus Foligno called out Garnet Hathaway after the Minnesota Wild lost 7-5 to the Philadelphia Flyers in a heated game on Saturday.Hathaway was assessed a roughing penalty early in the second period after he elbowed Joel Eriksson Ek, who recently underwent surgery to repair a broken nose and was using a normal visor, not a cage or a full face shield.Foligno said it's "what (Hathaway) has to do to stay relevant in this league," according to The Athletic's Michael Russo.Hathaway was handed another roughing penalty after he chopped down Mats Zuccarello late in the third period. Zuccarello was furious and went after Scott Laughton, taking a roughing penalty himself and negating a Minnesota power play.Foligno said it was "bullshit" that the referees didn't assess an extra penalty to the Flyers, according to Russo. Minnesota was down 6-5 at the time.Hathaway has three assists and 14 penalty minutes in eight contests this season. The 32-year-old recorded seven goals and 17 points last year while playing the full 82-game slate. His 132 penalty minutes ranked fourth league-wide.Foligno scored 10 goals and 22 points in 55 contests last season and had 59 penalty minutes. The 33-year-old has two goals and three points through eight games this season and only four penalty minutes. He netted Minnesota's second goal against Philadelphia.The Wild and Flyers next play on Dec. 14.

Edmonton Oilers superstar Connor McDavid won't return against the Columbus Blue Jackets due to a lower-body injury, the team announced.McDavid played only 37 seconds. He exited after an awkward fall on his first shift. connor mcdavid took the ice for the opening faceoff, was tripped and his shift lasted just 37 seconds. there’s now seven minutes left in the first, and he hasn’t taken a shift since. pic.twitter/cqUOeqjz4h— zach (@zjlaing) October 28, 2024 More to come.

Edmonton Oilers superstar Connor McDavid exited Monday's 6-1 loss against the Columbus Blue Jackets with a lower-body injury.

The Utah Hockey Club acquired defenseman Olli Maatta from the Detroit Red Wings for a 2025 third-round pick, the teams announced Tuesday.More to come.

Boston Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery is keeping the big picture in view amid his team's lackluster 1-4-1 stretch."We had a lot of success the last two years," Montgomery said after Thursday's 8-2 loss against the Carolina Hurricanes. "We were first place in the league at Thanksgiving the last two years. We never achieved anything we wanted to. Right now, we're not happy. Nobody's happy with what's going on, but we will get out of it, and we will be better, and, hopefully, it creates a better result come playoff time."The Bruins are last in the Atlantic Division with a 4-6-1 record. Boston has a minus-13 goal differential and has been thoroughly outplayed at even strength, ranking 28th in the NHL in five-on-five shot share, according to Natural Stat Trick.Boston was 8-0-1 on Oct. 31 last year and had a plus-15 goal differential. The Bruins finished the campaign second in the Atlantic and lost in the second round against the Florida Panthers. Boston also lost to the Panthers in the playoffs in 2023 after winning the Presidents' Trophy in a dramatic first-round upset.Star forward David Pastrnak admitted the Bruins struggled at even strength in the loss against Carolina."We just weren't good enough five-on-five at all," Pastrnak said. "They were all over us. We have to be better."The Bruins were outshot 37-15 against the Hurricanes, managing just five shots on goal in each period. Carolina limited Boston to eight shot attempts at five-on-five through 40 minutes, according to Natural Stat Trick.Pastrnak and the Bruins will look to right the ship Saturday against the Philadelphia Flyers.

Canadiens' Slafkovsky exits vs. Penguins after Acciari hit