The Week Ahead: The Winter Classic

Happy New Year everyone! The big game on the schedule is St. Louis at Chicago for the Winter Classic which will be played Tuesday at Wrigley Field. Usually, the NHL has its classic on New Year's Day, but not this season. There is only one game on January 1, as Los Angeles hosts New Jersey.

All statistics are through Saturday's games unless otherwise noted.  

WEEK OF DECEMBER 30-JANUARY 5

4 Games – Anaheim, Boston, Carolina, Nashville, New York Rangers, Toronto, Utah, Winnipeg

3 Games – Buffalo, Calgary, Chicago, Colorado, Columbus, Dallas, Detroit, Edmonton, Florida, Minnesota, Montreal, New Jersey, New York Islanders, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, San Jose, Seattle, St. Louis, Tampa Bay, Vancouver, Vegas, Washington

2 Games – Los Angeles, Ottawa

Nashville and Utah play all four games on the road.

Boston, Buffalo, Montreal, New Jersey, the New York Rangers, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh and Tampa Bay play three games at home.

Calgary, Chicago, Colorado, Columbus, Dallas, Florida, San Jose, Seattle. Toronto, Vegas, Washington and Winnipeg play three games on the road.

ANAHEIM

Games this week: vs. New Jersey, @ Winnipeg, @ Edmonton, vs. Tampa Bay

Tired: @ Edmonton (Friday)

Rested: vs. Tampa Bay (Saturday)

Notes: The Ducks play four games including three in four nights...Look for John Gibson and Lukas Dostal to share the net...Leo Carlsson has been a bit of a disappointment this season with only seven goals and 12 points in 27 games. The 20-year-old sophomore had 12 goals and 29 points in 55 contests last season...Mason McTavish is in the same boat as he has only four goals and 14 points in 27 appearances. He was drafted third overall in 2021 and has had back-to-back 42 and 43 point seasons in the last two years.

BOSTON

Games this week: @ Washington, @ New York Rangers, @ Toronto, vs. New York Islanders

Tired: vs. New York Islanders (Sunday)

Rested: None

Notes: The Bruins play three games in four nights as part of a four-game week...Jeremy Swayman should get three starts with Joonas Korpisalo playing once...If the Bruins are unable to get Trent Frederic's signature on a new contract, look for Frederic to be dealt by the trade deadline as they could get a lot for the pending UFA...Pavel Zacha has only nine goals and 18 points in 38 games this season.

BUFFALO

Games this week: @ Dallas, @ Colorado, @ Vegas

Tired: None

Rested: None

Notes: The Sabres are on the road for all three games this week...Peyton Krebs was drafted 17th overall in 2019 and was a big part of the Jack Eichel trade in 2022. Krebs has never become a top-six player as his best season was in 2022-23 when he tallied nine goals and 26 points. This season he has only three goals and 10 points in 35 appearances...James Reimer is 1-2-1 with a 2.45 GAA since taking over as the backup goalie with Buffalo.

CALGARY

Games this week: vs. Vancouver, vs. Utah, vs. Nashville

Tired: None

Rested: vs. Nashville (Saturday)

Notes: The Flames are home for all three games this week...Martin Pospisil has only one assist in his last nine games, though he was feisty a week ago with 16 PIM against Chicago...Connor Zary is centering the third line and has a goal and three assists during his three-game point streak...Tyson Barrie has been a healthy scratch in 17 straight games.

CAROLINA

Games this week:  Columbus, @ Florida, vs. Minnesota, vs. Pittsburgh

Tired: vs. Pittsburgh (Sunday)

Rested: None

Notes: The Hurricanes play four games this week, including three games in four nights...Pyotr Kochetkov is slated to start three times with Dustin Tokarski playing once...Martin Necas is without a point in his last five games heading into action Saturday. He still has 14 goals and 30 assists in 35 games this season...Shayne Gostisbehere has 27 points in 35 games to lead all Carolina defensemen.

CHICAGO  

Games this week: vs. St. Louis, vs. Montreal, vs. New York Rangers

Tired: None

Rested: vs. New York Rangers (Sunday)

Notes: The Blackhawks are home for all three games...Frank Nazar picked up his first assist of the season Monday. The 13th selection in the 2022 Draft, Nazar is averaging 3:52 on the first power play, so points should be forthcoming...Lukas Reichel has assists in each of his last two games...Nolan Allan has a goal and five assists in 29 games this season as a rookie defenseman.

COLORADO

Games this week: vs. Winnipeg, vs. Buffalo, vs. Montreal

Tired: None

Rested: vs. Winnipeg (Tuesday), vs. Montreal (Saturday)

Notes: The Avalanche signed Mackenzie Blackwood to a five-year, $26.25 million contract, less than three weeks after acquiring him from San Jose. He has been a major factor in turning the Avs' goaltending situation around, as he's 4-1-0 with a 1.82 GAA and a .940 save percentage since the trade...Artturi Lehkonen had the hat trick Friday in a 4-1 win over Utah. He has been great thus far with 13 goals and 19 points in 25 games and has once again moved up to the top line with Nathan MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen.

COLUMBUS

Games this week: vs. Carolina, vs. Detroit, vs. St. Louis  

Tired: None

Rested: vs. St. Louis (Saturday)

Notes: Dmitri Voronkov continues to surprise many with his outstanding offensive prowess this season. The 24-year-old has a six-game point streak with five goals and 10 points, including a pair of power-play goals Friday...Sean Monahan has four goals and eight points in his last four games as he has been centering Voronkov and Kirill Marchenko...Monahan has 13 goals and 36 points in 33 contests this season.

DALLAS

Games this week: vs. Buffalo, vs. Ottawa, vs. Utah  

Tired: None

Rested: None

Notes: The Stars lost Mason Marchment for a while after he took a puck to his face Friday against Minnesota...Logan Stankoven has only one assist in his last nine games and has fallen down the depth chart...Lian Bichsel looks to have landed a spot on the Dallas blue line. The 18th overall pick in 2022, Bichsel has a pair of goals in seven games, as well as 24 hits.

DETROIT

Games this week: vs. Pittsburgh, @ Columbus, @ Winnipeg   

Tired: None

Rested: None

Notes: The Red Wings fired coach Derek Lalonde on Thursday and replaced him with Todd McLellan...They are trying Joe Veleno on the top line with Dylan Larkin and Lucas Raymond while Alex DeBrincat moves down to the second unit...Marco Kasper is highly-regarded after being drafted eighth in 2022, but he has not hit the scoresheet in his last 10 games.

EDMONTON

Games this week: vs. Utah, vs. Anaheim, @ Seattle

Tired: @ Seattle (Saturday)

Rested: vs. Utah (Tuesday), vs. Anaheim (Friday)

Notes: Viktor Arvidsson is starting to heat up with two goals and an assist in his last two games...Connor McDavid is on a 10-game point streak with three goals and 16 assists...Evan Bouchard was considered a top-three offensive defenseman as far as fantasy was concerned last season, but he has struggled this year with six goals and 25 points in 35 games. He was a stud on the power play in 2023-24 with 35 points but has only six assists in 2024-25.

FLORIDA

Games this week: vs. New York Rangers, vs. Carolina, vs. Pittsburgh

Tired: vs. Pittsburgh (Friday)

Rested: None

Notes: The Panthers complete a five-game homestand this week...Spencer Knight is starting to see a little more action as he has started two of the last three games...That should keep Sergei Bobrovsky sharper, if he only starts 50 games, when playoff time occurs...Gustav Forsling had 56 points last season, but he has only 18 points in 37 games in 2024-25. He has only two goals (and no assists) in his 17 games.

LOS ANGELES

Games this week: vs. New Jersey, vs. Tampa Bay

Tired: None

Rested: vs. New Jersey (Wednesday)

Notes: The Kings are in the midst of a five-game homestand...Warren Foegele had a goal and two assists Saturday, giving him 10 goals and 21 points in 35 contests...Drew Doughty (ankle) has been out all season, but he could return either this week or next week...His return will hurt Brandt Clarke's status on the power play, where he has two goals and seven points and has been quarterbacking the first unit...Kevin Fiala continues to have a tough time this season with 13 goals and 21 points in 34 appearances.

MINNESOTA

Games this week: vs. Nashville, @ Washington, @ Carolina  

Tired: None

Rested: vs. Nashville (Tuesday)

Notes: The Wild are expected to get Joel Eriksson Ek back as early as Dec. 29, or possibly Tuesday as he has missed the last 11 games...He should replace Marco Rossi on the top line...Kirill Kaprizov is also due back after missing Friday's game with a lower-body injury...Marc-Andre Fleury is in his last NHL season as he will retire at the end of the year. He's lost his last two starts, allowing eight goals on 51 shots.

MONTREAL

Games this week: @ Vegas, @ Chicago, @ Colorado

Tired: @ Colorado (Saturday)

Rested: None

Notes: The Canadiens complete a six-game road trip in Colorado on Saturday...Montreal waived goaltender Cayden Primeau on Saturday and will send him to AHL Laval should he clear...Jakub Dobes made his NHL debut against Florida and he turned aside all 34 shots in shutting out the defending Stanley Cup champions...Alex Newhook picked up a couple of assists versus Florida, his first two of the season in Game 35.

NASHVILLE

Games this week: @ Winnipeg, @ Minnesota, @ Vancouver, @ Calgary

Tired: @ Minnesota (Tuesday), @ Calgary (Sunday)

Rested: @ Vancouver (Saturday)

Notes: The Predators play a pair of back-to-back road games this week, so look for Juuse Saros and Justus Annunen to share the crease...Steven Stamkos has been gearing up of late as he has four goals and five assists in his last eight games...Filip Forsberg hasn't found the back of the net in his last 14 games, but he does have 13 assists in his last eight appearances.

NEW JERSEY

Games this week: @ Anaheim, @ Los Angeles, @ San Jose

Tired: @ Los Angeles (Wednesday)

Rested: None

Notes: The Devils make their annual trek to California this week...Luke Hughes has two goals and eight points in his last seven games...Timo Meier was tossed from Saturday's loss to Carolina as he took a five-minute major for kneeing Martin Necas, as well as a game misconduct. Meier has 13 goals, 14 assists and 50 PIM in 38 games this season...Jacob Markstrom continues to sparkle this season with a 19-6-2 record, to go with three shutouts, a 2.11 GAA and a .914 save percentage.

NEW YORK ISLANDERS

Games this week: @ Toronto, vs. Toronto, @ Boston

Tired: None

Rested: @ Boston (Sunday)

Notes: The Islanders face the Maple Leafs twice this week in a home-and-home series...Maxim Tsyplakov leads the Islanders with 26 PIM, but don't expect him to get involved if there are fisticuffs...Anders Lee had a pair of goals Saturday in a 6-3 win over Pittsburgh, giving him a team-leading 15 goals and 29 points in 36 outings...Mathew Barzal has a goal and an assist in five games since returning from an upper-body injury that cost him 21 contests.

NEW YORK RANGERS

Games this week: @ Florida, vs. Boston, @ Washington, @ Chicago

Tired: @ Chicago (Sunday)

Rested: None

Notes: The Rangers play four games this week including three games in four nights...Look for Igor Shesterkin to play three times with Jonathan Quick playing once...The Rangers continue to slump, going 4-14-0 in their last 18 games...Chris Kreider was a healthy scratch Monday for the first time in his NHL career...Adam Fox has only two assists in his last seven games.

OTTAWA 

Games this week: @ Dallas, @ St. Louis

Tired: @ St. Louis (Friday)

Rested: None

Notes: The Senators are nearing the end of a nine-game road trip as the World Junior Championship are being held in Ottawa...They are really suffering between the pipes as Linus Ullmark and Anton Forsberg are out with lower-body injuries, leaving the netminding to Mads Sogaard and Leevi Merilainen, their goaltending duo at AHL Belleville...Tim Stutzle potted his 12th goal of the season Saturday and has 40 points in 35 outings.

PHILADELPHIA

Games this week: @ San Jose, @ Vegas, @ Toronto

Tired: None

Rested: @ Toronto (Sunday)

Notes: The Flyers complete a six-game road trip in Toronto on Sunday...They have the worst goaltending in the NHL with Samuel Ersson, Ivan Fedotov and Aleksei Kolosov...Scott Laughton has nine points in his last seven games and has moved up to the top line...Noah Cates has goals in each of his last five games...Matvei Michkov is without a point in his last seven games.

PITTSBURGH

Games this week: @ Detroit, @ Florida, @ Carolina

Tired: None

Rested: @ Florida (Friday), @ Carolina (Sunday)

Notes: The Penguins are on the road for all three games this week and are the rested team in two contests...Bryan Rust has 10 goals and 19 points in his last 14 games...Tristan Jarry has started eight of the Penguins' last nine games...Marcus Pettersson skated Saturday in a regular jersey and could return to action as early as this week after missing the last five games. 

SAN JOSE

Games this week: vs. Philadelphia, vs. Tampa Bay, vs. New Jersey

Tired: None

Rested: None

Notes: The Sharks play all three games at home...Jake Walman is out of action with a lower-body injury...He is having a great offensive season with five goals and 20 assists in 31 games and is sorely missed when out of action...Macklin Celebrini continues to show why he was selected first overall in June...The 18-year-old sensation has 11 goals and 26 points in 26 games heading into action Saturday.

SEATTLE

Games this week: vs. Utah, vs. Vancouver, vs. Edmonton

Tired: None

Rested: None

Notes: Matty Beniers snapped a four-game pointless streak Sunday and then potted his fifth goal of the season Saturday in a 5-4 come-from-behind win over Vancouver in overtime...Vince Dunn scored twice in the game, including the OT winner, and added an assist to give him seven goals and 14 points in 17 games...Joey Daccord sat out Saturday's game with an undisclosed injury, necessitating the recall of Ales Stezka from the minors to back up Philipp Grubauer.

ST. LOUIS

Games this week: @ Chicago, vs. Ottawa, @ Columbus

Tired: @ Columbus (Saturday)

Rested: vs. Ottawa (Friday)

Notes: Robert Thomas has two goals and two assists in his last two games, giving the Blues best player, eight goals and 28 points in 25 games this season...I was expecting better results from Philip Broberg this season after he signed as an RFA in the offseason...The former Edmonton rearguard has three goals and 10 assists in 24 games and has seen only 52 seconds of power play time over the last four games.

TAMPA BAY

Games this week: @ San Jose, @ Los Angeles, @ Anaheim

Tired: @ Anaheim (Sunday)

Rested: None

Notes: The Lightning are in California this week, where they play three games in four nights...Look for Andrei Vasilevskiy to play twice with Jonas Johansson starting once...Nikita Kucherov has points in 11 of his last 12 games, including five goals and 19 assists as he sits tied for second place in NHL scoring with 53 points...Brayden Point saw his eight-game point streak end Monday, but he got right back up and had a three-point effort Saturday in a 6-2 win over the Rangers.

TORONTO

Games this week: vs. New York Islanders, @ New York Islanders, vs. Boston, vs. Philadelphia

Tired: vs. Philadelphia (Sunday)

Rested: None

Notes: The Maple Leafs play four times this week, including three games in four nights...Expect to see Joseph Woll play three times with Matt Murray playing once...The Leafs play a home-and-home series with the Islanders, so look for Ryan Reaves (if he is able to crack the lineup) add to his penalty minute total if there is any rough stuff...Auston Matthews is once again out of action with an upper-body injury. He skated Saturday but there is no guarantee he will return to the ice this week as he has missed the last three games.

UTAH

Games this week: @ Seattle, @ Edmonton, @ Calgary, @ Dallas

Tired: @ Edmonton (Tuesday)

Rested: None

Notes: Utah plays all four games on the road, including three in four nights...Karel Vejmelka should start three times with Jaxson Stauber getting one start between the pipes...Vejmelka has lost his last two games but cannot be blamed as he stopped 59 of 64 shots...Vejmelka is 8-9-2 but has a fabulous 2.32 GAA and a just as impressive .918 save percentage...Dylan Guenther is without a point in his last three games but continues to lead Utah with 16 goals...Clayton Keller has 36 points in 35 games.

VANCOUVER

Games this week: @ Calgary, @ Seattle, vs. Nashville

Tired: vs. Nashville (Friday)

Rested: None

Notes: The Canucks play three games in four nights...Expect to see Thatcher Demko play twice with Kevin Lankinen between the pipes once...Quinn Hughes missed Saturday's game with an undisclosed injury, while Elias Pettersson was also absent with an undisclosed injury after leaving Monday's game against San Jose...Pettersson had a pair of goals Monday, snapping a six-game pointless drought.

VEGAS

Games this week: vs. Montreal, vs. Philadelphia, vs. Buffalo

Tired: None

Rested: None

Notes: The Golden Knights play all three games at home...I thought that Tomas Hertl would be a bigger scorer with the Golden Knights this season and while he has been excellent on the power play with seven goals and 11 points, he has only three goals and 10 helpers at even-strength in 35 games...Shea Theodore continues to be the top offensive blueliner on Vegas as he has four goals and 28 points in 34 contests.

WASHINGTON

Games this week: vs. Boston, vs. Minnesota, vs. New York Rangers

Tired: None

Rested: None

Notes: The Capitals got Alex Ovechkin back Saturday after he missed 40 days with a broken fibula...He scored an empty netter in a 5-2 win over the Maple Leafs, giving him 16 goals in 19 games...Aliaksei Protas has come into his own this season with 14 goals and 30 points in 35 games, setting career-highs in both categories with more than half the season left...Jakob Chychrun snapped a four-game pointless streak Saturday with a goal and an assist, giving him 10 goals and 23 points in 30 games.

WINNIPEG

Games this week: vs. Nashville, @ Colorado, vs. Anaheim, vs. Detroit

Tired: @ Colorado (Tuesday)

Rested: None

Notes: The Jets play four games this week, including three in four nights...Connor Hellebuyck should get the start in goal three times while Eric Comrie should start once...The Jets top line of Kyle Connor, Mark Scheifele and Gabriel Vilardi continue to impress...They combined for three goals and two assists Saturday after chipping in Monday with five goals and six assists in a 5-2 win in Toronto.