Sunday had a little extra juice on the schedule, and the Devils–Canucks matchup was one of the more interesting games to dig into. The headline going in was the debut of Zeev Buium and Marco Rossi with Vancouver, both fresh off being acquired from Minnesota in the blockbuster deal that sent Quinn Hughes the other way. New faces, a new look power play, and plenty of curiosity around how quickly everything would click.

Vancouver wasted no time making an impression. Just over a minute into the game, Jake DeBrusk opened the scoring on the power play, getting to his spot and finishing cleanly. Conor Garland set it up, while Zeev Buium picked up his first point as a Canuck as well.

Buium didn't stop there. He found the back of the net himself, again on the power play, with Garland once more factoring into the play. Two power-play goals in the opening frame gave Vancouver all the offense they would need, and the Canucks finished the night 2-for-3 with the man advantage. That early special-teams success proved to be the difference.

First Canucks game.
First Canucks goal.

Welcome to Vancouver, Zeev Buium! 👏 pic.twitter.com/ylY4mTTQ5L

— Vancouver Canucks (@Canucks) December 14, 2025

Both Zeev Buium and Marco Rossi saw time on the top powerplay unit.  Rossi was activated from the IR in his Canucks debut and spent most of the TOI with Jake DeBrusk and Brock Boeser but was unable to register a point in the Canucks win. Elias Pettersson was placed on IR leading up to the game so we will have to wait and see how this top-six unit looks and produces upon his arrival back from injury.

The Canucks leaned heavily Thatcher Demko who was calm, controlled, and efficient, stopping 25 of 26 shots, delivering a strong fantasy start posting a 0.962 SV% and 1.00 GAA.

On the Devils' side, the bigger-picture concerns continue to linger. New Jersey has just three wins over its last 10 games, and a team that once sat near the top of the Metropolitan Division has slid down to sixth.

Luke Hughes provided the lone goal, while Jesper Bratt picked up the assist to stay on the scoresheet. Beyond that, New Jersey's top forwards were mostly kept quiet.

Since Jack Hughes went down, Bratt has posted 13 points in his last 16 games, including three multi-point outings. Still, the overall impact has not quite felt the same without Hughes driving play. Bratt is now riding a three-game point streak with a goal and two assists, rebounding after a four-game pointless stretch, but it is clear the Devils are still searching for consistency as they try to steady their season.

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The game between the Utah Mammoth and the Pittsburgh Penguins looked like it had a clear script. Pittsburgh came out hot, jumping to a 3‑0 lead behind goals from Justin Brazeau and Bryan Rust, who each scored twice early, while Ben Kindel added another to put the Penguins firmly in control.

At that point, it felt like the game was locked up, the Penguins in cruise control and Utah staring at a steep uphill climb. But then the third period arrived, and everything changed. Utah came alive and flipped game flipped entirely, scoring four goals to erase the three-goal deficit and push the contest into overtime.

Michael Carcone was lead the surge for the Mammoth, scoring twice in regulation and acting as the spark plug for the comeback.

Dylan Guenther capped it all off with the overtime winner, doing exactly what he's become known for: finishing chances and delivering in high-pressure moments.

Dylan Guenther wins it for the @utahmammoth in @Energizer overtime!!! pic.twitter.com/inkYpXbq2M

📢 advertisement:

— NHL (@NHL) December 14, 2025

Utah outshot Pittsburgh by a wide margin, more than doubling their total, finishing with 37 shots to Pittsburgh's 16.

For Pittsburgh, Sergei Murashov was strong in the first two periods, stopping 32 of 37 shots and keeping the Penguins in front through their early surge. However, the third-period collapse and overtime winner pushed him into the loss, with his SV% dropping to .880 and five GA on 37 shots.

On the other side, Karel Vejmelka did not face the same volume, finishing with just 12 saves on 16 shots for a .750 SV%, but the Mammoth defense and the sudden offensive surge were the real drivers of Utah's win, more than any standout goaltending effort.

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The Hurricanes and Flyers delivered a tightly contested game that went down to the wire, ultimately finishing 3–2 in favor of the Hurricanes in a shootout win.

Carolina drew first blood as William Carrier opened the scoring with assists from Sean Walker and Jordan Staal, giving the Canes an early edge.

Taylor Hall added his seventh goal of the season on the power play, with Alexander Nikishin and Jackson Blake both credited with assists.

Jamie Drysdale answered for the Flyers, scoring his third goal of the season to put Philadelphia on the board, assisted by Trevor Zegras and Travis Sanheim. Zegras later tied the game, finishing the night with two points, continuing his strong season. Through 31 games, Zegras has 32 points (13 goals, 19 assists) and is on pace for a career-high 85-point season, cementing himself as one of Philadelphia's most consistent offensive threats. He is currently riding a four-game point streak with three goals and three assists.

The game was ultimately decided by Andrei Svechnikov, whose shootout goal pushed Carolina ahead, with goaltender Brandon Bussi stepping up to seal the victory with a 24 save performance.

NINE WINS IN A ROW FOR BRANDON BUSSI 🌪️ pic.twitter.com/R1EALx09Zd

— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) December 15, 2025

Bussi has quietly been one of the more consistent performers in Carolina's crease this season, steadily climbing the win ladder with nine victories and providing reliable netminding without much fanfare. In 12 appearances, he holds an 11–1–0 record with one shutout, allowing 25 goals on 279 shots, translating to a 2.05 goals-against average and a .910 save percentage. Carolina's defensive structure limits the shot volume he sees on a nightly basis, but when called upon, he's been steady, protecting leads and closing out games efficiently.

Even with these numbers, Bussi remains under the radar, rostered in only 41% of Yahoo leagues and 50% of Fantrax leagues. The wins are there, and the opportunity continues to present itself night after night. At some point, it's difficult to ignore what he is accomplishing between the pipes.

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For anyone thinking Brock Faber's production might take a hit with Quinn Hughes joining the lineup, they may just have to wait one more game. Faber picked up two assists in Minnesota's 6–2 win over Boston and was the first to celebrate Hughes' first goal as a Wild. If you have Faber in your lineup, you may want to hold on to him, he could be a direct beneficiary of to the addition of Quinn Hughes even if it's short term.

Minnesota's performance was decisive from start to finish, turning what could have been a tight game into a lopsided affair. The Wild extended their winning streak to four games showing Quinn Hughes how they win games in Minnesota.

Hughes, who arrived in the blockbuster trade with Vancouver just days ago, wasted no time making his presence felt, scoring in his first game.

QUINN HUGHES BURIES ONE IN HIS WILD DEBUT! 🚨

(🎥: @Sportsnet)pic.twitter.com/fnpJzZ9xMX

— theScore (@theScore) December 15, 2025

Jared Spurgeon scored power play goal, with assists from Brock Faber and Marcus Johansson, setting the tone early and putting Minnesota in control.

The Wild's attack kept coming, with Kirill Kaprizov dominating the stat sheet with two goals and an assist, pushing him to roughly 20 goals on the season.

Ryan Hartman added a goal and two assists to keep the Bruins chasing all night. Matt Boldy and additional to the fun with a goal himself, rounding out an offense that was both opportunistic and balanced across the lineup.

For Boston, scoring came from Alex Steeves and Andrew Peeke, each contributing a goal, but it clearly was not enough.

 David Pastrnak was held off the scoresheet, snapping his recent run of production that included seven points in his last two games since returning from injury.

In net, Jeremy Swayman bore the brunt of Minnesota's attack, allowing six goals on 31 shots as the Wild consistently generated high-danger chances.

Filip Gustavsson was solid for Minnesota, stopping 29 of 31 shots and giving his team a dependable backbone while the offense ran wild. Gustavsson has taken on the lion's share of starts for the Wild this season, with 21 appearances compared to Jesper Wallstedt's 12, though the wins column is nearly identical, with Gustavsson at 10 and Wallstedt at nine.

Although it was only the first game, the immediate impact of Hughes was obvious, and the continued reliability of both their offense and goaltending makes Minnesota a force to be reckoned with.

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Coming off a dominant performance against the Leafs on Saturday, the Oilers hit a rough patch falling 4–1 to the Canadiens and snapping a five-game point streak (4–0–1).

Ivan Demidov scored his seventh goal of the season on the power play, finishing a set up by Juraj Slafkovsky and Lane Hutson. That goal put Demidov just one point shy of Beckette Sennecke's 26 points, keeping the Calder race tight.

Lane Hutson was heavily involved in the Canadiens' offense, posting two assists on the night and reaching a significant milestone: 23 assists in the team's first 32 games. That places him alongside franchise legends like Guy Lapointe, Larry Robinson, and Chris Chelios, emphasizing just how productive he has been from the blue line and how much of an impact he continues to have in generating offense for Montreal. Hutson has two assists in each of this last three games.

Hutson's vision and timing on the ice were critical throughout the game, especially on the power play, where he helped set up both Demidov's opener and Nick Suzuki's third-period goal, which also featured assists from Slafkovsky and Hutson.

Montreal added goals from Joe Veleno and Alexandre Texier, ultimately closing out a 4–1 victory.

Zach Hyman scored Edmonton's lone goal on a point shot from Evan Bouchard, with Connor McDavid picking up an assist to extend his six-game point streak.

Both the Oilers and Canadiens rank among the league's most efficient power-play units, with Edmonton converting at 31.7% and Montreal at 26.7%. On Sunday, however, Edmonton was only able to capitalize on one of five power-play chances.

Between the pipes, Jakub Dobes was steady for Montreal, stopping 27 of 28 shots, providing the backbone for the Canadiens' balanced attack and helping ensure the Oilers' high-powered offense was kept largely in check.

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The Sabres rolled out a different variation of their lineup against Seattle.

If the Sabres can unlock Peyton Krebs' potential, then this top 9 is great.
Tonight's line combos:
Tage – Krebs – Doan
Tuch – Norris – Ostlund
Quinn – McLeod – Benson

— Dobber (@DobberHockey) December 15, 2025

Well, it paid off in a fairly convincing performance over the Kraken, who looked flat for much of the game. The lineup adjustments seemed to click immediately, with nearly every forward on the new lines recording a point, the lone exception being Josh Doan.

The balance and chemistry on the ice looked evident, allowing Buffalo to generate consistent scoring chances and maintain pressure throughout the game.

Tage Thompson extended his goal streak to four games, scoring in each contest while accumulating seven points over that stretch, keeping him at the top of the Sabres' leaderboard with 29 points on the season.

Buffalo's momentum has been building as well, with the team riding a three-game win streak.

Noah Ostlund and Zach Benson also found the back of the net, while Alex Tuch stood out with two assists, putting him on pace for a 74-point season, up from 67 points last year, showing his growing consistency and impact on the ice.

Seattle tried to respond in the second period, with Stephenson cutting the deficit to 2–1 on the power play, assisted by Vince Dunn and Jordan Eberle, but it was not enough to shift the game.

Joey Daccord has had a difficult season, sitting at 8‑8‑4, and the Kraken as a team continue to struggle offensively, scoring just 74 goals on the season, the lowest total in the NHL.

Thanks for reading! See you next week! For more fantasy hockey content and analysis, follow me on X @Punters_hockey. If you have any questions about your team or a trade? My DMs are always open, happy to help!