In the Rangers' 6-3 win over Philadelphia on Saturday, Mika Zibanejad recorded a hat trick, while Artemi Panarin scored two goals and added an assist. Once Panarin leaves the Rangers, Zibanejad's scoring could take a hit. Zibanejad and Panarin have been paired up quite a bit this season, and Zibanejad's best linemate both at even strength and on the power play (according to Frozen Tools) is Panarin. Zibanejad's declining point totals of recent seasons have reversed this season to the point where he is a near point-per-game player again with 46 points in 48 games, and he has also been red hot recently with 17 points in his last eight games. That won't come as easily with a less talented left winger.

In his 34^th NHL game, Brennan Othmann scored his first NHL goal. The Rangers' 2021 first-round pick, Othmann hasn't had the kind of success in the NHL that the Rangers have hoped for. That being said, Othmann is a left wing who could move up the lineup in a Panarin trade.

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Mats Zuccarello scored the overtime winner in the Wild's 5-4 win over Buffalo. Kirill Kaprizov assisted on the goal, giving him three assists for the game.

The Wild were able to win despite missing several forwards. Matt Boldy (undisclosed) and Joel Eriksson Ek (lower body) were both placed on injured reserve on Friday, while Marcus Johansson (lower body) did not travel with the team for their three-game road trip which began Saturday in Buffalo. 

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Adam Klapka led the Flames with a goal and an assist in their 4-2 win over the Islanders in the first game of Hockey Day in Canada.

In what could be his last game in Calgary, Rasmus Andersson registered an assist, giving him three points in his last four games. Trade rumors have been picking up on Andersson, who has been linked to both Boston and Vegas. UFA-to-be Andersson would leave a huge hole on the Flames' defense, as he leads all Flames blueliners in scoring (30 PTS in 48 GP) by a wide margin and leads all Flames skaters in icetime (24:14). Andersson is also just one point shy of last season's total (31 points) in 33 fewer games. If the Flames don't trade Andersson in the next day or two, they may scratch him from the lineup while they work out a deal.

Rasmus Andersson seemed to get emotional as he saluted the crowd in Calgary and gave high-five's and hugs to all his teammates before leaving the ice 🥺

Andersson's time with the Flames is likely coming to an end soon 👀 pic.twitter.com/MQIxt7bfLL

— Gino Hard (@GinoHard_) January 17, 2026

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Not known for his offense, Nate Schmidt led the Mammoth with two goals and two assists and five shots in their 6-3 win over Seattle. Schmidt's goals were his first since December 14.

Lawson Crouse broke a three-game point drought with a goal and two assists. Crouse was also a plus-3 and provided four shots and eight hits for Utah. When Crouse is scoring, he is useful in multicategory leagues – especially bangers leagues, since he has reached triple digits in hits for eight consecutive seasons. Crouse fell to just 18 points last season, but he is back on track with a 40-point pace (25 PTS in 49 GP) this season.

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The Carolina Hurricanes have registered hat tricks in back-to-back games. A day after Nikolaj Ehlers scored three goals against Florida, Andrei Svechnikov scored three times in a 4-1 win over New Jersey. Svechnikov filled the statsheet in multicategory leagues with a plus-3, four shots, and four hits. His ability to contribute in multiple categories is a strength, and his scoring rate (0.82 PTS/GP) is up from last season (0.67 PTS/GP).

Sebastian Aho assisted on all three of Svechnikov's goals. Aho has been hot with seven points over his last four games.

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After Saturday's game, Senators coach Travis Green said that the plan is for Linus Ullmark to travel with the team to Detroit for today's (Sunday's) game. That's a good thing, because Leevi Merilainen is taking on more than he can handle. Merilainen allowed six goals on 19 shots in Senators' 6-5 overtime loss to Montreal. Merilainen has appeared in every game since the holiday break, totaling five really bad starts compared to just two quality starts. It's not as though Ullmark has had a memorable season (and I'm just talking on the ice), and he may not be ready to play yet. But his return seems to be much-needed. In the meantime, maybe it’s James Reimer time for the Detroit game. Check GoaliePost for the latest.

Jake Sanderson did his part to keep the Senators in the game, scoring a goal while adding three assists. Sanderson is one of the league's hottest defensemen with 13 points over his last 10 games. He also has points in nine of his last 10 games.

Cole Caufield scored two goals, including the game-winner in overtime, and also added an assist. Caufield has six points over his last four games and is averaging nearly four shots per game over that span.

With three assists on Saturday, Lane Hutson also has six points over his last four games.

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Oliver Ekman-Larsson scored a goal and added two assists with a plus-4 in 25 minutes of icetime in the Leafs' 4-3 overtime win over Winnipeg. In his second season with the Leafs, Ekman-Larsson has tapped into production levels that he hasn't seen since his days with the Arizona Coyotes. OEL is on pace for over 50 points, which is not something that we would have predicted. However, he is getting a bit lucky with some advanced stats (11.6 SH%, 12.2 5-on-5 SH%, 1.9 PTS/60), so some regression should be expected in the second half.

Max Domi scored the overtime winner and added an assist with five shots on goal and a plus-3. Domi has been on the Auston Matthews line recently, and he seems to be playing better. After being healthy scratched on December 20, Domi has 10 points in 14 games. He's probably only a deep-league option at this point, though.

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In the Panthers' 5-2 win over Washington, Sam Bennett scored a goal with two assists and five shots and a plus-3. Over the past two months (since November 17), Bennett has 33 points in 29 games. I think he was left off Team Canada for the Olympics because the management team thought having both him and Tom Wilson there seemed redundant, while Canada also had to make room for fellow centers Macklin Celebrini and possibly Connor Bedard. Bennett's recent play and his reputation for stepping up in big games makes his omission debatable no matter how you would construct the lineup.

Uvis Balinskis has points in three consecutive games and goals in back-to-back games. He is also on the Panthers' top power play with Seth Jones out. Two of his three points over the last three games have been on the power play as well. Balinskis is rostered in very few leagues in both Yahoo and Fantrax (under 5%), so add him if you need help with scoring on your defense. The Panthers also play four games next week, so you could get a bit of mileage out of him.

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In the Bruins' 5-2 win over Chicago, Mason Lohrei scored two goals. Interestingly enough, Lohrei has been mentioned as a possible piece headed to Calgary in a Rasmus Andersson trade. Lohrei has boosted his trade value a bit recently with seven points over his last 10 games.

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Leon Draisaitl missed Saturday's game in Vancouver due to an illness in his family in Germany. Draisaitl is expected to return to the Oilers later next week.

Draisaitl's absence didn't affect the Oilers in any way on Saturday, as they trounced the Canucks 6-0. Kasperi Kapanen and Jack Roslovich each scored a pair of goals in the win.

With a goal on Saturday, Zach Hyman has 15 goals over his last 19 games. He has flown under the radar a bit this season because he missed the first month of the season. If you were patient enough to draft him and hang onto him while he struggled a bit early on, you are reaping the rewards now. Hyman is also averaging three shots per game over the season, with a minimum of three shots per game over each of his last five games. That seems like a recipe for more goals.

In his second game back from injury, Tristan Jarry stopped all 31 shots he faced to earn a shutout. Jarry and Connor Ingram appear ready to battle for starts in the Edmonton net, while Calvin Pickard seems to be the odd man out. The Oilers will be a very difficult team to beat if they have finally figured out their goaltending.  

The Canucks have now lost 10 games in a row, clearly looking like the NHL's worst team. Their on-ice results show that they are taking the tanking thing seriously, which could put them in a great spot to land a top prospect like Gavin McKenna or Ivar Stenberg. As a Canucks fan, all I can do is accept that the losses help in the cause to bring badly-needed elite talent to an organization that hasn't prioritized draft picks in recent seasons. Fun fact: with all of the mediocre seasons that the Canucks have had in their history, they have never picked first overall in the draft. Maybe this is their year. Even with that, it's going to be a long time before this team is a contender.

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With a goal on Saturday, Mark Stone has extended his point streak to 11 games. Over that span, Stone has 18 points, along with goals in 10 of those 11 games. Only four players have a higher point-per-game average than Stone (1.52 PTS/GP). Stone is an injury risk to the point where I try not to draft him, but he is paying off for those who rolled the dice or perhaps acquired him at a discount. Stone was picked at an ADP of 155 in Yahoo, which in hindsight seems like a very smart risk.

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