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NHL Weekender: Kings, Leafs heading in the wrong direction

NHL Weekender: Kings, Leafs heading in the wrong direction

At the end of every workweek, Yardbarker takes a look at what the NHL has in store for the weekend. We'll see whose stock is soaring, who needs to get their acts together and what tilts promise to keep you on the edge of your seat. 

In this week's edition, fisticuffs rule the West Coast, and we check in on the good ol' milestone tracker.

Who's on fire


Dennis Schneidler-USA TODAY Sports

Across the entire league, the hottest teams have stayed on top of their games. This includes the Bruins in the East, who have improved to 11-0-4 in their last 15 games. Expecting them to continue notching at least a point in every game is probably overkill, but they'll have to keep winning if they want to keep pace with the Tampa Bay Lightning. In fact, the entire East Conference race remains tight, especially now that the New Jersey Devils snapped their losing streak and notched two victories in a row.

Out in the Western Conference, the Predators registered four straight wins and have taken over the Central Division standings. Nashville went on an upswing after being shut out by the Golden Knights and falling to the Coyotes to start off the new year, winning the next for tilts by one goal each. The Preds look to keep that up with a bulk of home games on the schedule — the defending Western Conference champs are 15-4-2 at Bridgestone Arena this season.

Who's on a skid


Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports

Two overtime losses in a row isn't necessarily a skid, but four straight losses of any kind, like the ones that the Maple Leafs just racked up, provide cause for concern. Toronto is just barely hanging on to a playoff spot after not winning a game since Jan. 6. The Leafs have the opportunity to get back on track, however, with games against bottom-feeder teams like Ottawa and Colorado. A win over the Senators on Saturday could be just what they need to stay competitive.

In the Western Conference, the Kings continue their skid. After shutting out the Oilers 5-0 at the start of January, the SoCal kids have dropped five straight tilts, including wallopings from the Sharks and the Penguins just this week. Their chance at a redemption run comes on Friday with a rematch against the Anaheim Ducks. While we're talking about these two teams...

Flying fists

Last week, we pointed to Saturday's Ducks-Kings tilt as a must-watch for the weekend. If you're a fan of extra physical bouts, you hopefully didn't miss this fight-laden fete. At roughly 2:30 in the first frame, Jared Boll and Kurtis MacDermid threw their gloves onto the ice and exchanged punches to the face. Andy Andreoff and Kevin Bieksa followed suit before Nick Ritchie and Kyle Clifford got in on the action. All three fights happened within a four-second window on the play clock. Fighting may be declining in the current NHL, but the Kings and Ducks clearly haven't gotten that memo. Who knows how many fists will fly when these teams meet next?

Milestone tracker


Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

The halfway point of the season is a good time to take inventory of all the different players around the league who are on the hunt for career milestones. Nashville netminder Pekka Rinne is closing in on 300 wins, sitting at 291 headed into the weekend. Penguins captain Sidney Crosby is sitting at 399 goals, awaiting the marker that will officially put him in the 400 club.

Sharks big man Joe Thornton is right on his heels with 396 goals — the most recent being a sweet cross-ice goal against the Avalanche on Thursday. Thornton has also taken sole possession of 17th place on the NHL's all-time points list (1,424). He needs just two more to pass Bryan Trottier, then another 32 to catch up to Teemu Selanne at 1,457 points.

What to watch this weekend


Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

Jets at Flames, Saturday 3 p.m. EST

Calgary is coming off its bye week on a seven-game winning streak. Winnipeg is coming off of

its bye after dropping two straight tilts to struggling teams. Will these teams show that off-week rust? Will Johnny Hockey and the Flames pick up right where they left off last week? It's anyone's guess.

Penguins at Sharks, Saturday 8 p.m. EST, NSCA, ATTP

It's a rematch of the 2016 Stanley Cup Final, and both teams are currently in playoff position. The players may tell you they don't dwell on past seasons when they match up, but these two teams — despite only seeing each other twice a season — still seem to really dislike each other.

San Jose could be extra angry after dropping a 5-3 heartbreaker to the Avalanche on Thursday, when netminder Martin Jones had an off night by allowing four goals to start the game. Will he evoke his 2016 playoff prowess against the Pens for the Saturday night rumble?

More must-reads:

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