The Ottawa Senators visit the Washington Capitals and more NHL Games of the Week
This week’s NHL Games of the Week include a match between two capital cities that haven’t performed as well as fans would have hoped. Hear that game and more on NHL Network Radio.
Saturday, February 24th – 7 pm Eastern – SiriusXM 91
Boston Bruins at Vancouver Canucks
This rematch of the 2011 Stanley Cup Final would look pretty good as a Stanley Cup Final in 2024, but we’re a long four months away from that. Both these teams will make the playoffs; it’s now a matter of whom they play in the opening round. The heavily favoured Bruins ran away with the regular season this time last year but fell in seven in the first round to the upstart Florida Panthers. The Canucks missed the post-season cut by 12 points last season but have been one of the major pleasant surprises this time around. They appear to have the topsy-turvy Pacific Division crown pretty much all sewn up, but with roughly seven weeks remaining in the 2023-24 regular season, nobody is home and cooled out just yet.
Sunday, February 25th – 3:30 pm Eastern – SiriusXM 91
Philadelphia Flyers at Pittsburgh Penguins
The Battle of the Keystone State is an interesting clash this time, as the overachieving Flyers are fighting to keep their grip on third place in the Metropolitan Division. Their cross-state rivals have not had a campaign to remember yet, but they’d better get their act in gear ASAP if they wish to play past mid-April. So far, there have been no real indicators that the veteran Penguins can make that happen.
Monday, February 26th – 7 pm Eastern – SiriusXM 91
Ottawa Senators at Washington Capitals
A meeting of capital cities, both these NHL clubs haven’t enjoyed stellar regular seasons. The Senators have been a real disappointment in the Eastern Conference and have been fighting with the equally disappointing Columbus Blue Jackets for the dishonour of occupying the Eastern basement. The Capitals have fared slightly better, but they appear to be on their way to missing the post-season for a second straight year. The Caps haven’t won a playoff series since winning it all in the spring of 2018. Veteran sniper Alexander Ovechkin appears to have rediscovered his scoring touch, thus he’s picked back up his pursuit of legend Wayne Gretzky’s career regular season goal scoring record. But a rejuvenated Ovie doesn’t appear enough to push Washington into the playoffs.
Tuesday, February 27th – 7 pm Eastern – SiriusXM 91
Vegas Golden Knights at Toronto Maple Leafs
Five nights after meeting in Las Vegas, these two teams reconvene in Toronto. Barring a late-season push, the Maple Leafs appear to be headed for the third spot in the Atlantic Division…meaning they would play Florida or Boston in the opening round. Barring a late-season collapse by the Canucks, the Golden Knights appear to be in a battle to maintain their hold on the second spot in the Pacific Division. The Edmonton Oilers and Los Angeles Kings are not far behind Vegas in the standings. Maple Leafs forward Auston Matthews is the first NHL’er this season to hit the 50-goal mark, doing so last week in a game in Arizona.
Wednesday, February 28th – 8:30 pm Eastern – SiriusXM 91
St. Louis Blues at Edmonton Oilers
While the Oilers have their sights on the second spot and home-ice advantage in the opening round in the NHL Pacific Division, the Blues have been in a season-long struggle for one of the two Western wildcards. Both teams have recently gone on impressive winning streaks, which has catapulted the Oilers back into the top three in the Pacific. It has St. Louis fighting with the Kings, Predators, Wild, Kraken, and Flames for one of those two Western post-season invites.
Thursday, February 29th – 10 pm Eastern – SiriusXM 91
Los Angeles Kings at Vancouver Canucks
An extra day of hockey this month, thanks to the Leap Year, sees a dozen games on the NHL docket, including the Kings at the Canucks. Vancouver has a healthy lead for the top spot in the Pacific Division, but there has been concern of late regarding their level of play. They face a Kings’ team battling for a wildcard but aren’t far off the pace for the second spot in the Pacific. Can you say play-in games? We’re already experiencing them.
Friday, March 1st – 10 pm Eastern – SiriusXM 91
New Jersey Devils at Anaheim Ducks
A Friday night NHL game in SoCal featuring a young, rebuilding Ducks team versus a young, frustrating Devils team. Injuries to key players really has messed up New Jersey’s progression to date. Remember, they finished second in the tough Metropolitan Division last year, their 112 points placing them a mere point behind the Hurricanes for the top spot in that bracket. This time around, due to the aforementioned injuries, coupled with unsteady goaltending, the Devils have taken a couple of steps back and, as a result, find themselves in a tussle for a wildcard spot in the East. They could conceivably finish third in the Metro, but the team hasn’t yet exhibited that they can cobble together such a winning streak.
RELATED CHANNELS
