Joel Eriksson Ek scored a career-high four goals in his return from a lower-body injury, Kirill Kaprizov had his second of the game in overtime in his first game back and the Minnesota Wild outlasted the San Jose Sharks 8-7 on Wednesday night.

Alex Ovechkin of the Washington Capitals is now the leading goal-scorer in NHL history.

Alex Ovechkin initiated a memorable moment on the ice in Minnesota even though he went scoreless for Washington in a 4-2 loss.

When Los Angeles Kings goalie Darcy Kuemper came out to center ice ready to fight his Boston Bruins counterpart Jeremy Swayman on Sunday night, Kings head coach Jim Hiller was only thinking about all the bad things that could have happened.

Alex Ovechkin moved another step closer to breaking Wayne Gretzky's NHL career goals record by scoring on Marc-Andre Fleury again.

Kirill Kaprizov doesn’t need much space to score a goal, but he’s not above getting a little help from the opposing goalie.

Joel Eriksson Ek and Kirill Kaprizov each had hat tricks and three assists for the Minnesota Wild, who faced a three-goal deficit in the second period before storming back with six unanswered goals and hanging on for a record-filled 10-7 victory over the Vancouver Canucks.

Kirill Kaprizov scored the tiebreaking goal midway through the third period and Marc-Andre Fleury made 32 saves as the Minnesota Wild beat the Pittsburgh Penguins 3-2.

Marc-Andre Fleury has 552 wins for second place on the NHL's career list.

Marc-Andre Fleury took sole possession of second place with his 552nd career win in the NHL.

Marc-Andre Fleury wore a mask for warmups on the Minnesota Wild's Native American Heritage night after being told by the NHL that was not allowed.

The Vegas Golden Knights will play the Florida Panthers in the Stanley Cup Final beginning Saturday.

The Minnesota Wild brought back Marc-Andre Fleury and traded Cam Talbot for Filip Gustavsson last summer to make the Fleury their primary goalie.

Evgeni Malkin is returning to the Pittsburgh Penguins after all.

The long-anticipated dismantling of the Chicago Blackhawks’ roster has begun with the team trading Alex DeBrincat to the Ottawa Senators and Kirby Dach to the Montreal Canadiens.

Vladimir Tarasenko had three goals in the third period to break open a tied game and series, and the St. Louis Blues pushed the Minnesota Wild to the edge of elimination with a 5-2 victory in Game 5.

Kirill Kaprizov had a hat trick and Joel Eriksson Ek scored twice for the Minnesota Wild, who snapped back at the St. Louis Blues with a 6-2 victory to even their first-round playoff series at one game apiece.

David Perron had a hat trick and an assist to lead the St. Louis Blues past the Minnesota Wild 4-0 in Game 1 of their first-round series.

Marc-Andre Fleury may have been the biggest winner at the NHL trade deadline.

The Minnesota Wild have acquired goalie Marc-Andre Fleury in a trade with the Chicago Blackhawks hours before the NHL trade deadline.

The two-time defending Stanley Cup champion Tampa Bay Lightning made another trade on the eve of the deadline aimed at becoming the NHL’s first team to win three in a row since the 1980s.

The combination of jumbled standings in the Western Conference and a flat salary cap has stalled much of the trade market around the NHL.

The Chicago Blackhawks have hired Kyle Davidson as general manager, dropping his interim tag instead of going outside the floundering franchise for new leadership.

Nazem Kadri and Mikko Rantanen scored, Pavel Francouz made 23 saves for his third career shutout and the Colorado Avalanche beat the Chicago Blackhawks 2-0 to extend their franchise-record home winning streak to 16 games.

New Jersey coach Lindy Ruff tested positive for COVID-19 hours before the Devils’ game against the Edmonton Oilers and was isolated from the team.

Fenway Sports Group has reached an agreement with the Pittsburgh Penguins that would give the conglomerate controlling interest in one of the NHL’s marquee franchises.

Jack Hughes scored his second goal of the game less than a minute into overtime and the New Jersey Devils beat the Chicago Blackhawks 4-3 after blowing a late two-goal lead.

The Vegas Golden Knights have traded reigning Vezina Trophy-winning goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury to the Chicago Blackhawks.

Nashville Predators goaltender Pekka Rinne is retiring after 15 seasons.

Edmonton Oilers captain Connor McDavid ran away in the voting to win his second Hart Trophy as NHL MVP after leading the league in points.

Montreal Canadiens forward Joel Armia has been cleared to travel to Tampa after going into NHL COVID-19 protocol on the eve of the Stanley Cup Final.

Carey Price made 26 saves to lead the Montreal Canadiens to 4-1 road victory over the Vegas Golden Knight, putting the Canadiens one win away from the Stanley Cup Final.

Carey Price made 29 saves and the Montreal Canadiens beat the Vegas Golden Knights 3-2 on Wednesday night to tie the Stanley Cup semifinal series at a game apiece.

Shea Theodore had a goal and an assist, Marc-Andre Fleury made 28 saves and the Vegas Golden Knights beat the Montreal Canadiens 4-1 in the first game of the Stanley Cup semifinal.

Jonathan Marchessault, Max Pacioretty and William Karlsson came through with timely goals for the Vegas Golden Knights in their 4-2 series win over Colorado.

Alex Pietrangelo scored his first goal of the postseason to break a tie and the Vegas Golden Knights defeated the Colorado Avalanche 6-3 in Game 6 to advance to the Stanley Cup semifinals.

Edmonton Oilers center Connor McDavid, Toronto Maple Leafs center Auston Matthews and Colorado Avalanche forward Nathan MacKinnon have been named finalists for the Hart Trophy as NHL MVP.

Mark Stone scored on a breakaway 50 seconds into overtime as the Vegas Golden Knights overcame a two-goal deficit to beat the Colorado Avalanche 3-2 and take a 3-2 lead in their second-round playoff series.

Jonathan Marchessault had his fourth career hat trick to lead the Vegas Golden Knights to a 5-1 victory over the Colorado Avalanche to tie their second-round series at two games apiece.

Jonathan Marchessault and Max Pacioretty scored 45 seconds apart in the third period to lift the Vegas Golden Knights to a 3-2 victory over the Colorado Avalanche in Game 3 of their second-round playoff series.

Mikko Rantanen scored a power-play goal 2:07 into overtime, Philipp Grubauer outdueled fellow Vezina Trophy finalist Marc-Andre Fleury and the Colorado Avalanche beat the Vegas Golden Knights 3-2 to take a 2-0 lead in their second-round playoff series.

Vegas forward Ryan Reaves was suspended two games by the NHL for his roughing and unsportsmanlike conduct on Colorado’s Ryan Graves during the Golden Knights’ 7-1 loss in Game 1 of their second-round series Sunday.

Nathan MacKinnon and Gabriel Landeskog each scored twice as the well-rested Colorado Avalanche made quick work of Vegas with their speed, beating the Golden Knights 7-1 in a skirmish-filled Game 1 of their second-round playoff series.

Mattias Janmark notched his first career hat trick as the Vegas Golden Knights eliminated the Minnesota Wild with a 6-2 win in Game 7 of their opening-round series.

Cam Talbot made 37 saves and the Minnesota Wild beat the Vegas Golden Knights 4-2 despite having only 14 shots on goal to stave off elimination in their opening-round playoff series.

Reilly Smith capped a three-goal second-period surge by the Vegas Golden Knights with the go-ahead score in a 5-2 victory over the Minnesota Wild.

Vegas Golden Knights goalie Marc-Andre Fleury has stopped 63 of 65 shots from the Minnesota Wild over the first two games of their West Division playoff series.

Joel Eriksson Ek’s goal at 3:20 of overtime lifted the Minnesota Wild past the Vegas Golden Knights 1-0 in Game 1 of their first-round series.

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Jonathan Marchessault scored twice and the Vegas Golden Knights became the first NHL team to clinch a playoff berth, beating the San Jose Sharks 5-2 for their eighth straight victory.

Vegas Golden Knights right wing Alex Tuch (89) races for the puck against the Colorado Avalanche during the first period of of Outdoor Lake Tahoe NHL hockey game at Stateline, Nev., Saturday, Feb. 20, 2021. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli))STATELINE, Nev. – Nathan MacKinnon scored a dazzling goal more than nine hours after assisting on another to highlight a most unusual and lengthy outdoor game at Lake Tahoe that the Colorado Avalanche won 3-2 over the Vegas Golden Knights on Saturday. Although it’s fair to say that none of those had the picturesque setting of this rink located on the 18th fairway of a golf course on the shores of Lake Tahoe and surrounded by trees with snow-covered mountains towering in the background. Fleury made 36 saves for Vegas and fell to 0-3 in three career outdoor game starts. AdPART 1The Avs controlled the play under the sun, getting an early goal from Girard and outshooting Vegas 17-8 in the first 20 minutes.

Workers put the finishing touches on the temporary ice rink, Friday, Feb. 19, 2021, built at the Edgewood Tahoe Resort, that will host two NHL games, this weekend at Stateline, Nev. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli)STATELINE, Nev. – Some players snapped pictures of Lake Tahoe and the majestic Sierra Nevada mountains as they came out for their first look at the picturesque outdoor rink that will host a pair of NHL games this weekend. This is a drop the mic type outdoor rink. The guys really, really enjoyed it today. The only thing we’re missing is fans.”AdWith the COVID-19 pandemic limiting attendance at games, the NHL took the opportunity to hold a pair of outdoor games at a unique setting unlike the 30 previous outdoor games at stadiums.

Vegas Golden Knights right wing Mark Stone (61) reacts after scoring a goal against the San Jose Sharks during the second period of an NHL hockey game in San Jose, Calif., Saturday, Feb. 13, 2021. (AP Photo/Josie Lepe)SAN JOSE, Calif. – Jonathan Marchessault scored the first of Vegas’ three power-play goals and the Golden Knights spoiled San Jose’s first home game in nearly a year with a 3-1 victory over the Sharks on Saturday. San Jose was given the unbalanced schedule because of local restrictions that banned contact sports and practices, forcing the Sharks to hold training camp in Arizona. He was hired last January by Vegas but hadn’t faced San Jose until Saturday. SIMEK SIDELINEDSharks D Radim Simek left in the second period after taking two hard hits from Marchessault.

Vegas Golden Knights goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury (29) celebrates after defenseman Zach Whitecloud, left, scored against the Anaheim Ducks during the third period of an NHL hockey game Tuesday, Feb. 9, 2021, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/John Locher)The Latest on the effects of the coronavirus outbreak on sports around the world:___The NHL says Vegas Golden Knights forward Tomas Nosek has tested positive for COVID-19 after he was removed from playing in a 5-4 win over Anaheim on Tuesday night. The NHL says the Golden Knights home game against the Ducks remains scheduled for Thursday, pending test results of players and staff on both teams. In other coronavirus pandemic developments, Minnesota forward Victor Rask was added to the NHL’s COVID-19 list. The Wild now have 13 players on the list, with their games postponed through at least Saturday.

The Vegas Golden Knights have agreed to terms on a $61.6 million, seven-year contract with top free agent Pietrangelo, a person with direct knowledge of the move tells The Associated Press. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey, File)Alex Pietrangelo is Vegas bound, and the Golden Knights are shuffling the deck to fit him in. Pietrangelo signed a $61.6 million, seven-year deal with Vegas on Monday that carries an $8.8 million annual salary cap hit through 2027. Before registering Pietrangelo's contract, the Golden Knights traded defenseman Nate Schmidt to the Vancouver Canucks for a 2022 third-round pick, clearing his $5.95 million cap hit off the books. The 30-year-old leaves the St. Louis Blues after serving as captain of their 2019 Stanley Cup championship team.