NHL On Tap: Blues, Blackhawks in Winter Classic lead 13-game schedule

Welcome to the NHL On Tap, a daily look at the games on the NHL schedule. There are 13 games on the schedule for Tuesday, including one nationally televised in the United States and three in Canada:

Games of the day

St. Louis Blues at Chicago Blackhawks (5 p.m. ET; MAX, truTV, TNT, SN, TVAS)

The Blackhawks (12-23-2) and Blues (17-17-4) will play the Discover NHL Winter Classic in the iconic confines of Wrigley Field, home of Major League Baseball's Chicago Cubs, in the NHL's 42nd regular-season outdoor game and first Winter Classic rematch. It's the seventh regular-season outdoor game for Chicago, the most by any NHL team, and first for Connor Bedard. The 19-year-old forward has 93 points (32 goals, 61 assists) in 105 NHL games, including six points (three goals, three assists) during a four-game point streak. He needs one point to tie Patrick Kane (94 points; 29 goals, 65 assists in 99 games) for second-most by a Blackhawks teenager. The Blues are 2-0-0 in outdoor games, defeating the Blackhawks 4-1 at Busch Stadium in St. Louis in 2017 and the Minnesota Wild 6-4 at Target Field in Minnesota in 2022. Jordan Kyrou, who leads the Blues with 31 points (15 goals, 16 assists), holds the record for most points in an outdoor game (four points; two goals, two assists against the Wild). Today is extra special for St. Louis defenseman Cam Fowler, who will become the first player in NHL history to skate outdoors for his 1,000th game.

Boston Bruins at Washington Capitals (12:30 p.m. ET; MNMT, NESN, SNP, SNE)

Alex Ovechkin looks to score in his first home game since returning from a fractured left fibula to continue his pursuit of the NHL goals record and help potentially move the Capitals (24-10-2) into first place in the Metropolitan Division. The forward was injured Nov. 18 and missed 16 games, and with 870 goals is within 25 of passing Wayne Gretzky (894). Brad Marchand has a nine-game road point streak (11 points; seven goals, four assists) for the Bruins (20-14-4), who begin a three-game road trip after a 4-0 win against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Saturday.

Utah Hockey Club at Edmonton Oilers (9 p.m. ET; SN1, SNE, SNO, Utah16)

Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl will each try to extend an 11-game point streak, the longest active runs in the NHL. Draisaitl has 23 points (nine goals, 14 assists) and McDavid has 21 (three goals, 18 assists). The Oilers (21-12-3) hope to avoid losing three straight (0-1-1) for the first time since starting the season 0-3-0. Logan Cooley has points in 10 straight road games for Utah (16-14-6) and can become the 10th different player in NHL history with 11 in a row at age 20 or younger, with Gretzky achieving the feat twice.

Other Tuesday games

New York Islanders at Toronto Maple Leafs (1 p.m. ET; SNO, MSGSN)

The Maple Leafs (22-13-2) host the first of a home-and-home set without captain Auston Matthews, who will miss his fifth straight game since reaggravating an upper-body injury during a 6-3 win at the Buffalo Sabres on Dec. 20. The Islanders (14-16-7) have won five in a row against Toronto since March 21, 2023, and can tie their longest winning streak against the Maple Leafs, set from 1978-79 to 1979-80 and 1984-85 to 1986-87.

Montreal Canadiens at Vegas Golden Knights (3 p.m. ET; SCRIPPS, TSN2, RDS)

The Golden Knights (25-8-3) are on a six-game winning streak, the longest active in the NHL. Jake Evans has a five-game goal streak for the Canadiens (16-17-3), an NHL career-best, the League's longest active run and tied with Cole Caufield (2023-24) for longest by a Montreal skater over the past five seasons.

Pittsburgh Penguins at Detroit Red Wings (8 p.m. ET; FDSNDET, SN-PIT)

Sidney Crosby (98 points; 32 goals, 66 assists in 2024) can get 100 regular-season points in a calendar year for the ninth time in his NHL career for the Penguins (17-16-3), which would break a five-way tie with Mario Lemieux, Marcel Dionne, Mike Bossy and Bryan Trottier for second most in NHL history behind Gretzky (14). Patrick Kane has 16 points (six goals, 10 assists) this season for the Red Wings (14-18-4) and 687 (247 goals, 440 assists) at home, two from tying Phil Housley (689) for the second most among United States-born skaters in NHL history behind Mike Modano (738).

Carolina Hurricanes at Columbus Blue Jackets (8 p.m. ET; FDSNOH, FDSNSO)

Zach Werenski has a 12-game home point streak (24 points; eight goals, 16 assists) for the Blue Jackets (15-16-6) and can become the second defenseman in the past 30 years to extend that run to 13 (Mike Green, 14 in 2009-10). The Hurricanes (22-13-1) are 5-5-0 in their past 10 and will likely be without defenseman Shayne Gostisbehere (six goals, 21 assists in 35 games), who coach Rod Brind'Amour said is more than day to day because of an upper-body injury.

Buffalo Sabres at Dallas Stars (8 p.m. ET; Victory+, MSG-B)

The Sabres (14-19-4) go for a season-high fourth consecutive win and look to sweep the two-game season series against the Stars (21-13-1) after a 4-2 victory in Buffalo on Oct. 22. Dallas captain Jamie Benn has at least one point in eight of his past nine games (two goals, eight assists), including a goal and two assists in a 5-1 win at Chicago on Sunday.

Nashville Predators at Minnesota Wild (8 p.m. ET; FDSNWI, FDSNNO, FDSNSO)

The Predators (11-19-7) play the second of a back-to-back after a 3-0 loss at the Winnipeg Jets on Monday, with Steven Stamkos one power-play goal from becoming the 12th player with 100 on the road and joining Ovechkin (161) as the only active player to do so. The Wild (22-11-4) have lost five of seven.

Winnipeg Jets at Colorado Avalanche (8 p.m. ET; ALT, TSN3)

Connor Hellebuyck earned his NHL-high fifth shutout for the League-leading Jets (27-10-1) on Monday, and Kyle Connor has 15 points (six goals, nine assists) on a seven-game point streak. Nathan MacKinnon has 10 points (one goal, nine assists) during a four-game point streak for the Avalanche (22-15-0) and leads the NHL in points (60) and assists (46).

New Jersey Devils at Anaheim Ducks (8 p.m. ET; Victory+, MSGN)

The Devils (24-12-3) hold a one-point lead over the Capitals in the Metropolitan, and forward Jesper Bratt has five assists during a four-game point streak. Troy Terry leads the Ducks (14-17-4) with 27 points (10 goals, 17 assists) in 35 games, including an assist in a 5-3 comeback win against the Oilers on Sunday.

Philadelphia Flyers at San Jose Sharks (8 p.m. ET; NBCSP, NBCSCA)

Rookies Matvei Michkov of the Flyers (16-17-4) and Macklin Celebrini of the Sharks (11-22-6) go head-to-head for the second time this season; Michkov had an assist and the shootout-deciding goal in a 4-3 shootout victory at Wells Fargo Center on Nov. 11, when Celebrini was held without a point. The Flyers forward leads first-year skaters with 29 points (12 goals, 17 assists) and the Sharks center (27 points; 12 goals, 15 assists in 27 games) is the only rookie averaging a point per game this season (minimum five games).

Vancouver Canucks at Calgary Flames (9 p.m. ET; SNW, SNP)

The Flames (17-12-7) begin a three-game homestand with Jonathan Huberdeau (15 goals, 12 assists in 36 games) on pace to score an NHL career-high 34 goals, which would be his first 30-goal season with Calgary and first since he had 115 points (30 goals) for the Florida Panthers in 2021-22. The Canucks (17-10-8) are 1-1-3 in their past five games.