Welcome to the NHL On Tap, a daily look at the games on the NHL schedule. There are six games on the schedule for Friday, including one televised nationally in the United States.
Games of the day
Dallas Stars at Winnipeg Jets (8 p.m. ET; TSN3, NHLN, Victory+)
Mikko Rantanen will play his third game for the Stars (42-20-2) after being acquired in a trade with the Carolina Hurricanes on March 7. The forward has been a factor in his first two games with Dallas, with two goals and an assist. The Stars, 8-2-0 in their past 10 games, can pull within six points of the Jets (45-17-4) for the Central Division lead with a regulation win. Dallas forward Jason Robertson will look to extend his points streak to nine games; he scored in a 4-1 win at the Vancouver Canucks on Sunday and has 15 points (eight goals, seven assists) in his eight-game run. With a point, Winnipeg can move ahead of the Washington Capitals and regain sole possession of first place in the overall standings following the Capitals' 3-0 loss at the Los Angeles Kings on Wednesday. Connor Hellebuyck is 38-9-3 with a 1.99 goals-against average, .927 save percentage and six shutouts in 50 starts for the Jets this season and on track to win the Vezina Trophy, voted as best goalie in the NHL, for the third time in his career.
Detroit Red Wings at Carolina Hurricanes (7 p.m. ET; FDSNDET, FDSNSO, SNP, SNE)
Patrick Kane will look to build on a five-point game, which helped end a six-game losing streak for the Red Wings (31-28-6). The forward had two goals and three assists in a 7-3 win against the Buffalo Sabres on Wednesday. It was the fourth time Kane had at least five points in a game, and it helped pull Detroit within two points of the second wild card into the Stanley Cup Playoffs from the Eastern Conference in its quest to qualify for the postseason for the first time since 2015-16. The Hurricanes (39-22-4) can extend their winning streak to six games (allowing two goals or fewer in each of them) and move six points ahead of the New Jersey Devils for second in the Metropolitan Division. Carolina center Sebastian Aho has a point in six of his past seven games and 11 points (seven goals, four assists) in his past 11 games.
Edmonton Oilers at New York Islanders (7:30 p.m. ET; MSGSN, SNW, TVAS)
The prolific Leon Draisaitl can extend his NHL career-high point streak to 17 games when the Oilers (37-24-4) play the second game of a back-to-back at the Islanders (29-28-7). The Edmonton forward scored in a 3-2 loss at the New Jersey Devils on Thursday, has 24 points (12 goals, 12 assists) in his 16-game run, at least a point in 24 of his past 25 games (39 points; 18 goals, 21 assists) and is second in the League in scoring with 98 points (47 goals, 51 assists) in 65 games, four points behind NHL scoring leader Nathan MacKinnon of the Colorado Avalanche. Oh, and then there's Oilers captain Connor McDavid, who has 13 points (two goals, 11 assists) in a nine-game streak. Despite that production from their two game changers, Edmonton is 3-8-0 in its past 11 games and has fallen one point behind the Kings for third place in the Pacific. New York, 4-7-0 in its past 11 games, is trying to get back into playoff contention, sitting five points behind the Columbus Blue Jackets for the second wild card in the East. Goalie Ilya Sorokin is 4-2-0 in his past six starts with a 2.54 GAA and .922 save percentage.
