NHL On Tap: Capitals begin post-Carlson era against Bruins

There are 11 games on the NHL schedule for Saturday, with three nationally televised in the United States and six in Canada. Here are five things to watch today, along with the complete game schedule.

Capitals’ post-Carlson era begins

The start of the 11-game slate marks the first time since he was selected in the first round (No. 27) of the 2008 NHL Draft that John Carlson will not be a part of the Washington Capitals organization. After 17 seasons with Washington, Carlson was traded to the Anaheim Ducks on Thursday, meaning the Capitals (31-25-7), and especially their defensemen, have entered a new era, which starts against the host Boston Bruins (34-22-5) at TD Garden (12:30 p.m. ET; ABC, SN1, TVAS) in a game that features two teams in the mix for a Stanley Cup Playoff spot from the Eastern Conference. The Bruins hold the second wild card in the East, but after losing two winnable games since the break for the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026, are in a more tenuous spot than they’d prefer. The Capitals are four points behind them, though the Bruins have two games in hand on them. Boston will have David Pastrnak and Pavel Zacha playing on the second Hockey Day in Czechia, which is being celebrated for the fourth year.

A Perry good chance at reaching Cup Final?

Corey Perry has been to five of the past six Stanley Cup Finals. That makes the forward’s trade on Friday to the Tampa Bay Lightning, for whom he played from 2021-23, all the more interesting, and perhaps a harbinger that the Lightning could make a return to the Final, which they last reached in 2022. The Lightning (38-18-4), who visit the Toronto Maple Leafs (27-25-11) at Scotiabank Arena (7 p.m. ET; CBC, SNO, NHLN, The Spot), are first in the Atlantic Division and tied in points with the Buffalo Sabres, but with two games in hand. Perry, who had 65 points (31 goals, 34 assists) in 163 games in his time with Tampa Bay, had 28 points (11 goals, 17 assists) in 50 games for the Los Angeles Kings this season. 

New team, same hotel for Schenn

Brayden Schenn didn’t have far to go when he was traded from the St. Louis Blues to the New York Islanders on Friday before the NHL Trade Deadline; the teams were sharing a hotel before games at the San Jose Sharks on consecutive days. So instead of hopping on a flight, Schenn was well positioned to join his new squad, which has its first post-deadline game at SAP Center in San on Saturday (10 p.m. ET; MSGSN, NBCSCA). Both the Islanders (35-23-5) and Sharks (30-25-5) are vying for spots in the playoffs this season, with the Islanders sitting third in the Metropolitan Division, tied in points with the Pittsburgh Penguins, and the Sharks two points behind the Seattle Kraken for the second wild card from the Western Conference entering Friday.

Red-hot Blue Jackets

Since Rick Bowness took over as coach of the Columbus Blue Jackets (32-21-8) on Jan. 12, they have gone 13-2-1, pushing within one point of the Bruins for a wild card. They’ll try to keep that going when they host another playoff hopeful, the Utah Mammoth (33-25-4), at Nationwide Arena on Saturday (7 p.m. ET; FDSNOH, Utah16). They could have Zach Werenski back to help in that effort; the defenseman, who has missed the past three games due to illness, is expected take warmups. The Mammoth, whose biggest deal before the deadline was for defenseman MacKenzie Weegar on Wednesday, are not expected to have their newest acquisition Saturday; general manager Bill Armstrong said it could take 4-10 days for visa issues to be worked out with the former Calgary Flames defenseman. 

Sabres push for top spot in Atlantic

The Buffalo Sabres (37-19-6) are tied for the most points the Atlantic, an unfamiliar spot for them in recent seasons. But the Sabres are an NHL-best 26-6-2 dating to Dec. 8, and get a chance to improve on that record when they host the Nashville Predators (28-26-8) at KeyBank Center (5:30 p.m. ET; FDSNSO, MSG-B). Buffalo is hoping to continue its run to its first playoff berth since 2010-11, which would end the longest playoff drought in the NHL. The Sabres were among the most active teams in the NHL leading up to the deadline, acquiring forwards Sam Carrick and Tanner Pearson, and defensemen Logan Stanley and Luke Schenn, in an attempt to get bigger, stronger and harder to push around in a crucial season for the franchise.

The schedule

Washington Capitals at Boston Bruins (12:30 p.m. ET; ABC, SN1, TVAS)

New York Rangers at New Jersey Devils (3 p.m. ET; ABC, SN1, SN)

Nashville Predators at Buffalo Sabres (5:30 p.m. ET; FDSNSO, MSG-B)

Philadelphia Flyers at Pittsburgh Penguins (5:30 p.m. ET; SN-PIT, NBCSP)

Tampa Bay Lightning at Toronto Maple Leafs (7 p.m. ET; CBC, SNO, NHLN, The Spot)

Utah Mammoth at Columbus Blue Jackets (7 p.m. ET; FDSNOH, Utah16)

Vancouver Canucks at Winnipeg Jets (7 p.m. ET; SNW, SNP)

Montreal Canadiens at Los Angeles Kings (7 p.m. ET; FDSNW, KCAL, SNE, CITY, TVAS)

Carolina Hurricanes at Calgary Flames (10 p.m. ET; CBC, SNW, SNP, FDSNSO)

New York Islanders at San Jose Sharks (10 p.m. ET; MSGSN, NBCSCA)

Ottawa Senators at Seattle Kraken (10 p.m. ET; KHN/Prime, KONG, SNO, SNE, CITY, TVAS)