NHL On Tap: Rangers-Lightning will feature deep group of Olympic hopefuls

There are four games on the NHL schedule for Wednesday, including two nationally televised in the United States and Canada. Here are the five things to watch today, along with the complete game schedule.

USA Hockey brass should have eyes in Tampa

Four players hoping to land on the United States' Olympic team will be on the ice when the New York Rangers and Tampa Bay Lightning play at Benchmark International Arena in Tampa (7 p.m. ET; HBO MAX, TNT, TVAS). Rangers forwards J.T. Miller and Vincent Trocheck, and defenseman Adam Fox, and Lightning forward Jake Guentzel all attended the U.S. Olympic Orientation Camp in August and they all played for the United States at the 4 Nations Face-Off in February. New York coach Mike Sullivan is the coach of the U.S. Olympic team. Tampa Bay defenseman Ryan McDonagh, another American Olympic hopeful who was at the orientation camp, will not play. He will miss some time with an injury. This matchup will also provide a close look at some potential Canadian Olympians. Lightning coach Jon Cooper will coach Canada at the Olympics, and forwards Brayden Point, Anthony Cirelli and Brandon Hagel are all hoping to wear the maple leaf at the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026 as they did at the 4 Nations Face-Off. Oh, and let's not forget that Tampa Bay (8-5-2) has won seven of eight, and New York (8-7-2) is 7-1-1 on the road.

Olympic hopeful Bedard, Blackhawks look to stay hot

Connor Bedard has arrived in a big way this season. The 20-year-old carries an eight-game point streak (18 points; seven goals, 11 assists) into the Chicago Blackhawks' first home game since Oct. 28. They play the New Jersey Devils at United Center in Chicago (9:30 p.m. ET; HBO MAX, truTV, TNT, SN (JIP), TVAS2, SN360). Bedard, the Blackhawks' third-year center who was the No. 1 pick in the 2023 NHL Draft, has nine points (three goals, six assists) in the past three games, all road wins against the Vancouver Canucks, Calgary Flames and Detroit Red Wings. Chicago (8-5-3) returns home after going 3-2-1 on a six-game road trip, winning the final three after going 0-2-1 at the Winnipeg Jets, Edmonton Oilers and Seattle Kraken. Bedard, who is pushing to be included on Canada's Olympic roster, has 25 points (nine goals, 16 assists) in 16 games this season. He'll go against U.S. Olympic hopeful and fellow No. 1 NHL draft pick Jack Hughes (2019), who has gone quiet in the past two games but leads the Devils (11-4-1) with 10 goals and 18 points in 16 games. New Jersey is 3-1-1 in its past five games. Blackhawks forward Frank Nazar (lower body) will not play.

Oilers start road trip trying to find consistency

Connor McDavid is finding his level of elite consistency, bringing a three-game goal streak and five-game point streak on the road. Now his team has to follow along. The Oilers open a seven-game trip against the Philadelphia Flyers at Xfinity Mobile Arena (7:30 p.m. ET; NBCSP, TVAS2, SN). McDavid has 10 points (four goals, six assists) during the point streak, with all four goals coming in the past three games, including two in the third period of a 5-4 overtime win against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Monday. That came two nights after Edmonton lost 9-1 to the Colorado Avalanche. The Oilers (7-6-4) still needed to come back against the Blue Jackets to get the win Monday; they trailed 3-1 going into the third period and 4-2 in the third. But it was a win and maybe that sets up Edmonton to have success on its longest road trip of the season. The Flyers (8-5-2) haven't played since Saturday, when they lost 3-2 in overtime to the Ottawa Senators.

Konecny, Michkov heating up for Flyers

While McDavid and Leon Draisaitl are always the headliners, if you're locked into the Oilers-Flyers game, you need to be on the lookout for Philadelphia forwards Travis Konecny and Matvei Michkov. Konecny, a Canadian Olympic hopeful who played with McDavid in the 4 Nations Face-Off, has nine points (four goals, five assists) in a seven-game point streak. Michkov has goals in back-to-back games after scoring one in Philadelphia's first 13 games. In addition, forward Trevor Zegras, acquired in the offseason from the Anaheim Ducks, leads the Flyers with 16 points (four goals, 12 assists) in 15 games; no Philadelphia player had at least 15 points in his first 15 games since Jaromir Jagr in 2011-12.

Mammoth return home facing some adversity

The Utah Mammoth have to be happy about being home after playing eight of their past nine games on the road. They especially have to be happy that they're back in Salt Lake City after losing the last three of a four-game road trip. The Mammoth are back in their friendly barn, Delta Center, where they play the Buffalo Sabres (9 p.m. ET; Utah16, MSG-B, TVAS). Utah (9-7-0) has lost five of six (1-5-0) after starting the season with eight wins in 10 games. It is, however, 4-1-0 in five home games this season. The Mammoth have turned Delta Center into a true home-ice advantage. They return to their building to play the Sabres, who they defeated 2-1 in overtime on Nov. 4, the opener of their most recent four-game road trip that ended with a 4-2 loss in Ottawa. This one starts a stretch of six of eight games at home for the Mammoth before U.S. Thanksgiving on Nov. 27. It's a chance to make up some of the ground they lost on the road last week. Buffalo (5-6-4) has lost six of its past seven (1-2-4).

The schedule

New York Rangers at Tampa Bay Lightning (7 p.m. ET; HBO MAX, TNT, TVAS)

Edmonton Oilers at Philadelphia Flyers (7:30 p.m. ET; NBCSP, TVAS2, SN)

Buffalo Sabres at Utah Mammoth (9 p.m. ET; Utah16, MSG-B, TVAS)

New Jersey Devils at Chicago Blackhawks (9:30 p.m. ET; HBO MAX, truTV, TNT, SN, TVAS2, SN360)