Hockey headlines for February 26, 2026

Thursday, February 26, 2026

Ducks rally past Oilers to give Joel Quenneville his 1,000th career win (Orange County Register)
Avalanche fend off Mammoth without Nathan MacKinnon in first game after Olympic break (Denver Post)
Lightning shut down Maple Leafs in 1st game back after Olympic break (Tampa Bay Times)
Penguins captain Sidney Crosby out at least 4 weeks after Olympics injury (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)
Robert Thomas takes leave of absence from Blues for personal reasons (St. Louis Post-Dispatch)
Lightning coach Jon Cooper to miss 2 games after father’s death (Tampa Bay Times)
Hellebuyck to be first hockey player to receive Presidential Medal of Freedom (Winnipeg Free Press)
Damage control: Penguins team dentists race the clock when pucks and sticks shatter smiles (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)
Why Olympic hero Jack Hughes wanted to honor U.S. teammate, too, during Devils homecoming (NJ.com)
Matthew Tkachuk returns to White House after Olympic gold, lets Trump wear his medal (Miami Herald)
Maple Leafs captain Auston Matthews breaks silence on 'unfortunate' post-medal moment (Toronto Sun)
Jeremy Swayman gives kudos to U.S. women’s gold medal team (Boston Herald)
Stars goalie Jake Oettinger reflects on Olympic experience, explains White House absence (Dallas Morning News)
Canes’ Slavin: Post-Olympic trip to Washington, White House was not to be missed (Raleigh News & Observer)
Tage Thompson addresses criticism of Team USA: 'I don’t think anyone on our team is going to shy away' (Buffalo News)
Avalanche’s Brock Nelson speaks about winning gold medal, criticism of his United States teammates (Denver Post)
Lightning’s Jake Guentzel talks Olympic gold, passing on White House (Tampa Bay Times)
Rangers’ Vincent Trocheck responds to ‘sad’ political fallout of Team USA’s Olympic victory lap (New York Post)
Macklin Celebrini welcomes pressure as spotlight on Sharks starts to grow (San Jose Mercury News)
Flyers’ Travis Sanheim ‘grateful for the opportunity and the experience’ despite coming up just short of Olympic gold (Philadelphia Inquirer)
'Olympic experience should help me to lead more,' Juraj Slafkovsky says ahead of Canadiens' stretch run (Montreal Gazette)
Jarring transition awaits Blackhawks' Teuvo Teravainen after bronze medal with Finland (Chicago Sun-Times)
Coach John Hynes, other Wild staffers on Team USA won Olympics gold, but don’t get the gold (Minneapolis Star-Tribune)
Penguins defenseman Sam Girard acclimates to new surroundings (Pittsburgh Tribune-Review)
Golden Knights beat Kings without 5 Olympians in lineup (Las Vegas Review-Journal)
Wyatt Johnston answers the call as Stars down Kraken to keep positive momentum rolling (Dallas Morning News)
Sandin and van Riemsdyk score rare goals and Capitals beat Flyers 3-1 (Washington Post)
Tage Thompson beats post-Olympics fatigue to help Sabres beat New Jersey (Buffalo News)
Perfetti nabs overtime winner, Jets beat Canucks 3-2 (Winnipeg Sun)
Lightning rolls over Maple Leafs in decisive post-Olympic win (Toronto Sun)
Vegas spoils Artemi Panarin’s Kings debut with 5-goal 3rd period (Los Angeles Times)
Kraken fall flat in return from Olympic break (Seattle Times)
Dan Vladař sharp in net, but Flyers fall to Capitals in first game back from Olympic break (Philadelphia Inquirer)
Wyatt Johnston breaks Mike Modano’s Dallas Stars record for power play goals in a season (Dallas Morning News)
Tyler Myers sits out against Jets in advance of possible trade (Vancouver Province)
Why Nashville Predators have increasing sense of urgency in return from Olympic break (The Tennessean)
March this and March that! Red Wings’ McLellan sick of hearing it (MLive.com)
Roy on Islanders' power play: 'We like to focus on the process' (New York Newsday)
Aleksander Barkov wants to return to Panthers ‘soon.’ But when might he be back? (Miami Herald)
Olympic gold driving Red Wings’ Dylan Larkin during playoff push (MLive.com)
‘Whirlwind’ month takes Panthers rookie Sandis Vilmanis from AHL to Olympics (South Florida Sun-Sentinel)
Expect to see lots of Zayne Parekh in Calgary Flames' final two months of season (Calgary Sun)
Playing a simpler game the key for Maple Leafs prospect William Villeneuve (Toronto Sun)
MLSE boss Keith Pelley laments Maple Leafs 'ups and downs' in message to season-ticket holders (Toronto Sun)
Hobby’s Deli in Newark honors Olympic hero Jack Hughes with sandwich (NorthJersey.com)