Hockey headlines for December 15, 2021

Wednesday, December 15, 2021

Leafs move to the top of the NHL as Auston Matthews closes on goal lead (Toronto Star)
A fifth-straight win under a COVID cloud (Vancouver Province)
Avalanche defeats Ryan Reaves, NY Rangers to extend winning streak to five games (Denver Post)
Penguins beat Canadiens, extend winning streak to 5 (Pittsburgh Tribune-Review)
Flyers earn first three-game win streak of the season with 6-1 victory over the Devils (Philadelphia Inquirer)
Four more Hurricanes positive for COVID-19, game against the Minnesota Wild postponed (Raleigh News & Observer)
'Seems like an eternity': It's wait-and-see for Flames as COVID count hits 10 (Calgary Sun)
Four Canucks test positive for COVID-19 (Vancouver Province)
Bruins place forwards Brad Marchand and Craig Smith in COVID-19 protocol (Boston Globe)
Avalanche’s Devon Toews has positive COVID test, will miss at least six games (Denver Post)
Oilers' Ryan McLeod joins growing list of NHL players sidelined by COVID-19 (Edmonton Journal)
Sullivan says Penguins received covid-19 booster in October (Pittsburgh Tribune-Review)
Stars goaltender Anton Khudobin clears waivers, leaving open possibility to find trade partner (Dallas Morning News)
‘I wanted one last try’: Ben Bishop reflects on comeback attempt, bids emotional farewell to Stars (Dallas Morning News)
Wild's Guerin named GM of U.S. Olympic men's hockey team (Minneapolis Star-Tribune)
Will NHL players go to Beijing Olympics? With rising COVID-19 cases in NHL it's becoming more uncertain (USA Today)
COVID-19 is once again wreaking havoc on the sports world, around the world (Boston Globe)
COVID-19 booster shots may be MVP as positive cases hit NFL, NBA and NHL hard (USA Today)
McDavid calls potential quarantine ‘unsettling,’ Matthews ‘just playing it by ear’ on Beijing Olympics (Toronto Star)
Kraken try to stay vigilant as COVID-19 outbreak surges (Seattle Times)
Surging COVID cases prompt experts to call for crowd restrictions at Ontario pro sports events (Toronto Star)
Red Wings’ Robby Fabbri: Fun to be part of team on rise (MLive.com)
Team Canada retreats to mountains to prepare for world junior championship (Edmonton Sun)
West Mifflin's Logan Cooley selected to participate in World Junior Championship (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)
Pair of WNYers left off Team USA roster for World Junior Championship (Buffalo News)
Capitals’ attendance remains strong amid leaguewide decline (Washington Times)
Max Pacioretty’s 2 goals lift Golden Knights past Bruins (Las Vegas Review-Journal)
Driedger bails out Kraken and vice versa in 3-1 victory at San Jose (Seattle Times)
Lightning’s Andrei Vasilevskiy turns away Kings in overtime (Tampa Bay Times)
Wings' Alex Nedeljkovic helps end three-game skid with 2-1 win over Isles (Detroit Free Press)
Patchwork Blues do it again, post 4-1 win over Stars (St. Louis Post Dispatch)
Blue Jackets allow four unanswered goals in 4-3 loss to Canucks (Columbus Dispatch)
Islanders lose to Detroit with Barzal in COVID protocol (New York Newsday)
After sluggish start and lifeless finish, Florida Panthers blown out by Ottawa Senators (Miami Herald)
Kings focus on positive after OT loss to Lightning (Los Angeles Daily News)
Bruins can’t shake their home woes, steamrolled in short order by Golden Knights (Boston Globe)
Sharks’ first-ever game vs. Seattle Kraken ends in frustration (San Jose Mercury News)
Rangers battered again by powerful Avalanche (New York Post)
Stars head coach Rick Bowness says ‘no-shows’ on his roster ‘can’t hide’ after loss to Blues (Dallas Morning News)
Lacklustre effort equals Jets loss to the Sabres (Winnipeg Sun)
Hapless Canadiens extend winless streak to seven with 5-2 loss in Pittsburgh (Montreal Gazette)
Zibanejad recalls last rocky visit to Colorado (New York Newsday)
Patrik Laine rejoins Blue Jackets after father's death (Columbus Dispatch)
Blackhawks hoping to finally progress past ‘one-and-done’ offense (Chicago Sun-Times)
Severity of Sharks winger’s injury remains cloudy. Surgery? “Everything’s on the table” (San Jose Mercury News)
Does Trevor Zegras make the Ducks a must-see hockey team? (Orange County Register)
Defenseman Janis Moser ready for Coyotes and NHL debut Wednesday night (Arizona Republic)
Panthers claim goaltender Jonas Johansson off waivers (South Florida Sun-Sentinel)