Hockey headlines for December 31, 2021

Friday, December 31, 2021

Kraken twice blow leads as they fail to extinguish the Flames in third period (Seattle Times)
Panthers get their ‘swagger’ back with nine goals and a blowout of the rival Lightning (Miami Herald)
Kings end Canucks’ 7-game win streak in shootout (Los Angeles Daily News)
Dallas Stars’ game vs. Arizona postponed due to COVID-19 outbreak (Dallas Morning News)
Lightning head coach Jon Cooper returns from COVID protocol (Tampa Bay Times)
Canucks' Dowling latest addition to COVID-19 list (Vancouver Province)
Wild sign coach Dean Evason and staff to multi-year contract extensions (Minneapolis Star-Tribune)
Leafs and Raptors capacity cut to 1,000, some subscriber tickets cancelled (Toronto Star)
Amid strict new Ontario attendance guidelines, Senators preparing to finally get back in action Saturday (Ottawa Citizen)
Mike Keenan: Rangers exit was ‘biggest disappointment in my career’ (New York Post)
As Winter Classic nears, Wild players recall hockey at its most elemental (Minneapolis Star-Tribune)
Under new guidelines, Wild might get Brodin back for Winter Classic (Minneapolis Star-Tribune)
TNT set for its first, and a frigid, Winter Classic (St. Louis Post-Dispatch)
Red Wings’ Jeff Blashill: Cancellation of World Juniors ‘devastating’ (MLive.com)
‘I feel bad for the kids.’ The Greigs speak for many families with world juniors cancelled (Toronto Star)
'Brutal': cancelled World Juniors a teenaged wasteland (Winnipeg Sun)
Tomas Hertl scores in OT as Sharks (mostly) get back to familiar identity (San Jose Mercury News)
Blue Jackets return from hiatus with shootout win (Columbus Dispatch)
Carolina Hurricanes’ special teams too much for Canadiens (Raleigh News & Observer)
Kiefer Bellows propels Islanders past depleted Sabres (New York Post)
Flyers extend point streak to seven in overtime loss to Sharks. Sean Couturier to IR (Philadelphia Inquirer)
Win streak over despite Halák heroics (Vancouver Province)
Undermanned and overwhelmed Canadiens fall 4-0 to Hurricanes (Montreal Gazette)
Panthers rout outmanned Lightning (Tampa Bay Times)
Martin Jones, with a complicated legacy in San Jose, gets a fresh start with Flyers (San Jose Mercury News)
Kraken captain Mark Giordano and Calgary are old flames: could he be traded back there? (Seattle Times)
Former Flames captain Giordano forced to put return to Calgary on hold (Calgary Herald)
Well-rested Hawks look forward to busy stretch after COVID pause (Chicago Daily-Herald)
A silver lining to Avalanche’s lengthy COVID pause? “We’ll probably be healthy for the first time all year” (Denver Post)
Blues have found success despite little stability in their offense (St. Louis Post-Dispatch)
Capitals getting boost from centers following COVID-19 pause (Washington Times)
Coach Bruce Cassidy believes Bruins are ‘ready to go’ after long layoff (Boston Globe)
Golden Knights’ top-line forward out after wrist surgery (Las Vegas Review-Journal)
Ducks relieved Cam Fowler’s injury isn’t as serious as feared (Orange County Register)
Palmieri on injured reserve, no guarantees when he returns (New York Newsday)
Islanders get four players back from COVID list (New York Post)
Golden Knights get 2 players back from COVID protocol (Las Vegas Review-Journal)
Rasmus Sandin 'almost shaking' with joy as he re-joins Maple Leafs blue line in practice (Toronto Sun)
Edmonton Oilers need to know if they can count on goalie Mike Smith (Edmonton Sun)
Dominik Kubalik enters crucial 2nd part of Blackhawks’ season rejuvenated by family time (Chicago Sun-Times)
Bunting knocks wood that he has avoided COVID; Mrazek tabled his reflex skills during isolation (Toronto Sun)
On the doorstep of his NHL debut, Kasper Bjorkqvist has learned to take nothing for granted (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)
Three Amerks assigned to Sabres' taxi squad at start of road trip (Buffalo News)
Senators prospect Tyler Boucher talks about making transition to playing for the Ottawa 67's (Ottawa Citizen)
Coyotes, Gila River Arena to host Matt Shott Celebration of Life Jan. 5 (Arizona Republic)
Superman and the dogsledder: the good and bad of Jets Christmas (Winnipeg Sun)