As we enter the month of December, one thing is for certain: there is parity in the NHL. After Saturday's action, only six points separated all eight teams in the Metropolitan Division, while 15th-place Toronto is only four points out of the second wild-card in the East. The West is more spread out as Colorado, Dallas and Minnesota are the class of the conference, but 14th-place Vancouver is only four points out of the wild card. It is tight in the NHL.
All stats are through Saturday night unless otherwise noted.
Visit RotoWire's NHL Daily Starting Lineups to find out starters for every game on the schedule!
WEEK OF DECEMBER 1-7
4 Games – Anaheim, Chicago, Colorado, Columbus, Dallas, Florida, Montreal, New Jersey, New York Islanders, New York Rangers, San Jose, St. Louis, Utah, Washington, Winnipeg
3 Games – Boston, Buffalo, Calgary, Carolina, Detroit, Edmonton, Los Angeles, Minnesota, Nashville, Ottawa, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh
Tampa Bay, Toronto, Vancouver, Vegas
2 Games – Seattle
Chicago and Utah play four games on the road.
Florida plays four games at home.
Colorado, Columbus, Minnesota, Pittsburgh, St. Louis, Washington and Winnipeg play three games on the road.
Anaheim, Carolina, Edmonton, Los Angeles, Montreal, New Jersey, the New York Rangers and Philadelphia play three games at home.
ANAHEIM
Games this week
@ St. Louis, vs. Utah, vs. Washington, vs. Chicago
Tired: @ St. Louis (Monday)
Rested: vs. Chicago (Sunday)
Notes
The Ducks play four games this week, including three games in four nights... Lukas Dostal is
As we enter the month of December, one thing is for certain: there is parity in the NHL. After Saturday's action, only six points separated all eight teams in the Metropolitan Division, while 15th-place Toronto is only four points out of the second wild-card in the East. The West is more spread out as Colorado, Dallas and Minnesota are the class of the conference, but 14th-place Vancouver is only four points out of the wild card. It is tight in the NHL.
All stats are through Saturday night unless otherwise noted.
Visit RotoWire's NHL Daily Starting Lineups to find out starters for every game on the schedule!
WEEK OF DECEMBER 1-7
4 Games – Anaheim, Chicago, Colorado, Columbus, Dallas, Florida, Montreal, New Jersey, New York Islanders, New York Rangers, San Jose, St. Louis, Utah, Washington, Winnipeg
3 Games – Boston, Buffalo, Calgary, Carolina, Detroit, Edmonton, Los Angeles, Minnesota, Nashville, Ottawa, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh
Tampa Bay, Toronto, Vancouver, Vegas
2 Games – Seattle
Chicago and Utah play four games on the road.
Florida plays four games at home.
Colorado, Columbus, Minnesota, Pittsburgh, St. Louis, Washington and Winnipeg play three games on the road.
Anaheim, Carolina, Edmonton, Los Angeles, Montreal, New Jersey, the New York Rangers and Philadelphia play three games at home.
ANAHEIM
Games this week
@ St. Louis, vs. Utah, vs. Washington, vs. Chicago
Tired: @ St. Louis (Monday)
Rested: vs. Chicago (Sunday)
Notes
The Ducks play four games this week, including three games in four nights... Lukas Dostal is out of action for two-to-three weeks, so Petr Mrazek should play at least twice and possibly three times with Ville Husso playing the remainder... Pavel Mintyukov returned to action this past week after missing three games as a healthy scratch. He potted his first goal of the season Friday in a 5-4 win over the Kings.
BOSTON
Games this week
@ Detroit, vs. St. Louis, vs. New Jersey
Tired: None
Rested: None
Notes
David Pastrnak has missed the last two games with an undisclosed injury and could miss some further action this week, though head coach Marco Sturm thinks that the injury is not a long-term concern... Morgan Geekie scored a pair Saturday and has 20 goals, tied with Nathan MacKinnon for the NHL lead... Charlie McAvoy skated before practice Saturday for the first time since getting hit in the face by a puck Nov. 15. He is still some time away from returning to action, and he skated with a full face shield and a jaw protector.
BUFFALO
Games this week
vs. Winnipeg, @ Philadelphia, @ Winnipeg
Tired: None
Rested: None
Notes
The Sabres play the Jets twice this week, so if there are any fisticuffs, look for Peyton Krebs to add to his penalty minute total... Josh Norris (upper body) could return this week as he has been practicing and is close... Owen Power is without a point in his last eight games... Josh Doan is having a fine season with the Sabres, tallying eight goals and eight assists.
CALGARY
Games this week
@ Nashville, vs. Minnesota, vs. Utah
Tired: None
Rested: vs. Utah (Saturday)
Notes
The Flames have been getting great play from Devin Cooley, who could be challenging Dustin Wolf for the top job in Calgary. Cooley has won his last three starts and has given up only nine goals on 119 shots in his last four appearances. Wolf had a horrible outing Wednesday, allowing three goals on four shots before he was pulled at the five-minute mark of the opening period.
CAROLINA
Games this week
vs. Toronto, vs. Nashville, vs. San Jose
Tired: vs. San Jose (Sunday)
Rested: None
Notes
The Hurricanes play three home games in four nights this week... Look for Frederik Andersen to play twice with Brandon Bussi playing once, if Pyotr Kochetkov is unable to return from his undisclosed injury... Seth Jarvis picked up a hat trick in his hometown of Winnipeg on Friday. Remember that next year when the Hurricanes return to Manitoba... Andrei Svechnikov denied rumors this week that he was open to a trade.
CHICAGO
Games this week
@ Vegas, @ Los Angeles, @ Los Angeles, @ Anaheim
Tired: @ Anaheim (Sunday)
Rested: None
Notes
Chicago plays four road games this week, including three games in four nights... Spencer Knight should get three starts with Arvid Soderblom playing once... They play back-to-back games against the Kings, and if there is any rough stuff Colton Dach or Louis Crevier could be involved... Tyler Bertuzzi is thriving on the second line with Frank Nazar and Teuvo Teravainen and has 20 points in 21 games... Andre Burakovsky is also doing well with 16 points in 19 games. He has the added benefit of playing alongside Connor Bedard on the top unit.
COLORADO
Games this week
vs. Vancouver, @ New York Islanders, @ New York Rangers, @ Philadelphia
Tired: @ Philadelphia (Sunday)
Rested: None
Notes
The Avalanche play three games in four nights as part of a four-game week. Expect to see Mackenzie Blackwood and Scott Wedgewood share the net... Blackwood has won five straight games, but saw his shutout streak end after two games as he allowed a pair of goals on 23 shots after stopping 71 shots in his two shutouts... Brock Nelson got off to a terrible start with only three goals and five points in his first 16 games. He has been a stud since then, tallying five goals and adding six assists in his last nine games.
COLUMBUS
Games this week
@ New Jersey, vs. Detroit, @ Florida, @ Washington
Tired: @ Washington (Sunday)
Rested: None
Notes
The Blue Jackets play four games this week, including three games in four nights... Jet Greaves should see action in at least two games and likely three, while Elvis Merzlikins will get the remainder of the starts... From Oct. 21-Nov. 13, Sean Monahan had two goals and seven assists in 12 games. Unfortunately, he has only one goal and one assist in his other 13 appearances.
DALLAS
Games this week
@ New York Rangers, @ New Jersey, vs. San Jose, vs. Pittsburgh
Tired: @ New Jersey (Wednesday)
Rested: None
Notes
The Stars play four games this week, including three games in four nights... Jake Oettinger will likely play three games with Casey DeSmith playing once... Miro Heiskanen has had a terrific November with a goal and 16 assists in 14 games... Tyler Seguin has thrived on the top line with four goals and 12 points in his last 12 appearances... Jamie Benn has a pair of goals and five points in six games since returning from an upper-body injury that sidelined him for the first 19 games of the campaign... Wyatt Johnston leads the NHL in power-play goals with 10.
DETROIT
Games this week
vs. Boston, @ Columbus, @ Seattle
Tired: None
Rested: None
Notes
Patrick Kane has scored only once in his last 13 games... Dylan Larkin is on a four-game scoring streak and has 14 goals and 29 points in 26 games... Linemate Lucas Raymond notched his eighth of the season Saturday in a 3-2 shootout loss to Boston, giving the Swedish native 27 points in 24 contests... Cam Talbot seems to be the No. 1 goaltender in Detroit, surpassing John Gibson. Talbot is 9-4-1 this season.
EDMONTON
Games this week
vs. Minnesota, vs. Seattle, vs. Winnipeg
Tired: None
Rested: vs. Winnipeg (Saturday)
Notes
The Oilers are certainly having problems between the pipes as Stuart Skinner is 34th out of 57 goalies (minimum seven games played) with a 3.00 GAA, while Calvin Pickard is last with a 4.04 GAA. It's even worse in save percentage, as Skinner is 40th while Pickard remains dead last. You have to wonder when Connor Ingram is going to get called up from the minors, or if the Oilers will dip into the trade market... Ryan Nugent-Hopkins returned to action Saturday and had a goal and an assist.
FLORIDA
Games this week
vs. Toronto, vs. Nashville, vs. Columbus, vs. New York Islanders
Tired: None
Rested: None
Notes
The Panthers play three games in four nights as part of their four-game week... Sergei Bobrovsky should get three starts, though Daniil Tarasov has actually played quite well as his backup and could share the net this week... A.J. Greer is having a good fantasy season with six goals, four assists, a plus-seven rating and 41 PIM in 24 appearances... Seth Jones leads all Panther blueliners with 13 points, one better than Gustav Forsling... Aaron Ekblad has been a disappointment with only seven points in 23 games.
LOS ANGELES
Games this week
vs. Washington, vs. Chicago, vs. Chicago
Tired: None
Rested: None
Notes
The Kings play Chicago in back-to-back games at home this week... If the going gets tough, look for Jeff Malott to be in the middle of everything... Phillip Danault has yet to score in 25 games this season and has only four assists. He managed 43 points in 80 games last season... Adrian Kempe had only one goal in six games heading into action Saturday before scoring the overtime winner in a 2-1 victory over Vancouver.
MINNESOTA
Games this week
@ Edmonton, @ Calgary, @ Vancouver
Tired: None
Rested: @ Vancouver (Saturday)
Notes
The Wild trek through Western Canada this week... Minnesota finally lost Saturday after winning seven straight games, and it took a shootout against Buffalo to do so... Matt Boldy had 10 goals and 17 points in 14 November games... Jesper Wallstedt was supposed to begin taking over as the Wild's goaltender in 2024-25, but he had a tough season and spent most of it at AHL Iowa. It has been a different story this season as Wallstedt is 7-0-2 with a 1.93 GAA and a .938 save percentage. He should get plenty of consideration for the Calder Trophy, though it appears that Matthew Schaefer is the hands-down favorite.
MONTREAL
Games this week
vs. Ottawa, vs. Winnipeg, @ Toronto, vs. St. Louis
Tired: vs. Winnipeg (Wednesday)
Rested: None
Notes
The Canadiens play a pair of back-to-back games this week, so look for Sam Montembeault and Jakub Dobes to share the net this week... Mike Matheson inked a five-year, $30 million contract extension... Defenseman Adam Engstrom was held off the scoresheet in his NHL debut Wednesday, but was playing well in the AHL with five goals and 14 points in 18 games... Lane Hutson scored his fourth of the season Saturday in a 7-2 loss to mighty Colorado... Zachary Bolduc had two goals and four assists in four games before being held off the scoresheet Saturday.
NASHVILLE
Games this week
vs. Calgary, @ Florida, @ Carolina
Tired: None
Rested: None
Notes
Matthew Wood is tied for second among rookies in goals with seven. The 15th overall pick in the 2023 Draft, Wood has 11 points in 18 games this season, including five points on the power play... Steven Stamkos had a goal and an assist in his previous two contests before being held off the scoresheet Saturday in a loss to Winnipeg. Stamkos has only six goals and nine points in 25 games this season.
NEW JERSEY
Games this week
vs. Columbus, vs. Dallas, vs. Vegas, @ Boston
Tired: @ Boston (Saturday)
Rested: vs. Dallas (Wednesday)
Notes
The Devils play four games this week, including three games in four nights... Jacob Markstrom and Jake Allen should share the net... Dawson Mercer could be heating up again. He had a goal and an assist Saturday in a 5-3 loss to the Flyers and has 10 goals and 20 points in 25 games... Brenden Dillon will play in his 1,000th NHL game Monday at home against Columbus.
NEW YORK ISLANDERS
Games this week
vs. Tampa Bay, vs. Colorado, @ Tampa Bay, @ Florida
Tired: None
Rested: None
Notes
The Islanders play four times this week including three games in four nights... Ilya Sorokin should get three starts with David Rittich playing once... Kyle Palmieri suffered what is believed to be a knee injury Friday and could be out a while... Max Shabanov could replace him on the second unit. Shabanov has three goals and seven points in 13 games... There were some speculation that the Islanders could take Long Island native James Hagens with the first pick in the 2025 Draft, but Matthew Schaefer has made it clear the team made the right call as the rookie blueliner leads all first-year players with eight goals. He is outstanding.
NEW YORK RANGERS
Games this week
vs. Dallas, @ Ottawa, vs. Colorado, vs. Vegas
Tired: vs. Vegas (Sunday)
Rested: None
Notes
The Rangers play three games in four nights as part of their four-game week... Igor Shesterkin should get three starts with the recently promoted Spencer Martin playing once (possibly), in place of the injured Jonathan Quick. The Rangers played Shesterkin in back-to-back games Friday and Saturday, so perhaps they will roll with Shesterkin in all four games... Artemi Panarin has not ruled out returning to Russia after his contract runs out at the end of the season.
OTTAWA
Games this week
@ Montreal, vs. New York Rangers, vs. St. Louis
Tired: None
Rested: None
Notes
The Senators got Brady Tkachuk (broken wrist) back Friday after he missed 20 games. He picked up an assist in his first game back and almost tied the score in the final minute in St. Louis... Jake Sanderson has a goal and seven assists in his last eight games, giving the 23-year-old defenseman four goals and 19 points across 24 appearances... Linus Ullmark is 4-1-1 in his last six games, with a 2.12 GAA and a .914 save percentage.
PHILADELPHIA
Games this week
vs. Pittsburgh, vs. Buffalo, vs. Colorado
Tired: None
Rested: vs. Colorado (Saturday)
Notes
Matvei Michkov had only one goal in his first 13 games, but has turned on the jets of late with seven goals in his last 11 appearances, including a pair of goals Saturday in a 5-3 win over New Jersey... Owen Tippett had six points in his first 16 games but has been on fire ever since with 11 points in eight games... Dan Vladar won his 10th game of the season Saturday and is only four wins away from tying his career high.
PITTSBURGH
Games this week
@ Philadelphia, @ Tampa Bay, @ Dallas
Tired: None
Rested: None
Notes
The Penguins got Tristan Jarry back this past week. The netminder won both games this week, giving up five goals on 60 shots in victories over Buffalo and Columbus... Ben Kindel was a healthy scratch Wednesday. The 18-year-old rookie has a goal and one assist and a minus-5 rating in his last eight games... Sidney Crosby had a goal and an assist in Saturday's 7-2 loss to Toronto, giving him 16 goals and 27 points this season.
SAN JOSE
Games this week
vs. Utah, vs. Washington, @ Dallas, @ Carolina
Tired: None
Rested: vs. Washington (Wednesday), @ Carolina (Sunday)
Notes
The Sharks play four games this week, but don't play three games in four nights... Yaroslav Askarov should play at least two games and possibly three, while Alex Nedeljkovic will play the remainder of the contests. Askarov was outstanding yet again Friday, stopping 32 shots in a 3-2 win over Vancouver. His November record is 8-2-0 with a 1.88 GAA and a .944 save percentage... Michael Misa (lower body) and Jeff Skinner (lower body) could return to practice this week.
SEATTLE
Games this week
@ Edmonton, vs. Detroit
Tired: None
Rested: None
Notes
The Kraken are the one team in the NHL to play only twice this week... Jared McCann returned to action Wednesday after missing 17 games with a lower-body injury. He had an assist in a 3-2 loss to Dallas... The Kraken could loan Berkly Catton to Team Canada for the upcoming World Junior Championships... Kaapo Kakko returned to the lineup Saturday after missing six games with a lower-body injury... The Kraken placed Jaden Schwartz (lower body) on injured reserve in a corresponding move.
ST. LOUIS
Games this week
vs. Anaheim, @ Boston, @ Ottawa, @ Montreal
Tired: None
Rested: vs. Anaheim (Monday)
Notes
The Blues play three games in four nights as part of their four-game week... Look for Jordan Binnington and Joel Hofer to share the crease... Hofer stopped all 18 shots Saturday in a 1-0 win over Utah for his second shutout of the season... Keep an eye on Philip Broberg. The defenseman is an outstanding skater and at age of 24, has increased his ice time almost three minutes from last season, as he is averaging 23:26.
TAMPA BAY
Games this week
@ New York Islanders, vs. Pittsburgh, vs. New York Islanders
Tired: None
Rested: None
Notes
The Lightning play a pair of games versus the Islanders this week and if things get testy, look for Curtis Douglas to be in the middle of things... Brayden Point missed his fourth straight game Saturday with an undisclosed injury... Nikita Kucherov has four goals and 18 points during a nine-game scoring streak... Victor Hedman has been out since Nov. 12, a span of 10 games. Darren Raddysh has taken over as the offensive star on the blue line and has two goals and 13 points in his last eight games.
TORONTO
Games this week
@ Florida, @ Carolina, vs. Montreal
Tired: None
Rested: None
Notes
The Maple Leafs continue to play like they are a bottom-feeder in the NHL. They are 3-7-0 on the road and are 3-6-2 in their last 11 games after a big 7-2 victory over Pittsburgh on Saturday... Auston Matthews and Matthew Knies returned to action this week... They complete their six-game road trip in Carolina, before returning home for a Saturday clash versus Montreal... Matthews scored Saturday for the first time in three games... Dennis Hildeby stopped 33 shots Saturday's win over the Penguins for his first victory of the season.
UTAH
Games this week
@ San Jose, @ Anaheim, @ Vancouver, @ Calgary
Tired: @ Calgary (Saturday)
Rested: None
Notes
The Mammoth play three games in four nights, as part of their four-game week... Karel Vejmelka should get at least two starts and possibly three, while Vitek Vanecek will pick up the remaining starts... Utah could lose one of its young offensive stars for a while as Logan Cooley was on the wrong end of a knee-on-knee collision Saturday. He needed help to leave the ice, as he could not put any weight on his left leg and did not return. There was no update after the game, but it did not look good. Cooley has 14 goals and nine assists in 26 games this season.
VANCOUVER
Games this week
@ Colorado, vs. Utah, vs. Minnesota
Tired: vs. Minnesota (Saturday)
Rested: None
Notes
The Canucks are talking with Kiefer Sherwood about a contract extension, but if the two sides reach an impasse, don't be surprised if Sherwood is elsewhere by the trade deadline... Elias Pettersson looks like his old self this season after a bad 2024-25 campaign in which he had 15 goals and 30 assists in 64 contests. He has eight goals and 14 assists in 26 games thus far.
VEGAS
Games this week
vs. Chicago, @ New Jersey, @ New York Rangers
Tired: @ New York Rangers (Saturday)
Rested: None
The Golden Knights could activate Carter Hart week as his suspension ends Dec. 1... The Golden Knights have lost seven of their last 10 home games after defeating San Jose on Saturday... Mitch Marner had a goal and an assist, giving him five goals and 25 points this season... The win was goaltender's Carl Lindbom's first in the NHL... Tomas Hertl has 11 goals and nine assists this season, including eight points with the man advantage.
WASHINGTON
Games this week
@ Los Angeles, @ San Jose, @ Anaheim, vs. Columbus
Tired: @ San Jose (Wednesday)
Rested: vs. Columbus (Sunday)
Notes
The Capitals play four games this week, including three games in four nights... Look for Logan Thompson to play three times with Charlie Lindgren playing once... Alex Ovechkin continues to amaze at the age of 40. He has 11 goals and 12 assists in 25 games. While he used to be a high-volume shooter (over 300 shots in 15 different seasons, including 528 in 2008-09), he has only 63 in 25 games, the one part of his game that has slowed down.
WINNIPEG
Games this week
@ Buffalo, @ Montreal, vs. Buffalo, @ Edmonton
Tired: @ Edmonton (Saturday)
Rested: @ Montreal (Wednesday)
Notes
The Jets play four games this week, including three games in four nights... With Connor Hellebuyck on the shelf, the Jets will rely on Eric Comrie and Thomas Milic to split the netminding duties this week... They also play a pair of games against Buffalo this week and if tempers flare, look for Logan Stanley to be involved... Milic made his NHL debut Friday and allowed four goals on 34 shots to the Hurricanes. Head coach Scott Arniel was really upset with the effort of the Jets in front of Milic as the Jets were outshot 35-13, but they rebounded nicely Saturday with a 5-2 win over Nashville.
