Kaapo Kakko is carving out quite a legacy for himself in his homeland.

One of the top draft-eligible prospects in 2019, Kakko scored his 22nd goal of the season on Thursday, setting a new Liiga record for markers in a season by a player age 18 or younger.

Kakko passed some esteemed company along the way, according to Elite Prospects.

Here's a look at the record-setting tally:

Kakko, a winger, likely won't drop below No. 2 at this year's draft. He and American Jack Hughes are considered the consensus top two prospects.

Kakko registered five points in seven contests for Finland at this year's World Junior Hockey Championship, including the winning goal in the waning minutes of the gold-medal game against the United States.

Copyright © 2019 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

San Jose Sharks forward Evander Kane and his wife lost their unborn daughter, Eva, at 26 weeks.

Kane hasn't played since Feb. 26, as he was initially nursing a middle-body injury.

Teammate Erik Karlsson and his wife, Melinda, lost their son nearly one year ago.

Copyright © 2019 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

New York Rangers forward Chris Kreider has been fined $5,000, the maximum allowable under the CBA, for elbowing Vancouver Canucks forward Elias Pettersson during Wednesday's contest, NHL Player Safety announced Thursday.

The 27-year-old Kreider was also given a five-minute major and a game misconduct following the play.

Here's a look at the incident:

Pettersson, who previously suffered a concussion on Oct. 13 after being slammed to the ice by Florida Panthers defenseman Mike Matheson, returned to Wednesday's game following the elbow and insisted he felt fine.

"I started bleeding from my nose so that's why I went down," Pettersson told reporters, including Ben Kuzma of the Vancouver Province. "My head was feeling fine all the time. But of course, it's a protocol that you have to do they suspect you have a concussion."

This is the second fine of Kreider's career. He was given a $5,000 penalty in 2017 for hitting forward Cody Eakin, a member of the Dallas Stars at the time, with his helmet.

When asked about Kreider's intent on the latest play, Pettersson took the diplomatic approach.

“I saw he was coming, so I looked away and he lifted his arm and his elbow and got me in the head,” he said. “Intentional? I don’t know. I don’t think he’s a dirty player and I can’t talk for him."

The Canucks will be back in action Friday night when they host the New Jersey Devils.

Copyright © 2019 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Ottawa Senators prized prospect Erik Brannstrom was recalled from the AHL and made his NHL debut Thursday versus the St. Louis Blues.

Brannstrom was the crown jewel return in the deal that sent Mark Stone to the Vegas Golden Knights last month and is largely considered one of the top prospects in hockey.

The 19-year-old was drafted 15th overall by the Golden Knights in 2017. He stayed in Sweden for a season before coming to North America to play in the AHL, where he notched 29 points in 46 contests split between the Chicago Wolves and Belleville Senators.

Brannstrom also captained Sweden at this year's world juniors, where he registered four goals in five games.

Copyright © 2019 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Former NHLer Kristian Huselius considers himself fortunate after surviving an unexpected fireplace accident at his home in Sweden.

Huselius went to pour fuel on his fireplace when it suddenly exploded, causing burns to his face and upper body. He was sent to the intensive care unit for several days before returning home Wednesday.

"I'm really lucky because my whole apartment could have been a big fire," Huselius told Sportsnet's Eric Francis. "The doctor told me I was lucky to be alive. My face is kind of a mess right now. I have a lot of pain - that's a problem too. But they think my face is going to be fine. My shoulder is not as good. I might have to have surgery to get some new skin but I will wait a few weeks to see how much the damage is.

"I'm fortunate. I will have scars, but it could have been worse."

Huselius was drafted 47th overall by the Florida Panthers in 1997. He also had stints with the Calgary Flames and Columbus Blue Jackets over the span of his 10-year career. In 662 NHL games, he notched 451 points.

Copyright © 2019 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

New York Islanders goaltender Robin Lehner doesn't think there is enough being done to protect goalies from opposing players and is ready to take matters into his own hands if they continue to barrel through his territory.

“This is a problem around the league that a lot of goalies get run into like that,” Lehner told reporters, including Brett Cyrgalis of the New York Post. “Cannot complain about it, but maybe all the goalies should start protecting ourselves with our blockers and our sticks, and they shouldn’t call anything about that if we do it.”

The 27-year-old netminder was run over by Ottawa Senators forward Brady Tkachuk during the Islanders' 5-4 victory March 5. He left the contest with an upper-body injury and has not played since.

Lehner practiced with the team for the first time Wednesday and had some choice words for the Senators' young talent.

“Got to be honest, everyone always does it on purpose, which is fine. It’s part of hockey,” Lehner said. “But there are a few guys in the league who always do it intentionally on goalies. They’re just brought up and taught that way. It doesn’t matter if (Nelson) pushed on him or not, he’s coming into me, that’s just part of his game. I’m just happy I’m not out longer."

To add insult to injury, the Senators scored a goal on the play, prompting the Swede to voice his opinion on another issue he feels the league still has yet to solve.

“I think it’s a joke," Lehner said. “You look around at all the different hits and all the different stuff, it’s so inconsistent. Goalie interference and stuff like that, I’ve seen goals where players are holding goalies’ pads and sitting on them and it’s still a goal. So I don’t think they really know what they’re doing.”

Lehner has made his bid for the Vezina Trophy this season. Among netminders with a minimum of 30 games played, he ranks third with a .927 save percentage and second with a 2.19 goals-against average heading into Thursday's action.

Copyright © 2019 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Connor McDavid said his Edmonton Oilers didn't take the New Jersey Devils seriously enough on Wednesday night.

"We took them lightly and took the game for granted," McDavid told reporters following a 6-3 defeat. "When one doesn't go well, you've got to shake it off and keep going."

Oilers head coach Ken Hitchcock echoed his captain's sentiment.

Edmonton missed an opportunity to gain ground in the Western Conference playoff race against the moribund Devils, a team that sits third last in the East and was missing several key players to injury.

New Jersey rebounded with the victory after blowing a two-goal lead and allowing Johnny Gaudreau to erupt for six points in a 9-4 loss to the Calgary Flames on Tuesday night.

Copyright © 2019 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Chris Kreider might receive a phone call from the NHL's head office on Thursday morning.

The New York Rangers forward was given a five-minute major and a game misconduct for elbowing Vancouver Canucks phenom Elias Pettersson in the head on Wednesday night.

Here's a look at the play:

Pettersson went to the dressing room after the collision, but he returned before the end of the period. He missed time with a concussion earlier in the season after Florida Panthers defenseman Mike Matheson slammed him to the ice.

The Canucks received another five-minute power play shortly thereafter, as Brendan Lemieux was ejected for this hit on Antoine Roussel.

Roussel also left the game.

The Rangers are the first team this season to have two different players receive a game misconduct in the same contest, according to Sportsnet Stats.

Copyright © 2019 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.