Travis Konecny is proving to be a handful lately, in more ways than one.

The Philadelphia Flyers forward scored a goal Wednesday against the Washington Capitals, and the first-period marker gave him a goal in each of his last five games.

Konecny has been on a roll since being promoted to the Flyers' top line with Claude Giroux and Sean Couturier, and his five-game goal streak featured overtime winners in consecutive contests, first against the Capitals on Jan. 21 and then against the Detroit Red Wings on Jan. 23.

The 20-year-old sits fourth among all Flyers in goal-scoring with 11 in 50 games, as only Couturier, Wayne Simmonds, and Giroux have lit the lamp more often.

Konecny is in his second NHL season after being selected 24th overall by the Flyers in 2015.

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The Toronto Maple Leafs won't have veteran defensemen Ron Hainsey and Roman Polak for Wednesday's matchup with the New York Islanders and their third-ranked offense.

Polak has been placed on injured reserve with a viral infection and Hainsey is out while dealing with an illness. This occurs while top blue-liner Morgan Rielly remains out of the lineup with an upper-body injury. Hainsey and Rielly had made up Toronto's top pairing for most of the season.

Nikita Zaitsev's return to the lineup provides reinforcements, but given that he hasn't played since Dec. 15, it's unlikely he'll be at optimal effectiveness.

Justin Holl, who was recalled from the AHL on an emergency basis, will make his NHL debut. He had 20 points in 39 games with the

Here is how the Leafs are expected to take the ice on the back end:

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Eugene Melnyk is reiterating his commitment to Ottawa and the Senators more than a month after suggesting he'd relocate the franchise rather than sell it.

"Whatever was said in December, it's unfortunate that it hit a real nerve in Ottawa," Melnyk said on told CTV's "Your Morning" on Wednesday, per TSN. "The reality is I love the city, I love the people, I love the fans and it's actually my privilege to be there and to ice a team like the Ottawa Senators."

Prior to the NHL100 Classic in Ottawa last month, Melnyk was asked about potentially selling the club, saying, "Imagine if you own a McDonald's franchise. But you can move it. Why would you sell it? It's something that's very difficult to buy. We're doing OK here. Nothing great, but we're doing OK."

In addition to saying it's a privilege to own the club, Melnyk added he believes a new arena closer to downtown will greatly benefit both Ottawa and the Senators, and that the goal remains winning the Stanley Cup despite a poor showing on the ice so far this season.

"I just want to make sure people have their heads held high and are proud of the Ottawa Senators," he said.

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Jaromir Jagr's prolific NHL career appears to have come to an end with the 45-year-old returning home to the Czech Republic to finish the season.

As Luke Plunkett of Kotaku points out, the departure also means that there are no active players left in the league that appeared in NHL '94 - the EA Sports video game released in 1993.

Jagr leaves the NHL as the third-highest goalscorer in history (766) and third in games played (1,733).

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New Jersey Devils forward Taylor Hall has been fined $5,000 for boarding Buffalo Sabres forward Kyle Okposo, the NHL's Department of Player Safety announced.

The incident occurred in the first period of Tuesday's contest between the two clubs and saw Hall issued a minor for boarding on the play.

Luckily, Okposo appeared no worse for wear following the hit as he remained in the game. He finishing with the most ice time among all Sabres forwards with 22:15 logged.

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USA Hockey is set to honor the late Jim Johannson by keeping him as the general manager of record for the men's Olympic hockey team following his untimely passing on Jan. 21.

"This is Jimmy's team from start to finish," said head coach Tony Granato, per Chris Peters of ESPN. "It is and always will be. The work he did to bring us all together, the confidence he's given us as coaches and us as players is what he was all about. We want to do what Jimmy wanted us to do and how he wanted us to do it."

The American squad will be led by former NHL players Brian Gionta - who will be team captain - and James Wisniewski.

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Colorado Avalanche forward Nathan MacKinnon will not be in the lineup on Thursday when the club takes on the Edmonton Oilers and is considered day to day, the team announced on Wednesday.

MacKinnon was forced from Tuesday's game against the Vancouver Canucks with what appeared to be a shoulder injury after taking a hit from defenseman Alex Edler late in the second period.

The 22-year-old is expected to be reevaluated over the next 24 hours after which the team expects to have more information, according to TSN's Bob McKenzie. The team is also hopeful MacKinnon will be out only a week or less, McKenzie notes.

MacKinnon sits second in league scoring with 61 points in 49 games, just three points back of Tampa Bay Lightning forward Nikita Kucherov for the leaguelead.

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Former Nashville Predators captain Mike Fisher is coming come out of retirement to be an active player, the team announced Wednesday.

There is no timetable for his return to the lineup, but he will officially sign a deal for the balance of the season prior to the Feb. 26 trade deadline after skating and working out on his own and then joining the team for official practices.

Fisher retired after helping the Predators reach the Stanley Cup Final last year. He recorded 18 goals and 24 assists in 72 games last season but chipped in only four assists in 20 playoff games in the eventual loss to Pittsburgh.

He'll bring center depth to a team sorely lacking in that area, and despite joining the team at this late juncture, he can still get his name on the Cup if he appears in at least one final game, should Nashville be able to return and make good on their contender status.

That certainly appears to be the impetus for the decision:

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Toronto Maple Leafs head coach Mike Babcock hopes his team's on-ice play can motivate management to do some wheeling and dealing.

Following the team's morning skate Wednesday, the club's bench boss said he hopes his team can play well enough in the coming weeks to put general manager Lou Lamoriello under pressure to make a trade at the deadline, according to Sportsnet's Chris Johnston.

"It's our job, as a team, to put as much pressure as we can on Lou to help us," Babcock said, according to TSN's Mark Masters. "... The better you play and the more you look like you got a chance, the more opportunity you have for your GM to help you.

"Always could use help. Never been on a team that didn't need more."

The Maple Leafs currently hold down the third spot in the Atlantic with a comfortable 15-point cushion over the next team in the division, the Florida Panthers.

It's no secret that any such deadline deal would likely be intended to bolster the Maple Leafs' blue line. With Nikita Zaitsev back in the lineup Wednesday and Morgan Rielly appearing close to a return as well, however, the team's defensive corps should get a big boost regardless.

The trade deadline is set for 3:00 p.m. ET on Feb. 26.

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Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Nikita Zaitsev will be in the lineup for Wednesday's game against the New York Islanders, head coach Mike Babcock confirmed.

Zaitsev has been sidelined since Dec. 15 with a broken foot.

His return marks a positive development for a blue line that's still without Morgan Rielly, who is out with an arm injury.

Through 34 games this season, Zaitsev has recorded four goals and six assists in 22:51 of ice time per outing, second on the team in average ice time only to Jake Gardiner.

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