Picking up an assist against his childhood team was great, but it's not what Auston Matthews will cherish about his first-ever game in his hometown rink.

The mature Toronto Maple Leafs rookie spoke postgame following the highly anticipated contest and admitted - like a true pro - that in the end it's all about picking up two points.

"It was special. Like I said earlier – today, coming home and playing in front of the home crowd, playing where I grew up, it's definitely a special moment," Matthews said, according to the team. "To get the two points here and to win definitely puts the cherry on top."

Matthews was fortunate to have plenty of family and friends in attendance, and after growing up as a fan of the Coyotes and looking up to Shane Doan, the 19-year-old finally got the chance to go face to face with him.

In fact, Matthews got to line up against the Coyotes captain on the game's opening faceoff and - along with all in attendance - witnessed Doan collect career goal No. 400 in his 1,500th game; two moments that made the game that much more special.

"I saw him come up, it happened pretty quick," said Matthews. "It's kind of that part of the game that makes it pretty special.

"Obviously he got his 400th goal tonight playing in his 1,500th game. That's a pretty unbelievable accomplishment for him. I'm happy for him, but I'm happy that we got the win as well."

On the other hand, Matthews admits Doan's milestone moment could have been even sweeter if just for one thing.

"It would have been nice if I wasn't on the ice for that one," Matthews said, according to TSN's Kristen Shilton.

In all, Matthews' return to where it all began couldn't have gone much better. It's just unfortunate that Matthews won't have the chance to return for another game until next season.

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The Arizona faithful love their Auston Matthews and he loves them back.

Following the Toronto Maple Leafs forward's first game at his hometown arena, the 19-year-old - along with Coyotes forward Max Domi - stuck around to sign autographs for local youth hockey players on the ice.

In all upwards of 500 thrilled fans stuck around to meet two of the city's biggest stars, according to NHL.com's Dan Rosen.

Matthews finished the game with an assist and three shots as his club skated away with a 4-1 victory.

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Nathan MacKinnon ensured a happy holiday break for the Colorado Avalanche.

The speedy forward roofed a wrist shot past Corey Crawford to give his team a much-needed win over the Chicago Blackhawks on Friday.

The goal was MacKinnon's ninth of the season.

Colorado entered the game with the fewest amount of points in the NHL, so a win over the Central Division's first-place club is a nice stocking stuffer.

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The best way to end a goal-scoring slump is by netting a beauty.

Toronto Maple Leafs rookie William Nylander did just that Friday, turning on the jets and beating Arizona Coyotes goaltender Mike Smith with a top-shelf backhand to give the Maple Leafs a 4-1 lead.

Despite the lengthy goalless skid, Nyalnder still sits fourth in rookie scoring this season with 22 points.

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First Mark Messier, next Paul Coffey.

Florida Panthers forward Jaromir Jagr reminded the hockey world on Thursday that he's still a force when - with a rather unorthodox assist - he eclipsed Mark Messier's 1,887 to claim second place on the league's all-time points list.

However, Jagr is not done collecting milestones this season. The 44-year-old picked up an assist in Friday's game against the Detroit Red Wings and with it moved within an assist of Paul Coffey's 1,135 for fifth all time in that category.

After that he would need another 34 assists to catch Ray Bourque who sits fourth all time. Meanwhile in the goals department, Jagr sits third behind Wayne Gretzky and Gordie Howe and would need another 52 to pass Mr. Hockey for second place.

But if Jagr plays til he's 50 years old - as he plans - then no milestone may be safe.

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Florida Panthers forward Reilly Smith will be out the next 7-to-10 days with a concussion, head coach Tom Rowe said, according to George Richards of the Miami Herald.

Smith suffered the injury after taking a heavy hit by Detroit Red Wings defenseman Niklas Kronwall early into the second period of the team's 4-3 shootout loss on Friday.

The club's timetable means the 25-year-old can expect to miss the Panthers' next three games following the Holiday break.

Through 34 games this season Smith has managed six goals and 14 points.

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Appearing in his 1,500th career NHL game, the Arizona Coyotes captain recorded his 400th regular-season goal.

The milestone tally was assisted by Connor Murphy and Jamie McGinn, and came late in the second period on Frederik Andersen of the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Doan became the 93rd player in NHL history to reach 400 goals, and extends his lead atop the Coyotes' all-time list.

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The good news for the Boston Bruins is Tuukka Rask is playing some of the best hockey of his career.

The bad news?

All three goalies that have stepped in as backup have to this point failed miserably.

The latest example was Friday's 3-2 overtime loss to the Carolina Hurricanes wherein Anton Khudobin saw an early two-goal lead evaporate around him.

Signed to a two-year, $2.4-million deal this past summer, Khudobin has not been able to effectively backstop the Bruins in relief of Rask, while rookies Malcolm Subban and Zane McIntyre did not impress in brief stints earlier this season.

Here's a look at Rask's numbers compared to those behind him on the depth chart.

One potential silver lining for the Bruins is McIntrye's play at the AHL level. In 12 games, he's posted a record of 8-0-0 with a .956 save percentage. He could be called upon to jump up to the big club if need be, but there's still the matter of what to do with Khudobin and his contract.

With a record of 18-14-4 following the loss to Carolina, the Bruins remain in third place in the Atlantic. If they don't solve this particular problem, though, a third straight year out of the playoffs could very well be on the horizon.

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The captain is back on the board.

Jonathan Toews was credited with a goal against the Colorado Avalanche on Friday, marking his first since Nov. 6 and ending a 13-game scoreless drought.

The power-play goal was assisted by Artemi Panarin, and expelled a sigh of relief from the Chicago Blackhawks.

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