St. Louis Blues top prospect Jimmy Snuggerud had a big moment in the club's April 3 contest against the Pittsburgh Penguins. The 6-foot-1 forward recorded his first NHL point by picking up the primary assist on Jake Neighbours' goal. 

Blues' Jimmy Snuggerud Is Already Impressing Big TimeOn March 28, the St. Louis Blues signed top prospect Jimmy Snuggerud to a three-year entry-level contract. This was after the 20-year-old forward posted 24 goals, 27 assists, and 51 points in 40 games this season with the University of Minnesota. 

Now, after his strong night against the Penguins, Snuggerud is being rewarded. At the club's morning skate, Snuggerud was moved up to the Blues' top line with Robert Thomas and Pavel Buchnevich, with Dylan Holloway out due to injury. 

Assuming they stick to their morning skate lines for their April 5 contest against the Colorado Avalanche, Snuggerud will have a golden opportunity to show the Blues what he can do playing in a more prominent role. In addition, he now has the chance to play on a line with two of the Blues' top forwards.

Snuggerud showed at the collegiate level with the University of Minnesota that he is a highly skilled offensive player. In 40 games this season with the school, he dominated, posting 24 goals and 51 points. Over his entire three-year stint with the school, he had 66 goals, 69 assists, and 135 points in 119 contests. 

It will now be fascinating to see what Snuggerud can do playing on a line with two stars like Thomas and Buchnevich from here. 

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A troublesome week continued for the Florida Panthers on Saturday in the Canadian capital city.

Florida lost for the fourth time this week, dropping a 3-0 affair to the playoff-hopeful Ottawa Senators at Canadian Tire Centre.

The Panthers got off to a strong start, doubling up Ottawa on shots during the opening period, but that didn’t keep the Cats from falling behind yet again.

Two goals by the Sens on their first five shots – one by Jake Sanderson and another by Drake Batherson on the power play – sent the home team into the intermission with a commanding 2-0 lead.

Florida kept the pressure on Ottawa goaltender Anton Forsberg throughout the middle period, outshooting the Senators 12-5, but the score remained the same heading into the final 20 minutes.

Forsberg turned aside another 15 shots during the third period, earning his first shutout since all the way back on November 2 against Seattle.

This time, he stopped a season-high 40 shots on goal en route to his third shutout of the season and sending Florida to their fourth straight defeat.

On to Detroit.

QUICK THOUGHTS

Florida killed off four of Ottawa’s five power plays in the loss.

The Cats’ power play went 0-for-3.

Ottawa is now just four points behind the Panthers for third place in the Atlantic Division. Each team has six games remaining on their schedule.

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On Apr. 3, Pittsburgh Penguins rookie Rutger McGroarty scored his first NHL goal in a 5-4 overtime loss to the St. Louis Blues. Historically, McGroarty became the 214th player to score their first goal in a Penguins sweater. 

Meanwhile, the 21-year-old becomes the 68th player to achieve the feat in the salary cap era, which began with Sidney Crosby's first goal on Oct. 8, 2005. 

McGroarty is on a list with three Hall of Famers: Colin Campbell (1975), Mario Lemieux (1984), and Mark Reechi (1989).

Other iconic names in franchise history are also on the list, such as Jaromir Jagr, Jean Pronovost, Bob Errey, Phil Bourque, Kevin Stevens, Evgeni Malkin, Kris Letang, Jordan Staal, Jake Guentzel, and Bryan Rust.

McGroarty is the fourth player to record their first goal this season, following Owen Pickering (Dec. 3), Joona Koppanen (Mar. 18), and netminder Alex Nedeljkovic (Jan. 17).

Interestingly, Greg Malone scored his first NHL goal with the Penguins on Nov. 5, 1976, and 27 years later, his son Ryan would tally his first goal with Pittsburgh on Oct. 29, 2003.

According to StatHead, Staal is the youngest player in franchise history to score their first NHL goal, achieving the feat at 18-032, just 30 days younger than Crosby was when he scored at 18-062. 

Pittsburgh Penguins Schedule: Remaining Games & Statistical NotesThe Pittsburgh Penguins are winding down their 2024-25 season and on pace to miss the Stanley Cup playoffs for the third consecutive season, a first in Sidney Crosby's 20-year career. However, there is plenty to play for in the final weeks of the regular season. 

On the other hand, the oldest Penguins player to score their first NHL goal was Noel Price, who was 31-348 when he scored on Nov. 22, 1967. Price was one of six players to score their first goal in the inaugural season, starting with Gene Ubriaco's first goal on October 21, 1967.

Moreover, McGroarty is now the 39th active player to register their first NHL goal with the Penguins, including Tristan Jarry, who had the team's first-ever goalie goal on November 30, 2023. 

Considering the elite talent in the pipeline in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, this exclusive list of 214 players will surely expand before the end of the decade. 

Defenseman Elias Pettersson finally has his first NHL goal. The Vancouver Canucks defender beat Lukáš Dostál 9:40 into Saturday's matinee against the Anaheim Ducks. On the play, Linus Karlsson recorded his first career NHL assist while Derek Forbort was credited with the secondary assist. 

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This season has featured many first goals by Canucks players. Pettersson joins Karlsson, Max Sasson, Jonathan Lekkerimaki and Arshdeep Bains, who have all potted their first in the NHL. Pettersson is also the second Elias Pettersson to score for Vancouver, joining center Elias Pettersson, who scored his first goal on October 3, 2018, versus the Calgary Flames. 

FIRST OF MANY FOR JUNIOR! 👏 pic.twitter.com/NsHQWjQxKC

— Vancouver Canucks (@Canucks) April 5, 2025

Initially drafted 80th overall in 2022, Pettersson is the 31st player from his draft to score a goal. He is one of 11 players to record a goal that was drafted outside the first round, which also includes teammate Victor Mancini. Pettersson is also the 120th player in franchise history to score against the Ducks while also being the 27th defender to pick up a goal against the Canucks division rival.

Make sure you bookmark THN's Vancouver Canucks site and add us to your favourites on Google News for the latest news, exclusive interviews, breakdowns, and so much more. Also, be sure to leave a comment at the bottom of the page and engage with other passionate fans through our forum.

Fans across the NHL patiently wait for Washington Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin to break Wayne Gretzky's all-time goal record, tying The Great One with two goals on Friday night against the Chicago Blackhawks. 

Lost in the shuffle of the news of goal No. 894 and the pursuit of No. 895 is the fact that Ovechkin tallied the game's winning goal, the 136th of his career. This established a new NHL record for the most game-winning goals, surpassing former Pittsburgh Penguins icon Jaromir Jagr.

A fitting stat for the evening. 📊

Alex Ovechkin takes sole-possession of first place on the NHL's All-Time Game-Winning Goals Leaders, passing Jaromir Jagr. pic.twitter.com/pfWqDVdpwV

— TSN (@TSN_Sports) April 5, 2025

Jagr played with the Penguins from 1990 to 2001, and the former captain scored a franchise record of 78 game-winners. Until the salary cap era, only two players scored more than 50, the other being Mario Lemieux, who had 74 in his career. 

Meanwhile, in other cities, Jagr continued his quest for the NHL record, which Gordie Howe held with 121 when he retired after the 1979-1980 season. The ageless wonder scored 13 with the Washington Capitals and 21 with the New York Rangers. 

When Jagr departed the NHL to play in the KHL, he was behind only Phil Esposito and Howe on the all-time list. Upon a return in 2011, he picked up two game-winners with the Philadelphia Flyers, Dallas Stars, and Boston Bruins while adding to his totals with eight with the Florida Panthers and nine with the New Jersey Devils.

Surprisingly, the only team Jagr didn't record a game-winner with was the Calgary Flames, with whom he played 22 games in 2017-18 and scored one goal.

Now, one goal away from becoming the game's greatest scorer, it is only fitting that Ovechkin establishes another record, tallying the most game-winners while owning the highest power-play goal total in league history. 

Over 19 seasons with the Capitals, Ovechkin has scored the deciding goal against every franchise except the Arizona Coyotes, Dallas Stars, Seattle Kraken, and Vegas Golden Knights. 

BREAKING: Sidney Crosby Breaks Wayne Gretzky's Point-Per-Game Seasons RecordAfter 20 years in the making, Pittsburgh Penguins captain Sidney Crosby has made NHL history.

Despite scoring more than ten goals against all but three franchises, Utah Hockey Club, Golden Knights, and Kraken, Ovechkin has only scored more than ten game-winners against one franchise, the New York Islanders, with a career-high 11 winners.

The NHL's game-winning goal milestone isn't the only record Ovechkin has overtaken Jagr for during the 2024-25 season. In January, The Great 8 scored against his 179th goalie, surpassing Jagr's career total of 178. 

Ovechkin's quest for goal No. 895 continues on Sunday against the Islanders and Thursday against the Carolina Hurricanes. 

The Chicago Blackhawks lost 5-3 to the Washington Capitals on Friday night. The Capitals, a Stanley Cup-contending team, may even agree that the game’s final score is not a vital storyline to come out of it. 

During the game, Alex Ovechkin scored two goals which tied him with Wayne Gretzky for the most in NHL history. It was one of the most insane scenes you’ll ever see during an NHL game and it wasn’t even the record-breaking goal. That comes later. 

During the game, Chicago Blackhawks forward Oliver Moore collected his first NHL point in a goal scored by Frank Nazar. Later in the game, he earned his second with an assist on a goal scored by Philipp Kurashev. 

Moore and Sam Rinzel signed with the Blackhawks after their elimination from the NCAA Tournament with Minnesota. Now, they each have three games played and Moore has two points. It was important for him to get these confidence boosting points as he is a forward looking to create offense. 

Moore’s incredible accomplishment was overshadowed by the fact that Ovechkin tied the record, which was all anyone could talk about following the game. That doesn’t take away how special this is for Moore as he begins his hockey career. 

It seems that Moore is a student of the game who appreciates the all-time greats. He was not bothered by the fact that Ovechkin tied the record, which overshadowed his first time being on the scoresheet. 

"That was a surreal game. That was absurd." Moore said when reflecting on what just happened. "He's the greatest goal-scorer of all time so I was happy for him, to be honest with you. It was really cool to see."

Moore wasn’t the only young player with a major milestone overshadowed by Ovechkin’s moment either.

Ryan Leonard, who was recently signed by Washington when Boston College was eliminated, scored his first career NHL goal. Like Moore’s first point, not many talked about it as much as they would have if Ovechkin’s record-tying goal had not been involved.  

Up next for Oliver Moore is his search for his first NHL goal. His ability to play hard, the right way, and fast will allow him to get that in short order. The Pittsburgh Penguins are at the United Center for an evening game on Sunday. 

Visit The Hockey News Chicago Blackhawks team site to stay updated on the latest news, game-day coverage, player features, and more.

The Edmonton Oilers (44-26-5) are in town just before the playoffs to face off against the Los Angeles Kings (43-23-9) in the third of their four-game series. The Oilers are two points behind the Kings, making it important for the Kings to secure these two points and officially clinch a playoff spot. With the best home record in the NHL of 28-4-4, playing in Los Angeles was a challenging task for any visiting team. Darcy Kuemper manned the net for the Kings while Calvin Pickard led the Oilers out. As Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl remained out of the lineup today, the Kings held a significant advantage to defeating Edmonton on home ice. After missing the previous game against the Utah Hockey Club, the Kings' defense sees the return of Jordan Spence to the lineup. 

Kings and Oilers Battle Hard in First Period

The game officially began with the opening faceoff, as Anže Kopitar won against Adam Henrique. Both the Kings and the Oilers were delivering hits throughout the period, but with seven minutes remaining, the Kings held the lead in shots at 7-3. Kuemper was effectively protecting the Los Angeles net, while Edmonton, playing without their captain and Draisaitl, lacked their usual energy and speed. As the buzzer sounded, both teams headed into intermission scoreless. 

Scoreless After One 

The second period burst into action with a beautiful goal by Jeff Malott, but the celebration was short-lived. An Oilers challenge proved successful, overturning the goal due to an offside ruling, leaving the score at 0-0 and Malott still seeking his first NHL goal.