Goaltending woes have turned into goaltending whoas for the New York Islanders.

Heading into a back-to-back set of big divisional games - Thursday against the rival New York Rangers and Friday against the Carolina Hurricanes - the Islanders' goalie tandem of Jaroslav Halak and Thomas Greiss had combined for zero shutouts this season.

Two games and 95 shots on goal later, they each have one, temporarily easing concerns over the team's issues in net.

The Islanders have now scored 200 goals, second only to Tampa Bay for the NHL lead. But even after the shutouts, they still hold a minus-14 goal differential.

The wins bumped the Islanders into a wild-card playoff spot, and more of these performances are needed from Halah and Greiss if they want to hold onto that spot.

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Dustin Byfuglien came to the defense of his captain, but he may have taken it a bit too far.

In the dying seconds of the second period Friday night, the gargantuan Winnipeg Jets defenseman went after Colorado Avalanche forward A.J. Greer, who had cross-checked Blake Wheeler moments earlier.

Byfuglien fell to the ice with Greer, but then got to his knees and landed several more punches before the officials separated the two combatants.

The Jets blue-liner was assessed five minutes for fighting, as was Greer, but Byfuglien was also handed a 10-minute misconduct and a two-minute minor for unsportsmanlike conduct.

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Brian Gionta could return to the NHL following a stint as captain of Team USA at PyeongChang 2018.

This according to agent Steve Bartlett, who's already engaged in talks with multiple teams in regards to a contract for the balance of this season, building off interest expressed in Gionta last summer when he was unwilling to move from Buffalo or spend a full year away from his family.

"I (told Gionta) maybe you could get a playoff run with a team, and a couple of months away from the family is better than all year," Bartlett told The Athletic's Pierre LeBrun. "He liked that idea. So it’s been in the back of our mind as he prepared for the Olympics. I’ve had discussions with three-four (NHL) teams, and we’re kind of focusing in on one right now that I think is the front-runner."

The 39-year-old is the oldest American competitor at the Winter Olympics, and has failed to record a point in two tournament games. He appeared in 82 contests for the Sabres last season, scoring 15 goals and adding 20 assists.

There's still some gas left in the tank, and Bartlett is confident Gionta will be back in the NHL for the stretch run.

"Assuming that those talks continue to move forward, I think he’ll have a landing spot when all is said and done," Bartlett said. "We’re optimistic. I’ll continue to have discussions with interested teams, but right now our list is getting pretty short as far as what we think is a good fit for him and vice-versa."

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The Calgary Flames inked forward Mikael Backlund to a six-year contract extension, the club announced Friday.

It carries an average annual value of $5.35 million for a total of $32.1 million.

Here are more details, according to The Athletic's Pierre LeBrun.

Backlund has 34 points in 58 games this season, after putting together a career-high 53-point campaign in 2016-17.

The 28-year-old Swede is centering Calgary's second line between Matthew Tkachuk and Michael Frolik.

Backlund is in the final season of the three-year, $10.725-million deal he signed with the Flames in June 2015.

He has spent his entire career with Calgary after being selected 24th overall by the Flames in 2007.

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Jeff Gorton isn't going to give any of his club's top prospects an extended look just yet, regardless of whether the New York Rangers follow through on their apparent plan to restructure the roster.

"We are not going to burn the first year off any contracts," the Rangers general manager told Larry Brooks of the New York Post on Friday.

That would indicate neither Lias Andersson nor Filip Chytil - the team's first-round picks last June - will hit the 10-NHL-game threshold that triggers the first season of entry-level deals.

Both players are impressing so far in the AHL with the Hartford Wolf Pack, albeit in limited sample sizes. Andersson has eight points in 10 games, while Chytil has produced nine goals and 26 points in 31 contests.

"They’re both playing very well and we’re very happy with their progress, but it will be a day-by-day decision depending on the situation with Hartford, too," Gorton said. "We want to give Hartford a chance to make (the playoffs)."

Andersson hasn't yet played an NHL game, while Chytil appeared in two back in early October.

The Wolf Pack sit in sixth place in the AHL's Atlantic Division with a record of 24-22-4-3, as of Friday afternoon.

Gorton and club president Glen Sather admitted the franchise could part with "some familiar faces" in a letter to fans that was released last Thursday.

Last year, the Rangers drafted Andersson seventh overall and then selected Chytil with the 21st overall pick.

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Edmonton Oilers defenseman Adam Larsson returned to practice Friday following a lengthy absence from the team due to the sudden death of his father in January.

Larsson hasn't suited up in a game since Jan. 23, and head coach Todd McLellan said there's no word on when he might get back into game action.

In 40 games this season, Larsson's notched three goals and three assists while averaging over 21 minutes per night.

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Reinforcements are on the way for the Florida Panthers, as No.1 goaltender Roberto Luongo is set to return from his 27-game injury absence Saturday night against the Calgary Flames.

"I'm good to go, 100 percent," Luongo said Friday.

Luongo has been recovering from a lower-body issue suffered during the Dec. 4 contest against the New York Islanders when he was injured while making a save. He was activated off injured reserve Wednesday.

The Panthers have been utilizing the goaltending tandem of James Reimer and upstart Finnish rookie Harri Sateri in Luongo's absence - Florida has gone 15-10-2 during that time.

Prior to getting hurt, Luongo registered a 6-6-1 record to go along with a 2.61 goals-against average and .928 save percentage.

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With under two weeks to go until the trade deadline, the reigning Western Conference champs may be content to stand pat.

Though he may simply be trying to avoid tipping his hand, Nashville Predators general manager David Poile gave the impression that his club could enter the playoffs as currently constructed rather than adding more pieces before Feb. 26.

"I think we're closer to doing nothing than to do something," Poile told Adam Vingan of The Tennessean.

After making a series of moves since last season's run to the finals, Nashville leads the Central Division with 77 points - two clear of the Winnipeg Jets with a game in hand. Since falling to the Pittsburgh Penguins in Game 6 last June, Poile added Nick Bonino and Scott Hartnell in free agency, and brokered a midseason blockbuster in acquiring Kyle Turris from the Ottawa Senators in November.

The Preds have a realistic chance to compete for the Stanley Cup yet again, and Poile doesn't want to risk altering the chemistry his roster has developed by bringing in new blood.

"The worst thing that I could possibly do is to make a trade where somebody didn't fit in," Poile said.

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Despite sitting fifth in league scoring and remaining on pace to shatter his previous career-high points total, Phil Kessel isn't caught up in the hoopla of individual accolades.

The Pittsburgh Penguins star winger has 66 points in 59 games and an outside chance at catching Nikita Kucherov (76 points) in the race for the Art Ross Trophy, but the self-proclaimed hard-working, hockey-loving nice guy has his focus set elsewhere.

"I don't care. I've got two Cups," Kessel said when asked about the pursuit of the scoring title, per Pens Inside Scoop.

Kessel has been one of the league's hottest players in the New Year, recording 24 points in 19 games since the calendar flipped to 2018. The 30-year-old's surge is one of the main reasons the Pens have been unstoppable of late, going 14-4-1 in that span.

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