"It has been determined that the player's intention was not to strike the official but, rather, to initiate contact with the opposing player," the league said in a statement.
MacKinnon has never been suspended in his nine-year career. The only blemish on his resume is a $5,000 fine last season for unsportsmanlike conduct after tossing a helmet at Conor Garland.
New Jersey Devils defenseman Dougie Hamilton is expected to return to the lineup on Thursday against the Pittsburgh Penguins after missing the last 17 games with a broken jaw.
"I'm looking forward to him being back in the lineup," Devils head coach Lindy Ruff said. "I'm counting on him being in. I've had a conversation with him, he said he's ready to go and we're ready to put him back in."
Hamilton is expected to wear a full face shield in his return.
"At the start I couldn't have any pressure on it so I had to find something that had the pressure off it, but I couldn't play with that mask. I think it's at the point now where my jaw is solid and I'm able to put a pad on my chin and use that mask," Hamilton said.
The 28-year-old has recorded seven goals and 13 assists in 30 games this season. It's his first campaign with the Devils after signing a seven-year, $63-million contract as a free agent in the offseason.
One of the best players mentioned in trade deadline rumors may not become available after all.
Dallas Stars general manager Jim Nill said he hopes to sign pending unrestricted free-agent forward Joe Pavelski to an extension.
"That's what I hope," Nill told The Athletic's Pierre LeBrun. "I want to see where Joe is at. We got to look at our cap situation, too. And I think he'll have some questions he'll want answered. We'll have some questions. But my mindset is that we want to bring him back. He's been a great fit for us. He's a big part of our community and our team.
"We'll sit down and discuss that."
Pavelski is in the final season of a three-year, $21-million contract he signed as a UFA with Dallas in 2019. The 37-year-old continues to age like a fine wine, leading the Stars with 53 points in 49 games this season.
The Stars sit fifth in the Central Division and ninth in the Western Conference in points percentage. Their play over the next month will likely determine Nill's approach at the March 21 trade deadline.
"We just had our meetings and we went through all those scenarios," Nill said. "We're prepared for that. We've walked through all those scenarios. It might come down to that last week where we have to make some tough calls."
The Stars project to have roughly $28 million in cap space for next season, per CapFriendly, with restricted free agents Denis Gurianov and Jake Oettinger due for raises.
We have six games on the docket Tuesday, which means there are plenty of player props to comb through.
Let's take a closer look at two of my favorites.
Jordan Eberle over 2.5 shots (+105)
On the surface, the Islanders are not a team you would perceive to be a good prop target for shots against. But perception tells a different story than reality.
At five-on-five, they have given up 60.33 shot attempts per 60 minutes over their last 10 road dates. That's one of the NHL's worst rates, slotting them 27th in that span. They give up plenty of volume when they can't control the matchups.
Also working in Eberle's favor: The Islanders struggle to defend against right-wingers. Only five teams concede more shots per game to the position.
Eberle's raw shot volume is also higher at home and - if you're into narratives - there's the revenge factor for Eberle. The Kraken forward has faced the Islanders once already but, in a season that's otherwise lost, a matchup against the team that exposed him in the expansion draft could provide a little extra motivation.
Aaron Ekblad over 2.5 shots (-148)
Aaron Ekblad, like his Panthers as a whole, is particularly lethal when playing on home soil.
Ekblad has averaged 3.3 shots on goal per game in Florida this season, which has allowed him to go over the number 19 times in 25 tries. That's a remarkable 76% hit rate.
What's even more impressive is Ekblad started the season somewhat slowly, hitting in four of his first seven at home. Since then, he has registered at least three shots in 15 of 18, which is a ridiculous 83.33% hit rate.
The Predators are a solid team but definitely not one we have to avoid, especially when away from home. Nashville ranks 27th in shot suppression at five-on-five over its last 10 road dates.
Ekblad should have no problem taking advantage of this matchup.
Todd Cordell is a sports betting writer at theScore. Be sure to follow him on Twitter @ToddCordell.
The Toronto Maple Leafs lost by three goals to one of the worst teams in hockey on Monday. And, you know what? I'm going right back to them against the Columbus Blue Jackets.
You don't need me to tell you Toronto is one of the best offensive teams in the NHL. They have a ton of firepower and, statistically speaking, they're one of the league's best at generating chances. If skill players get opportunities in bulk, they're going to score.
I expect the Maple Leafs to get a ton of them against the Blue Jackets. Over the last 10 games, Columbus ranks 28th in high-danger chances against and 31st in expected goals against per 60 minutes of five-on-five play.
Giving up that kind of volume is a risky proposition no matter who is between the pipes. It just so happens J.F. Berube is expected to get the nod in this one.
The 36-year-old journeyman netminder has consistently posted sub .900 save percentages in the AHL over the last few years. Expecting him to slow the Maple Leafs - who should be chomping at the bit to redeem themselves after Monday's disastrous showing - is unrealistic, to say the least.
I like the Maple Leafs to score early and often in this one.
The wheels are coming off the San Jose Sharks. They've won just once over the last eight games and their underlying metrics in that span have been downright miserable - especially defensively.
At five-on-five, they've conceded more than 69 shot attempts per 60 minutes. They have also given up 3.48 expected goals against and 16.13 high-danger chances against per 60 minutes. They rank dead last in the NHL - well behind even the Arizona Coyotes - in each of those categories.
For perspective, the Anaheim Ducks have allowed 55.21 attempts, 2.67 expected goals, and 11.20 high-danger chances per 60 over the same span. They haven't exactly been stout and yet their defensive metrics are several tiers above San Jose's.
I expect the Ducks will be able to control the run of play in this game. They should generate more quality opportunities and, based on the projected goaltending matchup (James Reimer vs. John Gibson), I feel better about the Ducks getting the saves they need.
Back Anaheim to take care of business against the slumping Sharks.
Bet: Ducks (-150)
Todd Cordell is a sports betting writer at theScore. Be sure to follow him on Twitter @ToddCordell.
Montreal Canadiens interim head coach Martin St. Louis has noticed his club exuding an important trait lately.
"Confidence. I think to be successful as a team in this league, and as an individual, I think you need some swagger, and I think we're building a lot of swagger right now," St. Louis told Sportsnet's Eric Engels after a 5-2 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs on Monday night.
"Swagger is not cockiness or arrogance; it's just believing in yourself and feeling good about yourself," the bench boss clarified. "And I think we have that."
The Canadiens jumped out to a 5-0 lead against the Maple Leafs before cruising to their third consecutive victory and their second in as many days. Montreal is 3-3-0 since firing Dominique Ducharme and replacing him with St. Louis on Feb. 9.
The Habs, who remain the NHL's worst team by both points and point percentage, have begun to turn things around since the coaching change.
Cole Caufield, Jeff Petry, and Josh Anderson have all come alive offensively. Caufield, the preseason Calder Trophy favorite who struggled mightily for most of the campaign, has scored five goals in the six games under his new head coach.
Petry, the typically steady defenseman who's in the midst of a disappointing campaign, has produced two goals and three assists in the last four contests. Anderson, who the Canadiens signed to a hefty contract after acquiring him in a trade with the Columbus Blue Jackets for Max Domi, has collected three goals and an assist in the last two games, including two markers and a helper Monday.
Montreal has the 30th-ranked expected goals for percentage at five-on-five in the NHL this season, but it's been the 23rd-best team in that regard since St. Louis took over, according to Natural Stat Trick. The Habs sit 29th in scoring chances for percentage, but they're 22nd during the new coach's tenure.
We saw the rarest of occasions Sunday, and it didn't cause the hockey world to go blind. You've heard of the dangers of looking directly at a solar eclipse, but thankfully, you didn't need a reflective apparatus to witness the "loser eclipse" - the Coyotes (13-37 on the moneyline) and the Canadiens (10-40) both won a hockey game on the same day.
On Friday, we discussed the concept of a No Bet List and how Arizona and Montreal showed red flags before the season started. These should keep us away from them - no matter how much value their preseason priors suggest they had with inflated moneyline prices throughout the campaign.
But when do we consider removing teams from a No Bet List?
Bets on Arizona and Montreal will likely continue to show value this season solely because of the astronomical moneyline payouts that sportsbooks assign. The Canadiens have won two straight but required overtime and the shootout. With 10 straight losses prior to that, we're not ready to remove them from the list just yet.
The Coyotes are 3-4 in February and boast moneyline wins of +430 (at Colorado), +190 (at Seattle), and +225 (vs. Dallas). Even blind-betting the team every game this month would earn back roughly +4.5 units. Better yet, according to our guide, only three of its defeats were deemed valuable bets at the time, which would save that bettor a loss along the way.
While Montreal always shows as a bet - even though we've known since the start of the season that it's not - Arizona's had games that fell within our fair price range. When that happens, we have a stable enough rating on a team to trust a moneyline bet that shows as valuable.
Before we bring the Coyotes back into the fold, however, we need to remember that it's less about whether you should make the bet and more about knowing what you're getting into when you do.
The recipe
Before the campaign, we provided a three-chapter series on how to use the regular-season point-total market to create team ratings, how to interpret home-ice advantage, and then how to use those to create your own moneylines.
Two months ago, I posted my 2021-22 season ratings that use the metrics I deem important to predict future success. Since we've gotten through the All-Star break and COVID-19-related roster inconsistencies are fewer and further between, we'll increase the ratio between current season metrics and priors to a 70-30 split.
With our ratings weighted to this season's on-ice product, we can put more emphasis on team metrics without going all-in on what's happened in a still relatively small sample size.
The cheat sheet
The following includes my fair price on the matchups (true moneyline) and the moneyline price I would need to bet either side. I just need a 1% edge for a favorite if we're getting better than a fair price on the team that's more likely to win. For the underdog, I'll need 4% or better to make it a bet. On games that I have projected will be a near coin flip, a 2.5% edge is enough to make it a worthwhile wager. I also have a 5% win probability consideration for a side playing in the second game of a back-to-back with travel and 3% for without travel.
DATE
GAME
TRUE ML
PRICE TO BET
Feb. 21
COL@BOS
-128/+128
COL -123/BOS +151
CAR@PHI
+116/-115
CAR +136/PHI -111
WPG@CGY
+133/-133
WPG +157/CGY -128
TOR@MTL
-204/+204
TOR -195/MTL +246
SEA@VAN
+134/-134
SEA +158/VAN -129
Feb. 22
STL@PHI
+109/+129
STL -105/PHI +129
TOR@CBJ
+109/+129
TOR -105/CBJ +129
MIN@OTT
-142/+142
MIN -137/OTT +168
NSH@FLA
+171/-171
NSH +204/FLA -164
SJS@ANA
+104/-104
SJS +123/ANA +100
NYI@SEA
+131/-131
NYI -126/SEA +155
Feb. 23
WPG@DAL
+150/-150
WPG +178/DAL -144
EDM@TB
+112/-112
EDM +131/TB -107
BUF@MTL
+123/-123
BUF +144/MTL -118
COL@DET
-146/+146
COL -140/DET +172
LAK@ARI
-129/+129
LAK -124/ARI +152
Feb. 24
CBJ@FLA
+203/-203
CBJ +245/FLA -194
MIN@TOR
+108/-108
MIN +126/TOR -103
WSH@NYR
+102/-102
WSH +113/NYR +108
NJD@PIT
+134/-134
NJD +158/PIT -129
DAL@NSH
+103/-103
DAL +114/NSH +107
CGY@VAN
+100/+100
CGY +110/VAN +110
BOS@SEA
-120/+120
BOS -115/SEA +141
NYI@SJS
-104/+104
NYI +106/SJS +115
Matt Russell is a betting writer for theScore. If there’s a bad beat to be had, Matt will find it. Find him on Twitter @mrussauthentic.