Before the Pittsburgh Penguins and Philadelphia Flyers met at the 50-yard line at Heinz Field on Saturday for the latest chapter of the NHL Stadium Series, actual penguins were marched out for your viewing pleasure.

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Filip Forsberg refuses to settle for anything less than three-point performances.

The 22-year-old Nashville Predators pivot made waves earlier this week after posting consecutive hat tricks in games against the Calgary Flames and Colorado Avalanche, and continued his run during the club's 5-2 win over the Washington Capitals on Saturday night.

He might not have earned the hat trick of hat tricks, but Forsberg came pretty close, posting a goal and two assists for his third straight three-point game.

That the young forward achieved the feat against Washington was likely all the more satisfying for Forsberg, as he flexed his offensive muscle in front of the team that traded him away four years ago.

After starting 2016-17 at a disappointing pace, Forsberg has been crushing the opposition as of late to make up ground. With his trio of exceptional performances in tow, he now sits at 45 points on the year through 60 games, putting him on pace for his third straight 60-point season.

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NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Filip Forsberg scored the winning goal and had two assists as the Nashville Predators scored three in the second period in beating the Washington Capitals 5-2 on Saturday.

Forsberg missed becoming the first in NHL history with a hat trick in three consecutive games. He still notched his seventh goal in three games as Nashville won its second straight and third in four games.

Roman Josi scored twice, and Mike Fisher and Viktor Arvidsson each had a goal. Ryan Johansen had three assists.

The Predators denied their former coach Barry Trotz his 700th career win in the building where he started his career as an NHL coach back in 1998.

Tom Wilson and Evgeny Kuznetsov scored for the Capitals. They beat Edmonton 2-1 in Washington on Friday night and were without T.J. Oshie and defensemen Brooks Orpik and Matt Niskanen.

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Erik Karlsson's never backpedaled quicker.

Longtime PGA Tour player Jesper Parnevik shared a pretty hilarious video of Karlsson losing his cool when an idling alligator splashed suddenly as the group approached it on a golf course.

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When the regular season comes to a close and the schedule shifts to the playoffs, no NHL club makes it very far without a healthy dose of offensive depth.

The Columbus Blue Jackets likely aren't sweating that requirement, as the strength of their forwards group seems to be just fine.

Heading into their Saturday night tilt with the New York Islanders, the Jackets' offense was rolling along at an elite rate already, the club ranking fifth in the league with 3.19 goals per game.

They managed to find a new level against the Islanders, however, stomping their division rival with a 7-0 victory.

The most impressive part of that win? All but two of Columbus' 12 forwards managed to record a point in the game.

Related: Watch: Wennberg dishes through defender's legs to set up goal

Five different Jackets forwards recorded multi-point efforts (Nick Foligno, Alexander Wennberg, Brandon Saad, Boone Jenner, and Josh Anderson), while everyone else in the forward corps - besides Oliver Bjorkstrand and Scott Hartnell - recorded at least one point.

Of course, things didn't look so bad for the blue-liners either, as David Savard posted a team-leading three points (one goal, two assists), while Jack Johnson scored for the Jackets as well.

The Islanders entered the game with a seemingly favorable match-up against Columbus' backup goaltender, Joonas Korpisalo, but had their hopes for an easy win quickly dashed as Korpisalo earned his first career shutout while the rest of his team rolled over the Islanders for 60 minutes straight.

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LOS ANGELES - Jonathan Quick made 32 saves in his return from a groin injury, and Tyler Toffoli scored two of Los Angeles' four third-period goals in a 4-1 victory over the Anaheim Ducks on Saturday.

Quick missed 59 games after injuring the groin in the first period of the season opener Oct. 12 against San Jose, and his return was complimented by a timely end to Los Angeles' recent offensive power outage.

Dustin Brown added his 10th goal of the season, and Jeff Carter scored an empty-net goal, securing a much-needed two points in the Kings' chase for a wild card in the Western Conference after losing four of their previous five games.

Andrew Cogliano scored, and Jonathan Bernier made 29 saves for Anaheim. They head into the bye week alternating wins and losses over their last nine games.

Toffoli scored 3:37 into the third period, ending a 130-minute goal drought for the Kings in the fierce Southern California rivalry, having been held scoreless in 10 of the previous 11 periods against the Ducks this season.

Toffoli added his 12th goal of the season off a spectacular pass from Carter that somehow stayed under Cam Fowler's feet as the Ducks defenseman slid face-down on the ice trying to deflect the puck, giving Los Angeles the 2-1 lead with 12:12 remaining.

Brown deflected in Kevin Gravel's shot from just inside the blue line 17 seconds later, giving the Kings as many goals in 4:28 as they had scored in their previous three games combined.

Quick mostly looked sharp in his return, even doing the splits well out in front of his crease to deny Nick Ritchie on a power play in the first period, but could not prevent the Ducks' lone goal.

Cogliano was on the receiving end of a quick give-and-go from Ryan Kesler, potting his 14th goal of the season late in the first. Jakob Silfverberg intercepted the puck at center ice and sparked a ruthless rush the other way, picking up his 38th point of his breakout campaign.

Patrick Eaves made his debut for the Ducks after being acquired from Dallas for a conditional second-round draft pick Friday. Slotted on a line with Corey Perry and Rickard Rakell, Eaves played 16:09.

The latest edition of the Freeway Faceoff was typically physical and ill-tempered, with a 10-man dog pile midway through the second period leading to a fight between Ducks center Nate Thompson and Kings defenseman Brayden McNabb. Carter, who leads the Kings with 29 goals, and Kesler traded blows later in the period, a right hand by Kesler momentarily sending Carter down to a knee.

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The NHL was apparently willing to reduce the 10-game suspension levied to Antoine Vermette for his slash on linesman Shandor Alphonso down to five, but the Officials Association prevented an amendment, according to multiple reports.

It's believed Vermette met with the NHL on Thursday in an effort to lessen the punishment.

The slash was deemed to be the application of physical force without an intent to injure, which carries an automatic 10-game suspension.

If he chooses, Vermette has seven days to take his appeal to an independent arbitrator, or he stands to miss the 10 games and forfeit nearly $100,000 in salary.

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Columbus Blue Jackets pivot Alexander Wennberg's breakout season continues.

The 22-year-old impressed once again during his club's tilt against the New York Islanders on Saturday night, beating a defender along the wall and embarrassing another with the slickest of dishes to teammate Nick Foligno, who finished the play off in style.

The assist was Wennberg's 39th of the year, taking his season total to 49 points.

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If the Montreal Canadiens are looking for an affordable gamble to upgrade their offense, they might consider giving the Washington Capitals a call.

The topic of conversation? Stanislav Galiev, the skillful winger who seems to be nearing the end of his tenure in Washington.

Capitals general manager Brian MacLellan is ready to move the 2010 third-round pick, according to The Washington Post, not because he thinks Galiev isn't worthy of a shot in the big leagues, but because the team simply has a deep NHL roster and too many young forwards clawing for spots.

Putting up points

Galiev has done enough to prove he could be of use to a club in need of an offensive boost if given a decent shot. The 25-year-old has 17 goals and 28 points through 34 appearances in the AHL this season, but he also boasts a notable resume of production dating back to his days in junior hockey.

The Russian winger showed plenty of promise early in his career while suiting up for the QMJHL's Saint John Sea Dogs (alongside current Habs' defender Nathan Beaulieu). Galiev posted 60 points in 67 games in his first go-round with the club, before exploding for 37 goals and 65 points in just 64 contests one year later, his best offensive showing thus far.

He's bounced around between the ECHL and AHL since then. His finest effort in each league: 47 points in 46 games with the ECHL's Reading Royals in 2012-13, and 45 points through 67 appearances for the AHL's Hershey Bears in 2014-15.

Dotted throughout that timeline is a history of winning. The Moscow native has lifted five championship trophies up to this point, racking up a Memorial Cup, an ECHL championship, two QMJHL championships, and a USHL championship.

And he wasn't simply along for the ride during those runs either. Galiev amassed 34 goals and 80 points in 57 playoff contests in the QMJHL, and scored at a point-per-game pace during the ECHL playoffs as well.

(Photo courtesy: USA Today Sports)

Bringing it in the big leagues

Does this resume guarantee the talented winger can succeed at the NHL level? Of course not, but it should give teams in need of an offensive spark enough reason to roll the dice - especially in a situation such as this, wherein MacLellan seems resigned to simply let Galiev go so that the forward can play.

The Capitals kept Galiev on their roster throughout the entirety of 2015-16 to avoid losing him in the waiver process, though he only managed to break into the club's well-stocked lineup 24 times. He posted just three points in those appearances, though he wasn't given much of a shot, his ice-time limited to fewer than 10 minutes per game.

Galiev is far from a sure thing, but his talent is promising enough that Washington held on to him as long as they could, and seem willing to part with him simply to avoid stalling his development. With a bigger role, he could thrive.

Meshing in Montreal

The Canadiens' offensive woes have been well-documented. Despite boasting a few marquee stars on the roster, they've scored the fewest goals in the league over the past month.

Acquiring Galiev likely won't require much of a sacrifice in terms of assets going the other way, nor would the 25-year-old put much of a strain on Montreal's salary situation - he carries a $575,000 cap hit and will be an unrestricted free agent this summer.

Bring him in, give him a shot, and see if something clicks. It's fair to assume Galiev is hungry for an opportunity to showcase his skill after being shelved for much of last season, and at this point, the Canadiens could use any help they can get.

His countryman Alexander Radulov has already helped bring a different flavor to the Canadiens' offense this season, and the veteran could potentially play a key role in helping Galiev's transition as well.

Buying big remains an option for general manager Marc Bergevin, but if the club opts for a more subtle addition, Galiev might just be a worthy gamble.

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Jeff Carter's first scrap in a Los Angeles Kings uniform didn't end well.

Anaheim Ducks forward Ryan Kesler earned an economical victory in a fight with the Kings' top scorer in Saturday's heated matinee clash, flooring him with one punch.

Seeing red after being stung by the elbow of Carter earlier in the shift, Kesler deserves credit for not following up his heavy right with additional shots when Carter got up to his feet.

Carter last fought more than six years ago when he was a member of the Philadelphia Flyers.

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