Powerful Design: Stamkos’ perfect feed caps off textbook passing sequence

The Tampa Bay Lightning's second goal in an 11-second span on the power play against the Philadelphia Flyers on Saturday was a shining example of the vision and skill Tampa Bay's most dangerous players possess.

It was Brayden Point's second of the game and fifth in the last two contests, but it wouldn't have been possible without Steven Stamkos' precision, nor the awareness shown by both Nikita Kucherov and Victor Hedman.

Let's take a look at how they did it.

As we begin, the public address announcer in Philadelphia hasn't even had time to announce Tyler Johnson's marker that made it 4-1 for Tampa Bay moments earlier, but the Lightning are pressing again. What was a 5-on-3 is now a 5-on-4.

J.T. Miller fires the puck into the Flyers' zone, and it heads to Hedman at the blue line after bouncing off Dale Weise's left skate.

Hedman spots Kucherov - who's out of view on the broadcast - and taps it in his direction.

Kucherov, camped out on the edge of the circle, surveys the scene before receiving the puck and notices Stamkos (at the point to Hedman's left) turning on the jets down the wing.

Like Hedman did just a second or two earlier, Kucherov directs a perfect pass without wasting any time controlling the puck, and it slides toward Stamkos, who remains unmarked at the point on the left wing.

Stamkos receives it while cruising into the slot, and has to decide whether to shoot or try to find Brayden Point, who's positioned in front of the net.

Now, let's pick it up from another angle for a better view. Flyers defenseman Andrew MacDonald drops to the ice, perhaps expecting a shot.

Despite having an extremely tight window for a potential pass to Point, Stamkos somehow feathers a perfect feed under the sliding MacDonald and right to his red-hot teammate.

Point makes no mistake on the redirection and it's in the net.

Stamkos' nose for the net and impressive hand-eye coordination were the biggest factors on this goal, but the Lightning's power-play structure and passing ability showed why they're one of the most effective units in the NHL.

(Images courtesy: NHL.com)

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Driver who filmed Sens players says he destroyed 2nd clip

The Uber driver who captured and posted footage of Ottawa Senators players criticizing assistant coach Martin Raymond claims he deleted a second video from the same ride.

James Sparklin said he spoke to a member of the Senators organization and told them he got rid of the other clip.

"I called the team ... because I wanted to make sure they understood that I have destroyed the other tape. It will never ever see the light of day," the Arizona native told The Canadian Press.

However, a spokesperson for the team denied that Sparklin apologized to the club, saying, "Based on our review, we have no reason to believe that any such conversation took place."

Sparklin described the second video as showing the players entering his van and having a discussion about the number of passengers.

In the aftermath of the video circulating earlier this month, Sparklin mentioned he was aggravated by something that happened early in the trip involving how many passengers he'd be taking in the van.

Sparklin told CP on Sunday that the second video shows him discussing that issue with the players, and he was concerned both that his rating would be affected and his insurance wouldn't cover the ride because Uber XL is for six or fewer passengers.

He may not have apologized to the team, but Sparklin did so in his interview with CP.

"I am extremely sorry for what happened and it is not right," he said. "I never meant harm on any of the players involved, the coaching staff involved, the owner involved, the town that was involved ... I wasn’t thinking at all."

Uber fired Sparklin for violating its terms of service.

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Domi off to historic start with Canadiens

Max Domi's exploits early in his first season with the Montreal Canadiens have placed his name in the legendary franchise's record books.

Domi is the first Canadiens player with 24 or more points in his first 20 games with the franchise since Odie Cleghorn posted 30 in 1918-19.

He's collected five goals and eight assists in his current nine-game point streak. He had one helper in Saturday's victory over the Vancouver Canucks.

In total, the 23-year-old has accrued 10 goals and 14 assists on the campaign.

The Canadiens acquired Domi in an offseason deal with the Arizona Coyotes in exchange for Alex Galchenyuk.

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Severely depleted Bruins still manage to beat Coyotes

To say the Boston Bruins entered Saturday's contest against the Arizona Coyotes shorthanded would be a gigantic understatement, and yet, they found a way to earn two points.

Shortly before puck drop, the club announced Patrice Bergeron was going home to be evaluated for an upper-body injury. And hours earlier, captain Zdeno Chara was ruled out for at least four weeks as he deals with a knee injury.

The Bruins were also missing four additional starting blue-liners. As a result, they strolled into the desert with a lineup that looked more like an exhibition roster than the 112-point team from a season ago.

Boston surged ahead on first-period goals from Jakob Forsbacka Karlsson and Jake DeBrusk, and backup Jaroslav Halak turned in a 32-save performance to secure the 2-1 victory.

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Report: Leafs comfortable letting Nylander sit if no deal struck by Dec. 1

The Toronto Maple Leafs reportedly aren't against letting the contract impasse between the organization and unsigned forward William Nylander go beyond the Dec. 1 deadline to sign restricted free agents.

"Even with it so close now, the Toronto Maple Leafs don't feel there has to be a resolution to this by Dec. 1," Sportsnet's Chris Johnston said during Hockey Night in Canada's Headlines segment on Saturday.

"If there isn't a trade that presents itself, and we spoke last week about the fact that they are gauging the market on William Nylander, and William Nylander's demands don't come in to the range they're comfortable paying, they're comfortable letting this player sit."

Nylander has been absent all season, and the two sides have until 5:00 p.m. ET on Dec. 1 to strike a deal. If that doesn't happen, the 22-year-old will be forced to sit out the remainder of the 2018-19 campaign. Last week, it was reported the Maple Leafs are engaging in trade dialogue regarding the dynamic Swede.

Both Nylander and Leafs general manager Kyle Dubas have expressed a desire to find common ground on a long-term deal. But with under two weeks left to reach an agreement, it's unclear how the scenario will play out.

Nylander has recorded back-to-back 61-point seasons.

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Lundqvist notches 438th career win, passes Plante for 7th all time

New York Rangers netminder Henrik Lundqvist recorded his 438th career victory during a win over the Florida Panthers on Saturday, moving him into seventh on the NHL's all-time wins list.

Jacques Plante, who suited up for the Rangers from 1963 to 1965, previously occupied the spot.

Rank Goalie Wins
1 Martin Brodeur 691
2 Patrick Roy 551
3 Ed Belfour 484
4 Roberto Luongo 475
5 Curtis Joseph 454
6 Terry Sawchuk 445
7 Henrik Lundqvist 438
8 Jacques Plante 437
9 Tony Esposito 423
10 Marc-Andre Fleury 412

Lundqvist could reach the top five with a strong finish to the 2018-19 season.

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