Jason Zucker regrets calling out head coach Bruce Boudreau earlier this week.

"I'll start by first apologizing to Bruce. There was no reason for me to use his name in that quote in any way," Zucker said to the media on Saturday. "My intention with the quote was to state that everybody needs to be better ... 99.9% of that is on the players."

Zucker's comments were made after the Minnesota Wild lost 4-0 to the Montreal Canadiens on Thursday, dropping their record to 1-6-0.

Despite the harsh criticism, it seems Boudreau understood where his player was coming from.

"His whole thing was that everyone has to be better. He didn't intend, or want to center me out," Boudreau said.

The veteran forward clarified he still wants to see a stronger effort from his teammates.

"I stand by the fact that A) it was my mistake, but I also stand by the fact that everybody does need to be better."

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Warning: Story contains coarse language

Anton Khudobin appeared to be searching for answers as the Dallas Stars suffered their eighth defeat in nine games Friday night.

The club's backup netminder, who stopped 29 of 32 shots in a 4-2 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins, was at a loss for words - to an extent - postgame.

"What else can you say? We just got another L, fucking, I don’t know," Khudobin said, according to the Dallas Morning News' Matthew DeFranks. "We just have to keep going and do something."

The veteran goalie said the team isn't angry enough and was asked how the players can get angrier.

"Just getting tired of losing," he replied. "That's how."

Dallas dropped to 1-7-1 on the season, equaling the worst nine-game start in franchise history, according to DeFranks.

Friday's loss was the Stars' fifth straight. They have yet to win a game in regulation, with their lone victory coming in overtime against the Washington Capitals on Oct. 8.

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John Carlson has exploded out of the gate for the Washington Capitals.

The star defenseman collected three assists in a 5-2 win over the New York Rangers on Friday night, pushing his season totals to 14 helpers and 17 points in nine games.

Carlson notched three points in three of those contests, and only two blue-liners in NHL history have produced more three-point games than Carlson has through the first nine games.

Paul Coffey and Paul Reinhart both authored four of them during the 1988-89 and 1989-90 seasons, respectively. The Capitals rearguard is tied with Bobby Orr, Gaston Gingras, and Harry Cameron on that list.

With his second assist Friday, Carlson became the first defenseman in franchise history to record at least 15 points in the month of October.

His 16th point gave him the most by a Capitals blue-liner in any calendar month since Mike Green notched 20 in February 2009.

Carlson's latest three-point effort temporarily vaulted him into a tie for first with Edmonton Oilers superstar Connor McDavid in the NHL's points race. McDavid was also in action Friday night and will still have a game in hand after his contest.

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The Colorado Avalanche won't have to play Friday night's game against the Florida Panthers without their most dynamic player, as Nathan MacKinnon is officially in the lineup.

MacKinnon was a game-time decision due to a leg bruise he suffered Wednesday.

The perennial Hart Trophy candidate took part in Friday's pregame warmup in his usual spot between Gabriel Landeskog and Mikko Rantanen on Colorado's top line, according to The Athletic's Ryan S. Clark.

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The New Jersey Devils are close to signing 2017 first overall pick Nico Hischier to a seven-year contract extension with an average annual value of $7.25 million, according to TSN's Pierre LeBrun.

Hischier is in the final year of his entry-level contract. He would join a list of several prominent players, including Alex DeBrincat, Samuel Girard, Clayton Keller, and Thomas Chabot, to sign new deals before hitting restricted free agency next summer.

Keller, a fellow forward who also signed a long-term deal, offers the best comparison. The Arizona Coyotes winger inked a eight-year extension with a cap hit of $7.15 million.

Hischier finished seventh in Calder Trophy voting in 2017-18 after recording 52 points in 82 games. The 20-year-old center picked up 47 points in 69 games last season while the Devils regressed to the NHL's basement, and he's tallied two assists in six contests during the team's tough start this year.

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