Wayne Gretzky knows a thing or two about winning the Stanley Cup, and he likes what he's seeing from the Edmonton Oilers and Toronto Maple Leafs.

The Great One's high praise for the clubs doesn't entirely relate to their on-ice performances, but what he's able to see from the groups off the ice and how they're interacting with one another.

"I went for lunch with Leon Draisaitl, Connor (McDavid), and Darnell Nurse and it reminded me so much of me, Kevin Lowe, Mark Messier, and Paul Coffey having lunch together," Gretzky said Wednesday on Sportsnet 590 The Fan's "Real Kyper and Bourne show." "That they were teasing each other; Leon was disappointed that Connor's passes weren't as good as he thought they should be. And you know what? That's what makes teams successful. That they can tease each other and be on the same page and that ultimately they want to win a championship."

Edmonton's McDavid and Draisaitl are two of the best hockey players in the NHL, while the Maple Leafs boast a stacked group highlighted by Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner, John Tavares, and William Nylander.

Despite all the star power and dominating the regular season, neither team has been able to achieve any success in the playoffs. Since the 2015-16 season, the Oilers have won one playoff round while the Leafs haven't been victorious at all.

"I remember I left lunch and I said to my wife, 'You know what? This team is so much closer to winning than people understand because these guys are so close and they want to win so badly for each other and I love that,'" Gretzky said. "To me, that's even better when in the locker room these guys are all on the same page. And I feel watching the Leafs play that they have that same camaraderie. It's us, and we're together, and we don't care who scores."

After finishing as the top two teams in the North Division last year, the Maple Leafs currently sit in second place in the Atlantic Division while the Oilers are in second in the Pacific Division. The Oilers haven't won the Cup since 1990; the Leafs are searching for their first ring since 1967.

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The Vegas Golden Knights have their triggerman back.

Max Pacioretty is in the team's lineup for Wednesday's game against the Nashville Predators, the team announced. He's missed the last 17 games with a fractured foot.

The 33-year-old sniper has two goals and an assist in two games this season. He led Vegas with 24 goals last year.

Pacioretty is skating in his usual spot on the team's top line with Chandler Stephenson and Mark Stone.

The Golden Knights have been beleaguered by injuries and COVID-19 absences this season. The team is still without Nolan Patrick, William Karlsson, Jonathan Marchessault, and Alec Martinez, while the recently acquired Jack Eichel is recovering from neck surgery.

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Former Blue Jackets center Pierre-Luc Dubois isn't quite sure what to expect from his first game back in Columbus since being traded to the Winnipeg Jets in a blockbuster shakeup last January.

When asked if he'd thought about the reception he might receive from the fans when the Jets square off against the Blue Jackets on Wednesday night, the 23-year-old laughed and said, "a little bit."

"It's been almost a year now, but I'm expecting some people still to maybe be unhappy, disappointed," Dubois said in a media scrum before the game. "If they're happy, that's great. If they're not happy and booing me, I've heard it before."

Dubois has highly anticipated his return to Columbus ever since the team traded him (along with a 2022 third-round pick) to Winnipeg in exchange for forwards Patrik Laine and Jack Roslovic.

"I circled this date on my calendar. Not because of the players involved, but because it's my first time being back. I saw the news about (Laine's) father this week, I’m really sorry about that," Dubois said. "We're all feeling for him. Hopefully I get to play against him in Winnipeg."

Laine, who remains sidelined with an injury, is dealing with the death of his father Harri and is unavailable for the contest.

Dubois added it "definitely feels weird" being on the visitors' side of Nationwide Arena.

"Tonight, I think it might take a little part of the warm-up, maybe first shift, second shift (to adjust), and then after that, it'll be just a normal game."

The Blue Jackets selected Dubois third overall in the 2016 draft and he put up 159 points in 239 career games with the franchise.

Dubois called the end of his tenure in Columbus "complicated" and "choppy," but he once again stayed away from revealing any more details as to why he requested a trade.

"It wasn't a decision made because of someone or some things. I felt like it was the right time to move on, and I’m happy here in Winnipeg. It's going well, I've learned a lot, and I'm gonna keep learning," he said. "It was just time for something new."

Dubois has returned to form with the Jets to start the season, registering 10 goals and six assists in 18 games.

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Tuesday was a huge bounce-back night on the ice. I posted six shot props on Twitter, five of which were winners. Naturally, the one I wrote up in the best bets article was the one that lost.

Nevertheless, the 5-1 night brought our record on shot totals to 33-16. Let's keep the ball rolling tonight.

Pierre-Luc Dubois over 2.5 shots (-110)

Dubois has attempted 48 shots - and hit the target 30 times - over the last 10 games at five-on-five alone. He's averaging 6.2 attempts and 3.9 shots on goal across all game situations. He recorded at least three shots on goal seven times in that span. Put simply, he's shooting a ton.

Now he draws a very juicy matchup against the Columbus Blue Jackets. This is an extreme pace-up spot. The Jackets rank 29th in shots against per 60 over the last 10 games at five-on-five. They play fast, high-event games. Dubois will benefit from that.

So, we're looking at a trigger-happy player in a shot-friendly environment. If that's not enough to get you on board, there's also the good old-fashioned revenge narrative. Dubois is going up against his former team for the first time since being traded to the Winnipeg Jets. That could put a little extra pep in his step.

Ryan Hartman over 2.5 shots (-115)

You don't think of Hartman as an offensive dynamo, but he's quietly playing some very productive hockey.

Hartman has piled up 60 shot attempts over the last 10 games and is tied with Kevin Fiala for the team lead in shots on goal (35) over that time.

Like Dubois, he now finds himself in a pace-up spot against a team bleeding shots. The New Jersey Devils have not defended well of late. Over the last 10 games, they rank 30th in shot attempts and shots on goal against per 60 minutes of five-on-five play.

Having played at least 16 minutes in 10 straight, and centering the top line at even strength, Hartman finds himself in a prime spot to take advantage of the matchup.

Todd Cordell is a sports betting writer at theScore. Be sure to follow him on Twitter @ToddCordell.

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Chicago Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews hasn't quite found his groove yet after missing all of the 2020-21 campaign with chronic inflammatory response syndrome.

"I'm definitely not satisfied or happy with where (my game) is at. Just got to keep working and stay patient and try to build up more energy, more pace, more speed on the ice," he said Tuesday after the Blackhawks' 5-2 loss to the Calgary Flames, according to the Chicago Sun-Times' Ben Pope.

Toews has failed to score a goal in 19 games so far this season - a drought he had never experienced in his lengthy career. The last time the 33-year-old lit the lamp in an NHL game was Aug. 18, 2020, against the Vegas Golden Knights in the Edmonton playoff bubble.

"It's been a while since I've seen a puck go in, obviously. Definitely like scoring goals," Toews said, according to The Athletic's Mark Lazerus. "So I'd like to get going in that area. Just got to keep working through it. I'm not really sure what else to say at this point."

Toews is at least feeling comfortable enough to set up plays, with eight assists under his belt in the early goings of the year.

"Mentally, I feel confident with the puck and feel like I can make plays, and there's just times when you can't take chances," he said, per Pope.

With Toews on the ice at five-on-five, Chicago has controlled less than half of the shot attempts and high-danger chances while being outscored 12-7 so far this campaign, according to Natural Stat Trick.

The Blackhawks have scored the fourth-fewest goals in the league (41) and own the third-worst goal differential (-21).

Chicago currently sits second-last in the Central Division, ahead of just the listless Arizona Coyotes, with a record of 6-11-2. The franchise fired head coach Jeremy Colliton earlier this month and has since gone 5-2-0 with interim bench boss Derek King at the helm.

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Tampa Bay Lightning star Brayden Point will likely be out four-to-six weeks due to the upper-body injury he sustained Saturday.

The Lightning said on Sunday that Point would be out indefinitely.

Point went hard into the boards after a scoring chance late in a loss to the New Jersey Devils on Saturday. He stayed in the game to take the ensuing penalty shot but missed Tampa Bay's win over the Minnesota Wild on Sunday.

The Lightning have been without fellow top-liner Nikita Kucherov since Oct. 16 due to an injury of his own.

Point has produced seven goals and six assists over 13 games this season. The 25-year-old led the team with 23 goals and 48 points while playing all 56 contests in the previous campaign.

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The New York Islanders placed defenseman Zdeno Chara in COVID-19 protocol, general manager Lou Lamoriello announced Tuesday.

New York also announced forward Brock Nelson will miss two-to-four weeks with a lower-body injury. The 30-year-old leads all Islanders with nine goals and 11 points in 15 games this season. He exited Sunday's contest versus the Toronto Maple Leafs after logging just 6:58 of ice time.

The Islanders called up defenseman Thomas Hickey and forward Anatoli Golyshev from the AHL to fill the roster.

Chara, 44, is the latest Islanders player to land on the list, joining captain Anders Lee, forwards Josh Bailey, Kieffer Bellows, and Ross Johnston, as well as defensemen Andy Greene and Adam Pelech.

Despite the growing list, Lamoriello said no decisions were made to postpone upcoming games after he spoke with the league Monday, so the Islanders are preparing to play.

The NHL postponed three of the Ottawa Senators' games after 10 players and an associate coach entered protocol.

Lamoriello added that other than Chara, there were no additional positive cases. None of the Islanders who tested positive have returned a negative test yet.

Winger Anthony Beauvillier was placed in protocol Saturday and missed the Islanders' 5-2 loss to the Calgary Flames, but he was able to play Sunday against the Toronto Maple Leafs after his test was found to be a false positive.

It's been a tough start to the season for the Isles, who currently sit in last place in the Metropolitan Division with a 5-8-2 record.

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Cammi Granato will be the newest member of the Hockey Hall of Fame Selection Committee, the institution announced Tuesday.

The American legend is joining an 18-member group that includes only one other woman, Cassie Campbell-Pascall.

Columbus Blue Jackets president of hockey operations John Davidson is retiring from the committee on Dec. 31. He's served as its chair for seven years and has been part of the group for more than two decades. Mike Gartner will take over as chair, having served on the committee since 2009. Granato and Gartner will assume their new roles on Jan. 1.

Granato was one of the first two women inducted into the Hall along with Angela James in 2010. Granato captained Team USA to gold at the 1998 Olympics and was the all-time leading scorer in women's international hockey at the time of her retirement. She's currently a pro scout for the Seattle Kraken and became the first woman to hold that title in NHL history when the expansion franchise hired her in 2019.

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