For The Great One, plays like Trevor Zegras' breakaway during last weekend's All-Star Skills Competition aren't just dazzling moments - they're good for the game.

"Individually, I can't do the things that these kids do. … We didn't do all this individual stuff," Wayne Gretzky said during NHL on TNT on Wednesday night. "They do it from a young age and they get good at it, and they incorporate that into the game, which is wonderful for the game."

Zegras, the Anaheim Ducks phenom, stole the show in Las Vegas by scoring blindfolded in an homage to "Dodgeball."

Gretzky, who logged 2,857 points in 1,487 career NHL games, also shouted out Calgary Flames talent Matthew Tkachuk after he stunned the hockey world with yet another between-the-legs goal against the Vegas Golden Knights on Wednesday night.

"It's good for the game because kids love it," Gretzky said. "And good for them that they can do that."

However, not everyone shares Gretzky's love for these individual displays. Former head coach John Tortorella questioned the league's direction after Zegras went viral for pulling off a lacrosse-style assist earlier this season.

"If you did that back in 2000, late '90s, 2000, you'd get your head taken off," Tortorella said during an ESPN broadcast in December. "It's cool, it's cool to watch and all that, but I'm not so sure it's good for the game."

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Claude Julien will return to the bench as the head coach of Canada's men's Olympic team following its tournament-opening clash Thursday against Germany, Hockey Canada announced.

Canada initially ruled out Julien of the 2022 Winter Games after he slipped on the ice and fractured his ribs during a team-building activity at training camp in Switzerland late last month.

The medical staff deemed him unfit to fly to Beijing. Hockey Canada subsequently announced that Jeremy Colliton would take over head coaching duties.

Colliton will reassume his role as an assistant coach.

Julien will lead Canada during its matchup against the United States on Friday at 11:10 p.m. ET.

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The Edmonton Oilers announced defenseman Duncan Keith won't return to Wednesday night's contest against the Chicago Blackhawks, according to The Athletic's Daniel Nugent-Bowman.

Keith crashed hard into the boards during the first period and needed to be helped off the ice.

The veteran has one goal and 13 assists in 34 games this season and is tied for third among Oilers defensemen in average time on ice (20:46).

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The Vancouver Canucks are adding American hockey icon Cammi Granato to their hockey operations department, according to TSN's Darren Dreger.

The role is unconfirmed, but Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman reports Granato will serve as assistant general manager.

Granato was previously working with the Seattle Kraken as a pro scout. She became the first woman in NHL history to hold the title when Seattle hired her in 2019.

The Canucks hired Emilie Castonguay as an assistant general manager last month.

Granato is one of the most decorated women's hockey players ever. She captained the United States to gold at the 1998 Olympics and retired as the all-time leading scorer in women's international hockey. She was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2010 and is one of two women on the institution's selection committee.

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Boston Bruins star Brad Marchand has been suspended six games for roughing and high-sticking Pittsburgh Penguins goaltender Tristan Jarry during Tuesday night's contest, the NHL's Department of Player Safety announced.

Marchand got heated late in Tuesday's contest. After being denied on a scoring chance in the final seconds of the third period, Marchand punched Jarry in the head, then soon afterward slammed his stick into the goalie's mask as a scrum broke out.

This marks the second time this season Marchand has been suspended. He received a three-game ban for slew-footing Oliver Ekman-Larsson in November. This is the eighth suspension of his career.

Marchand leads the Bruins with 49 points in 39 games this season.

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Veteran Boston Bruins netminder Tuukka Rask announced his retirement from the NHL after 15 seasons on Wednesday.

The 34-year-old returned from hip surgery this season, but he only appeared in four games before opting to hang up his pads for good.

"Today is a day that I hoped would never come. But now that it's here, I feel I owe it to everyone to hear it from me," Rask said in a statement.

He continued: "Over these last few weeks, I've realized that my body is not responding the way it needs to for me to play at the level I expect of myself and that my teammates and Bruins fans deserve. Therefore, it is with a heavy heart that I announce my retirement from the game of hockey."

Rask was a first-round pick of the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2005. He was dealt to the Bruins the following year, where he authored a Hall of Fame worthy career.

The Finland native made 564 appearances for the Bruins, finishing his career with the fourth-best save percentage in league history among qualified goaltenders.

*Denotes Hall of Famer

Rask also posted a career 2.28 goals against average, won a Stanley Cup in 2011, and captured the Vezina Trophy in 2014. He's Boston's all-time leader in games played, wins, and goals saved above average.

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The St. Louis Blues signed head coach Craig Berube to a three-year extension through the 2024-25 season, the team announced Wednesday.

"I've enjoyed working with (general manager) Doug Armstrong and (chairman) Tom Stillman, working with the coaching staff and training staff and all the players we have here," Berube said. "Why would I want to go anywhere else? I love it here."

Berube took over the Blues' bench in 2018 and brought the club from last place to a Stanley Cup championship the following spring. It was the first title in franchise history.

The Blues own a 133-72-30 regular-season record and have made the playoffs in each of the past three campaigns with Berube at the helm.

St. Louis is in the thick of the postseason race again this season, currently holding the fourth-best points percentage (.648) in the Western Conference through 44 games.

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Less than a year after Dominique Ducharme led the Montreal Canadiens on an improbable run to the Stanley Cup Final, the team has dismissed their head coach.

The Canadiens will name Ducharme's replacement later Wednesday and are retaining all of their assistant coaches for the time being.

Montreal sits last in the NHL standings with an 8-30-7 record in 2021-22. The Habs went 23-46-14 in 83 regular-season games under Ducharme and 13-6 in the playoffs.

The club has also overhauled its front office since its Cup Final appearance. Montreal fired former general manager Marc Bergevin and tabbed ex-New York Rangers GM Jeff Gorton as executive vice president of hockey operations in November. The Canadiens then hired former player agent Kent Hughes as GM in January.

Montreal has played without goaltender Carey Price and captain Shea Weber for the duration of the campaign, while numerous others have also missed time.

The Canadiens brought Ducharme on as an assistant coach in 2018 and promoted him to the lead job upon firing Claude Julien last February. Ducharme served as interim head coach until the squad formally removed that tag on July 13.

The 48-year-old signed a three-year extension with Montreal on the same day.

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