Jordan Kyrou was emotional after being booed by his home fans in the St. Louis Blues' 4-2 win against the Ottawa Senators on Thursday.

"It's definitely the toughest game I've probably played, to be honest," Kyrou told reporters postgame, per Bally Sports Midwest.

"It's just tough, right? Like, I love playing here, so it's just tough to hear the fans booing me there," he added, fighting back tears.

The crowd's reaction stemmed from Kyrou's lack of comment earlier in the day when asked about head coach Craig Berube's firing, saying, "he's not my coach anymore."

"It's not easy, obviously, but I see where they're coming from with how my comments sounded," Kyrou said. "That's definitely tough, you know, I love playing here; I love playing in front of the fans."

The 25-year-old clarified he meant no disrespect toward Berube with what he said earlier on Thursday.

"Obviously, I respect (Berube)," he said. "He's been my coach for the whole time I've been here, right? So I respect everything he's done here. He's done a great job; he won a Cup. All I really meant was, I'm just trying to focus on my future, focus on what I can do to help my team win."

Kyrou added: "Sorry if it sounded in a bad way at all. Just like I said, I'm just really trying to focus on the future here and focus on what I can do to help our team win."

Interim head coach Drew Bannister commended Kyrou for how he handled the boos during the game.

"I've known Jordan for some time," Bannister said, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch's Matthew DeFranks. "I've coached him. He's an outstanding kid, and he cares a lot about his teammates. He cares a lot about this organization, and he cares a lot about this fan base."

He continued: "He's disappointed in himself right now for his play. He is trying to find his way through what he's doing right now. ... He's searching for answers. And Jordan's got to work his way through it. Myself, the rest of the team, they're here to support him."

Kyrou notched an assist in the victory, giving him 18 points in 29 games for the campaign. He scored a career-high 37 goals and eclipsed the 70-point mark for the second time in 2022-23.

The Blues will stay at home, hosting the Dallas Stars on Saturday.

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Canucks icon Roberto Luongo was the star of the show before Thursday's clash against the Florida Panthers, as he was inducted into Vancouver's Ring of Honour.

Luongo is the eighth Canuck to earn the distinction, joining Orland Kurtenbach, Kirk McLean, Thomas Gradin, Harold Snepsts, Pat Quinn, Mattias Ohlund, and Alex Burrows. The organization has also retired the numbers of six players.

Many of Luongo's former teammates were on hand for the ceremony. Henrik and Daniel Sedin presented their former netminder with a jersey featuring a captain's "C," symbolizing his run as the Canucks' leader for two seasons.

Then, Vancouver fans serenaded him with a vintage "Luuuuu" chant before the banner was dropped.

Kevin Bieksa also narrated an emotional video tribute.

The Canucks acquired Luongo from the Panthers before the 2006-07 season, and he went on to become the club's all-time wins leader (252) while owning a .919 save percentage across 448 games. He was a Vezina Trophy finalist twice in Vancouver and played a key role in helping the club reach the Stanley Cup Final in 2011 while also winning the Presidents' Trophy in back-to-back seasons.

"I want to thank you guys," Luongo said during a speech, per The Athletic's Thomas Drance. "It wasn't always rainbows and butterflies; there were some harder times. But those times made me who I am today ... and I appreciate it from the bottom of my heart."

Luongo was traded back to Florida during the 2013-14 campaign and finished his career in 2019. He was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2022.

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Minnesota Wild general manager and president of hockey operations Bill Guerin was subject to an external investigation after a team employee filed a human resources complaint alleging verbal abuse in the workplace, sources told The Athletic's Michael Russo.

The alleged incident occurred in late November. Guerin didn't attend the NHL's board of governors meeting or the Wild's four-game road trip while the investigation was ongoing.

Two attorneys conducted interviews with more than 15 members of the Wild organization, and the investigation's findings were given to team ownership, which determined Guerin did not commit a fireable offense. League commissioner Gary Bettman and deputy commissioner Bill Daly are satisfied with the result, according to Russo.

The Wild and assistant general manager Chris O'Hearn agreed to part ways on Wednesday after a separate investigation into code of conduct violations.

"The Minnesota Wild takes its code of conduct seriously," the team said in a statement to Russo. "We recently concluded two separate investigations into alleged violations of that code of conduct, and have taken appropriate steps to address the matters raised to our attention. The club will not comment further."

Guerin and O'Hearn had worked alongside each other since 2019.

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The Luongo gameday show! A final nod to Roberto Luongo’s tenure in Vancouver, as Lu met the media before the Canucks and Panthers game. We hear from Roberto, and Matt and Blake react to his stories of better days gone by.

The Daily Hive’s Rob Williams stops by with his serenade as well, and tells the guys what he thinks will be remembered most, and if the number 1 will ever be worn again even if it’s not retired.

Patrick Johnston of the Province changes things up and reveals his takeaways from a conversation with Canucks President Jim Rutherford. PJ discusses the possibilities for a Canucks practice facility, and if another roster tweak is still in the offing. Presented by Applewood Auto Group.

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St. Louis Blues forward Jordan Kyrou didn't have much to say when asked about his relationship with ex-head coach Craig Berube.

"I've got no comment," he said Thursday, per The Athletic's Jeremy Rutherford. "He's not my coach anymore."

Berube was removed from his post following St. Louis' 6-4 loss to the Detroit Red Wings on Tuesday. Blues general manager Doug Armstrong discussed his decision to move on from the 2019 Stanley Cup champion in a press conference Wednesday, saying "things weren't changing" under Berube's direction.

Drew Bannister is now running the Blues' bench on an interim basis. Kyrou played under Bannister with the AHL's San Antonio Rampage for parts of the 2018-19 and 2019-20 seasons.

"It kind of feels like a little bit of a fresh start kind of thing," Kyrou said. "Yeah, we're all excited here. We want to turn the ship around right now and get our culture back a little bit and get back to how we know how to play hockey."

Kyrou has struggled through the first two months of the campaign, totaling five goals and 17 points in 28 games. The 25-year-old is in the first season of an eight-year, $65-million extension. He put up a career-high 37 goals in 79 contests in 2022-23.

In an effort to get Kyrou going again, Bannister put him on the top line with Pavel Buchnevich and Robert Thomas at practice.

"When you talk about Robbie, Buchy, Jordan, the most success they had was last year together," Bannister explained, per the St. Louis Post-Dispatch's Matthew DeFranks. "I want to give our team the best opportunity to win tonight and I think it's having them on a line together. Jordan's one player that we have to get going, but both of those players have to help in that progress."

Some of Kyrou's teammates weren't as tight-lipped about Berube's dismissal on Wednesday.

"I guess the first emotions are you feel guilty," Captain Brayden Schenn said, according to NHL.com's Lou Korac. "You feel responsible for a lot of it. ... That one really stings for me personally because I've had him for so long and he's been so good for me throughout my career."

Goaltender Jordan Binnington, meanwhile, understands the onus is now on the players to perform better.

"We've got to be proud to wear that Blue Note jersey and proud to be part of this organization and play for this city," he said. "If you're not, just get out of here, because we're not wasting time. These are special years; being able to play in the NHL, it's a privilege."

St. Louis will square off against the Ottawa Senators on Thursday.

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We have a fun eight-game slate ahead of us Thursday night. Let's take a look at a couple of my favorite ways to attack it.

Senators (-120) @ Blues (+100)

The Senators have traded wins and losses of late, but they've quietly posted some very strong underlying numbers.

Even without top defenseman Thomas Chabot, they've shown the ability to consistently outchance their opponents.

They've won the expected goals battle in five of the past six games, coming 0.17 short in the lone exception against a Hurricanes team known for its five-on-five dominance.

The Senators' mediocre defense and inconsistent goaltending mean their positive chance differentials aren't always going to lead to results.

It should be a different story against a team like the Blues. They've struggled at five-on-five all season long. While the team recently fired head coach Craig Berube, the reality is this Blues team simply isn't very good.

They have a lot of players providing nowhere close to the value they're being paid to bring. A lot of said players are veterans on the back nine of their careers, meaning there isn't much reason to expect a sudden change.

I think the Senators' team speed and skill up front will cause a lot of problems for a declining Blues side making schematic adjustments under a new coach.

Look for Brady Tkachuk, Tim Stutzle, and the Senators' big guns to exploit this vulnerable Blues defense.

Bet: Senators (-120)

Panthers (-120) @ Canucks (+100)

One of the trademarks of a great team is having a response when things go the other way. That's been the Panthers' calling card all season. They've lost two consecutive games only once since Oct. 14.

I expect their streak to continue at least a little longer. The Panthers are a well-oiled machine that can win in so many different ways.

At five-on-five, they continue to generate shots in bulk while allowing very few. Their penalty kill is near the top of the league in almost every key metric, and the power play is very dangerous. It's hard to get an edge over the Panthers in any area.

I think they're going to be able to control the run of play at even strength in this game. The Canucks' season numbers are pretty good but have dipped of late. They've controlled just over 46% of the expected goals share in December, nearly 10% lower than the Panthers.

The Canucks also continue to struggle on the penalty kill. Over the last 10 games, they sit 21st in expected goals against and 26th in goals against while undermanned.

That spells trouble heading into a game against Aleksander Barkov, Matthew Tkachuk, and some of the Panthers' lethal power-play weapons.

I think the Panthers are going to come out hungry after their worst performance of the season in Seattle.

Given the Panthers are performing at good-to-great levels in every game state, they're poised to cool off a Canucks side that's generated a league-low 63 shots over its three-game winning streak.

Bet: Panthers (-120)

Todd Cordell is a sports betting writer at theScore. Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, at @ToddCordell.

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One of the league's co-leaders in goals, Auston Matthews, headlines Thursday's list of players worth backing - or fading - in the prop market.

Let's take a closer look.

Auston Matthews: Over 4.5 shots

Matthews is shooting the puck like there's no tomorrow. He's attempted at least 10 shots in five of his past seven games, with the exceptions coming against a pair of low-event teams in the Rangers and Kraken.

He finds himself in a big pace-up spot Thursday night against the Blue Jackets. They've bled shots all season long and are showing no signs of defensive improvement. They rank dead last in shots allowed per game over the last 10.

A lot of the volume they give up comes from opposing centers. Columbus sits 27th in shots allowed per game versus the position on the year and over the last 10.

That should help raise Matthews' floor and ceiling, as should home ice. He owns a 54% success rate in Toronto this season and is averaging just under five shots on goal per game.

That's a stark contrast from his road numbers, where Matthews is producing 3.9 shots per contest and has fallen short of his total in 10 of 13 appearances.

Look for Matthews to make the most of home ice and a mouthwatering matchup.

Odds: -122 (playable to -135)

Cam Atkinson: Over 2.5 shots

Atkinson is a machine at home. He's averaging 3.4 shots per contest in Philadelphia and has gone over his total in 11 of 13 games. That equates to a juicy 85% success rate.

Sean Couturier eats up all the difficult matchups at home, freeing Atkinson for plenty of offensive-zone starts against lesser competition. He's making the most of it on a nightly basis.

The Capitals have conceded nearly 33 shots per game over the last 10, which ranks them in the bottom 10. They do give up plenty of volume, and Atkinson figures to be one of the primary beneficiaries.

Atkinson recently did the job against the Devils, Hurricanes, Golden Knights, and Kings. He should have little problem generating three shots against the Capitals.

Odds: -110 (playable to -140)

Kirill Kaprizov: Under 3.5 shots

Kaprizov hasn't been a prolific shooter under new head coach John Hynes. He's gone under his total in six of seven games, finishing at two or fewer in each failure. Those are not the kind of numbers we're accustomed to seeing from Kaprizov.

Although his average attempt volume looks pretty good, the numbers are heavily inflated by a 16-attempt performance. For perspective, he's averaging just over 6.5 when excluding that game. It's much tougher to get four shots on net with those outputs.

The Flames aren't great, but they don't give up a ton of shots, nor do they take many penalties. They profile as a team that should be able to keep Kaprizov to a manageable number.

Odds: -135 (playable to -150)

Todd Cordell is a sports betting writer at theScore. Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, at @ToddCordell.

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