Officials handed Connolly a major penalty for interference and a game misconduct after he plowed into Kero near the boards early in the first period. Kero laid on the ice while the Stars' medical staff attended to him, and they eventually took him off.
Dallas later said Kero was conscious, alert, and responsive. He'll be hospitalized as a precaution and for further evaluation.
The 29-year-old is in his second season with the Stars after playing parts of three campaigns with the Blackhawks.
The 35-year-old landed awkwardly and couldn't put any weight on his left leg after Wild forward Brandon Duhaime checked him along the wall less than three minutes into the first period.
Edler got to the bench with the assistance of the Kings' medical staff and immediately went to the dressing room.
The team later ruled him out for the rest of the game.
Los Angeles has dealt with numerous injuries to blue-liners this season. The Kings' No. 1 rearguard, Drew Doughty, missed 16 games with a knee issue before returning Nov. 30. Top-four defenseman Sean Walker is out for the campaign after tearing the MCL and ACL in his right knee on Oct. 25.
Tampa Bay Lightning head coach Jon Cooper made history Thursday night, winning his 400th game faster than any other NHL bench boss ever.
Cooper guided the Lightning to a 5-3 victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs, achieving the milestone in his 659th contest as a head coach.
The 54-year-old is the longest-tenured active coach in the NHL, having led Tampa Bay since March 2013.
Cooper has led the Lightning to back-to-back Stanley Cup championships and has also helped the club reach the final in 2015. Tampa's made two other conference final appearances during his stint.
The British Columbia native ranks 39th on the NHL's all-time wins list among bench bosses and 50th in games coached. Cooper's also notably held his current position entirely in the shootout era when regular-season wins have been more common.
The Chicago Blackhawks goaltender joined Hall of Famers Martin Brodeur and Patrick Roy as the lone netminders in NHL history to accomplish the feat.
The crowd at the Bell Centre in Montreal chanted Fleury's name in the final seconds.
Here's a look at the top five on the league's all-time wins list:
Player
GP
W
Martin Brodeur
1266
691
Patrick Roy
1029
551
Marc-Andre Fleury
901
500
Roberto Luongo
1044
489
Ed Belfour
963
484
Fleury has played all but 21 of those 901 games during the shootout era, in which wins are more common, but there's no questioning his level of success.
The 37-year-old is in his first season with the Blackhawks after playing four with the Vegas Golden Knights. Fleury led the latter squad to a Stanley Cup Final appearance in its inaugural campaign of 2017-18, and he also won three championships over 13 seasons with the Pittsburgh Penguins.
The NHL's Board of Governors unanimously approved the sale of the Pittsburgh Penguins to Fenway Sports Group.
"The purchase remains subject to negotiation and execution of documentation before the transaction can be closed," the league said Thursday.
The new owners signed an agreement to buy a majority interest in the club on Nov. 29. At the time, the sale was subject to league approval and was expected to close by year's end. The purchase price is still unconfirmed.
Previous majority owners Mario Lemieux and Ron Burkle will retain minority shares, and the team's senior management staff will remain in place.
Fenway Sports Group, which also owns MLB's Boston Red Sox and the Premier League's Liverpool, reportedly explored a merger with Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment before pursuing the Penguins. MLSE oversees the NHL's Toronto Maple Leafs, the NBA's Toronto Raptors, MLS' Toronto FC, and Scotiabank Arena.
Lemieux and Burkle rescued Pittsburgh from bankruptcy after buying the team in 1999. The Penguins won the Stanley Cup in 2009, 2016, and 2017.
The Arizona Coyotes may find themselves barred from their own building if they fail to settle their debts with the city of Glendale.
Last Friday, the Arizona Department of Revenue filed a tax lien notice in Maricopa County against IceArizona Hockey LLC - which owns the NHL club - stating the team owes $1.3 million in state and city taxes, The Athletic's Katie Strang reports.
If the Coyotes fail to settle their debt by Dec. 20, the city has told ASM - the company that manages Gila River Arena - not to let team employees or arena vendors into the facility.
A letter from city manager Kevin Phelps to Gutierrez said the team owes Glendale about $250,000 of that amount, with the rest owed to the state.
The Coyotes are entitled to an informal hearing if they request one in writing within 10 days. The Coyotes owe taxes dating back to June 2020, according to the tax lien notice.
Phelps said he apprised NHL commissioner Gary Bettman of the situation Wednesday.
The Coyotes' first home game after Dec. 20 is scheduled for three days later versus the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Glendale said in August that it planned to opt out of its lease agreement for Gila River Arena after this season, meaning the Coyotes will need a new building after June 30, 2022.
Two weeks after the city revealed its plans, the team filed a bid for land in nearby Tempe to be the site of a new arena.
Nurse missed the previous six contests with a broken finger.
The 26-year-old has posted 11 points - all assists - over 16 games this season. He leads the Oilers and ranks fourth in the NHL in average ice time during the 2021-22 campaign at 26:06.
Edmonton signed Nurse to an eight-year contract extension carrying an average annual value of $9.25 million in August. He's in his eighth season with the Oilers, who drafted him seventh overall in 2013.
Nurse missed the previous six contests with a broken finger.
The 26-year-old has posted 11 points - all assists - over 16 games this season. He leads the Oilers and ranks fourth in the NHL in average ice time during the 2021-22 campaign at 26:06.
Edmonton signed Nurse to an eight-year contract extension carrying an average annual value of $9.25 million in August. He's in his eighth season with the Oilers, who drafted him seventh overall in 2013.
There's still plenty of hockey to be played in this NHL season, but the Hart Trophy race continues to take shape nearly two months into the campaign.
The top three contenders have remained as such for the majority of 2021-22 - though the order of that trio looks a bit different this time around - while another longtime impact player and a young star in the making are building cases to be included in the MVP conversation.
Here are our top five Hart candidates with one-quarter of the season in the rearview mirror.
Stamkos ranks among the NHL's goals and points leaderswhilecollecting three more goals and three more points than the next closest Lightning skaters. Yes, Tampa Bay also boasts all-world defenseman Victor Hedman and standout goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy, but Stamkos has kept the Lightning's offense afloat while the team has been without its two most electric forwards.
Much like the player who's ranked third on this list, Stamkos is at an age when he should be declining. But the veteran center, who'll be 32 in February, hasn't slowed down, and his steady play has been critical to Tampa Bay's success.
4. Troy Terry
Jeff Vinnick / National Hockey League / Getty
GP
G
A
ATOI
xGF%
23
15
10
17:09
54.69
Terry's emergence has been one of the NHL's best stories this season. The 24-year-old reeled off a 16-game point streak from Oct. 18 to Nov. 18, during which he amassed 12 goals and 10 assists while burying nine of those markers at even strength. Terry is the most surprising name near the top of the league's scoring list, but it's time to start recognizing his impressive contributions.
The forward's production has been a major reason the Anaheim Ducks have exceeded expectations. Terry has scored more than twice as many goals as any teammate in 2021-22.He also leads the club in points, with eight more than the next closest teammate not named Ryan Getzlaf, and 19 of the captain's 20 points are assists.Getzlaf deserves some credit for Terry's dominance, but the latter proved Wednesday he can score without the playmaking pivot in the lineup.
Terry's inflated shooting percentage is bound to regress, but the underlying numbers show he's no fluke. The winger's favorable expected goals for percentage bodes well for the future, especially considering his goals for percentage is under 50% at 47.06. That means the team has actually had additional opportunities to score with Terry on the ice but just hasn't converted them.
3. Alex Ovechkin
John McCreary / National Hockey League / Getty
GP
G
A
ATOI
xGF%
24
19
19
21:33
50.21
Ovechkin has carried his team amid multiple injuries even more effectively than Stamkos has. The Washington Capitals have been without Nicklas Backstrom for all of 2021-22, while T.J. Oshie has missed various stretches and Anthony Mantha remains out indefinitely after getting hurt in early November.
And yet, Ovi has been nothing short of incredible this season, which is even more jaw-dropping considering he's 36 years old. The Russian ranks second on the NHL's goal-scoring list and third in the league in points this season. He's scored 11 more times and racked up 10 more points than his next closest teammate.
Ovechkin isn't just banging home power-play one-timers to pad his numbers, either. The Capitals captain has relied on that method for only one of 19 markersin 2021-22, and he leads the league in both even-strength goals and points. If not for the Edmonton Oilers' dynamic duo, Ovi would be the Hart favorite.
2. Leon Draisaitl
Codie McLachlan / Getty Images Sport / Getty
GP
G
A
ATOI
xGF%
21
20
21
22:57
49.38
Draisaitl continues to lead in the "Rocket" Richard and Art Ross Trophy races, and there's no denying his immense talent. However, the German has an absurd shooting percentage of 27.8% in 2021-22, which will surely regress as the season goes on. He's also scored half of his goals on the power play.
His underlying numbers at five-on-five also remain largely unfavorable. The 26-year-old hasa commendable goals for percentage in those situations (63.89), but his subpar expected goals for percentage indicates an inability to drive possession. In addition, the Oilers aren't controlling the share of scoring chances with Draisaitl on the ice at five-on-five, earning only 45.34% of them.
Draisaitl's analytic figures without McDavid are even worse. The 2019-20 Hart Trophy winner has a 42.76 xGF%and a 41.72% SCF% while playing without the Edmonton captain at five-on-five. Draisaitl is undoubtedly one of the NHL's most valuable players, but a closer look at numbers beyond just goals and points clearly indicates he's still not the Hart frontrunner.
1. Connor McDavid
Icon Sportswire / Icon Sportswire / Getty
GP
G
A
ATOI
xGF%
21
15
25
22:19
54.89
Draisaitl has been producing at a higher rate than McDavid since the start of November, but the latter superstar remains the NHL's most valuable player for several reasons.
Firstly, the Oilers are better with just McDavid on the ice than they are with only Draisaitl at five-on-five. In contrast to Edmonton's paltry xGF and SCF percentages with Draisaitl and without McDavid, the team is driving possession at rates above 50% when the two-time MVP is playing without his older teammate.
Draisaitl deserves credit for his stellar production while logging a bit more ice time, but McDavid has been more effective by just about any analytic measure. The 24-year-old has favorable xGF and SCF percentages on an individual basis in addition to his superior numbers in the with-and-without comparison.
McDavid also boasts the NHL's best individual expected goals rate in all situations and one of the league's top ixG figures at five-on-five, while Draisaitl sits 94th in the latter. So while Draisaitl's counting stats are superior, McDavid has consistently proved he has a greater impact on his team's ability to control the play and create more scoring opportunities, thereby demonstrating his superior value.
The NHL gave the go-ahead for the New York Islanders to proceed with their regular-season slate after having a pair of games postponed due to COVID-19 protocol.
The team will host the San Jose Sharks on Thursday as previously scheduled after the league temporarily called off the Islanders' matchups versus the New York Rangers and Philadelphia Flyers on Sunday and Tuesday, respectively. The NHL is still working on rescheduling those contests.
Eight Islanders players were on the COVID-19 list at the time of the postponements, but several of them were back on the ice Wednesday. Anders Lee, Josh Bailey, Adam Pelech, Andy Greene, and Ross Johnston are now out of protocol, head coach Barry Trotz said, according to Newsday's Andrew Gross. Trotz added that he expects four of those players to suit up against the Sharks.
Zdeno Chara, Casey Cizikas, and Kieffer Bellows are the other three Islanders players on the list. General manager Lou Lamoriello confirmed Saturday that Cizikas tested positive.
The Islanders became the second NHL team to have games postponed due to COVID-19 protocol this season. The Ottawa Senators were forced to temporarily scrap three contests earlier in November after 10 players and their associate coach landed on the list.
