Hockey headlines for January 4, 2026

Sunday, January 4, 2026

Maple Leafs vs. Islanders: Two historic Auston Matthews goals, a Mats Sundin salute and one precious road point for Toronto (Toronto Star)
Columbus Blue Jackets win 5-1, end Buffalo Sabres' 10-game win streak (Columbus Dispatch)
Avalanche power play springs to life, leads to 5-3 comeback win against Carolina (Denver Post)
Capitals lose to Blackhawks — and lose Tom Wilson to injury (Washington Post)
Jets grounded for the 9th time, lose 4-2 to the Senators (Winnipeg Sun)
Penguins suspend newly-acquired defenseman Egor Zamula (Pittsburgh Tribune-Review)
Dallas Stars grant goalie Casey DeSmith non-roster status due to personal family matter (Dallas Morning News)
Former Maple Leafs president Brendan Shanahan to lead review on junior hockey in Ontario (Toronto Star)
Ottawa Senators GM Steve Staios on Linus Ullmark, the trade market and being a Stanley Cup contender (Ottawa Sun)
Eye on 2026: Trade deadline could be key to Knights’ season (Las Vegas Review-Journal)
Blackhawks' Teuvo Teravainen excited to fulfill Olympic dreams with Finland — once the rink is finished (Chicago Sun-Times)
Stars forward Jason Robertson addresses Olympic team snub: ‘Obviously, it hurts your ego’ (Dallas Morning News)
Flames prospect Zayne Parekh chasing history — and gold — at world juniors (Calgary Sun)
‘It just feels big’: Successful Winter Classic in Miami shows hockey is thriving in Florida (Miami Herald)
Stadium Series presentation will be unlike any other NHL outdoor game (Tampa Bay Times)
Nick Foligno's joke leads to Blackhawks' shootout winner against Capitals (Chicago Sun-Times)
Lightning beat Sharks, sweep through California with 7th straight win (Tampa Bay Times)
Fraser Minten lifts Bruins to 3-2 overtime win over Canucks (Boston Herald)
Vancouver native Fraser Minten scores twice, including the OT winner, as Bruins beat Canucks for back-to-back wins (Boston Globe)
Kings hang on to beat Wild in shootout (Los Angeles Daily News)
Penguins defense smothers Red Wings for 4th consecutive win (Pittsburgh Tribune-Review)
Nic Hague's goal with 29 seconds left lifts Predators 4-3 over Flames (The Tennessean)
Jordan Binnington's shutout leads Blues past Canadiens, 2-0 (St. Louis Post-Dispatch)
Denver Barkey notches his first NHL goal as the Flyers hold off the Edmonton Oilers (Philadelphia Inquirer)
Thomas Chabot's two-goal effort leads Ottawa Senators to victory over Winnipeg Jets (Ottawa Sun)
Celebrini tallies another point, but Sharks’ winning streak ends in 7-3 loss to Lightning (San Jose Mercury News)
'Sitting back a little bit': Oilers fail to arrive in 5-2 loss to Flyers (Edmonton Sun)
Wild rally for point but lose 5-4 in shootout to Kings (Minneapolis Star-Tribune)
Why one Hurricanes reunion makes little sense, even after nostalgia-filled night (Raleigh News & Observer)
'We gotta regroup': Wings swept by Penguins, start 0-2 in 2026 (Detroit News)
How Nicolas Hague, Steven Stamkos reversed roles in Predators' win (The Tennessean)
Cole McWard calls his Islanders debut ‘a confidence-builder’ (New York Newsday)
New baby, game-winning goal vs. Vegas highlight whirlwind week for Brayden Schenn (St. Louis Post-Dispatch)
Jon Cooper heaps praise on Tampa, Lightning in coaching 1,000th game (Tampa Bay Times)
Link between Isles' Schaefer and Maple Leafs' Tavares? They were No. 1. (New York Newsday)
‘Frustrated’ Knights believe they can overcome self-inflicted errors (Las Vegas Review-Journal)
Rangers hope Winter Classic momentum carries into new chapter at Garden (New York Post)
Knights goalie sighted at practice, return could be soon (Las Vegas Review-Journal)
Rangers need more of the outdoor lights version of Alexis Lafreniere (New York Post)
Danila Yurov signals his Wild ‘adaptation’ is over (St. Paul Pioneer Press)