The New Jersey Devils withstood the loss of their No. 1 center but could be without their top defenseman when they host the Detroit Red Wings on Saturday afternoon. Nico Hischier is expected to return to the lineup following a two-game absence -- both wins -- but Sami Vatanen likely will not be available after he was hurt in Thursday's 3-0 win at Philadelphia.

Center Brayden Point hopes to follow up a historic performance with another big effort when his Tampa Bay Lightning visit the Philadelphia Flyers on Saturday afternoon in a battle of teams with injured No. 1 goalies. The 22-year-old Point scored his first career hat trick Thursday in a span of 91 seconds bridging the first and second periods - all on power plays - as the Lightning rallied to defeat Pittsburgh 4-3 and end their first losing streak of the season at two.

The Buffalo Sabres are in the midst of a season-high four-game winning streak, with all of the victories coming by one goal - and three occurring after regulation. Buffalo hopes to continue the run, but in easier fashion, when it visits the Minnesota Wild on Saturday.

The Montreal Canadiens have a chance to win back-to-back games for the first time in a month when they wrap up a three-game road trip through Western Canada on Saturday against the Vancouver Canucks. Montreal swept its two-game series with the Canucks last season and have won five straight meetings, including the last two in Vancouver.

The Pittsburgh Penguins have plenty of gloom and doom circling their team with setbacks in seven of their last eight games (1-6-1) in addition to the injury absence of superstar captain Sidney Crosby. The Penguins could see a ray of light with the potential return of Derick Brassard on Saturday when they visit the Ottawa Senators at Canadian Tire Centre.

The Florida Panthers' season-high winning streak is over, but Mike Hoffman's torrid stretch continues. The 28-year-old left wing looks to register a point in a 15th straight game when the Panthers visit the New York Rangers on Saturday.

The Columbus Blue Jackets aim to extend their point streak to seven games and exact revenge from the Carolina Hurricanes for an early-season loss on Saturday when the two Metropolitan Division rivals meet at PNC Arena in Raleigh, N.C. Columbus matched a season high in goals in its 7-3 romp over Florida on Thursday to improve to 4-0-2 in its last six games.

The Arizona Coyotes have emerged as a playoff contender near the quarter mark of the regular season with their work on defense and while short-handed as they try to end a 12-game losing streak against the visiting Boston Bruins on Saturday. The Coyotes entered Friday leading the NHL in penalty-killing and ranked third in scoring among defensemen while their 10 short-handed goals were six more than any other team in the league.

The Nashville Predators look to snap their season-high three-game losing streak without two key players in the lineup when they face the league-worst Los Angeles Kings on Saturday in the opener of their three-game homestand. Defenseman P.K. Subban (upper body) will miss his second straight game while Viktor Arvidsson (thumb) has been ruled out for about 6-to-8 weeks as the Predators are mired in a 0-2-1 stretch.

The Edmonton Oilers had scored six goals during a four-game skid before matching that total in their last outing. The Oilers aim to keep the offense in gear on Saturday when they open Pacific Division play with the first installment of the Battle of Alberta against the host Calgary Flames, who have scored just six goals during their last four contests (1-3-0).

The San Jose Sharks will be seeking revenge when they continue their six-game homestand Saturday against the St. Louis Blues. San Jose, which fell to 2-1-0 on its stretch at SAP Center with Thursday's 5-2 loss to Toronto, outshot the Blues 33-31 in St. Louis on Nov. 9 but were on the wrong end of a 4-0 decision.