* After the NHL on TNT debuted their holiday album in celebration of the upcoming 2024 Discover NHL Winter Classic, Kraken goaltender Joey Daccord matched his own club record with 42 saves to help Seattle extend its point streak to five games less than two weeks ahead of hosting the contest.

* Gabriel Vilardi extended his goal streak to four games to help the Jets launch into top spot in the Central Division while Dylan Strome scored the overtime winner to push the Capitals into a Wild Card position.

* Connor McDavid and Jack Hughes, selected No. 1 overall four years apart, are set to go head-to-head for the second time this season when the Oilers and Devils clash during an ESPN+ and Hulu doubleheader as part of a 12-game Thursday.

DACCORD MATCHES FRANCHISE RECORD AS KRAKEN GEAR UP FOR WINTER CLASSIC

Joey Daccord stopped 42 of 43 shots he faced and tied a Kraken record for most saves in a game – equaling the previous benchmark he set Oct. 26 (42 at CAR) to lead Seattle to victory Wednesday. In addition to starring on the ice, Daccord was featured in Episode 2 of ‘Road to the Discover NHL Winter Classic’as the Kraken gear up for their outdoor matchup against the Golden Knights at T-Mobile Park on Jan. 1 (3 p.m. ET; TNT, MAX, SN, TVAS).

* Daccord’s career-tying night began by stopping all 20 shots he faced in the first period as he became the second goaltender this season to make 20-plus saves in the opening frame without allowing a goal, following Ottawa’s Joonas Korpisalo (23 on Oct. 28 at PIT).

VILARDI LIFTS JETS BACK INTO TOP SPOT IN CENTRAL DIVISION . . .
Gabriel Vilardi (1-2—3) posted his second three-point game in a week (also 1-3—4 on Dec. 13) and extended his career-high goal streak to four games to help the Jets (19-9-3, 41 points) move back into first place in the Central Division. It marked the fourth time in five days that the No. 1 seed in the Central has changed hands, with the Stars (18-8-4, 40 points) and Avalanche (19-11-2, 40 points) also occupying the spot in that span.

* The Jets improved to 7-1-1 (15 points) since the start of December, matching the Flyers (7-0-1), Canucks (7-1-1) and Islanders (6-1-3) for the most points in the League this month.

* Vilardi has recorded 5-5—10 since his four-game goal streak began Dec. 13 – the most points by any player in the NHL during that span. Since returning to the lineup Nov. 30, Vilardi (6-6—12 in 10 GP) leads all Jets skaters in goals and ranks second on the club in points behind Nikolaj Ehlers (5-9—14 in 10 GP).

* The forward also became the first player in Jets team history to post a four-game goal streak during his first season with the club and just the seventh different player in franchise history to record a run of at least that length during his debut campaign with the Jets/Thrashers.

. . . WHILE STROME’S OVERTIME WINNER MOVES CAPITALS INTO WILD CARD SPOT

On a night 19-year-old Ivan Miroshnichenko – the Capitals’ first-round pick in the 2022 NHL Draft who was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma that same year – made his NHL debut, it was fellow rookie Hendrix Lapierre (1-1—2) who factored on both Washington goals in regulation before Dylan Strome netted the winner in overtime. The Capitals received an emotional pre-game speech from assistant equipment manager Craig “Woody” Leydig, which defenseman Trevor van Riemsdyk credited as a spark ahead of puck drop.

* The victory propelled the Capitals (16-9-4, 36 points) ahead of the idle Lightning (15-13-5, 35 points) and into the second Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference. Six clubs have held a Wild Card spot in the East this month (CAR, DET, NYI, TBL, TOR & WSH).

* Lapierre, who idolized Alex Ovechkin as a kid and was called up by the Capitals alongside Miroshnichenko on Dec. 19, notched the second multi-point game of his career (also Nov. 18). He became Washington’s third rookie in the past five years to record two-plus points multiple times in a season following Connor McMichael (2x in 2021-22) and Travis Boyd (2x in 2018-19).

* Ovechkin assisted on Strome’s game-winning goal in the extra frame as the latter scored his team-leading 13th tally of the season. Strome is on pace to finish 2023-24 first in goals for the Capitals – a distinction Ovechkin has held in every campaign since 2005-06 (tied in 2016-17).

QUICK CLICKS

* NHL Network Announces 2024 IIHF World Junior Championship Broadcast Schedule

* Jaromir Jagr starts 36th season, has assist in Kladno loss

* Winter Classic, Kraken’s struggles discussed on ‘NHL @TheRink’ podcast

* T-Mobile Park allows for smooth construction of Winter Classic rink

* Wednesday edition of #NHLStats: Live Updates

PAIR OF DOUBLEHEADERS, MacKINNON’S STREAKS HIGHLIGHT 12-GAME THURSDAY
A 12-game Thursday in the NHL features a pair of doubleheaders on Sportsnet One in Canada and on ESPN+ and Hulu in the U.S., while elsewhere Nathan MacKinnon will look to extend a pair of 16-game point streaks.

* Three of the NHL’s top eight highest-scoring players since the start of last season will share the ice when Connor McDavid (1st; 194 points), Leon Draisaitl (3rd; 162 points) and Jack Hughes (t-8th; 137 points) face off in an Oilers–Devils matchup broadcast on ESPN+ and Hulu. Edmonton (8-3-0; .727 P%) ranks second in the Western Conference and third in the NHL in points percentage since U.S. Thanksgiving thanks in large part to the efforts of McDavid, who leads the League in points per game over that span (5-20—25 in 11 GP; 2.27 P/GP).

* Despite missing five games due to injury, Hughes is on pace for his first career 100-point campaign and leads New Jersey in goals, assists (tied) and points (14-24—38 in 25 GP) – well on his way to becoming the fastest in franchise history to 40 points in a season. Hughes’ 1.52 points-per-game rate in 2023-24 is tied with McDavid (11-30—41 in 27 GP) for the second highest behind NHL scoring leader Nikita Kucherov (22-32—54 in 32 GP; 1.69 P/GP).

* After establishing a new career-high point streak in his last outing, MacKinnon skates into Thursday looking to find the score sheet in his 17th straight home contest to start 2023-24 and become the fourth different player in franchise history – and second in Avalanche team history – to post a run of at least 17 games at any point in a season. MacKinnon, who paces all skaters in regular-season scoring in 2023 (48-77—125 in 79 GP), will also aim to become the first player not named McDavid or Draisaitl to lead the League in points in a calendar year since 2017.