Lightning, Panthers resume 'Battle of Florida'; Utah tries for 9-game point streak
Welcome to the NHL On Tap, a daily look at the games on the NHL schedule. There are 13 games on the schedule for Monday, including two nationally televised in Canada:
San Jose Sharks at Vancouver Canucks (9 p.m. ET; Prime, NBCSCA)
Macklin Celebrini, the No. 1 pick in the 2024 NHL Draft, returns to his home province when the Sharks (11-19-6) face the Canucks (16-10-7) for the second time this season and first for Celebrini, who missed a 3-2 loss at SAP Center on Nov. 2 with a hip injury. The 18-year-old native of North Vancouver is third among NHL rookies with 23 points (11 goals, 12 assists) in 24 games and can become the fastest player in Sharks history to reach 25 in the NHL (Rob Gaudreau, 29 games in 1992-93). Canucks captain Quinn Hughes has 17 points (three goals, 14 assists) in his past 12 games. He had a goal and two assists in a 5-4 overtime loss to the Ottawa Senators on Saturday, tying him with Markus Naslund (74) for the fifth-most multi-assist games in team history.
Tampa Bay Lightning at Florida Panthers (7 p.m. ET; FDSNSUN, SCRIPPS)
The Lightning (18-11-2) and Panthers (22-11-2) play the second of a back-to-back, home-and-home set in the "Battle of Florida" after Sam Reinhart scored twice to help Florida to a 4-2 victory on Sunday that gave it wins in four straight games and six of seven while ending Tampa Bay's four-game winning streak and Nikita Kucherov's nine-game point streak (three goals, 17 assists). Brayden Point scored for the Lightning, extending his point streak to eight (six goals, 12 assists).
Dallas Stars at Utah Hockey Club (9 p.m. ET; Utah 16, Victory+)
Utah (16-11-6) seeks to extend an eight-game point streak (6-0-2) and remain the only team without a regulation loss since Dec. 7 in the second of back-to-back games after a 5-4 shootout loss to the Anaheim Ducks on Sunday. Clayton Keller, Dylan Guenther and Logan Cooley have combined for 34 points during the run, including Keller's four points (two goals, two assists) and Cooley's goal Sunday. The Stars (19-13-0) are 5-5-0 in their past 10 games after a 3-1 loss to the New York Rangers on Friday and will try to avoid losing three in a row for the first time this season.