It’s Monday so let’s hit the ice to kick off the week. The NHL season is really settling into its groove, which is good for us cause it creates for a lot of content. Let’s dive in!

First Period

1,000 for 97: There is elite company and then there is Gretzky, Lemieux, and Bossy. That’s the company Connor McDavid now joins by getting 1,000 points in just 659 career games. It was fitting that “McJesus” got it on a goal, assisted by long time running mate Leon Draisaitl. The moment was only enhanced by his dad who celebrated in the stands with the rest of the Oilers fans, but 97 wasn’t done yet. With the game tied at two in overtime, he set up his other long time teammate, Darnell Nurse for the GWG and point 1,001…next stop 2K?

Second Period

Russian Machine Never Breaks: With McDavid making history last week, the leagues eyes shifted back to the chase for history in DC. Alex Ovechkin’s assault on the all time goals record, a pursuit that once seemed a bit miserable, is now scintillating on a nightly basis. Number eight took the show to “Sin City,” where he hit the jackpot on the strip with his 31st career hat trick in a 5-2 win over the Knights. Ovie needs just 29 goals to pass Wayne Gretzky and break the record, while his Caps are a surprising 12-4-1 to start…maybe the 39 year old could have a grand send off after all.

Third Period

Steel City Sadness: Father Time, unlike the Kansas City Chiefs, is undefeated. He catches up to everyone eventually and Sidney Crosby and the Penguins are learning the hard way right now. At age 37, 87’s game isn’t suffering, but his team certainly is, for the first time since his rookie year in 05-06. At 7-10-3 the black and yellow are near the bottom of the East and not showing any signs of life. They had a particularly bad week, one that saw them lose 7-1 to the Stars at home, a game they trailed 6-0 after the first period. The Pens have done all they can to put off a full scale rebuild for a long time, but that time seems to finally be up.

Overtime

A Big Week for The M&M Boys: No, I don’t mean Mickey Mantle and Roger Maris. But rather Matvei Michkov and Mitchell Marner! They may play for separate teams, but I wanted to highlight their fabulous play together here to cap our post this week. We begin with Michkov, who at just 19 years old is breaking out as a rookie star in the league. He had 15 points in 16 games (6 G’s, 9A’s), but started the week looking to bounce back from being a healthy scratch. He did just that with five points in three games last week and memorable moments along the way. It started by scoring the shootout winner against the Sharks and fellow draft phenom Macklin Celebrini…

And then scoring an OT winner in the Canadian capital. This was followed by a two point night on Saturday, in a third straight Flyers win, making them 8-8-2 on the year and inching closer to a Wild Card spot.

As for Marner, the Leafs number 16 picked up 4 points in three games last week while coming up very clutch, much like Michkov. The first big moment came on Wednesday night in Washington when he tied the game late in the third to force an eventual Leafs OT winner from John Tavares.

He then capped off Saturday night in Toronto with a dazzling two way sequence against the Oilers where he denied McDavid a goal and then scored the winner, the 200th of his career!

Marner’s hot streak comes at a critical time as the Leafs have been without Auston Matthews of late. They’re 11-6-2, second in the Atlantic, so they need him to keep firing to keep pace with the defending champion Panthers!

On Twitter you can find Mike @Mike_Sheerin, Tyler @TMon_19 and Sean @SeanMartinNFL. Subscribe to the site by hitting the follow button in the bottom right corner and entering your email address. Check out our Instagram feed @thebroadwaybreakdownsports for special gameday and promotional content. Our podcasts are available on Spotify. Visit the Rangers Ed Shop by clicking the link on our homepage. Check out our mailbag page to join the conversation here on the site and on our partners show, The Rangers Ed Podcast! We’ll be back with more soon!