Three stars
1. Sergei Bobrovsky, Columbus Blue Jackets
When Bob is hot, the Blue Jackets seem unbeatable. And Bob is certainly on a heater right now.
Bobrovsky picked up his second shutout in his past four starts, turning aside 39 shots the New Jersey Devils sent his way in a 3-0 win.
Things weren’t looking good for Columbus’ crease hero, but over the past six games, he’s been back to his winning ways, taking victories in five of those starts and losing in overtime in the other. His save percentage on the season has jumped up to .913 to go along with his 16-10-1 record.
Bob has won four straight, as have the Blue Jackets.
2. Sebastian Aho, Carolina Hurricanes
Two goals, four points on Whalers night? Someone showed up to make sure the men back in green collected a nice win in those beautiful threads.
Aho was spectacular in the game, scoring shorthanded and assisted on both of Teuvo Teravainen’s goals as the ‘Canes bounced back from a 2-0 deficit with four unanswered goals.
It’s been an up and down year for Carolina, but it was nice to see them pick up the win after honoring their heritage on Sunday.
3. Jayce Hawryluk, Florida Panthers
Through his first four NHL games, Hawryluk hadn’t sniffed the scoresheet.
All of that changed on Sunday, however. The 22-year-old made the most of his limited ice-time, scoring twice -- including on a breakaway -- to get his first NHL goal and then his second right after it.
Highlights of the night
This was solid:
Decades in the making pic.twitter.com/1uyB1gTL6G
— Carolina Hurricanes (@Canes) December 23, 2018
Hawryluk’s first NHL goal was just a product of hard work:
Jayce Hawryluk strips Cam Ward of the puck and slots it in the empty net to record his first career NHL goal (1-1): pic.twitter.com/2RPmUzjxfg
— The Rat Trick (@FanSidedTheRat) December 24, 2018
He did him dirty:
Just smooth. pic.twitter.com/aVdh5viloF
— NHL (@NHL) December 24, 2018
Factoids
Dougie Hamilton has recorded a shot tonight to extend his streak to 200 consecutive games played with at least one shot on goal, which is the longest active streak in the NHL.
— Hurricanes PR (@CanesPR) December 23, 2018
Dylan Larkin extended his career-high point streak to 11 games, the longest by a @DetroitRedWings player since Henrik Zetterberg posted an equal run from Dec. 22, 2010 – Jan. 10, 2011 (6-10—16 in 11 GP). #NHLStats #DETvsTOR pic.twitter.com/SzYckHxzzy
— NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL) December 24, 2018
1,041 career assists for Joe Thornton.
— NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL) December 24, 2018
He passed Marcel Dionne (1,040) for sole possession of 10th place on the NHL’s all-time list. #NHLStats #ARIvsSJS pic.twitter.com/ypIrpvRRea
Most shutouts since 2016-17:
— NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL) December 23, 2018
14 – @SergeiBobrovsky
13 – Pekka Rinne
11 – John Gibson
11 – Braden Holtby
11 – Tuukka Rask
11 – Andrei Vasilevskiy#NHLStats #CBJvsNJD pic.twitter.com/52MFuejeef
Scores
Blue Jackets 3, Devils 0
Hurricanes (Whalers) 5, Bruins 3
Panthers 6, Blackhawks 3
Flyers 3, Rangers 2 (SO)
Maple Leafs 5, Red Wings 4 (OT)
Kings 4, Golden Knights 3 (OT)
Islanders 3, Stars 1
Coyotes 4, Sharks 3 (OT)
Merry Christmas, everyone!
Scott Billeck is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @scottbilleck