Deen's Daily
Deen’s Daily: Captain Landeskog; Best Outdoor Game Ever; ANOTHER GOALIE FIGHT!
The Avs bested the Red Wings on Saturday and play them again tonight. Will Gabe Landeskog participate in the Olympics with a letter on his jersey? Also, an epic outdoor game in Tampa Bay featuring a goalie fight!
All that and more on this edition of Deen’s Daily — February 2.
Colorado Hockey Now
Detroit was cold. It felt nice to fly back to sunny Colorado on Sunday ahead of a rematch between the Red Wings and Avalanche. I will say, for those who haven’t been, you should absolutely put Little Caesars Arena on your bucket list. That building is far and away the best in the NHL and the in-game entertainment and energy from the crowd is top notch.
Albeit, Red Wings fans didn’t have much of anything to cheer for on Saturday. Nathan MacKinnon was a big reason why.
READ MORE: 10 Takeaways: No Necas, No Problem. Supercharged MacKinnon Led Avalanche in Detroit
After the game, I asked Mackenzie Blackwood about MacKinnon. Does he still get surprised when MacKinnon puts up one of those types of games?
His response was fun.
READ MORE: In The Room: Asking Blackwood About MacKinnon is Always Entertaining (+)
Moving away from NHL action, it’s sounding like Team Sweden is leaning towards Gabe Landeskog being a part of their team for the Winter Olympics. Landeskog hasn’t played since sustaining an upper-body injury in Florida on Jan. 4.
Colorado’s captain has made it clear that he wants to play in Italy. Jared Bednar was on the record saying the team supports him rehabbing so he can partake. It’s just a matter of making sure things can align for him to be cleared to play by then.
If he does, he’ll be relied on quite a bit.
READ MORE: Landeskog to Captain Team Sweden at Winter Olympics?
Around The NHL
Detroit Hockey Now: The Red Wings will be seeking redemption at Ball Arena. They’ll have to figure out their recent scoring struggles if they’re going to have any chance to best the Avalanche.
Boston Hockey Now: What an epic matchup between the Bruins and Lightning in the latest Stadium Series. Tampa went down 5-1 and made a comeback. They won in a shootout after a controversial no goal in OT.
This game truly had everything. The largest comeback in 45 outdoor games, real drama, and… another goalie fight!
STADIUM SERIES GOALIE FIGHT 😱 pic.twitter.com/ntCWlmmr25
— ESPN (@espn) February 2, 2026
Florida Hockey Now: Nobody is doubting the Florida Panthers have the talent to make a late push and secure a playoff spot. But the number of injuries to crucial players continues to make that difficult.
Forever Blueshirts: Do the Rangers need a retool, or an all-out rebuild?
Call me a geek, but I find goalie fights pretty silly. If Swayman wants to hit a guy on the ice a couple times, he ought to be fair game for the biggest, badess skater on the Bolts. Vasilevsky shouldn’t have to burn calories and risk injury to kick his ass.
Not a big fan of planned goon fights, either.
This is what they look like.
I agree. I think I’m okay with them because of how rare they have been. If it was a nightly thing, or way more frequent, I’d have a problem with goalies leaving their creases.
I read an article that said Panarin’s “preferred destination” was the Panthers, and it made me chuckle. Florida is basically in the exact same boat as Colorado as it pertains to making that trade. Both teams have basically none of the required high draft picks, prospects, or young and available rostered players; and most importantly they don’t have the cap flexibility this year to fit him in, or in the coming years to facilitate an extension. So while it’s not impossible for Panarin to end up in Sunrise or Denver, the amount of gymnastics needed to pull it off makes… Read more »
I don’t see the fit with Panarin. Too expensive and not what the Avs really need. Let’s face it, the Rangers with him haven’t come close to a Stanley Cup. A 3C or a physical defenseman would be a much better direction. Especially with the loss of Solovyov for basically nothing in return. No matter what, do not make a trade for trade’s sake unless it truly strengthens the Avs for a Cup run.
Yeah, I don’t really see a fit either. Then again, Panarin’s talent will be welcome anywhere he lands. If the Avs did pull it off, get Landy back (and are somewhat healthy), they’d have an abundance of weapons making them even more difficult to play against. I could see him improving PP1 too
I’d like to see them target a 3C and a more versital physical D-man too. I was really surprised by the Solovyov trade. I thought he fit into the system pretty well.