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NHL Notebook: Steven Stamkos reaches the 600-goal milestone
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Photo credit: Sergei Belski/USA Today Sports
Ryley Delaney
Jan 2, 2026, 16:00 ESTUpdated: Jan 2, 2026, 15:35 EST
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Another milestone has been reached this season.
On New Year’s Eve, Nashville Predators forward Steven Stamkos reached the 600-goal mark in a 4-2 victory over the Vegas Golden Knights. With the goal, he has become the 22nd player in National League History to reach the mark. The most recent player to hit the 600 goal milestone was Sidney Crosby last season.
Alex Ovechkin and Crosby often get touted as generational talents from the noughties, but Stamkos is no slouch either. Drafted first overall in 2008 by the Tampa Bay Lightning, Stamkos went on to score 555 goals and 1,137 points in 1,082 games with the Floridian team. He captained the team to back-to-back Stanley Cups in 2020 and 2021, and made two more Stanley Cup Finals in 2015 and 2022.
Looking at individual achievements, Stamkos won the Rocket Richard trophy twice, leading the league with 51 goals in 2009-10 and then 60 goals in 2011-12. Those 60 goals were the last time anyone hit that milestone until Auston Matthew did it in 2021-22. Winning two Rocket Richard Trophies in Ovechkin’s prime will always be a notable achievement.
Surprisingly, Stamkos has only made two All-Star Games in his 18-year career, a rather big shock given he’s one of the most prolific scorers of the 21st century. Since joining the Nashville Predators during the 2024 off-season, Stamkos has 45 goals and 79 points in 121 games, including 18 goals and 26 points in 39 games this season.

Penguins and Flyers make a trade

It’s not often you see a trade between state rivals, but the Pittsburgh Penguins and Philadelphia Flyers did just that on New Year’s Eve. The Penguins sent Philip Tomasino to the Flyers in exchange for Egor Zamula.
Starting with Tomasino, the 24-year-old was selected 24th overall by the Predators in the 2019 draft. He scored 11 goals and 32 points in his rookie season back in 2021-22, but never hit the double-digit goal mark in Tennessee again, granted he didn’t play more than 41 games the following two seasons. 
Last season, he was traded to the Penguins, where he scored 11 goals and 23 points in 50 games, giving him 24 points in 61 games between the two teams. So far this season, Tomasino has played just nine games where he has an assist.
Zamula, a defenceman, was undrafted and signed with the Flyers in 2018 and made his NHL debut in the 2020-21 season. The former Calgary Hitmen played 26 games in his first three professional seasons, but finally became a regular with the Flyers in 2023-24.
That season, the 25-year-old scored five goals and 21 points in 66 games. He followed that up with three goals and 15 points in 63 games in 2024-25, but has played just 13 games this season where he picked up an assist.

Sabres’ win streak hits 10 games, Jets losing streak hits eight games

There are two ongoing streaks that are shocking. The Buffalo Sabres are currently on a 10-game winning streak, while the Winnipeg Jets have lost their last eight games.
Starting with the Jets, they had a 4-1 lead over the Toronto Maple Leafs on Thursday, but blew the lead in a 6-5 loss to 0-5-3 in their last eight. Since Nov. 21, the Jets have just three wins, as they are 3-13-4 in their last 20 games.
As of the morning of Jan. 2, the Jets sit dead last in the NHL thanks to a 15-20-4 record with 34 points. What’s more shocking about this is that their 116 points in 2024-25 earned them the Presidents’ Trophy. What an awful turnaround, but if there’s a team that can pull off a comeback like the 2019 St. Louis Blues this year, it’s the Jets.
On the other hand, the Buffalo Sabres haven’t made the playoffs since 2010-11, I was in Grade 7 for context. As the calendar flipped to 2026, the Sabres currently occupy the final wild card spot in the Eastern Conference thanks to a 10 game winning streak.
It all started with a 4-3 overtime win over the Edmonton Oilers on Dec. 9, and since then, they’ve defeated the Vancouver Canucks, Calgary Flames, Seattle Kraken, Flyers, New York Islanders, New Jersey Devils, Ottawa Senators, Boston Bruins, St. Louis Blues, and Dallas Stars. It’s not the hardest schedule, but there are some playoff teams in there.
We’ll see if the Sabres can continue their strong play in 2026.
Ryley Delaney is a Nation Network writer for FlamesNation, Oilersnation, and Blue Jays Nation. She can be followed on Twitter @Ryley__Delaney.
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