Morning Chirps: Nestrasil returns, McDavid breaks Hossa's Olympic record

The medal round for the Olympic men’s tournament is set. We got the golden matchup we all wanted to see before the games began. Plus, the lone current Chicago Blackhawks player in Milan can return home with a medal of his own. Let’s get to your Saturday Morning Chirps!

Blackhawks Chirps

• The Blackhawks will be off today after three straight days of practice. They will return to the Blackhawks Ice Center tomorrow and Monday, take Tuesday off, then practice on Wednesday before flying out to Nashville. They had a full house yesterday. Ryan Donato was back after his wife gave birth to their second daughter. Jason Dickinson was also a full participant after leaving Thursday’s practice early with an illness. Assistant coach Anders Sorensen was back on the ice after being part of Team Sweden’s staff at the Olympics.

• The only non-injured player who was missed was Teuvo Teravainen, who will play in the bronze medal game with Finland later today. Head coach Jeff Blashill said he expects him back in Chicago on Sunday night and will give him Monday off. He expects him to practice on Wednesday and play against the Predators on Thursday.

• Vaclav Nestrasil returned to the lineup for UMass after being out of action since Feb. 1 with a concussion. He made an immediate impact with an assist in a 4-0 win over the University of New Hampshire. The 2025 first-round pick has 11 goals and 24 points in 27 games this season.

• Staying in the NCAA, Julius Sumpf set up John Mustard’s team-leading 13th goal of the season in Providence College’s 5-2 win over the University of Vermont. Mustard also recorded an assist to finish with two points, as Providence has won 14 of its last 16 games.

• In Ontario Hockey League action last night, Jack Pridham picked up an assist in the Kitchener Rangers’ 3-0 win against A.J. Spellacy and the Windsor Spitfires.

• In the United States Hockey League, Mason West recorded an assist in the Fargo Force’s 3-2 loss to the Lincoln Stars. Since returning to the rink after winning the Minnesota State Championship in football, he has six goals and 14 points in 21 games.

• On this date in 1960, Bobby Hull had a five-point night, with four goals and an assist, to lead the Blackhawks to a 7-5 victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs. This was the first four-goal game of his Hall of Fame career and fourth hat trick.

• A decade later, in 1970, Hull became the third player in NHL history to score 500 career goals, with a pair of tallies in a 4-2 win against the New York Rangers. He got the best of Hall of Fame goaltender Ed Giacomin to join Maurice Richard and Gordie Howe in the 500-goal club.

• One year later, Hull had another five-point effort, with three goals and two assists, in a 7-5 win over the Los Angeles Kings. His 27th career hat trick broke Richard’s record for the most in NHL history.

• In 2018, the Blackhawks beat the Ottawa Senators 3-2 in a shootout to make Joel Quenneville only the third head coach in league history to be behind the bench for 1,600 games.

• Blackhawks Birthday Roll Call, Feb. 21: Jerry Dupont, Marl LaVarre, Jim Vandermeer, James Wisniewski, and David Gust.

NHL & Olympic Chirps

• Heading into the Olympics, nearly everyone predicted that the United States and Canada would meet in the gold medal game. That’s exactly what we have in store for Sunday morning after yesterday’s semifinal action. Canada had to come back from a 2-0 deficit win 3-2 over Finland, with Nathan MacKinnon scoring in the final minute of regulation. Meanwhile, Team USA rolled to a 6-2 victory against Slovakia, playing their best game of the tournament.

• Connor McDavid picked up two assists in Canada’s 3-2 victory over Finland to make some Olympic hockey history. He has two goals and 13 points in five games to pass Blackhawks Hall of Famer Marian Hossa for the most points by any player in his first five Olympic games with NHL players. Hossa had seven goals and 12 points in his first five games for Slovakia.

• Tage Thompson sat out the third period for Team USA for precautionary reasons. After the game, head coach Mike Sullivan told reporters that he expects the Buffalo Sabres star forward to play against Canada on Sunday.

• It’s been one heck of a week for women’s hockey legend Hilary Knight. She got engaged, won a gold medal, and became the U.S. women’s all-time Olympic leader in goals and points. To cap it all off, she will be one of the flag bearers for the United States at Sunday’s closing ceremony. Well deserved!

• If it wasn’t for bad luck, Vancouver Canucks forward Filip Chytil would have no luck at all. He will be out indefinitely after taking a puck to the face in practice on Wednesday and suffering a facial fracture. Injuries, including multiple concussions, have limited him to only 78 games since the start of the 2023-24 season.

• NHL Birthday Roll Call, Feb. 21: Hap Holmes, Danny Grant, Larry Melnyk, Brian Rolston, Ryan Smyth, Jake Muzzin, Ian Cole, Devon Toews, and Luke Evangelista.