The New York Rangers and New York Islanders look to regain their footing on Saturday afternoon when they return from their respective NHL-mandated five day breaks at Madison Square Garden. The Rangers dropped five of eight contests to fall into fourth place in the Metropolitan Division while the Islanders reside in the basement with losses in five straight before forging a shootout win over New Jersey.

The Pittsburgh Penguins ended the 2017 calendar year with a 4-1 loss in Detroit on New Year's Eve. The Penguins get a chance to avenge that defeat and end a string to three straight losses to the Red Wings when they host Detroit on Saturday afternoon in the first game for both teams since the league-mandated five-day break.

The Minnesota Wild have waited more than a month for their opportunity to exact revenge but finally get the chance when they host the Central Division-leading Winnipeg Jets on Saturday. Minnesota is looking to get even for a 7-2 loss at Winnipeg on Nov. 27 in which it scored the first two goals before allowing seven in a row.

Claude Julien has not had an up-close look at his former team since he was fired by the Boston Bruins and hired by the Montreal Canadiens in a one-week span 13 months ago. Julien will have ample opportunity to get familiar with the Bruins, who will visit Montreal on Saturday in the first of three meetings between the teams in the next eight days.

The topsy-turvy Philadelphia Flyers were trending upward with wins in three straight prior to their league-mandated five-day break in their schedule. The Flyers aim to pick up where they left off on Saturday when they open a two-game road trip versus the New Jersey Devils, who have dropped a season-high five straight contests (0-2-3).

The Dallas Stars and Colorado Avalanche have recorded two wins apiece heading into the finale of their season series on Saturday at American Airlines Center. The Stars skated to their fifth straight home win over the Avalanche with a 3-1 triumph on Oct. 14 and posted a 7-3 victory in Colorado on Dec. 3.

The Vegas Golden Knights hope to continue their surprising inaugural-season success after a six-day break as they start the second half against the visiting Edmonton Oilers on Saturday. The Golden Knights have gone 14-1-1 since Dec. 3 to climb to the top of the Western Conference and are coming off a 2-1 victory over the New York Rangers on Sunday that featured another strong performance from All-Star goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury (9-2-1).

The Los Angeles Kings and Anaheim Ducks each stumbled into their league-mandated five-game breaks but one team will snap a modest two-game skid when the Pacific Division rivals collide Saturday night in this season's third installment of the Freeway Face-Off. Host Los Angeles won the previous two meetings, with both going beyond regulation.

The San Jose Sharks take a brief break from a road-heavy stretch on the schedule when they host the Arizona Coyotes on Saturday. San Jose completed a 1-2-2 trek with Sunday's 4-1 loss in Winnipeg and heads back out on the road for three contests after taking on the Coyotes.