The Toronto Maple Leafs struggled to find the net on their trip to California and hope to get their offense back in gear as they play six of the next seven at home, starting with a visit from the Atlantic Division-rival Tampa Bay Lightning on Tuesday night. The Maple Leafs, who entered Monday fourth in the league in scoring (3.41) managed three goals while going 0-2-1 in the Golden State, capped by Friday’s 2-1 loss at Anaheim.

Three losses in a row, including a humbling 8-3 defeat at home to Edmonton, put the Nashville Predators in a precarious position entering a rugged portion of the schedule featuring a string of matchups against playoff contenders. The Predators answered the first part of the challenge and resume a five-game road trip with a visit to the Montreal Canadiens on Tuesday night.

The Pittsburgh Penguins appear to be clenching their stick even tighter amid a stressful stretch while the carefree New Jersey Devils are excelling without the pressure of competing for a postseason berth. The Penguins have lost eight of their last 10 contests heading into the opener of a three-game road trip against the Devils on Tuesday.

The Boston Bruins have enjoyed season-long dominance to put themselves on the cusp of becoming the first NHL team to reach triple digits in points. The Bruins' missteps have been rare, and they look to prevent a third at the expense of the white-hot Flyers on Tuesday when the teams conclude their season series in Philadelphia.

The Carolina Hurricanes appeared on the verge of sliding out of the playoff chase in the wake of four consecutive losses but they have managed to right themselves with a pair of impressive road wins. Coming off back-to-back victories at the New York Islanders and Pittsburgh, Carolina continues its six-game road trip at the Detroit Red Wings on Tuesday night.

The Dallas Stars appeared to be a sure thing for the postseason midway through last month, even challenged for first place in the Central Division. While the Stars still maintain a firm grasp on third place in the division, they are mired in a season high-tying losing streak entering Tuesday night's matchup against the visiting New York Rangers.

The New York Islanders and Vancouver Canucks appeared to be on the fast track toward the playoffs before stumbling over last two weeks with just one combined win in their last 12 outings. The Islanders and Canucks aim to get pick up speed at the other's expense on Tuesday when the teams meet in British Columbia.

The Anaheim Ducks and Ottawa Senators are well out of playoff position, but the two young teams have been playing the spoiler role quite well of late as they prepare to test each other Tuesday night in southern California. Ottawa has won four of its last five games, including impressive victories over Vancouver and the New York Islanders, while the Ducks beat Colorado and Toronto recently and are 4-2-1 in their past seven outings.