NYT Strands today — hints, spangram and answers for game #349 (Saturday, February 15 2025)

NYT Strands on a cellphone
(Image credit: Tom’s Guide/NY Times/Shutterstock)
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Need some assistance with NYT Strands today? Today's theme — "Ice packs" — is going to give you a hard time if you're outside of North America.

Below, we've compiled some useful hints for Strands #349, as well as the answers, should it come to that. We'll start off with some clues, before building up to the full answer for Strands #349, so read on if you need a little help.

Warning: Spoilers lie ahead for Strands #349.

Today's NYT Strands answer — Today's theme and hints

The official theme for NYT Strands #349 is... "Ice packs".

And here's an unofficial hint from me: "Feeling pucky?"

If you're still in the dark, here are some useful words to give you those valuable clue tokens:

  • WHILE
  • DEETS
  • CAVE
  • CHANTS
  • STYLES
  • MALES
  • JAIL
  • HEAVE

Still struggling? The spangram will give you a hint about the connection word. Today, it starts with H and ends with M.

Scroll down to find out what it is...

It's HOCKEYTEAM.

Today's Strands answers

So, what are today's Strands answers for game #349?

Drumroll, please...

  • SHARKS
  • JETS
  • DEVILS
  • LIGHTNING
  • WILD
  • AVALANCHE

Strands #349

(Image credit: Alan Martin)

...and the spangram was HOCKEYTEAM.

Strands #349

“Ice packs”

🔵🔵🟡🔵

🔵🔵🔵

Hi Strands fans. Given I'm from the U.K. and have never so much as touched a puck, you'd be forgiven for thinking I'd be at the mercy of clues in a puzzle all about hockey teams.

But you'd be wrong. Thanks to me and my brothers' addiction to the PC version of NHL '95 three decades ago, I got through it without assistance. Thanks, EA Sports!

I almost needed a clue to figure out the theme, until I lucked out with SHARKS in the bottom-left corner. What might sharks have to do with ice? The San Jose Sharks!

Playing on the hunch, I rattled through the teams I could remember: no Pittsburgh Penguins, Toronto Maple Leafs or New York Islanders, but maybe the New York JETS? Sure enough, I found it in the top-left corner.

To make it easier for myself, I decided to break the board down by sourcing the spangram. I found HOCKEYTEAM spelt backwards in the shape of a hocket stick from bottom to top. And that meant I easily got DEVILS (I want to say New Jersey?) between my two existing answers.

Three answers were on the right side of the grid, and I found LIGHTNING (Tampa Bay?) at the top, before locating WILD (pass) to its left. That just left AVALANCHE (again, sorry, no idea) to complete the puzzle.

Despite my lapse in knowledge at the end, I reckon that's not bad for a Brit...

Yesterday's Strands answers

Reading this in a later time zone? You can find the full article on yesterday's Strands answers for game #348 right here.

Alan Martin

Freelance contributor Alan has been writing about tech for over a decade, covering phones, drones and everything in between. Previously Deputy Editor of tech site Alphr, his words are found all over the web and in the occasional magazine too. When not weighing up the pros and cons of the latest smartwatch, you'll probably find him tackling his ever-growing games backlog. Or, more likely, playing Spelunky for the millionth time.

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