NHL Friday recap

There were six games on the Friday slate, starting off in New York with...

The Rangers hosting their most recent hosts from across town, the Islanders. Dwayne Roloson started for the Islanders, while Henrik Lundqvist played in net for the Rangers. Marc Staal opened the scoring in the second period after a scoreless first frame, with his fourth goal of the season coming on the power play, assisted by Derek Stepan and Brandon Dubinsky. After another long lull, Brian Boyle put the game out of reach with his eleventh of the year finding the empty Islander net, with assists by Dubinsky and Ryan Callahan. First star went to Henrik Lundqvist for his 17 save shutout, while Marc Staal took second star status, and Islanders goalie Dwayne Roloson was the third star, going 19 for 20 in saves. In a first period fight/roughhousing, Callahan fought with the Islanders' Jesse Joensuu, with other penalties added on in addition to the dance.

Onto Raleigh, where the Carolina Hurricanes hosted the Colorado Avalanche. Cam Ward was stationed in front of the Hurricanes net, while Craig Anderson made a return to the crease after his most recent injury. After two scoreless periods, rookie Jeff Skinner scored his eighth to put the 'Canes ahead, with an assist by Tuomo Ruutu. Milan Hejduk evened the score with his ninth of the year, with the helper by Kevin Shattenkirk. In overtime, the decisive goal was off of Brandon Sutter's stick, his fifth of the year, with assists coming from Joni Pitkanen and Jamie McBain. The Hurricanes won 2-1. Cam Ward was the first star with a 34 for 35 save performance, while Carolina's goal scorers Skinner and Sutter were the second and third stars.

Onward to Buffalo, where the Sabres hosted the Columbus Blue Jackets. Ryan Miller handled the goaltending duties for Buffalo, while Mathieu Garon controlled the Blue Jackets crease. Buffalo got started with Jochen Hecht's third of the year from Tyler Ennis and Mike Grier. Jason Pominville added on his second of the year, a power play goal from Drew Stafford and Thomas Vanek. Buffalo had the lone second period goal as well, Stafford's fifth of the season, a power play tally assisted by Derek Roy and Thomas Vanek. Ennis tallied his own goal in the third period, his sixth of the year with an assist by Shaone Morrison. Vanek finished the scoring with his power play goal, his tenth goal of the year, with assists by Ennis and Roy. Stafford received the first star with his one goal and assist, with Ennis getting the second star for a goal and two assists, and Ryan Miller's 19 save shutout was the third star. The third period of the 5-0 rout turned violent, with three fights. The Sabres Cody McCormick fought with the Blue Jackets Mike Commodore, followed by a dance featuring Steve Montador and Jared Boll, and wrapping up the slate was Patrick Kaleta's duel with Derek Dorsett. Five of the six players involved received ten or more penalty minutes for the night.

Over to Minnesota, where the Wild hosted the Calgary Flames. The Wild let Niklas Backstrom start, while the Flames went with Henrik Karlsson in the crease. Minnesota opened the scoring in the second period, with Pierre-Marc Bouchard returning from injury and scoring his first of the year, from Nick Schultz and Martin Havlat. Mark Giordano tied it late in the second period, with his third goal of the year coming from Niklas Hagman and Olli Jokinen. Alex Tanguay broke the tie, giving the Flames a 2-1 lead with his eighth of the season courtesy of Matt Stajan and Jarome Iginla. Havlat re-tied the game for the Wild with his sixth of the season, assisted by Kyle Brodziak and Brent Burns. The tie held up through the overtime period, and in the shootout, Tanguay scored, answered by Patrick O'Sullivan, before Rene Bourque put one away and won the game for the Flames. Jay Bouwmeester was for an unknown reason, the first star, while the game saver Bourque was the second star. Havlat, who recorded a goal and an assist in a losing effort, was the third star.

Onto Chicago, where the Blackhawks hosted the Vancouver Canucks in a battle of vicious playoff rivals. Marty Turco started for Chicago, while Roberto Luongo got the nod for the Canucks. Tanner Glass broke the scoring open in the second period, with his third of the year. He was assisted by Jannik Hansen and Dan Hamhuis. Christian Ehrhoff added on for the Canucks, with a power play goal, his fourth tally of the year from Alexander Edler and Daniel Sedin. Daniel's brother Henrik scored his own third period goal, his third of the year, from Daniel and Alexandre Burrows. Vancouver would roll onto a 3-0 lead to save the torment of having their first star goalie Roberto Luongo to having to listen Chelsea Dagger. Bobby Lu had 32 saves in the shutout. Ehrhoff and Glass got the second and third stars for their goals.

Finally, we stop in Anaheim with the Ducks hosting the Detroit Red Wings. Anaheim gave Jonas Hiller the green light to tend the twine, while Jimmy Howard was in between the pipes for Detroit. Johan Franzen opened the scoring early with his eleventh of the season, assisted by Valtteri Filppula. Tomas Holmstrom tacked on a goal for the Wings in the second period, his seventh of the year, from Henrik Zetterberg and Pavel Datsyuk. Danny Cleary also scored, his 12th of the year, with a helper from Brian Rafalski. Filppula added a goal late in the third period for good measure, his seventh of the season, with assists being attributed to Jonathan Ericsson and Johan Franzen. Detroit rolled onto a 4-0 win, with Jimmy Howard's 41 save shutout being the first star, Ryan Getzlaf of the Ducks being the second star for no good reason whatsoever, and Johan Franzen receiving the third star for a goal and an assist.

Saturday has a fairly full slate of games, with 12 of a possible 15 being played. Recaps will come Sunday at some point, hopefully before the morning football games end, which will be recapped shortly after they end.

Thursday NHL Recap

Another day, another round of games played, this time with eight games. The Marco Sturm to LA rumor has been squashed as well. Initial thoughts are that his knee is not well enough off, and the Kings would like to be receiving a healthy-certified player. So Sturm will sit on Boston's shelf for now. Onto the games, starting in...

Pittsburgh, where the Penguins hosted the Atlanta Thrashers. Marc-Andre Fleury was in net for the Penguins, while Ondrej Pavelec played goal for Atlanta. Bryan Little started the scoring in the game, with his fifth of the season coming on the power play assisted by Anthony Stewart and Johnny Oduya. Sidney Crosby responded with his 19th of the year from Chris Kunitz and Deryk Engelland. Crosby tallied his 20th of the season in the second period, giving the Penguins the lead, with this one from Aaron Asham. He completed the hat trick with his 21st of the year, with assists by Brooks Orpik and Kris Letang. Nik Antropov started to mount a comeback for the Thrashers with his seventh of the year from Niclas Bergfors, but the third period was scoreless and the Penguins won 3-2. Crosby was the first star, with his hat trick, while Orpik was second star for his assist, and Antropov's goal was good for the third star in his team's losing effort. Chris Thorburn of Atlanta and Deryk Engelland featured in an early first period fight.

Along to New Jersey, where the Montreal Canadiens were hosted by the Devils. Johan Hedberg started for the Devils, while Carey Price got the nod for Montreal. Brian Gionta scored early with his eighth of the season from Roman Hamrlik and Tomas Pleckanec, followed shortly by Lars Eller's second of the season, which was unassisted. Montreal chased starter Johan Hedberg after the second goal so early. Hedberg was replaced by Mike McKenna. The Canadiens continued in the second period with Tom Pyatt's first of the season, assisted by Maxim Lapierre and Jeff Halpern. Scott Gomez also got a goal, his fourth of the season, a power play score assisted by Mathieu Darche and Yannick Weber. Piling it on, Benoit Pouliot potted his sixth of the year from Eller and Hamrlik. To prevent being shut out, Jason Arnott scored his ninth of the year for the Devils, from Patrik Elias and Dainius Zubrus. Montreal went on to win 5-1. Lars Eller was the first star, with a goal and an assist, followed by Brian Gionta, who had a goal. Carey Price was the third star, with 27 for 28 saves in his start.

Onto Toronto, where a pair of lowly teams in the host Maple Leafs and visiting Edmonton Oilers faced off. Nikolai Khabibulin started for Edmonton, while Jonas Gustavsson tended the Maple Leaf twine. Jordan Eberle opened the scoring with his fifth of the year, assisted by Ryan Whitney. Taylor Hall got a goal in the second period, his seventh of the year, which Eberle picked up an assist on. This was enough for Toronto to yank Gustavsson and replace him with Jean-Sebastien Giguere. Sam Gagner scored late in the second period with his eighth of the year, with helpers from Magnus Paajarvi and Ryan Jones. Hall added another goal in the third period, second of the night and eighth of the season for him, on which Shawn Horcoff and Jordan Eberle assisted on. Adding insult to injury, Jones netted his fifth of the year from Ryan Whitney and Jim Vandermeer. First star went to Taylor Hall with two goals, while Eberle got second star with a goal and two assists. Nikolai Khabibulin's 33 saves for the shutout were good enough for the third star. Colton Orr of the Maple Leafs and Steve MacIntyre of the Oilers dropped the gloves in the early going of this 5-0 rout.

Onto New York, where the Islanders hosted cross-town rivals, the New York Rangers. DiPietro started for the Islanders, as did Martin Biron for the Rangers. The Rangers drew first blood with Erik Christensen's fourth of the season, assisted by Sean Avery and Marian Gaborik. They extended their lead with Ryan Callahan's eighth of the season, from Brandon Dubinsky and Derek Stepan. The Islanders got on the board late in the first period with Zenon Konopka's first of the season, assisted by James Wisniewski and John Tavares. Matt Moulson tied the game with his ninth of the year, assisted on by Tavares and P.A. Parenteau. Rob Schremp gave the Isles the lead with his third of the year from Radek Martinek and Blake Comeau, chasing Rangers starter Martin Biron, with Henrik Lundqvist coming on in relief. Brandon Prust re-tied the game with his second of the season, from Marc Staal. Marian Gaborik gave the Rangers the lead back with his sixth of the year, an unassisted power play goal. He extended the Blueshirts lead to 5-3 with his second goal of the night and seventh of the season, this time allowing help from Sean Avery. Michael Grabner started to rally the Islander troops with his sixth of the season from Martinek and Frans Nielsen. Comeau then tied it minutes later with his fourth of the year, assisted by Parenteau and Travis Hamonic. Gaborik broke the tie and completed his hat trick 25 seconds later, with his eighth of the year coming from Christensen and Avery. This was the decisive goal, and the Rangers won 6-5. Gaborik was the first star with his hat trick and extra assist, while Avery's sock trick of three assists was good for second star. Comeau's goal and assist in the losing effort was good enough for third star. There were two fights in the game, with Trevor Gillies of the Islanders taking on Rangers overpaid toughman Derek Boogaard, and the later dance between Matt Martin and Mike Sauer.

Over to Boston, where the Bruins went against the Tampa Bay Lightning. Tim Thomas started for the hosts, while Mike Smith was given the goaltending duties for the Lightning. David Krejci started the scoring with his third of the season, from Milan Lucic and Andrew Ference. Dennis Seidenberg added his first of the year to the scoresheet for the Bruins, late in the first period and assisted by Michael Ryder. Lucic notched his 12th of the year in the second period, from Krejci and Nathan Horton. Victor Hedman scored for the Lightning, his second of the year, coming from Ryan Malone and Sean Bergenheim. Shawn Thornton restarted the Bruins scoring with his fifth of the year, assisted by Brad Marchand and the goalie, Tim Thomas. David Krejci scored again early in the third, his fourth of the year, unassisted this time. Mike Smith was promptly replaced by Dan Ellis. Ellis couldn't stop the Bruins scoring barrage, as Michael Ryder scored his seventh of the year quickly after the change. Ryder needed no assistance for his goal. Mark Recchi added his fifth of the year on the power play, assisted by Ryder and Zdeno Chara. Blake Wheeler topped it all off with his sixth of the year, with the lone assist by Recchi. Boston won 8-1. Krejci was the first star, with two goals and an assist, while Milan Lucic was the second star for his goal-and-assist performance, and Zdeno Chara was third star with an assist.

Up to Ottawa, where Dany Heatley's return as a San Jose Shark was much anticipated, and a reality when the Senators hosted his team. Antti Niemi played in net for the Sharks, while Pascal Leclaire guarded the host's net. Patrick Marleau got things going for the Sharks, with his eleventh of the season from Dan Boyle and Joe Thornton on the power play. Justin Braun added a power play goal in the second period, his first tally of the season, with an assist from the much-maligned former Senator Dany Heatley. Logan Couture added two goals in the third period for San Jose, with assists on both by Ryan Clowe, and the primary assist on the first from Benn Ferriero. These were Couture's ninth and tenth of the year, and the last goals in the game. Couture earned the first star for his two goals, while Antti Niemi was the second star with his 28 save shutout, and receiving the third star was Dan Boyle with his assist.

Down to Big D, where the Dallas Stars hosted the Washington Capitals. Andrew Raycroft started for the Stars, while Michal Neuvirth was in between the Capitals pipes. After a scoreless first period and a half, Mike Rebeiro opened the scoring for Dallas with his fourth of the season, a power play goal assisted on by Brad Richards and James Neal. Mike Knuble responded in the third period for the Capitals, with his fourth of the year, also a power play tally, assisted by Mike Green and Eric Fehr. Twenty seconds later, Brandon Segal scored for the Stars, his third of the year with helpers added on by Brenden Morrow and Jeff Woywitka. This was the decisive goal, and the Stars won 2-1. Andrew Raycroft was the first star with a 37 for 38 save performance in the face of a high-power offense, and Brandon Segal was second star with his goal. Adam Burish was the third star. Segal also dropped the gloves earlier in the game with Matt Hendricks.

Onto the last game of the night, played in Los Angeles, where the Kings hosted the traveling Florida Panthers. Jonathan Quick started for the Kings, opposed by Tomas Vokoun of the Panthers. Jarret Stoll started the scoring with his eighth of the year for the Kings, assisted by Justin Williams and Ryan Smyth. Michal Repik responded for the Panthers with his first of the year from Keaton Ellerby and Bill Thomas. Florida took the lead in the second period with David Booth's sixth of the year, with assists going to Steven Reinprecht and Steve Bernier. Los Angeles started a comeback with Peter Harrold's first of the season, assisted by Kyle Clifford and Brad Richardson. Anze Kopitar gave the Kings the lead with his ninth of the season from Dustin Brown. They were able to hold on and defeat the Panthers 3-2. Drew Doughty was the first star for... who knows what. David Booth's goal in the losing effort was second star and Anze Kopitar was the third star with his game winning tally.

There are another six games going on in the hockey-verse for Friday night, which will be recapped tomorrow. Thank you for reading, and on a side note, Montreal Canadiens defenseman Andrei Markov will be out for the season with another knee injury. Catch you tomorrow.

Thursday Night Football, week 13

We return to a late-season normality with only one football game this Thursday night. This game is between the host Philadelphia Eagles and Chicago Bears. The Eagles got on the board first with a 1 yard touchdown pass from Michael Vick to LeSean McCoy. David Akers added the extra point. Houston responded with a 48 yard field goal from Neil Rackers. McCoy answered back with a 4 yard touchdown rush, and Akers was true with another extra point. Akers added on a 36 yard field goal. Matt Schaub then completed a touchdown pass for 8 yards to Jacoby Jones, with Rackers adding the extra point. David Akers made it 20-10 Eagles before the half with a 22 yard field goal. After the second half started, Schaub linked up with Arian Foster for 13 yards and a touchdown, with a good Rackers extra point. Foster put the Texans ahead with his 3 yard touchdown run, and after the Rackers extra point, Houston led 24-20. Philadelphia came roaring back in the fourth quarter with Michael Vick's 2 yard touchdown run, to retake the lead 27-24 with the Akers extra point. Vick helped to put it away with his touchdown pass to Owen Schmitt for 5 yards, and with the Akers extra point, the score was 34-24. This ended up being the final as the Eagles held on and came back to win.

Regular NFL action on Sunday will be posted as it was last week, in three parts for the three sets of kickoffs.

Wednesday NHL recap

There were seven games being played in hockey last night. Also, in this afternoon is a trade rumor involving Marco Sturm to the Kings. Details on that will come tomorrow if anything surfaces. Meanwhile, Sturm's current team, the Boston Bruins were in...

The City of Brotherly Love, playing guest to the Philadelphia Flyers. Tim Thomas was in front of the Bruins cage, while rookie goalie sensation Sergei Bobrovsky was in goal for the Flyers. Patrice Bergeron's fourth of the year opened up the scoring, giving the Bruins a 1-0 lead with his power play goal that went unassisted. Tyler Seguin added his fifth of the year later in the first, assisted by Michael Ryder and Brad Marchand. After a scoreless second period and relatively quiet majority of the third frame, Milan Lucic put his eleventh of the year in an empty net. David Krejci got the lone assist on the game's last goal, good for a 3-0 Bruins win. Tim Thomas' 41 save shutout was first star, while Patrice Bergeron's one goal was good for second star, and Zdeno Chara received the third star. Dropping the mitts were Jody Shelley for the Flyers and Shawn Thornton for the Bruins, who had a dance in the first period.

Into Ohio, where the Columbus Blue Jackets hosted the Nashville Predators. Steve Mason was the Columbus goalkeeper, while Pekka Rinne received another start for the Predators. Colin Wilson's fourth of the year opened the scoring late in the first period, with assists by Cal O'Reilly and Martin Erat to give the Predators a 1-0 lead. Antoine Vermette evened the score in the second period with sixth of the year coming from Jan Hejda and R.J. Umberger. Nashville responded with Sergei Kostitsyn's third of the year, assisted by Erat and Marcel Goc. Kris Russell re-tied it for Columbus with his first of the year, with assists by Vermette and the goalie Steve Mason. Vermette added his seventh of the season and second of the night to give Columbus a lead, assisted by Rick Nash and Umberger. Kevin Klein tied it again for the Predators, with his second of the year, unassisted. This lasted through to a shootout, where Nashville's Steve Sullivan was the determining factor, giving the Predators a 4-3 shootout win. Vermette was first star in a losing effort with two goals, while Kevin Klein was good for second star with a goal. Umberger, also of the losing Blue Jackets, received the third star, with two assists.

Up to Montreal, where the Canadiens hosted the Edmonton Oilers. Devyn Dubnyk tended the visiting twine, while Carey Price was in front of the Montreal net. Scott Gomez and Kurtis Foster both got first period power play goals, their third of the year, with Gomez being assisted by Michael Cammalleri and Mathieu Darche, and Foster's responding tally getting help from Sam Gagner and Ales Hemsky. Darche got his fourth of the year in the second period from Cammalleri and Roman Hamrlik on the power play. Hamrlik later added his own, the second for him this year, comnig from Benoit Pouliot and Lars Eller. Hemsky and Gagner added their seventh of the year each, to re-tie the game at three. Hemsky got his help from Magnus Paajarvi and Jim Vandermeer, while Gagner's shorthanded tally came from Hemsky. In overtime, Dustin Penner added his eighth of the year to win the game for Edmonton, 4-3. The game winner went unassisted. Penner received the first star for his goal, while Darche and Hamrlik received second and third star for their goal and assist in a losing effort.

Moving to the Gateway to the west, where St. Louis hosted the Washington Capitals. Semyon Varlamov started for the Capitals, as did Jaroslav Halak for the Blues. The Capitals opened the scoring with Brooks Laich's seventh of the year, coming on the power play with helpers by Nicklas Backstrom and Alexander Semin. Boyd Gordon extended the lead to 2-0 with his first of the year, assisted by Tom Poti and D.J. King. Alex Steen scored late in the second period for the Blues, his fifth of the year coming from B.J. Crombeen and Erik Johnson. Backstrom did all the scoring in the third period with two goals, his tenth and eleventh of the year. The first of the night was assisted by Mike Knuble and John Carlson, while the second was an empty netter from Alex Ovechkin and John Erskine. Semyon Varlamov was the first star with a 37 for 38 save performance, while Backstrom's two goals and an assist was second star and the third star went to Alex Steen's goal in a losing effort.

Into Minnesota, where the Wild hosted the Phoenix Coyotes. Jason LaBarbera was the goaltender for the Coyotes, while Jose Theodore was in the home team's crease. Ed Jovanovski opened the scoring for Phoenix with his fourth of the year from Adrian Aucoin and Scottie Upshall. Upshall scored his seventh of the year in the second period, with helpers from Shane Doan and Kyle Turris. Matt Cullen gave the Wild life with his sixth of the year in the third period, coming from Patrick O'Sullivan and Marek Zidlicky. Upshall added another goal, seocnd of the night and eighth of the season to restore the two goal lead, with assists this time going to Eric Belanger and Adrian Aucoin. Mikko Koivu's fifth of the year put Minnesota in striking distance, down 3-2 because of assists from Martin Havlat and Brent Burns. Phoenix killed the hopes of a comeback, with an empty net goal, unassisted, from Lauri Korpikoski. Jason LaBarbera was the first star with his 33 for 35 save performance, while second star honors went to Scottie Upshall for two goals and an assist, and the thrid star was given to Martin Havlat's one assist in the losing effort for his Wild.

Up to Alberta, where the Calgary Flames hosted divisional rivals from Vancouver, the Canucks. Studly goalies Miikka Kiprusoff of the Flames and Roberto Luongo of the Canucks were the twinetenders. Mason Raymond scored early for Vancouver, his fifth goal of the season, coming from Andrew Alberts and Ryan Kesler. Jeff Tambellini also scored for the Canucks, his fourth of the year from Alexander Edler and Mason Raymond. Tim Jackman added his third of the year for the Flames, cutting the lead to 2-1. Assists came from Mark Giordano and Cory Sarich. Daniel Sedin notched a power play goal, his 14th tally of the season, from Ryan Kesler, and playmaking twin brother Henrik. Alex Tanguay responded for the Flames with his seventh of the season from Matt Stajan and Jarome Iginla. Vancouver responded in the third with Mason Raymond's sixth of the year, and second of the night, a shorthanded goal from Manny Malhotra. Alexandre Burrows extended the lead with his fourth of the year, assisted by Henrik Sedin. Mason Raymond completed his hat trick on the power play, assisted by Mikael Samuelsson. Dan Hamhuis put it out of reach with his third of the year, also on the power play, with assists by Jeff Tambellini and Raffi Torres. Mason Raymond was the obvious first star, with a hat trick and an assist, with second star status going to Ryan Kesler with two assists and the third star was given to Daniel Sedin, who had one goal. Tanner Glass of the Canucks and Tim Jackman of the Flames also had a first period fight.

Onto Anaheim, where the Ducks hosted the Florida Panthers in the last game of the evening. Jonas Hiller was in net for the Ducks, while Tomas Vokoun was in between the pipes for Florida. George Parros opened the scoring with his second of the year, assisted by Kyle Chipchura. Getzlaf extended the Ducks lead with his eighth of the year, assisted by Toni Lydman and Corey Perry. Anaheim's lead extended even farther with Parros' second of the night and third of the year, again from Chipchura. Florida finally responded with Mike Santorelli's seventh of the year, with assists coming from Steve Bernier and Dmitry Kulikov. Bernier added his own goal in the third to cut the lead to 3-2, a power play goal from Stephen Weiss and Dennis Wideman. Anaheim answered with Corey Perry's 12th of the season, from Ryan Getzlaf. Florida attempted to rally back again, behind Bernier's third of the season and second of the night from Bryan McCabe and Santorelli, but Bobby Ryan's 13th of the year into an empty net squashed those hopes. Ryan's goal was unasssisted. The Ducks beat the Panthers 5-3, with first star honors going to George Parros for his two goals. Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry were second and third stars, each with a goal and an assist. Parros also dropped the gloves with Darcy Hordichuk in the first period, leaving him one assist away from the Gordie Howe hat trick.

There are eight games that will be recapped tomorrow from tonight's action. Also, the trade rumors mentioned in the introduction will be confirmed or denied in tomorrow's post as well. Have a great night, and I'll catch you tomorrow.

NHL Tuesday recap

Another five-game night on Tuesday, so it's not a large load of games. There were some high scoring ones, but before I spoil it any farther, we start the recaps in...

Toronto, where the Maple Leafs hosted the Tampa Bay Lightning. Jonas Gustavsson was handling the goaltending duties for the Maple Leafs, while Dan Ellis was placed in front of the twine for the Lightning. Kris Versteeg potted his seventh of the year to open the scoring, giving Toronto an early lead. Assists came from Tyler Bozak and Carl Gunnarsson. Ryan Malone tied it for the Lightning, when his sixth of the year went in. It was a power play goal, assisted by Simon Gagne. The Leafs responded with Nikolai Kulemin's eighth of the year, also on the power play, with assists by Tomas Kaberle and Kris Versteeg. Kulemin added another, good for his ninth of the year, in the third, coming from Joey Crabb and Mike Komisarek. Martin St. Louis added two goals for the Lightning, his ninth and tenth of the year. The first one of the night came off of Steve Downie, with the second one, a game tying goal with nine seconds left in the third, came from Steven Stamkos and Dominic Moore. Simon Gagne scored the winner in overtime, his first of an injury-plagued season, with an assist from Brett Clark. Gagne got the first star with his game winning goal and earlier assist, while teammate Martin St. Louis got second star with two goals. Toronto's Nikolai Kulemin got third star with his two goals in the losing effort.

Into the Windy City, where Chicago's Blackhawks hosted the Blues from St. Louis. Ty Conklin was in front of the visitor's net, while Corey Crawford was allowed to start for the 'Hawks. Chicago was on the board first with Tomas Kopecky's third of the year, coming from Patrick Sharp. Patrik Berglund got the Blues on the board with his sixth of the season from Vladimir Sobotka and David Backes, but Chicago responded quickly with Patrick Sharp's 16th of the year from Kopecky and Brian Campbell. Troy Brouwer kept Chicago going strong in the second, with his fifth of the year, a power play goal from Jeremy Morin and Brian Campbell. Jonathan Toews also notched a power play tally, his tenth goal of the year, coming from Patrick Kane and Brent Seabrook. Kane got his tenth of the year as well, coming from Viktor Stalberg and Toews. St. Louis started digging into the Blackhawks 5-1 lead with Eric Brewer's third of the year, from Backes and Sobotka, who also picked up assists on Alex Pietrangelo's second of the year. The Blues kept rolling with Brad Boyes' sixth of the year, assisted by Alex Steen and Erik Johnson. The Blackhawks came in and squashed this comeback attempt with Kane's eleventh of the year from Stalberg and Kopecky, and Toews also notched another goal, a power play strike from Kopecky and Duncan Keith. David Backes tried to get the Blues a late comeback, with his fourth of the year coming from Pietrangelo, but it was too little too late as the Blackhawks beat the Blues 7-5. Patrick Kane was the first star with two goals and an assist, while Patrick Sharp was the second star with a goal and an assist. Tomas Kopecky grabbed the third star with his sock trick and goal. There was a fight in every period, with John Scott of the Blackhawks fighting Cam Janssen of the Blues, Nick Boynton and B.J. Crombeen having a dance, and Jeremy Morin tangling with Chris Porter. These two rivals had quite the bitter evening.

Into Nashville, where the Predators hosted the Phoenix Coyotes. Ilya Bryzgalov got the nod for the Desert Dogs, while Pekka Rinne served the Predators in the blue paint. Shea Weber opened the scoring, notching one for the Predators, his third of the year coming off of Patric Hornqvist and Steve Sullivan on the power play. Cal O'Reilly added on with his fifth of the year, also on the power play and coming from Sullivan and Ryan Suter. Jordin Tootoo finished it off with his empty netter, good for his third of the year. The lone assist on his goal was from Jerred Smithson. Nashville defeated Phoenix 3-0. Pekka Rinne was the first star for his 33 save shutout, with goal scorers Weber and O'Reilly taking the second and third stars in that order.

Going upward a bit, to Denver where the Colorado Avalanche hosted the Atlanta Thrashers. Peter Budaj was the masked man for the Avalanche, whereas Ondrej Pavelec protected the net for the Thrashers. Rich Peverley's sixth of the season got Atlanta going, with assists coming from Andrew Ladd and Zach Bogosian. After a scoreless second period, Colorado tied it with Matt Duchene's unassisted seventh goal of the year. The Avalanche took the lead with David Jones eleventh tally of the year, this one being a power play goal with assists by Kevin Shattenkirk and Milan Hejduk. Dustin Byfuglien tied the game again for Atlanta, with his tenth of the year from Tobias Enstrom and Alex Burmistov. In the overtime period that followed, Atlanta prevailed riding on Anthony Stewart's seventh of the season, with Byfuglien and Ron Hainsey grabbing the helpers for the winning goal. Stewart's goal was good enough for the first star, while Colorado's Matt Duchene got the second star with his goal. Byfuglien was third star with his goal and assist.

Finally, at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, where the Sharks hosted Western Conference rivals from Detroit, the Red Wings. Jimmy Howard was playing goal for the Winged Wheel, while Antero Niittymaki got the start for the Sharks. The first goal in the game was a power play tally by Danny Cleary, his eleventh goal of the year, with assists by Henrik Zetterberg and Valtteri Filppula. Pavel Datsyuk extended the Red Wings lead with his eighth goal of the year, assisted by Brian Rafalski and Zetterberg. Dany Heatley's 12th of the year trimmed the lead down to 2-1, with assists on the power play goal coming from Joe Thornton and Joe Pavelski. Zetterberg scored his own goal, his eighth of the year in the second period, with assists by Rafalski and Datsyuk, but was answered by Benn Ferriero's second of the year for the Sharks, assisted by Jamie McGinn and Derek Joslin. Detroit struck late in the third with Patrick Eaves' fourth of the year, from Cleary and Niklas Kronwall. Zetterberg added another goal, his ninth of the season and second of the night in the third period to run the lead up to 5-2. Datsyuk provided the assist for the goal. Ryan Clowe attempted to mount a comeback for the Sharks with his fifth of the season, assisted by Justin Braun and Torrey Mitchell. The Red Wings won, 5-3 over the Sharks. Zetterberg's four point night of two goals and assists was good enough for the first star, with Datsyuk earning the second for his goal and two assists. Ryan Clowe was the third star with his goal.

That's Tuesday's hockey action. Wednesday night features seven games, so about half the NHL is playing tonight. Recaps will be tomorrow at the same time, same place, along with a Thursday Night Football recap, time permitting. Thank you again for reading, and I'll see you tomorrow.

NHL recap for Monday

Two trades to report, with the Boston Bruins trading Matt Hunwick to Colorado for Colby Cohen, to free up cap space for Marc Savard's return. The Avalanche subsequently traded Scott Hannan to the Washington Capitals for Tomas Fleischmann. On another note, there were five games played on Monday, and they looked something like this starting in...

Madison Square Garden, where the New York Rangers hosted the red-hot Pittsburgh Penguins. Henrik Lundqvist was in between the pipes for the Rangers, and Marc-Andre Fleury was playing goal for the Penguins. Max Talbot opened the scoring early in the first, scoring his fifth of the year from Pascal Dupuis. Kris Letang added his fifth of the year in the second period with assists from Sidney Crosby and Dupuis, and shortly after, Chris Connor notched his second of the year with helpers by Tyler Kennedy and Alex Goligoski. Marian Gaborik tried to spark the Rangers to life with his fifth of the year from Michal Rozsival, but they couldn't muster anything in the third period and lost 3-1 to their guests. Pascal Dupuis took first star honors with his two assists, followed by Marc-Andre Fleury's 25 for 26 saves, and Sidney Crosby's one assist. Two fights in the first two periods featured Brandon Prust of the Rangers and Michael Rupp of the Penguins, followed by Sean Avery and Tyler Kennedy's bout.

Moving along to the site of the 2011 All-Star Game, in Carolina where the Hurricanes hosted the Dallas Stars. Cam Ward was in the paint for Carolina, and Kari Lethonen got the nod for the Stars. James Neal lit the lamp first for the Stars, with assists from Loui Eriksson and Jeff Woywitka. The goal was his ninth of the year. Steve Ott added his own tally for the Stars, his fifth of the year, from Jamie Benn and Trevor Daley, followed by James Neal's tenth of the year and second of the night to put the Stars up 3-0. Neal got an assist from Nicklas Grossman on this goal. Eric Staal got the Hurricanes on the board with his 12th of the year, an unassisted tally. Jamie Benn notched a goal, his sixth of the year in the third period, with assists from Brenden Morrow and Mike Ribeiro, and this proved to be the last of the scoring, as the Stars won 4-1. James Neal was the first star with his two goal, and Jamie Benn got the second star for a goal and an assist. Kari Lehtonen received the third star for a 27 for 28 save performance.

Going north of the border, where the Ottawa Senators hosted their cross-country rival, the Edmonton Oilers. Martin Gerber took on his former team, while Brian Elliot tended the twine for the Senators. Nick Foligno scored his first of the year from Chris Neil early to give the Senators an early 1-0 lead. Tom Gilbert registered his fourth of the year in the second to even the score, with an assist from Sam Gagner on the power play. Andrew Cogliano scored his third of the year from Gilbert Brule and Dustin Penner to give the Oilers the lead. Brule also scored, his fourth of the year for Edmonton, with assists from linemates Cogliano and Penner. Taylor Hall finished it off with his sixth of the year into an empty net. He got help from Shawn Horcoff and Jordan Eberle. Cogliano took the first star with a goal and assist, and Brule got the second star for the same. Martin Gerber's 22 for 23 save night was good for a third star.

Going cross-country to the Scotiabank Saddledome, where the Calgary Flames hosted their division rivals from Minnesota, the Wild. Jose Theodore was in net for the Wild, whereas Miikka Kiprusoff backstopped for the Flames. After a scoreless first period, Jay Bouwmeester scored his third of the year from Jarome Iginla and Alex Tanguay. Iginla notched his tenth of the year just 18 seconds later, with assists from Tanguay and Mark Giordano. Niklas Hagman scored his seventh of the year later in the third, which was a power play goal. Olli Jokinen and Rene Bourque assisted on that goal, which was the last game as the Flames shut out the Wild, 3-0. Miikka Kiprusoff was the first star for his 32 save shutout, while Bouwmeester received second star status for his goal, and Iginla was the third star with a goal and an assist.

Moving into California, where the Anaheim Ducks hosted their I-5 rivals, the Los Angeles Kings. Jonas Hiller was in net for the host Ducks, while Jonathan Quick was starting for the Kings. The first period went scoreless, and in the second period, Cam Fowler scored his second of the year for the Ducks, a power play goal from Lubomir Visnovsky and Teemu Selanne. The Ducks added an insurance goal late in the third with Jason Blake's fifth of the year, from Selanne and Visnovsky. They went on to win 2-0, with Jonas Hiller being the first star for his 27 save shutout. The goal scorers Blake and Fowler received the second and third stars.  Kyle Clifford of the Kings and Aaron Voros of the Ducks also dropped the mitts in the first period.

There are another 5 games for Tuesday (the night of this post) which will be recapped tomorrow. Until then, enjoy the games.

Week 12 Football All-Stars

These are the all-stars of the week for football, at the four major offensive positions and kicker.

Quarterback: Tom Brady
Running Back: Peyton Hillis
Wide Receiver: Dwayne Bowe
Tight End: Billy Bajema
Kicker: Nate Kaeding

That's all the football for now, and I'll have posts about the Thursday night game on Thursday night, so enjoy the days off (as much as you can, depending on how much you'll miss football).

Monday Night Football

Tonight's game, aired in primetime for ESPN is the underwhelming matchup of the two worst teams in the NFC West, the 49ers and the Cardinals. This post comes at the conclusion of the game, being played in the desert.

San Francisco @ Arizona: San Francisco opened the scoring just over 5 minutes into the first quarter with a Troy Smith touchdown to Michael Crabtree, which was good for 38 yards. Shane Andrus added the extra point for the 49ers. Jay Feely got the Cardinals on the board with his 31 yard field goal. Anthony Dixon had a 1 yard touchdown run to extend the 49ers lead to 14-3 with the Andrus extra point. Brian Westbrook added his own touchdown run of 8 yards, and San Francisco took a 21-3 lead with another Andrus extra point. Jay Feely ended the scoring for the first half with a 39 yard field goal, trimming the lead to 21-6 San Francisco at the half. Andrus added a 38 yard field goal for the 49ers in the third quarter, and added a 26 yard kick in the fourth as well. This concluded the scoring, and San Francisco won 27-6.

Fantasy Hockey All-Stars, week 7 (of the season)

This is a new weekly feature that will show the best player at every position in the game. Football will be conducted similarly, but only for Quarterbacks, Running Backs, Wide Receivers, and Tight Ends. Football all-stars will be posted on Tuesdays throughout the rest on the season, with hockey's all-stars being posted on Mondays. Baseball, when it rolls around, will be conducted like hockey. Here's your stars:

Center: Sidney Crosby: 4 goals, 3 assists, +2, 0 penalty minutes, 3 power play points, 16 shots on goal
Left Wing: Alex Ovechkin: 0 goals, 6 assists, +4, 4 penalty minutes, 3 power play points, 23 shots on goal
Right Wing: Alexander Semin: 4 goals, 0 assists, +2, 4 penalty minutes, 2 power play points, 21 shots on goal
Defense: Dustin Byfuglien: 2 goals, 4 assists, +4, 0 penalty minutes, 3 power play points, 17 shots on goal
Goaltender: Ondrej Pavelec: 3 wins, 0.67 goals against average, 97 saves, .980 save percentage, 1 shutout

Those are your best players for the week in hockey. Check back next week for more!

Song of the Week I

Song of the Week is a feature that will be weekly and aims to turn my readers on to some music that I like. For this week, the song is Whatever's Left by Snow Patrol, which is the fourth track from the Final Straw album. It is 2:41 seconds long, and the album was released in 2004. Snow Patrol is a band from Glasgow, over in the United Kingdom, and they are commonly referred to as a Britpop band, with the official Windows classification being Alternative. Final Straw was their third album, the first two being the duds Songs for Polarbears and When It's All Over We Still Have To Clear Up. Happy listening!

Sunday Night Football Week 12

San Diego at Indianapolis: Peyton Manning passed to Jacob Tamme to open the scoring, good for 4 yards and the touchdown. Adam Vinatieri made the extra point. Nate Kaeding answered for the Chargers with a 28 yard field goal. Kevin Burnett also intercepted Peyton Manning for 29 yards and a touchdown, with Kaeding kicking the extra point. Kaeding added two more field goals, good from 33 and 50 yards before Manning struck again, this time to Blair White for 6 yards and the touchdown. Vinatieri added the extra point. Kaeding added a 30 yard field goal to start the scoring the second half, followed by Eric Weddle's interception of Peyton Manning for 41 yards and a touchdown, with Kaeding tacking on the extra point. Mike Tolbert ran 3 yards for a touchdown early in the fourth quarter and Kaeding added another extra point, and later another field goal, good from 20 yards. That proved to be the end, and the Chargers routed the Colts 36-14.

Sunday NHL recap

There were three games this afternoon, all starting at 2 PM Pacific time, and all of which appeared to be good games. This should provide a good recap of anything a hockey fan might have missed during the football and with three games all at the same time. Please note that Fantasy Hockey All-Stars of the week will be coming out tomorrow afternoon. It will be formatted to show the best Center, Left Wing, Right Wing, Defenseman, and Goaltender of the past week. This will be a weekly feature. Also, I will start living up to the music end of the bargain for this blog, as so far, it's been mainly a sports blog. Here's your hockey recaps for the day.

Starting in the Motor City, where the Detroit Red Wings hosted the Columbus Blue Jackets. Jimmy Howard was in the net for Detroit, and Steve Mason was the Masked Man for the Jackets. Opening the scoring late in the first with his sixth tally on the season was Derrick Brassard, who got some help from Anton Stralman and Jan Hejda. Detroit got back together in the second period, with a Niklas Kronwall goal, the fifth of his season from Pavel Datsyuk and Johan Franzen. They took the lead with Darren Helm's second of the year, coming from Drew Miller. Valtteri Filppula found the back of the net early in the third as well, good for his sixth of the year with assists by Franzen and Todd Bertuzzi. Columbus attempted a late comeback, with R.J. Umberger scoring his eighth of the year on the power play, with assistance from Antoine Vermette and Jakub Voracek. Danny Cleary squashed these hopes with his tenth of the season placed firmly into the empty net with the assist from Datsyuk. Jimmy Howard received first star status for his 27 of 29 save performance, and Darren Helm and Derrick Brassard receiving the second and third stars for their goals.

Moving along to D.C. where the Capitals played host to the Carolina Hurricanes. Cam Ward was the twine tender for the Hurricanes, while Semyon Varlamov controlled the Capital crease. Washington got on the board with a goal by Marcus Johansson, his third of the season. Eric Fehr picked up the assist. Late in the first, Alexander Semin made it 2-0 Washington with his 18th of the year, getting helpers from Alex Ovechkin and Nicklas Backstrom. Erik Cole got his fifth of the season early in the second off of Eric Staal, who scored with less than three seconds left in the third to force an overtime. Jussi Jokinen and Joni Pitkanen assisted on Eric Staal's goal. Overtime was scoreless, and in the shootout, Alex Ovechkin's goal was the deciding factor. Washington came away with a 3-2 victory. Despite the loss, Cam Ward was the first star with a 38 for 40 save performance, followed by Ovechkin, who had an assist and the game clincher in the shootout, and lastly, Semyon Varlamov, who was 26 for 28 in saves.

Going to Georgia, where the Atlanta Thrashers hosted the Boston Bruins. Ondrej Pavelec played in goal for the Thrashers, while Tuukka Rask got a start for the Bruins. Atlanta opened the scoring with Evander Kane's ninth of the season, with Anthony Stewart and Dustin Byfuglien picking up assists. Byfuglien had one of his own, his ninth on the year, and assisting him were Alex Burmistov and Johnny Oduya. Jim Slater also recorded his third of the season for Atlanta, and Byfuglien had another assist. Boston got on the board with Blake Wheeler's fifth of the year assisted by Michael Ryder and Milan Lucic. Atlanta answered late with Niclas Bergfors sixth of the year, coming of the power player with helpers going to Byfuglien and Tobias Enstrom. This was the end of the scoring, as the third period produced no goals, and Atlanta won 4-1. Byfuglien was the first star with his goal and sock trick, with Pavelec 40 for 41 save performance and Evander Kane's goal registering the other two stars.

That's all the hockey we've got tonight, but there is still football to be played (and blogged about). Keep watch for the San Diego Chargers-Indianapolis Colts Sunday Night Football post coming at the conclusion of the game.

NFL Week 12 Late Games recap

For the Early Games recap, please go back to the blog frontpage and under the archive, click on the early games post.

There were five games starting at 1 PM Pacific time today. Those five games will be recapped right here.

Kansas City @ Seattle: Matt Cassel was able to break the game open with a touchdown pass for 7 yards going to Dwayne Bowe. Ryan Succop added the extra point. Late in the first quarter, Seattle blcoked a punt attempt by Dustin Colquitt and Earl Thomas returned it 10 yards for the touchdown to even the score at 7 after the Olindo Mare extra point. Shaun Smith ran a 1 yard play for a touchdown to give the lead back to the Chiefs, and Succop added the extra point. Cassel later connected with Bowe again for 36 yards and the touchdown. Succop added another extra point. Olindo Mare added a 43 yard field goal before halftime to make it 21-10 Kansas City. Matt Hasselbeck and Chris Baker connected for the only score of the third quarter, a 13 yard touchdown pass, and Mare added the extra point to trim the lead to 21-17. In the fourth, Jamaal Charles had a 3 yard run for a touchdown and Cassel found Bowe once again, this time for 9 yards, and Succop added the extra points to those touchdowns. The Seahawks answered once more with Matt Hasselbeck connecting with Ben Obomanu for 87 yards and the touchdown, with Mare kicking the extra point, but the chances for a comeback were silenced by Matt Cassel's 6 yard pass to Tony Moeaki for a touchdown, and another extra point from Succop. The Chiefs downed the Seahawks 42-24.

Miami @ Oakland: Oakland struck early on the opening kickoff with Jacoby Ford running it back 101 yards for the touchdown and Sebastian Janikowski added the extra point. Dan Carpenter helped the Dolphins get on the board with a 49 yard field goal, and later in the first quarter, Chad Henne connected with Patrick Cobbs for 29 yards and a touchdown. The Carpenter extra point was good, and Miami had a 10-7 lead. Bruce Gradkowski passed to Jacoby Ford for a 44 yard touchdown, and Janikowski added another extra point for the Raiders. Miami responded with a Carpenter field goal good for 23 yards, giving Oakland the 14-13 advantage at halftime. The Dolphins struck early in the third quarter, with Chad Henne's pass to Marlon Moore for 57 yards and a touchdown, with Carpenter's extra point being good. Carpenter added a 44 yard field goal and Miami led after three quarters by a score of 23-14. Janikowski got on the board for the Raiders once more with a 30 yard field goal, which was answered by a 25 yard kick from Carpenter. Miami added one more touchdown, a 45 yard Ricky Williams run, with a Carpenter extra point, and the Dolphins beat the Raiders 33-17.

Philadelphia @ Chicago: David Akers started with a 45 yard field goal to get the Eagles on the board early. The Bears answered with two first quarter touchdown passes from Jay Cutler, 10 yards and the score for Earl Bennett and a 20 yard touchdown pass to Johnny Knox. Robbie Gould kicked both extra points. Michael Vick then started the second quarter scoring with an 8 yard touchdown pass to Jeremy Maclin, and an Akers extra point, followed by a 36 yard field goal from Akers. Chicago responded with another Cutler touchdown pass to Bennett good for 6 yards this time, and another Gould extra point. The Bears took a 21-13 lead into the locker room at halftime. Cutler made another touchdown pass, this one to Greg Olsen for 9 yards, with a Gould extra point, and later on in the third quarter, a Gould field goal of 23 yards. Philadelphia tried to rally back and snag a win on the leg of David Akers making a 22 and a 36 yard field goal, followed up by a 30 yard touchdown pass from Michael Vick to Brent Celek, with an Akers extra point, but they could not pass the Bears, and lost 31-26.

Tampa Bay @ Baltimore: The first quarter was scoreless, and Billy Cundiff got Baltimore on the board first with a 45 yard field goal, answered by Connor Barth's 22 yard field goal kick. Joe Flacco threw two touchdown passes, the first to Todd Heap for 65 yards and the second to Derrick Mason for 10 yards. Cundiff added on both extra points. Baltimore took the 17-3 lead in through halftime and all throughout the third quarter until Tampa Bay tried to come back in the fourth with a Josh Freeman touchdown pass of 5 yards to Kellen Winslow. Connor Barth tacked on the extra point, but the Buccaneers couldn't rally all the way back, and the Ravens beat them 17-10.

St. Louis @ Denver: Knowshon Moreno started off the scoring for the Broncos with a 4 yard tocuhdown run, and subsequent Matt Prater extra point. Prater added a 49 yard field goal later in the first quarter. St. Louis responded with a Sam Bradford pass to Michael Hoomanawanui for 36 yards and a Josh Brown extra point. Denver led at the end of the first quarter 10-7. Prater extended the lead with a 40 yard field goal, but St. Louis poured on the points afterward with Sam Bradford finding Billy Bajema twice, once for 2 yards and the other for 26 yards, and Josh Brown went 1 for 2 with the extra points. Josh Brown also added two field goals, a 28 and a 37 yarder before the end of the half, giving the Rams a 26-13 lead. Kenneth Darby added on to the lead with a 1 yard touchdown rush, and Josh Brown kicked another extra point. The Broncos started the fourth quarter with a Kyle Orton touchdown pass to Brandon Lloyd for 41 yards, and a Prater extra point. Josh Brown kicked a 26 yard field goal to make it 36-20 for the Rams. Denver tried to rally back with a Kyle Orton touchdown pass to Eddie Royal for 16 yards, but Orton's two point attempt pass to Jabar Gaffney was no good. Orton found Lloyd again, this time for 5 yards and a touchdown, with a Prater extra point, but St. Louis would hold on and beat the Broncos 36-33.

This concludes the bulk of the recaps for the NFL in week 12, with the Sunday Night Football post coming out hopefully at the end of the game.

NFL Week 12 Early Games Recap

There were six games that had kickoff today at 10 AM Pacific. This post will recap these games. For the Late Games, check the next post after this one.

Green Bay @ Atlanta: Matt Bryant opened the scoring in the first quarter with a 38 yard field goal, and was answered by Mason Crosby's late 22 yard field goal to tie the game at 3 at the end of the first. Matt Ryan connected with Tony Gonzalez at the end of the first half to put Atlanta up 10-3 after the Bryant extra point. Aaron Rodgers took a short run in the third quarter to tie the game after Crosby's extra point. Michael Turner's short touchdown run and Bryant's extra point were answered by Rodgers connecting with Jordy Nelson and Crosby making another extra point. Matt Bryant won the game with a 47 yard field goal, making the final 20-17 Falcons.

Tennessee @ Houston: After a scoreless first quarter, Matt Schaub made two short passes for touchdowns, the first to Joel Dreessen for a yard, and the other to Andre Johnson for two yards. Neil Rackers was true on two extra point to give Houston a 14-0 halftime lead. Rackers than kicked a 35 yard field goal in the third quarter and a 33 yard field goal in the fourth to wrap it up and give the Texans a 20-0 shutout over the Titans.

Minnesota @ Washington: Donovan McNabb opened the scoring by passing 10 yards to Fred Davis for the touchdown, with Graham Gano's extra point being good. Adrian Peterson answered for the Vikings with a 5 yard touchdown run and Ryan Longwell made his extra point to tie the game at 7. The tie was preserved into the second half until Toby Gerhart had a 5 yard run for touchdown in relief of Adrian Peterson. Ryan Longwell added the extra point and later, a 31 yard field goal. Graham Gano kicked two field goals in the fourth quarter, a 40 and 42 yarder, but they were not enough, and the Redskins fell 17-13 to the Vikings.

Jacksonville @ New York Giants: Lawrence Tynes opened the scoring by kicking a 22 yard field goal for the Giants. Rashad Jennings answered with a touchdown for Jacksonville, a 5 yard run. Josh Scobee's extra point was good. Scobee then kicked a 22 yard field goal in the second quarter, which was answered by Tynes' 29 yard field goal. David Garrard added his own rushing touchdown for the Jaguars, a 5 yard spurt, followed by Scobee's extra point, giving Jacksonville a 17-6 lead at halftime. Tynes' 28 yard field goal was the only score of the third quarter, and Eli Manning connected with Mario Manningham for 26 yards and the score. The Giants tied the game with a two point conversion by Ahmad Bradshaw. Scobee broke the tie with a 42 yard field goal to give the Jaguars a 20-17 lead, but Eli Manning's 32 yard touchdown pass to Kevin Boss and Tynes' extra point was too much and the Giants held on to win, 24-20 over Jacksonville.

Pittsburgh @ Buffalo: Rashard Mendenhall got the Steelers on the board first with a short one yard touchdown run, and Shaun Suisham made the extra point. Suisham had an early 45 yard field goal and a late 46 yarder to put Pittsburgh up 13-0 at halftime. Ryan Fitzpatrick got the Bills on the board with a 65 yard pass to Fred Jackson for a touchdown, and Rian Lindell made the extra point before kicking two field goals of 29 and 32 yards in the fourth quarter. Suisham responded with a 48 yard field goal before Lindell one-upped him with a 49 yard kick to tie the game at 16. In overtime, Suisham nailed a 41 yard field goal, and the Steelers beat Buffalo by a final of 19-16 in overtime.

Carolina @ Cleveland: Carolina drew first blood with a Mike Goodson 26 yard touchdown run and John Kasay extra point. Peyton Hillis then had three touchdowns in a row, all rushes of 9, 5, and 6 yards, with three Phil Dawson extra point to put Cleveland up 21-7. Kasay kicked a 43 and a 42 yard field goal before halftime, making the score at the half 21-13. Captain Munnerlyn then intercepted former Panther Jake Delhomme for 37 yards and a touchdown before another Kasay extra point. Kasay kicked a 43 yard field goal in the fourth, putting Carolina ahead 23-21 for a short time before Phil Dawson kicked the eventual game winner of 41 yards and the Browns held on for a 24-23 victory over Carolina.

Sorry it sounds rushed and boring, but I've been typing all day and it's getting harder to be creative. The NFL Late Games recap post and NHL Sunday recap will be posted after I return from dinner tonight. Thank you for your patience and happy reading.

Saturday NHL recap

There were slightly less games on for Saturday than Friday, which isn't usually the case in the NHL. Saturday tends to be the busier day for playing. However, ten games is still two-thirds of the league, and that is no small amount. The first of the ten games took place in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Many teams, like the two teams in this game, were playing for the second day in a row. This means many backup goalies, or starters who didn't play on Friday. Here's how Saturday looked:

The Penguins played host to the Calgary Flames in Pittsburgh. Brent Johnson was in net for the Penguins, and Miikka Kiprusoff was his opposing goaltender. After a quiet first period, Aaron Asham opened the scoring with his third of the year, with assists by Kris Letang and Brooks Orpik. Sidney Crosby also added a goal, his 16th of the year, and he was assisted by Chris Kunitz and Kris Letang. The Penguins took a 2-0 lead into the third period, where Crosby tallied another goal, his 17th of the year and second of the night, coming on the power play. Assists went to Paul Martin and Letang again. Rene Bourque notched his eleventh of the season to put the Flames on the board. He got help from Alex Tanguay and Jay Bouwmeester. Crosby completed his hat trick on an empty net goal good for his 18th of the year, and with an assist from Brooks Orpik. Crosby earned first star honors for his hat trick, with Brent Johnson taking the second star with a 30 for 31 save performance and Kris Letang picked up the third star for the "sock trick" of three assists. Tim Jackman also fought with Deryk Engelland in the second period.

Moving to Joisy, where the New Jersey Devils hosted the Philadelphia Flyers. Johan Hedberg started for the Devils, and Brian Boucher made an appearance for the Flyers. Adam Mair got his first of the year for the Devils, with assists by David Clarkson and Brian Rolston. The Flyers tied it of Danny Briere's 12th of the year in the third period, which came on the power play. Helpers go to Scott Hartnell and Jeff Carter. The game stayed tied at one throughout overtime and was determined in the shootout after Nikolay Zherdev scored for the Flyers, who were beaten out by Jason Arnott and Travis Zajac. Johan Hedberg took first star status for a 40 for 41 save appearance, and the goal scorers Briere and Mair took the second and third stars.

Heading north to Montreal where the Canadiens hosted the Buffalo Sabres. Carey Price backstopped the Canadiens, while Ryan Miller controlled the netminding duties for Buffalo. Andrei Kostitsyn scored first for Montreal, his ninth on the year, with the assists from Brian Gionta and Tomas Plekanec on the power play. Gionta scored two of his own in the second period, his sixth and seventh of the year, with Kostitsyn assisting on the first and Plekanec and Jaroslav Spacek picking up helpers for the second. Montreal led 3-0 until Jordan Leopold struck late for the Sabres, scoring his seventh of the year with assists from Jochen Hecht and Jason Pominville. Gionta's two goals and an assist gave him the first star, with Carey Price receiving the second for a 35 for 36 save performance, and the third star went to Andrei Kostitsyn with a goal and assist. Cody McCormick and Travis Moen received fighting majors in a scrum near the end of the second. They also drew other penalties in the brawl.

Staying in Canada for the Ottawa Senators hosting of the Toronto Maple Leafs. Brian Elliot took the crease for the Senators and Jonas Gustavsson was in net for the Maple Leafs. Alex Kovalev struck first for Ottawa on the power play for his seventh of the year, with an assist from Mr. Carrie Underwood, Mike Fisher. Fisher scored two goals in the second, with assists on both of them coming from Kovalev and Milan Michalek. This concluded the scoring through a quiet third period, and Brian Elliot was the third star with a 29 save shutout. Mike Fisher took the first star with his two goals and one assist, and Alex Kovalev took the second with his goal and two assists.

Going south in Tampa Bay, where the Lightning hosted their in-state rivals, the Florida Panthers. In net for the Lightning was Dan Ellis (and all his money problems) and between the pipes for Florida was Tomas Vokoun. Teddy Purcell opened the scoring for the Lightning with his fifth goal of the season, coming on the power play from Steven Stamkos and Ryan Malone. Dana Tyrell added his third of the season in the second period to put the Lightning up 2-0, and was assisted by Mattias Ritola and Steve Downie. Radek Dvorak responded with a penalty shot goal to put the Panthers on the board. In the third, Dmitry Kulikov's first of the year was enough to tie the game at two, and that Panther's goal went unassisted. Five and a half minutes later, Shawn Matthias scored his fourth of the season with an assist from Mike Santorelli. The Panthers led 3-2 until Sean Bergenheim tied it with his fourth of the season coming from Teddy Purcell and Ryan Malone. The tie lasted through to a shootout, where Stephen Weiss' goal was the difference, giving the Panthers the win. Weiss got the first star, with Purcell getting the second for a goal and assist, and Dana Tyrell getting the third star.

To St. Louis, where the Blues returned the favor and hosted the Stars. Kari Lethonen and Jaroslav Halak both retook the nets for the rematch. It took until late in the second period for B.J. Crombeen's third goal of the season to give the Blues a lead. Assists came from Patrik Berglund and Brad Winchester. Jamie Benn's fifth goal of the season tied the game at one early in the third period, and he got help from Mike Rebeiro and Brenden Morrow. Loui Eriksson's tenth goal of the season put Dallas ahead, and it came on the power play with assists from Brad Richards and Stephane Robidas. Jamie Benn's goal gave him first star status, while Lethonen got the second star for his 35 for 36 save performance, and Andy McDonald received the third star. Cam Janssen and Brian Sutherby had an early first period fight as well.

Over to Nashville, where the Predators hosted the New York Rangers. Pekka Rinne received the green light to start for the Predators, as did Lundqvist for the Rangers. Colin Wilson dented the scoreboard for the Predators early in the first, with his third of the season. Marcel Goc and Francis Bouillon had the assists. The 1-0 lead would last until just over halfway through the third period, where Ryan Callahan's seventh of the year tied the game. Assists go to Michael Del Zotto and Brandon Dubinsky. In the shootout that followed later, Erik Christensen's goal proved to be the deciding factor, and the Rangers won, 2-1. Henrik Lundqvist's 29 for 30 save performance earned him the first star, with Christensen taking the second, and Rinne's 23 for 24 save appearance was good enough for the third star. Two fights in the first happened twelve seconds apart, the first featuring the Rangers' Sean Avery and the Predators' Jordin Tootoo, and the second featuring Brandon Prust and Shane O'Brien.

Into the desert, where the Phoenix Coyotes hosted the Anaheim Ducks. Ilya Bryzgalov started for the 'Yotes, and Jonas Hiller took the paint for the Ducks. Derek Morris opened the scoring with his second of the year for the Coyotes, and he was assisted by Ray Whitney and Radim Vrbata. Jason Blake answered for the Ducks, with his fourth of the year via Dan Sexton's helper. In the second, Lauri Korpikoski's sixth of the season, assisted by Shane Doan and Scottie Upshall gave Phoenix the lead back, and that was bolstered by Keith Yandle's fourth of the year, coming on the power play with help from Doan and Vrbata. Bobby Ryan responded with a pair of goals, his tenth and eleventh of the year. Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry assisted the first one, and the second, game-tying goal was unassisted. The Ducks scored three more in the third, the first of which was Brandon McMillan's first of the year, coming from Getzlaf and Cam Fowler. Corey Perry then recorded his eleventh, which was also assisted on by Getzlaf and Fowler. Bobby Ryan completed the hat trick with his 12th of the year, where Getzlaf and Perry recorded assists. Trying to make a comeback, Upshall scored his sixth of the year with helpers from Korpikoski and Doan, but it wasn't enough and the Ducks won 6-4. Bobby Ryan was the first star with his hat trick, whereas Shane Doan's sock trick gave him second star, and Ryan Getzlaf's four assists were good enough for third star status.

Into the mountains where the Colorado Avalanche hosted the Minnesota Wild. Peter Budaj got the start for the Avs, while Niklas Backstrom was in the crease for the Wild. Paul Stastny's ninth of the year opened up the scoring, and he was assisted by Kevin Shattenkirk and Milan Hejduk. Antti Miettinen responded for the Wild with his sixth of the year from Cal Clutterbuck, and Minnesota took a 2-1 lead when Matt Cullen's fifth of the year went in on the power play near the end of the first. Assists on Cullen's goal went to Miettinen and Mikko Koivu. Colorado responded with four straight, starting with Greg Mauldin's second of the year, assisted by Stastny and Ryan O'Byrne. Hejduk kept it going with a power play goal, his eighth tally for the year, which was assisted by Chris Stewart and John-Michael Liles, giving the Avalanche a 3-2 lead. Greg Mauldin's third of the year and second of the night kept it going, on which Ryan Wilson and Cody McLeod assisted. Kevin Shattenkirk's fourth of the year extended the lead to 5-2, and his goal went unassisted. Kyle Brodziak scored his third of the year for the Wild, with an assist from Martin Havlat, to cut the lead to 5-3. David Jones added his tenth for Colorado, from Mauldin and Ryan Wilson, to make it 6-3, and Matt Duchene's sixth of the year coming from Mauldin and Shattenkirk made it 7-3. Brodziak got his second of the night and fourth of the year, assisted by Havlat and Marek Zidlicky, but it was too late to save the Wild, who fell 7-4. Mauldin's two goals and two assists were good for the first star, and Shattenkirk's goal and two assists gave him the second star. Hejduk got the third star with a goal and an assist. Brodziak and Stewart had a fight in the second period.

Up to Edmonton, where the Oilers hosted the San Jose Sharks. Antero Niittymaki played goal for the Sharks, as did Devyn Dubnyk for the Oilers. Benn Ferriero scored his first of the year for the Sharks, with assists by Logan Couture and Justin Braun. Edmonton's Sam Gagner answered with a power play goal, his sixth tally of the year, with an assist by Dustin Penner, to tie it at one through the first period. Dany Heatley scored his tenth and eleventh of the year in the second period, the first on a power play from Joe Thornton and Dan Boyle, and the second at even strength from Braun and Thornton, giving the Sharks a 3-1 lead through the second. Joe Pavelski scored his eighth of the year for the Sharks from Patrick Marleau and Dany Heatley. Edmonton attempted to rally back with Shawn Horcoff's seventh of the year from Jordan Eberle and Ryan Whitney, and Jim Vandermeer's first of the year from Sam Gagner, but they couldn't catch up and the Sharks won 4-3. Heatley earned the first star with two goals and an assist, while Sam Gagner's goal and assist were good enough for second star, and Justin Braun's two assists earned a third star.

Moving to Los Angeles, where the Kings hosted the Chicago Blackhawks. Jonathan Quick managed the goaltending duties for the Kings, while Corey Crawford was in net for the Blackhawks. After a scoreless first period, Patrick Sharp scored his 15th of the year halfway through the second. Patrick Kane and Duncan Keith picked up the assists. Kane scored his own goal early in the third, to give the Blackhawks a 2-0 lead. It was his ninth of the year, coming from Tomas Kopecky and Patrick Sharp. Anze Kopitar scored his eighth of the season to try and rally the Kings back, which was assisted by Jack Johnson and Ryan Smyth on the power play. The Kings could not recover, and Chicago took the game 2-1. Patrick Sharp got the first star with a goal and assist, while Jarret Stoll took the second star, and Duncan Keith grabbed the third star with an assist. Kevin Westgarth and John Scott had a fight in the second period.

There's your recap for the NHL on Saturday, November 27th, 2010. There are three games on Sunday, so a shorter recap is took come at the conclusion of those games.

Friday NHL action

There were a total of 13 games played on Black Friday, spread out well across the whole day starting at 9 AM Pacific and ending... significantly later. Black Friday is a determining point in the NHL season, as statistics are out there that show 77.5% of teams in a playoff spot on Black Friday will go on to play in the playoffs at the end of the year for a shot at the Stanley Cup. Here's how the games looked this time.

The first game was between the Carolina Hurricanes and Boston Bruins. Goaltenders were Cam Ward for the 'Canes and Tim Thomas for the Bruins. Jeff Skinner tallied his seventh goal of the season late in the first on a power play with assists from Tuomo Ruutu and Joe Corvo. Ruutu scored his fifth of the season on a power play midway through the second period with assists from Ian White and Joni Pitkanen. Jussi Jokinen added his fifth goal of the season in the third period, also on a power play, and got help from Eric Staal and Jeff Skinner. Cam Ward was the first star with a 37 save shutout, and Ruutu and Skinner took the other two stars with their goals and assists.

Moving to Long Island, New York, where the Islanders hosted the New Jersey Devils. Rick Dipietro tended the twine for the Islanders while Johan Hedberg did the same for the Devils. Jesse Joensuu scored his first of the season early in the first with assists from Frans Nielsen and Michael Grabner. Rob Schremp added another goal for the Islanders, his second this season, and he was assisted by Blake Comeau and James Wisniewski. This would prove to be the margin, and DiPietro held on with 29 saves for a shutout and the first star. The goal scored Joensuu and Schremp got the other two stars for their performance. Bruno Gervais and Colin White featured in a first period fight, with each of them drawing penalties before the fight.

Into Philadelphia, where the Flyers played host to the Calgary Flames. Sergei Bobrovsky played in net for the hosts, and Miikka Kiprusoff was in the paint for the Flames. The first period was quiet with no goals, and it remained scoreless until the second period with Nikolay Zherdev's eighth of the season with assists from Matt Carle and Blair Betts. Curtis Glencross answered for the Flames with an unassisted shorthanded goal, his seventh on the year. Philadelphia's James van Riemsdyk scored his third with an assist from Mike Richards later in the second, and Calgary answered with Steve Staios and his first of the year with assists from Alex Tanguay and Jarome Iginla. With the score tied at two in overtime, Mike Richards thought he had a goal, but it was waved off because of Chris Pronger's unsportsmanlike conduct penalty. Calgary held on and forced a shootout, in which Claude Giroux scored early for the Flyers, but Kiprusoff held on while Niklas Hagman evened the score, and Rene Bourque notched the game clincher, earning him first star status. Second and third stars go to Glencross of the Flames and van Riemsdyk of the Flyers.

Going cross-state into Pittsburgh, where the Penguins hosted the Ottawa Senators. Marc-Andre Fleury played in goal for the Penguins, and Pascal Leclaire was in net for Ottawa. Ottawa opened the scoring in the first with a goal from Jesse Winchester, his third of the year with assists from Jarkko Ruutu and Erik Karlsson. Evgeni Malkin helped to even the score with his eighth of the year on the power play and was assisted by Tyler Kennedy and Sidney Crosby. The Penguins then took the lead in the third with a goal with a power play goal from Alex Goligoski. Assists on this eventual game winner go to Zbynek Michalek and Tyler Kennedy. Fleury earned the first star, with his opponent goaltender Leclaire earning the second, and Tyler Kennedy took the third with his two assists.

Minnesota played host to Nashville in the day's fifth game to start, with Jose Theodore and Pekka Rinne starting the game in net. The host Wild set the tone early on, with a goal by Marek Zidlicky, his third of the year on assists from Cal Clutterbuck and Antti Miettinen. Andrew Brunette scored his fourth of the year for the Wild as well, with Patrick O'Sullivan and Mikko Koivu picking up the helpers. The last goal in the first was from Martin Havlat, his fourth of the year, and he was assisted by Zidlicky. This was enough to chase away Pekka Rinne, who was replaced by Anders Lindback in net. The Wild scored another goal early in the second from Nick Schultz, his second of the year, with the lone assist going to Havlat. The Predators finally got one past Theodore, with Steve Sullivan's sixth of the year, coming off a power play, with assists given to Colin Wilson and Patric Hornqvist. Minnesota responded with Havlat's fifth of the year and second of the game, and assists went to Matt Cullen and Zidlicky. Nashville scored one more time late on Martin Erat's second of the year on the power play from Hornqvist and Ryan Suter. Minnesota won 5-2, with Havlat getting the first star with two goals and an assist, Zidlicky receiving the second star with a goal and two assists, and Theodore getting the third for his 32 for 34 performance in net. Clayton Stoner and Jordin Tootoo participated in a third period fight as well.

Moving out west to Orange County where the Anaheim Ducks played host to the Stanley Cup Champion Chicago Blackhawks. Jonas Hiller started in net for the Ducks, as did Corey Crawford for the 'Hawks. Dan Sexton opened the scoring for the Ducks on the power play with assists from Saku Koivu and Cam Fowler. It was his first of the year. Duncan Keith answered in the second period with a shorthanded goal, his second score of the year, with an assist from Patrick Sharp. Sharp added his 14th of the year unassisted in the third to give the Blackhawks the lead. Niklas Hjalmarsson added his first of the year, assisted by Dave Bolland and Jonathon Toews. Capping off the scoring was Troy Brouwer's fourth goal of the year on which Jake Dowell and Jack Skille added assists. This chased Hiller out of the game, and Curtis McElhinney relieved him for the remainder of the game. the Blackhawks won 4-1, and Patrick Sharp's goal and assist earned him first star honors, with Sexton getting the second and Duncan Keith grabbing the third.

Into the American capital, where the Washington Capitals played host to the Tampa Bay Lightning. Semyon Varlamov started for the Capitals and Mike Smith was in the pipes for Tampa Bay. John Carlson's third of the year for the Capitals opened the scoring, with Marcus Johansson picking up the assists. The second period proved to be a goal fest for the Capitals, with John Erskine getting his third of the year from Brian Fahey and Brooks Laich. Alexander Semin then scored a hat trick naturally, with his 15th of the season coming from Johansson, and his 16th and 17th both coming on the power play and both from Nicklas Backstrom and Alex Ovechkin. Mike Smith was pulled after Semin's second of the night, in favor of Dan Ellis. Tom Poti added his second of the season in the third period for good measure, with an assist from Matt Hendricks. Semyon Varlamov made 17 saves in this shutout, good enough for third star behind Carlson's one goal performance, and Semin's first star-quality hat trick. Ryan Malone and John Erskine also got in a third period fight.

Moving into the capital of Ohio, where the Detroit Red Wings paid a visit to the Columbus Blue Jackets. Jimmy Howard played in net for Detroit, as did Steve Mason for Columbus. The first period was uneventful, but Johan Franzen opened up the scoring with his tenth of the season for the Red Wings in the second period. Assists came from Todd Bertuzzi and Valtteri Filppula. Filppula added his fifth of the year in the third period, a power play goal with assists from Brad Stuart and Jiri Hudler. Antoine Vermette attempted to get the Blue Jackets going with his fifth of the year from Jared Boll and R.J. Umberger, but the Red Wings held strong for the 2-1 win. Filppula was the first star with a goal and assist, with Jimmy Howard getting the second for a 34 for 35 performance and Blue Jackets goalie Steve Mason took the third star.

Back to New York, near the border, where the Buffalo Sabres hosted the Toronto Maple Leafs. Ryan Miller started for the Sabres, and Jonas Gustavsson was in the crease for the Maple Leafs. Jordan Leopold got a power play goal, his sixth tally on the season with an assist by Andrej Sekera. Thomas Vanek also got a power play goal, his ninth of the year, from Derek Roy and Luke Adam. Buffalo held onto this 2-0 lead until the third period, where Patrick Kaleta's third goal of the year extended the lead to 3-0. It was a shorthanded goal, assisted by Paul Gaustad. Toronto got on the board with a shorty of their own, in the form of Phil Kessel's tenth goal of the year, which went unassisted. This was not enough, and Buffalo went on to win 3-1. Ryan Miller was the first star in his 35 for 36 save performance, with Kaleta getting second star, and Luke Adam getting the third. Kaleta also had a first period fight with Toronto's Luke Schenn.

Going to south Florida, where the Panthers hosted the New York Rangers. Henrik Lundqvist was the Rangers netminder, and Scott Clemmensen was controlling the Florida net. Derek Stepan notched his sixth goal of the year in the first period, giving the Rangers a 1-0 lead. Sean Avery and Marc Staal had the assists. They extended it in the third period with a power play goal by Ryan Callahan, his sixth of the year, with assists by Erik Christensen and Steve Eminger. Brandon Prust iced the cake with his first of the year, a shorthanded goal with the assist coming from Marc Staal. Henrik Lundqvist was the first star for the Rangers with a 40 save shutout, and Callahan and Prust received the other two stars. Prust also dropped the gloves with Florida's Darcy Hordichuk early in the first period.

Moving north into Georgia, where the Atlanta Thrashers hosted the Montreal Canadiens. Alex Auld played goal for Montreal, as did Ondrej Pavelec for Atlanta. Late in the first period, Rich Peverley opened the scoring with his fourth of the year and with assists from Niclas Bergfors and Tobias Enstrom. Enstrom scored a goal of his own in the second period, which was his third of the year and it went unassisted. Peverley returned to the scoresheet with his fifth of the year and second of the night, this time on the power play. Dustin Byfuglien and Andrew Ladd added assists. This was the final goal of the game, and Atlanta won 3-0. Pavelec received the first star with his 25 save shutout and Peverley was second with his two goals, followed by Enstrom, with a goal and an assist. P.K. Subban also had a fight with Zach Bogosian in the third period during a scrum on ice.

Into Dallas, where the Stars hosted the St. Louis Blues. Kari Lethonen started for the Stars, and Jaroslav Halak was in between the pipes for the Blues. Andy McDonald's seventh goal of the season opened the scoring, a shorthanded tally with helpers from Alex Pietrangelo and Barret Jackman. Brad Richards evened the score with his eleventh of the year from Loui Eriksson and Trevor Daley in the second period, but was answered by Andy McDonald again, good for his eighth of the year and second of the night, with an assist by David Backes. Jamie Benn answered again to tie the game at two in the third period with his fourth of the year, a shorthanded goal going unassisted. Mike Rebeiro added his third of the year with an assist from Benn, capping the scoring and giving Dallas a 3-2 win. Jamie Benn claimed the first star with a goal and assist, with St. Louis' Andy McDonald getting the second for his two goals, and the third star went to Brad Richards with a goal. Two fights occured in the second period between Brad Winchester of the Blues and Brian Sutherby of the Stars for the first one and Eric Brewer and Steve Ott in the second bout.

The last game of the day featured the visiting San Jose Sharks going north to take on the Vancouver Canucks. Antti Niemi was in net for the Sharks and Roberto Luongo played goal for the Canucks. Jeff Tambellini scored his third for the 'Nucks with assists from Alexander Edler and Ryan Kesler in the first period. The Sharks responded with Dany Heatley's ninth of the year, from Joe Thornton and Dan Boyle. Raffi Torres answered in the second period early, with his eighth of the year from Jannik Hansen and Dan Hamhuis. Mikael Samuelsson netted his fifth of the year just under two minutes later, with an assist from Tanner Glass. Samuelsson also got his sixth of the season in the third period, which was unassisted. Alexandre Burrows scored his third of the year from the Sedin twins Henrik and Daniel. Capping off the scoring was Keith Ballard's first of the year, an unassisted goal. The Canucks won 6-1 over the Sharks, giving first star honors to Samuelsson with two goals, and Luongo received  the second star for his 32 for 33 save performance. Jannik Hansen received the third star with one assist.

That's Friday, November 26th, 2010 in hockey. Saturday's post to follow shortly.

Subway Sunday

This is the first edition of the sandwich showdown. However, since only one Subway sandwich was consumed, the default winner is obviously Sunday's Turkey on wheat. It was a well prepared sandwich on 9-grain whole wheat bread, a top notch for the health-conscious. Add on the traditional KC Masterpiece Hot 'n' Spicy BBQ sauce, and you have a Thanksgiving sandwich with a bit of a kick. I would say based on taste, this sandwich will receive 9.5/10. EAT FRESH!