Thursday Hockey and Baseball

On Thursday, we had ten hockey games and six baseball games on the latter's opening day. These will be recapped in full. Please pardon any weaknesses in structure for baseball, this is a learning curve that I will need to adjust to. The hockey started in...

Washington, D.C., with the Capitals hosting the Columbus Blue Jackets. Steve Mason and Michal Neuvirth tended the twines. Washington opened with a John Carlson goal, his seventh of the season, assisted by Brooks Laich and Jason Chimera. Columbus answered in the second period with Antoine Vermette sinking his 19th of the year, courtesy of Matt Calvert and Tomas Kubalik. Mike Knuble quickly replied for the Capitals, registering his 21st of the season with help from Nicklas Backstrom and Alex Ovechkin. The Blue Jackets tied it up again with a Fedor Tyutin goal, his seventh of the year, made possible by Kubalik and Calvert. Thirteen seconds later, Washington took the lead once more with a Jason Arnott goal, his 16th of the season, with guidance from Marco Sturm. Columbus found another equalizer from Scottie Upshall, his 22nd of the year getting aided by Derek MacKenzie. Chimera gave the Capitals a 4-3 win over the Blue Jackets in the overtime period that was required, his ninth of the campaign fueled by Laich and Carlson. The three stars went to Chimera, Arnott, and Calvert.

Into Philadelphia, where the Flyers hosted the Atlanta Thrashers. Chris Mason and Sergei Bobrovsky took control of the creases. Atlanta was the first on the board in the third period with a Nik Antropov goal, his 15th of the campaign, guided in by Evander Kane. This would be the only goal of the game, and the three stars went to Mason (43 save shutout), Kane, and Bobrovsky (21 for 22 saves).

Onto Long Island, where the New York Islanders hosted their rivals, the New York Rangers. Henrik Lundqvist and Al Montoya made the starts. The Rangers opened the scoring with Vinny Prospal netting his sixth of the season, with help from Marian Gaborik. The Islanders tied it with Blake Comeau notching his 22nd of the year, with helpers provided by Josh Bailey and Travis Hamonic. Thirty-three seconds later, the Islanders had a lead with a Radek Martinek goal, his third of the season made possible P.A. Parenteau and John Tavares. The Islanders extended their lead with a Jesse Joensuu goal, his fifth of the year, guided in by Martinek and Jack Hillen. Parenteau kept the Islanders going with his 19th of the season, assisted by Matt Moulson and Dylan Reese. Lundqvist was replaced by Chad Johnson for the third period. Moulson also tallied for the Islanders with his 31st of the year, courtesy of Tavares and Reese. Fights broke out in the third period after the Moulson goal, with Sean Avery fighting Micheal Haley before Brandon Prust took on Zenon Konopka. Trevor Gillies resumed the scoring for the Islanders (ironic isn't it?) with his second of the season, with help from Reese, who finished off a sock trick, and Matt Martin. The Rangers sent one last weak response with Prust notching his 13th of the year, thanks to Brian Boyle. The final stood at 6-2 with the three stars awarded to Montoya (25 for 27 saves), Martinek, and Parenteau.

Over to Boston, where the Bruins hosted the Toronto Maple Leafs. James Reimer and Tim Thomas played in the blue paint. Toronto opened the scoring with Luke Schenn netting his fifth of the season, with help from Carl Gunnarsson and Joffrey Lupul. Boston tied it in the second period with a shorthanded and unassisted goal by Brad Marchand, his 21st of the year. David Krejci soon put the Bruins in front with his 13th of the season, made possible by Milan Lucic and Nathan Horton. Lupul retied it for the Maple Leafs with his 12th of the year, a power play goal powered by Phil Kessel and Tyler Bozak. Andrew Ference gave Boston the lead back with his third goal of the season, helped along by Marchand and Patrice Bergeron. Lupul found another equalizer for Toronto with his second of the game and 13th of the year, aided by Kessel and Schenn. The tie lasted into the shootout, where the Maple Leafs topped the Bruins with Nazem Kadri's lone tally. The three stars went to Lupul, Marchand, and Kadri.

Down south, the Tampa Bay Lightning hosted the Pittsburgh Penguins. Marc-Andre Fleur and Dwayne Roloson played between the pipes. Tampa Bay opened the scoring with Steve Downie recording his ninth of the campaign, with assistance from Simon Gagne and Steven Stamkos. Martin St. Louis put the Lightning in front with his 30th of the season, helped along by Vincent Lecavalier and Victor Hedman. After a scoreless second period, Pittsburgh entered the scoring in the third with Michael Rupp's seventh of the year, fueled by Alex Kovalev. The final would stand at 2-1 with Roloson (36 for 37 saves), St. Louis, and Downie picking up the three stars.

Moving south in the state, the Florida Panthers hosted the Ottawa Senators. Craig Anderson and Scott Clemmensen took to the cages. Nick Foligno opened the scoring for Ottawa with his 13th of the season, an unassisted goal. The Senators continued along with Colin Greening notching his fifth of the year, courtesy of Marek Svatos. Florida got on the board with the second of the campaign by Michal Repik, assisted by Marty Reasoner. Greening got the goal back for Ottawa with his sixth of the season and second of the game, with Svatos and Chris Phillips picking up the assists. The Senators made it 4-1 with Filip Kuba notching his first of the year, guided in by Erik Condra and Ryan Shannon. The three stars were awarded to Greening, Anderson (37 for 38 saves), and Svatos after the scoreless third period made the score final.

To Minnesota, where the Wild hosted the Edmonton Oilers. Nikolai Khabibulin and Niklas Backstorm defended the cages. Minnesota took control of the scoring first with Antti Miettinen sinking his 15th of the season on the power play thanks to Matt Cullen and Andrew Brunette. Marek Zidlicky extended the lead for the Wild with his seventh of the year, assisted by Pierre-Marc Bouchard and Kyle Brodziak. Brad Staubitz also tallied for Minnesota on his second of the season, courtesy of Eric Nystrom and John Madden. The Wild kept going with Martin Havlat sinking his 22nd of the year, fueled by Chuck Kobasew and Brent Burns. Edmonton finally got on the board with Tom Gilbert netting his sixth of the season on the power play, with helpers provided by Ryan Jones and Magnus Paajarvi. The Oilers brought the score to 4-2 with Linus Omark notching his fourth of the year, also a power play goal, powered by Gilbert and Jim Vandermeer. This would be the final, and the three stars went to Cullen, Zidlicky, and Burns.

Heading to Colorado, with the Avalanche hosting the Nashville Predators. Pekka Rinne and Brian Elliott made the starts. Nashville opened with Colin Wilson registering his 16th of the season with helpers by Matt Halischuk and Blake Geoffrion. The Predators extended their lead with Jordin Tootoo's sixth of the year, guided along by Cody Franson and Martin Erat. Erat tallied for Nashville on the power play in the third period, his 16th of the campaign made possible by Mike Fisher and Sergei Kostitsyn. Colorado got on the board with Paul Stastny recording his 22nd of the season, helped along by Milan Hejduk and Matt Duchene. David Jones tacked on his 26th of the year for the Avalanche late in the third period as well, with assistance from John-Michael Liles and Kevin Porter, but the final would stay at 3-2. The three stars were given to Erat, Stastny, and Rinne (27 for 29 saves).

Next on the route, the Vancouver Canucks hosted the Los Angeles Kings. Jonathan Quick and Roberto Luongo took care of the twines. Kyle Clifford put Los Angeles in front first with his sixth of the season, helped along by Drew Doughty and Brad Richardson. Daniel Sedin put Vancouver in a tie in the second period with his 41st of the year, with help from Viktor Oreskovich. With a second left in the middle frame, the Canucks took the lead on a Christian Ehrhoff tally, his 13th of the season, made possible by Jannik Hansen. Ryan Kesler made it 3-1 Vancouver with his 37th of the year, a power play goal, powered by Daniel and Sami Salo. This was the final, with the three stars given to Daniel, Ehrhoff, and Kesler.

To finish the hockey in San Jose, with the Sharks hosting the Dallas Stars. Kari Lehtonen and Antti Niemi played in front of the goals. San Jose got on the board first with Dan Boyle notching his seventh of the season, assisted by Joe Pavelski and Kyle Wellwood. The Sharks extended their lead with Logan Couture on the power play, his 31st of the year getting powered by Ryane Clowe and Dany Heatley. Marc-Edouard Vlasic also tallied for San Jose, his third of the season coming off of Joe Thornton and Devin Setoguchi. Patrick Marleau added on a pair for the Sharks, his 34th and 35th of the campaign, coming via Jamal Mayers and Ian White on the first goal and Thornton and Heatley on the second. Ben Eager used his sixth of the year to make it 6-0 San Jose with assists coming from Mayers and Vlasic. This was the final, and the three stars were given to Marleau, Niemi (29 save shutout), and Eager.

To the baseball games for opening day, where we start with...

The New York Yankees hosting the Detroit Tigers. Justin Verlander and CC Sabathia got the ball to start. The scoring was opened by Detroit in the second inning, with Jhonny Peralta knocking in Miguel Cabrera with a sacrifice fly. The Yankees replied and took the lead with a 3-run home run by Mark Teixeira, scoring Russell Martin and Derek Jeter as well. The Tigers got a run back with Brandon Inge's single to score Cabrera in the fourth inning. Cabrera also knocked in a run with a sacrifice fly in the fifth, with Austin Jackson coming around to score. New York retook the lead in the seventh, with Curtis Granderson's solo home run, and extended it with Jeter's sacrifice fly, which scored Martin. The Yankees made it 6-3 with Nick Swisher's single to score Alex Rodriguez. This score would be the final, with Joba Chamberlain picking up the win, Rafael Soriano grabbing a hold, and Mariano Rivera getting the save. Phil Coke was credited with the loss. The top batters were Inge for the Tigers and Teixeira for the Yankees.

Moving into the Nation's capital, with the Washington Nationals hosting the Atlanta Braves. Derek Lowe and Livan Hernandez were on the mounds. Atlanta opened the scoring in the first inning with Brian McCann sneding Chipper Jones home with a single. Jason Heyward made it 2-0 for the Braves in the second inning with his solo home run. This would go down as the final, with Lowe grabbing the win, Eric O'Flaherty, Peter Moylan, and Johnny Venters grabbing the holds, and Craig Kimbrel finishing for the save. Hernandez was tagged the losing pitcher. The top hitters were Heyward and Danny Espinosa.

Into Ohio, where the Cincinnati Reds hosted the Milwaukee Brewers. Yovani Gallardo and Edinson Volquez took their spot on the mounds. Milwaukee opened the scoring in the first inning with homers by Rickie Weeks and Carlos Gomez, accompanied by Casey McGehee's sacrifice fly to bump Ryan Braun in. Joey Votto answered for Cincinnati in the same inning on a sacrifice fly, which brought Drew Stubbs back to the plate. The Brewers wasted no time, getting the run back in the second inning as Weeks doubled to bring Wil Nieves around to home. Stubbs sent a ball out of the yard in the fourth inning for the Reds, good as a solo home run. Milwaukee went up 5-2 when Braun homered in the fifth inning. McGehee knocked Braun in again in the seventh inning as well, scoring another run for the Brewers on that single. Votto scored for Cincinnati with a solo home run in the bottom of the seventh. The Reds managed to squeak out a win in the ninth inning by Jonny Gomes' sacrifice fly to bring Brandon Phillips to home, and a later three run home run from Ramon Hernandez, also scoring Votto and Scott Rolen. The final stood at 7-6, with Logan Ondrusek getting the win. The pitchers on the Milwaukee side were Takashi Saito with a hold, and John Axford with a blown save and loss.

To Kansas City, where the Royals hosted the Los Angeles Angels. Jered Weaver and Luke Hochevar got the ball for the opening day game. Los Angeles opened the scoring in the fourth inning with Torii Hunter's solo home run and a double by Erick Aybar to bring Vernon Wells home. The Angels continued in the sixth inning with Jeff Mathis hitting a solo shot, and Maicer Izturis singling to bring Peter Bourjos back in. Kansas City got on the board in the seventh inning with Jeff Francoeur hitting a solo home run. The Royals brought the score to 4-2 with Mike Aviles solo home run in the eighth inning. This would be the final, with Weaver getting the win, Jordan Walden, Kevin Jepsen, and Michael Kohn getting the holds, along with Fernando Rodney grabbing the save. Hochevar was tacked for the loss. Mathis and Francoeur were the top hitters.

Cross the state of Missouri, the St. Louis Cardinals hosted the San Diego Padres. Tim Stauffer and Chris Carpenter took the mound. St. Louis opened the scoring in the first inning with a Matt Holliday single that brought Colby Rasmus in. San Diego replied in the fourth inning with Orlando Hudson recording a sacrifice fly to bring Will Venable in. In the same inning, the Cardinals retook the lead with Yadier Molina's single, scoring Lance Berkman. The Padres retied it in the fifth inning, with Nick Hundley's double scoring Ryan Ludwick. St. Louis grabbed the lead once again in the eighth inning, with a Holliday home run. Cameron Maybin allowed San Diego to tie it at 3 with his own home run in the ninth inning, which would force extra innings. In the eleventh, the Padres got runs off of a Maybin single, which allowed Chase Headley to score with some fielding issues by Ryan Theriot. Hundley also singled, batting in Cedric Hunter, bringing the final to 5-3 after Heath Bell came on for the save. Other pitching stats go to Pat Neshek for the win, Ryan Franklin for the blown save, and Bryan Augenstein for the loss. Hundley and Holliday got top batter honors.

To a National League California battle, with the Los Angeles Dodgers hosting the World Series Champion San Francisco Giants. Tim Lincecum and Clayton Kershaw were on the mound. Los Angeles busted opening the scoring in the sixth inning, when Buster Posey made a throwing error, allowing Matt Kemp to score and James Loney and Juan Uribe to move up a base as well. Loney also doubled in the eighth inning, bringing Kemp in again. San Francisco got on the board with a Pat Burrell home run, good for one run, bringing the final to 2-1. Kershaw took the win, Hong-Chih Kuo got the hold, and Jonathan Broxton recorded the save on the Dodgers ledger, while Lincecum was given the loss for the Giants. Burrell and Loney were the top batters.

If you are still reading, congratulations, and this will be the basic formatting for the near future, until the end of the Stanley Cup Playoffs in hockey. For all you sports fans, tell your baseball-loving friends about this blog, a great place to get decent recaps of every game that is played (even if they are a bit late).