NHL Day 24 2011-2012

There are a total of thirteen games on today, and the first is an afternoon special with the New York Rangers hosting the Ottawa Senators. Craig Anderson and Henrik Lundqvist wear the masks. Ottawa was first on the board with Chris Neil netting his second of the season, via Filip Kuba and Erik Karlsson (his tenth assist). New York got going in the second period with a power play goal by Ryan Callahan, his third of the year, powered by Brad Richards and Michael Del Zotto. The Rangers struck again later on the same major power play with Richards netting his second of the season, courtesy of Marian Gaborik. Gaborik extended the New York lead in the third period with his fifth of the year, coming off of Derek Stepan and Wojtek Wolski. The Rangers kept the upping the ante with another Richards goal, his second of the game and third of the season, fueled by Gaborik and Wolski. Ottawa pulled dangerously close with a pair of Jason Spezza goals, his sixth and seventh of the year, the second coming on the power play. Taking credit for helpers were Kuba and Milan Michalek on the first and Sergei Gonchar and Karlsson on the second. Michalek tied it for the Senators with his seventh of the season, thanks to Colin Greening and Kuba, the latter finishing a sock trick. The tie lasted into a shootout, where the Senators took the game 5-4 with a lonely goal from Michalek. The three stars went to Spezza, Richards, and Gaborik, and honorable mentions are in line for Kuba, Michalek, Karlsson, and Wolski.

To the regularly scheduled games we go, beginning these in Toronto, where the Maple Leafs host the Pittsburgh Penguins. Brent Johnson and Jonas Gustavsson take up residence in front of the cages. Toronto led off with a power play goal by Mikhail Grabovski, powered by Dion Phaneuf and Clarke MacArthur as his fourth of the season. Pittsburgh tied it in the second period with a Matt Cooke goal, his fourth of the year, assisted by Arron Asham and Ben Lovejoy. The Maple Leafs regained the lead on a Tim Connolly power play goal, set up by Joffrey Lupul and Phil Kessel. The Penguins tied it again with Chris Kunitz putting away his fourth of the season, a power play goal made possible by Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang. MacArthur gave Toronto another lead in the third period, his second of the year coming off of Phaneuf and Grabovski. Pittsburgh found yet another answer with Malkin on the power play with his second of the season thanks to Letang (tenth assist) and James Neal. Kessel gave the Maple Leafs a 4-3 lead with his tenth of the year, courtesy of Connolly and Mike Komisarek. The Penguins had no answer to this, and lost by the above margin, with the three stars of the game being Kessel, Phaneuf, and Gustavsson (34 for 37 in saves), and honorable mentions to Letang, Malkin, Grabovski, Connolly, and MacArthur.

Back into the Big Apple, with the New York Islanders hosting the San Jose Sharks. Thomas Greiss and Rick DiPietro got the starting nods. (Please set your egg timers to calculate how long The Glass Goalie will remain healthy). San Jose struck just seventeen seconds in when DiPietro broke his ankle trying to stop a shot Joe Pavelski notched his seventh of the season on the power play via Patrick Marleau and Dan Boyle. New York tied it in the second period with the seventh of the year from John Tavares, also a power play goal, powered by P.A. Parenteau and Matt Moulson. The Islanders took the lead with a Michael Grabner power play goal, his third of the season, thanks to Kyle Okposo and Frans Nielsen. The Sharks tied it up again with a Logan Couture goal, his third of the year, with assists from Brent Burns and Marc-Edouard Vlasic. The tie lasted into an overtime period, where Burns struck with his third of the season, a power play goal made possible Pavelski and Boyle and the penalty was for Travis Hamonic lifting the puck over glass for delay of game. Pavelski, Tavares, and Burns had the three stars, while other notable efforts were Greiss (35 for 37 in saves) and Boyle.

Heading upstate, to Buffalo, where the Sabres host the Florida Panthers. Jose Theodore and Jacob Markstrom play between the pipes. Florida opened the scoring in the second period with a Marcel Goc goal, his second of the season coming from Scottie Upshall and Tomas Kopecky. Buffalo tied it on the eighth of the year for Thomas Vanek, thanks to help from Luke Adam and Tyler Myers. The Sabres grabbed the lead in the third period on a power play goal by Jason Pominville, his fifth of the season, powered by Brad Boyes and Christian Ehrhoff. The Panthers retied it on a Tomas Fleichmann goal, his third of the year, with helpers provided by Kopecky and Jason Garrison. Florida took a 3-2 lead with a power play goal by Garrison, his fourth of the season, made possible by Brian Campbell and Kopecky, the latter getting a sock trick. This was a final, and the three stars were Garrison, Fleischmann, and Pominville, with honors to Kopecky.

Staying in the Northeast area, the Philadelphia Flyers welcomed the Carolina Hurricanes. Brian Boucher and Ilya Bryzgalov were in the creases for the game. Philadelphia opened with a Scott Hartnell goal, his fourth of the season, fueled by Claude Giroux. Carolina answered in the second period with a Jussi Jokinen goal, his third of the year, assisted by Jiri Tlusty and Chad LaRose. The Flyers retook the lead early in the third period with a Jaromir Jagr goal, his fourth of the season, with help from Giroux. Philadelphia extended the lead with the third of the year by Max Talbot, courtesy of Giroux and Braydon Coburn, while shorthanded. Giroux, who now had a sock trick, finally found the twine on his own, netting his seventh of the season via Hartnell and Kimmo Timonen. Jagr added on his second of the game and fifth of the year for a 5-1 final score, and he was aided by Hartnell. The three stars logically went to Giroux, Hartnell, and Jagr.

Up to Montreal, where the Canadiens welcomed in the Boston Bruins. Tuukka Rask and Carey Price were given a go-ahead to start. Montreal drew first blood with a power play goal by Brian Gionta, his second of the season, powered by Tomas Plekanec and Michael Cammalleri. The Canadiens extended the lead with a Lars Eller goal, via Travis Moen and Andrei Kostitsyn. Montreal made it 3-0 in the second period with a power play goal from David Desharnais, his second of the season, thanks to Cammalleri and Yannick Weber. Boston got on the board with a Milan Lucic goal, his third of the year guided in by Nathan Horton. The Bruins made it close late in the third period with a Tyler Seguin goal, his fourth of the season, made possible by Patrice Bergeron and Zdeno Chara. The Canadiens iced it with Plekanec putting his fourth of the year away into an empty net, with no assistance required. Price (26 for 28 in saves), Eller, and Plekanec got the three stars in the 4-2 win, and honorable mention to Cammalleri.

Heading far south like a bird in the winter, where the Tampa Bay Lightning hosted the Winnipeg Jets. Ondrej Pavelec and Dwayne Roloson were the masked men. Tampa Bay opened the scoring late in the second period on a power play goal by Vincent Lecavalier, his fifth of the year, powered by Steven Stamkos and Eric Brewer. This held up for a 1-0 Lightning win, with Roloson (28 save shutout), Lecavalier, and Pavelec (26 for 27 in saves) getting the three stars.

Northwest a tad, with the Nashville Predators hosting the Anaheim Ducks. Jonas Hiller and Pekka Rinne are tending the twines. Fourteen seconds into the game, Nashville took the lead with a Patric Hornqvist goal, his second of the season, fueled by Colin Wilson and Shea Weber. Martin Erat extended the lead for the Predators with his goal, fueled by Jordin Tootoo and Ryan Suter. The scoring was silent until a power play in the early third period, where Nashville made it 3-0 on a Weber goal, made possible by Suter and David Legwand. This was a final, with Rinne (20 save shutout), Weber, and Hornqvist getting the three stars,
 although Suter also played well.

Northward again, to Minnesota, where the Wild hosted the Detroit Red Wings. Jimmy Howard and Josh Harding played in the blue paint. Minnesota struck in the first period on a Dany Heatley goal, his third of the year, coming off of Mikko Koivu for the lone assist. The scoring was silent for the rest of the game, preserving a 1-0 Wild win. Harding (36 save shutout), Heatley, and Justin Falk were the three stars, although Koivu or Howard (19 for 20 in saves) could have been third star.

Plunging to the south again, with the Dallas Stars hosting the New Jersey Devils. Johan Hedberg and Kari Lehtonen were the goaltenders. Dallas led off with a Loui Eriksson goal, his sixth of the season, courtesy of Steve Ott and Jamie Benn. New Jersey tied it in the second period with a Petr Sykora goal, and Patrik Elias grabbed the lone assist here. The Stars regained the lead in the third period on a Vernon Fiddler goal, his second of the year, fueled by Radek Dvorak and Sheldon Souray. Souray iced the game on his third of the season, an empty net goal coming from Alex Goligoski. This left the final at 3-1, with Fiddler, Lehtonen (31 for 32 in saves), and Eriksson taking the three stars.

Into the heart of the Midwest, with the Chicago Blackhawks hosting the Columbus Blue Jackets. In goal were backups Allen York and Ray Emery. Chicago opened with a Marcus Kruger goal, via Jamal Mayers and Brent Seabrook. Columbus tied it on a Vinny Prospal goal, his fifth of the season, created by Fedor Tyutin and James Wisniewski. The Blackhawks regained the lead on the fifth of the year by Dave Bolland, a shorthanded goal coming off of a Michael Frolik pass. The Blue Jackets found another equalizer in the second period as Derek MacKenzie netted his second of the season, thanks to Rick Nash and Aaron Johnson. Chicago grabbed a 4-2 lead on a pair of Viktor Stalberg goals, his first two of the year, and assists went to Nick Leddy twice, and Andrew Brunette and Duncan Keith once each. Frolik iced it for the Blackhawks with his second of the season, an empty net and unassisted goal. The three stars went to Stalberg, Kruger, and Emery (27 for 29 in saves), and honors to Frolik and Leddy.

Back to the Southwest, with the Phoenix Coyotes hosting the Los Angeles Kings. Jonathan Quick and Mike Smith took care of the cages. Los Angeles opened the scoring in the second period with a Mike Richards goal, his second of the season, coming off of Dustin Brown and Willie Mitchell. Phoenix took the lead with a pair of Radim Vrbata goals, his second and third of the year, fueled by Martin Hanzal twice primarily, and the secondaries belonged to David Schlemko and Rostislav Klesla. The Kings tied it in the third period with the fifth of the season for Anze Kopitar, courtesy of Trent Hunter and Matt Greene. The Coyotes took the game in overtime by a 3-2 score as Daymond Langkow notched his second of the year, assisted by Vrbata and Derek Morris. Vrbata, Smith (36 for 38 in saves), and Schlemko got the three stars, although Hanzal or Langkow would have fit fine.

Finally, the Vancouver Canucks host the Washington Capitals. Tomas Vokoun and Roberto Luongo got the starts, although Michal Neuvirth relieved Vokoun after the first period. Vancouver was first on the board with a Maxim Lapierre goal, his second of the season, fueled by Dale Weise and Kevin Bieksa. Washington tied it with Alex Ovechkin netting his fourth of the year, with help from Troy Brouwer and Nicklas Backstrom. The Canucks got the lead back with a Chris Higgins tally, his fourth of the season coming on the man advantage thanks to Dan Hamhuis and David Booth. Vancouver made it 3-1 late in the first period with an Alexander Edler power play goal, powered by Sami Salo and Ryan Kesler. Ovechkin got the Capitals going again in the second period with his fifth of the year and second of the night, a power play goal assisted by Backstrom (tenth assist of the season) and John Carlson. Washington tied it on Mike Knuble's second of the season, a penalty shot conversion brought around by an Edler tripping call. Edler made up for it with his second of the game and the year, with helpers provided by Sedins Henrik and Daniel. The Capitals got another equalizer on Marcus Johansson's fifth of the season, via Dennis Wideman. Vancouver got one back in the third period as Henrik netted his fourth of the year, thanks to Edler and Kesler. The Canucks made it 6-4 with a Higgins goal, his second of the night and fifth of the season, with assists provided by Jannik Hansen and Manny Malhotra. Vancouver finished it off with a Lapierre goal, his third of the year and second of the game, guided in by Bieksa and Hamhuis. The three stars of the 7-4 game were Edler, Higgins, and Lapierre, with honorable mention to Ovechkin, Backstrom, Hamhuis, Bieksa, Kesler, and Henrik Sedin.