Today we have a light schedule for a Saturday, with only eight games, three of which being all-Canada games. We start early with the...
Washington Capitals hosting the Los Angeles Kings. Jonathan Bernier and Semyon Varlamov were given the starts. Opening the scoring was Washington when Alex Ovechkin put his 21st of the season away unassisted. Los Angeles tied it with an Anze Kopitar tally, his 17th of the year coming from Wayne Simmonds and Michal Handzus. The Kings took the lead with an Andrei Loktionov marker, his third of the campaign made possible by Kyle Clifford and Matt Greene. Handzus made it 3-1 Los Angeles with his eighth of the season, coming from Kopitar and Simmonds. Jarret Stoll extended the Kings lead farther with his 16th of the year, assisted by Justin Williams and Ryan Smyth. This was the final tally, and the three stars went to Kopitar, Simmonds, and Willie Mitchell.
In the first of the Canada matches, the Edmonton Oilers hosted the Ottawa Senators during the afternoon. Nikolai Khabibulin opposed Brian Elliott. Ottawa drew first blood on Bobby Butler's first goal of the season, an unassisted goal. Andrew Cogliano replied for Edmonton with his ninth of the year, thanks to Jordan Eberle and Kurtis Foster. Alex Kovalev retook the lead for the Senators on his 12th of the season, with help from Nick Foligno. The Oilers tied it again in the second period with Dustin Penner scoring his 19th of the year via Ales Hemsky. Ottawa made it 3-2 when Milan Michalek scored on the power play with his 14th of the season, courtesy of Butler and Jason Spezza. The Senators extended the lead again with a Peter Regin tally, his third of the year, with help from Kovalev and Foligno. Edmonton got back within a goal on Penner's second of the game and 20th of the season, assisted by Hemsky and Linus Omark. However, Ottawa sealed the deal with Kovalev notching his second of the game and 13th of the year into the open cage, with Spezza and Erik Karlsson picking up the helpers. Butler, Penner, and Kovalev were the three stars.
Staying Canadian (or should we say Canadien), the Montreal Canadiens hosted the Toronto Maple Leafs. Jean-Sebastien Giguere and Carey Price got the starts (and name association to team loyalties would be misleading in this scenario) in front of the cages. Benoit Pouliot got Montreal out front in the second period with his 12th of the season, a goal from David Desharnais and Roman Hamrlik. Shortly thereafter, Brian Gionta added on his 21st of the year for the Canadiens, with help from Max Pacioretty. Montreal got it out to 3-0 with a Desharnais power play marker, his fifth of the campaign going in with assistance from Scott Gomez and Hamrlik. This would be the final, giving Desharnais, Price (27 save shutout), and Pouliot the three stars.
Heading south, where the Tampa Bay Lightning hosted the Carolina Hurricanes. Cam Ward and Dwayne Roloson were given the responsibility in front of the nets. Tampa Bay struck first in the second period on a Steve Downie goal, his seventh of the season from Martin St. Louis and Steven Stamkos. The Lightning made it 2-0 with a Vincent Lecavalier marker, his 12th of the year being assisted by Teddy Purcell and Simon Gagne on the power play. Carolina answered with an Eric Staal tally, his 27th of the season also coming on the power play with the help of Joni Pitkanen and Erik Cole. Sean Bergenheim extended the Tampa Bay lead to 3-1 with his eleventh of the year, courtesy of Dana Tyrell. Jeff Skinner got the Hurricanes back within a goal on his 21st of the season, thanks to Staal and Tuomo Ruutu. Nineteen seconds later, Cole potted his 15th of the year to tie the game with a mere thirty-three seconds left in regulation. Pitkanen and Joe Corvo grabbed the assists. This was just an extension of the loss though, as Marc-Andre Bergeron nailed his first of the season in overtime to win it for the Lightning, with the help of Bergenheim. Earning the three stars were Bergeron, Lecavalier, and Pitkanen.
Out west, the Phoenix Coyotes hosted the Chicago Blackhawks. Earning the chance to start were Corey Crawford and Ilya Bryzgalov. Phoenix drew first blood with a Radim Vrbata goal, his 15th of the season getting help from Ray Whitney. The Coyotes made it 2-0 early in the second period on a Taylor Pyatt marker, his 14th of the year coming off of Shane Doan and Sami Lepisto. Chicago got a goal back with Troy Brouwer putting his 16th of the season away on the power play with the help of Marian Hossa and Dave Bolland. Duncan Keith tied it for the Blackhawks in the third period with his own power play goal, helped along by Brian Campbell and Bolland as his fifth of the year. The tie was preserved into a shootout, where Vrbata scored the only tally and gave Phoenix the 3-2 victory. Vrbata, Pyatt, and Bryzgalov (31 for 33 saves) were the three stars.
Back east, the Nashville Predators hosted the Colorado Avalanche. Peter Budaj and Pekka Rinne were in front of the cages. Colorado opened the scoring with Kevin Porter notching his tenth of the season courtesy of Paul Stastny and Matt Hunwick. Eleven seconds later, Shea Weber potted his eleventh of the year for Nashville to tie the game, with help from Martin Erat and Ryan Suter. Erat made it 2-1 for the Predators in the second period with his ninth of the season, a power play goal made possible by Patric Hornqvist and Sergei Kostitsyn. The Avalanche retied the game with David Jones scoring his 19th of the year, thanks to Daniel Winnik and Ryan O'Reilly. Colorado took a 3-2 lead early in the third period with Matt Duchene sinking his 21st of the season, with assists from Brandon Yip and Porter. Hornqvist retied the game for Nashville on his 17th of the year, with help from David Legwand and Steve Sullivan. Cody Franson gave the Predators a 4-3 lead with his seventh of the year, unassisted. Icing the game off for Nashville was Legwand, providing his ninth of the season into the empty net with assistance from Erat and new Predator Mike Fisher. Earning the three stars were Hornqvist, Franson, and Erat.
North for the Minnesota Wild hosting the St. Louis Blues. Jaroslav Halak and Niklas Backstrom put on the masks for the game. Two fights opened the action in the mid first period, with Matt D'Agostini taking on Cam Barker, and the sequel between Cam Janssen and Brad Staubitz. Minnesota ended up drawing the first goal with Cal Clutterbuck taking his 17th of the season to the twine with help from Jared Spurgeon and Pierre-Marc Bouchard. The Wild made it 2-0 with the eleventh of the year by Antti Miettinen, a power play goal coming off of Andrew Brunette. Minnesota rolled along with Kyle Brodziak notching his eleventh of the season, with Brent Burns picking up the assist. St. Louis got on the board with Patrik Berglund scoring his 14th of the year on the power play, courtesy of T.J. Oshie and Brad Boyes. With no scoring in the third period, 3-1 Wild over Blues was the final, but there was a mini-brawl at the end with Alex Steen and Greg Zanon exchanging minors as Colin Stoner fought with David Backes, earning them 15 minutes apiece. The three stars went out to Burns, Backstrom (24 for 25 saves), and Staubitz.
Finally, the Vancouver Canucks hosted the Calgary Flames to wrap up the Canadian-themed day. Miikka Kiprusoff and Roberto Luongo were between the pipes. Vancouver opened the scoring with Alexandre Burrows potting his 16th of the season on the power play with assists provided by Mason Raymond and Manny Malhotra. Calgary tied the game in the second period with Tim Jackman sinking his tenth of the year with the help of Matt Stajan and Anton Babchuk. Curtis Glencross soon made it 2-1 Flames with his 17th of the season, helped along by Brendan Morrison and Jarome Iginla. Mikael Samuelsson put the Canucks back in front with two goals in a row, his 14th and 15th of the campaign. Picking up assists were first Raymond and Kevin Bieksa at even strength and then Christian Ehrhoff and Daniel Sedin on the power play. Burrows sealed the deal 4-2 for Vancouver over Calgary with his second of the game and 17th of the year into an empty net, with the set up made by Aaron Rome and Malhotra. Samuelsson, Glencross, and Bieksa earned the three stars.
That's all for Saturday. Happy Hockey Day.
Saturday, February 12, 2011
NHL Friday
The NHL had eight games on Friday, and *spoiler alert* there was a lot happening in a majority of the games. We start, however, in a relatively calm environment known as...
Columbus, where the Blue Jackets welcomed Peter Forsberg and the Colorado Avalanche. Peter Budaj and Mathieu Garon got the spot starts. Colorado opened the scoring with Philippe Dupuis notching his fourth of the season, an unassisted goal. Rick Nash answered for Columbus in the second period with his 25th of the year, from Jakub Voracek and Fedor Tyutin. Derick Brassard put the Blue Jackets in front with his 14th of the season, courtesy of Nash. Sealing the deal late in the third period was Derek MacKenzie with his third of the year, an empty netter gathering steam from Samuel Pahlsson. The three stars were given out to Nash, Garon (31 for 32 saves), and Brassard.
Heading to the site of an earlier brawl, the Detroit Red Wings visited the Boston Bruins and the TD Garden. Jimmy Howard and Tuukka Rask started the game. Detroit struck early with a Todd Bertuzzi goal from Johan Franzen and Henrik Zetterberg, good for his ninth of the season. Danny Cleary put the Red Wings up 2-0 with his 17th of the year, courtesy of Jiri Hudler and Niklas Kronwall. David Krejci put Boston on the board in the late first period on the power play goal from Milan Lucic and Zdeno Chara, going down as his eighth of the campaign. Hudler got Detroit going again in the second period, with his sixth of the season seeing help from Zetterberg and Brian Rafalski. Zetterberg made it 4-1 Red Wings later with a power play goal from Tomas Holmstrom, who returned from injury, and Cleary for his 17th of the year. Twenty-four seconds later Detroit got another with Bertuzzi potting his second of the night and tenth of the season with Pavel Datsyuk picking up the helper. Rask came out of the came after the second period, and Tim Thomas took over the reigns in front of the Bruins net. Holmstrom tacked on a goal for the Red Wings later in the form of his 12th of the year, a power play marker made possible by Hudler and Datsyuk. The final stood at 6-1, a different form of carnage from earlier in the week, with the three stars going to Datsyuk, Zetterberg, and Bertuzzi.
Moving along to the Prudential Center, where the New Jersey Devils hosted the San Jose Sharks. Antti Niemi and Johan Hedberg got the starting nods. The scoring was opened by San Jose in the third period with Patrick Marleau sending his 21st of the season into the mesh thanks to the help from Niclas Wallin and Joe Pavelski. New Jersey answered with Brian Rolston marker, his eighth of the year coming with the man advantage from Ilya Kovalchuk and Patrik Elias. Kovalchuk also netted the eventual game winner in the form of his 19th of the season, with Travis Zajac adding on the lone helper for the Devils. Earning the three stars were Kovalchuk, Hedberg (31 for 32 saves), and Rolston.
Heading over to the Nassau Coliseum on Long Island, where the New York Islanders hosted the Pittsburgh Penguins. Brent Johnson was out in net, as was Mikko Koskinen, but Marc-Andre Fleury also saw some pucks. Opening the scoring for New York was Travis Hamonic with his second of the season, assisted by Michael Grabner and Frans Nielsen. A traditional fight later occurred between Micheal Haley and Craig Adams. The Islanders made it 2-0 with a Jesse Joensuu marker, his fourth of the year coming off of Josh Bailey and Matt Martin. P.A. Parenteau made it 3-0 New York with his 14th of the season with the help of Hamonic and John Tavares on the power play. Dropping the mitts eight seconds later were Eric Godard and Trevor Gillies. Michael Grabner extended the Islanders lead out to 4-0 with his 20th of the year, courtesy of Bruno Gervais and Radek Martinek. Tavares kept New York going in the second period with his 20th of the season, helped along by Hamonic and Matt Moulson. Thirty seconds later, the Islanders got the first of the year by Haley, with an assist from Jack Hillen. There was a brawl at 5:21 in the second, featuring a notable moment between Matt Martin and the Pittsburgh goalie Brent Johnson, who took a twirl before Deryk Engelland came off the Pittsburgh bench to play linesman between his goalie and his opponent, earning him a ten game suspension. After cleaning up the mess, Pittsburgh came out an scored a goal off the stick of Kris Letang, who appeared to be better after a rough slash from Tavares at the end of the first period, sinking his eighth of the season on the power play from Alex Goligoski and Brett Sterling. Jordan Staal added on his fifth of the year, also coming on the power play, with the help of Tyler Kennedy. Moulson regained those two goals for New York by potting two of his own, 20th and 21st on the campaign, with Parenteau and Tavares grabbing assists on the earlier goal and Tavares finishing a sock trick alongside Milan Jurcina on the latter power play marker. Another brawl occured in the early third period at 4:47, depleting the benches of further players. The Penguins made it 8-3 with a Tyler Kennedy power play goal, his eleventh of the season, thanks to Letang and Joe Vitale. More multiple penalties were called at 12:12, 12:40, 16:04, 16:12, and 17:43 before Grabner was able to pot his second of the game and 21st of the year, both shorthanded and unassisted. Another penalty set at 17:58 concluded the sinning for the 346 minutes of misbehavior. Getting the three stars were Tavares, Moulson, and Grabner, who did a decent job of staying out of the box. Since so many players were involved in the brawls, it will be easier to honor the Penguins (Goligoski, Nick Johnson, Kennedy, Paul Martin, Zbynek Michalek, Brooks Orpik, Staal, and Eric Tangradi) and the Islanders (Gervais, Grabner, Joensuu, Jurcina, Martinek, Moulson, Nielsen, Parenteau, and Tavares) who only earned minor penalties or no penalties throughout the game. May you all have a good time competing for the Lady Byng.
Getting away from the bloodbath, we travel to Atlanta, where the Thrashers hosted the New York Rangers. Henrik Lundqvist and Ondrej Pavelec were selected to guard the cages. Keeping with the theme of Friday night fights, Eric Boulton and Brandon Prust took a twirl. This was not the theme of the game, as Atlanta soon registered a goal from Anthony Stewart, good as his 14th of the season with the help of Alex Burmistrov and Evander Kane. New York evened the score early in the second period with a power play goal by Marc Staal, his seventh of the year going in with the help of Marian Gaborik and Vinny Prospal. The Rangers took the lead with a Brandon Dubinsky marker in the third period, his 19th of the season seeing help from Gaborik and Ryan McDonagh. Kane gave the Thrashers the lead back with two in a row later in that period, good for his 15th and 16th of the year, with helpers coming first from Stewart and Ron Hainsey and later on the power play from Dustin Byfuglien and a healthy Tobias Enstrom. Picking up the three stars were Kane, Pavelec (27 for 29 stops), and Stewart.
Out west a bit farther, the St. Louis Blues hosted the Minnesota Wild. Jose Theodore and Jaroslav Halak played in between the pipes. St. Louis opened the scoring early with a Patrik Berglund marker, his 13th of the season going in thanks to T.J. Oshie and Carlo Colaiacovo, who got his first point since coming back from injury. Trying to change pace, Brad Staubitz took on his namesake, Brad Winchester in a fight. Minnesota tied the game shortly after with an Andrew Brunette goal, his 15th of the year, with the help of Brent Burns and Mikko Koivu. The Blues retook the lead when the ninth of the season by Andy McDonald found twine, with helpers from Brad Boyes and Roman Polak. Cal Clutterbuck retied it for the Wild in the second period with his 15th of the year, courtesy of Martin Havlat. Nineteen seconds into the third period, St. Louis took the lead back with David Backes scoring his 19th of the season, thanks to Boyes and Barret Jackman. Twenty-two seconds later, Minnesota had gotten another equalizer off of Clutterbuck again, going as his 16th of the year via Kyle Brodziak. The Blues did take the lead back once more when Backes potted his second of the game and 20th of the season, made possible by Alex Pietrangelo and McDonald. The Wild, with only fifty-eight seconds left got a well-timed goal out of Havlat to tie it at 4, with his 16th of the year getting help from Koivu and Brunette. The tie lasted into a shootout, where Oshie and Pierre-Marc Bouchard exchanged goals, followed by another canceling pair by Boyes and Koivu, and equal scoring in the fourth round by Brent Burns and Alex Steen. John Madden finally wrapped it up for Minnesota several rounds later. The three stars were given out to Clutterbuck, Backes, and Brunette.
In Texas, the Dallas Stars hosted their old goalie who now plays for the Chicago Blackhawks. Marty Turco, a former Stars hero, opposed Kari Lethonen in the creases. Chicago was the first to score with Patrick Kane netting his 18th of the season with no assistance. Thirty-one seconds later, the Blackhawks sported a 2-0 lead after Brent Seabrook nailed his fourth of the year in with the help of Jonathan Toews and Kane. Patrick Sharp later extended the Chicago lead out to 3-0 with his 28th of the season, a power play goal made possible by Toews and Kane. Dallas got on the board in the second period when Stephane Robidas put his fourth of the year in the twine unassisted. Brad Richards added on a power play goal for the Stars, his 23rd of the season also going unassisted. Dallas found the equalizer early in the third period with Brenden Morrow notching his 24th of the year thanks to Jamie Langenbrunner and Robidas. The tie lasted throughout the rest of the game into the shootout, where the Stars sealed victory after Morrow, Richards, and Ribeiro converted, and only Toews got a tally for the Blackhawks. Given the three stars were Richards, Kane, and Robidas.
Finally, the Calgary Flames host the Anaheim Ducks. Curtis McElhinney got the start against his former team, taking the crease across from Miikka Kiprusoff. Anaheim struck first with a Saku Koivu marker, his 12th of the season going in with the help of Jason Blake and Teemu Selanne. Calgary replied with a Rene Bourque goal, his 17th of the year, in the second period, coming from Robyn Regehr and Jarome Iginla. The Flames took the lead with Olli Jokinen's eleventh of the season forty-one seconds later, assisted by Curtis Glencross and David Moss. Koivu retied it for the Ducks on his second of the game and 13th of the year, thanks to Selanne and Blake. Brandon McMillan put Anaheim back out in front with his seventh of the season, a shorthanded goal from Corry Perry and Andy Sutton. Calgary tied it again in the third period, as Iginla notched his 23rd of the year, courtesy of Regehr and Brendan Morrison. Glencross put the Flames up 4-3 with his 16th of the season, helped along by Moss and Jokinen. The Ducks would not give up though, and evened the score with Selanne scoring on the power play for his 16th of the year, made possible by Ryan Getzlaf and Perry. This forced an overtime, and the pattern of scoring prevailed, when Cam Fowler sealed a 5-4 victory with his seventh of the campaign, coming from Koivu and Selanne, the latter of which completed a sock trick. Glencross, Jokinen, and Selanne got the three stars.
That's all for a busy Friday. Eight games are featured Saturday, the Hockey Day in Canada. Hoping to get that post out later.
Columbus, where the Blue Jackets welcomed Peter Forsberg and the Colorado Avalanche. Peter Budaj and Mathieu Garon got the spot starts. Colorado opened the scoring with Philippe Dupuis notching his fourth of the season, an unassisted goal. Rick Nash answered for Columbus in the second period with his 25th of the year, from Jakub Voracek and Fedor Tyutin. Derick Brassard put the Blue Jackets in front with his 14th of the season, courtesy of Nash. Sealing the deal late in the third period was Derek MacKenzie with his third of the year, an empty netter gathering steam from Samuel Pahlsson. The three stars were given out to Nash, Garon (31 for 32 saves), and Brassard.
Heading to the site of an earlier brawl, the Detroit Red Wings visited the Boston Bruins and the TD Garden. Jimmy Howard and Tuukka Rask started the game. Detroit struck early with a Todd Bertuzzi goal from Johan Franzen and Henrik Zetterberg, good for his ninth of the season. Danny Cleary put the Red Wings up 2-0 with his 17th of the year, courtesy of Jiri Hudler and Niklas Kronwall. David Krejci put Boston on the board in the late first period on the power play goal from Milan Lucic and Zdeno Chara, going down as his eighth of the campaign. Hudler got Detroit going again in the second period, with his sixth of the season seeing help from Zetterberg and Brian Rafalski. Zetterberg made it 4-1 Red Wings later with a power play goal from Tomas Holmstrom, who returned from injury, and Cleary for his 17th of the year. Twenty-four seconds later Detroit got another with Bertuzzi potting his second of the night and tenth of the season with Pavel Datsyuk picking up the helper. Rask came out of the came after the second period, and Tim Thomas took over the reigns in front of the Bruins net. Holmstrom tacked on a goal for the Red Wings later in the form of his 12th of the year, a power play marker made possible by Hudler and Datsyuk. The final stood at 6-1, a different form of carnage from earlier in the week, with the three stars going to Datsyuk, Zetterberg, and Bertuzzi.
Moving along to the Prudential Center, where the New Jersey Devils hosted the San Jose Sharks. Antti Niemi and Johan Hedberg got the starting nods. The scoring was opened by San Jose in the third period with Patrick Marleau sending his 21st of the season into the mesh thanks to the help from Niclas Wallin and Joe Pavelski. New Jersey answered with Brian Rolston marker, his eighth of the year coming with the man advantage from Ilya Kovalchuk and Patrik Elias. Kovalchuk also netted the eventual game winner in the form of his 19th of the season, with Travis Zajac adding on the lone helper for the Devils. Earning the three stars were Kovalchuk, Hedberg (31 for 32 saves), and Rolston.
Heading over to the Nassau Coliseum on Long Island, where the New York Islanders hosted the Pittsburgh Penguins. Brent Johnson was out in net, as was Mikko Koskinen, but Marc-Andre Fleury also saw some pucks. Opening the scoring for New York was Travis Hamonic with his second of the season, assisted by Michael Grabner and Frans Nielsen. A traditional fight later occurred between Micheal Haley and Craig Adams. The Islanders made it 2-0 with a Jesse Joensuu marker, his fourth of the year coming off of Josh Bailey and Matt Martin. P.A. Parenteau made it 3-0 New York with his 14th of the season with the help of Hamonic and John Tavares on the power play. Dropping the mitts eight seconds later were Eric Godard and Trevor Gillies. Michael Grabner extended the Islanders lead out to 4-0 with his 20th of the year, courtesy of Bruno Gervais and Radek Martinek. Tavares kept New York going in the second period with his 20th of the season, helped along by Hamonic and Matt Moulson. Thirty seconds later, the Islanders got the first of the year by Haley, with an assist from Jack Hillen. There was a brawl at 5:21 in the second, featuring a notable moment between Matt Martin and the Pittsburgh goalie Brent Johnson, who took a twirl before Deryk Engelland came off the Pittsburgh bench to play linesman between his goalie and his opponent, earning him a ten game suspension. After cleaning up the mess, Pittsburgh came out an scored a goal off the stick of Kris Letang, who appeared to be better after a rough slash from Tavares at the end of the first period, sinking his eighth of the season on the power play from Alex Goligoski and Brett Sterling. Jordan Staal added on his fifth of the year, also coming on the power play, with the help of Tyler Kennedy. Moulson regained those two goals for New York by potting two of his own, 20th and 21st on the campaign, with Parenteau and Tavares grabbing assists on the earlier goal and Tavares finishing a sock trick alongside Milan Jurcina on the latter power play marker. Another brawl occured in the early third period at 4:47, depleting the benches of further players. The Penguins made it 8-3 with a Tyler Kennedy power play goal, his eleventh of the season, thanks to Letang and Joe Vitale. More multiple penalties were called at 12:12, 12:40, 16:04, 16:12, and 17:43 before Grabner was able to pot his second of the game and 21st of the year, both shorthanded and unassisted. Another penalty set at 17:58 concluded the sinning for the 346 minutes of misbehavior. Getting the three stars were Tavares, Moulson, and Grabner, who did a decent job of staying out of the box. Since so many players were involved in the brawls, it will be easier to honor the Penguins (Goligoski, Nick Johnson, Kennedy, Paul Martin, Zbynek Michalek, Brooks Orpik, Staal, and Eric Tangradi) and the Islanders (Gervais, Grabner, Joensuu, Jurcina, Martinek, Moulson, Nielsen, Parenteau, and Tavares) who only earned minor penalties or no penalties throughout the game. May you all have a good time competing for the Lady Byng.
Getting away from the bloodbath, we travel to Atlanta, where the Thrashers hosted the New York Rangers. Henrik Lundqvist and Ondrej Pavelec were selected to guard the cages. Keeping with the theme of Friday night fights, Eric Boulton and Brandon Prust took a twirl. This was not the theme of the game, as Atlanta soon registered a goal from Anthony Stewart, good as his 14th of the season with the help of Alex Burmistrov and Evander Kane. New York evened the score early in the second period with a power play goal by Marc Staal, his seventh of the year going in with the help of Marian Gaborik and Vinny Prospal. The Rangers took the lead with a Brandon Dubinsky marker in the third period, his 19th of the season seeing help from Gaborik and Ryan McDonagh. Kane gave the Thrashers the lead back with two in a row later in that period, good for his 15th and 16th of the year, with helpers coming first from Stewart and Ron Hainsey and later on the power play from Dustin Byfuglien and a healthy Tobias Enstrom. Picking up the three stars were Kane, Pavelec (27 for 29 stops), and Stewart.
Out west a bit farther, the St. Louis Blues hosted the Minnesota Wild. Jose Theodore and Jaroslav Halak played in between the pipes. St. Louis opened the scoring early with a Patrik Berglund marker, his 13th of the season going in thanks to T.J. Oshie and Carlo Colaiacovo, who got his first point since coming back from injury. Trying to change pace, Brad Staubitz took on his namesake, Brad Winchester in a fight. Minnesota tied the game shortly after with an Andrew Brunette goal, his 15th of the year, with the help of Brent Burns and Mikko Koivu. The Blues retook the lead when the ninth of the season by Andy McDonald found twine, with helpers from Brad Boyes and Roman Polak. Cal Clutterbuck retied it for the Wild in the second period with his 15th of the year, courtesy of Martin Havlat. Nineteen seconds into the third period, St. Louis took the lead back with David Backes scoring his 19th of the season, thanks to Boyes and Barret Jackman. Twenty-two seconds later, Minnesota had gotten another equalizer off of Clutterbuck again, going as his 16th of the year via Kyle Brodziak. The Blues did take the lead back once more when Backes potted his second of the game and 20th of the season, made possible by Alex Pietrangelo and McDonald. The Wild, with only fifty-eight seconds left got a well-timed goal out of Havlat to tie it at 4, with his 16th of the year getting help from Koivu and Brunette. The tie lasted into a shootout, where Oshie and Pierre-Marc Bouchard exchanged goals, followed by another canceling pair by Boyes and Koivu, and equal scoring in the fourth round by Brent Burns and Alex Steen. John Madden finally wrapped it up for Minnesota several rounds later. The three stars were given out to Clutterbuck, Backes, and Brunette.
In Texas, the Dallas Stars hosted their old goalie who now plays for the Chicago Blackhawks. Marty Turco, a former Stars hero, opposed Kari Lethonen in the creases. Chicago was the first to score with Patrick Kane netting his 18th of the season with no assistance. Thirty-one seconds later, the Blackhawks sported a 2-0 lead after Brent Seabrook nailed his fourth of the year in with the help of Jonathan Toews and Kane. Patrick Sharp later extended the Chicago lead out to 3-0 with his 28th of the season, a power play goal made possible by Toews and Kane. Dallas got on the board in the second period when Stephane Robidas put his fourth of the year in the twine unassisted. Brad Richards added on a power play goal for the Stars, his 23rd of the season also going unassisted. Dallas found the equalizer early in the third period with Brenden Morrow notching his 24th of the year thanks to Jamie Langenbrunner and Robidas. The tie lasted throughout the rest of the game into the shootout, where the Stars sealed victory after Morrow, Richards, and Ribeiro converted, and only Toews got a tally for the Blackhawks. Given the three stars were Richards, Kane, and Robidas.
Finally, the Calgary Flames host the Anaheim Ducks. Curtis McElhinney got the start against his former team, taking the crease across from Miikka Kiprusoff. Anaheim struck first with a Saku Koivu marker, his 12th of the season going in with the help of Jason Blake and Teemu Selanne. Calgary replied with a Rene Bourque goal, his 17th of the year, in the second period, coming from Robyn Regehr and Jarome Iginla. The Flames took the lead with Olli Jokinen's eleventh of the season forty-one seconds later, assisted by Curtis Glencross and David Moss. Koivu retied it for the Ducks on his second of the game and 13th of the year, thanks to Selanne and Blake. Brandon McMillan put Anaheim back out in front with his seventh of the season, a shorthanded goal from Corry Perry and Andy Sutton. Calgary tied it again in the third period, as Iginla notched his 23rd of the year, courtesy of Regehr and Brendan Morrison. Glencross put the Flames up 4-3 with his 16th of the season, helped along by Moss and Jokinen. The Ducks would not give up though, and evened the score with Selanne scoring on the power play for his 16th of the year, made possible by Ryan Getzlaf and Perry. This forced an overtime, and the pattern of scoring prevailed, when Cam Fowler sealed a 5-4 victory with his seventh of the campaign, coming from Koivu and Selanne, the latter of which completed a sock trick. Glencross, Jokinen, and Selanne got the three stars.
That's all for a busy Friday. Eight games are featured Saturday, the Hockey Day in Canada. Hoping to get that post out later.
Friday, February 11, 2011
Thursday in the NHL
The NHL had five games on the block for Thursday, a lighter load than average. It started off in...
Philadelphia, with the Flyers hosting the Carolina Hurricanes. Cam Ward and Brian Boucher were given the starts. The game was quiet for the first two periods, taking until the opening seconds of the third frame for Philadelphia to score, a power play goal by Jeff Carter from Mike Richards and Chris Pronger for his 26th of the season. Danny Briere made it 2-0 Flyers with his 27th of the year, also a power play goal, with the help of Claude Giroux and Matt Carle. Carolina got on the board forty seconds later with the 13th of the season by Tuomo Ruutu, courtesy of Char LaRose. The Hurricanes failed to muster any further offense and lost 2-1. Briere, Boucher (31 for 32 saves), and Carter got the three stars.
Following that, the Toronto Maple Leafs hosted the New Jersey Devils. Johan Hedberg and James Reimer were assigned to the creases. The scoring was opened by Toronto in the second period when Nikolai Kulemin tallied his 21st of the season, with the help of Phil Kessel and Mikhail Grabovski. New Jersey got the equalizer in the third period with Dainius Zubrus notching his eleventh of the year, assisted by Mark Fayne and Patrik Elias. The Devils sealed the victory in overtime with an Ilya Kovalchuk marker, his 18th of the season coming with assistance from Anssi Salmela. Kovalchuk, Hedberg (31 for 32 saves), and Reimer (37 for 39 saves) got the three stars.
Next up, the Pittsburgh Penguins hosted the Los Angeles Kings. Jonathan Quick and Marc-Andre Fleury tended the twines. Pittsburgh was the first to score with a Brett Sterling marker, his first of the season made possible by Dustin Jeffrey and Nick Johnson. Los Angeles tied it with the 15th of the year by Jarret Stoll, courtesy of Ryan Smyth and Justin Williams. The 1-1 tie lasted throughout the second and third periods into the extra frame where the Penguins' Jordan Staal sealed a victory with his fourth of the season, thanks to Pascal Dupuis. Earning the three stars were Staal, Fleury (32 for 33 saves), and Stoll.
Up in Canada again for the Montreal Canadiens hosting the New York Islanders. Mikko Koskinen and Alex Auld covered the mesh. Montreal drew first blood with a Max Pacioretty goal, his ninth of the season going in with the help of David Desharnais and Jaroslav Spacek. New York responded with John Tavares potting his 19th of the year, an unassisted goal. The Canadiens regained the lead with Benoit Pouliot sinking his eleventh of the season, courtesy of Ryan White. The Islanders again tied the game, this time with Michael Grabner tallying his 18th of the year, helped along by Frans Nielsen and Jack Hillen. Fifty-eight seconds later, Tomas Plekanec gave Montreal the 3-2 lead with his 19th of the season, requiring no help. New York responded with Grabner getting his second of the night and 19th of the year, with Nielsen and Hillen again gathering the helpers. The tie lasted into a shootout, where Kyle Okposo's goal for the Islanders defeated the Canadiens. Okposo, Pacioretty, and Plekanec earned the three stars.
Lastly, the Florida Panthers hosted the Buffalo Sabres. Ryan Miller and Tomas Vokoun were in between the pipes. Buffalo was the first to score in the second period with the third of the season by Mike Weber, assisted by Jason Pominville and Jochen Hecht. Steve Bernier tied the game for Florida with his fifth of the year, a power play goal made possible by Jason Garrison and Dennis Wideman. The Sabres retook the lead in the third period on Thomas Vanek's 22nd of the season, coming from Pominville and Tyler Myers. Marty Reasoner tied the game again for the Panthers with his eleventh of the year, with Wideman collecting another assist. The tie lasted into the extra overtime frame, where Myers won the game on his seventh of the season, via Nathan Gerbe. The three stars were awarded to Myers, Bernier, and Reasoner.
Friday games out by noon Saturday.
Philadelphia, with the Flyers hosting the Carolina Hurricanes. Cam Ward and Brian Boucher were given the starts. The game was quiet for the first two periods, taking until the opening seconds of the third frame for Philadelphia to score, a power play goal by Jeff Carter from Mike Richards and Chris Pronger for his 26th of the season. Danny Briere made it 2-0 Flyers with his 27th of the year, also a power play goal, with the help of Claude Giroux and Matt Carle. Carolina got on the board forty seconds later with the 13th of the season by Tuomo Ruutu, courtesy of Char LaRose. The Hurricanes failed to muster any further offense and lost 2-1. Briere, Boucher (31 for 32 saves), and Carter got the three stars.
Following that, the Toronto Maple Leafs hosted the New Jersey Devils. Johan Hedberg and James Reimer were assigned to the creases. The scoring was opened by Toronto in the second period when Nikolai Kulemin tallied his 21st of the season, with the help of Phil Kessel and Mikhail Grabovski. New Jersey got the equalizer in the third period with Dainius Zubrus notching his eleventh of the year, assisted by Mark Fayne and Patrik Elias. The Devils sealed the victory in overtime with an Ilya Kovalchuk marker, his 18th of the season coming with assistance from Anssi Salmela. Kovalchuk, Hedberg (31 for 32 saves), and Reimer (37 for 39 saves) got the three stars.
Next up, the Pittsburgh Penguins hosted the Los Angeles Kings. Jonathan Quick and Marc-Andre Fleury tended the twines. Pittsburgh was the first to score with a Brett Sterling marker, his first of the season made possible by Dustin Jeffrey and Nick Johnson. Los Angeles tied it with the 15th of the year by Jarret Stoll, courtesy of Ryan Smyth and Justin Williams. The 1-1 tie lasted throughout the second and third periods into the extra frame where the Penguins' Jordan Staal sealed a victory with his fourth of the season, thanks to Pascal Dupuis. Earning the three stars were Staal, Fleury (32 for 33 saves), and Stoll.
Up in Canada again for the Montreal Canadiens hosting the New York Islanders. Mikko Koskinen and Alex Auld covered the mesh. Montreal drew first blood with a Max Pacioretty goal, his ninth of the season going in with the help of David Desharnais and Jaroslav Spacek. New York responded with John Tavares potting his 19th of the year, an unassisted goal. The Canadiens regained the lead with Benoit Pouliot sinking his eleventh of the season, courtesy of Ryan White. The Islanders again tied the game, this time with Michael Grabner tallying his 18th of the year, helped along by Frans Nielsen and Jack Hillen. Fifty-eight seconds later, Tomas Plekanec gave Montreal the 3-2 lead with his 19th of the season, requiring no help. New York responded with Grabner getting his second of the night and 19th of the year, with Nielsen and Hillen again gathering the helpers. The tie lasted into a shootout, where Kyle Okposo's goal for the Islanders defeated the Canadiens. Okposo, Pacioretty, and Plekanec earned the three stars.
Lastly, the Florida Panthers hosted the Buffalo Sabres. Ryan Miller and Tomas Vokoun were in between the pipes. Buffalo was the first to score in the second period with the third of the season by Mike Weber, assisted by Jason Pominville and Jochen Hecht. Steve Bernier tied the game for Florida with his fifth of the year, a power play goal made possible by Jason Garrison and Dennis Wideman. The Sabres retook the lead in the third period on Thomas Vanek's 22nd of the season, coming from Pominville and Tyler Myers. Marty Reasoner tied the game again for the Panthers with his eleventh of the year, with Wideman collecting another assist. The tie lasted into the extra overtime frame, where Myers won the game on his seventh of the season, via Nathan Gerbe. The three stars were awarded to Myers, Bernier, and Reasoner.
Friday games out by noon Saturday.
Thursday, February 10, 2011
Wednesday Hockey
Few announcements before the actual post for the games. First of all, there have been a few trades spun as the deadline approaches, with Michael Frolik heading to Chicago, who sends Jack Skille to Florida. Also, Toronto sent Francois Beauchemin to Anaheim for Joffery Lupul. Most recently, Mike Fisher was sent from Ottawa to Nashville for a picks package. Also, for scheduling concerns due to an increased workload for me in the coming weeks, I will try to get these done regularly, but forgive me if I miss a day. With that said, we start in...
Boston, where the Bruins hosted the Canadiens of Montreal. Carey Price and Tim Thomas were sent out to block the pucks. Boston opened the scoring in the first period with a Brad Marchand goal, his 15th of the season, getting help along the way from Patrice Bergeron and Mark Recchi. Twelve seconds later, the Bruins went up 2-0 with a Dennis Seidenberg marker, his fifth of the year, made possible by Nathan Horton. There was a scrum at the end of the first period, featuring Carey Price, Travis Moen, and Milan Lucic, among others. Twenty-five seconds into the second period, Brian Gionta notched his 20th of the season for Montreal, with the help of Tomas Plekanec and James Wisniewski. The Canadiens tied it with a P.K. Subban goal from Gionta and Plekanec on the power play, going as his seventh of the year. Boston retook the lead with Adam McQuaid potting his first of the season, from Horton and Lucic. Yannick Weber retied it for Montreal with his own first of the year, thanks to Mathieu Darche. The Bruins took the lead back once again, 4-3, with a Michael Ryder goal thirty-one seconds later, his 15th of the season a product of Blake Wheeler and Zach Hamill. Fifty-nine seconds later, Lucic made it 5-3 with his 22nd of the year, courtesy of Horton (completing a sock trick) and David Krejci. Another brawl broke out, with Montreal penalties handed out to Gionta (double minor for roughing), Wisniewski (roughing), Max Pacioretty (roughing), and Boston penalties doled out to Recchi (roughing), Marchand (roughing and charging), Zdeno Chara (roughing), and Steve Kampfer (roughing). However, that was not all, as Carey Price and Tim Thomas also received fighting majors for their goalie fight, along with leaving the crease penalties. Twelve seconds after the brawl, David Desharnais netted his fourth of the season for the Canadiens on the power play, with the help of Subban and Weber. Lucic later potted his second of the game and 23rd of the year for the Bruins, shorthanded from Krejci and Horton. Montreal makes it 6-5 a little ways into the third period with a Pacioretty marker, his seventh of the season assisted by Wisniewski on the power play. Boston made it 7-5 with Ryder getting his second in the game and 16th of the year with the help of Seidenberg and Kampfer on the power play. Horton potted his 14th of the season, giving the Bruins a three goal lead well into the third period, allowing Krejci to complete his sock trick. At 17:06 in the third period, another small brawl broke out, with Subban and Lucic taking misconducts, Krejci and Benoit Pouliot fighting, and Horton getting called for a cross check. Not satisfied with already beating the holy crap out of each other already, a massive brawl broke out at the 19:11 mark. Andrew Ference dropped the mitts with Moen (who received two majors for that brawl), Shawn Thornton and Roman Hamrlik both drew fighting majors and game misconducts, alongside Thornton taking a roughing call, Johnny Boychuk and Jaroslav Spacek also dropping the gloves, good for a game misconduct and fighting majors each, and Tom Pyatt dancing with Gregory Campbell. For good measure, the Canadiens brought the eventual final to 8-6 Boston with Pacioretty's second goal of the night and eighth of the year, helped along by Desharnais and Weber. There were the three stars Horton, Lucic, and Ryder, but the special mention goes to the 192 total penalty minutes assessed, alongside possible supplementary discipline. That would be three times the length of a game in sin points.
Going along to more peaceful and lower-scoring areas, the Columbus Blue Jackets invited the San Jose Sharks to Ohio. Antti Niemi and Steve Mason got the starting honors. Columbus opened with a power play goal from Kristian Huselius, his 12th tally of the season, assisted by Anton Stralman and R.J. Umberger. The Blue Jackets went up 2-0 with the third of the year by Grant Clitsome, also a power play goal, with Fedor Tyutin and Derick Brassard picking up the helpers. San Jose got a goal back fairly early in the second period with Kent Huskins notching his first of the campaign, thanks to Joe Pavelski and Patrick Marleau. The Sharks tied the game with the second of the season by Kyle Wellwood, putting it into the goalmouth with the help of Ryane Clowe and Logan Couture. In the third period, San Jose took a 3-2 lead when Marleau sank his 20th of the year, helped along by Pavelski. This was the eventual final, giving the three stars to Niemi (42 for 44 saves), Marleau, and Clitsome.
Continuing to Detroit, where the Red Wings hosted the Nashville Predators. Pekka Rinne and Jimmy Howard were wearing the masks. Nashville was the first to strike with a Martin Erat goal, his eighth of the season going down with the help of Marcel Goc and Sergei Kostitsyn. David Legwand extended the Predators lead out to 2-0 with his eighth of the year, with Ryan Suter grabbing the lone assist. Colin Wilson made it 3-0 Nashville with his 13th of the campaign early in the second period, courtesy of Jerred Smithson and Joel Ward. Kostitsyn added on his 15th of the season for the Predators, scaring off Jimmy Howard for Joey MacDonald with the power play tally from Patric Hornqvist and Shea Weber. Detroit did get on the board with Ruslan Salei scoring his first of the year thanks to Henrik Zetterberg and Danny Cleary. After a silent third period, the final stood at Nashville taking a 4-1 win, giving out the three stars to Kostitsyn, Legwand, and Weber.
A little west, the Minnesota Wild hosted the Colorado Avalanche. Craig Anderson and Niklas Backstrom were called upon to tend the twines. Minnesota struck first with an Antti Miettinen goal, his tenth of the season coming on the power play via Matt Cullen and Brent Burns. Eleven seconds later, Colorado tied it with the 17th of the year by David Jones, made possible Matt Duchene. Forty seconds after that, the Wild took the lead back when Martin Havlat netted his 15th of the campaign, courtesy of Kyle Brodziak and Cal Clutterbuck. John Madden added on his eighth of the season for Minnesota, making it 3-1 with the help of Cullen and Jared Spurgeon. The Avalanche attempted a comeback in the third period on the second Jones tally of the game, also his 18th of the year, from Milan Hejduk. The full rally failed, giving the Wild a 3-2 victory. Andrew Brunette, Cullen, and Backstrom (23 for 25 saves) were given three stars status.
Far south, the Dallas Stars hosted the Phoenix Coyotes. Ilya Bryzgalov and Kari Lethonen were in the blue paint. Steve Ott opened the scoring for Dallas with his tenth of the season, with Brad Richards and Loui Eriksson picking up the helpers. Michal Rozsival tied the game with his first goal for Phoenix and fourth of the year, a power play tally from Taylor Pyatt and Lee Stempniak. The Stars took the lead back in the second period with Richards putting his 22nd of the campaign in the twine, assisted by Nicklas Grossman and Brenden Morrow. The Coyotes retied the game at 2 with Mikkel Boedker's first of the season in the third period, helped along by Ray Whitney. The tie lasted into an overtime frame, where Radim Vrbata won it with his power play tally from Keith Yandle and Whitney for his 14th of the year. The three stars were awarded to Vrbata, Richards, and Whitney.
Criss-crossing the map again, the Calgary Flames hosted the Ottawa Senators. Robin Lehner and Miikka Kiprusoff were allowed to play the goal. Calgary was the first to score, with Tim Jackman picking up his eighth goal of the season, made possible by Niklas Hagman and Robyn Regehr. Thirty-seven seconds later, Ottawa tied the game when Chris Kelly put his 12th of the year in the mesh, with Jarkko Ruutu and Filip Kuba getting the assists. Chris Campoli put the Senators up 2-1 with his unassisted third goal of the season. Olli Jokinen tied the game back up for the Flames with his tenth of the campaign, a power play goal assisted by Curtis Glencross and Anton Babchuk. Glencross put Calgary out in front with his 15th of the year, from Jokinen and Babchuk. Babchuk added on his seventh of the season for the Flames, a power play goal in the third period from Regehr making it 4-2. Icing the cake for Calgary was Jackman with his second of the game and ninth of the year, a power play goal courtesy of Jarome Iginla and Brendan Morrison. Babchuk, Jackman, and Glencross were the three stars in the Flames 5-2 victory.
Staying in the same province, the Edmonton Oilers hosted the Chicago Blackhawks. Corey Crawford and Devan Dubnyk got the starting nods. Patrick Sharp put Chicago up first with his 27th of the season, coming off of Jonathan Toews. In the second period, the Blackhawks went up 2-0 on a Bryan Bickell goal, his 13th of the year going unassisted. Patrick Kane made it 3-0 Chicago with his 16th of the season, a power play goal from Tomas Kopecky and Toews. Edmonton got on the board with the eleventh of the campaign by Jordan Eberle, courtesy of Taylor Hall and Jim Vandermeer. Kane finished it off with his second of the game and 17th of the year, making it 4-1 for the Blackhawks with the unassisted empty netter. Toews, Crawford (23 for 24 saves), and Eberle earned the three stars.
Finally, the west coast rhyme scheme battle between the host Vancouver Canucks and visiting Anaheim Ducks. Curtis McElhinney and Cory Schneider faced off in the backup battle. Anaheim struck first with the eleventh of the season by Jason Blake, helped along by Teemu Selanne and Toni Lydman. The Ducks extended their lead in the second period with Brandon McMillan's sixth of the year, made possible by Dan Sexton and Andreas Lilja. Bobby Ryan made it 3-0 Anaheim with his 24th of the season, assisted by Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry. Vancouver finally got on the board with a Daniel Sedin power play goal, his 29th of the year coming from Mikael Samuelsson and Ryan Kesler. Alexandre Burrows put the Canucks within a goal with his 15th of the season, from Henrik Sedin and Daniel Sedin. Ryan potted his second of the game and 25th of the campaign to make it 4-2 for the Ducks, this time with assists from Selanne and Lubomir Visnovsky. With twenty-one seconds left in the game, Kesler put his 32nd of the year in the twine with the help of Daniel Sedin and Kevin Bieksa. Vancouver failed to score again, however, and lost 4-3 to Anaheim. The three stars went to Ryan, Selanne, and Daniel Sedin.
Thursday's games will be when I can get to them.
Boston, where the Bruins hosted the Canadiens of Montreal. Carey Price and Tim Thomas were sent out to block the pucks. Boston opened the scoring in the first period with a Brad Marchand goal, his 15th of the season, getting help along the way from Patrice Bergeron and Mark Recchi. Twelve seconds later, the Bruins went up 2-0 with a Dennis Seidenberg marker, his fifth of the year, made possible by Nathan Horton. There was a scrum at the end of the first period, featuring Carey Price, Travis Moen, and Milan Lucic, among others. Twenty-five seconds into the second period, Brian Gionta notched his 20th of the season for Montreal, with the help of Tomas Plekanec and James Wisniewski. The Canadiens tied it with a P.K. Subban goal from Gionta and Plekanec on the power play, going as his seventh of the year. Boston retook the lead with Adam McQuaid potting his first of the season, from Horton and Lucic. Yannick Weber retied it for Montreal with his own first of the year, thanks to Mathieu Darche. The Bruins took the lead back once again, 4-3, with a Michael Ryder goal thirty-one seconds later, his 15th of the season a product of Blake Wheeler and Zach Hamill. Fifty-nine seconds later, Lucic made it 5-3 with his 22nd of the year, courtesy of Horton (completing a sock trick) and David Krejci. Another brawl broke out, with Montreal penalties handed out to Gionta (double minor for roughing), Wisniewski (roughing), Max Pacioretty (roughing), and Boston penalties doled out to Recchi (roughing), Marchand (roughing and charging), Zdeno Chara (roughing), and Steve Kampfer (roughing). However, that was not all, as Carey Price and Tim Thomas also received fighting majors for their goalie fight, along with leaving the crease penalties. Twelve seconds after the brawl, David Desharnais netted his fourth of the season for the Canadiens on the power play, with the help of Subban and Weber. Lucic later potted his second of the game and 23rd of the year for the Bruins, shorthanded from Krejci and Horton. Montreal makes it 6-5 a little ways into the third period with a Pacioretty marker, his seventh of the season assisted by Wisniewski on the power play. Boston made it 7-5 with Ryder getting his second in the game and 16th of the year with the help of Seidenberg and Kampfer on the power play. Horton potted his 14th of the season, giving the Bruins a three goal lead well into the third period, allowing Krejci to complete his sock trick. At 17:06 in the third period, another small brawl broke out, with Subban and Lucic taking misconducts, Krejci and Benoit Pouliot fighting, and Horton getting called for a cross check. Not satisfied with already beating the holy crap out of each other already, a massive brawl broke out at the 19:11 mark. Andrew Ference dropped the mitts with Moen (who received two majors for that brawl), Shawn Thornton and Roman Hamrlik both drew fighting majors and game misconducts, alongside Thornton taking a roughing call, Johnny Boychuk and Jaroslav Spacek also dropping the gloves, good for a game misconduct and fighting majors each, and Tom Pyatt dancing with Gregory Campbell. For good measure, the Canadiens brought the eventual final to 8-6 Boston with Pacioretty's second goal of the night and eighth of the year, helped along by Desharnais and Weber. There were the three stars Horton, Lucic, and Ryder, but the special mention goes to the 192 total penalty minutes assessed, alongside possible supplementary discipline. That would be three times the length of a game in sin points.
Going along to more peaceful and lower-scoring areas, the Columbus Blue Jackets invited the San Jose Sharks to Ohio. Antti Niemi and Steve Mason got the starting honors. Columbus opened with a power play goal from Kristian Huselius, his 12th tally of the season, assisted by Anton Stralman and R.J. Umberger. The Blue Jackets went up 2-0 with the third of the year by Grant Clitsome, also a power play goal, with Fedor Tyutin and Derick Brassard picking up the helpers. San Jose got a goal back fairly early in the second period with Kent Huskins notching his first of the campaign, thanks to Joe Pavelski and Patrick Marleau. The Sharks tied the game with the second of the season by Kyle Wellwood, putting it into the goalmouth with the help of Ryane Clowe and Logan Couture. In the third period, San Jose took a 3-2 lead when Marleau sank his 20th of the year, helped along by Pavelski. This was the eventual final, giving the three stars to Niemi (42 for 44 saves), Marleau, and Clitsome.
Continuing to Detroit, where the Red Wings hosted the Nashville Predators. Pekka Rinne and Jimmy Howard were wearing the masks. Nashville was the first to strike with a Martin Erat goal, his eighth of the season going down with the help of Marcel Goc and Sergei Kostitsyn. David Legwand extended the Predators lead out to 2-0 with his eighth of the year, with Ryan Suter grabbing the lone assist. Colin Wilson made it 3-0 Nashville with his 13th of the campaign early in the second period, courtesy of Jerred Smithson and Joel Ward. Kostitsyn added on his 15th of the season for the Predators, scaring off Jimmy Howard for Joey MacDonald with the power play tally from Patric Hornqvist and Shea Weber. Detroit did get on the board with Ruslan Salei scoring his first of the year thanks to Henrik Zetterberg and Danny Cleary. After a silent third period, the final stood at Nashville taking a 4-1 win, giving out the three stars to Kostitsyn, Legwand, and Weber.
A little west, the Minnesota Wild hosted the Colorado Avalanche. Craig Anderson and Niklas Backstrom were called upon to tend the twines. Minnesota struck first with an Antti Miettinen goal, his tenth of the season coming on the power play via Matt Cullen and Brent Burns. Eleven seconds later, Colorado tied it with the 17th of the year by David Jones, made possible Matt Duchene. Forty seconds after that, the Wild took the lead back when Martin Havlat netted his 15th of the campaign, courtesy of Kyle Brodziak and Cal Clutterbuck. John Madden added on his eighth of the season for Minnesota, making it 3-1 with the help of Cullen and Jared Spurgeon. The Avalanche attempted a comeback in the third period on the second Jones tally of the game, also his 18th of the year, from Milan Hejduk. The full rally failed, giving the Wild a 3-2 victory. Andrew Brunette, Cullen, and Backstrom (23 for 25 saves) were given three stars status.
Far south, the Dallas Stars hosted the Phoenix Coyotes. Ilya Bryzgalov and Kari Lethonen were in the blue paint. Steve Ott opened the scoring for Dallas with his tenth of the season, with Brad Richards and Loui Eriksson picking up the helpers. Michal Rozsival tied the game with his first goal for Phoenix and fourth of the year, a power play tally from Taylor Pyatt and Lee Stempniak. The Stars took the lead back in the second period with Richards putting his 22nd of the campaign in the twine, assisted by Nicklas Grossman and Brenden Morrow. The Coyotes retied the game at 2 with Mikkel Boedker's first of the season in the third period, helped along by Ray Whitney. The tie lasted into an overtime frame, where Radim Vrbata won it with his power play tally from Keith Yandle and Whitney for his 14th of the year. The three stars were awarded to Vrbata, Richards, and Whitney.
Criss-crossing the map again, the Calgary Flames hosted the Ottawa Senators. Robin Lehner and Miikka Kiprusoff were allowed to play the goal. Calgary was the first to score, with Tim Jackman picking up his eighth goal of the season, made possible by Niklas Hagman and Robyn Regehr. Thirty-seven seconds later, Ottawa tied the game when Chris Kelly put his 12th of the year in the mesh, with Jarkko Ruutu and Filip Kuba getting the assists. Chris Campoli put the Senators up 2-1 with his unassisted third goal of the season. Olli Jokinen tied the game back up for the Flames with his tenth of the campaign, a power play goal assisted by Curtis Glencross and Anton Babchuk. Glencross put Calgary out in front with his 15th of the year, from Jokinen and Babchuk. Babchuk added on his seventh of the season for the Flames, a power play goal in the third period from Regehr making it 4-2. Icing the cake for Calgary was Jackman with his second of the game and ninth of the year, a power play goal courtesy of Jarome Iginla and Brendan Morrison. Babchuk, Jackman, and Glencross were the three stars in the Flames 5-2 victory.
Staying in the same province, the Edmonton Oilers hosted the Chicago Blackhawks. Corey Crawford and Devan Dubnyk got the starting nods. Patrick Sharp put Chicago up first with his 27th of the season, coming off of Jonathan Toews. In the second period, the Blackhawks went up 2-0 on a Bryan Bickell goal, his 13th of the year going unassisted. Patrick Kane made it 3-0 Chicago with his 16th of the season, a power play goal from Tomas Kopecky and Toews. Edmonton got on the board with the eleventh of the campaign by Jordan Eberle, courtesy of Taylor Hall and Jim Vandermeer. Kane finished it off with his second of the game and 17th of the year, making it 4-1 for the Blackhawks with the unassisted empty netter. Toews, Crawford (23 for 24 saves), and Eberle earned the three stars.
Finally, the west coast rhyme scheme battle between the host Vancouver Canucks and visiting Anaheim Ducks. Curtis McElhinney and Cory Schneider faced off in the backup battle. Anaheim struck first with the eleventh of the season by Jason Blake, helped along by Teemu Selanne and Toni Lydman. The Ducks extended their lead in the second period with Brandon McMillan's sixth of the year, made possible by Dan Sexton and Andreas Lilja. Bobby Ryan made it 3-0 Anaheim with his 24th of the season, assisted by Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry. Vancouver finally got on the board with a Daniel Sedin power play goal, his 29th of the year coming from Mikael Samuelsson and Ryan Kesler. Alexandre Burrows put the Canucks within a goal with his 15th of the season, from Henrik Sedin and Daniel Sedin. Ryan potted his second of the game and 25th of the campaign to make it 4-2 for the Ducks, this time with assists from Selanne and Lubomir Visnovsky. With twenty-one seconds left in the game, Kesler put his 32nd of the year in the twine with the help of Daniel Sedin and Kevin Bieksa. Vancouver failed to score again, however, and lost 4-3 to Anaheim. The three stars went to Ryan, Selanne, and Daniel Sedin.
Thursday's games will be when I can get to them.
Tuesday, February 8, 2011
Tuesday games
There are another six games on Tuesday, with all starting before 5 Pacific. This post should be finished tonight. We open up with...
The New York Islanders hosting the Toronto Maple Leafs. The youngsters in net were James Reimer and Mikko Koskinen. Toronto opened the scoring with the seventh of the season by Colby Armstrong, with assists by Holy-Nose Darryl Boyce and Tomas Kaberle. The Maple Leafs extended the lead to 2-0 with the first of the year by Jay Rosehill, assisted by Luke Schenn. New York visited the scoresheet with a Matt Moulson marker, his 19th of the season coming on the power play thanks to John Tavares and P.A. Parenteau. The Islanders tied the game in the second period on a Michael Grabner goal, his 17th of the year, with help from Radek Martinek and Kyle Okposo. Toronto came back and retook the lead with Kaberle's third of the season, courtesy of Armstrong and Boyce. Nikolai Kulemin made it 4-2 Maple Leafs with his 20th of the year, made possible by Phil Kessel. Toronto kept scoring with the second of the season by Fredrik Sjostrom, helped along by Armstrong, and the sock trick earning Boyce. New York attempted to close in by making it 5-3 with a Rob Schremp goal, his tenth of the year gaining steam from Milan Jurcina and Matt Martin. This was the final, and the three stars went out to Armstrong, Kaberle, and Grabner.
Next up, the New Jersey Devils hosted the Carolina Hurricanes. Cam Ward and Johan Hedberg were called on to make the starts. The game was scoreless into the second period until Jeff Skinner netted his 19th of the season, with the help of Joe Corvo and Joni Pitkanen on the power play. New Jersey answered with the sixth of the year for Mattias Tedenby, courtesy of Jason Arnott and Colin White. Skinner added on another power play goal for the Hurricanes, his second of the game and 20th of the season, assisted by Eric Staal and Ian White. The Devils tied it again, this time with Nick Palmieri notching his fifth of the year, with help from Ilya Kovalchuk and Colin White, and forcing an overtime. It was in the extra frame that Tedenby nailed his second of the game and seventh of the season to win it for New Jersey, thanks to Travis Zajac and the goalie Johan Hedberg. The three stars went to Tedenby, Palmieri, and Skinner.
After that, the Pittsburgh Penguins hosted the Columbus Blue Jackets. Steve Mason and Marc-Andre Fleury picked up the starts. First of major mention, there was a fight between Derek Dorsett and Ben Lovejoy early in the first. Columbus was the first to score with a Rick Nash goal, his 24th of the season, which came from Derick Brassard and Jakub Voracek. Another fight broke out after a controversial Matt Cooke hit on Fedor Tyutin, and Cooke dropped the mitts with Brassard. Samuel Pahlsson extended the Blue Jackets lead with his fifth of the year, assisted by R.J. Umberger and Jan Hejda. Voracek added his own for Columbus, his tenth of the season making it 3-0 with the help of Nash and Brassard. Pittsburgh did get on the board with a power play goal by Tyler Kennedy, his tenth of the campaign with helpers by Michael Rupp and Paul Martin. Antoine Vermette answered with his 13th of the year to make it 4-1 Blue Jackets, courtesy of Kristian Huselius and Umberger. After a fight between Eric Godard and Jared Boll, the game concluded with the aforementioned score. The three stars went to Mason (32 for 33 saves), Nash, and Voracek.
A little ways south, the Washington Capitals hosted the San Jose Sharks. Antti Niemi and Michal Neuvirth were in between the pipes. The game was silent through two periods and half of the third until Logan Couture put his 24th of the season away, assisted by Ben Eager and Kent Huskins, giving San Jose a lead. Dan Boyle made it 2-0 Sharks with his sixth of the year, coming from Dany Heatley and Devin Setoguchi. This was the final, and Couture, Neuvirth (34 for 36 saves), and Niemi (25 save shutout) were the three stars.
Also being played, the Florida Panthers hosted the St. Louis Blues. Jaroslav Halak and Tomas Vokoun got the starting honors. Dennis Wideman put Florida up first with his eighth of the season, a power play goal made possible by Stephen Weiss and Michael Frolik. David Backes tied it for St. Louis late in the second period by scoring his 18th of the year, with the help of Andy McDonald and Brad Boyes. Matt D'Agostini put the Blues up 2-1 in the later third period with his 12th of the season, which was helped along by Vladimir Sobotka and Barret Jackman. The Panthers couldn't recover and lost 2-1, with the three stars awarded to D'Agostini, Halak (30 for 31 saves), and Backes.
Finally, the Tampa Bay Lightning hosted the Buffalo Sabres. Ryan Miller and Dwayne Roloson put on the masks. Sean Bergenheim put Tampa Bay on the board first with his ninth of the season, assisted by Vincent Lecavalier and Brett Clark. Buffalo answered back with a Drew Stafford tally, his 18th of the year, with the help of Jordan Leopold. Lecavalier put the Lightning back out front with his tenth of the season, gaining steam from Victor Hedman. Bergenheim added on another goal to give Tampa Bay a 3-1 lead, his second of the game and tenth of the year, with the help of Ryan Malone. Thomas Vanek got the Sabres going again, making it 3-2 with his 20th of the season, courtesy of Mike Weber. Leopold tied the game in third period for Buffalo with his eleventh of the year, helped along by Tyler Ennis. Ennis also picked up the assist on the go-ahead goal for the Sabres, Tim Connolly's eighth of the season. Forty-seven seconds later, and the lead was 5-3 for Buffalo when Vanek netted his second of the game and 21st of the year, made possible by Cody McCormick. Stafford later added two in a row to complete his hat trick, the 19th and 20th of his season which got help from Shaone Morrison and Weber first and Leopold and Vanek on the latter power play tally. The Lightning tried feebly to make the comeback with Lecavalier netting his second of the game and eleventh of the year on the power play from Martin St. Louis and Steven Stamkos. The final was 7-4, and the three stars were Stafford, Vanek, and Lecavalier.
The New York Islanders hosting the Toronto Maple Leafs. The youngsters in net were James Reimer and Mikko Koskinen. Toronto opened the scoring with the seventh of the season by Colby Armstrong, with assists by Holy-Nose Darryl Boyce and Tomas Kaberle. The Maple Leafs extended the lead to 2-0 with the first of the year by Jay Rosehill, assisted by Luke Schenn. New York visited the scoresheet with a Matt Moulson marker, his 19th of the season coming on the power play thanks to John Tavares and P.A. Parenteau. The Islanders tied the game in the second period on a Michael Grabner goal, his 17th of the year, with help from Radek Martinek and Kyle Okposo. Toronto came back and retook the lead with Kaberle's third of the season, courtesy of Armstrong and Boyce. Nikolai Kulemin made it 4-2 Maple Leafs with his 20th of the year, made possible by Phil Kessel. Toronto kept scoring with the second of the season by Fredrik Sjostrom, helped along by Armstrong, and the sock trick earning Boyce. New York attempted to close in by making it 5-3 with a Rob Schremp goal, his tenth of the year gaining steam from Milan Jurcina and Matt Martin. This was the final, and the three stars went out to Armstrong, Kaberle, and Grabner.
Next up, the New Jersey Devils hosted the Carolina Hurricanes. Cam Ward and Johan Hedberg were called on to make the starts. The game was scoreless into the second period until Jeff Skinner netted his 19th of the season, with the help of Joe Corvo and Joni Pitkanen on the power play. New Jersey answered with the sixth of the year for Mattias Tedenby, courtesy of Jason Arnott and Colin White. Skinner added on another power play goal for the Hurricanes, his second of the game and 20th of the season, assisted by Eric Staal and Ian White. The Devils tied it again, this time with Nick Palmieri notching his fifth of the year, with help from Ilya Kovalchuk and Colin White, and forcing an overtime. It was in the extra frame that Tedenby nailed his second of the game and seventh of the season to win it for New Jersey, thanks to Travis Zajac and the goalie Johan Hedberg. The three stars went to Tedenby, Palmieri, and Skinner.
After that, the Pittsburgh Penguins hosted the Columbus Blue Jackets. Steve Mason and Marc-Andre Fleury picked up the starts. First of major mention, there was a fight between Derek Dorsett and Ben Lovejoy early in the first. Columbus was the first to score with a Rick Nash goal, his 24th of the season, which came from Derick Brassard and Jakub Voracek. Another fight broke out after a controversial Matt Cooke hit on Fedor Tyutin, and Cooke dropped the mitts with Brassard. Samuel Pahlsson extended the Blue Jackets lead with his fifth of the year, assisted by R.J. Umberger and Jan Hejda. Voracek added his own for Columbus, his tenth of the season making it 3-0 with the help of Nash and Brassard. Pittsburgh did get on the board with a power play goal by Tyler Kennedy, his tenth of the campaign with helpers by Michael Rupp and Paul Martin. Antoine Vermette answered with his 13th of the year to make it 4-1 Blue Jackets, courtesy of Kristian Huselius and Umberger. After a fight between Eric Godard and Jared Boll, the game concluded with the aforementioned score. The three stars went to Mason (32 for 33 saves), Nash, and Voracek.
A little ways south, the Washington Capitals hosted the San Jose Sharks. Antti Niemi and Michal Neuvirth were in between the pipes. The game was silent through two periods and half of the third until Logan Couture put his 24th of the season away, assisted by Ben Eager and Kent Huskins, giving San Jose a lead. Dan Boyle made it 2-0 Sharks with his sixth of the year, coming from Dany Heatley and Devin Setoguchi. This was the final, and Couture, Neuvirth (34 for 36 saves), and Niemi (25 save shutout) were the three stars.
Also being played, the Florida Panthers hosted the St. Louis Blues. Jaroslav Halak and Tomas Vokoun got the starting honors. Dennis Wideman put Florida up first with his eighth of the season, a power play goal made possible by Stephen Weiss and Michael Frolik. David Backes tied it for St. Louis late in the second period by scoring his 18th of the year, with the help of Andy McDonald and Brad Boyes. Matt D'Agostini put the Blues up 2-1 in the later third period with his 12th of the season, which was helped along by Vladimir Sobotka and Barret Jackman. The Panthers couldn't recover and lost 2-1, with the three stars awarded to D'Agostini, Halak (30 for 31 saves), and Backes.
Finally, the Tampa Bay Lightning hosted the Buffalo Sabres. Ryan Miller and Dwayne Roloson put on the masks. Sean Bergenheim put Tampa Bay on the board first with his ninth of the season, assisted by Vincent Lecavalier and Brett Clark. Buffalo answered back with a Drew Stafford tally, his 18th of the year, with the help of Jordan Leopold. Lecavalier put the Lightning back out front with his tenth of the season, gaining steam from Victor Hedman. Bergenheim added on another goal to give Tampa Bay a 3-1 lead, his second of the game and tenth of the year, with the help of Ryan Malone. Thomas Vanek got the Sabres going again, making it 3-2 with his 20th of the season, courtesy of Mike Weber. Leopold tied the game in third period for Buffalo with his eleventh of the year, helped along by Tyler Ennis. Ennis also picked up the assist on the go-ahead goal for the Sabres, Tim Connolly's eighth of the season. Forty-seven seconds later, and the lead was 5-3 for Buffalo when Vanek netted his second of the game and 21st of the year, made possible by Cody McCormick. Stafford later added two in a row to complete his hat trick, the 19th and 20th of his season which got help from Shaone Morrison and Weber first and Leopold and Vanek on the latter power play tally. The Lightning tried feebly to make the comeback with Lecavalier netting his second of the game and eleventh of the year on the power play from Martin St. Louis and Steven Stamkos. The final was 7-4, and the three stars were Stafford, Vanek, and Lecavalier.
Monday, February 7, 2011
Monday Hockey
Another week begins, and so do another six games at some point tonight. The first of these games is in...
Toronto, where the Maple Leafs host the Atlanta Thrashers. Ondrej Pavelec and Jean-Sebastien Giguere are guarding the cages. Evander Kane puts Atlanta up first with his 14th of the season, a power play goal from Bryan Little and Zach Bogosian. Dustin Byfuglien put the Thrashers up 2-0 with his 17th of the year, also a power play goal, courtesy of Bogosian and Rich Peverley. Toronto answered in the second period with the second of the season by Dion Phaneuf, assisted by Mikhail Grabovski and Nikolai Kulemin. Grabovski tied it for the Maple Leafs with his 22nd of the year, coming off of Clarke MacArthur and Tomas Kaberle. Thirty-nine seconds later, Atlanta regained the lead with a Nik Antropov goal from Anthony Stewart, good for his tenth of the season. Toronto found another equalizer in the form of the 17th of the year from MacArthur, thanks to Kaberle and Kris Versteeg. Kulemin gave the Maple Leafs a 4-3 lead with his 19th of the campaign, unassisted. Tim Brent added some insurance with his seventh of the season, helped along by Joey Crabb and Colby Armstrong. The Thrashers tried to get going again with Andrew Ladd putting his 17th of the year away with the help of Peverley and Little, but no further offense came of it and the Maple Leafs held on for a 5-4 victory. The three stars are awarded to Kaberle, Kane, and Grabovski.
Next up features the Detroit Red Wings hosting the New York Rangers. Martin Biron and Jimmy Howard are in the nets. The scoring was opened in the second period by Pavel Datsyuk, who returned from injury to net his 13th of the season with the help of Jiri Hudler and Danny Cleary. New York tied it in the third period with a Derek Stepan goal, his 15th of the year getting help from Matt Gilroy and Wojtek Wolski. Hudler took the lead back for the Red Wings on his fifth of the season, via Jonathan Ericsson and Datsyuk. Detroit extended their lead out to 3-1 with the fourth of the year by Drew Miller, assisted by Justin Abdelkader. The Rangers came back within a goal thanks to Brandon Dubinsky notching his 18th of the campaign with the help of Sean Avery and Marian Gaborik, but it wasn't enough to avoid defeat. Datsyuk, Hudler, and Howard (45 for 47 saves) were the three stars.
Southward a bit, with the Nashville Predators hosting the Edmonton Oilers. Earning the privilege to start are Devan Dubnyk and Pekka Rinne. Edmonton dented the scoreboard first with Andrew Cogliano notching his eighth of the season, made possible by Jordan Eberle and Taylor Hall. Ryan Jones put the Oilers up 2-0 with his 12th of the year, helped along by Colin Fraser and Liam Reddox. Eberle made it 3-0 in the early third period with his tenth of the season, with assists coming from Jim Vandermeer and Cogliano. Dustin Penner kept the Oilers going with his 18th of the year, courtesy of Ales Hemsky. Pekka Rinne was pulled for Anders Lindback at this point. Edmonton would cruise to a 4-0 victory, giving the three stars to Dubnyk (37 save shutout), Jones, and Cogliano.
Meanwhile, Edmonton's Alberta rivals, the Calgary Flames host the Chicago Blackhawks. Corey Crawford and Miikka Kiprusoff are tending the twines. Calgary struck first with a Mikael Backlund goal, his seventh of the season, with assists by Lance Bouma and Adam Pardy. Chicago answered in the second period with a Patrick Kane marker from Jonathan Toews and Troy Brouwer, good as his 15th of the year. Calgary regained the lead in the third period with a goal by Curtis Glencross, his 14th of the season from Olli Jokinen and Robyn Regehr. Rene Bourque put the dagger in for Calgary with his 16th of the year, an empty net goal with helpers from Jokinen and Jarome Iginla. The three stars went to Glencross, Iginla, and Brent Seabrook.
After that, the Phoenix Coyotes played host to the Colorado Avalanche. Craig Anderson and Ilya Bryzgalov were the featured goaltenders. Phoenix struck first with a Radim Vrbata goal, his 12th of the season going down thanks to Martin Hanzal and Ray Whitney. The Coyotes added on in the second period with a Scottie Upshall marker, the 16th of the campaign for him coming off of Kyle Turris and Shane Doan. Vrbata sank another goal in the third period, making it 3-0 with his second of the night and 13th of the year on the power play from Taylor Pyatt and Whitney. This was the final, and Bryzgalov (26 save shutout), Vrbata, and Adrian Aucoin took the three stars home.
Lastly, the Vancouver Canucks hosted the Ottawa Senators. Playing the creases were Brian Elliott and Roberto Luongo. Alexandre Burrows opened the scoring for Vancouver with his 14th of the season, assisted by Henrik Sedin and Christian Ehrhoff. Ryan Kesler added on his 31st of the year to extend the Canucks lead, with the helpers by Mason Raymond and Mikael Samuelsson. Samuelsson potted his own goal in the second period for Vancouver, making it 3-0 with his 12th of the season courtesy of Kesler and Raymond. Ottawa finally got on the board when Nick Foligno sank his ninth of the year, with the help of a returning Jason Spezza and Daniel Alfredsson. Spezza made it a one goal game for the Senators with his tenth of the season, with the lone assist by Chris Phillips. Samuelsson iced the game off for the Canucks with his second of the night and 13th of the year, an empty net goal getting help along the way from Raymond, who finished a sock trick. The three stars went to Samuelsson, Spezza, and Dan Hamhuis.
Tuesday's games are on the way, keep watch very soon.
Toronto, where the Maple Leafs host the Atlanta Thrashers. Ondrej Pavelec and Jean-Sebastien Giguere are guarding the cages. Evander Kane puts Atlanta up first with his 14th of the season, a power play goal from Bryan Little and Zach Bogosian. Dustin Byfuglien put the Thrashers up 2-0 with his 17th of the year, also a power play goal, courtesy of Bogosian and Rich Peverley. Toronto answered in the second period with the second of the season by Dion Phaneuf, assisted by Mikhail Grabovski and Nikolai Kulemin. Grabovski tied it for the Maple Leafs with his 22nd of the year, coming off of Clarke MacArthur and Tomas Kaberle. Thirty-nine seconds later, Atlanta regained the lead with a Nik Antropov goal from Anthony Stewart, good for his tenth of the season. Toronto found another equalizer in the form of the 17th of the year from MacArthur, thanks to Kaberle and Kris Versteeg. Kulemin gave the Maple Leafs a 4-3 lead with his 19th of the campaign, unassisted. Tim Brent added some insurance with his seventh of the season, helped along by Joey Crabb and Colby Armstrong. The Thrashers tried to get going again with Andrew Ladd putting his 17th of the year away with the help of Peverley and Little, but no further offense came of it and the Maple Leafs held on for a 5-4 victory. The three stars are awarded to Kaberle, Kane, and Grabovski.
Next up features the Detroit Red Wings hosting the New York Rangers. Martin Biron and Jimmy Howard are in the nets. The scoring was opened in the second period by Pavel Datsyuk, who returned from injury to net his 13th of the season with the help of Jiri Hudler and Danny Cleary. New York tied it in the third period with a Derek Stepan goal, his 15th of the year getting help from Matt Gilroy and Wojtek Wolski. Hudler took the lead back for the Red Wings on his fifth of the season, via Jonathan Ericsson and Datsyuk. Detroit extended their lead out to 3-1 with the fourth of the year by Drew Miller, assisted by Justin Abdelkader. The Rangers came back within a goal thanks to Brandon Dubinsky notching his 18th of the campaign with the help of Sean Avery and Marian Gaborik, but it wasn't enough to avoid defeat. Datsyuk, Hudler, and Howard (45 for 47 saves) were the three stars.
Southward a bit, with the Nashville Predators hosting the Edmonton Oilers. Earning the privilege to start are Devan Dubnyk and Pekka Rinne. Edmonton dented the scoreboard first with Andrew Cogliano notching his eighth of the season, made possible by Jordan Eberle and Taylor Hall. Ryan Jones put the Oilers up 2-0 with his 12th of the year, helped along by Colin Fraser and Liam Reddox. Eberle made it 3-0 in the early third period with his tenth of the season, with assists coming from Jim Vandermeer and Cogliano. Dustin Penner kept the Oilers going with his 18th of the year, courtesy of Ales Hemsky. Pekka Rinne was pulled for Anders Lindback at this point. Edmonton would cruise to a 4-0 victory, giving the three stars to Dubnyk (37 save shutout), Jones, and Cogliano.
Meanwhile, Edmonton's Alberta rivals, the Calgary Flames host the Chicago Blackhawks. Corey Crawford and Miikka Kiprusoff are tending the twines. Calgary struck first with a Mikael Backlund goal, his seventh of the season, with assists by Lance Bouma and Adam Pardy. Chicago answered in the second period with a Patrick Kane marker from Jonathan Toews and Troy Brouwer, good as his 15th of the year. Calgary regained the lead in the third period with a goal by Curtis Glencross, his 14th of the season from Olli Jokinen and Robyn Regehr. Rene Bourque put the dagger in for Calgary with his 16th of the year, an empty net goal with helpers from Jokinen and Jarome Iginla. The three stars went to Glencross, Iginla, and Brent Seabrook.
After that, the Phoenix Coyotes played host to the Colorado Avalanche. Craig Anderson and Ilya Bryzgalov were the featured goaltenders. Phoenix struck first with a Radim Vrbata goal, his 12th of the season going down thanks to Martin Hanzal and Ray Whitney. The Coyotes added on in the second period with a Scottie Upshall marker, the 16th of the campaign for him coming off of Kyle Turris and Shane Doan. Vrbata sank another goal in the third period, making it 3-0 with his second of the night and 13th of the year on the power play from Taylor Pyatt and Whitney. This was the final, and Bryzgalov (26 save shutout), Vrbata, and Adrian Aucoin took the three stars home.
Lastly, the Vancouver Canucks hosted the Ottawa Senators. Playing the creases were Brian Elliott and Roberto Luongo. Alexandre Burrows opened the scoring for Vancouver with his 14th of the season, assisted by Henrik Sedin and Christian Ehrhoff. Ryan Kesler added on his 31st of the year to extend the Canucks lead, with the helpers by Mason Raymond and Mikael Samuelsson. Samuelsson potted his own goal in the second period for Vancouver, making it 3-0 with his 12th of the season courtesy of Kesler and Raymond. Ottawa finally got on the board when Nick Foligno sank his ninth of the year, with the help of a returning Jason Spezza and Daniel Alfredsson. Spezza made it a one goal game for the Senators with his tenth of the season, with the lone assist by Chris Phillips. Samuelsson iced the game off for the Canucks with his second of the night and 13th of the year, an empty net goal getting help along the way from Raymond, who finished a sock trick. The three stars went to Samuelsson, Spezza, and Dan Hamhuis.
Tuesday's games are on the way, keep watch very soon.
Fantasy Hockey All-Stars, week 16
This is a special edition of All-Stars this week, featuring a 2-week time period severed by the actual All-Star break, so the stats will be compiled over the last two weeks. With that, these are the studs:
Center: Henrik Sedin, 2 goals, 5 assists, +3, 2 penalty minutes, 4 power play points, 12 shots on goal
Left Wing: Daniel Sedin, 1 goal, 7 assists, +3, 0 penalty minutes, 4 power play points, 14 shots on goal
Right Wing: Mikael Samuelsson, 3 goals, 5 assists, +4, 2 penalty minutes, 4 power play points, 23 shots on goal
Defenseman: Dan Hamhuis, 1 goal, 3 assists, +6, 6 penalty minutes, 2 power play points, 11 shots on goal
Goaltender: Roberto Luongo, 4 wins, 1.25 goals against average, 116 saves, .959 save percentage, 1 shutout
As any normal hockey fan can tell, Vancouver absolutely dominated the world around the All-Star break, with all of these players being on the Canucks team. This will be back next week.
Center: Henrik Sedin, 2 goals, 5 assists, +3, 2 penalty minutes, 4 power play points, 12 shots on goal
Left Wing: Daniel Sedin, 1 goal, 7 assists, +3, 0 penalty minutes, 4 power play points, 14 shots on goal
Right Wing: Mikael Samuelsson, 3 goals, 5 assists, +4, 2 penalty minutes, 4 power play points, 23 shots on goal
Defenseman: Dan Hamhuis, 1 goal, 3 assists, +6, 6 penalty minutes, 2 power play points, 11 shots on goal
Goaltender: Roberto Luongo, 4 wins, 1.25 goals against average, 116 saves, .959 save percentage, 1 shutout
As any normal hockey fan can tell, Vancouver absolutely dominated the world around the All-Star break, with all of these players being on the Canucks team. This will be back next week.
Song of the Week VI
This week, we have a live performance coming in as our song for the week. I would like to note that while we try to keep things PG around this blog, song titles are chosen by their artists, and the computer decides for the song of the week. With that, our song of the week is The B**** is Back, by Sir Elton John. This live performance is recorded at Madison Square Garden in New York City, as the last track in the set for that show. The song itself has a very good message, with Elton stating that he doesn't really care what others think of him, because he's going to live his life as he likes. The quick tempo of the song also bring out an edge to the message, giving the song a strong and independent feeling. That's all for this week, we'll be back here next week.
Sunday, February 6, 2011
SUPER BOWL XLV
This is the official Sports, Music, Subway, Repeat blog post for Super Bowl XLV. We have the NFC's Green Bay Packers taking on the Pittsburgh Steelers in Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas (props for failure to prepare and making the festivities quite pathetic to the Cowboys organization). Green Bay opened the scoring with a touchdown pass from Aaron Rodgers to Jordy Nelson for 29 yards, with Mason Crosby adding on the extra point. The next touchdown also came from the Packers, with Nick Collins intercepting Ben Roethlisberger for 37 yards and a score, and Crosby brought the tally to 14-0. Shaun Suisham put Pittsburgh on the board with a 33 yard field goal. Rodgers responded for Green Bay with a 21 yard touchdown pass to Greg Jennings, allowing another extra point by Crosby. Roethlisberger decided to throw a touchdown to the right team this time, connecting with Hines Ward for 8 yards and a score, with the extra point by Suisham bringing the halftime score to 21-10, leaving the Steelers down by 11. Pittsburgh added on another touchdown in the third quarter, an 8 yard rush by Rashard Mendenhall, and the Suisham extra point brought them within 4. Rodgers connected with Jennings again, this time for 8 yards and the score, and the 11 point lead was restored on the Crosby extra point. The Steelers answered with Roethlisberger throwing a 25 yard touchdown to Mike Wallace, and the two point conversion was good on the Antwaan Randle El run. Crosby adds on a 23 yard field goal to give Green Bay a 31-25 lead. This would be enough to make the Packers Super Bowl champions, giving the steelers only their second loss ever in a Super Bowl game. (As a side note, the city of Seattle and state of Washington thank the Packers for winning.)
NHL on Super Bowl Sunday
As a prelude to "The Big Game," the NHL scheduled three games for our viewing pleasures. The first of which should be the main-view grabber, the NHL's own big game with the...
Washington Capitals hosting the injury-ridden Pittsburgh Penguins. Marc-Andre Fleury and Michal Neuvirth got the starts in goal for today's game. Brooks Laich opened the scoring for Washington in the first period with his eleventh of the season, helped along by John Erskine and Mathieu Perreault. The Capitals take a 2-0 lead in the second period with a shorthanded goal by Marcus Johansson, his seventh of the year getting assistance from Jeff Schultz. Washington wraps the game up in the late third period with an empty net goal by Mike Knuble, his 13th of the campaign coming off of Matt Hendricks. The three stars were awarded to Neuvirth (22 save shutout), Laich, and Johansson.
The next game of the day is in Montreal, with Canadiens hosting the New Jersey Devils. Martin Brodeur and Carey Price pick up the starting honors. Dainius Zubrus puts New Jersey up early with his tenth of the season, an unassisted goal. Ilya Kovalchuk made it 2-0 for the Devils with his 16th of the year, thanks to Colin White and Travis Zajac. Starting in net in the second period for New Jersey is Johan Hedberg, covering for a likely-injured Brodeur. Zajac adds his own goal for New Jersey, his ninth of the season, making it 3-0 thanks to Anton Volchenkov. Montreal got on the board with a goal by P.K. Subban, his sixth of the year, with the helpers by Scott Gomez and Max Pacioretty. Kovalchuk sealed the deal at 4-1 for the Devils with his second of the night and 17th of the season into the empty net with the help of Zajac. Earning the three stars were Kovalchuk, Subban, and Zajac.
Lastly, we have the blogger's nightmare, with the Tampa Bay Lightning hosting the St. Louis Blues. Ty Conklin and Dan Ellis took to the creases for the game. Steven Stamkos put Tampa Bay up first with his 40th of the season, which got help from Brett Clark and Martin St. Louis (and you now know why this is a nightmare; glad it only happens once a year). St. Louis tied the game at one just thirty seconds into the second period with the 12th of the year by Patrik Berglund, with Alex Steen and T.J. Oshie picking up the helpers. The Lightning quickly reclaimed the lead with a Dominic Moore goal, his ninth of the season getting the assistance need from Stamkos and Marc-Andre Bergeron. The Blues answered back with David Backes putting his 17th of the year in the twine on the power play with the help of Steen and Oshie. St. Louis took the lead on the first of the season by Nikita Nikitin, made possible by Jay McClement. Tampa Bay retied the game on a Steve Downie marker just thirty seconds later, his sixth of the year helped along by Stamkos and St. Louis. The Lightning toppled the Blues after a scoreless third period with an overtime power play goal from Vincent Lecavalier, with assists from Bergeron and Stamkos, the later notching a sock trick. The three stars were Stamkos, Downie and Backes.
Washington Capitals hosting the injury-ridden Pittsburgh Penguins. Marc-Andre Fleury and Michal Neuvirth got the starts in goal for today's game. Brooks Laich opened the scoring for Washington in the first period with his eleventh of the season, helped along by John Erskine and Mathieu Perreault. The Capitals take a 2-0 lead in the second period with a shorthanded goal by Marcus Johansson, his seventh of the year getting assistance from Jeff Schultz. Washington wraps the game up in the late third period with an empty net goal by Mike Knuble, his 13th of the campaign coming off of Matt Hendricks. The three stars were awarded to Neuvirth (22 save shutout), Laich, and Johansson.
The next game of the day is in Montreal, with Canadiens hosting the New Jersey Devils. Martin Brodeur and Carey Price pick up the starting honors. Dainius Zubrus puts New Jersey up early with his tenth of the season, an unassisted goal. Ilya Kovalchuk made it 2-0 for the Devils with his 16th of the year, thanks to Colin White and Travis Zajac. Starting in net in the second period for New Jersey is Johan Hedberg, covering for a likely-injured Brodeur. Zajac adds his own goal for New Jersey, his ninth of the season, making it 3-0 thanks to Anton Volchenkov. Montreal got on the board with a goal by P.K. Subban, his sixth of the year, with the helpers by Scott Gomez and Max Pacioretty. Kovalchuk sealed the deal at 4-1 for the Devils with his second of the night and 17th of the season into the empty net with the help of Zajac. Earning the three stars were Kovalchuk, Subban, and Zajac.
Lastly, we have the blogger's nightmare, with the Tampa Bay Lightning hosting the St. Louis Blues. Ty Conklin and Dan Ellis took to the creases for the game. Steven Stamkos put Tampa Bay up first with his 40th of the season, which got help from Brett Clark and Martin St. Louis (and you now know why this is a nightmare; glad it only happens once a year). St. Louis tied the game at one just thirty seconds into the second period with the 12th of the year by Patrik Berglund, with Alex Steen and T.J. Oshie picking up the helpers. The Lightning quickly reclaimed the lead with a Dominic Moore goal, his ninth of the season getting the assistance need from Stamkos and Marc-Andre Bergeron. The Blues answered back with David Backes putting his 17th of the year in the twine on the power play with the help of Steen and Oshie. St. Louis took the lead on the first of the season by Nikita Nikitin, made possible by Jay McClement. Tampa Bay retied the game on a Steve Downie marker just thirty seconds later, his sixth of the year helped along by Stamkos and St. Louis. The Lightning toppled the Blues after a scoreless third period with an overtime power play goal from Vincent Lecavalier, with assists from Bergeron and Stamkos, the later notching a sock trick. The three stars were Stamkos, Downie and Backes.
Sandwich Showdown, February 5-6
This Sandwich Showdown, along with the others in February, will likely be very similar, as the promotional choice for this month at Subway is all sandwiches will be at $5 (footlong cost). With that said, we have a Spicy Italian going up against a Roasted Chicken, with both on Herbs and Cheese. The Spicy Italian brought out many different flavors of richness and tasty goodness, as it always does. However, the Roasted Chicken, featured with its porker partner, the slices of Bacon, get the clear cut victory here with just absolute sandwich perfection. This feature will run here next week.
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