NHL February 2nd 2013

Eleven games on today in a busy schedule. First up...

The Pittsburgh Penguins host the New Jersey Devils. Martin Brodeur and Marc-Andre Fleury are given the starting nods. Pittsburgh started with a second period Brandon Sutter goal, passed from Sidney Crosby and Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin. The Penguins added on as Chris Kunitz potted his second of the season, an unassisted goal. New Jersey got on the board with a shorthanded goal by Andy Greene, set up by Dainius Zubrus and Ryan Carter. Pittsburgh replied in the third period with the second of the year by Kris Letang assisted by Kunitz and Malkin. The Penguins extended the lead as Crosby notched his fourth of the season, via Kunitz and Pascal Dupuis. Pittsburgh padded the lead as Robert Bortuzzo scored a goal, thanks to Crosby and Dupuis. This made it 5-1, the final, with Crosby, Kunitz, and Bortuzzo getting the three stars, while Dupuis, Malkin, and Fleury (15 for 16 in saves) get the honorable mentions.

Up in Montreal, the Canadiens host the Buffalo Sabres. Ryan Miller and Carey Price guard the cages. Montreal struck first in the first period as Rene Bourque scored his second of the season, a power play goal powered by Brian Gionta and Tomas Plekanec. The Canadiens added on with a second period Brendan Gallagher goal, his third of the year, fueled by Alex Galchenyuk and Francis Bouillon. Montreal padded the lead as David Desharnais scored, courtesy of Lars Eller. The Canadiens extended the lead as Eller found twine, thanks to Galchenyuk and Tomas Kaberle. Jhonas Enroth relieved Miller for the third period. Montreal kept going as Bourque potted his second of the game and third of the season in the third period, with the help of Plekanec. Buffalo got on the board with a Thomas Vanek goal, his seventh of the season, coming shorthanded with a lone assist from Marcus Foligno. The Canadiens made it 6-1 with a power play goal by Desharnais, his second of the game, assisted by Eller and P.K. Subban. This was a final score, with the three stars being Galchenyuk, Bourque, and Price (30 for 31 in saves), while the honorable mentions went to Eller, Desharnais, and Plekanec.

Southwest to Colorado, as the Avalanche host the Edmonton Oilers. Devan Dubnyk and Semyon Varlamov will man the creases. Edmonton was first to score in the first period on a Nail Yakupov goal, his fifth of the season, coming off of Ales Hemsky and Sam Gagner. Colorado got on the board in the second period as P.A. Parenteau scored his sixth of the year, courtesy of Jamie McGinn and Ryan Wilson. The Avalanche took the lead with a McGinn goal, made possible by Matt Duchene. Colorado iced it at 3-1 when Paul Stastny scored his third of the season, an empty net goal set up by John Mitchell and Duchene. McGinn, Parenteau, and Duchene got the three stars.

Back east, the Columbus Blue Jackets host the Detroit Red Wings. Jimmy Howard and Steve Mason are the young goalies. Detroit led off in the first period with the second of the season for Johan Franzen, assisted by Niklas Kronwall and Jonathan Ericsson. Columbus tied it as James Wisniewski scored his second of the year, a power play goal powered by Fedor Tyutin and Derick Brassard. The Blue Jackets took the lead in the second period on the third of the season by Artem Anisimov, an unassisted goal. Columbus added on as Anisimov potted his second of the game and fourth of the year, thanks to John Moore and Jack Johnson. The Blue Jackets padded the lead as Mark Letestu scored his third of the season, a shorthanded goal passed from Brandon Dubinsky and Tyutin. The Red Wings got one back as Damien Brunner netted his fourth of the year, with the help of Valtteri Filppula. This only made it 4-2, the final, with Anisimov, Mason (32 for 34 in saves), and Johnson getting the three stars, while Tyutin gets the honorable mention.

Further east, the Philadelphia Flyers host the Carolina Hurricanes. Dan Ellis and Ilya Bryzgalov make the starts. Philadelphia got going with a Kurtis Foster power play goal in the first period, made possible by Matt Read and Sean Couturier. Carolina tied it on a Joni Pitkanen goal, with a lone assist by Eric Staal. The Flyers took the lead back as Braydon Coburn scored, thanks to Jakub Voracek and Brayden Schenn. Philadelphia added on as Briere scored a power play goal, set up by Claude Giroux and Kimmo Timonen. The Hurricanes shot back as Eric Staal notched his sixth of the season, with the help of Jiri Tlusty. The Flyers replied in the second period on a Mike Knuble goal, coming off of Read. Ellis was pulled for Cam Ward at this time. Philadelphia extended the lead as Giroux scored his third of the year, a power play goal powered by Timonen and Briere. Carolina got one back in the third period with the second of the campaign for Patrick Dwyer, a power play goal, fueled by Jordan Staal and Jamie McBain. This produced a 5-3 final, with the three stars being Briere, Read, and Bryzgalov (39 for 42 in saves), while Giroux, Timonen, and Eric Staal get the honorable mentions.

Down in Tampa Bay, the Lightning host the New York Rangers. Martin Biron and Mathieu Garon are the backup goalies getting spot starts. Tampa Bay opened in the second period as Steven Stamkos scored his sixth of the season, a power play goal powered by Matt Carle and Martin St. Louis. New York tied it with a Derek Stepan goal, assisted by Taylor Pyatt and Carl Hagelin. The Rangers took the lead in the third period on a Rick Nash goal, his second of the year, fueled by Brad Richards and Marc Staal. New York padded the lead as Hagelin scored, with a lone helper from Pyatt. The Lightning pulled back as Stamkos scored his second of the game and seventh of the campaign, set up by Carle and Ryan Malone. They failed to tie it, losing 3-2, with the three stars being Nash, Stepan, and Stamkos, while Carle, Hagelin, and Pyatt receive the honorable mentions.

Back north, the Toronto Maple Leafs host the Boston Bruins. Tuukka Rask and James Reimer will wear the pads. Boston began in the first period as Chris Bourque scored, and the assists went to Chris Kelly and Rich Peverley. This was the game's only goal, resulting in a 1-0 final score. The three stars were Reimer (33 for 34 in saves), Rask (21 save shutout), and Bourque.

Southwest to Phoenix, as the Coyotes host the Dallas Stars. Richard Bachman and Mike Smith have the green light to start. Phoenix led off in the second period as Nick Johnson scored his third of the season, via Lauri Korpikoski. The Coyotes added on in the third period as Mikkel Boedker potted his second of the year, thanks to Martin Hanzal and Derek Morris on the power play. This was good for a 2-0 win, with the three stars awarded to Smith (17 save shutout), Johnson, and Morris.

North to Calgary, with the Flames hosting the Chicago Blackhawks. Ray Emery and Miikka Kiprusoff protect the nets. Chicago finally got going in the third period as Patrick Kane netted his fourth of the season, assisted by Patrick Sharp and Andrew Shaw. Calgary tied it on a Dennis Wideman power play goal, powered by Alex Tanguay and Jarome Iginla. The Flames took the lead as Jay Bouwmeester notched his second of the year, courtesy of Jiri Hudler and Matt Stajan. The Blackhawks tied it with three seconds left on the sixth of the campaign for Marian Hossa, passed from Johnny Oduya and Kane. The game required a shootout to be determined, and Kane had the only tally, which gave Chicago the 3-2 win. The three stars were given to Emery (45 for 47 in saves), Wideman, and Bouwmeester, while Kane gets the honorable mention. 

Back to the south, with the Anaheim Ducks hosting the Los Angeles Kings. Jonathan Quick and Jonas Hiller tend the twines. Anaheim started in the first period with a Nick Bonino goal, passed from Emerson Etem. The Ducks added on as Bonino scored his second of the night, via Etem and Bryan Allen. Jonathan Bernier was called on in relief of Quick. Los Angeles got on the board as Dustin Brown scored his second of the season, a power play goal powered by Anze Kopitar and Drew Doughty. The Kings tied it quickly as Jarret Stoll scored, with the help of Simon Gagne and Slava Voynov. Anaheim jumped back ahead as Ryan Getzlaf sank his third of the year, assisted by Corey Perry. Los Angeles tied it in the second period with another Brown goal, his second of the game and third of the season, a power play goal coming off of Doughty and Mike Richards. The Ducks regained the lead again on a Sheldon Souray power play goal, his second of the year, going in unassisted. The Kings replied with a Justin Williams goal, made possible by Gagne and Stoll. Anaheim took the lead once more on a Kyle Palmieri goal, his fourth of the season, guided in by Saku Koivu and Luca Sbisa on the power play. The Ducks padded the lead as Bonino finished his hat trick in the third period with a power play goal, pushed through by Bobby Ryan and Sbisa. Anaheim iced it at 7-4 on a Teemu Selanne empty net goal, his third of the year, set up by Bonino and Ryan. The three stars were Bonino, Francois Beauchemin, and Souray, while any of Ryan, Sbisa, Etem, Brown, Doughty, or Gagne could take the second star.

Finally, we end in San Jose, where the Sharks welcome the Nashville Predators. Pekka Rinne and Antti Niemi are the Finnish goalies. Nashville opened in the third period with a Sergei Kostitsyn goal, and Colin Wilson had the lone assist. San Jose tied it as Martin Havlat potted his third of the season, a power play goal powered by Scott Gomez. The game was decided in the shootout on a lone Craig Smith tally, leving the Predators with a 2-1 win. The three stars were awarded to Rinne (26 for 27 in saves), Niemi (23 for 24 in saves), and Kostitsyn.

Follow me on Twitter @KipperScorpion.