Sunday, December 19, 2010
Saturday Sandwich Review
Due to my eyes literally being bigger than my stomach Saturday night at KFC, there is no Sandwich Showdown this week. However, I will take this time to review my Roast Beef on wheat that I had yesterday. It was delicious and nutritious, featuring a healthy bread and protein from the deli cut of beef. The sauce really brought out a nice kick in the sandwich, and simplicity was key in making it a delicious feature and a great meal. Good sandwich idea for anyone, in my opinion, and the Roast Beef has always been a favorite of mine. Sandwich Showdown will likely not occur next week either, with the Christmas holiday. Keep eating though, and eat happily.
Saturday's NHL recap
There were eleven games played on Saturday, all of which to be recapped in this post. In baseball news, Zack Greinke appears to be headed to Milwaukee from Kansas City, headlining a multi-player deal. Initial thoughts are the Brewers got a boost here, solidifying their rotation at the top. Also, with the recaps now in hockey, there will be less detail. The goalies will be listed in visitor and home format, with the three stars being trimmed down to the names. By now, many of you readers know who plays where, and you can all read the post, so I don't have to tell you twice what any given player did. We start in Philadelphia, where the...
Flyers hosted the New York Rangers. Henrik Lundqvist and Brian Boucher were the goalies. The first period went scoreless, and Nikolay Zherdev put Philadelphia up first with his 12th of the year, assisted by Mike Richards. Andreas Nodl extended the Flyer lead with his eighth of the season, helped by Claude Giroux. Derek Stepan got New York on the board with his ninth of the year, assisted by Alexander Frolov and Erik Christensen. Ville Leino made it a two goal game again with his eighth of the year, with assistance from Kimmo Timmonen and Danny Briere. Zherdev made it 4-1 Philadelphia with his second of the night and 13th of the season, a power play goal with help from Andrej Meszaros and Jeff Carter. This proved to be the final, with the Flyers getting the win. Zherdev, Timmonen, and Nodl got the stars. Breaking out in a fight were Dale Weise of the Rangers and Dan Carcillo of the Flyers, which was late in the third period.
Heading the short distance to Boston, where the Bruins hosted the Washington Capitals. Michal Neuvirth and Tim Thomas were the twinetenders. Patrice Bergeron opened the scoring with his sixth of the year, assisted by Blake Wheeler and Adam McQuaid. Andrew Ference extended the Boston lead to 2-0 with his first of the season, from Brad Marchand and David Krejci. Wheeler added his eighth of the year later in the first period, getting help from Bergeron and Johnny Boychuk. Washington finally answered in the second period with Matt Bradley's third of the year, courtesy of Dave Steckel and Matt Hendricks. The Capitals continued the rally back in the third period with a Karl Alzner goal, his second of the year, from John Carlson and Alex Ovechkin. However, the Bruins held on for the rest of the third period and won 3-2. Bergeron, Tim Thomas (39 for 41), and McQuaid received the stars. McQuaid and Bradley also had a first period fight.
Heading out west to British Columbia, where the Vancouver Canucks hosted the Toronto Maple Leafs. Jonas Gustavsson and Roberto Luongo got the starts in net. Alexandre Burrows got the Canucks started in the first period with his sixth of the season, assisted on by Kevin Bieksa and Daniel Sedin. Vancouver also scored a goal in the second period from Jannik Hansen, assisted by Ryan Kesler and Jeff Tambellini. Toronto responded in the third period with a Mikhail Grabovski goal, his eleventh of the year. Clarke MacArthur and Nikolai Kulemin picked up the helpers. The Canucks responded with Christian Ehrhoff's fifth of the season, with Hansen and Alexander Edler picking up assists. Henrik Sedin finished the scoring with an empty net goal, his sixth tally of the campaign, from Burrows and Bieksa. Vancouver cruised to a 4-1 win over the Maple Leafs. Luongo (27 for 28 saves), Kesler, and Bieksa picked up the stars for the game.
Going across the map and significantly south, to where the Atlanta Thrashers hosted the New Jersey Devils. Martin Brodeur and Ondrej Pavelec were in their respective creases to start the game. The Thrashers opened with a goal by Ron Hainsey, his first of the season, assisted by Brent Sopel and Nik Antropov. Eric Boulton extended the lead to 2-0 with his second of the year, from Chris Thorburn and Johnny Oduya. Evander Kane made it 3-0 with his eleventh of the season, thanks to Anthony Stewart and Hainsey. Atlanta continued with Andrew Ladd's eleventh of the season in the second period, courtesy of Rich Peverley and Tobias Enstrom. This was enough for Martin Brodeur to be replaced by Johan Hedberg. Ilya Kovalchuk got New Jersey on the board with his power play goal from Travis Zajac and Patrik Elias. The goal was his eighth of the year. The Thrashers got back on the scoring train with Boulton in the third period, who notched two more goals to complete his hat trick. The third of his season was helped by Thorburn and Jim Slater, and the fourth of the year went unassisted. Thorburn put the Devils out of their misery with his fifth of the year, helped out by Kane and Stewart. Atlanta won 7-1, with stars going to Boulton, Thorburn, and Hainsey. Zajac and Peverley also shared a dance in the third period.
Going up to Columbus, where the Blue Jackets tried to break the nearly-infamous Third Jersey Curse against the visiting Dallas Stars. Kari Lehtonen and Mathieu Garon earned the starts. Brad Richards got Dallas up first with his 13th of the year, assisted by Mike Rebeiro and Stephane Robidas. The Blue Jackets answered with the first goal of the season for Fedor Tyutin. Ethan Moreau and Anton Stralman provided the helpers. The game was scoreless through the second, and Richards second of the night and 14th of the year in the third period gave the Stars a 2-1 lead. Picking up the assist was Loui Eriksson. Dallas held on to win 2-1, with the stars going to Richards, Lethonen (35 for 36 saves) and losing goaltender Garon (21 for 23). The game was not without activity, as their were a total of 88 penalty minutes assessed, including fights between Krys Barch of the Stars and Tom Sestito of the Blue Jackets in the first period, before Barch came back for more to fight Jared Boll in the second period. Various other misconducts and minor penalties were a common sight throughout the game as well.
Continuing along to Long Island, where the New York Islanders hosted the traveling Phoenix Coyotes. Jason LaBarbera and Nathan Lawson picked up the starts in place of the normal netminders. Opening the scoring for Phoenix was Radim Vrbata, notching his seventh of the year, a power play goal from Shane Doan and Keith Yandle. Jesse Joensuu answered in the second period with his second goal of the year, from John Tavares and James Wisniewski. Joensuu also assisted on the go-ahead goal for the Islanders, which was from Michael Grabner, his seventh of the season. Phoenix re-tied the game in the third period with a goal by Wojtek Wolski, his fifth of the year assisted by Doan and Oliver Ekman-Larsson. Rob Schremp regained the lead for New York with his sixth of the season, from Grabner and Andrew MacDonald on the power play. Martin Hanzal tied it at 3 late in the third period for the Coyotes with his ninth of the year, helped along by Vrbata and Keith Yandle. The tie would last into a shootout, where Doan and Frans Nielsen exchanged barbs before Vrbata and Kyle Turris put the game away, giving Phoenix a 4-3 win. Joensuu of the Islanders was the first star, followed by Hanzal and Labarbera (41 of 44 saves). Setting the tone early were pugilists Paul Bissonnette of the Coyotes and Trevor Gillies of New York.
Onward to Carolina, where the Hurricanes hosted another traveling Pacific Division team, the Anaheim Ducks. Jonas Hiller and Cam Ward were in between the pipes. Ryan Getzlaf got the Ducks on the board first with his 12th of the season, assisted by Corey Perry and Bobby Ryan. Eric Staal added a natural hat trick, his 14th, 15th, and 16th of the year, with the first two being power play goals in the first period, assisted by Jussi Jokinen and Joni Pitkanen on the first and Jamie McBain and Jokinen again on the second. Erik Cole and Jeff Skinner assisted on the third one that came at even strength in the second period. Carolina's lead was cut to 3-2 by Anaheim's Getzlaf, who added his second of the night and 13th of the year on the power play from Lubomir Visnovsky and Perry, in the third period. Joe Corvo put the game out of reach, making it 4-2 Hurricanes with his empty net goal, from Brandon Sutter, as his sixth of the season. Staal's hat trick earned the first star, followed by Ward (43 for 45 saves) and Tim Gleason (contributions unidentified), with a personal Honorable Mention to Getzlaf.
Heading into Florida, where the Tampa Bay Lightning hosted the Buffalo Sabres. Ryan Miller and Mike Smith were given goaltending duties. The first period went by scoreless, and Tampa Bay opened the scoring with a power play goal by Simon Gagne, his third goal of the season, with assists by Vincent Lecavalier and Martin St. Louis. Steven Stamkos made it 2-0 for the Lightning with his 25th of the season, assisted by St. Louis and Ryan Malone. Jason Pominville got the Sabres on the board with his fifth of the year, from Jochen Hecht and Andrej Sekera. The Lightning finished the game off late in the third period with an empty net goal by Martin St. Louis, his 12th of the season being helped by Stamkos and Mattias Ohlund, giving them a 3-1 win. The three stars provided don't exactly add up to what I think they should, so my top three in the game would be St. Louis, Stamkos, and Mike Smith (22 for 23 in saves).
Heading into Tennessee, where the Nashville Predators hosted the Los Angeles Kings. Jonathan Bernier and Anders Lindback got the starts. Justin Williams gave Los Angeles a lead fifteen seconds in with his eleventh of the season, assisted by Dustin Brown and Drew Doughty. Trevor Lewis made it 2-0 with his first of the year, from Alexei Ponikarovsky and Kevin Westgarth. The next goal for the Kings, Doughty's second of the year, scared off Anders Lindback, and it was assisted by Michal Handzus and Wayne Simmonds. Mark Dekanich came on in relief. Steve Sullivan gave Nashville signs of life with his tenth of the year, assisted by Ryan Suter and Colin Wilson, but LA put that comeback down with Ryan Smyth's tenth of the season, a power paly goal from Dustin Brown and Jarret Stoll. Ponikarovsky made it 5-1 in the second period with his third of the year, helped by Oscar Moller and Trevor Lewis. Smyth added his second of the game and eleventh of the year later in the second, with Stoll and Moller picking up the helpers. The 6-1 score ended up being the final after a silent third period, and Los Angeles had no trouble winning. Smyth, Doughty, and Lewis earned the stars for the game.
Going to St. Louis, where the Blues hosted the San Jose Sharks. Antero Niittymaki and Jaroslav Halak were the netminders. Logan Couture opened the scoring for San Jose, notching his 16th of the season, a power play goal from Dan Boyle and Ryane Clowe. Extending the lead was Marc-Edouard Vlasic, who scored his second of the season, from Joe Pavelski and Jamal Mayers. Couture made it 3-0 for San Jose with his 17th of the year and second of the game, helped along by Boyle and Patrick Marleau. St. Louis finally struck with a David Backes penalty shot goal, his seventh of the year made possible by a Jason Demers slashing infraction. The Sharks topped it off in the third period with a Devin Setoguchi goal, his fifth on the campaign, with help from Vlasic and Pavelski. The Sharks cruised to a 4-1 win. Couture, Boyle, and Vlasic earned the stars for the game. The first period ended up being a brawlfest with three fights (St. Louis guy, San Jose guy format in listing). The first involved B.J. Crombeen and Ryane Clowe, followed by the middle bout of Chris Porter and Scott Nichol, and lastly, the finale involving Brad Winchester and Jamal Mayers.
Lastly, we head up to Calgary, where the Flames hosted Northwest division rivals, the Minnesota Wild. Niklas Backstrom and Miikka Kiprusoff earned the starting duties for the two teams. After going half the game with no scoring, Antti Miettinen opened things up with his eighth of the year, a power play goal assisted by Mikko Koivu and Brent Burns. Koivu later tallied his own goal for the Wild, his seventh of the year making it 2-0, with assists from Burns and Andrew Brunette. Chuck Kobasew made it 3-0 for Minnesota in the third period, notching his third of the year with help from Koivu and Nick Schultz. Calgary finally answered with a goal by Matt Stajan, his second of the season, helped along by Cory Sarich and Rene Bourque, but it was far too late to help, and Minnesota held on for a 3-1 win over the Flames. Koivu eanred the first star, followed by Mark Giordano of the Flames for unknown reasons, and Backstrom earned the third star with his 28 for 29 saves.
That's all we got for hockey on Saturday. Posts to be put out later today will include a Sandwich Review, three football posts, and if I get lucky, a Sunday Hockey recap.
Flyers hosted the New York Rangers. Henrik Lundqvist and Brian Boucher were the goalies. The first period went scoreless, and Nikolay Zherdev put Philadelphia up first with his 12th of the year, assisted by Mike Richards. Andreas Nodl extended the Flyer lead with his eighth of the season, helped by Claude Giroux. Derek Stepan got New York on the board with his ninth of the year, assisted by Alexander Frolov and Erik Christensen. Ville Leino made it a two goal game again with his eighth of the year, with assistance from Kimmo Timmonen and Danny Briere. Zherdev made it 4-1 Philadelphia with his second of the night and 13th of the season, a power play goal with help from Andrej Meszaros and Jeff Carter. This proved to be the final, with the Flyers getting the win. Zherdev, Timmonen, and Nodl got the stars. Breaking out in a fight were Dale Weise of the Rangers and Dan Carcillo of the Flyers, which was late in the third period.
Heading the short distance to Boston, where the Bruins hosted the Washington Capitals. Michal Neuvirth and Tim Thomas were the twinetenders. Patrice Bergeron opened the scoring with his sixth of the year, assisted by Blake Wheeler and Adam McQuaid. Andrew Ference extended the Boston lead to 2-0 with his first of the season, from Brad Marchand and David Krejci. Wheeler added his eighth of the year later in the first period, getting help from Bergeron and Johnny Boychuk. Washington finally answered in the second period with Matt Bradley's third of the year, courtesy of Dave Steckel and Matt Hendricks. The Capitals continued the rally back in the third period with a Karl Alzner goal, his second of the year, from John Carlson and Alex Ovechkin. However, the Bruins held on for the rest of the third period and won 3-2. Bergeron, Tim Thomas (39 for 41), and McQuaid received the stars. McQuaid and Bradley also had a first period fight.
Heading out west to British Columbia, where the Vancouver Canucks hosted the Toronto Maple Leafs. Jonas Gustavsson and Roberto Luongo got the starts in net. Alexandre Burrows got the Canucks started in the first period with his sixth of the season, assisted on by Kevin Bieksa and Daniel Sedin. Vancouver also scored a goal in the second period from Jannik Hansen, assisted by Ryan Kesler and Jeff Tambellini. Toronto responded in the third period with a Mikhail Grabovski goal, his eleventh of the year. Clarke MacArthur and Nikolai Kulemin picked up the helpers. The Canucks responded with Christian Ehrhoff's fifth of the season, with Hansen and Alexander Edler picking up assists. Henrik Sedin finished the scoring with an empty net goal, his sixth tally of the campaign, from Burrows and Bieksa. Vancouver cruised to a 4-1 win over the Maple Leafs. Luongo (27 for 28 saves), Kesler, and Bieksa picked up the stars for the game.
Going across the map and significantly south, to where the Atlanta Thrashers hosted the New Jersey Devils. Martin Brodeur and Ondrej Pavelec were in their respective creases to start the game. The Thrashers opened with a goal by Ron Hainsey, his first of the season, assisted by Brent Sopel and Nik Antropov. Eric Boulton extended the lead to 2-0 with his second of the year, from Chris Thorburn and Johnny Oduya. Evander Kane made it 3-0 with his eleventh of the season, thanks to Anthony Stewart and Hainsey. Atlanta continued with Andrew Ladd's eleventh of the season in the second period, courtesy of Rich Peverley and Tobias Enstrom. This was enough for Martin Brodeur to be replaced by Johan Hedberg. Ilya Kovalchuk got New Jersey on the board with his power play goal from Travis Zajac and Patrik Elias. The goal was his eighth of the year. The Thrashers got back on the scoring train with Boulton in the third period, who notched two more goals to complete his hat trick. The third of his season was helped by Thorburn and Jim Slater, and the fourth of the year went unassisted. Thorburn put the Devils out of their misery with his fifth of the year, helped out by Kane and Stewart. Atlanta won 7-1, with stars going to Boulton, Thorburn, and Hainsey. Zajac and Peverley also shared a dance in the third period.
Going up to Columbus, where the Blue Jackets tried to break the nearly-infamous Third Jersey Curse against the visiting Dallas Stars. Kari Lehtonen and Mathieu Garon earned the starts. Brad Richards got Dallas up first with his 13th of the year, assisted by Mike Rebeiro and Stephane Robidas. The Blue Jackets answered with the first goal of the season for Fedor Tyutin. Ethan Moreau and Anton Stralman provided the helpers. The game was scoreless through the second, and Richards second of the night and 14th of the year in the third period gave the Stars a 2-1 lead. Picking up the assist was Loui Eriksson. Dallas held on to win 2-1, with the stars going to Richards, Lethonen (35 for 36 saves) and losing goaltender Garon (21 for 23). The game was not without activity, as their were a total of 88 penalty minutes assessed, including fights between Krys Barch of the Stars and Tom Sestito of the Blue Jackets in the first period, before Barch came back for more to fight Jared Boll in the second period. Various other misconducts and minor penalties were a common sight throughout the game as well.
Continuing along to Long Island, where the New York Islanders hosted the traveling Phoenix Coyotes. Jason LaBarbera and Nathan Lawson picked up the starts in place of the normal netminders. Opening the scoring for Phoenix was Radim Vrbata, notching his seventh of the year, a power play goal from Shane Doan and Keith Yandle. Jesse Joensuu answered in the second period with his second goal of the year, from John Tavares and James Wisniewski. Joensuu also assisted on the go-ahead goal for the Islanders, which was from Michael Grabner, his seventh of the season. Phoenix re-tied the game in the third period with a goal by Wojtek Wolski, his fifth of the year assisted by Doan and Oliver Ekman-Larsson. Rob Schremp regained the lead for New York with his sixth of the season, from Grabner and Andrew MacDonald on the power play. Martin Hanzal tied it at 3 late in the third period for the Coyotes with his ninth of the year, helped along by Vrbata and Keith Yandle. The tie would last into a shootout, where Doan and Frans Nielsen exchanged barbs before Vrbata and Kyle Turris put the game away, giving Phoenix a 4-3 win. Joensuu of the Islanders was the first star, followed by Hanzal and Labarbera (41 of 44 saves). Setting the tone early were pugilists Paul Bissonnette of the Coyotes and Trevor Gillies of New York.
Onward to Carolina, where the Hurricanes hosted another traveling Pacific Division team, the Anaheim Ducks. Jonas Hiller and Cam Ward were in between the pipes. Ryan Getzlaf got the Ducks on the board first with his 12th of the season, assisted by Corey Perry and Bobby Ryan. Eric Staal added a natural hat trick, his 14th, 15th, and 16th of the year, with the first two being power play goals in the first period, assisted by Jussi Jokinen and Joni Pitkanen on the first and Jamie McBain and Jokinen again on the second. Erik Cole and Jeff Skinner assisted on the third one that came at even strength in the second period. Carolina's lead was cut to 3-2 by Anaheim's Getzlaf, who added his second of the night and 13th of the year on the power play from Lubomir Visnovsky and Perry, in the third period. Joe Corvo put the game out of reach, making it 4-2 Hurricanes with his empty net goal, from Brandon Sutter, as his sixth of the season. Staal's hat trick earned the first star, followed by Ward (43 for 45 saves) and Tim Gleason (contributions unidentified), with a personal Honorable Mention to Getzlaf.
Heading into Florida, where the Tampa Bay Lightning hosted the Buffalo Sabres. Ryan Miller and Mike Smith were given goaltending duties. The first period went by scoreless, and Tampa Bay opened the scoring with a power play goal by Simon Gagne, his third goal of the season, with assists by Vincent Lecavalier and Martin St. Louis. Steven Stamkos made it 2-0 for the Lightning with his 25th of the season, assisted by St. Louis and Ryan Malone. Jason Pominville got the Sabres on the board with his fifth of the year, from Jochen Hecht and Andrej Sekera. The Lightning finished the game off late in the third period with an empty net goal by Martin St. Louis, his 12th of the season being helped by Stamkos and Mattias Ohlund, giving them a 3-1 win. The three stars provided don't exactly add up to what I think they should, so my top three in the game would be St. Louis, Stamkos, and Mike Smith (22 for 23 in saves).
Heading into Tennessee, where the Nashville Predators hosted the Los Angeles Kings. Jonathan Bernier and Anders Lindback got the starts. Justin Williams gave Los Angeles a lead fifteen seconds in with his eleventh of the season, assisted by Dustin Brown and Drew Doughty. Trevor Lewis made it 2-0 with his first of the year, from Alexei Ponikarovsky and Kevin Westgarth. The next goal for the Kings, Doughty's second of the year, scared off Anders Lindback, and it was assisted by Michal Handzus and Wayne Simmonds. Mark Dekanich came on in relief. Steve Sullivan gave Nashville signs of life with his tenth of the year, assisted by Ryan Suter and Colin Wilson, but LA put that comeback down with Ryan Smyth's tenth of the season, a power paly goal from Dustin Brown and Jarret Stoll. Ponikarovsky made it 5-1 in the second period with his third of the year, helped by Oscar Moller and Trevor Lewis. Smyth added his second of the game and eleventh of the year later in the second, with Stoll and Moller picking up the helpers. The 6-1 score ended up being the final after a silent third period, and Los Angeles had no trouble winning. Smyth, Doughty, and Lewis earned the stars for the game.
Going to St. Louis, where the Blues hosted the San Jose Sharks. Antero Niittymaki and Jaroslav Halak were the netminders. Logan Couture opened the scoring for San Jose, notching his 16th of the season, a power play goal from Dan Boyle and Ryane Clowe. Extending the lead was Marc-Edouard Vlasic, who scored his second of the season, from Joe Pavelski and Jamal Mayers. Couture made it 3-0 for San Jose with his 17th of the year and second of the game, helped along by Boyle and Patrick Marleau. St. Louis finally struck with a David Backes penalty shot goal, his seventh of the year made possible by a Jason Demers slashing infraction. The Sharks topped it off in the third period with a Devin Setoguchi goal, his fifth on the campaign, with help from Vlasic and Pavelski. The Sharks cruised to a 4-1 win. Couture, Boyle, and Vlasic earned the stars for the game. The first period ended up being a brawlfest with three fights (St. Louis guy, San Jose guy format in listing). The first involved B.J. Crombeen and Ryane Clowe, followed by the middle bout of Chris Porter and Scott Nichol, and lastly, the finale involving Brad Winchester and Jamal Mayers.
Lastly, we head up to Calgary, where the Flames hosted Northwest division rivals, the Minnesota Wild. Niklas Backstrom and Miikka Kiprusoff earned the starting duties for the two teams. After going half the game with no scoring, Antti Miettinen opened things up with his eighth of the year, a power play goal assisted by Mikko Koivu and Brent Burns. Koivu later tallied his own goal for the Wild, his seventh of the year making it 2-0, with assists from Burns and Andrew Brunette. Chuck Kobasew made it 3-0 for Minnesota in the third period, notching his third of the year with help from Koivu and Nick Schultz. Calgary finally answered with a goal by Matt Stajan, his second of the season, helped along by Cory Sarich and Rene Bourque, but it was far too late to help, and Minnesota held on for a 3-1 win over the Flames. Koivu eanred the first star, followed by Mark Giordano of the Flames for unknown reasons, and Backstrom earned the third star with his 28 for 29 saves.
That's all we got for hockey on Saturday. Posts to be put out later today will include a Sandwich Review, three football posts, and if I get lucky, a Sunday Hockey recap.
Saturday, December 18, 2010
Friday NHL recap
Four games were played on Friday. Some lopsided hockey, although there was a close game in there. We start at the Prudential Center in...
New Jersey, where the Devils hosted the Nashville Predators. Martin Brodeur was in between the pipes for New Jersey, while Anders Lindback started again for the Predators. Steve Sullivan got Nashville going late in the first period, scoring his ninth of the year with help from Shea Weber. Martin Erat added two power play goals, almost exactly a period apart in the second and third periods, good for his fourth and fifth goals of the season. Assisting on the first were Ryan Suter and Shea Weber, and Suter and Sergei Kostitsyn had the helpers for the later one. Mattias Tedenby got New Jersey on the board with his fourth of the season, also a power play goal, from Ilya Kovalchuk and Brian Rolston. The Devils couldn't fully recover, however, and lost 3-1 to the Predators. Erat's two goals were good for the first star, followed by Weber's two assists. Tedenby's goal in the loss earned the third star.
Heading to Florida, where the Panthers hosted the Buffalo Sabres. Tomas Vokoun was in the paint for Florida, and Ryan Miller earned the starting duties for the Sabres. Bryan McCabe got the Panthers up early with his fourth of the year, assisted by Shawn Matthias and Evgeny Dadonov. Marty Reasoner added two goals in a row, his fourth and fifth of the campaign, with Dadonov and Dennis Wideman helping on the first goal and Jason Garrison picking up the lone assist on the second. Making it 4-0 was David Booth, whose eighth of the year came on the power play from Michael Frolik and Matthias. Frolik potted his own eighth of the year late in the second period, with help from Stephen Weiss and Chris Higgins, but not too late that Buffalo coludn't finally get on the board with Derek Roy's tenth of the year, assisted by Tyler Myers, and their relieving goaltender Patrick Lalime, who came on after Miller gave up Booth's goal. Weiss made it 6-1 early in the third period with his eighth of the season, a shorthanded goal assisted on by Higgins. Tim Connolly made it 6-2 with his sixth of the year for Buffalo, a power play goal assisted by Jochen Hecht and Tyler Ennis. The 6-2 margin proved to be the final, giving Florida the win on the back of first star Reasoner, who had two goals, followed by Frolik, who had one goal and one assist, and goalie Tomas Vokoun, who was 41 for 43 in saves.
Going to Chicago, where the Blackhawks hosted bitter rivals in the form of the Detroit Red Wings. There was a pregame ceremony for Chris Chelios, the Brett Favre of hockey, as he played for both teams. Starting in net for Chicago was Corey Crawford, and for Detroit there was Jimmy Howard. The Blackhawks struck early with Patrick Sharp's 18th of the season, a power play goal assisted by Brent Seabrook and Jonathan Toews. Bryan Bickell made it 2-0 with his ninth of the season, assisted by Fernando Pisani and Seabrook. Patrick Eaves cut the lead to 2-1 with his sixth of the year, from Jonathan Ericsson and Brian Rafalski just twenty-seven seconds after Bickell's goal. Tomas Kopecky added two goals, in the second and third periods, good for his fourth and fifth of the year, with Brian Campbell and Niklas Hjalmarsson assisting the first and Jack Skille and Jake Dowell picking up helpers on what would be the last goal of the game. Chicago went on to beat the Red Wings 4-1. Corey Crawford earned the first star, going 29 for 30 in saves, followed by Kopecky's tow goals and Seabrook's two assists.
Finally, the last game was in Ottawa, where the Senators hosted the Colorado Avalanche. Brian Elliott and Craig Anderson started for the hosts and visitors, respectively. Erik Karlsson's sixth of the year tore things open early in the first period, with Chris Kelly and Jarkko Ruutu helping the Senators get a 1-0 lead. The Avalanche answered with a T.J. Galiardi goal, his fourth this year, assisted by the Kevins, Shattenkirk and Porter. Milan Michalek retook the lead for Ottawa, scoring his seventh of the year courtesy of Ryan Shannon. It took Colorado until the second period to answer, with Cody McLeod's fourth of the season, assisted by John-Michael Liles and Philippe Dupuis. Keeping with the alternating pattern, as the Senators took a 3-2 lead with Matt Carkner's first of the season, helped along by Chris Neil and Chris Kelly. Matt Duchene and the Avalanche responded with a power play goal, the 12th score of the year for Duchene, assisted by Liles and Shattenkirk. Breaking the trend, Colorado got ahead in the third period with a goal by Kevin Porter, his sixth of the year coming from Dupuis. The Senators went on to answer with Jason Spezza's ninth of the year, a power play goal assisted by Alex Kovalev and Mike Fisher. Daniel Alfredsson made it 5-4 Ottawa with his eleventh of the year, assisted by Nick Foligno. Tying the game up was Ryan O'Reilly, netting his fourth of the year from Daniel Winnik and Ryan O'Byrne. The tie surprisingly held up until Duchene netted his second of the night in overtime, his 13th of the season, from Tomas Fleischmann to win it 6-5 for the Avalanche. First star honors went to Duchene for the two goals, followed by Alfredsson, who had a goal in his team's loss, and Ryan O'Reilly, who also tallied a goal.
That's all there is to it. Saturday features eleven games, which may be recapped in two pieces such as last week. Depends on if I can type, which is something I struggled with throughout here, so sorry if there are any typos.
New Jersey, where the Devils hosted the Nashville Predators. Martin Brodeur was in between the pipes for New Jersey, while Anders Lindback started again for the Predators. Steve Sullivan got Nashville going late in the first period, scoring his ninth of the year with help from Shea Weber. Martin Erat added two power play goals, almost exactly a period apart in the second and third periods, good for his fourth and fifth goals of the season. Assisting on the first were Ryan Suter and Shea Weber, and Suter and Sergei Kostitsyn had the helpers for the later one. Mattias Tedenby got New Jersey on the board with his fourth of the season, also a power play goal, from Ilya Kovalchuk and Brian Rolston. The Devils couldn't fully recover, however, and lost 3-1 to the Predators. Erat's two goals were good for the first star, followed by Weber's two assists. Tedenby's goal in the loss earned the third star.
Heading to Florida, where the Panthers hosted the Buffalo Sabres. Tomas Vokoun was in the paint for Florida, and Ryan Miller earned the starting duties for the Sabres. Bryan McCabe got the Panthers up early with his fourth of the year, assisted by Shawn Matthias and Evgeny Dadonov. Marty Reasoner added two goals in a row, his fourth and fifth of the campaign, with Dadonov and Dennis Wideman helping on the first goal and Jason Garrison picking up the lone assist on the second. Making it 4-0 was David Booth, whose eighth of the year came on the power play from Michael Frolik and Matthias. Frolik potted his own eighth of the year late in the second period, with help from Stephen Weiss and Chris Higgins, but not too late that Buffalo coludn't finally get on the board with Derek Roy's tenth of the year, assisted by Tyler Myers, and their relieving goaltender Patrick Lalime, who came on after Miller gave up Booth's goal. Weiss made it 6-1 early in the third period with his eighth of the season, a shorthanded goal assisted on by Higgins. Tim Connolly made it 6-2 with his sixth of the year for Buffalo, a power play goal assisted by Jochen Hecht and Tyler Ennis. The 6-2 margin proved to be the final, giving Florida the win on the back of first star Reasoner, who had two goals, followed by Frolik, who had one goal and one assist, and goalie Tomas Vokoun, who was 41 for 43 in saves.
Going to Chicago, where the Blackhawks hosted bitter rivals in the form of the Detroit Red Wings. There was a pregame ceremony for Chris Chelios, the Brett Favre of hockey, as he played for both teams. Starting in net for Chicago was Corey Crawford, and for Detroit there was Jimmy Howard. The Blackhawks struck early with Patrick Sharp's 18th of the season, a power play goal assisted by Brent Seabrook and Jonathan Toews. Bryan Bickell made it 2-0 with his ninth of the season, assisted by Fernando Pisani and Seabrook. Patrick Eaves cut the lead to 2-1 with his sixth of the year, from Jonathan Ericsson and Brian Rafalski just twenty-seven seconds after Bickell's goal. Tomas Kopecky added two goals, in the second and third periods, good for his fourth and fifth of the year, with Brian Campbell and Niklas Hjalmarsson assisting the first and Jack Skille and Jake Dowell picking up helpers on what would be the last goal of the game. Chicago went on to beat the Red Wings 4-1. Corey Crawford earned the first star, going 29 for 30 in saves, followed by Kopecky's tow goals and Seabrook's two assists.
Finally, the last game was in Ottawa, where the Senators hosted the Colorado Avalanche. Brian Elliott and Craig Anderson started for the hosts and visitors, respectively. Erik Karlsson's sixth of the year tore things open early in the first period, with Chris Kelly and Jarkko Ruutu helping the Senators get a 1-0 lead. The Avalanche answered with a T.J. Galiardi goal, his fourth this year, assisted by the Kevins, Shattenkirk and Porter. Milan Michalek retook the lead for Ottawa, scoring his seventh of the year courtesy of Ryan Shannon. It took Colorado until the second period to answer, with Cody McLeod's fourth of the season, assisted by John-Michael Liles and Philippe Dupuis. Keeping with the alternating pattern, as the Senators took a 3-2 lead with Matt Carkner's first of the season, helped along by Chris Neil and Chris Kelly. Matt Duchene and the Avalanche responded with a power play goal, the 12th score of the year for Duchene, assisted by Liles and Shattenkirk. Breaking the trend, Colorado got ahead in the third period with a goal by Kevin Porter, his sixth of the year coming from Dupuis. The Senators went on to answer with Jason Spezza's ninth of the year, a power play goal assisted by Alex Kovalev and Mike Fisher. Daniel Alfredsson made it 5-4 Ottawa with his eleventh of the year, assisted by Nick Foligno. Tying the game up was Ryan O'Reilly, netting his fourth of the year from Daniel Winnik and Ryan O'Byrne. The tie surprisingly held up until Duchene netted his second of the night in overtime, his 13th of the season, from Tomas Fleischmann to win it 6-5 for the Avalanche. First star honors went to Duchene for the two goals, followed by Alfredsson, who had a goal in his team's loss, and Ryan O'Reilly, who also tallied a goal.
That's all there is to it. Saturday features eleven games, which may be recapped in two pieces such as last week. Depends on if I can type, which is something I struggled with throughout here, so sorry if there are any typos.
Friday, December 17, 2010
NHL recap, Thursday, December 16th
There were nine games played on Thursday. We'll jump right in with...
The Atlanta Thrashers hosting the Carolina Hurricanes. Chris Mason got a start for the Thrashers, while Cam Ward was in between the pipes for the Hurricanes. After a scoreless first period, Atlanta broke open the scoring with Evander Kane's tenth of the season, a power play goal assisted by Anthony Stewart and Johnny Oduya. Stewart extended the lead to 2-0 with his ninth of the season, from Kane and Dustin Byfuglien. Carolina started to answer with Brandon Sutter's seventh of the season early in the third period, assisted by Tuomo Ruutu and Jamie McBain. They tied it with Eric Staal's 13th of the year, from Joni Pitkanen. The tie lasted into the shootout, where Nik Antropov traded a barb with Jussi Jokinen, and the Hurricanes stole the game with Sergei Samsonov's goal. Samsonov earned the first star for the winner, followed by Evander Kane, who had a goal and an assist in the Thrasher loss, and Tuomo Ruutu, who tallied an assist. Atlanta's Ben Eager also scrapped with Troy Bodie.
Moving right along into the Big Apple, where the New York Rangers hosted the Phoenix Coyotes. The backups were out in full force, with Martin Biron guarding the Rangers net, and Jason LaBarbera protecting the cage for Phoenix. The Coyotes got started early with a power play goal by Taylor Pyatt, his seventh score of the season coming from Kyle Turris and Keith Yandle. Adrian Aucoin made it 2-0 with his first of the season, assisted by Vernon Fiddler and Lauri Korpikoski. Dan Girardi trimmed the lead down, scoring his third of the year, a power play goal with help from Ruslan Fedotenko and Marc Staal. Phoenix restored the two goal lead with a Martin Hanzal goal, his eighth of the year coming with the man advantage, and assisted by Shane Doan and Ray Whitney. The Rangers cut the lead back down with a Brandon Prust goal, his fifth, coming shorthanded after LaBarbera fumbled with the puck near his net, and the other assist coming from Girardi. LaBarbera did not get an assist on that statistically, but he did make it easier for Prust to put one past him. Derek Stepan tied it at 3 in the third period, scoring his eighth of the season, from Chris Drury and Sean Avery. The tie lasted into the shootout, with New York's Erik Christensen providing the deciding factor. Girardi earned the first star with his goal and assist, followed by Prust, who had a goal. Lastly in the third star spot, Christensen, who won the game.
Going into Canada, where the Montreal Canadiens hosted bitter rivals, the Boston Bruins. Carey Price started for the host Canadiens, while Tim Thomas was in the crease for the visiting Bruins. Michael Cammalleri struck early for Montreal, converting a penalty shot after he was hooked. Maxim Lapierre extended the lead with his fifth of the year, assisted by Mathieu Darche and Alexandre Picard. Blake Wheeler answered for Boston, scoring his seventh, from Mark Recchi and Patrice Bergeron. Max Pacioretty made it 3-1 Montreal with his first of the year, thanks to Scott Gomez and Jaroslav Spacek. Marc Savard responded with his first goal since returning from a concussion, assisted by Andrew Ference and Tyler Seguin, making it 3-2. Brian Gionta restored the two goal lead again with his eleventh of the season, with the helpers coming from Pacioretty and Gomez. Milan Lucic tried to get the Bruins into it with his 16th of the season, assisted by Bergeron and Savard on the power play, but it was too late, and Montreal held on for the 4-3 win. Pacioretty earned the first star with his goal and assist, followed by goal scorers Cammalleri and Gionta in the second and third star spots. David Krejci and Michael Cammalleri also had a fight in the second period.
Heading back to New York, where the Islanders hosted the Anaheim Ducks. Rick DiPietro got the start for the Islanders, as did Curtis McElhinney for the Ducks. P.A. Parenteau got New York started with his fifth of the year, a power play goal assisted by John Tavares and James Wisniewski. Blake Comeau followed it up with his sixth of the year just twenty-eight seconds later, asssited by Rob Schremp and Jon Sim. Matt Moulson struck relatively close afterward, notching his eleventh of the year, unassisted. This goal was enough to scare Curtis McElhinney out of the net, and Jonas Hiller came on as his replacement. Joffery Lupul started Anaheim on the rebound trail with his third of the year, a power play goal from Saku Koivu and Jason Blake. Blake added his sixth of the year early in the third period, from Cam Fowler and Lupul. However, the Islanders would weather the rest of the period and win 3-2. Rick DiPietro earned the first star, going 30 for 32 in saves, followed by Andrew MacDonald, who did something, and Jason Blake, who had a goal and an assist in a losing effort. Dropping the gloves were Trevor Gillies of New York and Sheldon Brookbank of Anaheim in the first period, followed by Matt Martin and George "The Mustache" Parros in the second period.
Going along to St. Louis, where the Blues hosted the Los Angeles Kings. Ty Conklin got the nod for the Blues, while Jonathan Quick was in between the pipes for the Kings. Ryan Smyth started the scoring, giving Los Angeles a 1-0 lead with his ninth of the year, a power play goal from Jack Johnson and Dustin Brown. St. Louis tied it later in the first period with Jay McClement's fifth of the season, assisted by Brad Winchester and B.J. Crombeen. Anze Kopitar took the lead back with his 14th of the year, a power play goal made possible by Drew Doughty and Jack Johnson. St. Louis took the lead up to 4-2 with three straight, beginning with Vladimir Sobotka's third of the season from David Backes and Carlo Colaiacovo. They continued with a power play goal from Winchester and assisted by Colaiacovo and Sobotka, and finished the scoring stretch with Eric Brewer's fifth of the season, from Sobotka and Backes. Wayne Simmonds got Los Angeles back on track with his sixth of the year, assisted by Kyle Clifford and Michal Handzus. Dustin Brown tied it up at 4, with his eleventh of the season helped along by Rob Scuderi and Anze Kopitar. Alex Steen retook the lead for the Blues, scoring his ninth of the season courtesy of McClement and Crombeen. Backes iced the cake with an empty netter from Brad Boyes and Colaiacovo, good for his sixth of the season. The Blues cruised to 6-4 win over the Kings, with Steen's goal being the first star, followed by Sobotka, who had a goal and two assists. Kopitar earned the third star with his goal and assist in the loss, and honorable mentions are in place for Colaiacovo's sock trick. One fight broke out in the second period, between Kyle Clifford of Los Angeles and Tyson Strachan of St. Louis.
Heading to north to Minnesota, where the Wild hosted the Ottawa Senators. Jose Theodore got the nod for the Wild, while Pascal Leclaire was in goal for the Seantors. Kyle Brodziak opened the scoring, giving Minnesota a 1-0 lead with his fifth of the year, assisted by Pierre-Marc Bouchard and Martin Havlat. Daniel Alfredsson evened it in the second period with his tenth of the year, a power play goal from Mike Fisher and Erik Karlsson. Nick Foligno gave Ottawa a lead with his third of the year, also on the power play, assisted by Karlsson and Sergei Gonchar. Chris Kelly topped it off with his seventh of the season, assisted by Karlsson and Alfredsson into an empty net. The Senators would proceed to win 3-1 over the Wild. Pascal Leclaire was the first star with his 23 for 24 saves, followed by Karlsson's sock trick, and Havlat, who had an assist in the loss.
Heading to Texas, where the former Minnesota franchise moved, which would be Dallas, with the Stars hosting the San Jose Sharks. Kari Lethonen was assigned to netminding duties for Dallas, while Antero Niittymaki got the start for San Jose. Devin Setoguchi opened the scoring for the Sharks, potting his third of the year, with assistance from Joe Pavelski and Justin Braun. Brenden Morrow evened it for the Stars late in the first period, with his tenth of the year, assisted by Loui Eriksson and Stephane Robidas on the power play. Eriksson added his own power play goal in the second period, his 13th of the year, with Brad Richards and Robidas picking up the helpers. Torrey Mitchell tied it up again for San Jose, with his fourth of the year, courtesy of Dany Heatley and Kent Huskins. Setoguchi gave San Jose the lead back with his second of the night and fourth of the year, with Pavelski and Niclas Wallin assisting this goal. Tom Wandell gave Dallas a tie game again, scoring third of the year with help from Steve Ott. The 3-3 tie lasted until overtime, where Logan Couture potted his 15th of the year on the power play, giving the Sharks a 4-3 win over the Stars. Dan Boyle had the lone assist on the winner. Setoguchi got the first star with two goals, followed by Loui Eriksson, who had one goal and one assist in his team's loss, and lastly, Pavelski, who had two assists.
Heading into Canada again, where the Calgary Flames hosted the Toronto Maple Leafs. Miikka Kiprusoff tended the Flames twine, while Jean-Sebastien Giguere proceeded with goaltending duties for the Maple Leafs. Nikolai Kulemin got Toronto up first, with his tenth of the year, receiving help from Clarke MacArthur and Francois Beauchemin. Calgary evened it with the fourth goal of the year for Mikael Backlund, assisted by Brendan Morrison. Alex Tanguay gave the Flames a lead in the second period with his ninth of the year, assisted by Matt Stajan and Jarome Iginla. Extending the lead even farther was Olli Jokinen, whose power play goal from Anton Babchuk and Niklas Hagman made it 3-1. It was Jokinen's fifth of the season, coming thirty-three seconds after Tanguay's goal, and following it twenty-four seconds later was Rene Bourque's 13th of the year, with Jokinen picking up the assist. Bourque's goal was enough for Toronto to replace Giguere with Jonas Gustavsson. Hagman made it 5-1 Calgary with his eighth of the year in the third period, a power play goal assisted by Jokinen and Babchuk. Mikhail Grabovski tried to rally the Maple Leafs back with his tenth of the year from Kris Versteeg, but it was too late. The Flames downed the Maple Leafs 5-2. Jokinen got the first star with a goal and two assists, followed by Hagman, who had a goal and an assist, and Tanguay, who had one goal.
Lastly, we stay in Alberta, where the Edmonton Oilers hosted the Columbus Blue Jackets. Nikolai Khabibulin was again in net for the Oilers, while Steve Mason got another start for the Blue Jackets. Linus Omark struck early for Edmonton, scoring his first NHL goal, obviously his first of the season, from Ryan Whitney. Kristian Huselius answered later in the first period with his fourth of the year and first since returning from injury, assisted by Rostislav Klesla and R.J. Umberger. Jordan Eberle gave the Oilers the lead again, scoring his eighth of the season, from Taylor Hall and Sam Gagner. Huselius answered again for the Blue Jackets, tying it at 2 with his second of the night and fifth of the season, assisted this time by Umberger and Rick Nash on the power play. Edmonton took a 3-2 lead with Dustin Penner's power play goal, his tenth of the year comnig from Omark and Magnus Paajarvi. Eberle extended the lead in the second period with his second of the night and ninth of the season, thanks to contributions from Whitney and Hall. Paajarvi extended the lead farther with his fourth of the year, assisted by Ryan O'Marra and Omark. Sam Gagner made it 6-2 with his ninth of the year, assisted by Hall. Huselius completed his hat trick late in the third period, his sixth of the year, coming from Antoine Vertmette. Edmonton would hold on to defeat Columbus 6-3. Omark's goal and two assists earned him the first star, and Eberle's two goals were good for the second star, followed by third star Hall, who had a three-assist sock trick. Honorable mentions go to Paajarvi, who had a goal, an assist, and a generally awesome name, and Huselius, for his hat trick in the return from his injury.
That's all there is for now, check back tomorrow for a recap of Friday's four games.
The Atlanta Thrashers hosting the Carolina Hurricanes. Chris Mason got a start for the Thrashers, while Cam Ward was in between the pipes for the Hurricanes. After a scoreless first period, Atlanta broke open the scoring with Evander Kane's tenth of the season, a power play goal assisted by Anthony Stewart and Johnny Oduya. Stewart extended the lead to 2-0 with his ninth of the season, from Kane and Dustin Byfuglien. Carolina started to answer with Brandon Sutter's seventh of the season early in the third period, assisted by Tuomo Ruutu and Jamie McBain. They tied it with Eric Staal's 13th of the year, from Joni Pitkanen. The tie lasted into the shootout, where Nik Antropov traded a barb with Jussi Jokinen, and the Hurricanes stole the game with Sergei Samsonov's goal. Samsonov earned the first star for the winner, followed by Evander Kane, who had a goal and an assist in the Thrasher loss, and Tuomo Ruutu, who tallied an assist. Atlanta's Ben Eager also scrapped with Troy Bodie.
Moving right along into the Big Apple, where the New York Rangers hosted the Phoenix Coyotes. The backups were out in full force, with Martin Biron guarding the Rangers net, and Jason LaBarbera protecting the cage for Phoenix. The Coyotes got started early with a power play goal by Taylor Pyatt, his seventh score of the season coming from Kyle Turris and Keith Yandle. Adrian Aucoin made it 2-0 with his first of the season, assisted by Vernon Fiddler and Lauri Korpikoski. Dan Girardi trimmed the lead down, scoring his third of the year, a power play goal with help from Ruslan Fedotenko and Marc Staal. Phoenix restored the two goal lead with a Martin Hanzal goal, his eighth of the year coming with the man advantage, and assisted by Shane Doan and Ray Whitney. The Rangers cut the lead back down with a Brandon Prust goal, his fifth, coming shorthanded after LaBarbera fumbled with the puck near his net, and the other assist coming from Girardi. LaBarbera did not get an assist on that statistically, but he did make it easier for Prust to put one past him. Derek Stepan tied it at 3 in the third period, scoring his eighth of the season, from Chris Drury and Sean Avery. The tie lasted into the shootout, with New York's Erik Christensen providing the deciding factor. Girardi earned the first star with his goal and assist, followed by Prust, who had a goal. Lastly in the third star spot, Christensen, who won the game.
Going into Canada, where the Montreal Canadiens hosted bitter rivals, the Boston Bruins. Carey Price started for the host Canadiens, while Tim Thomas was in the crease for the visiting Bruins. Michael Cammalleri struck early for Montreal, converting a penalty shot after he was hooked. Maxim Lapierre extended the lead with his fifth of the year, assisted by Mathieu Darche and Alexandre Picard. Blake Wheeler answered for Boston, scoring his seventh, from Mark Recchi and Patrice Bergeron. Max Pacioretty made it 3-1 Montreal with his first of the year, thanks to Scott Gomez and Jaroslav Spacek. Marc Savard responded with his first goal since returning from a concussion, assisted by Andrew Ference and Tyler Seguin, making it 3-2. Brian Gionta restored the two goal lead again with his eleventh of the season, with the helpers coming from Pacioretty and Gomez. Milan Lucic tried to get the Bruins into it with his 16th of the season, assisted by Bergeron and Savard on the power play, but it was too late, and Montreal held on for the 4-3 win. Pacioretty earned the first star with his goal and assist, followed by goal scorers Cammalleri and Gionta in the second and third star spots. David Krejci and Michael Cammalleri also had a fight in the second period.
Heading back to New York, where the Islanders hosted the Anaheim Ducks. Rick DiPietro got the start for the Islanders, as did Curtis McElhinney for the Ducks. P.A. Parenteau got New York started with his fifth of the year, a power play goal assisted by John Tavares and James Wisniewski. Blake Comeau followed it up with his sixth of the year just twenty-eight seconds later, asssited by Rob Schremp and Jon Sim. Matt Moulson struck relatively close afterward, notching his eleventh of the year, unassisted. This goal was enough to scare Curtis McElhinney out of the net, and Jonas Hiller came on as his replacement. Joffery Lupul started Anaheim on the rebound trail with his third of the year, a power play goal from Saku Koivu and Jason Blake. Blake added his sixth of the year early in the third period, from Cam Fowler and Lupul. However, the Islanders would weather the rest of the period and win 3-2. Rick DiPietro earned the first star, going 30 for 32 in saves, followed by Andrew MacDonald, who did something, and Jason Blake, who had a goal and an assist in a losing effort. Dropping the gloves were Trevor Gillies of New York and Sheldon Brookbank of Anaheim in the first period, followed by Matt Martin and George "The Mustache" Parros in the second period.
Going along to St. Louis, where the Blues hosted the Los Angeles Kings. Ty Conklin got the nod for the Blues, while Jonathan Quick was in between the pipes for the Kings. Ryan Smyth started the scoring, giving Los Angeles a 1-0 lead with his ninth of the year, a power play goal from Jack Johnson and Dustin Brown. St. Louis tied it later in the first period with Jay McClement's fifth of the season, assisted by Brad Winchester and B.J. Crombeen. Anze Kopitar took the lead back with his 14th of the year, a power play goal made possible by Drew Doughty and Jack Johnson. St. Louis took the lead up to 4-2 with three straight, beginning with Vladimir Sobotka's third of the season from David Backes and Carlo Colaiacovo. They continued with a power play goal from Winchester and assisted by Colaiacovo and Sobotka, and finished the scoring stretch with Eric Brewer's fifth of the season, from Sobotka and Backes. Wayne Simmonds got Los Angeles back on track with his sixth of the year, assisted by Kyle Clifford and Michal Handzus. Dustin Brown tied it up at 4, with his eleventh of the season helped along by Rob Scuderi and Anze Kopitar. Alex Steen retook the lead for the Blues, scoring his ninth of the season courtesy of McClement and Crombeen. Backes iced the cake with an empty netter from Brad Boyes and Colaiacovo, good for his sixth of the season. The Blues cruised to 6-4 win over the Kings, with Steen's goal being the first star, followed by Sobotka, who had a goal and two assists. Kopitar earned the third star with his goal and assist in the loss, and honorable mentions are in place for Colaiacovo's sock trick. One fight broke out in the second period, between Kyle Clifford of Los Angeles and Tyson Strachan of St. Louis.
Heading to north to Minnesota, where the Wild hosted the Ottawa Senators. Jose Theodore got the nod for the Wild, while Pascal Leclaire was in goal for the Seantors. Kyle Brodziak opened the scoring, giving Minnesota a 1-0 lead with his fifth of the year, assisted by Pierre-Marc Bouchard and Martin Havlat. Daniel Alfredsson evened it in the second period with his tenth of the year, a power play goal from Mike Fisher and Erik Karlsson. Nick Foligno gave Ottawa a lead with his third of the year, also on the power play, assisted by Karlsson and Sergei Gonchar. Chris Kelly topped it off with his seventh of the season, assisted by Karlsson and Alfredsson into an empty net. The Senators would proceed to win 3-1 over the Wild. Pascal Leclaire was the first star with his 23 for 24 saves, followed by Karlsson's sock trick, and Havlat, who had an assist in the loss.
Heading to Texas, where the former Minnesota franchise moved, which would be Dallas, with the Stars hosting the San Jose Sharks. Kari Lethonen was assigned to netminding duties for Dallas, while Antero Niittymaki got the start for San Jose. Devin Setoguchi opened the scoring for the Sharks, potting his third of the year, with assistance from Joe Pavelski and Justin Braun. Brenden Morrow evened it for the Stars late in the first period, with his tenth of the year, assisted by Loui Eriksson and Stephane Robidas on the power play. Eriksson added his own power play goal in the second period, his 13th of the year, with Brad Richards and Robidas picking up the helpers. Torrey Mitchell tied it up again for San Jose, with his fourth of the year, courtesy of Dany Heatley and Kent Huskins. Setoguchi gave San Jose the lead back with his second of the night and fourth of the year, with Pavelski and Niclas Wallin assisting this goal. Tom Wandell gave Dallas a tie game again, scoring third of the year with help from Steve Ott. The 3-3 tie lasted until overtime, where Logan Couture potted his 15th of the year on the power play, giving the Sharks a 4-3 win over the Stars. Dan Boyle had the lone assist on the winner. Setoguchi got the first star with two goals, followed by Loui Eriksson, who had one goal and one assist in his team's loss, and lastly, Pavelski, who had two assists.
Heading into Canada again, where the Calgary Flames hosted the Toronto Maple Leafs. Miikka Kiprusoff tended the Flames twine, while Jean-Sebastien Giguere proceeded with goaltending duties for the Maple Leafs. Nikolai Kulemin got Toronto up first, with his tenth of the year, receiving help from Clarke MacArthur and Francois Beauchemin. Calgary evened it with the fourth goal of the year for Mikael Backlund, assisted by Brendan Morrison. Alex Tanguay gave the Flames a lead in the second period with his ninth of the year, assisted by Matt Stajan and Jarome Iginla. Extending the lead even farther was Olli Jokinen, whose power play goal from Anton Babchuk and Niklas Hagman made it 3-1. It was Jokinen's fifth of the season, coming thirty-three seconds after Tanguay's goal, and following it twenty-four seconds later was Rene Bourque's 13th of the year, with Jokinen picking up the assist. Bourque's goal was enough for Toronto to replace Giguere with Jonas Gustavsson. Hagman made it 5-1 Calgary with his eighth of the year in the third period, a power play goal assisted by Jokinen and Babchuk. Mikhail Grabovski tried to rally the Maple Leafs back with his tenth of the year from Kris Versteeg, but it was too late. The Flames downed the Maple Leafs 5-2. Jokinen got the first star with a goal and two assists, followed by Hagman, who had a goal and an assist, and Tanguay, who had one goal.
Lastly, we stay in Alberta, where the Edmonton Oilers hosted the Columbus Blue Jackets. Nikolai Khabibulin was again in net for the Oilers, while Steve Mason got another start for the Blue Jackets. Linus Omark struck early for Edmonton, scoring his first NHL goal, obviously his first of the season, from Ryan Whitney. Kristian Huselius answered later in the first period with his fourth of the year and first since returning from injury, assisted by Rostislav Klesla and R.J. Umberger. Jordan Eberle gave the Oilers the lead again, scoring his eighth of the season, from Taylor Hall and Sam Gagner. Huselius answered again for the Blue Jackets, tying it at 2 with his second of the night and fifth of the season, assisted this time by Umberger and Rick Nash on the power play. Edmonton took a 3-2 lead with Dustin Penner's power play goal, his tenth of the year comnig from Omark and Magnus Paajarvi. Eberle extended the lead in the second period with his second of the night and ninth of the season, thanks to contributions from Whitney and Hall. Paajarvi extended the lead farther with his fourth of the year, assisted by Ryan O'Marra and Omark. Sam Gagner made it 6-2 with his ninth of the year, assisted by Hall. Huselius completed his hat trick late in the third period, his sixth of the year, coming from Antoine Vertmette. Edmonton would hold on to defeat Columbus 6-3. Omark's goal and two assists earned him the first star, and Eberle's two goals were good for the second star, followed by third star Hall, who had a three-assist sock trick. Honorable mentions go to Paajarvi, who had a goal, an assist, and a generally awesome name, and Huselius, for his hat trick in the return from his injury.
That's all there is for now, check back tomorrow for a recap of Friday's four games.
Thursday Night Football week 15
Sorry for being a bit late on this one. The San Diego Chargers hosted the San Francisco 49ers in the prime time game. Philip Rivers and the Chargers struck first with a pass to Vincent Jackson, good for 58 yards and the touchdown. Nate Kaeding kicked the extra point. Kaeding made it 10-0 in the second quarter with his 25 yard field goal kick, and added the extra point when Rivers found Jackson again in the end zone, this time for 11 yards. San Diego led San Francisco 17-0 at halftime. Mike Tolbert kept them going with his 1 yard touchdown run in the third quarter, followed by a Kaeding extra point. In the fourth quarter, Rivers found Jackson one more time, going 21 yards for the touchdown pass. Kaeding supplied the extra point and another field goal, from 39 yards to make it 34-0. The 49ers woke up far too late, but avoided being shut out with Brian Westbrook's 3 yard touchdown run, followed by Jeff Reed's extra point to leave the final at 34-7. The Chargers improved to 8-6, and the 49ers dropped to 5-9.
Again, sorry for the delay. I will have hockey recaps for Thursday out later today.
Again, sorry for the delay. I will have hockey recaps for Thursday out later today.
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
Early Wednesday NHL recap
With a total of eleven games on tonight and not enough time for me to recap them all tomorrow along with a football game, I'll take care of some of them now. All games will be recapped in this post, pending any technical difficulties, with the final game of the night being added on tomorrow morning. With that said, we start in...
Washington D.C., where the Capitals hosted the Anaheim Ducks. Semyon Varlamov played in net for the hosts, while Jonas Hiller tended the twine for the Ducks. Brooks Laich drew first blood for Washington, scoring his eighth of the season, assisted by John Carlson and Nicklas Backstrom. Anaheim answered in the second period with a power play goal from Joffery Lupul, his second of the year, assisted by Cam Fowler and Lubomir Visnovsky. Going scoreless through the third period, Ryan Getzlaf's eleventh of the year won it in overtime for the Ducks, 2-1. Assists were credited to Corey Perry and Toni Lydman. Jonas Hiller earned the first star with his 31 for 32 save outing, followed by overtime hero Getzlaf, and Brooks Laich, both of those two having a goal.
Staying with the east hosts west theme, we have the New Jersey Devils welcoming the Phoenix Coyotes. Martin Brodeur started for the Devils, while Ilya Bryzgalov was in between the pipes for Phoenix. That-Other-Ilya, Kovalchuk, scored first, giving New Jersey a 1-0 lead with his sixth of the year. Dainius Zubrus picked up the assist. Mark Fayne also scored for New Jersey in the first period, recording his first of the season, with the help coming from Patrik Elias and Travis Zajac. After leaving the second period scoreless, the Devils made it 3-0 with Kovalchuk's second of the night and seventh of the year, with Zajac and Elias both picking up assists on the power play goal. This held on to be the final, with Martin Brodeur getting the first star for his 29 save shutout. Kovalchuk's two goals were the second star, followed by Fayne's goal at the third star slot.
Onward to Pittsburgh, where the Penguins hosted the New York Rangers. Brent Johnson got the start for Pittsburgh, while Henrik Lundqvist was in the paint for the Rangers. Evgeni Malkin struck late in the first period with his eleventh of the season, from Sidney Crosby and Brooks Orpik to give the Penguins a 1-0 lead. After going scoreless in the second period, the Rangers woke up in the third period, with the sixth of the year for Erik Christensen, a power play goal from Marian Gaborik. Fifteen seconds later, Alexander Frolov had his sixth of the year past Brent Johnson, assisted by Brian Boyle and Dan Girardi. Artem Anisimov made it 3-1 with his ninth of the year, helped by Michal Rozsival and Michael Del Zotto. Boyle tacked on his 12th of the season to give us the final of 4-1, with the helpers on his goal coming from Frolov and Marc Staal. Frolov and Boyle earned the first and second stars, respectively, for a goal and an assist each, followed by Henrik Lundqvist, who was 27 for 28 in saves. Sean Avery of the Rangers and Aaron Asham of the Penguins also had a dance in the early third period.
Traveling to Buffalo, where the Sabres hosted the Boston Bruins. Ryan Miller was in net for the Sabres, and Tuukka Rask was given netminding duties for Boston. David Krejci got the Bruins up first with his fifth of the year, assisted by Dennis Seidenberg. Drew Stafford answered for Buffalo with his sixth of the season, a power play goal from Derek Roy and Tyler Myers. Both teams went dry in the second period before Boston retook the lead in the third, with Michael Ryder's ninth of the year, a power play goal assisted by Steve Kampfer. Stafford added his seventh and eighth of the year to complete his hat trick, with Derek Roy picking up assists on both, and Jason Pominville nabbing the second assist on the latter power play tally. The 3-2 score held up for Buffalo, defeating the Bruins. Stafford took the first star with his hat trick, complemented perfectly by Roy's second star sock trick. Tyler Ennis managed to receive the third star for unknown reasons.
Continuing along into Florida, where the Panthers hosted the Carolina Hurricanes in a Southeast division match. Tomas Vokoun started for the Cats, while Cam Ward got the nod for Carolina. Evgeny Dadonov struck early, with his first of the year just twenty-nine seconds into the game. Marty Reasoner and Shawn Matthias picked up the assists. Michael Frolik extended the Florida lead to 2-0, chasing Cam Ward with his seventh of the year, courtesy of Chris Higgins and Stephen Weiss. Justin Peters came on in relief. Bryan McCabe followed not too long after with his third of the year, a power play goal from Dennis Wideman and Mike Santorelli. Erik Cole got Carolina on the board in the second period, with his sixth of the year, assisted by Jeff Skinner and Eric Staal. Jamie McBain made it closer in the third period, with his first of the season thanks to Joni Pitkanen and Sergei Samsonov. The Hurricanes took the lead with two goals from Tuomo Ruutu, his sixth and seventh of the season. The first was a power play goal assisted by Skinner and Samsonov, and the second was unassisted and at even strength. Carolina would hold on for the 4-3 victory. Ruutu was the first star with two goals, followed by Skinner, who had two assists. Relief goaltender Justin Peters was the third star, going 21 for 22 in saves.
Into Quebec, where the Montreal Canadiens hosted the Philadelphia Flyers. Carey Price guarded the Habs net, while Sergei Bobrovsky returned to the crease for Philadelphia. Jeff Carter allowed the Flyers to strike first, registering his 13th of the year, assisted by Matt Carle. James van Riemsdyk extended the lead to 2-0 in the second period, with his sixth of the year coming from Carter and Andrej Meszaros. P.K. Subban got Montreal on the board late in the second period, with his second of the year coming off of Scott Gomez and Michael Cammalleri on the power play. Nikolay Zherdev gave the Flyers a 3-1 lead with his eleventh of the season, assisted by Sean O'Donnell. Restarting the Montreal rally was Tomas Plekanec, potting his tenth of the year with help from Benoit Pouliot and Cammalleri. Brian Gionta tied it at 3 with his tenth of the year, from Gomez and Subban. Van Riemsdyk retook the lead for Philadelphia, scoring his second of the night and seventh of the year, a power play goal courtesy of Zherdev and Carter. Claude Giroux ended the scoring with his 16th of the season, from Mike Richards, and the Flyers would cruise to a 5-3 victory over the Canadiens. Sergei Bobrovsky was the first star, turning away 38 of 41 shots fired at him, while Gionta followed at second star with a goal and Subban at the third star with a goal and an assist. Gionta and Subban were both part of the losing Montreal team, despite getting those stars.
Heading back stateside, where the Detroit Red Wings hosted bitter Central division rivals in the St. Louis Blues. Jimmy Howard got the start for the Red Wings, while Jaroslav Halak was sent out to guard the visiting cage. Nicklas Lidstrom broke the silence in the second period, giving Detroit a 1-0 lead with his fifth of the year. Assists go to Henrik Zetterberg and Pavel Datsyuk. Carlo Colaiacovo answered with his fourth of the year, with Dave Scatchard and Eric Brewer picking up the assists. Niklas Kronwall gave the Red Wings the lead back with his seventh of the season, from Danny Cleary and Darren Helm. Cleary later added his own goal in the late second period, his 14th of the year coming on the power play from Lidstrom and Zetterberg. Lidstrom made it 4-1 with his second of the night and sixth of the year, assisted by Zetterberg and Brian Rafalski on the power play. Brad Winchester answered to make it 4-2 with his own power play goal, his third mark of the season assisted by Alex Steen and Patrik Berglund. Lidstrom completed the hat trick into an empty net, good for his seventh of the year, from Cleary and Zetterberg. Detroit went on to beat St. Louis 5-2. Lidstrom had the first star with his hat trick and bonus assist, followed by Cleary, who had a goal and two assists, and Zetterberg, who had a four-pack of helpers.
Going back into Florida, where the Tampa Bay Lightning hosted their Southeast division rivals from Atlanta, the Thrashers. Mike Smith got the nod for the Lightning, while Ondrej Pavelec was in between the pipes for the Thrashers. Atlanta struck first with Rich Peverley's eighth of the year, a shorthanded goal helped along by Ron Hainsey. Sean Bergenheim answered for Tampa Bay in the second period, his sixth of the year assisted by Randy Jones and Pavel Kubina. The third period and overtime preserved the 1-1 tie, and it was the Lightning's Victor Hedman who broke it with the only goal in the shootout. Bergenheim did receive the first star for his goal, while Dustin Byfuglien was obviously amazing enough to earn the second star (what's in a name, anyway?), and Mike Smith's 27 for 28 save outing was nice enough to be the third star.
Getting into Tennessee, where the Nashville Predators hosted the still-traveling San Jose Sharks. Anders Lindback made another appearance for Nashville, while Antti Niemi was given goaltending duties for San Jose, who scored first, with a goal by Niclas Wallin, his third of the year coming via Benn Ferriero and Justin Braun. The Predators answered in the second period with Jordin Tootoo's fourth of the year, an unassisted goal by the fluffy-skirted man. Dany Heatley gave the Sharks the lead back with his 14th of the season, assisted by Joe Thornton on the power play. With time running down in the third period, under five minutes left, Sergei Kostitsyn tied it with his fifth of the year, courtesy of Shea Weber and Ryan Suter. Nashville took the lead less than a minute later with a Colin Wilson goal, his seventh of the season, assisted by Steve Sullivan and Marcel Goc. The Predators would hold on for the 3-2 victory over San Jose. Wilson was the first star, with a game winning goal, followed by Anders Lindback, who was 25 for 27 in saves, and lastly, Kostitsyn, whose goal gave him the third star.
Heading into Chicago, to the tune of Chelsea Dagger at the United Center, the site of the Blackhawks hosting their last opponent, the Colorado Avalanche. The two teams met at the Pepsi Center in Denver on Monday, and the rematch came Wednesday. Craig Anderson started for the visiting Avalanche, while Corey Crawford got the honors for the Blackhawks. Greg Mauldin opened the scoring for Colorado, netting his fifth of the year thanks to Daniel Winnik and the ageless Adam Foote. Chicago answered early in the second period with a Bryan Bickell goal, his eighth on the campaign, from Brent Seabrook and Duncan Keith. Colorado took a 3-1 lead with two power play goals fairly close together from Tomas Fleischmann, his seventh and eighth goals of the year. Picking up assists on the first one were Paul Stastny and Matt Duchene, who also assisted on the second one alongside Kevin Shattenkirk. Jonathan Toews tried to get Chicago back into it with his 14th of the year, assisted by Jassen Cullimore and Tomas Kopecky, but Fleischmann completed the hat trick with his ninth of the year, getting help from David Jones and Ryan O'Byrne. Troy Brouwer sent one last message to the Avalanche with his ninth of the year to make it 4-3, with assists coming from Bickell and Brian Campbell. Fleischmann was the first star with his hat trick, followed by Craig Anderson, who was 35 for 38 in saves. Bryan Bickell's goal and assist in the losing effort was third star worthy.
Lastly, we join the Vancouver Canucks hosting the Columbus Blue Jackets in progress. Roberto Luongo is in net for the Canucks, while Mathieu Garon earned another start for the Blue Jackets. In the first period, Ryan Kesler scored late, his 13th of the season, assisted by Alexander Edler, to give Vancouver a 1-0 lead. Derick Brassard answered with his seventh of the season in the second period, assisted by Jakub Voracek and Marc Methot. Kesler added his second of the night and 14th of the year shortly after, from Mikael Samuelsson. Tom Sestito tied it in the third period with a power play goal for Columbus, from Mike Commodore and Fedor Tyutin. It was his first score of the year. The 2-2 tie held up into overtime until Kesler completed his hat trick with his 15th of the season, assisted by the Sedin twins, Daniel and Henrik, on the power play, and the Canucks won 3-2 over the Blue Jackets. Kesler earned the first star for his trick, followed by Tyutin, who had one assist for the losing Columbus team, and Alexander Edler had the third star with his assist.
There are eight games being played Thursday and recapped Friday. Also, keep posted for the Thursday Night Football post tonight.
Washington D.C., where the Capitals hosted the Anaheim Ducks. Semyon Varlamov played in net for the hosts, while Jonas Hiller tended the twine for the Ducks. Brooks Laich drew first blood for Washington, scoring his eighth of the season, assisted by John Carlson and Nicklas Backstrom. Anaheim answered in the second period with a power play goal from Joffery Lupul, his second of the year, assisted by Cam Fowler and Lubomir Visnovsky. Going scoreless through the third period, Ryan Getzlaf's eleventh of the year won it in overtime for the Ducks, 2-1. Assists were credited to Corey Perry and Toni Lydman. Jonas Hiller earned the first star with his 31 for 32 save outing, followed by overtime hero Getzlaf, and Brooks Laich, both of those two having a goal.
Staying with the east hosts west theme, we have the New Jersey Devils welcoming the Phoenix Coyotes. Martin Brodeur started for the Devils, while Ilya Bryzgalov was in between the pipes for Phoenix. That-Other-Ilya, Kovalchuk, scored first, giving New Jersey a 1-0 lead with his sixth of the year. Dainius Zubrus picked up the assist. Mark Fayne also scored for New Jersey in the first period, recording his first of the season, with the help coming from Patrik Elias and Travis Zajac. After leaving the second period scoreless, the Devils made it 3-0 with Kovalchuk's second of the night and seventh of the year, with Zajac and Elias both picking up assists on the power play goal. This held on to be the final, with Martin Brodeur getting the first star for his 29 save shutout. Kovalchuk's two goals were the second star, followed by Fayne's goal at the third star slot.
Onward to Pittsburgh, where the Penguins hosted the New York Rangers. Brent Johnson got the start for Pittsburgh, while Henrik Lundqvist was in the paint for the Rangers. Evgeni Malkin struck late in the first period with his eleventh of the season, from Sidney Crosby and Brooks Orpik to give the Penguins a 1-0 lead. After going scoreless in the second period, the Rangers woke up in the third period, with the sixth of the year for Erik Christensen, a power play goal from Marian Gaborik. Fifteen seconds later, Alexander Frolov had his sixth of the year past Brent Johnson, assisted by Brian Boyle and Dan Girardi. Artem Anisimov made it 3-1 with his ninth of the year, helped by Michal Rozsival and Michael Del Zotto. Boyle tacked on his 12th of the season to give us the final of 4-1, with the helpers on his goal coming from Frolov and Marc Staal. Frolov and Boyle earned the first and second stars, respectively, for a goal and an assist each, followed by Henrik Lundqvist, who was 27 for 28 in saves. Sean Avery of the Rangers and Aaron Asham of the Penguins also had a dance in the early third period.
Traveling to Buffalo, where the Sabres hosted the Boston Bruins. Ryan Miller was in net for the Sabres, and Tuukka Rask was given netminding duties for Boston. David Krejci got the Bruins up first with his fifth of the year, assisted by Dennis Seidenberg. Drew Stafford answered for Buffalo with his sixth of the season, a power play goal from Derek Roy and Tyler Myers. Both teams went dry in the second period before Boston retook the lead in the third, with Michael Ryder's ninth of the year, a power play goal assisted by Steve Kampfer. Stafford added his seventh and eighth of the year to complete his hat trick, with Derek Roy picking up assists on both, and Jason Pominville nabbing the second assist on the latter power play tally. The 3-2 score held up for Buffalo, defeating the Bruins. Stafford took the first star with his hat trick, complemented perfectly by Roy's second star sock trick. Tyler Ennis managed to receive the third star for unknown reasons.
Continuing along into Florida, where the Panthers hosted the Carolina Hurricanes in a Southeast division match. Tomas Vokoun started for the Cats, while Cam Ward got the nod for Carolina. Evgeny Dadonov struck early, with his first of the year just twenty-nine seconds into the game. Marty Reasoner and Shawn Matthias picked up the assists. Michael Frolik extended the Florida lead to 2-0, chasing Cam Ward with his seventh of the year, courtesy of Chris Higgins and Stephen Weiss. Justin Peters came on in relief. Bryan McCabe followed not too long after with his third of the year, a power play goal from Dennis Wideman and Mike Santorelli. Erik Cole got Carolina on the board in the second period, with his sixth of the year, assisted by Jeff Skinner and Eric Staal. Jamie McBain made it closer in the third period, with his first of the season thanks to Joni Pitkanen and Sergei Samsonov. The Hurricanes took the lead with two goals from Tuomo Ruutu, his sixth and seventh of the season. The first was a power play goal assisted by Skinner and Samsonov, and the second was unassisted and at even strength. Carolina would hold on for the 4-3 victory. Ruutu was the first star with two goals, followed by Skinner, who had two assists. Relief goaltender Justin Peters was the third star, going 21 for 22 in saves.
Into Quebec, where the Montreal Canadiens hosted the Philadelphia Flyers. Carey Price guarded the Habs net, while Sergei Bobrovsky returned to the crease for Philadelphia. Jeff Carter allowed the Flyers to strike first, registering his 13th of the year, assisted by Matt Carle. James van Riemsdyk extended the lead to 2-0 in the second period, with his sixth of the year coming from Carter and Andrej Meszaros. P.K. Subban got Montreal on the board late in the second period, with his second of the year coming off of Scott Gomez and Michael Cammalleri on the power play. Nikolay Zherdev gave the Flyers a 3-1 lead with his eleventh of the season, assisted by Sean O'Donnell. Restarting the Montreal rally was Tomas Plekanec, potting his tenth of the year with help from Benoit Pouliot and Cammalleri. Brian Gionta tied it at 3 with his tenth of the year, from Gomez and Subban. Van Riemsdyk retook the lead for Philadelphia, scoring his second of the night and seventh of the year, a power play goal courtesy of Zherdev and Carter. Claude Giroux ended the scoring with his 16th of the season, from Mike Richards, and the Flyers would cruise to a 5-3 victory over the Canadiens. Sergei Bobrovsky was the first star, turning away 38 of 41 shots fired at him, while Gionta followed at second star with a goal and Subban at the third star with a goal and an assist. Gionta and Subban were both part of the losing Montreal team, despite getting those stars.
Heading back stateside, where the Detroit Red Wings hosted bitter Central division rivals in the St. Louis Blues. Jimmy Howard got the start for the Red Wings, while Jaroslav Halak was sent out to guard the visiting cage. Nicklas Lidstrom broke the silence in the second period, giving Detroit a 1-0 lead with his fifth of the year. Assists go to Henrik Zetterberg and Pavel Datsyuk. Carlo Colaiacovo answered with his fourth of the year, with Dave Scatchard and Eric Brewer picking up the assists. Niklas Kronwall gave the Red Wings the lead back with his seventh of the season, from Danny Cleary and Darren Helm. Cleary later added his own goal in the late second period, his 14th of the year coming on the power play from Lidstrom and Zetterberg. Lidstrom made it 4-1 with his second of the night and sixth of the year, assisted by Zetterberg and Brian Rafalski on the power play. Brad Winchester answered to make it 4-2 with his own power play goal, his third mark of the season assisted by Alex Steen and Patrik Berglund. Lidstrom completed the hat trick into an empty net, good for his seventh of the year, from Cleary and Zetterberg. Detroit went on to beat St. Louis 5-2. Lidstrom had the first star with his hat trick and bonus assist, followed by Cleary, who had a goal and two assists, and Zetterberg, who had a four-pack of helpers.
Going back into Florida, where the Tampa Bay Lightning hosted their Southeast division rivals from Atlanta, the Thrashers. Mike Smith got the nod for the Lightning, while Ondrej Pavelec was in between the pipes for the Thrashers. Atlanta struck first with Rich Peverley's eighth of the year, a shorthanded goal helped along by Ron Hainsey. Sean Bergenheim answered for Tampa Bay in the second period, his sixth of the year assisted by Randy Jones and Pavel Kubina. The third period and overtime preserved the 1-1 tie, and it was the Lightning's Victor Hedman who broke it with the only goal in the shootout. Bergenheim did receive the first star for his goal, while Dustin Byfuglien was obviously amazing enough to earn the second star (what's in a name, anyway?), and Mike Smith's 27 for 28 save outing was nice enough to be the third star.
Getting into Tennessee, where the Nashville Predators hosted the still-traveling San Jose Sharks. Anders Lindback made another appearance for Nashville, while Antti Niemi was given goaltending duties for San Jose, who scored first, with a goal by Niclas Wallin, his third of the year coming via Benn Ferriero and Justin Braun. The Predators answered in the second period with Jordin Tootoo's fourth of the year, an unassisted goal by the fluffy-skirted man. Dany Heatley gave the Sharks the lead back with his 14th of the season, assisted by Joe Thornton on the power play. With time running down in the third period, under five minutes left, Sergei Kostitsyn tied it with his fifth of the year, courtesy of Shea Weber and Ryan Suter. Nashville took the lead less than a minute later with a Colin Wilson goal, his seventh of the season, assisted by Steve Sullivan and Marcel Goc. The Predators would hold on for the 3-2 victory over San Jose. Wilson was the first star, with a game winning goal, followed by Anders Lindback, who was 25 for 27 in saves, and lastly, Kostitsyn, whose goal gave him the third star.
Heading into Chicago, to the tune of Chelsea Dagger at the United Center, the site of the Blackhawks hosting their last opponent, the Colorado Avalanche. The two teams met at the Pepsi Center in Denver on Monday, and the rematch came Wednesday. Craig Anderson started for the visiting Avalanche, while Corey Crawford got the honors for the Blackhawks. Greg Mauldin opened the scoring for Colorado, netting his fifth of the year thanks to Daniel Winnik and the ageless Adam Foote. Chicago answered early in the second period with a Bryan Bickell goal, his eighth on the campaign, from Brent Seabrook and Duncan Keith. Colorado took a 3-1 lead with two power play goals fairly close together from Tomas Fleischmann, his seventh and eighth goals of the year. Picking up assists on the first one were Paul Stastny and Matt Duchene, who also assisted on the second one alongside Kevin Shattenkirk. Jonathan Toews tried to get Chicago back into it with his 14th of the year, assisted by Jassen Cullimore and Tomas Kopecky, but Fleischmann completed the hat trick with his ninth of the year, getting help from David Jones and Ryan O'Byrne. Troy Brouwer sent one last message to the Avalanche with his ninth of the year to make it 4-3, with assists coming from Bickell and Brian Campbell. Fleischmann was the first star with his hat trick, followed by Craig Anderson, who was 35 for 38 in saves. Bryan Bickell's goal and assist in the losing effort was third star worthy.
Lastly, we join the Vancouver Canucks hosting the Columbus Blue Jackets in progress. Roberto Luongo is in net for the Canucks, while Mathieu Garon earned another start for the Blue Jackets. In the first period, Ryan Kesler scored late, his 13th of the season, assisted by Alexander Edler, to give Vancouver a 1-0 lead. Derick Brassard answered with his seventh of the season in the second period, assisted by Jakub Voracek and Marc Methot. Kesler added his second of the night and 14th of the year shortly after, from Mikael Samuelsson. Tom Sestito tied it in the third period with a power play goal for Columbus, from Mike Commodore and Fedor Tyutin. It was his first score of the year. The 2-2 tie held up into overtime until Kesler completed his hat trick with his 15th of the season, assisted by the Sedin twins, Daniel and Henrik, on the power play, and the Canucks won 3-2 over the Blue Jackets. Kesler earned the first star for his trick, followed by Tyutin, who had one assist for the losing Columbus team, and Alexander Edler had the third star with his assist.
There are eight games being played Thursday and recapped Friday. Also, keep posted for the Thursday Night Football post tonight.
Fun Size NHL recap
Tuesday had a mere pair of games. They get revenge on Wednesday with eleven on the slate, but for yesterday, we started with...
A Pennsylvania battle between the hosting Philadelphia Flyers and the future TV stars from Pittsburgh, the Penguins. Brian Boucher got the start for the Flyers, while Marc-Andre Fleury took care of the Penguins net. Claude Giroux got Philadelphia on the scoresheet first with his 15th of the season, assisted by Danny Briere and Scott Hartnell. In the second period, Evgeni Malkin tied the game with a power play goal from Alex Goligoski and Sidney Crosby. The goal was Malkin's ninth of the year. Philadelphia answered with a Nikolay Zherdev goal, his tenth of the year helped by James van Riemsdyk and Sean O'Donnell. Malkin provided the answer again for Pittsburgh with his tenth of the year and second of the night, another power play goal, coming from Crosby and Kris Letang. The Flyers recorded their own power play goal, Hartnell's eighth score of the season, assisted by Chris Pronger and Kimmo Timmonen. This was the final, with the Flyers toppling the Penguins 3-2. Hartnell's goal and assist earned him the first star, followed by Malkin's two goals in a losing effort, and Pronger's assist.
We finish up Tuesday in Edmonton, with the Oilers hosting the Toronto Maple Leafs. Nikolai Khabibulin got the nod for Edmonton, and Jean-Sebastien Giguere tended the Maple Leafs net. Dion Phaneuf opened with his first goal of the season against his former rivals, with the assists coming from Phil Kessel and Colby Armstrong. Jordan Eberle's seventh of the season evened it up for the Oilers, with the helpers from Sam Gagner and Ryan Whitney. Mikhail Grabovski gave Toronto the lead back with his ninth goal of the season, helped along by Clarke MacArthur and Brett Lebda. Kris Versteeg extended the lead to 3-1, potting his tenth of the year from Luke Schenn and Tim Brent. Kessel poured some more on with his power play goal in the third period, a power play marker from Versteeg and Tyler Bozak. The Maple Leafs ended ahead 4-1 over the Oilers. Kessel earned the first star, for a goal and an assist, followed by Jean-Sebastien Giguere's 23 for 24 saves, and lastly, the third star went to Edmonton's Taylor Hall for any reason not regarding his appearance (I kid the rookie). Also sharing a second period fight were Edmonton's Zack Stortini and Toronto's Colton Orr.
There may be a post containing some of the earlier Wednesday hockey action following this one, and if not, it'll all come out tomorrow when I can find a second to do it. Also, Thursday Night Football is on tomorrow night, and that post should be out tomorrow as well.
A Pennsylvania battle between the hosting Philadelphia Flyers and the future TV stars from Pittsburgh, the Penguins. Brian Boucher got the start for the Flyers, while Marc-Andre Fleury took care of the Penguins net. Claude Giroux got Philadelphia on the scoresheet first with his 15th of the season, assisted by Danny Briere and Scott Hartnell. In the second period, Evgeni Malkin tied the game with a power play goal from Alex Goligoski and Sidney Crosby. The goal was Malkin's ninth of the year. Philadelphia answered with a Nikolay Zherdev goal, his tenth of the year helped by James van Riemsdyk and Sean O'Donnell. Malkin provided the answer again for Pittsburgh with his tenth of the year and second of the night, another power play goal, coming from Crosby and Kris Letang. The Flyers recorded their own power play goal, Hartnell's eighth score of the season, assisted by Chris Pronger and Kimmo Timmonen. This was the final, with the Flyers toppling the Penguins 3-2. Hartnell's goal and assist earned him the first star, followed by Malkin's two goals in a losing effort, and Pronger's assist.
We finish up Tuesday in Edmonton, with the Oilers hosting the Toronto Maple Leafs. Nikolai Khabibulin got the nod for Edmonton, and Jean-Sebastien Giguere tended the Maple Leafs net. Dion Phaneuf opened with his first goal of the season against his former rivals, with the assists coming from Phil Kessel and Colby Armstrong. Jordan Eberle's seventh of the season evened it up for the Oilers, with the helpers from Sam Gagner and Ryan Whitney. Mikhail Grabovski gave Toronto the lead back with his ninth goal of the season, helped along by Clarke MacArthur and Brett Lebda. Kris Versteeg extended the lead to 3-1, potting his tenth of the year from Luke Schenn and Tim Brent. Kessel poured some more on with his power play goal in the third period, a power play marker from Versteeg and Tyler Bozak. The Maple Leafs ended ahead 4-1 over the Oilers. Kessel earned the first star, for a goal and an assist, followed by Jean-Sebastien Giguere's 23 for 24 saves, and lastly, the third star went to Edmonton's Taylor Hall for any reason not regarding his appearance (I kid the rookie). Also sharing a second period fight were Edmonton's Zack Stortini and Toronto's Colton Orr.
There may be a post containing some of the earlier Wednesday hockey action following this one, and if not, it'll all come out tomorrow when I can find a second to do it. Also, Thursday Night Football is on tomorrow night, and that post should be out tomorrow as well.
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