Wednesday brought us six games as we close down on 2010 and get ready for 2011. They started in...
New Jersey, with the Devils hosting the New York Rangers. Henrik Lundqvist and Martin Brodeur were in between the pipes. Travis Zajac got the Devils on the board first with his fifth of the year, assisted by Mattias Tedenby and Ilya Kovalchuk. Forty-seven seconds later, Brian Boyle put the Rangers in a tie with his 14th of the year, from Ruslan Fedotenko and Brandon Prust. Michal Rozsival gave New York the lead with his third of the year, helped along by Brandon Dubinsky and Derek Stepan. Dubinsky put the game away with six seconds left in the third, potting his 16th of the season, with help from Artem Anisimov on the empty netter to give the Rangers a 3-1 win over New Jersey. Lundqvist (43 for 44 saves), Rozsival, and Brodeur (23 for 25 saves) were the three stars recipients. Dropping the gloves in the second period were Dainius Zubrus and Brian Boyle.
Staying in the Tri-State area, the New York Islanders hosted the Pittsburgh Penguins. Marc-Andre Fleury and Rick DiPietro picked up the starts. After going scoreless in the first period, Josh Bailey scored his sixth of the year to give the Islanders a 1-0 lead early in the second period. Travis Hamonic picked up the lone assist. The Penguins tied it on Chris Connor's fourth of the year, from Tyler Kennedy. The tie would be preserved until a shootout. Rob Schremp and Kris Letang traded barbs in the first round, Frans Nielsen put New York ahead in round two, but was answered by Evgeni Malkin in the third. P.A. Parenteau ended up saving the Islanders with his goal and the subsequent miss from Mark Letestu, giving the Islanders the 2-1 win over Pittsburgh. DiPietro (37 of 38 saves), Bailey, and Fleury (25 of 26 saves) earned the three stars.
Next up, the Ottawa Senators hosted the Carolina Hurricanes. Cam Ward and Brian Elliott were the starters. Carolina got out hot in the first period, with Zach Boychuk scoring his first and second of the season, with help from Pat Dwyer and Joe Corvo on the first, and Tuomo Ruutu on the latter power play goal. The Hurricanes extended their lead with Erik Cole's eighth of the year in the second period, which was unassisted, as was Dwyer's seventh of the campaign in the third period. Carolina took down the Senators 4-0. Ward (37 save shutout), Boychuk, and Jesse Winchester of the Senators earned the three stars.
Heading into the state of hockey, where the Minnesota Wild hosted the San Jose Sharks. Antero Niittymaki and Niklas Backstrom were the masked men. Minnesota opened the scoring as Kyle Brodziak scored his seventh of the year, a power play goal from Martin Havlat and Pierre-Marc Bouchard. San Jose answered with Joe Thornton potting his ninth of the season, also a power play goal, courtesy of Ryane Clowe and Dan Boyle. The Sharks took the lead in the second period on Devin Setoguchi's sixth of the season, assisted by Clowe and Logan Couture. Mikko Koivu retied the game for the Wild with his ninth of the year, made possible by Andrew Brunette and Antti Miettinen. San Jose took the lead back with Patrick Marleau's 14th of the season, a power play goal helped along by Thornton and Dany Heatley. Minnesota put themselves into a 3-3 tie with Chuck Kobasew potting his fifth of the season, assisted by Nick Schultz and John Madden. Brent Burns gave them the lead with his eleventh of the year, an unassisted goal. Brodziak made it 5-3 with his eighth of the year and second of the night, from Havlat and Burns, and that margin proved to be the final later. Brodziak, Koivu, and Burns were the night's three stars.
Moving along to Dallas, where the Stars hosted the Detroit Red Wings. Jimmy Howard and Kari Lethonen were in the paint for the game. Jiri Hudler opened the scoring with his third of the year for Detroit, a power play goal from Todd Bertuzzi and Nicklas Lidstrom. Brad Richards evened it for Dallas with his 17th of the year, from Loui Eriksson and Trevor Daley. They took the lead on Mark Fistric's second of the season, assisted by Brenden Morrow and Jamie Benn. The Stars led 3-1 with Benn potting his ninth of the year, thanks to Mike Ribeiro. The Dallas goals came within 1:14 of each other. Detroit finally answered back, as Lidstrom netted his eleventh of the season, assisted by Valtteri Filppula and Betuzzi. Patrick Eaves put the Red Wings back into a tie with his ninth of the campaign, with help from Johan Franzen and Brian Rafalski on the power play. Detroit continued the scoring trend in the third period, with Brad Stuart registering his third of the season, thanks to Hudler and Drew Miller. Giving the Wings a 5-3 lead was Kris Draper, netting his second of the year with help from Eaves and Darren Helm. Eaves scored his second of the night and tenth of the year with assistance from Franzen and Henrik Zetterberg. Eaves then completed the hat trick with a long range shot into an empty net for his eleventh of the season, made possible by Jonathan Ericsson and the goalie Jimmy Howard. The Red Wings would topple the Stars 7-3, with Eaves, Benn, and Lidstrom earning the three stars in a scoring fest.
Finally, the Phoenix Coyotes hosted the Los Angeles Kings. Jonathan Quick and Ilya Bryzgalov played in front of the nets, with Bryzgalov returning from injury. The Coyotes scored first, as Shane Doan scored his sixth of the year, from Scottie Upshall and Ed Jovanovski. The Kings answered with Brad Richardson scoring his sixth as well, with help from Anze Kopitar and Kevin Westgarth. Phoenix took the lead back on Ray Whitney's sixth of the season, from Keith Yandle and Lauri Korpikoski. Ryan Smyth tied it again for Los Angeles with his 12th of the campaign, a power play goal from Drew Doughty and Jack Johnson. Upshall took the lead back for the Coyotes with his ninth of the year, from Doan and Yandle. Brett MacLean extended the Phoenix lead to 4-2 with his first of the year, assisted by Upshall and Adrian Aucoin on the power play. Marco Sturm capped off the seven goal first period with his second of the year, assisted by Kopitar to keep the Kings within striking distance. Doan potted his second of the night and seventh of the year in the second period, a power play goal requiring assistance from Whitney and Yandle, who completed a sock trick. Kyle Turris made it 6-3 for Phoenix, notching his sixth of the year, unassisted. This would prove to be the final through the quiet third period, with the Coyotes toppling their division rivals. Earning the three stars were Upshall, Yandle, and Doan. Fighting in the second period were Kevin Westgarth of Los Angeles and Paul Bissonnette of Phoenix.
Thursday, December 30, 2010
Wednesday, December 29, 2010
Tuesday NHL coverage
There were nine games of hockey played on Tuesday. The first was up north...
With the Toronto Maple Leafs hosting the Carolina Hurricanes. Cam Ward and Jonas Gustavsson were given the starting nods. Jeff Skinner score first for the Hurricanes, his ninth of the year made possible by Jussi Jokinen and Tuomo Ruutu. Phil Kessel tied it up for the Maple Leafs with his 13th of the year, a power play goal from Tomas Kaberle and Dion Phaneuf. Eric Staal gave Carolina the lead back with his 17th of the year, which was unassisted. Kessel again did the work to tie the game, with his second of the night and 14th of the season coming from Joey Crabb and Tyler Bozak. Staal, not wanting to be outdone, put in his second of the night and 18th of the year, a power play marker from Sergei Samsonov and Pat Dwyer. Mikhail Grabovski took it into his hands to relieve Kessel from the tie-it-up role, netting his 13th of the year with help from Kris Versteeg and Kaberle on the power play. Carolina did have a third period hero though, with Dwyer coming in to score his sixth of the year off of Tim Gleason and Zach Boychuk. The Hurricanes would hold strong to win 4-3 over the Maple Leafs. Ward (34 for 37 saves), Grabovski and Staal earned the three stars in the game.
Next on the slate was the Pittsburgh Penguins hosting the Atlanta Thrashers. Ondrej Pavelec and Marc-Andre Fleury played the role of cage guards. Evander Kane drew first blood, giving the Thrashers a 1-0 lead on his 12th of the year, from Bryan Little and Alex Burmistrov. Sidney Crosby extended his point streak to 25 games with his 31st of the year, a power play goal from Kris Letang. Dustin Byfuglien made it 2-1 for Atlanta by registering his 14th of the season, assisted by Tobias Enstrom and Little. Crosby struck again, putting Pittsburgh in a 2-2 tie with his 32nd of the year and second of the night, assisted by Alex Goligoski. The Penguins took the lead on a shorthanded goal by Craig Adams, his second marker of the year, with help coming from Matt Cooke. Chris Kunitz gave the Penguins a 4-2 lead with his tenth of the season early in the third period, assisted by Crosby and Pascal Dupuis. Mark Letestu extended the lead farther with his eighth of the year, which found mesh unassisted. Cooke also scored for Pittsburgh, his eighth of the year, courtesy of Crosby and Zbynek Michalek. Atlanta gave a heartwarming goodbye from the game as Eric Boulton buried his fifth of the year, assisted by Jim Slater and Chris Thorburn. Picking up stars in the Penguins 6-3 win were Crosby, Cooke, and Adams.
Heading along to Washington, where the Capitals hosted the Montreal Canadiens. Carey Price and Semyon Varlamov played in goal. Jay Beagle opened the scoring for Washington, netting his second of the season, with Eric Fehr and Matt Hendricks getting the helpers. Mike Green recorded his seventh of the year in the last minute of the first period, assisted by Nicklas Backstrom. After going scoreless throughout the second period, Alex Ovechkin put the game away with his 14th of the season, the empty net goal assisted by Karl Alzner. The Capitals defeated the Canadiens 3-0, with Varlamov (25 save shutout), Beagle, and Green getting the three stars.
Following that, the Boston Bruins visited the Tampa Bay Lightning. Tim Thomas and Den Ellis played in the creases. Michael Ryder scored early, with his eleventh of the year, a power play goal putting Boston up 1-0 from Mark Recchi and Dennis Seidenberg. Steven Stamkos tied it for the Lightning with his 29th of the year, also a power play goal, assisted by Brett Clark and Ryan Malone. The Bruins retook the lead in the second period on Steve Kampfer's first of the year, assisted by Marc Savard and Nathan Horton. Vincent Lecavalier tied it again for Tampa Bay, his seventh of the year coming from Sean Bergenheim and Pavel Kubina. Brad Marchand gave the Bruins the lead back with his fifth of the season, assisted by Shawn Thornton and Gregory Campbell. Martin St. Louis kept the pattern up with his 15th of the year, tying the game again, with help from Stamkos and Kubina. Recchi gave the Bruins what would be the winner with just twenty seconds left in the game, scoring his seventh of the year, courtesy of Patrice Bergeron and Seidenberg on the power play. Earning the three stars in the 4-3 Bruins win were Recchi, Lecavalier, and Seidenberg.
Continuing along to the west, where the St. Louis Blues hosted the Chicago Blackhawks. Marty Turco and Ty Conklin were the starters. Jake Dowell opened the scoring for Chicago late in the first period, notching his fifth of the year, assisted by Viktor Stalberg. St. Louis answered in the second period with another player scoring his fifth of the season, Vladimir Sobotka, who needed no help. Brad Boyes gave the Blues the lead with his eighth of the year, from Erik Johnson and Matt D'Agostini. Brad Winchester added an insurance goal, his fifth of the year, courtesy of Barret Jackman and Jay McClement. The Blues would cruise to a 3-1 victory over the Blackhawks, with Sobotka, D'Agostini, and Turco (40 of 43 saves) earning the stars.
Along to Nashville, where the Predators hosted the Dallas Stars. Andrew Raycroft and Pekka Rinne were the goaltenders. The first period went soundlessly, and Steve Ott got the Stars up in the second period with his eighth of the year, assisted by Loui Eriksson and Brad Richards. Colin Wilson tied it late in the second period for Nashville, scoring his own eighth of the campaign, assisted by J.P. Dumont and Sergei Kostitsyn on the power play. Wilson struck again early in the third period, his second of the night and ninth of the season coming from Joel Ward and Jerred Smithson. Eriksson retied it for Dallas, netting his 16th of the year thanks to Jamie Benn and Karlis Skrastins. The Predators fell behind on Mark Fistric's first of the season, unassisted. Krys Barch put Nashville down 4-2 with his first of the year, with help from Brian Sutherby and Matt Niskanen. Earning the Stars in the Dallas win were Eriksson, Wilson, and Raycroft (44 for 46 saves).
Going into Canada again, where the Edmonton Oilers hosted the Buffalo Sabres. Dustin Penner put the Oilers up early in the first period with his eleventh of the year, assisted by Ales Hemsky. Luke Adam tied it for the Sabres later that same period with his second of the year, helped along by Patrick Kaleta and Steve Montador. Buffalo took the lead in the second period with a goal by Mike Weber, his first of the season, assisted by Jochen Hecht and Jason Pominville. Hecht made it 3-1 with his fourth of the season in the third period, thanks to Nathan Gerbe and Weber. Edmonton cut the lead to a goal with Ryan Jones potting his eighth of the season, assisted by Tom Gilbert and Jeff Petry. Weber put the game in Buffalo's favor, notching his second of the season and of the night, an empty net goal that went unassisted. Picking up the three stars in the Sabres win were Weber, Gilbert, and Hecht.
Heading down south to the desert, where the Phoenix Coyotes hosted the Anaheim Ducks. Jonas Hiller and Ilya Bryzgalov were your goalies for the game. The Ducks opened the scoring with Luca Sbisa potting his first of the season, from Saku Koivu. Joffery Lupul extended the Anaheim lead to 2-0 with his fourth of the year, courtesy of Brandon McMillan and Andreas Lilja. Corey Perry made it 3-0 with his 20th of the year, which was unassisted. Phoenix got on the board with a power play goal by Shane Doan in the second period, his fifth of the year being helped by Ray Whitney and Keith Yandle, but the Coyotes couldn't manage additional offense and fell 3-1 to Anaheim. Picking up the three stars were Jonas Hiller (31 for 32 saves), Lee Stempniak, and Doan, officially from Phoenix. More obvious choices in the second and third spots would be Perry and Sbisa, but my opinion does not matter to the Coyotes three stars selectors. Also, in the first period, the best of fights occurred in a new chapter with Paul Bissonnette and George Parros dropping the gloves once again.
Lastly, the Philadelphia Flyers go a comfortable place for them, visiting the Vancouver Canucks. Brian Boucher and Roberto Luongo were the goalies of choice in the game. Manny Malhotra opened the scoring with his sixth of the year for Vancouver, from Christian Ehrhoff and Raffi Torres. Ryan Kesler made it 2-0 for the Canucks with his 18th of the year, thanks to Kevin Bieksa. Daniel Sedin exteneded the lead farther with his 19th of the year, from Alexandre Burrows and Henrik Sedin. Philadelphia got on the board with Danny Briere's 17th of the season, assisted by Ville Leino. Kesler got Vancouver back into scoring with a power play goal, his second marker of the night and 19th of the year, assisted by Henrik Sedin and Ehrhoff, good enough for the Flyers to replace Brian Boucher with Sergei Bobrovsky. Making it 5-1 for B.C. was Jannik Hansen, scoring his fourth of the year, courtesy of Daniel Sedin and his sock trick brother Henrik. Jeff Tambellini made it 6-1 Vancouver with his ninth of the year, assisted by Kesler. Jeff Carter gave the Flyers one last kick with his 14th of the year, a power play goal assisted by Briere and Claude Giroux to bring the game to its 6-2 Vancouver final. Kesler, Henrik Sedin, and Luongo (35 for 37 saves) earned the stars.
That's finally all, I'm all caught up after pacing myself today. Tonight, there were six hockey games, and those will be covered tomorrow as quickly as possible.
With the Toronto Maple Leafs hosting the Carolina Hurricanes. Cam Ward and Jonas Gustavsson were given the starting nods. Jeff Skinner score first for the Hurricanes, his ninth of the year made possible by Jussi Jokinen and Tuomo Ruutu. Phil Kessel tied it up for the Maple Leafs with his 13th of the year, a power play goal from Tomas Kaberle and Dion Phaneuf. Eric Staal gave Carolina the lead back with his 17th of the year, which was unassisted. Kessel again did the work to tie the game, with his second of the night and 14th of the season coming from Joey Crabb and Tyler Bozak. Staal, not wanting to be outdone, put in his second of the night and 18th of the year, a power play marker from Sergei Samsonov and Pat Dwyer. Mikhail Grabovski took it into his hands to relieve Kessel from the tie-it-up role, netting his 13th of the year with help from Kris Versteeg and Kaberle on the power play. Carolina did have a third period hero though, with Dwyer coming in to score his sixth of the year off of Tim Gleason and Zach Boychuk. The Hurricanes would hold strong to win 4-3 over the Maple Leafs. Ward (34 for 37 saves), Grabovski and Staal earned the three stars in the game.
Next on the slate was the Pittsburgh Penguins hosting the Atlanta Thrashers. Ondrej Pavelec and Marc-Andre Fleury played the role of cage guards. Evander Kane drew first blood, giving the Thrashers a 1-0 lead on his 12th of the year, from Bryan Little and Alex Burmistrov. Sidney Crosby extended his point streak to 25 games with his 31st of the year, a power play goal from Kris Letang. Dustin Byfuglien made it 2-1 for Atlanta by registering his 14th of the season, assisted by Tobias Enstrom and Little. Crosby struck again, putting Pittsburgh in a 2-2 tie with his 32nd of the year and second of the night, assisted by Alex Goligoski. The Penguins took the lead on a shorthanded goal by Craig Adams, his second marker of the year, with help coming from Matt Cooke. Chris Kunitz gave the Penguins a 4-2 lead with his tenth of the season early in the third period, assisted by Crosby and Pascal Dupuis. Mark Letestu extended the lead farther with his eighth of the year, which found mesh unassisted. Cooke also scored for Pittsburgh, his eighth of the year, courtesy of Crosby and Zbynek Michalek. Atlanta gave a heartwarming goodbye from the game as Eric Boulton buried his fifth of the year, assisted by Jim Slater and Chris Thorburn. Picking up stars in the Penguins 6-3 win were Crosby, Cooke, and Adams.
Heading along to Washington, where the Capitals hosted the Montreal Canadiens. Carey Price and Semyon Varlamov played in goal. Jay Beagle opened the scoring for Washington, netting his second of the season, with Eric Fehr and Matt Hendricks getting the helpers. Mike Green recorded his seventh of the year in the last minute of the first period, assisted by Nicklas Backstrom. After going scoreless throughout the second period, Alex Ovechkin put the game away with his 14th of the season, the empty net goal assisted by Karl Alzner. The Capitals defeated the Canadiens 3-0, with Varlamov (25 save shutout), Beagle, and Green getting the three stars.
Following that, the Boston Bruins visited the Tampa Bay Lightning. Tim Thomas and Den Ellis played in the creases. Michael Ryder scored early, with his eleventh of the year, a power play goal putting Boston up 1-0 from Mark Recchi and Dennis Seidenberg. Steven Stamkos tied it for the Lightning with his 29th of the year, also a power play goal, assisted by Brett Clark and Ryan Malone. The Bruins retook the lead in the second period on Steve Kampfer's first of the year, assisted by Marc Savard and Nathan Horton. Vincent Lecavalier tied it again for Tampa Bay, his seventh of the year coming from Sean Bergenheim and Pavel Kubina. Brad Marchand gave the Bruins the lead back with his fifth of the season, assisted by Shawn Thornton and Gregory Campbell. Martin St. Louis kept the pattern up with his 15th of the year, tying the game again, with help from Stamkos and Kubina. Recchi gave the Bruins what would be the winner with just twenty seconds left in the game, scoring his seventh of the year, courtesy of Patrice Bergeron and Seidenberg on the power play. Earning the three stars in the 4-3 Bruins win were Recchi, Lecavalier, and Seidenberg.
Continuing along to the west, where the St. Louis Blues hosted the Chicago Blackhawks. Marty Turco and Ty Conklin were the starters. Jake Dowell opened the scoring for Chicago late in the first period, notching his fifth of the year, assisted by Viktor Stalberg. St. Louis answered in the second period with another player scoring his fifth of the season, Vladimir Sobotka, who needed no help. Brad Boyes gave the Blues the lead with his eighth of the year, from Erik Johnson and Matt D'Agostini. Brad Winchester added an insurance goal, his fifth of the year, courtesy of Barret Jackman and Jay McClement. The Blues would cruise to a 3-1 victory over the Blackhawks, with Sobotka, D'Agostini, and Turco (40 of 43 saves) earning the stars.
Along to Nashville, where the Predators hosted the Dallas Stars. Andrew Raycroft and Pekka Rinne were the goaltenders. The first period went soundlessly, and Steve Ott got the Stars up in the second period with his eighth of the year, assisted by Loui Eriksson and Brad Richards. Colin Wilson tied it late in the second period for Nashville, scoring his own eighth of the campaign, assisted by J.P. Dumont and Sergei Kostitsyn on the power play. Wilson struck again early in the third period, his second of the night and ninth of the season coming from Joel Ward and Jerred Smithson. Eriksson retied it for Dallas, netting his 16th of the year thanks to Jamie Benn and Karlis Skrastins. The Predators fell behind on Mark Fistric's first of the season, unassisted. Krys Barch put Nashville down 4-2 with his first of the year, with help from Brian Sutherby and Matt Niskanen. Earning the Stars in the Dallas win were Eriksson, Wilson, and Raycroft (44 for 46 saves).
Going into Canada again, where the Edmonton Oilers hosted the Buffalo Sabres. Dustin Penner put the Oilers up early in the first period with his eleventh of the year, assisted by Ales Hemsky. Luke Adam tied it for the Sabres later that same period with his second of the year, helped along by Patrick Kaleta and Steve Montador. Buffalo took the lead in the second period with a goal by Mike Weber, his first of the season, assisted by Jochen Hecht and Jason Pominville. Hecht made it 3-1 with his fourth of the season in the third period, thanks to Nathan Gerbe and Weber. Edmonton cut the lead to a goal with Ryan Jones potting his eighth of the season, assisted by Tom Gilbert and Jeff Petry. Weber put the game in Buffalo's favor, notching his second of the season and of the night, an empty net goal that went unassisted. Picking up the three stars in the Sabres win were Weber, Gilbert, and Hecht.
Heading down south to the desert, where the Phoenix Coyotes hosted the Anaheim Ducks. Jonas Hiller and Ilya Bryzgalov were your goalies for the game. The Ducks opened the scoring with Luca Sbisa potting his first of the season, from Saku Koivu. Joffery Lupul extended the Anaheim lead to 2-0 with his fourth of the year, courtesy of Brandon McMillan and Andreas Lilja. Corey Perry made it 3-0 with his 20th of the year, which was unassisted. Phoenix got on the board with a power play goal by Shane Doan in the second period, his fifth of the year being helped by Ray Whitney and Keith Yandle, but the Coyotes couldn't manage additional offense and fell 3-1 to Anaheim. Picking up the three stars were Jonas Hiller (31 for 32 saves), Lee Stempniak, and Doan, officially from Phoenix. More obvious choices in the second and third spots would be Perry and Sbisa, but my opinion does not matter to the Coyotes three stars selectors. Also, in the first period, the best of fights occurred in a new chapter with Paul Bissonnette and George Parros dropping the gloves once again.
Lastly, the Philadelphia Flyers go a comfortable place for them, visiting the Vancouver Canucks. Brian Boucher and Roberto Luongo were the goalies of choice in the game. Manny Malhotra opened the scoring with his sixth of the year for Vancouver, from Christian Ehrhoff and Raffi Torres. Ryan Kesler made it 2-0 for the Canucks with his 18th of the year, thanks to Kevin Bieksa. Daniel Sedin exteneded the lead farther with his 19th of the year, from Alexandre Burrows and Henrik Sedin. Philadelphia got on the board with Danny Briere's 17th of the season, assisted by Ville Leino. Kesler got Vancouver back into scoring with a power play goal, his second marker of the night and 19th of the year, assisted by Henrik Sedin and Ehrhoff, good enough for the Flyers to replace Brian Boucher with Sergei Bobrovsky. Making it 5-1 for B.C. was Jannik Hansen, scoring his fourth of the year, courtesy of Daniel Sedin and his sock trick brother Henrik. Jeff Tambellini made it 6-1 Vancouver with his ninth of the year, assisted by Kesler. Jeff Carter gave the Flyers one last kick with his 14th of the year, a power play goal assisted by Briere and Claude Giroux to bring the game to its 6-2 Vancouver final. Kesler, Henrik Sedin, and Luongo (35 for 37 saves) earned the stars.
That's finally all, I'm all caught up after pacing myself today. Tonight, there were six hockey games, and those will be covered tomorrow as quickly as possible.
Fantasy Football Championship All-Stars
As the games were played, many fantasy owners competing in this week's general consensus grand finale were meticulously watching the games affecting their glorious hopes. The week had games on 5 different days, including the extension of drama to Tuesday night where fantasy powerhouse Michael Vick tried to give his owners their final push. Here's whose most likely to have helped you win your league.
Quarterbacks: Aaron Rodgers and Josh Freeman
Running Backs: Jamaal Charles and Matt Forte
Wide Receivers: Jerome Simpson (0% owned in Yahoo! formats) and Dwayne Bowe.
Tight Ends: Kellen Winslow and Rob Gronkowski
Kickers: Sebastian Janikowski and the Bionic Foot and Neil Rackers
I personally, out of 18 teams managed alone eligible for glory this week had three winners, four second place, and two third place with two teams next week going, one for all the glory and another for third place. Look for the last edition of this post for the season to come out next week.
Quarterbacks: Aaron Rodgers and Josh Freeman
Running Backs: Jamaal Charles and Matt Forte
Wide Receivers: Jerome Simpson (0% owned in Yahoo! formats) and Dwayne Bowe.
Tight Ends: Kellen Winslow and Rob Gronkowski
Kickers: Sebastian Janikowski and the Bionic Foot and Neil Rackers
I personally, out of 18 teams managed alone eligible for glory this week had three winners, four second place, and two third place with two teams next week going, one for all the glory and another for third place. Look for the last edition of this post for the season to come out next week.
Tuesday Football make-up (Tuesday say what?)
Making up the originally scheduled Sunday Night game that was postponed due to suspected heavy snowfall in Philadelphia, the Eagles hosted the Minnesota Mother Nature's Wrath, or as they are more commonly known, the Vikings. Michael Vick got Philadelphia up first in the opening quarter with a 3 yard touchdown pass to Clay Harbor, and David Akers kicked the extra point. Losing his grip on the ball, a Vick fumble recovered by Viking Antoine Winfield was taken back 45 yards for the touchdown, with Ryan Longwell providing the tying extra point. Longwell added a 30 yard field goal and an extra point on the Joe Webb 9 yard touchdown rush in the third quarter, giving Minnesota a 17-7 lead. Vick attempted to rally the troops by running into the end zone from 10 yards out, and Akers made it a 3 point game with his point after. However, the Vikings had a different plan, letting Adrian Peterson put the nail in the Eagles' hopes of winning the game with his 1 yard touchdown run capped off with Longwell's extra point. The 24-14 Vikings win improved them to 6-9, and dropped Philadelphia to 10-5.
This concludes this post. In just a few minutes, the Fantasy Football Championship Week All-Stars will be out.
This concludes this post. In just a few minutes, the Fantasy Football Championship Week All-Stars will be out.
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
Monday NHL Recap
One of the nice things about being so far behind is that you get to make trades sound like they happened earlier than they actually did, with James Wisniewski being traded from the New York Islanders to the Montreal Canadiens. After acquiring him in the offseason for a conditional third round draft pick, the Isles shipped him off in return for a second round pick in 2011 and fifth round pick in 2012. Way to make the management look serviceable. Also of news this Tuesday, Calgary Flames general manager and executive vice president Darryl Sutter has stepped down, being replaced by former assistant general manager Jay Feaster in the general manager role. As for the six Monday games, we start with...
The New York Islanders visiting the New York Rangers. Dwayne Roloson and Henrik Lundqvist were in between the pipes for the game. Matt Gilroy and the Rangers struck early with his first of the season, assisted by Chris Drury and Brandon Dubinsky. The Islanders answered back with a Rob Schremp goal, assisted by James Wisniewski (his final point in this stint with the Islanders) and Blake Comeau. It was Schremp's seventh of the year. P.A. Parenteau gave the Islanders a 2-1 lead with his eighth of the season, from Matt Moulson and John Tavares. The Rangers tied the game late in the first period with Marian Gaborik scoring his tenth of the year, with help from Marc Staal and Derek Stepan on the power play. Gilroy potted his second of the night and the year in the second period, with help from Brian Boyle. Boyle would make it 4-2 with his 13th of the year, assisted by Michal Rozsival. Dubinsky would continue the Rangers scoring surge in the third period with his 15th of the year, assisted by Artem Anisimov and Drury. Ruslan Fedotenko made it 6-2 with his seventh of the year, courtesy of Brandon Prust and Boyle. Stepan registered what would be the last goal of the game, which was his eleventh of the year, helped along by Gaborik and Mats Zuccarello on the power play. The Rangers beat their archrivals 7-2. Gilroy, Boyle, and Dubinsky earned the three stars.
Heading down to Florida, where the Panthers hosted trading partners of the offseason, the Boston Bruins. Tim Thomas and Scott Clemmensen played in goal for the game. The first period was scoreless, and The Panthers got on the board first with David Booth potting his ninth of the season, from Michael Frolik. The Bruins answered back with David Krejci scoring his sixth of the season, assisted by Michael Ryder and Zdeno Chara. Florida answered back later in the second period with Mike Santorelli scoring his tenth of the season, assisted by Frolik and Bryan Allen. Krejci retied the game for Boston in the third period with his seventh of the year and second of the night, assisted by Blake Wheeler and Ryder. The 2-2 tie lasted until a shootout was needed, with Wheeler's lone goal in the skills competition being the factor, earning him a star alongside Krejci and Thomas (32 for 34 saves).
Heading west a bit, with the Columbus Blue Jackets hosting the Minnesota Wild. Jose Theodore and Steve Mason were delegated to the starting job. Chuck Kobasew gave Minnesota an early first period lead with his fourth of the year, assisted by Nick Schultz and Brad Staubitz. Columbus tied the game in the second period with Derick Brassard scoring his ninth of the season, assisted by Kristian Huselius and Rick Nash. The Wild retook the lead later when Mikko Koivu potted his eighth of the year with two seconds left in the second period, with Antti Miettinen and Marek Zidlicky picking up the helpers. Fedor Tyutin scored his second of the year to get the Blue Jackets in a 2-2 tie in the third period, thanks to Jared Boll and Rick Nash. Forty-one seconds later, Columbus had a 3-2 lead after Andrew Murray netted his second of the season, from Marc Methot and Samuel Pahlsson. Minnesota would tie it up with the tenth goal of the season by Cal Clutterbuck, with help from Zidlicky and Kobasew. The game would require a shootout, where Nash and Kyle Wilson put Columbus up early, Pierre-Marc Bouchard answered to give the shootout tally a 2-1 Blue Jackets advantage, but Huselius put it away, giving the Blue Jackets a 4-3 win over the Wild. Steve Mason (37 for 40 saves), Nash, and Huselius earned the three stars. In the fighting category, Boll and Staubitz had a first period dance, with Staubitz coming back for more in the third period, dueling with Tom Sestito.
Next up we have the Colorado Avalanche hosting the Detroit Red Wings. Chris Osgood and Peter Budaj were the goalies for the game. Colorado opened the scoring in the first period with a goal by Matt Duchene, his 14th of the year, assisted by Tomas Fleischmann and Milan Hejduk. Detroit answered with a power play goal by Jiri Hudler, his second tally of the season, with help from Valtteri Filppula and Nicklas Lidstrom. The Avalanche retook the lead with T.J. Galiardi scoring his sixth of the campaign, and David Jones and Adam Foote picked up the helpers. The Red Wings scored another power play goal courtesy of Johan Franzen, his 16th marker of the year, assisted by Lidstrom and Niklas Kronwall. After going scoreless through the second period, the Red Wings would return to the scoresheet with Lidstrom potting his tenth of the season, a power play goal from Hudler and Todd Bertuzzi. Duchene put the game into a 3-3 tie for the Avalanche with his second of the night and 15th of the season, assisted by Paul Stastny and John-Michael Liles on the power play. The tie would last until Detroit's Kronwall broke it in overtime, notching a power play goal from Henrik Zetterberg and Lidstrom to win the game. The goal was his eighth of the year. Detroit would beat Colorado 4-3, with Osgood (46 of 49 saves and 400th career victory), Kronwall, and Duchene grabbing the three stars.
Next up was the Calgary Flames hosting the Buffalo Sabres. Ryan Miller and Miikka Kiprusoff were the men tending the twine. Drew Stafford and Buffalo struck first with his tenth of the year, from Jason Pominville and Andrej Sekera. Calgary answered in the second period with Olli Jokinen potting his eighth of the year, from Alex Tanguay and Robyn Regehr. Jarome Iginla gave the Flames their first lead of the game with his 15th of the season, assisted by Tanguay and Jokinen. Extending the lead in the third period was Ales Kotalik, whose first of the year made it 3-1 with help from Anton Babchuk. Calgary scored again, with David Moss sneaking his fourth of the year past Ryan Miller, assisted by Tim Jackman. Patrick Kaleta netted his fourth for the Sabres, with Jochen Hecht and Mike Weber picking up the helpers. Tom Kostopoulos made it 5-2 for Calgary in the final second, his third of the year coming on the man advantage from Adam Pardy and David Moss. Iginla, Cory Sarich, and Jokinen earned the three stars.
Lastly, we have the San Jose Sharks hosting their rivals from the south, the Los Angeles Kings. Jonathan Quick and Antti Niemi picked up the starts. The game was uneventful through two periods, save for a Brad Richardson of the Kings and Scott Nichol of the Sharks bout in the second period. Los Angeles did wake up in the third period, with Trevor Lewis scoring his second of the campaign from Richardson. Marco Sturm extended the lead with his first of the season, courtesy of Anze Kopitar and Matt Greene. Dustin Brown took a pair of goals to wrap up the scoring, his 15th and 16th of the years for the Kings, from Drew Doughty and Kopitar first and Kopitar again for his sock trick and Jack Johnson. Quick's 24 save 4-0 shutout, Brown, and Kopitar grabbed the stars for the game.
That's all for this post here. Still in ketchup mode at this point, but two posts will quickly follow this one.
The New York Islanders visiting the New York Rangers. Dwayne Roloson and Henrik Lundqvist were in between the pipes for the game. Matt Gilroy and the Rangers struck early with his first of the season, assisted by Chris Drury and Brandon Dubinsky. The Islanders answered back with a Rob Schremp goal, assisted by James Wisniewski (his final point in this stint with the Islanders) and Blake Comeau. It was Schremp's seventh of the year. P.A. Parenteau gave the Islanders a 2-1 lead with his eighth of the season, from Matt Moulson and John Tavares. The Rangers tied the game late in the first period with Marian Gaborik scoring his tenth of the year, with help from Marc Staal and Derek Stepan on the power play. Gilroy potted his second of the night and the year in the second period, with help from Brian Boyle. Boyle would make it 4-2 with his 13th of the year, assisted by Michal Rozsival. Dubinsky would continue the Rangers scoring surge in the third period with his 15th of the year, assisted by Artem Anisimov and Drury. Ruslan Fedotenko made it 6-2 with his seventh of the year, courtesy of Brandon Prust and Boyle. Stepan registered what would be the last goal of the game, which was his eleventh of the year, helped along by Gaborik and Mats Zuccarello on the power play. The Rangers beat their archrivals 7-2. Gilroy, Boyle, and Dubinsky earned the three stars.
Heading down to Florida, where the Panthers hosted trading partners of the offseason, the Boston Bruins. Tim Thomas and Scott Clemmensen played in goal for the game. The first period was scoreless, and The Panthers got on the board first with David Booth potting his ninth of the season, from Michael Frolik. The Bruins answered back with David Krejci scoring his sixth of the season, assisted by Michael Ryder and Zdeno Chara. Florida answered back later in the second period with Mike Santorelli scoring his tenth of the season, assisted by Frolik and Bryan Allen. Krejci retied the game for Boston in the third period with his seventh of the year and second of the night, assisted by Blake Wheeler and Ryder. The 2-2 tie lasted until a shootout was needed, with Wheeler's lone goal in the skills competition being the factor, earning him a star alongside Krejci and Thomas (32 for 34 saves).
Heading west a bit, with the Columbus Blue Jackets hosting the Minnesota Wild. Jose Theodore and Steve Mason were delegated to the starting job. Chuck Kobasew gave Minnesota an early first period lead with his fourth of the year, assisted by Nick Schultz and Brad Staubitz. Columbus tied the game in the second period with Derick Brassard scoring his ninth of the season, assisted by Kristian Huselius and Rick Nash. The Wild retook the lead later when Mikko Koivu potted his eighth of the year with two seconds left in the second period, with Antti Miettinen and Marek Zidlicky picking up the helpers. Fedor Tyutin scored his second of the year to get the Blue Jackets in a 2-2 tie in the third period, thanks to Jared Boll and Rick Nash. Forty-one seconds later, Columbus had a 3-2 lead after Andrew Murray netted his second of the season, from Marc Methot and Samuel Pahlsson. Minnesota would tie it up with the tenth goal of the season by Cal Clutterbuck, with help from Zidlicky and Kobasew. The game would require a shootout, where Nash and Kyle Wilson put Columbus up early, Pierre-Marc Bouchard answered to give the shootout tally a 2-1 Blue Jackets advantage, but Huselius put it away, giving the Blue Jackets a 4-3 win over the Wild. Steve Mason (37 for 40 saves), Nash, and Huselius earned the three stars. In the fighting category, Boll and Staubitz had a first period dance, with Staubitz coming back for more in the third period, dueling with Tom Sestito.
Next up we have the Colorado Avalanche hosting the Detroit Red Wings. Chris Osgood and Peter Budaj were the goalies for the game. Colorado opened the scoring in the first period with a goal by Matt Duchene, his 14th of the year, assisted by Tomas Fleischmann and Milan Hejduk. Detroit answered with a power play goal by Jiri Hudler, his second tally of the season, with help from Valtteri Filppula and Nicklas Lidstrom. The Avalanche retook the lead with T.J. Galiardi scoring his sixth of the campaign, and David Jones and Adam Foote picked up the helpers. The Red Wings scored another power play goal courtesy of Johan Franzen, his 16th marker of the year, assisted by Lidstrom and Niklas Kronwall. After going scoreless through the second period, the Red Wings would return to the scoresheet with Lidstrom potting his tenth of the season, a power play goal from Hudler and Todd Bertuzzi. Duchene put the game into a 3-3 tie for the Avalanche with his second of the night and 15th of the season, assisted by Paul Stastny and John-Michael Liles on the power play. The tie would last until Detroit's Kronwall broke it in overtime, notching a power play goal from Henrik Zetterberg and Lidstrom to win the game. The goal was his eighth of the year. Detroit would beat Colorado 4-3, with Osgood (46 of 49 saves and 400th career victory), Kronwall, and Duchene grabbing the three stars.
Next up was the Calgary Flames hosting the Buffalo Sabres. Ryan Miller and Miikka Kiprusoff were the men tending the twine. Drew Stafford and Buffalo struck first with his tenth of the year, from Jason Pominville and Andrej Sekera. Calgary answered in the second period with Olli Jokinen potting his eighth of the year, from Alex Tanguay and Robyn Regehr. Jarome Iginla gave the Flames their first lead of the game with his 15th of the season, assisted by Tanguay and Jokinen. Extending the lead in the third period was Ales Kotalik, whose first of the year made it 3-1 with help from Anton Babchuk. Calgary scored again, with David Moss sneaking his fourth of the year past Ryan Miller, assisted by Tim Jackman. Patrick Kaleta netted his fourth for the Sabres, with Jochen Hecht and Mike Weber picking up the helpers. Tom Kostopoulos made it 5-2 for Calgary in the final second, his third of the year coming on the man advantage from Adam Pardy and David Moss. Iginla, Cory Sarich, and Jokinen earned the three stars.
Lastly, we have the San Jose Sharks hosting their rivals from the south, the Los Angeles Kings. Jonathan Quick and Antti Niemi picked up the starts. The game was uneventful through two periods, save for a Brad Richardson of the Kings and Scott Nichol of the Sharks bout in the second period. Los Angeles did wake up in the third period, with Trevor Lewis scoring his second of the campaign from Richardson. Marco Sturm extended the lead with his first of the season, courtesy of Anze Kopitar and Matt Greene. Dustin Brown took a pair of goals to wrap up the scoring, his 15th and 16th of the years for the Kings, from Drew Doughty and Kopitar first and Kopitar again for his sock trick and Jack Johnson. Quick's 24 save 4-0 shutout, Brown, and Kopitar grabbed the stars for the game.
That's all for this post here. Still in ketchup mode at this point, but two posts will quickly follow this one.
Monday Night Football, week 16
This week's Monday Night game featured NFC South rivals fighting for playoff honors, as the New Orleans Saints traveled to Atlanta to face the division leading Falcons. Garrett Hartley opened the scoring for the Saints by kicking a first quarter field goal of 52 yards. New Orleans took the lead to 10-0 with Pierre Thomas running in for a touchdown of 2 yards and an extra point by Hartley. Atlanta answered with Matt Ryan passing 7 yards for the touchdown to Roddy White, and Matt Bryant providing the extra point. The Saints led the Falcons 10-7 going into halftime and throughout the scoreless third quarter. The Falcons took a lead with Chauncey Davis intercepting Drew Brees for 26 yards and the touchdown, and Bryant's extra point made it 14-10 for Atlanta. However, Brees threw one to the right team later, connecting for 6 yards with Jimmy Graham for the touchdown. Hartley was good on the point after. The Falcons could not manage a comeback, and fell 17-14 to their rivals, with the Saints jumping up to 11-4, and the Falcons falling to 12-3.
More recaps of various sports to come later.
More recaps of various sports to come later.
Monday, December 27, 2010
Sunday Hockey recap
The NHL got back to game play after taking the Christmas break, and hosted a heavy 11 game slate. All the games kept combined goals at 5 or less, which makes this post a lot easier to put out. We start off in...
Atlanta, where the Thrashers hosted the Tampa Bay Lightning. Dan Ellis and Ondrej Pavelec had the goaltending duties for the game. The Lightning got the first goal of the game, thanks to Steven Stamkos potting his 28th of the year, assisted by Ryan Malone and Martin St. Louis. The Thrashers answered in the second period with a goal by Zach Bogosian, his third of the year, helped along by Anthony Stewart and Bryan Little. Tampa Bay retook the lead with Vincent Lecavalier's fifth of the season, assisted by Simon Gagne and Sean Bergenheim. Atlanta kept themselves in the game and tied it up again in the third period when Fredrik Modin notched his seventh of the season, courtesy of Jim Slater and Ben Eager. The 2-2 tie lasted to force overtime, where Lecavalier did magic and won the game for the the Lightning with his sixth of the year and second of the night, a power play goal assisted by St. Louis and Stamkos. Lecavalier, losing goalie Pavelec (31 for 34 saves), and Bogosian were the three stars.
Next on the list were the Chicago Blackhawks hosting the Columbus Blue Jackets. Mathieu Garon and Marty Turco were the goalies for the game. Tomas Kopecky opened the scoring for Chicago with his sixth of the year, assisted by returning star Marian Hossa and Jassen Cullimore. The 1-0 lead for the Blackhawks stayed until Patrick Sharp extended it in the third period with his 19th of the year, helped by Brent Seabrook and Hossa on the power play. Dave Bolland made it 3-0 with his fifth of the year, also a power play goal, from Troy Brouwer and Bryan Bickell. Sharp potted another, his 20th of the season and second of the night with help from Brouwer and Jonathan Toews. The Blue Jackets showed signs of life with a power play goal by Derrick Brassard, his eighth of the year being helped by Tom Sestito and Fedor Tyutin. Hossa, Sharp, and Turco (26 for 27 saves) picked up the three stars.
Following that game was the St. Louis Blues hosting the Nashville Predators. Pekka Rinne and Jaroslav Halak were the netminders for the game. The first period was scoreless, and David Backes opened up in the second period with his eighth of the year, assisted by Vladimir Sobotka. Backes put the game away with an empty net tally in the third period, his ninth of the year and second of the night, courtesy of Alex Steen. Halak's 32 save shutout, Backes' two goals, and Rinne's 24 of 25 were the three stars.
Moving right along with the Minnesota Wild hosting the Detroit Red Wings. Jimmy Howard and Niklas Backstrom played in net for this showdown. Henrik Zetterberg notched the first goal of the game, his 13th of the season, assisted by Niklas Kronwall and Johan Franzen. Danny Cleary made it 2-0 for Detroit with his 16th of the year, helped by Valtteri Filppula. The lead was extended further in the second period by Kris Draper, who potted his first of campaign, thanks to Kronwall and Jonathan Ericsson. Tomas Holmstrom made it 4-0 with his tenth of the year, a power play goal courtesy of Zetterberg and Nicklas Lidstrom. Minnesota showed signs of life, avoiding the shutout with Brent Burns scoring his tenth of the year, a power play goal assisted by Martin Havlat and Patrick O'Sullivan. The final ended up 4-1 for the Red Wings over the Wild. Zetterberg, Kronwall, and Lidstrom were the stars of the game.
Going along to Carolina, where the Hurricanes hosted the Washington Capitals. Semyon Varlamov and Cam Ward were the goalies in the game. Washington struck first as Mathieu Perreault netted his fifth of the season, assisted by Alexander Semin and Brooks Laich. Carolina tied it in the second period with a goal by Jussi Jokinen, whose sixth of the season was assisted by Tuomo Ruutu and Jeff Skinner. The Capitals retook the lead with Dave Steckel's fourth of the season, assisted by Alex Ovechkin, who made it 3-1 with his 13th of the year later in the second period. Mike Green picked up the assist on the Ovechkin goal. The Hurricanes tried to get a rally going in the third period, with Ruutu striking early, his eighth of the year being helped by Jay Harrison and Jokinen. They couldn't muster any extra offense and fell 3-2 to the men from D.C. Ovechkin, Varlamov (33 for 35 saves) and Ruutu were the three stars.
Next up was the New York Islanders hosting the Montreal Canadiens. Carey Price and Dwayne Roloson were tending the twine in this game. New York struck first with Blake Comeau, who scored his eighth of the year thanks to Rob Schremp and Mark Eaton. They made it 2-0 when Michael Grabner scored his eighth of the year with help by Frans Nielsen. The Islanders kept the scoring going in the third period with P.A. Parenteau's seventh of the year, a power play goal assisted by Nielsen and John Tavares. James Wisniewski made it 4-0 for the Islanders with his third of the season, also on the power play with help from Andrew MacDonald and Parenteau. Montreal avoided the shutout with Tomas Plekanec netting his eleventh of the season, from Andrei Kostitsyn and Michael Cammalleri. The final would be 4-1, favoring New York over the Canadiens. Roloson (38 for 39 saves), Wisniewski, and Parenteau would pick up the three stars.
Moving a short distance to New Jersey, where the Devils hosted the Toronto Maple Leafs. Jonas Gustavsson and Martin Brodeur would get the starting nod for the game. Toronto struck first with Colby Armstrong in the first period, with his second of the season being helped by Kris Versteeg. They extended the lead in the second period when John Mitchell netted his second of the season, assisted by Versteeg and Carl Gunnarsson. The Maple Leafs ran the lead to 3-1 with Nikolai Kulemin's 12th of the year, assisted by Clarke MacArthur and Mikhail Grabovski. Johan Hedberg replaced Martin Brodeur in the Devils net to start the third period, and New Jersey woke up with a power play goal by Rod Pelley, his first of the year assisted by Mark Fayne and Andy Greene. Armstrong put Toronto up 4-1 with his third of the year and second of the night, assisted by Tomas Kaberle. That would be the final, with Versteeg, Armstrong, and Gustavsson (29 of 30 saves) earning the stars for their performances. There was a notable fight in the game (something I've taken out of this post due to my lack of energy) between Dion Phaneuf and Ilya Kovalchuck in the second period.
Heading north with the Ottawa Senators hosting the Pittsburgh Penguins. Marc-Andre Fleury and Brian Elliott were in between the pipes. Ottawa struck first with a Mike Fisher goal, his tenth of the year getting help from Erik Karlsson and Sergei Gonchar on the power play. Karlsson added his own goal to make it 2-0 for the Senators, with his seventh of the year assisted by Chris Kelly and Jason Spezza. Karlsson struck again early in the second period, with his second of the night and eighth of the season coming on the power from Spezza. Pittsburgh avoided the shutout because Sidney Crosby was unwilling to kill his almost historical point streak, potting his 30th of the year thanks to Matt Cooke and Chris Kunitz. It was too late to help the Penguins, who lost 3-1 to Ottawa. Elliott (44 for 45 saves), Karlsson, and Chris Phillips earned the three stars. There was an early fight between tough guys Eric Godard of Pittsburgh and Matt Carkner of Ottawa.
Traveling significantly farther south, to Dallas, with the Stars hosting the Phoenix Coyotes. Jason LaBarbera and Kari Lethonen were the masked men. Phoenix opened the scoring with Kyle Turris in the second period, his fifth of the year coming from Shane Doan and Mikkel Boedker. This proved to be the deciding factor, as the Coyotes beat the Stars 1-0. LaBarbera (30 save shutout), Lethonen (24 for 25 saves), and Turris earned the three stars. Keeping the fans awake in the first period was Phoenix tough guy Paul "BizNasty" Bissonnette fighting Krys Barch of Dallas.
Moving along to Hollywood, where the Los Angeles Kings hosted the Anaheim Ducks. Jonas Hiller and Jonathan Bernier were the starting goalies for the game. All scoring occurred in the second period, started off with Wayne Simmonds scoring his eighth of the year for the Kings, from Michal Handzus and Kyle Clifford. The Ducks answered thirty-two seconds later with a Matt Beleskey goal, his first of the season from Toni Lydman and Ryan Getzlaf. Anze Kopitar and Los Angeles took the lead back later with his 15th of the year. from Marco Sturm and Dustin Brown. Justin Williams made it 3-1 with his 14th of the year, an unassisted goal. Brown struck with his 14th of the year to put Anaheim down 4-1, with the power play goal being helped by Drew Doughty and Jack Johnson. Jonas Hiller was replaced by Curtis McElhinney after the Brown goal. This score would prove to be the final. Kopitar, Johnson, and Bernier (18 of 19 saves) picked up the three stars status. Two fights occurred, with Kyle Clifford of the Kings fighting George Parros of the Ducks in the second period, followed by Simmonds dropping the gloves with Anaheim superstar Corey Perry in the third period.
Last on the Sunday schedule was the Vancouver Canucks hosting the Edmonton Oilers. Nikolai Khabibulin and Cory Schneider were the cage protectors. After going scoreless in the first thirty-three minutes, The Oilers got on the board with a Ryan O'Marra goal, his first of the season assisted by Linus Omark. Edmonton would take the lead to 2-0 with Ryan Whitney scoring his second of the season, assisted by Andrew Cogliano and Dustin Penner. Vancouver tried to start a rally back, with Jeff Tambellini scoring his eighth of the campaign late in the second period, with help from Ryan Kesler and Alexander Edler. Mikael Samuelsson continued the Canucks scoring in the early third period with his eighth of the season, courtesy of Raffi Torres and Manny Malhotra. Kevin Bieksa gave Vancouver the lead with twenty-four seconds left in regulation by potting his third of the year, helped along by Alexandre Burrows and Henrik Sedin. The Canucks held on to topple the Oilers 3-2, with Tambellini, Whitney, and Bieksa receiving the three stars.
That's all for Sunday's games. I will get the Monday Night Football, Monday Hockey recap, and possibly Tuesday Night Football out when I can. Thanks for your patience.
Atlanta, where the Thrashers hosted the Tampa Bay Lightning. Dan Ellis and Ondrej Pavelec had the goaltending duties for the game. The Lightning got the first goal of the game, thanks to Steven Stamkos potting his 28th of the year, assisted by Ryan Malone and Martin St. Louis. The Thrashers answered in the second period with a goal by Zach Bogosian, his third of the year, helped along by Anthony Stewart and Bryan Little. Tampa Bay retook the lead with Vincent Lecavalier's fifth of the season, assisted by Simon Gagne and Sean Bergenheim. Atlanta kept themselves in the game and tied it up again in the third period when Fredrik Modin notched his seventh of the season, courtesy of Jim Slater and Ben Eager. The 2-2 tie lasted to force overtime, where Lecavalier did magic and won the game for the the Lightning with his sixth of the year and second of the night, a power play goal assisted by St. Louis and Stamkos. Lecavalier, losing goalie Pavelec (31 for 34 saves), and Bogosian were the three stars.
Next on the list were the Chicago Blackhawks hosting the Columbus Blue Jackets. Mathieu Garon and Marty Turco were the goalies for the game. Tomas Kopecky opened the scoring for Chicago with his sixth of the year, assisted by returning star Marian Hossa and Jassen Cullimore. The 1-0 lead for the Blackhawks stayed until Patrick Sharp extended it in the third period with his 19th of the year, helped by Brent Seabrook and Hossa on the power play. Dave Bolland made it 3-0 with his fifth of the year, also a power play goal, from Troy Brouwer and Bryan Bickell. Sharp potted another, his 20th of the season and second of the night with help from Brouwer and Jonathan Toews. The Blue Jackets showed signs of life with a power play goal by Derrick Brassard, his eighth of the year being helped by Tom Sestito and Fedor Tyutin. Hossa, Sharp, and Turco (26 for 27 saves) picked up the three stars.
Following that game was the St. Louis Blues hosting the Nashville Predators. Pekka Rinne and Jaroslav Halak were the netminders for the game. The first period was scoreless, and David Backes opened up in the second period with his eighth of the year, assisted by Vladimir Sobotka. Backes put the game away with an empty net tally in the third period, his ninth of the year and second of the night, courtesy of Alex Steen. Halak's 32 save shutout, Backes' two goals, and Rinne's 24 of 25 were the three stars.
Moving right along with the Minnesota Wild hosting the Detroit Red Wings. Jimmy Howard and Niklas Backstrom played in net for this showdown. Henrik Zetterberg notched the first goal of the game, his 13th of the season, assisted by Niklas Kronwall and Johan Franzen. Danny Cleary made it 2-0 for Detroit with his 16th of the year, helped by Valtteri Filppula. The lead was extended further in the second period by Kris Draper, who potted his first of campaign, thanks to Kronwall and Jonathan Ericsson. Tomas Holmstrom made it 4-0 with his tenth of the year, a power play goal courtesy of Zetterberg and Nicklas Lidstrom. Minnesota showed signs of life, avoiding the shutout with Brent Burns scoring his tenth of the year, a power play goal assisted by Martin Havlat and Patrick O'Sullivan. The final ended up 4-1 for the Red Wings over the Wild. Zetterberg, Kronwall, and Lidstrom were the stars of the game.
Going along to Carolina, where the Hurricanes hosted the Washington Capitals. Semyon Varlamov and Cam Ward were the goalies in the game. Washington struck first as Mathieu Perreault netted his fifth of the season, assisted by Alexander Semin and Brooks Laich. Carolina tied it in the second period with a goal by Jussi Jokinen, whose sixth of the season was assisted by Tuomo Ruutu and Jeff Skinner. The Capitals retook the lead with Dave Steckel's fourth of the season, assisted by Alex Ovechkin, who made it 3-1 with his 13th of the year later in the second period. Mike Green picked up the assist on the Ovechkin goal. The Hurricanes tried to get a rally going in the third period, with Ruutu striking early, his eighth of the year being helped by Jay Harrison and Jokinen. They couldn't muster any extra offense and fell 3-2 to the men from D.C. Ovechkin, Varlamov (33 for 35 saves) and Ruutu were the three stars.
Next up was the New York Islanders hosting the Montreal Canadiens. Carey Price and Dwayne Roloson were tending the twine in this game. New York struck first with Blake Comeau, who scored his eighth of the year thanks to Rob Schremp and Mark Eaton. They made it 2-0 when Michael Grabner scored his eighth of the year with help by Frans Nielsen. The Islanders kept the scoring going in the third period with P.A. Parenteau's seventh of the year, a power play goal assisted by Nielsen and John Tavares. James Wisniewski made it 4-0 for the Islanders with his third of the season, also on the power play with help from Andrew MacDonald and Parenteau. Montreal avoided the shutout with Tomas Plekanec netting his eleventh of the season, from Andrei Kostitsyn and Michael Cammalleri. The final would be 4-1, favoring New York over the Canadiens. Roloson (38 for 39 saves), Wisniewski, and Parenteau would pick up the three stars.
Moving a short distance to New Jersey, where the Devils hosted the Toronto Maple Leafs. Jonas Gustavsson and Martin Brodeur would get the starting nod for the game. Toronto struck first with Colby Armstrong in the first period, with his second of the season being helped by Kris Versteeg. They extended the lead in the second period when John Mitchell netted his second of the season, assisted by Versteeg and Carl Gunnarsson. The Maple Leafs ran the lead to 3-1 with Nikolai Kulemin's 12th of the year, assisted by Clarke MacArthur and Mikhail Grabovski. Johan Hedberg replaced Martin Brodeur in the Devils net to start the third period, and New Jersey woke up with a power play goal by Rod Pelley, his first of the year assisted by Mark Fayne and Andy Greene. Armstrong put Toronto up 4-1 with his third of the year and second of the night, assisted by Tomas Kaberle. That would be the final, with Versteeg, Armstrong, and Gustavsson (29 of 30 saves) earning the stars for their performances. There was a notable fight in the game (something I've taken out of this post due to my lack of energy) between Dion Phaneuf and Ilya Kovalchuck in the second period.
Heading north with the Ottawa Senators hosting the Pittsburgh Penguins. Marc-Andre Fleury and Brian Elliott were in between the pipes. Ottawa struck first with a Mike Fisher goal, his tenth of the year getting help from Erik Karlsson and Sergei Gonchar on the power play. Karlsson added his own goal to make it 2-0 for the Senators, with his seventh of the year assisted by Chris Kelly and Jason Spezza. Karlsson struck again early in the second period, with his second of the night and eighth of the season coming on the power from Spezza. Pittsburgh avoided the shutout because Sidney Crosby was unwilling to kill his almost historical point streak, potting his 30th of the year thanks to Matt Cooke and Chris Kunitz. It was too late to help the Penguins, who lost 3-1 to Ottawa. Elliott (44 for 45 saves), Karlsson, and Chris Phillips earned the three stars. There was an early fight between tough guys Eric Godard of Pittsburgh and Matt Carkner of Ottawa.
Traveling significantly farther south, to Dallas, with the Stars hosting the Phoenix Coyotes. Jason LaBarbera and Kari Lethonen were the masked men. Phoenix opened the scoring with Kyle Turris in the second period, his fifth of the year coming from Shane Doan and Mikkel Boedker. This proved to be the deciding factor, as the Coyotes beat the Stars 1-0. LaBarbera (30 save shutout), Lethonen (24 for 25 saves), and Turris earned the three stars. Keeping the fans awake in the first period was Phoenix tough guy Paul "BizNasty" Bissonnette fighting Krys Barch of Dallas.
Moving along to Hollywood, where the Los Angeles Kings hosted the Anaheim Ducks. Jonas Hiller and Jonathan Bernier were the starting goalies for the game. All scoring occurred in the second period, started off with Wayne Simmonds scoring his eighth of the year for the Kings, from Michal Handzus and Kyle Clifford. The Ducks answered thirty-two seconds later with a Matt Beleskey goal, his first of the season from Toni Lydman and Ryan Getzlaf. Anze Kopitar and Los Angeles took the lead back later with his 15th of the year. from Marco Sturm and Dustin Brown. Justin Williams made it 3-1 with his 14th of the year, an unassisted goal. Brown struck with his 14th of the year to put Anaheim down 4-1, with the power play goal being helped by Drew Doughty and Jack Johnson. Jonas Hiller was replaced by Curtis McElhinney after the Brown goal. This score would prove to be the final. Kopitar, Johnson, and Bernier (18 of 19 saves) picked up the three stars status. Two fights occurred, with Kyle Clifford of the Kings fighting George Parros of the Ducks in the second period, followed by Simmonds dropping the gloves with Anaheim superstar Corey Perry in the third period.
Last on the Sunday schedule was the Vancouver Canucks hosting the Edmonton Oilers. Nikolai Khabibulin and Cory Schneider were the cage protectors. After going scoreless in the first thirty-three minutes, The Oilers got on the board with a Ryan O'Marra goal, his first of the season assisted by Linus Omark. Edmonton would take the lead to 2-0 with Ryan Whitney scoring his second of the season, assisted by Andrew Cogliano and Dustin Penner. Vancouver tried to start a rally back, with Jeff Tambellini scoring his eighth of the campaign late in the second period, with help from Ryan Kesler and Alexander Edler. Mikael Samuelsson continued the Canucks scoring in the early third period with his eighth of the season, courtesy of Raffi Torres and Manny Malhotra. Kevin Bieksa gave Vancouver the lead with twenty-four seconds left in regulation by potting his third of the year, helped along by Alexandre Burrows and Henrik Sedin. The Canucks held on to topple the Oilers 3-2, with Tambellini, Whitney, and Bieksa receiving the three stars.
That's all for Sunday's games. I will get the Monday Night Football, Monday Hockey recap, and possibly Tuesday Night Football out when I can. Thanks for your patience.
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