Another week begins, and so do another six games at some point tonight. The first of these games is in...
Toronto, where the Maple Leafs host the Atlanta Thrashers. Ondrej Pavelec and Jean-Sebastien Giguere are guarding the cages. Evander Kane puts Atlanta up first with his 14th of the season, a power play goal from Bryan Little and Zach Bogosian. Dustin Byfuglien put the Thrashers up 2-0 with his 17th of the year, also a power play goal, courtesy of Bogosian and Rich Peverley. Toronto answered in the second period with the second of the season by Dion Phaneuf, assisted by Mikhail Grabovski and Nikolai Kulemin. Grabovski tied it for the Maple Leafs with his 22nd of the year, coming off of Clarke MacArthur and Tomas Kaberle. Thirty-nine seconds later, Atlanta regained the lead with a Nik Antropov goal from Anthony Stewart, good for his tenth of the season. Toronto found another equalizer in the form of the 17th of the year from MacArthur, thanks to Kaberle and Kris Versteeg. Kulemin gave the Maple Leafs a 4-3 lead with his 19th of the campaign, unassisted. Tim Brent added some insurance with his seventh of the season, helped along by Joey Crabb and Colby Armstrong. The Thrashers tried to get going again with Andrew Ladd putting his 17th of the year away with the help of Peverley and Little, but no further offense came of it and the Maple Leafs held on for a 5-4 victory. The three stars are awarded to Kaberle, Kane, and Grabovski.
Next up features the Detroit Red Wings hosting the New York Rangers. Martin Biron and Jimmy Howard are in the nets. The scoring was opened in the second period by Pavel Datsyuk, who returned from injury to net his 13th of the season with the help of Jiri Hudler and Danny Cleary. New York tied it in the third period with a Derek Stepan goal, his 15th of the year getting help from Matt Gilroy and Wojtek Wolski. Hudler took the lead back for the Red Wings on his fifth of the season, via Jonathan Ericsson and Datsyuk. Detroit extended their lead out to 3-1 with the fourth of the year by Drew Miller, assisted by Justin Abdelkader. The Rangers came back within a goal thanks to Brandon Dubinsky notching his 18th of the campaign with the help of Sean Avery and Marian Gaborik, but it wasn't enough to avoid defeat. Datsyuk, Hudler, and Howard (45 for 47 saves) were the three stars.
Southward a bit, with the Nashville Predators hosting the Edmonton Oilers. Earning the privilege to start are Devan Dubnyk and Pekka Rinne. Edmonton dented the scoreboard first with Andrew Cogliano notching his eighth of the season, made possible by Jordan Eberle and Taylor Hall. Ryan Jones put the Oilers up 2-0 with his 12th of the year, helped along by Colin Fraser and Liam Reddox. Eberle made it 3-0 in the early third period with his tenth of the season, with assists coming from Jim Vandermeer and Cogliano. Dustin Penner kept the Oilers going with his 18th of the year, courtesy of Ales Hemsky. Pekka Rinne was pulled for Anders Lindback at this point. Edmonton would cruise to a 4-0 victory, giving the three stars to Dubnyk (37 save shutout), Jones, and Cogliano.
Meanwhile, Edmonton's Alberta rivals, the Calgary Flames host the Chicago Blackhawks. Corey Crawford and Miikka Kiprusoff are tending the twines. Calgary struck first with a Mikael Backlund goal, his seventh of the season, with assists by Lance Bouma and Adam Pardy. Chicago answered in the second period with a Patrick Kane marker from Jonathan Toews and Troy Brouwer, good as his 15th of the year. Calgary regained the lead in the third period with a goal by Curtis Glencross, his 14th of the season from Olli Jokinen and Robyn Regehr. Rene Bourque put the dagger in for Calgary with his 16th of the year, an empty net goal with helpers from Jokinen and Jarome Iginla. The three stars went to Glencross, Iginla, and Brent Seabrook.
After that, the Phoenix Coyotes played host to the Colorado Avalanche. Craig Anderson and Ilya Bryzgalov were the featured goaltenders. Phoenix struck first with a Radim Vrbata goal, his 12th of the season going down thanks to Martin Hanzal and Ray Whitney. The Coyotes added on in the second period with a Scottie Upshall marker, the 16th of the campaign for him coming off of Kyle Turris and Shane Doan. Vrbata sank another goal in the third period, making it 3-0 with his second of the night and 13th of the year on the power play from Taylor Pyatt and Whitney. This was the final, and Bryzgalov (26 save shutout), Vrbata, and Adrian Aucoin took the three stars home.
Lastly, the Vancouver Canucks hosted the Ottawa Senators. Playing the creases were Brian Elliott and Roberto Luongo. Alexandre Burrows opened the scoring for Vancouver with his 14th of the season, assisted by Henrik Sedin and Christian Ehrhoff. Ryan Kesler added on his 31st of the year to extend the Canucks lead, with the helpers by Mason Raymond and Mikael Samuelsson. Samuelsson potted his own goal in the second period for Vancouver, making it 3-0 with his 12th of the season courtesy of Kesler and Raymond. Ottawa finally got on the board when Nick Foligno sank his ninth of the year, with the help of a returning Jason Spezza and Daniel Alfredsson. Spezza made it a one goal game for the Senators with his tenth of the season, with the lone assist by Chris Phillips. Samuelsson iced the game off for the Canucks with his second of the night and 13th of the year, an empty net goal getting help along the way from Raymond, who finished a sock trick. The three stars went to Samuelsson, Spezza, and Dan Hamhuis.
Tuesday's games are on the way, keep watch very soon.
Monday, February 7, 2011
Fantasy Hockey All-Stars, week 16
This is a special edition of All-Stars this week, featuring a 2-week time period severed by the actual All-Star break, so the stats will be compiled over the last two weeks. With that, these are the studs:
Center: Henrik Sedin, 2 goals, 5 assists, +3, 2 penalty minutes, 4 power play points, 12 shots on goal
Left Wing: Daniel Sedin, 1 goal, 7 assists, +3, 0 penalty minutes, 4 power play points, 14 shots on goal
Right Wing: Mikael Samuelsson, 3 goals, 5 assists, +4, 2 penalty minutes, 4 power play points, 23 shots on goal
Defenseman: Dan Hamhuis, 1 goal, 3 assists, +6, 6 penalty minutes, 2 power play points, 11 shots on goal
Goaltender: Roberto Luongo, 4 wins, 1.25 goals against average, 116 saves, .959 save percentage, 1 shutout
As any normal hockey fan can tell, Vancouver absolutely dominated the world around the All-Star break, with all of these players being on the Canucks team. This will be back next week.
Center: Henrik Sedin, 2 goals, 5 assists, +3, 2 penalty minutes, 4 power play points, 12 shots on goal
Left Wing: Daniel Sedin, 1 goal, 7 assists, +3, 0 penalty minutes, 4 power play points, 14 shots on goal
Right Wing: Mikael Samuelsson, 3 goals, 5 assists, +4, 2 penalty minutes, 4 power play points, 23 shots on goal
Defenseman: Dan Hamhuis, 1 goal, 3 assists, +6, 6 penalty minutes, 2 power play points, 11 shots on goal
Goaltender: Roberto Luongo, 4 wins, 1.25 goals against average, 116 saves, .959 save percentage, 1 shutout
As any normal hockey fan can tell, Vancouver absolutely dominated the world around the All-Star break, with all of these players being on the Canucks team. This will be back next week.
Song of the Week VI
This week, we have a live performance coming in as our song for the week. I would like to note that while we try to keep things PG around this blog, song titles are chosen by their artists, and the computer decides for the song of the week. With that, our song of the week is The B**** is Back, by Sir Elton John. This live performance is recorded at Madison Square Garden in New York City, as the last track in the set for that show. The song itself has a very good message, with Elton stating that he doesn't really care what others think of him, because he's going to live his life as he likes. The quick tempo of the song also bring out an edge to the message, giving the song a strong and independent feeling. That's all for this week, we'll be back here next week.
Sunday, February 6, 2011
SUPER BOWL XLV
This is the official Sports, Music, Subway, Repeat blog post for Super Bowl XLV. We have the NFC's Green Bay Packers taking on the Pittsburgh Steelers in Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas (props for failure to prepare and making the festivities quite pathetic to the Cowboys organization). Green Bay opened the scoring with a touchdown pass from Aaron Rodgers to Jordy Nelson for 29 yards, with Mason Crosby adding on the extra point. The next touchdown also came from the Packers, with Nick Collins intercepting Ben Roethlisberger for 37 yards and a score, and Crosby brought the tally to 14-0. Shaun Suisham put Pittsburgh on the board with a 33 yard field goal. Rodgers responded for Green Bay with a 21 yard touchdown pass to Greg Jennings, allowing another extra point by Crosby. Roethlisberger decided to throw a touchdown to the right team this time, connecting with Hines Ward for 8 yards and a score, with the extra point by Suisham bringing the halftime score to 21-10, leaving the Steelers down by 11. Pittsburgh added on another touchdown in the third quarter, an 8 yard rush by Rashard Mendenhall, and the Suisham extra point brought them within 4. Rodgers connected with Jennings again, this time for 8 yards and the score, and the 11 point lead was restored on the Crosby extra point. The Steelers answered with Roethlisberger throwing a 25 yard touchdown to Mike Wallace, and the two point conversion was good on the Antwaan Randle El run. Crosby adds on a 23 yard field goal to give Green Bay a 31-25 lead. This would be enough to make the Packers Super Bowl champions, giving the steelers only their second loss ever in a Super Bowl game. (As a side note, the city of Seattle and state of Washington thank the Packers for winning.)
NHL on Super Bowl Sunday
As a prelude to "The Big Game," the NHL scheduled three games for our viewing pleasures. The first of which should be the main-view grabber, the NHL's own big game with the...
Washington Capitals hosting the injury-ridden Pittsburgh Penguins. Marc-Andre Fleury and Michal Neuvirth got the starts in goal for today's game. Brooks Laich opened the scoring for Washington in the first period with his eleventh of the season, helped along by John Erskine and Mathieu Perreault. The Capitals take a 2-0 lead in the second period with a shorthanded goal by Marcus Johansson, his seventh of the year getting assistance from Jeff Schultz. Washington wraps the game up in the late third period with an empty net goal by Mike Knuble, his 13th of the campaign coming off of Matt Hendricks. The three stars were awarded to Neuvirth (22 save shutout), Laich, and Johansson.
The next game of the day is in Montreal, with Canadiens hosting the New Jersey Devils. Martin Brodeur and Carey Price pick up the starting honors. Dainius Zubrus puts New Jersey up early with his tenth of the season, an unassisted goal. Ilya Kovalchuk made it 2-0 for the Devils with his 16th of the year, thanks to Colin White and Travis Zajac. Starting in net in the second period for New Jersey is Johan Hedberg, covering for a likely-injured Brodeur. Zajac adds his own goal for New Jersey, his ninth of the season, making it 3-0 thanks to Anton Volchenkov. Montreal got on the board with a goal by P.K. Subban, his sixth of the year, with the helpers by Scott Gomez and Max Pacioretty. Kovalchuk sealed the deal at 4-1 for the Devils with his second of the night and 17th of the season into the empty net with the help of Zajac. Earning the three stars were Kovalchuk, Subban, and Zajac.
Lastly, we have the blogger's nightmare, with the Tampa Bay Lightning hosting the St. Louis Blues. Ty Conklin and Dan Ellis took to the creases for the game. Steven Stamkos put Tampa Bay up first with his 40th of the season, which got help from Brett Clark and Martin St. Louis (and you now know why this is a nightmare; glad it only happens once a year). St. Louis tied the game at one just thirty seconds into the second period with the 12th of the year by Patrik Berglund, with Alex Steen and T.J. Oshie picking up the helpers. The Lightning quickly reclaimed the lead with a Dominic Moore goal, his ninth of the season getting the assistance need from Stamkos and Marc-Andre Bergeron. The Blues answered back with David Backes putting his 17th of the year in the twine on the power play with the help of Steen and Oshie. St. Louis took the lead on the first of the season by Nikita Nikitin, made possible by Jay McClement. Tampa Bay retied the game on a Steve Downie marker just thirty seconds later, his sixth of the year helped along by Stamkos and St. Louis. The Lightning toppled the Blues after a scoreless third period with an overtime power play goal from Vincent Lecavalier, with assists from Bergeron and Stamkos, the later notching a sock trick. The three stars were Stamkos, Downie and Backes.
Washington Capitals hosting the injury-ridden Pittsburgh Penguins. Marc-Andre Fleury and Michal Neuvirth got the starts in goal for today's game. Brooks Laich opened the scoring for Washington in the first period with his eleventh of the season, helped along by John Erskine and Mathieu Perreault. The Capitals take a 2-0 lead in the second period with a shorthanded goal by Marcus Johansson, his seventh of the year getting assistance from Jeff Schultz. Washington wraps the game up in the late third period with an empty net goal by Mike Knuble, his 13th of the campaign coming off of Matt Hendricks. The three stars were awarded to Neuvirth (22 save shutout), Laich, and Johansson.
The next game of the day is in Montreal, with Canadiens hosting the New Jersey Devils. Martin Brodeur and Carey Price pick up the starting honors. Dainius Zubrus puts New Jersey up early with his tenth of the season, an unassisted goal. Ilya Kovalchuk made it 2-0 for the Devils with his 16th of the year, thanks to Colin White and Travis Zajac. Starting in net in the second period for New Jersey is Johan Hedberg, covering for a likely-injured Brodeur. Zajac adds his own goal for New Jersey, his ninth of the season, making it 3-0 thanks to Anton Volchenkov. Montreal got on the board with a goal by P.K. Subban, his sixth of the year, with the helpers by Scott Gomez and Max Pacioretty. Kovalchuk sealed the deal at 4-1 for the Devils with his second of the night and 17th of the season into the empty net with the help of Zajac. Earning the three stars were Kovalchuk, Subban, and Zajac.
Lastly, we have the blogger's nightmare, with the Tampa Bay Lightning hosting the St. Louis Blues. Ty Conklin and Dan Ellis took to the creases for the game. Steven Stamkos put Tampa Bay up first with his 40th of the season, which got help from Brett Clark and Martin St. Louis (and you now know why this is a nightmare; glad it only happens once a year). St. Louis tied the game at one just thirty seconds into the second period with the 12th of the year by Patrik Berglund, with Alex Steen and T.J. Oshie picking up the helpers. The Lightning quickly reclaimed the lead with a Dominic Moore goal, his ninth of the season getting the assistance need from Stamkos and Marc-Andre Bergeron. The Blues answered back with David Backes putting his 17th of the year in the twine on the power play with the help of Steen and Oshie. St. Louis took the lead on the first of the season by Nikita Nikitin, made possible by Jay McClement. Tampa Bay retied the game on a Steve Downie marker just thirty seconds later, his sixth of the year helped along by Stamkos and St. Louis. The Lightning toppled the Blues after a scoreless third period with an overtime power play goal from Vincent Lecavalier, with assists from Bergeron and Stamkos, the later notching a sock trick. The three stars were Stamkos, Downie and Backes.
Sandwich Showdown, February 5-6
This Sandwich Showdown, along with the others in February, will likely be very similar, as the promotional choice for this month at Subway is all sandwiches will be at $5 (footlong cost). With that said, we have a Spicy Italian going up against a Roasted Chicken, with both on Herbs and Cheese. The Spicy Italian brought out many different flavors of richness and tasty goodness, as it always does. However, the Roasted Chicken, featured with its porker partner, the slices of Bacon, get the clear cut victory here with just absolute sandwich perfection. This feature will run here next week.
Saturday, February 5, 2011
Saturday Hockey (back to same-day)
There are eleven scheduled games for Saturday. These will be played throughout much of the day, starting with...
The Boston Bruins hosting a former trading partner, the San Jose Sharks. In the nets were Antti Niemi and Tim Thomas. San Jose got on the board in the first period with a Logan Couture goal, his 23rd of the season coming on the power play from Ryane Clowe and Marc-Edouard Vlasic. The game was relatively quiet throughout until the last three seconds, where the game was sealed 2-0 for the Sharks on a Devin Setoguchi empty net goal from Clowe and Niclas Wallin for his eleventh of the year. The three stars went to Couture, Niemi (26 save shutout), and David Krejci (best last name east of the Mississippi).
Heading up north a bit, the Montreal Canadiens host the New York Rangers. Martin Biron and Carey Price tended the twines. The scoring was opened by Montreal in the late second period by Scott Gomez with his seventh of the season, thanks to Alexandre Picard and Yannick Weber. The Canadiens sealed a 2-0 victory with an empty netter from Tomas Plekanec, assisted by P.K. Subban for his 18th of the year. The three stars were awarded to Price (35 save shutout), Gomez, and Biron (27 for 28 saves).
Out west for the last of the matinees, the Colorado Avalanche hosted the Anaheim Ducks. Guarding the cages were Curtis McElhinney and Peter Budaj. Anaheim drew first blood on a Corey Perry power play goal, with helpers provided by Teemu Selanne and Cam Fowler for his 26th of the season. Perry added a pair more for the hat trick in the third period, his 27th and 28th of the year, with the helpers by Bobby Ryan and Brandon McMillan for the earlier goal and Todd Marchant and Saku Koivu on the game-sealing empty netter. The three stars went to Perry, McElhinney (25 save shutout), and Ryan O'Byrne (to get three stars, presumably).
For the regularly scheduled games, the Philadelphia Flyers hosted the Dallas Stars. Kari Lethonen and Brian Boucher were called on to make the starts. Andrej Meszaros put Philadelphia on the board first with his fourth of the season, helped along by Ville Leino. Darroll Powe added his own fourth of the year, a shorthanded goal from Blair Betts and Sean O'Donnell, giving the Flyers a 2-0 lead. Dallas dented the scoreboard with Brendan Morrow putting his 23rd biscuit of the season in the basket, courtesy of Mike Ribeiro and Trevor Daley. Jeff Carter put Philadelphia back in front by two goals with his 25th of the year, made possible by Claude Giroux and Chris Pronger. This was the final, giving the Flyers a 3-1 win over the Stars, and the three stars were given out to Boucher (30 for 31 saves), Meszaros, and Morrow.
Next up, the Carolina Hurricanes host the struggling Atlanta Thrashers. Ondrej Pavelec and Cam Ward were in the creases. Atlanta drew the first blood with a Niclas Bergfors tally, his eleventh of the season draining with the help of Bryan Little and Johnny Oduya. Carolina answered in the second period with an Eric Staal goal, his 26th of the year, getting help from Tuomo Ruutu and Jeff Skinner on the power play. The Hurricanes took the lead in the third period with Brandon Sutter notching his 12th of the season, courtesy of Jiri Tlusty and Joni Pitkanen. Brent Sopel answered for the Thrashers with his second of the year, an unassisted goal. Twenty-eight seconds later, Carolina took the lead back when Tlusty notched his fourth of the season, helped along by Pat Dwyer and Ian White. Atlanta found another equalizer off the stick of Zach Bogosian, his fourth of the year getting assistance from Little and Rich Peverley. In the overtime period, Erik Cole sealed the game for the Hurricanes, notching his 14th of the season with the help of Jamie McBain and Pitkanen. The three stars went to Cole, Sutter, and Tlusty.
In the border battle, the Buffalo Sabres hosted the Toronto Maple Leafs. James Reimer and Ryan Miller were sent out to stop the puck. Buffalo found the back of the net first with a Jason Pominville goal, his 12th of the season assisted by Thomas Vanek. Drew Stafford made it 2-0 for the Sabres with a power play goal from Jordan Leopold and Tyler Myers, good for his 16th of the year. Buffalo kept it going in the second period with a Paul Gaustad tally, his seventh of the season getting aided by Mike Grier and Rob Niedermayer. Tim Connolly added on his seventh of the year as well for the Sabres, a power play goal made possible by Vanek and Stafford. Toronto got on the board with a Nikolai Kulemin goal, his 18th of the season coming shorthanded via Luke Schenn. Stafford made it 5-1 with his 17th of the year, an unassisted goal for Buffalo, prompting Toronto to put Jean-Sebastien Giguere in the crease. The Maple Leafs answered back with a Francois Beauchemin marker, his second of the season helped along by Kris Versteeg and Colby Armstrong. Vanek wrapped the game up for the Sabres on his unassisted 19th of the year. Earning the three stars were Stafford, Vanek, and Leopold.
Heading down to Long Island, where the New York Islanders hosted the Ottawa Senators. Brian Elliott and Kevin Poulin made the starts. New York found twine first with a Matt Moulson goal, his 18th of the season coming from Jack Hillen and John Tavares. Ottawa responded with the third of the year by Chris Neil just thirteen seconds later, with the lone assist going to Mike Fisher. The Islanders took the lead back with a Michael Grabner goal from Frans Nielsen and Ty Wishart, good for his 16th of the season. The Senators tied the game again with a Fisher marker, his 14th of the year gaining power with Chris Kelly and Chris Campoli. Ottawa took a 3-2 lead when Alex Kovalev netted his eleventh of the season, courtesy of Peter Regin and Campoli. Seventeen seconds later, New York retied the game at 3 with the eighth of the year by Rob Schremp, assisted by Jeremy Colliton and Wishart. Elliott was replaced by Robin Lehner. After going scoreless in the second period, the Islanders took the lead back with another Schremp goal in the third period, his ninth of the season and second of the game coming on the power play thanks to Travis Hamonic and Grabner. Nielsen sealed the game for New York, 5-3, with his sixth of the year into the empty cage, with Hamonic providing the assistance. The three stars were handed out to Schremp, Grabner, and Fisher.
Out further west, the Columbus Blue Jackets played host to the Edmonton Oilers. Nikolai Khabibulin and Steve Mason were in front of the cages. Edmonton scored first with Magnus Paajarvi getting his eighth of the season, courtesy of Linus Omark and Sam Gagner. The Oilers took a 2-0 lead with the Dustin Penner goal, assisted by Ales Hemsky and Ladislav Smid, for his 17th of the year. R.J. Umberger got Columbus on the board with his 18th of the season, thanks to Antoine Vermette and Fedor Tyutin. The Blue Jackets tied the game in the second period on a Kristian Huselius marker, his tenth of the year getting help from Umberger and Grant Clitsome. Edmonton took the lead back in the third period with the second of the night and ninth of the campaign from Paajarvi, with Omark and Gagner picking up the helpers once again. Umberger responded again with his second of the game and 19th of the season, his assistance provided by Kris Russell and Vermette. Huselius finally put the Blue Jackets out front with his second of the game and eleventh of the year, helped along by Umberger and Russell. Columbus held on to defeat the Oilers 4-3, and the three stars went to Umberger, Huselius, and Russell.
Following that, the Phoenix Coyotes hosted the Minnesota Wild. Niklas Backstrom and Ilya Bryzgalov put on the masks for the game. It took until the third period to see a goal scored, and this one came from Phoenix's Taylor Pyatt, his 13th of the season seeing help from Sami Lepisto and Eric Belanger. The Coyotes defeated the Wild by this 1-0 score, and the three stars were Bryzgalov (25 save shutout), Pyatt, and Lauri Korpikoski.
Back in the east a bit, the Nashville Predators brought the Detroit Red Wings to town. Joey MacDonald and Pekka Rinne took charge of the cages. Nashville took the lead on a Shea Weber power play goal in the first period, his tenth of the year coming from Ryan Suter and Colin Wilson. Sergei Kostitsyn made it 2-0 in the second period with a beautiful shorthanded, one-handed (told you it was shorthanded), goal, good as his 13th of the season, with Suter gathering in another assist. Kostitsyn added another goal in the third period for his 14th of the year, courtesy of Marcel Goc and Martin Erat, presenting us with the 3-0 Predators final over Detroit. The three stars were given to Rinne (35 save shutout), Kostitsyn, and Suter.
Lastly, the late game between the Calgary Flames and Los Angeles Kings. Jonathan Quick and Miikka Kiprusoff were in between the pipes. Los Angeles struck first just thirty-nine seconds into the game with a Rob Scuderi goal, his second of the season coming from Justin Williams and Ryan Smyth. Forty-two seconds after that, Calgary found the tying goal in the form of the first of the year for Robyn Regehr, helped along by Alex Tanguay and Brendan Morrison. The Kings tied it later with a Dustin Brown marker, his 18th of the season finding twine on the power play thanks to Williams and Jack Johnson. Tanguay tied the game forty-five seconds into the second period with his 13th of the year, made possible by Morrison and Jarome Iginla, to put the Flames in a tie again. Williams gave Los Angeles the lead back with his 19th of the season, with Andrei Loktionov and Brown snapping up the assists. Tanguay added on another equalizer for Calgary, his second goal of the game and 14th of the year, assisted by Morrison and Iginla again, this time on the power play. The tie lasted through the rest of the game and into a shootout, where both teams got two quick goals, the Flames markers coming from Rene Bourque and Tanguay, which were answered by the Kings' Michal Handzus and Jarret Stoll, before Williams sealed the game in the seventh round for Los Angeles. Earning the three stars were Tanguay, Williams, and Morrison.
That's all for Saturday. Posts coming out later on Sunday are the Sandwich Showdown, NHL action, and Super Bowl XLV. Keep watch.
The Boston Bruins hosting a former trading partner, the San Jose Sharks. In the nets were Antti Niemi and Tim Thomas. San Jose got on the board in the first period with a Logan Couture goal, his 23rd of the season coming on the power play from Ryane Clowe and Marc-Edouard Vlasic. The game was relatively quiet throughout until the last three seconds, where the game was sealed 2-0 for the Sharks on a Devin Setoguchi empty net goal from Clowe and Niclas Wallin for his eleventh of the year. The three stars went to Couture, Niemi (26 save shutout), and David Krejci (best last name east of the Mississippi).
Heading up north a bit, the Montreal Canadiens host the New York Rangers. Martin Biron and Carey Price tended the twines. The scoring was opened by Montreal in the late second period by Scott Gomez with his seventh of the season, thanks to Alexandre Picard and Yannick Weber. The Canadiens sealed a 2-0 victory with an empty netter from Tomas Plekanec, assisted by P.K. Subban for his 18th of the year. The three stars were awarded to Price (35 save shutout), Gomez, and Biron (27 for 28 saves).
Out west for the last of the matinees, the Colorado Avalanche hosted the Anaheim Ducks. Guarding the cages were Curtis McElhinney and Peter Budaj. Anaheim drew first blood on a Corey Perry power play goal, with helpers provided by Teemu Selanne and Cam Fowler for his 26th of the season. Perry added a pair more for the hat trick in the third period, his 27th and 28th of the year, with the helpers by Bobby Ryan and Brandon McMillan for the earlier goal and Todd Marchant and Saku Koivu on the game-sealing empty netter. The three stars went to Perry, McElhinney (25 save shutout), and Ryan O'Byrne (to get three stars, presumably).
For the regularly scheduled games, the Philadelphia Flyers hosted the Dallas Stars. Kari Lethonen and Brian Boucher were called on to make the starts. Andrej Meszaros put Philadelphia on the board first with his fourth of the season, helped along by Ville Leino. Darroll Powe added his own fourth of the year, a shorthanded goal from Blair Betts and Sean O'Donnell, giving the Flyers a 2-0 lead. Dallas dented the scoreboard with Brendan Morrow putting his 23rd biscuit of the season in the basket, courtesy of Mike Ribeiro and Trevor Daley. Jeff Carter put Philadelphia back in front by two goals with his 25th of the year, made possible by Claude Giroux and Chris Pronger. This was the final, giving the Flyers a 3-1 win over the Stars, and the three stars were given out to Boucher (30 for 31 saves), Meszaros, and Morrow.
Next up, the Carolina Hurricanes host the struggling Atlanta Thrashers. Ondrej Pavelec and Cam Ward were in the creases. Atlanta drew the first blood with a Niclas Bergfors tally, his eleventh of the season draining with the help of Bryan Little and Johnny Oduya. Carolina answered in the second period with an Eric Staal goal, his 26th of the year, getting help from Tuomo Ruutu and Jeff Skinner on the power play. The Hurricanes took the lead in the third period with Brandon Sutter notching his 12th of the season, courtesy of Jiri Tlusty and Joni Pitkanen. Brent Sopel answered for the Thrashers with his second of the year, an unassisted goal. Twenty-eight seconds later, Carolina took the lead back when Tlusty notched his fourth of the season, helped along by Pat Dwyer and Ian White. Atlanta found another equalizer off the stick of Zach Bogosian, his fourth of the year getting assistance from Little and Rich Peverley. In the overtime period, Erik Cole sealed the game for the Hurricanes, notching his 14th of the season with the help of Jamie McBain and Pitkanen. The three stars went to Cole, Sutter, and Tlusty.
In the border battle, the Buffalo Sabres hosted the Toronto Maple Leafs. James Reimer and Ryan Miller were sent out to stop the puck. Buffalo found the back of the net first with a Jason Pominville goal, his 12th of the season assisted by Thomas Vanek. Drew Stafford made it 2-0 for the Sabres with a power play goal from Jordan Leopold and Tyler Myers, good for his 16th of the year. Buffalo kept it going in the second period with a Paul Gaustad tally, his seventh of the season getting aided by Mike Grier and Rob Niedermayer. Tim Connolly added on his seventh of the year as well for the Sabres, a power play goal made possible by Vanek and Stafford. Toronto got on the board with a Nikolai Kulemin goal, his 18th of the season coming shorthanded via Luke Schenn. Stafford made it 5-1 with his 17th of the year, an unassisted goal for Buffalo, prompting Toronto to put Jean-Sebastien Giguere in the crease. The Maple Leafs answered back with a Francois Beauchemin marker, his second of the season helped along by Kris Versteeg and Colby Armstrong. Vanek wrapped the game up for the Sabres on his unassisted 19th of the year. Earning the three stars were Stafford, Vanek, and Leopold.
Heading down to Long Island, where the New York Islanders hosted the Ottawa Senators. Brian Elliott and Kevin Poulin made the starts. New York found twine first with a Matt Moulson goal, his 18th of the season coming from Jack Hillen and John Tavares. Ottawa responded with the third of the year by Chris Neil just thirteen seconds later, with the lone assist going to Mike Fisher. The Islanders took the lead back with a Michael Grabner goal from Frans Nielsen and Ty Wishart, good for his 16th of the season. The Senators tied the game again with a Fisher marker, his 14th of the year gaining power with Chris Kelly and Chris Campoli. Ottawa took a 3-2 lead when Alex Kovalev netted his eleventh of the season, courtesy of Peter Regin and Campoli. Seventeen seconds later, New York retied the game at 3 with the eighth of the year by Rob Schremp, assisted by Jeremy Colliton and Wishart. Elliott was replaced by Robin Lehner. After going scoreless in the second period, the Islanders took the lead back with another Schremp goal in the third period, his ninth of the season and second of the game coming on the power play thanks to Travis Hamonic and Grabner. Nielsen sealed the game for New York, 5-3, with his sixth of the year into the empty cage, with Hamonic providing the assistance. The three stars were handed out to Schremp, Grabner, and Fisher.
Out further west, the Columbus Blue Jackets played host to the Edmonton Oilers. Nikolai Khabibulin and Steve Mason were in front of the cages. Edmonton scored first with Magnus Paajarvi getting his eighth of the season, courtesy of Linus Omark and Sam Gagner. The Oilers took a 2-0 lead with the Dustin Penner goal, assisted by Ales Hemsky and Ladislav Smid, for his 17th of the year. R.J. Umberger got Columbus on the board with his 18th of the season, thanks to Antoine Vermette and Fedor Tyutin. The Blue Jackets tied the game in the second period on a Kristian Huselius marker, his tenth of the year getting help from Umberger and Grant Clitsome. Edmonton took the lead back in the third period with the second of the night and ninth of the campaign from Paajarvi, with Omark and Gagner picking up the helpers once again. Umberger responded again with his second of the game and 19th of the season, his assistance provided by Kris Russell and Vermette. Huselius finally put the Blue Jackets out front with his second of the game and eleventh of the year, helped along by Umberger and Russell. Columbus held on to defeat the Oilers 4-3, and the three stars went to Umberger, Huselius, and Russell.
Following that, the Phoenix Coyotes hosted the Minnesota Wild. Niklas Backstrom and Ilya Bryzgalov put on the masks for the game. It took until the third period to see a goal scored, and this one came from Phoenix's Taylor Pyatt, his 13th of the season seeing help from Sami Lepisto and Eric Belanger. The Coyotes defeated the Wild by this 1-0 score, and the three stars were Bryzgalov (25 save shutout), Pyatt, and Lauri Korpikoski.
Back in the east a bit, the Nashville Predators brought the Detroit Red Wings to town. Joey MacDonald and Pekka Rinne took charge of the cages. Nashville took the lead on a Shea Weber power play goal in the first period, his tenth of the year coming from Ryan Suter and Colin Wilson. Sergei Kostitsyn made it 2-0 in the second period with a beautiful shorthanded, one-handed (told you it was shorthanded), goal, good as his 13th of the season, with Suter gathering in another assist. Kostitsyn added another goal in the third period for his 14th of the year, courtesy of Marcel Goc and Martin Erat, presenting us with the 3-0 Predators final over Detroit. The three stars were given to Rinne (35 save shutout), Kostitsyn, and Suter.
Lastly, the late game between the Calgary Flames and Los Angeles Kings. Jonathan Quick and Miikka Kiprusoff were in between the pipes. Los Angeles struck first just thirty-nine seconds into the game with a Rob Scuderi goal, his second of the season coming from Justin Williams and Ryan Smyth. Forty-two seconds after that, Calgary found the tying goal in the form of the first of the year for Robyn Regehr, helped along by Alex Tanguay and Brendan Morrison. The Kings tied it later with a Dustin Brown marker, his 18th of the season finding twine on the power play thanks to Williams and Jack Johnson. Tanguay tied the game forty-five seconds into the second period with his 13th of the year, made possible by Morrison and Jarome Iginla, to put the Flames in a tie again. Williams gave Los Angeles the lead back with his 19th of the season, with Andrei Loktionov and Brown snapping up the assists. Tanguay added on another equalizer for Calgary, his second goal of the game and 14th of the year, assisted by Morrison and Iginla again, this time on the power play. The tie lasted through the rest of the game and into a shootout, where both teams got two quick goals, the Flames markers coming from Rene Bourque and Tanguay, which were answered by the Kings' Michal Handzus and Jarret Stoll, before Williams sealed the game in the seventh round for Los Angeles. Earning the three stars were Tanguay, Williams, and Morrison.
That's all for Saturday. Posts coming out later on Sunday are the Sandwich Showdown, NHL action, and Super Bowl XLV. Keep watch.
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