Twelve games are on the slate for today, beginning in...
Boston, where the Bruins host the New York Islanders. Thomas Greiss and Tuukka Rask draw the starts in goal. New York led off in the first period with an Anders Lee goal, his eleventh of the season, going in unassisted. The Islanders added on with a Thomas Hickey goal, his third of the year, via Josh Bailey and Lee. New York extended the lead in the second period as Nikolay Kulemin scored his fourth of the season, thanks to Johnny Boychuk. Anton Khudobin replaced Rask in goal. Boston got on the board in the third period with an Anton Blidh goal, passed from Brandon Carlo and the goalie Khudobin. The Bruins got one back with a Dominic Moore goal, his eighth of the year, courtesy of Zdeno Chara and Jimmy Hayes. The Islanders iced it at 4-2 with a Lee power play goal, his second of the game and twelfth of the campaign, powered by Bailey and Nick Leddy. The three stars were awarded to Lee, Greiss (48 for 50 in saves), and Bailey.
Over in New Jersey, the Devils welcome the Nashville Predators. Juuse Saros is mismatched with Cory Schneider in goal. Nashville began in the first period with a James Neal goal, his thirteenth of the season, passed from Viktor Arvidsson and Mattias Ekholm. The Predators added on with another Neal goal, his second of the game and fourteenth of the year, assisted by Roman Josi and Arvidsson. Nashville extended the lead as Ekholm scored in the second period, with the help of Craig Smith. The Predators padded the lead in the third period on a Filip Forsberg power play goal, his fifth of the season, powered by Josi and Ryan Johansen. Nashville kept going with a shorthanded Johansen goal, his seventh of the year, set up by Arvidsson, who got a sock trick, and Ryan Ellis. New Jersey got on the board with a Sergey Kalinin goal, guided in by Andy Greene and Damon Severson. The game ended at 5-1, with the three stars going to Neal, Arvidsson, and Johansen, while Ekholm and Josi get the honorable mentions.
West to Pittsburgh, where the Penguins bring in the New York Rangers. Antti Raanta and Matt Murray are in the blue paint. Pittsburgh started in the first period with a Sidney Crosby power play goal, his twenty-second of the season, powered by Ian Cole and Justin Schultz. New York tied it on a Matt Puempel goal, his second of the year, coming off of Marek Hrivik and Nick Holden.The Penguins retook the lead in the second period on an Evgeni Malkin goal, his fourteenth of the season, passed from Chris Kunitz and Phil Kessel. Pittsburgh added on with a Kessel power play goal, his eleventh of the year, with assists provided by Malkin and Brian Dumoulin. The Rangers got one back on a Michael Grabner goal, his fourteenth of the season, helped along by Derek Stepan and Mats Zuccarello. The Penguins shot back with a Schultz goal, his sixth of the year, fueled by Malkin. Pittsburgh extended the lead as Bryan Rust scored his ninth of the season, thanks to Crosby. The Penguins padded the lead on a Patric Hornqvist power play goal, his seventh of the year, courtesy of Nick Bonino and Kunitz. Pittsburgh iced it at 7-2 with a Bonino goal, his sixth of the campaign, with helpers from Rust and Cole. The three stars went to Malkin, Schultz, and Kessel, while Bonino, Crosby, Rust, Kunitz, and Cole receive the honorable mentions.
In Ohio, the Columbus Blue Jackets host the Los Angeles Kings. Peter Budaj and Curtis McElhinney are called on to start in goal. Columbus got going in the second period with a Cam Atkinson goal, his thirteenth of the season, guided in by Brandon Dubinsky and Boone Jenner. Los Angeles tied it on a Jeff Carter power play goal, his fifteenth of the year, powered by Alec Martinez and Drew Doughty. The Blue Jackets retook the lead in the third period on an Atkinson goal, his second of the game and fourteenth of the season, via Dubinsky and David Savard. The Kings tied it on an unassisted Carter goal, his second of the game and sixteenth of the year. The tie went to a shootout, where Atkinson and Sam Gagner beat Carter for a 3-2 Blue Jackets win. The three stars were awarded to Atkinson, Carter, and Dubinsky.
In Canada, the Montreal Canadiens welcome the Anaheim Ducks. Jonathan Bernier and Carey Price guard the cages. Anaheim opened in the first period with an Andrew Cogliano goal, his ninth of the season, going in unassisted. Montreal tied it with a Paul Byron goal, his eleventh of the year, helped along by Jeff Petry and Torrey Mitchell. The Canadiens took the lead in the second period with a Tomas Plekanec goal, his third of the season, coming on the power play from Byron and Artturi Lehkonen. Montreal added on in the third period with a Petry goal, his seventh of the year, going in unassisted. The Canadiens extended the lead as Max Pacioretty scored a power play goal, his thirteenth of the season, thanks to Petry. Montreal finished it at 5-1 with a Chris Terry goal, via Michael McCarron and Nathan Beaulieu. The three stars were given to Petry, Byron, and Price (12 for 13 in saves).
South to Florida, where the Tampa Bay Lightning bring in the Detroit Red Wings. Jimmy Howard and Ben Bishop are between the pipes. Tampa Bay struck first in the first period with a Brian Boyle goal, his seventh of the season, fueled by Anton Stralman and Jonathan Drouin. Andrei Vasilevskiy had to replaced an injured Bishop in the first period. Howard came out injured in the second period, replaced by Petr Mrazek. The Lightning added on in the second period with a Drouin power play goal, his eighth of the year, powered by Alex Killorn and Tyler Johnson. Tampa Bay extended the lead as Brayden Point scored his third of the season on the power play, thanks to Johnson and Hedman. The Lightning padded the lead with a Vladislav Namestnikov goal, his fourth of the year, courtesy of Killorn and Point. Detroit got on the board in the third period with an Anthony Mantha goal, his fifth of the campaign, helped along by Nick Jensen and Henrik Zetterberg. The final stood at 4-1, with the three stars going to Drouin, Point, and Johnson, while Killorn gets an honorable mention.
Staying in the state, the Florida Panthers host the Buffalo Sabres. Robin Lehner and Roberto Luongo are set to start in goal. Florida was first to score in the first period with an Aleksander Barkov goal, his eighth of the season, made possible by Jaromir Jagr and Jason Demers. The Panthers added on with a Keith Yandle power play goal in the second period, his second of the year, powered by Barkov and Jagr. Buffalo got on the board with a Sam Reinhart power play goal, his seventh of the season, assisted by Rasmus Ristolainen and Ryan O'Reilly. The Sabres tied it with an Evander Kane goal, his sixth of the year, passed from Brian Gionta and Cody Franson. Buffalo took the lead in the third period with a Ristolainen goal, his third of the season, via Reinhart. Florida tied it again with a Nick Bjugstad goal, guided in by Barkov and Jagr, the latter earning a sock trick. The tie went to a shootout, where Vincent Trocheck and Barkov tallied goals for a 4-3 Panthers win. The three stars were Jagr, Barkov, and Ristolainen, while Reinhart gets an honorable mention.
Northwest to Minnesota, where the Wild welcome the Colorado Avalanche. Semyon Varlamov and Devan Dubnyk are in the creases. Minnesota led off in the first period with a Charlie Coyle power play goal, his eleventh of the season, powered by Eric Staal and Matt Dumba. The Wild added on with a Mikko Koivu goal in the second period, his eighth of the year, coming off of Dumba and Mikael Granlund. This stood for a 2-0 win, with the three stars going to Dubnyk (18 save shutout), Dumba, and Coyle.
Backtracking to Chicago, where the Blackhawks bring in the Ottawa Senators. Mike Condon and Scott Darling are the goalies in place of inactive regulars. Ottawa began in the first period with a Bobby Ryan goal, his seventh of the season, with a lone assist by Kyle Turris. Chicago tied it on an Artemi Panarin power play goal, his fifteenth of the year, powered by Brent Seabrook and Patrick Kane. The Senators took the lead back with a Derick Brassard goal, his seventh of the season, via Chris Wideman and Ryan. Ottawa added on with a Tom Pyatt goal, his fourth of the year, courtesy of Jean-Gabriel Pageau and Zack Smith. The Blackhawks shot back with a Tyler Motte goal, his fourth of the season, helped along by Vinnie Hinostroza and Ryan Hartman. The Senators shot back with a Dion Phaneuf power play goal, his fifth of the year, with helpers from Turris and Erik Karlsson. Chicago answered in the third period with a Richard Panik goal, his ninth of the season, coming off of Kane and Duncan Keith. This only made it 4-3, the final, with the three stars belonging to Ryan, Turris, and Kane.
In Texas, the Dallas Stars host the St. Louis Blues. Jake Allen and Antti Niemi are the masked men. Dallas opened in the first period with a Patrick Eaves power play goal, his twelfth of the season, powered by Jason Spezza and John Klingberg. St. Louis tied it with a Jaden Schwartz goal, his twelfth of the year, assisted by Paul Stastny and Dmitrij Jaskin. The Stars took the lead back in the second period on a Spezza goal, his sixth of the season, guided in by Jiri Hudler and Esa Lindell. The Blues tied it on a Patrik Berglund goal, his fifth of the year, helped along by Jay Bouwmeester and Robby Fabbri. St. Louis won 3-2 in overtime on a David Perron goal, his eighth of the campaign, with a lone assist from Schwartz. The three stars were Schwartz, Spezza, and Perron.
In Canada again, the Vancouver Canucks welcome the Winnipeg Jets. Connor Hellebuyck and Jacob Markstrom are the young goalies. Winnipeg started in the first period with a Blake Wheeler power play goal, his tenth of the season, powered by Dustin Byfuglien. Vancouver tied it in the second period with a Jannik Hansen goal, his fourth of the year, coming off of Henrik Sedin and Alex Biega. The Canucks took the lead in the third period with another Hansen goal, his second of the game and fifth of the season, assisted by Daniel Sedin and Henrik Sedin. Vancouver added on with a Sven Baertschi goal, his seventh of the year, going in unassisted. The Canucks finished it at 4-1 with a Bo Horvat empty net goal, his tenth of the campaign, set up by Luca Sbisa. The three stars belonged to Hansen, Markstrom (31 for 32 in saves), and Henrik Sedin.
Finally, the San Jose Sharks bring in the Calgary Flames. Chad Johnson and Martin Jones protect the nets. San Jose dented the scoreboard in the second period with a Patrick Marleau goal, his ninth of the season, fueled by Marc-Edouard Vlasic and Joe Thornton. The Sharks added on with a Paul Martin goal, his second of the year, via Thornton and Joe Pavelski. San Jose extended the lead as Jonoas Donskoi scored his third of the season, thanks to Tommy Wingels and Pavelski. The Sharks padded the lead on another Donskoi goal, his second of the game and fourth of the year, going in unassisted. Calgary got on the board with a Sam Bennett goal, his eighth of the season, passed from Matthew Tkachuk and Dennis Wideman. The game ended at 4-1, with the three stars given to Donskoi, Thornton, and Pavelski.
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