Tag: crashing the zamboni

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NHL General

Crashing the Zamboni: Weekend Recap


1. Jagr Scores #600
Jaromir Jagr etched his name into the hockey record books on Sunday night at Madison Square Garden. With his first period goal, Jagr became only the sixteenth player in NHL history to hit the twine 600 times (he also added two assists in the game to contribute to a 4-1 win over the Lightning).
Jagr epitomizes everything that makes the NHL great–an incredible intensity, relentless passion, and an unmatched motivational drive to be great. A first-round draft pick of Pittsburgh in 1990 (what’s the deal with all of these great Penguin 1st rounders?), he played 11 seasons for the Pens before moving on to a brief stint with the Washington Capitals. During the 2003-’04 season, he packed his bags to move along to New York, where he’s become the captain of the Rangers. Currently, he is only 46 points shy of 1500 for his career.

2. Dunham Dominates

Getting a rare start in net was just what Islander Mike Dunham needed on Saturday night. Rick DiPietro’s backup stopped 43 shots in a victorious 4-1 effort against the Florida Panthers at the Bank Atlantic Center in Fort Lauderdale. The Islanders have played well on this five-game road trip, posting a record of 3-0-1. They will complete the road stand tonight against the Toronto Maple Leafs, then head back to the Nassau Coliseum for a contest with the Hurricanes on Wednesday. New York needs help from their primary goaltender to stay on the right track; so far this year, DiPietro is a sub-par 6-5-1. The Isles are sitting hot on the heels of their New York counterpart for 2nd in the Atlantic Division.

3. Flames Are Hot

The Calgary Flames put an end to the Detroit Red Wings’ nine game winning streak on Friday night, coming away with a 4-1 win. Perhaps more importantly, it was the sixth straight win for Calgary–throwing them right into the mix of things in the Western Conference after a less than stellar start. Mikka Kiprusoff is looking like his usual self on this hot streak, giving up only six goals and posting two shutouts. The Flames will go for their 7th win in a row when they face the Edmonton Oilers on Tuesday night.

Check It Out

Columnist Paula Wolf tries her best to explain the woes of the Philadelphia Flyers this season. You have to praise Paula for even trying, because this Philly club is a bit of a mystery. At 5-13-2, they’re simply playing with no life–and the on-again-off-again injuries of captain Peter Forsberg are never a welcome sidestory for Flyers fans.

Game of the Night: Florida at Boston
Bruins going for 5th straight win

The Last Shot
Jaromir Jagr is not the only Ranger to reach the 600 goal plateau… Brendan Shanahan scored #600 in New York’s first game of the season.

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NHL General

Crashing the Zamboni: Penguins, NHL Luck Out



No more red for Malkin

1. Malkin Staying In NHL
After an ongoing dispute with Metallurg Magnitogorsk of the Russian Super League, a federal judge ended all debate and declared that rookie sensation Evgeni Malkin could stay with the NHL… from the AP:

Metallurg Magnitogorsk, a Russian Super League team, claims that Malkin is under contract in his native country. The club sought a preliminary injunction that would have banned the forward from playing for the Penguins until the matter is resolved.
But the ruling Wednesday by U.S. District Judge Loretta A. Preska clears the way for Malkin, a star rookie with Penguins, and minor leaguers Andrei Taratukhin of the Calgary Flames and Alexei Mikhnov of the Edmonton Oilers to stick with the NHL franchises.

The Penguins and the NHL must be thanking their lucky stars. Malkin is what the Pens have needed for a while as far as options on the ice – and he’s a marketing machine for the NHL, much like Alex Ovechkin has proved to be after his incredible rookie campaign.

2. Surviving a Scare
The Nashville Predators were able to hold off a pesky Columbus club on Wednesday night, propelling to a 5-4 win. The Preds scored the final two goals of the game in the third to help themselves to the victory – they were netted by David Legwand and Scott Nichol with less than 10 minutes to play. This was a pretty important victory for Nashville, who continued to stay on Detroit’s tail in the Central. As we said before, it looks to be a two-team dogfight for possession of that division, and the race will be close throughout the remainder of the season. The Red Wings have won nine straight, and are clearly the hottest team in hockey. If there was one positive to come out of this game for the Jackets, it’s the solid play of Rick Nash, who scored two goals and racked up an assist in the game.

3. Can’t Capitalize
The Bruins downed the Caps on Wednesday in Washington, taking it to a shootout and converting for the 3-2 victory. After Boston jumped out to an early 2-0 lead in the 1st, the Capitals stepped up their D for the final two periods, shutting out the Bruins for the rest of regulation and overtime. In shootouts, Boston’s Patrice Bergeron got one by Washington goaltender Olaf Kolzig to secure the victory. In the game, Tim Thomas saved 33 shots off the sticks of Caps’ players, including shutouts in the final three segments of the game. The Bruins’ Marc Savard earned two assists, extending his points streak to seven games.

Check It Out
CBS Sportsline’s Wes Goldstein repots that the Capitals’ days of misery have finally passed by. With a building block like Alex Ovechkin, is tough to disagree — Washington looks to be a legitimate contender not only in the Southeast Division but in the Eastern Conference as a whole.

Game of the Night: Minnesota at Nashville
Wild have lost four of last five games

The Last Shot
Alexander Ovechkin fired his agent, Don Meehan, on Wednesday. This comes as a bit of a surprise to us, as Meehan is known to be a solid agent in the hockey world, working for clients like Jerome Iginla and Jose Theodore.

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NHL General

Crashing the Zamboni: K-K-K-Ken c-c-c-coming to C-C-C-columbus?



What’s my job today?

1. Hitchcock Bounced Around
The Philadelphia Flyers didn’t want him coaching the team, so they fired him–then re-hired him as a scout. After last night’s firing of coach Gerard Gallant, the Columbus Blue Jackets seem to think they’ve found their man. The Jackets were granted permission to talk with Ken Hitchcock about a possible head coaching position on Tuesday night–the same night they named assistant Gary Agnew interim coach. Hitchcock has to be scratching his head; he gets booted from a losing team just to be picked out by another club that’s just as bad. Ouch.

2. Coyotes Howl Over Wild
The Phoenix Coyotes gained a much-needed and extremely rare victory over a solid Minnesota Wild team on Tuesday night. Phoenix escaped with the 4-3 win after trailing at one time by a score of 2-0. Coyote Georges Laraque earned two assists and bragging rights over Minnesota’s Derek Boogaard after getting in a scuffle with “The Boogeyman” in the second period. Yanic Perreault and Oleg Saprykin both netted a duo of goals for Phoenix, topping off an awesome all-around performance for the team. Minnesota, who is leading the Northwest Division, received a mediocre performance from goalie Manny Fernandez in the final two periods, stopping 30 out of 34 shots on his way to a defeat at the hands of the last-place Coyotes.

3. Flashbacks for Jaromir, Brenden
Jaromir Jagr showed glimpses of his younger self on Tuesday night, leading his New York Rangers to a victory over the division-leading New Jersey Devils. The veteran scored a pair of key third period goals to provide the Madison Square Garden crowd with a bevy of smiles. Marcel Hossa provided Jagr with assists on both goals. Another fine NHL elder, Brenden Shanahan, scored his 14th goal of the year to put the exclamation point on a game that looked quite similar to the Phoenix-Minnesota contest. Three unanswered goals in the third period were just what the doctor ordered for New York, who will likely remain in a dogfight with the Devils atop the Atlantic Division for most of the year.

Check It Out
SI.com’s Darren Eliot discusses the pros and cons of having one bona-fide goalie instead of two. Eliot thinks that having one powerhouse netminder is a better option than alternating between a duo, as we’re seeing many teams do nowadays.

Game of the Night: Philadelphia at Anaheim
Flyers are last in Eastern, Ducks are best in western

The Last Shot
The Flyers have announced that captain Peter Forsberg may be in the lineup on Wednesday night against Anaheim. He has missed the past two games with a sprained ankle.

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NHL General

Crashing the Zamboni: Welcome to the Hall


1. Newest members of the Hockey Hall of Fame
On Monday, Patrick Roy, Herb Brooks, Harley Hotchkiss, and Dick Duff were inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame.
Patrick Roy
-NHL’s all-time winningest goaltender (holds records for most playoff and regular season wins) with Canadeins and Avalanche
-Won three Conn Smythe Trophies (playoff MVP)
-Won three Vezina Trophies (NHL’s best goalie)

Herb Brooks
-Coached Team USA to Olympic Gold in 1980
-Won three NCAA titles at Minnesota
-Coached four NHL teams
Harley Hotchkiss
-Key cog in Flames’ move to Calgary
-Co-owner of Calgary Flames franchise
Dick Duff
-Played on five NHL teams
-Won six Stanley Cups

2. Future of the NHL
The Penguins showed off their potential and talent on Monday night in Pittsburgh. A trio of first-round draft picks scored goals against the Philadelphia Flyers, snapping a five game losing streak with a 3-2 win. Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, and Jordan Staal all netted goals for the Penguins, who helped themselves at keeping up to par in a busy Atlantic Division. The three kids, whose combined age is only 57 years, sent Philly to its sixth straight loss and proved that they’re the new generation of hockey. At 18, 19, and 20, no member of the tremendous trio is even old enough to drink yet (legally, at least. Guess you can’t blame them for pounding a few with the way they’ve been playing, but that’s beside the point…). Even though they’re currently sitting in third in their division, the Pens look to be setting themselves up quite nicely for the immediate future in Pittsburgh.

3. Gallant Out in Columbus
The Columbus Blue Jackets are hungry for a winner, and they attempted to move one step closer to relieving their starvation on Monday night. The firing of head coach Gerard Gallant was the first step in what could be a tedious process of turning the club’s fortunes around. Gallant was hired as coach in the summer of 2004, and had a record well below .500 in his tenure as head honcho.

In five seasons of existence, Columbus has yet to come close to the playoffs–but star left wing Rick Nash has shown some serious potential at only 22 years old. As featured in yesterday’s “Check It Out”, he needs to start putting up some numbers in order for his club to make any type of impact this year. As of now, Columbus is dead last in the league with only 33 goals scored.

Check It Out
Offwing.com’s Eric Mcerlain takes an interesting look at the hockey afterlife, including the post-hockey troubles of former NHLer Darren McCarty. McCarty couldn’t stay out of financial troubles, and was forced to file for bankruptcy… sad occurrence for someone who happened to be a very good hockey player in his time.

Game of the Night: Minnesota at Phoenix
Coyotes: 5-2 in last seven games against Wild

The Last Shot
Washington’s Olaf Kolzig stopped 44 shots against the Florida Panthers on Monday night, getting the win in a 4-1 effort. The Panthers’ 45 shots were a season high–you know things are going awry when you put up a season high for shots and still lose by three… ouch!

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NHL General

Crashing the Zamboni: Weekend Recap



Check out my ugly uni!

1. Awesome in OT
The Buffalo Sabres continue to take care of business, and look to be a Stanley Cup contender come playoff time. They racked up another win on Saturday night, drowning the already dead Philadelphia Flyers. The 5-4 overtime victory was the third straight win for Buffalo in the extra period. Daniel Briere had an outstanding game, scoring two goals–one to tie it, and another to win it. While the Sabres continue to roll along, the Flyers continue to fall to the pit of the NHL. The giant wing on their jerseys has been clipped this year; at 3-11-2, Philly is dead last in the Eastern Conference. Even Flyers fans are having a hard time remembering the times when team was actually good. That’s an unfortunate thing, since it really wasn’t that long ago. It doesn’t help that they’ve been without captain Peter Forsberg, who has been battling a nagging ankle injury and is listed as day-to-day.

2. Jinxed
Friday’s post on Crashing the Zamboni featured the Anaheim Ducks and their emergence to begin the season. With their 12-0-4 mark, they set a record for most games without a regulation loss to start a season. On the same night of the post, the Ducks suffered a 3-0 loss at the hands of the Calgary Flames–and it didn’t come in overtime or a shootout. Our apologies go out to the Ducks and their fans, who we’re sure were hoping to see their team go without a regulation loss this year. But don’t just blame us: Mikka Kiprusoff had a stellar performance, stopping all 37 shots that came his direction on the way to a shutout victory.
Anaheim would avenge the loss with another victory on Sunday night over the Wild, 3-2. Currently, their record stands at 13-1-2, by far the best in the Western Conference.

3. Preds Victorious
The Nashville Predator skated to a 1-0 victory on Saturday night, attempting to keep up with the Red Wings in the Central. Chris Mason was a brick wall between the pipes, saving his way to a shutout win with a career-high 42 saves. As a backup to Tomas Vokoun, it was his first shutout in the four games he’s started on the year. Scott Upshall scored the only goal of the game in the first period, but it was enough to fend off the Avalanche, who have slipped into last in the Northwest Division. This was the third 1-0 game in the NHL in the past week, which is exactly what the league is trying to stay away from with the rule changes put in effect last year (the other two games were a Dallas victory over Phoenix on Thursday and a Chicago win over Columbus last night).

Check It Out
SI.com’s Allan Muir looks into the struggles of the Columbus Blue Jackets, perhaps the most irrelevant team in the league. He suggests sniper Rick Nash is the problem, and if the Columbus Blue Jackets want to get rolling, then that is the guy that needs to put up numbers. Playing in the same division as Detroit and Nashville, it may be quite a while before the Blue Jackets actually have an impact on this league.

Game of the Night: Buffalo at Carolina
Rematch of last year’s Eastern Conference finals (Hurricanes won in seven games)

The Last Shot
The Chicago Blackhawks actually won a game on Sunday night. Oh, wait… they faced Columbus. Does that really count?

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NHL General

Crashing the Zamboni: Good Times in Anaheim

1. Feeling Ducky
The Ducks just keep quacking along this year, and if not for the solid play of the Stars and Sharks, they would already be a lock to win the Pacific. They continued their trend of winning on Thursday night, turning in the usual all-around performance that we’ve become accustomed to seeing. With a 6-0 victory over the Vancouver Canucks, Anaheim set an NHL record for most games without a regulation loss to start a season. At 12-0-4, they have played an astounding 16 games without being behind after three periods. The Ducks’ Ryan Getzlaf scored two goals, helping netminder Jean-Sebastien Giguere breathe a little easier. ‘Giggy’ was no sieve on Thursday, stopping all 20 shots that came his way en route to a shutout victory. With the loss, Vancouver has lost four of their last five, scoring only eight goals in that span.

2. Blackhawk Bummer
The Devils earned a shootout victory over the reeling Chicago Blackhawks on Thursday, winning by a score of 2-1. For Chicago, it’s their eighth straight losswith only nine points on the season, they have plummeted to the bottom of the Central Division. Goalie Brian Boucher has started seven games this year for Chi-town, and is currently sitting at 0-7-0. That’s pretty sad. New Jersey, on the other hand, won their third straight for the first time this year, and are now leading the Atlantic Division. They held Chicago to 0-4 on the Power Play, meaning the Blackhawks have not scored a Power Play goal in six games. For all you fans in Chicago sitting around and waiting for the Blackhawks to be good, we feel your pain. You know (and we know) deep inside that it just isn’t going to happen anytime soon.

3. Stars Squeak By
Dallas downed the Phoenix Coyotes in Arizona on Thursday, winning in a low scoring effort, 1-0. Marty Turco earned his first shutout of the year, but only had to face 13 shots. Brenden Morrow’s Power Play goal was enough for the Stars to break away with the win; their defense did the rest. On the other side, Phoenix goalie Curtis Joseph played excellent, stopping 34 of 35 shots in a losing cause. Cujo gave the Coyotes a chance to win, but an abysmal offense could get nothing going against Dallas. 13 shots? Please. This is the NHL. We knew the Coyotes were bad, but many didn’t think they’d come out this flat to start the season. Their offense just cannot jell — they’ve been shut out three times this year. This team just doesn’t make much sense to us. The puzzle pieces are there, but they have absolutely no logic as to how they go together. Here’s hoping they figure it out soon it would be a true shame to see Wayne Gretzky depart the bench this early.

Check It Out
NBC Sports created a timeline of jerseys for the Vancouver Canucks, chronicled in a series of pictures. The common thought here is that the ‘Original Blues’ are the all-time Canuck favorite (better than the butt-ugly butter yellow uniforms of the mid-80’s, at least). Vancouver wore the throwbacks on Thursday night against Anaheim.

Game of the Night: Nashville at Detroit
Predators have won three of last four games in Detroit

The Last Shot
The Red Wings placed Jason Williams on injured reserve a day after suffering a vicious hit at the hands of Edmonton’s Raffi Torres. Williams was carted off the ice, suffering a concussion and laceration to the face.

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NHL General

Crashing the Zamboni: Hats Off to Atlanta – Again



Best part of the hat trick

1. Sens Slumping, Thrashers Thumping
The Ottawa Senators are reeling at the moment, now having lost five straight games. This is their longest losing streak in 10 years, believe it or not. Their most recent loss came at the hands of the mighty Atlanta Thrashers on Wednesday night, as the Sens managed to blow two 2-goal leads in the game. Credit Atlanta, though. This is a team on a mission, and that has been clearly seen through the first month of the season.
Slava Kozlov lit the red lamp three times in this game for his fifth career hat trick. His last 3-goal game also came against the Senators in January. With Ilya Kovalchuck’s Hat Trick on Monday night, it marks the first time in the history of the franchise that they’ve had hat tricks in consecutive games. Hat sales are expected to skyrocket this week in Atlanta, because everyone in town is now looking for a new Thrashers hat.

2. Dominik the Dominator
Detroit continued to melt the ice on Wednesday night, when they made quick work of the Edmonton Oilers by a score of 3-0. For Red Wings goalie Dominik Hasek, he earned his 70th career shutout and led Detroit to their seventh consecutive win. At 41 years old, he still has what it takes. If I were him, I’d aim to become the Julio Franco of hockey–play as long as possible. It also helps that the Red Wings have arguably the best defense in the NHL, and pucks are usually cleared out before Hasek has to stop a shot. The only low point for Detroit in this contest came in the second period, when Jason Williams left the ice on a stretcher. He suffered a vicious check to the face, and then landed face-first onto the ice. Ouchies.

3. Sundin Don’t Shine In Toronto
Maple Leafs captain Mats Sundin is expected to miss up to month with a torn ligament in his right elbow. He was injured on Monday night while playing against the Philadelphia Flyers. This could eventually be a big blow for the Maple Leafs. They’re going to have to keep up with the Buffalo Sabres in the Northeast Division (they have done an excellent job of hanging around in that division this year) without the help of their team leader in points – and in a division that could end up in a deadlock at the end of the year, this injury could be huge.

Check It Out
ESPN’s John Buccigross evaluates today’s NHL and plays “Buy or Sell” with every team. His biggest buy is with Pittsburgh, and since Evgeni Malkin showed up, we tend to agree. The Maple Leafs, Oilers, and Avalanche are among a handful of teams he would not currently pay to watch.

Game of the Night: Washington at Carolina
Capitals: coming off first back-to-back wins of the season

The Last Shot
The Flyers’ Jeff Carter is sidelined for six weeks, thanks to a broken ankle. This prompted Philly to call up veteran Petr Nedved from the AHL. The Flyers’ farm team, the Philadelphia Phantoms, are 5-6-1 on the season… that’s better than the record of the big league club, as the Flyers now stand at 3-10-1. Our condolences go out to Nedved– we’d rather play on the Phantoms this year, too.

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NHL General

Crashing the Zamboni: So what do they do with all those hats?



GWH

1. Collecting Hats
Ilya Kovalchuck was the star for the Thrashers on Monday night, leading his team to a 5-3 win in Atlanta. The #1 overall draft pick in 2001 sent the hats flying with a Hat Trick, netting three Power Play goals and an assist in the game. Kovalchuk continues to impress, and is slowly forming into one of the best players in the league. Atlanta’s Johan Hedberg had a nice night between the pipes, stopping 24 of 27 shots faced on the way to his third straight win. Another big reason for the Thrashers’ success was the amount of time they spent on the man advantage. Boston committed 13 penalties in the game, allowing four Power Play goals.

2. Capping Off the Win
Alexander Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals walked out of the Verizon Center with a 4-3 Overtime victory on Monday night, trying to keep pace with the Atlanta Thrashers in a crowded Southeast Division. Ovechkin did his thing yet again – scoring two goals, including the game-tying Power Play goal with 24 seconds left in regulation. That would later set up Chris Clark for the game-winner in the extra period. The Senators held a comfortable 3-0 lead in the first period, but were unable to stall the Caps’ offense. Washington scored four unanswered goals over the next two and a half periods to earn the victory. With the loss, the Ottawa Senators have now lost four straight games and are in danger of slipping to last in the Northeast Division.

3. Lightning Strikes the Island
On Monday night in the Nassau Coliseum, the Tampa Bay Lightning downed the New York Islanders by a score of 5-1. Tampa Bay sniper Martin St. Louis scored a Power Play goal in the second period, breaking a 1-1 tie and launching a stretch of four unanswered goals for the Lightning. They also got some offensive help from an unlikely source in Defenseman Filip Kuba, who scored his forst and second goals of the season. Johan Hedberg got a rare start for Tampa, and made the most of it. He stopped 25 shots en route to his first win of the year.

Check It Out
Off Wing Opinion’s Eric McErlain talks about the NHL’s scheduling issues. He, along with the rest of the hockey world, would like to see less divisional games and more interconference contests.

Game of the Night: Minnesota at San Jose
Minnesota has won last four games at San Jose

The Last Shot
Former Red Wing Steve Yzerman received the Lester Patrick Award Monday, given to individuals who have made an impact on hockey in the United States.

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NHL General

Crashing the Zamboni: Weekend recap


1. Floundering in Philly
On Saturday night in Philadelphia, the Washington Capitals downed the Flyers by a score of 5-3. It was the Caps’ first win in Philly since 1998, lasting a stretch of 16 games. Alexander Ovechkin bailed Washington out again netting two goals in the first period en route to the victory. He now has eight goals on the season. The Flyers, on the other hand, still haven’t picked it up. They’re off to one of their worst starts ever, currently standing with a 3-9-1 record. Much of this abysmal start can be attributed to goalie Robert Esche, who was expected to do well this season. Needless to say, his 1-3 record and 5.31 Goals Allowed Average have been a bit of a disappointment.

2. Hot Wings
The Detroit Red Wings have suddenly caught fire. With a victory in Columbus on Saturday, they’re now won six straight games and are tied for the lead in the Central Division. Dan Cleary scored his first two goals of the season, including a shorthanded tally in the second period. Cleary scored only three times all of last year for Detroit, who will go for their seventh straight win on Wednesday night against the Oilers. Dominik Hasek has been solid between the pipes, getting four of the six victories and only giving up seven goals in the process.

3. Sparking Flames
The Calgary Flames have been non-existent this season in a competitive Northwest Division, and with a record of 4-7-2 they’ve been a disappointment to many. Jerome Iginla provided the spark that they’ve desperately needed on Saturday night, leading his team to a 3-2 victory over the St. Louis Blues. Iginla scored the game-winning Power Play goal with under five minutes to go, snapping a four game losing streak for the Flames. On the other side, the Blues’ Bill Guerin scored his team-leading seventh goal of the season. He’s more than halfway through his goal total of 13 from last year.

Check It Out
NHL.com’s Evan Weiner discusses the Chicago Blackhawks and the possibility that their lowliness is attributed to another Chicago curse. Story has it, the “curse of Muldoon” was put upon them by a former coach.

Game of the Night: Pittsburgh at Anaheim
Anaheim: Have not lost in regulation this year (10-0-4); Penguins’ Malkin held without goal for first time Sat. against SJ

The Last Shot
With their 4-3 win over the Wild in Minnesota on Saturday, the Predators extended a franchise-best road winning streak to seven games.

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NHL General

Crashing the Zamboni: Early season payback


1. Sweet Revenge
In a rematch of last year’s Eastern Conference Quarterfinals, the Montreal Canadiens squared off with the Carolina Hurricanes on Thursday night. Goaltender Cristibal Huet was rock-solid in net, making sure that it wasn’t a playoff repeat for the Hurricanes. He lead them to a 4-0 victory, dropping Carolina’s record to an underwhelming 6-6-2. It was Huet’s first shutout of the season, and it couldn’t have come against a more ideal opponent. Coming off of their Stanley Cup season, the Hurricanes are now 0-3-1 against all of the Easterrn Conference teams they defeated in the playoffs.

2. #450
Florida Panthers coach Jacques Martin reeled in his 450th career victory on Thursday night, leading his team to a 4-2 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs. He became just the 13th coach in NHL history to reach the milestone. Martin, who also happens to be the General Manager of the Panthers, has worked for St. Louis, Colorado, and Ottawa in his professional career; he picked up a Stanley Cup as a member of the Avalanche organization in 1996.

3. Sabres Stay Hot
As the Boston Bruins found out last night, the Buffalo Sabres are never really out of the game. Buffalo overcame a 4-1 deficit with just 8:49 remaining in regulation to eventually win it in a shootout, 5-4. Maxim Afinogenov scored the second and third goals of the night for Buffalo, trimming the Bruin lead to one with only 2:30 left in the game. Less than a minute later, at the 1:35 mark, Ales Kotalik tied the score at four apiece. The Sabres would eventually roll out of Boston with a victory, improving their record to a miraculous 11-0-1 on the year. Even with the win, Buffalo’s Daniel Briere had his league high 10-game point streak snapped.

Check It Out
Former Islander co-owner Sanjay Kumar is not a happy camper right now – he’ll be spending the next 12 years behind bars for accounting fraud.

Game of the Night: Dallas at Edmonton
Dallas: Off to best start in franchise history (10-2-0).

The Last Shot
Last night, the Red Wings defeated the Blackhawks 2-1 for their fifth straight victory.