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.
