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Ducks 6 - Blackhawks 3

Teemu Selanne came up big for the Ducks last night. His hat trick gave him 546 career goals to push him past Maurice “Rocket” Richard on the all time goal scoring list in the NHL. He is now 25th all time on that list. He also had 2 assists including his 600th career assist.

His three goals also helped that Ducks to a 6-3 victory over the Blackhawks.

Devils 2 - Capitals 1

Martin Brodeur held is down for the Devils but he also had some help. Brodeur finished this game with 37 total saves but the crossbar and the left post also stopped a couple of shots. Sometimes it’s better to be lucky than good I guess, or even better, how about being lucky and good.

John Madden scored a goal in the overtime period with only 50 seconds remaining to give the Devils the 2-1 victory over the Capitals. With this victory they are now 1 point ahead of the Senators for the top spot in the close Eastern conference for first place. This is the first time the Devils have been in first place since 2001.

Around the league

• Daymond Langkow and Craig Conroy scored, Miikka Kiprusoff stopped 38 shots and the Calgary Flames beat Minnesota 2-1 to replace the Wild atop the Northwest Division. Calgary has beaten Minnesota four straight times.
• Much-maligned Marek Malik scores his first goal of the season, and Jaromir Jagr nets his second in two nights in the New York Rangers’ 5-0 victory over the Florida Panthers.
• Andrew Cogliano’s third-period goal helped the Edmonton Oilers end a three-game losing streak and ruin the return of Joe Sakic to the Colorado lineup by beating the Avalanche 3-2.
• Ilya Bryzgalov stopped 35 shots for his second shutout of the season and fourth of his career, and the Phoenix Coyotes beat the St. Louis Blues 2-0.
• Jeremy Roenick scores the game-winner as all three San Jose skaters are successful in the shootout, leading them to a 2-1 victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Canadiens 6 - Rangers 5

Someone the Rangers managed to blow a 5-0 second period lead to lose to the Canadiens in Montreal 6-5 in a shootout. This was both the biggest comeback for the Habs as well as the biggest lead lost by the Rangers in both of these teams long history. These two were 2 of the original 6 so you already know they have a long history.

Penguins 3 - Panthers 2

The Pens and Panthers went into the third with a 2-0 lead in favor of the Panthers.  The Pens made an amazing comeback in the third, scoring 2 goals in the final 3:20 to pull out the 3-2 win. Two of those were from Ryan Malone.

Around the league

• David Krejci scored in the third round of the shootout to lift the Boston Bruins past the Carolina Hurricanes 3-2.
• The Ottawa Senators knew what was at stake, and they stepped up against the Philadelphia Flyers. Antoine Vermette had a goal in regulation and another in the shootout as the Senators defeated the struggling Flyers 3-2.
• Vesa Toskala made 26 saves while starting for the 17th time in 18 games as the Toronto Maple Leafs beat the Columbus Blue Jackets 3-1.
• Brad Boyes’ 32nd goal put St. Louis ahead to stay and the Blues scored three power-play goals for the second straight game in a 5-1 victory over the Chicago Blackhawks.
• Scott Nichol and J.P. Dumont each scored a goal and added a pair of assists as the Nashville Predators edged the Edmonton Oilers 5-4.
• Daniel Sedin’s overtime goal lifted the Vancouver Canucks to a 3-2 win over the Minnesota Wild.
• Dion Phaneuf and Jarome Iginla each scored two goals to lead the Calgary Flames to a 4-1 win over the Phoenix Coyotes.

Stars 1 - Red Wings 0

The Stars savored this one. They almost never beat the Red Wings so whenever they do it cause for celebration. Even though right now it seems like the Red Wings are pulling their best LA Kings impression by not winning any of their last 6 games. Their longest losing streak of the season.

They’re goalie Marty Turco had 28 saves for his 32 career shutout and only his second victory in 16 tries against the Red Wings. Turco led the Stars to a 1-0 victory over the Red Wings.

“That team’s had my number so it was satisfying to beat them,” said Turco after registering his 201st victory. “Now I’m focused on evening things up against them.”

It also helped that the Red Wings are really slipping right now. They haven’t looked like the best team in the NHL over their last 6 games.

Penguins 4 - Sabres 1

It took a little while for the Pens offense to get going but they were alright because Ty Conklin held it down for them in the meantime. Conklin stopped 36 shots including the first 25 he faced. This gave the limping Penguins offense time to get going a power the Penguins to a 4-1 victory over the Sabres.

“When your goalie’s giving you the performance like Ty gave us, it gives your team some confidence,” Penguins coach Michel Therrien said. “He’s a big part of the reason why we had success.”

Evgeni Malkin, Petr Sykora, Jarkko Ruutu and Colby Armstrong all had goals for the Pens to the win.

Around the league

• Patrick Lalime stopped 21 shots and defenseman James Wisniewski had two assists in the Chicago Blackhawks’ 2-1 win over the Colorado Avalanche.
• Chris Drury scored a power-play goal and added an assist, and Henrik Lundqvist made 29 saves for the New York Rangers in a 3-1 victory over the San Jose Sharks.
• Brad Boyes’ 31st goal snapped a five-game point drought, Eric Brewer had a career-best four assists and the St. Louis Blues scored a season-high three power-play goals in a 5-1 victory over the Columbus Blue Jackets.
• Alexei Kovalev had a goal and two assists to lead the Montreal Canadiens to a 5-3 win over Philadelphia.
• Teemu Selanne set an Anaheim record with his 670th point on an assist during the Ducks’ four-goal, second-period outburst and Anaheim beat Calgary 4-2.
• Marian Gaborik scored the winner with 4.4 seconds left in overtime, and the Minnesota Wild held off a furious rally to beat the Nashville Predators 5-4.

Hurricanes 4 - Penguins 2

The Canes came into this game with a question. How do you stop one of the NHL’s top offenses without three of your top defensemen.

The answer they came up with was a fairly simple one. The best defense is to turn it up on offense and thats exactly what they did in this one to top the Pens 4-2. Ray Whitney stepped up big for the Canes in this one. Whitney had a goal and two assists. This production helped the quick-shooting and gunslinging Canes score three power-play goals in this one.

Erik Cole and Eric Staal also had goals in this one. That snapped long scoring droughts for them. Ryan Bayda added his first goal for the depleted Hurricanes as well. This teamwork helped make up for the loss of captain and leading scorer Rod Brind’Amour. Brind’Amour left in the game’s opening moments with a torn ligament in his left knee. That sounds painful.

Coyotes 5 - Stars 2

Radim Vrbata is going to have to be the catalyst for the Coyotes if they are going to do anything this year. Right now he is leading the team in scoring and second in points and just as they showed last night, he will need to come up big if they want to make the playoffs.

Vrbata scored a short-handed goal and dished out two assists in last nights game against the Stars. He helped the Coyotes snap their four-game losing streak with a 5-2 victory over the Dallas Stars. Vrbata’s goal was the 25th of the season and his 100th of his career.

The win over the Stars also snapped their seven game winning streak and brought them back down to earth. The Stars had been one of the NHL’s hottest teams lately and if they had won it would’ve been a franchise record for consecutive wins. Oh well, better luck next time.

Around the league

• Martin St. Louis had a goal and two assists to lead the Tampa Bay Lightning to a 5-3 win over Philadelphia, the Flyers’ fifth straight loss.
• Ruslan Fedotenko scored two of the Islanders’ four power-play goals and New York beat the Toronto Maple Leafs 5-4 for its second straight victory.
• Jonathan Toews scored a pair of goals and assisted on another and the Chicago Blackhawks beat the Nashville Predators 6-1.
• Ryan Johnson scored St. Louis’ second short-handed goal of the season and Manny Legace stopped 39 shots, lifting the Blues to a 4-1 win over the Colorado Avalanche.
• Mikko Koivu scored the winning goal in a shootout and the Minnesota Wild recovered from a pair of rare blown leads in the third period to beat the Vancouver Canucks 5-4.
• Alex Hemsky, Kyle Brodziak and Fernando Pisani each scored a goal and the Edmonton Oilers defeated the San Jose Sharks 3-2.

Devils 3 - Senators 2

Martin Brodeur has just been setting record after record this season. He may be the G.O.A.T. and he just set another record last night. He hit the 30 win mark in an NHL-record 12 straight seasons.

“It’s one of the things I set for myself,” he said after the New Jersey Devils’ 3-2 overtime victory against the Ottawa Senators on Wednesday night. “Thirty games at the end of the year is not a big number, but not that many goalies do it in consecutive years, so it’s nice.

“Now I’ll look forward to try to hit 35 next.”

The way the Devils have been playing lately, it shouldn’t be long before he hits that 35 mark.

Around the league

• Eric Perrin and Slava Kozlov scored on Atlanta’s first two shootout opportunities and the Thrashers beat the Washington Capitals 3-2.
• Dustin Byfuglien scored two goals and the Chicago Blackhawks rolled to a big early lead to beat the Columbus Blue Jackets 7-2.
• Ryan Miller stopped 35 shots and Paul Gaustad scored the lone goal, lifting the Buffalo Sabres to a 1-0 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs.
• The Boston Bruins used first-period goals by Petteri Nokelainen and Vladimir Sobotka as well as a smothering defense for a 2-1 win over the Pittsburgh Penguins.
• Alexei Kovalev’s shot from the right circle 1:43 into overtime gave the Montreal Canadiens a 2-1 victory over Florida last night in Sunrise, Fla., spoiling the Panthers’ first game since forward Richard Zednik was seriously injured earlier this week.

Sabres 5 - Senators 1

Thomas Vanek was the man in this one. Vanek lead the Sabres to victory beginning with one goal in the first period and netting two more in the third to get his first career hat trick. The final in this one was Sabres 5 and Senators 1.

This win further helps the Sabres climb back into the playoff race. Lately they’ve been one of the NHL’s hottest teams, going undefeated through regulation in 9 straight games and getting 16 out of a possible 18 points in that same time frame. Way to come through in the clutch.

Clark MacArthur and Jason Pominville were responsible for the other goals for the Sabres to help them put a hurtin on the Sens.

Predators 4 - Red Wings 2

Nashville’s offense has been on fire lately.  They have scored 13 times in the last 3 games which is not usual for them.  Their line of Jason Arnott, Alexander Radulov and J.P. Dumont are mostly responsible for it. That trio combined for two goals and three assists for them as they jumped out to a quick 3-0 lead on the powerful Red Wings in the first and they were able to hold on for the 4-2 victory.

Radulov and Dumont both scored goals in the first, while Dumont added an assist and Arnott assisted on two goals. Radulov scored his second of the game in the second period.

“Every line is going, which makes it easier for everybody,” Dumont said. “We are a really good team when we all play together. When you keep your head up and stay confident, good things are going to happen.”

This loss marks the fourth straight for the NHL’s top team, the Red Wings. They have been fallin off lately but for some reason, I feel like they’ll be ok.

Around the league

• Andrew Ladd scored twice in the first 6:33, and the Carolina Hurricanes held on after Shawn Thornton had two goals in a 27-second span late in the third period to beat the Boston Bruins 3-2.
• Trent Hunter had a goal and two assists for the Islanders, who won at home for the first time this year, defeating the Philadelphia Flyers, 4-3.
• Vinny Prospal scored twice, including the go-ahead goal midway through the third, leading the Tampa Bay Lightning past the Montreal Canadiens 3-2.
• Low-scoring defenseman Jay McKee got the go-ahead goal off an aggressive play midway through the third period in the St. Louis Blues’ slump-busting 4-2 victory over the Los Angeles Kings.
• Kyle Brodziak scored twice and Mathieu Garon made 38 saves as the Edmonton Oilers continued their playoff push with a 4-2 win over the Minnesota Wild.
• Samuel Pahlsson rammed in a rebound with 4:21 remaining in the third period, Teemu Selanne added his first goal of the season and the Anaheim Ducks won their fifth straight by beating the Colorado Avalanche 2-1.
• Dion Phaneuf scored Calgary’s tying goal during a two-man advantage with 49.8 seconds left in regulation, and Jarome Iginla got the overtime winner with 24.9 seconds to play in the Flames’ 4-3 victory over the San Jose Sharks.

Stars 2 - Coyotes 1

In the only game of the evening, the Stars made a comeback win over the Phoenix Coyotes 2-1.

Phoenix Goaltender Ilya Bryzgalov frustrated the Stars all night, almost. He stiffled the Stars for about 2 1/2 periods but not for 3 and because of that, the Stars were able to extend their current win streak to 7 games.

Steve Ott and Mike Modano finally got to Bryzgalov in the third to rally for a late victory. Modana scored his 523 career goal increasing his current lead for US born players. This goal came on a 5 on 3 advantage with 3:12 to go in the game. Clutch.