02/02/12 - Studs & Duds

[bondon]

Sorry bout the late post, had a late night.

Studs

3) The Kids are Alright - The young guns on the Oilers were overshadowed tonight by a monstrous performance from Sam Gagner, but Taylor Hall and Jordan Eberle both had a great game. Each registered one goal and three assists for four points on the night. Both were plus-four and combined for 12 shots on goal.

2) Warding off the Bears - Playing on the road against one of the league's best offensive teams? No problem says Cam Ward, as he made a remarkable 47 saves for his third shutout of the season which (correct me if I'm wrong) is the highest number of saves made in a shutout this year. Ward has been back to his elite form in the past month as he has only had one game with a save percentage below .917% through 12 starts in 2012. For the moment it looks like the Canes still have a shot at a playoff spot, and don't look like they will be sellers just yet.

1) Winner, Gagner! - Four goals, four assists, plus-six, six shots on goal. W T F!?

Honourable Mentions

Price-Choppers - Zach Parise and Ilya Kovalchuk went to town on Carey Price combining for five points. Parise scored two goals while Kovalchuk added three assists as they led the Devils to a 5-3 win over Price and the Habs.

Burning up - Brent Burns had a measly 17 points in 47 games but he rewarded those that have been patient with him tonight. Burns notched three assists, with four penalty minutes, a shot, a blocked shot, and three hits.

Backbone of the team - The Minnesota Wild desperately needed a win, after going 3-6-1 in their last 10 games and being embarrassed by the Predators on Tuesday. Veteran Niklas Backstrom stepped in and was a rock for the team stopping all 37 shots that he faced, securing the 1-0 win.

Duds

3) Gross effort on defense - Nik Grossman and Trevor Daley were a team worst minus-three on the night for the Stars, and were on the ice for all of the Sharks three even-strength goals.

2) The Vancouver Cannots - The Canucks had a rough two periods to start the game. Through forty minutes, they had given up 30 shots while only taking 11 of their own. While they did manage to come back and tie the game to snatch a point, they need to show a more consistent effort through sixty minutes. Cody Hodgson was a minus-two on the same day that he was named the NHL's rookie of the month for January. Luongo did everything he could but his 40 saves weren't enough. He failed to make a save in the shootout but this loss shouldn't be pinned on him.

1) Blackhawks Down - Rough night for the Hawks as they were embarrassed by a team that has won five of their last 23 games. Corey Crawford allowed five goals on 28 shots, and Ray Emery fared no better as he allowed three on 13. Nick Leddy, Dave Bolland, and Andrew Shaw were the worst on the team at minus-three.

Dishonourable Mention

Powerplay? - The Devils allowed yet another shorthanded goal tonight against the Habs, as (from what I gathered) Kurtis Foster turned the puck over at the blue line springing Mathieu Darche and Tomas Plekanec. The Devils were also only able to get a measly 21 shots on Carey Price despite being given four powerplay opportunities.

Quick Hits

Reinforcing the Offense - David Clarkson is a player known more for his fighting ability than his scoring but this season he is reminding people that he can play hockey. Clarkson had an incredible roto game tonight, as he scored two goals, one assist, had two penalty minutes, three shots, EIGHT hits, and two faceoff wins. He now has 19 goals on the season.

Lil' Wayne - Wayne Simmonds was the Flyers' go-to guy for offense tonight as he scored two goals and took a game high ten shots on goal. Claude Giroux had a goal and an assist.

Welcome back Buff - Dustin Byfuglien made his long-awaited return to the lineup since being injured before Christmas. Big Buff logged a team high 25:36 TOI and registered an assist on the game-winner in overtime.

Showing signs of a turnaround - Ilya Bryzgalov had another strong start tonight making 26 saves on 27 shots for the win. This is his second straight start where he has allowed only one goal, and seems to be building momentum for a good run down the stretch.

Ryan Kesler - Huge roto night for Kes, as he scored a goal on four shots, was plus-one, had two penalty minutes, along with five hits, three blocks, and four faceoff wins.

Ondrej the Giant - Big statement game for Pavelec and the Jets, as they won on the road against a red hot Tampa Bay Lightning team. Pavelec made 30 saves for the 2-1 win in overtime.

[GMGates]

C'est beau! Merci!

I'm just very glad to not be playing against the team with Sam Gagner this week.

Dodged a bullet on that one!

[metaldude26]

Boooooooooooo!

TSN gave Sam Gagner all three stars. You could have at least showed him the same courtesy.

[bondon]

Boooooooooooo!

TSN gave Sam Gagner all three stars. You could have at least showed him the same courtesy.

Pfft, he got all the attention last night, the other guys deserve a look too

[metaldude26]

Pfft, he got all the attention last night, the other guys deserve a look too

The last time someone dropped eight in a game, Gagner was a fetus. A FETUS! You are going to regret not having properly acknowledged this flash in the pan when it fails to happen for another 23 years. As for the other clowns, honourable mention their ass!

[dmvincent]

Gagner was pretty crazy last night, he had everything going for him. It was an absolute free for all between Chicago and Edmonton. So many penalties taken and way too many shots on goal for each team. I look forward to my studs and duds debut next week!

[dyzfunctioned]

Gagner!!!

Also of note, cam ward set a franchise record for number of saves in a shutout.

[arctic_rogue]

So, has the buy low window ended on Gagner?

[metaldude26]

Gagner!!!

Also of note, cam ward set a franchise record for number of saves in a shutout.

Oh no! Arturs Irbe!

[Buck Fush]

Ebs and hall deserved to get 2nd and 3rd star, 4pt nights are nothing to sneeze at. My boy ebs now has 39 pts over his last 31 GP, that's a 100+ pt pace! Kid is a machine.