2/22/12 Studs & Duds

[dmvincent]

STUDS


Anderson axes the Capitals
Craig Anderson helped the Ottawa Senators to their fourth straight win and he continues to be on one of his patented hot streaks. Anderson stopped 33 of 35 shots, making several spectacular saves and keeping the Capitals out of a playoff spot at the same time. With a win, the Caps would have been tied with the Toronto Maple Leafs for the eighth spot in the East. Ottawa is currently seven points up on Toronto and not very far behind New Jersey, Pittburgh, Philadelphia and Boston.

Krazy Karlsson
Erik Karlsson has shown the hockey world this season just how good he can be in his prime and he's hit his stride at the age of 21. With so many years left in his career, Karlsson is sure to be one of the best defencemen in the league for a while. His numbers this season are just flat out ridiculous. Karlsson has 60 points after collecting his 13th goal along with two assists last night against Washington. Karlsson is only 13 points back of Evgeni Malkin for the league lead in points and he's also 20 points up on the next best dman in Brian Campbell, who currently has 40 points.

Terrific Thomas
Tim Thomas and the Bruins were road warriors last night in St. Louis. Thomas stopped 30 of 32 shots and Boston prevailed to a 4-2 win after losing two games in a row to Minnesota and Winnipeg.

Semin keeps scoring
Despite all the bad feelings around the Washington Capitals of late, Alex Semin continues to get it done after an awful first half of the season. The Russian winger chipped in with two assists, three shots on goal and finished with an even plus minus. Semin has 39 points on the season and could possibly be on the move at the trade deadline. He'd be a great addition to a club in need of some help up front. The issue with Semin isn't effort, its confidence. He's confident in his game of late and continues to be dangerous for opponents.

Mighty Michalek
Milan Michalek matched Erik Karlsson on the scoreboard with 3 points, after collecting two goals and an assist last night. Michalek is having a nice season after struggling with injuries over the past few years. The winger has 42 points on the season for the Sens and they'll need him to stay healthy if they want to stay in seventh spot in the East.

Major Marchand
Brad Marchand scored two goals and now has 21 on the season. The feisty winger is a lot to handle for any opposition and will continue to be an important part of the Bruins going forward. He might be small, but he sure is mighty.

Lucic lifts the Bruins
Milan Lucic collected a goal and an assist to help the Bruins to another win, which they needed to keep pace with the rest of the East. Lucic has very even numbers on the season, with 21 goals and 23 assists. He also sports over 100 penalty minutes, 108 shots on goal and is a plus-5.

Kelly kills the Blues
Chris Kelly has a knack for scoring big goals and has been a great addition to the Bruins since being acquired from the Senators at last years trade deadline. He's always one of the hardest working players in every game he plays and that showed last night in St. Louis. Kelly scored the game-winning goal, his 15th of the season and he also added an assist.

Varlamov is victorious
Semyon Varlamov was fantastic last night for Colorado, stopping 32 of 33 shots in a 4-1 victory. After Jean-Sebastien Giguere sustained a groin injury against the Canucks last week, Varlamov has been doing his part and playing very well. The Avs tweaked their forward group with the acquisition of Steve Downie recently, so the team is serious about making the playoffs this season.

Stastny sinks the Kings
The Avs need more from Paul Stastny and he did his part on Wednesday night, notching two goals and letting Varlamov go to work in what would end in another Colorado win.


DUDS


Kopitar kept off the scoresheet again
Anze Kopitar is as talented as they come, but he continues to struggle of late and had zero points in last night’s loss to the Avalanche. Kopitar played over 17 minutes, had three shots on goal and was a minus-1 in the game. The Kings will need Kopitar to heat up sooner rather than later, as the Chicago Blackhawks, Colorado Avalanche and Dallas Stars are all breathing down their necks. So, what’s the good news on Kopitar? He does still have 51 points on the season.

Vokoun very unimpressive
Tomas Vokoun just hasn’t been what was expected of him when he was signed in the off-season. Vokoun surrendered four goals as the Capitals continued to struggle on Wednesday when they hosted the Senators.

Quick not quick enough
Jonathan Quick has been fantastic this season, but not last night against the Avalanche and not Monday in a game against the Phoenix Coyotes. Quick allowed four goals on 29 shots in a loss to the Coyotes earlier in the week and was pulled early in the game last night after allowing three goals on 10 shots. Its probably just a little slump, but it just goes to show you how amazing we’re all used to him being each and every night.

[TwoPuckCanuck]

Good post Mac! Lots of info, especially considering it was a three game night. As always, great alliterations! haha