Boston vs. Tampa Bay - Bergenheim leads Bolts to rout of Bruins in Game 1

BOSTON -- The swift-skating Tampa Bay Lightning wasted little time taking control of the Eastern Conference finals.
Surprising playoff scorer Sean Bergenheim began a stretch of three Tampa Bay goals in 85 seconds in the first period and the Lightning beat the Boston Bruins 5-2 on Saturday night for their eighth straight win.
"We're not a team that's waiting to win games," Tampa Bay coach Guy Boucher said after the Lightning grabbed home-ice advantage. "We like to push to win games."
Bergenheim, who scored just 14 goals in the regular season, got his NHL-high eighth of the playoffs at 11:15. Brett Clark connected at 11:34 and Teddy Purcell wrapped up the onslaught, both with unassisted goals as the Lightning capitalized on Bruins mistakes.
The two goals in 19 seconds and three in 1:25 are club records.
"That's what we do," Bergenheim said. "We went in on the forecheck and we went in front of the net and we score that way."
Tyler Seguin, the No. 2 overall draft pick last year, scored for Boston with 4:01 left in the first period in his playoff debut.
Tampa Bay scored twice in the last seven minutes -- Marc-Andre Bergeron on a power play and Simon Gagne into an empty net -- before Johnny Boychuk made it 5-2.
Game 2 of the best-of-7 series is Tuesday night in Boston.
Both teams were coming off long layoffs after sweeping their previous series. It was the first game in 10 days for the Lightning and first in eight for the Bruins.
"Rust was even on both sides as far as the time off so you don't want to use rust as an excuse," Bruins coach Claude Julien said, "but I think the effort was something that we're going to need more of."
In the final minute, the Bruins frustration showed when Milan Lucic and Nathan Horton were given game misconducts. Lucic was penalized after punching Victor Hedman.
"That is part of the game," Hedman said. "I wasn't expecting it."
The speedy Lightning, the 2004 Stanley Cup champions, came out aggressively in an arena where they were just 4-25-6 before beginning their first playoff series ever against the Bruins. They won 61 percent of the faceoffs with the Bruins top faceoff man, Patrice Bergeron, sidelined by a mild concussion.
"It's so important to start with the puck," Julien said. "When you don't win as many draws as you're used to, you're backpedaling a little bit."



The Bruins, in the conference finals for the first time since 1992, lost for the second time in 10 games. But they lost the first two games against Montreal in the opening round then won it in seven.
"It's only one game," Boucher said. "We haven't done anything yet."
The Lightning did take advantage of some miscues by the Bruins.
"I thought we gave them some easy goals and that was more of our doing than it was theirs," Julien said.
Bergenheim scored after Tim Thomas made a save and Dennis Seidenberg tried to clear the rebound with his right skate after losing his stick. But the puck went right to Bergenheim and he beat Thomas from just in front of the crease.
"It was just a big battle in front of the net," Seidenberg said. "I lost my stick and I obviously didn't know what to do without a stick and the puck at my feet. I kicked it to whoever scored the goal."
It quickly became 2-0 when Clark skated all the way up the right side, passing at least two Bruins who let him go by, and scored his first playoff goal when he shoveled a backhander from the right side off Thomas' right arm.
"It takes a lot of energy from you" to allow two goals so close to each other, Boston's David Krejci said. "Somehow you've got to find a way to find the energy and go out there the next shift and try to ... maybe get a goal."
But it was the Lightning who got that goal, the result of a giveaway from Bruins defenseman Tomas Kaberle. He had the puck behind his own net then skated to the left and lost control. An aggressive Purcell was there to take it away. Thomas stopped the first shot, but Purcell got his second goal when he put the rebound behind the NHL's regular-season leader in goals-against average and save percentage.
"We capitalized on some opportunities," Lightning goalie Dwayne Roloson said. "We got a couple lucky ones."
Seguin replaced Bergeron, one of the Bruins' best players in the postseason.
The rookie, an outstanding offensive player who had been benched for the first 11 playoff games in part because of his defensive shortcomings, then did what he does best. He cut quickly between defensemen Mike Lundin and Marc-Andre Bergeron, sending an off-balance Lundin sprawling to the ice, and beat Roloson with a forehand shot to the goalie's left.
Notes

• A pregame moment of silence was observed for Derek Boogaard, the New York Rangers' enforcer found dead in his Minneapolis apartment on Friday.
• Tampa Bay's previous playoff records were 55 seconds for fastest two goals (April 23, 2006 at Ottawa) and 3:07 for fastest three goals (May 27, 2004 vs. Calgary).
• Gagne played after missing three games because of a concussion.
• Boston was scoreless on four power plays and is 2 for 41 in its 12 playoff games.

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Wings force Game 6 with Sharks - San Jose vs. Detroit - Red Wings rally back, force Game 6 with Sharks

SAN JOSE, Calif. -- The Detroit Red Wings are coming home with a chance to take a step toward history.
Suddenly, that seems well within reach.
Tomas Holmstrom broke a tie with 6:08 remaining, and the Red Wings scored three third-period goals to avoid elimination with a 4-3 victory over the San Jose Sharks on Sunday night.
"There's a lot of character on this team. There's not any quit," said Detroit goalie Jimmy Howard, who made 39 saves. "Our season was on the line there in the third period, and we found a way."
Daniel Cleary and Jonathan Ericsson also scored in the final period to send the series back to Detroit for Game 6 on Tuesday night. After winning the first three games, San Jose is clinging to a 3-2 lead.
Logan Couture, Joe Pavelski and Devin Setoguchi scored to help the Sharks take a 3-1 lead early in the third period. Then the Red Wings scored two quick goals before Holmstrom redirected the winner past Antti Niemi, leaving a sellout crowd stunned and silent.
Niklas Kronwall also scored and Pavel Datsyuk added three assists for Detroit.
"I think you put yourselves in a very dangerous position if you get back on your heels against that team," Sharks coach Todd McLellan said. "I didn't think we did that tonight. They just outplayed us in the third period."
The Red Wings moved closer to adding to their already storied history.
The 1942 Toronto Maple Leafs, 1975 New York Islanders and 2010 Philadelphia Flyers are the only teams to win a series after losing the first three games. With Chicago winning three straight to force a Game 7 against Vancouver in the opening round, that's enough precedent to give Detroit hope that it can push San Jose to the brink.
The Red Wings already have overcome a repeat of last season, when they went down 3-0 to the Sharks -- just like this year -- before being eliminated in Game 5 at San Jose.
No encore this time.
Detroit came back again with a strong push up ice and sent several shots at Niemi after going down two goals. In a span of 1:46, the Red Wings got a goal from Ericsson and another from Cleary on a wraparound shot for the equalizer.
Then Nicklas Lidstrom sent a slap shot from the center that was deflected on net by Holmstrom, redirected top shelf to beat Niemi and shock a towel-waving crowd that was ready to toast a berth in the Western Conference finals for the second straight season.

"I didn't know it went in right away," Holmstrom said. "But I saw the ref point at the net and I felt pretty good."
Fans had reason to be optimistic: the Sharks had controlled the puck and forced the action from the start.
But they failed to convert on two power plays in the opening period -- not even registering a shot on the first -- and nearly fell behind again if not for a spectacular save from their goalie. Niemi kept the Red Wings from going ahead first, diving to his left to rob a slap shot by Ericsson with a glove save.
A few minutes later, Joe Thornton won a faceoff in Detroit's territory and passed it back for a slap shot by Dan Boyle from just inside the blue line. Boyle's shot was redirected by Setoguchi for his fifth goal of the playoffs to put San Jose up 1-0 with 2:42 left in the period.
The Red Wings were able to kill off another power play in the second to give themselves a chance, only to fail to even get a shot off when they had their own man advantage. Then Pavelski made them pay when he took a pass from Ryane Clowe on a 2-on-1 break, flicking the puck past Howard to give the Sharks a 2-0 lead.
The goal also was Pavelski's fifth of the playoffs, although he didn't have much time to celebrate. Kronwell scored 53 seconds later with a wrist shot that beat Niemi top shelf with 3:35 left in the period.
Any momentum the Red Wings had entering the final period seemed to end with a thud.
Dany Heatley came out of a scrum along the side boards and shoved a pass ahead to Couture, who finished on a wide-open breakaway past Howard's left leg 54 seconds into the third period to give the Sharks a 3-1 cushion.
"When we go up 3-1 we usually finish teams off," Thornton said. "They fought back very hard. We made a couple of careless plays and against their skilled players, they put those in."
Notes

• Red Wings forward Mike Modano was a healthy scratch again. He has sat out every game in the series.
• The Red Wings inserted left winger Drew Miller into the lineup and scratched Jiri Hudler.
• The Sharks are 7-0 when they lead a series 3-1.
• The announced attendance was a sellout crowd of 17,562.
• The Sharks fell to 5-1 when they score first in the playoffs.

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Preds use 2OT to even series - Preds tie series on Halischuk's double-overtime goal

VANCOUVER, British Columbia -- Running out of time and chances, and stuck below the goal line, Nashville defenseman Ryan Suter threw the puck on net and hoped to get a whistle.
He did better than that, netting the tying goal with 67 seconds left in regulation.
That forced overtime and set the stage for Matt Halischuk's winner 14:51 into the second extra session that gave the Predators a 2-1 victory in Game 2 of the Western Conference semifinal series and tied it at 1 on Saturday night.
"I was just trying to get it on net and get a whistle and got a fortunate bounce and went in," Suter said of his shot that went between Roberto Luongo's legs and bounced in off the goalie's left skate.
After Pekka Rinne made several spectacular saves in the extra periods, Nick Spaling took Suter's entry pass and fed the puck cross-ice to Halischuk. He quickly snapped a shot over a sprawling defender and the glove of Luongo, giving the Predators the victory that got them back into the first second-round series in team history.
"I was just trying to get it off as hard and quick as I could," Halischuk said. "Tried to pick my spot and luckily it went in."
Rinne made it possible with several acrobatic game-saving stops in extra time, finishing with 18 of his 32 stops after regulation.
"He was definitely their best player," said Canucks defenseman Kevin Bieksa, who had an empty net taken away by a headfirst dive from Rinne with 2:14 left in the first overtime. "We had plenty of chances to win it in overtime and plenty of chances to go up 2-0, and he stood on his head."
Alex Burrows scored a short-handed goal two minutes into the second period and it appeared Luongo would make it stand up for his second straight shutout. But Suter tied it on Nashville's 36th shot, a harmless looking centering pass.
"Obviously, you don't want to give up a goal late," said Luongo, who finished with 44 saves. "Sometimes it happens. We had a chance to win."
Several actually.
But after little action in regulation, Rinne looked in overtime like the Vezina Trophy finalist that shut down the Canucks for most of Game 1.
He robbed Henrik Sedin alone atop the crease on a rebound early in overtime and stretched out to turn away Maxim Lapierre with a minute left as the Predators avoided losing consecutive games for the first time since early March.
The save that stood out was against Bieksa, who appeared to have the whole net after a beautiful cross-ice pass from Henrik Sedin before Rinne dove.
"Obviously, I was a little bit fortunate," Rinne said. "Sedin made a nice pass to Bieksa and I was able to get my blocker and my stick over there."
Asked how he refocused after no early action, Rinne said, "you have no choice."
"It's sudden death and you try to be ready for every single situation, every single shot," he added. "It was easy to stay focused, especially in overtime, it seemed like they were shooting more, and it's always fun when that happens."
Game 3 will be Tuesday at Nashville, and the Predators are happy to be going home.
"It was a big game for us momentum- and confidence-wise," Rinne said.
It was also the longest game in Predators history, and the third longest for the top-seeded Canucks, who won the series opener 1-0 on Thursday but have now given up home-ice advantage to Nashville. The Predators will host the next two games before the series returns to Vancouver for Game 5.
Unlike the opener, in which the Canucks outplayed the Predators and Luongo's toughest task was staying awake, Nashville carried the play in Game 2. They had a 36-15 shot advantage in regulation, forcing Luongo to make several good saves, including a stacked-pads stop on Jordin Tootoo's breakaway with 8:46 left.
"We played Predator hockey," coach Barry Trotz said. "We played with conviction. We played with discipline. Our work ethic was there. We had a lot more detail. I thought in regulation we had the majority of the play. We had the better chances, we just couldn't convert."
After Burrows scored his the fourth of the playoffs -- all in the last four games -- while Vancouver was short-handed, the Canucks tried to ride Luongo to a second successive 1-0 victory against the Predators.
Luongo stuffed Mike Fisher on a 3-on-1, power-play rush in the second, made a right pad save on defenseman Shea Weber's blast from the top of the circles, and just got David Legwand's wraparound as Nashville pushed hard in the third.
But Luongo looked bad on Suter's shot from well below the goal line, ending his shutout streak at 126 minutes, 11 seconds -- his best stretch in the playoffs.
"We banged our head against Luongo all night and he made a lot of key saves, but he couldn't get that one and it was a great confidence boost," Rinne said.
Notes

• Predators RW Martin Erat, who missed two games in Round 1 with a suspected concussion, left briefly after getting hit in the head by Weber's deflected slap shot.
• Nashville coach Barry Trotz said he was considering using forwards J.P. Dumont and Colin Wilson, but neither played.
• Vancouver D Sami Salo, out since Game 6 in Chicago because of an undisclosed injury, skated on his own Saturday and is expected to travel to Nashville.

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Game 1: Bruins strike early, often - Boucher yanked, Flyers' goalie search continues

It took all of one game -- actually, not even two periods -- to restart the Philadelphia Flyers' goalie carousel.
Flyers goalie Brian Boucher was yanked with less than four minutes left  the second period after he allowed his fifth goal (on 23 shots) in the Boston Bruins’ 7-3 victory in Game 1 of the second-round series at Wells Fargo Center on Saturday. In came rookie Sergei Bobrovsky, who allowed the final two goals over the final 10 shots.

They combined ot allow the most goals in a postseason game against the Bruins since May 4, 1978.

“It wasn’t a good afternoon all around for all of us,” Boucher told CSN Philadelphia.  “We didn’t get any breaks and we certainly didn’t play all that well. At the same time, I don’t see the need for a change (in goal), but we’ll see what happens.”

The Flyers began the first round with Bobrovsky in net, but his tenure ended after he allowed three goals on seven shots. Boucher came into the game in relief as the Flyers battled back to win Game 2 against the Buffalo Sabres. Boucher eventually had his owns struggles and Michael Leighton --- who was limited to one regular-season game ---- played part of Game 5 and got the start in Game 6. Boucher finished off the series and entered as the No. 1 goalie for this round.

One bright spot for the Flyers defense and special teams is that they killed all five of the Bruins’ 5-on-4 opportunities. The Bruins still haven’t scored on the power play and they sunk to 0-for-26 with the extra man.

-- A.J. Perez

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Goldstein: Top rookies - Top rookies: Strong class even beyond top three

The battle for the Calder Trophy as top rookie has been a two-horse race much of the season between Jeff Skinner of the Carolina Hurricanes and Logan Couture of the San Jose Sharks.
Skinner, the league's youngest player, has become something of a rock star in Raleigh with a spectacular season that has him leading all rookie scorers. Couture has been hot on his heels in total points, and his 30 goals, including eight game-winners, are both second best on the Pacific Division-leading Sharks, making him an immediate impact player on a team that could win the Stanley Cup.

Brad Marchand has made much more of an impact than No. 2 overall pick Tyler Seguin in Boston. (Getty Images)

Lately Michael Grabner has inserted himself into the conversation. A preseason waiver-wire pickup by the New York Islanders, Grabner gained attention by winning the fastest skater competition at the All-Star weekend and then exploding offensively to become the first freshman to hit the 30-goal plateau.
One from this trio of young stars will likely walk away with the award in June. In the meantime though, several others have put together fine first NHL seasons that merit honorable mention, if not a trophy.
1. Corey Crawford: Although Chicago was expecting veteran Marty Turco to handle most of its goaltending chores, Crawford became the Blackhawks go-to guy early and has kept the reigning Cup champs in the hunt for a playoff spot. Chicago's struggles to overcome the major roster changes that followed its title have been well documented, but Crawford's sparkling numbers allowed the Blackhawks to hang around long enough for the remaining core group to get its act together.
2. Brad Marchand: The rookie who had folks in Boston excited at the outset was second overall pick Tyler Seguin, but instead Marchand has stolen the spotlight. Playing mainly on a line with Mark Recchi, someone old enough to be his father, Marchand has produced offense with 20 goals, four shorthanded, and played well enough defensively to garner a plus-25 rating.
3. John Carlson: Washington is hitting its stride as the playoffs approach in large part because the Capitals are playing much better defense. Funny thing is Washington's blue line has been hit with key injuries all season, but Carlson, the hero of Team USA's 2010 World Junior Championship, has filled a big void. On both sides of the puck too, because he is eating up big minutes and putting up points.
4. Taylor Hall: The legacy of his first season will be a questionable decision that ended it prematurely, rather than the Calder he might have won. Hall struggled under the glare of being drafted first overall at the outset of the season with Edmonton, but came on strong for the Oilers after Thanksgiving and rushed into contention for the rookie scoring title. Those chances ended when he broke his hand in a fight during an early March game against Columbus.
5. Tyler Ennis: Without any real big-time snipers, the Buffalo Sabres rely generally on scoring by committee, and the 21-year-old Ennis has fit in nicely. Ennis isn't very big and doesn't get as much ice time as many other Sabres forwards, but he has made his presence felt as the team's second-leading scorer with 19 goals and 47 points.
6. Cam Fowler: Fowler was supposed to go a lot higher than 12th overall last June and he has shown why with the Anaheim Ducks. The 19-year-old is the top scorer among rookie defensemen, plays more than 22 minutes and looks like he will fill the role Scott Niedermayer manned for this franchise before he retired this season.
7. Derek Stepan: Debuting with an opening night hat trick wasn't exactly an omen of things to come because he needed nearly six weeks to score again. Still a 20-goal rookie campaign is nothing to sneeze at. Stepan has eased into his role as a versatile center by coach John Tortorella, spending most of his time on second or third lines, but playing comfortably on the top unit when injuries or circumstances have dictated.
8. Cory Schneider: He probably could be the No. 1 guy for many teams right now. One day he may fill that role for another club because Vancouver has veteran Roberto Luongo locked up for the next decade. In the meantime, Schneider has made the most of his opportunities to spell the Canucks starter and has outplayed Luongo statistically.
9. P.K. Subban: Subban, the most outsized personality among the rookie crop, has gained notoriety because of it. The Montreal Canadiens defenseman has been a hit with locals since being called up for last season's playoffs even if the Habs scratched him a couple of times in midseason. Around the league though, Subban has been called out by opponents for being too cocky too soon. Still, Subban has more goals than any other rookie defenseman and is second among them in total points.
10. Sergei Bobrovsky: He may or may not be the starting goalie come playoff time because the struggling Flyers have been rotating Bobrovsky with veteran Brian Boucher lately. Even so, Bobrovsky still is putting up very good numbers. He's played the majority of games and the Flyers have been leading the Eastern Conference most of the season, so Philadelphia should be less concerned about the goaltending questions that have perpetually haunted them. Then again, the playoffs are approaching.

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Stars 5, Blackhawks 0 - Lehtonen has flawless game, Stars zip Blackhawks

DALLAS -- Kari Lehtonen recovered from one of his worst games with one of his best.
Lehtonen made 23 saves for his 16th NHL shutout, Jamie Benn extended his point streak to nine games with a goal and an assist, and the Dallas Stars beat the Chicago Blackhawks 5-0 on Thursday night.

Western Conference
Seed	Team	GP	Pts
1	y-Vancouver	72	103
2	Detroit	71	94
3	San Jose	72	90
4	Phoenix	72	87
5	Los Angeles	71	85
6	Dallas	71	84
7	Chicago	71	84
8	Calgary	73	83
9	Nashville	71	82
10	Anaheim	70	81
11	Minnesota	71	77
12	Columbus	70	74
13	St. Louis	71	73
14	Colorado	70	60
Eliminated
15	Edmonton	71	55

Complete Playoff Race >>

Steve Ott, Brenden Morrow, Jason Williams and Brandon Segal added goals for Dallas, which ended a two-game skid.
Mike Ribeiro and Brad Richards had two assists each in support of Lehtonen, who has two shutouts in four games.
In between, however, Lehtonen allowed four goals in a 6-3 loss to the San Jose Sharks and three in an overtime defeat to the Los Angeles Kings during a critical seven-game homestand.
"I didn't have a great game (against San Jose), so it was nice, plus a little bit of luck, it all paid off," Lehtonen said. "We'd lost two in a row, so everybody was ready. We played the right way, did things right and were responsible."
Chicago dropped to 9-2-2 in its last 13 games, leaving coach Joel Quenneville searching for answers to a flat performance.
"Tough one to explain. Nothing good about this game," Quenneville said. "We should all absorb some responsibility on how bad we were. The importance of this game, and they keep getting bigger, we didn't respect the urgency."
Lehtonen had a good night, but he also had plenty of help as the Stars blocked 14 shots and were credited with 26 hits.
"We were really pleased with the way everybody pitched in defensively," Dallas coach Marc Crawford said. "You look at key elements in our game where we need to have big performances from our defense, our penalty killing and our goaltender, and we got all of those things. And then we got the added output from our forwards being very adherent to how we have to play in the defensive zone."
The teams are tied for sixth in the conference at 84 points, although the Stars own the tiebreaker based on a 3-1 record against the Blackhawks this season.
Dallas is 5-2-1 against Chicago the past two seasons.



Richards connected with Ott on a long stretch pass, and Ott converted on a breakaway at 17:37 of the first period to stop a 16-game drought.
Benn made it 2-0 at 1:01 of the second, scoring his 21st goal with a one-timer from the right circle off a 2-on-1 break with Ribeiro. Benn has eight goals in nine games, the NHL's longest current point streak.
Morrow extended the lead at 3:35 of the second on another one-timer from the right circle.
Quenneville then pulled rookie goalie Corey Crawford in favor of former Stars netminder Marty Turco.
Williams gave his team a four-goal advantage at 2:54 of the third when he scored into an open net after intercepting Turco's attempt at a clearing pass up the right boards. Segal then scored off a rebound with 8:08 left, completing a tough night for the Blackhawks.
"No excuses. We shouldn't forget this too quickly," Chicago captain Jonathan Toews said. "One of the toughest games of the year and we had one of the worst performances."
Notes

• Dallas recalled Segal from Texas of the AHL. He adds forward depth with RW Loui Eriksson out because of an upper body injury. Segal went to the dressing room for stitches after his head was cut in a first-period fight with Jake Dowell. Segal returned for the second period.
• Dallas forward Adam Burish (lower body) sat out his third consecutive game.
• Lehtonen has started 12 straight and played in his 58th game this season. Injuries limited Lehtonen to 58 games over the previous two seasons.
• Lehtonen received an assist on Ott's goal, his franchise-record sixth this season.
• D Brian Campbell (left leg), C Dave Bolland (concussion), LW Bryan Bickell (illness) and D Jordan Hendry (knee) were out for Chicago.

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GM meetings conclude - GMs address issues, with focus in making game safer

BOCA RATON, Fla. -- It was all very agreeable for the NHL’s general managers this week as they met in a place far removed from their day-to-day reality to deal with the increasingly vocal criticism about violence in their game.
Even the nail-biting playoff races involving many of their teams couldn’t inspire much of a dispute among the participants. In fact many of the GMs spent the final evening together in a local sports bar watching NHL games that provided several instances of dangerous plays their three-day meeting was focused on preventing, some of them were between their own teams.
Yet in this laid back environment along the Atlantic shore, there seemed to be no problem keeping emotions in check.
"We both took a sip of our beer and looked at each other, actually that happened at several moments during that game," said San Jose GM Doug Wilson, who watched his Sharks win a heavy-hitting contest against division-rival Dallas sitting next to Stars general manager Joe Nieuwendyk. "When the puck is dropped, we respect the fact you didn’t really talk about it.
"But when it’s all over, you’re trying to look at how the game is played, how we want it played and I think that’s basically what you saw here for the last few days. You separate issues. That’s the beauty of having these meetings after trade deadline, instead of emotions, or self-interest or the most recent issue driving it, you have an opportunity to do what’s right for the game."
In the case of this three-day get together, "what’s right" was debatable for everyone on the outside, and a talking point for those on the inside.
There has been pressure on the league all season to deal with dangerous injury-causing plays, particularly head shots, and it boiled over a few days before the meetings began when Boston’s Zdeno Chara left Montreal’s Max Pacioretty with a concussion and broken neck following a controversial hit. But for most GMs, especially those belonging to a hawkish old guard, tinkering with anything involving hitting is anathema.
"What is a hit to the head, and what exactly are we talking about?" said New Jersey’s Lou Lamoriello. "We’ve got to be careful how we determine that."
Last year at these meetings, the GMs determined outlawed blind-side and lateral hits to the head were no longer to be allowed. The GMs stood firm in opposition to calls for banning all head shots this time around, but instead but were unanimous in their willingness to address the current problems in a different way.
"It’s much more collaborative in nature than before, people weren’t drawing lines in the sand," said Buffalo Sabres GM Darcy Regier. "For whatever reason, people are willing to listen and mull things over and have conversations."
"Clearly there’s been a little more movement, guys are sensitive to what’s going on," added Carolina’s Jim Rutherford. "Everyone feels very strong about doing something to make the game safer, and as we get more data, it helps us make better decisions.
The data Rutherford was talking about came from the league, which has been tracking concussions and their causes all season. The numbers show that roughly 44 percent of those so far have been caused by legal hits, while injuries from blind side and lateral hits to the head have been drastically reduced. So now the league will look at reducing hits that occur below the goal line and along the boards -- the ones where concussions result from a player's head bouncing off the glass, usually when the victim is stationary and the hitter has lined him up.
"We have the [charging and boarding] rules in place to deal that," Pittsburgh GM Ray Shero said. "They’re all there, but we just have to be more aggressive in enforcing them."
It’s part of a multi-faceted attempt the league will make to reduce the potential risk factor for its players going forward. Part of the effort will include a re-examination of the equipment, arena structures and a new protocol for tending to players suspected of sustaining a concussion. But the major aspect of all this will be stricter enforcement of charging and boarding penalties and tougher supplemental discipline.
Problem is that’s not exactly a quick fix. The GMs recommendations for on-ice changes have to go to the players association and competition committee for approval before the board of governors can make them official in June.
"The one thing we heard from managers was they wanted supplemental punishment increased," said NHL VP of operations Colin Campbell. "That’s fine until it’s their player and they say it wasn’t a big deal.
"But we have to send out tapes of all kinds of different disciplines, telling players this will get you this many games, or managers do you want this penalty to be eight games instead of four. There’s a lot to do so nothing can change for the rest of this season. But the thing is that whatever we do, we want to make sure we get it right."
And that’s something everyone agrees on.
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New Jersey vs. New York - Salmela's first goal gives Devils further playoff boost

NEWARK, N.J. -- The New Jersey Devils found an unlikely star in Anssi Salmela to sustain their playoff drive.
The defenseman scored his first goal of the season 3:09 into overtime in the Devils' 3-2 victory over the New York Islanders on Saturday.

Eastern Conference
Seed	Team	GP	Pts
1	Philadelphia	68	91
2	Washington	69	88
3	Boston	68	85
4	Pittsburgh	69	86
5	Tampa Bay	69	85
6	Montreal	69	83
7	N.Y. Rangers	70	76
8	Buffalo	68	74
9	Carolina	69	72
10	Toronto	69	70
11	Atlanta	69	70
12	New Jersey	68	68
13	Florida	69	65
14	N.Y. Islanders	70	65
15	Ottawa	68	59

Complete Playoff Race >>

Salmela took a feed from Mattias Tedenby and drilled a shot past Al Montoya as the Devils improved to 22-3-2 in their last 27 games.
Not a bad night for a player who missed 27 games with a knee injury, couldn't crack the lineup when he returned, and was unclaimed when placed on waivers in January.
"That is crazy," Devils coach Jacques Lemaire said of Salmela's season. "He was not among the regulars. He was not even dressing. Then we had injuries. He got back in and has played well. He's capable of playing like this. At a certain time, he was losing it, making it more complicated, and he got in trouble. When he keeps it simple, he's got great mobility, good puck control, a good shot and he can play well defensively."
Salmela's fourth NHL goal was a huge relief.
"I think he's more pleased now," Salmela said of Lemaire. "I've been playing, so I think it's good, a little bit simpler. We are more together in our game plan. I had so many chances and I feel like I have wasted a lot of opportunities. You feel bad when you're not scoring and you have chances."
The Devils are still on their improbable drive for a playoff spot. The Devils have played nine straight one-goal games and have overtime wins on consecutive nights. Travis Zajac scored the decisive goal Friday at Atlanta in another 3-2 victory. New Jersey, 12th in the East, moved within six points of the postseason cutoff.
The Devils already achieved a goal Lemaire thought impossible when he came out of retirement: they are .500 (32-32-4). They were 9-22-2 when Lemaire replaced John MacLean on Dec. 23.
"Never," Lemaire said. "It's the teams you play against in a league that is so strong. You could win some games in a row, but never enough to get to .500. The hill was too high to even think about it."
New Jersey had trailed 2-1 in the third period before rallying.
Jacob Josefson had his first NHL goal and David Clarkson also scored, and Martin Brodeur made 13 saves for the Devils.
Blake Comeau and John Tavares scored for New York, which got 32 saves from Montoya. The Islanders are 4-0-3 in their last seven as they try to remain on the fringe of the Eastern Conference playoff race. New York is nine points back in 14th place.
Josefson opened the scoring 1:57 in with a hustle goal. Clarkson tipped the puck into the Islanders zone with Josefson in pursuit. Josefson skated behind the New York net, shook off defenseman Bruno Gervais, and came out the other side to bank in a sharp-angle shot off Montoya's skate.



Josefson, the Devils' first-round selection in the 2009 draft, missed 30 games early this season with a hand injury.
New Jersey had several opportunities to expand the lead in the first five minutes but Montoya held his ground, especially when Ilya Kovalchuk had a couple of swipes at a loose puck at the goal mouth.
At the other end, the Devils again went into first-period shutdown mode. They limited the Islanders to only 3 shots, extending their modern NHL record to 16 straight games without allowing a goal in the opening period.
The Devils finished with eight shots and carried a 1-0 lead into the break.
New Jersey started the second period on the power play, and Brian Rolston almost connected but his hard shot was gloved by Montoya, who was sprawled on the ice.
The momentum then shifted toward the Islanders.
Jack Hillen blocked Kovalchuk's shot, pushing the puck ahead to Comeau, who burst into the Devils zone. He eluded the backchecking Rolston before dragging the puck across the slot and whipping a backhander past Brodeur at 1:13.
New York had the better of the play the rest of the period. Brodeur made a sparkling glove save on Michael Grabner to preserve the deadlock 6:42 into the period.
Just 4 seconds later, Tavares put New York ahead 2-1 by deflecting Andrew MacDonald's point shot past Brodeur.
In the third, Brodeur stopped Grabner again, this time on a short-handed breakaway. That turned out to be the key save of the night.
"That was obviously the turning point of the game," Islanders coach Jack Capuano said. "We could have gone up 3-1. How many times do you see them come back and score right away? It was a big save by Marty. That's what he does."
Clarkson scored shortly after to pull the Devils even at 5:42 - 4 seconds after the power play expired. Clarkson jammed the puck home after Montoya failed to corral a rebound.
The Devils outshot the Islanders 15-6 in the third period and 32-15 through regulation.
New Jersey had the only three shots in overtime, too.
Notes

• Zajac played in his 387th consecutive game for the Devils, one shy of the club record held by Ken Daneyko (Nov. 4, 1989-March 29, 1994).
• The Islanders and Devils will meet once more this season, March 30 in New Jersey.

Copyright 2011 by STATS LLC and The Associated Press. Any commercial use or
distribution without the express written consent of STATS LLC and The
Associated Press is strictly prohibited.

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Job security emboldens already bold-faced Bettman

Gary Bettman's new contract as NHL commissioner is actually five months old and five years long -- which is pretty much what this week must seem like to him.
The Zdeno Chara hit and the subsequent level of action have become a multinational thing. The owner of the Montreal Canadiens has essentially called the league out on the lack of sanctions to Chara. Air Canada, one of the NHL's major sponsors, is complaining loudly about the number of head shots to and by players. Arizona politics are swamping the Phoenix Coyotes and showing that Bettman's commitment to the market was either misplaced or insufficient.
And Bettman is in standard Bettmanian mode -- jaw out and spoiling for as many fights as he can manage.

Bettman didn't flinch when major sponsor Air Canada made demands. (US Presswire)

That's the beauty of Gary Bettman, though -- when in doubt, he will lead with an elbow and if need be, he will use a stanchion.
There have been any number of moments where Bettman's leadership has been questioned/mocked/dismissed, because he does have this way of confronting a position, finding the least defensible place to make his stand. But he never loses his core support, and he never loses his chestiness.
Bettman is not by nature a diplomat, and he showed his spiny side yet again this week, especially in the Chara hit on Montreal's Max Pacioretty. The league decided that Chara's punishment, ejection, was sufficient and wasn't hearing any other viewpoints on the subject. This after Sidney Crosby lost his season as the league's biggest name to a persistent concussion.
And his work in Phoenix, basically blaming the citizens watchdog group for undermining his plan to find a new owner for the Coyotes, has been only slightly more conciliatory than that of a Rottweiler with missed-meal cramps.
But it might be his dismissal of Air Canada that showed him at his most Bettmanic.
After the airline threatened to withdraw its sponsorship, which includes being the official air carrier for the six Canadian teams and five American ones, if steps were not taken to reduce violent hits to the head, Bettman did what most commissioners would consider only as a last resort.
"Air Canada is a great brand as is the National Hockey League, and if they decide that they need to do other things with their sponsorship dollars, that's their prerogative. It is the prerogative of our clubs that fly on Air Canada to make other arrangements if they don't think Air Canada is giving them the appropriate level of service."
Well, that's elegant. He turned "the league isn't doing enough about head shots" into "Air Canada's not keeping up with the in-flight peanut demand." He made the league's problem into the airline's problem, and if he wasn't seen shooting off a middle finger, it's only because you can only do so much with a statement.
This is why Bettman is so Bettman. He not only doesn't duck a fight, he likes them. He likes getting in front of the other guy's goal, a la Tomas Holmstrom, and he likes the odd sluefoot, as he really likes to play through the whistle.
In the past, a cock-up like Phoenix would cause demands for his resignation, or some sign of shame. In the past, the Chara thing would make him look silly and ineffectual and blind to the realities of a game that takes safety too blithely.
But he just got five more years, and even if he didn't get a raise, it's still another $35 million-plus deal. The people whom he needs to like him like him, and as long as they have his back, he's going to continue Bettman-ing.
It's not even about public perception for him anymore. He has had the job long enough to know what works for him and what doesn't, and paying attention to outward cries of ... well, anything, really, doesn't work for him.
His new strength, he has decided, is to be the hardest of hardnoses, to conciliate on nothing, to tell anyone who needs to hear the lesson to go pound salt for another five years.
A good lesson, he would like to think, when the NHL's next collective bargaining cycle begins. The speak-loudly-and-keep-your-stick-high style he has plainly embraced indicates a man who commissions with "Bring it on" monogrammed on his shirts, and he's ready for whatever Don Fehr, or even any rogue owner, has to bring.
Normally, this would seem self-defeating, but the new deal has given Bettman all the courage he thinks he needs. Diplomacy? Tact? Negotiating deftness? That stuff's for sissies.
Well, OK, maybe sissies is a strong word. It's for someone who didn't just get five more years on the company arm. Gary Bettman is fearless again, and that means that he's likely to be kind of a killjoy.
Still.

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Following early trade flurry, few deals made on deadline

As far as reality television goes, it was a flop.
Not that anyone should really be surprised. With so many trades of significant magnitude having been completed in the three weeks leading up to the deadline, even the large group of panelists that populated the NHL Network studio seemed prepared for a slow day.
At least they came ready with enough idle chatter material to fill the time between trades. They needed it too, despite 16 deals involving 35 players and 13 draft picks taking place. Most of them were of the non-descript variety, which was probably inevitable because the story of this season's trade deadline was less about the final day than the weeks leading up to it.
The Boston Bruins, for example, did nothing on Monday. But Boston had already made themselves a more serious Stanley Cup contender long before, picking up a prize in defenseman Tomas Kaberle, and adding depth at forward with veterans Chris Kelly and Rich Peverley earlier in February.
Philadelphia made its big depth move early as well by adding Kris Versteeg, while the Anaheim Ducks and Pittsburgh Penguins filled some of their holes cost-effectively by doing some shopping ahead of time, too.
And the biggest deal of the season, between two non-playoff teams and involving several young star players, happened long before the deadline. The trade that saw Erik Johnson and Jay McClement go to Colorado from St. Louis for Chris Stewart and Kevin Shattenkirk happened during the night, but there was no way it was going to be topped on deadline day.
Still, there were some noteworthy occurrences as the final hours wound down, with the Washington Capitals grabbing Jason Arnott late in the process and the Los Angeles Kings solving one of their problems by acquiring Dustin Penner. Even the Vancouver Canucks got in on the action, although they probably didn't have to.
The league-leading Canucks have a lot going for them this season, yet decided it couldn't hurt to add depth forwards Chris Higgins and Maxim Lapierre if it didn't cost anyone off the roster. But on the whole, there was little about deadline day that made for riveting viewing.
The problem was that the trade everyone was waiting for was always a long shot because Brad Richards still has a concussion, not to mention a no-trade clause and the Dallas Stars still have a chance to make the playoffs. Dallas is up for sale though, while Richards will be an expensive unrestricted free agent after the season and they had a gentlemen's agreement to move things along if the team could get the right price.
Under the circumstances they couldn't.
No doubt several other teams in this very tight NHL season found themselves in the same situation. But some still managed to have a pretty good day. A look at the winners and losers:
Winners
Washington Capitals: Washington optimists still believe this is a team lying in the weeds and waiting to pounce in the playoffs. That's debatable given their inconsistencies this season, but the Capitals did pick up a couple of good pieces in Jason Arnott and Dennis Wideman. Arnott is a rental who was sought after by several teams looking for a big, physical center and fills a need on the Capitals' second line. Wideman meanwhile, is erratic in his own end, but has a good offensive skill set, especially on the power play. Washington is concerned with the injuries to offensive defensemen Mike Green and Tom Poti, but Wideman will help pick up some of the slack and make the team deeper when they return.

The Kings' latest acquisition, Dustin Penner, knows how to get to the net and has 30-goal type of talent. (Getty Images)

New Jersey Devils: They gave up Arnott who wasn't coming back next season, but considering the circumstances, the Devils got a very good return in David Steckel and a second-round draft pick. New Jersey still thinks it is in the playoff hunt despite being nine points out because the Devils have won 17 of their last 20 games, but Arnott wasn't committed to the effort and said so publicly several times in the last few days. That didn't put New Jersey in a particularly good bargaining position, and while Steckel doesn't have Arnott's offense, he can score on occasion, plays better defense and is very good in the faceoff circle.
Los Angeles Kings: They really wanted Brad Richards, but the price they would have had to pay to extract a pending free agent from a bitter division rival didn't make sense. Still the Kings had to do something to offensively upgrade a team that justifiably thinks it has deep playoff possibilities. Penner probably wasn't the Kings' first choice, but with the trade market being as tight as it was, he was a good "settle." Penner is big, strong, gets to the net and when he's on, has 30-goal type of talent. Penner should fit easily into Los Angeles as well with a couple of ex-Oilers around and his familiarity with the area from his days with the Ducks. And the Kings didn't have to touch their roster to get him.
Florida Panthers: GM Dale Tallon was busier than anyone, stripping his team of as many veterans and as much salary as he could while stockpiling draft picks to continue his rebuilding process. Tallon struck it rich in last year's draft with six of the first 50 picks. His deals Monday upped his collection for this June's draft to 10 picks in the first three rounds, and it cleared millions off the payroll for the balance of this season and beyond. That's as good as it can get on deadline day for a team that is about to miss its 10th consecutive playoff and is losing a lot of money.
Ottawa Senators: Their biggest deal of the day was not trading defenseman Chris Phillips. The Senators re-signed the veteran hours before the deadline, but still managed to get in one more deal that gained them a prospect and a second-rounder. It was the end of a frenzied fire sale period for Ottawa that saw the Senators move out a number of veterans while reloading with lots of draft picks.
Losers
New York Rangers: They made a move a couple of days earlier to get Bryan McCabe, but their real target was Brad Richards. New York will probably make a play for him when he's a free agent next season, but they wouldn't meet the Stars' asking price, which apparently included Artem Anisimov, a first-round pick and a prospect. That's a lot, but if Richards does get healthy soon, he's the kind of player who would have made a big impact down the stretch in the wide-open East for a hard-working team that has a great goaltender.
Montreal Canadiens: Drew MacIntyre is not the answer to any question in Montreal. The Canadiens needed to add some size, preferably down the middle. And Jason Arnott was obviously available.
Minnesota Wild: You could have gotten good odds at the start of the season betting Minnesota coach Todd Richards would still be around at the deadline, but he's done a good job keeping this moderately talented team in playoff contention. Problem is they're in a dog fight for one of the seeds and missing captain Mikko Koivu for the next few weeks. The Wild needed to add some depth, but only came up with minor leaguers Jeff Penner and Mikko Lehtonen.
Nashville Predators: What would it have taken to get a 20-goal scorer?

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Power Rankings: As deadline passes, powers primed for push

So did anyone improve their chances of winning the Stanley Cup on NHL trade deadline day? Not likely, although the Vancouver Canucks did get a little deeper by adding Chris Higgins and Maxim Lapierre to their fourth line.
Meanwhile, the Washington Capitals might have changed their dynamic a little by trading for Jason Arnott and Dennis Wideman, while the Los Angeles Kings didn't hurt themselves by inserting Dustin Penner in their talented and youthful lineup.
Playoff hopefuls like the Calgary Flames and Carolina Hurricanes brought in some veteran help with Fredrik Modin and Bryan Allen respectively, but most of those considered to be legitimate contenders did their tweaking long before the presumed frenzy erupted.
Everybody was looking as the deadline approached, but with the races, particularly the West, being as tight as they are, there were far more buyers than sellers. And the prices sellers sought might have made gouge-happy oil companies blush.
That's why powerhouses like Philadelphia, San Jose, Boston and even Tampa Bay did their shopping early. Except for the Bruins' acquisition of defenseman Tomas Kaberle from Toronto, none of the contenders did anything particularly eye-opening, but everyone seemed to fill a need or at last get a little deeper.
How much that will mean when the playoffs roll around remains to be seen. In the meantime, the Power.
extracted from cbssports.com

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Power Rankings: Wings again driving for big finish

They've been forgotten at times this season, which can happen when you fall short of a third consecutive Stanley Cup Finals appearance. But that's always a mistake when it comes to the Detroit Red Wings.

Jimmy Howard has allowed only six goals in his past four starts. (AP)

Problem for this team in the post-lockout era is that anything short of a Finals appearance means it fell short. So when the Red Wings lasted only two rounds last spring, the end overshadowed the fact Detroit needed a late tear just to make the playoffs.
The Red Wings were hit hard by key injuries last season and were below the cutoff line until players came back and turned Detroit into the league's best team, finishing 16-2-3. That was around mid-February coincidentally. The Red Wings are far better off in the standings now, the return of key players recently is making a difference as well.
Pavel Datsyuk came back Feb. 7 from a hand injury that cost him two weeks without missing a beat, picking up five goals and four assists in seven games. Brad Stuart is back. too, and the Red Wings are expecting Valtteri Filppula and Mike Modano.
And in the meantime, the Red Wings are one of the league's hottest teams with five consecutive wins and have a big lead in the Central Division.
Detroit started last week on the heels of a home-and-home sweep of the Bruins that was dominant enough to push Boston into some pretty significant trades in the days that followed. The Wings then had a statement win in Tampa Bay before finishing their road trip with efficient wins in Florida and Minnesota.
They're getting very good work in goal again from Jimmy Howard, who has allowed just six goals on 117 shots in his past four starts, and they are ramping up the game that does very well come playoff time. In case anyone has forgotten.

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Calgary vs. Montreal - Flames blank Habs in outdoor Heritage Classic

CALGARY, Alberta -- A lot of shots and a lack of hitting made for classic pond hockey in the Heritage Classic outdoor game, and that suited Miikka Kiprusoff just fine.
Kiprusoff made 39 saves for his fourth shutout this season, and the Flames beat the Montreal Canadiens 4-0 Sunday on a cold, clear night at McMahon Stadium.
The temperature was about 16 degrees at the start of the game, with winds of 16 miles per hour making it feel like less than 2 degrees. The cold didn't slow down Kiprusoff, who decided not to wear the neoprene wetsuit he tried out during Saturday's practice because it felt too hot, but he did put on extra clothes during the game.
"The first period was pretty windy," the Flames' goalie said. "I had to add something after the first period, put more clothes on, but we had a lot of good stuff here to use. The last two periods, the second and third I felt all right."
Rene Bourque scored twice, Anton Babchuk had a short-handed goal and Alex Tanguay also scored for the Flames, who became just the second home team to win in the NHL's six outdoor games.
"I think it's right up there with playing your first game, scoring your first goal, things like that," Bourque said of the experience of playing outside. "It's just fun to be part of this and playing in front of these people, especially when you're sitting on the bench and you're looking out and seeing 40,000 people."
The win moved the Flames past four teams into a tie with Nashville for fifth place in the Western Conference, as 10 points separate third place and 12th. Calgary has earned at least a point in 18 of its last 20 games.
Carey Price finished with 33 saves for Montreal, which dropped to 1-2-2 in its last five games.
Price said he wasn't cold, but said the ice conditions changed from the previous day.

"I thought the ice was a lot harder and a lot bumpier," he said. "You know what? Calgary played exactly the way they needed to play. They knew the type of game that was coming and they executed the game plan. They just threw everything at the net. They got a few good chances and they buried them."
The Heritage Classic had more hockey-like weather than the Winter Classic in Pittsburgh on Jan. 1, when 50 temperatures and rain forced the NHL to delay the start of the game from afternoon to evening.
The winds blew directly into the faces of about 5,000 people in the temporary seats, and fans were popping hot packs into their boots by the start of the second period. The announced attendance was 41,022, and the majority of fans wore the Flames' red and cream retro jerseys, but there was also a strong Montreal contingent and some combined jerseys and tuques from both teams.
"I expected some people to go home," Calgary's Jarome Iginla said. "I can imagine how cold they were. They didn't get to warm up the way we do, but they were there to the end having a great time."
Several players wore eye black under their eyes to reduce sun glare, but didn't need it for the opening faceoff at 4:25 p.m. local time because the setting sun behind the west stands cast a shadow completely covering the ice. However, the stadium lights reflected brightly off the ice by the third period.
The ice crew pampered the McMahon Stadium ice before and during the game. They opted to hand spray the surface instead of running resurfacing machines that weigh nearly seven tons over it and risk cracking the ice. They were constantly patching ice along the boards.
"The ice wasn't great, but it's better than some NHL rinks we play in," Iginla said. "It was a little bit bouncy, probably a little bit brittle compared to what we're used to, but nobody was really complaining about the ice.
"For sure there's less contact. The ice wasn't great around the boards. You could see them fixing it all the time. You want to play hard, but you also don't want to see anyone catch a toe and go into the boards. I think that's probably part of it."
Bourque scored a power-play goal at 8:09 of the first period when he re-directed a shot from Tanguay past Price.
Curtis Glencross backhanded the puck up high to Babchuk, whose shot from the top of the faceoff circle beat Price's glove for a short-handed goal at 12:44 of the second.
Bourque made it 3-0 with his second goal about 2 minutes later when he cruised in from the boards and tucked a backhander past Price.
Tanguay scored on a goal-mouth feed from Iginla at 10:53 of the third period.
Notes

• This was the first Heritage Classic since 2003, when the Canadiens edged host Edmonton 4-3. NHL commissioner Gary Bettman wouldn't commit to a date and location for another one, but said the outdoor game in Calgary was profitable. "We made a big investment in doing it in Calgary and we think it paid off tremendously," Bettman said.
• Boston is the only other team to win its outdoor game, beating Philadelphia 2-1 in overtime in the Winter Classic at Fenway Park on Jan. 1, 2010.
• Montreal LW Mike Cammalleri played his first game in a month after separating his shoulder and assistant captain Hal Gill drew back into the lineup after missing four games with an upper-body injury.
• Canadiens D James Wisniewski also played despite taking a puck in the cheekbone Thursday at Edmonton.

Calgary goalie Miikka Kiprusoff stops 39 shots, including this one by Travis Moen.
(AP)

extracted from cbssports.com
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Oilers rookie Hall nets three PPGs for first hat trick

EDMONTON, Alberta -- When the Edmonton Oilers selected Taylor Hall first overall in last year's NHL draft, they hoped they landed a game-breaking player.
He lived up to that billing in rallying the Oilers past the Atlanta Thrashers.
The rookie scored three power-play goals in the third period for his first NHL hat trick, and the Oilers stormed back in the final frame to beat the Thrashers 5-3 on Saturday.
"It's a great feeling anytime a player can get a hat trick and contribute to your team," Hall said. "But if we don't get those power plays and play strong as a group in the third, I don't get those goals.
"It was a really fun night on all parts. Everyone chanting your name and all of the hats raining down, It's something I will never forget."
This is exactly the kind of performance the Oilers are looking forward to getting from Hall for years to come.
"We're a team that is fighting to gain respect and create an identity, and at the same time throw a wrench in other teams' plans," coach Tom Renney said. "Taylor seized the opportunity to really sign this one."
Edmonton trailed 3-1 in the third, but came back to post its first three-game winning streak at home since last March. Magnus Paajarvi and Ales Hemsky also scored for the Oilers (19-32-8).
Dustin Byfuglien, Andrew Ladd and Evander Kane had goals for the playoff-hopeful Thrashers, who have dropped five straight road games during a stretch in which they have lost seven of eight and 14 of 17 overall.



"We gave them life," Atlanta coach Craig Ramsey said of his team's third-period collapse. "Everything was going in our favor and then we take three penalties and give them those power-play chances and get behind.
"They walked them out and stuffed them in the net. It was really disheartening to see that. We didn't get it done killing penalties and we didn't get it done on the power play."
Atlanta took a 1-0 lead on its first shot of the game 4½ minutes in as Byfuglien's floater from the point went in off goalie Devan Dubnyk's glove.
The Thrashers almost doubled their advantage with six minutes left in the first period, but Bryan Little fired a shot off the post after the Oilers gave away the puck in their zone,
Atlanta did go ahead 2-0 59 seconds into the second when Ladd golfed in a rebound for his 21st goal.
Edmonton cut its deficit in half with five minutes remaining in the period as Paajarvi scored on a wrist shot from the top of the circle that went between Chris Mason's pads.
The Thrashers countered 1:12 into the third when Kane went around Dustin Penner and scored his 17th goal of the season as the teams played 4-on-4.
But the Oilers tied it on Hall's first two power-play goals less than a minute apart.
Just 30 seconds after Atlanta scored, Hall stepped out from the side of the net and surprised Mason with a shot through his legs. Hall scored again 40 seconds later, converting a pass from behind the net by Hemsky.
With seven minutes left, Atlanta's Nik Antropov was given a double high-sticking penalty. Hall then completed the natural hat trick to give him 20 goals this season.
Hemsky rounded out the scoring with an empty-net goal with 12 seconds left.
Notes

• It was the only meeting this season between the two teams.
• The Thrashers had forward Blake Wheeler and defenseman Mark Stuart in the lineup after acquiring them Friday in a trade with Boston.
• Edmonton placed disgruntled D Sheldon Souray on re-entry waivers. Souray, who has been playing for Hershey (AHL) can be claimed by NHL teams on Monday.
• Oilers rookie RW Jordan Eberle came in with eight points in eight games since returning from an ankle injury.
• Atlanta's penalty-killing unit is the second worst in the NHL at 76.5 percent. Only Edmonton is worse at 75.5 per cent.
• NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman was in attendance before heading to Calgary for Sunday's outdoor Heritage Classic between the host Flames and the Montreal Canadiens.

Not only does the game have many goals, but it also features a pretty good fight between Jean-Francois Jacques and Mark Stuart. (AP)

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Boston believes it's a contender after Kaberle blockbuster

A Friday flurry to finish a week filled with trades.
Seems about right, doesn’t it?
The fun started with the Colorado Avalanche sending Craig Anderson to the Ottawa Senators in what seemed like a meaningless exchange of disappointing goaltenders. Then the Boston Bruins kicked things into high gear with a pair of deals that included a blockbuster that landed them the kind of player most contenders covet right about now, defenseman Tomas Kaberle.
Makes you wonder how the Canadian networks are going to fill all those hours of airtime on trade deadline day.
It’s a national viewing party north of the border, you know, and it starts early in the morning. But it could be anticlimatic with so many teams doing their Christmas shopping early and avoiding the inevitable rush. And no buyer has been busier than the Bruins, a team that is telling everyone it has serious Stanley Cup aspirations this season with all their moves.
Boston will be hard pressed to catch the Philadelphia Flyers for first place in the Eastern Conference, but they made it clear they are building for a long run this spring by turning into that guy three blocks from the stadium with a sign that says “Need tickets.” The Bruins have been out there shopping for weeks. With the market starting to move as early as it has this season, and with the added cap space from Marc Savard being on long-term injury reserve not hurting matters, GM Peter Chiarelli wasted little time getting in on the action, making some significant changes to the roster with three deals in the last couple of days.
Getting Chris Kelly from Ottawa on Tuesday for a second round pick deepens Boston on the third line and penalty kill, and adding sniper Rich Peverley, who came from Atlanta along with defenseman Boris Valabik earlier today, will boost the offense. But the big prize was Kaberle, one of the top offensive defensemen in the league and someone on the wish list of several teams.

Is Tomas Kaberle the missing piece to propel the Bruins to the next level? (Getty Images)

Kaberle didn’t come cheap though, costing the Bruins a first round draft pick and prospect Joe Colborne, the 16th overall pick in 2008. Boston threw in a conditional second round pick as well.
“We felt right now in this market there wasn’t a player close to him available,” Chiarelli said.
Kaberle wasn’t available to everybody, either. In fact, Kaberle was open only to the Bruins, by his own choice. The 32-year-old veteran had a no-trade clause in a four-year deal that ends after this season, and he has remained adamantly opposed to waiving it for the last several seasons.
But with his unrestricted free agency looming and the Maple Leafs not certain about re-signing him, Kaberle agreed take his offensive skills to Boston, where they should have a much more meaningful impact than in Toronto for the last several years.
It’s a deal that concludes nearly two years of attempts by Boston to acquire Kaberle. The Bruins thought they had him at the 2009 draft when Maple Leafs had a brief window to trade Kaberle and offered him up for Phil Kessel. But negotiations broke down and Kaberle remained in Toronto with a team that has been in a constant state of rebuilding since the lockout, playing amid constant rumors about his future there.
Eventually the Maple Leafs landed Kessel in a deal that cost them two first-round draft picks, and now they’ll get back part of that back. Toronto added another first-round pick earlier this week when it dealt Kris Versteeg to the Flyers, but the Bruins still come out the winners here because they’ve added an important dimension that their deep and talented roster may have been lacking for a deep playoff run.
Kaberle could be the missing piece for the Bruins because of the way he can move the puck and join the attack. He isn’t a physical defenseman, but he can handle his end and will probably be more comfortable and arguably more effective with Zdeno Chara being the spotlight player on Boston’s blue line.
Most important, Kaberle’s power play quarterbacking skills will give some much needed juice to that Bruins special team, something that has to improve if Boston is looking to go deep this season.
These days, Boston has 43-year-old Mark Recchi, a forward by trade, manning one of the points on the power play. The ageless veteran is still pretty good in front of the net, but he doesn’t have the shot or the quickness to be directing thing from the point.
Kaberle will immediately take over that job from him, and playing opposite of Chara, will give the Bruins a much more dangerous look with the man advantage. And overall.
extracted from cbssports.com

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Cup-or-bust Flyers add another championship piece

As if the Philadelphia Flyers had to get any deeper.
It wasn't enough being the Eastern Conference leader for almost the entire season and having a top-five offense and a top-10 defense. Getting double-digit production from more players than any team didn't suffice either, and neither did having the league's best set of top-six defensemen or two goalies who have done nothing but silence doubters all season.

Kris Versteeg, battling with ex-Flyer Simon Gagne, gives Philly even more flexibility up front. (AP)

None of that was enough to keep a team bent on winning it all this season sitting still, so this week the Flyers traded away their first-round draft pick in an effort to upgrade.
It's the third year in a row Philadelphia has moved what is generally considered a coveted asset, this time to Toronto for forward Kris Versteeg.
Thing is the 24-year-old forward isn't a difference maker. But he is someone who has won a Stanley Cup and can do a lot of things well, and by adding him the Flyers are telling you just how much their future is now.
"I think we really feel that we have something special; it's a different attitude than before," said Danny Briere, the Flyers scoring leader with 27 goals. "You know if you look at last year when were hanging on just to survive and make the playoffs, the mentality was different. We weren't seeing the big picture.
"This season is different. I think going to the Finals against Chicago and coming so close to winning, we realized a lot of things about our team, the way we fought and battled for each other. We think we can accomplish more, but we have to keep pushing all the time."
The Flyers should wish that would be the worst of their problems. Some of them were talking about it after they built up a three-goal lead and had to hang on beat the Panthers 4-2. Captain Mike Richards called the effort "maybe a bit lazy," while defenseman Sean O'Donnell suggested the team was fortunate to escape with a win against a bottom feeder. But as coach Peter Laviolette rationalized later, the Flyers were coming off an emotional statement win the night before against high-powered Tampa Bay, and still found a way to emerge with a victory.
"Sometimes you just have to take the two points and move on," Laviolette said.
Philadelphia has been doing a lot of that this season. The Flyers suffered a three-game losing streak a week into the season but have dropped two-in-a-row only once since then. Their 38 wins top the league, and they trail overall standing leader Vancouver by two points with a game in hand.
"I'm excited about it. I mean this is a team that can win the Stanley Cup," said an understated Versteeg. "You look at that roster and you go ‘wow' there's so much youth and skill, you could produce with anyone you played with.
"I think it's going to be just like Chicago, and I'm going to be a piece of the puzzle."
That could be worth more to the Flyers than the last pick of the first round if it helps them win the Stanley Cup. The 24-year-old Versteeg made an impact in his role last season with the Blackhawks as a versatile winger who was comfortable anywhere from the third to first lines or on special teams. It is a particular skill set that the Maple Leafs weren't ready for but should fit nicely on a Flyers team thinking about a long run.
"I see a lot of similarities here with Anaheim in terms of the pieces they have put together," said the 39-year-old O'Donnell, who won the 2007 Stanley Cup with the Ducks. "You look around this room and you see a lot of talent, a team that's built to win this year, not in two or three years.
"There's a Stanley Cup or bust mentality. We've been feeling it since training camp."
Actually it's been there since last June when the Flyers went down in six games to the Blackhawks in the Finals, although O'Donnell wouldn't know that because he only joined the team in the summer. General manager Paul Holmgren felt one reason Philadelphia lost was that its top four defensemen where overtaxed, so he added O'Donnell and Andrej Meszaros to the blue line.
Holmgren wanted to do something between the pipes as well, but ended up bringing back Michael Leighton, the journeyman who took the Flyers to the Finals last spring. Problem was Leighton had back issues and appeared in only one game, but in the meantime rookie Sergey Bobrovsky and veteran Brian Boucher have handled the job well enough to make any attempt to upgrade unnecessary.
In large part that's because there is so much balance through the lineup. Philadelphia has been getting consistent offense from all its lines with Briere, Claude Giroux, Jeff Carter, Mike Richards and Scott Hartnell leading the way. With Pronger and Kimmo Timonen, the Flyers can always have a shutdown defenseman on the ice, and the goaltending right now is as good as it has to be.
"You're always looking to see what's out there, but I like the roster we have now," Holmgren said.
He should.

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Couture for rookie of year? More like Sharks MVP

With hand wringing about fighting all the rage in the NHL these days, Logan Couture could easily become one of those players who fade into the background for a while.
For one thing, he already had what he claims is his annual fight way back in November. For another, he's a rookie playing for a team in a time zone that tends to be overlooked, if not forgotten.
Especially when it comes to voting for individual awards.

Logan Couture's rock-solid play has earned raves from his fellow Sharks. (US Presswire)

Couture seems kind of used to it by now, even if he is only a rookie. The 21-year-old got an initial taste of hockey life spent mainly under the radar on the West Coast with the San Jose Sharks last season in 25 games and 15 more in the playoffs. Then he had another only a few weeks ago when one of his top rivals for the Calder Trophy, Carolina's Jeff Skinner, turned into a Justin Bieber-type of rock star before the very eyes of the national media assembled for the All-Star Game in Raleigh.
Couture was there too. But he only took part in the skills competition while Skinner got into the game in front of an adoring crowd as an injury replacement. Still if the Sharks center was only one of the extras on the national stage, he has distinguished himself on a Sharks team loaded with marquee names like Joe Thornton, Dany Heatley, Patrick Marleau and Dan Boyle. And he has done so in a way that would now land him the San Jose team MVP award, if not the league's rookie of the year prize.
Coach Todd MacLellan describes him "a catalyst for our team, a go-to guy," who has inspired enough confidence to play in situations generally not handled by first year players.
"Logan shows up to play every day," MacLellan said. "He's made a number of players around him better and not necessarily the rookies but some of the veterans too. He's brought them along and made them better."
For his part, Couture seems a little reluctant about accepting that particular analysis from his coach, shrugging it off with the typical "just trying to help the team win" response. That said, the player taken ninth overall in 2007 does admit things have gone pretty well in his rapid ascent to a regular job in the NHL.
Couture was penciled in for a roster spot coming into the season, but has increased his ice time since early on by getting to play quite a bit on both special teams. For everyone involved, the big time offense has been the added bonus.
"It's definitely been a fun year so far," Couture said. "I mean on this team there are so many superstars it's been nice for me to kind of slide in there on the second or third line. I don't get the big checkers most nights. They're focused on Jumbo and Heater and Patty, so I'm enjoying it right now."
He should, because chances are it won't last very for long. That's already apparent, MacLellan said, because teams that don't start games with their best defenders tracking Couture often end up that way.
"You'd be surprised how it's changing," MacLellan said. "He may not see the top guys at the beginning, but he's not going to get a free pass anymore because coaches evaluate on the fly and flip things around."
Not that it seems to be bothering Couture. He leads the Sharks with 24 goals including eight game-winners, many of them the result of him getting to the front of the net rather than being on the perimeter. In a telling stat about how well he has played without the puck, he has the best plus-minus rating on the team.
"He's a complete player who plays it both ways," said Boyle. "I'd say he's arguably our best player this season, not just our best rookie. It takes confidence to get to a certain level and he's got it an early age."
Couture acknowledged there was more of a comfort level for him coming into the season having had NHL time in the last one. His first year as a pro gave him a head start as a full-fledged rookie, a status he almost lost because of the number of games he played last season.
"I really learned a lot in those games and in the playoffs and I knew what to expect coming in, but the funny thing is I actually didn't know I still qualified [for the Calder] until someone told me a few games into the season," Couture said. "What I was most concerned about was making this team and helping it win."
And now, about the Calder race that has recently seen Michael Grabner of the New York Islanders enter the conversation as well?
"Sure it's nice be in consideration for it, but I'm not really thinking about it too much," he said. "The main thing for us is to make the playoffs first. If we play well and if I continue to play well, things will work themselves out. I don't think it really matters where I play."

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