Results - Mar 21, 2014

NY Rangers @ Columbus 3-1 - Even though Rangers left wing Rick Nash didn't get a point in his anticipated return to Nationwide Arena on Friday, he made a point with his teammates during a 3-1 win against the Columbus Blue Jackets. Nash, the former Blue Jackets captain, rode an emotional roller coaster during his first game here since Columbus traded him to New York in July 2012. He was booed at the start, received a prolonged standing ovation after a video tribute, then became public enemy No. 1 for two skirmishes with Columbus goalie Sergei Bobrovsky and a third-period fight with undersized forward Matt Calvert. Two other former Blue Jackets had big roles in helping New York (38-29-4) move two points ahead of Columbus (36-28-6) into third place in the Metropolitan Division. Derek Brassard put the Rangers up 2-1 with 8:29 remaining, and defenseman Anton Stralman had an assist on each of the first two goals. Nick Foligno gave Columbus a 1-0 lead at 1:12 of the third period before Derek Stepan tied the score 44 seconds later. The Rangers got an empty-net goal from Carl Hagelin, and goalie Henrik Lundqvist made 25 saves, but Brassard said Nash's physical play and willingness to mix it up was an inspiration. The first period was filled with energy and mixed feelings for Nash, who spent nine seasons with Columbus and is the Blue Jackets' career leader in games played (674), points (547), goals (289) and assists (258). He was booed during the introduction of the starting lineup and when he had the puck, but by the end of a video tribute with 13:45 to go in the first period, most people stood and cheered although there was further booing. The booing got louder with 2:54 remaining in the second period when Nash and Bobrovsky tangled for the second time. The goalie dumped Nash in front of the goal during a Rangers power play in the first period, but that was a minor skirmish compared to round two. Nash had a step on the defense and cut toward the net from the right faceoff circle. He powered his way to the crease and got off a shot before colliding with Bobrovsky. The puck crossed the goal line but it was immediately waved off for goalie interference. Bobrovsky used his stick to lift Nash's off the ice. As Nash reached for the stick, Bobrovsky knocked it away. Nash then made a two-handed shove to Bobrovsky's mask. Nash was heartily booed when he was escorted to the penalty box, and the result was a Blue Jackets power play on which they failed to score for the 29th straight time over the past eight games. Brassard scored his 16th of the season with a wraparound between the left post and Bobrovsky's pad.

Nash explained why he and Calvert fought 12 seconds into the third period. "The two crosschecks to the head, the slew foot and the fact that he said he's going with me no matter what. He didn't care. That was enough to set me off."

Calvert offered a different explanation."He took a cheap shot at our goalie and we really didn't have a chance to respond because the linesmen jumped in. I had a chance right at the start of the third period to get the boys going. He had to pay for what he did. It was a gutless move. I'm glad it happened, but it's a disappointing loss."

Boston @ Colorado 2-0 - Goalie Chad Johnson made 31 saves and the Bruins defeated the Avalanche 2-0 at Pepsi Center on Friday night to clinch a berth in the Stanley Cup Playoffs with their 11th consecutive win. Boston (48-17-5) leads the Eastern Conference with 101 points, the same number as the Western Conference-leading St. Louis Blues (47-15-7), who have played one fewer game. The Bruins haven't lost since a 4-2 defeat to the Washington Capitals on March 1. They've gone 10-0-3 in their past 13 road games and haven't lost in regulation on the road since a 4-2 defeat to the Los Angeles Kings on Jan. 9. Avalanche coach Patrick Roy pulled goalie Semyon Varlamov for a sixth skater with five minutes to play in the third period, but the Avalanche were shut out for the first time since a 4-0 loss to the Phoenix Coyotes on April 6, 2013, a stretch of 80 games. Colorado (44-21-6), third in the Central Division, fell three points behind the second-place Chicago Blackhawks (41-15-15), who defeated the Carolina Hurricanes 3-2. The Avalanche and Blackhawks each have 12 games left in the regular season. The Avalanche have gone 1-3-1 since defeating the Blackhawks 3-2 on March 12, a win that moved them into second place in the division by one point. The Bruins took a 2-0 lead on a power-play goal by Carl Soderberg at 13:11 of the second period with the Avalanche's Gabriel Landeskog in the penalty box for interfering with Andrej Meszaros. Using Loui Eriksson as a screen, Soderberg took a shot from the right circle that sailed over Varlamov's right shoulder. Dougie Hamilton picked up his second assist of the game on the play. Johnson made two big saves in the period before Soderberg scored, stopping Maxime Talbot's backhander after skating down the middle and turning aside Jan Hejda from just outside the crease after Matt Duchene passed in front. The Avalanche outshot the Bruins 14-6 in the first period, but Boston grabbed a 1-0 lead on a goal by Patrice Bergeron at 5:12. Chara pressured the Avalanche into a turnover and Hamilton kept the puck in at the blue line. He passed to Bergeron skating down the slot for a shot that Varlamov stopped. But Bergeron was able to slide the rebound under Varlamov's outstretched left pad for his 21st goal of the season. The Bruins killed all three of the Avalanche's power plays. Colorado didn't have a shot on goal for the first 12 minutes of the third period, and when they got one it came on a power play with Shawn Thornton serving a holding penalty. Bruins defenseman Johnny Boychuk took part in the pregame warmup, but he was scratched for the third consecutive game because of a foot injury.
Nashville @ Calgary 6-5 - It took six goals, five scorers and two goaltenders to keep the Stanley Cup Playoff hopes of the Nashville Predators alive. Matt Cullen had four points and goaltender Carter Hutton stopped 10 shots in relief of starter Pekka Rinne to power the Predators to a 6-5 victory against the Calgary Flames at Scotiabank Saddledome on Friday. The win, which saw Nashville surrender leads of 2-0, 3-1 and 4-3 before holding on to snap a three-game losing skid, keeps the Predators' faint playoff hopes alive, moving them within nine points of the idle Phoenix Coyotes for the second wild-card berth in the Western Conference. The game was tied 4-4 after a wild second period that featured five goals in nine minutes before Nashville captain Shea Weber put the Predators ahead to stay. With Curtis Glencross in the penalty box for hooking, Weber stepped into a one-timer after a pass from Matt Cullen and fired a shot along the ice that went under goalie Joey MacDonald to put Nashville up 5-4 with 5:32 remaining in regulation. It was his second goal of the night and 18th of the season. Cullen added his fourth point of the night when he redirected Roman Josi's centering feed past MacDonald at 17:08. The goal proved important when Mike Cammalleri scored his second of the night, seventh in the past six games and team-leading 22nd of the season with 2:24 remaining in regulation. He beat Hutton from a sharp angle to cut the deficit to one goal. The Flames pulled MacDonald for an extra attacker with just under 1:30 remaining, but Calgary couldn't draw even thanks largely to Hutton, who denied Jiri Hudler's chip, Sean Monahan's wrister from 10 feet and Kris Russell's last-second blast from the point in the final minute of the game. In a game that featured the NHL debuts of Calgary's Kenny Agostino and Nashville's Calle Jarnkrok, Predators' defenseman Victor Bartley made sure he'd get to celebrate a first of his own 5:10 into the game. After cruising into the Flames zone, Bartley stepped into a pass from Craig Smith for a one-timer that beat Flames' starter Joni Ortio for his first career NHL goal to put the Predators up 1-0 at 5:10. The goal came on Nashville's first shot. The Predators were equally successful on their second. Forty-nine seconds later, Weber took a return pass from Mike Fisher in the slot and shoveled a shot over Ortio's blocker to make it 2-0. With Colin Wilson in the penalty box for holding the stick, Russell recorded his first goal since Dec. 6, a span of 29 games, skipping a shot off Weber's stick and past Rinne with 33.9 seconds remaining in the first period to cut the deficit to 2-1. Though each started the second, neither Ortio nor Rinne could finish a wild period that saw a combined five goals on 19 shots. After Patric Hornqvist restored Nashville's two-goal lead at 4:10 by batting a pass out of midair and behind Ortio, goals by Cammalleri and Hudler 51 seconds apart erased the Predators lead and squared the game at 3-3. Hudler's goal featured Mark Giordano's 13th point in his past 11 games and prompted a timeout from Predators coach Barry Trotz. It worked; 52 seconds later, Viktor Stalberg snuck out from behind the net and tucked the puck behind Ortio, chasing the Flames goaltender in favor of MacDonald after he made nine saves on 13 shots. Jarnkrok's assist on the play was his first NHL point. Ortio, who was called up on an emergency basis due to injuries, was returned to Abbotsford of the AHL after the game. Karri Ramo will return for the Flames' road game Saturday against the Edmonton Oilers. Rinne lasted another five minutes, but gave way to Hutton after coughing up a dump-in to Lance Bouma, who promptly found Mikael Backlund alone in the slot for a tap-in into the vacated net at 13:31. The new goaltenders calmed the scoring with MacDonald turning away two shots in 11:54 of action and Hutton stopping the only shot he faced in the final 6:29 of the period.