Results: Wed, Mar 05, 2014

Toronto @ NY Rangers 3-2 OT - Hours after being traded from the Tampa Bay Lightning in a blockbuster deadline-day move, Martin St. Louis made his anticipated debut with the New York Rangers. But, it was Tyler Bozak who stole the show Wednesday night at Madison Square Garden. Bozak scored his second of the game 1:51 into overtime and the Toronto Maple Leafs defeated the Rangers 3-2 for a big second point in the heated race to the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Ryan McDonagh and Dominic Moore scored shorthanded goals 79 seconds apart and Henrik Lundqvist made 26 saves for the Rangers (33-26-4), who moved one point ahead of the Columbus Blue Jackets in the Metropolitan Division but fell short in St. Louis' debut with his new club. Nazem Kadri also scored for the Maple Leafs (33-23-8); Jonathan Bernier stopped 35 of 37 shots. With the win, Toronto pulled ahead of Tampa Bay for third in the Atlantic Division. After Kessel beat defensemen McDonagh and Dan Girardi to a loose puck behind the Rangers net, Bozak was left all alone in front on the game-winner. It was there that he took Kessel's pass and beat Lundqvist for his 14th. Down 2-0 in the third and with Brad Richards whistled for tripping at 5:18, it looked as though the Maple Leafs fifth-ranked power play might put this one away. But the Rangers' penalty kill provided an unlikely comeback. McDonagh earned his 10th and gave the Rangers new life on a point shot that went off Dion Phaneuf's skate and past Bernier at 5:34. Dominic Moore tied the game with another shorthanded goal 79 seconds later. Following a giveaway at the blue line by Kessel, Derek Stepan led a 2-on-1 rush alongside Moore, who took a pass and beat Bernier blocker side for his fifth at 6:53. That game-tying sequence marked the second time in four games that Toronto has allowed two shorthanded goals on the same penalty. They are now tied with the Philadelphia Flyers and Edmonton Oilers for the League lead with 10 shorthanded goals allowed. Following a scoreless first, the Rangers had one of their best scoring chances with James van Riemsdyk off for interference early in the second. After St. Louis fished the puck out of the right corner, McDonagh sent a cross-ice pass to a wide-open Richards. The center's hard shot slammed off the left post 58 seconds into the period before the puck rolled around the Toronto crease. Toronto opened the scoring 23 seconds after van Riemsdyk's penalty expired when Bozak was awarded a penalty shot after being hooked by John Moore on a partial breakaway. The Toronto center made no mistake, freezing Lundqvist before beating him between the legs to give the Maple Leafs a 1-0 lead on his 13th 1:44 into the second. Leading 1-0 despite being outshot 7-1 in the opening 7:31 of the second, Toronto thought it had expanded its lead when Jake Gardiner's shot from the left wing was called a goal. But a video review indicated the puck actually bounced off both posts before skipping away from the Rangers net. Lundqvist saved his best save for the end of the second when Joffrey Lupul found a rebound on the doorstep following a long shot from Nikolai Kulemin. He was foiled by Lundqvist in-close before going to the backhand, where he appeared to have the goaltender out of the play. But Lundqvist stretched his right pad out to make a remarkable stop with 1:20 remaining. There was little Lundqvist could do when Kadri gave Toronto a 2-0 lead on his 16th goal two minutes into the third. The Maple Leafs center was left all alone at the side of the crease and had no trouble harnessing a rebound of a Kulemin shot and stuffing it home. That score snapped a six-game scoreless drought for Kadri. That deficit took some of the shine off St. Louis' arrival. St. Louis, acquired earlier in the day for captain Ryan Callahan, a first-round pick at the 2015 NHL Draft and a conditional second-round pick this year, was greeted with an ovation from the crowd when he took the ice for his first shift. Moments later, he took a pass from Richards in the slot and fired New York's first shot, a laser that was stopped by Bernier 57 seconds into the opening period. St. Louis appeared to find quick chemistry with linemates Carl Hagelin and Richards, a teammate on the Tampa Bay team that won the Stanley Cup in 2004. The three accounted for five of New York's 12 shots in the first. St. Louis finished with three shots on goal in 20:11 of ice time. But it was the team that didn't make changes on deadline day that came away with a win.
Washington @ Philadelphia 4-6 - The two dirtiest teams in the NHL met again on Wednesday night, and it was no surprise that it got physical (see photo above). It's been almost four months since Philadelphia Flyers captain Claude Giroux finally scored his first goal of the 2013-14 NHL season. He hasn't slowed down since. Giroux had his second straight two-goal, one-assist game when the Flyers held on to defeat the Washington Capitals 6-4 Wednesday, sweeping the home-and-home and winning a third straight game. Jakub Voracek scored two goals, and Michael Raffl and Steve Downie had one each for the Flyers. Steve Mason made 21 saves for Philadelphia, which is 8-2-0 in its past 10 games. A big reason for that recent success has been Giroux, who has eight goals and nine assists in that span. Giroux's linemates also have been big contributors; Voracek has four goals and four assists, and Scott Hartnell has three goals and six assists. After playing at a top level through two periods, the Flyers nearly fell flat in the third when the Capitals mounted a comeback. The Capitals were held to eight shots in the first two periods and trailed 4-1, then scored three times on 17 shots in the third to turn the game into a nail-biter. Alex Ovechkin finished with a goal and an assist, and Joel Ward, Troy Brouwer and Brooks Laich scored. Washington went 3-for-4 on the power play after going 0-for-6 against the Flyers on Sunday. Ovechkin made it 4-2 on his League-high 44th goal of the season at 6:35. With Downie serving a penalty, Backstrom held the puck deep on the right side of the Philadelphia zone. He found a seam and rifled a pass to Ovechkin in the left circle, and as quickly as the pass arrived, Ovechkin one-timed it past Mason for his League-leading 18th power-play goal. Brouwer got the Capitals within 4-3 when Washington outworked the Flyers in the Philadelphia zone and Jack Hillen zipped a pass from the right wall to Brouwer open in the slot, where he slammed it past Mason at 9:25. The Flyers were able to breathe a brief sigh of relief when Voracek finished a nice feed from Hartnell with a wrist shot from above the hash marks at 11:51, but Flyers defenseman Mark Streit took a penalty 10 seconds later, and Washington pulled within 5-4 when Laich redirected Mike Green's shot from the right point for his seventh goal of the season with 6:00 left. Downie closed the scoring with an empty-net goal with 51.9 seconds remaining. The Flyers played what could have been their best two periods of the season. They led 4-1 and were outshooting the Capitals 23-8 through 40 minutes. The first period ended with the Flyers leading 2-0 on goals 1:34 apart by Giroux and Voracek. Giroux's 22nd goal of the season was first. Matt Read lobbed a pass from the Philadelphia end into the neutral zone that Hillen got to, but Sean Couturier arrived and bumped him off the puck. Giroux jumped on the loose puck and streaked around Ovechkin through the right side of the Washington zone. He pulled it around a lunging poke check attempt by Holtby and scored into an empty net at 6:48. Voracek made it 2-0 13 seconds into the Flyers' first power play. Washington won the faceoff after Brouwer was called for slashing, but Voracek held in Karl Alzner's clearing attempt at the right point. He passed to Wayne Simmonds at the goal line, and Simmonds then spun it behind the net to Giroux on the wall on the left side. As the defense converged on Giroux, he whipped the puck across the ice to Voracek, who took a step toward the middle of the ice and fired a low, hard shot through traffic that beat Holtby at 8:22. Giroux's second goal of the game made it 3-0 at 5:26. Green was bumped from behind by Hartnell and turned over the puck just to the right of the Washington net. Giroux jumped on the loose puck and chipped it over Holtby's glove before the goalie could set himself. Raffl made it 4-0 after a Holtby turnover and the Capitals' inability to clear the puck from the defensive zone against the Flyers' fourth line. Newly acquired defenseman Andrew MacDonald worked the puck to Luke Schenn at the left point, and his shot went off Raffl in the slot at 11:52. Holtby was pulled after allowing four goals on 18 shots. He was replaced by Philipp Grubauer, who was recalled from Hershey of the American Hockey League after the Capitals traded backup goalie Michal Neuvirth to the Buffalo Sabres earlier Wednesday as part of the trade for goaltender Jaroslav Halak. Halak will join the team Thursday for its game at the Boston Bruins. Grubauer finished with 10 saves on 11 shots. Washington got on the board on Ward's power-play goal. Mason couldn't control a puck dumped behind the net, and as it rolled along the wall on the left side of the Philadelphia zone, Jason Chimera chipped it to Ovechkin at the point. He worked it over to Green at the right point, and Ward got a piece of Green's low shot through traffic to redirect it past Mason for his 19th of the season at 14:06. After taking one point in four with the Flyers and heading into a tough game Thursday, Ward said the Capitals will look back to these final 20 minutes for inspiration. Philadelphia also will look to take some good and learn from the bad as it moves forward. The Flyers next play Saturday at the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Ottawa @ Calgary 1-4 - Markus Granlund scored his first career NHL goal and Joni Ortio made 30 saves for his first victory in the Calgary Flames' 4-1 win against the Ottawa Senators at Scotiabank Saddledome on Wednesday night. Ortio and Granlund were two of seven players in Calgary's lineup against the Senators who have played at least 16 games this season for the Flames' American Hockey League affiliate, the Abbotsford Heat. It's a result of moving Reto Berra and Lee Stempniak at the NHL Trade Deadline and a rash of injuries to strike the club and the first time since Jan. 8, 2010 the Flames have had at least seven of their own draft picks in the lineup. Ottawa's loss gave Alberta-based teams a sweep of the Senators, who in addition to the 27th-place Flames also fell to the 29th-place Edmonton Oilers by a 3-2 score on Tuesday. They too were active at the deadline, acquiring Ales Hemsky from the Oilers and re-signing Chris Phillips in an effort to make a push for the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Granlund, who is second in goals (23) and fourth in points (44) among AHL rookies, wasted little time scoring his first after notching his first NHL point with an assist in a 3-2 loss against the Minnesota Wild on Monday. Max Reinhart picked off a pass at the Senators' blue line and fired a shot that was deflected into the slot and into the skates of Granlund, who kicked the puck up to his stick before chipping a shot over Ottawa goalie Craig Anderson to put Calgary up 1-0 at 2:04 of the first period. Ottawa failed to record a shot until 9:15 of the first when Bobby Ryan's one-timer was denied by Ortio's pad. The Senators' second shot came with 6:45 remaining, a slap shot from the top of the slot off the stick of the newly acquired Ales Hemsky, which Ortio calmly gloved. A flurry of chances followed Hemsky's chance and despite holding a 7-2 edge through the first 14 minutes, the Flames quickly saw the gap erased but still took a 1-0 lead into the first intermission. Calgary extended that lead to three after 40 minutes. Failing to convert on a breakaway after stepping out of the penalty box, Mark Giordano made amends on a Flames power play four minutes later after Paul Byron, another Abbotsford call-up, redirected his pass by the pad of a screened Anderson for his third of the year to put the Flames up 2-0 at 9:12. With 2:47 remaining, Joe Colborne gave Calgary a three-goal lead. Parked backdoor, Colborne converted on a Jiri Hudler spinning feed from below the goal line for his first goal in 20 games and fifth of the season. With a power play following a skirmish as a result of a Clarke MacArthur hit that forced Hudler from the game 19 seconds into the third, the Senators tried to climb back into the game but were met by Ortio, who stuffed two attempts from Jason Spezza on the doorstep. Kyle Turris ended Ortio's shutout bid with 9:36 remaining in the game, but Mike Cammalleri quickly restored the three-goal advantage with his second in as many games 58 seconds later.
Montreal @ Anaheim 4-3 SO - Thomas Vanek was trending on Twitter in Montreal going into its game Wednesday night. Afterward, it was Dustin Tokarski. In his first NHL game in two years, Tokarski made 39 saves in regulation and overtime and stopped four of six shootout attempts to lead the Montreal Canadiens to a 4-3 win against the Anaheim Ducks at Honda Center. Andrei Markov scored in the sixth round after Tokarski stopped Saku Koivu to end an eventful day. Tokarski found out he was starting before the morning skate after coach Michel Therrien decided to give Peter Budaj a rest. Markov beat Ducks goalie Jonas Hiller with a wrist shot on the left side of the net. Anaheim's Kyle Palmieri nearly scored in the fifth round when his shot his each goal post and skidded on the goal line, but it was reviewed and negated. Tokarski's and Palmieri's body language suggested they thought Palmieri scored. Montreal, which landed top rental wing Vanek from the New York Islanders moments before the NHL Trade Deadline, generated 31 shots and forced a 3-3 tie going into the third on Brendan Gallagher's goal at 19:24 of the second. Gallagher picked the loose puck out from a scrum for his 16th goal. Unlikely scorers Tim Jackman, Daniel Winnik and Francois Beauchemin helped the Ducks overcome a sleepy start. The three combined for six goals going into the game, but Jackman deflected defenseman-turned-forward Luca Sbisa's shot at 7:08 of the second and Winnik batted in Matt Beleskey's rebound at 18:11. For all the talk about Anaheim's depth, Ducks coach Bruce Boudreau found himself shorthanded because right wing Teemu Selane was scratched with the flu and center Mathieu Perreault was placed on injured reserve, retroactive to Feb.28. Sbisa played left wing. The Ducks have been able to erase bad starts, but Boudreau wasn't happy being in such a position. Tokarski appeared in his first NHL game since March 19, 2012. The 24-year-old was mostly solid, but he was victimized by a random bounce that allowed Anaheim to tie it 2-2. Beauchemin dumped the puck in from the red line and it caromed off a stanchion and into the open net at 9:07 of the second after Tokarski went behind his goal. It came with Alexei Emelin serving his second minor penalty of the night and Tokarski stood in disbelief. Tokarski stopped the first 18 shots, including eight on a Ducks power play, after it took Anaheim more than 10 minutes to record a shot. Hiller made impressive glove saves on Gallagher in the first and Markov in the second and couldn't be faulted too much after Montreal took a 2-0 lead on goals by Brian Gionta and Max Pacioretty. Gionta whacked the puck in past Hiller at 8:23 of the first after the puck bounced toward the goal off a faceoff. Pacioretty scored from the right side on a threaded pass from David Desharnais to finish a rush at 12:26. Pacioretty has four goals in four games and reached the 30-goal plateau for the second time in his career. Anaheim general manager Bob Murray spoke before the game and said he tried hard to land one more piece, presumably Vancouver Canucks center Ryan Kesler, and even tried to get a rental player for "a couple of draft picks." The Ducks also announced that defenseman Sami Vatanen is being evaluated for a lower-body injury. Newly-acquired defenseman Mike Weaver was scratched for Montreal.