Ryan brought us bagels….pretty cool deal.  Now coming up the AM Skate.

The Morning After:

Yesterday’s scores:

Senators 3, Maple Leafs 2

Blue Jackets 3, Canadiens 0

Wild 1, Sharks 0

Canucks 4, Oilers 3

Predictions record: 1-3

My 3 stars of the night:

1. Niklas Backstrom, MIN (36 Saves, Shutout)… Backstrom continued his hot streak by standing on his head and delivering a shutout for Minny.

2. Raffi Torres, VAN (3 Goals)

3. Mathieu Garon, CBJ (29 Saves, Shutout)

Quick-hit Observations:

– The play of Backstrom has gone unnoticed, mostly because of the likes of Tim Thomas, Jonathan Quick, and Jaroslav Halak. But Minnesota’s backstop has been dynamite lately. In his last six games, Backstrom is 4-1-1 with a 1.48 GAA and .952 save percentage.

– After going 167:39 without scoring a goal, Toronto finally found the back of the net 5:15 into the third period last night. Unfortunately, their two late goals weren’t enough to catch the Sens.

– Mathieu Garon is making his voice heard to unseat Steve Mason as the starter in Columbus. Garon is 3-0 with a 1.15 GAA this season.

– You’ve got to admire the hat trick from Raffi Torres in Edmonton. The first two goals came off hard work, while the third (a seeing-eye backhander) was the game-winner. Torres has been a great bargain pickup for Vancouver.

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Tonight’s Slate:

Bruins @ Sabres, 7:00 ET

Maple Leafs @ Capitals, 7:00

Islanders @ Hurricanes, 7:00

Thrashers @ Panthers, 7:30

Devils @ Blackhawks, 8:30

Penguins @ Stars, 8:30

Red Wings @ Flames, 9:30

Predators @ Coyotes, 10:00

Lightning @ Ducks, 10:00

Games of the Night:

Pittsburgh Penguins @ Dallas Stars

8:30 ET… TV: Local Networks

Records:

Overall: Penguins (6-5-1) … Stars (6-4-0)

Last Ten: Penguins (6-3-1) … Stars (6-4-0)

Away/Home: Penguins (4-1-1) … Stars (3-3-0)

Season Series (09/10): 1-0 Penguins

Players to watch:

PIT- Mark Letestu

The young center had a quick start, but has zero points in five games.

DAL- James Neal

Neal quietly has 10 points already, and needs to have a solid game tonight.

Projected Goaltenders:

PIT- Brent Johnson (2010/11 stats: 5-0-1, 1.16 GAA)

DAL- Kari Lehtonen (2010/11 stats: 5-4-0, 2.93 GAA)

Injury Report:

PIT- Jordan Staal (hand, out), Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang (undisclosed, questionable), Zbynek Michalek (shoulder, questionable)

DAL- None

Game Thoughts:

Pittsburgh and Dallas square off tonight in what will be their only meeting of the season. The bruised and battered Penguins will look to grab two points on the road against a healthy Stars club. However, Lehtonen has struggled recently and the Pens have dealt with injuries well in the early going. I like Pittsburgh if Johnson is in net.

Prediction: Penguins 4, Stars 2

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Wednesday Game of the Week:

Detroit Red Wings (6-2-1) @ Calgary Flames (6-5-0)

9:30 ET… TV: TSN, Local Networks

2010/11 Season Series: 1-0 Red Wings

Prediction: Red Wings 3, Flames 2 (SO)

More to come from this game…

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The rest of tonight’s predictions:

Bruins over Sabres

Capitals over Maple Leafs

Hurricanes over Islanders

Panthers over Thrashers

Blackhawks over Devils

Predators over Coyotes

Ducks over Lightning

Ryan brings us the Morning Skate…a look back and a true look ahead.

The Morning After:
Last night’s scores:
Hurricanes 4, Maple Leafs 2
Islanders 6, Red Wings 0
Devils 1, Rangers 0 (SO)
Flyers 6, Stars 3
Thrashers 6, Senators 1
Lightning 7, Capitals 4
Blues 4, Blue Jackets 1
Predators 5, Oilers 3
Sharks 3, Coyotes 1
Predictions record: 7-2

My 3 stars from last night:
1. Martin Brodeur, NJ (51 Saves, Shutout)
Brodeur put in another masterful performance with a stunning 51-save effort in the Garden.
2. Patrick Marleau, SJ (2 Goals, 1 Assist)
Marleau had two 1st period goals to put the ‘Yotes away early.
3. Henrik Lundqvist, NYR (45 Saves, 0 GA)
Lundqvist had another great effort against the Devils, but it wasn’t quite enough in the end.
Honorable Mention: S. Stamkos, R. Jones, D. Roloson, I. Kovalchuk, R. Schremp, M. St. Louis, J. Pitkanen, D. Heatley, I. Laperriere
Dud of the Night:
Detroit Red Wings… For the first time in this blog’s history, I said something positive about Detroit. I talked them up yesterday, saying they are still a force in the NHL. I don’t care how well the Islanders are playing; upper-echelon teams in this league don’t lose 6-0 to New York’s other half!
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Tonight’s Slate:
Canucks @ Wild, 7:00 ET
Capitals @ Panthers, 7:30
Penguins @ Flames, 9:30
Bruins @ Ducks, 10:00

Games of the Night:
Vancouver Canucks @ Minnesota Wild
7:00 ET… TV: NHL Net. (US), Local Networks

Records:
Overall: Canucks (27-17-2) … Wild (23-20-3)
Last Ten: Canucks (7-1-2) … Wild (6-4-0)
Away/Home: Canucks (9-10-1) … Wild (15-6-1)
Season Series: 3-0 Canucks

Players to watch:
VAN- Alex Burrows
Burrows already had 9 goals this month, and could be on a mission after Monday’s happenings.
MIN- Guillaume Latendresse
The big forward has been on a tear lately, and needs to keep it up tonight.

Projected Goaltenders:
VAN- Roberto Luongo (09/10 stats: 23-13-2, 2.22 GAA)
MIN- Niklas Backstrom (09/10 stats: 20-14-3, 2.63 GAA)

Injury Report:
VAN- Kevin Bieksa (ankle, out), Pavol Demitra (shoulder, out), Steve Bernier (groin, questionable), Ryan Johnson (foot, out), Aaron Rome (head, questionable), Michael Grabner (ankle, out)
MIN- Brent Burns and Pierre-Marc Bouchard (concussion, out), Chuck Kobasew (knee, out), Clayton Stoner (groin, doubtful)

Game Thoughts:
This should be a very interesting Northwest Division battle. Vancouver has launched themselves into the division race over the last month, and have won 5 of their last 6 meetings in Minnesota. Todd Richards’ Wild is surging towards a playoff bid with two great wins over the ‘Hawks and Pens. Can they keep it going?? Not tonight. I like the Canucks to continue their mastery of Minny.
Prediction: Canucks 3, Wild 2 (OT)
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Pittsburgh Penguins @ Calgary Flames
9:30 ET… TV: TSN, Local Networks

Records:
Overall: Penguins (28-18-1) … Flames (26-14-6)
Last Ten: Penguins (3-7-0) … Flames (6-3-1)
Away/Home: Penguins (14-10-0) … Flames (12-8-3)
Season Series: First meeting

Players to watch:
PIT- Sidney Crosby
Sid has scored 5 goals in the last 3 games, but the Pens have lost 2 of those games.
CGY- Jay Bouwmeester
Jay-Bo is pointless in the last 6 games… does that change tonight?

Projected Goaltenders:
PIT- Marc-Andre Fleury (09/10 stats: 23-14-1, 2.66 GAA)
CGY- Miikka Kiprusoff (09/10 stats: 23-11-6, 2.16 GAA)

Injury Report:
PIT- Chris Kunitz (abdomen, out), Brooks Orpik and Brent Johnson (lower body, questionable)
CGY- Craig Conroy (foot, out)

Game Thoughts:
Dan Bylsma’s Penguins make a rare Western Canada trip this week, starting tonight in Calgary. His team has sputtered over the last few weeks, while Calgary has been racking up points to stay on top of the division. If the Pens once again fail to get anything going on the man advantage, I have to take the Flames…
Prediction: Flames 3, Penguins 1

The rest of tonight’s predictions:
Capitals over Panthers
Ducks over Bruins

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