Ryan brings us the Morning Skate once again. Its Tuesday so this should be tons of fun for everyone.
THE MORNING SKATE
The Morning After:
Yesterday’s scores:
Thrashers 6, Maple Leafs 3
Panthers 5, Flyers 0
Penguins 6, Coyotes 1
Ducks 3, Bruins 0
Lightning 5, Hurricanes 1
Canucks 3, Blues 1
Wild 4, Flames 1
Predictions record: 4-3
My 3 stars of the night:
1. Evgeni Malkin, PIT (2 Goals, 3 Assists)… Malkin has looked like himself since returning from injury and put together a five-point performance vs. Phoenix.
2. Jonas Hiller, ANA (45 Saves, Shutout)
3. Tobias Enstrom, ATL (2 Goals, 2 Assists)
Close but no cigar: T. Vokoun, FLA; S. Crosby, PIT; M. St. Louis, TB; N. Backstrom, MIN; F. Modin, ATL
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Tonight’s Slate:
Ducks @ Sabres, 7:00 ET
Blues @ Thrashers, 7:00
Flames @ Blue Jackets, 7:00
Devils @ Capitals, 7:30
Canadiens @ Stars, 9:00
Kings @ Avalanche, 9:30
Oilers @ Sharks, 10:30
Games of the Night:
Montreal Canadiens @ Dallas Stars
9:00 ET… TV: Local Networks
Records:
Overall: Canadiens (19-12-2) … Stars (20-10-3)
Last Ten: Canadiens (5-4-1) … Stars (6-2-2)
Away/Home: Canadiens (7-7-0) … Stars (11-3-2)
Season Series (09/10): 1-0 Canadiens
Players to watch:
MTL- Michael Cammalleri
‘Cammer’ is currently on a seven-game point streak.
DAL- Mike Ribeiro
Ribeiro goes up against his former team for just the third time.
Projected Goaltenders:
MTL- Carey Price (2010/11 stats: 18-10-2, 2.13 GAA)
DAL- Kari Lehtonen (2010/11 stats: 14-7-3, 2.58 GAA)
Injury Report:
MTL- Andrei Markov (knee, out)
DAL- None
Game Thoughts:
The Habs and Stars rarely meet, but the division winners will faceoff tonight in Big D. Marc Crawford’s bunch has had a recent surge and sit just one point out of the Western Conference lead. Montreal has been going in a different direction, losing four of five. This is a tough one to call… I’ll go with the Habs to break out of their slump.
Prediction: Canadiens 3, Stars 2 (SO)
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Los Angeles Kings @ Colorado Avalanche
9:30 ET… TV: Local Networks
Records:
Overall: Kings (18-12-1) … Avalanche (19-10-4)
Last Ten: Kings (5-4-1) … Avalanche (6-1-3)
Away/Home: Kings (7-10-0) … Avalanche (10-4-1)
Season Series: 1-0 Kings
Players to watch:
LA- Justin Williams
Williams, one of their more consistent producers, needs to step up tonight.
COL- Tomas Fleischmann
‘Flash’ has 11 points in nine games with Colorado this year.
Projected Goaltenders:
LA- Jonathan Quick (2010/11 stats: 15-7-1, 2.02 GAA)
COL- Craig Anderson (2010/11 stats: 10-4-2, 2.99 GAA)
Injury Report:
LA- Willie Mitchell (lower body, out), Marco Sturm (knee, questionable), Matt Greene (upper body, questionable), Scott Parse (hip, out)
COL- Chris Stewart (hand, out), Milan Hejduk and Cody McLeod (groin, questionable), Kyle Quincey (shoulder, out), Daniel Winnik (flu, questionable), Peter Mueller and Kyle Cumiskey (concussion, out)
Game Thoughts:
A pair of playoff-contending teams go at it in Denver tonight. L.A. continues their long road trip, while the Avs will look to keep up their dramatic six game win streak. It’s hard to see the Kings getting both games in Colorado this year, but Quick is perfect against Joe Sacco’s club. This is another toss-up… the Avs’ luck runs out.
Prediction: Kings 4, Avalanche 3
Lock of the Night:
Capitals over Devils… Washington’s losing skid is done and the Devils are in a world of hurt.
The rest of tonight’s predictions:
Sabres over Ducks
Thrashers over Blues
Blue Jackets over Flames
Sharks over Oilers
