Empty Netter Assists - 12-17-10
Penguins
-Brooks Orpik (above) is adding a little offense to his game.
-The Penguins are on a rare four-day break.
-If the Penguins ever do every one healthy, what do they do with their roster (PG+)?
-"We are getting the coverage we deserve. We knew what we were signing up for. My regrets are to our fans for not playing up to our capabilities of late. . . . It is real; authentic and true. Warts and all." - Capitals owner Ted Leonsis on hos his franchise was portrayed in the debut episode of HBO's "24/7."
-"My mom already called me about how many F-bombs I used." - Capitals coach Bruce Boudreau who used a great deal of vulgarity in the debut episode.
-The Capitals discuss the episode:
-A rally for the Winter Classic will be held. Dec. 30 at Market Square.
-Dan Steinberg of the Washington Post managed to get a sneak peak of the upcoming appearances of Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin on "The Price is Right."
-Happy 46th birthday to former Penguisn goaltender Frank Pietrangelo (right). A fourth-round pick in 1983, Pietrangelo spent parts of five seasons with the Penguins. As a rookie in 1987-88, he saw action in 21 games, had a 9-11-0 record with a 3.98 goals against average, .867 save percentage and one shutout. He followed that up in 1988-89 by playing in 15 games, going 5-3-0 with a 4.04 goals against average and a .890 save percentage. During 1989-90, he appeared in 21 games, compiled a record of 8-6-2 and had a 4.33 goals against average and a 867 save percentage. Arguably, Pietrangelo's finest NHL season was 1990-91. He set career highs in games (25) and wins with a 10-11-1 record while sporting a 3.94 goals against average and .880 save percentage. During the 1991 postseason, Pietrangelo stepped up in a big way while spelling injured starter Tom Barrasso. In Game 6 of a Patrick Division semifinal series at New Jersey, Pietrangelo made 27 saves, including a dazzling stop on Devils forward Peter Stastny which simply became known as "The Save" in a 4-3 victory which tied the series, 3-3 (below). In Game 7, Pietrangelo made 27 saves in a 4-0 home shutout victory which clinched the series. All together, Pietrangelo saw action in five games that postseason, went 4-1 and had a 3.12 goals against average, and .899 save percentage and helped the franchise claim its first Stanley Cup title. After five games, a 2-1-0 record, a 5.33 goals against average and .880 save percentage in 1991-92, Pietrangelo was dealt at the trade deadline to the Whalers in exchange for two draft picks. The first player in franchise history to wear No. 40, Pietrangelo appeared in 87 games for the Penguins and had a 34-32-3 record with a 4.13 goals against average, .873 save percentage and one shutout.
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-Happy 27th birthday to former Penguins forward Erik Christensen. A third-round pick in 2002, "Crusher" spent parts of three seasons with the Penguins. As a rookie in 2005-06, Christensen appeared in 33 games and scored 13 points. He followed that up in 2006-07 by playing in 61 games and recording 33 points. He saw action in four postseason games that spring and failed to score a point. After 49 games and 20 points in 2007-08, Christensen was at the trade deadline along with Colby Armstrong, Angelo Esposito and a draft pick to the Thrashers in exchange for Pascal Dupuis and Marian Hossa. In 143 regular season games with the Penguins, Christensen scored 66 points. Arguably the greatest shootout artist in franchise history, Christensen's success rate of 60.9 (14 for 23) percent is the best in franchise history among those with more than five shot attempts. Christensen is currently a member of the Rangers.
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-Happy 31st birthday to former Penguins forward Matt Murley. A second-round pick in 1999, Murley spent parts of two seasons with the Penguins. As a rookie in 2003-04, Murley appeared in 18 games and scored two points. Following the 2004-05 lockout, Murley saw action in 41 games in 2005-06 and scored six points. In the 2006 offseason, Murley joined the Avalanche as a free agent. In 59 games with the Penguins, Murley scored 11 points. He currently plays for Timrå of the Elitserien in Sweden.
Atlantic Division
-A shootout goal by former Penguin Erik Christensen gave the Rangers a comeback 4-3 win against the Coyotes. Dan Girardi had a goal and an assist in regulation for New York while Martin Biron made 30 saves in the victory.
-Check out this brutal turnover by Coyotes goaltender Jason LaBarbera which led to a goal for New York's Brandon Prust:
-Rick DiPietro made 30 saves for the Islanders in a 3-2 win against the Ducks. It was only the second win in 22 games for New York. Jason Blake and Joffrey Lupul each had a goal and an assist for Anaheim.
-Cool Photos of the Night: Overhead looks at the Ducks' bench:
-Funny Face of the Night: This Islanders fan having some issues with her ice cream:
-Islanders defenseman Milan Jurcina (hamstring) and Radek Martinek (arm) returned to the lineup after being sidelined several games due to injuries.
-The Islanders were only able to sell 7,659 tickets for this game.
-"I still feel I have a lot to offer whether it's here or with another hockey club. I feel like I can still produce in this league. If I do go somewhere else I want other teams to know that.'' - Devils forward Brian Rolston on being place on and clearing waivers.
Northeast Division
-A goal and an assist by Max Pacioretty helped the Canadiens beat the rival Bruins, 4-3. Teammate Scott Gomez recorded two assists while Carey Price made 34 saves in the victory. Marc Savard had a goal and an assist for Boston.
-Montreal's Mike Cammalleri put on about 23 moves on this penalty shot:
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-Check out this wonderful, clean hip check Montreal's P.K. Subban stuck on Boston's Brad Marchand:
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-Boston's Gregory Campbell had issues with Subban afterwards:
-Second Funny Face of the Night: Montreal's Mathieu Darche getting hit inot the boards by Boston's Steve Kampfer:
-Captain Daniel Alfredsson had a goal and an assist for the Senators in a 3-1 win at Minnesota. Teammate Erik Karlsson recorded three assists while Pascal Leclaire made 23 saves in the victory.
-Prior to the game, former North Stars forward and recent Hockey Hall of Fame inductee Dino Ciccarelli dropped the puck for a ceremonial faceoff:
-Leclaire won two consecutive games for the first time in nearly a calendar year.
-The Canadiens demoted forward Dustin Boyd to Hamilton of the AHL.
-Sabres defenseman and former Penguin Jordan Leopold is a big Michael Jackson fan.
Southeast Division
-Shootout goals by Jussi Jokinen and Sergei Samsonov gave the Hurricanes a 3-2 win at Atlanta. Cam Ward made a whopping 45 saves in the victory. Evander Kane and Anthony Stewart each had a goal and an assist in regulation for the Thrashers.
-Hurricanes forward Jiri Tlusty left the game due an "upper-body" injury.
-Capitals forward Alexander Semin (right) is dealing with a "lower-body" injury.
-Lightning forward Nate Thompson called out Thrashers forward Eric Boulton for an alledged knee-on-knee hit in a game Wednesday.
-The Lightning demoted forward Johan Harju to Norfolk of the AHL.
Central Division
-David Backes and Vladimir Sobotka each had a goal and two assists for the Blues in a 6-4 defeat of the Kings. Jay McClement and Brad Winchester each netted a goal and an assist for St. Louis while teammate Carlo Coliacovo recorded three assists. Former Penguin Ty Conklin made 25 saves in the victory. Fire Ray Shero. Dustin Brown and Anze Kopitar each had a goal and an assist for Los Angeles.
-St. Louis' Tyson Strachan and Los Angeles' Kyle Clifford had issues:
-St. Louis' Alexander Steen > Los Angeles' Jack Johnson:
-Blackhawks forward Patrick Kane aggravated a right ankle injury.
-The Blackhawks demoted forward Jeremy Morin to Rockford of the AHL.
-The Predators recalled forward Steve Begin from Milwaukee of the AHL.
-With defenseman Erik Johnson day to day due to a knee injury, the Blues recalled defenseman Nikita Nikitin from Peoria of the AHL.
Northwest Division
-A goal and two assists by Olli Jokinen led the Flames to a 5-2 defeat of the Maple Leafs. Niklas Hagman added a goal and an assist for Calgary while teammate Anton Babchuk recorded two assists. Miikka Kiprusoff made 17 saves in the victory.
-Maple Leafs captain and former Flames defenseman Dion Phaneuf received the Jaromir Jagr/Marian Hossa-in-Pittsburgh treatment in his first game back in Calgary since being traded to Toronto.
-Linus Omark had a goal and two assists for the Oilers in a 6-3 defeat of the Blue Jackets. Jordan Eberle added two goals for Edmonton while teammat Taylor Hall recorded three assists. Nikolai Khabibulin made 37 saves in the win. Kristian Huselius had a hat trick for Columbus.
-Huselius' hat trick
-Khabibulin and Edmonton's Theo Peckham had issues with this puck:
-Edmonton's Zach Stortini and Columbus' Tom Sestito had issues:
-The Canucks recalled forward Aaron Volpatti from Manitoba of the AHL and demoted forward Jonas Andersson to Manitoba.
-Canucks defenseman Christian Ehrhoff is dealing with vertigo.
-Avalanche forward Paul Stastny is day to day due to a back injury.
Pacific Division
-An overtime goal by Logan Couture gave the Sharks a 4-3 win at Dallas. Teammate Joe Pavelski recorded two assists while Antero Niittymaki made 15 saves in the victory. Loui Eriksson had a goal and an assist for the Stars.
-Dallas' Nicklas Grossman mashed San Jose's Jamal Mayers into the boards:
-Nittymaki kept his eyes on this puck:
-A good look at Nittymaki's lid:
-With starting goaltender Ilya Bryzgalov sidelined due to the flu, the Coyotes were forced sign American International College goaltender Tom Fenton to a one-game amateur-tryout contract:
-Kings defenseman Willie Mitchell left last night's game due to a "lower-body" injury.
-The Stars activated forwards Krys Barch (foot) and Toby Petersen (hand) from injured reserve.
(Photos: Orpik-Peter Diana/Post-Gazette; Pietrangelo-Penguins Hockey Cards; Ducks/Islanders and Semin-Bruce Bennett/Getty Images; Bruins/Canadiens-Richard Wolowicz/Getty Images; Kings/Blues-Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images; Blue Jackets/Oilers-Canadian Press; Sharks/Stars-Tony Gutierrez/Associated Press and Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)