Empty Netter Assists - 04-23-10
Playoff Stuff
Penguins-Senators
-Dave Molinari's recap from last night's game. "I think we should realize that the way we started the game is unacceptable." - Matt Cooke on losing the fourth-longest game in franchise history.
-The Ottawa Sun's recap. "I felt pretty confident in there" - Senators goaltender Pascal Leclaire.
-The Associated Press' recap. "Obviously, you just forget about this and you just have to take advantage of your next chance to finish it." - Kris Letang.
-NHL.com's recap. "It's an unbelievable feeling." - Senators defenseman Matt Carkner (above) who scored the game-winning goal.
-Mike Lange's goal calls.
-Highlights:
-Mike Fisher head-butting Brooks Orpik:
-Hockey Night in Canada's pregame montage:
-Happy times for the Senators:
-Happy times for Chris Kunitz and Bill Guerin:
-Crosby being popular:
-Ottawa's Erik Karlsson got the drop on Evgeni Malkin here:
-Craig Adams keeping an eye on Karlsson:
-Ruslan Fedotenko > Ottawa's Peter Regin:
-Leclaire playing a puck:
-Leclaire didn't keep his eyes on this puck:
-Alex Goligoski and Ottawa's Jarkko Ruutu having issues:
-"I don't remember a game with three [reviews] before." - Sidney Crosby.
-Welcome back Ruslan Fedotenko.
-How important is it for the Penguins to end this thing in Game 6 (PG+)?
-Game 5 was the longest in Senators history.
-"Definitely the biggest goal of my career." - Carkner who has all of two NHL goals in his career.
Capitals-Canadiens
-"We really have nothing to lose." - Canadiens forward Mike Cammalleri on trailing the Capitals, 3-1.
-The Canadiens are switching back to goaltender Jaroslav Halak for Game 5.
-The Capitals confirmed goaltender Semyon Varlamov would start Game 5.
Devils-Flyers
-Brian Boucher (above) made 28 saves and led the Flyers to a series-clinching 3-0 shutout of the Devils. Claude Giroux added two goals and an assist while teammate Daniel Briere recorded a goal and and assist for Philadelphia which won the series, 4-1.
-Check out one of Giroux's goals:
-Check out this defensive play by Philadelphia's Daniel Briere:
-Flyers forward Ian Laperriere blocked a flipping slapper from Devils defenseman Paul Martin with his face last night:
-Laperriere vowed to wear a visor from now on.
-Handshake line:
-New Jersey's Martin Brodeur offering congrats to Boucher:
-Happy times for Philadelphia's Daniel Carcillo and Boucher:
-Happy times for the Flyers. Not so much for New Jersey's Zach Parise:
-Sad times for New Jersey's Andy Greene:
-"Talk is cheap." - Flyers defenseman Chris Pronger on Devils forward Ilya Kovalchuk who guaranteed a win.
-Devils forward Patrik Elias felt his team was good enough to win the Stanley Cup.
-"We got outworked." - Devils forward Zach Parise.
-New Jersey's Martin Brodeur is still a big-game goaltender right?
Sabres-Bruins
-"We have hope in this locker room." - Sabres forward Tim Kennedy on trailing the series, 3-1.
-Sabres forward Raffi Torres is expected to be a healthy scratch for tonight's Game 5.
-Bruins forward Marc Savard was given clearance to take contact in practice. A head injury has sidelined him since early March.
Sharks-Avalanche
-Evgeni Nabokov made 28 saves and led the Sharks to a 5-0 shutout of the Avalanche. Logan Couture had two goals while teammate Patrick Marleau (above) had a goal and an assist for San Jose which leads the series, 3-2.
-Happy times in San Jose:
-Colorado's Craig Anderson kept his eyes on this puck:
-Anderson had issues with this puck:
-Nabokov recorded his first postseason shutout in two years.
-"I feel we got what we deserved tonight. I don't think we played well enough for 60 minutes to win." - Avalanche coach Craig Anderson.
Blackhawks-Predators
-Antti Niemi (above) made 33 saves for the Blackhawks in a 3-0 shutout win at Nashville. Patrick Sharp had two goals while teammate Jonathan Toews recorded a goal and an assist for Chicago which tied the series, 2-2.
-Nashville's Pekka Rinne taking the ice:
-Rinne kept his eyes on this puck:
-Nashville's Joel Ward got some torque on this stick:
-"We can't be satisfied knowing we won one game here." - Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville.
-Blackhawks defenseman Brian Campbell returned to the lineup for the first time since suffering rib and shoulder injuries March 14.
-"We know we can win in that building." - Predators defenseman Dan Hamhuis on returning to the United Center for Game 5.
-Predators forward Jordin Tootoo took a puck to the face.
Canucks-Kings
-When did Canucks forward and former Penguin Mikael Samuelsson (right) become a game-changer?
-Canucks defenseman and former Penguin Nolan Baumgartner is dealing with a right leg injury.
Coyotes-Red Wings
-Coyotes captain Shane Doan ("upper-body") will be a game-time decision for Game 5.
-"There is no room for error." - Red Wings coach Mike Babcock.
Non-Playoff Stuff
Penguins
-Mario Lemieux > Ben Roethlisberger.
-Happy 61st birthday to former Penguins forward Gregg Sheppard. Acquired prior to the 1978-79 season in a trade with sent Jean Pronovost to the Atlanta Flames, Sheppard spent four seasons with the Penguins. In 241 games with the Penguins, he recorded 123 points, 62nd most in franchise history. He retired following the 1981-82 season.
-Happy 49th birthday to former Penguins forward Jock Callander. A free agent signing prior in the 1987 offseason, Callandar spent parts of five seasons with the Penguins' organization. While most of his time with the organization was spent with the Penguins' IHL affiliate in Muskegon, Callandar's best moment as a Penguing came in the club's 1992 run towards the Stanley Cup. With injuries hit, Callandar was recalled along with Dave Michayluk and Mike Needham to form the Muskegon Line which helped the team win its second consecutive title. The following offseason, Callandar signed with the expansion Lightning. In 101 regular season game with the Penguins, Callandar recorded 49 points.
-Happy 49th birthday to former Penguins goaltender Alain Chevrier (right). Acquired at the 1990 trade deadline for future considerations, Chevrier's Penguins career amounted to three games late in the 1989-90 season. He went 1-2-0 over that stretch with a 5.06 goals against average. The following offseason, he signed with the Red Wings.
-Happy 67th birthday to former Penguins general manager and Hockey Hall of Famer Tony Esposito.
Northwest Division
-Rams quarterback and Heisman Trophy winner Sam Bradford. Vancouver Canucks fan:
Smythe Division
-Drew Doughty of Los Angeles, Mike Green of Washington and Duncan Keith of Chicago were named as finalists for the Norris Trophy as the league's top defenseman.
-Colorado forward Matt Duchene, Buffalo defenseman Tyler Myers and Detroit goaltender Jimmy Howard were named finalists for the Calder Trophy as the league's top rookie.
(Photos: Senators/Penguins-Gene J. Puskar/Associated Press; Flyers/Devils-Bill Kostroun/Associated Press and Jim McIsaac/Getty Images; Avalanche/Sharks-Brian Bahr/Getty Images; Blackhawks/Predators-Grant Halverson/Getty Images; Samuelsson-Doug Pensinger/Getty Images; Chevrier-eBay)