Empty Netter Assists - 12-31-10

Penguins

-Our live blog for today's alumni game begins at approximately 9:15 p.m. Please tune in.

-Hell or high water (literally), the NHL seems pretty determined to start Saturday's game at 1 p.m.

-"I'm not concerned. This game will be played." - Capitals general manager George McPhee.

-"They have to be right there, with Philadelphia." - Sidney Crosby on the Penguins' rivalry with the Capitals.

-Crosby was named Canada's male athlete of the year.

-Dan Bylsma speaks:

-Do yourself a favor and read this wonderful story by Jeff Z. Klein about the history of hockey in Pittsburgh.

-Brad Thiessen made 19 saves for the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton penguins in a 1-0 loss to the rival Hershey Bears at Consol Energy Center.

-Eric Tangradi is getting his act together with the AHL Penguins.

-Happy 56th birthday to former Penguins forward Terry Ruskowski. A free agent signing prior to the 1985-86 season, Ruskowski spent two seasons with the Penguins. In 1985-86, Ruskowski played in 73 games and scored 63 points. He followed that up in 1986-87 by appearing in 78 contests and contributing 51 points. During the 1987 offseason, he joined the Minnesota North Stars as a free agent. In 143 regular season games with the Penguns, Ruskowski scored 114 points, 65th-most in franchise history.

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-Happy 55th birthday to former Penguins forward Gary McAdam. Acquired midway through the 1978-79 season in a trad which sent Dave Schultz to the Sabres, McAdam spent parts of three seasons with the Penguins. He finished 1978-79 by appearing in 28 games and scoring 14 points for the Penguins. In the 1979 postseason, he played in seven games and scored three points. He followed that up in 1979-80 by playing in 78 games and scoring 41 points. That spring's postseason saw him appear in five games and score three points. After 34 games and 12 points in 1980-81, McAdam was traded to the Red Wings in exchange for Errol Thompson. In 140 regular season games with the Penguins, McAdam scored 67 points. In 12 postseason games, he contributed six points.

-Happy 33rd birthday to former Penguins defenseman Dan Focht. Acquired at the 2003 trade deadline along with Ramzi Abid and Guillaume Lefebvre in exchange for Jan Hrdina and Francois Leroux, Focht spent parts of two seasons with the Penguins. He finished 2002-03 by appearing in 12 games for the Penguins and recorded three assists. In 2003-04, Focht appeared in 52 games and scored five points. Following the 2004-05 lockout, Focht joined the Panthers as a free agent.

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-Happy 62nd birthday to former Penguins forward Rene Robert. Claimed from the Sabres during the 1971 offseason in an intra-league draft, Robert's Penguins' career amounted to 49 games and 18 points in 1971-72. During the 1972 offseason, Robert was traded to the Sabres in exchange for Eddie Shack. Robert became an all-star with the Sabres as part of the famed "French Connection line with Rick Martin and Gilbert Perreault.

-Happy 63rd birthday to former Penguins forward Nelson Debenedet. Acquired in the 1974 offseason in a trade which sent Hank Nowak and a draft pick to the Red Wings, DeBenedet's Penguins' career amounted to 31 games and nine points during the 1974-75 season. He was released in the 1975 offseason.

-Happy 55th birthday to former Penguins defenseman Lex Hudson. A 12th-round pick in 1978-79, Hudson's entire Penguins and NHL career amounted to two games and no points in 1978-79. He was released in 1979.

Atlantic Division

-Captain Mike Richards had two goals and two assists for the Flyers in a 7-4 win at Los Angeles. Claude Giroux recorded three assists for Philadelphia while teammates Jeff Carter, James van Riemsdyk and Daniel Briere each netted a goal and an assist. Michael Leighton made 32 saves in the victory. Ryan Smyth scored two goals for the Kings.

-Cool Photo of the Night: The Kings taking the ice:

-Leighton made his first start since Game 6 of last season's Stanley Cup final.

-Devils goaltender Martin Brodeur is 1-8-0 since returning from an elbow injury.

-New Jersey forward Brian Rolston went unclaimed on re-entry waivers. Rolston and fellow forward Nick Palmieri were recalled from Albany of the AHL.

-The Devils demoted defenseman Mark Fraser to Albany of the AHL.

-The Islanders recalled forward Jesse Joensuu and former Pittsburgh Forge defenseman Dylan Reese from Bridgeport of the AHL.

-Rangers forward an former Penguin Erik Christensen will be sidelined four to six weeks due to an MCL sprain.

Southeast Division

-Steven Stamkos scored two goals and two assists and led the Lightning to a 4-1 defeat of the Canadiens. Teammate Martin St. Louis added a goal and an assist while Cedrick Desjardins made 27 saves in the win.

-Check out this dazzling move by Stamkos on a penalty shot:

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-It wasn't all bad for the Canadiens. Check out this hit by P.K. Subban on Tampa Bay's Dana Tyrell:

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-Desjardins got the win in his NHL debut against the organization he used to play for.

-Shootout goals by Tim Stapleton and Bryan Little gave the Thrashers a 3-2 win against the Bruins. Tobias Enstrom scored both of Atlanta's goals in regulation while Ondrej Pavelec made 42 saves in the victory.

-Bostons Tim Thomas kept his eyes on this puck:

-The Hurricanes demoted forward Jon Matsumoto and defenseman Bryan Rodney to Charlotte of the AHL.

-The Thrashers placed forward Nik Antropov (hip) on injured reserve and recalled forward Tim Stapleton from Chicago of the AHL.

Central Division

-Kristian Huselius scored two goals for the Blue Jackets in a 3-2 win at Toronto. Antoine Vermette and Rick Nash each recorded two assists for Columbus while Steve Mason made 20 saves in the victory.

-The Blue Jackets activated forward Derek MacKenzie ("lower body") from injured reserve.

Northwest Division

-Milan Hejduk's shootout goal gave the Avalanche a 4-3 win at Edmonton. T.J. Galiardi and Paul Stastny each had a goal and an assist in regulation for Colorado while Craig Anderson made 32 saves in the victory. Andrew Cogliano and Ales Hemsky each recorded a goal and an assist in regulation for the Oilers who have lost five consecutive games.

-The Wild recalled defenseman Jared Spurgeon from Houston of the AHL.

Pacific Division

-A goal and an assist by Dany Heatley led the Sharks to a 5-3 win at Chicago. Teammates Dan Boyle and Marc-Edouard Vlasic each recorded two assists while Antti Niemi made 26 saves in the victory. Patrick Sharp had a goal and an assist for the Blackhawks.

-Niemi got a little bug-eyed here:

-Instead of looking around this screen by Chicago's Viktor Stalberg, Niemi tried looking under it:

-Niemi has won three consecutive games this season against his former team.

-The Ducks placed captain Ryan Getzlaf (face) on injured reserve.

-The Stars demoted forward Aaron Gagnon to Texas of the AHL.

IIHF World Championships

-Stars prospect Jack Campbell made 14 saves for the United States in a 4-0 shutout of Germany.

-Highlights:

-Red Wings prospect Calle Jarnkrok had a goal and two assists for Sweden in a 6-3 win against the Czech Republic.

-Two goals by Danil Sobchenko helped Russia rout Norway, 8-2.

-A goal and an assist by Inti Pestoni led Switzerland to a 6-4 defeat of Slovakia.

Adams Division

-Brooks Ostergard made 25 saves for the Robert Morris men's team in a 4-3 loss to RIT at Consol Energy Center.

-Highlights:

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-Today would've been the 93rd birthday of former Pittsburgh Hornets forward Red Heron.

(Photos: Heinz Field-Keith Srakocic/Associated Press; Flyers/Kings-Stephen Dunn/Getty Images; Bruins/Thrashers-Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images; Sharks/Blackhawks-Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images)