Empty Netter Assists - 01-19-12
Penguins
-"We never lost faith or confidence in him." - Penguins assistant coach Todd Reirden on Paul Martin (above).
-Dan Bylsma speaks:
-Uhhhhhhh.... Marc-Andre Fleury speaks:
-Brooks Orpik speaks:
-Former Penguins forward Jon Sim has joined the Berlin Polar Bears of the DEL in Germany.
-Happy 31st birthday to former Penguins defenseman Ross Lupaschuk. Acquired in the 2001 offseason along with Kris Beech and Michal Sivek in a deal which sent Jaromir Jagr and Frantisek Kucera, Lupaschuk's Penguins' career amounted to three games and no points in 2002-03. He was released in the 2005 offseason.
Atlantic Division
-Shocking News: Dennis Veteri, a Flyers fan accused of attacking and injuring a Rangers fan after the Winter Classic, has 11 previous arrests for assault on his record.
Northeast Division
-Maple Leafs forward and former Penguin Colby Armstrong (right) has sought advice from Sidney Crosby on how to deal with his own concussion.
-Bruins forward Brad Marchand will return to the lineup after serving a five-game suspension.
-Daniel Alfredsson and Zdeno Chara were named captains for the All-Star Lame Game.
Southeast Division
-Michal Neuvirth made 31 saves for the Capitals in a 3-0 shutout of the Canadiens. It was the sixth shutout of Neuvirth's career.
-In his first game against the Capitals since he injured Washington forward Nicklas Backstrom with a hit to the head Jan. 3, Canadiens forward Rene Bourque fought Capitals forward Matt Hendricks:
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-Washington captain Alex Ovechkin scored on a rocket from the right point:
-Happy times for the Capitals. Not so much for Montreal's Carey Price:
-Neuvirth gloved this puck:
-Ovechkin gave chase to Montreal's PK Subban:
-Hurricanes forward Jeff Skinner declared himself "pretty good" a day after being dropped on a hit by Brooks Orpik.
-The Hurricanes demoted forward Brett Sutter to Charlotte of the AHL and recalled forward Zac Dalpe from Charlotte.
-Panthers goaltender Jose Theodore returned to the lineup after missing five games due to a knee injury.
-The Panthers acquired minor league forwards Jonathan Matsumoto and Mattias Lindstrom from the Hurricanes in exchange for forwards Evgenii Dadonov and A.J. Jenks.
-Panthers defenseman Ed Jovanovski will be sidelined approximately two months due to a broken hand.
Central Division
-Captain Jonathan Toews scored two goals for the Blackhawks in a 6-2 defeat of the Sabres. Dave Bolland, Jimmy Hayes and Andrew Shaw each had a goal and an assist for Chicago while teammates Duncan Keith and Brent Seabrook each recorded two assists. Corey Crawford made 25 saves in the victory. Captain Jason Pominville scored both of Buffalo's goals.
-It wasn't all bad for the Sabres. Pominville's first goal was a real snipe:
-Sabres defenseman and Cranberry native Mike Weber kept an eye on this puck as Chicago's Jamal Mayers skated by:
-The Blues signed goaltender Brian Elliott to a two-year contract extension worth a total of $3.6 million. He will have a salary cap hit of $1.8 million. In the final year of a two-way contract, Elliott has a 15-5-1 record, 1.68 goals against average, .937 save percentage and five shutouts.
-“One coach who called me said, ‘Arnie, you’re officially a coach now. You’ve been fired.'" - Former Blue Jackets coach Scott Arniel on his recent dismissal.
-The Predators demoted forward Chris Mueller to Milwaukee of the AHL.
Northwest Division
-An overtime goal and an assist by Ryan O'Reilly gave the Avalanche a 4-3 win against the Panthers. Peter Mueller added two goals and an assist for Colorado while teammate Paul Stastny netted a goal and an assist. Jean-Sebastien Giguere made 26 saves in the victory. Marcel Goch had a goal and an assist for Florida.
-Goal of the Night: Muller's first goal was a really nice moment:
-Fluky Goal of the Night: After losing his own stick, Colorado defenseman Ryan O'Byrne borrowed the twig of teammate Chuck Kobasew then accidentally knocked a puck into his own net:
-Happy times for the Panthers. Not so much for Giguere:
-Following an 18-month battle with concussion symptoms, Muller scored his first goal since April 4, 2010.
-The Avalanche placed forwrd Brandon Yip on waivers.
-“I asked him if he was still good looking and he said, ‘Mom, I look like Frankenstein.’" - Kim Strba, mother of Oilers forward Taylor Hall, on her son suffering a facial cut which required 30 stitches Tuesday. There is no timetable for Hall's return.
-The Canucks recalled forward Chris Tanev from Chicago of the AHL.
-Flames forward Curtis Glencross is dealing with a knee ailment.
-Flames goaltending coach Clint Malarchuk - infamous for suffering a skate injury to his throat while as a member of the Sabres in 1989 - is conseling a 15-year-old player in Alberta who suffered the same injury.
Pacific Division
-Francois Beauchemin had two goals and an assist for the Ducks who beat the Coyotes, 6-2. Jason Blake added a goal and an assist for Anaheim while teammates Nick Bonino, Andrew Cogliano and Lubomir Visnovsky each recorded two assists. Jonas Hiller made 25 saves in the victory. Anaheim has gone 6-0-1 in its past seven games.
-Pass of the Night: Bonino setting up Blake for a goal:
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-The Ducks recalled former Penguins defenseman and Hopewell native Nate Guenin from Syracuse of the AHL.
Adams Division
-Former Blackhawks/Panthers/Avalanche forward Brett McLean has joined Lugano of the NLC in Switzerland.
(Photos: Martin-Nick Laham/Getty Images; Armstrong-Bruce Bennett/Getty Images; Capitals/Canadiens-Richard Wolowicz/Getty Images; Sabres/Blackhawks-Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images; Panthers/Avalanche-Doug Pensinger/Getty Images)