NHL Recap: April 7, 2013 – Shootouts and Shutouts
There were 7 games around the NHL outside of Ottawa’s 2-1 loss to the Panthers that has Sens fans gripping their armrests a little tighter today. Here is a quick tour around the league:
Apr 7, 2013; Washington, DC, USA; Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin (8) celebrates with Capitals goalie Michal Neuvirth (30) after scoring a goal against the Tampa Bay Lightning at Verizon Center. The Capitals won 4-2. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports
- Alex Ovechkin scored 2 more goals, to put him into a tie with Steven Stamkos with 25. More importantly, the Capitals won the game over the Lightning 4-2, moving two points up on Winnipeg for the Southeast Division lead. John Carlson and Joel Ward scored the other Washington goals. while Vincent Lecavalier and Alex Killorn scored for the Lightning, while Ben Bishop allowed 3 goals on 37 shots in the loss.
- The Devils moved into 9th place and gained a point on the Senators with a 3-2 shootout loss to the Sabres, who all of a sudden have won 3 straight and are 4 points back of 7th and 8th. It was pest night in Buffalo as Patrick Kaleta and Steve Ott scored the goals in regulation for the Sabres, with Nathan Gerbe scoring the shootout winner. Steve Sullivan and Mark Fayne scored for New Jersey.
- Brian Elliott only got one goal of offensive support, but he made it stand up as the Blues shut out the Red Wings 1-0. Elliot made 28 saves for his third straight win since returning from a conditioning stint in Peoria. Chris Porter had the lone goal for the Blues, who jumped past the Wings into 7th in the West.
- Dallas scored twice in the third period to force extra time and Jamie Benn completed the comeback with the shootout winner to snap the Sharks’ 7 game winning streak. Alex Chiasson had a pair for the Stars, while Eric Nystrom and Loui Eriksson had the others. Tommy Wingels, Brent Burns, TJ Galiardi and Marc-Edouard Vlasic had the San Jose goals.
- Jason Pominville had a goal and an assist and Niklas Backstrom made 24 saves to lead the Wild past the Blue Jackets 3-0. The loss leaves the Blue Jackets 4 points out of 8th place in their Cinderella push for the playoffs, which is now likely to fall short. Ryan Suter and Charlie Coyle also scored for Minnesota, who moved within 2 points of the Canucks for top spot in the Northwest.
- Ray Emery got the better of Pekka Rinne for the second straight night, as the Blackhawks beat the Predators 5-3. Andrew Shaw, Brandon Saad, Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane each had a goal and an assist for the Hawks with Bryan Bickell scoring on consecutive nights in the win. Shea Weber, Nick Spaling and David Legwand socred for Nashville, who now trail 8th place by 5 points with only 8 games left.
- Three times Anaheim took the lead, and three times the Kings came back to tie, but Jonathan Bernier didn’t have an answer in the shootout as the Ducks took the battle of LA 4-3. Kyle Palmieri, Corey Perry and Matt Beleskey did the honors for Anaheim, with Drew Doughty, Jeff Carter and Dustin Brown replying for the Kings. Bobby Ryan, Saku Koivu and Perry all scored in the shootout, but only Carter could beat Viktor Fasth.
That concludes our tour around the NHL on Sunday night. Check back tomorrow when we recap all 5 games from Monday night, including a big game in New York where the Rangers can move into a tie with the Senators if they can beat the Toronto Maple Leafs.