Here is a quick tour around the league:

Jan 29, 2013; Boston, MA, USA; Boston Bruins center Tyler Seguin (19) scores against New Jersey Devils goaltender Johan Hedberg (1) during a shoot out following overtime at TD Garden. It was Seguin’s second shootout goal, but his first one was called back due to fan interference. Mandatory Credit: Michael Ivins-USA TODAY Sports

1. Johan Hedberg made 28 saves in his first start of the season for the New Jersey Devils, but the Boston Bruins beat the Devils in the shootout.  Brad Marchand had the shootout winner for the Bruins after Tyler Seguin had scored twice in the shootout.  Yes, twice.  He was ordered to re-shoot his attempt after scoring because a fan threw a hot dog onto the ice at Hedberg while Seguin was approaching for his shot.  Referees ruled that the flying wiener was distracting for the goaltender.  With the game requiring extra time, the Bruins and Devils both remain the only Eastern Conference teams without a regulation loss.
2. Matt Frattin scored his third goal in as many games since being called up to replace Joffrey Lupul, with less than 2 seconds remaining in overtime to give the Toronto Maple Leafs a 4-3 win over the Buffalo Sabres.  It was Frattin’s second goal of the game, and Cody Franson added a goal and an assist.  Rookie Mikhail Grigorenko, on the day he was told he would remain in Buffalo instead of being returned to junior, scored his first NHL goal in the loss.
3. The New York Rangers scored in the first and the second periods and then held on to defeat the Philadelphia Flyers 2-1.  The Rangers may have lost their captain, Ryan Callahan for a long time after he left the game with a shoulder injury suffered in a fight with Maxime Talbot.  Talbot said he heard something pop in the scrap so he stopped the tussle.  Callahan scored what would be the game winner before leaving with the injury.
4. In a see-saw battle, the Montreal Canadiens took a 2-0 lead before allowing the Winnipeg Jets to score three straight to take the lead.  Montreal then replied with two more, the winner coming on the power play off the stick of Tomas Plekanec.  Andrei Markov had two assists on the power play as the Habs went 2 for 5 with the man advantage.
5. The New York Islanders walked into Pittsburgh and stunned the Penguins, taking a 4-0 lead before the Pens finally broke Evgeni Nabokov‘s shutout bid wit 1:09 left in the third period.  Nabokov made 37 saves to get the win.  Matt Moulson had a goal and an assist for the Islanders, while Casey Cizikas scored his first NHL goal in the contest.
6. In the battle of Florida, the result was as expected as the surging Lightning defeated the floundering Panthers 5-2.  Vincent Lecavalier, Taylor Pyatt, Cory Conacher and Dana Tyrell each had a goal and an assist to pace the Lightning, who have won 4 in a row, while the Panthers have dropped 5 straight since their win on opening night.
7. Valtteri Filppula scored twice among Detroit’s 4 unanswered goals to pace the Red Wings to a 4-1 win over the Dallas Stars.  Pavel Datsyuk assisted on both Filppula goals, and Henrik Zetterberg added a goal and an assist.
8. Pierre-Marc Bouchard scored with just over 5 mintues left to give the Minnesota Wild a 3-2 win over the Columbus Blue Jackets.  The Jackets had erased a 2-0 first period deficit with goals from Mark Letestu and Jack Johnson, but couldn’t find a way to get the win.
9. Patrick Marleau was held goalless for the first time this season, but it didn’t matter as the San Jose Sharks remained perfect with a 3-2 shootout win over the Anaheim Ducks.  It was the toughest test of the season for the Sharks, who needed a late 3rd period goal from Logan Couture to send the game to extra time. Surprisingly, it was Michal Handzus that was the lone shooter from either side to score in the shootout.

That concludes our tour around the NHL for Tuesday night.  Wednesday is a relatively light night with only 4 games, including the Canadiens travelling to face the Senators.  The Chicago Blackhawks will try to move to 7-0 when they face the Minnesota Wild.

Jan 29, 2013; Ottawa, ON, CAN; Ottawa Senators goalie Craig Anderson (41) deflects the puck in the third period against the Washington Capitals at Scotiabank Place. The Senators defeated the Capitals 3-2 Mandatory Credit: Marc DesRosiers-USA TODAY Sports

GAME RECAP

Troy Brouwer opened the scoring driving the net and putting one past Anderson on a nice feed from Wojtek Wolski on a 2 on 1 after Erik Karlsson looked lost at the offensive blue line.  Four minutes later, Jay Beagle threw one at the net and the puck went off Matt Hendricks past Anderson for the 2-0 lead.

Ottawa was badly outplayed in the 2nd period, but Anderson refused to allow the 3-0 goal and kept his team in the game.  The low point came midway through the period when the Senators were pinned in their own end for what seemed like an eternity but was probably only 2 minutes. Either way, it was long enough for the “faithful” in attendance to begin raining Boooos on the team.  Coach MacLean started shuffling lines trying to find a combination that worked.  One player that was working was Mika Zibanejad, who was the only forward who seemed to have any jump at all so far.  Lo and behold, Zibanejad cued the Senators comeback, starting the rush that was eventually finished by Jim O’Brien to bring the Senators back within one, despite being outshot 9-6, and being drastically outplayed in the frame.

A quick backhand off a faceoff from Milan Michalek caught Michal Neuvirth by surprise and went in far post to even the score early in the third, and Ottawa started taking the play to Washington.  A big Anderson glove save off Jason Chimera set the stage for the heroics of Sergei Gonchar.  With Joel Ward off for high-sticking, Karlsson set up Gonchar’s one-timer from the middle of the  ice that went off Hendricks and past Neuvirth.  Protecting the one goal lead, Anderson made huge saves off Mike Ribeiro all alone after the Senators failed to clear the puck twice and got stuck in their own end.  That was as close as Washington would get and Ottawa snuck away with the 3-2 win.

OBSERVATIONS

• If Zibanejad plays as well Wednesday as he did on Tuesday, he might force the Senators to keep him in Ottawa.  He was flying all night, and was the Senators best skater by a wide margin.  He was physical, handled the puck with confidence and played on almost every line.
• When the lineup shuffling began, I think Paul MacLean would have liked to shuffle Guillaume Latendresse off the roster.  He started on the “first” line with Turris and Alfredsson, and when he was replaced my Michalek on that line he ended up on the de facto 4th line with Peter Regin and Jakob Silfverberg.
• O’Brien, Erik Condra and Zibanejad was the best line on the ice for Ottawa, and Zibanejad earned extra ice time on the Ottawa power play and looked impressive all night.
• Alex Ovechkin has lost his heart somewhere, so if you find one laying around somewhere, please return it to the Capitals.  He looked completely disinterested all night and had perhaps one rush all evening that made you take notice of him.  Ditto Nicklas Backstrom.  Ward and Ribeiro were the most noticeable players for the Capitals.

SENSHOT’S PLAYER OF THE GAME

This one is a tie between Anderson and Zibanejad.  Anderson gets the nod for his stellar play in the net, and especially his late saves on Chimera (with the score tied) and Ribeiro (leading by one).  Zibanejad, from the opening faceoff on, was the only Senator with noticeable jump as he displayed speed and an edge that Ottawa was hoping to see from him.  He looked really strong on the boards as well, and once his wiry frame fills out a bit, he will be a dangerous power forward to contend with.

UP NEXT

Ottawa gets right back into action against the Montreal Canadiens, who pay a visit to Ottawa Wednesday night.