NHL Recap – Jan 30,2013: Chicago Loses, Luongo Makes Things Difficult In Vancouver

It was a relatively light night in the NHL on Wednesday.  In addition to the Ottawa Senators victory over the Montreal Canadiens, there were three other games, including one of the remaining undefeated teams falling for the first time.  Here is a really quick tour around the league:

Jan 30, 2013; St. Paul, MN, USA; Minnesota Wild forward Matt Cullen (7) scores on Chicago Blackhawks goalie Corey Crawford (50) during the shootout at the Xcel Energy Center. The Wild defeated the Blackhawks 3-2 in a shootout. Mandatory Credit: Brace Hemmelgarn-USA TODAY Sports

  1. Matt Cullen had the shootout winner as the Minnesota Wild snapped Chicago’s six game winning streak 3-2.  Zach Parise also scored in the shootout for the  Wild, as only Jonathan Toews could beat Niklas Backstrom in the Wild net.  Josh Harding started the game for the Wild, but was pulled after allowing 2 goals  on 4 shots in less than 7 minutes, despite only trailing 2-1.  Backstrom came in and stopped all 28 shots he faced to get the win in relief.
  2. Nail Yakupov had the OT winner and a rather subdued celebration followed, to give the Edmonton Oilers a 2-1 win.  Despite the relative composure by the Edmonton Oilers rookie (as compared to his “Theo Fleury” last week), Phoenix Coyotes defenseman Derek Morris didn’t like it and tried to get at Yakupov, but Ryan Whitney stepped in to take the punishment on behalf of his young teammate. Edmonton had carried a 1-0 lead for almost 55 minutes, but Nick Johnson broke Devan Dubnyk‘s shutout bid and eared the Coyotes a point with his goal 19 seconds before the end of regulation.
  3. Roberto Luongo made 27 saves in his second consecutive start as he blanked the Colorado  Avalance 3-0.  Free Agent signee Jason Garrison finally scored his first goal of the season in the first period and it proved to be the winner.  Maxim Lapierre and Zack Kassian also scored for the Vancouver Canucks, who if they didn’t already have a goalie controversy, they do now, with Luongo’s strong play.

There are 9 games scheduled for Thursday night, including an important Northeast Division matchup between the Boston Bruins and the Buffalo Sabres.  Sens Fans are hoping for a regulation win for either side and the lack of a 3 point game.  Edmonton will try to stop the last remaining unbeaten team when they travel to San Jose for a tough end to back to back games.