The NHL season kicked off, and although there were 3 exciting games with a banner raising, it was a scary moment that made all watching stop what they were doing for just a minute.
Oct 1, 2013; Chicago, IL, USA; Members of the Chicago Blackhawks watch as the 2013 Stanley Cup championship banner is raised to the rafters before the game against the Washington Capitals at the United Center. Mandatory Credit: Rob Grabowski-USA TODAY Sports
Here is our daily NHL Recap:
- The Toronto Maple Leafs scored what proved to be the winner just over 5 minutes into the third as Mason Raymond tried to pass across to Dave Bolland on a 2 on 1, but it got deflected by Francis Bouillon back to Raymond, and he had Price out of position anticipating pass for a relatively easy goal. Lars Eller scored his second of the night with almost 2 and a half minutes left to give the Habs some hope, but despite intense pressure on James Reimer in the dying moments, the Leafs held on for the win. James van Riemsdyk, Tyler Bozak and Dion Phaneuf had the other Toronto goals while Brendan Gallagher joined Eller on the scoresheet for the Habs. The score was overshadowed by a very scary incident in a fight involving Montreal’s George Parros and the Leafs’ Colton Orr. During the pair’s second fight of the game, Orr lost his balance and went down to the ice, keeping a grip on Parros’ sweater. That pulled Parros off balance and he fell over Orr, landing chin first on the ice and getting knocked out cold. He was down for a long time and after trying unsuccessfully to get up with the help of teammates and medical personnel, was taken off the ice and to hospital on a stretcher. We hope Parros makes a full and speedy recovery.
- The defending Stanley Cup champs raised their banner and then avoided the fate that they forced on the Kings last year, by winning their season-opener. In a see-saw battle, the difference was Braden Holtby‘s gift to Johnny Oduya with just over 7 minutes in the third to break a 4-4 tie. Oduya’s long shot from the boards appeared to be going wide, but Holtby tried to glove the puck and ended up deflecting it into his own goal, for what proved to be the game winner. It ruined a nice Washington debut for Mikhail Grabovski, who netted a hat trick and added an assits in the 6-4 Blackhawks win. Alex Ovechkin had the other, while Nicklas Backstrom and Mike Green each had two assists in the losing effort. It was a balanced Hawks attack, with 6 different goal scorers including Brandon Bollig, Patrick Kane, Brent Seabrook, Brandon Saad and Marian Hossa, who iced it with the empty netter after Oduya’s winner earlier in the third. It was a battle of two Team Canada hopefuls in the net, and neither looked great, and Corey Crawford was shaken up at one point but stayed in the game.
- The Edmonton Oilers blew a 2 goal lead and Michaek Folik led the comeback as the Winnipeg Jets spoiled the Oilers home opener by a score of 5-4. Frolik had a late 2nd period goal to bring the Jets within one, and then scored the winner with just over 5 minutes left after Jacob Trouba had evened the score with his first NHL goal less than 4 minutes earlier. Mark Scheifele and Bryan Little scored in the first period for the Jets, while Luke Gazdic’s first NHL goal in his first game and Boyd Gordon had the game tied through one. Ales Hemsky and Jesse Joensuu put the Oil up a pair before Folik cued the comeback on the night the banner he helped the Hawks win last season went to the rafters of his former home arena.