Will Alexander Ovechkin catch Evgeni Malkin?
Scoring Race 1. Evgeni Malkin | 34 goals – 74 assists – 108 points | Remaining Schedule: TB, NYI, MTL 2. Alexander Ovechkin | 55 goals – 51 assists – 106 points | Remaining schedule: ATL, TB, FLA Alexander Ovechkin has a six game point streak that includes 5 goals – 7 assists during that streak as he is now within two points of catching Evgeni Malkin for the NHL points lead Both players have three games remaining and
The M.V.P. Debate Poll
The M.V.P. Debate Poll We recently polled six NHL writers on the M.V.P. debate and who they would vote for on other major awards. First up are three writers from the Western Conference we polled this week Questions 1. Who would receive your M.V.P. vote if you had to vote today? 2. In order of 1-3, who are your top three Hart Trophy finalists 3. Norris Trophy Winner 4. Vezina Trophy Winner 5. Calder Trophy Winner 6. If you had to pick one player to build your team around who would that be? The Writers David Staples РEdmonton Journal M.V.P Vote 1. Pavel Datsyuk Top Three Hart Trophy Finalists 2. Pavel Datsyuk, Alexander Ovechkin, Zach Parise Norris Trophy 3. Nicklas Lidstrom, Zdeno Chara, Mike
Kings will be in must-win situation Friday night at Mellon Arena
Dustin Brown scored with 34 seconds left in overtime to give the Los Angeles Kings (30-30-10) a 3-2 win over the Boston Bruins Thursday night. The Kings rallied from two down, to get a much needed win as they’re five points out of the final playoff spot in the Western Conference. Los Angeles travels to Pittsburgh for a matchup against the league’s hottest team Friday night. The Kings will be in another must-win situation. Don’t expect to see Pittsburgh native John Zeiler in the lineup for the Kings tomorrow night. Zeiler was a scratch once again Thursday night.
Penguins win 6th straight, upend Capitals 4-3 in shootout
Marc Andre Fleury was 3-3 in the shootout and Sidney Crosby scored the only goal in the shootout as the Penguins extended their winning streak to six games to finish a 5 game road trip 5-0. Crosby (Goal, Assist, shootout goal) got the Penguins on the board first, scoring his 25th goal of the season at 4:12 of the first period. Winger Chris Kunitz chipped a puck off the boards in the neutral zone that led to a 2-on-1 for Bill Guerin and Sidney Crosby. Guerin sold the play and made a great feed to Crosby who put the Penguins up 1-0 in the first. Guerin and Crosby were not done as Guerin assisted on Sergei Gonchar’s 2nd period goal
Capitals go for clean sweep this afternoon
Previous Meetings 10/16/08: Capitals 4 – Penguins 3 1/14/09: Capitals 6 – Penguins 3 2/22/09: Capitals 5 – Penguins 2 Crosby vs Ovechkin Part II – Quotes
NHL: Malkin, Ovechkin put feud to rest in Super Skills
Alexander Ovechkin and Evgeni Malkin teamed up at the BellCenter Saturday night for the NHL super skills competition and put their feud to rest for atleast one weekend. Malkin claimed the shooting accuracy title, hitting three of four targets in a playoff with Ottawa’s Dany Heatley after both nailed all four targets in four shots in the opening round. During the breakaway challenge Malkin helped Ovechkin win the breakaway challenge by giving Ovechkin a hat, glasses, a shot of gatorade and and his stick. Ovechkin received 42.8 percent of the fan voting via text messages. The two super stars were also seen together at Club Opera having a good time. Reports indicate Ovechkin credited Atlanta’s Ilya Kovalchuk for helping the
NHL Mid Season Awards; Parise earns 1st half M.V.P
1st half M.V.P Forward Zach Parise (28 g – 27 a – 55pts, +20) Inside Analysis: Parise is the games most under-rated player and the leagues top bargain with a cap hit of only $3.1 million per season. With goaltender Martin Brodeur sidelined for up to 4 months, Parise has carried the Devils offensively and at the All-Star break the Devils are the Atlantic division leader with 61 points. With Brodeur due back in late February, the Devils go into the second half as arguably the most dangerous team in the Eastern Conference. Parise ranks 7th in the NHL in points and ranks third in goals. Runner up: Alexander Ovechkin (31g -28a -59pts) Vezina Trophy (Top Goaltender) Miikka Kiprusoff (28-12-3,
Ovechkin, Capitals shine in Pittsburgh; win 6-3
Alexander Ovechkin had two goals and 1 assist, including 10 shots on goal as the Capitals beat the Pittsburgh Penguins 6-3 Wednesday night at Mellon Arena. Ovechkin and the Caps outshot the Penguins 42-29 and broke the game wide open in the third period outscoring the Penguins 4-1 in the third period. The Penguins 9-16-1 in their last 26 games suffered not only a costly lost in the standings but also to their roster. Defenseman Rob Scuderi took a puck in the face in the first period. Scuderi left the game and did not return. Forwards Max Talbot and Sidney Crosby were also injured injured in the third period. Both players did not return. Crosby was favoring his left leg
Penguins faceoff against the Capitals
Tonight‚Äôs matchup between the Pittsburgh Penguins (21-19-4) and Washington Capitals ( 27-14-3) has no shortage of story lines. Story Line 1: Malkin vs Ovechkin Feud It has become clear over the past year that the former Russian roommates do not get along. Alexander Ovechkin goes out of his way time and time again to hit Malkin. Malkin addressed the issue saying “Ovechkin is a great player, but every time he hits me – I don’t know why,.‚Äù While Malkin and Ovechkin remain mostly quiet on the issue, it is believed it all stems back to Russian reports that Ovechkin took a swing at Malkin’s Russian agent, Gennady Ushakov, in a Moscow night club. Ovechkin denies the story but Evgeni Malkin
Morning Buzz
Down 3-1 the Penguins played like a desperate team in the third period but it wasn‚Äôt enough as the Boston Bruins won their 10th straight game beating the Penguins 4-2 Thursday night at Banknorth arena. The Bruins may not be the most talented team in the league but they have bought into Claude Julien’s system and they know how to win games. They win games by driving to net, winning battles in the corners and clearing the front of the net. All things the Penguins are struggling at and maybe the Penguins don‚Äôt have the personnel to improve in those areas. The Bruins 29-5-4 lead the NHL in points and also lead the NHL in goals with 141. While the