A Day in the NHL: Monday January 10

A couple of highlight-reel goals marked last night’s action, while the Chicago Blackhawks took a trip down memory lane. I guess you could say that New Jersey took a trip down memory lane as well with an ever-so-rare win on Sunday.

The Night that Was:

On a night when the reigning Stanley Cup champions honored the champions of 1961, Marian Hossa showed why he’s just one reason the ‘Hawks could pull off a repeat. Hossa had a goal and two assists while three ‘Hawks had two points and ten Blackhawks had a point overall. Corey Crawford made 29 saves for his first shutout of the season, as the Islanders lost for just the fourth time in their last 12, 5-0 to the Blackhawks. Nathan Lawson put up with 45 shots on the evening, while John Tavares was held pointless for just the third time in his last 12 games. Chicago has now won three of their last four.

Things were looking comfortable for Carolina at one point, but they quickly went south before the Canes rebounded for a 4-3 win over Atlanta in overtime. After exchanging first-period power play markers, Jeff Skinner put Carolina up 3-1 with a huge power-play blast in the second. Before the period was up, Nic Bergfors had made it 3-2, and a beautiful goal (his second) in tight from Bryan Little mid-way through the third tied things up at three. Eric Cole got his team the extra point on a great solo effort in overtime as Justin Peters earned just his second win of the season. Tobias Enstrom extended a modest four-game point-streak with two assists for the Thrashers.

While Little’s goal was nice, Jamie Benn had highlight reels rolling all over the place when he stepped around Cam Barker in the first period. Benn’s spectacular score was his first of two on the evening, as the Stars rolled to a seventh-straight road win in Minnesota, 4-0. The win tied a franchise record for road wins as Andrew Raycroft made 26 saves. Trevor Daley came up with a goal and an assist to match three other two point nights from fellow Stars (Benn, Brad Richards, and Brenden Morrow), while Cal Clutterbuck and Martin Havlat each had three-game point streaks snapped for Minnesota.

The New Jersey Devils got a virtuoso performance out of Martin Brodeur yesterday, and it lead to a win. Despite Tampa leading 2-1 after the first period, Brodeur stood on his head and allowed just one goal on 23 shots over the last two periods, as Jason Arnott netted a fluky winner. Brodeur even tried to score another goal of his own (he’s got two in his career), until it fell short at the blueline. It did lead to one man’s first NHL goal though, as Nick Palmieri scored the final goal, an empty-netter, in Jersey’s 6-3 win. The win snapped New Jersey’s four-game winning streak.

Quick Hits:

-Bobby Ryan was the only man to score, logging his 18^th of the season in the second period as Jonas Hiller made 37 saves for a 1-0 Anaheim win over San Jose.

What’s on Tonight?

The Penguins won’t have Sidney Crosby in the lineup when the Boston Bruins visit Pittsburgh, while the Coyotes play under the Arch in St. Louis. Detroit and Colorado will get comfortable with each other in the Mile-High City, while Toronto begins a Western swing in Los Angeles.

The Injury Bug:

-Alex Frolov has been lost for the season. The New York Rangers’ forward tore his ACL Saturday against the St. Louis Blues and will need surgery.

-Mike Fisher of the Ottawa Senators, Kevin Shattenkirk of Colorado, and Alex Semin of the Washington Capitals are all dealing with lower body injuries. Fisher and Shattenkirk suffered theirs blocking shots, while Semin was clipped in Washington’s game against Florida.

-Atlanta placed forward Evander Kane on Injured Reserve. Kane has a lower body injury.

Rumours and News Around the League:

-Calgary Flames forward Tom Kostopoulos has been suspended six games for breaking Brad Stuart’s jaw. Kostopoulos took a running head-shot at Stuart in the game between Calgary and Detroit Friday evening.

-Mike Commodore still wants to be traded, but it looks like the Columbus Blue Jackets might be giving re-entry waivers a try at some point. Commodore was sent to Springfield after clearing waivers.

-Ben Eager served the first of a five-game suspension on Sunday. Eager is being forced to sit out because of a sucker-punch he delivered to the Leafs’ Colby Armstrong on Friday.

-The L.A. Kings inked Jack Johnson to a seven-year contract extension over the weekend, undoubtedly meaning that upcoming RFA Drew Doughty is one of their next concerns.

The Overlooked Fantasy Line of the Night:

Jonas Hiller got the nod on NHL.com for his second-straight shutout, but Andrew Raycroft’s goose-egg gets him the love here. Raycroft made 26 stops against Minnesota, and has now strung together three great starts in a row. It was also his second shutout of the season.

If you want to e-mail Bryan, you can at bryanthiel74@hotmail.com. You can also follow him on Twitter at BryanThiel_88.