Five Minute Major

*Photo from the Columbus Dispatch*     What a night for young Elvis Merzlikins, and against one of the NHL's best teams too. Merzlikins stopped 37 shots, 3 different skaters scored, and the Columbus Blue Jackets topped the defending champion Tampa Bay Lightning by a 3-1 score on Tuesday night.     The scoring didn't start until 10:49 into the second period, when Oliver Bjorkstrand got the Blue Jackets on the board with his 13th goal of the season. With just 32 seconds left in the second, David Savard scored his first goal of the season to make it 2-0. 4:12 into the 3rd period, Mathieu Joseph got the Lightning on the board. But the Jackets got that goal right back with 1:31 left in the game on Cam Atkinson's 13th of the season, this one an empty netter.    Blue Jackets coach John Tortorella said of the win that "We were better, We're working on a way to play that will get us into some sort of identity. I think we took a step in the right direction....

*Photo from the Buffalo News*     The Buffalo Sabres are simply not in the business of winning hockey games. Certainly not this season. It was just another nightmare for them on Monday, this time at the hands of the Philadelphia Flyers. Kevin Hayes scored, Ivan Provorov added the winner, and the Flyers topped the Buffalo Sabres by a 4-3 score on Monday night in overtime.    Henri Jokiharju started the scoring for Buffalo 17:41 into the first period, giving the Sabres a 1-0 lead. In the second period, Cody Eakin and Brandon Montour scored for Buffalo to extend their lead to 3-0. Then, everything fell apart in the 3rd. Hayes got it started just 1:50 into the period, then Claude Giroux made it 3-2 Sabres 10 minutes later. With 1:29 left in the game, Sean Couturier scored to tie things up for the Flyers. In OT, Provorov scored just 42 seconds in to seal the comeback win.    Provorov said of the late comeback that "Honestly, I'm not sure why it keeps happen...

*Photo from the Los Angeles Times*     Josh Manson, what a time for the first goal of the season. Manson scored in overtime, Adam Henrique added a goal, and the Anaheim Ducks came back to beat the St.Louis Blues by a 3-2 score in overtime on Sunday night. Originally down 2-0, they kept fighting, and clawed their way back, and it payed off.    Ryan O'Reilly started the scoring for the Blues just 2:27 into the game, giving St.Louis an early 1-0 lead. That lead then became 2-0 on Vladimir Tarasenko's second goal of the season, a power play goal 15:59 into the first period. In the second period, Cam Fowler's 3rd goal of the season got the Ducks on the board, cutting the lead in half for the Blues. In the 3rd, Henrique tied the game just 2:13 into the period. 1:42 into overtime, Manson scored his first of the season to cap the comeback for the Ducks.    Manson said of scoring the OT winner that "I wasn't expecting the shift in the overtime to be honest but when ...

*Photo from the Milford Daily News*     The Boston Bruins need to get wins by any means necessary to stay in playoff position in the East Division. Saturday afternoon against the lowly Buffalo Sabres, it was the secondary scoring that got it done. Nick Ritchie scored, Craig Smith potted the game winner, and the Bruins topped the Sabres with a 3-2 win on Saturday.    Sam Reinhart got the scoring started, giving the Sabres a 1-0 lead just 2:01 into the game. It remained that way until 11:41 into the second period, when Matt Grzelcyk got the Bruins on the board with his second goal of the season. Almost 3 minutes later, Kyle Okposo gave the Sabres the lead again, making it 2-1. In the 3rd, Ritchie tied the game 5:22 into the period, and Smith gave the Bruins the game winner at the 16:10 mark.    Smith said of the Bruins win that "I thought we were opportunistic, some of the focus was put on getting to the front of the net and being a little bit more hungry aro...

*Photo from the Press Democrat*     Arizona Coyotes forward Christian Dvorak had a rather good game Friday night against the San Jose Sharks. Dvorak scored two goals, Phil Kessel added a goal, and the Coyotes topped the Sharks with a 5-2 win on Friday night, getting closer to playoff position.    Dvorak started the scoring 6:20 into the first, giving the Coyotes a 1-0 lead early. In the second period, Tomas Hertl scored short handed for the Sharks, and Nick Schmaltz scored for Arizona, making it 2-1 in favor of the Coyotes after two periods. In the 3rd, Dvorak, Dryden Hunt, and Kessel all scored for the Coyotes, and Patrick Marleau scored for the Sharks, making it 5-2.    Schmaltz said of the win that "It's always nice to see everyone getting on the board. It builds your team's confidence, individuals get more confidence, and that can only help us. I thought we were really good tonight. We weren't forcing too many plays. We were making the plays when t...

*Photo from Click On Detroit*     One night after Andrew Copp of the Winnipeg Jets scored 4 goals, Nashville Predators center Rocco Grimaldi decided he wanted to score 4 goals as well. Grimaldi scored 4 goals, Eeli Tolvanen added a goal, and the Predators routed the Detroit Red Wings with a 7-1 win on Thursday night.     The first period was a wild one. Grimaldi started the scoring for Nashville 5:34 into the period, making it 1-0 early. Then came Tolvanen's goal to make it 2-0. After that, Grimaldi scored two more times to make it 4-0, completing the hat trick. To wrap up the period, Bobby Ryan scored for the Red Wings with 55 seconds left to make it 4-1. In the second, Mikael Granlund scored for the Predators to make it 5-1. In the 3rd, Mathieu Olivier scored to make it 6-1, and Grimaldi scored his 4th of the game to make it 7-1 Predators.    Grimaldi said of his 4 goal outing that "I was more in shock. When you don't score for a really long tim...

*Photo from TSN*     The Winnipeg Jets have lots of high end forward talent. Matthew Perreault, Kyle Connor, Mark Scheifele, Nikolaj Ehlers, and Andrew Copp, to name a few. Wednesday night against Vancouver, Copp had himself a night. Copp scored 4 goals, 6 different Jets added assists, and the Jets cruised past the Vancouver Canucks with a 5-1 victory.     Copp started the scoring 5:53 into the second period, with a power play goal to make it 1-0. Copp extended the lead 4:57 later, making it 2-0 Jets. The lead then became 3-0 on Scheifele's 13th goal of the season. In the 3rd period, Copp scored two more times for the Jets, his 9th and 10th goals on the season, and Nils Hoglander added a late goal for the Canucks to make it 5-1.     Copp said of scoring 4 goals that "I'm going to have a hard time remembering my last four-goal game. I don't know, I don't know if that's ever happened before. Obviously, our power play was working again today, an...

*Photo from AP News*     The Chicago Blackhawks needed a win. On a night celebrating Patrick Kane's 1000 game milestone, the setting was perfect. They delivered. Kane dished out two assists, 3 different Blackhawks added goals, and the Blackhawks outlasted a late comeback bid by the Florida Panthers to grab a 3-2 win Tuesday night.     Dominik Kubalik started the scoring for the Blackhawks 6:24 into the game, with his 11th goal of the season to make it 1-0 Chicago. With 1:30 left in the opening period, Pius Suter scored his 9th of the year to extend the lead to 2-0. 4:22 into the second period, Carl Soderberg scored a power play goal to widen the lead to 3-0. 4:31 after Soderberg scored, Anton Stralman got the Panthers on the board to make it 3-1. In the 3rd, Alex Wennberg scored to cut it to 3-2, but they couldn't muster another goal.    Kane said of the Blackhawks play that "We did a good job of coming out strong and kind of took over the game to get ...

*Photo from Yourvalley.net*     It had been a long time since Brady Skjei had scored a goal. Over a year. The last goal he scored came against his current team, the Carolina Hurricanes. That drought is over. Skjei scored, Skjei's teammate in Carolina and New York Jesper Fast added a goal as well, and the Hurricanes shut out the Columbus Blue Jackets with a 3-0 win on Monday night.    Skjei started the scoring for the Hurricanes, with his first goal of the season coming at the 9:13 mark of the first period. 6:39 into the second, Fast extended the Hurricanes lead to 2-0 on his 4th goal of the season. A few minutes later, at 8:58, Martin Necas scored his 6th of the season to widen the lead to 3-0, which wasn't given up.    Fast said of the win that "I think we've played pretty good hockey, but tonight we played a complete 60-minute hockey game. We were on the right side, working hard and doing the right things. It was a really good game from all of us."  ...

*Photo from Yahoo! Sports*     Jesper Bratt didn't force a bad shot. Instead, he created a play by himself. He skated around the net, and did the wrap around goal. Bratt scored the OT winner, Sami Vatanen added a goal himself, and the New Jersey Devils beat the Pittsburgh Penguins with a 2-1 overtime win Sunday afternoon.    Sidney Crosby got the scoring started just 3:37 into the game, scoring his 12th goal of the season to give the Penguins an early 1-0 lead. It stayed that way until 4:48 into the second period, when Vatanaen tied things at one, getting the Devils on the board with his second goal of the season. 2:50 into overtime, Bratt scored a wraparound goal to give the Devils the win.    Bratt said of his decision to go wraparound that "I saw that their goalie had everything covered for me to shoot at and I didn't want to force a bad angle shot. I tried to wrap it and I saw that one of his legs got caught and he couldn't push through to the...

*Photo from the Mining Gazette*     Scoring from the depth is always essential to Stanley cup winning teams. The Dallas Stars almost got it last year. Now, they want another shot. Tanner Kero scored his first goal of the season, Andrej Sekera added a goal, and the Stars shut out the Detroit Red Wings with a 3-0 win on Saturday.    Kero started the scoring for the Stars later in the game, making it 1-0 Stars at the 17:22 mark of the second period. In the 3rd, Sekera scored to lengthen the Stars lead to 2-0 at the 8:16 mark of the 3rd. After that, 13:43 into the 3rd, Ty Dellandrea scored a power play goal to make it 3-0 Dallas, a lead they held on to.    Stars coach Rick Bowness talked about the young guys, Kero and Dellandrea, scoring, saying that "With the schedule we're on, with the injuries that we have, you need your young players to step up. Ty's power-play goal, Kero's goal, you need those things to happen if we're going to have any success." ...

*Photo from the Las Vegas Review-Journal*     A month and a half later, Robin Lehner is back in the goal crease for the Vegas Golden Knights. He sure looked sharp. Max Pacioretty scored twice, Lehner got the win, and the Golden Knights topped the Los Angeles Kings with a 4-2 win Friday night in Lehner's return from a concussion.    Pacioretty got two quick goals for Vegas in the first period, scoring goals 15 and 16 in the first period. Combine that with a Alex Iafallo goal for the Kings, and it was 2-1 Vegas after one period. In the second, Trevor Moore scored to tie things up for the Kings, but William Karlsson scored his 7th goal of the season following Moore's goal to put Vegas right back in front. In the 3rd period, William Carrier's first goal of the season gave Vegas a 4-2 lead that they didn't give up.    Pacioretty said of the win for Vegas that "Everybody on our team played a strong game tonight, and Robin obviously included. It's not easy to...

*Photo from TSN*     Calle Jarnkrok had a good night. So did Juuse Saros. That's all the Nashville Predators needed in Florida. Jarnkrok scored twice, Mattias Ekholm added an assist, and the Predators topped the Florida Panthers with a 2-1 win Thursday night in Florida.     Jonathan Huberdeau started the scoring for the Panthers with just 1:22 left in the first period, snapping his 11th goal of the season past Saros to give the Panthers a 1-0 lead. Jarnkrok scored his 8th goal of the season 7:25 into the second to tie things up at one. It remained tied until 1:17 into the 3rd period, when Jarnkrok scored his 9th of the season to give Nashville a 2-1 lead, which they didn't give up.    Predators coach John Hynes said of Jarnkrok's game that "It's nice to see him be able to get rewarded for the opportunities he's getting. And when he's getting his opportunities, he's bearing down. You don't score if you're not in those scoring areas and you're...

*Photo from CBS Sports*     Yeah, I think New York Rangers star Mika Zibanejad is off the schneid. What a night it was for him. Zibanejad put up a hat trick, added another 3 assists, and the Rangers absolutely rolled over the Philadelphia Flyers Wednesday night, with a 9-0 rout at Madison Square Garden.     The first period was two goals for the Rangers, with Brenden Lemieux and Artemi Panarin scoring. The second period featured 7 goals from the Rangers. First, Pavel Buchnevich scored twice to make it a 4-0 lead for the Rangers. Then, Jacob Trouba scored to make it a 5-0 lead. Zibanejad then ripped off 3 straight goals, one short handed, one on the power play, and one at even strength. Filip Chytil scored with 21 seconds left to make it 9-0.     Zibanejad had been struggling prior to this game, saying that "I've been trying to get myself through this and it hasn't been easy, but it is what it is. It's one game, but I feel like the game just overal...

*Photo from the Boston Globe*     Dan Vladar was not ready in the bubble. He was not ready when Jaroslav Halak was pulled in game 3 against the Tampa Bay Lightning in the middle of a shellacking. But he endured it anyway. Now, with Tuukka Rask injured and Halak having started 4 straight games, Vladar was ready for his first NHL start. He seized his opportunity. Vladar stopped 34 shots, Trent Frederic scored the game winning goal, and the Boston Bruins topped the Pittsburgh Penguins with a 2-1 win on Tuesday night.     David Pastrnak got the scoring going for the Bruins 3:20 into the first period, with his 13th goal of the season, making it 1-0 early. Brandon Tanev tied things for the Penguins at the 15:22 mark of the first, making it a 1-1 game. It remained that way until the 3rd period, when Frederic sent a rocket into the back of the net to give the Bruins a 2-1 lead, which they held on to.     Vladar said of his first NHL win that "The whole be...

*Photo from Buffalo News*     Buffalo Sabres head coach Ralph Krueger has been fired by the team, according to an announcement made by the Sabres. Assistant coach Steve Smith has also been ousted. The change comes as the Sabres sit at a dismal 6-18-4 record this season, the worst record in the East Division and the NHL. The moves were announced this morning by the Sabres.    Sabres GM Kevyn Adams said the team needs to show more pride, saying that "To love, to look around the city of Buffalo and see Sabres hats and signs and people wearing jerseys, that matters. That has to be within the DNA of our team. I don't care where we are in the standings right now. If we do not show up at the rink tomorrow and for the rest of that season and have that characteristic about our team, it's going to be unacceptable."    Assistant coach Don Granato has been named the interim head coach, and director of player development Matt Ellis and development coach Dan Girardi...

*Photo from Yahoo!     After multiple fights in the last installment of the battle of Alberta between the Calgary Flames and Edmonton Oilers, there was curiosity surrounding this version of it. Brett Ritchie and Jujhar Khaira ended up being the only ones to drop the gloves this time around, but there was still entertainment to be had. Ritchie fought Khaira, Noah Hanifin scored the game winning goal, and the Flames topped the Oilers with a 4-3 win in Monday night's installment of the battle of Alberta.    The scoring started in the second period, and it was quite the frenzy. It started with Calgary jumping out to a 2-0 lead on goals from Dillon Dube and Elias Lindholm. Adam Larson then scored for Edmonton to cut the lead to 2-1. After Andrew Mangiapane extended Calgary's lead to 3-1, Josh Archibald countered for Edmonton, making it 3-2 after two periods. In the 3rd, Leon Draisaitl tied it up for the Oilers, but Hanifin then scored the eventual game winning goal to mak...

*Photo from the Raleigh News & Observer*     The Carolina Hurricanes are cruising. Entering Sunday's game against the Detroit Red Wings, the Hurricanes had won 7 straight games. That streak extended. Dougie Hamilton scored a short handed goal, Nino Niederreiter added a goal, and the Hurricanes topped the Red Wings with a 2-1 win on Sunday.     Hamilton started the scoring in the game, with a short handed breakaway goal at 15:13 of the second period, his 3rd goal of the season. In the 3rd period, Niederreiter added a goal, his 12th of the season, just 1:37 into the 3rd, giving the Hurricanes a 2-0 lead. With 10 seconds left, Anthony Mantha scored for the Red Wings, but that was all Detroit could muster.    Hurricanes coach Rod Brind'Amour said of the win that "The penalty kill was really solid. That was the difference in the hockey game. We had the one and could have had a couple more. We always talk about that special teams are a huge par...

*Photo from Yahoo! News*     The New York Islanders are on quite a rampage. Saturday, in their first game without captain Anders Lee in quite a while, they continued that rampage. Kieffer Bellows scored two goals, Oliver Wahlstrom added another, and the Islanders topped the New Jersey Devils with a 3-2 win on Saturday night.     Pavel Zacha started the scoring for the Devils, giving them a 1-0 lead 6:37 into the first period. At 17:58 of the first, Wahlstrom tied it up for the Islanders with his 5th goal of the season. In the second period, Janne Kuokkanen scored for the Devils to give them a 2-1 lead after two periods. In the 3rd, Bellows scored the tying goal 1:59 into the 3rd, and the game winning goal 5:10 into the 3rd.     Bellows was given the first shot to skate with Matthew Barzal and Jordan Eberle in place of Lee, and Bellows took advantage. He said of playing with Barzal and Eberle that "I just wanted to go out there, work hard, grind do...

*Photo from the CBC*     When the Edmonton Oilers need a spark, they turn to their two best players. They are Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl. Both of them sure had excellent nights. McDavid tallied 3 points, Draisaitl added two more, and the Oilers rolled past the Ottawa Senators with a 6-2 win Friday night.     McDavid got the scoring started just 10 seconds into the game, giving Edmonton a very early 1-0 lead. At 3:06, Thomas Chabot tied things for Ottawa. Tyson Barrie then added a goal for Edmonton, and it was 2-1 Oilers after one period. In the second, Brady Tkachuk scored on the power play for Ottawa, but Nurse and Draisaitl added goals for Edmonton, making it a 4-2 game after two periods. In the 3rd, goals from Tyler Ennis and Gaeten Haas put the game on ice for Edmonton.     McDavid said of the Oilers recent surge that "A lot was made last week with what happened with Toronto and we found a way to get those points back, so...

*Photo from Barstool Sports*     Boston Bruins winger Jake Debrusk was scratched against the New York Islanders due to a lack of offensive production. Thursday night against the New York Rangers, he was back in the lineup to try and get an offensive spark. He got one. Debrusk scored, Jaroslav Halak was dominant, and the Bruins shut out the Rangers with a 4-0 win on Thursday night.     David Pastrnak started the scoring for Boston, ripping home his 12th goal of the season to give the Bruins a 1-0 lead early. At 17:34 of the first, Patrice Bergeron added a shorthanded goal to make it 2-0 Bruins after one period. 3:31 into the second period, David Krejci scored his first goal of the year to make it 3-0 Bruins. Just 81 seconds later, Debrusk scored his second of the season to make it 4-0, which held up for the rest of the game.     Debrusk addressed his lack of offensive production, saying that "I know what I need to do. It's my job to be the bes...

*Photo from AP News*     In overtime, Gabe Landeskog always delivers. Brandon Saad scored his 9th goal of the season, Landeskog added the winner, and the Colorado Avalanche beat out the Arizona Coyotes with a 2-1 overtime win on Wednesday night.     Saad started the scoring for the Avalanche 1:23 into the first, giving the Avalanche a 1-0 lead early on. It remained that way until 18:05 into the second period, when Tyler Pitlick tied things up for the Coyotes with his 6th goal of the season. It stayed that way until overtime, when Landeskog scored with 38 seconds to go in OT to give Colorado the win.    Landeskog said of the tight win that "It's hard not to get frustrated in a game like this. Going into the third sometimes you feel like you should be up three or four goals, but you look at the scoreboard and it's tied at one. But Raanta had a good night, and he was seeing everything. They are a competitive team. It is close in the standings an...