National Hockey League news: March 12, 2008

March 12, 2008

There were 9 games played in the National Hockey League on March 11, 2008.

Colorado Avalanche @ Atlanta Thrashers
Andrew Brunette scored the first goal for the Avalanche at 4:47 into the first period. A few minutes later, Joe Sakic put Colorado ahead by 2 with his 10th goal of the season. Colby Armstrong put the Thrashers on the board 1:27 later. Milan Hejduk scored his 22nd goal of the season 48 seconds into the second period. David Jones put the Avalanche ahead by three goals less than halfway through the second period. Brunette then scored his second of the night on a power play later in the second period. In the third period, Erik Christensen scored for Atlanta. The Avalanche have won 8 of their last 10, while the Thrashers lose their 10th in 11 games. Sakic and Jones each had three point nights for the Avalanche.

San Jose Sharks @ Nashville Predators
Joe Pavelski broke a scoreless tie 15:32 into the second period on a Sharks power play. Milan Michalek put San Jose ahead by 2 early in the third, his unassisted goal coming 37 seconds into the period. Jason Arnott brought the Predators within one goal 5:29 into the third on a Nashville power play. Evgeni Nabokov made 26 saves for San Jose, and Dan Ellis allowed 2 goals in 42 shots for Nashville. The Sharks have won 10 straight, while the Predators have lost 2 in a row.

St. Louis Blues @ Edmonton Oilers
Zachery Stortini scored his third goal of the season, putting the Oilers on the board 2:58 into the first period. Jarret Stoll scored a power play goal for Edmonton at 7:03, and Sam Gagner gave the Oilers a 3 goal lead 1:37 later on another power play. Andy McDonald put the Blues on the board late in the first period on a St. Louis power play. Lee Stempniak brought St. Louis within 1 early in the second period. Brad Boyes tied the score 11:15 through the second period. The score remained tied until 5 seconds left in sudden death overtime, where Andrew Cogliano scored the game winner, giving Edmonton their third straight win. St. Louis has lost 10 of their last 11 games. Mathieu Garon made 28 saves, earning his 26th win of the season.

Philadelphia Flyers @ Toronto Maple Leafs
Scottie Upshall scored 13:26 into the first period to put the Flyers on the scoreboard first. Braydon Coburn scored a power play goal with less than a minute remaining in the second period. Daniel Brière put the Flyers up by three 1:12 into the third period. The Maple Leafs then scored three unanswered goals. Leafs captain Mats Sundin scored on a power play 4:48 into the third. Pavel Kubina brought Toronto within one at 13:16. Jeremy Williams scored his second of the season to tie the score at three apiece with 3:41 left in regulation to force overtime. With less than a minute remaining in 4-on-4 overtime, Kubina scored his second of the night, completing the come-from-behind win for the Leafs. Toronto outshot the Flyers 55-25. Martin Biron made 51 saves for the Flyers. Vesa Toskala made 22 saves for Toronto.

New Jersey Devils @ Montreal Canadiens
Bryan Smolinski scored the first goal 4:51 into the first period, putting the Canadiens on the board first. Saku Koivu's goal with 1:32 left in the first period made it 2-0 Montreal. Maxim Lapierre scored 14:20 into the second period for the Canadiens. Michael Ryder gave Montreal a 4 goal lead with his 13th goal of the season. Carey Price made 38 saves for the Canadiens, earning his second shutout of the season. The Canadiens now sit on top of the Eastern Conference standings.

Boston Bruins @ Ottawa Senators
Dany Heatley broke a scoreless tie 5:44 into the second, giving the Senators the first score of the game. Heatley also scored a power play 11:05 into the second on a power play. Jason Spezza put Ottawa ahead by 3 late in the second period on a power play. Dennis Wideman put the Bruins on the board with 2:26 left in the game. Heatley completed his hat trick by scoring an empty net goal with 36 seconds left. Martin Gerber made 28 saves for the Senators, who have now won 2 straight. Boston goaltender Alex Auld allowed 3 goals on 28 shots. Heatley had 4 points, also assisting on Spezza's goal in the second period.

New York Islanders @ Tampa Bay Lightning
Michel Ouellet scored the first goal of the night for Tampa Bay, coming at 6:51 into the first period on a power play. Vincent Lecavalier also scored on a Lightning power play, putting them ahead by 2 12:09 into the first. The Islanders got on the board with less than 3 minutes left in the first, when Bill Guerin scored his 21st of the season. Ruslan Fedotenko tied the score at 2 goals apiece 4:16 into the second. Jeff Halpern scored for the Lightning 9 minutes into the second period, retaking the lead for Tampa Bay. Nick Tarnasky scored 14:49 into the second, giving Tampa a 2 goal lead. Lecavalier scored his second of the night, giving his team a 3 goal lead. Ben Walter scored a power play goal to get within 2 of Tampa, but the Lightning then scored 3 goals within 1 minute. First, Lecavalier completed the hat trick with 2:17 left in the game, then Ouellet scored his second of the night 28 seconds later. Just 10 seconds after that, Jason Ward scored an unassisted goal, his 8th of the season. Mike Comrie added a goal for the Islanders with 37 seconds remaining.

Chicago Blackhawks @ Detroit Red Wings
Kirk Maltby scored the first goal of the game for the Red Wings 8:34 into the first period. Rene Bourque tied the score a couple minutes later with his 9th goal of the season. Pavel Datsyuk scored his 26th goal of the season to retake the lead for Detroit. Johan Franzen scored an unassisted empty net goal with 49 seconds left in the game, ensuring the victory for Detroit, who have now won 4 straight. Chris Osgood made 19 saves, improving his record to 24-8-3. Chicago has now lost their last 3 games.

Anaheim Ducks @ Phoenix Coyotes
Todd Marchant scored first for the Ducks, breaking a scoreless tie with 1:22 left in the first period. Ryan Getzlaf scored for Anaheim 7:17 into the second period, giving them a 2 goal lead. The Coyotes tied it up to force overtime, after the captain Shane Doan scored late in the second, and Keith Yandle scored over halfway through the third. In a shootout, Radim Vrbata scored the only goal, giving the Coyotes their 5th win in 6 games against Anaheim this season. Jean-Sebastien Giguere made 37 saves throughout the game, allowing two goals and one shootout attempt. Ilja Bryzgalov made 35 saves, allowing just two goals in regulation.

Player of the Day
Today's Player of the Day is Dany Heatley of the Ottawa Senators. Heatley scored three goals and assisted on the other in Ottawa's 4-1 win over the Boston Bruins. He now has 35 goals and 39 assists on the season.

For information on the selection process of the Player of the Day, see this page.