NHL Three Stars: Kane continues MVP campaign with 4-point night
No. 1 Star: Patrick Kane, Chicago Blackhawks
The fans chanted “MVP!” for Kane after he tallied a goal and three assists in the Blackhawks’ 7-2 trouncing of the Toronto Maple Leafs. Kane set up goals by Andrew Shaw, Brent Seabrook and Artemi Panarin, and scored his 34th of the season. Kane now has 82 points in 60 games.
No. 2 Star: Al Montoya, Florida Panthers
The Panthers backup made 31 saves and made three more in the shootout as Florida defeated the Pittsburgh Penguins, 2-1. Jussi Jokinen had the shootout winner.
No. 3 Star: Mike Santorelli, Anaheim Ducks
In a giant mess of a game, Mike Santorelli scored to even the game in the first period and then had the clincher in the third period as the Ducks outlasted the Calgary Flames, 6-4. Not bad for 8:44 of ice time.
Honorable Mention: John Torchetti won his coaching debut with the Minnesota Wild, as Zach Parise scored his first goal in nine games in their 5-2 win over the Vancouver Canucks. … Martin Hanzal and Oliver Ekman-Larsson both had a goal and two assists as the Arizona Coyotes routed the Montreal Canadiens, 6-2. … Brock Nelson and Ryan Strome had a goal and an assist while Thomas Greiss made 28 saves in the New York Islanders’ 4-1 win over the Detroit Red Wings. … Tyler Seguin made a gorgeous pass to Mattias Janmark for the overtime game-winner, as the Dallas Stars defeated the Nashville Predators, 3-2. Antti Niemi made 24 saves.
Game of the Day
The Ducks and Flames had a wild back-and-forth affair. Anaheim is 9-1-1 in the past 11 games. Watch the highlights here:
Did You Know? Nathan Schoenfeld, 31, was the Coyotes’ backup goalie after Anders Lindback was injured off-ice hours before their game. Schoenfeld is the son of ex-Coyotes coach and current New York Rangers senior vice president and assistant GM Jim Schoenfeld.
Dishonorable Mention: The Maple Leafs were 3-for-7 on the penalty kill. … Matt Bartkowski was a minus-4, while Linden Vey was a minus-3. … Max Pacioretty was a minus-3 with no points. … Jonas Hiller was pulled after making 13 saves on 17 shots, replaced by Joni Ortio in the second period. … Justin Abdelkader was given a minor penalty for tossing Jimmy Howard’s stick back to him. … Kevin Bieksa pushed Johnny Gaudreau into the Ducks’ net, and potentially helped the puck cross in the process.
