NHL Three Stars: Jones slows Flames; Kopitar hits 20 goals
No. 1 Star: Martin Jones, San Jose Sharks
The netminder stopped 47 of 48 shots on goal to lead his team to a 2-1 overtime win at the Calgary Flames. The 47 saves were a career-high for Jones. The win for the Sharks moved them to 78 points, four behind the Kings for second place in the Pacific Division. The Sharks are five points behind the Anaheim Ducks for first in the Pacific.
No. 2 Star: Anze Kopitar, Los Angeles Kings
The Kings’ top line center scored a goal and notched two assists in a 5-1 win over the Vancouver Canucks. The goal was Kopitar’s 20th on the season. Kopitar has scored 20-or-more goals in eight of his nine full seasons in the NHL.
No. 3 Star: Shayne Gostisbehere, Philadelphia Flyers
The young blueliner scored twice in his team’s 4-2 win over the Tampa Bay Lightning. The scores were his 13th and 14th, which set a Flyers single-season record for goals by a rookie defenseman, set by Behn Wilson in 1978-79. The Flyers are 7-2-1 in their last 10 games and two points behind the Detroit Red Wings for the final Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference.
Honorable Mention: Philadelphia Flyers forward Claude Giroux notched two assists in the win over the Lightning. Teammates Wayne Simmonds and Brayden Schenn each scored one goal and added one assist in the victory … Tampa forward Tyler Johnson notched two assists in the loss … Buffalo Sabres forward Sam Reinhart picked up two assists and scored the shootout winner in a 4-3 victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs … Sabres forward Jack Eichel scored his 20th goal of the season. Teammate Evander Kane scored his 19th goal and added an assist … Maple Leafs forward Leo Komarov scored his 19th goal of the season … Boston Bruins center Patrice Bergeron scored two goals in a 5-4 overtime win over the Florida Panthers … Boston teammate Brad Marchand notched two assists … Bruins netminder Tuukka Rask stopped 47 of 51 shots on goal in the win … Boston coach Claude Julien picked up his 388th win with the Bruins, which ranks first in franchise history. Julien past Art Ross for the mark… Florida forward Jiri Hudler scored two goals … Panthers forward Jonathan Huberdeau notched two assists. Linemate Jaromir Jagr moved into third place all time in points with 1,851. Jagr notched an assist on a goal by Aleksander Barkov to move past Gordie Howe … Colorado Avalanche forward Matt Duchene scored his 28th goal of the season and notched an assist in a 3-1 win over the Arizona Coyotes … Avs forward Mikhail Grigorenko also scored a goal and added an assist … San Jose Sharks defenseman Brent Burns notched a Gordie Howe Hat Trick in the win over the Flames … Joe Colborne scored the lone goal for the Flames … Washington Capitals goaltender Braden Holtby stopped 27 of 28 shots on goal in a 2-1 shootout win over the Anaheim Ducks … The victory for the Caps ended Anaheim’s franchise record 11-game winning streak … Ryan Getzlaf scored Anaheim’s only goal … Andre Burakovsky’s third period goal tied up the game for the Caps … Los Angeles defenseman Drew Doughty fired his 13th goal of the season and added an assist … Kings forward Jeff Carter scored two goals and was a plus-3. He has 300 goals in his NHL career.
Did You Know? Eichel became the first Sabres teenager to score 20 goals in a season since Pierre Turgeon in 1988-89.
Dishonorable Mention: Panthers goaltender Roberto Luongo was pulled after allowing four goals on 16 shots on goal … Florida defensemen Aaron Ekblad and Dmitry Kulikov were both a minus-3 … The Lightning mustered just 18 shots on goal at Flyers goaltender Steve Mason …The Canucks allowed five unanswered goals to lose to the Kings.
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