NHL Three Stars: Carter, Huberdeau lead division leaders
No. 1 Star: Jeff Carter, Los Angeles Kings
The Kings forward scored two goals less than six minutes apart in the second period and then assisted on Andy Andreoff’s goal in the third, powering LA’s 3-0 win over the Calgary Flames. Jonathan Quick made 21 saves.
No. 2 Star: Mike Condon, Montreal Canadiens
The Habs goalie made 26 saves in shutting out the Tampa Bay Lightning, 3-0. That included 14 shots in the first period. David Desharnais, Torrey Mitchell and Phillip Danault scored for the Canadiens.
No. 3 Star: Jonathan Huberdeau, Florida Panthers
The rats flew in Sunrise as Huberdeau scored the game-tying and eventual game-winning goals in the Panthers’ 3-2 win over the New Jersey Devils. Jaromir Jagr had two assists. …
Honorable Mention: Jamie Benn scored goal No. 40 and added an assist in the Dallas Stars’ 4-1 win over the Arizona Coyotes. Benn is the first 40-goal scorer for the Stars since Mike Modano had 50 in 1993-94. … Cody Ceci’s goal with 3:57 remaining was the game-winner for the Ottawa Senators, as Minnesota’s six-game winning streak ended in a 3-2 defeat. Bobby Ryan had two assists and was a plus-3. … Jeff Sknner and Victor Rask scored third-period goals to rally and defeat the New York Rangers, 4-3. Patrick Brown scored his first NHL goal and assist. … Phil Kessel had two goals and Kris Letang had a goal and an assist as the Pittsburgh Penguins rolled over the Nashville Predators, 5-2. James Neal and Ryan Johansen had a goal and an assist in the loss. … John Tavares had two goals and the New York Islanders earned a big win over the Columbus Blue Jackets, 4-3. Anders Lee had the game-winner at 5:23 of the third period. … Cal O’Reilly and Johan Larsson had two goals each in the Buffalo Sabres’ 4-1 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs. … The streak is over, as the Vancouver Canucks ended a nine-game skid and defeated the San Jose Sharks, 4-2. Ryan Miller made 32 saves. Jannik Hansen scored the go-ahead goal with 5:03 remaining.
Game of the Night:
Carolina had a fun comeback to spoil Eric Staal’s homecoming.
Did You Know? Eric Staal had zero points, had three shots on goal and three hits in 18:02 of ice time in his first game back in Raleigh.
Dishonorable Mention: The Coyotes were without Oliver Ekman-Larsson (illness) and lost Martin Hanzal, who left the game in the first period with an upper body injury. … Tyler Johnson and Jonathan Marchessault were a minus-3. … Pekka Rinne was pulled again after giving up four goals in 40 minutes. … Islanders defenseman Travis Hamonic played 2:56 before he left the gam with a lower-body injury after a collision with Scott Hartnell. … This was not Thomas Greiss’s finest moment:
