There were some strange dance partners in Saturday night's tilt between the Ottawa Senators and the Toronto Maple Leafs. Luke Schenn fought Nick Foligno. Mikhail Grabovski threw down with Chris Neil. But, in far and away the most unlikely bout of the night, Clarke MacArthur dropped the gloves with Sergei Gonchar:

There wasn't much to the fight, which is likely why CBC could hardly find it in the replays, but what it lacked in entertainment value it more than made up for in novelty. The fight was only the second of 37-year-old Gonchar's career, the first coming in 1998-99, when he was still a member of the Washington Capitals.

He fought Guy Carbonneau.

Among those entertained by the rare spectacle: Erik Karlsson, who applauded his teammate after Gonchar had served the five-minute major and returned to the bench:

I love Gonchar's disbelieving chuckle in the penalty box. He seems surprised as anyone.

Now, if you prefer your novelty fights videos to feature actual landed punches, take a look at Mikhail Grabovski's fight video with Chris Neil.

Read the sign: do not hit Lindy Ruff

Why yes, that is a stop sign on the back of Lindy Ruff's jacket.

It's a good idea. You'll recall that, back in February, Ruff was forced to watch three games from the press box after breaking three ribs in a collision with Buffalo Sabres defenseman Jordan Leopold.

The Sabres have had their issues with players hitting supposedly untouchable members of their personnel, and after Brendan Shanahan let Leopold off the hook, thus declaring open season on coaches, something had to be done. Ruff's new jacket, a gentle reminder to his players that he has the right of way, is a good innovation.

Ruff sported the new gear at practice on Friday. From WGRZ:

The jacket had a "stop" sign on the back and a "yield" sign on the front.  "That's my on ice, just a little bit of extra protection. Guys notice the stop sign and yield so they don't run me over," said Ruff after practice.

The jacket was made as a joke by Ruff's friend and PGA golfer Dudley Hart.

There's still a chance the Sabres could avoid joining Hart on the golf course next month.

At the time of Ruff's injury, the Sabres were a point out of the basement in the Eastern Conference, but they've put together a late push, and now find themselves only three points out of eighth place. A playoff berth is a distinct possibility with a strong finish, especially with a game versus the Capitals, the team they're attempting to catch, in 10 days. Frankly, right now, they can't afford another "Ruff" collision (heyo!).

s/t to Carlo for the tip.

Follow Harrison Mooney on Twitter at @HarrisonMooney

Dennis Seidenberg, Gregory Campbell, and the newly-inked Shawn Thornton (AP)

The boy in the Freddy Kreuger shirt is probably really happy about this news.

Shawn Thornton will be seeing green this St. Patrick's Day, as the Boston Bruins have re-signed the pending UFA enforcer to a two-year extension worth $1.1 million per year.

Bob McKenzie broke the news Saturday afternoon, which is in keeping with his reports from mid-February that GM Peter Chiarelli would be attempting to re-sign all three members of Boston's Merlot Line, the fourth-line trio of Gregory Campbell, Daniel Paille and Thornton.

One down, two to go.

(According to the Merlot Line's Facebook page, the nickname comes from the color of their practice jerseys -- and also their impeccable class. And maybe the fact that Paul Giamatti hates them?)

Thornton's taken a step back since his 10-goal, 14-major campaign in 2010-11 (at least on the scoring end -- he's got 19 majors this year), but he remains an integral part of the Bruins' identity, as well an increasingly valuable entity in this league: a tough guy that can play.

A large part of the Bruins' success comes from their ability to roll four lines, an advantage that many (myself included) felt was the difference in the Stanley Cup Final. The Bruins were able to keep their forwards fresher than the Vancouver Canucks by giving their fourth line regular -- and often momentum-changing -- shifts.

There aren't many teams in the league with bottom trios as effective as Boston's.

The contract may seem a bit steep for a player that doesn't put the puck in the net all that often, but it's a great deal for Boston, all things considered. Judging by the value that teams are beginning to put on fighters that can take regular shifts, I'd argue that Thornton probably left some money on the table here by opting to forego unrestricted free agency in July.

I'm willing to wager he could have gotten $1.5 or more on the open market, especially if he were allowed to represent himself. Thornton wins debates; just ask Tony Gallagher.

Follow Harrison Mooney on Twitter at @HarrisonMooney

Sidney Crosby's second second coming continues to go well, as the Pittsburgh Penguins' captain picked up another multi-point game, notching 3 assists in a 5-2 win over the New Jersey Devils. Two of those helpers came on goals by Matt Cooke, who has scored four times since being gifted Sidney Crosby as a centre two games ago.

But the Crosby-Cooke combination isn't the only Pittsburgh twosome that should concern other Eastern Conference teams these days. Judging from this powerplay hookup, Crosby and Evgeni Malkin remain just as formidable together as ever:

Crosby does some incredible work to fend off his check and fire that cross-ice feed in traffic. What a pass. (Note: According to Wysh, a Penguins fan claims she "almost had a baby" on this pass. That, my friends, is a successful pass.)

But Malkin's one-timer is perfectly placed as well. What a shot.

Crosby's 3-point night gave him 5 points in two games since returning, and 17 on the year. That puts him on pace for 34 points in this injury-shortened campaign. If that doesn't blow your mind, consider: Crosby is averaging 1.7 points per game this season, far and away the best in the NHL. (He's trailed by teammate Evgeni Malkin at 1.38 and fellow Pennsylvanian Claude Giroux at 1.22.)

Granted, we're drawing from a 10-game sample size and you'd have to expect him to tail off a little (right?... right?), but the guy has missed nearly a full calendar year of hockey and, through 10 games, he's producing at the highest point per game pace since Mario Lemieux posted a 1.76 PPG in 2000-01. That's stunning.

The Pittsburgh Penguins look untouchable right now. En route to their 11th straight win, they outshot the Devils 44-14.

(Bonus material: check out New Jersey's green St. Patrick's Day shorts in the clip. Aw yeah.)

Follow Harrison Mooney on Twitter at @HarrisonMooney

Getty ImagesIt's beginning to look nigh impossible for a Western Conference player to garner a Hart Trophy nod this season, what with the remarkable campaigns of Claude Giroux, Evgeni Malkin, Steven Stamkos and Henrik Lundqvist, all of whom look deserving of a win, let alone a nomination. There's no denying that, regardless of which Conference you might think is stronger (it's the West, which has long had better teams and better beasts), the standout players this season have come from the East.

But, if the Hart stipulated representation from each Conference, I'd be inclined to select Jarome Iginla.

Is there anybody in the West who means more to his team than Iginla? I don't think so, and if you think the fortune of the Calgary Flames isn't inextricably linked to the play of their captain, consider the run he's on right now.

Iginla has hit the scoresheet in all eight games the Flames have played in the month of March. He's scored a goal in his last six and has 14 points total. During that same stretch, the team has one regulation loss and they've won five straight, suddenly jumping back into playoff contention. After Thursday night's games, they were only one point back of Phoenix and Colorado in 7th and 8th place.

If they can make the dance, it will be because of Iginla.

Here are your Puck Headlines: a glorious collection of news and views collected from the greatest blogosphere in sports and the few, the proud, the mainstream hockey media.

Panthers hair (Reddit)

• Via Reddit Hockey, this Florida Panthers fan is sporting some incredible hair. Here's another photo. But there's no way in the world this is the best picture of this dude that's out there. If you saw him (or if you are him), we want to hear from you.

• Even on off-days, Sidney Crosby picks up points. The Penguins' centre has been awarded an extra assist on Pascal Dupuis's 5-2 goal. [Elliotte Friedman]

• Bad news for the St. Louis Blues: Andy McDonald has been listed as week-to-week. Good news: He's expected to be ready for the playoffs. [JP Rutherford]

McRibs• Be sure to check out this gallery of the Dallas Stars' St. Patrick's Day warmup jerseys. Mike Ribeiro's "McRibs" jersey is especially inspired. [Facebook]

• Jonathan Toews's recovery from upper-body injury has suffered a setback of some sort. Joel Quenneville, on whether the Blackhawks expect Toews back before the playoffs: "Well, let's hope so. That'd be great." That doesn't sound promising. [NHL]

• Adrian Dater on what the loser point is doing to hockey in the stretch run. Hint: it's not turning it awesome. [SI]

• After three seasons, the Florida Panthers will be retiring their blue third jerseys because it's already attracted the sponsor they allegedly wanted and Dale Tallon hated it. [Miami Herald]

• Bourne, on the Bruins 'punk test', and the ramifications of Milan Lucic running Ryan Miller: "And so, every game became a playoff game for the Bruins. A knock-down, drag-out playoff game. Whether Boston won most of the physical confrontations or not, they've been forced to engage more than any other team in the NHL this season, and that's only fair — they made their bed, they chose their style." [Backhand Shelf]

• Is Brendan Shanahan GM material? [USA Today]

The St. Louis Blues suffered a big loss Thursday night, as forward Andy McDonald left their game versus the Carolina Hurricanes with a shoulder injury after getting tangled up with forward Tuomo Ruutu and crashing into the side boards.

After the Blues rang the puck around the net, McDonald and Ruutu sprinted to cut it off along the wall. McDonald appeared poised to win the puck race, but Ruutu attempted to swat the Blues forward's stick out of the way and body him away from the puck, a move that sent McDonald stumbling into the boards and then to the locker room with a shoulder injury.

Losing McDonald for any length of time is a real blow to the Blues' offense. Since returning from a concussion, the forward has 17 points in 18 games, the highest point-per-game rate on the team.

Ken Hitchcock didn't like the hit, and he made sure to say so. From STL Today:

"I didn't like the hit," Hitchcock said.

See? I told you. Hitchcock continued.

"I thought the hit was certainly a penalty, whether it's a suspension or not, who knows? But that's what's wrong with our game. The player was in a vulnerable position. He knocked his stick to knock him off balance and then pushed him hard into the boards. It's a real tough play in hockey."

It is a tough play, and regarding whether or not it's a suspension, I'm not sure either.

AP

Marco Sturm's commitment to this hook is downright admirable.

No. 1 Star: Cam Ward, Carolina Hurricanes

It was a goaltenders' duel in Carolina, as Ward and St Louis Blues' netminder Brian Elliott held this game scoreless for over 50 minutes before Chad LaRose opened the scoring. It would be all the Hurricanes needed, as Ward make 40 saves for the shutout in the 2-0 win, the 200th victory of his career. Jeff Skinner's insurance goal was the goal of the night, a slick bit of footwork after getting his stick lifted on a 2-on-1: