NHL Three Stars: Brouwer, Stoll provide late-game heroics in wins
No. 1 Star: Troy Brouwer, Washington Capitals
As much as everyone kvetched about the rivalry the NHL was trying to sell between the Caps and the Blackhawks, it ended up being a pretty great game. Brouwer, with his dad in the stands, sent the game winner past Corey Crawford with 12.9 seconds left in a 2-2 game.
No. 2 Star: Alexander Ovechkin, Washington Capitals
Ovi was beyond pumped for this outdoor home game. When it was all said and done, he had 1 goal, 1 assist (on the game winning power play goal), 4 hits, and the title of 'rock star' bestowed upon him by Coach Trotz.
No. 3 Star: Jarret Stoll, Los Angeles Kings
In non-outdoor game news: Stoll capped off the comeback by the Kings scoring the 3-2 game winner less than a minute after LA tied it up, and with 1:14 left on the game clock.
Honorable Mention: Los Angeles trailed 2-1 until the 2:07 mark of the third period when Justin Williams tied the game (stop me if you've heard that before) ...
... The game could have been much worse. Ryan Miller faced 40 shots from the Kings and only allowed 3 goals ... Radim Vrbata skated away with 2-points for the Canucks ... Patrick Sharp scored a power play goal for Chicago and was credited with a game-high 10 shots ... Mike Green added 2 assists for a total of 16 on the season.
Did You Know? Washington's Eric Fehr is the goal scoring record holder for outdoor games with 3. He scored 2 goals in 2011 and 1 goal today.
Dishonorable Mention: Chicago was less than thrilled with the officiating in the Winter Classic ... Kris Versteeg 'could be out for a bit' after blocking a shot with his hand in the early part of the third ... Vancouver was held to only 16 shots on goal by LA despite leading nearly the entire game.
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Jen Neale is a staff writer for Puck Daddy on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email her at puckdaddyblog@yahoo.com or follow her on Twitter!
