NHL Three Stars: Briere comes up clutch; Stammer's natural hatty; Wild Bill hunts Buffalo
No. 1 Star: Daniel Briere, Colorado Avalanche
With 0.4 seconds to go, Briere potted the Avalanche's second goal of the season to beat the Bruins, 3-2. For non-Boston fans, it's alwas a little fun to hear an unhappy Jack Edwards.
No. 2 Star: Steven Stamkos, Tampa Bay Lightning
Uhm, he's baaack? That didn't take too long. The one they call 'Stammer' scored a natural hattrick against Montreal.
Of the three, the first goal he scored, on power play, is my favorite. Not just for the slick moves by Stamkos, but for the guy who golf claps on camera following the goal.
No. 3 Star: William Karlsson, Anaheim Ducks
In his second NHL game ever, the Swedish rookie scored his first two goals in the league. Goal number one is a beauty. 'Wild Bill' misses on his first shot, skates to the center of the offensive zone, calls for the puck, steps on it, and fires a rocket past Michal Neuvirth.
Honorable Mention: Clarke MacArthur scored the game's only goal in the Senators 1-0 win against the Panthers. Tip your cap to Craig Andersen and Roberto Luongo for stopping 32 and 26 shots, respectively; then again, it was Florida and Ottawa playing ... It pays to be good and/or lucky in hockey. You can decide which one Reto Berra was on this sliding save against Milan Lucic ...
... Congrats to Lightning youngster Vladislav Namestnikov for scoring his first NHL goal and first multi-point NHL game ... Ben Bishop owes Anton Stralman dinner after making this incredible kick save for him ...
... Ryan Kessler continues to produce for the Ducks. He sniped this penalty shot goal in Anaheim's 5-1 victory over Buffalo ...
Did You Know? The Avalanche didn't score their first goal of the new season until 23:28 into Game 3. Jamie McGinn can be credited with getting his team off the schnide.
Dishonorable Mention: Montreal was undefeated until their 1-7 walloping by the Lightning. Carey Price was pulled after two periods where he gave up four goals. Dustin Tokarski replaced price and allowed in three goals, two of which came within 20 seconds of one another ... Anaheim has lost forward Pat Maroon for an indefinite amount of time due to a leg injury sustained on this low hit by Josh Gorges:
... Attendance for the Florida Panthers versus the Ottawa Senators, in Sunrise, was 7,311. Remember, that's tickets sold. If you saw the amount of open seats, you'd think that number was too high.
