NHL Three Stars: Talbot shines for Oilers; Malkin leads rout
Keep your eye on that puck, Antti.
No. 1 Star: Cam Talbot, Edmonton Oilers
Talbot made 39 stops, including 33 in the final 40 minutes to help the Oilers edge the Winnipeg Jets 2-1. Patrick Maroon and Lauri Korpikoski scored first period goals to help Talbot earn his fourth straight win.
No. 2 Star: Evgeni Malkin, Pittsburgh Penguins
Malkin tallied his 26th and 27th goals of the season during a 6-1 rout of the New Jersey Devils. The Penguins raced out to a 3-0 lead in the opening 22 minutes thanks to a pair of goals 38 seconds apart by Malkin and Matt Cullen. Bryan Rust recorded a goal and two assists and Sidney Crosby chipped in a pair of helpers himself to extend his point streak to five games. Malkin now has four goals in his last four games.
No. 3 Star: Corey Crawford, Chicago Blackhawks
Two goals in the first period and another pair in the third period helped pace the Blackhawks by the Detroit Red Wings 4-1. Crawford stopped 33 shots for his third straight win. Patrick Kane scored his 38th of the season to give him 89 points, a career best.
Honorable Mention: In the wildest game of the day, the New York Islanders and New York Rangers scored seven times in the opening period, with the Brooklynites coming out on top 6-4. Cal Clutterbuck fired a shot by Antti Raanta with 1:28 left in the third period to break a 4-4 tie. Johnny Boychuk scored twice in the first period, while Kyle Okposo, Nick Leddy and Frans Nielsen each recorded two points. The Islanders took six of seven games on their road trip.
Eric Staal recorded his first two points as a Ranger. He was also 20-for-22 in the face-off circle.
Kari Lehtonen made 23 saves and Antoine Roussel snapped a 1-1 tie with 2:14 left in the third period to help give the Dallas Stars a 2-1 win over the Ottawa Senators. Jason Spezza recorded a power play tally against his old side in the first period, giving him goals against all 30 NHL teams … Jori Lehtera, Ryan Reaves, Patrik Berglund and Robby Fabbri scored for the St. Louis Blues as they nearly blew a 3-0 lead to beat the Minnesota Wild 4-2. Jake Allen made 30 saves for his third win in a row.
Did You Know? “The Islanders scored three goals in the opening 4:45 of a game for the first time since Oct. 20, 2005, also against the Rangers.” (AP via Elias)
Dishonorable Mention: Devils goaltender Keith Kinkaid was in net for all six Pittsburgh goals … The Devils have now dropped eight of their last 10 … Jeff Blashill gave Petr Mrazek a quick hook after allowing two goals in the opening 6:19 … The Rangers have dropped six of their last seven games at MSG against the Islanders … Devan Dubnyk was pulled after letting in three goals on 16 shots. He’s allowed at least three goals in nine of his last 14 starts …Minnesota's power play went 0-for-4 as their winning streak came to an end after four games.
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