Kukla's Korner Hockey

Kukla's Korner Hockey

NHL Short Notes

01/25/2016 at 10:07am EST

CRAWFORD, BLACKHAWKS BLANK BLUES
Corey Crawford denied all 25 shots he faced to earn his League-leading seventh shutout of the season and backstop the Blackhawks to their 13th win in their past 15 games.

* At 33-15-4 (70 points), the Blackhawks moved five points ahead of the idle Stars (30-14-5, 65 points) for first place in the Central Division and Western Conference. They also climbed within three points of the idle Capitals (35-8-3, 73 points) for first place in the NHL standings; Washington, however, holds six games in hand.

* The Blackhawks picked up their seventh straight victory at United Center, their longest home winning streak since Nov. 9 – Dec. 21, 2014 (8-0-0). They pace the NHL in home wins and home points in 2015-16 (21-5-1, 43 points).

* Crawford, who totaled seven shutouts over the past four seasons combined (203 GP), has equaled that number in 41 games in 2015-16. He also ranks in the top 10 in the League in saves (1st; 1,157), wins (2nd; 28), save percentage (3rd; .932) and goals-against average (8th; 2.08).

* Crawford has registered all seven of his shutouts this season on home ice, boosting his record to 18-5-1 at United Center (1.59 GAA, .947 SV%, 7 SO). His 18 home wins lead the NHL, spurred by six straight victories at United Center dating to Jan. 3.

KINGS RALLY PAST RIVAL SHARKS
Vincent Lecavalier scored the tying goal with 12.2 seconds remaining in regulation andMarian Gaborik provided the winning tally with less than one minute left in overtime to power the Kings to their third victory in their last five games.

* At 30-15-3 (63 points), the Kings reached the 30-win milestone in the fewest games in the franchise’s 48-year history (48 GP). Their previous record was 51 games, achieved in both 1980-81 and 2005-06.

* The Kings, who have split their first four meetings with the Sharks this season (LAK: 2-2-0, SJS: 2-1-1), moved nine points ahead of their intrastate rival atop the Pacific Division. They will face off for a fifth and final time on March 28 at SAP Center.

* Gaborik registered his 11th career overtime goal and second of the campaign (also Nov. 28 vs. CHI). His 11 such goals share sixth among active players, with Coyotes captainShane Doan.

* Lecavalier posted his fourth goal in nine games since joining the Kings on Jan. 6 (4-1—5). That equals his total from his 45 prior outings dating to last season (4-9—13 w/ PHI).

SENATORS, HURRICANES INCH CLOSER TO PLAYOFF SPOTS
Both the Senators (23-20-6, 52 points) and Hurricanes (22-20-8, 52 points) recorded wins on Sunday to move within three points of the two teams currently occupying Wild Card spots in the Eastern Conference:


* Craig Anderson turned aside all 35 shots he faced to collect his third shutout of the season and guide the Senators to their third victory in their past five contests. Jean-Gabriel Pageau scored his League-leading fifth shorthanded goal of the campaign; Ottawa paces the NHL with 10 shorthanded goals overall.

* ICYMI: Bobby Ryan’s second-period goal, which stood as the game-winner, helped two young Senators fans get a puppy.

* Kris Versteeg scored twice, including the winning and insurance tallies, to lift the Hurricanes to a 6-2-1 record in their past nine games. Versteeg posted his 10th career multi-goal performance and first since Jan. 21, 2012 at WPG (2-1—3 w/ FLA).

MILESTONES & BENCHMARKS
* Sharks forward Joe Thornton (0-1—1) moved within two points of becoming the 33rd player in NHL history to record 1,300 in his career (367-931—1,298). He has posted at least one point in 17 of his past 18 outings (5-18—23), including 2-10—12 during a nine-game point streak.

* Thornton also became the second player to appear in 800 games with the Sharks, joining teammate Patrick Marleau (1,376).

* Blues captain David Backes (700) and Rangers forward Derek Stepan (400) also played in milestone games. Backes became the fifth player to appear in 700 games with the Blues, joining Bernie Federko (927), Barret Jackman (803), Brian Sutter (779) andBrett Hull (744).

LOOSE PUCKS
Despite suffering the overtime loss, the Sharks (7-0-2) extended their point streak to nine games – their longest such run since Oct. 3-21, 2013 (8-0-1) . . . Via Elias, Hurricanes forward Elias Lindholm (21 years, 53 days) became the youngest player in franchise history to convert a penalty shot . . . Blackhawks forward Artemi Panarin posted the game-winning goal. He continues to pace all rookies in goals (17), assists (29) and points (46) this season . . . Sharks captain Joe Pavelski scored his 24th goal of the season to move into sole possession of sixth place in the NHL . . . Flames forward Joe Colborne (1-1—2) registered his second multi-point game of the season (also Nov. 17 vs. NJD: 0-2—2) . . . Senators teammates Bobby Ryan (4-2—6) and Mika Zibanejad (2-4—6) and Sharks forward Joonas Donskoi (1-5—6) all extended their point streaks to five games . . . ICYMI: The Department of Player Safety suspended Kings forward Milan Lucic for one game for roughing Coyotes defenseman Kevin Connauton . . . Bridgestone Arena continued its preparations for the 2016 Honda NHL All-Star Game, including the addition of a new center-ice logo.

SNEAK PEEK AT MONDAY’S ACTION
All Times Eastern
Detroit @ NY Islanders, 7:00 p.m., SNO, SNP, FS-D, MSG+
Boston @ Philadelphia, 7:00 p.m., TVAS, NESN, CSN-PH
Montreal @ Columbus, 7:00 p.m., SNE, RDS, FS-O
Buffalo @ NY Rangers, 7:30 p.m., NBCSN
Calgary @ Dallas, 8:30 p.m., SNW, FS-SW
Arizona @ Minnesota, 8:30 p.m., FS-A, FS-WI, FS-N+
NBCSN Channel Finder
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WESTERN CONFERENCE TEAMS CONTINUE PLAYOFF PUSHES
Two clubs battling for playoff spots in the Western Conference face off when the Wild (23-17-8, 54 points) welcome the Coyotes (23-19-5, 51 points) to Xcel Energy Center. Minnesota currently occupies the final Wild Card spot in the conference, two points clear of Nashville (22-18-8, 52 points). Arizona, meanwhile, is clinging to third place in the Pacific Division, but is tied with Vancouver (20-18-11, 51 points) – in terms of points – for its position. This marks the third and final meeting of the season between the Wild and Coyotes; the teams have split their prior two matchups, with Minnesota earning a 4-3 victory on Oct. 15 and Arizona posting a 2-1 overtime win on Dec. 11.

the above information was supplied by the NHL PR department

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Paul Kukla founded Kukla’s Korner in 2005 and the site has since become the must-read site on the ‘net for all the latest happenings around the NHL.

From breaking news to in-depth stories around the league, KK Hockey is updated with fresh stories all day long and will bring you the latest news as quickly as possible.

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