NHL Final Scores & Recap

(Friday, February 1st)

Final Score: NY Rangers 3, New Jersey 1

Newark, NJ - Chris Drury scored twice and Henrik Lundqvist made 33 saves, as the New York Rangers clipped the New Jersey Devils, 3-1, in an Atlantic Division tussle at the Prudential Center. Brandon Dubinsky also lit the lamp for the Rangers, who have won all five games against the Devils this season and four of their last five overall. New York pulled within one point of third-place New Jersey courtesy of its 26th win of the season and ninth road triumph. Zach Parise scored for the Devils, who have dropped three in a row and four of six. Martin Brodeur allowed two goals on 25 shots in defeat.

Final Score: Atlanta 5, Buffalo 4 (SO)

Atlanta, GA - Eric Perrin scored the game-winner in the shootout as the Atlanta Thrashers came back to beat the Buffalo Sabres, 5-4, at Philips Arena. In the fourth round of the shootout, Perrin skated in on net, sold the backhander to Jocelyn Thibault, came back to the forehand and deposited the puck into the net. Thomas Vanek had the last chance for Buffalo, but he missed the net on his shot. Bobby Holik and Tobias Enstrom each had a goal and an assist for the Thrashers, who have won two straight after a five- game losing streak. Johan Hedberg stopped 29 shots and all four shooters in the shootout. Atlanta played without star forward Ilya Kovalchuk, who sat out the game with a right knee injury and will miss Saturday’s game in Washington, but is expected to return to play early next week. Jochen Hecht, Jason Pominville, Daniel Paille and Dmitri Kalinin each had a goal for the Sabres, who had a three-game winning streak stopped. Ryan Miller started in net for Buffalo and made 18 saves on 20 shots, but left after the second period with a lower body injury. He appeared to get hurt when Atlanta’s Chris Thorburn fell on him late in the second. Thibault finished the game between the pipes and stopped seven shots.

Final Score: Florida 4, Vancouver 3 (SO)

Sunrise, FL - Nathan Horton notched the game-winner by netting the lone goal in the shootout, as the Panthers spoiled Vancouver goaltender Roberto Luongo’s return to Florida with a 4-3 win over the Canucks. Daniel Sedin could have kept the shootout going with the final shot in the third round, but while making a move to the backhand near the net, lost control of the puck before he could take a shot. Horton scored in regulation, as did Jozef Stumpel and Stephen Weiss for the Panthers, who snapped a two- game slide. Vokoun added 29 stops in regulation for his 21st win of the season. Luongo, making his first appearance in South Florida since the 2006 trade which dealt him to Vancouver, took the loss despite a solid, 40-save performance. The 28-year-old goaltender played for the Panthers from 2000-2006, compiling 108 wins and 26 shutouts. Daniel and Henrik Sedin posted a goal and assist each for the Canucks, who have lost three in a row and five of six. Mason Raymond also tallied and Markus Naslund picked up a pair of helpers in the loss.

Final Score: Detroit 2, Colorado 0

Detroit, MI - Henrik Zetterberg scored with 2:20 left in regulation to break a scoreless tie and Dominik Hasek made 11 of his 15 saves in the third period to record his fourth shutout of the season and 80th of his career, as the Detroit Red Wings blanked the Colorado Avalanche, 2-0, at Joe Louis Arena. Kris Draper added an empty-net goal and Pavel Datsyuk registered two helpers to give him assists in five consecutive games, as the Red Wings recorded their sixth straight win. Peter Budaj, who was making his first start since January 2, allowed one goal on 35 shots for the Avalanche, who have dropped three of four.

Final Score: St. Louis 1, Anaheim 0 (SO)

St. Louis, MO - Andy McDonald scored the game-winner in the shootout as the St. Louis Blues downed the Anaheim Ducks, 1-0, in a tight contest at Scottrade Center. After playing 65 minutes of scoreless hockey, Ryan Getzlaf took the first shot for Anaheim, but lost control of the puck as he was making a move to the backhand. McDonald then gave St. Louis the lead as he stickhandled to the forehand and lifted the puck into the left corner. After Manny Legace made a right pad save on Todd Bertuzzi’s stuffer, Brad Boyes sealed the win as he got the puck into the net past the left pad of Jean-Sebastien Giguere. Legace finished the game with 30 saves to post his fourth shutout of the season for the Blues, who have won two straight after a seven-game losing streak. Giguere stopped 20 shots for his third shutout of the season for the Ducks, who have dropped a season-high five straight contests.

Final Score: Dallas 4, Edmonton 1

Edmonton, AB - Brenden Morrow posted a goal and an assist, leading the Dallas Stars to a 4-1 win over the Edmonton at Rexall Place. The win moves the Stars, who entered play tied with idle San Jose, into first place in the Pacific Division. Stephane Robidas, Jussi Jokinen and Steve Ott also tallied for the Stars, who have won two in a row. Mike Ribeiro collected two assists and Marty Turco made 32 saves to earn his 21st win of the season. Zack Stortini lit the lamp for the Oilers, who have dropped two straight and six of eight overall. Dwayne Roloson allowed three goals on 21 shots in defeat.

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