This won't make Dennis Seidenberg a popular man in Edmonton.The New York Islanders defenseman caught Oilers rookie Jesse Puljujarvi with a knee-on-knee hit midway through the opening period Saturday night.Puljujarvi left the game and was ruled out for the remainder shortly thereafter.

She said yes, obviously.Detroit Red Wings forward Justin Abdelkader popped the question to fiancee Julie Leshkevich in fine fashion.

Craig Anderson wears No. 41 for the Ottawa Senators, but Saturday night called for a heartfelt and temporary change.

Willie Desjardins isn't hiding from the fact his employment hinges on results.The Vancouver Canucks head coach admitted in advance of Saturday's game versus the Toronto Maple Leafs that his post isn't secure."When losses pile up everybody gets on the hot seat," Desjardins said, according to TSN. "I think that's a common thing for the league. And it's a fair thing - it's not unfair. Especially when you're not scoring. We (have to) find ways to score - we know that."Vancouver has scored four goals across six consecutive regulation losses, and has been shut out in four of its last five games. It ranks second-to-last in shots per game, and is still without a goal from the $36-million investment placed on Loui Eriksson.The Canucks are, however, one of the top teams in terms of suppressing shots on target, which is a marked improvement from last season when they finished second-to-last.Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Calgary Flames forward Kris Versteeg will be sidelined for a couple weeks while dealing with a groin injury, head coach Glen Gulutzan announced Saturday.Versteeg sustained the injury during Thursday's win over the San Jose Sharks. The Flames placed him on injured reserve Saturday, and recalled prospect Hunter Shinkaruk from the AHL.In 12 games with the Flames this season, Versteeg has recorded four points.Shinkaruk, a first-round pick of the Vancouver Canucks in 2013, notched four goals and four assists across seven AHL contests prior to being recalled.Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Craig Anderson and his Senators teammates will wear special decals on their helmets for Saturday's game versus the Buffalo Sabres on "Hockey Fights Cancer" night in Ottawa.Related: Anderson returns to start vs. Sabres on Hockey Fights Cancer nightThe "Stick by Nik" stickers are in support of Anderson's wife Nicholle, who was diagnosed with cancer late last month.

The New York Islanders are evidently running low on wingers to try on John Tavares' top line.Fourth-line wing and hits leader Cal Clutterbuck will flank the superstar center with Josh Bailey for Saturday's game versus the Edmonton Oilers, the team announced.Tavares is still producing at a solid rate despite seeing wingers cycle through, picking up five goals and nine points in 11 games. He's shared the ice with Andrew Ladd, Jason Chimera, Shane Prince, and Anthony Beauvillier among others this year after the Islanders let Kyle Okposo walk in free agency.Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

David Backes will be back in the Boston Bruins lineup Saturday against the New York Rangers, the veteran forward confirmed with NHL.com's Amalie Benjamin.Backes has been absent the last five games after undergoing surgery to clean up an injured elbow.Boston was kept under two goals per game in Backes' absence, but did collect three wins on the back of Tuukka Rask.The former St. Louis Blues captain had two goals and four points in five games before his procedure.Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Craig Anderson will be in goal for the Ottawa Senators once again Saturday night when the club takes on the Buffalo Sabres, head coach Guy Boucher confirmed.Anderson left the club Thursday for the second time in a week to be with his wife Nicholle, who was recently diagnosed with cancer.Fittingly, Saturday night marks the NHL's Hockey Fights Cancer night - an initiative to raise awareness about the disease and money for research - at the Canadian Tire Centre, which promises to be an emotional atmosphere.Anderson has made two starts since the club announced Nicholle's diagnosis: an uplifting 37-save shutout over the Edmonton Oilers, followed by a 32-save win over Carolina.Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

The disjointed Philadelphia Flyers defensive corps will get a boost Saturday night versus the Montreal Canadiens.Michael Del Zotto is set to make his season debut after missing the first month of the season with a knee injury suffered in the preseason, general manager Ron Hextall said, according to Philly.com's Sam Carchidi.He's expected to be paired with Shayne Gostisbehere.Philadelphia's 43 goals against is the most in the league but they managed a winning record despite their permeability, taking 13 points from 12 games in Del Zotto's absence.Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

It may not be detailed in his contract, or even once communicated aloud, but it had to have been understood: An essential component of Al Montoya's job is taking a bullet when necessary for Carey Price.Montoya, the netminder now usually in a ball cap for the Canadiens, made this essential sacrifice Friday, staying in for the full 60 minutes as the Columbus Blue Jackets forced arena staff to tap into the gunpowder reserve, firing the cannon 10 times versus Montreal.Big picture, this double-digit thrashing depends on perspective.On one hand, Montreal’s inflated PDO and bottom-10 possession metrics indicate this was an inevitable correction (favorably on one night) for a team that still relies far too heavily on the NHL’s best goaltender. Conversely, the one-loss Canadiens' 2.09 goals-per-game input still leads the league despite being tagged for 10, supporting the theory that this was merely a wake-up call for a legitimate title contender.There is no such spin, however, for Montoya. Allowing 43 percent of the club's total input on one night is humiliating. Although it's just one night, it skews a season's worth of statistics, and will likely affect future earnings.But on Friday, he earned his money.A backup goalie's primary function is to protect the starter; this is achieved in a variety of ways. They're obviously needed to spell an injured starter, to handle the crease during back-to-backs, and to be used wherever needed to lessen the workload on the No. 1, who's typically targeted an optimal amount of starts to make throughout the year. This sort of shielding isn't limited to physical health, either. Backups also exist so the big-money starter can avoid the sort of shame Montoya's dealing with right now.Normally, this goes both ways, and the No. 1 will tighten up the straps and head in when the backup's unable to track the puck in a game still within reach - like when Montoya allowed three goals in a little over three minutes in the first period Friday.But in Montreal, preservation takes on a heightened importance. Price means more to the Canadiens than any other player does to his team in the entire NHL, and with his injury history - and the devastation his 70-game absence wrought on Montreal last season - it would be borderline negligent on the part of Michel Therrien and the coaching staff to send him into a meaningless game, cold.Therrien said after the game that it was "a really tough decision," and that Price was held back because Montreal will meet Philadelphia on the second half of a back-to-back Saturday night.That's all valid - but this was the right decision regardless.Montoya will handle this situation the right way. If his ego's a little bruised this morning, though, it's far quicker to fix, and way less detrimental to the team, than a section of Price's soft tissue that's torn, strained, or stretched due to an altered pregame routine and insufficient warmup when thrust into action for meaningless minutes.Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Rickard Rakell is back.The Anaheim Ducks forward played in his third game of the season Friday after waiting out a contract extension, finishing with three points for the second time in four days.Rakell had two goals and an assist in his team's 5-1 win over the Arizona Coyotes, giving him six points in three games. He had three points in his season debut Tuesday, and was held scoreless Wednesday.The point is, Rakell is averaging three points every other game, and when he's on the board, the Ducks win. And that makes Kevin Bieksa very happy:

Friday was Montreal Canadiens head coach Michel Therrien's 53rd birthday. He got the worst gift of all from his team: a 10-0 shelling at the hands of the Columbus Blue Jackets.The good news: The boys are all saying the right things after hanging their poor goalie Al Montoya out to dry."You don't ever forget one like that," forward Brendan Gallagher said, according to The Columbus Dispatch's Aaron Portzline. "We got taught a lesson. This was an ass-kicking. We had it coming."Therrien agreed with Gallagher's last point."It's a tough game," he said. "But the coaching staff, we saw it coming. We saw it coming like a big curveball."As far as captain Max Pacioretty's concerned, the Canadiens are going to learn a lot about themselves after Friday's loss."We got the outcome we deserved tonight," Pacioretty told reporters. "The good news is we turn around and play again (Saturday) at home. So it's tough to shake it off when you get scored on that many times, but we'll see what type of group we have when we lace 'em up (Saturday)."It's frustrating. We've done a lot of good things recently. It hasn't been perfect. I think the reason why we've won so many games is because we've stuck together and played for one another. And tonight we just left (Montoya) out to dry and that's what's frustrating, because we pride ourselves on being such a close group, and to leave our goalie out to dry like that is very frustrating."Montoya stopped 30 of 40 shots."It was really tough to leave him in there," Therrien said of putting Montoya back in the crease to start the third period when it was already 8-0, according to Pro Hockey Talk's Cam Tucker. "That was a really tough decision to make."Canadiens goalie coach Stephane Waite spoke with Montoya after 40 minutes, Tucker adds, presumably about the mop-up role he was going to be used in for the rest of the game.Carey Price will be in the crease Saturday against the Philadelphia Flyers.Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

A blowout of this magnitude was bound to produce plenty of noteworthy nuggets, and Friday's 10-0 rout of the Montreal Canadiens by the Columbus Blue Jackets certainly did.Here are 10 memorable statistical tidbits from the historic blowout:Worst Canadiens shutout loss in nearly 75 years

Tie Domi would be proud.Max Domi, the son of the famous enforcer, made Ryan Kesler regret his decision to drop the gloves Friday night, sending the Anaheim Ducks forward to the ice with a vicious uppercut.Kesler left the game to be evaluated and eventually joined his teammates back on the bench a few minutes into the second period.Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Brandon Tanev got to celebrate his first NHL goal twice.Video review was needed to confirm the Winnipeg Jets rookie found the net for the first time in his career, and the goal was a big one, as it knotted Friday's game against the Detroit Red Wings at 3-3 with less than 10 minutes to go in the third period.Tanev made it two for himself with 80 seconds left to play, going roof in fine fashion on a breakaway to make it 4-3, and giving the Jets another third-period comeback win.The final score was 5-3 Winnipeg. Nik Ehlers had a goal and three assists, while Mark Scheifele scored once and added two helpers.(Videos courtesy: NHL.com)Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Al Montoya hates cannons. And you can't blame him.The Blue Jackets put a remarkable 10 goals past the Montreal Canadiens' backup goalie on 40 shots Friday in Columbus, with the Goal Cannon going off in celebration each time.Montoya allowed eight goals in 40 minutes, but with Montreal at home to Philadelphia on Saturday, the poor guy was back in the crease to start the third period. It was his game to lose - and hopefully forget.Here are the best tweets from The Beatdown in Ohio:

Someone check on the cannon.The Columbus Blue Jackets established a new franchise mark for goals in a game Friday night in a 10-0 dismantling of the Montreal Canadiens.Scott Hartnell's second of the game made it 9-0 for the Blue Jackets midway through the third period, breaking the club's previous record of eight goals in a single contest.Josh Anderson's second gave Columbus a 10-0 lead less than three minutes later.

Give Patrik Laine space, and this is what happens.The Winnipeg Jets phenom flicked home his seventh goal of the season Friday night, capitalizing on a collision between Detroit Red Wings defenseman Danny DeKeyser and forward Andreas Athanasiou that wiped both of them out of the play.The goal vaulted Laine into the rookie goal-scoring lead, surpassing Toronto Maple Leafs sensation Auston Matthews and New York Rangers winger Jimmy Vesey, who were idle Friday.(Video courtesy: NHL.com)Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

The Winnipeg Jets will be considerably thinner up front against the Detroit Red Wings on Friday night.Jets forwards Mathieu Perreault and Joel Armia will both miss the game due to injuries sustained Thursday night against the Washington Capitals.Head coach Paul Maurice told reporters Friday that Perreault is considered day to day, while Armia has gone back to Winnipeg to have tests performed for what Maurice said is "not a day to day situation."Nicolas Petan will play against the Red Wings after being recalled earlier Friday. The 21-year-old has four goals in nine games for the AHL's Manitoba Moose and appeared in 26 NHL games last season.Perreault has one goal and two assists in 11 games, while Armia has four points in 10 contests.Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

David Pastrnak scored a goal in Thursday's win over Tampa Bay, but also appears to have experienced a dental mishap after being caught with a high stick from Lightning forward J.T. Brown.The Boston Bruins winger shared his new look, with a great tribute to Lloyd Christmas, Jim Carrey's character in "Dumb and Dumber":

Alain Vigneault's New York Rangers have never really had a problem scoring goals; just four teams - the Stars, Blackhawks, Lightning, and Capitals - have a greater per-game output across the last four years.This unshakable standard's been maintained despite shot-creation valleys, as well as Rick Nash, the $7.8-million star, leading the NHL in even-strength goals one season to eking out 15 total the next. In tandem with the supreme puck-stopping capabilities of Henrik Lundqvist, the Rangers have scored just enough to rack up the most wins league-wide when factoring in postseason success.Yet there's reason to suggest this season's Rangers - the team people had pegged for a step back this year - could be the most dangerous in this regime.New York beat the Edmonton Oilers 5-3 on Thursday, winning for an eighth time in 11 games, and in the process scoring a league-best 45th goal to push their goal differential to plus-20.Here's how they suddenly have the look of the NHL's most potent attack.AdditionsIn his first full summer with autonomy, Rangers general manager Jeff Gorton eschewed convention. Rather than filling out his bottom six with role players limited once their skates cross the blue line, he targeted those with potential or a proven track record of scoring in the NHL.Potential arrived in Jimmy Vesey, whose importance came twofold. First, the reigning Hobey Baker came as a top-end prospect New York lost spending so many draft picks chasing a ring. And second, the college free agent projected to offer singular value to a cap-strapped team on an entry-level contract as a refined, 23-year-old rookie. So far, this prophecy has proven true, as Vesey's ascended into a top-line role, and has six goals and nine points in his first 11 games.His signing was precipitated, in part, by another move to inject young blood into their aging core. A month before, Gorton flipped Derick Brassard - New York's second leading scorer from a season ago - to the Ottawa Senators for Mika Zibanejad (also 23), a second-round pick, and in turn, almost $2.5 million in cap room. Zibanejad's since solidified the second-line center role, his speed and play-making instinct lending itself well to often-dominant power winger Chris Kreider.Elsewhere on the margins, Gorton signed a serviceable penalty killer who happened to have a 34-goal season on his resume in Michael Grabner, and filled his fourth-line center position with Brandon Pirri, who scored 22 goals in 49 games two seasons ago.Altogether, the Rangers now deploy legitimate scoring punch on all four lines, and thus far have submitted 10 of the 93 NHL forwards with seven points or more.ResurgencesWhat may come as more encouraging than success from New York's newcomers are the starts from players that recently fell short of expectation.First and foremost, the incentivized Nash is again producing at a top-line rate after hearing trade rumors after his dismal, injury-plagued season. He has six goals and nine points in 11 games, and is posing the same problems he did for opposing defenses in his "prime," using his speed, size, passing ability, and a willingness to dig into the dirty areas.Likewise, Kreider has shown the complete, explosive package that wavered at times last season when healthy. A terror in full flight, Kreider was arguably the most dominant player in the NHL through the first week, recording three goals and seven points in four games before neck spasms chopped him down.And finally, Kevin Hayes' resurgence is illustrative of both New York's new-look artillery and refined approach. His third-line unit, which boasts legitimate top-six talent in himself and J.T. Miller, has combined for 30 points in 11 games as teams struggle to match lines with the Rangers. Hayes (who no longer needs to look over his shoulder with Tanner Glass in the minors) has already contributed 30 percent of his total production from his sophomore season.Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

A big dream appears to be dead for the Ottawa Senators.The idea of an outdoor game being played on Parliament Hill has been nixed by the Government of Canada, according to Don Butler of the Ottawa Citizen.The Senators had hoped to host a game on the hill in 2017 as part of the team's 25th anniversary celebration, the 100th anniversary of the NHL, and Canada's 150th birthday.

The New York Islanders could be paying the price for allowing key free agents to sign elsewhere in the summer.That's what head coach Jack Capuano alluded to following Thursday's 3-2 loss to Philadelphia, pointing out his club scored a power-play goal with the likes of Cal Clutterbuck and Casey Cizikas on the ice, with the other marker coming off the stick of Dennis Seidenberg."We took 134 points out of our lineup (in free agency) and we need to find a way to get some offense," Capuano said, per Arthur Staple of Newsday. "That’s my concern."Those points came from primarily from Kyle Okposo (now with Buffalo) and Frans Nielsen (Detroit), who ranked second and third in team scoring with 64 and 52 points, respectively.Andrew Ladd was signed with a view to filling that hole, but he's contributed a lone assist in 11 games.Ladd is far from the only player failing to pick up the slack, and Capuano wasn't pleased with the effort brought forth in the loss to the Flyers."It was concerning the way a few guys came out, I won’t lie to you," he said. "We have some decisions to make going forward."Perhaps general manager Garth Snow will have some decisions of his own to make sooner than later.Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Following a loss to the Montreal Canadiens last week, Nazem Kadri took a moment to send a family his best wishes after learning they named their baby after him.Little did he know that in that moment, he joined another Toronto Maple Leafs family altogether.

CHICAGO - Marian Hossa raced up the ice and headed to the net. Fedor Tyutin jabbed at him with his stick, but it was too late. Hossa shook him off and flicked the puck over Semyon Varlamov's glove.It was vintage Hossa.While the NHL playoffs raged into June, the 37-year-old Hossa found his legs again. The physical winger is off to a solid start for the Chicago Blackhawks, flashing the form that made him one of the league's best two-way players for most of his distinguished career.''So far, I feel pretty good, skating-wise, and also had lots of puck on my stick,'' Hossa said. ''So when you play with the puck you get more comfort level and you are making things happen.''Like Thursday night, when Hossa played a key role in Chicago's 4-0 win over Colorado. First, he got free for a breakaway and held off Tyutin on the way to his fourth goal of the season at 15:03 of the first.Hossa scored again 55 seconds into the third , taking a stretch pass from defenseman Duncan Keith and shooting over Varlamov's glove for his fourth goal in his last four games.''He's skating well,'' coach Joel Quenneville said. ''He's never really looked like he's slowing down at any time. The finish around the net was nice to see, two outstanding shots.''Hossa, who signed a 12-year, $62.8 million contract in July 2009, helped the Blackhawks win the Stanley Cup in 2010, 2013 and 2015. But the years of long playoff runs and Olympic play took a toll.He had just 13 goals and 20 assists in 64 games last season, and Chicago was eliminated in the first round of the playoffs for the first time since 2012.''Definitely longer summer helps after such a long time,'' Hossa said. ''I think the body needed a little rest.''His resurgence has helped Chicago to four straight wins and seven of nine overall, masking some issues with puck possession and turnovers. The Blackhawks face a difficult test this weekend when they take on Dallas in a home-and-home set.Hossa has five goals and four assists in 10 games. He didn't score his fifth goal last season until his 24th game.''You know sometimes when the puck goes in early for you you're more relaxed,'' he said. ''You don't force things, and I think right now that's what's happening.''Hossa also has found a home on Chicago's second line, playing alongside center Artem Anisimov and Calder Trophy winner Artemi Panarin. Anisimov, Panarin and Patrick Kane formed one of the NHL's most potent lines last season, but Kane is playing alongside captain Jonathan Toews in the top group at the moment as Quenneville searches for balance in his lineup.Panarin set up Hossa's first goal against the Avalanche.''Playing with two really good players, you know, try to find an open area and those guys can find you,'' Hossa said. ''I think things are clicking, just need to keep working on it.''Hossa's first multigoal game since Jan. 10, also against Colorado, ran his goal total to 504, passing Peter Bondra for the highest total for a Slovakian-born player. Hossa is 41st on the NHL's career list, just three back of Hall of Fame center Jean Beliveau.''He's got some offensive numbers that really are great to look at,'' Quenneville said after Hossa scored his 500th goal, which occurred last month against Philadelphia. ''The best part of his game is the consistency of being a pro, night in and night out, being responsible on both sides of the puck, plays hard every single game and night. It's a good example for our young guys learning how to play the right way.''---Jay Cohen can be reached at http://www.twitter.com/jcohenapCopyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

The Detroit Red Wings appear set to welcome Niklas Kronwall back to the lineup Friday against the Winnipeg Jets.

For the second game in a row, the Vancouver Canucks outshot the opposition, but came out on the losing end after failing to hit the back of the net.Thursday's loss in Ottawa marked the fourth time the Canucks have been shut out in their past five games. Vancouver fired 27 shots on Mike Condon, who got the shutout in his Senators debut, after recording 42 shots the night before in Montreal, only to be flummoxed at every turn by Carey Price.The chances are there, says head coach Willie Desjardins, but a sense of desperation may be lacking.

On the Fly, theScore's NHL roundtable series, will be published every Friday throughout the season. This week, we look at those producing at a high level, but flying under the radar.The forgotten superstarO'Leary: Claude Giroux is no stranger to going unnoticed.Over the past five seasons combined, the Flyers' captain ranks fifth league-wide in overall points, trailing a who's who of NHL superstars.This season - so far at least - it's much of the same, as the 28-year-old sits tied for second in scoring with 13 points in 12 games.Giroux has topped 70 points four times in his career, yet hardly garners much of the notoriety or superstardom that comes with being one of the league's top offensive threats.His underappreciation is a common trend, even on the international scale. After finally cracking a best-on-best Team Canada roster at the World Cup, Giroux was scratched for all but one game.If Giroux keeps up his current pace - his career mark of 0.9 points per game suggests that's quite possible - maybe, just maybe, he'll finally be recognized for what he's capable of.The HurricaneWilkins: It's easy to fly under the radar in Raleigh, and former Calder Trophy winner Jeff Skinner has done exactly that.

Matthew Tkachuk certainly looks like an NHLer.The Calgary Flames rookie showed off his speed and skill Thursday against the San Jose Sharks, taking a feed from Michael Frolik and fooling goaltender Martin Jones for his second goal of the game.Tkachuk's goal held up as the game-winner in a 3-2 victory.It came mere hours after the Flames announced they were keeping the 18-year-old for his 10th game of the season, thus burning the first-year of his entry-level contract.Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Scoring is suddenly a lost art for the Vancouver Canucks.The Ottawa Senators defeated Willie Desjardins' club 1-0 on Thursday night, handing the Canucks their seventh consecutive loss.It was the fourth time in the last five games and second time in as many nights that Vancouver failed to register a single goal.The Canucks lost 3-0 to the Montreal Canadiens on Wednesday night, following a 5-2 defeat at the hands of the Washington Capitals last Saturday. The scoreless drought began with losses to the Senators and the Edmonton Oilers last week.Vancouver became the first team in NHL history to open a season with three straight wins while never leading in regulation.Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Marian Hossa continues to etch his name in the record books.The Chicago Blackhawks forward scored twice in a 4-0 victory over the Colorado Avalanche on Thursday night, passing Peter Bondra to become the top-scoring Slovakian-born player in league history.Hossa tied Bondra with his 503rd career goal to make it 2-0 late in the first period, then surpassed the former Washington Capitals star with his 504th career marker less than a minute into the second period.The 37-year-old became the 44th player to score 500 career goals when he accomplished the feat during a game against the Philadelphia Flyers last month.Hossa needed 1,246 games to surpass Bondra, who only required 1,081 to score 503.Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

DALLAS - Tyler Seguin assisted on Dallas' first four goals to help the Stars beat the St. Louis Blues 6-2 on Thursday night.Seguin's four assists tied his career high. He had scored three of Dallas' six goals in the previous five games.John Klingberg had two goals for the Stars, including an empty-netter. Patrick Eaves, Stephen Johns, Jason Spezza and Jordie Benn also scored for Dallas. Jamie Benn had three assists.Paul Stastny and captain Alex Pietrangelo scored for St. Louis.Stars goalie Antti Niemi made 28 saves. Jake Allen had 21 for the Blues.Eaves broke a scoreless tie at 6:35 of the second period. St. Louis tied it on Stastny's goal at 11:26, but Dallas took a 2-1 lead 31 seconds later on Klingberg's first of the season.Pietrangelo scored at 10:27 of the third. He and Stastny each had a goal and an assist.In the first period, each team had eight shots on goal. Four of St. Louis' shots came in less than 2 minutes, beginning with Carl Gunnarsson's attempt at 12:34.The Blues killed the only penalty in the first, against Alexander Steen for hooking at 3:31.In the second period, Dallas scored when Eaves skated in front of the net as Seguin arrived from the right faceoff circle. Eaves deflected the puck off his body and over Allen.St. Louis scored its first goal when the puck went off Spezza in front to Stastny, who beat Niemi from short range.Seguin set up Benn for a scoring chance, but Allen stopped his shot. Benn gathered in the puck and passed out to Klingberg at the right faceoff dot. His shot went past Allen into the upper left corner.NOTES: It was the first regular-season game between the teams since St. Louis beat the Stars 6-1 in the deciding seventh game of a Western Conference semifinal playoff series last season. Play between the Central Division rivals became chippy, with two fights in the second period and coincidental minor penalties for roughing in the third. . The Blues had scored only three goals in their previous four games. St. Louis entered the game ranked 16th in the NHL in shots on goal per game, but 28th in goals per game. Seguin's previous four-assist game was on Oct. 18, 2014, against Philadelphia. He has seven points (three goals, four assists) in the last five games.UP NEXT:Blues: St. Louis will return home to face Columbus on Saturday.Stars: They'll end a two-game homestand Saturday vs. Chicago.Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Arizona Coyotes forward Christian Dvorak made sure his first NHL goal was a memorable one.Gaining the puck in the Nashville Predators' zone, Dvorak sidestepped Nashville defender Matt Irwin and tucked a backhand shot behind sprawling netminder Pekka Rinne.It was a quick transition for Dvorak, who was recalled from the Coyotes' AHL affiliate earlier Thursday.Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

NEW YORK - Claude Giroux scored the only goal in the shootout to lift the Philadelphia Flyers to a 3-2 win over the New York Islanders on Thursday night.Travis Konecny and Jakub Voracek also scored for the Flyers, who improved to 6-5-1 with their third straight victory.Dennis Seidenberg and John Tavares had goals for the Islanders and Jaroslav Halak stopped 40 of 42 shots.Despite both teams struggling to stop their opponents, neither scored in the first period. Philadelphia outshot New York 14-8 in the period and 42-27 for the game.Michal Neuvirth made 25 saves for the Flyers.Konecny got the Flyers on the board in the second period. He corralled a stretch pass from Radko Gudas and fired a shot that Halak stopped, but the goalie wasn't able to control the rebound and Philadelphia's rookie center put in his second goal of the season.It also marked only the fourth time this season that Philadelphia scored the first goal and was also the Flyers' league-leading 21st second period goal.The lead lasted for all of 8:20, as Tavares tapped in a power-play goal with 29 seconds left in the period. The goal was Tavares' fifth overall and his second on the power play.The Islanders went ahead 2-1 on Seidenberg's goal with 7:05 left. It was his fourth of the season. Voracek tied it with less than a minute left when he put in his seventh goal of the season.New York dropped to 4-6-1 with its fourth loss in five games.NOTES: Prior to the game, the Flyers announced D Andrew MacDonald would miss a week with a lower body injury. He was replaced in the lineup by Nick Schultz. The team also noted C Boyd Gordon was placed on the injured reserve. Left winger Michael Raffl was activated in the corresponding roster move, and skated on a line with C Giroux and RW Wayne Simmonds. ... RW Dale Weise was scratched. ... New York scratched G Jean-Francois Berube, LW Anthony Beauvillier and C Matthew Barzal. ... The game was the first of four regular season meetings between the longtime rivals. The Flyers and Islanders are scheduled to play Jan. 22 in New York, Feb. 9 in Philadelphia and Mar. 30 in Philadelphia.UP NEXT:FLYERS: Play at Montreal Saturday.ISLANDERS: Play Edmonton Saturday.Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

SUNRISE, Fla. - Vincent Trocheck scored two goals, including the game-winner in overtime, to lift the Florida Panthers to a 4-3 victory over the New Jersey Devils on Thursday night.Trocheck poked in a rebound past Cory Schneider with 43.4 seconds left in overtime.Denis Malgin and Aaron Ekblad also scored for the Panthers and James Reimer made 33 saves. Reimer started in place of Roberto Luongo, who has lost his last three starts.Pavel Zacha, PA Parenteau and Travis Zajac scored for the Devils and Schneider stopped 25 shots.Zacha tied the score 3-all with 3:55 left in the third period. Zacha's shot from the slot beat Reimer for his first NHL goal.The teams traded goals 20 seconds apart early in the third.Trocheck extended the Panthers lead to 3-1 when he took a nice feed from Jaromir Jagr in the right circle and one-timed the puck past Schneider at 4:29.The Devils answered when Parenteau took a pass from John Moore in the right circle and beat Reimer to cut the deficit to 3-2.The Devils closed to 2-1 on a power-play goal by Zajac, whose shot was blocked but deflected off the skate of Panthers defenseman Alex Petrovic and into the net with 1:56 left in the second.After going 0 for 7 on the power play in Tuesday's 2-1 loss to Boston, the Panthers converted on their first two opportunities.The Panthers took a 1-0 lead on a power-play goal by Ekblad. Keith Yandle passed from the slot to Ekblad high in the left circle. Ekblad's one-timer got by Schneider with 7:02 left in the first.Florida stretched its lead to 2-0 on Malgin's power-play goal at 6:44 of the second. Malgin's shot from low in the right circle went past Schneider's glove. The 19-year-old recorded his first NHL goal on Tuesday against Boston.Notes: Florida's Jagr played in his 1,640th NHL game, passing Dave Andreychuk and moving into sixth all-time on the league list. Next up: No. 5 Chris Chelios (1,651) and No. 4 Mark Recchi (1,652). The earliest Jagr could pass Gordie Howe (1,767) for the NHL record would be in the second half of the 2017-18 season. . Panthers coach Gerard Gallant said C Nick Bjugstad (hand) and LW Jussi Jokinen (lower body) could be back with the team as early as next week. .The Devils played their first game since a 3-1 victory at Tampa Bay on Saturday. . Devils C Reid Boucher and C Jacob Josefson were scratched.UP NEXTDevils: Visit Tampa Bay on SaturdayPanthers: Visit Washington on SaturdayCopyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Winnipeg Jets head coach Paul Maurice didn't hold back when asked about the too many men call that led to Washington Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin's game-winner in overtime Thursday.Watch: Ovechkin blasts OT winner to ground Jets"It was horseshit, so that would be hard to swallow," Maurice told reporters postgame.The coach singled out one official in particular."I can't blame the referees on it because the linesman called it, which is important that he involved himself in the game at that point. I don't think it was too many men on the ice, I don't even think it was that close."The Jets were penalized while making a line change with 2:39 remaining in overtime, and Ovechkin won the game one minute later.Winnipeg erased a three-goal third-period deficit to tie the game on Marko Dano's first of the season midway through the frame.Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Talk about capitalizing.Alex Ovechkin scored the game-winner in overtime, lifting the Washington Capitals to a 4-3 victory over the Winnipeg Jets on Thursday night.Ovechkin's power-play goal came after the Jets were penalized for having too many men on the ice in the extra frame.Related - Jets' Maurice: Too many men penalty in OT was 'horsesh-t'He scored twice, added an assist, and finished with eight shots on goal in the game.Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Mitch Marner scored a pair of goals in Thursday's game between the Toronto Maple Leafs and Buffalo Sabres.After netting his first in the opening frame following a pretty feed from Tyler Bozak, Marner found the back of the net again just 1:50 into the second, beating Buffalo's Robin Lehner.Grabbing the puck in front of the net, set up by James van Riemsdyk, Marner then cut through four Buffalo skaters to bury his second of the night.Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Who knew Connor McDavid was a multi-sport athlete?The Edmonton Oilers captain set up teammate Ryan Nugent-Hopkins' first goal of the season with a soccer-style kick pass that gave the Oilers a power-play goal and an early 1-0 lead over the New York Rangers on Thursday night.It was McDavid's eighth assist and 13th point in 11 games. Nugent-Hopkins was held off the scoresheet in each of his first 10 contests despite chipping in five helpers.(Video courtesy: NHL.com)Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

It was only a matter of time for Nicklas Backstrom.The Washington Capitals center scored his first goal of the season in style Thursday night, pouncing on a rebound and flicking a backhand shot past Winnipeg Jets goaltender Michael Hutchinson while facing the other direction.Backstrom was held without a goal in the first nine games of the season, but he entered Thursday's contest with five assists - three of which coming on the power play.(Video courtesy: NHL.com)Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Vancouver Canucks defenseman Nikita Tryamkin will make his season debut Thursday versus the Ottawa Senators, coach Willie Desjardins announced.Related: The curious case of Nikita TryamkinThe 22-year-old Tryamkin recorded two points in 13 games with the Canucks last season. He has yet to play this season, while a clause in his contract also keeps the Russian defender from reporting to the AHL.Tryamkin has been a healthy scratch for the past 10 games after failing to report to training camp in game shape.Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

The Dallas Stars have announced that forward Jiri Hudler will not be in the lineup Thursday when they take on the St. Louis Blues.Hudler appeared in the last two games after missing the previous five with an undisclosed illness. The team reports that an illness will again keep him out of Thursday's match.It has been a frustrating season for the 32-year-old Hudler, who has been limited to just four games thus far.Hudler has yet to record a point this season after scoring 46 points last year, which he split between the Calgary Flames and Florida Panthers.Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.