NHL Recap January 31 2019
THURSDAY’S RESULTS – Home Team in Caps
Philadelphia 3, BOSTON 2 (OT)
NY Rangers 4, NEW JERSEY 3
WINNIPEG 4, Columbus 3
SEASON OF THE COMEBACK
All three games contested on Thursday featured the winning team overcoming a deficit of at least goal en route to victory.
* Nearly half of all games contested this season have featured teams overcoming a deficit of any kind to win (44.7%; 349 of 780). The 349 comeback wins are the most ever in an NHL season before the beginning of February, three more than 2005-06 (346).
ZIBANEJAD (HAT TRICK) SCORES ANOTHER GAME-WINNING GOAL
Mika Zibanejad (3-1—4) scored the second hat trick of his NHL career (also 3-0—3 on Feb. 27, 2016 at CGY) to help the Rangers defeat the Devils and improve to 4-1-0 in their last five games.
* Zibanejad has collected 11 points in his last five outings (8-3—11), including four game-winning goals. He became the second player in franchise history to score four or more winning goals in a span of five team games, joining Rod Gilbert from Dec. 7-17, 1966 (4 GWG in 5 GP).
FLYERS, HART EXTEND WIN STREAKS
Philadelphia overcame deficits of 1-0 and 2-1 before Travis Sanheim (1-1—2) scored at 2:56 of overtime as the Flyers extended their win streak to six games, the longest active run in the NHL.
* Carter Hart (23 saves) improved to 5-0-0 in his last five appearances dating to Jan. 14 (2.38 GAA, .930 SV%). Hart (born Aug. 13, 1998) became the 10th different goaltender in NHL history to record a personal win streak of at least five games before celebrating his 21st birthday and first since Montreal’s Carey Price from March 20 – April 5, 2008 (7-0-0).
CENTRAL DIVISION-LEADING JETS EXTEND HOME WIN STREAK TO SIX GAMES
Jack Roslovic tied the game in the third period and Kyle Connor scored the go-ahead goal with 1:14 remaining in regulation as the Central Division-leading Jets (33-16-2, 68 points) extended their home win streak to six games, tied for the longest active run in the NHL (w/ SJS).
* Roslovic, a native of Columbus, became the seventh Ohio-born player in NHL history to score at least one regular-season goal against the Blue Jackets, joining Bryan Smolinski (8 G), Peter Harrold (2 G), Jeff Hamilton (2 G), Brian Holzinger (2 G), Mike Rupp (1 G) and J.T. Miller (1 G).
* No players from the Buckeye State ever scored against the Cleveland Barons, who were active from 1976-77 to 1977-78. In fact, only one Ohio-born player ever played in a game against the Barons – Ab Demarco Jr., a native of Cleveland (3 GP).
FRIDAY’S GAMES
| Chicago@ Buffalo | 7:00 PM ET |
| Nashville@ Florida | 7:00 PM ET |
| Tampa Bay@ NY Islanders | 7:00 PM ET |
| Ottawa@ Pittsburgh | 7:00 PM ET |
| Calgary@ Washington | 7:00 PM ET |
| Toronto@ Detroit | 7:30 PM ET |
| Vegas@ Carolina | 7:30 PM ET |
| Minnesota@ Dallas | 8:00 PM ET |
RED WINGS TO RETIRE KELLY’S No. 4 AT LITTLE CAESARS ARENA
The Red Wings (19-25-7, 45 points) will retire former player Red Kelly’s No. 4 in a pre-game ceremony at Little Caesars Arena prior to their game against the Maple Leafs (30-17-2, 62 points). He will become the eighth player in franchise history to have his number retired by Detroit, joining Terry Sawchuk (No. 1), Nicklas Lidstrom (No. 5), Ted Lindsay (No. 7), Gordie Howe (No. 9), Alex Delvecchio (No. 10), Sid Abel (No. 12) and Steve Yzerman (No. 19).
* Kelly, an eight-time Stanley Cup champion, played with the Red Wings from 1947-48 to 1959-60 and the Maple Leafs from 1959-60 to 1966-67. He led NHL defensemen in goals, assists and points in 1953-54 (16-33—49 in 62 GP) en route to being named the first-ever recipient of the James Norris Memorial Trophy; since then, only two different Red Wings blueliners have won the honor – Lidstrom (7x) and Paul Coffey (1x).
* Kelly also captured the Lady Byng Memorial Trophy four times throughout his NHL career (1950-51, 1952-53, 1953-54 and 1960-61), trailing only Frank Boucher (7x) and Wayne Gretzky (5x) for the most titles since its introduction in 1924-25.
KANE LOOKS TO EXTEND POINT STREAK TO 10 GAMES
Buffalo, N.Y. native Patrick Kane (7-14—21 in 9 GP) looks to extend his point streak to 10 games when the Blackhawks (18-24-9, 45 points) visit the Sabres (25-19-6, 56 points) at KeyBank Center. He has recorded at least one point in 10 or more consecutive team games on four prior occasions, most recently from Oct. 17 – Dec. 13, 2015 (16-24—40 in 26 GP).
* Kane can become the third player in franchise history to register at least five point streaks of 10 or more games with the Blackhawks; he would join Denis Savard (11x) and Bobby Hull (5x). Only NHL three players have recorded at least five point streaks of 10 or more games since Kane began his career in 2007-08: Sidney Crosby (7x), Evgeni Malkin (6x) and Ryan Getzlaf (5x).
Flyers’ Hart Named NHL ‘Rookie of the Month’ for January
Philadelphia Flyers goaltender Carter Hart, who went 6-2-1 with a 2.33 goals-against average and .931 save percentage in nine appearances, has been named the NHL’s “Rookie of the Month” for January.
Hart edged St. Louis Blues goaltender Jordan Binnington (5-1-1, 1.57 GAA, .936 SV%, 1 SO), Arizona Coyotes right wing Conor Garland (7-1—8 in 11 GP), Buffalo Sabres defenseman Rasmus Dahlin (1-7—8 in 10 GP) and Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Marcus Pettersson (0-8—8 in 11 GP) for the honor.
Hart, who led the entire NHL in saves (283) and ranked third in time on ice (540:13) during January, won five straight games to close the month (2.38 GAA, .930 SV%). In doing so, the 20-year-old Sherwood Park, Alta., native became the 10th goaltender in League history to post a five-game winning streak prior to his 21st birthday – and the first to achieve the feat since Carey Price from March 20 – April 5, 2008 (7-0-0 w/ MTL).
A second-round selection (48th overall) by Philadelphia in the 2016 NHL Draft, Hart has compiled an 8-5-1 record, 2.48 goals-against average and .922 save percentage in 14 total outings since making his League debut with a win Dec. 18 (vs. DET: 20 SV). He joins Vancouver Canucks center Elias Pettersson (October and December) and Dahlin (November) as a Rookie of the Month winner in 2018-19.
Gaudreau, Lehner and Kane Named NHL ‘Three Stars’ for January
Calgary Flames left wing Johnny Gaudreau, New York Islanders goaltender Robin Lehner and Chicago Blackhawks right wing Patrick Kane have been named the NHL’s “Three Stars” for the month of January.
FIRST STAR – JOHNNY GAUDREAU, LW, CALGARY FLAMES
Gaudreau ranked second in the NHL with 8-10—18 in 11 games to propel the Flames (33-13-5, 71 points) to a 9-1-1 January and into first place in the Western Conference. Gaudreau found the scoresheet in all but his final appearance of the month, extending his point streak to 11 contests dating to Dec. 31 (10-12—22) – the longest by a Calgary player since Kristian Huselius posted a 15-game run from Jan. 9 – Feb. 10, 2007 (10-11—21). Gaudreau registered six multi-point performances in January, including 1-3—4 to open the month (Jan. 2 at DET) – his second straight four-point effort (also Dec. 31 vs. SJS: 2-2—4) and the eighth such outing of his career. He also scored in seven different contests, highlighted by his team-best sixth winning goal of the campaign Jan. 2 at DET. The 25-year-old Salem, N.J., native – who was the League’s ‘Second Star’ of December – sits fourth in the NHL with 29-44—73 in 51 total games this season, also sharing fifth place in assists and sixth place in goals.
SECOND STAR – ROBIN LEHNER, G, NEW YORK ISLANDERS
Lehner went 6-1-1 with a 1.73 goals-against average, .935 save percentage and one shutout in eight appearances to lift the Islanders (29-15-5, 63 points) to an 8-2-1 January and into first place in the Metropolitan Division. Lehner opened the month with three consecutive victories to extend his overall winning streak to eight games dating to Dec. 18 (1.45 GAA, .951 SV%, 1 SO), making him the fourth goaltender in franchise history to record such a run. In total, he yielded two or fewer goals in six of his eight January starts, highlighted by his 11th career shutout Jan. 20 vs. ANA (19 SV). The 27-year-old Gothenburg, Sweden, native has played in 27 total contests this season (his first w/ NYI), topping the NHL with a 2.02 goals-against average and .931 save percentage to go along with a 15-7-4 record and three shutouts.
THIRD STAR – PATRICK KANE, RW, CHICAGO BLACKHAWKS
Kane paced the NHL with 14 assists and 21 points (10 GP) to help the Blackhawks (18‑24-9, 45 points) earn points in six of their 10 January games (3-4-3). Kane found the scoresheet in all but his first outing of the month, finishing January on a nine-game point streak (7-14—21) and eight-game assist streak (6-14—20). He registered six total multi-point efforts, including five straight from Jan. 6-14 (4-9—13). Kane also matched a personal best with his second career five-point performance, compiling 2-3—5 Jan. 20 vs. WSH. The 30-year-old Buffalo native – who sits one point shy of 900 for his NHL career (341-558—899 in 872 GP) – ranks fifth in the League with 29-42—71 through 50 total contests this season.