Tobias Enstrom scored two power play goals, and Brian Little and Tim Stapleton each scored in the first two rounds of a shootout as the Atlanta Thrashers defeated the Boston Bruins 3-2. Ondrej Pavelec picked up the win when he stoned Blake Wheeler and Tyler Seguin during the shootout. Tim Thomas was the hard-luck loser.
R.J. Umberger tipped a Rick Nash wrist shot past Jonas Gustavsson for the game winner as the Columbus Blue Jackets defeated the Toronto Maple Leafs 3-2. Steve Mason stopped 20 of 22 shots for the victory. Kristian Huselius had two goals for the Blue Jackets, while Nikolai Kulemin and Tyler Bozak each had a single tally for the Leafs.
San Jose snapped its two game losing streak when Joe Thornton tipped in the game winner as the Sharks topped the Chicago Blackhawks 5-3. Antti Niemi stopped 26 shots for the win. Marty Turco making his third straight appearance was saddled with the loss after allowing four goals on 20 shots. Patrick Sharp, Troy Brouwer, and Brian Campbell scored for Chicago. Scott Nichol, Benn Ferriero, Dany Heatley, and Ryane Clowe each found the back of the net for San Jose. Dan Boyle and Marc-Edouard Vlasic each picked up a pair of assists.
Milan Hejduk scored the lone goal in a shootout to lead the Colorado Avalanche to a 4-3 win over the Edmonton Oilers. The Avalanche darted out to a 3-0 first period lead on goals by TJ Galiardi, Paul Stastny, and Thomas Fleischman. Edmonton tied it on a second period goal by Taylor Hall, and third period goals by Ales Hemsky and Andrew Cogliano. Dustin Penner had two assists. Colorado goalie Craig Anderson picked up the win, while Devan Dubnyk suffered the loss for the Oilers.
Michael Leighton picked up his first victory of the season as the Philadelphia Flyers outlasted the Los Angeles Kings 7-4. Leighton had not played since last year's Stanley Cup final. He was finally activated after spending the entire season on IR rehabilitating from back surgery. He stopped 32-36 shots. Kings goalie Jonathan Bernier was ineffective allowing six goals on only 22 shots. He was finally relieved by Jonathan Quick. Mike Richards scored two goals and had two assists for the Flyers. He was joined by fellow teammates Jeff Carter, Scott Hartnell, Danny Briere, James van Riemsdyk, and Ville Leino who each scored a goal. Ryan Williams potted two goals, while Justin Williams and Jack Johnson each scored once for L.A. The Kings Kyle Clifford, Wayne Simmonds, and Michal Handzus were a minus 3 plus/minus for the night.
Injuries:Anaheim's Ryan Getzlaf has been put on IR after sustaining multiple sinus fractures when a deflected puck hit his face a couple of days ago. He will miss at least two games.
The swelling is so severe, it will take two weeks to determine treatment for Oiler defenseman Ryan Whitney's ankle. If surgery is needed, he will miss the remainder of the year.
Atlanta's Nik Antropov was placed on IR with an injured hip. The injury was worse than originally thought.
Thrasher winger Evander Kane was unable to suit up for tonight's game with an undisclosed arm injury. He attempted to practice but was forced to leave the ice after six minutes.
Blackhawk forward Jonathan Toews will miss two weeks with a shoulder injury. Fortunately, the injury was not as severe as originally feared.
