Lost in the seven goals Vancouver scored on Monday night was the fact that they also dominated the Stars in the face off circle, winning 62% of draws. As we often say, it's hard to score if you never have the puck. Not only did the Stars bounce back in a big way on the scoreboard Wednesday but they also won an unheard of 69% of faceoffs against the Oilers, making how Edmonton out shot Dallas by such a wide margin a bit of a mystery.
In case you missed it last night, Adam Burish relayed on The Ticket post game show that Matt Niskanen was the proud recipient of the Warrior Sword following the game and will get to enjoy his All-Star break with it. Apparently he suffered a minor cut and bravely battled through it.
Mr. Burish also said the doctors want him to wear a walking boot because of the many, many pucks he's blocked in January with the same inside part of his foot but that he simply refused, saying he looks ridiculous in it. He hinted he's going to Mexico with some other players over the break, so he'll rest it there. He also mentioned banged up knees.
Defending Big D is not taking an All-Star break, by the way. We'll be trying to bring you as much content as possible even though there's no hockey to watch or comment on. Just try and stop us from yammering on!
- In reading a lot of the Oiler quotes after the game, I am surprised at two things. A.) The Oilers have an even keel and still talk about their losses with a tone that doesn't convey the hopelessness of their season. Kudos for their professionalism. B.) I have not read any Khabibulin quotes from last night yet. Too bad. That guy nearly lost it a couple of times last night and looked like he might get himself thrown out of the game in the third after demonstrative defiance to the refs when called for a slash but he wasn't. It wasn't behavior befitting a veteran of his stature.
- Copper And Blue did a great recap of the game from their point of view. [Coppernblue.com]
- The ECHL celebrates Travis Morin's NHL debut last night. He's the 460th ECHL player to make it to the show. [ECHL]
- The gathering storm clouds in San Jose make for some pretty entertaining reading over at Fear the Fin. Well done, Mr. Plank. [Fear The Fin]
- There's some recycled quotes here but a nice read from The Hockey Writers on the Stars chemistry. [THW]
- Why does the DMN have their chat with Heika today behind the pay wall? [DMN]
- The city of Glendale needs to front the Coyotes buyer $100 million and they're doing it with a bond program. Earlier this week it was reported that the effort may have failed. Now all sides are backing off the report and the NHL says it's false. I don't care how messy the Stars sale gets. It will never get this messy. (crossing my fingers.) Read here, and here.
- We still need RSVP's to our watch party in Addison on February 5th. Check out the post here.