Players of the Night:
Roberto Luongo, Florida Panthers: The Cats need a few things to go right to make the playoffs. The man called Lu (or Strombone) posting 31-save shutouts will certainly help their cause though. Luongo was stellar in the win, his 75th career shutout, and the Panthers are two points out of a playoff spot. Fancy that.
Marc-Andre Fleury, Vegas Golden Knights: Fleury turned aside all 28 shots he faced against a porous Detroit Red Wings team in a 4-0 win. Vegas matched the record for most road wins (19) by a team in its inaugural season because of course they did. Honorable mention to Alex Tuch and Cody Eakin, who split the spoils with a pair of goals each.
Martin Jones, San Jose Sharks: 16 saves don’t seem like many to get a shutout, but it’s hard as a goalie to keep your wits about you when you’re facing next to no shots. Jones faced 16 shots in a 2-0 shutout, with only two of those coming in the third period. St. Louis was very bad on Thursday, with Jake Allen standing in the way of a complete blowout. Allen stopped 34 of 35.
The whole team, Nashville Predators: Yes, every single one of them. Because winning is hard in the NHL and yet the Predators recorded their 10th straight win on Thursday in a 4-2 win against the Anaheim Ducks.
Highlights of the Night:
Hischier pass warning:
Tape-to-tape stretch pass and a flick of the wrist later. Goal. 👌 https://t.co/BW0l1hd9mD
— NHL (@NHL) March 9, 2018
Nolan Patrick with the no-looker:
No look. Backdoor. Absolutely beautiful feed from @nolan_patrick19. Jeeze! https://t.co/Tb75SPfuBv
— NHL (@NHL) March 9, 2018
Poor Jake Allen:
Gotta hate when the net grabs your skate and refuses to let go. pic.twitter.com/OhtkCt9t6h
— NHL GIFs (@NHLGIFs) March 9, 2018
Defeated:
.@cmcdavid97 with the filthy shootout moves. pic.twitter.com/nlSMInFfe9
— NHL GIFs (@NHLGIFs) March 9, 2018
Quick robbery:
Quick stays with it. pic.twitter.com/EIjakthwAt
— NHL GIFs (@NHLGIFs) March 9, 2018
News of the Night:
- Taylor Hall’s remarkable point streak came to a Hall’t at 26 games on Thursday.
Factoids of the Night:
Some Jets stuff, because they have players named Laine and goalies named Hellebuyck:
Connor Hellebuyck earned his 35th win of 2017-18 to establish a @NHLJets / Thrashers franchise record for most in a season by a goaltender. #NHLStats #WPGvsNJD pic.twitter.com/Bp72etoMJo
— NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL) March 9, 2018
Uh oh. The Lightning have another player who can produce at will:
Anthony Cirelli of the @TBLightning has collected 2-3—5 through the first four games of his NHL career (1.25 P/GP). #NHLStats #NYRvsTBL pic.twitter.com/WCnNAxQGQZ
— NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL) March 9, 2018
The @GoldenKnights matched the NHL record for most road wins by a team in its inaugural season. #NHLStats #VGKvsDET pic.twitter.com/ZG3QeyNg6U
— NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL) March 9, 2018
Scores:
Panthers 5, Canadiens 0
Lightning 5, Rangers 3
Golden Knights 4, Red Wings 0
Sabres 4, Senators 3 (OT)
Blue Jackets 5, Avalanche 4 (OT)
Jets 3, Devils 2
Bruins 3, Flyers 2
Predators 4, Ducks 2
Hurricanes 3, Blackhawks 2
Oilers 2, Islanders 1 (SO)
Sharks 2, Blues 0
Kings 3, Capitals 1
Scott Billeck is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @scottbilleck