Three Stars
1. Max Domi
Consider this a collective award for the Canadiens, who throttled the Red Wings 8-1, even though they played the night before.
Domi led the way two goals and three assists for five points, with three shots on goal and a +5 rating in that lopsided win. This pushes his breakthrough 2018-19 campaign to 22 goals and 59 points in 64 games.
By the way, Domi’s the first Canadiens player to score at least five points in a game since some obscure player named Guy Lafleur did so in 1978.
Other Canadiens players could make credible arguments for spots in the top three, too. Jonathan Drouin was among the non-Domi leading scorers of Tuesday, generating four points (all assists). Andrew Shaw wasn’t far behind, generating his first hat trick.
Those three didn’t just tear things up, they also scored with startling efficiency. Looking at goals alone, they combined for five on just seven SOG. By my calculations, that is ... very good.
2. Teuvo Teravainen
Teravainen is to the Hurricanes what Domi is to the Canadiens for Tuesday. He had the best game of anyone on a team that dominated the competition, and thus Teravainen’s teammates deserve mentions, too.
Teravainen scored one goal and three assists for four points. Remarkably, the Teravainen - Domi connection continues over the full season view, as Teravainen has 59 points in 2018-19 (in 63 games). The Hurricanes probably already felt good about signing Teuvo to a five-year extension with just a $5.4 million cap hit when they inked it in January, but it only looks better now.
Two of his teammates deserve recognition, as well. Both Dougie Hamilton (two goals, one assist, game misconduct?) and Jordan Staal (three assists) generated three-point nights. Hamilton was especially dangerous, generating nine SOG in Carolina’s impressive 6-1 win against Kings.
3. Brad Marchand
Marchand scored a goal and two assists, with his tally being his 25th career shorthanded goal, tying Rick Middleton for the Bruins’ franchise record.
The 30-year-old now has 25 goals and 74 points in 62 games this season. Marchand’s now 11 points short of his career-high of 85 points, which he generated in both 2016-17 and 2017-18.
A lot happened in this game, even beyond Marchand helping the Bruins dominate the Sharks. Erik Karlsson looked a little slow on Marchand’s goal, maybe because - you know - he might be dealing with an injury that requires rest. There was also a fight between Evander Kane and Zdeno Chara. Yeah, a lot was going on.
Highlights of the Night
Matthew Tkachuk might not suffer from many more slumps when he can score like this.
Vinnie Hinostroza has a lot of moves, which Roberto Luongo unfortunately found out.
.@Hinostroza12 clinches the shootout win! pic.twitter.com/UX0HdV90Cp
— NHL GIFs (@NHLGIFs) February 27, 2019
Factoids
- Jordan Binnington only needed to make 19 saves for his fifth shutout, so that wasn’t quite good enough to get him in the three stars on a high-scoring night. He’ll have to settle for being on a pretty lofty list.
Jordan Binnington's historic rookie season continues. He is only the second netminder in the NHL's modern era (since 1943-44) to record five shutouts through his first 18 career starts. #NHLStats #NSHvsSTL pic.twitter.com/d7tXirg51l
— NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL) February 27, 2019
- Marc-Andre Fleury generated his ninth 30-win season, tying Eddie Belfour, and trailing only Henrik Lundqvist (11), Patrick Roy (13), and Martin Brodeur (14).
- The Bruins are now 10-0-4 in their last 14 games for an impressive point streak.
Scores
BOS 4 - SJS 1
CGY 3 - NYI 1
PHI 5 - BUF 2
WSH 7 - OTT 2
CAR 6 - LAK 1
PIT 5 - CBJ 2
MTL 8 - DET 1
STL 2 - NSH 0
MIN 3 - WPG 2
ARI 4 - FLA 3 (SO)
VGK 4 - DAL 1
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James O’Brien is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @cyclelikesedins.