Skip navigation
Favorites
Sign up to follow your favorites on all your devices.
Sign up

The Buzzer: Hats off to Kreider, Dube; Pesce fined, Hurricanes bring back surge

NHL Scores

NEWARK, NJ - MARCH 04: Chris Kreider #20 of the New York Rangers is congratulated as he returns to the bench after scoring his third goal of the game during the third period against the New Jersey Devils at the Prudential Center on March 4, 2021 in Newark, New Jersey. The Rangers defeated the Devils 6-1. (Photo by Andy Marlin/NHLI via Getty Images)

NHLI via Getty Images

Three Stars

1. Chris Kreider, New York Rangers. Big night for the Rangers in a 6-1 win over the New Jersey Devils. Alexis Lafreniere continued his recent surge, and Kreider recorded his second hat trick in the past five games. Kreider is now up to 13 goals for the season and has been a real bright spot in what has been a disappointing season for the Rangers so far.

2. Dillon Dube, Calgary Flames. The Flames have not found any consistency yet this season and lately have been alternating big wins and ugly losses. Thursday was a big win as they crushed the Ottawa Senators, 7-3. Dube was the big star in this one offensively with a hat trick of his own. He entered Thursday’s game with just three goals on the season. His performance and the Flames win was still not enough for Geoff Ward, who was fired immediately after the game and replaced by Darryl Sutter. Read more about that here.

3. Thatcher Demko, Vancouver Canucks. The big upset of the night in the NHL was Vancouver slowing down the Toronto Maple Leafs with a 3-1 win. Jake Virtanen scored two goals, but Demko was the big star in this game with a 32-save effort against one of the NHL’s best offensive teams.

Other Notable Performances From Thursday

• Claude Giroux scored the game-winning goal for the Philadelphia Flyers as they stunned the Pittsburgh Penguins with a huge rally. Read more about that game here.

• The Carolina Hurricanes were 5-2 winners over Detroit in a game that featured a nasty slew-footing incident from defenseman Brett Pesce. The league announced he has been fined $5,000 for a “dangerous trip.”

• Aaron Ekblad had a huge game with four points as the Florida Panthers held on for a 5-4 win over the Nashville Predators.

• Pierre-Luc Dubois scored the overtime winner for the Winnipeg Jets as they beat the Montreal Canadiens.

• The Columbus Blue Jackets picked up a much-needed win against a banged up Dallas Stars team. Eric Robinson’s goal is the game winner.

Highlights Of The Night

Matt Martin scored two goals for the New York Islanders as they dominated the Buffalo Sabres, and this one is just amazing.

Alex Killorn scored the game-winning goal for the Tampa Bay Lightning with 0.1 seconds to play in overtime to extend their winning streak to six games. Read all about that game here.

Jared McCann scored this slick goal for the Pittsburgh Penguins.

With a small number of fans in the building the Carolina Hurricanes brought back the Storm Surge for the first time this season.

Scores

New York Islanders 5, Buffalo Sabres 2
New York Rangers 6, New Jersey Devils 1
Carolina Hurricanes 5, Detroit Red Wings 2
Philadelphia Flyers 4, Pittsburgh Penguins 3
Winnipeg Jets 4, Montreal Canadiens 3 (OT)
Tampa Bay Lightning 3, Chicago Blackhawks 2 (OT)
Florida Panthers 5, Nashville Predators 4
Columbus Blue Jackets 3, Dallas Stars 2
Calgary Flames 7, Ottawa Senators 3
Vancouver Canucks 3, Toronto Maple Leafs 1

Adam Gretz is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @AGretz.