In the NHL, Filip Chytil contributed one pass to the New York Rangers’ 6:3 win over Seattle. The Czech striker did not extend his streak of five games with a goal, but scored in eleven of the last fourteen games (11+5). Thanks to David Kämpf’s assist, Toronto won 3:0 in Columbus.
Rangers were leading 4-0 in the 22nd minute. The opening goal was scored by Vladimir Tarasenko in his first game after being transferred from St. Louis. “It’s something new for me,” said the Russian striker.
“I was traded for the first time in my career, I spent 11 years in one city and one club. But everyone accepted me very well here and it’s nice to start with a goal. I know that (Panarin and Zibanejad) can create a game, I tried to be ready. The cooperation is you enjoyed,” he added.
The second goal was added by Kaapo Kakko, who finished off Chytil’s pass at the left post into an open goal.
Six different scorers were responsible for the Rangers’ fourth straight win: Vincent Trocheck and Jacob Trouba added to the lead, Mikka Zibanejad made it 5-1 early in the third period and Ryan Lindgren closed the scoring in a goaltending risk. Oliver Bjorkstrand, Jared McCann and Branden Tanev made their mark for Seattle.
Toronto’s two goals were scored by John Tavares, who opened the scoring at 5:45. The second goal didn’t come until the 48th minute after a successful interplay, which Pierre Engvall finished off with a shot into an empty goal. It was released by Morgan Rielly, who was passed to the right side by Kämpf. 49 seconds later, Tavares secured the win, which was helped by Ilya Samsonov’s thirty saves.
“We played solidly and patiently. We didn’t allow the opponent much,” Toronto coach Sheldon Keefe rejoiced. “Zero is not about me, but about the performance of the whole team. I haven’t seen a better match from us. We blocked a lot of shots, we played great when we were weakened and we spent a lot of time in the attacking zone,” stated Samsonov.
There was no Czech goalkeeping duel in Chicago, which defeated Arizona 4:3 in overtime. Home team Petr Mrázek and on the other side Karel Vejmelka played the role of substitute goalkeepers. The Blackhawks outshot their opponents 44:26 and turned the game around from 0:2. The main engineer of the turnaround was Andreas Athanasiou (1+2). Clayton Keller achieved the same balance for the losers. The game was decided by defender Caleb Jones.
Evgeni Malkin had two assists in Pittsburgh’s 6-3 win at Anaheim and became the 51st player in NHL history to score 1,200 points in a contest. The 36-year-old striker has 463 goals and 737 assists in 1,032 games played.
However, the key figure of the match was defender Pierre-Olivier Joseph, who opened the scoring and scored three points (2+1). Pittsburgh led 3:1 after the first period and 6:1 in the 53rd minute. Anaheim goaltender John Gibson conceded six times, but stopped another 53 shots, setting a new club record. The Penguins have never had more shots on the road (59) either.
NHL:
Columbus – Toronto 0:3 (0:1, 0:0, 0:2)
Branky: 6. a 49. Tavares, 48. Engvall (Fights). Shots on goal: 30:41. Spectators: 18,860. Stars of the match: 1. Tavares, 2. Samsonov (both Toronto), 3. Korpisalo (Columbus).
NY Rangers – Seattle 6:3 (3:0, 1:1, 2:2)
Goals: 3. Tarasenko, 6. Kakko (Catched), 15. Trocheck, 22. Trouba, 44. Zibanejad, 58. Lindgren – 23. Bjorkstrand, 46. McCann, 47. B. Tanev. Shots on goal: 28:29. Spectators: 18,006. Stars of the match: 1. Tarasenko, 2. Trocheck, 3. Kakko (all NY Rangers).
Chicago – Arizona 4:3 in overtime. (1:2, 1:0, 1:1 – 1:0)
Goals: 14. S. Jones, 23. Athanasiou, 55. Blackwell, 64. C. Jones – 2. Keller, 13. Schmaltz, 58. Bjugstad. Shots on goal: 44:26. Spectators: 19,007. Stars of the match: 1. C. Jones, 2. Athanasiou, 3. S. Jones (all Chicago).
Anaheim – Pittsburgh 3:6 (1:3, 0:1, 2:2)
Goals: 16. Zegras, 54. McTavish, 56. J. Klingberg – 10. and 35. Joseph, 18. Kapanen, 20. Carter, 51. Rust, 53. Guentzel. Shots on goal: 31:59. Spectators: 15,026. Game stars: 1. Joseph, 2. Malkin, 3. Rust (all Pittsburgh).
