5 things we learned in the NHL last week
The Air Canada Centre is scarier than a haunted house for goalies
Another week of the NHL season has come and gone, but not without teaching us a few lessons along the way.
Here's a look back at some of the most exciting and/or strange events that caught the attention of hockey fans over the last seven days.
1. The Air Canada Centre is a bad place to be a goalie
Just ask Ben Bishop and Frederik Andersen. The Lightning netminder finished Tuesday's game against the host Maple Leafs with a 7-4 win, but it cost him his two front teeth.
Two days after Peter Holland gave Bishop a modified Colgate smile, Andersen got a crimson mask thanks to an errant stick from the Panthers' Tom Sceviour.
2. Sidney Crosby is back
Great news for the Penguins, bad news for anyone facing Pittsburgh. That includes the Florida Panthers, the first team to face Crosby since he missed the first three weeks of the NHL season with a concussion.
They may have preferred he waited another couple days to get back on the ice:
The Islanders and Flyers were victims No. 2 and No. 3 in a Penguins three-game win streak since their captain returned to action. Crosby has four goals in those three contests, including this laser beam against Philadelphia:
3. NHL players solve problems just like the rest of us
Mark Scheifele and Tyler Seguin had a problem. And they solved it in the most effective and fair manner ever devised by the human mind.
Rock. Paper. Scissors.
4. Devan Dubnyk's donuts
The Wild netminder turned away all 94 shots that came his way this week, leading Minnesota to three shutout wins over the Bruins, Sabres and Stars.
Dubnyk is the first goalie in Wild history to record three consecutive shutouts, but he's not the first 'tender to pull off the feat with a Minnesota-based NHL team.
<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/mnwild?src=hash">#mnwild</a>'s Devan Dubnyk is the 2nd Minnesota <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NHL?src=hash">#NHL</a> goalie with 3 straight shutouts (Cesare Maniago, North Stars, Dec., 1967), per <a href="https://twitter.com/EliasSports">@EliasSports</a>
—@RussostribDubnyk hasn't been beaten in the last 180 minutes of game action, but he's still far from the modern-era shutout streak record of 332 minutes and one second, set by Brian Boucher with the Phoenix Coyotes in the 2003-04 season.
5. We're talking about practice
Jaroslav Halak's agent took to Twitter to complain about the Islanders' three-goalie roster, and its perceived detrimental effect due to a lack of practice time.
Starting goalie for NY Islanders last game had only 1 quality practice in last 5 days before Penguins game. Going on 2 years of this now.
—@walshaIt seems like Allan Walsh's social media musings caught the attention of New York GM Garth Snow, who may have a solution for the team carrying three goalies. Trade one.
Word tonight is that after <a href="https://twitter.com/walsha">@walsha</a> Twitter blast of NYI carrying three goalies, NYI GM has let league know Jaroslav Halak is available.
—@FriedgeHNIC