Jagr Turns Back The Clock: Tricks USA in Czech win

Special players rise to the occasion. Performing on the big stage has never been a problem for Jaromir Jagr. The former NHL great turned back the clock with a vintage game in today's quarterfinal between Team USA and the Czech Republic at the World's. No.68 dialed it up, notching a hat trick to lead the Czechs past an overmatched young American squad 4-0 in Bratislava- advancing the defending champs to the semifinals before a raucous atmosphere that featured overwhelming support.

As Zach Parise said during intermission on Versus, "What can you say about this guy?" Like many, he's seen it before with Jagr victimizing the Devils a few Springs ago in the last Battle Of Hudson. The speed isn't the same but the instincts along with incredible hockey sense are for the now 39 year-old who the Pens are rumored to have interest in. Could a Pittsburgh reunion be in the works for GM Ray Shero? Jagr's contract with Avangard Omsk ran out but he may stay put. Of course, the wider hockey surface benefits his style- allowing him more room and space to create along the wall.

Personally, I'd love to see Jagr return to the NHL for one more go round. In 1,273 career games, No.68's tallied 646 goals along with 953 assists totaling 1,599. If he came back, a few milestones are attainable with JJ needing one point for 1,600, 47 helpers for 1,000 and 54 goals to join the 700 Goal Club. If he played 27 games, the former Blueshirt would hit 1,300. While the point would be easy, the other two might be more difficult. It's hard to gauge how an older and slower Jagr would do back on the smaller North American ice. With more of an emphasis on speed, could his body hold up over an 82 game schedule? Of course, if he played with say Evgeni Malkin and Sidney Crosby, that would certainly benefit him. Imagine what Pens games would be like. Super Mario II ring a bell? A Pens ticket would become a hot commodity, which would benefit a league where attendance isn't always positive despite what spin the NHL puts out.

Of course, all this is wild speculation. Fun to envision. One thing about Jagr. He's still quite potent on the power play where two of his three markers came, including a familiar 5-on-3 one-timer that deflected off Mike Komisarek's stick past Ty Conklin for the Czechs' second of the day. Jagr started the scoring when he took full advantage of a Kevin Shattenkirk turnover, beating Conklin through the wickets on a mini-break late in a first period controlled by Scott Gordon's younger club.
Our country lost their discipline in a poor middle stanza. James van Riemsdyk's silly elbow handed the Czechs a two-man advantage. After some strong penalty killing along with a couple of big stops by Conklin on Marek Zidlicky, the Czech Republic used a timeout to rest their top unit. It paid dividends when Roman Cervenka dished across for a quick Jagr rocket that Conklin had no chance on. He actually was in good position before the puck changed direction due to Komisarek.

Due in large part to special teams, Team USA never got any quality chances on Thrasher netminder Ondrej Pavelec (29 saves), who denied Nashville prospect Craig Smith in the first. Gordon's club did blow their own abbreviated 5-on-3 prior to Jagr connecting, staking the Czechs to a two-goal lead after 40 minutes. The U.S. effort was better in the third but they never were able to match their more experienced opponents' firepower. Czech Republic had a loaded roster that included Devil Patrik Elias, Tomas Plekanec (Mtl), Michal Frolik (Chi), Jakub Voracek (CBJ), Milan Michalek (Ott), Zbynek Michalek (Pit) along with former NHLers Petr Prucha, Jiri Novotny, Karel Rachunek, Lukas Krajicek and Martin Skoula. Cervenka, former Ranger draft pick Jan Marek and Czech captain Tomas Rolinek are no strangers to international play.

Conversely, Team USA's roster was comprised mostly of kids who didn't represent us in Vancouver when our country was runner-up to Canada in one of the most memorable games ever. It still hurts. Ranger Derek Stepan was held off the scoresheet for the first time along with linemates Blake Wheeler (Atl) and Van Riemsdyk (Phi). In seven games, Stepan paced us with seven points. Others who played well included Smith, Devil Nick Palmieri, Ryan Shannon (Ott), Jack Skille (Fla), Jack Johnson (LA), captain Mark Stuart (Atl), Ryan McDonagh (NYR), Cam Fowler (Ana) and future Blueshirt Chris Kreider. Komisarek (Tor), Shattenkirk (Stl), ex-Blue Yan Stastny , Tim Stapleton (Atl), Paul Gaustad (Buf), Mike Brown (Tor), Chris Porter (Stl) and Clay Wilson (Fla) also rounded out the roster along with Islander Al Montoya.

The difference in skill level was evident on the Czechs' final two tallies. A Stepan mistake in the neutral zone led to a quick set up for Plekanec, who wired one top shelf for 3-zip. A frustrated Stuart slash late allowed Jagr to turn the trick when No.68 worked a textbook give-and-go with Plekanec, who found him for an easy finish to plenty of salutes from a pro-Czech crowd that included painted faces and funky outfits in their flag colors. European fans are classic. One day, I have to go see a game overseas. Just for the atmosphere itself along with a unique culture, it'll be worth it.

While Czech Republic awaits the Germany-Sweden winner, tomorrow features a heavyweight quarter match between Russia and Canada. Versus is airing it live at 2 ET. If you get a chance to tune in, don't miss it! With Detroit and San Jose off after another amazing performance from Pavel Datsyuk, who along with Niklas Kronwall have helped the Red Wings rally from an 0-3 hole to even the series, you can catch an encore of the Jagr Show at 8 tonight.

I was going to do a separate entry on this series, which has become the second this postseason that needs a Game 7 after one team led 3-0. We saw it in Round One when the Blackhawks rallied to not only force a deciding game but got a Jonathan Toews shorthanded goal with two minutes left, taking the Canucks to sudden death before Alex Burrows rescued the city of Vancouver. Now, it's another experienced former champion standing up to make it the kinda series I envisioned. I took the Sharks in seven. So, it's not surprising that tomorrow will see an epic conclusion to a classic Conference Semifinal where basically every game's been decided by a goal sans a late Darren Helm empty netter that sent The Joe into a frenzy.

It's been a hard fought battle all the way with San Jose prevailing by one the first three, including a pair of OT winners from Joe Pavelski and Devin Setoguchi. To Detroit's credit, they fought back with two one-goal triumphs, including a miraculous third period comeback with Jonathan Ericsson, Kronwall and Tomas Holmstrom scoring in succession to stun HP Pavilion in Game 5. Game 6 was incredible with unbelievable netminding from Antti Niemi (42 saves) giving his team a chance to steal it. When Logan Couture nudged Dany Heatley's rebound across the line, the Sharks led with 16:06 left. But Jimmy Howard (24 saves) also made a few clutch stops including a ridiculous glove save off a tricky Heatley deflection. The Wings wouldn't be denied when Valterri Filppula found a pinching Kronwall for a shot Henrik Zetterberg redirected.

They took advantage of a terrible San Jose change with Filppula steering home a ridiculous backhand saucer feed from who else but Datsyuk. Datsyukian as I refer to him on Twitter is amazing. He's playing with a bad wrist and took only one key defensive draw late last night and won it. Whatever pain he's in, you wouldn't know it. I've said it before. Not to sound like an echo, but there's no more complete player than Pavel Datsyuk. The man is a magician with the puck who never takes a shift off. His backchecking is second to none even though I think Ryan Kesler wins his first Selke. I love Kes, who reminds me of Mark Messier. He's having a great playoffs. But if you were to ask me who my favorite player is to watch, it's Datsyuk. The man is all heart. He only got one point last night but it's his constant play with and without the puck that is breathtaking. Take his wizardry that made Jeremy Roenick target Patrick Marleau dizzy before feeding Nick Lidstrom for Holmstrom's decider the other day. It's just remarkable.

The Red Wings will attempt to become the fourth team to make it all the way back from 3-0 behind. Can they join the '42 Maple Leafs, '75 Islanders and last year's Flyers, who went to Game 6 before falling to Chicago in sudden death? It shouldn't be easy at one of the best home ice advantages in the league. It's not like the Sharks have played poorly. Yesterday was their first bad game. Without Niemi, it's not a contest. None of that matters. Something Todd McLellan pointed out in his press conference. Game 7 is about stars. It's where heroes are born. San Jose should have Ryane Clowe back to reunite with Couture and Heatley, who've been their best line. Joe Thornton has played better hockey than any other playoffs. Pavelski is as clutch as it gets and Setoguchi has been everywhere. Is this the game Marleau shows? It's all on the line.

Blues blanket Rangers

It was the Blues tonight at The Garden for the Rangers literally as they were blanketed by a good team 2-0. So much for getting back to .500 on home ice. It wasn't for lack of effort. Simply put, St. Louis is just a better team. Stellar defense, physicality, a great penalty kill and faceoff dominance allowed John Davidson's club to rebound from a shootout loss in Beantown despite little offense.

Alex Steen's second period tally off a three-on-two rush stood up as the winner in a throwback game that saw little time and space for either side to make plays. In a battle of backups, Ty Conklin outdueled Martin Biron, repelling all 27 his way en route to the shutout. Biron, who had little chance on Steen's perfect wrister high blocker, also was solid turning aside 20 of 21 in his third start.

It just came down to a foolish mistake by enforcer Derek Boogaard, who with rookie linemates Derek Stepan and Evgeny Grachev in on the puck behind the net, went for a big hit catching all three deep. Had he backed up instead, there's probably no odd-man break with Brad Boyes dishing across for Steen, who used Dan Girardi as a screen for his second of the season. He would also score into an empty net with four seconds left, sending a disappointed crowd home.

Frustrating, yes. But the Rangers did some good things, competing hard and playing perhaps their best D so far. There's still plenty to work on for John Tortorella's club before hosting the Alex Ovechkin Caps Tuesday and the Sabres Thursday. Figure it to center around faceoffs where they again were victimized badly, losing 38-of-54 (70 Pct). Even a legit boarding major on human wrecking ball B.J. Crombeen with over 12:00 left when he crushed Stepan, who still cameback for his next shift, wasn't enough to get it tied. They couldn't win any draws and never got set up. The best opportunity came late with Artem Anisimov blowing a gimme with Conklin out of position. He didn't realize how much time he had, firing too quick and hitting the side of the net. That was the chance.

Save us the build in MSG excuse about vet ref Bill McCreary erring on a hi-stick call which negated an actual Alex Frolov goal. Yes, the puck probably never touched any Blue and they never gained clean possession before Frolov put in an errant Conklin clear attempt. However, mistakes happen all the time. Too much so these days as I debated with plenty of #NYR Tweeps before. McCreary is one of the best officials out there. He simply missed it. There was enough time for our team to score one measly goal. It just never came with Boogard's boneheaded play costing us at least a point. Speaking of Boogey Man, he also took a needless rough in the offensive zone. If he's not scratched next game, something's wrong. That cannot happen. Cam Janssen was out too. God forbid he challenge him. It's already Brashear II.

As for the five minute power play from Hell, we don't have one PP QB right now, especially with Mike Del Zotto struggling. At least he was stronger in his end. Michal Rozsival was the only consistent defenseman who pinched effectively. Outside of one nice Marc Staal rush, there just wasn't enough aggressiveness. Dan Girardi had another stellar game. He really should have Staal's 'A,' but I get why they're doing it.

As far as Tort's employment of forwards, I felt he didn't use Brian Boyle enough up front and never even gave Grachev a sniff in the third despite another decent outing. In the second, Grach had a nice takeaway and almost broke in clean using his size and reach. Only a hustling defensive play by Vlad Sobotka prevented the big chance. Is eight shifts (4:10) enough for the 20 year-old Russian? No but this stint should benefit his development. When Marian Gaborik returns which might come next week, he'll go back down to Hartford. I don't view him as Jessiman II as some have already unfairly labeled. The instincts are there. He just needs more time to develop offensively.

Frolov had one of his better games. He was more involved on the cycle which included a nifty Stepan backhand pass which Fro fired into Conklin. I get the feeling he's gonna get one soon and that should open the floodgates. D-Step played better, looking more confident with the puck and was rewarded with more ice-time, playing with Frolov and Ruslan Fedotenko in the third. He had one sneaky try from behind the net along with a couple of good passes but as teammates did, was brutal in the dotted circle losing six of seven faceoffs. Insert classic Don Cherry HNIC rant here. If only I could find it.

One other parting shot before we finish up. Fedotenko was properly called for a late hit after a whistle. Fine. But how come a punk like Daniel Carcillo gets away with it against the Islanders in a tie game late in the third yesterday? Simply amazing.

BONY 3 Stars:

3rd Star-Michal Rozsival, NYR (2 takeaways, 4 blocked shots, hit in 21:23)
2nd Star-Alex Steen, Stl (2 goals incl. decider in 2nd, 7 SOG, +2 in 18:07)
1st Star-Erik Johnson, Stl (2 hits, 2 blocked shots, +1 in 25:47-simply dominant)


Star Note: Neither goalie earned a star because they didn't have to make many tough saves.  

The MSG Blues

Another opportunity wasted. Yet again, the Rangers couldn't take advantage of good fortune. With the hapless Bruins losing in the Matt Cooke Revenge game, our heroes failed by falling to the Blues 4-3 at MSG. Their home record is now 15-23. I don't count OT or gimmick losses. Besides, our team's stunk it up in those instances anyway, further damaging their chances of a fifth consecutive postseason.

How does a team contending for the playoffs have a losing record on home ice? Absolutely brutal. If you check history, the post-lockout Rangers always were reliable at The Garden. Now, we're back to the Dark Ages and it shows. If you can't win at one of the better venues with great support, what does it say about your franchise? There are an awful lot of adjectives I can't use to express my bitter disappointment. Thank God we sold this game and weren't there for another classic tease. A game in which the weakest link Wade Redden actually contributed by tying it. And then in the next breath, one of our better players Ryan Callahan lost his check on Paul Kariya, allowing the vet to score his 400th- further crushing Ranger hopes.

Home Ice Disadvantage: A Closer Look At NYR Post-Lockout

Year         Record at MSG    Without OT/SO Losses
'05-06      25-10-6                25-16
'06-07      21-15-5                21-20
'07-08      25-13-3                25-16

'08-09      26-11-4                26-15 
'09-10      15-17-6                15-23


The last time the Blueshirts were this inept at home, they were finishing up a 69-point season in '03-04. In fact, they won only 13 times back when ties still existed along with the dreaded four column Bettman Era Error. That team went 13-21-3-4 or in more conventional terms, 13-25-3. Coincidence?

In many ways, the way this season's winding up, it eerily reminds us of '02-03 when the Islanders gave the Rangers plenty of chances to comeback and steal the eighth spot. Instead, our hapless team 'led' by Bobby Holik finished five points behind the Isles, whose 83 were enough to lose in the first round to Ottawa. Fast forward seven years later and history is repeating itself with Boston clinging onto the final spot with 74 points. Three better than both the Blueshirts and Thrashers, who doubled up slumping Ottawa to pull into a tie for ninth. Both Beantown and Hotlanta have 12 left to our 11, underlying just how important Sunday's NBC tilt is at TD Northbank.

If only it were that simple. Tampa, who lost tonight is 11th with 68 while the Islanders, who've reeled off three in a row are tied for 12th with the Panthers just six out. Even the Hurricanes, who pulled out an overtime home win over conference leader Washington are at 66 still hanging around. Given how poorly the injury riddled Bruins and Rangers are playing, anything's possible.

That brings us to the latest bad loss for the club that resides on 33rd and 7th. They wasted an inspired effort from Marian Gaborik, who snapped out of it with his club-leading 37th goal while setting up the other two Ranger tallies. Talking head John Tortorella came to his senses and put Erik Christensen back with the Great Gabby while finally demoting lifeless Olli Jokinen to the third line. While the change netted positive results, the team still found a way to lose despite out-shooting St. Louis 29-16.

Unfortunately, Henrik Lundqvist wasn't at the top of his game, permitting a couple he'd like back, including the mystifying unscreened Erik Johnson shot from the right point that left the normally affable 28 year-old Swede waving his arms in disgust. Even if you want to get on Chris Drury for not clearing the puck, it was still inexplicable. Four goals on 16 shots is inexcusable for one of the game's better netminders. He struggled in spurts, letting out bad rebounds off routine shots. This is one of my pet peeves. I can't classify Henrik as elite because he still has areas which need fixing, starting with positioning. He plays too far back. A more aggressive goalie cuts off the angles. Aside from that, the conservative approach makes him vulnerable on breakaways. Something we've seen this season. Everyone knows you can pick high glove. It's the other areas he should focus on with Benoit Allaire during the offseason.

It's not Lundqvist's fault the team is so poorly constructed. Speaking of which, did Matt Gilroy (8:52 TOI) see the ice in the third period? Here we are in Game 70 and the coach doesn't even have enough confidence to play the Hobey winner. What's that thing again about Hobey jinxes? Never mind. Where they lost this one was during the first three critical minutes, failing miserably on an extended five-on-three. So out of sync were they that even blatant homer Joe Micheletti critiqued it by basically saying, 'This is the worst 5-on-3 I've seen.' You know it's bad when such a rare moment happens on Jazzy Jim's Don't Worry Be Happy Network.

Despite not converting with neither point men Gaborik or the Jokester even considering a shot, the Rangers managed to get it tied when an even rarer sight took place in the form of a Redden goal. The play was made possible by Gaborik and Brandon Dubinsky, who Tort stuck out. In this stretch, Dubi's played the best hockey of his career. He won the board battle, freeing the puck to Gabby with the puck eventually coming back to an open Redden, who blasted home his second of the season to loud cheers- snapping a 57-game drought. Hell. He even helped set up Gaborik's 37th back in the first. So, on a night they got three points from their superstar and two from the worst player, they still invented a new way to lose.

One thing we've seen too much of is that this team can't sustain it. How many times have they tied a game just to see an opponent come right back, breaking our hearts? Same losing characteristics the pre-lockout teams had. And coached by the self-proclaimed genius who walks on water and never is accountable. At least Tom Renney always took the blame. The Blues' winner came 73 seconds later with Kariya finishing off a nice play that David Backes and T.J. Oshie combined on. With Jody Shelley making a poor change, Kariya took him off the puck and then made a bee line for the net escaping Callahan while Oshie set him up for the milestone. Congrats to a classy player who would've been a Hall Of Fame lock if not for injuries.


Can anyone please explain to me how it's possible that Shelley overstayed his shift? What was he even doing out there?!?!?!?!?! Hey. This is the same coach who had the audacity to stick out two-thirds of the fourth line in the final shift after Dubinsky tied the Buffalo game, which they predictably lost in overtime 2-1 on 3/7. You gotta be kidding me.

To their credit, the Blueshirts tried everything to get this one tied but couldn't beat backup Ty Conklin. Ser---ious--ly. They couldn't beat the freaking second string goalie, who made 26 saves. In a heated playoff race that's there for the taking, swept by the Blues. There are no words.

BONY 3 Stars:

3rd Star-Paul Kariya, Stl (game-winner with 11:36 left-400th career goal)
2nd Star-Erik Johnson, Stl (PPG, 4 PIM, SOG, 2 hits in 17:35)
1st Star-Marian Gaborik, NYR (club-leading 37th plus 2 assists, 3 SOG, +1 in 24:09)

Malkin 3 Jagr 1 Conklin > Lundqvist

If this looks like some sort of complex mathematics formula, then yeah. Chances are it probably is.

Translation: Malkin scores three goals while Jagr scores only one. Ty Conklin makes clutch stops setting a new career high with 43 saves while Henrik Lundqvist allows cruddy rebounds like Malkin's winner which "Franchise goalies" aren't supposed to give up.

Not that we're pinning this all on King Henrik who's Dad is still sick which can't be helping his concentration. His team failed to show for the first 20 and paid the price because when you face a hot goalie who's as unconscious as Conklin is now, you're not coming back from three down. Especially against him, Sid the Kid, Malkin and that team which looked a heck of a lot more organized than the Booshirts did.

Who cares if Jagr scored his fourth power play goal to break up the shutout midway through the third? Did anyone actually believe they'd get anything else by Conklin AKA the new Dominator (well at least for now anyway).

Think about that. Jagr has FOUR POWER PLAY GOALS. FOOOOOOOOUR! FOREEEEEEEEE!!!!!

The last word of course intentional because the way he's not produced on the PP, they'll be warming up the golf clubs at least two months earlier than anyone at 2 Penn Plaza expected.

I've lost faith. This team just doesn't inspire much now.

37 games remaining. Will they wake up before it's too late?!?!?!?!?!

Let them prove me wrong. Does anybody think this team even if they make it will do anything substantial this Spring? Not as long as No.68 is wearing the 'C.'


I take back the Cup prediction. I must've been on something.


P.S. How is Malkin not on the All-Star team? This business of representing every team is a joke. We're talking about a meaningless exhibition. That means the fans in Atlanta should get to see all the game's brightest and best stars. Malkin is one of the best young players in the league and he won't be there because the league has to make every team feel good. Bull shit.

I'm done.

Some extra Saturday stuff

With it being a very busy Saturday in the league, we figured we'd throw out some other extra stuff as well from other games:



-Toronto captain Mats Sundin's two goals in his team's 3-2 home loss to the Flyers gave him 20 for the season- making it the 17th consecutive season the 35 year-old Swedish pivot has scored at least 20 in his brilliant NHL career.



Sundin, who was taken first overall by the Quebec Nordiques in 1989 has tallied 408 of his 543 with the Maple Leafs since coming over in a trade for Wendel Clark. No.543 last night moved him past Stan Mikita into sole possession for 25th on the NHL's all-time goalscoring list.



Swedish Finisher A Magnificent Mats (Most Consecutive Seasons of at least 20 goals-or-more)



Gordie Howe 22 seasons

*Brendan Shanahan 18 seasons

Marcel Dionne 17 seasons

Brett Hull 17 seasons

Mats Sundin 17 seasons

+Jaromir Jagr 16 seasons



*still active needing five goals to reach 19 straight

+active and needs nine more for 17 in a row





-Emergency third string goalie Ty Conklin continued his amazing story stopping all 35 Panthers shots in backstopping the suddenly surging Pens to a 3-0 shutout- their sixth consecutive win.



The 30 year-old journeymen who's with his third organization in two years has been utterly brilliant since being recalled from AHL affiliate Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. In six straight starts, he's allowed only eight goals. In fact, he's now seven-for-seven when he gets the nod in net for Pittsburgh, which trails first place New Jersey by just a point.



"Its nice, mostly because the team's been plying so well," Conklin told the Associated Press after yesterday's latest stellar performance. "Everything's a lot more fun when you win."



"When you have a goalie that can make the saves, he's giving you a chance to win, and this is what he's doing right now," Pens' coach Michel Therrien added.



It sure is a lot simpler when you've got a hot goalie. That it would come from such an unlikely source due to a high ankle sprain which has sidelined starter Marc-Andre Fleury makes it even more special for the Penguins.



Conk-ering All (Ty Conklin this season with Pens)



8 GP 7 GS Record: 7-0 2.00 GAA .939 Save Pct 2 SHO





-With another goal (No.32) plus two assists, Calgary captain Jarome Iginla remained red hot in leading his Flames to a 6-4 win over the NHL's worst team the LA Kings.



After a slow start under new coach Mike Keenan, the admirable 30 year-old power forward has turned it up carrying his team to wins in 11 of their last 14 to move up to 49 points- one fewer than division leader Vancouver.



In fact, when Iginla tallies, the Flames have a pretty good record this season improving to 16-4-3 after last night.



Iginla Lighting The Lamp With Regularity (A breakdown of Iginla's goalscoring this season)



October 12 GP 8 goals

November 14 GP 5 goals



Two month total 26 GP 13 goals



Since Dec. 1 17 GP 19 goals



Notes:



-Iginla has only failed to score a goal in five of the 17 games.

-The Calgary franchise has six multi-goal games during the stretch including a hat trick in a 9-6 win over Tampa Bay on Dec.13.

-Included was a five-game goalscoring streak from 12/11 - 12/18 in which he lit the lamp eight times.

-The goal last night made it three straight games with a goal (5 total). He's tallied eight times in the last six contests.



More Iginla (Goalscoring leaders for 2007-08 season)



Ilya Kovalchuk, Atl 33 goals

Jarome Iginla, Cgy 32 goals

Alexander Ovechkin, Wsh 32 goals





-With his OT winner in a 2-1 victory over the Islanders, Marek Svatos continued his bounce back season. After scoring only 15 times in 2006-07, the 25 year-old Avs' right wing already has one more goal than he did in 66 games last year.



Svatos has three goals in his last two games and six in his past seven.

Marek's Turnaround In 2007-08

2006-07 66 GP 15 goals

2007-08 38 GP 16 goals

Crosby and Pens take Classic in shootout

It came down to the game's most electricifying player Sidney Crosby against one of the better young netminders this game has to offer in Ryan Miller. Mono y mono.

With the game on his stick, the best the league has to offer already at just 20 years of age in season three wouldn't allow his team to lose in this well played Hockey Heritage outdoor Winter Classic.

Even with the snow in his eyes, as he calmly carried the puck skating towards Miller, the youngest NHL captain in league history faked left and then pulled to a stop and slipped the puck through the Buffalo goalie's five-hole to send the Penguins to a thrilling 2-1 shootout victory over the home Sabres before a record crowd of 71,217 screaming spectators at Ralph Wilson Stadium.

"Growing up, I played a lot outside," the rating 2006-07 Hart winner explained to the Associated Press about the vintage pond hockey he took part in factoring in on his team's only goal in regulation before deciding it.

"When you see 70,000 people jammed into a stadium to watch
hockey, it's a good sign. The atmosphere and environment, I don't think you can
beat that."

Truer words couldn't be said about this extraordinary event- the second for the league since 2003 when the Canadiens defeated the Oilers in Edmonton. It was the first such NHL outdoor event in the United States.

"I like facing Sidney. I really want to stop him, obviously," the losing netminder said after keeping his team afloat with a strong third in stopping all 12 Pens' shots to earn his team a point. "I thought I made a good play to stay with him. I didn't think he made quite the play he wanted, but it worked out for him."

Truthfully, there were no losers on this special day in upstate New York.

"I'd love to do it again. I thought it was awesome," Buffalo coach Lindy Ruff pointed out. "It was good for the game. It may not be the best hockey game because of the situation, because of the weather, because of the snow, but the atmosphere was incredible.

"The hell with the cynics."

Even league commish Gary Bettman came to the same conclusion despite not your ideal conditions. But it sure was fun to watch adding an extra element which fans could appreciate.

"Based on the response, on our ability to execute, and the inquiries we're getting from other clubs for similar activities, this obviously is something we're going to look at again," a pleased Bettman said afterwards.

For former Sabre backup Ty Conklin, it was fitting that he was the winning netminder since the journeyman also took part in the first one when his Oilers fell to the Habs 4-3 before 57,167 on Nov.22, 2003.

The 31 year-old from Anchorage Alaska was very strong in making 36 saves including turning aside 13 of 14 in a busy second to keep the Pens afloat.

In two straight starts against his former team, Conklin allowed only one goal to lead Pittsburgh to a home-and-home sweep. Not too shabby. Plus his glove save on Maxim Afinogenov's backhand deke in Round Three of the shootout was awesome giving the stage to Sid the Kid to work his magic.

You have to give kudos to all the hard work which was done in preparing the facility, especially keeping the ice playable through wintry conditions.

Here are our three stars:

3rd Star-Brian Campbell (goal, 3 SOG in 24:50 TOI)
2nd Star-Ty Conklin (36 saves)
1st Star-Sidney Crosby (assist and SO winner)