POWER TO THE HABS The Montreal Canadiens were dead to rights last night against the Columbus Blue Jackets being down 2-0 with just under 9 minutes remaining in the game when the Jackets' started to lose their cool. One penalty after another awoken the sleeping giant and they made them pay with 3  consecutive power play goals to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat.  It was a P. K. Subban sandwich wrapped around 2 pieces of Max Pacioretty power play bread as they provided the fantastic finish for the visiting Habs. The loss put a damper on the Jackets who are trying to get back into playoff contention which would be a minor miracle considering the start they have had this season with all the injuries.... Where Columbus' Sergei Bobrovsky faltered, Washington's Braden Holtby & Anaheim's Frederik Andersen stood tall as the pair pitched shutouts against their respective opponents, 1-0 and 4-0 respectively. Holtby made Jason Chimera's 1st-period goal hold up while Andersen got the benefit of a Corey Perry hat trick. Kudos goes out to the threesome. It was the unlikeliest outcome between the New Jersey Devils and Los Angeles Kings as the Devils took a 5-3 win in LA. New Jersey has been struggling all year and beating the Kings was going to be difficult. Devils' G Cory Schneider wasn't at this best, stopping 23 of 26 SOG, but the team played a solid game in front of him with some early help from an unlikely power play source, Steve Bernier, who netted 2 with the man-advantage. Without the services of Jaromir Jagr, someone had to fill those shoes. Expect Bernier to return those rentals once Jagr is cleared for action. ***The Minnesota Wild are trying to address their goaltending woes by acquiring journeyman goaltender Devan Dubnyk from the Arizona Coyotes for a third round pick. Dubnyk has played well this season for the Coyotes with a 9-5-2 record but average metrics in 2.72 GAA and a .916 SP.  Those numbers are a huge improvement over last season's nightmare, so look for the Wild to give Dubnyk every chance to be the number 1 guy in Minnesota.

THE FUTURE IS NEAR We are just three months into the 2014-15 season and we already have caught a glimpse of the next generation of goaltending talent that will descend upon the NHL in the years to come. First, let's pay tribute to a goaltender that has made a tremendous impact on the league and may be playing his swansong year in St. Louis.  I am talking about none other than Martin Brodeur who set another NHL record with his 125th shutout against the Colorado Avalanche on December 29th. With this possibly being his last hurrah, I am grateful to have witnessed one of the great NHL goaltenders of all time. A lot of people look forward to the New Year because it holds the promise of a new beginning for some and a chance to turn things around for others. Although we never really know what the future has in store, we are fortunate enough to have caught a glimpse of what that future holds for some young goaltending talent and it certainly looks quite bright. So let's take a look at some up-and-coming goaltending talent. We might as well start with who is probably the top-rated goaltending talent around. And that distinction belongs to Tampa Bay prospect Andrei Vasilevskiy. The 20-year old net minder was drafted #19 overall in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft by the Lightning and has played the past few seasons in the KHL where he has posted some impressive statistics.  AV's KHL stats in 36 games over 2 years are 18-9-5 with a 2.22 GAA and a .924 SP.  Vasilevskiy was called up when Tampa Bay starter Ben Bishop went down with a minor lower-body injury and started 3 games, winning 2, and posting a 2.01 GAA and a .940 SP. Even though they are both small sample sizes, the talent is there as noted by HockeysFuture.com's 15th overall rating among prospects. The future looks bright in sunny Tampa Bay. Switching over to the West Coast, the Anaheim Ducks are sporting a very talented goalkeeper of their own in John Gibson. Gibson already has had a much heralded career as he won the gold medal for the United States in the 2013 World Junior Ice hockey Championships sporting a 1.36 GAA and .955 SP.  Impressive  indeed!  He also won the bronze medal at the 2013 IIHF World Championships by posting another set of incredible metrics; 1.56 GAA & .951 SP. When starter Frederik Andersen went down with an injury towards the end of last season, Gibson was called up and added to his resume an NHL debut 3-0 shutout of the Vancouver Canucks. In just 3 starts that season, the youngster went 3...

The highest scoring team in the NHL, the Toronto Maple Leafs, were outscored by one of the lowest scoring teams, the Florida Panthers in a 6-4 shoot'em out battle in Miami, Florida. The Leafs had built a 4-2 lead going into the 3rd period but the Cats clawed back as they scored 4 unanswered goals as Roberto Luongo (18/22 SV) outlasted James Reimer (28/33 SV). The regulation win kept the Panthers close to a playoff spot....James van Riemsdyk, with a goal and assist, and Joffrey Lupul (2A) were the offensive sparks for Toronto while Dmitry Kulikov (G, A) and Jussi Jokinen (2A) were their counterparts for Florida.... Heading over to the West Coast, it was the Anaheim Ducks prevailing over the Vancouver Canucks 2-1 in overtime as G Frederik Andersen turned aside 12 of 13 SOG getting a relatively easy night in back-to-back starts. Andersen has now started 20 of 21 games for the Ducks and it looks like backup Ilya Bryzgalov will only be seeing spot duty every now and then....D Cam Fowler scored the game-winner and now has 7 points in 13 December games. This may be a good "buy-low" situation on the Anaheim defenseman.

RINNE ROLLS ON & JOHNNY BE GOOD! You may not have noticed but the Washington Capitals have won 3 in a row and 7 of last 9 with Braden Holtby raising his record to 15-7-5 after beating the Ottawa Senators 2-1. Caps C Nicklas Backstrom continued his hot hand with a power play goal that stood up as the game-winner. That's 9 points in last 5 games putting him on the "Niiiiice" list....Continue to start Holtby as the team is getting acclimated to Head Coach Barry Trotz' system.... Nashville stays close to the top of the Western Conference with a pedestrian 5-1 win over the Columbus Blue Jackets who have stumbled a little by losing 2 of last 3 but can't blame the Jackets as Pekka Rinne has been the NHL's best goaltender this season. Rinne leads the NHL with 22 wins and he also has a 1.84 GAA and a .934 SP.  Wow!...Craig Smith, one of our sleeper picks in the 2014-2015 PrimePucks™ Fantasy hockey Draft Guide may be heating up as he has 4 points in last 2 games. With just 19 points in 32 games, I may need a little more confirmation that he can be consistent from here on out.... Jimmy Hayes, all through my brain! Hayes helped the Florida Panthers squeak past the Pittsburgh Penguins 4-3 in a shootout with 2 goals.  There are probably better options on the waiver wire but keep an eye on him.  You never know..... The Vancouver Canucks beat up on the Arizona Coyotes 7-1. It was the usual suspects for Vancouver with the Sedin twins getting 2 points each and Alex Burrows netting 2. There had been so much promise for Burrows but he never lived up to the hype but has settled in as a good support forward...Oliver Ekman-Larsson is getting hot with a power play goal, giving him 6 points in 9 December games.... Frederik Andersen and the Anaheim Ducks managed to put an end to the San Jose Sharks 5-game winning streak but it took overtime to do the trick. It was Andersen's 19th win on the year so continue to ride the young Duck net minder... And we saved the best for last as Johnny Gaudreau, aka Johnny Hockey, helped the Calgary Flames beat Los Angeles 4-3 in overtime. With the Flames trailing the LA Kings 3-0 near the end of the 2nd period, Gaudreau kicked it into gear and scored his first NHL hat trick before the Flames capped the comeback with a Mark Giordano game-winner in OT. The Flames scored 4 unanswered goals to end their 8-game losing streak.

RINNE ROLLS ON & JOHNNY B. GOOD! You may not have noticed but the Washington Capitals have won 3 in a row and 7 of last 9 with Braden Holtby raising his record to 15-7-5 after beating the Ottawa Senators 2-1. Caps C Nicklas Backstrom continued his hot hand with a power play goal that stood up as the game-winner. That's 9 points in last 5 games putting him on the "Niiiiice" list....Continue to start Holtby as the team is getting acclimated to Head Coach Barry Trotz' system.... Nashville stays close to the top of the Western Conference with a pedestrian 5-1 win over the Columbus Blue Jackets who have stumbled a little by losing 2 of last 3 but can't blame the Jackets as Pekka Rinne has been the NHL's best goaltender this season. Rinne leads the NHL with 22 wins and he also has a 1.84 GAA and a .934 SP.  Wow!...Craig Smith, one of our sleeper picks in the 2014-2015 PrimePucks™ Fantasy hockey Draft Guide may be heating up as he has 4 points in last 2 games. With just 19 points in 32 games, I may need a little more confirmation that he can be consistent from here on out.... Jimmy Hayes, all through my brain! Hayes helped the Florida Panthers squeak past the Pittsburgh Penguins 4-3 in a shootout with 2 goals.  There are probably better options on the waiver wire but keep an eye on him.  You never know..... The Vancouver Canucks beat up on the Arizona Coyotes 7-1. It was the usual suspects for Vancouver with the Sedin twins getting 2 points each and Alex Burrows netting 2. There had been so much promise for Burrows but he never lived up to the hype but has settled in as a good support forward...Oliver Ekman-Larsson is getting hot with a power play goal, giving him 6 points in 9 December games.... Frederik Andersen and the Anaheim Ducks managed to put an end to the San Jose Sharks 5-game winning streak but it took overtime to do the trick. It was Andersen's 19th win on the year so continue to ride the young Duck net minder... And we saved the best for last as Johnny Gaudreau, aka Johnny Hockey, helped the Calgary Flames beat Los Angeles 4-3 in overtime. With the Flames trailing the LA Kings 3-0 near the end of the 2nd period, Gaudreau kicked it into gear and scored his first NHL hat trick before the Flames capped the comeback with a Mark Giordano game-winner in OT. The Flames scored 4 unanswered goals to end their 8-game losing streak.

Perhaps this is the time to start thinking about "buying low" on the New Jersey Devils as they have played 21 of their 34 games away from home so far and with some players returning to full health should be able to make a run with a lot of games coming up at home. New Jersey plays 12 of their next 18 games at the Prudential Center. Devils G Keith Kincaid earned his won his 1st NHL victory against the high-powered Tampa Bay lightning who seem to have hit a rut lately by losing 6 of their last 9 games. Both usual starters, Ben Bishop and Cory Schneider, were out for different reasons but should be in net for their respective team's next starts....Patrik Elias scored his 4th goal on the season and just 3th point in 28 games this season well below his career average. Could be a solid acquisition from here on out as he should return to normal scoring levels.... Ilya Bryzgalov got his first start in his return to the Anaheim Ducks and was smoked for 6 goals by the Ottawa Senators. Expect Frederik Andersen back in net for their next game.  Bobby Ryan seems to be heating up with 8 points in 8 December games after contributing two assists in the game. You just might be able to obtain Ryan on the cheap.  If you remember, Ryan was at a point-per-game clip before playing with an injury last year, his first in Ottawa.... Jaroslav Halak and the NY Islanders continued their strong season with a 2-1 victory in Hockeytown over the Detroit Red Wings who lost G Jimmy Howard to a lower-body injury during the first period. Hopefully for the Red Wings, Howard won't be out long as he was having a nice comeback season.  Halak earned his 17th win on the year.... Michael Hutchinson continues to show what he can do at the NHL level with a 30-save, 2-1 win over the Boston Bruins. Hutchinson raised his record to 7-2-2 with outstanding metrics and should be considered the undisputed starter but Winnipeg continues to platoon both he and Ondrej Pavelec who is having his best statistical season by far but the team seems to win more with Hutch in net..... The Dallas Stars scored twice early and held on for a 2-1 victory over the Calgary Flames, raising G Kari Lehtonen's record to 13-7-5. For the Flames, that was their 7th loss in a row  as they are quickly fading from a solid start to the season.  

Could this be the coming out party for Montreal's Alex Galchenyuk? Moved to the center the top line a few games ago, the ultra-talented Center, with his 3-goal game tonight against the Hurricanes, has 5 points in the three games since being moved.  It's too early to say for sure that he is ready for greater things, but he is capable...Max Pacioretty who knows a few things about hat tricks assisted on all three Galchenyuk goals... Tampa Bay won for just the second time in the past 6 games with rookie G Andrei Vasilevskiy making his NHL debut and turning aside 23 of the 24 Philadelphia SOG for the win. Regular starter Ben Bishop hurt himself the previous night but according to Bishop, he shouldn't be out long...Tyler Johnson had the game-winner and an assist in the game giving him 33 points in 33 games this season. No sophomore jinx for this Johnson....  Toronto continued their winning ways and remain the hottest team in the Eastern Conference with an impressive 6-2 win over Frederik Andersen and the Anaheim Ducks. The top line of Phil Kessel-Tyler Bozak-James van Riemsdyk combined for 7 points in the Leaf victory....G Jonathan Bernier, our latest BETWEEN THE PIPES feature, remained hot with a 40-save effort in notching his 13th win and his 8th win in last 10 decisions. Continue to ride the hot net minder.... Both Sergei Bobrovsky and Jimmy Howard wouldn't budge in their matchup last night and it took a shootout to decide the regulation scoreless tie. Both net minders have been playing excellent goal of late and should continue for the remainder of the season..... The Florida Panthers continue to scratch and claw their way against their opponents to come away with at least a point and last night was just another reminder that the Cats aren't going to be an easy game anymore. Roberto Luongo turned aside 23 of 24 and then saw another 20 attempts in the shootout before Nick Bjugstad put an end to the shootout marathon for the win....   Just when you thought the Los Angeles Kings would continue their recent dominance over St. Louis, their breakout star Vladimir Tarasenko fueled the 5-2 comeback win with a heck of a third period effort- two goals and an assist. He finished with four points on the night to extend his point streak to six games. His overall 36 points is only two behind the NHL lead so treat Tarasenko as an ultra-elite fantasy option and enjoy his monster season. Trading him is not recommended... Not much to say about Arizona's 2-1 overtime win ...

Good morning all! Christmas is coming! With Zdeno Chara back in the lineup, Boston should be able to get back on track soon enough. I don't know if this particular coaching change will help Ottawa but I do agree that a change was needed. I think you can now consider Buffalo NHL-ready as they have gone 7-3-0 in last ten games separating themselves from the Carolina Hurricanes. The biggest reason in Buffalo is G Jhonas Enroth. He has taken the reins after a somewhat sluggish start.  The Philadelphia Flyers have an upcoming 8-game road trip which will say a lot about their chances for the playoffs. I could see a lot of names changing addresses for the Hurricanes when the trading deadline approaches. It's impressive to see the Florida Panthers in the middle of the Eastern Conference standings with 32 points through 28 games. Nice job! Can you believe Toronto is the hottest team in the NHL right now with an 8-1-1 record over last 10 games? Who would've thought after the 9-2 Tampa catastrophe? The Leafs did it by beating the former hottest team, the Detroit Red Wings, twice in one week. Nazem Kadri is playing well on both sides of the puck and has 7 points in 6 December games and he had 7 total points in all of November. That Sean Couturier is on fire recently if you haven't noticed. He also has 7 points in 6 December games like Kadri. At 6-3-1 in last 10 games, is that considered a slump for Tampa Bay? With Crosby slumping and all their injuries throughout the early season, the Pittsburgh Penguins still sit atop the Eastern Conference. Nicklas Backstrom, the assist machine, had a hat trick against Tampa. Now, with all the firepower in that game, I wouldn't have guessed him to get a hattie. Scott Darling lost against the Islanders 3-2.  He has played well with a 5-2 record and a 1.97 GAA.  Corey Crawford has a 1.87 GAA and Antti Raanta has a 2.02 GAA. What do they feed those Blackhawk goalies? Sergei Bobrovsky and the Columbus Blue Jackets are storming their way back into the playoff picture by rattling off six straight wins. Get on the bandwagon and hitch the cannon up to the back. When Kris Letang is in the lineup, he is lethal. Well, maybe not lethal, but damn good. Frederik Andersen is 7-0-0 in December. I don't think he can get through the month without a loss. Do you? If Edmonton could only score a little bit more each game, Arizona might have been in last place in the Western Conference instead of the Oilers. I think a coaching change may be in order ...

Marc-Andre Fleury (26/27 SV) and the Crosby-less Pittsburgh Penguins played a tidy game against the Calgary Flames and came away with a 3-1 victory. It appears Crosby will be out for at least one more game but they did welcome back D Kris Letang and Patric Hornqvist from the infirmary. Hornqvist was held off the score sheet but Letang scored the game-winning goal while Evgeni Malkin pitched in with 2 assists. The Pens are just so deep with offense that as long as one of Malkin or Crosby are in the lineup, they are tough to beat.... The Montreal Canadiens continued their 5-game home stand with a 6-2 win over the Los Angeles Kings as P. K. Subban was the main cog with a goal and an assist giving him 21 points in 31 games and 8 points in last 7.    Subban is creeping up on the defensive scoring leaders with his 2 points and now is just 9 points behind leader Mark Giordano. I have a feeling that Subban will catch Giordano at some point....Habs rookie Jiri Sekac started and ended the scoring with goals, his 5th and 6th of the season. That's 4 points in last 3 games and with just 12 points in 24 games, I'd be hesitant in picking him up.... The Florida Panthers continued their strong play this season and came away with a 3-2 shootout win in Detroit. Both Roberto Luongo and Jimmy Howard played well in net for their respective teams but the shootout loss prevented the Red Wings from taking over the top of the Eastern Conference... Anaheim goalie Frederik Andersen started his 17th straight game last night against the Edmonton Oilers and came away with his 6th straight winning by a score of 4-2. Andersen turned aside 21 SOG for his 16th win on the season.  This wasn't much of a contest with the Oilers losing their 14th in their past 15 games.

Most important news of the night was that Corey Perry left the game with an apparent knee injury on a check along the side boards. The seriousness of his injury is not known at this time but after a sensational start to the season, Perry will continue to travel with the team, so the eseverity of his injury might not be that bad.  This injury, and his recent bout with the mumps and I'm sure Perry can't wait for the new year to begin.... Anaheim Duck G Frederik Andersen (21/25 SV) didn't have his best game but managed to play well enough for his 13th win on the season. With the recent tryout of one-time Duck Ilya Bryzgalov and rookie John Gibson still recovering from a lower-body injury, it appears that Andersen will be manning the crease for the foreseeable future.  If, and when, Bryzgalov signs, Gibson seems to be headed for the minors to develop his game once he returns from injury.... Minnesota G Darcy Kuemper (13/18 SV) didn't have his best game either as he was pulled after letting in all 5 goals in the Ducks 5-4 win over the Wild. Kuemper's play has been off-and-on lately going 3-3-0 in last 6 starts.  The Wild need consistent play form their net minders and with Josh Harding lurking in the AHL, Kuemper's days as the undisputed no. 1 in Minnesota may be drawing to a close.... The good thing to come out of this game was the play of Ryan Kesler who had 2 goals and an assist. Kesler will need to bring his ‘A' game as Perry could be out of the lineup for a period of time depending on the severity of his injury.... Winnipeg G Michael Hutchinson (20/22 SV) is not making it easy for the Jets coaching staff not to play him more regularly as he put in another superb performance by allowing just 2 goals or less in a game for the sixth straight start. Ondrej Pavelec owners need to grab him as a handcuff pronto.....The line of Bryan Little (3G, A), Andrew Ladd (G, 2A) and Blake Wheeler (3A) were the offensive stars of the game. Perhaps the Colorado Avalanche were exactly what the doctor ordered for the Jets' offense and is a sign of things for Winnipeg forwards.... The Chicago Blackhawks defeated the Montreal Canadiens 4-3 on a last minute goal by Brandon Saad who now has 3 points in the last 3 games showing signs of breaking out of an early season slump....Kris Versteeg continued his resurgence as a Blackhawk with another power play assist, making that 8 points in last 5 games and 22 points in 22 games. Perhaps the imminent return of Patrick Sharp will slow ...