Los Angeles, CA (Sports Network) - It took an extra three months, but the Los
Angeles Kings finally got to have their Stanley Cup celebration. It all went
downhill from there. Marian Hossa scored twice and added an assist to lead the
Chicago Blackhawks in a 5-2 win over the Kings in the season opener on
Saturday. Last June saw the Kings win the first Cup in franchise history as
the team defeated the New Jersey Devils in six games, capping a 16-4
postseason run that saw the team become the first eighth seed to take home the
coveted chalice. In a pre-game ceremony, Los Angeles raised its championship
banner in the rafters of the Staples Center, but Conn Smythe winner Jonathan
Quick gave up three goals in the first period en route to the season-opening
loss. Quick posted a 1.41 goals against average and .946 save percentage in
last year's playoff run, but he allowed five goals on 22 shots while Rob
Scuderi and Jordan Nolan scored in the loss. Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane
each posted a goal and an assist for the Blackhawks, who got 19 saves from
Corey Crawford in the win.
Final Score: Pittsburgh 3, Philadelphia 1
Philadelphia, PA (Sports Network) - The NHL lockout certainly didn't quell the
disdain the Pittsburgh Penguins and Philadelphia Flyers have for one another.
The Atlantic Division denizens picked up right from last year's memorable
first-round postseason series, with the Penguins getting a little bit of
revenge. Behind a strong performance by Marc-Andre Fleury, Pittsburgh opened
the truncated campaign Saturday at the Wells Fargo Center with a 3-1 victory.
Fleury made 26 saves to earn his 227th career win, breaking a tie with Tom
Barrasso for the most in franchise history. James Neal, Tyler Kennedy and
Chris Kunitz each had a goal for the Penguins, who were bumped off by their
in-state rivals in six games last spring in a wild, high-scoring series. The
two squads combined to score 56 goals, with the Penguins allowing 30. The
Flyers didn't fare as well in the next round as they were eliminated in five
games by the eventual Eastern Conference-champion New Jersey Devils. Ilya
Bryzgalov stopped 24 shots for Philadelphia, while Claude Giroux lit the lamp
in his debut as the Flyers' new captain.
Final Score: Ottawa 4, Winnipeg 1
Winnipeg, MB (Sports Network) - Erik Karlsson, last year's Norris Trophy
winner, had a goal and an assist to lift the Ottawa Senators over the Winnipeg
Jets, 4-1, in the season-opener for both teams. Chris Neil, Milan Michalek and
Kyle Turris also lit the lamp for the Senators, who lost to the top-seeded New
York Rangers in seven games in the first round of the playoffs last season.
Craig Anderson made 27 saves for Ottawa, which exceeded just about everybody's
expectations with a 92-point season in 2011-12, an 18-point improvement from
the previous year. Dustin Byfuglien scored the lone goal for the Jets, who
finished eight points out of a playoff spot last season. Ondrej Pavelec
stopped 33-of-37 shots in defeat.
The Sports Network