Saturday Wrap-Up

TURN ON THE BAY CITY ROLLERS!!!

By Zak Griffin

If it ain't Scottish, it's crap! Unless of course we are talking about the night of hockey that was this Saturday night. So buckle up kiddos, we've got a lot of ground to cover and only so much time to do it in!

Vancouver Canucks 4 vs. Toronto Maple Leafs 0

As I sat at the corner of Quebec St. and East 1st Ave. at 4:31 p.m., I stared into the distance and gazed upon the hotbed of magnificence that is Rogers Arena. Knowing that the Leafs were in town, I ate my blackberry sorbet and lemon gelato nervously, a state I usually find myself in whenever Toronto clashes with the Canucks. Knowing full well the consequences that await should Toronto be victorious on the day they raised Pavel Bure's #10 to the rafters... I shuddered to even ponder the possibility of a Canucks loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs... Like that's ever going to happen! Let's put it this way, losing 4-0 is never an indication that your team played well but had it not been for James Reimer... this game would have gotten ugly. It's been nearly 10 years since the Leafs last beat the Canucks, so we can all continue with our lives as they were. The sun rises in the east, it sets in the west, the Toronto Maple Leafs cannot beat the Vancouver Canucks and I will NEVER allow my Maple Leafs friends to forget about it.

Chicago Blackhawks 5 vs. Winnipeg Jets 1

In front of a rowdy crowd of 15,004 at the MTS Centre in Winnipeg, "Captain Serious" himself, Jonathan Toews, finally debuted in front of his hometown. Winnipeg got ahead early, but that's about as close as it would be, as five straight goals from the Hawks helped the team win its third straight game. But Toews was pointless and Kane didn't score, so in the end nobody won... not even Charlie Sheen (that's right I'm still making Charlie Sheen jokes).

Courtesy imdb.com

Can you look away? 'Cause I sure can't!

Anaheim Ducks 6 vs. Buffalo Sabres 3

Hockey Poem #2 (A Haiku) By Zak Griffin

The lowly Sabres
Put forth a mighty effort
Just kidding, they sucked

Tampa Bay Lightning 4 vs. St. Louis Blues 2

First name Alex. Last name... Killorn!? Okay, this is just getting ridiculous. Alex Steen, the league's biggest surprise so far, took a back seat to the other other Alex, as Killorn had three points (1G, 2A) on the night. Then again, that's what happens when you get moved onto a line with Steven Stamkos and Martin St. Louis. It's like trying to catch fish with dynamite... and the fish are in your bathtub.

Philadelphia Flyers 1 vs. New Jersey Devils 0

After showing he still is the Mike Tyson of hockey (in more ways than one), Ray Emery made 14 saves for the shutout (EDITOR'S NOTE: Seriously? A 14-save 1-0 shutout? Did the Devils forget their sticks or something?), to help the Flyers bounce back from their humiliating 7-0 loss/Royal Rumble against the Capitals the night before. Brayden Schenn had the only goal of the contest as the Flyers try to remain in contention for the Connor McDavid sweepstakes.

New York Islanders 3 vs. Boston Bruins 1

Thomas Vanek got his first goal as an Islander and added in an assist to help the Islanders take down the beloved Bruins of Bean town (Holy sarcasm Batman!). Oh, and then there's this:

Courtesy boston.barstoolsports.com

Look at that smug face. LOOK AT IT! Everyone hates you, Boston sports fans.

New York Rangers 5 vs. Carolina Hurricanes 1

It begins! Henrik Lundqvist made 28 saves, Derek Stepan had a hat trick and the New York Rangers have won three in a row to start the month of November. I know it is too soon to say so, but it is looking like my theory that Alain Vigneault the cause of his teams' poor starts is starting to look true. I don't want to toot my own horn, but...

Courtesy deviantart.com

You get the point. 

Washington Capitals 3 vs. Florida Panthers 2 (SO)

The Capitals were perfect in the shootout to beat the struggling Panthers and move to .500 on the year at 7-7-0. With his fifth goal of the season, Nicklas Backstrom moves ahead of Alex Ovechkin for the team scoring lead, as Ovechkin continues to sit out with an upper-body injury... whatever that means.

Pittsburgh Penguins 3 vs. Columbus Blue Jackets 0

Coming into this game, Penguins back-up Jeff Zatkoff posted a mighty 0-2-0 record, a 5.06 goals-against average and a .818 save percentage. So, one would think, with Zatkoff prepared to start, that this might be the game the Jackets could take in their home-and-home series with the Penguins. Well, those people would be WRONG!! Zatkoff made 19 saves both his first career win and first career shutout. Way to show it to the haters Jeff!

Colorado Avalanche 4 vs. Montreal Canadiens 1

Having Adam Foote's number retired is a good way to get people's minds off of the whole Varlamov situation, as the former long time Avs defensemen saw his number 52 ascend into the rafters. And as the puck was dropped, the Avs continued to do what they have done so well all season: not lose hockey games, moving to 12-1-0 on the year. Brendan Gallagher scored though... which makes me happy, and I like being happy!

Nashville Predators 3 vs. Los Angeles Kings 2

David Legwand got a pair of goals, Shea Weber scored his fourth of the year and Seth Jones (former Portland Winterhawk) added an assist, as the Preds knocked off the Kings in a game that was definitely played on ice.

OK, I didn't actually watch this game, but I'm thinking that's a safe assumption.

Courtesy virgula.uol.com.br

Like this, but with fighting

Phoenix Coyotes 3 vs. San Jose Sharks 2 (SO)

In an interesting twist, Antoine Vermette scored 36 seconds into the Coyotes contest versus the Sharks. Two hours later he scored the winner in the shootout, as the Coyotes defeated San Jose. Oh, and in between Vermette's goals, Mike Smith made 50 saves, but it was mostly Vermette though.

Detroit Red Wings 5 vs. Edmonton Oilers 0

The anthems were sung, the two teams lined up and the puck was dropped... this is where things started going wrong for the Oilers. For Dallas Eakins and co. the end could not come soon enough. The Oilers only mustered 14 shots on goal, allowing Petr Mrazek to earn his first career shutout (EDITOR'S NOTE: Two 14-save shutouts in one night! Got to be a record!). But this was not the end for the Oilers' problems on the night. Edmonton saw two players, goaltender Richard Bachman (groin) and defenceman Anton Belov (knee) go down with injuries, the latter of which came as a result of a nasty collision into the side boards. Not a good day in Oil country.

Until next time, keep your stick on the ice.

*         *         *

Zak Griffin hopes you've enjoyed this edition of Saturday Wrap-Up. Follow him on Twitter at @zakgriffin13. If you have any questions, comments or thoughts on chess-boxing as a sport please leave them in the comment section below.