The Bolts and Crunch
Dave Mishkin says the Bolts weren’t rusty coming off their bye week, but were undone by a few costly mistakes. [NHL.com]
Turnovers were key. [Lightning.NHL.com]
Namely, the one by Valtteri Filppula that led to the Stars’ winning goal. Afterward, Jon Cooper states the painfully, comically, frustratingly obvious: The Lightning need to start getting two points instead of just one. [Tampa Bay Times]
Kristers Gudlevskis gave up four goals on 20 shots before being yanked as the Syracuse Crunch lost 6-1 to the St. John’s IceCaps. [Syracuse.com]
The League
Jamie Benn says Antoine Roussel has to buy lunch for the Stars again after he bought Saturday’s team meal and scored a hat trick that night. [The Associated Press]
In case you didn’t watch last night, the Stars’ longtime announcer, the great Dave Strader, called his first game after taking a leave of absence because of cancer, and the Stars paid tribute — and didn’t let him down. [SBNation]
For the Colorado Avalanche, the Lightning’s opponent tonight, it’s not too early to start talking about the draft: Nolan Patrick, the No. 1 prospect this year, isn’t the player the team needs. [Mile High Hockey]
It’s Hockey Day in America, which means you can have a full day of hockey. Start with the Capitals/Rangers at 12:30 p.m. on NBC, then Red Wings/Penguins at 3:30 p.m. on NBC, watch the beginning of Blackhawks/Sabres at 6 p.m. on NBCSN before tuning into the Lightning/Avalanche at 8 p.m. [NBC Sports]
The Game
In news that makes you go hmmm, close to 10,000 ECHL fans were in attendance at Memorial Coliseum in Fort Wayne, Indiana, as the Fort Wayne Komets hung Colin Chaulk’s No. 91 in the rafters. But the banner was upside down. General manager David Franke said “this is the most embarrassing thing I’ve ever been a part of in 27 years with the club.” The team is blaming arena workers for the gaffe. [News Sentinel]
