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NHL Roundup: Tarasenko dominates Winter Classic

By Dave Stevenson

Jan 2, 2017; St. Louis, MO, USA; Chicago Blackhawks goalie Corey Crawford (50) makes a save on a shot by St. Louis Blues right wing Vladimir Tarasenko (91) during the second period in the 2016 Winter Classic ice hockey game at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 2, 2017; St. Louis, MO, USA; Chicago Blackhawks goalie Corey Crawford (50) makes a save on a shot by St. Louis Blues right wing Vladimir Tarasenko (91) during the second period in the 2016 Winter Classic ice hockey game at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports /
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Vladimir Tarasenko put on one heck of a show in the 2017 Winter Classic. Here’s all the action from the NHL from Jan. 2. 

It’s safe to say 2017 has began with a “boom” for the NHL. Merely one day after Auston Matthews scored in overtime to give the Toronto Maple Leafs a Centennial Classic win over the Detroit Red Wings, the St. Louis Blues got three third period goals to beat the Chicago Blackhawks 4-1 in the Winter Classic.

In the league’s premier outdoor game, Vladimir Tarasenko dominated on a very big stage. He got two goals to lead the Blues to a win at Busch Stadium. For all of the talk of the bad weather predictions, the game was very crisp and the ice was in pretty good shape. While it wasn’t perfect, it was certainly better than the ice in recent Winter Classics.

The Buffalo Sabres got a bit of bad news, as forward Johan Larsson will miss the rest of the 2016-17 season. He dislocated his wrist and elbow after suffering a nasty hit against the Boston Bruins in late December.

Last Night’s Scores

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Tarasenko scored two of the Blues’ third period goals. Jake Allen stopped all but one of the shots he saw and looked remarkably sharp. Robby Fabbri continues to be underrated, putting up two assists. Patrik Berglund and Alexander Steen got the other goals for St. Louis.

Blackhawks defenseman Michal Kempny scored just 62 seconds in the game, marking the second fastest goal in Winter Classic history.

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It was a night of firsts for the New Jersey Devils. Defenseman Steven Santini got his first NHL assist on a first period goal by P.A. Parenteau. In the third period, Miles Wood got his first career assist on Sergey Kalinin’s goal. Cory Schneider picked up his second shutout of the season.

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Bo Horvat and Sven Baertschi, who got the game winning goal, scored for the Vancouver Canucks. The Colorado Avalanche got goals from Mikko Rantanen and Tyson Barrie.

Last Night’s Stars

  1. Vladimir Tarasenko is a rising star. In case there were any NHL fans who didn’t realize how great he is, his performance during the Winter Classic won them over for sure. Tarasenko has had issues with Ken Hitchcock, but the two appear to have a mutual understanding of each other.
  2. Cory Schneider got his second shutout of the season, stopping all 22 shots on goal he faced. The Devils need more of this from him if they want to rebound out of their slump.
  3. Sven Baertschi got the game winning goal for the Canucks, notching two goals in their win over the Avalanche.

Tonight’s Schedule

There are seven games on the schedule. The most intriguing one features the Toronto Maple Leafs visiting the Washington Capitals. This should be a good test for both teams.

Another must-see game features the Columbus Blue Jackets hosting the Edmonton Oilers. Not only will Connor McDavid be on display, so will the hottest team in the league. The Blue Jackets’ winning streak is approaching 17 games, which is the record.

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Other games on the schedule include the New Jersey Devils visiting the Carolina Hurricanes, the New York Rangers hosting the Buffalo Sabres, the Winnipeg Jets visiting the Tampa Bay Lightning, the Nashville Predators hosting the Montreal Canadiens, and the Los Angeles Kings visiting the San Jose Sharks.

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