Last Night's Preseason Performers (Oct 1)

It was a back and forth affair through two periods between the Capitals and the Hurricanes, as they headed to the 3rd, tied at 3-3, but that was all the scoring they saw until the shootout. There, the home team took the skills competition and the Hurricanes were 4-3 winners in the end.

For the home side, Eric Staal led the way offensively, picking up a pair of assists in the game, while Eddie Lack made his bid for the number one job, making 31 saves and another three in the shootout for the victory.

The Rangers and Bruins skated through a competitive preseason match, with the Rangers taking this one in their own barn, in regulation, 3-2.

Ryan McDonagh had a couple of assists in the game, helping to lead his team at both ends of the ice, while Henrik Lundqvist got the full game on Wednesday, making 39 saves for the victory.

On the other side of the ice, Brett Connolly scored the two goals for the Bruins and Ryan Spooner assisted on both goals, as they each get mentions this morning.

The New Jersey Devils were not intimidated by the trip to the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, nor were they dismayed by the 2-1 deficit they faced after the 1st period, as they came back to score three unanswered goals and take a 4-2 victory on the road on Wednesday night.

Travis Zajac, amidst trade rumours, led the way with a couple of goals, while Jacob Josefson and Damon Severson each chipped in with a couple of assists offensively.  Back-up goalie for the year, Keith Kinkaid, made 27 saves for the win.

For the Flyers, offensive defender Michael Del Zotto had a couple of assists in the loss.

It was another road team victory in the final game of the night, but this one was far more decisive than the Devils/Flyers, rather it was quite the beat down that the Detroit Red Wings gave the Pittsburgh Penguins. A 7-2 final is nothing to be sneezed, even in the preseason.

It was the rookies that came out to play for the Red Wings, as Andreas Athanasiou and Anthony Mantha each had 3-point nights, while Brendan Smith, Justin Abdelkader and Dylan Larkin each had 2-point nights.  Petr Mrazek still had to make 36 saves for the victory, so it wasn't like he was standing around and doing nothing for his victory.