FanHouse J.p.Dumont

Newsmakers in the NHL is a weekday morning attempt to clear yesterday's rebounds and look to the day ahead.

Bruins 5, Canadiens 4: The Montreal Canadiens may have lost on Thursday night, but because they did so in overtime, earning a "Bettman point," they managed to secure a playoff spot, avoiding what would have been a spectacular disappointment in a season of celebrations and championship expectations. Montreal overcame a 3-1 deficit in the second period with a four-goal outburst, including a tally from defenseman Mathieu Schneider who suited up despite earlier reports that his season was over.

Aside from Montreal, the New York Rangers also punched their playoff tickets with a 2-1 win over the Flyers, which means the Florida Panthers, despite their 3-2 win in Atlanta, are mathematically eliminated from contention.

Late in the first period of last night's Predators-Canucks game, with the score tied at one, Vancouver's Rob Davison leveled Nashville's Scott Nichol following a dump-in to the zone, leading to a rather physical night of hockey in the music city. It was a classic, "Hey, keep your head up" moment.

In the wake of the crushing hit, Jason Jaffrey and Rich Peverley squared off at center ice. Not the best scrum we've seen, but Peverley losses points for fighting with his visor on. Doesn't this violate the code?

Over the past 48 hours or so, as the hockey world stopped dead to consider the behavior of one Sean Avery, I couldn't help but think back to the early part of October when, during a trip to the penalty box in Nashville, Avery decided to tangle with a Predators fan sitting next to the glass.

I'm sure some of you will remember this incident that took place back on Oct. 11:



At the time, it was impossible not to laugh a little. After all, who couldn't get a chuckle out of what looked to be a rather proper lady giving the NHL's No. 1 bad boy a piece of her mind. It was hard to get her out of my mind too. After all, she probably had a story to tell, one that plenty of other folks would like to hear.

And boy, does she have a story to tell.

(Editor's note: Some of the language that follows is extremely graphic and is not suitable for younger readers.)

The Minnesota Wild are probably the last team you would expect to be involved in a 6-5 game, but, hark, here we are. Paul Stastny scored a pair of goals and picked up an assist for the Avalanche, as they snapped the Wild's modest two-game winning streak on Monday night.

Minnesota goalie Niklas Backstrom had what was, perhaps, his worst night of the season, giving up six goals on 26 shots through the first two periods. He didn't come back out for the third, as Josh Harding took over and stopped all five shots he faced in the defeat.

For the Avalanche, Peter Budaj gave up five goals of his own on 17 shots, as Minnesota picked up goals from Pierre-Marc Bouchard (2), Owen Nolan, Mikko Koivu, and Brent Burns.

Bouchard scored his second goal of the game just 22 seconds into the second period, giving Minnesota a brief 3-2 lead. Just three minutes later, Stastny picked up his first, as the Avalanche would fill the net three more times in the period, ultimately chasing Backstrom from the game.

Minnesota head coach Jacques Lemaire called the first 40 minutes the worst two periods he had seen, as Colorado was not only leading 6-4, but also holding a commanding 26-12 edge in shots on goal.