IN THE ZONE - The Olympics are over, Simon Moser's rise continues

Anaheim Ducks

After the Ducks lost four of their last five games before the Olympics, Jonas Hiller faced the St. Louis Blues on Friday. Before the game, all the Olympians of the Ducks were honored for their performance in Sochi. After that, Hiller’s performance seamlessly tied in with those in Sochi: He celebrated his 21st shutout of his career and the 5th of the current season. As a consequence, he now leads the league in shutouts and was elected as second star of the game. One single goal up front was enough to defeat the Blues 1-0. Swiss defenseman Luca Sbisa, who has been scratched for the Olympics, was now a healthy scratch as well.

Calgary Flames

The Flames started their two-game week on Thursday against the Kings. Reto Berra had to accept the role of the backup-goalie as Rookie Joni Ortio got the start and made 22 saves in Calgary’s 0-2 loss. On Saturday, the Flames faced the Oilers and Reto Berra was back in net. After three periods and 21 saves by Berra it was a tie game. Finally, Sean Monahan scored the game winner for the Flames in OT for a 2-1 victory.

Minnesota Wild

Nino Niederreiter and his Minnesota Wild started their week after the Olympic break with a 3-0 win over the Oilers. Niederreiter scored his 19th assist on that night. He played 15:24 minutes and had 2 shots on goal. In the second game of the week Minnesota celebrated a 2-1 overtime-win in a hard-fought game. Both teams scored in the first period. Nino Niederreiter missed his penalty shot in the shootout and ended the game with a -1 rating.

Nashville Predators

Simon Moser was recalled from the AHL after his great performance during the Olympics. For the Predators, he played his fourth game in the NHL on Thursday against the Tampa Bay Lightning. Moser had one shot on goal in 8:22 minutes on the ice. His teammate Roman Josi scored his 9th goal in the 3-2 victory over the Lightening. On March 1, the Predators faced off against the Winnipeg Jets. This time Simon Moser scored for his team. It was his first goal in the NHL and the only goal for the Predators in this game. In the end, they fell 3-1 to the Jets. Moser was elected third star of the game for his performance. Roman Josi, on the other hand, blocked 3 shots and left the ice with a -1 rating.

New Jersey Devils

Damien Brunner had a very bad week. In his first game after the Olympics, he had to leave the ice after 1:35 with a lower body injury. Right before the Olympics, Brunner just came back from a knee injury. Without his help, the Devils won their game against the Columbus Blue Jackets 5-2 and alos in their second game of the week the Devils got two points when they destroyed the New York Islanders 6-1. How long Brunner will be out is not yet clear, but it seems that he will soon return to the Devil’s line-up.

Philadelphia Flyers

The Philadelphia Flyers started their week very badly. First, they had to accept a 3-7 thrashing against the San Jose Sharks. Mark Streit played 18:18 minutes and registered one shot on goal. After this painful loss, the Flyers fought back against the New York Rangers on Saturday. Mark Streit scored his 22nd assist of the season and his team won 4-2. Overall, Streit spent 22:05 minutes on the ice and left it with a +1 rating.

Vancouver Canucks

In his fourth game for the Canucks, Raphael Diaz had three shots on goal and blocked one shot. His new team played against the St. Louis Blues, who were in second place of the league, and won the game after a goal in the third period 1-0. Yannick Weber, on the other hand, was a healthy scratch. On Friday, the Canucks faced the Minnesota Wild. Yannick Weber was scratched again and Raphael Diaz got only 6:54 minutes of ice time. He had the chance to decide the game in the shootout but he missed his shot. In the end, the Canucks lost the game 1-2 against the Wild.
 

{flike}