Hottest players in the last month:

Martin Brodeur
With 11 wins and 4 shutouts in the New Year, Brodeur has helped the Devils right the ship and get back into the playoff hunt. Earlier this season I was worried the new rules, and smaller pads had transformed Brodeur into Mike Dunham, but it seems that he has adapted and is fully recovered from his injuries.

Sidney Crosby
Even with the Penguins falling apart, retiring a player a week, putting the 'for sale' sign on the front lawn, Crosby has continued to rack up the numbers with 8 goals and 14 assists for the month of January. This kid has the weight of the Winnepeg (Pittsburgh) Penguins, as well as that of the entire NHL on his back. Considering the media attention (which is often brutal towards him) and his age, Crosby's game has obviously not suffered. I haven't seen a first round draft pick dominate like this since Alexander Daigle.

Scott Gomez
Another reason why the Devils have turned it around is the recent play of Scott Gomez. It doesn't hurt that your linemate Patrick Elias returned from IR and the other guy riding shotgun Brian Gionta is putting every puck you pass to him in the net. Gomez has 10 goals and 12 assists in the past month and doesn't show any sign of slowing down, unless he faces the Rangers (actually he did score agains them Sunday night, but they stopped your win streak!!! WOOO HOOO).

Dominik Hasek
The Dominator has continued his excellent play, and is a big reason why the Senators are so good right now. In the last month he has 8 wins and 2 shutouts, including a recent whooping of the Leafs (who are going down faster than a Value Jet right now). As long as he stays injury free (the groin has been the most popular injury in the NHL and on Broke Back Mountain this year), the Senators should be a shoe-in for the Cup.

Alexander Ovechkin
Hands down he is the man. Ovechkin has started to separate himself from the rest of the rookie class this year and in January has 13 goals and 10 assists. If you didn't see his highlight reel goal last week, then visit www.ovechkinfans.com/. Probably the coolest goal I've seen since Marek Malik's against Kolzig!

Last Night's Scores:

Washington 2 Boston 3 F
Pittsburgh 3 NY Islanders 4 F (SO)
Carolina 5 Atlanta 1 F
Buffalo 8 Toronto 4 F
Montreal 0 Ottawa 3 F
New Jersey 0 Tampa Bay 1 F (OT)
Vancouver 1 Detroit 2 F
Phoenix 5 St. Louis 3 F
Nashville 1 Minnesota 5 F
Calgary 0 Chicago 2 F
Dallas 3 Colorado 2 F (SO)
Edmonton5 Los Angeles 3 F
Anaheim 2 San Jose 0 F

Game of the Night:

There really isn't one, because there are only two this evening, so I will give you both.

Minnesota at Columbus 7:00 PM
New Jersey at Florida 7:30 PM

I'm leaning towards the Columbus game, just because of Rick Nash. He's another guy who's been on fire lately since missing half the season with a knee injury.

Enjoy the games, and see you tomorrow.

Your friend on ice,
Captain Bosh