Rumors, moves, injuries and newsmakers...

Shut out, Malkin retains scoring lead; Devil know-how; 'Hawks almost blow it; trade bait on display in Toronto; and more...

MALKIN IT HAPPEN  The Pittsburgh Penguins can rest Sidney Crosby as long as they want. Evgeni Malkin was seen as the Penguin to be counted on with 'Sid the Kid' out and has he ever delivered.

The young Russian, who is a testament to size, strength and skill, has 30 points in 16 games since Crosby went down a high ankle sprain against Tampa Bay on January 18. Over the course of that stretch of games, Malkin had only failed to register a point once--in a game versus Atlanta on January 30.

That was until Saturday afternoon at home, where he was held pointless by the Ottawa Senators. The Sens came from behind to beat the Pens 4-3. Malkin had seven shots on net, and the second most ice time on the team behind Sergei Gonchar--playing 27:24.

Malkin still retains first place in the NHL scoring race as he entered Saturday's action with 82 points, but Washington's Alexander Ovechkin had three assists to bring him to within one point of a tie. Malkin is only three points away from his rookie total last year (85).

"Geno" will get a chance to add to his point total on Sunday afternoon when the Pens host the San Jose Sharks.

THE DEVILS YOU KNOW? 
What can you say about New Jersey Devils GM Lou Lamoriello? He sure knows how to pick 'em.

The 2007-08 New Jersey Devils may not be comprised of the same group of talent that won three Stanley Cups from 1995-2003 but, make no mistake, they are still very good.

Proof positive of their skill and discipline is their emergence as the current second seed in the Eastern Conference. The Devils are currently the hottest team in the East, winning their past four and garnering 17 of 22 points in the last 11 games.

In their 4-2 win over the New York Islanders on Saturday, all four of their goals were scored by homegrown talent--players that have not played for any other team in the NHL: Patrik Elias, Zach Parise and Brian Gionta were all Devils draft picks, while John Madden was signed as a free agent out of the NCAA in 1997.

Goaltender Martin Brodeur started his 21st straight game and made 19 saves for win No. 34 Saturday against the Isles. Parise got his 25th goal of the season and has a goal in each of his past five games. He will get a chance to make it six in a row against Washington on Sunday afternoon.

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BLACKHAWKS 
They are certainly young and good, and on Saturday they showed they can be a little wild too. Leading 5-1 nearing the 10-minute mark of the third period against the Los Angeles Kings, the 'Hawks were sitting pretty. They probably never thought Patrick Sharp, who had a goal and an assist at that point, would have to be their savior in overtime. Patrick Lalime surrendered four straight goals in the third, five on the night, on 36 Kings shots--including 19 in the third. Lalime filled in for Nikolai Khabibulin, who was out of the lineup with back spasms. Robert Lang, Martin Havlat and rearguard Brent Seabrook all enjoyed two-point nights in the hair-raising win.

BLUE JACKETS 
The Blue Jackets beat the Canadiens 3-0 on "Bob Gainey Night" in Montreal, and goaltender Pascal LeClaire has to be on cloud nine right about now. The young man from Repentigny, Quebec is enjoying an amazing season, and now has nine shutouts on the year. No. 9 came in his home province, which is extra special. He turned away 31 shots for the win. Rick Nash scored the only goal Columbus would need in the first period. It was his 33rd this season. Manny Malhotra had gone goal-less in 26 games before notching both a goal and an assist in his first multi-point game since November 4.

CAPITALS 
Alexander Ovechkin may not have scored his 50th, or even his 49th goal on Saturday, but that does not mean he didn't show up against Carolina. Ovechkin, who has now failed to score in his last four games, assisted on all three Caps markers in the 6-3 loss. Mike Green had a goal and an assist and, along with fellow defenseman Shaone Morrisonn, was the only Capital to be in the plus category. Alexander Semin scored a goal in his fourth straight game and Brooks Laich had the third Capital goal for his 11th on the year.

HURRICANES 
Three Carolina players--Matt Cullen, Eric Staal and defensemen Joe Corvo--had three points apiece in a pivotal 6-3 divisional win over Washington Saturday. While many Hurricanes factored in on the score sheet, Staal and Cullen shone. Staal led his team in ice time, and took 28 face-offs. Cullen led the team in goals (two), shots and only lost one of the 12 face-offs he took. The 'Canes have now scored 11 goals in their past two games.

ISLANDERS 
Rick DiPietro had his work cut out for him in the third period of a 2-2 game against the Devils Saturday. DiPietro faced 20 Devils shots in the final frame, allowing two goals and suffering the loss. The Isles had been on a tear, winning six games in a row before Saturday's loss. The Isles' top two performers, Mike Comrie and Bill Guerin, were held off the score sheet but Ruslan Fedotenko scored his 14th of the year. He's now in a three-way tie for third on the club in goals with Miroslav Satan--who was minus-3 against New Jersey--and Mike Sillinger, who will undergo season-ending hip surgery next week. Frans Nielsen got his first NHL point, assisting on the Fedotenko goal.
KINGS 
Well it wasn't the 'Miracle on Manchester' all over again but it sure was exciting. Mike Cammalleri and Anze Kopitar both had three points in the third to bring the Kings back from a 5-1 deficit to tie the game against the Chicago Blackhawks Saturday. Dan Cloutier was yanked after surrendering five goals on 17 shots, and was replaced by Erik Ersberg--who allowed the winning goal in overtime but stopped 18 of 19 shots in over 30 minutes of action. Ersberg played in his first NHL game, after spending last season with HV 71 in the Swedish Elitserien. It was a night of firsts for the Kings, who also saw Peter Harrold pot his first NHL goal to open the scoring on Saturday.

MAPLE LEAFS 
The Maple Leafs' game versus Atlanta Saturday provided interesting fodder for trade deadline hounds, as a number of potentially movable commodities showed their worth. Captain Mats Sundin had his 971st point in 970 career games with the Blue and White. He tied the game in the second with his 24th goal of the year. Nik Antropov had three points. With Sundin reportedly having no intention of leaving, Antropov's performance could have GM's calling interim GM Cliff Fletcher. Bryan McCabe had an assist and now has 15 points on the season. He is reportedly going to decide if he wants to waive his no-movement clause by Monday. The Leafs won the game 3-1.

SABRES 
Sabres forwards Paul Gaustad, Derek Roy and Thomas Vanek all played on Saturday night against the New York Rangers, after missing Friday's practice. Unfortunately, it was not enough against the Rangers, as Buffalo fell 4-3. Roy had two assists and Ales Kotalik had two goals in the loss. Vanek had an assist while leading the Sabres in shots with five. Gaustad finished minus-1 but won 11 of 19 face-offs to lead the Sabres at 58 per cent.

SENATORS 
Captain Daniel Alfredsson was the hero, scoring with under five seconds left in overtime to down the Penguins 4-3 at the Mellon Arena on Saturday. After end-to-end action that saw a mad scramble in front of the Pittsburgh net, and two big saves by Ray Emery at the other end, "Alfie" ended the game on a broken play--scoring the backhand winner. What made Alfredsson's goal so dramatic was that it capped a four-goal comeback by the Sens, who were down 3-0 with less than 30 minutes to play. It was Alfredsson's fifth game-winning goal this season. Dany Heatley had two goals on seven shots and Cory Stillman continued to pay dividends by recording a goal and an assist. Emery faced 28 shots and looks to be the go-to guy in Ottawa for the time being.