Atlanta's fluky goal ends Boucher's streak
Brian Boucher's record shutout streak ended with a goal that deflected in off a Phoenix teammate.
The reaction was relief, not disappointment.
"I'm happy that it's over," the Woonsocket, R.I., native said after the Coyotes tied the Atlanta Thrashers, 1-1, in Glendale, Ariz., last night. "It was a nice run, something that I'll never forget.
"But we're talking about one goal. I think it's good for the team that we don't have to answer questions about it anymore."
Randy Robitaille's slap shot glanced off the chest of Phoenix defenseman David Tanabe and into the net for a power-play goal that ended Boucher's remarkable string of five consecutive shutouts at 6:16 of the first period.
"I don't think it would have hit the net if it didn't hit me," Tanabe said. "If it wasn't for that bounce, he could have had another shutout."
Daymond Langkow intercepted Garnet Exelby's clearing pass and scored an unassisted goal to tie it 1-1 at 6:21 of the third period as Atlanta's winless streak reached seven games and Phoenix's unbeaten string grew to six.
Boucher had 20 saves, including two incredible stops of shots by Ilya Kovalchuk. Atlanta's backup goalie Byron Dafoe made 40 saves as the Coyotes outshot the Thrashers, 41-21.
Boucher was not scored upon for 332 minutes 1 second and had 146 saves in that span. The old records of 309:21 and four consecutive shutouts were set by Montreal's Bill Durnan in 1949.
Avalanche 5, Blackhawks 4 -- Alex Tanguay scored 3:42 into overtime as visiting Colorado beat Chicago and extended its points streak to seven games (6-0-0-1). Eighteen seconds after serving a penalty for tripping, Tanguay beat Chicago goalie Michael Leighton high on the glove side with a shot from the left circle.
Hurricanes 2, Senators 2 -- Erik Cole broke a 26-game scoring drought when he netted the tying goal with 3:29 left in regulation, lifting host Carolina to a draw with Ottawa. With the teams skating four-on-four, Cole flipped a backhander by Patrick Lalime. Kevin Weekes made 38 saves for the Hurricanes.
Blue Jackets 2, Mighty Ducks 2 -- Rick Nash scored his NHL-leading 25th goal of the season with 5:23 left in the third period, lifting Columbus to a tie with Anaheim. Nash sent a wrist shot from the slot past goaltender Martin Gerber to keep the Blue Jackets undefeated in their last three road games (1-0-2-0).
Canucks 2, Panthers 2 -- Henrik Sedin scored with 6:26 left to complete host Vancouver's rally from a two-goal deficit in the third period and lift the Canucks into a tie with Florida. After a wild sequence in the Florida end, Sedin cut toward the top of the crease and one-timed a pass from twin brother Daniel Sedin through a crowd and past Steve Shields.
Capitals 1, Oilers 0 -- Olaf Kolzig made 26 saves for his first shutout of the season as Washington beat visiting Edmonton. Robert Lang scored for the Capitals.
Lightning 2, Rangers 1 -- Jassen Cullimore scored 2:03 into overtime to lift visiting Tampa Bay past New York.
