Newsmakers in the NHL is a weekday morning attempt to clear yesterday's rebounds and look to the day ahead.Senators 3, Canadiens 2: First, the bad news for the Montreal Canadiens: they dropped a 3-2 decision, at home, to the Ottawa Senators on Monday night. Now, the really bad news for the Canadiens: remember those injuries to Andrei Markov and Mathieu Schneider? Yeah, they're worse than expected.
RDS is reporting (via TSN) that Markov will miss three weeks with a knee injury, while Schneider will miss the remainder of the season due to a shoulder injury that will require surgery. Ouch. The Canadiens entered play on Monday with a game in hand on the two teams chasing them in the standings -- the Rangers and Panthers -- and failed to take advantage with their loss to Ottawa.
Montreal managed to take a 2-1 lead with four seconds remaining in the second period on Roman Hamrlik's sixth goal of the season. The Senators, however, rallied in the third period with a pair of goals from Dany Heatley, including the game-winner with 7:59 to play in the third period. Even if the Canadiens qualify for the postseason (still very possible) it's going to be a difficult run without two of their best defensemen.
Red Wings 4, Sabres 1: Buffalo's slim playoff hopes took a pretty big hit on Monday night with a 4-1 loss to the Detroit Red Wings. Marian Hossa scored a pair of goals in the win, giving him the third 40-goal campaign of his career. Nicklas Lidstrom and Brad Stuart also picked up goals for the Wings, while Chris Osgood stopped 32-of-33 shots in net. Paul Gaustad scored the only goal for Buffalo.
The Rest Of Monday's Action
-- Calgary continues its quest for a division title against the Los Angeles Kings.
Daily Rebounds
-- Claude Lemieux gets the San Jose Sharks nomination for the 2009 Bill Masterson Memorial Trophy. Everybody is just fighting for second place behind Richard Zednik, right? [Puck Daddy]
-- Five prospects who could make an impact in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. [The Sports Corner]
-- The revolving door of captains for the Montreal Canadiens during the 1990's. This is from a week ago, but it's still worth a look. [Eyes On The Prize]
Tuesday's Key Games
Flames vs. Canucks: Most important game of the night in the Western Conference, as Calgary and Vancouver face off with the Northwest Division title potentially on the line. The Canucks come in having lost three in a row.
Rangers vs. Canadiens: The classic four-point game in Madison Square Garden as the Canadiens look to rebound from a loss to Ottawa on Monday night. Both teams need a win.
Panthers vs. Flyers: Florida is coming off an impressive win against Pittsburgh on Sunday, and needs to keep the momentum going in its visit to Philadelphia. The Flyers are still fighting for home-ice in the opening round and have lost four of their past six games.
