No. 1 Star: James Reimer, Toronto Maple Leafs
Last year's rookie sensation made a statement on opening night, stopping 32 shots ? including 14 in the first period ? in the Leafs' 2-0 victory over the Montreal Canadiens. It was Reimer's fourth career shutout, one that included six saves while shorthanded. "He was unbelievable," said Ron Wilson, Maple Leafs coach and apparent EMF fan.
No. 2 Star: Matt Cooke, Pittsburgh Penguins
Guess the "reformed" Matt Cooke is a guy contending for the Rocket Richard Trophy. The Penguins winger scored a top-shelf power-play goal and a shorthanded goal in Pittsburgh's 4-3 shootout win at the Vancouver Canucks. Yes, Matt Cooke is, for one night, leading the NHL in goal scoring and is tied with several dozen other players for fewest penalty minutes (zero). Take a picture, it'll last longer.
No. 3 Star: Claude Giroux, Philadelphia Flyers
During the Flyers' 2-1 win at the Boston Bruins, fans saw a few glimpses of what Giroux and Jaromir Jagr can do as a duo. His goal at 19:10 of the first period was the best example: Jagr slipping a pass to Giroux, who made a brilliant move on Tim Thomas (27 saves) to tie the game at 1-1. Jakub Voracek scored 47 seconds later and the Flyers would hang on for the 2-1 win.
Honorable mention: Special nod to Matthew Lombardi, playing in his first game since Oct. 13, 2010. He scored a shorthanded goal to open the scoring for the Leafs, having come all the way back from a concussion last season. ? Dion Phaneuf had a goal and an assist. ? Ilya Bryzgalov won his first game as a Flyer, stopping 22 shots. ? Brad Marchand scored the Bruins lone goal off a great stretch pass by Tyler Seguin on the power play. ? Daniel Sedin completed a great shift by his line in the third period with a sniper-shot to tie the game, giving him a goal and an assist on the night. Henrik Sedin, meanwhile, perfectly set up Keith Ballard for a goal in the second. ? Kris Letang scored a nasty goal in the shootout. ... Marc-Andre Fleury stopped 33 shots, and was spectacular at times.
Did you know? Jagr's assist gives him 1,600 career NHL points, becoming the ninth player in League history to hit that mark.
Dishonorable mention: Vancouver was 0-for-3 on the power play and gave up two power play goals and a shorty. ? Montreal was 0-for-5 on the power play and squandered a 14-shot first period. ? Finally, remember how players were scoring from behind the goal line against Roberto Luongo last postseason? James Neal showed that they still can:
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