That goal would bring the Stars back to within one of the San Jose Sharks, but that was as close as they would come, as the Sharks cruised to the 5-2 victory.  That win surely made it a lot easier for Boyle to laugh at his embarrassing mishap following the game.

Check it out.

Hat Tip – [NHL.com]

Hockey player.

With the name “Plush” printed on the back of his jersey, Morgan took to the ice to show off his skills at a San Jose Sharks practice.  Playing hockey is nothing new to Nyjer, who spent much of his childhood taking part in the sport.  He would even go on to play seven games for the Regina Pats of the Western Hockey League, recording two goals and 20 penalty minutes during his time with the team.

By the looks of it, his time in the MLB hasn’t caused him to completely lose his scoring touch on the ice, as he was able to bury a few of his penalty shot attempts.  And if his brawl with the Marlins two seasons ago is any indication, it appears as though he hasn’t lost his aggressive nature either, but he was able to refrain from dropping the gloves and going a round with Joe Thornton on this occasion.

Personally, after the brawls that occurred at Candlestick during the preseason, suddenly being plunged into darkness there would have made me a little uneasy. But the lights went back on after 16 minutes and everything was okay.

Of course, this was hardly the first time a stadium malfunction has delayed or impacted a major sporting event. So today, Total Pro Sports brings you a list of 12 other weird stadium malfunctions. In time, we’ll have a better idea of where the 2011 MNF power outage might rank on this list.

Check ‘em out.

Some may think that after practicing and playing Niemi before, the Blackhawks players would know his weaknesses, but they didn’t have any luck exposing them last night.  Instead, it was Niemi who appeared to expose the weaknesses of his former teammates, as he stopped all 34 shots directed his way during the Sharks’ 1-0 victory.

San Jose was was easily the second best team on the ice at the HP Pavilion, but they had the best goalie in Antti Niemi.  That would prove to be enough to earn the Sharks the win, and earn Niemi “The Stat Line of the Night” for Wednesday, November 23, 2011.

The next time your girlfriend complains about the fighting in an NHL game, show her this.

Hat Tip – (Barstool Sports)

“Joe’s a heck of a player, but here’s a player popping off about our team, and Joe hasn’t won a goddamn thing in this league.  He could go down as one of the better players in out league who hasn’t won anything.  So what he should do is just shut up.  It was uncalled for, it was classless, and I’ve never had it happen like that before.”

Those who know Tortorella know that he could have been a lot harder on Thornton during his rant.  After all, Torts usually isn’t one to hold anything back, and he easily could have retaliated by reminding Thornton that as soft as he might think the Rangers are, they aren’t nearly as soft as Joe’s game during the playoffs.

Here is a look at Tortorella firing back.

Hat Tip – [TSN]

This time around our search has taken us all the way back to Friday’s slate of games, as Douglas Murray of the San Jose Sharks and Eric Boulton of the New Jersey Devils squared off for a bout that ended with a bang.  That bang came courtesy of Boulton’s right hand, which landed square on the jaw of Murray, earning him the decisive victory and a spot on our “Frozen Fisticuffs Fight of the Night” for Friday, October 21, 2011.

For NHL teams, third jerseys are huge cash cows. That’s because gullible hockey fans (like myself) will go out and buy the third jersey replicas the day they are released, even though they already own their teams’ “regular” jerseys.

On top of that, historic franchises (like the Rangers or Maple Leafs) can change up these third jerseys every couple of years—or whenever they need a fresh infusion of cash—without being accused of “messing with tradition.” Because, hey, they’re just the third jerseys, right?

Well, there is an upside to this type of cash grab: it brings a little more creativity to NHL uniform designs.

Teams are more likely to take risks with third jerseys because they know that, if people hate them, they can change them after a couple seasons. Sometimes, the results are not good. But sometimes they are.

Since this is the first weekend of the NHL season—a time for hope and optimism—I’m going to focus on the positive today and bring you a list of the 9 best third jerseys you will see in the NHL this season. Maybe I’ll bring you the worst third jerseys another day—after the shine of the new season rubs off a bit (after a couple more career threatening concussions).

9. Columbus Blue Jackets

For the longest time, I thought everything about the Blue Jackets’ branding was stupid. That’s because their original jersey’s featured a freaking bug on the front, giving the distinct impression that the “Blue Jacket” was some kind of take on “Yellow Jacket”—you know, like the wasp that’s the mascot of Georgia Tech sports teams. Of course, “Blue Jacket” is actually a reference to Columbus’ rich Civil War history. Eventually, the franchise wised up, realized the bug logo was kind of confusing, and changed up their designs. Then they came out with these sharp third jersey’s featuring civil war cannons to really drive the point home: history, not bugs. (Good work, Columbus.)

8. San Jose Sharks

Personally, I think San Jose’s regular unis are among the best in all of pro sports, let alone hockey. So if I were a Sharks fan (and I’m not), I wouldn’t even want to see a third jersey. However, if a third jersey they must have, this one is pretty good.

The designers were smart and followed the most important rule for hockey uniforms: less is more. The Sharks’ alternates don’t have any of that silly piping down the front, or swooshing panels under the armpits. It’s just crest, arm stripe, lace-up collar. Like feng shui on a shirt.

7. Colorado Avalanche

There are two types of uniforms in the NHL: classic and modern. The Red Wings’ simple sweaters epitomize the former and, for a long time, the Avalanche’s regular sweaters have been the standard-bearers of the latter. However, more recently the Avalanche have added a classic design of their own to their arsenal of sweaters. And with it they prove that, basically, when it comes to designing uniforms, they can do no wrong. (I especially like the tricolor striping on the sleeves.)

6. Pittsburgh Pengins

Most people probably don’t realize that Pittsburgh’s original 1967 uniforms were navy powder blue—and that an actual penguin was nowhere to be found. In fact, the famous skating penguin was not introduced until 1969; however, the uniforms didn’t go from blue to black until 1980.

The good-looking third jersey Pittsburgh will be wearing this season is very similar to those 1969 models. The only difference is that the powder blue and navy blue have swapped places.

5. Washington Capitals

In evaluating the NHL’s third jerseys for the purposed of making this list, one of the things I was decidedly not looking for were nice-looking jerseys that are merely throwbacks. My thinking was, yes, they may be awesome, but they’re not really “alternatives” to the regular jerseys since they’ve been worn previously. So I said I wouldn’t include any such designs.

Then I decided to make an exception for the Washington Capitals because their throwback third jerseys are just so much better than all the nonsense they’ve been wearing on a regular basis for the last 15 years. So I guess that makes me a flip-flopper. Maybe I should run for office.

4. New York Rangers

The Rangers’ third jersey’s (introduced for the 2010-11 season) don’t really deviate too far from their traditional, iconic sweaters. But then, I think that’s the beauty. The diagonal lettering reads “New York” instead of “Rangers,” the blue is darker, and the red is deeper. Not much a difference, but damn do they look good.

And no, that is not Luke Wilson. That’s former captain Chris Drury.

3. St. Louis Blues

The Blues may never be able to shake the ignominy of this awful monstrosity (easily one of the worst regular uniforms in the history of the NHL). However, this sharp third jersey has helped them put their awful past behind them.

2. Minnesota Wild

I’ve never liked the Minnesota Wild’s primary logo and uniform design. I know it’s irrational, but the fact that their colors are green and red—Christmas colors, for God’s sake—really pisses me off. And don’t get me started about that panther silhouette/wilderness vigniette crest.

So when I heard they were coming out with a third jersey a couple years ago, I thought “oh Lord, here we go.” Then they revealed the jersey, and I was dumbfounded. I think it’s totally awesome.

You’ll notice that they’ve removed red as a primary color and emphasized the yellowish off-white—that, I think, was the most important move they made. However, I also really love to vintage-looking “Minnesota” script across the chest. Add to it the bulky stripes and the lace-up collar, and Minnesota finally gets a hockey jersey worthy of their love for the sport.

1. Chicago Blackhawks

The Chicago Blackhawks have the best-looking third jerseys in the NHL today. They keep the classic warrior-head logo while adding some excellent vintage touches.

Normally it would be a pretty big gamble for a team with Chicago’s heritage to mess with their uniform design. Luckily, Chicago got a free-pass to test a new jersey when they got to hose the Winter Classic a couple years back. People loved the jerseys they wore that day so much, the team decided to make it permanent.

Smooth move, guys.

Like many expansion teams before them, the San Jose Sharks inaugural season was one to forget.  They finished dead last in a number of statistical categories including wins, points, goals for and goals allowed.  The lone bright spot for the Sharks was their first pick (second overall) in the draft, right winger Pat Falloon.  Although considered by many as a bust, Falloon did enjoy a pretty good rookie season, tallying 25 goals, and 34 assists for 59 points.

In recent seasons, the San Jose Sharks have been one of the better regular season teams in the NHL, but have earned the title of choke artists when it came to playoff hockey.  This off-season the Sharks traded away Dany Heatley and Devin Setoguchi for Martin Havlat and Brent Burns, in hopes that these two players can help them take the next step and get them into the Stanley Cup finals.

Here are some highlights from the Sharks over the years.

Notable Birthdays

Kurt Thomas, NBA – Born October 4th 1972 (age 39) in Dallas, Texas

Justin Williams, NHL – Born October 4th 1981 (age 30) in Cobourg, Ontario

Jered Weaver, MLB – Born October 4th 1982 (age 29) in Northridge, California

We witnessed one of those bouts last night, however, some may describe it as more of a beating than a bout, as the Vancouver Canucks’ Aaron Volpatti knocked out the San Jose Sharks’ Brad Winchester before their fight could really even begin.

Volpatti had crushed Sharks defenseman Jason Demers earlier in the game, and it appeared as though Winchester was looking for some revenge, but his search for vengeance was short lived, as Volpatti connected on one solid right, dropping his opponent to the ice in a heap.

As you might expect, there would be no more attempted acts of vengeance against Volpatti from the Sharks players following this knockout.