Crazy Night In Ottawa (But Hey, Aren't They All?)

It's the NHL Closer. We pass the mic to the kids at Orland Kurtenblog. Their NHL Closer is written by Canadians for Americans.

Pens Beat Sens, Orpik's Struggles Persist. Jarkko Ruutu took two diving penalties in the first period, laid low for a couple hours and then won it in a shootout for the Pittsburgh Penguins. His backhander past Ottawa's Martin Gerber gave the Pens a 6-5 victory in a wild affair that the Senators twice led by two goals. Ryan Malone scored a pair for Pittsburgh while goalie Dany Sabourin came off the bench to replace the man with the yellow pads, Marc-Andre Fleury, who stopped just two of the first four shots sent his way. Closer darling Brooks Orpik was held off the score-sheet for an eighth consecutive game.

Rockford Also Blue Itself. The Blackhawks got short-handed goals from Patrick Sharp and Jacob Dowell and beat the Calgary Flames, 2-1. Dowell, a product of the University of Wisconsin, was making his NHL debut after being called up from the AHL's Rockford IceHogs, a team that plays in an arena nicknamed the "Big Orange Box." And, yes, there's gotta be a better way to say that.

NHL Players Will Say Anything. Martin Erat notched a goal and added two assists as the Nashville Predators defeated the Detroit Red Wings, 3-2. It was the Preds' seventh win of the month after an October that included a six-game losing streak. Radek Bonk scored the winner in the third period and produced this beauty of a quote after the game: "Sometimes they go in for you and sometimes they don't. They are going in for me right now."