Blackhawks Conquer Panthers
(Sunrise, FL) — Jonathan Toews scored a second period goal and dished out two assists as the Blackhawks beat the Panthers 4-1 in Sunrise, Florida. Brandon Saad contributed a goal and an assist, while Patrick Kane and John Hayden had the other Chicago goals. Corey Crawford made 37 stops as the Blackhawks are 3-0-and-1 in their past four games. Jared McCann scored the Florida goal 66 seconds deep into the second period to cut the lead to 2-1. Roberto Luongo made 35 saves. The Panthers lost for the third time in four games.
Devils Outlast Red Wings In OT
(Detroit, MI) — Brian Gibbons scored the winning goal in overtime as the Devils outlasted the Red Wings, 4-3, in Detroit. Brian Boyle and Taylor Hall put the Devils on the board in the first, and Nico Hischier padded the lead in the third. Keith Kinkaid racked up 31 saves as New Jersey won on the second night of a back-to-back. David Booth had a pair of goals for Detroit, including the tying tally in the final period. Petr Mrazek gave up three goals before getting replaced by Jimmy Howard, who gave up the losing goal in OT. Detroit is on a four-game slide.
Blues Cruise Past Wild
(St. Louis, MO) — The Blues scored three goals in the first period and rolled past the Wild 6-3 in St. Louis. Paul Stastny, Dmitrij Jaskin, and Jaden Schwartz did the damage in the first. Schwartz, Kyle Brodziak, and Sammy Blais also lit the lamp in a three-goal third as the Blues put the game away. St. Louis converted on three-of-eight power play opportunities as it won for the seventh time in 10 games. Charlie Coyle, Zack Mitchell, and Eric Staal found the back of the net for Minnesota. The Wild dipped to 11-9-and-3.
Ohio State Fights Off Michigan
(Ann Arbor, MI) — Dwayne Haskins replaced the injured J.T Barrett at quarterback and ninth-ranked Ohio State fought off Michigan, 31-20, in Ann Arbor Saturday. Barrett aggravated his knee injury when a an unidentified person bumped into him before the game. Haskins took over in the third quarter and guided three scoring drives. Barrett, Mike Weber and J.K. Dobbins rushed for touchdowns as Ohio State improved to 10-and-2. John O’Korn threw for 195 yards, a TD and a pick for the 8-and-4 Wolverines. Jim Harbaugh fell to 0-and-3 against the Buckeyes as head coach.
Washington Clobbers Washington State
(Seattle, WA) — Myles Gaskin piled up 192 yards and four touchdowns as number-17 Washington clobbered 13th-ranked Washington State 41-14 in Seattle. The Huskies ran for 328 yards as a team as they won the annual “Apple Cup” game. Washington quarterback Jake Browning threw for just 93 yards but added a rushing score in the rainy conditions. The Huskies improved to 10-and-2 overall and 7-and-2 in Pac-12 play. Cougars signal-caller Luke Falk had 369 passing yards and a touchdown but was also sacked five times and threw three interceptions in defeat. Wazzu’s fifth-straight “Apple Cup” loss will keep them out of the Pac-12 title game. The Cougars fell to 9-and-3 and 6-and-3.
Stanford Upends Notre Dame
(Stanford, CA) — K.J. Costello threw a career-high four touchdown passes as number-21 Stanford upended eighth-ranked Notre Dame, 38-20, at Stanford Stadium. Heisman hopeful Bryce Love ran for 125 yards in the win. The Cardinal entered the fourth quarter trailing by three, but scored three touchdowns in four minutes and 50 seconds to pull away for good. Stanford will take on USC in the Pac-12 Championship Game next Saturday at Levi’s Stadium. Brandon Wimbush threw touchdown passes of 83 and 75 yards, but the Notre Dame offense stalled in the final quarter. Wimbush tossed two interceptions in the fourth as the Irish fell to 9-and-3.
Clemson Whips South Carolina
(Columbia, SC) — Kelly Bryant tossed two touchdown passes to Hunter Renfrow as third-ranked Clemson downed rival number-24 South Carolina 34-10 in Columbia, South Carolina. Ryan Carter had a pick-six for the first Tigers’ touchdown. It was the 100th victory for Clemson coach Dabo Swinney. The 11-and-1 Tigers will play Miami in the ACC title game next Saturday in Charlotte. South Carolina did not score until the fourth quarter when they trailed by 34 points. The Gamecocks are now 8-and-4 on the season.
Fresno State Upends Number-23 Boise State
(Fresno, CA) — Marcus McMaryion threw for 332 yards and two touchdowns as Fresno State upended number-23 Boise State 28-17 in Fresno. KeeSean Johnson was on the receiving end of both scores and collected 119 receiving yards for the Bulldogs. Jordan Mims added a rushing score as Fresno State improved to 9-and-3 overall and 7-and-1 in Mountain West play. Broncos’ quarterback Brett Rypien threw for 278 yards and Alexander Mattison ran for a score in defeat. Boise State fell to 9-and-3 and 7-and-1. The two teams will rematch in the Mountain West Conference Championship game next Saturday.