Calgary @ Buffalo 2-1 OT - Matt Stajan scored the winning goal 42 seconds into overtime, and the Calgary Flames defeated the Buffalo Sabres 2-1, giving them their first victory in Buffalo since 1996. Stajan took a pass from Paul Byron, who also scored for Calgary (13-15-4), before skating toward the left faceoff circle and firing a wrist shot past Jhonas Enroth for his sixth of the season. Sabres rookie forward Zemgus Girgensons made the play that opened the scoring. He skated down his off wing before centering the puck toward the slot. It was there that Moulson, who had a step on backchecking Mike Cammalleri, beat Enroth for his 11th of the season 5:40 into the third period to give Buffalo a 1-0 lead. Calgary had a strong chance to tie the game with 12:03 left in the third when Joe Colbourne led a 2-on-1 rush alongside Brian McGrattan. Colbourne fired a hard wrist shot, but Enroth made a glove save to preserve the lead. But 22 seconds later, Byron tied the game. Chris Butler found Byron with a pass from behind the net. From there, Byron lifted the puck past a falling Enroth for his first of the season at 8:19. Each team thought they scored in the first period. Cammalleri was certain he opened the scoring with 18 seconds left and Ramo pulled for an extra attacker following a delayed penalty to Marcus Foligno. Cammalleri took a centering pass from T.J. Brodie and beat Enroth in close, but the Flames had too many men on the ice, which negated the goal. The Sabres had their chance 10:57 into the first period when Ville Leino's shot from the half-wall was blocked and the puck went directly to Brayden McNabb at the point. McNabb's slap shot was stopped by Ramo and the puck sat in the crease in the middle of a mad goalmouth scramble. Leino eventually deposited the puck in the goal, but by then the net had been pushed off its moorings. Brian Flynn appeared to beat Ramo in close 2:42 later, but his shot went off the crossbar, the second time in the period the Sabres struck iron. Calgary had quality chances after Foligno took his third penalty of the game 11:58 into the second, particularly Kris Russell's point shot eight seconds into the power play. It was during that penalty kill Buffalo defenseman Tyler Myers led a 3-on-2 shorthanded rush that resulted in another hit post. With 1:03 remaining in the second period, Brodie was whistled for hooking Moulson to give Buffalo its fifth power play of the game. The Sabres would not score, making the teams a combined 0-for-9 with 11 shots. Buffalo finished the game without forward Cody McCormick, who left in the second period with an upper-body injury.
Los Angeles @ Ottawa 5-2 - Jeff Carter assisted on Dwight King's goal 21 seconds into the first period, scored his ninth at 4:18 to chase Ottawa Senators goalie Craig Anderson, and Los Angeles extended its winning streak to six games with a 5-2 victory Saturday. King scored his eighth goal on the first shot of the game, and Carter made it 2-0 on the Kings' fourth shot to drive Anderson from the net. King and Carter each had a goal and two assists. Anze Kopitar, who scored twice, made it 3-0 against Ottawa backup Robin Lehner at 12:56. Defensemen Joe Corvo and Erik Karlsson scored for the Senators, who got within 3-2 on Karlsson's ninth goal at 4:24 of the third. Cody Ceci, who turns 20 next Saturday, played his second straight game since he was recalled from Binghamton of the American Hockey League on an emergency basis Thursday while Marc Methot recovers from the flu. King beat Anderson with a long shot from the left side moments after the opening faceoff. Carter scored from the left faceoff circle after Ceci inadvertently swiped the puck to him while battling with King in the left corner. Kopitar made it 3-0 when he won a goalmouth battle with Ceci to put a rebound of Slava Voynov's shot past Lehner. Corvo, a former Kings defenseman who played his 700th NHL game Thursday, drew Ottawa within 3-1 with his third goal at 13:51 of the second. Karlsson made it 3-2 early in third when he beat Jones with a shot from the point. Kings forward Trevor Lewis was activated from injured reserve and returned to the lineup for the first time since Nov. 21. Lewis, who centered a line with Daniel Carcillo and Jordan Nolan, missed nine games because of a lower-body injury. Los Angeles placed center Colin Fraser on injured reserve, retroactive to Wednesday, when he suffered a head injury on a hit into the boards by Toronto's Frazer McLaren. Senators defenseman Jared Cowen sat out the end of his two-game suspension for his hit to the head of Buffalo forward Zemgus Girgensons on Tuesday.
Tampa Bay @ New Jersey 0-3 - Late in the second, Devils defenseman Eric Gelinas zipped a sharp pass to Brunner, who gathered it in motion in the neutral zone and sped up the center of the ice. His forehand went over the left-hand glove of Lindback with 4:23 to go. Zubrus made it 2-0 when his forecheck caused Lightning defenseman Eric Brewer to turn over the puck behind his net. Jaromir Jagr got it and fed Zubrus, who tapped it past Lindback at 6:44 of the third period. It became 3-0 when Zubrus found the rebound of a Jagr shot to Lindback's right at the end line, and he forced it from behind the line off the goalie's pad into the net at 9:36. Jagr's second assist was his 17th of the season; he had 19 in 45 games last season. Tampa Bay played the final four-plus minutes with an empty net.
Montreal @ NY Islanders 1-0 OT - Max Pacioretty scored 1:51 into overtime to give the Canadiens a 1-0 victory against the New York Islanders on Saturday night. After more than 61 minutes of scoreless hockey, the Canadiens produced the game's only goal on one of the few mistakes made all night by the NHL's most porous defense. David Desharnais took the puck away from Thomas Hickey behind the net and fed an onrushing Pacioretty, who evaded Aaron Ness' check and deflected the puck past Islanders goalie Evgeni Nabokov for the win. Nabokov, returning after a lower-body injury kept him out for four weeks, made 24 saves for the Islanders, who have dropped 12 of their past 13 games. The Islanders had the best chance of the first period when John Tavares batted a rebound out of midair and past Price only to have the puck ping off the crossbar. Both goaltenders were tested early in the third period. Nabokov had to make a nice stop on Alex Galchenyuk's close-in shot before Price got his arm on an open shot from the right circle by Cal Clutterbuck and stopped a break-in by Michael Grabner. Price also got in front of a point shot by Andrew MacDonald with several bodies in front of him and directed the rebound to the left corner. Price made a big save on Tavares with 10:44 remaining in the third after the Islanders captain stole the puck in the left circle and tried to go five-hole. Nabokov made his best stops in a half-minute span of the third period, robbing Tomas Plekanec on a one-timer from the slot with 7:05 to play and gloving Andrei Markov's rocket from the left point soon after that.
St Louis @ Columbus 4-3 OT - The Blues spotted the Blue Jackets a 3-1 lead in a frenetic first period, overcame a series of penalties to trail by a goal after two, and rallied late to tie the game. Columbus fell behind 1-0 on Tarasenko's first goal, but came back with goals from Anisimov, Tyutin and a 5-on-3 goal by Johansen for the lead after 20 minutes. Along the way, there were four fighting majors, three roughing calls and a late unsportsmanlike conduct to Backes. St. Louis went in front at 4:10 when Jay Bouwmeester's shot caromed off the traffic in front to Tarasenko, who put the puck off McKenna and into the net. Columbus tied it when Anisimov scored for the second straight game, converting a centering pass from Blake Comeau at 8:49 after getting position on Bouwmeester in the slot. Less than three minutes later, the Blue Jackets' forechecking paid off when St. Louis defenseman Alex Pietrangelo, under pressure, sent his clearing pass to Tyutin's stick. The Columbus defenseman let a shot go from the left point that went off Halak's glove and into the goal. The game got even more interesting during an ensuing Columbus power play when Matt Calvert dumped Blues defenseman Barret Jackman. After the penalties were sorted out, Cole received an extra two minutes for roughing, and seven seconds into the two-man advantage, Brandon Dubinsky fed Johansen cross-ice for the one-timer from the lower left circle for 3-1 lead at 13:27. Tarasenko made it 3-2 at 8:33 of the second period with a slap shot from the left side with Columbus down a man. Chris Stewart tied the game at 3-3 with 6:27 left in regulation, 20 seconds after Columbus forward Mark Letestu shot over the Blues net on a breakaway. Stewart was in position for a rebound after a shot from the left point by Ian Cole was tipped in front by Brenden Morrow. David Backes scored the winner 22 seconds into the extra period after the Blues rallied from a two-goal deficit. Backes scored his 16th goal off a turnover created by Alexander Steen at the blue line. The puck fell between Columbus' Fedor Tyutin and Artem Anisimov. Backes skated in, pulled the puck back and beat Mike McKenna for the Blues' third straight win.
San Jose @ Nashville 2-3 - Carter Hutton made 36 saves for the Nashville Predators on Saturday, but the save of the game might have belonged to teammate Roman Josi. The San Jose Sharks had cut the Predators' lead to one when Patrick Marleau scored a sixth-attacker goal at 19:05 of the third period, and they Sharks were swarming for another. With 31 seconds left, Josi blocked Joe Pavelski's wrist shot from 13 feet that was headed for the back of the net, helping to Nashville to hold on for its third straight win. Josi also scored a power-play goal in 23:52 of ice time, earning the game's first star in the Predators' 3-2 victory over the Sharks at Bridgestone Arena. In a season in which No. 1 goalie Pekka Rinne remains out indefinitely with a staph infection in his hip, the Predators will take any luck they can get. They also are making some of their own these days, especially in the form of Hutton's performance the last three games. This month, he has stopped 106 of 110 shots (a .964 save percentage), giving him a 1.20 goals-against average in the four games he has played. Hutton began his pro career as part of the Sharks' organization, playing 22 games in 2010-11 with their American Hockey League affiliate in Worcester. During the Stanley Cup Playoffs that season, he served as a "black ace" for the Sharks. For San Jose, the loss represented the continuation of a rut. The Sharks fell to 1-4-1 in their past six games, during which they have scored 11 goals. Sharks coach Todd McLellan said his team was not "near aggressive enough" to start the game and felt that by holding Nashville to 23 shots, San Jose should have come away with at least one point in the standings. Nashville defenseman Victor Bartley helped to put his team on top 1-0 at 16:04 of the first period when he wristed a puck at the net from just above the left circle. It caromed off the left leg and then the stick of Predators wing Eric Nystrom, who was stationed in front of the net, before going into the net. Nashville connected on its first power-play chance of the game with 1:52 left in the second period to grab a 2-0 lead. Nick Spaling won the puck from a scrum along the boards and shoveled it to Craig Smith behind the net. Smith found Josi moving in from the point, and Josi's wrist shot beat Antti Niemi to the glove side. Smith was playing for the first time in four games. He was a healthy scratch on Dec. 7 and then sat out the next two games with an illness. He ranks third on the team in points with 16. In the last two games Nashville's power play has gotten hot after a long dry spell. Until the Predators' 3-1 win on Thursday against the Dallas Stars, they had gone six games and 16 attempts without a goal with the man advantage. However, Nashville went 2-for-3 in that game and its only failure came in the final 23 seconds of regulation when the Predators were salting away the victory.
Predators wing Rich Clune helped draw the power play with an aggressive forecheck. He knocked Sharks defenseman Brad Stuart to the ice with a hard check that also separated Stuart from his stick. Knowing he would lose possession, Stuart played the puck with his glove and was called for closing his hand on the puck. Nashville later failed to connect on a third-period power play and the Sharks scored five seconds after it ended. Marleau won the puck behind the net from Predators defenseman Shea Weber, then found Matt Irwin high in the slot. Dan Boyle deflected Irwin's shot between Hutton's legs with 12:32 left in regulation to cut the margin to 2-1. Viktor Stalberg made it 3-1 with 2:39 left in regulation, calling his own number on a 2-on-1 and beating Niemi (20 saves) low to the glove side. With Niemi pulled, Marleau redirected Boyle's pass behind Hutton with 54.6 seconds left in regulation to cut the deficit to one goal.
Boston @ Vancouver 2-6 - Vancouver Canucks coach John Tortorella was so unhappy with the way his team started the second period that he called a timeout after the Boston Bruins tied the game. He used the brief break to tear into his team. It worked. David Booth put the Canucks back in front 80 seconds later and Chris Higgins doubled the lead a little more than three minutes after that, sparking the Canucks to a 6-2 win on Saturday night. Unfortunately for the Canucks it won't change what happened the last time Boston visited Vancouver. The Bruins won Game 7 of the 2011 Stanley Cup Final the last time they were here, 2 1/2 years ago. It seemed to mean more to Roberto Luongo, who made 39 saves to win his first game against the Bruins that Game 7 loss. Jannik Hansen opened the scoring with a shot from outside the blue line late in the first period, and defenseman Christopher Tanev scored Vancouver's final goal on a shorthanded 2-on-1 rush midway through the third period as the Canucks swept a five-game homestand and extended their season-long winning streak to seven games. Unlike a bitter Cup Final and the animosity-filled first rematch on Jan. 7, 2012, this game was intense but mostly tame until early in the third period. A scrum between Kesler and Brad Marchand ended with the Bruins agitator appearing to mimic lifting the Cup in front of the Canucks bench, earning scorn from both sides after the game. Dan Hamhuis and Jarome Iginla traded gloved punches a short while later. Iginla, who left the game in the first period with an apparent dislocated finger but returned for the start of the second, got the extra penalty and Sedin converted the power play. Reilly Smith, who missed the morning skate because of a flu bug that has ripped through the Bruins, scored both goals as Boston wrapped up a four-game road trip with its first loss in five games. It might have ended better if not for a rare off night for goalie Tuukka Rask, who was back in net after backing up Chad Johnson in a 4-2 win against the Edmonton Oilers on Thursday while battling the flu. Rask stopped 19 of 23 shots before being replaced after Weber beat him with a one-timer 1:34 into the third period. Rask got caught jumping up awkwardly when Hansen's shot from well outside the blue line hit Zdeno Chara's stick and dipped dramatically between the goalie's legs before he could get down. The Bruins appeared to lose Iginla during a fight with Kesler early in the first period. The ring finger on Iginla's left hand was bent almost 90 degrees as he left the ice in obvious pain. But Iginla was back to start the second period, and his return seemed to spark the Bruins. Boston had the first five shots and tied the game 4:11 into the period when Smith intercepted a bad pass by Hamhuis, skated in alone and lifted a backhander past Luongo before running him over. Tortorella promptly called his timeout and spent it pointing his finger and yelling at his players as they gathered around him on the bench. It wasn't long after that Booth blew a shot past Rask's glove on a rush off the left wing at 5:31, and Higgins made it 3-1 after a dominant shift by Mike Santorelli at 8:46. Santorelli took the puck through the crease only to be denied twice by Rask, but he won a battle for the second rebound and hit the far post with a backhander from the right slot that bounced right to Higgins for an easy empty-net shot.
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