Results - Tue, Apr 08, 2014

Detroit @ Buffalo 4-2 - The Red Wings are within sight of their 23rd consecutive trip to the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Darren Helm, David Legwand and Pavel Datsyuk scored third-period goals Tuesday night to give the Red Wings a 4-2 victory against the Sabres. Helm broke a 1-1 tie 3:33 into the third period by firing a rebound past Buffalo goaltender Matt Hackett. Legwand made it 3-1 when he skated in to the right of Hackett and snapped a wrist shot over his shoulder with 4:14 remaining for his 14th goal of the season and fourth as a member of the Red Wings. Datsyuk hit the empty net in the final seconds after rookie Zemgus Girgensons' second goal of the night got the Sabres within 3-2. Jimmy Howard stopped 25 shots for the Red Wings. Hackett stopped 33 shots. With the win, the Red Wings have 90 points and own the first wild-card position in the Eastern Conference, one point ahead of the Columbus Blue Jackets, who beat the Phoenix Coyotes in overtime. Detroit coach Mike Babcock reached a personal milestone with his 414th victory in Detroit, passing Jack Adams for the most in franchise history. But he's more concerned with the Red Wings' road game against the Pittsburgh Penguins on Wednesday; one point in that game will assure Detroit of a berth in the playoffs, where they could see Pittsburgh in a first-round series. Detroit needs to earn one point in their final three games to clinch a playoff spot. After a scoreless first period, Girgensons gave the Sabres a 1-0 lead 1:31 into the second. Girgensons was tied up in front of the net with Red Wings defenseman Danny DeKeyser in front of the net when Cody Hodgson fired a pass that Girgensons deflected past Jimmy Howard. The Sabres had a chance to put the Red Wings in 2-0 hole when they had 1:51 of 5-on-3 power play time after a holding call on DeKeyser and a delay of game penalty to Justin Abdelkader. The Red Wings killed off both penalties, partly thanks to a big save from Howard against Sabres defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen. Red Wings defenseman Brendan Smith made it 1-1 at 12:28 of the second period. Smith took a cross-ice pass from Franzen on a 3-on-2 break and beat Hackett for his fifth goal of the season. Helm put the Red Wings ahead to stay with his 12th goal of the season. He collected the rebound of Kyle Quincey's shot and snapped a wrister past Hackett. It was his fifth goal in five games and third against the Sabres this season. Legwand's goal made it 3-1, but Girgensons' second goal of the night with 2:11 to play cut the Red Wings lead to 3-2. Girgensons dangled around the defense and beat Howard for his eighth goal of the season. Datsyuk hit the empty net with 4.3 seconds remaining for his 17th of the season. Datsyuk played in his third game since he returned from a knee injury that cost him 16 games.
Ottawa @ NY Islanders 4-1 - Jason Spezza scored twice and Craig Anderson made 45 saves to lead the Senators to a 4-1 win against the Islanders at Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum on Tuesday night. Spezza's second goal of the night proved to be the game-winner for Ottawa, but the Senators' hopes of qualifying for the Stanley Cup Playoffs ended with the Columbus Blue Jackets' overtime win against the Phoenix Coyotes. Ales Hemsky had a goal and two assists and Matt Kassian also scored for the Senators. Frans Nielsen scored for New York and goalie Anders Nilsson stopped 28 of 31 shots. The Islanders finished with a record of 13-19-9 at home and are wrapping up a disappointing season after making the playoffs last spring. The Senators got on the board when Spezza scored his 21st goal of the season via the power play at 12:45 of the second period. With Islanders forward John Persson in the box for tripping, Spezza took a pass from Erik Karlsson and ripped a slap shot from the left circle that beat Nilsson, who was screened by Ottawa forward Chris Neil. Nielsen tied it with his 25th goal of the season 22 seconds into the third period. With the teams at even strength, defenseman Kevin Czuczman fired a slap shot from the left point that was stopped by Anderson, but Nielsen collected the rebound in the slot and backhanded it past the Senators' goaltender to make it 1-1. Spezza put the Senators back in front with his second goal of the night at 12:45 when his wrist shot from a sharp angle somehow managed to go off Nilsson's back and over the goal line at the far post to make it 2-1. The goal required video review, but was quickly awarded. Hemsky gave Ottawa a two-goal lead 1:39 later. Milan Michalek sprung Hemsky into the Islanders' zone with the puck and he cruised past Czuczman before wristing a low shot past Nilsson for his 13th goal of the season and second in the past three games. Anderson preserved the 3-1 lead with 2:02 remaining when he made a right pad save on Casey Cizikas after Brock Nelson poked a puck loose at center ice and sent Cizikas in on a breakaway. Kassian's empty-net goal with 11.2 seconds left rounded out the scoring. Spezza had the primary assist for his third point of the night. New York right wing Cal Clutterbuck sustained an upper-body injury during the second period and did not return. Islanders left wing Brett Gallant made his NHL debut. Gallant, who had one goal, one assist and 245 penalty minutes in 56 games for the Bridgeport Sound Tigers in the American Hockey League, was handed seven minutes in penalties in 6:02 of ice time.
Carolina @ NY Rangers 1-4 - Brad Richards scored twice on the power play, Martin St. Louis had three assists, and the Rangers defeated the Hurricanes 4-1 on Tuesday at Madison Square Garden. Benoit Pouliot and Derek Stepan scored for the Rangers; Henrik Lundqvist made 27 saves. New York maintained their two-point lead over the Philadelphia Flyers for second place in the Metropolitan Division. The Flyers, who have a game in hand, defeated the Florida Panthers 5-2. Patrick Dwyer scored for the Hurricanes; Cam Ward stopped 32 of 36 shots. The loss eliminated Carolina from Stanley Cup Playoff contention. Richards and St. Louis entered the game having combined for one goal in the past four games. St. Louis had four points in his first 17 games since being traded to the Rangers on March 5. He almost matched that total Tuesday. St. Louis set up Richards' tying goal with Alexander Semin off for hooking. After St. Louis' first pass was blocked, he corralled a bouncing puck near the slot and made a spinning no-look pass that found Richards at the left circle. Richards took a wrist shot that beat Ward inside the left post with 4:16 left in the first period, snapping New York out of an 0-for-9 power-play slump. Pouliot broke the 1-1 tie in the opening minute of the second period. Mats Zuccarello faked a slap shot from the point, freezing Carolina's defense, before feeding Pouliot on left wing. With Ward cheating far out of the net, Pouliot tucked the puck into an open cage to give New York the lead 50 seconds in on his 14th goal. Zuccarello drew an elbowing penalty on Jeff Skinner with 6:52 remaining in the period, and New York needed 28 seconds on the man advantage for Richards to get his second of the night. Dwyer's stick was broken by a St. Louis slap shot, leaving the penalty kill further shorthanded. From there, the Rangers worked the puck to the point, where Richards fired a shot past Ward's blocker for his 20th of the season at 13:36. Stepan put the game out of reach 4:38 into the third period. St. Louis' initial pass off the rush was blocked, but he collected the loose puck before connecting with Stepan. Standing by the right post, the center simply had to tip the feed past a sprawling Ward for his 17th to give New York a three-goal lead. Dwyer opened the scoring shortly after Pouliot failed to work the puck up the left boards and out of the Rangers end. Brett Bellemore forced a turnover, pushed the puck deep into the zone and attempted to feed Dwyer in front. The pass went off the side of the net but slid between Kevin Klein's legs directly to the Hurricanes forward, who beat Lundqvist to the blocker side with a quick shot for his eighth of the year 3:22 into the game. The Hurricanes were overmatched at times, particularly during the third period when they were outshot 15-7.
Toronto @ Tampa Bay 0-3 - The Lightning eliminated the Maple Leafs from the race for the Stanley Cup Playoffs on Tuesday night. They hope they didn't lose their No. 1 goaltender in the process. Ben Bishop left the game after making a glove save 5:43 into the first period and didn't return, but backup Anders Lindback stopped all 25 shots he faced in a 3-0 victory. Bishop landed on his left side and wrist and was helped to the dressing room in obvious discomfort. The Lightning said he sustained an upper-body injury. Very little has worked out for the Maple Leafs in the past few weeks. Toronto had the fourth-best record in the Eastern Conference on March 15, one day before it began an eight-game slide by losing to the Washington Capitals. The loss to the Lightning was the Maple Leafs' 10th in 12 games. The Lightning moved within two points of the Montreal Canadiens in the race for second place in the Atlantic Division. Each team has three games remaining. The winner will have the home-ice advantage when the teams meet in the first round of the playoffs. Tampa Bay rookie Ondrej Palat scored his 21st and 22nd goals of the season in the second period to put the Lightning ahead 2-0. He opened the scoring at 9:19 when he carried the puck into the Toronto zone, skated across into the high slot and fired a quick shot that went over James Reimer's left shoulder. His second goal came at 15:45 , seven seconds into Tampa Bay's only power-play opportunity of the game. With Troy Bodie off for tripping, Steven Stamkos sent a shot wide of the net. But the puck bounced off the boards and came right to Palat, stationed to the left of the net, who fired it home. Victor Hedman, who assisted on both of Palat's goals, hit the empty net for his 13th goal of the season. Toronto's best scoring chance came early in the second period when Phil Kessel took a cross-ice pass but fired wide. Tampa Bay defenseman Sami Salo left the game early in the second period and did not return. The Lightning did not say why Salo did not play after leaving the ice 3:16 into the middle period.

Philadelphia @ Florida 5-2 - The Cryers scored four second-period goals Tuesday to clinch their return to the Stanley Cup Playoffs. They remain two points behind the New York Rangers, who defeated the Hurricanes 4-1, for second place in the Metropolitan Division and home-ice advantage in the Eastern Conference First Round. Vincent Lecavalier and Sean Couturier also scored for the Flyers in the second period, and Lecavalier had an assist on a third-period goal by Tye McGinn after Florida cut the Philadelphia lead to 4-2. Adam Hall had two assists. Goaltender Roberto Luongo was a late scratch for the Panthers because of an upper-body injury; Dan Ellis made 22 saves in the emergency start. It was the fourth time in five starts with the Panthers that Ellis, acquired in a trade with the Dallas Stars on March 5, allowed at least five goals. Luongo started the previous two games after missing three games with a mild concussion he sustained against the Hurricanes on March 27, but Horachek said the injury that kept him out against the Flyers was muscular. Erik Gudbranson and Jonathan Huberdeau scored in the third period for the Panthers, who lost for the ninth time in 11 games. Huberdeau, back after missing 11 games because of a concussion, snapped a 19-game goal drought. His goal was his first since Jan. 20. Giroux had his fourth two-goal game of the season, his third since March 2. Lecavalier became the seventh Flyers player to reach 20 goals this season. After a scoreless first period during which the Flyers had a stretch of 4:40 of power-play time, including 1:40 with a 5-on-3, Lecavalier opened the scoring at 2:02 of the second. The goal came after Florida defenseman Colby Robak almost whiffed on a pass from behind his net and the puck slid out front. Ellis stopped Hall's stuff attempt, but the rebound found its way to Lecavalier in the slot and he put it home through the five-hole. Giroux scored twice in a span of 2:21 to make it 3-0. His first goal came on a wrist shot from the right circle that beat Ellis low to the far side. The second was a one-timer from the slot off a backhand cross-ice feed from Mark Streit, giving him 27 this season. Couturier closed the second-period scoring after Braydon Coburn's slap shot from the point was blocked by Florida center Nick Bjugstad and bounced to the side, where Couturier one-timed it into an open net. It was Couturier's first goal since March 1, a span of 18 games. The Panthers scored twice in the first 5:38 of the third period. Gudbranson scored at 1:14 when his wrist shot from the blue line went off a Flyers player. Huberdeau made it 4-2 when he got by Streit at the Flyers' blue line by pushing the puck forward with his backhand before beating Mason with a shot along the ice.
Washington @ St Louis 4-1 - The Crapitals still have a pulse. Alex Ovechkin paved the way with his 50th goal of the season and two assists and the Capitals kept their Stanley Cup Playoff hopes alive with a 4-1 win against the slumping Blues at Scottrade Center on Tuesday night. Nicklas Backstrom scored two goals and Mikhail Grabovski scored for the Crapitals, who won their second straight. Braden Holtby, playing because former Blues goalie Jaroslav Halak wasn't comfortable facing his former teammates, stopped 28 shots and beat the Blues for the second time this season. John Carlson had two assists. The Blue Jackets' 4-3 overtime win against the Coyotes leaves Washington four points back. Each team has three games remaining. The Blues dropped their third in a row for the first time this season. Not only is their grip on the top spot in the Western Conference in jeopardy, but the Colorado Avalanche moved within two points of the Central Division leaders by beating the Edmonton Oilers 4-1. It's the sixth game in a row and ninth in the past 11 that the Blues have scored two or fewer goals. Maxim Lapierre scored for the Blues. Ryan Miller, who beat the Capitals 2-1 in a shootout on two occasions with the Buffalo Sabres earlier this season, stopped 18 shots in the loss. To make matters worse, captain David Backes missed the second half of the game. Coach Ken Hitchcock said it's a lower-body injury and Backes, who appeared to be struck by a slap shot from Alexander Steen, is listed as day-to-day. Ovechkin's 50th of the season gave him five 50-goal seasons for his career but his first since the 2009-10 season. It came off a one-timer from the left circle with 2:06 left in the first period and gave the Capitals a 1-0 lead. Derek Roy was in the box for the Blues serving a hooking penalty and Ovechkin took the feed from Carlson and rifled a shot over Miller's left shoulder. It was Ovechkin's 23rd power-play goal. Ovechkin tied Steve Yzerman, Brett Hull, Bobby Hull, Phil Esposito and Pavel Bure for sixth all-time in the NHL in 50-goal seasons. Each had five. Mike Bossy and Wayne Gretzky lead the NHL with nine, followed by Marcel Dionne, Guy Lafleur and Mario Lemieux, each with six. Although it's a farsity, having Ovechkin's name alongside those great players, he will never achieve a fraction of what those other players have and certainly not win a Stanley Cup anytime soon. The Blues were buzzing early in the second and got the equalizer from Lapierre, who took Steve Ott's shot from the left point after he intercepted Marcus Johansson's clearing attempt. Lapierre got a hole of the puck and slid it past Holtby at 2:39 to tie the game 1-1. But in a 4-on-4 situation, Grabovski's first goal in 14 games, a slap shot from the left point that beat Miller to the short side, gave Washington a 2-1 lead at 8:52. Backstrom then took a pass from Ovechkin in the slot and snapped a shot past Miller with 1:10 left to make it 3-1. The Capitals took advantage of another power play when Backstrom fired a wrister from the right circle past Miller, who was screened on the play by Troy Brouwer, 16 seconds into the third period to give Washington a three-goal lead. The Blues fired 29 shots at Holtby, Washington blocked 26 to the Blues' six, and the Blues missed the net 25 times to Washington's four. It was Washington's first visit to St. Louis since Dec. 1, 2010. The Capitals also defeated the Blues 4-1 on Nov. 17 in Washington.
Boston @ Minnesota 3-4 SO - With a Stanley Cup Playoff spot locked up thanks to some help from Columbus earlier in the night, the Wild went out and decided their playoff position. Minnesota, which trailed by a goal for almost 19 minutes of the third period, tied the game with the extra attacker at 18:55 on a goal by Ryan Suter, then won in the shootout, defeating the Bruins 4-3 on Tuesday at Xcel Energy Center. The Wild wrapped up the top Western Conference wild-card spot with the victory. Earlier in the evening, Columbus' 4-3 overtime win against Phoenix had cemented Minnesota's playoff berth. Trailing by one heading into the third period, Wild coach Mike Yeo told his players they had already clinched a playoff berth with the Coyotes' loss. it was a risky move for the third-year coach, who has now guided the Wild to the playoffs in back-to-back seasons. Wild goaltender Ilya Bryzgalov watched Patrice Bergeron fire high and wide, then made stops against Reilly Smith and Brad Marchand in the shootout, pumping both fists after shutting down Marchand with a right-pad save to end the game. Mikko Koivu scored the only goal in the shootout in the second round to help Minnesota win its first tiebreaker in its past five tries. Koivu, who used his signature forehand-backhand-shelf move on the shootout winner, stumped Bruins goalie Tuukka Rask, who said he stood in the crease prior to Koivu's turn trying to conjure up his preferred move. Minnesota, who had nine shots on goal in the final 40 minutes of regulation, connected on its last one to send the game to overtime. With Bryzgalov on the bench for an extra attacker, Jason Pominville worked the puck to the high slot, where Suter snapped a soft shot past Rask for his eighth goal. The Wild have made a habit of scoring clutch goals late in games the past several weeks. Minnesota have rallied to tie and/or win in the third period in five of its past nine. The Wild nearly won the game twice in overtime, but Rask gloved Grade A chances by Matt Moulson and Pominville, who had two first-period goals, to get the game to the shootout. Minnesota, which needed a win on the season's final day to sneak in as the eighth seed in 2012-13, now has roster options and could even rest some regulars with two games and five days remaining in the regular season. Minnesota are in the playoffs for consecutive seasons for the second time in team history. The loss spoiled a banner night for the Bruins' power play, which entered the game 0-for-36 all-time against the Wild. Finally, after 13 games and nearly 14 full seasons, the Bruins broke through with the man advantage against the Wild, and not once but twice. Loui Eriksson's power-play goal late in the second period gave the Bruins a 3-2 lead, and for the first time Tuesday, a team held on to an advantage for quite a while. A tripping penalty against Milan Lucic 41 seconds into the game put the Wild on the power play, and Minnesota promptly scored as Pominville's blast from the point was tipped in front by Bruins defenseman Johnny Boychuk and past Rask at 1:05. But a slashing penalty on Suter gave Boston a power play 1:02 later, and a shot from the point by Smith snuck under a sliding Kyle Brodziak and past Bryzgalov at 3:00. For Bryzgalov, the goal snapped a streak of 145:15 without allowing a goal following back-to-back shutouts. Bergeron slammed home a rebound in front for his 29th goal to give the Bruins their first lead at 10:28 of the first. That lead lasted less than a minute. Pominville scored his second of the night off a faceoff to Rask's left, taking a nice centering pass by Moulson on the goal line. The goal was Pominville's team-leading 29th, one more than Zach Parise, and his third multigoal game this season, first since Nov. 1. Eriksson made it 3-2 when he and Gregory Campbell stood alone in front of Bryzgalov. Each got a piece of Zdeno Chara's snap shot from the point, but Eriksson touched it last for his ninth goal at 16:18 before Suter's late heroics tied it once again. Boston was playing without its two leading scorers, Jarome Iginla and David Krejci, both of whom were scratched. With the Bruins locked into the top seed in the Eastern Conference, all they have to play for is the Presidents' Trophy. With three games remaining, the Bruins (114 points) lead the St. Louis Blues by three points and the Anaheim Sucks by four points for the top record in the NHL.
Colorado @ Edmonton 4-1 - After being whistled for a costly penalty, Erik Johnson took it upon himself to help pull the Avalanche within two points of the top spot in the Central Division. Johnson scored the game-winner on an impressive individual rush that put the Avalanche ahead to stay en route to a 4-1 victory against the Oilers on Tuesday night at Rexall Place. The goal came 12 seconds after the Oilers had tied the game while Johnson sat in the penalty box serving an interference penalty. Stastny, Tyson Barrie and Jamie McGinn also scored for the Avalanche, and goaltender Jean-Sebastien Giguere made 22 saves to earn the win in what may have been the final start of his career. Giguere has hinted he will retire at the end of the season. Colorado are two points behind the St. Louis Blues for first place in the Central Division and four points ahead of the third-place Chicago Blackhawks. David Perron scored for the Oilers, whose two-game win streak was snapped. Oilers goalie Ben Scrivens stopped 29 shots. Stastny opened the scoring 4:13 into the first period, getting to a loose puck at the side of the net and whacking away until it slid under Scrivens' pad. The Oilers tied the game at 16:58 on the power play with Perron's team-leading 28th goal. The Oilers right wing, who entered the game tied for the team lead in goals with Taylor Hall and Jordan Eberle, banked a centering pass in off Avalanche defenseman Nick Holden's skate and past Giguere. The Avalanche regained the lead when Johnson made up for the penalty that had resulted in Perron's power-play goal. Johnson took on four Oilers at the blue line, then danced around Edmonton defenseman Jeff Petry and fired the puck through Scrivens. Johnson's goal proved to be a backbreaker for the Oilers, who had beaten the Avalanche 8-2 on Dec. 5 in their most recent meeting at Rexall Place . Barrie scored a power-play goal at 7:34 of the third period to increase Colorado's lead to 3-1. McGinn then beat Oilers center Ryan Nugent-Hopkins to a rebound in front at 16:19 to put the Avalanche up by three. The Oilers have two games left, having failed to qualify for the playoffs for the eighth consecutive season.