Lightning get Point in OT win
Brayden Point scored a power-play goal 3:12 into overtime and the Tampa Bay Lightning overcame a 4-1 deficit to beat the Florida Panthers 5-4 last night in Sunrise, Fla. Point took a pass from Nikita Kucherov across the front of the crease to the left side and flipped it past James Reimer. Tampa Bay improved to 19-7-1, a point ahead of Toronto for the overall NHL lead. Kucherov had a goal and two assists, and Cedric Paquette, Mathieu Joseph and Alex Killorn also scored. Louis Domingue made 24 saves, and Steven Stamkos recorded an assist to help the Lightning improve to 3-0 against the Panthers this season. Maple Leafs 5, Wild 3 — Nazem Kadri broke a tie with 3:20 to play and Zach Hyman scored twice as Toronto defeated Minnesota in St. Paul. Hyman added an empty-net goal in the final minute to seal Toronto’s fourth straight victory and Minnesota’s third loss in a row. The Maple Leafs improved to 19-8-0, a point behind Tampa Bay for the NHL lead. Canadiens 5, Rangers 2 — Shea Weber and Artturi Lehkonen each scored twice and host Montreal snapped a five-game losing streak with a victory over New York. Tomas Tatar also scored for the Canadiens, who won for the first time at home since Nov. 10. Carey Price stopped 20 shots.
Flyers 4, Penguins 2 — Dale Weise scored in the first minute of the third period and visiting Philadelphia held on to beat Pittsburgh. Claude Giroux, Travis Konecny and Jakub Voracek also scored for the Flyers, who won for the second time in eight games. Anthony Stolarz stopped 30 shots. Sidney Crosby scored his 14th for Pittsburgh. Islanders 3, Blue Jackets 2 — Casey Cizikas scored the tiebreaking goal in the third period and New York won in its return to the Nassau Coliseum, rallying to beat Columbus. Anders Lee and Anthony Beauvillier scored in the second period to tie the score after the Islanders fell behind, and Thomas Greiss stopped 28 shots. Jets 4, Devils 3 — Mark Scheifele scored his second goal of the game at 4:43 of overtime, and Winnipeg beat New Jersey in Newark. Schiefele tucked the puck past Keith Kinkaid as the Jets won their second straight, improving to 3-3-0 over their past six games.
Senators 6, Sharks 2 — Ben Harpur scored his first NHL goal, Craig Anderson stopped 36 shots and host Ottawa spoiled Erik Karlsson’s return by beating San Jose. Karlsson, the former Senators captain, was playing his first game in Ottawa since he was traded to San Jose in the offseason. The team honored the two-time Norris Trophy winner with a video tribute during the first period. Stars 2, Canucks 1 — Alexander Radulov had two points, including the go-ahead goal with 3:23 remaining in the third period and Ben Bishop made 24 saves in his return from injury to help visiting Dallas to a win against Vancouver.
Elsewhere in the NHL — William Nylander’s contract impasse with the Toronto Maple Leafs has ended. The restricted free agent signed a six-year deal yesterday just before the 5 p.m. deadline. The deal is worth $10.2 million this season and $6.9 million a year the rest of the seasons.