Leafs set franchise wins records with victory over Panthers

TORONTO » Mitch Marner had a goal and an assist to extend his point streak to 10 games and the Toronto Maple Leafs beat the Florida Panthers 4-3 on Wednesday night to set a franchise record with their 46th win.

Toronto also set a high-water mark with its 27th home win.

James van Riemsdyk added his 35th goal — and the 200th career — for Toronto, while Auston Matthews and Patrick Marleau added their 30th and 25th goals, respectively.

Frederik Andersen made 30 saves and set a career high with his 36th victory.

Jonathan Huberdeau scored twice, and Evgenii Dadonov also scored for Florida, which got 31 stops from Roberto Luongo, including a couple of big ones early.

Both Huberdeau and Dadonov hit the 25-goal mark.

Florida, meanwhile, remains three points back of New Jersey for the second wild card in the Eastern Conference, with one game in hand.

Toronto came out flying after having its club-record home winning streak snapped at 13 by lastplace Buffalo on Monday. Luongo stopped van Riemsdyk on a breakaway, then robbed Tyler Bozak of what looked like a sure goal with a blocker save.

The Leafs broke through at 3:05, when Marner was quickest to his own rebound off the end boards to get his 21st.

Bruins, Chara agree to 1-year extension

Boston Bruins defenseman Zdeno Chara signed a contract that will take him through his 42nd birthday, and he’s already anticipating the next one.

“I believe, myself, that I’m going to be playing beyond this contract,” he said after agreeing to a one-year deal that him at least $5 million.

“No matter how long you want to continue to play, you have to perform. You have to back up your status,” he said. “So I know I need to go out there every night and do my job, perform and play hard and work hard and be a great example for my teammates. (The) rest of it, it will fall into place.”

A five-time All-Star who was the league’s best defenseman in 2009, Chara turned 41 this month but still leads the Bruins in time on ice with an average of 23 minutes per game. He has seven goals and 16 assists this season, his 20th in the NHL, and is the franchise’s third-leading scorer for a defenseman, behind Hall of Famers Ray Bourque and Bobby Orr. will pay