Ducks win to join Wild with postseason berth
Ondrej Kase scored the tie-breaking goal on a rebound with 3:56 to play, and the Ducks clinched their sixth consecutive playoff berth with a 3-1 victory over Minnesota in Anaheim on Wednesday night.
Kase secured his first 20goal season by jumping on a long rebound of Josh Manson’s shot, and Andrew Cogliano added an empty-net goal with 2:13 left. Ryan Miller made 26 saves in his first start since March 9 for the Ducks, who have won eight of 10 in their usual late-season surge to the playoffs.
Nick Ritchie also scored, and Manson had two assists as the Ducks officially extended the NHL’s second-longest streak of postseason berths. Anaheim also leapfrogged Los Angeles into third place in the Pacific Division, leading by one point with two games to play for both clubs.
Matt Dumba scored a power-play goal and Devan Dubnyk stopped 28 shots for the Wild, who took their fifth loss in seven games during what turned out to be a meaningless game for the playoff-bound club.
When the Blues’ loss to Chicago ended during the first period in Anaheim, Minnesota was locked into third place in the Central Division, clinching a first-round matchup with either Winnipeg or Nashville.
St. Louis’ result also clinched a playoff berth for the Kings, and it meant the Ducks would be able to clinch as well. Blackhawks 4, Blues 3: Duncan Keith scored a power-play goal with 8.5 seconds left and Chicago beat host St. Louis to hurt the Blues’ playoff hopes. Andreas Martinsen, Blake Hillman and Alex DeBrincat also scored, and Jean-Francois Berube made 30 saves. The Blackhawks beat the Blues for the first time in three meetings this season. Vladimir Tarasenko and Brayden Schenn each had a goal and an assist for the Blues. They have lost four straight. They remain a point behind idle Colorado for the second wild-card spot in the Western Conference. Senators 4, Sabres 2: Matt Duchene scored his team-leading 27th goal for visiting Ottawa, helping assure Buffalo of finishing last in the NHL standings. Max McCormick, Ryan Dzingel and Alexander Burrows, with an empty-netter, also scored for the Senators. Ryan O’Reilly and Kyle Okposo scored for the Sabres. Buffalo had already extended its franchise-worst playoff drought to a seventh season.