Lightning erase 3-goal deficit
TAMPA: Alex Killorn broke a tie midway through the third period and the Tampa Bay Lightning scored the final four goals to rally past the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-3 on Tuesday night.
Victor Hedman, Ryan McDonagh and Nikita Kucherov also scored as Tampa Bay reached 50 wins for the second time in franchise history. Yanni Gourde had two assists for the Atlantic Division leaders, who moved five points ahead of secondplace Boston for the top spot in the Eastern Conference.
Andrei Vasilevskiy made 27 saves and set a Lightning record with his 41st victory of the season.
James van Riemsdyk scored twice for Toronto, who fell to 28-2-2. Fredrik Andersen returned after missing two games with an upper-body injury and stopped 21 shots.
The Lightning played the final two periods without forward Ryan Callahan, who exited at 16:04 minutes of the first favouring his right arm and shoulder area.
Nathan MacKinnon had two assists, extending his point streak to a career hightying 13 games, and Colorado beat hosts Chicago 5-1.
Alexander Kerfoot scored twice and Semyon Varlamov made 44 saves as Colorado won for the fifth time in six games and improved to 8-1-3 in their last 12. Mikko Rantanen and Tyson Barrie each had a goal and an assist, and Erik Johnson added an empty-netter.
The Avalanche (40-25-8) snapped a tie with Anaheim for the top spot in the Western Conference wild-card race and moved within two points of Minnesota for third place in the Central Division.
Chicago (30-35-9) lost for the sixth time in seven games.
Defenceman Brent Seabrook scored his fifth goal of the season for the Blackhawks, and Anton Forsberg made 35 stops in his first start since he was pulled in the first period of Thursday night’s 6-2 loss at Winnipeg.
The last-place Blackhawks were eliminated from postseason contention with the loss. They had made the play-offs in nine straight seasons, winning three Stanley Cups.
John Carlson scored with five minutes remaining to help Washington beat Dallas 4-3 and extend their lead atop the Metropolitan Division.
TJ Oshie, Matt Niskanen and Alex Ovechkin also scored for Washington, who lead the tight Metropolitan by four points over Pittsburgh and Columbus.
The Capitals are on pace for their third consecutive division title and play-off appearance with nine games remaining.
Carlson’s goal tied him with the Stars’ John Klingberg for the NHL lead among defencemen with 61 points. It was also a dagger to Dallas’ fading play-off hopes.
The Stars finished their road trip 0-4-2 and sit outside the final play-off position in the Western Conference and could need 14 of a possible 18 points before the end of the season to get in.
Braden Holtby stopped 24 of the 27 shots he faced.