Crosby-led Pens shoot by Rangers
Sidney Crosby scored his league-leading 43rd goal in regulation and then got the clinching goal in the shootout to lift Pittsburgh to a 4-3 win over the Rangers last night in New York, snapping the Penguins’ four-game skid.
Jake Guentzel, returning from a concussion, and Bryan Rust also scored for Pittsburgh, and Matt Murray stopped 30 shots. With the win, the Penguins topped their point total last season en route to the Stanley Cup.
Chris Kreider tied the score with 11.6 seconds left in regulation. Nick Holden had a goal and an assist, Rick Nash also scored and J.T. Miller added two assists for the Rangers. Henrik Lundqvist finished with 32 saves as New York fell to 0-5-3 at home since beating Washington on Feb. 19.
Islanders 2, Devils 1 — Anders Lee and Anthony Beauvillier scored to help host New York preserve its slim playoff chances with the victory against New Jersey.
The Islanders might have suffered a big injury as captain John Tavares left the game late in the third period clutching his left leg. Jaroslav Halak stopped 26 shots as New York pulled four points behind the Bruins for the second wild card in the Eastern Conference.
Adam Henrique scored and Keith Kincaid had 36 saves for the Devils.
Patrik Elias, New Jersey’s all-time leading scorer, is retiring at 40 after a career that spanned almost two decades and included two Stanley Cup titles.
Coyotes 6, Capitals 3 — In Glendale, Ariz., Christian Dvorak scored a pair of unassisted goals and Arizona chased goaltender Braden Holtby to snap Washington’s six-game winning streak.
Alexander Burmistrov also scored twice for the Coyotes, and Louis Domingue stopped 45 shots in making his second straight start for the Coyotes.
Nicklas Backstrom, Daniel Winnik and Justin Williams had the goals for the Capitals.
Blackhawks 3, Blue Jackets 1 — Artemi Panarin had two goals, Corey Crawford made 32 saves and Chicago beat visiting Columbus, which lost for the second time in as many nights.
Marian Hossa also scored in the first period for the Blackhawks, and Patrick Kane assisted on all three goals as the Blackhawks extended their lead in the Central Division to nine points over idle Minnesota.
Nick Foligno scored his 25th goal for the Blue Jacekts to end an eight-game drought.
Kings 2, Canucks 0 — Jarome Iginla scored his 625th career goal and Jonathan Quick made 35 saves for his second shutout of the season as Los Angeles won in Vancouver.
Tyler Toffoli also scored for the Kings, who now sit eight points behind Nashville for the last Western Conference wild card slot with five games remaining for each team.
Flames 5, Sharks 2 — Matt Stajan scored his first goal in 24 games in a three-goal second period, Johnny Gaudreau, Sean Monahan, Alex Chiasson and Sam Bennett also scored, and Calgary clinched a playoff berth with the win against visiting San Jose.
Avalanche 2, Blues 1 — In Denver, J.T. Compher scored in regulation, Calvin Pickard made 27 saves through overtime and two more in the shootout, and Colorado edged St. Louis, but the losers got the point it needed to clinch a playoff spot.