Panthers win follows tribute to Fla. victims
Vincent Trocheck scored the winning goal with 19.1 seconds left to lift the Florida Panthers over the Washington Capitals, 3-2, last night in Sunrise, Fla., hours after victims of last week’s shooting at nearby Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School were honored with a somber video tribute.
With the score tied at 2, Trocheck redirected a shot by Jonathan Huberdeau past goaltender Braden Holtby during a power play.
Before the game, the arena video screen showed the names and faces of each of the 17 students who were killed on Valentine’s Day in nearby Parkland. The darkened ice was then illuminated with 17 circles of light, with a student’s name inside each one.
Panthers goalie Roberto Luongo, a Parkland resident, gave an emotional statement about the bravery of those who lost their lives trying to save others and how inspiring the students have been coping with the tragedy. Players from both teams stood for the ceremony, some wiping tears from their eyes.
Florida players will wear Marjory Stoneman Douglas logos on their helmets and uniform patches for the remainder of the season.
Lightning 4, Senators 3 — Nikita Kucherov had two assists to reach 80 points and Tampa Bay defeated host Ottawa.
Tyler Johnson, Victor Hedman, Vladislav Namestnikov and Brayden Point scored for the Lightning, who leapfrogged expansion Vegas to regain the top spot in the overall NHL standings with 85 points.
Maple Leafs 4, Islanders 3 — Tyler Bozak scored the shootout winner and host Toronto edged New York.
Auston Matthews tipped in Jake Gardiner’s shot to tie it at 3 with 3:29 remaining in the third period, but later left the game favoring his right side after taking a hit. He did not return.
Mitch Marner and Morgan Rielly also had goals, and Frederik Andersen made 32 saves.
Flyers 2, Blue Jackets 1 — Nolan Patrick scored the go-ahead goal in the third period and Petr Mrazek made 19 saves in his Philadelphia debut in a win over visiting Columbus.
Claude Giroux had a goal and an assist and Shayne Gostisbehere added two assists for the Flyers, who won their fourth straight game.
Wild 4, Devils 2 — In Newark, N.J., Joel Eriksson Ek and Chris Stewart scored in a 39-second span during a three-goal second period, and Minnesota rallied from two down to beat New Jersey.
Taylor Hall and Stefan Noesen scored for the Devils. Hall’s 13-game point streak is the longest in the NHL this season, one more than Bruins winger David Pastrnak.
Sabres 3, Red Wings 2 — Marco Scandella scored with a second left in overtime, lifting Buffalo over host Detroit.
Justin Abdelkader pulled the Red Wings into a 2-all tie with 1:25 remaining in the third period.
Canadiens 3, Rangers 1 — Antti Niemi made 31 saves and host Montreal beat New York to snap its sixgame losing streak.
Canadiens defenseman Shea Weber will miss the rest of the season because of a torn left foot tendon.
Predators 7, Sharks 1 — Pekka Rinne made 33 saves in his 300th career win and host Nashville routed San Jose.
Oilers 3, Avalanche 2 — Connor McDavid scored at 2:19 of overtime and had an assist to lead host Edmonton past Colorado.
Flames 5, Coyotes 2 — In Glendale, Ariz., Jon Gillies rebounded from a firstminute goal to make 35 saves in his first NHL start of the season, helping Calgary beat Arizona.
Stars 2, Kings 0 — Kari Lehtonen made 18 saves, Alex Radulov and Tyler Seguin each had a goal and visiting Dallas blanked Los Angeles.
Elsewhere in the NHL — The Arizona Coyotes signed Darcy Kuemper to a two-year contract extension, a day after acquiring the goalie from the Los Angeles Kings.