Avalanche return, clinch playoff bid
Andre Burakovsky scored twice and Brandon Saad and Pierre-Edouard Bellemare added goals as the Colorado Avalanche clinched a playoff berth with a 4-2 victory over the St. Louis Blues on Thursday night.
Colorado, back on the ice for the first time since April 14 because of COVID-19 protocols, improved to 18-1-2 in its last 21 games. The Avalanche are 8-1-0 in April after finishing a league-best 122-3 in March, setting franchise records for wins and points in a month. The Avalanche are 5-1-0 against the Blues this season, with a 20-11 scoring margin.
CAPITALS 1, ISLANDERS 0, SO » Evgeny Kuznetsov scored the deciding goal in a shootout, and Washington reclaimed sole possession of first place in the East Division.
Ilya Samsonov stopped 26 shots through overtime for his second shutout of the season and third of his career.
Semyon Varlamov finished with 28 saves through overtime, but the Islanders fell one point behind the Capitals.
RED WINGS 7, STARS 3 » Jakub Vrana scored four goals in a game for the first time to help Detroit rout Dallas and match its victory total from last season. Detroit picked up its 17th victory in its 49th game, a year after winning 17 of 71 games.
PENGUINS 5, DEVILS 1 » Sidney Crosby and Bryan Rust each scored their 19th goals of the season to pace Pittsburgh.
MAPLE LEAFS 5, JETS 3 » Mitch Marner had two goals and an assist, Auston Matthews scored his NHL-leading 34th goal and North-leading Toronto moved six points ahead of Winnipeg.
LIGHTNING 3, BLUE JACKETS 1» Ondrej Palat scored the tiebreaking goal in the third period and Curtis McElhinney stopped 24 shots, leading Tampa Bay past Columbus.
HURRICANES 4, PANTHERS 2» Sebastian Aho scored two short-handed goals and to help Carolina to its sixth straight win.
BRUINS 5, SABRES 1 » David Pastrnak had a goal and two assists and Boston beat Buffalo for its seasonbest sixth straight victory..
FLYERS 3, RANGERS 2 » James van Riemsdyk scored two power-play goals and Philadelphia beat New York to snap a two-game slide.