The San Jose Sharks were back in action on Thursday night as they hosted the red-hot Buffalo Sabres in the two teams’ final meeting of the regular season. The Sabres had a dominant victory during their last meeting with the Sharks, winning 6-3. As a result, the Sharks were looking to avenge their previous performance. 

The Sharks were buzzing early on, maintaining quite a bit of offensive pressure and limiting dangerous chances on the rush. Kiefer Sherwood nearly gave the Sharks an early lead five minutes into the game when his shot from the slot forced Buffalo’s goaltender, Alex Lyon, to stretch across the crease to make the save. The game started off very fast paced, going all the way to the first TV timeout before there was a stoppage of play. 

Roughly nine minutes into the game, Alex Nedeljkovic got his first major test of the night when Jack Quinn and Jason Zucker each had a chance. Nedeljkovic denied Quinn’s shot, before Macklin Celebrini blocked Zucker’s follow-up chance. 

Alex Wennberg took the Sharks’ first penalty of the night 11 minutes into the first period, when he high-sticked Tage Thompson. The Sharks killed off the penalty.

Macklin Celebrini got a breakaway chance with roughly six minutes remaining in the first, but was hauled down by the Buffalo defense. To the dismay of the SAP Center crowd, no penalty was called on the play. 

A couple of minutes later though, the Sharks would get their first power play of the net when Zucker was called for high-sticking. Celebrini danced through the weakened defense to generate the Sharks’ best scoring opportunity of the power play, but Lyon was able to stonewall him, keeping the puck out of the net. 

After 20 minutes, the game remained deadlocked at 0-0. When the second period started, the Sharks were without a key player, as Tyler Toffoli was ruled doubtful to return.

The Sharks got their second man advantage of the night when Owen Power took down Pavol Regenda in the corner, almost a quarter of the way through the middle frame. Nothing came of the man advantage, as the Sabres killed it off fairly easily. 

Will Smith nearly gave the Sharks the lead around the halfway point of the game, as with 12 minutes remaining in the second period, he hit the crossbar. Sherwood had a solid scoring chance moments later, but was denied by Lyon.

Noah Ostlund gave the Sabres the lead with 10:55 remaining in the second, scoring off a rebound. The initial shot was taken by Josh Doan, the puck then hit the boards behind Nedeljkovic and bounced right to Ostlund. Sam Carrick added a second Sabres goal just 36 seconds later.

The Sabres’ captain, Dahlin, joined the goal-scoring party to make it 3-0 just over a minute later. 

As the second period neared its end, the Sharks caused a major net-front scramble. While it seemed like the Sharks couldn’t be denied, Lyon and the Buffalo defense found a way to shut the door. 

The Sabres’ three goals in the second period came on just three shots, showing that the Sharks were suppressing shots fairly well, but the ones that they did give up were quality chances. Buffalo carried their three-goal lead into the second intermission. 

On the Sabres’ first shot of the third period, Tage Thompson would score a five-hole goal to make it 4-0. As a result, the Sabres had scored a goal on four straight shots. 

As time ticked away, the game started getting a bit more chippy. Around the halfway point of the period, Vincent Desharnais and Sam Carrick started going at each other, with Carrick eventually knocking off the giant Sharks defenseman's helmet. 

Barclay Goodrow was called for slashing with 6:20 remaining in the game, giving the Sabres an opportunity to extend their lead even further. The Sharks penalty kill remained perfect though, killing off the penalty with little cause for concern.

Sam Carrick would score one final goal for the Sabres, making it 5-0 late in the third. 

The Sabres would ultimately walk away victorious with a 5-0 victory over the Sharks. The Sharks will be back in action on Saturday, as they’ll host the Philadelphia Flyers in a matinee game with a 1 P.M. puck drop.

Filip Forsberg recorded his 30th goal of the season as the Nashville Predators picked up a critical playoff race win over the Seattle Kraken, 3-1, on Thursday at Bridgestone Arena. 

It's the first time Nashville has won back-to-back games since Feb. 2, tying them with Seattle for the final Wild Card spot. The Kraken have the tiebreaker with more regulation wins. 

Ryan Ufko opened the scoring, netting his second goal of the season off a one-timer feed from Brady Skjei to make it 1-0 Nashville in the first period. It was Ufko's fourth point in five games.  

Seattle responded in the final two minutes of the opening period as Frederick Gaudreau tipped in a cross-ice feed from Chandler Stephenson to tie the game. 

In the second period, Jamie Oleksiak was called for interference on Steven Stamkos, putting the Predators on the power play. Ryan O'Reilly scored the game-winning goal, putting away a Forsberg rebound to make it 2-1 Nashville. 

Forsberg iced the game on an empty net goal with a little over a minute left in the game to record his sixth 30-plus goal season and the third straight season he's put up that tally. 

Justus Annunen picked up the win, making 25 saves on 26 shots. His start was unexpected as Juuse Saros was ruled out due to a day-to-day, upper-body injury, which was sustained in the morning skate. 

Milwaukee Admirals goalie Matt Murray was called up at the last minute and arrived in the middle of the game to back up Annunen. 

If the Los Angeles Kings and San Jose Sharks both lose in regulation tonight, the Predators will be in a three-way tie for the final Wild Card spot. A win over the Vegas Golden Knights on Saturday would push them over the threshold. 

When their 2025-26 season began, outside expectations for the Pittsburgh Penguins were - as everyone knows at this point - not exactly glowing.

Many assumed that they would likely finish around where they did last season as the league's ninth-worst team. Many also assumed that things would look more bleak than that and that they'd end up a lottery team in contention for the Gavin McKenna sweepstakes. And, there were some believers who thought that this team would be chasing a wildcard spot in the stretch run of the season.

No matter where people found themselves on the spectrum of hope for the Penguins this season, very few predicted what has actually come to pass: this being a very good hockey team that is not only in a playoff spot with some situational advantages but also - potentially - a legitimate Stanley Cup contender.

As of Mar. 20, the Penguins sit second in the Metropolitan Division with 84 points, eight points back of the division-leading Carolina Hurricanes and one point up on both the Columbus Blue Jackets and the New York Islanders - the second of which is out of the playoff picture. Although things are close, the Penguins currently have the tiebreaker on both teams, and they are positioned ahead - meaning a playoff berth is all within their control. 

And there are many figures and data points that suggest this team may just be one of the league's best. 

For one, they are tied for seventh in the NHL in points and points percentage, which goes to show that they're earning their way to the upper-half of the league's playoff picture. There are also only five NHL teams with more regulation wins than Pittsburgh (29), and the only two teams with fewer regulation losses than Pittsburgh's 18 are the Colorado Avalanche (13) and the Dallas Stars (15).

In addition, they're 5-16 in overtime and shootouts, two non-traditional formats that have cost the Penguins some points. If they had earned two points in even half of their overtime/shootout contests, they'd have 5-6 additional points and would be two points shy of Carolina for the division lead.

But, hypotheticals aside, there are some tangible numbers that suggest this Penguins' team could, in fact, be a real contender this season.

Coming into tonight’s games, Pens are THE ONLY NHL TEAM ranked in the Top 10 in every one of these datapoints:

Points (81, 9th)
Points% (.614, 8th)
Reg W (28, 6th)
GF/GP (3.36, 9th)
GA/GP (2.91, 9th)
PP (25.0, 4th)
PK (84.2, 2nd)
Shots (29.1, 7th)
Shots Ag (27.2, 10th)

— Bob Grove (@bobgrove91) March 17, 2026

They are the only NHL team with both special teams units in the top-five

The Penguins know all too well that poor special teams can crush playoff hopes. Two seasons ago, they had the league's 30th-ranked power play and missed the playoffs by one point, so a power play goal here and there probably would have gotten them to the postseason.

Now? Their power play is ranked fourth in the NHL at 25.1 percent - and has pretty much been in the top-five all season long - and their penalty kill is even better at 84.2 percent, which is good enough for second in the league to only the Chicago Blackhawks (84.7 percent). 

Having good special teams is a key advantage down the stretch and into the playoffs, especially because penalties generally aren't called with the same frequency or regularity in the playoffs as they are in the regular season. So, the ability to capitalize on the man advantage and kill off opposing power plays in the playoffs is a big one.

Their special teams can help them get to the postseason, and they would certainly help within it, too. 

Takeaways: Penguins Come Back Yet Again To Earn Point In Crosby's Return GameThe Pittsburgh Penguins continued to show their resilience and no-quit mentality Wednesday when they stole a point out of their matchup against the Carolina Hurricanes - even if they had no business earning a point

Their goals-for per game and goals-against per game are both top-10

Pittsburgh is both scoring goals at an elite rate and preventing them.

Their goals-for per game rate of 3.44 ranks sixth in the NHL, while their goals-against per game (2.94) ranks 10th. The influx of finishing ability is a massive development for this team, which has struggled to score in the past several seasons, and the goaltending and the defense have improved this season to the point that the Penguins have become a top-15 team in the league defensively at five-on-five.

At the end of the day, the puck in the back of the opposing net is a good thing, and the puck in your own net is a bad thing. The Penguins are coming out on the right side of both things. 

Penguins Recall Defenseman From Wilkes-Barre/ScrantonThe Pittsburgh Penguins have recalled Ryan Graves from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.

Their shots for and shots against numbers are solid

Producing shots on goal and preventing them is also, typically, a measure of a good team. 

The Penguins are eighth in the league in shots-for per game (29.1), and they are 12th in shots-against per game (27.4). And in terms of their offensive attack, not only are the Penguins generating a lot - according to Moneypuck, they are seventh in expected goals for per 60 (2.67) - they are also making it very difficult for opposing goaltenders and defenses.

They are the NHL’s fifth-best team in high-danger shots for (152), meaning they are getting a ton of good looks. They are also finishing on a fair amount of those looks, as Pittsburgh is ninth in the NHL in shooting percentage at 10.19 percent. 

However, on the other end of the spectrum, the Penguins have surrendered the sixth-most high-danger shots against (147) in the league, behind only one current playoff team in the Boston Bruins. Of course, they will have to surrender less of those dangerous scoring chances if they want to both make the playoffs and make a run, but their goaltending has been good and timely enough to stymie a good chunk of those. 

They have the seventh-highest goal differential in the league 

The Penguins' goal differential has been pretty high all season long, at times squeaking into the top-five. Right now, it is seventh-best at plus-25, and - well - the only teams ahead of them are the six teams ahead of them in the league standings. 

That's a pretty good indicator that - like the six teams ahead of them - they are simply a good hockey team. After the Penguins at 7, the goal differential order gets a little jumbled, as the 17th-ranked (points-wise) Utah Mammoth are behind the Penguins at eight (plus-23), and the 13th-ranked Ottawa Senators are behind them at nine (plus-18).

And, according to Moneypuck, they are also ninth in goals differential per 60 at 0.28.

The Penguins' goal differential numbers track with the teams above them, as the top-seven teams in the league are clearly the most consistent teams across the board.

The Wraparound: Can Crosby And Malkin Put Together One Last Magical Playoff Run?Emma Lingan, Michael Augello and Kelsey Surmacz discuss the Penguins' potential in the playoffs, Rasmus Andersson's chances of being a free agent, the Islanders, Predators and more.

Their PDO indicates that what they’re doing is sustainable

Many folks point to PDO - personal discouragement outcomes - as an indicator of how lucky a team is getting as well as whether or not what they’re accomplishing is sustainable. PDO combines team shooting percentage and team save percentage to determine this, so a high PDO (above 100) typically correlates with a team relying on good goaltending and high shooting percentage, while a low PDO (below 100) shows they can’t rely on either and are getting very unlucky. 

Well, the good thing for the Penguins is that they find themselves in the middle of the pack. Their PDO (100.67) is 12th in the NHL, and they’re right in the vicinity of other teams who are chasing them, including the Blue Jackets (13th) and the Islanders (16th). 

Four of the five teams at the top of the list in PDO are four of the top-five teams in the NHL points-wise, which includes the Stars, Tampa Bay Lightning, Colorado Avalanche and Buffalo Sabres. So, pure shooting talent as well as goaltending talent does play a role here, as these teams have benefited tremendously from high save percentage and shooting percentage.

The Penguins seem to be in that perfect sweet spot where they’re good enough in both departments to the extent where getting a timely save or finishing aren’t problems - like they have been in the past - but where they aren’t necessarily reliant on either for their success.

The Penguins Went 2-1-2 Without Malkin And Crosby. And Rickard Rakell Deserves More Credit For That.There are several Pittsburgh Penguins who stepped up big-time in the absence of both Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin - but one player flew a bit under the radar.

Bookmark THN - Pittsburgh Penguins on your Google News tab to follow the latest Penguins news, roster moves, player features, and more!    

EDMONTON, Alberta (AP) — Sergei Bobrovsky made 21 saves to earn his fourth shutout of the season as the Florida Panthers continued to plague Edmonton, emerging with a 4-0 victory over the Oilers on Thursday in a rematch of the last two Stanley Cup finals.

Cole Reinhardt, A.J. Greer, Anton Lundell and Carter Verhaeghe scored for the injury-riddled Panthers, who snapped a two-game losing skid.

Sam Bennett, Evan Rodrigues and Mike Benning all had two assist games. The Panthers are almost certain to miss the playoffs and a chance to defend their back-to-back titles.

Connor Ingram made 19 stops in the loss for Edmonton.

The Oilers had a two-game winning streak halted and missed out on an opportunity to move ahead of idle Anaheim into first in the Pacific Division.

Edmonton remained without star forward Leon Draisaitl, out for the rest of the regular season with a lower-body injury.

Florida has been hit hard by injuries all season. Among those out of the lineup on Thursday were Aleksander Barkov, Sam Reinhart and Brad Marchand. Only defenseman Gustav Forsling has managed to appear in all 68 games this season. Conversely, six Oilers have played in every game: Connor McDavid, Matt Savoie, Vasily Podkolzin, Evan Bouchard, Mattias Ekholm and Darnell Nurse.

Up next

Panthers: Visit the Calgary Flames on Friday.

Oilers: Host the Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday.

___

AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl

Flyers dazzle in shootout to beat Kings, sweep back-to-back set originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

The Flyers went the distance Thursday night for a gutsy, 4-3 shootout win over the Kings at Crypto.com Arena.

Trevor Zegras and Matvei Michkov delivered in the skills competition. Zegras is a scorching 20 for 33 lifetime.

Samuel Ersson picked up his 13th career shootout victory in 18 opportunities.

This was the Flyers’ fourth straight overtime game and their 25th of the season. They lead the NHL with 15 shootout wins over the last two seasons.

Travis Konecny, Noah Cates and Travis Sanheim provided the team’s goals in regulation.

Michkov and Rasmus Ristolainen each had two assists. Cates also had a helper.

The Flyers (33-23-12) improved to 2-0-0 on this three-game California road trip. They beat the Ducks, 3-2, in overtime Wednesday night.

Rick Tocchet’s club is a commendable 5-5-1 in the second game of back-to-back sets. Last season, the Flyers were a dreadful 1-10-2.

They really gutted this one out. They had to roll with just 11 forwards and an extra defenseman.

The Flyers were without Sean Couturier, who missed the game because of an upper-body injury. It’s unknown if the injury is related at all to Couturier’s back, which has plagued the Flyers’ captain in the past.

Denver Barkey (upper body) and Luke Glendening (lower body) were also out. Both have been considered day to day.

The Flyers have gone 8-2-1 over their last 11 games. The problem, though, is they received little help Thursday night in the playoff race (more on that below).

The Flyers went 1-0-1 in their regular-season series with the Kings (28-24-16). They suffered a 3-2 overtime loss in Philadelphia at the end of January.

• Ersson converted 22 saves on 25 shots. He turned away Adrian Kempe and Artemi Panarin in the shootout.

The Flyers relinquished a 3-2 third-period lead when they gave up a power play goal to Panarin.

But Ersson was solid all night and the Flyers rewarded him with three second-period goals.

The 26-year-old has been a reliable guy since the Olympic break. In four appearances (three starts), he has recorded three wins, a 1.74 goals-against average and .920 save percentage.

Los Angeles netminder Darcy Kuemper stopped 17 of the Flyers’ 20 shots.

• With 14 games left, the Flyers have matched their win total from last season, when they went 33-39-10.

They already have two more points than last season.

The Flyers have made progress and they would actually hold a playoff spot rather comfortably if they were in the Western Conference. In fact, the Ducks are in first place of the Pacific Division and the Flyers have the same number of points.

But in the Eastern Conference, the Flyers are trying to chase down multiple teams. The Blue Jackets, Bruins and Red Wings all won Thursday night. The Flyers are within five points of third place in the Metropolitan Division and six points back of both the East’s first and second wild-card spots.

• The Flyers dodged an injury scare in the third period when Michkov was hammered into the boards by Drew Doughty.

The 21-year-old winger was shaken up but didn’t need to leave the game. He had a strong and active night in 17:04 minutes.

• With how undermanned the Flyers were up front, Emil Andrae was deployed mostly as a forward.

Garrett Wilson played his first NHL game in almost seven years. The 35-year-old winger has been a part of AHL affiliate Lehigh Valley’s leadership group over the last six seasons.

• The Flyers wrap up their trip Saturday when they visit the Sharks (4 p.m. ET/NBCSP).

The Florida Panthers were back in a familiar building on Thursday night despite being extremely far from home.

Playing at Rogers Place for the first time since Game 5 of last year’s Stanley Cup Final, the Panthers picked up right where they left off, skating to a resounding 4-0 victory over the Oilers.

It was Florida who got on the scoreboard first, and the goal came off the stick of one of the newest Panthers players.

Cole Reinhardt picked up the puck in the neutral zone behind Edmonton’s defenders and went in all alone on Connor Ingram and made an abrupt backhand forehand move, sending the goaltender the wrong way while depositing the puck in the back of the net at the 11:12 mark of the first period.

The Cats weren’t done there.

A.J. Greer picked up his 12th goal of the season, deflecting a long shot by rookie defenseman Mike Benning past Ingram with 57.7 seconds left in the period, sending Florida into the intermission up 2-0 on the Oilers.

For Benning, the rookie picked up the primary assist on both Panthers goals, giving him his first multi-point game in the NHL while playing for the first time in his hometown of Edmonton.

Florida stretched their lead to 3-0 after Vasily Podkolzin took a delay of game penalty at the 13:49 mark of the middle frame.

A loose puck came out of the slot and right to Anton Lundell, who fired the puck into a yawning cage for his 18th tally of the season.

The Panthers would hold their lead until late in the third period, when Carter Verhaeghe sealed the deal with a snipe of a shot from the slot that came directly off a faceoff win.

Standing tall between the pipes for Florida was Sergei Bobrovsky.

Bob finished with 21 saves, including all nine of Edmonton’s high-danger shots, according to Natural Stat Trick.

It’s the fourth shutout of the season for Bobrovsky, and first since mid-December.

The win was also his 454th, moving him into a tie for seventh on the NHL’s all-time wins list with Curtis Joseph. Bob trails sixth-place Henrik Lundqvist by only five wins.

On to Calgary.

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Photo caption: Mar 19, 2026; Edmonton, Alberta, CAN; Edmonton Oilers forward Matt Savoie (22) looks for a loose puck in front of Florida Panthers goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky (72) during the first period at Rogers Place. (Perry Nelson-Imagn Images)

The Chicago Blackhawks took on the Minnesota Wild for the second time in a week on Thursday night. This was the fourth and final meeting between the two, and the first three were all 4-3 wins past regulation in favor of the Wild. 

The Blackhawks came in looking like a team that was desperate for a win over their Central Division rival. They broke through at 16:22 of the first period, when Andrew Mangiapane made a great play to find Ilya Mikheyev at the net-mouth for a 1-0 lead. 

That would be the end of the scoring in the opening frame. In the second, Connor Bedard made a beautiful play to make it 2-0 for the Blackhawks. After stealing the puck and creating a breakaway for himself, he held off the defender to create space and made a sensational move to score. 

Bedard's goal was his 28th of the season, which ties him with Tyler Bertuzzi for the team lead. For all of the time that he's missed due to his mid-season injury, it's impressive to see him reach these goal-scoring heights. 

Watching where he takes his totals over the final 14 games will be a storyline to follow as the season comes to a close. 

The Wild got themselves on the board when Nico Sturm scored at 15:47. The Blackhawks still skated into the third period with a 2-1 lead. 

Although the Wild came very close to scoring with less than a second remaining in regulation, Spencer Knight made one final save (with help from Alex Vlasic) to preserve the 2-1 victory for the Blackhawks. Knight made 28 saves on 29 shots. 

This is Chicago's first win in regulation over Minnesota since December of 2019. That ends a 19-game point streak (18-0-1) in the head-to-head matchup for the Wild. They also haven't won in Minnesota since November of 2017. 

March has been a decent month for the Blackhawks. They are 4-2-2 during the month, which is a win for a young team beginning to improve. Most of those games have come post-trade deadline, meaning it is an even younger team, making it an even more impressive stretch. 

Watch Every Chicago Goal

What’s Next For The Blackhawks?

The Blackhawks will be back in action again on Friday night. The Colorado Avalanche, who have been the top team in the NHL all season, will be at the United Center. 

Visit The Hockey News Chicago Blackhawks team site to stay updated on the latest news, game-day coverage, player features, and more.

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The Pittsburgh Penguins made a couple of roster moves on Thursday.

After sending forward Avery Hayes back to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, the Penguins recalled defenseman Ryan Graves from his conditioning stint. He was with WBS for a week and appeared in two games, scoring one goal.

Graves has only played in 19 games with the Penguins this season, recording one goal. That goal came against the New Jersey Devils back on Nov. 8. 

Defenseman Ryan Graves has been recalled from his conditioning loan with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (AHL). pic.twitter.com/5bPZH2eAgM

— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) March 19, 2026

Graves has appeared in 15 games for WBS this season, racking up three goals and 10 points. He was originally signed by the Penguins back in 2023 before the 2023-24 season started. 

Graves has played in 150 games for the Penguins over the last three seasons, scoring five goals and assisting on 14 others. 

Bookmark THN - Pittsburgh Penguins on your Google News tab to follow the latest Penguins news, roster moves, player features, and more!   

BOSTON (AP) — Lukas Reichel had a goal and an assist in his Boston debut, Jeremy Swayman made 22 saves and the Bruins beat the Winnipeg Jets 6-1 on Thursday night to end a two-game losing streak.

David Pastrnak scored his 27th goal of the season and had an assist. Viktor Arvidsson and Pavel Vacha also each had a goal and assist, and Fraser Minten and Jonathan Aspirot added late goals.

Fighting for one of the final Eastern Conference playoff spots, the Bruins finished in regulation for only the second time in seven games. They were coming off overtime losses at New Jersey on Monday night and Montreal on Tuesday night.

Jonathan Toews ended Swayman’s shutout bid on a tip-in at 5:38 of the third. Connor Hellebuyck stopped 22 shots for Winnipeg.

SENATORS 3, ISLANDERS 2

OTTAWA, Ontario (AP) — Brady Tkachuk scored with 11.1 seconds left to give Ottawa a victory over New York.

Tkachuk controlled the loose puck in the crease and squeezed it past goalie Ilya Sorokin for the comeback victory.

New York dropped out of a playoff position in the tight Eastern Conference, while Ottawa closed within four points of the Islanders.

RED WINGS 3, CANADIENS 1

DETROIT (AP) — Alex DeBrincat scored the go-ahead goal with 3:25 remaining and assisted on Detroit’s two other goals, lifting the Red Wings to a victory over Montreal.

DeBrincat scored the winner on a backhander after stealing the puck from defenseman Mike Matheson in the Canadiens’ zone. J.T. Compher scored earlier in the period and Andrew Copp added an empty-net goal with 16.8 seconds remaining.

John Gibson made 32 saves for the Red Wings, who won for the second straight game following a three-game losing streak. Detroit recorded back-to-back victories for the first time since a three-game winning streak in mid-January.

The Red Wings also won the season series, 2-1 and pulled even with the Canadiens in the Atlantic Division standings in the tight Eastern Conference playoff race.

BLUE JACKETS 6, RANGERS 3

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Adam Fantilli scored twice, including an empty-net goal with 2:54 remaining, and Columbus beat New York, keeping alive hopes for their first playoff berth since the 2019-20 season.

Columbus extended its point streak to 11 games and takes over third-place in the Metropolitan Division thanks to the New York Islanders’ 3-2 loss in Ottawa.

Boone Jenner had a goal and an assist, and Isac Lundestrom, Conor Garland and Damon Severson also scored. Zach Werenski’s three assists give him 52 on the season and his second career 70-plus point season, tying him with Artemi Panarin for the most in team history. Jet Greaves made 22 saves for Columbus, which has won three straight.

Mika Zibanejad and Alexis Lafreniere each had a goal and an assist, and Vincent Trocheck also scored for New York, which had its two-game road win streak snapped. Igor Shesterkin finished with 31 saves.

BLACKHAWKS 2, WILD 1

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — Connor Bedard scored a goal and defenseman Alex Vlasic made a game-saving stop as time ran out on Thursday night as Chicago beat Minnesota to snap the NHL’s longest active point streak for one team against another.

Ilya Mikheyev also scored and Spencer Knight made 28 saves for the Blackhawks, who were 0-18-1 in their last 19 games against Minnesota. Chicago’s last victory over the Wild was on Dec. 15, 2019.

Nico Sturm scored for the Wild and Jesper Wallstedt stopped 24 of 26 shots he faced.

With Wallstedt pulled for an extra attacker, the Wild nearly tied it in the final seconds. Knight got a piece of Quinn Hughes’ shot, but the puck trickled behind him in the crease. Before a Minnesota player could get to it, the 6-foot-6 Vlasic swept his stick into the crease and tucked the puck beneath his goalie.

PREDATORS 3, KRAKEN 1

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Filip Forsberg scored a goal and added two assists and Justus Annunen made 25 saves to lead Nashville to a victory over Seattle in a matchup of teams vying for a Western Conference wild card.

Ryan Ufko and Ryan O’Reilly also scored for the Predators, winners of two straight.

Frederick Gaudreau scored and Joey Daccord made 24 saves for the Kraken, who are 2-6 over their last eight games.

With the win, Nashville pulled even with the Kraken, both with 71 points, just outside the wild-card spots.

PANTHERS 4, OILERS 0

EDMONTON, Alberta (AP) — Sergei Bobrovsky made 21 saves to earn his fourth shutout of the season as Florida continued to plague Edmonton, emerging with a victory over the Oilers in a rematch of the last two Stanley Cup finals.

Cole Reinhardt, A.J. Greer, Anton Lundell and Carter Verhaeghe scored for the injury-riddled Panthers, who snapped a two-game losing skid.

Sam Bennett, Evan Rodrigues and Mike Benning all had two assist games. The Panthers are almost certain to miss the playoffs and a chance to defend their back-to-back titles.

Connor Ingram made 19 stops in the loss for Edmonton.

The Oilers had a two-game winning streak halted and missed out on an opportunity to move ahead of idle Anaheim into first in the Pacific Division.

LIGHTNING 6, CANUCKS 2

VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP) — Nikita Kucherov and Anthony Cirelli each had a goal and two assists and Tampa Bay beat NHL-worst Vancouver.

Kucherov moved into sole possession of second place in the NHL scoring race with 114 points, one behind Edmonton’s Connor McDavid. Tampa Bay is second in the Atlantic Division, four points behind Buffalo.

Jake Guentzel, Darren Raddysh, Yanni Gourde and Brandon Hagel also scored for the Lightning, and Andrei Vasilevskiy made 19 saves for his NHL-leading 32nd victory.

Liam Ohgren and Linus Karlsson scored for Vancouver, and Kevin Lankinen stopped 24 shots.

MAMMOTH 4, GOLDEN KNIGHTS 0

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Karel Vejmelka stopped all 28 shots he faced for Utah, while Vegas counterpart Adin Hill was chased after allowing three goals without making a save in the Mammoth’s victory over the Golden Knights.

Vejmelka had his second shutout of the season and eighth in five NHL seasons to help Utah solidify its hold on the first wild-card spot in the Western Conference. The Mammoth built on a 6-3 home victory over Dallas on Monday night that snapped a four-game losing streak.

Third in the Pacific Division, the Golden Knights lost their second straight to finish a homestand 2-2. It fell apart quicky for Hill.

SABRES 5, SHARKS 0

SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) — Alex Lyon made 23 saves for his 10th straight road victory as Buffalo scored three times in a span of less than two minutes in the second period to beat San Jose.

Sam Carrick scored twice, Rasmus Dahlin had a goal and an assist, and Noah Ostlund and Tage Thompson also scored to help the Sabres win for the 11th time in 12 games. Buffalo moved into a tie with Carolina for the most points in the Eastern Conference.

Lyon posted his seventh career shutout and moved within one road win of the longest streak in NHL history. San Jose’s Evgeni Nabokov and Minnesota’s Devan Dubnyk each won 11 straight on the road.

Alex Nedeljkovic made 11 saves — but none in the three-goal second period — as the Sharks dropped their third straight and remained just outside playoff position in the Western Conference. San Jose became the second team in at least 11 seasons to allow at least three goals in a period without making a save, with Boston doing it last season against Chicago.

FLYERS 4, KINGS 3, SO

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Trevor Zegras and Matvei Michkov scored in a shootout to give Philadelphia their fourth victory in five games, over Los Angeles.

Noah Cates had a goal and an assist, Travis Konecny and Travis Sanheim also scored, and Samuel Ersson made 22 saves. The Flyers remained six points behind Boston and Detroit for the two Eastern Conference wild-card spots.

On Wednesday night at Anaheim, Cates scored in overtime in the Flyers’ 3-2 victory over the Ducks.

Adrian Kempe and Artemi Panarin failed on their shootout attempts for Los Angeles, though the Kings still moved into the second wild card in the Western Conference.

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In this most critical stretch of the season, the Detroit Red Wings found a way to get it done against a divisional opponent that they're jockeying against for postseason position. 

Alex DeBrincat scored his 34th tally of the season at 16:35 of the third period, breaking a 1-1 tie against the Montreal Canadiens. It ultimately stood up as the game-winner, helping the Red Wings pick up a 3-1 victory at Little Caesars Arena and earn two huge points in the Atlantic Division standings.

Almost as importantly, Detroit's regulation win ensured the Canadiens picked up zero points. Detroit is now tied with Montreal and the Boston Bruins at 84 points apiece. 

As of now, they remain in the second Wild Card postseason position. The New York Islanders are a single point behind them, while the next closest team, the Ottawa Senators, is five points back. 

Thursday marked the return of forward Andrew Copp, who had missed the previous three games with a lower-body injury, to the lineup. Meanwhile, team captain Dylan Larkin remains sidelined despite having participated in the morning skate. 

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There was no score in the opening 20 minutes of play, which nearly included the second goal in as many games for rookie Emmit Finnie; his shot rang off the post early in regulation. 

However, it would be Montreal who broke the ice late in the second period thanks to a power-play goal from Juraj Slafkovsky. They scored just seconds into their man-advantage chance with Moritz Seider in the penalty box, the result of over two minutes of play being hemmed in the Detroit zone. 

Detroit caught a fortunate bounce early in the game’s final frame, as J.T. Compher was credited with the game-tying goal. Patrick Kane’s shot from the point was stopped by Canadiens goaltender Jakub Dobes, but the rebound deflected off Compher’s leg and into the net.

Just as it appeared that both teams could be destined for overtime, DeBrincat stole a rolling puck from defenseman Mike Matheson in the Montreal zone.

He broke in alone on Dobes and roofed a backhand shot into the net, sending the fans in attendance into a frenzy. 

"They Make A Difference": Todd McLellan Praises Passionate Red Wings Fans One of the largest fan bases in professional sports, the fans of the Detroit Red Wings help make a difference for the players.

Montreal soon pulled Dobes and pressed hard for the tying goal, but Copp sealed the victory with an empty-net goal for his ninth tally of the season. 

John Gibson was solid again for Detroit, making 32 saves. Dobes countered with 25 saves. 

The Red Wings, who are now 2-0-1 in their last three games, face another critical test on Saturday as they face the Bruins at home. 

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This one suuuucks.

Brady Tkachuk’s goal with 11 seconds left was a gut punch, but the Islanders squandered two leads, going up in the second period thanks to Matthew Schaefer, and then again early in the third thanks to Brayden Schenn. But Schenn’s goal was the ONLY SHOT ON GOAL FOR THE ISLANDERS IN THE THIRD PERIOD.

Let me repeat that: Brayden Schenn’s goal was the only shot on goal for the Islanders in the third period.

The Senators were on a back to back but came out with a dominant third period, and got rewarded with two points. And since the Columbus Blue Jackets and Detroit Red Wings won their games, the loss knocked the Islanders out of a playoff spot.

Bad vibes all around, especially for all the yapping about setting the tone early with two fights.

[NHL Gamecenter | Game Summary | Event Summary | Natural Stat Trick]

First Period

As I just mentioned, there were two fights early, with Anders Lee and Brady Tkachuk dropping the gloves right off the opening faceoff. Shortly after, Brayden Schenn took on Ridley Greig and Greig did his best to hang on against a much bigger guy like Schenn.

And then Dylan Cozens took a roughing penalty after taking off Matthew Schaefer’s helmet, but the Islanders couldn’t convert on the man advantage.

Ilya Sorokin was strong this period, and made a notable save on a wraparound attempt, but Carson Soucy earned what could have been the save of the game, stopping a sure goal with his skate.

Soon after, though, he took a tripping penalty, and Ottawa closed out the period on a power play that the Islanders killed the last 11 seconds of into the second period.

Second Period

Nick Cousins took a delay of game penalty for flipping the puck over the glass after a strong shift from the Islanders’ top line.

That power play pretty terrible, since the best chance came shorthanded from Tim Stützle, who just couldn’t find the finish.

Less than a minute after the power play, Matthew Schaefer, playing despite some doubts this morning (apparently he might be nursing a cold or something like that) gave the Islanders the lead, picking up his 50th point of the season. Phil Housley, pretty good defenseman, is the only other 18 year old defenseman with at least 50 points in an NHL season. So, you know, just Matthew Schaefer doing Matthew Schaefer things.

Anthony Duclair blocked a shot with his knee and was down on the ice and needed to be helped off. He didn’t return for the rest of the period.

Artem Zub went to the box for cross checking Mat Barzal, and Shane Pinto would tie the game for the Senators shorthanded, while the Islanders did nothing with the power play.

Bo Horvat took a holding penalty that the Islanders killed, and then Lars Eller was called for tripping Simon Holmström, but the power play, which completely sucked tonight, continued to be terrible. The Senators’ penalty kill is ranked 30th in the league, but the Isles’ power play is also 30th, so I guess it really was an even match of mediocrity.

Adam Pelech had to hold off Stützle and Kyle MacLean stopped a follow up Jordan Spence shot to keep the game tied at 1, and Brady Tkachuk put the puck off the outside of the net in the dying seconds of the second period.

Third Period

Brayden Schenn scored just two minutes into the third, giving the Islanders a 2-1 lead that should’ve given them some momentum in a must-win game.

Instead, Ilya Sorokin became the MVP of the period, making a big save on Tkachuk after Cal Ritchie and Adam Pelech couldn’t clear the puck, and another save on a dangerous redirect from Cozens.

Then, Warren Foegele tied it, after the puck hit off multiple players, including Sorokin’s arm, bouncing directly to Foegele after that initial save.

Duclair came back almost halfway through the third and looked fine, blocking a shot with his stick.

Matt Amadio missed wide with a tip in chance, and Sorokin made a huge save on a 2 on 1 (another save of the game candidate in a better game), helped by Ryan Pulock and Bo Horvat who helped clear it out of the crease.

Ultimately, with 11 seconds left Tkachuk picked off a loose puck in the crease after Pelech got crosschecked in front of Sorokin and scored to give the Senators the 3-2 lead and win.

That goal keeps the Senators’ playoff hopes alive, just barely, and puts the Islanders in an uphill battle for a playoff spot.

Just an extremely frustrating end to a high-pressure game, and it felt like the Islanders barely matched the intensity of a team playing the second half of a back to back. Just a gut punch of a loss.

Up Next

Next, the New York Islanders close out this Canadian road trip against the Montreal Canadiens, who lost to Detroit tonight, which is what pushed the Isles out of the wild card spots. It’s a must-win game, although it’s unlikely they’d be catching Montreal in a wild card situation if it came down to it. The Islanders just need two points every game, however they can get them.

OTTAWA, Ontario (AP) — Brady Tkachuk scored with 11.1 seconds left to give the Ottawa Senators a 3-2 victory over the New York Islanders on Thursday night.

Tkachuk controlled the loose puck in the crease and squeezed it past goalie Ilya Sorokin for the comeback victory.

New York dropped out of a playoff position in the tight Eastern Conference, while Ottawa closed within four points of the Islanders.

Tkachuk and Anders Lee dropped the gloves on the opening faceoff in a fight between captains. Five minutes later, Ottawa’s Ridly Greig and Brayden Schenn also exchanged punches.

Shane Pinto had a short-handed goal to tie it at 1 for the Senators in the second period, and Warren Foegele sent a backhander past Sorokin 5:12 into the third to even it at 2. James Reimer made 19 saves for the victory.

Rookie Matthew Schaefer opened the scoring for the Islanders early in the second period, and Schenn made it 2-1 at 2:02 of the third.

Schaefer is the second 18-year-old defenseman in NHL history to have 50 points in a season, joining Phil Housley (57 in 1982-83).

Sorokin stopped 23 shots.

Up next

Islanders: At Montreal on Saturday night.

Senators: Host Toronto on Saturday night.

The Montreal Canadiens had a date with the Detroit Red Wings on Thursday night, and both teams desperately needed the two points in what is proving to be a very tight playoff race. Earlier in the day, the Habs announced that Josh Anderson was dealing with an upper-body injury and would be evaluated daily. As a result, Joe Veleno got back in the lineup to take on the team that drafted him. The Quebecer had watched the last 10 games from the press gallery.

With such high stakes, it was hardly surprising to see both teams play some tight and hard-hitting hockey. While the Canadiens’ run-and-gun offence can be very entertaining to watch, it often leads them to take unnecessary risks. With the playoffs fast approaching, they got a wake-up call when they dropped back-to-back games last weekend in what could only be described as a giveaway festival.

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Not Making The Same Mistake

For a second game in a row, Martin St-Louis gave Jakub Dobes the net. After the Czech netminder had a great outing on Tuesday, it was felt that he deserved to be there again. It feels like the organization has learnt from its past mistakes. Earlier this season, when the youngster was playing great games, he would still make way for Samuel Montembeault because the team wanted its starter to get his game back.

Now, despite Jacob Fowler being widely regarded as the Canadiens’ goaltender of the future, the coach decided to stick with Dobes, giving him the respect he deserves. There’s no doubt that Fowler will get back in the net soon enough; you can’t let him sit for too long, but giving the nod to Dobes was the right move in the circumstances.

The masked man rewarded his coach with another good performance. Through 40 minutes, he had stopped the 15 shots he faced, including a few tricky ones on rebounds, and he looked very comfortable out there. The Wings were trying to get in his face and take his focus off the task at hand, but he remained concentrated, even if he did get in on the pushing and shoving at one stage.

Managing The Game, The Clock And The Lead

The Canadiens led 1-0 entering the third frame, but J.T. Compher put the Wings on the scoreboard a little over two minutes into the period, and St-Louis looked very irritated by the goal. Not because it was a bad goal to give from Dobes, he made the first save, but the puck bounced off the Wings’ player and into the net, and you can’t fault him for that, but because it all stemmed from the fact that the Canadiens’ second line attacked with no regard to its defensive responsibilities.

Alex Newhook, Ivan Demidov, and Oliver Kapanen all ended up behind the offensive goal line, allowing the Wings to get a numerical advantage. While everyone was back in the defensive zone by the time the puck went in, the Habs have enough trouble establishing who needs to cover who when they don’t have to do it under pressure. The coach was fuming, and the look he gave his forwards as they sat back on the bench spoke volumes. There were only 11 minutes left in the third frame by the time Newhook and Ivan Demidov got back on the ice.

St-Louis rarely benches his top offensive players, but he's been talking about risk and puck management for ages now, and particularly in the last few days, he had had enough.

Everything That Can Go Wrong, Will Go Wrong

Despite leading for much of the game, the Canadiens ended up on the wrong end of a 2-1 defeat thanks to one play going horribly wrong. Montreal won a faceoff in the offensive zone, Matheson sent it around the board, and Noah Dobson was unable to stop the clearing attempt. Then, Mike Matheson went to retrieve the puck in the defensive zone, and somehow he coughed it up to Alex DeBrincat, who wasn’t going to miss his chance, all alone with Dobes.

As St-Louis has often said this season, the Canadiens paid cash for their mistakes in that game. The coach often says that “good teams will make you pay for your mistakes”, and Detroit made plenty of mistakes as well, but Montreal didn’t make them pay. The Michigan side had 19 giveaways but still skated away with the two points in a game the Canadiens couldn’t afford to lose.

Dobes would have deserved better on a night where he stopped 25 of the 27 shots he faced for a .926 save percentage, but it’s not about what you deserve; it’s about what you get. On Thursday night, Detroit, the Boston Bruins, the Ottawa Senators, and the Columbus Blue Jackets all won, yet another example of Murphy’s Law in action.

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OTTAWA, Ontario — Such is the frenetic pace of the playoff race right now that the Islanders only needed to slip up once to get themselves into trouble.

Thursday’s 3-2 loss to the Senators later, the Islanders were in danger of falling out of third place — and potentially a playoff spot altogether — contingent on results that would come in mere minutes later in Columbus and Detroit.

That the defeat came on Brady Tkachuk’s winner with 11 seconds left in regulation only added to the hurt.

The Blue Jackets and Red Wings, both of whom looked in good shape to get points as the buzzer sounded in Ottawa, both were in position to pass the Islanders with wins.

That would amount to a major shock to the system for an Isles team that has been in a playoff spot every day since Dec. 4.

That’s the cruel nature of the race right now, and this was a particularly cruel night for the Islanders.

They temporarily lost Anthony Duclair to injury in the second period after the winger caught Tyler Kleven’s blast on his right knee, and on a night where they didn’t seem to have much in the tank, the Islanders scratched and clawed their way to a 2-1 lead early in the third period anyway.

Brayden Schenn broke a 1-1 tie just 2:02 into the last period, taking an outlet pass off the rush and executing a perfect give-and-go with Simon Holmstrom to score for a second straight game, handing the Islanders the lead.

Of course, that was not the end of it.

Warren Foegele re-tied the game off Fabian Zetterlund’s rebound that left Ilya Sorokin unable to cover his right post in time just over three minutes later.

• CHECK OUT THE LATEST NHL STANDINGS AND ISLANDERS STATS

Sorokin more than made up for it by the end of the night, coming up with a 10-bell save on Michael Amadio off the rush late in the third, which required the puck to be cleared off the line by Ondrej Palat for good measure.

Again, the Islanders looked completely on their heels — 19 minutes into the third, Schenn’s goal was their only shot on goal of the entire period.

It looked like the Isles would at least get the game to overtime, when Jordan Spence’s floater from the right point was knocked in by Brady Tkachuk with 11.1 seconds left on the clock, handing Ottawa a 3-2 lead and leaving the Islanders with a gut-punch loss.

New York Islanders No. 1 overall pick Matthew Schaefer recorded his 50th point of the season Thursday night at 4:45 of the second period against the Ottawa Senators.

Schaefer. 50-point club. #Islespic.twitter.com/h3P793XRRk

— The Elmonters (@TheElmonters) March 20, 2026

With the assist, Schaefer became the second 18-year-old defenseman in NHL history to record 50 points in a season, following Phil Housley (57 in 1982-83). 

He also became the fourth Islanders rookie defenseman to record 50 points in a season.