Tampa Bay Lightning (48-24-6, in the Atlantic Division) vs. Montreal Canadiens (46-22-10, in the Atlantic Division)

Montreal, Quebec; Thursday, 7 p.m. EDT

BOTTOM LINE: The Tampa Bay Lightning visit the Montreal Canadiens after the Canadiens defeated the Florida Panthers 4-3 in a shootout.

Montreal is 15-9-1 against the Atlantic Division and 46-22-10 overall. The Canadiens have gone 19-5-1 in games they convert at least one power play.

Tampa Bay is 48-24-6 overall and 14-8-1 against the Atlantic Division. The Lightning have allowed 219 goals while scoring 277 for a +58 scoring differential.

Thursday's game is the fourth meeting between these teams this season. The Canadiens won 4-1 in the previous meeting.

TOP PERFORMERS: Lane Hutson has 12 goals and 63 assists for the Canadiens. Cole Caufield has nine goals and eight assists over the past 10 games.

Nikita Kucherov has 43 goals and 84 assists for the Lightning. Jake Guentzel has six goals and eight assists over the last 10 games.

LAST 10 GAMES: Canadiens: 9-1-0, averaging 3.4 goals, 5.5 assists, 4.3 penalties and 10.7 penalty minutes while giving up 1.9 goals per game.

Lightning: 5-3-2, averaging 3.3 goals, 5.5 assists, 5.4 penalties and 12.5 penalty minutes while giving up 2.9 goals per game.

INJURIES: Canadiens: Alexandre Carrier: out (upper body), Patrik Laine: out (abdomen), Joseph Veleno: day to day (illness).

Lightning: Brandon Hagel: day to day (lower-body), Max Crozier: out (abdomen), Anthony Cirelli: day to day (undisclosed), Dominic James: out (leg), Declan Carlile: out (undisclosed), Victor Hedman: out (personal), Pontus Holmberg: day to day (upper-body).

___

The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.

Typically, when NHL teams outshoot their opponent 28-10, they can expect to win. That is, in fact, what happened on Wednesday when the Vegas Golden Knights wrapped up their season series against the Vancouver Canucks with a 2-1 victory— but the win didn’t come easily.

“It certainly wasn’t pretty. But we found a way to lead, and we found a way to win,” said head coach John Tortorella postgame.

The Golden Knights took it to the Canucks right from puck drop. In the first period, they outshot Vancouver 10-2 and generated seven high-danger scoring chances while only allowing one.

“I think we started the game really well,” said Nic Dowd following the 2-1 win. “In my opinion, it’s probably one of those games where you want to jump on the team early. You get chances, you want to try and put those away and kind of step on them a little bit. And obviously we didn’t, right?

“But sticking with it, not getting bored, trying to stay consistent, understanding that the tough plays are the ones that are going to earn you offense and not make you play defense, we didn’t get away from that, and we were rewarded for it down the stretch,” Dowd finished.

The Canucks broke the ice at 12:50 in the second period. Linus Karlsson won a board battle, and Teddy Blueger came up with the puck. Blueger entered the offensive zone and found Max Sasson, who drove down into the right circle and beat Carter Hart far-side.

MAX OPENS THE SCORING! pic.twitter.com/wSY5fWfG6f

— Vancouver Canucks (@Canucks) April 8, 2026

The Golden Knights answered back just 1:56 later. Colton Sissons pressured Marcus Pettersson into a turnover behind the net, and Brandon Saad corralled the loose puck. Saad reset back for Shea Theodore at the blue line; Theodore worked the puck over to his defensive partner, Brayden McNabb, who stepped into his shot and scored from distance.

ya love to see it 😃 pic.twitter.com/hKjxrjqTER

— Vegas Golden Knights (@GoldenKnights) April 8, 2026

In the third, the Golden Knights locked it down defensively. It took the Canucks nearly 14 minutes to record their first shot of the period.The Golden Knights took their first lead of the game at 12:13 in the third. Cole Smith forced a turnover at the blue line, entered the zone, and left the puck for Nic Dowd. Dowd drove deeper in the zone and found Smith in the slot for the go-ahead goal.

all gas, no brakes 😮‍💨 pic.twitter.com/LfnHOBWCGr

— Vegas Golden Knights (@GoldenKnights) April 8, 2026

Rasmus Anderson was called for interference towards the end of the period, and the Canucks headed to the power play with 1:41 remaining in regulation. They pulled their goaltender for the extra attacker, but the Golden Knights held them to just one shot on goal and held on for the 2-1 win.

“It’s just one of those games that can get away from you. And that’s what I like about our team, they stayed with it,” Tortorella said postgame. “Good teams win those games.”

Three Takeaways of the Knight

1. On one hand, the Golden Knights need more from their top offensive performers. Vancouver leads the league in goals allowed, and this one came down to the wire. The only reason the Golden Knights won is that the Canucks are dead last in the league in scoring.

On the other hand, the Golden Knights are getting consistent depth scoring, which helps offset the need for more from top performers. They’ve gotten goals from a defenseman in three of their last four games. That matters.

2. It’s been a roller coaster of a season for the Golden Knights as far as the standings are concerned. They comfortably led the Pacific Division heading into the Olympic Break. Then, just last week, they were struggling to stay afloat as third in the division.

After tonight’s win, they’re tied for first in the Pacific once more, though the Oilers hold the tiebreaker.

3. Elsewhere, the Nashville Predators steamrolled the Anaheim Ducks, and the Utah Mammoth beat the Edmonton Oilers in overtime. Hence, the Golden Knights needed this win to keep pace in the standings. At this time of year, it doesn’t matter if two points come against the third team in the league or the 32nd. For the Golden Knights, all that matters is stacking wins and improving their chances of securing home-ice advantage in the postseason.

Suddenly somewhat desperate, the Anaheim Ducks hosted the Nashville Predators on Tuesday night at Honda Center.

The Ducks entered this game on the back of a five-game losing streak and had seen their five-point lead in the Pacific Division evaporate. As of Tuesday, they were tied with the Edmonton Oilers for first place and just one point ahead of the Vegas Golden Knights in third. A win in this one would have gone a long way in relieving unexpected tension at this point in the season.

Game #78: Ducks vs. Predators Gameday Preview (04/07/26)

Takeaways from the Ducks 5-3 Loss to the Flames

Their opponent, the Predators, came into this game on their second leg of a back-to-back, having lost in a shootout to the Los Angeles Kings 3-2 on Monday. The Preds came into this game one point behind LA and one point ahead of the San Jose Sharks, but still on the outside looking in at the playoff picture.

Cutter Gauthier (upper body) and Radko Gudas (lower body) remained out of the Ducks’ lineup in this game. Ian Moore seems locked in as a fourth-line winger for the foreseeable future, and was joined by Olen Zellweger. Frank Vatrano acted as the team’s healthy scratch in this game, and Pavel Mintyukov returned to the lineup after missing the last three games with a lower-body injury. Tyson Hinds received his second career start in this game.

Here’s how the Ducks lined up to start this game:

Granlund-Carlsson-Terry

Kreider-Poehling-Sennecke
Killorn-McTavish-Viel

Zellweger-Washe-Moore

LaCombe-Trouba

Mintyukov-Carlson

Hinds-Helleson

Lukas Dostal got the start in this game and saved 20 of 25 shots. He was opposed by Justus Annunen for Nashville, who stopped all 43 shots he faced in this game, earning himself his third career shutout and first this season.

Game Notes

Game flow and analytics will reveal that the Ducks dominated this game and got “goalied.” Some of that may be true; they faced a dialed goaltender, they controlled possession, and they weren’t on the receiving end of any puck luck. However, the aspects of their game that they’ve been able to paper over for the majority of the season all came to light in this game.

“We started doing exactly what we wanted to do,” Ducks head coach Joel Quenneville said after the game. “We started to sag a bit after they scored the first goal, and they got life. We played the period we wanted. Didn’t get any action around the net with second opportunities, and their goalie played well.”

Two of the biggest ingredients to the Ducks’ winning recipe this season have been outscoring problems and above-average goaltending in the environment provided. In this game, they couldn’t buy a goal, and Dostal was merely human.

“In the last couple of games, there was parts in it where it’s exactly how we wanted to play,” Quenneville continued. “We were seeing teams that have to win the game. We have to win games here. That’s where we’re at.”

Net Front Defending: Whether at 5v5 or on the penalty kill, the Ducks have struggled to box out net front forwards and have struggled to deny cutting forwards access to the front of the crease all season. Typically, when pucks make their way to the point, the strong-side defender will attempt to cut down on an angle and block the shot before it gets to their goaltender. However, if that shot can get through that layer of their defense, there’s typically an open forward at the goal mouth, screening, deflecting, or picking up a rebound.

Their aggressive style also lends way to puck watching from the far side. If the weak-side defender loses focus for a split second, talented puck carriers will easily find an uncovered teammate on their way to a dangerous locale.

Rush Defense: The Ducks have been remarkably susceptible to giving up odd-man rushes, stemming from overaggressiveness in the offensive and neutral zones. When they do have numbers tracking back energetically, they have an unfortunate tendency to over-pursue or fail to pick up their assignments.

These rush and net-front defending issues have plagued the Ducks all season, despite their success, and all came to fruition in this game on each of Nashville’s five goals.

Power Play: Nashville’s penalty kill did well to pressure Anaheim along the wall and at the offensive blueline. Seams were non-existent, and shots were challenged. The only aspect, an aspect they failed to reproduce, was player and puck movement through the middle of the ice, utilizing their bumper and switching along the perimeter.

Beckett Sennecke: Sennecke was one of the Ducks’ more consistent offensive drivers in this game, sparking chances from all three zones. What stood out most in this game, playing on the right side of Leo Carlsson and opposite Mikael Granlund, was his ability to make smart, effective second touches out of the zone on the breakout.

Sennecke consistently scanned before getting to spots and before pucks arrived, reading flow, coverage, and teammates with speed. He made clever one-touches to Carlsson, made crisp cross-ice stretch passes to Granlund in the neutral zone, utilized defensemen for regroups, and when he had a fraction of a second, he even pulled pucks off the wall himself, skating to the middle of the ice and starting a rush.

The Ducks will look to snap their six-game winless streak at the most dire juncture of the season, on Thursday, when they’ll host Macklin Celebrini and his hungry San Jose Sharks squad, vying for a playoff spot.

Ducks Recall Tyson Hinds to NHL, Assign Lucas Pettersson, Damian Clara to AHL

Takeaways from the Ducks 6-2 Loss to the Blues

Takeaways from the Ducks 4-3 Loss to the Sharks

The Vancouver Canucks recorded their yet another loss on home ice Tuesday as they fell 2-1 to the Vegas Golden Knights. Max Sasson scored the only goal for Vancouver as he beat Carter Hart in the second period. As for Nikita Tolopilo, he stood on his head and made 26 saves in the loss.

Tuesday's loss will go down as one of the worst home efforts in recent memory. The Canucks recorded just 11 shots compared to the Golden Knights' 28. Ultimately, Tolopilo is the reason this game stayed close, as he did everything in his power to try to secure a victory in front of the fans. 

"I mean, without Tolo, I don't know how close it would be, said Sasson post-game. You know, I thought everyone, including myself, can probably give a better effort in front of our home fans. Only a couple games left, and only getting 10 shots or whatever. It's not good enough."

Vancouver's inability to win games at Rogers Arena has been puzzling all season. With the loss, the Canucks can not hit 10 wins at home, which is a first for the franchise. Post-game, Sasson was asked about the lack of victories at Rogers Arena and why Vancouver has struggled at home compared to on the road. 

"We've got to figure that out. Going into next year, it feels, everyone's a little more tense at home. I have no clue, you know why, or what it is. I'm sure that'll be talked about in summer meetings and stuff and going into training camp, but yeah, you're 100% right. It feels, even, you know, in the locker room, it feels looser on the road for whatever reason. And, we've got to be good at home if we're gonna be a good team in this league."

Head Coach Adam Foote was also at a loss for words when asked about the problems at home. He said, "I don't. I mean, there's been lots of talk and discussion about it, but, I mean, you know, I don't, I really don't. But I don't want to look too far into that right now. That's something we'll probably have discussions more about in the off-season."

While it is understood that the Canucks are in a rebuild, the fans at Rogers Arena deserve better than what happened on Tuesday night. Vancouver's only push came at the end of the game, and even then, the team only managed four total shots in the third period. With one final home game left on the calendar, hopefully, this group can step up and provide some form of entertainment for the home crowd. 

Stats and Facts:

- Filip Hronek led all players with six hits

- Teddy Blueger extends his point streak to four games

- The Canucks' 11 shots recorded are the second-lowest total in franchise history

- Marco Rossi and Filip Hronek led Vancouver with two shots each

Scoring Summary:

1st Period:

No Scoring

2nd Period:

12:50- VAN: Max Sasson (13) from Teddy Blueger and Linus Karlsson
15:46- VGK: Brayden McNabb (5) from Shea Theodore and Brandon Saad

3rd Period:

12:13- VGK: Cole Smith (8) from Nic Dowd

Up Next:

The Canucks hit the road for three straight in California, starting with a matchup against the Los Angeles Kings. Vancouver still has two more games against the Kings, with the second meeting being the Canucks' home finale. Game time is scheduled for 7:30 pm PT. 

Make sure you bookmark THN's Vancouver Canucks site and add us to your favourites on Google News for the latest news, exclusive interviews, breakdowns, and so much more. Also, don't forget to leave a comment at the bottom of the page and engage with other passionate fans through our forum. This article originally appeared on The Hockey News.

Latest From THN’s Vancouver Canucks Site:

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VANCOVUER, British Columbia (AP) — Cole Smith's goal midway through the third period proved to be the winner as the Vegas Golden Knights held on to beat the Vancouver Canucks 2-1 on Tuesday night.

Max Sasson opened the scoring for the Canucks (22-47-8) with a wrist shot over the glove of Golden Knights goalie Carter Hart at the 12:50 mark of the second period. It was his 13th goal of the season.

Brayden McNabb replied for Vegas (36-26-16) less than three minutes later, sending a shot through traffic to tie the score at 1. Smith scored the go-ahead goal 12:13 into the third.

Vancouver had a prime chance to force extra time when Vegas defenseman Rasmus Andersson was called for interference with less than two minutes left. The Canucks pulled goalie Nikita Tolopilo in favor of an extra attacker, but failed to score.

Hart stopped 10 of the 11 shots he faced for the Golden Knights. Tolopilo made 26 saves for the Canucks.

Vegas extended its winning streak to four games under new head coach John Tortorella, who took over behind the bench March 31.

The Golden Knights swept the three-game season series between the teams after winning 5-2 on Feb. 4 and 4-2 on March 30 in Vegas.

Up next

Golden Knights: Visit Seattle on Thursday.

Canucks: Start a three-game road trip at Los Angeles on Thursday.

___

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

Justus Annunen made 43 saves for his first shutout win in a Nashville Predators uniform in a 5-0 victory over the Anaheim Ducks on Tuesday at the Honda Center. 

It is Annunen's third career shutout, the first since March 4, 2024, in a 5-0 win over the Chicago Blackhawks when he was with the Colorado Avalanche. 

It was also the Predators' first shutout win of the season and their widest margin of victory. 

The win also puts Nashville ahead of the Los Angeles Kings for the final Wild Card spot in the Western Conference with 84 points. The Predators have four games remaining in the regular season. 

Erik Haula opened the scoring in the second period, picking up a slot-feed from Joakim Kemell and beating Lukas Dostal blocker side. 

About four minutes later, on the power play, Filip Forsberg fired a shot from the top of the circles to put Nashville up 2-0. It's his eighth point in the last five games and his 38th goal of the season. 

In the final minute of the second period, on the penalty kill, Ryan O'Reilly picked off a Ducks player and passed to Nick Perbix, forcing a break the other way. He'd pass it up to Brady Skjei, who scored on the breakaway for his third goal of the year and the Predators' eighth short-handed goal of the season. 

In the third period, on an odd-man rush, Zach L'Heuruex capped it off with a goal to give Nashville a wide 4-0 lead. Kemell had the primary assist on the goal for the first multi-point game of his career. 

Late in the third, Fedor Svechkov picked up a spinning feed into the slot from Tyson Jost and scored for his first goal in nearly a month. 

Nashville's penalty kill was efficient as it killed off 6-of-6 Ducks power plays. Two of those Ducks' power plays were 5-on-3s. 

The Predators will play their final road game of the regular season on Thursday, traveling to Salt Lake City to face the Utah Mammoth at 8 p.m. CST. 

 

Jared Bednar and Colorado were unable to clinch the division on home ice against the Blues on Easter Sunday, but they would get another crack at it tonight in St. Louis.

Their second meeting in three days fit the season of rematches and revenge, with Colorado finishing with two points this time around.

Valeri Nichushkin would score twice, including a shorthanded goal, with Martin Necas netting the other for the Avalanche, and Scott Wedgewood collecting 19/20 saves and his 29th win of the season.

The Game

Val Nichushkin had one goal in his last twelve games before tonight’s game, but he picked a great night to get out of his skid and started the scoring with a wonderful re-direct.

Sam Malinski made a nice pass along the blue line that found Devon Toews’ stick. His point blast was deflected past Hofer, who didn’t stand a chance behind Nichkuskin’s large frame.

Colorado took the 1-0 lead with 3:29 left in the first frame.

Volume way up 🔊 pic.twitter.com/j7Mm6rklld

— z – Colorado Avalanche (@Avalanche) April 8, 2026

Just when it looked like we’d head to the intermission, a one-goal game, Colorado’s top line and D pair pinned the Blues in their own end in patented Avalanche fashion.

MacKinnon was strong on the puck in the corner, which, when supported by a pinch from Devon Toews, turned dangerous.

Once the puck landed on Artturi Lehkonen’s stick, he sent it right back to MacKinnon, who attacked the net and made a quick tap pass to Martin Necas.

Marty would tuck the puck over the shoulder of Hofer and give Colorado a 2-0 lead after one period of play.

Nate with some magic to get that puck to Necas 🪄 pic.twitter.com/1wyenP3qVB

— z – Colorado Avalanche (@Avalanche) April 8, 2026

Colorado’s third and final goal of the evening would come just 1 minute and 40 seconds into the second frame. That means the Avalanche scored all their goals in 5:09 of game time.

This shorthanded exclamation point once again came from Val Nichushkin, and of the between-the-legs variety.

We’ve seen Nichushkin attempt this shot a few times without success, but this one trickled just enough to light the lamp.

Nothing like a late goal of the year candidate to make it 3-0 Avalanche.

Valeri Nichushkin – Colorado Avalanche (17)
Shorthanded Goal pic.twitter.com/L2VH5zjr2y

— NHL Goal Videos (@NHLGoalVideos) April 8, 2026

Robert Thomas had a hat trick on Sunday, but his one tally late in the second is all the Blues would do to muster up a fight, leaving a final score of 3-1 Avalanche and crowning the boys in Burgundy and Blue for the lucky 13th time in franchise history.

Takeaways

The Avalanche could have clinched the Presidents Trophy and home ice throughout the playoffs if Boston had also bested Carolina in regulation this evening. Still, they fell to the Canes in OT.

No worries, Colorado will clinch as soon as Carolina loses another in regulation, or Colorado collects another 2 points.

Valeri Nichushkin had just three goals shy of the 20-goal mark this season, and his 17 (this season) ranks 5th highest of his 11-year career.

CHAMPS of the Central ✅ pic.twitter.com/sq4rDsMbuo

— z – Colorado Avalanche (@Avalanche) April 8, 2026

Val seemed to fight his game a bit on the scoring side this year compared to years past, but is still plenty productive in what feels like a “down-year” after his 28-goal performance in 2023-24.

Scott Wedgewood’s back collided with the post, and he went down, clearly in discomfort. Following the game, he said he just lost his breath and felt fine after getting it back and moving around a bit.

Although it explains why he didn’t leave the game tonight, it’s something to keep an eye on, given that Wedgewood has dealt with tightness in his back earlier in the season.

Speaking of scares, Nazem Kadri did, in fact, miss shifts before not returning for the third period entirely tonight. Jared Bednar didn’t give a clear update in the post-game presser, mentioning his playing or not playing in the next contest could depend on pain tolerance.

Bednar, although pleased with the outcome, was very clear in his messaging that they are not remotely close to the finish line or to realizing their goals this season.

Jared Bednar postgame:

“We’re not all the way there yet, right?”#GoAvsGo

— Adrian Hernandez (@AdoHernandez27) April 8, 2026

Upcoming

The Calgary Flames will visit Ball Arena for another date with the Avalanche on Tuesday.

Let us know what you thought of this contest in the comments!

An incredibly difficult and painful season for Dmitry Kulikov has come to an end.

After Tuesday’s shootout loss to the Montreal Canadiens, Florida Panthers Head Coach Paul Maurice told the media that Kulikov suffered a broken finger during the third period.

As a result, Kulikov won’t play in any of Florida’s final four games of the season.

“Dmitry won’t come back from that,” Maurice said.

It’s the third serious injury Kulikov has had to endure this season.

He suffered a shoulder injury two games into the season, missing the next 57 while recovering from surgery.

After finally returning to Florida’s lineup in early March, the veteran defenseman got 15 games under his belt before the next serious injury struck, this time breaking his nose during a 6-3 Panthers win over the Ottawa Senators.

Despite Florida’s season being over in terms of making the playoffs, Kulikov told the coaching staff that he wanted to continue playing and battling with his teammates.

He had to miss two games with the broken nose before he was medically cleared to play, returning to the ice on Sunday in Pittsburgh.

Now, Kulikov is the third player in the past two weeks to be ruled out for the season due to a broken finger, joining Evan Rodrigues and Aaron Ekblad.

Rodrigues was hurt during Florida’s 3-2 loss against Minnesota on March 26 while Ekblad injured his finger in the same game Kulikov broke his nose.

“It’s just the standard injury here now,” Maurice said. “It’s just unbelievable what these guys have been through.”

The Panthers will continue their road trip on Thursday in Ottawa before playing their final road game of the season Saturday against the Toronto Maple Leafs.

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Photo caption: Apr 5, 2026; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Florida Panthers defenseman Dmitry Kulikov (7) controls the puck against the Pittsburgh Penguins during the first period at PPG Paints Arena. (Mark Alberti-Imagn Images)

NEWARK, N.J. -- Contrary to recent precedent, the Philadelphia Flyers are beginning to prove that teams can compete with a core of elite, talented young wingers. Look at the shell-shocked Prudential Center as proof.

The New Jersey Devils, one of the NHL's hottest teams since the Olympic break and packed with talent in their own right, were made to look downright listless by Rick Tocchet and the Flyers for large swathes of Tuesday night's 5-1 win.

Timely goals from Trevor Zegras and Tyson Foerster, as well as timely assists from Matvei Michkov and Owen Tippett and saves from Dan Vladar, drained the life from the Devils seemingly every time they threatened to build momentum.

Zegras, with his two tallies, established a new career-high of 25, surpassing his previous marks of 23 from 2021-22 and 2022-23. The 25-year-old has now tied his previous single-season best of 65 points with plenty of hockey left to play this season.

According to NHL PR, Zegras, having scored twice in just 3:38, is the fastest Flyer to score two goals to start a game since Flyers legend Brian Propp had two in 1:58 back on Feb. 27, 1982.

Flyers' Rick Tocchet Nailed His Latest Lineup ChangeThe <a href="https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/philadelphia-flyers">Philadelphia Flyers</a> are, perhaps surprisingly, seriously threatening for a berth in the 2026 Stanley Cup playoffs, and it comes as a result of everyone pulling together at the perfect time.

Having played left wing alongside Christian Dvorak for much of the 2025-26 season, Zegras has enjoyed newfound success back at center, lining up between Foerster and Tippett.

In 35 minutes of 5-on-5 ice time together, the Foerster, Zegras, and Tippett unit has a 64.95% xGF%, according to Natural Stat Trick, while out-scoring opponents 3-2.

It's early and the returns have been small, but each player has pulled their weight equally.

"It's amazing," Zegras said after the game. "It's been a long time since I've felt this, like, the rush of winning."

Zegras could very well be on his way to playing in his first career playoff games, so long as he and the Flyers can maintain their torrid post-Olympics pace.

The same is true of youngsters like Michkov, Denver Barkey, and Alex Bump, who also led by example in the eyes of Tocchet.

Michkov, with assists on both Foerster goals, has now quietly reached 45 points on what was considered to be a lost sophomore season. The 21-year-old is three goals away from 20 and five points away from 50.

Flyers Top Prospect Already Making A Major DifferenceFlyers top prospect Porter Martone is already making a big difference for the Metropolitan Division club.

"A guy like Bumper, he had a couple of tough shifts, and all of a sudden, after that, he played great. Barks, he throws one out in the stands, he's mad. But after that, he played great," Tocchet remarked.

"Mich, he served the [delay of game] penalty, comes out of the box, wins a battle on the wall, we get a 2-on-1. They know that these are big things. They're not small things when you can do those things."

The 2-on-1 Tocchet was referring to was Foerster's first of two goals, when the 24-year-old picked up Michkov's touch along the wall, raced down the ice, and beat Devils goalie Jacob Markstrom low.

That goal put the Flyers back ahead two goals at 3-1 after New Jersey dominated the last 15 minutes of the first period and found the scoresheet via Cody Glass. Michkov's subtle play killed the momentum and ultimately spurred the Flyers on to a significant win for playoff purposes.

The Flyers have been as good as any team in the NHL over the last month and a half, even without the fabled No. 1 center.

We'll soon find out if that's sustainable, and they should probably plan on upgrading the position anyway, but the core of the team certainly appears to be in place.

NEWARK, N.J. (AP) — Trevor Zegras and Tyson Foerster each scored twice, Dan Vladar made 23 saves and the Philadelphia Flyers routed the New Jersey Devils 5-1 on Tuesday to bolster their playoff position with four games remaining.

The Flyers have won three straight and have six victories in their last eight contests. Their 92 points are four behind second-place Pittsburgh in the Metropolitan Division.

The Flyers have vaulted into playoff position with an 11-3-1 mark since a 6-2 home loss to the Rangers on March 9.

CANADIENS 4, PANTHERS 3, SO

MONTREAL (AP) — Cole Caufield and Alexandre Texier scored in the shootout after Nick Suzuki’s late tying goal as Montreal beat Florida.

Ivan Demidov and Phillip Danault also scored in regulation as playoff-bound Montreal won for the ninth time in 10 games. Juraj Slafkovsky added two assists and Jakub Dobes made 30 saves for his sixth consecutive win.

Caufield remained one goal shy of his 50th for the third consecutive game after scoring twice Thursday against the New York Rangers. He is scoreless in three straight games for the first time since posting four consecutive goalless outings from Jan. 8 to 12.

Eetu Luostarinen, Carter Verhaeghe and Cole Reinhardt scored for fading Florida, which lost its eighth straight game against the Canadiens. Daniil Tarasov stopped 29 shots.

The two-time reigning Stanley Cup champions entered the night 27th in the overall league standings and out of playoff contention.

SENATORS 6, LIGHTNING 2

OTTAWA, Ontario (AP) — Jake Sanderson scored a pair of goals and Ottawa were closer to a playoff appearance with a win over Tampa.

Jordan Spence, Fabian Zetterlund, Tim Stutzle and Shane Pinto also scored for Ottawa. Brady Tkachuk had four assists and goaltender Linus Ullmark made 28 saves for the win.

Nick Paul and Corey Perry scored for the Lightning. Jonas Johansson made 26 saves.

BLUE JACKETS 4, RED WINGS 3, SO

DETROIT (AP) — Zach Werenski scored in the shootout to lead Columbus over Detroit, ending a six-game skid.

Adam Fantilli tied the game with 17 seconds left, Danton Heinen also scored and Werenski also added a goal and an assist in regulation. Jet Greaves stopped 34 shots and assisted on Werenski’s goal for his first career point.

Werenski notched his 26th multipoint game of the year, setting a single-season record for the Blue Jackets.

Justin Faulk scored twice, Dylan Larkin added one goal, and John Gibson had 32 saves for the Red Wings.

HURRICANES 6, BRUINS 5, OT

Raleigh, N.C. (AP) — Jaccob Slavin scored at 1:13 of overtime as Carolina beat Boston and claimed their fourth Metropolitan Division title in six years.

Slavin’s first goal of the season helped offset a hat trick by Boston’s Morgan Geekie. Andrei Svechnikov, K’Andre Miller, Logan Stankoven, William Carrier and Taylor Hall also scored for Carolina. Brandon Bussi overcame a shakey start and finished with 16 saves.

Hampus Lindholm and Pavel Zacha also scored for Boston, with Zacha’s goal at 12:33 in the third period tying the game at 5. Boston’s Jeremy Swayman made 18 saves before being pulled after allowing five goals, including three in the first nine minutes of the second period. Joonas Korpisalo stopped the 16 shots he faced in regulation, but Slavin beat him in OT by tapping in a pass from Sebastian Aho.

The Hurricanes will be home for the Stanley Cup playoffs as the Metropolitan champions for the third time under coach Rod Brind’Amour. They also won the Central Division in the shortened, reconfigured 2020-21 season.

AVALANCHE 3, BLUES 1

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Valeri Nichushkin scored twice and Colorado beat St. Louis to clinch the Central Division and the top seed in the Western Conference.

It is the third time in five seasons, and first since 2023, that the Avalanche finished as the top team in the conference.

Martin Necas also scored and Scott Wedgewood made 18 saves for Colorado, which has earned points in eight of its last 11 games.

Wedgewood was shaken up midway through the third period after Philip Broberg made contact with him after being tripped by Sam Malinski. Wedgewood was driven awkwardly into the post and stayed down for several minutes, but remained in the game.

Robert Thomas scored and Joel Hofer made 34 saves for the Blues, whose slim playoff hope took a hit with the loss.

STARS 4, FLAMES 3, OT

DALLAS (AP) — Wyatt Johnston scored twice, including in overtime, to lead Dallas to the win over Calgary.

Johnston scored 3:39 into overtime on a power-play backhand shot. Jason Robertson and Miro Heiskanen each got an assist on the goal. Johnston scored two goals in the game.

Justin Hryckowian and Robertson each scored for the Stars. Robertson’s wrist shot 4:51 into the third period sent the game to overtime.

Zayne Parekh, Yegor Sharangovich and Joel Farabee scored for the Flames.

Jake Oettinger stopped 17 shots in the win for the Stars. Devin Cooley made 21 saves for the Flames.

WILD 5, KRAKEN 2

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — Vladimir Tarasenko scored the go-ahead goal in the second period, Matt Boldy had a goal and an assist, and Minnesota twice benefited from replay reviews in a victory over Seattle.

Marcus Johansson also had a goal and an assist for the Wild, who won their fourth straight game. Marcus Foligno scored the tying goal early in the second, and Joel Eriksson Ek added an empty-net goal and two assists.

Minnesota trails Dallas by two points for second place in the Central Division and Western Conference heading into their showdown Thursday in Texas. Each team has four regular-season games remaining before they square off in a first-round playoff series, with home-ice advantage still up for grabs.

MAMMOTH 6, OILERS 5, OT

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Clayton Keller scored on a power play 33 seconds into overtime to lift Utah to a victory over Edmonton.

Alexander Kerfoot forced overtime with 7:04 left in regulation after tapping in a long feed from Sean Durzi, setting the stage for Utah to claim its first win over Edmonton.

Nick Schmaltz scored twice in the second period to rally the Mammoth from a two-goal deficit. JJ Peterka and Logan Cooley also scored, and Karel Vejmelka had 21 saves.

Curtis Lazar, Connor McDavid, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Vasily Podkolzin, and Colton Dach scored for the Oilers, who lost their second straight. Tristan Jarry made 25 stops.

GOLDEN KNIGHTS 2, CANUCKS 1

VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP) — Cole Smith’s goal midway through the third period proved to be the winner as Vegas held on to beat Vancouver.

Max Sasson opened the scoring for the Canucks (22-47-8) with a wrist shot over the glove of Golden Knights goalie Carter Hart at the 12:50 mark of the second period. It was his 13th goal of the season.

Brayden McNabb replied for Vegas (36-26-16) less than three minutes later, sending a shot through traffic to tie the score at 1. Smith scored the go-ahead goal 12:13 into the third.

Vancouver had a prime chance to force extra time when Vegas defenseman Rasmus Andersson was called for interference with less than two minutes left. The Canucks pulled goalie Nikita Tolopilo in favor of an extra attacker, but failed to score.

Hart stopped 10 of the 11 shots he faced for the Golden Knights. Tolopilo made 26 saves for the Canucks.

PREDATORS 5, DUCKS 0

ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Justus Annunen stopped 43 shots — one shy of his career high — for his third career shutout, and Nashville sent Anaheim to their sixth consecutive loss.

Erick Haula, Filip Forsberg and Brady Skjei scored second-period goals, and Zachary L’Heureux and Fedor Svechkov scored in the third for the Predators. Joakim Kemmell and Ryan O’Reilly each had two assists.

The win pushed Nashville (84 points) one point ahead of the Los Angeles Kings for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference. The Predators have four regular-season games left.

The Ducks, who have been outscored 29-14 during their losing streak, remain stuck at 87 points. They also have four games remaining.

DALLAS (AP) — Wyatt Johnston scored twice, including in overtime, to lead the Dallas Stars to the 4-3 win over the Calgary Flames on Tuesday night.

Johnston scored 3:39 into overtime on a power-play backhand shot. Jason Robertson and Miro Heiskanen each got an assist on the goal. Johnston scored two goals in the game.

Justin Hryckowian and Robertson each scored for the Stars. Robertson’s wrist shot 4:51 into the third period sent the game to overtime.

Zayne Parekh, Yegor Sharangovich and Joel Farabee scored for the Flames.

Jake Oettinger stopped 17 shots in the win for the Stars. Devin Cooley made 21 saves for the Flames.

The Stars won 62% of the faceoffs in the game.

Flames defenseman Kevin Bahl left early in the first period with a lower-body injury and did not return.

Up next

Flames: Visit the Colorado Avalanche on Thursday.

Stars: Host the Minnesota Wild on Thursday.

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

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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.

The Calgary Flames dropped a 4-3 overtime decision to the Stars in Dallas on Tuesday night.

Devin Cooley got the start in goal for Calgary, while Aydar Suniev suited up for just his second NHL appearance. The opening period didn’t produce any scoring, but the Flames took a hit to their blueline when Kevin Bahl exited early with an injury and did not return.

Dallas broke through first in the second period. Just over four minutes in, a shot that missed the net caromed hard off the end boards and bounced out to Justin Hryckowian who pounced and chipped it past Cooley to make it 1–0.

Calgary responded with a strong push midway through the period. After sustained pressure across multiple shifts, Olli Maatta moved the puck up to Adam Klapka, who drove the net and forced a rebound. Joel Farabee jumped on the loose puck and slipped a backhand past Jake Oettinger to even things at 1-1 with his 19th of the season.

The Flames grabbed the lead late in the frame. With under two minutes remaining, Klapka held the line to keep the play alive before feeding Yegor Sharangovich in the high slot. Sharangovich wired a shot past Oettinger to give Calgary a 2-1 edge heading into the third.

The Flames wasted no time adding to their lead. Just 26 seconds into the final frame, Zayne Parekh capitalized on the power play, stepping into open ice and firing a wrist shot over Oettinger to make it 3–1. Matt Coronato picked up the primary assist, with Matvei Gridin also drawing in.

But Dallas pushed back quickly. Wyatt Johnston cut the deficit to one after finishing a rebound off a Mikko Rantanen wraparound attempt, and moments later, Jason Robertson tipped home a pass from Matt Duchene to tie the game 3–3.

With neither side able to break the deadlock in regulation, the game moved to overtime. Calgary found itself shorthanded when Ryan Strome was assessed a double minor for high-sticking. The Flames’ penalty kill held firm initially, with Cooley turning aside several quality chances, but the pressure eventually broke through. Johnston struck again, taking a pass from Robertson and finishing on the backhand to seal the 4–3 win for Dallas.

Three Takeaways

Parekh continues to impress

 Zayne Parekh stood out throughout the night. He scored on the power play, was active in all three zones, hit the crossbar, and consistently moved the puck efficiently.

Klapka making his presence felt

Adam Klapka recorded two assists and played a key role in Calgary’s offensive zone time. It marks his second multi-point performance of the season.

Penalty kill strong, until it mattered most

 Calgary’s penalty kill was solid in regulation, going a perfect 3-for-3 against a dangerous Stars unit. However, the overtime double minor proved costly, overshadowing an otherwise strong night from the PK.

Mathew Barzal says his “heart” on the ice is at center.

Under new Islanders coach Pete DeBoer, his heart is getting what it wants.

During Tuesday’s second practice of DeBoer’s tenure, Barzal skated in the middle with Brayden Schenn shifted to left wing.

With four games left in the regular season and the Islanders (42-31-5) jostling for a playoff spot, they need DeBoer to shake things up after firing Patrick Roy. One of his first tweaks will be moving Barzal back to his favored position.

“My initial reaction watching Mat from the other bench is, everybody’s looking for that type of speed in the middle of the ice,” the former Panthers, Devils, Sharks, Golden Knights and Stars coach told reporters after practice.

“So, I think the fact that he’s played both, that he can play both, is a great thing. And coming back from the Olympics, out of the 14 or 15 forwards [Team Canada] took, most of them were centermen. So you’ve got to be able to move around and play different roles. But that speed through the middle of the ice is really dangerous. And the good teams all have that — [Jack] Eichel in Vegas and [Connor] McDavid and [Nathan] MacKinnon.”

Barzal has toggled between wing and center during his decade with the Islanders but hasn’t lined up in the middle since early February — a 23-game span in which he registered 24 points and five goals.

In the prior 54 games this season, Barzal lined up at center 50 times, totaling 43 points. His four starts at right wing before February resulted in three points.

DeBoer stopped short of confirming where Barzal will line up, but the forward welcomes a move back to the middle.

“I think my heart, as a player, is probably down the middle of the ice, just because it allows me to do a lot of things,” he said. “But I really like my time on the wing, and I think it’s actually helped me as a player.”

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Moments earlier, he said: “I like both, to be honest with you. I like being down the middle, maybe a little more speed underneath the puck.

“And I also like being on the wing, with being able to maybe be ahead of the play a little bit sometimes, and create some offense off the breakout and on entries and stuff, coming out of the wall and kind of getting creative.”

DeBoer, who reached the Stanley Cup Final with the Sharks and Devils, stopped practice a handful of times Tuesday to give players instructions from a whiteboard.

“I’m drinking through a fire hose right now, trying to get up to speed,” the coach said of his whirlwind start in New York.

DeBoer, 57, also employed color-coded uniforms for the team’s lines, though he said he’s being mindful of not “paralyzing” his players with too much information.

“I’ve got to get to know the group. … I don’t know them,” DeBoer said. “I’ve been coaching in the West for 10 years. So I don’t know this group as well as I would like to know them.”

Barzal was less stressed about his and his linemates’ potential positional tweaks.

“It’s easier to go from center to wing than wing to center,” he said when asked about himself, Schenn and Cal Ritchie all being natural centers.

“Schenner and Rich are both really smart players. I think it’s an easy adaptation for everybody.”

DeBoer hopes that’s the case when the Isles host the Maple Leafs in a pivotal Thursday night matchup.

OTTAWA, Ontario (AP) — Jake Sanderson scored a pair of goals and the Ottawa Senators were closer to a playoff appearance with a 6-2 win over the Tampa Bay Lightning on Tuesday night.

Jordan Spence, Fabian Zetterlund, Tim Stutzle and Shane Pinto also scored for Ottawa. Brady Tkachuk had four assists and goaltender Linus Ullmark made 28 saves for the win.

Nick Paul and Corey Perry scored for the Lightning. Jonas Johansson made 26 saves.

Tied 1-1 to start the third, the Senators scored twice in less than two minutes to take a two-goal lead.

Perry pulled the Lightning within one midway through the third when he was left all alone and raised a shot over a sprawled Ullmark.

The Senators added a pair of power-play goals to secure the victory.

Pinto scored into an empty net.

With an assist on Ottawa’s opening goal, Stutzle recorded his second-career 80-point season.

Up next

Lightning: Visit the Montreal Canadiens on Thursday.

Senators: Host the Florida Panthers on Thursday.

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