Category: Ice Hockey

The Florida Panthers completed a sweep of their two-game homestand on Thursday night in Sunrise.

Fresh off defeating the Ottawa Senators, Florida took down another team fighting for their playoff lives, earning a gritty 2-1 victory over the Boston Bruins at Amerant Bank Arena.

Interestingly, all the goals in this game would come during the opening period.

Getting the party started just 4:20 into the game was Panthers youngster Mackie Samoskevich.

First, he picked off a pass from Bruins defenseman Henri Jokiharju deep in Boston’s zone before cutting to the middle of the ice and wiring a shot past Jeremy Swayman to set up Florida with a 1-0 lead.

For Samoskevich, it was his third consecutive game with a goal, the longest such streak of his NHL career.

Just 3:39 later, Sam Bennett was in the right place at the right time when A.J. Greer’s long wrist shot was blocked by Jokiharji.

The puck came right to Bennett’s stick as he skated through the slot, and the quick-thinking forward put the puck past Swayman before the goaltender could react, doubling the Cats’ lead.

Ultimately, the goal would end up being the game-winner After Fraser Minter picked up his 17th goal of the season during the final minute of the opening frame.

From there, Sergei Bobrovsky stood tall for the Cats, stopping all 20 shots Boston put on him the rest of the way, including 15 that came during the third period.

He also stopped 10 of the Bruins’ high-danger shots on a night Bob’s expected goals against was 4.59.

Next up for the Panthers is their final road trip of the season, a five-gamer that begins with back-to-back games in Pittsburgh on Saturday and Sunday.

Off to see the Penguins.

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Photo caption: Apr 2, 2026; Sunrise, Florida, USA; Florida Panthers goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky (72) makes a save against Boston Bruins left wing Viktor Arvidsson (71) during the third period at Amerant Bank Arena. (Sam Navarro-Imagn Images)

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Anthony Cirelli registered his second career hat trick, Nikita Kucherov had a goal and three points, and the Tampa Bay Lightning moved into first place in the Atlantic Division after a 6-3 victory against the Pittsburgh Penguins on Thursday night.

Zemgus Girgensons scored his 100th career goal and Brayden Point scored his second in 14 games for Tampa Bay, which improved to 7-1-2 in the past 10 games. Jake Guentzel and Gage Goncalves both had two assists while Andrei Vasilevskiy finished with 21 saves.

Egor Chinakov scored twice and Rickard Rackell also scored for Pittsburgh. Sam Girard and Kris Letang both had two assists and Stuart Skinner finished with 27 saves.

The Penguins remain in second place in the Metropolitan Division, three points ahead of the New York Islanders.

Cirelli scored Tampa Bay’s first two goals and he added an empty-netter for his first hat trick since Jan. 17, 2020.

CANANDIENS 3, RANGERS 2

NEW YORK (AP) — Cole Caufield scored his 48th and 49th goals of the season, and Montreal won its seventh game in a row to move closer to making the playoffs by defeating New York.

Caufield’s second was his NHL-best 12th winning goal, putting the Canadiens ahead 47 seconds after Will Cuylle tied it. He moved one back of Colorado’s Nathan MacKinnon for the league lead in goals and in the process extended his career high with 83 points.

This winning streak is the storied organization’s longest in nearly a decade, dating to an eight-game unbeaten run from Oct. 18-Nov. 2, 2016. Montreal has separated itself from the pack in the Eastern Conference and kept pace with Buffalo and Tampa Bay in a hot Atlantic Division race.

Alex Newhook scored the Canadiens’ first goal 4 1/2 minutes into the second period on their 12th shot against Igor Shesterkin, who was the only reason they hadn’t taken a lead earlier.

Jakub Fowler made 21 saves, the biggest on a penalty kill late in the second when he turned aside Alexis Lafrenière at the side of the net.

SENATORS 4, SABRES 1

OTTAWA, Ontario (AP) — Lars Eller broke a third-period tie and Ottawa beat Buffalo, preventing it from wrapping up a drought-breaking playoff spot.

Buffalo will have to wait to end its NHL-record 14-season postseason skid, the second-longest active futility run in North America’s four major sports behind the New York Jets and their 15-season slide.

Eller deflected defenseman Artem Zub’s shot from the point past goalie Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen at 5:55 of the third.

Buffalo defenseman Mattias Samuelsson opened the scoring at 8:49 of the second with a long wrist shot. Dylan Cozens tied it with 4:42 left in the second on a tip-in. He has 26 goals this season.

Ridly Greig and Shane Pinto added empty-net goals.

Linus Ullmark made 21 saves for Ottawa. The Senators — in the second wild-card spot in the East — opened a five-game homestand.

Luukkonen stopped 20 shots for Buffalo.

HURRICANES 5, BLUE JACKETS 1

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Logan Stankoven scored two goals in the first nine minutes, and Carolina clinched a playoff berth for the eighth season in a row by beating Columbus.

Alexander Nikishin added a first-period short-handed goal and Jordan Martinook and Andrei Svechnikov also scored as the Metropolitan Division-leading Hurricanes were on the way to winning for the third time in their last four games. Taylor Hall and Sebastian Aho each had two assists and Frederik Andersen made nine saves.

For Carolina, the 10 shots allowed matched the fewest shots against in franchise history.

The Hurricanes have qualified for the playoffs in each season under coach Rod Brind’Amour, a former team captain.

Denton Mateychuk scored for the Blue Jackets, who are winless in their last five games (0-4-1). Elvis Merzlikins stopped 16 shots.

RED WINGS 4, FLYERS 2

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Patrick Kane scored a pivotal goal in the same building where he scored a Stanley Cup Final winner, Alex DeBrincat scored two goals and Lucas Raymond had one to lead Detroit past Philadelphia.

The Red Wings snapped a points tie in the chase for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. Detroit has 88 points to 86 for the Flyers through 75 games. The Red Wings are now tied in points with Ottawa, but the Senators have more regulation wins if it comes to a tiebreaker.

Kane’s Game 6 overtime goal helped Chicago beat the Flyers in 2010 for the Stanley Cup. The Flyers never recovered, winning only three playoff series since and lost a swing matchup in a game that could decide if they return to the postseason.

Travis Konecny scored his 25th goal in the third to make it 3-2 and give the Flyers some needed hope at a comeback.

It just wasn’t enough.

The Flyers beat Detroit 5-3 last weekend in a game where Red Wings goalie John Gibson was pulled. Gibson was back in net for this one — his 13th straight start - and rebounded with 32 saves.

PANTHERS 2, BRUINS 1

SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) — Florida goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky made 15 saves in the third period and 28 overall as the Panthers defeated Boston.

The two-time defending Stanley Cup champion Panthers avoided elimination from the playoffs with the win.

Florida got first-period goals from Mackie Samoskevich and Sam Bennett in their second straight win.

Boston, which had won four straight, got a goal from Fraser Minten. Jeremy Swayman made 22 saves in the loss.

DEVILS 7, CAPITALS 3

NEWARK, N.J. (AP) — Jack Hughes had two goals and three assists and Dawson Mercer scored twice as New Jersey beat Washington.

Hughes scored his first goal for the Devils 9:10 into the second period on a wrist shot, assisted by Jesper Bratt and Johnathan Kovacevic. He tacked on a wrist shot 8:10 into the third, assisted by Bratt and Connor Brown. Hughes has 24 goals and 44 assists this season.

Bratt, Dougie Hamilton and Cody Glass also scored for the Devils.

Tom Wilson, Pierre-Luc Dubois and Cole Hutson scored for the Capitals.

Jake Allen made 29 saves in the win for the Devils. Logan Thompson had 23 saves for the Capitals.

WILD 5, CANUCKS 2

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — Matt Boldy scored his 39th and 40th goals, Kirill Kaprizov added his 40th and Minnesota wrapped up a playoff spot with a victory over Vancouver.

Third in the Western Conference and the NHL’s stacked Central Division, Minnesota secured the postseason spot in 75 games after getting in last season in the 82nd and final game before falling to Vegas in the first round.

Ryan Hartmman scored twice in the third to reach 20 goals, and Filip Gustavsson made 29 saves to help the Wild rebound from a 6-3 loss at Boston on Saturday.

Former Canucks defenseman Quinn Hughes had his 67th assist. He joined the Wild in a blockbuster trade in December that sent Marco Rossi, Zeev Buium, Liam Ohgren and a first-round pick in 2026 to Vancouver.

Tom Willander and Jake DeBrusk scored for NHL-worst Vancouver, and Nikita Tolopilo stopped 32 shots. The Canucks were coming off an 8-6 victory at NHL-leading Colorado on Wednesday night.

STARS 3, JETS 0

DALLAS (AP) — Jake Oettinger made 22 saves for his third shutout of the season in a matchup of Team USA Olympic goaltenders and rookie Arttu Hyry had a goal in his first multipoint NHL game as Dallas beat Winnipeg.

Adam Erne also had a goal and an assist and Matt Duchene also scored for the Stars, who opened a five-game homestand that will close their home season. They are second in both the Central Division and the overall league standings, coming off a 1-2-1 road trip with only one regulation win in their previous 10 games.

Oettinger was an Olympic backup while Winnipeg’s Connor Hellebuyck backstopped Team USA to the gold medal.

Oettinger has 31 wins, third in the NHL, with his first shutout since Dec. 3. In his previous five starts, he was 1-2-1 plus a no-decision when he was pulled after allowing four first-period goals.

Hellebuyck, who stopped 18 shots, is 20-21-11 after posting a career-high 47 wins last season while winning his third Vezina Trophy.

It’s official: the Vancouver Canucks will finish the 2025–26 season dead-last in the NHL. With their 5-2 loss to the Minnesota Wild tonight, Vancouver officially secures the best odds at picking first-overall in the 2026 NHL Draft. 

Tonight’s result ensures that regardless of how the remaining games go, the Canucks will remain 32nd in the NHL. Vancouver was mathematically eliminated from playoff contention last week and currently hold a record of 22–45–8 with 52 points in 75 games. Ahead of them in the standings are the Calgary Flames (70 points in 74 games) and Chicago Blackhawks (68 points in 75 games), who now have too-high a point lead on the Canucks to challenge for the best draft lottery odds. 

Through their 56 years of existence, the Canucks have yet to pick first-overall in any NHL Entry Draft. They have made a total of eight selections within the top-three: Daniel Sedin (2nd, 1999), Petr Neded (2nd, 1990), Trevor Linden (2nd, 1988), Dale Tallon (2nd, 1970), Henrik Sedin (3rd, 1999), Dennis Ververgaert (3rd, 1973), Don Lever (3rd, 1972), and Jocelyn Guevremont (3rd, 1971). 

The 2026 NHL Draft lottery date is set for May 5. The 2026 NHL Entry Draft itself will take place at KeyBank Centre in Buffalo, with the first-round taking place on June 26 and round two to seven occurring on June 27. 

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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ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — The Minnesota Wild have clinched a spot in the NHL playoffs, giving them another chance to advance in the postseason for the first time since 2015.

The Wild earned a bid 75 games in after clinching last year in the 82nd and final game of the regular season. They beat league-worst Vancouver 5-2 on Thursday night to get in.

“We knew all we had to do was win a game and we're there,” winger Ryan Hartman said. “Happy with the result tonight.”

Minnesota was eliminated by the Vegas Golden Knights in the first round last year, ending coach John Hynes’ debut season.

The Wild failed to advance in seven postseason appearances between 2016 and 2023. Their deepest run in the playoffs was a trip to the conference finals in 2003 in the franchise’s third year of existence.

The Minnesota North Stars lost in the 1981 and 1991 Stanley Cup Final. They relocated to Dallas in 1993, becoming the Stars, and hoisted the Cup in 1999.

The Wild proved their commitment to contending this season by signing Kirill Kaprizov to an eight-year, $136 million contract extension — the richest deal in league history. The star winger has a team-high 83 points and now has Minnesota back in the postseason again.

“We make playoffs, it’s nice," Kaprizov said. “It's the best time of the year.”

Goaltender Filip Gustavsson has won twice as many games as he’s lost while giving up a little more than 2 1/2 goals per game.

“He's such a talented kid, but now you're starting to see the talent come into, I think, a mindset and a little bit of a swagger that you need to have as the main guy, and he's done a good job of that,” Hynes said. “I think the guys play hard in front of him, and he's done a good job too, I think, of earning the trust and respect of the group.”

Minnesota has the league’s longest active streak of consecutive winning seasons at 14.

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

The Vancouver Canucks took on Quinn Hughes and the Minnesota Wild for the first time since their trade in December, losing by a score of 5-2. Tom Willander and Jake DeBrusk scored Vancouver’s two goals of the game, while Nikita Tolopilo stopped 32 of 34 shots faced in his 14th start of the season. 

Tonight, all eyes were on the four pieces involved in Vancouver and Minnesota’s blockbuster deal. It was former Wild forward Liam Öhgren who made the biggest impression at the beginning of the game tonight, putting his trademark forecheck to work on a Vancouver penalty kill to break the puck back out into the O-zone and even drawing a penalty for his efforts. The Canucks took a 2–1 lead off the ensuing power play. 

Tolopilo has had a rough go in his most recent starts, though that was not the case tonight.  The goaltender stepped up big-time for Vancouver when Minnesota began to press during the first period. He also made a couple of grade-A saves on Quinn Hughes — one moments after Minnesota’s second goal of the game and another off a breakaway after the defenceman exited the penalty box. 

After scoring three goals and putting up an assist the night before, Brock Boeser continued his stretch of success by producing some solid scoring chances in the first period. Not only did he manage to get a chance in on Filip Gustavsson all alone off the rush, he also created a strong rebound chance from the right of the Minnesota goaltender. 

Turnovers were an issue for the Canucks tonight, as three of Minnesota’s goals came about after Vancouver’s defencemen were unable to properly get the puck off their sticks. Pierre-Olivier Joseph was unable to clear it on the first goal, while a giveaway by Zeev Buium gave Matt Boldy his second goal of the game. Defenceman Elias Pettersson’s pass ended up on Kirill Kaprizov’s stick before ultimately winding up in the back of Vancouver’s net. 

Given the fact that Vancouver played in Colorado the night before — and won, no less — their early effort in this game wasn’t bad at all. Having said that, the Canucks noticeably slowed down towards the third period, during which Minnesota took the opportunity to build on their one-goal lead. 

Post-game, Hughes spoke on what playing against his former teammates was like. 

"Definitely a little weird, but I think that you move on and I'm happy to be here right now. Probably [playing] in Vancouver would be a little bit weirder than this, but yeah, it was nice. We got the win, and we've got a big weekend coming up." 

With the loss, Vancouver officially clinches 32nd in the NHL, giving themselves the best odds at selecting first-overall in the 2026 NHL Draft. Minnesota officially secures a playoff spot with the win.  

Stats and Facts: 

• Tom Willander takes sole possession of fifth in the NHL in scoring by a rookie defenceman with his 20th point of the season 
• Jake DeBrusk scores his third power play goal in four games  
• Elias Pettersson extends his current point streak to four games 

Scoring Summary: 

1st Period: 

8:32 - MIN: Matt Boldy (39) from Marcus Johansson and Joel Eriksson Ek 

16:00 - VAN: Tom Willander (5) from Teddy Blueger and Max Sasson 

16:42 - VAN: Jake DeBrusk (18) from Filip Hronek and Elias Pettersson (PPG) 

2nd Period: 

0:23 - MIN: Matt Boldy (40) 

6:08 - MIN: Kirill Kaprizov (40) from Mats Zuccarello 

3rd Period: 

6:03 - MIN: Ryan Hartman (19) from Mats Zuccarello and Quinn Hughes 

18:52 - MIN: Ryan Hartman (20) from Kirill Kaprizov and Matt Boldy (ENG)

Up Next: 

The Canucks will now head back to Vancouver for another matchup against a Central Division team, this time taking on the Utah Mammoth in what will be their third-last home game of the season. Though the game will be played in Vancouver, puck drop is scheduled for 4:00 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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DALLAS (AP) — Jake Oettinger made 22 saves for his third shutout of the season in a matchup of Team USA Olympic goaltenders and rookie Arttu Hyry had a goal in his first multipoint NHL game as the Dallas Stars beat the Winnipeg Jets 3-0 on Thursday night.

Adam Erne also had a goal and an assist and Matt Duchene also scored for the Stars, who opened a five-game homestand that will close their home season. They are second in both the Central Division and the overall league standings, coming off a 1-2-1 road trip with only one regulation win in their previous 10 games.

Oettinger was an Olympic backup while Winnipeg’s Connor Hellebuyck backstopped Team USA to the gold medal.

Oettinger has 31 wins, third in the NHL, with his first shutout since Dec. 3. In his previous five starts, he was 1-2-1 plus a no-decision when he was pulled after allowing four first-period goals.

Hellebuyck, who stopped 18 shots, is 20-21-11 after posting a career-high 47 wins last season while winning his third Vezina Trophy.

Duchene and Hyry scored 89 seconds apart midway through the first period to put Dallas ahead 2-0. Duchene collected his own rebound off the outside of the net behind the goal line and banked it off Hellebuyck. It was a power-play score for the NHL’s best home power play.

Hyry had the secondary assist on Erne’s deflection early in the second period.

Dallas led after one period for the first time in six games and improved to 22-4-3 when in that position.

The Stars went 4-0 in the season series, their first sweep of the Jets since the franchise moved from Atlanta in 2011.

With multiple forwards sidelined with injuries, Dallas played 11 and seven defensemen.

Up next

Stars: Host league-leading Colorado on Saturday.

Jets: Finish a four-game road trip on Saturday night at Columbus.

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

NEWARK, N.J. (AP) — Jack Hughes had two goals and three assists and Dawson Mercer scored twice as the New Jersey Devils beat the Washington Capitals 7-3 on Thursday night.

Hughes scored his first goal for the Devils 9:10 into the second period on a wrist shot, assisted by Jesper Bratt and Johnathan Kovacevic. He tacked on a wrist shot 8:10 into the third, assisted by Bratt and Connor Brown. Hughes has 24 goals and 44 assists this season.

Bratt, Dougie Hamilton and Cody Glass also scored for the Devils.

Tom Wilson, Pierre-Luc Dubois and Cole Hutson scored for the Capitals.

Jake Allen made 29 saves in the win for the Devils. Logan Thompson had 23 saves for the Capitals.

Up next

Devils: Host the Montreal Canadiens on Saturday night.

Capitals: Host the Buffalo Sabres on Saturday night.

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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.

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After what was a disastrous start to their critical three-game road swing, the Detroit Red Wings managed to rebound and pick up a victory in a venue they've had very little success in over the last 30 years. 

Thanks to two goals from Alex DeBrincat, the Red Wings doubled up the Philadelphia Flyers, winning by a 4-2 final score at Xfinity Mobile Arena. It was just Detroit's fourth regulation victory in the venue since 1997. 

#REDWINGS WIN IN PHILLY! #LGRWpic.twitter.com/i2uDvG6aDC

— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) April 3, 2026

Despite being tied with 88 points, the Red Wings moved ahead of the Columbus Blue Jackets in the standings. But because the Ottawa Senators managed to defeat the Buffalo Sabres, they are now in the second Wild Card position, also with 88 points. 

During the contest, the Red Wings also lost defenseman Justin Faulk to an undisclosed injury.

Bookmark The Hockey News Detroit Red Wings team site to stay connected to the latest news, game-day coverage, and player features. 

DeBrincat, who has now matched his season total of 39 goals from last season, broke the ice late in the first period with a power-play goal. 

While the Flyers got the tying marker early in the second period from Tyson Foerster, Detroit restored the one-goal lead after Lucas Raymond fired a shot at the side of the net past sprawling goaltender Samuel Ersson late in the frame. 

While the Red Wings were outshot by the Flyers in the third period, they moved ahead 3-1 thanks to the 14th goal of the season from Patrick Kane, who had broken in on a two-on-one rush with DeBrincat.

In doing so, he passed former Red Wings forward Brett Hull to become the 26th highest-scoring player in NHL history (1,392 points). 

Flyers rookie forward Porter Malone, who was recently signed to an entry-level contract after finishing his time with Red Wings prospect Trey Augustine with the Michigan State Spartans, soon picked up his first NHL point with an assist on a goal by Travis Konecny that was upheld following a video review.

However, DeBrincat answered just seconds later, spinning 180 degrees along the goal line before firing a sharp-angle shot past Ersson. 

Goaltender John Gibson, making his 13th straight start, rebounded from being yanked in his previous two games by making 32 saves. Ersson countered with 15 saves.

The Red Wings conclude their road trip against the New York Rangers on Saturday afternoon. 

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The Ottawa Senators’ relentless rash of injuries to defensemen continued Thursday night.

Already without Jake Sanderson, Thomas Chabot, Carter Yakemchuk, Nick Jensen, and Dennis Gilbert, they lost Tyler Kleven during a 4-1 victory over the Buffalo Sabres at Canadian Tire Centre. Kleven left the game in the first period and did not return after taking a puck up high that struck him either in the side of the head or the neck area.

There's no word yet on how long Kleven will be out. He has three goals and 18 points in 69 games this season.

His injury not only left the Senators with five defensemen for most of the night, but all five were right shots. Kleven, who’s been eating up huge minutes with all the injuries, was the only healthy left shot on the NHL roster.

After the game head coach Travis Green didn't have anything definitive yet on Kleven, but told the media after the game he was "not expecting it to be great news."

This is more rough news for a lineup that already included the inexperience of Cam Crotty and Lassi Thomson. Thomson had played only three NHL games this season. For Crotty, the Ottawa native, this was just his third career NHL game.

That meant the Senators leaned heavily on Jordan Spence, who was a healthy scratch at the start of the season. He played 30:18.

Meanwhile, the options in Belleville are limited. Jorian Donovan, who got into two games last week, the first of his career, seems like the most likely callup candidate if healthy NHL-level reinforcements aren't coming.

On that front, Jake Sanderson is getting close to a return from an upper-body injury. He’s been skating with the team for a few days now. Dennis Gilbert suffered an upper-body injury on March 21 and was given a three-week prognosis, so he’s at least another week away.

If Sanderson can't go, it will be yet another next man up scenario on Saturday afternoon. The Senators, now back in a playoff spot, will host the Minnesota Wild in game two of a five game homestand.

Steve Warne
The Hockey News

SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) — Florida goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky made 15 saves in the third period and 28 overall as the Panthers defeated the Boston Bruins 2-1 on Thursday night.

The two-time defending Stanley Cup champion Panthers avoided elimination from the playoffs with the win.

Florida got first-period goals from Mackie Samoskevich and Sam Bennett in their second straight win.

Boston, which had won four straight, got a goal from Fraser Minten. Jeremy Swayman made 22 saves in the loss.

The Panthers also used a fast start in a 6-3 win over the Ottawa Senators on Tuesday night, scoring five goals in the opening period.

Samoskevich opened the scoring with his third goal in as many games when he intercepted a pass deep in the offensive zone and sent a wrist shot past Swayman.

Bennett made it 2-0 at 7:39 of the first, scoring from the slot.

Boston pulled to within a goal in the closing minute of the first period.

The Bruins put two shots on Bobrovsky near the front of the net, and the puck squirted out along the goal line right to where Minten was all alone.

Minten had plenty of time to grab the puck, put it on his backhand, and beat a sprawled out Bobrovsky to make it 2-1 with 27 seconds left in the period.

Bobrovsky, who has won five of his past seven starts, had a big challenge in the third, but held strong.

The two-time defending Stanley Cup champion Panthers avoided elimination from the playoffs with Thursday's win.

Up next

Bruins: At Tampa Bay on Saturday.

Panthers: At Pittsburgh on Saturday.

___

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

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Logan Stankoven scored two goals in the first nine minutes, and the Carolina Hurricanes clinched a playoff berth for the eighth season in a row by beating the Columbus Blue Jackets 5-1 on Thursday night.

Alexander Nikishin added a first-period short-handed goal and Jordan Martinook and Andrei Svechnikov also scored as the Metropolitan Division-leading Hurricanes were on the way to winning for the third time in their last four games. Taylor Hall and Sebastian Aho each had two assists and Frederik Andersen made nine saves.

For Carolina, the 10 shots allowed matched the fewest shots against in franchise history.

The Hurricanes have qualified for the playoffs in each season under coach Rod Brind’Amour, a former team captain.

Denton Mateychuk scored for the Blue Jackets, who are winless in their last five games (0-4-1). Elvis Merzlikins stopped 16 shots.

In the third meeting between the teams in less than 2½ weeks, Stankoven scored 2:27 into the game on a deflection in front of Merzlikins on Carolina’s first shot of the game. Stankoven's 17th goal of the season – adding to his career-high total – came at 8:52 when he tapped in a loose puck in the crease.

Nikishin became the franchise’s first rookie defenseman to score a short-handed goal.

By the end of the first period, Carolina had more goals (3) than the Blue Jackets had shots (2).

Mateychuk got Columbus on the board with 8:36 left in the second, but 13 seconds later Martinook scored by sending the puck on net from just inside the blue line.

Hurricanes captain Jordan Staal played in his 1,400th career game.

Stankoven had one goal when Carolina won 5-2 on Tuesday night at Columbus.

Up next

Blue Jackets: Home Saturday vs. Winnipeg

Hurricanes: Home Saturday vs. New York Islanders

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

Pregame

The Penguins welcome back Bryan Rust from injury and shake up the lines a little to put Rickard Rakell back at center and put Ben Kindel up with Evgeni Malkin. Stuart Skinner gets a second-straight game in net.

Their hosts are rolling with this lineup.

First period

Tampa starts off the game hot getting seven of the first nine shots, and the first goal. Anthony Cirelli follows up on a rebound to open the scoring.

The Penguins settle down after that and get to their game. Sam Girard steps up in the zone and makes a pass over to Rickard Rakell. Rakell uses his skates to kick the puck up to his stick for a nifty move and finish. 1-1.

Pittsburgh takes their first lead, courtesy of Egor Chinakhov. Chinakhov skates to the outside of the defense then gets a rising backhand shot that goes far-side. 2-1 Pens.

Next up come the first power plays of the night, Connor Clifton is guilty of interference when a Tampa player drives to the net. While on the PK, Erik Karlsson lifts a sky pass for Noel Acciari and a Lightning player has to hold Acciari on his drive to the net.

Shots are 11 a piece, good news for the Penguins to be able to create their looks at the net. They made the most of it and take a one-goal lead into the first break.

Second period

Pittsburgh starts the period on a short carryover power play, but it’s Tampa who scores. An odd bounce handcuffs Karlsson and Rust which Cirelli corals and is off to the races. He dekes and beats Skinner to make it a 2-2 game.

Tampa gains momentum for that and nearly score again if not for Girard pulling a puck away from the crease in a scramble. A bit later Girard stays active by breaking up a Nikita Kucherov pass that might have done damage if it got through.

The Lightning re-gain the lead with 5:52 to play. Tampa’s top line pushes up the ice, Jake Guentzel’s shot goes wide but the puck ramps back into the danger zone where Brayden Point gets it and scores from in close. 3-2 TB.

Tampa gets a goal in the last minute, Yanni Gourde passed from behind the net to Zemgus Girgensons and he was able to work it to the backhand and put in a goal to extend the lead to 4-2.

Tough period for the Pens, giving up goals at the beginning and end of it puts them behind. Shots are 9-8 TB in the second period, but shot attempts in the game are 47-33 TB through 40. They’re playing the type of game they want to play.

Third period

Evgeni Malkin’s temper boils over out of frustration, he gets four minutes worth of penalties after a scrum, taking a Tampa player away for two. The Lightning get their second power play of the night but come no closer to scoring than a post hit by Darren Raddysh.

Letang skates up the ice and gets hooked to draw a power play. It doesn’t go well, the Pens match their number of shots in the first ten minutes of the period (0) on their power play.

Soon after that expires, Connor Dewar is the latest to get rung up on a penalty, though Tampa’s power play is soon negated by a penalty by themselves.

Nikita Kucherov is at the point of the game where he’s trying to create a special highlight; he puts the puck through Girard’s triangle —twice — on a rush but doesn’t score. On his next shift, Kucherov whips a rolling puck on a bit of a no-look all the way from wall that beats Skinner high. 5-2. Yep, that’s a highlight goal from a special player.

Pittsburgh lifts Skinner for an extra skater with over 5 minutes to go. Doesn’t last that long until Cirelli completes his hat trick. 6-2.

The Penguins get a late power play and Chinakhov provides a somewhat meaningless buzzer beater to wrist an absolutely filthy wrister in with 1:5 seconds left. Not that meaningless I guess, being as it’s Chinakhov’s 20th of the season.

Some thoughts

• Chinakhov often, often, often will cut into the middle of the ice on a rush with the puck on his stick (such a play got him crushed with an open ice hit against Calgary early in his Pittsburgh stint). That’s gotta be the book on him, so it was brilliant to go off-script and use his speed to beat Ryan McDonagh towards the outside in the first period. The finish to get enough on a backhander to beat a goalie the caliber of Vasilevskiy speaks for itself, what a talent Chinakhov is.
• Sam Girard looks much more comfortable and confident lately, today was probably his best game yet as a Penguin. He’s starting to use his legs to extend plays and then he’s got the hands to make something happen. Two assists in the first period and a couple of other sequences were very positive to see. His partner Kris Letang also looks like he’s settling into a physical and more careful role, which from an article earlier today has been working lately. It truly helps the team so much seeing that pair gel and continue to stack up quality performances.
• Glad to see Evgeni Malkin apparently shake off blocking a shot to the skate in the first period. With the way Malkin’s second half of the season has been going it’s been one bad break after another, the last thing he needed was taking more damage. Malkin usually has great games against Tampa, this certainly wasn’t one of them.
• Rust came back from injury to play, but he visibly didn’t look that good moving around the ice. He was skating at times in an unnatural and unsteady way, not looking like a fluid NHL skater. Maybe he’s on the upswing from his unspecified lower body injury, didn’t look excessively comfortable out there on this day. After watching Rust for a decade you gain a little bit of knowledge for seeing him out there, something didn’t look quite right.
• The Pens looked good at times early on, though for the most part Tampa played like a stronger team. They’re very persistent when it comes to puck battles and don’t give up much easily without getting on the opponent and competing for every inch. Wouldn’t blame Crosby if he has a nightmare tonight where Gourde is hounding him relentlessly considering that happened all night.
• By the end of the night, maybe the Pens packed it in but they sure didn’t make a push in the third period. That’s unlike them, they usually don’t go away as quietly as they did today. The damage was done with a poor second period and there wasn’t anything in the cards for even the faintest hints of a comeback attempt.
• This always kinda seemed like a house money game for the Penguins after the hugely important wins on Monday and Tuesday. Maybe all that exertion caught up with them, maybe they just caught a very good opponent on one of their better nights. (And, as always, it’s tends to be a bit of both). The good news for Pittsburgh is this won’t hurt them too much thanks to the other scores: Columbus and Philadelphia lost in regulation, even Washington looks like they’re about to fall. This was the ‘game in hand’ over the Islanders, who didn’t play tonight and now have as many GP as the Pens. Playoff positioning didn’t take any hits tonight – and now Pittsburgh gets to play all of their last six games against teams who won’t be going to the playoffs.

Not a banner night for the Pens, they got ahead early but gave up a shorthanded goal that took a lot of wind of their sails and Tampa ended up going right by them. On to the next on Saturday afternoon against Florida.

The Rangers enjoyed a rare stretch filled with rookie debuts, milestones and wins, but reality is one heck of a buzzkill.

Canadiens star Cole Caufield delivered the reality check.

Thursday’s 3-2 loss to the Canadiens at Madison Square Garden snapped the Blueshirts’ three-game winning streak, as Caufield potted goals Nos. 48 and 49 of the season to stifle the home team’s two-goal, third-period comeback.

A notable number of Montreal jerseys were in the MSG stands to see it.

You could hear just how many there were after each Canadiens goal.

And they shot out of their MSG seats as Caufield made a slick move around Vladislav Gavrikov with just over five minutes left in regulation to put Montreal ahead.

J.T. Miller looked caught off guard by linesman Dan Kelly’s puck drop on the faceoff that led to Caufield’s goal. Asked about it after the game, The Rangers captain said he didn’t want to get into it.

“There’s a lot that goes on in the game,” he said. “I have a lot of respect for Dan. I’ve known him a long time. It’s a moment that nobody wanted to have for me and him and sorry, we’ll leave it at that.”

The Rangers fell behind 2-0 in a lopsided second period in which they were outshot 11-5.

They rallied with two goals in just under five minutes in the third.

After Adam Fox put in a loose puck, Will Cuylle ended a 13-game drought dating to March 7 when Jonny Brodzinski’s shot deflected off him and past Montreal goalie Jacob Fowler.

Entering the game, the Rangers had picked up points in nine consecutive games (7-0-2) against the Canadiens, as well as in 14 of their past 17 meetings. (12-3-2) dating to November 2019.

“We talked about it between periods, just getting the next goal,” head coach Mike Sullivan said. “Trying to get it in striking distance. Our effort, I thought, was there all night long. It’s unfortunate the goal that beat us, but seemed like a nothing play. As far as the effort, and how hard our guys competed to get back in the game, I give them a lot of credit.”

Miller is the 2025-26 Rod Gilbert “Mr. Ranger” Award winner.

The annual award, created in the 2021-22 season in honor of the late Rod Gilbert, is given to the Blueshirt who “best honors Rod’s legacy by exemplifying leadership qualities both on and off the ice and making a significant humanitarian contribution to his community.”

• CHECK OUT THE LATEST NHL STANDINGS AND RANGERS STATS

“It’s an honor,” Miller said after the loss. “I feel proud, but feel a lot of pride for that Mr. Gilbert was an unbelievable Ranger and wore the crest as well as anybody. I know what he means to the city and the organization and the Rangers, so to be able to go down there and be a part of that. It meant a lot to my wife, Natalie, and I. This is something we’re just getting started with, and it’s been awesome so far being back being a Ranger. It means the world to me.”

In January, Miller and his wife, Natalie, donated $154,000 to the Garden of Dreams Foundation, marking the largest donation to the nonprofit organization made by a player in MSG sports history.

With this donation, Garden of Dreams purchased 10 suites to invite youth from varying partner organizations, such as NYPD Widows and Children’s Fund, SCAN-Harbor, Ronald McDonald House New York, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, and more, to attend Rangers games and to meet the Millers following the game.

At the beginning of the 2025-26 season, Miller also represented the Rangers at the BGC Charity Day in honor of the lives lost in the September 11 attacks. Miller participated in celebrity guest calls on the trading floor, met fans and helped raise funds for the Garden of Dreams Foundation.

Goalie Jonathan Quick returned from a seven-game absence due to an upper-body injury to serve as backup to Igor Shesterkin on Thursday.

Defenseman Urho Vaakanainen shed his red noncontact jersey during an optional morning skate Thursday but was sidelined for his eighth straight game with an upper-body injury.

NEW YORK (AP) — Cole Caufield scored his 48th and 49th goals of the season, and the Montreal Canadiens won their seventh game in a row to move closer to making the playoffs by defeating the New York Rangers 3-2 on Thursday night.

Caufield’s second was his NHL-best 12th winning goal, putting the Canadiens ahead 47 seconds after Will Cuylle tied it. He moved one back of Colorado’s Nathan MacKinnon for the league lead in goals and in the process extended his career high with 83 points.

This winning streak is the storied organization’s longest in nearly a decade, dating to an eight-game unbeaten run from Oct. 18-Nov. 2, 2016. Montreal has separated itself from the pack in the Eastern Conference and kept pace with Buffalo and Tampa Bay in a hot Atlantic Division race.

Alex Newhook scored the Canadiens’ first goal 4 1/2 minutes into the second period on their 12th shot against Igor Shesterkin, who was the only reason they hadn’t taken a lead earlier.

Jakub Fowler made 21 saves, the biggest on a penalty kill late in the second when he turned aside Alexis Lafrenière at the side of the net. Helped by his teammates controlling the puck for much of the night, the 21-year-old from South Florida improved to 8-5-2 in his first 15 NHL starts since getting called up in December.

Despite 22 saves from Shesterkin and the goals by Cuylle and Adam Fox, New York lost for a 26th time in 38 home games. Captain J.T. Miller was honored with an award named for Hall of Famer Rod Gilbert, who played his entire 18-season professional career with the Rangers.

Up next

Canadiens: Visit the New Jersey Devils on Saturday night to wrap up their five-game trip.

Rangers: Host the in-the-hunt Detroit Red Wings on Saturday.

All year long, the Islanders have been outrunning their defensive analytics, so maybe it is not a shock that in two pivotal games against the Penguins and Sabres, the results started to catch up.

The Islanders were not knocked below the playoff cutline with those two defeats, though they head into Friday’s home match against the Flyers with minimal cushion over the Senators, Red Wings and Philadelphia.

There are six games left in their season, and each of them is of the utmost importance.

So, too, is making life easier for Ilya Sorokin, who is likely to start at least five of the last six, with Saturday’s game in Carolina the only spot in which David Rittich might get a look.

Sorokin’s Vezina Trophy campaign could get over the line if the Islanders make the playoffs, and has been the single biggest reason for the disconnect between his club’s expected and actual goals allowed.

The goaltender cannot do it all by himself, though, and the Islanders can only learn that the hard way so many times.

“We want to do a good job in the inner area,” coach Patrick Roy said. “Meaning that when the puck’s behind the net, make sure we get good body position. Make sure we got good sticks protecting that net front. I think our expected goals against was a little high [against the Sabres] because of those areas.

“When the puck goes to the goal line, they like to take a shot from the blue line, we like to front. But if you front, you need to block the shot. So we need to do a better job and maybe clean up a little bit here and there. You don’t have to do a lot. I’ll give you an example: When we played Pittsburgh, [Sidney] Crosby had two plays behind the next. He came in front, it’s probably .40, .50 [xG]. So you clean up a couple goals like this, makes a big difference at the end of the night.”

Of course, the chances — and Roy pointed out it’s only a few per game — that carry a high expected goals against do so because they are Grade-A looks.

The analytics merely put a number on what everyone can see: Protect the inner slot and the areas below the hashes and the Islanders will cut out the opposing team’s best chances.

“I think we can protect the middle a little bit better,” Brayden Schenn said. “Shifts are gonna happen where you get caught in your own end. You have to force plays, keep it to the outside. I think all in all, we need to be a little better defensively, which ultimately leads to more offensively.”

Granted, that’s easier said than done, and won’t ever be perfect. But there’s a lot of ground to cover between perfect and the last couple of games. For example, the Sabres’ third goal Tuesday night, when no one picked up Peyton Krebs in transition, allowing him to streak in and get on the end of Alex Tuch’s pass, is the sort of thing that shouldn’t happen.

“A little bit of over-back-checking,” Scott Mayfield told The Post. “We’re trying to collapse the house and there’s a guy behind. But there’s kind of been different things that have been happening. I think in the end, we all know the way we need to play.”

That would be aggressively, getting the puck in the offensive zone and forechecking it to keep it there. It’s easiest to defend by playing offense, after all.

As for when that’s not working?

“In the D-zone, it’s all about closing quick,” Mayfield said. “I think when we let them get time and space, we kinda get a little mixed up on whose guy is who, it gets tough. When we’re getting in there, closing: hit, pin, find a puck — I think that’s when we’re at our best.”