National Hockey League Game Capsules

Buffalo, NY (SportsNetwork.com) – Darren Helm, David Legwand and Pavel Datsyuk scored third-period goals, and Detroit walked away with a 4-2 decision over Buffalo on Tuesday. Brendan Smith also tallied for the Red Wings, winners in five of their last six and who maintained a one-point edge over Columbus for the first wild-card slot in the East after the Jackets beat Phoenix in overtime. Jimmy Howard backed up his offense with 25 saves. Detroit head coach Mike Babcock won his 414th game with the franchise, vaulting him over Jack Adams for tops on the all-time list. Zemgus Girgensons recorded both goals and Cody Hodgson assisted twice for the Sabres, who have lost four in a row and eight of nine. Matt Hackett stopped 33 shots.

Final Score: Ottawa 4, NY Islanders 1

Uniondale, NY (SportsNetwork.com) – Jason Spezza scored twice, including the go-ahead goal in the third period to lift the Ottawa Senators to a 4-1 win over the New York Islanders on Tuesday. Despite the victory, their second in a row, the Senators were eliminated from playoff contention because Columbus beat Phoenix in overtime on Tuesday. Spezza scored the go-ahead goal 12:45 into the third period on a sharp-angle shot from the low right side that hit off goaltender Anders Nilsson’s shoulder and rattled around inside the top of the net before popping out. Play initially continued, but the Senators captain was sure right away the puck had gone in. After a brief review, he was proven correct. Ales Hemsky made it 3-1 just 1:41 later, beating Nilsson glove side with a close forehand, and Matt Kassian added an empty-net goal for the final margin. Craig Anderson had 45 saves for the Senators, whose playoff hopes depended on them going 4-0 to finish the season and Columbus losing its remaining four games. Frans Nielsen scored for the Islanders, who have lost three in a row. It was New York’s final home game of the season. The Islanders went 18-19-2 in their second-to-last season at Nassau Coliseum before moving to Brooklyn in 2015. Nilsson gave up three goals on 31 shots.

Final Score: NY Rangers 4, Carolina 1

New York, NY (SportsNetwork.com) – Brad Richards potted a pair of power-play goals to back a 27-save effort from Henrik Lundqvist in the New York Rangers’ 4-1 win over the Carolina Hurricanes at Madison Square Garden. Benoit Pouliot and Derek Stepan also scored to help the Rangers halt a two-game losing streak, with Martin St. Louis contributing three assists to the victory. Patrick Dwyer accounted for the lone Carolina goal and Cam Ward finished with 32 saves in the loss, which officially eliminated the Hurricanes from playoff consideration.

Final Score: Columbus 4, Phoenix 3 (OT)

Columbus, OH (SportsNetwork.com) – Ryan Johansen’s goal 3:33 into overtime lifted the Columbus Blue Jackets to a 4-3 win over the Phoenix Coyotes on Tuesday. Johansen handled a loose puck near center ice, skated in along the left side and fired a wrist shot that beat Thomas Greiss top-shelf on his glove side. The Coyotes’ Oliver Ekman-Larsson forced the extra session with his goal with 14.6 seconds remaining in regulation, firing a wrister from the point through traffic. Johansen finished with one goal and an assist, while Blake Comeau, Boone Jenner and Mark Letestu also scored for the Blue Jackets, who currently hold the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. Sergei Bobrovsky allowed three goals on 32 shots in the win. Martin Erat and Shane Doan both scored for the Coyotes, who fell two points back of Dallas for the final playoff spot in the Western Conference as the Stars beat Nashville on Tuesday.

Final Score: Tampa Bay 3, Toronto 0

Tampa, FL (SportsNetwork.com) – Anders Lindback relieved the injured Ben Bishop in net and stopped all 25 shots he faced as the Tampa Bay Lightning blanked the Toronto Maple Leafs, 3-0, and eliminated them from playoff contention. The Maple Leafs were second in the Atlantic Division as of Mar. 13 but have spiraled into a 2-10 slump, with none of the losses coming in overtime. Entering Tuesday’s game, they stood three points back of Columbus for the second wild card spot in the Eastern Conference. Their loss, coupled with the Blue Jackets’ overtime win over Phoenix on Tuesday, means Toronto’s season will end at the end of the week. Ondrej Palat scored two goals and Victor Hedman added an empty-netter in the final minute for the Lightning, who snapped a two-game skid and stayed five points ahead of the Detroit Red Wings for third place in the Atlantic Division with three games to play for both teams. Tuesday’s game did not begin as planned for Tampa Bay, as Bishop went down less than six minutes in. The netminder dove after a deflection, landed on his left wrist and stayed on the ice writhing in pain after making the save. His teammates immediately called to the bench for assistance, and he needed help getting off the ice with what the team deemed an upper-body injury. Bishop had made three saves to that point, and Lindback did the rest with seven more in the opening frame, 11 in the second and seven more in the third to complete the shutout.

Final Score: Philadelphia 5, Florida 2

Sunrise, FL (SportsNetwork.com) – Claude Giroux scored twice and the Philadelphia Flyers punched their ticket to the postseason with a 5-2 win over the Florida Panthers on Tuesday. A year after missing the playoffs, the Flyers will be taking part in the chase for the Stanley Cup for a sixth time in the past seven seasons, and the franchise has missed the playoffs just twice since the lockout-shortened 1995 campaign. Philadelphia still remains two points behind the Rangers, who defeated Carolina on Tuesday, for second place in the Metropolitan Division, but does have a game in hand. Sean Couturier, Tye McGinn and Vincent Lecavalier each had a goal for the Flyers, who have won two straight after dropping six of seven. Steve Mason made 38 saves and tied a career best with his 33rd win of the year. Jonathan Huberdeau and Erik Gudbranson lit the lamp for the Panthers, who have lost six of seven. Dan Ellis gave up all five goals on 27 shots.

Final Score: Washington 4, St. Louis 1

St. Louis, MO (SportsNetwork.com) – Alex Ovechkin scored his 50th goal of the season and added two assists, leading the Washington Capitals to a 4-1 victory over the St. Louis Blues on Tuesday. Nicklas Backstrom had two goals and Mikhail Grabovski also scored for the Capitals, who have won two games in a row on the heels of a five-game losing streak. Washington remains alive — if only just — in the hunt for a wild-card spot in the playoffs, trailing Columbus by four points with three games remaining. Braden Holtby had 28 saves in the win as the Caps swept the two-game season series with St. Louis. Maxim Lapierre scored for the Blues, who have lost three games in a row as they cling to a one-point lead over Anaheim for first place in the Western Conference, and a small lead over Colorado in the Central Division. Ryan Miller gave up four goals on 22 shots.

Final Score: Minnesota 4, Boston 3 (SO)

St. Paul, MN (SportsNetwork.com) – Ryan Suter scored the game-tying goal with 1:05 remaining in regulation, while Ilya Bryzgalov stopped Brad Marchand to end the shootout, as Minnesota claimed a 4-3 victory over Boston and wrapped up a wild-card berth on Tuesday night at Xcel Energy Center. Mikko Koivu scored the lone goal of the game’s final segment, and the Wild have won five of their last six overall. Jason Pominville tallied twice and Koivu recorded a pair of assists in regulation for the hosts, who clinched the top wild card spot in the Western Conference with the win. Bryzgalov finished with 21 saves, improving to 7-0-3 since arriving in the Twin Cities. Loui Eriksson, Reilly Smith and Patrice Bergeron lit the lamp for the Bruins, who moved three points up on St. Louis — which lost at home in regulation to Washington — in the race for the Presidents’ Trophy. Tuukka Rask also stopped 21 shots.

Final Score: Dallas 3, Nashville 2 (SO)

Dallas, TX (SportsNetwork.com) – Tyler Seguin scored the winner in the fourth- round of the shootout as the Dallas Stars inched closer to a playoff spot with a 3-2 win over the Nashville Predators. Dallas has 89 points on the season and moved two points ahead of Phoenix for the final wild card spot in the Western Conference. Phoenix lost to Columbus in overtime on Tuesday. Jamie Benn and Alex Goligoski scored in regulation for the Stars, who have won five of seven. Kari Lehtonen stopped 27 shots. Gabriel Bourque had both goals and Pekka Rinne made 28 saves for the Predators, who were knocked out of playoff contention with the loss.

Final Score: Colorado 4, Edmonton 1

Edmonton, AB (SportsNetwork.com) – Jean-Sebastien Giguere stopped 22 shots and the Colorado Avalanche grabbed a 4-1 win over the Edmonton Oilers on Tuesday. First place in the Central Division, and in the Western Conference overall, is still in play for the Avalanche as the team has 109 points on the season, two back of St. Louis for both positions. Both teams have three games to play. Tyson Barrie, Erik Johnson, Jamie McGinn and Paul Stastny all scored for the Avalanche, who have won seven of their past eight games. David Perron scored the only goal of the game for the Oilers, who sit dead last in the conference with just 65 points. Ben Scrivens allowed all four goals on 33 shots in the loss.

Categorized in: NHL