National Hockey League Game Capsules
Toronto, ON (Sports Network) – Jay McClement, Clarke MacArthur and Phil Kessel scored in the third period to help Toronto overcome New Jersey, 4-2, at Air Canada Centre. Nazem Kadri tallied in the opening 20 minutes and James Reimer made 28 saves for the Maple Leafs, who have won two straight and six of their last nine. Marek Zidlicky registered both goals and Ryan Carter added assists on both for the Devils, losers of five consecutive games. Johan Hedberg allowed all four goals on 23 shots.
Final Score: Pittsburgh 4, Tampa Bay 3
Pittsburgh, PA (Sports Network) – Evgeni Malkin returned from a four-game absence to post a goal and an assist as the Pittsburgh Penguins took a 4-3 win over the Tampa Bay Lightning on Monday. Malkin, last year’s Hart Trophy winner, had been out due to a concussion he suffered in a game against Florida on Feb. 22, but was back on the ice to help the Penguins to their second straight win. Sidney Crosby added a goal and an assist while Chris Kunitz and James Neal also scored for Pittsburgh, which got 25 saves from Marc-Andre Fleury. Steven Stamkos scored twice while Tom Pyatt also scored for the Lightning, who have dropped their past five games. Mathieu Garon started in net for Tampa but left just 2:19 into the second period with an undisclosed injury. He stopped 12-of-13 shots while Anders Lindback allowed two goals on 18 shots in the loss.
Final Score: Phoenix 5, Anaheim 4 (SO)
Glendale, AZ (Sports Network) – Oliver Ekman-Larsson scored the winner in the fifth round of the shootout, and the Phoenix Coyotes claimed their second consecutive 5-4 victory over the Anaheim Ducks. Ekman-Larsson beat Jonas Hiller with a rising wrister to begin the round, and Mike Smith closed the pads on a Bobby Ryan forehander to end the contest. Antoine Vermette, Matthew Lombardi, Shane Doan and Keith Yandle scored in regulation for the Coyotes, who also won by a similar score against their division rivals in the shootout at home on Saturday night and have taken three of four overall. Smith picked up the win with 27 stops. Ryan Getzlaf totaled a goal and two assists for the Ducks, who have dropped three of their last five. Ryan, Matt Beleskey and Corey Perry also lit the lamp, while Hiller made 36 saves in the setback. The clubs finish off their three-game set in southern California on Wednesday.
Final Score: Los Angeles 5, Nashville 1
Los Angeles, CA (Sports Network) – Jeff Carter notched the fifth hat trick of his career to help the Los Angeles Kings to a 5-1 rout of the Nashville Predators on Monday. Slava Voynov had three assists while Mike Richards and Dwight King also scored for the Kings, who were coming off a loss to Vancouver on Saturday that had snapped a five-game winning streak. Jonathan Bernier posted 18 saves in the victory. Gabriel Bourque scored late in the game for the Predators, who have dropped three straight, five of six and seven of nine. Pekka Rinne gave up all five goals on just 13 shots before being pulled late in the contest.
Categorized in: NHL