Beck Malenstyn scored just 2:07 into the game on Monday night for the visiting Buffalo Sabres, who never trailed as they ended a 13-game losing streak with a 7-1 victory over the New York Islanders in Elmont, N.Y.
Jiri Kulich recorded his first career two-goal game, while Rasmus Dahlin set a career-high with four assists. The Sabres, who won for the first time since Nov. 23, set a season-high for goals in the win.
They had been outscored 54-28 during their 13-game losing streak (0-10-3). Buffalo scored the first six goals in the game, posting their most lopsided win since a 7-0 shutout of the Los Angeles Kings on Feb. 13 last season.
Dahlin’s four assists broke his previous best of three, which he had accomplished three times. Goalie Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen made 27 saves in the victory.
Lightning 4, Panthers 0
Nikita Kucherov scored the game-winning goal before being ejected, and Tampa Bay split its home-and-home series with Florida by shutting out the Stanley Cup champions in Sunrise, Fla.
Backup goalie Jonas Johansson stopped 36 shots for his first shutout since October 2023.
Kucherov scored early but was ejected late in the first period after a kneeing incident on Matthew Tkachuk, who needed help to get to the dressing room but returned to the game later.
Canucks 4, Sharks 3
Elias Pettersson scored twice and Quinn Hughes had two assists as Vancouver edged San Jose at home.
Brock Boeser and Kiefer Sherwood also scored for the Canucks, who snapped a three-game losing streak (0-1-2) and won for the second time in six games (2-2-2). Thatcher Demko made 26 saves, improving to 12-0-0 against the Sharks in his career.
For San Jose, William Eklund, Cody Ceci, and Luke Kunin scored. Rookie Macklin Celebrini had two assists in the loss, while Yaroslav Askarov stopped 20 shots in his first game against the Canucks.
Golden Knights 3, Ducks 1
Tomas Hertl scored the go-ahead goal in the third period and added an assist as Vegas completed a four-game regular-season sweep of Anaheim in Las Vegas.
The win marked coach Bruce Cassidy’s 119th victory with the Golden Knights, surpassing Gerard Gallant for the most in franchise history. Cassidy’s record with the team is now 119-59-20.
Tanner Pearson scored a short-handed goal, and Keegan Kolesar added a goal and an assist for Vegas, which won its fourth straight game and eighth in the last nine games. Adin Hill made 31 saves for his 50th career win.
Mason McTavish scored for Anaheim, and Lukas Dostal, who entered the game after John Gibson was injured, made 19 saves.
Wild 4, Blackhawks 3
Brock Faber scored the go-ahead goal early in the third period, and Minnesota held on for a win over Chicago.
Faber’s goal put the Wild ahead 3-2 with 17:17 remaining in the third. Kirill Kaprizov, Jared Spurgeon, and Marcus Foligno also scored for Minnesota, which snapped a four-game losing streak. The Wild extended their unbeaten streak to 14 games against Chicago (13-0-1).
For the Blackhawks, Connor Bedard, Nick Foligno, and Jason Dickinson scored. Chicago lost its second straight game after winning three in a row.
Stars 3, Utah Hockey Club 2
Casey DeSmith made 24 saves in his first start since Dec. 2, helping Dallas end a two-game skid with a win against Utah.
DeSmith had made 36 saves in a 2-1 win against Utah in his previous start. Jake Oettinger had started the next eight games, and DeSmith only appeared for 18 minutes in relief of Oettinger against Toronto on Wednesday.
Colin Blackwell, Roope Hintz, and Jamie Benn scored for Dallas, while Kevin Stenlund and Barrett Hayton scored for Utah. Karel Vejmelka made 26 saves for Utah, which had its eight-game point streak (6-0-2) ended.
Penguins 7, Flyers 3
Sidney Crosby scored a goal and three assists, matching the Pittsburgh career record for assists held by Hall of Famer Mario Lemieux, as the Penguins beat Philadelphia. Crosby and Lemieux each have 1,033 assists, tied for 12th in NHL history.
Michael Bunting scored twice, Rickard Rakell had a goal and two assists, Bryan Rust added a goal and an assist, and Philip Tomasino and Blake Lizotte also scored for Pittsburgh. Evgeni Malkin and Erik Karlsson each had two assists, and Tristan Jarry made 24 saves.
For Philadelphia, Egor Zamula, Noah Cates, and Sean Couturier scored. Samuel Ersson allowed five goals on 11 shots before being replaced by Aleksei Kolosov, who made six saves on seven shots.
Devils 5, Rangers 0
Jack Hughes scored twice and had an assist as New Jersey beat New York. The Devils scored three power-play goals in the win.
Hughes’ two goals came against goaltender Jonathan Quick, who allowed five goals on 29 shots. Timo Meier also scored on the power play, and Stefan Noesen and Dawson Mercer added goals in the third period.
The Rangers have lost 13 of their last 17 games.
Bruins 4, Capitals 1
Elias Lindholm and Charlie Coyle scored third-period goals within a span of 2:18, helping Boston come from behind to defeat Washington.
Brad Marchand led the Bruins with two goals and an assist, extending his points streak to 10 games.
Jakub Vrana scored for Washington, and the Bruins played half of the game without star winger David Pastrnak, who was injured in the second period.
Blues 4, Red Wings 0
Dylan Holloway scored his first career hat trick as the St. Louis Blues ended a three-game losing streak with a win over Detroit.
Jordan Binnington made 19 saves for his second shutout of the season, and Alexandre Texier also scored. The Blues had scored just one goal in each of their previous three games.
Cam Talbot made 17 saves for the Red Wings, who have lost three straight games.
Jets 5, Maple Leafs 2
Mark Scheifele scored three goals and had an assist as Winnipeg defeated Toronto.
Kyle Connor scored twice, and Gabriel Vilardi had three assists for the Jets, who have won two games in a row. Connor Hellebuyck made 23 saves.
John Tavares scored twice for Toronto, including his 200th goal as a Maple Leaf, becoming the fifth player in NHL history to score 200 goals for two different teams.
Blue Jackets 5, Canadiens 4
Dmitri Voronkov scored twice, and Kirill Marchenko scored the game-winning goal for Columbus in a win over Montreal.
Marchenko finished with a goal and two assists, while Sean Monahan and Zach Werenski each had three assists.
Patrik Laine left the game after the first period with an upper-body injury.
Predators 5, Hurricanes 2
Jonathan Marchessault scored two goals and added an assist as Nashville won back-to-back games for the first time since October, defeating Carolina.
Steven Stamkos, Ryan O’Reilly, and Mark Jankowski also scored for Nashville, which has won four of its last six games. Filip Forsberg provided three assists, and Juuse Saros made 25 saves.
Jordan Staal and Sebastian Aho scored for the Hurricanes, who have lost two of their last three games.
