* Andrew Hammond made 31 saves, including 10 in the final period, to improve to 12-0-1 since making his first NHL start on Feb. 18. He is the first goaltender to pick up at least one point in each of his first 13 NHL starts since 1996-97, when Patrick Lalimewent 14-0-2 in his first 16 starts with the Penguins.

* Hammond, however, yielded more than two goals for the first time in his career. He shares the NHL record for most consecutive starts to begin a career without allowing more than two goals (12), a mark established by Frank Brimsek of the Bruins in 1938-39.

* The line of Kyle Turris (2-1—3), Milan Michalek (1-2—3) and Mark Stone (0-3—3) combined for 3-6—9.

* Turris posted his second multi-goal (also Dec. 17 at NJD: 2-0—2) and three-point game of the season (also Feb. 21 vs. FLA: 1-2—3); Michalek recorded his 200th NHL goal and second three-point performance of the season (also Feb. 14 vs. EDM: 2-1—3); and Stone set a career high for assists in one contest – he ranks third among rookies with 18-31—49.

* Ryan scored his fifth game-winning goal of the season, matching a career high set in 2010-11 (w/ ANA). He also notched the decisive goal in the Senators’ last three wins over the Bruins: on Dec. 28, 2013, Dec. 13, 2014 (in a SO) and Jan. 3, 2015 (in OT).

* ICYMI: Curtis Lazar enjoyed one of the hamburgers fans threw onto the ice in celebration of the victory.

. . . JAGR CLIMBS ALL-TIME GOALS LIST AS PANTHERS ALSO MOVE UP
Jaromir Jagr posted 1-1—2, including his 718th NHL goal, to help the Panthers snap a two-game skid and pick up their first home-ice win over the Red Wings since Dec. 10, 2013 (0-3-0).

* At 32-25-14 (78 points), the Panthers moved within five points of the Bruins (36-24-11, 83 points) – who lost in regulation – for the final Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference. The teams face off three more times this season: on Saturday at FLA,March 31 at BOS and April 9 at FLA.

* With his goal, Jagr moved past Phil Esposito (717) and into sole possession of fifth place in NHL history. Jagr (718-1,073—1,791) also moved within eight points of Ron Francis (549-1,249—1,798) for fourth all-time.

* Brandon Pirri scored for the fourth consecutive game, matching a career high set earlier this season (Jan. 31 – Feb. 5: 4-1—5). He has 14 goals in his last 19 appearances dating to Jan. 19.

* Roberto Luongo made 26 saves in his return from a six-game absence. Overall, he is 24-16-11 with a 2.35 goals-against average, .922 save percentage and two shutouts in 53 appearances.

* Jonathan Huberdeau collected one assist. He shares the team lead with 11-32—43, including 2-8—10 in his past nine outings.

PRICE’S FLAWLESS PERFORMANCE LIFTS CANADIENS TO TOP OF STANDINGS
Carey Price stopped all 31 shots he faced to record his 33rd career shutout (eighth this season) and lead the Canadiens to their third victory in their past four contests.

* At 45-20-7 (97 points), the Canadiens leapfrogged the idle Ducks (45-20-7, 97 points) for first place in the NHL standings, where the top seven teams are separated by five points:

* Price established a career high with his League-leading 39th win of the season; he also paces the NHL in goals-against average (1.89) and save percentage (.937). Price is just three victories shy of the franchise record for wins in one season, a mark shared by Ken Dryden (1975-76) and Jacques Plante (1955-56 and 1961-62).

* Price also matched a career high with his eighth shutout of the season (also 2010-11), which is tied for second in the League behind Marc-Andre Fleury (9). His 33 career shutouts rank fifth in Canadiens history, one behind Bill Durnan (34).

* Max Pacioretty registered 1-1—2, including his 35th goal of the season – which places fourth in the NHL. Elias says Pacioretty, who scored a career-high 39 goals in 2013-14, is the first Canadiens player to post at least 35 goals in consecutive seasons since Vincent Damphousse in 1992-93 (39) and 1993-94 (40).

* Brendan Gallagher reached the 20-goal milestone for the first time in his career and also set a career high with his 42nd point. Dale Weise (1-1—2) added his fourth career game-winning goal and first since March 16, 2014 at BUF.

* Tomas Plekanec (21-29—50) collected two assists to reach 50 points for the fifth time in his career and first time since 2011-12 (17-35—52).

* The Canadiens have earned at least one point in each of their last 10 meetings with the Hurricanes dating to April 5, 2012 (8-0-2), including five consecutive victories. They also have won eight of the last nine head-to-head games at Bell Centre dating to Nov. 13, 2010, including five straight.

GAUDREAU PROPELS FLAMES BACK INTO PLAYOFF POSITION . . .
Johnny Gaudreau recorded 1-2—3, including his 20th goal of the season, to help the Flames snap a two-game skid and pick up their first home-ice win over the Flyers since March 22, 2001 (0-4-1).

* At 39-27-5 (83 points), the Flames leapfrogged the idle Kings (34-22-14, 82 points) to reclaim third place in the Pacific Division. They also moved within one point of the Canucks (40-26-4, 84 points) – who lost in regulation – for second place.

* Gaudreau (20-36—56) posted his fourth three-point performance of the season – and second in his past four games (also March 13 vs. TOR: 1-2—3) – to move into first in rookie scoring, one point ahead of Filip Forsberg (21-34—55).

* Per Elias, Gaudreau became the first Flames rookie to collect at least 56 points in one season since Sergei Makarov in 1989-90 (24-62—86). Joe Nieuwendyk holds the Flames rookie record with 51-41—92 in 1987-88.

* Jiri Hudler and Kris Russell each added two assists. Hudler matched a career high with his 37th assist of the season (68 GP), a mark set in 2013-14 (75 GP). Russell has 2-8—10 in his past eight outings.

* TJ Brodie, Sean Monahan and Dennis Wideman also scored. Brodie established a career high with his third game-winning goal of the season, Monahan notched his team-leading 28th goal of the campaign and Wideman added his 13th (equaling a career high achieved in 2007-08 and 2008-09 w/ BOS).

* Karri Ramo made 26 saves to earn his fourth victory in his past five decisions. Overall, he is 14-8-1 with a 2.54 goals-against average, .914 save percentage and two shutouts in 29 appearances.

. . . STAFFORD, JETS EDGE BLUES TO MAINTAIN LAST WILD CARD SPOT . . .
Drew Stafford notched the tying goal with 6:44 remaining in regulation and also scored in the shootout to propel the Jets to their third consecutive victory overall and first win over the Blues since Oct. 18, 2013 (0-5-2).

* At 36-23-12 (84 points), the Jets maintained the final Wild Card spot in the Western Conference, moving two points ahead of the idle Kings (34-22-14, 82 points) – the first club on the outside of the playoff picture. They also moved within one point of the Wild (39-25-7, 85 points) – who lost in regulation – for the first Wild Card spot in the conference.

* Stafford extended his point streak to four games (3-2—5) and has 6-5—11 in 15 games since joining the Jets (9-15—24 in 50 GP w/ BUF).

* Andrew Ladd recorded the decisive goal in the shootout, the eighth such tally of his career and first since April 1, 2014 at PHX. Ladd also posted the game-winning goal for the Jets in their last outing on Tuesday vs. SJS.

* Ondrej Pavelec made 32 saves through overtime – and stopped an additional two attempts in the shootout – to pick up his third consecutive win (1.30 GAA, .955 SV%).

* The Jets improved to 10-2-2 in their last 14 home games dating to Jan. 13. They also earned their first win of the season when trailing after two periods (1-19-4).

. . . CLOSEST CONTENDERS ALSO PICK UP WINS
The Sharks, Avalanche and Stars – three of the closest teams on the outside of the playoff picture in the Western Conference – also recorded wins on Thursday:

* Logan Couture (1-1—2) and Joe Thornton (0-2—2) both collected two points to power the Sharks to their fifth consecutive victory over the Maple Leafs and ninth win in their last 10 head-to-head meetings dating to Dec. 3, 2005. Thornton became the 19th player in NHL history to record 900 assists (356-900—1,256). Antti Niemi made 27 saves to improve to 5-1-0 in six career appearances vs. TOR (1.67 GAA, .937 SV%).Tomas Hertl, Melker Karlsson and Tommy Wingels also scored for the Sharks, who are 5-3-0 in their past eight outings.

* Semyon Varlamov made 28 saves to earn his sixth consecutive personal win and lead the Avalanche to their sixth victory in their last seven contests. Varlamov’s six straight wins match a career high last achieved March 25 – April 5, 2014. He has a 1.17 goals-against average, .963 save percentage and one shutout during the current run.Freddie Hamilton scored his first career goal (18 GP), which proved to be the game-winner. Gabriel Landeskog and Ryan O’Reilly each added 1-1—2, while Matt Duchene and Jarome Iginla supplied the other goals.

* The Stars scored twice in an 83-second span of the second period to break a 0-0 tie and pick up their fourth victory in their past five outings. Kari Lehtonen made 31 saves to reach the 30-win milestone for the fifth time in his career and second straight season (33 in 2013-14). He improved to 16-5-2 versus Eastern Conference opponents this season, including an 8-0-1 mark in his last 10 such games. Jamie Benn recorded 1-1—2, including his fifth game-winning goal of the season. Rookie Brett Ritchie added his sixth goal of the campaign.

OVECHKIN POWERS CAPITALS TO FIRST ROAD WIN OVER WILD
Alex Ovechkin scored his League-leading 46th and 47th goals of the season to power the Capitals to third consecutive victory overall and first all-time win against the Wild in Minnesota (1-6-1).

* At 39-23-10 (88 points), the Capitals tied the Penguins (39-22-10, 88 points) – in terms of points – for third place in the Metropolitan Division. Pittsburgh, however, holds one game in hand and owns the ROW tiebreaker (PIT: 36, WSH: 35).

* Ovechkin recorded his 13th multi-goal game of the season – also tops in the NHL and five more than the next-closest players (Joe Pavelski and Tyler Seguin). Ovechkin paces the League with 98 multi-goal performances since his debut in 2005-06. Jarome Iginla ranks second in that span with 66.

* Ovechkin also posted his League-leading 11th game-winning goal of the season, matching a career high achieved in 2007-08 and 2010-11. Max Pacioretty ranks second with nine such tallies this season.

* With his performance, Ovechkin moved into first place in the NHL with 47-26—73, one point more than Nicklas Backstrom (18-54—72), Sidney Crosby (23-49—72) andJohn Tavares (33-39—72).

* Braden Holtby made 28 saves to pick up his third consecutive win and improve to 35-18-9 overall. Only Olie Kolzig has recorded more wins for the Capitals in one season (41 in 1999-00 and 37 in 2000-01).

DANO’S CAREER PERFORMANCE IGNITES BLUE JACKETS’ RALLY
Down 2-0 in the second period, the Blue Jackets scored six unanswered goals – highlighted by 2-1—3 from rookie Marko Dano – to pick up their fifth consecutive road victory, one shy of the franchise record set Jan. 19 – Feb. 18, 2011.

* The Blue Jackets improved to 5-1-0 in their last six games overall. They also earned their first win in Vancouver since Oct. 5, 2009, snapping a seven-game skid (0-4-3).

* The Blue Jackets matched a franchise record – for one game – with six consecutive goals. They also scored six straight on Nov. 25, 2013 at TOR (6-0 W).

* Dano notched his first career multi-goal and three-point performances. The Eisenstadt, Austria, native has 4-4—8 in his past eight outings and 7-7—14 overall this season (25 GP).

* Alexander Wennberg (1-1—2) added his third career multi-point game. Cam Atkinson, Rene Bourque and Scott Hartnell also scored; Hartnell extended his point streak to six contests (6-1—7).

* Sergei Bobrovsky made 38 saves, including 20 in the first period, to improve to 5-1-0 in his past six decisions. Overall, he is 21-17-2 with a 2.80 goals-against average, .914 save percentage and one shutout in 41 appearances.

LOOSE PUCKS
Despite suffering the shootout loss, the Blues extended their point streak against the Jets/Thrashers to 13 games dating to Nov. 8, 2009 (10-0-3). That includes a 4-0-2 mark in six all-time visits to MTS Centre . . . Penguins captain Sidney Crosby and Flyers forward Jakub Voracek both posted their 49th assists of the season, second in the NHL to Nicklas Backstrom (54). Crosby also is tied for second in the League with 72 points, while Voracek ranks fifth with 70 . . . Coyotes defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson (2-0—2) recorded his fourth career multi-goal game and first since Jan. 28, 2014 vs. LAK (2-0—2). He leads all defensemen with 19 goals this season, one ahead of Erik Karlsson . . . Four players – Ryan Spooner (2-0—2), Torey Krug (1-1—2),Carl Soderberg (1-1—2) and David Pastrnak (0-2—2) – registered multi-point games for the Bruins. Spooner posted his second career multi-goal performance, both at OTT (also March 10: 2-0—2), while Soderberg snapped a 24-game drought with his first goal since Jan. 17 vs. CBJ . . . Wild forward Thomas Vanek collected one assist to extend his point streak to six games (4-3—7), his longest since Jan. 12-21, 2014 (3-5—8 in 6 GP w/ NYI) . . . Blues forward T.J. Oshie scored in the shootout. His 52.5% career efficiency (31-for-59) ranks second among active skaters with a minimum of 25 attempts, behind Frans Nielsen (38-for-70, 54.3%) . . . Red Wings forward Erik Colereached the 20-goal milestone for the sixth time in his career and first time since 2011-12 . . . Maple Leafs defenseman Jake Gardiner snapped a 44-game drought with his first goal since Dec. 6 vs. VAN . . . Coyotes captain Shane Doan played in his 1,384th NHL game, tying Larry Robinson for 37th place in League history . . . Blues defenseman Zbynek Michalek (700), Wild forward Sean Bergenheim (500), Avalanche forward John Mitchell (400) and Maple Leafs forward Trevor Smith (100) also played in milestone games . . . Hurricanes defenseman and Montreal native Danny Biega made his NHL debut in his hometown . . . ICYMI: Boston University forward Jack Eichel, the No. 2 North American skater in Central Scouting’s mid-season rankings for the 2015 NHL Draft, was named one of 10 finalists for the 2015 Hobey Baker Award.

The current playoff matchups through Thursday’s games:

SNEAK PEEK AT FRIDAY’S ACTION
All Times Eastern
New Jersey @ Buffalo, 7:00 p.m., MSG+, MSG-B, BELL TV
Detroit @ Tampa Bay, 7:30 p.m., NHLN-US, SN360, TVA, FS-D, SUN
Colorado @ Anaheim, 10:00 p.m., ALT, FS-W
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