Kukla's Korner Hockey

Kukla's Korner Hockey

NHL Short Notes

04/01/2016 at 10:38am EDT

VICTORIES PROPEL DIVISION LEADERS . . .
The Stars, Kings and Panthers moved into sole possession of first place in their respective divisions via Thursday wins:

* Jamie Benn registered 1-1—2, including his 40th goal of the season, to power the Stars to their sixth victory in their past seven games as well as sole possession of first place in the Central Division and Western Conference. Benn became the first Dallas player to reach the 40-goal milestone since 1993-94 (Mike Modano: 50). Benn, who ranks second in both goals and points, also equaled a career high with his 87th point of the campaign (40-47—87).

* Jonathan Quick stopped all 21 shots he faced to guide the Kings to their second win in their last three contests and back into first place in the Pacific Division. At 46-26-5 (97 points), Los Angeles matched its franchise record for victories in one season, last achieved in 2013-14 (46-28-8, 100 points). Quick also equaled a career high and team record with his 39th win of the campaign (2.20 GAA, .919 SV%, 5 SO), a mark he established in 2009-10.

* Jonathan Huberdeau (2-0—2) posted his sixth career multi-goal game to lift the Panthers to their third victory in their past four outings as well as sole possession of first place in the Atlantic Division. At 43-25-9 (95 points), Florida matched its franchise record for wins in one season, set in 1999-00 (43-27-12, 98 points). Huberdeau scored for the fourth straight contest (5-1—6) and also equaled a career high for points in one campaign (18-36—54).

. . . PENGUINS, ISLANDERS GAIN GROUND IN METROPOLITAN
The Penguins and Islanders both picked up wins to gain ground in the Metropolitan Division, where teams Nos. 2-4 are separated by just three points:


* Kris Letang recorded 1-1—2, including what stood as the winning goal, to lead the Penguins to their 10th victory in their last 11 games as well as second place in the division. Pittsburgh finished March with a 12-4-0 record, tied for the second-most wins in one calendar month in franchise history (behind March 2013: 15-0-0).

* John Tavares (2-0—2) notched his third multi-goal game of the season to power the Islanders to their third straight victory overall as well as a 9-1-1 record in their past 11 games at Barclays Center. Anders Lee provided the tiebreaking goal early in the third period after scoring the equalizer (also in the final frame) in Tuesday’s win vs. CAR.

SPOILER ALERT
Several teams played the spoiler role against their respective opponents:

* The Hurricanes scored a pair of third-period goals to spoil the return of former captainEric Staal and the Rangers’ chance to clinch a playoff berth. ICYMI: Staal, who ranks second in franchise history in goals (322), assists (453) and points (775), received a video tribute and standing ovation in his first trip back to PNC Arena.

* Cody Ceci potted the tiebreaking goal with 3:57 remaining in regulation to help the Senators snap the Wild’s season-high winning streak at six games. Jean-Gabriel Pageau(1-2—3) matched a career high for points in one game, while Craig Anderson (23 SV) reached the 30-win milestone for the third time in his career.

* Jannik Hansen (1-1—2) notched the winning goal with 5:03 left in the third period to halt the Canucks’ losing streak at nine games (0-8-1) and prevent the Sharks from gaining ground in the Pacific Division. Hansen reached the 20-goal milestone for the first time in his career.

* Mike Condon stopped all 26 shots he faced to earn his first career shutout and help the Canadiens spoil the Lightning’s bid to remain atop the Atlantic Division. David Desharnais picked up the winning goal while playing in his 400th NHL game.

MILESTONES & BENCHMARKS
* Panthers forward Jaromir Jagr (0-2—2) reached the 60-point milestone for the 18th time in his career (25-36—61). Via Elias, only two players have more such seasons in NHL history: Gordie Howe (21) and Wayne Gretzky (19).

* Devils forward Adam Henrique (0-1—1) and Rangers forward Mats Zuccarello (1-0—1) each recorded their 200th NHL point.

* Hurricanes forward Patrick Brown (11 GP) and Devils forward Blake Pietila (5 GP) each posted their first NHL goal.

* Maple Leafs forward Tobias Lindberg (0-1—1), Hurricanes forward Sergey Tolchinsky(0-1—1), Senators defenseman Ben Harpur and Blue Jackets forward Sonny Milano all made their NHL debuts.

STREAKING
* Wild forward Erik Haula (1-0—1) extended his point streak to a career-high 10 games (5-6—11), matching a franchise record established by Andrew Brunette from March 7-27, 2002 (5-12—17).

* Stars forward Ales Hemsky (0-2—2) extended his point streak to six games (2-5—7).

* Sharks defenseman Brent Burns (0-2—2) extended his assist/point streak to five games (1-7—8). Coyotes teammates Martin Hanzal (3-4—7) and Anthony Duclair (2-4—6) also extended their point streaks to five games.

LOOSE PUCKS
Johan Larsson (2-0—2) and Cal O’Reilly (2-0—2) each registered their first career multi-goal performance to help the Sabres extend their home point streak against the Maple Leafs to 11 games dating to Dec. 16, 2011 (10-0-1), including seven straight wins . . . Kings forward Jeff Carter (2-1—3) and Penguins forward Phil Kessel (2-0—2) also posted multi-goal games . . . Senators captain Erik Karlsson (1-1—2) equaled a career high with his 78th point of the season (15-63—78) . . . Panthers forward Aleksander Barkov scored his 24th goal of the season (61 GP), matching his total from his first 125 NHL games . . . Stars forward Patrick Sharp reached the 20-goal milestone for the eighth time in his career . . . The Department of Player Safety fined Capitals forward Jason Chimera$5,000 for butt-ending Flyers defenseman Shayne Gostisbehere . . . REMINDER: The Department of Player Safety will have a hearing today with Blackhawks defenseman Duncan Keith for high-sticking Wild forward Charlie Coyle . . . ICYMI: The NHL received Sports Emmy Award nominations for NHL Tonight and Road to the NHL Winter Classic.

TODAY’S CLINCHING SCENARIOS
* The Penguins (idle) will clinch a playoff berth if the Red Wings lose to the Wild in any fashion OR if the Bruins lose to the Blues in any fashion.

* The Rangers (idle) will clinch a playoff berth in the Bruins lose to the Blues in regulationAND the Red Wings lose to the Wild in any fashion.

* The Predators (idle) will clinch a playoff berth if the Avalanche lose to the Capitals in regulation.

SNEAK PEEK AT FRIDAY’S ACTION
All Times Eastern
Minnesota @ Detroit, 7:30 p.m., NHLN-US, FS-N, FS-D+
Boston @ St. Louis, 8:00 p.m., NESN, FS-MW
Chicago @ Winnipeg, 8:00 p.m., CSN-CH, TSN3
Washington @ Colorado, 9:00 p.m., CSN-DC, ALT
Vancouver @ Anaheim, 10:00 p.m., SNP, PRIME, FS-SD
NBCSN Channel Finder
Sportsnet Channel Finder
NHLN Channel Finder

WILD CARD HOPEFULS MEET IN DETROIT
Two teams battling for playoff spots face off when the Wild (38-29-11, 87 points) visit the Red Wings (38-28-11, 87 points) at Joe Louis Arena. Minnesota, who currently occupies the final Wild Card spot in the Western Conference, is trying to bounce back after seeing its six-game winning streak snapped on Thursday. Detroit, the first club on the outside of the postseason picture in the Eastern Conference, also is looking to rebound from a loss as it attempts to extend its 24-season playoff streak. This marks the second and final meeting of 2015-16 between these teams; the Wild won their first matchup, 3-1, on Dec. 28 at Xcel Energy Center, but the Red Wings own a 3-1-1 record in their past five head-to-head games dating to March 22, 2014 (MIN: 2-1-2).

the above information was provided by the NHL PR department

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