. . . SHARKS RALLY TO SNAP KINGS’ HOME WINNING STREAK
The Kings raced to 2-0 and 3-1 leads, but the Sharks scored four unanswered goals – including a pair from both Joe Pavelski (2-1—3) and Brent Burns (2-1—3) – to snap their intrastate rival’s home winning streak at six games.

* Pavelski extended his point streak to five games (5-5—10), a stretch that includes a pair of three-point performances (also Dec. 17 at TOR: 1-2—3). He ranks fifth in the League with 18 goals and shares eighth place with 36 points this season (34 GP).

* Burns, who has 4-4—8 over his past four outings, scored his 13th and 14th goals of the season (34 GP) to move two ahead of Justin Faulk for the most by a defenseman. His 31 points rank third among blueliners.

* Joe Thornton (1-2—3) also registered three points to extend his point streak to five games (2-5—7).

FORMER BLACKHAWKS GUIDE STARS TO TOP OF STANDINGS
Led by former Blackhawks teammates Antti Niemi (20 SV) and Patrick Sharp (1-1—2), the Stars earned their third consecutive win and sixth victory in their past eight games to move into sole possession of first place in the NHL standings.

* At 26-7-2 (54 points), the Stars continued their best start to a season – in terms of wins and points – in the franchise’s 48-year history. Their 54 points are two more than the Capitals (25-6-2, 52 points), who have two games in hand.

* Niemi, who backstopped the Blackhawks to the Stanley Cup in 2009-10, recorded his 35th career shutout and third of the season (23 GP). He improved to 8-8-1 in 17 career appearances against his former club (2.71 GAA, .914 SV%, 3 SO).

* Sharp, who won three championships with the Blackhawks (239-272—511 in 679 GP), scored his first career goal against the team in his first meeting following an offseason trade. He now has recorded at least one goal against all 30 NHL clubs.

* Johnny Oduya (0-1—1) also found the scoresheet in his first game against the Blackhawks since joining the Stars during the offseason. Oduya won two Stanley Cups with Chicago over the last four seasons (9-34—43 in 219 GP).

ALLEN, TARASENKO LEAD BLUES PAST BRUINS
Jake Allen stopped all 32 shots he faced and Vladimir Tarasenko potted the tiebreaking goal early in the third period to propel the Blues to their fourth victory in their past five games.

* Allen moved into a share of the League lead (w/ Corey Crawford) with his fifth shutout of the season (27 GP). He also ranks in the top 10 in wins (t-4th; 16), goals-against average (6th; 2.06) and save percentage (6th; .928).

* Tarasenko scored his 22nd goal of the season (35 GP) to tie Jamie Benn for the most in the NHL. He also shares fifth overall with 22-16—38, including 6-5—11 during a seven-game point streak.

* The Blues improved to 7-1-0 in their last eight visits to TD Garden dating to Jan. 21, 2002 (BOS: 1-2-5).

DOWN TO THE WIRE
Six of Tuesday’s 10 games featured one-goal margins, with the winning goal in each contest recorded in the third period or later:

* Brandon Pirri and Aleksander Barkov both scored in the shootout to lead the Panthers to their fifth consecutive victory, their second such winning streak of the season (also Nov. 27 – Dec. 4). At 19-12-4 (42 points), Florida climbed within one point of Montreal (20-13-3, 43 points) – who lost in regulation – for first place in the Atlantic Division.

* Derick Brassard registered 2-1—3 and Mats Zuccarello (1-1—2) notched the winning goal at 2:37 of overtime to help the Rangers snap a three-game skid (0-3-0). Brassard has three multi-goal performances in his last nine outings (also Dec. 6 vs. OTT: 2-0—2 and Dec. 11 at EDM: 2-0—2); he had four such games in his first 510 NHL appearances.

* Darcy Kuemper made 24 saves, including nine in the final period, to backstop the Wild to their fourth win in their last six games as well as a 7-2-3 record in their past 12 contests. Kuemper improved to 4-0-4 in nine appearances this season (2.13 GAA, .926 SV%, 1 SO); that includes a 3-0-1 record at Xcel Energy Center (1.97 GAA, .936 SV%).

* The Devils raced to a 3-0 lead in the opening period and ultimately held off the Red Wings to snap a three-game skid (0-2-1). Sergey Kalinin scored the winning goal early in the final frame, while Kyle Palmieri (1-1—2) added his 14th of the season (35 GP), equaling a career high achieved in 2013-14 (71 GP) and 2014-15 (57 GP) – both with the Ducks.

* Shane Doan (2-1—3) registered his 50th career three-point performance – including a pair of goals in 14 seconds – to help the Coyotes improve to 3-1-1 in their last five games and halt the Maple Leafs’ point streak at six contests (4-0-2). The teams combined forthree goals in a 21-second span of the first period, a record for the Maple Leafs and two seconds shy of equaling the Coyotes/Jets mark established on Dec. 17, 1986 at CHI (0:19).

* Daniel Sedin posted the tiebreaking goal with 8:51 remaining in regulation to lift the Canucks to a 2-0-1 record in their past three games, their longest point streak since Oct. 24 – Nov. 2 (3-0-2). Vancouver went 9-for-10 on the penalty kill, the first time they have successfully defended nine power plays since Oct. 21, 2007 at CBJ (also 9-for-10).

MILESTONES & BENCHMARKS
* Panthers forward Jaromir Jagr collected one assist to move within five of becoming the sixth player in NHL history to record 1,100 career assists. Teammate Roberto Luongo(15 SV) earned his 415th career win to move within eight of tying Tony Esposito (423) for seventh place in NHL history.

* Coyotes captain Shane Doan (2-1—3) played in his 1,418th career game to move pastLuke Richardson (1,417) and into sole possession of 29th place on the NHL’s all-time games played list. Doan, who has spent his entire career with the Coyotes/Jets, also scored his 375th and 376th NHL goals to move within three of tying Dale Hawerchuk(379) for the most in franchise history.

* Senators forward Ryan Dzingel, a seventh-round selection (204th overall) in the 2011 NHL Draft, made his League debut (5:25 TOI).

LOOSE PUCKS
The Rangers and Stars both earned their 14th home wins of the season to tie the Blackhawks for the League lead . . . The Bruins failed to collect at least one point for just the second time in their past 16 games (11-2-3) . . . The Coyotes improved to 10-1-1 in their last 12 meetings with the Maple Leafs dating to Jan. 14, 2006 (TOR: 2-9-1) . . . Stars captain Jamie Benn (22-24—46) registered one assist to tie teammate Tyler Seguin(19-27—46) for second in NHL scoring, four points behind Patrick Kane (21-29—50) . . . Senators captain Erik Karlsson posted one assist to extend his point streak to five games (3-3—6). His 29 assists share the League lead (w/ Patrick Kane), while his 38 points pace all defenseman and are tied for fifth overall (w/ Vladimir Tarasenko) . . . Lightning forward Jonathan Marchessault scored to extend his point streak to a career-high five games (3-2—5). He had 3-1—4 in his first 17 NHL appearances . . . Kings forward Tyler Toffoli (2-0—2) recorded his sixth career multi-goal game and third of the season . . . Ducks forward Carl Hagelin, who compiled 58-72—130 in his first four NHL seasons with the Rangers (266 GP), logged 14:09 in his return to Madison Square Garden . . . ICYMI: The Kings wore special holiday-themed jerseys during pregame warm-ups that will auctioned to benefit the victims of the San Bernardino tragedy . . . Professional golfer and Dallas native Jordan Spieth dropped the ceremonial opening puck prior to the Blackhawks-Stars game.

SNEAK PEEK AT SATURDAY’S ACTION
All Times Eastern
Buffalo @ Boston, 7:00 p.m., MSG-B, BELL TV, NESN
Columbus @ Tampa Bay, 7:00 p.m., FS-O, SUN
Montreal @ Washington, 7:00 p.m., NHLN-US, CBC, CITY, TVAS, CSN-DC
New Jersey @ Carolina, 7:00 p.m., MSG+, FS-CR
Dallas @ St. Louis, 8:00 p.m., FS-SW+, FS-MW
Detroit @ Nashville, 8:00 p.m., FS-D+, FS-TN
Pittsburgh @ Minnesota, 8:00 p.m., ROOT, FS-N, FS-WI
Los Angeles @ Arizona, 9:00 p.m., FS-W, FS-A
Edmonton @ Vancouver, 10:00 p.m., CBC

the above information was provided by the NHL PR department