Alexander Ovechkin scored twice as the Washington Capitals doubled up the Tampa Bay Lightning 4-2 and took over sole possession of the Southeast Division lead with their fourth straight win. Vincent Lecavalier had a goal and an assist for Tampa in the loss.
SPIN: Ovechkin has rebounded nicely from his woeful start to tie Steven Stamkos for the league lead in goals with 25. Joel Ward had a goal and an assist for Washington but is an inconsistent player. Ben Bishop has looked good in his first two starts with Tampa Bay since being traded from Ottawa, stopping 34 of 37 shots in this one. Bishop could be a sleeper goalie that can be a sneaky netminder to play.
Minnesota blanked Columbus 3-0 behind a 24-save effort from Niklas Backstrom. Ryan Suter, Charlie Coyle and Jason Pominville all scored for the Wild as they chase Vancouver for the Northwest Division crown.
SPIN: The Wild is giving it everything they can and have gone 16-8 in their last 24 games. They look like a team that can make the playoffs but the strength for the rest of the season will be goaltending. Backstrom could be one of the best goalies in fantasy down the stretch.
St. Louis blanked Detroit 1-0 on a Chris Porter goal and a 28-save effort from Brian Elliott. Jimmy Howard stopped 24-of-25 shots in the loss.
SPIN: The Blues have won four in a row to climb into the seventh spot in the West and have 12 road wins this season, the second best total in the West.
Dallas bumped off San Jose 5-4 in the shootout to end the Sharks’ seven-game winning streak.
SPIN: Dallas erased 2-0 deficits and 4-2 deficits in this game so the Stars still have some fight left in them.They won’t be a great fantasy play down the stretch but can steal some points here and there. Alex Chiasson scored twice for Dallas and Jamie Benn had a pair of assists for the Stars. Brent Burns picked up his sixth goal of the season for San Jose in the loss and has been one of the more consistent offensive threats for the Sharks. Justin Braun had two assists for San Jose.
Florida downed Ottawa 2-1 with Scott Clemmensen turning aside 40-of-41 shots to get a rare win.
SPIN: Ottawa went 0-for-5 on the power play in this one and that contributed to the loss. The Senators had goaltender Craig Anderson come back after missing 18 games with an ankle injury and he made 15 saves in his first game back. Use him with a little caution until he gets back up to his Vezina candidate form from earlier this season.
Chicago clinched a playoff berth with a 5-3 win over Nashville.
SPIN: Patrick Kane and Andrew Shaw each had a goal and an assist for the Hawks as they continue to roll along. Pekka Rinne made an appearance in his 29th consecutive game for the Predators and made 35 saves in the loss. We’re near the end of the season and Nashville could still make the playoffs. But will they try to rest Rinne for a game or two in an attempt to keep him fresh should they make it there?
Buffalo took down New Jersey 3-2 in a shootout. Sabres have won three in a row and are just four points out of the final playoff spot.
SPIN: Ryan Miller made 37 saves for the Sabres and got just enough support to get the game into overtime. New Jersey was without Ilya Kovalchuk for a seventh straight game. They’ve gone 0-4-3 without him in the lineup and that is also part of the Stat of the Night below.
Anaheim downed the LA Kings 4-3 in a shootout.
SPIN: Jeff Carter picked up his 23rd goal of the season for the Kings and Dustin Brown added his 15th in the losing effort. Matt Belesky had a goal and an assist for the Ducks and Corey Perry lit the lamp as well in the win.
Multiple Goal Scorers
Ovechkin-WSH, Chiasson-DAL,
Stat of the Night
Washington is 13-1-1 in its last 15 home games against Tampa Bay.
Stat of the Night II-Bedeviling Brodeur
Since getting win #666, Brodeur and the Devils are 0-4-3.
Three Stars of the Night
1 Ovechkin
2 Clemmensen
3 Miller
Monday’s Games (all times ET)
Carolina at Boston 7pm Hurricanes need a win to salvage the season and any playoff hopes.
NY Rangers at Toronto 7pm
Calgary at Colorado 9pm Here’s the pillow fight for the Western Conference basement.
Edmonton at Anaheim 10pm Can the Oilers’ get a pair of much needed points?
Phoenix at Vancouver 10pm Coyotes look for a fourth straight win to close the gap to the 8th spot.
