Bruins keep Capitals winless in shootouts
Patrice Bergeron scored the only goal in the shootout, lifting the Boston Bruins past the Washington Capitals 3-2 Wednesday night in Washington.
After Bergeron beat Olie Kolzig, Tim Thomas snuffed a shot by Matt Pettinger to secure the victory. The Capitals are 0-4 in shootouts this season.
Thomas stopped 33 shots for the Bruins, who got first-period goals from Phil Kessel and Brad Stuart.
Predators 5, Blue Jackets 4: At Columbus, Ohio, David Legwand had two goals and an assist and Nashville beat the Blue Jackets to ruin the debut of interim coach Gary Agnew.
Agnew replaced Gerard Gallant, who was fired Monday, one day after a shutout loss dropped the league’s lowest-scoring team into last place in the Central Division.
Senators 4, Sabres 2: At Buffalo, N.Y., Peter Schaefer’s goal broke a third-period tie, helping struggling Ottawa beat the Sabres. Ottawa won for only the second time in nine games.
Sharks 4, Avalanche 3: At Denver, Joe Thornton and Patrick Marleau scored power-play goals 17 seconds apart in the third period and Evgeni Nabokov stopped 40 shots to lead San Jose past Colorado.
Islanders 3, Stars 0: At Dallas, Rick DiPietro stopped 35 shots for his first shutout of the season and seventh of his career, leading New York over the Stars.
Canadiens 3, Lightning 1: At Tampa, Fla., Sheldon Souray scored a pair of power-play goals, helping Montreal beat Tampa Bay.
Montreal captain Saku Koivu recorded his 335th assist with the Canadiens, tying him for 16th on the franchise’s career list with Claude Provost.
Flyers 7, Ducks 4: At Anaheim, Calif., Peter Forsberg returned to the Philadelphia lineup with a goal and an assist, and the Flyers scored on five of 11 shots against Jean-Sebastien Giguere to beat the Ducks and snap a franchise record-tying six-game losing streak.
Hurricanes 2, Rangers 1: At Raleigh, N.C., Rod Brind’Amour scored with 6:05 left in the third period to lift Carolina over New York.
Malkin can stay
Evgeni Malkin was cleared to stay with the Pittsburgh Penguins after a federal judge denied a demand by his former Russian club that he be yanked from the NHL.
Metallurg Magnitogorsk, a Russian Super League team, claims that Malkin is under contract in his native country. The club sought a preliminary injunction that would have banned the forward from playing for the Penguins until the matter is resolved.
But the ruling by U.S. District Judge Loretta A. Preska clears the way for Malkin, a star rookie with Penguins, and minor leaguers Andrei Taratukhin of the Calgary Flames and Alexei Mikhnov of the Edmonton Oilers to stick with the NHL franchises.