Colorado doubles up Vancouver

Milan Hejduk scored twice and Peter Forsberg had three assists, including two in a four-goal spurt in the second period, to lead the Colorado Avalanche to a 6-3 win over the Vancouver Canucks on Wednesday in Denver.

Forsberg replaced Ryan Smyth on the second line to start the second period, and the line of Hejduk (two goals, one assist), Paul Stastny (one goal, two assists) and Forsberg combined for nine points after that.

The Avalanche broke a seventh-place tie with the Canucks in the tight Western Conference playoff race.

Wild 3, Oilers 1: At St. Paul, Minn., Sean Hill, Branko Radivojevic and Brian Rolston scored goals and Mikko Koivu added three assists to lead Minnesota over Edmonton and into first place in the Northwest Division.

Blue Jackets 4, Blackhawks 0: At Columbus, Ohio, Clay Wilson had a goal and his first assist in his second NHL game and Fredrik Norrena made 17 saves as the Blue Jackets blanked Chicago to snap a three-game losing streak.

Ducks 2, Kings 1 (SO): At Anaheim, Calif., Mathieu Schneider and Teemu Selanne scored for the Ducks in a shootout and the defending Stanley Cup champions beat Los Angeles to clinch a playoff berth.

Around the league

Sidney Crosby, sidelined for 28 of the Pittsburgh Penguins’ past 31 games with a sprained right ankle, went through an optional practice without problems and plans to play tonight against the New York Islanders. … Philadelphia Flyers forward Simon Gagne reiterated that he will sit out the rest of the season because of lingering symptoms from a series of concussions. … The Carolina Hurricanes have signed first-round draft pick Brandon Sutter to a three-year contract and say he will report to their American Hockey League affiliate in Albany.