Backstrom’s OT goal lifts Caps over Isles

NHL: Nicklas Backstrom scored 11:09 into overtime to lift the Washington Capitals to a 2-1 victory and even their first-round playoff series at 2-all against the New York Islanders in Uniondale, New York.

Alex Ovechkin also scored and assisted on the decisive goal, which came off a faceoff to the right of the Islanders net. Backstrom dug the puck out in the right corner, worked his way up the boards and snapped a shot near the blue line that went through a crowd and sneaked inside the far post.

Casey Cizikas scored for the Islanders as the series shifts to Washington for Game 5 on Thursday.

• Seabrook lifts Blackhawks over Preds in 3OT: Brent Seabrook scored exactly one minute into the third overtime and the Chicago Blackhawks beat the visiting Nashville Predators 3-2 to take a 3-1 lead in the series.

Chicago’s Brandon Saad’s third period goal prompted overtime. Scott Darling had 52 saves.

Colin Wilson and James Neal scored for Nashville and Pekke Rinne made 48 saves.

• Red Wings down Lightning for 2-1 lead: Petr Mrazek made 22 saves for his first postseason shutout, and Pavel Datsyuk, Riley Sheahan and Luke Glendening scored for Detroit in a 3-0 victory over the visiting Tampa Bay Lightning that gave the Red Wings a 2-1 lead in their playoff series.

• Flames handle Canucks to take 3-1 series lead: Jiri Hudler had a goal and an assist and the Calgary Flames earned a 3-1 win over the Vancouver Canucks in Calgary, Alberta.

Calgary’s Johnny Gaudreau scored his first playoff goal and 18-year-old rookie Sam Bennett had his second in as many games.

• Canadiens’ Beaulieu to miss rest of series: Montreal Canadiens defenseman Nathan Beaulieu will miss the rest of the first-round playoff series against Ottawa with an upper-body injury. Montreal can wrap up a four-game sweep tonight at Ottawa.

Wall, Beal lead Wizards rout of Raptors to take 2-0 series lead

NBA: John Wall had 26 points and 17 assists, Bradley Beal scored 28 points and the visiting Washington Wizards beat the Toronto Raptors 117-106 to take a 2-0 lead in their first-round playoff series.

The Wizards host Game 3 on Friday night.

Sixth Man Award winner Lou Williams scored 20 points for the Raptors, who have lost four straight playoff games over the past two seasons.

• LeBron scores 30, Cavaliers top Celtics: LeBron James scored 30 points, Kyrie Irving added 26 and the host Cleveland Cavaliers finally shook off Boston in the fourth quarter, beating the Celtics 99-91 to take a 2-0 lead in their opening-round series.

James moved past Hall of Famer Jerry West on the career playoff scoring list.

Isaiah Thomas scored 22 points for the Celtics. Game 3 is Thursday night in Boston.

• Howard and Harden lead Rockets over Mavericks: Dwight Howard scored 28 points and James Harden added 24 to help the Houston Rockets coast to a 111-99 victory over the visiting Dallas Mavericks to take a 2-0 lead in the Western Conference playoff series.

Monta Ellis had 24 points for Dallas. Game 3 is in Dallas on Friday night.

• Budenholzer NBA coach of the year: Mike Budenholzer of the Atlanta Hawks has been chosen as NBA coach of the year. The second-year coach was honored after leading the Hawks to a 60-22 record and top seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs.

• Suns’ Morris twins indicted: A Maricopa County grand jury has indicted the Phoenix Suns’ Marcus and Markieff Morris on felony aggravated assault charges. The twins are accused of joining three other men in beating a man on Jan. 24 at a Phoenix recreation center.

Bayern, Barcelona reach Champions League semifinals

Miscellany: Robert Lewandowski scored twice, and Bayern Munich overcame a two-goal deficit from the first leg to defeat Porto 6-1 in Munich and reached the Champions League semifinals for the fourth straight year.

In the night’s other match, Neymar scored twice and Barcelona beat visiting Paris Saint-Germain 2-0 for a 5-1 aggregate win.

• City Council approves NFL stadium plan: Carson, California, City Council unanimously voted to clear the path for a proposed $1.7 billion stadium near Los Angeles that could become the shared home to the NFL’s San Diego Chargers and the Oakland Raiders. The 3-0 vote marks a significant step forward for plans to lure the NFL back to the Los Angeles.

• UCI anti-doping tribunal ready to start: The International Cycling Union’s new in-house anti-doping tribunal will hear its first cases in the coming weeks. The tribunal is a key part of UCI president Brian Cookson’s attempts to reform a sport long tainted by doping scandals.