LDN - Sports

Highlights of Thursday's NHL games

[December 29, 2017] (The Sports Xchange) - Highlights of National Hockey League games on Thursday:

Golden Knights 3, Kings 2

David Perron scored the winning goal at 3:30 of overtime as the Vegas Golden Knights defeated the Los Angeles Kings 3-2 on Thursday for their sixth consecutive win.

Vegas extended its point streak to 11 games (10-0-1), the longest of any team in its inaugural season. It is the first time in NHL history that an expansion team has won six games in a row.

Jonathan Marchessault and Brendan Leipsic registered the other Vegas goals. Marc-Andre Fleury made 26 saves.

Los Angeles lost its second straight game and has dropped five of its past seven. Marian Gaborik and Drew Doughty registered goals, and Jonathan Quick made 36 saves.

Capitals 4, Bruins 3 (SO)

Alex Ovechkin scored the only goal of the shootout, and Washington earned its 12th consecutive victory over Boston.

Ovechkin, the Capitals' third shooter, made a move to his right and fired high over Bruins goaltender Anton Khudobin, off the post and in. Boston had won five straight while Washington snapped a three-game slide after overcoming a 2-0 deficit.

David Backes' second goal of the night gave the Bruins a 3-2 lead at 7:19 of the third period, but the Capitals tied it on Brett Connolly's eighth goal of the season during a scramble in front with 8:38 remaining. Backes and Noel Acciari scored early in the first period.

Lightning 3, Canadiens 1

Red-hot Tampa Bay tied the game with 12 seconds left in the second period and jumped ahead 30 seconds into the third to defeat Montreal.

The Lightning's top two scorers combined on a highlight-reel goal -- Nikita Kucherov outskated a Canadiens defender to a loose puck and flicked a no-look backward pass to a charging Steven Stamkos, who beat Carey Price for the tying goal.

Tampa Bay, which is 10-0-1 in its past 11, took the momentum from that score into the third, when Brayden Point poked in a loose puck in front of the net for his 15th goal and a 2-1 lead with 19:30 left.

Maple Leafs 7, Coyotes 4

Patrick Marleau scored twice as Toronto defeated Arizona.

Mitch Marner recorded a goal and two assists, William Nylander had a goal and an assist, and Auston Matthews, Zach Hyman and Connor Brown also scored for the Maple Leafs. Marleau finished with a three-point night.

Jordan Martinook had a goal and an assist, and Josh Archibald, Brendan Perlini and Christian Fischer also scored for the Coyotes, who fell to a league-worst 9-26-5. Arizona has lost two of three, giving up at least six goals in each of the defeats.

[to top of second column]

Boston Bruins left wing Brad Marchand (63) skates with the puck as Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin (8) defends in the first period at Capital One Arena. The Capitals won 4-3 in a shootout. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports

Panthers 3, Flyers 2

James Reimer came within eight minutes of his second consecutive shutout as Florida won its fourth straight game.

Reimer, who made 29 saves in his 10th straight start in place of injured starter Roberto Luongo, has allowed just seven goals in his past four appearances. In a span covering parts of three games, Reimer went 121:54 without allowing a goal.

Jared McCann, Derek MacKenzie and Jonathan Huberdeau scored for the Panthers, and Nick Bjugstad picked up two assists. Huberdeau has 13 goals, one shy of Vincent Trocheck for the team lead.

Sharks 3, Flames 2 (SO)

Joe Pavelski and Joonas Donskoi scored the only goals in a shootout, lifting San Jose past Calgary for the Sharks' third consecutive win.

Pavelski and Timo Meier scored for the Sharks in regulation, and Martin Jones made 32 saves. Jones stopped all three shots he faced in the shootout.

Garnet Hathaway and Mikael Backlund scored for the Flames. Backup goaltender David Rittich made 30 saves.

Canucks 5, Blackhawks 2

Thomas Vanek scored two goals and added three assists, and Sam Gagner added two goals and an assist as Vancouver beat Chicago.

Gagner extended his point streak to four games after producing points in only five of the previous 15 contests. His linemate, Brock Boeser, had a goal and three assists to take the NHL rookie points lead (38) from Mathew Barzal of the New York Islanders.

The Canucks ended a four-game losing streak. The Blackhawks took their third loss in a row. Nick Schmaltz and Ryan Hartman, with only 8.6 seconds left in the game, scored for Chicago.

Back to top