Around the League notebook for Monday, March 23

EASTERN CONFERENCE PLAYOFF RACE (Click chart below to zoom)	WESTERN CONFERENCE PLAYOFF RACE (Click chart below to zoom)
Related information: "If the playoffs started today ..."  |  Current playoffs standings

MONDAY'S RESULTS

Home Team in CAPS

Los Angeles 3, NEW JERSEY 1

Chicago 3, CAROLINA 1

Minnesota 2, TORONTO 1

OTTAWA 5, San Jose 2

DALLAS 4, Buffalo 3

CALGARY 3, Colorado 2

Winnipeg 4, EDMONTON 1

SURGING SENATORS REACH WILD-CARD SPOT WITH WIN AGAINST SHARKS

Facing a 2-1 deficit at the outset of the third period, the Ottawa Senators scored four straight goals, including two in a span of 1:12, to defeat the San Jose Sharks by a score of 5-2. The Senators, who have earned points in 16 of their past 17 games (15-1-1), are 37-24-11 (85 points) and leapfrogged the idle Boston Bruins to take sole possession of the final wild card into the Stanley Cup Playoffs from the Eastern Conference.

* According to the Elias Sports Bureau, the Senators have recorded points in 16 of 17 games for the first time since Feb. 20-March 24, 2007 (11-1-5). Elias also says that Ottawa have won 15 of 17 games for the first time since Oct. 3-Nov. 15, 2007 (15-2-0).

* Andrew Hammond made 29 saves and is 14-0-1 in his first 15 career starts, which includes victories in nine consecutive decisions. Through his 15 starts, Hammond has posted a 1.67 goals-against average and a .946 save percentage.

* Elias says that Hammond is the first goaltender in NHL history to earn points in each of his first 15 career starts since Patrick Lalime went 14-0-2 in his first 16 career starts with the Pittsburgh Penguins during the 1996-97 season.

* Mike Hoffman (1-2—3) scored his 26th goal into an empty net and had two assists to record his second three-point game of the season.

* Bobby Ryan (0-3—2) posted his second three-assist game of the season. Ryan's first assist was the 200th of his career.

* Mika Zibanejad (2-0—2) recorded his second multi-goal game of the season and extended his point streak to four games (2-3—5).

* Alex Chiasson (1-0—1) scored his 11th goal of the season and extended his point streak to three games (1-2—3). The marker also stood as his first game-winning goal of the season.

* Ottawa swept their season series versus San Jose (2-0-0) for the first time since the 2000-01 season.

* The Carleton University Ravens Men's Basketball team was honored in a pre-game ceremony for winning the 2015 CIS Championship. The Ravens Men’s Basketball team has won five consecutive CIS Championships and 11 in the past 13 years.

BOUMA, JONES LEAD CALGARY OVER COLORADO ...

Lance Bouma (1-1—2) and David Jones (1-1—2) each recorded a goal and an assist to lead the Calgary Flames to a 3-2 victory against the Colorado Avalanche. The Flames, who rank third in the Pacific Division standings, are 40-27-6 (86 points) and moved within two points of the idle Vancouver Canucks, who rank second in the Pacific Division standings with a record of 42-26-4 (88 points).

* Bouma scored his 14th goal and 16th assist to post his ninth multi-point performance of the season. The marker was his fourth game-winning goal of the season. Jones opened the scoring with his 13th goal and had his 15th assist to record his sixth multi-point game of the season.

* Karri Ramo made 25 saves and is 15-8-2 with a 2.53 GAA and a .915 save percentage. Ramo has earned points in six of his past seven decisions (5-1-1).

* Jiri Hudler (1-0—1) scored his 27th goal of the season and extended his point streak to three games (2-3—5). Sean Monahan (0-1—1) registered his 26th assist of the season and also extended his point streak to three games (2-2—4).

... WHILE KINGS KEEP PACE WITH WIN AGAINST DEVILS

Anze Kopitar (1-2—3) recorded his fifth three-point performance of the season to lead the Los Angeles Kings to a 3-1 victory against the New Jersey Devils. The Kings, who rank fourth in the Pacific Division standings, are 35-23-14 (84 points) and moved within two points of the Flames.

* Kopitar scored his 15th goal of the season and had two assists to extend his point streak to three games (1-4—5). Kopitar leads the Kings in assists (42) and points (15-42—57). The Kings are 10-1-3 this season when Kopitar records a multi-point game.

* With 386 career assists, Kopitar passed Robert "Butch" Goring for sole possession of sixth on the Kings' all-time assists list. Kopitar also skated in the 673rd game of his NHL career and tied Mike Murphy for eighth on their all-time games played list.

* Marian Gaborik (0-2—2) recorded his first multi-assist game of the season.

* Jonathan Quick stopped all but one of 20 shots he faced and is 31-19-12 this season with a 2.27 GAA and a .916 save percentage.

* Tyler Toffoli (1-0—1) scored his 21st goal of the season on a power play. The marker also stood as Toffoli’s fourth power-play goal of the season and his fourth game-winning goal, which tied him for the team-lead in the latter category.

CRAWFORD BACKSTOPS BLACKHAWKS TO WIN AGAINST HURRICANES

Corey Crawford made 43 saves to backstop the Chicago Blackhawks to a 3-1 victory against the Carolina Hurricanes. The Blackhawks, who have earned points in eight of their past nine games (7-1-1), are 44-22-6 (94 points). Chicago, which ranks third in the Central Division standings, moved within two points of the idle Nashville Predators, who rank second in the Central with a record of 44-21-8 (96 points).

* Crawford stopped all but one of 44 shots he faced and is 30-15-5 with a 2.19 GAA and a .926 save percentage. Crawford, who has earned points in eight of his past nine decisions (7-1-1), reached the 30-win mark for the fourth time in his career.

* According to the Elias Sports Bureau, Crawford became the third goaltender in Blackhawks history to post four seasons of at least 30 wins, joining Tony Esposito (eight such seasons spanning from 1969 to 1979) and Glenn Hall (four such seasons spanning from 1961 to 1965).

* Andrew Shaw (2-0—2) opened the scoring and added an empty-netter to record his second multi-goal game of the season.

* Patrick Sharp (1-1—2) scored his 13th goal and added his 25th assist to post his 11th multi-point performance of the season.

* Jonathan Toews (0-1—1) registered his 37th assist of the season, which also stood as the 500th point of his career (218-282—500). Toews is the 16th player in Blackhawks history to reach the milestone.

* Chicago swept its season series versus Carolina (2-0-0) and has won four straight games against the Hurricanes.

MINNESOTA, WINNIPEG RETAIN WILD-CARD POSITIONS WITH WINS

The Minnesota Wild defeated the Toronto Maple Leafs by a score of 2-1 and the Winnipeg Jets defeated the Edmonton Oilers by a score of 4-1. The Wild are 41-25-7 (89 points) this season and the Jets are 38-23-12 (88 points). Minnesota and Winnipeg occupy the first and second wild-card spots into the playoffs from the West, respectively.

* Minnesota earned its franchise-best ninth consecutive road win. Minnesota also established a franchise record with their 21st road win of the season (21-14-2).

* Thomas Vanek (1-1—2) scored his 19th goal of the season – which also stood as his second game-winning goal of the season – and had his 30th assist to record his 11th multi-point game of the season. The performance allowed Vanek to extend his season-high point streak to eight games (6-4—10), which is the League's longest current streak.

* In his 32nd straight start, which includes a franchise record 31 consecutive starts with the Wild, Devan Dubnyk made 35 saves. He is 32-11-3 with a 2.10 GAA and a .929 save percentage. Dubnyk is 23-6-1 with Minnesota.

* Dubnyk became the first NHL goaltender to start in 32 consecutive games since Jonas Hiller did so for the Anaheim Ducks from Jan 12-March 18, 2012.

* Minnesota’s second win in Toronto in Wild history allowed them to sweep their season series versus the Maple Leafs (2-0-0). Their previous win in Toronto was a 5-2 victory on Nov. 10, 2009. The Wild are 10-3-2 against Atlantic Division opponents this season.

* The Jets earned their fifth straight win, which matched a season-high.

* In his fifth straight start, Ondrej Pavelec stopped all by one of 34 shots he faced and is 18-14-7 with a 2.36 GAA and a .917 save percentage. Palat has won a season-high five consecutive decisions (5-0-0).

* Drew Stafford (1-0—1) opened the scoring with his 16th goal of the season and extended his season-high point streak to six games (4-4—8), which also established a new career-high.

* Lee Stempniak (1-0—1) scored his 11th goal of the season, which also stood as his second game-winning goal of the season.

STARS OVERCOME THREE ONE-GOAL DEFICITS TO DEFEAT SABRES

The Dallas Stars overcame three one-goal deficits to defeat the Buffalo Sabres in regulation by a score of 4-3. The Stars earned their third straight win and are 35-28-10 (80 points).

* According to the Elias Sports Bureau, the Stars hadn't overcome three or more one-goal deficits and earn a win in regulation since Dec. 21, 2005 when they overcame three one-goal deficits to defeat the Columbus Blue Jackets by a score of 5-3.

* Jamie Benn (2-1—3) scored an even-strength goal, a power-play goal and added his team-leading 44th assist to record his fifth three-point game of the season. Benn's second tally was also his seventh power-play goal of the season and his assist was the 200th of his career. The performance allowed Benn to extend his point streak to three games (3-3—6).

* Patrick Eaves (1-1—2) scored his 10th goal and added his 10th assist to record his second consecutive multi-point game and his third of the season.

* Cody Eakin (1-0—1) scored his 17th goal of the season with 3:14 remaining in regulation, which also stood as his fifth game-winning goal of the season. Eakin is tied for the team-lead in game-winning goals.

* Kari Lehtonen made 25 saves and is 32-14-10 with a 2.82 GAA and a .907 save percentage. Lehtonen has won three consecutive decisions and has earned victories in six of his past seven decisions (6-1-0). Lehtonen has also earned points in six straight games against Buffalo (5-0-1).

* Dallas has earned points in four consecutive games versus Buffalo at home (3-0-1) and is 6-1-1 in its past eight home games against the Sabres.

LOOSE PUCKS

New Jersey forward Steve Bernier skated in the 600th game of his NHL career. ... Carolina defenseman John-Michael Liles (0-1—1) extended his point streak to a season-high three games (0-3—3). ... Ottawa forward Jean-Gabriel Pageau (1-0—1) extended his point streak to three games (2-1—3), which matched a career-high. ... Ottawa forward Mark Stone (0-1—1) extended his point streak to four games (1-5—6). ... San Jose forward Joe Pavelski (1-0—1) scored his 18th power-play goal of the season and ranks second among League-leaders in the category. ... Dallas forward Tyler Seguin (0-1—1) extended his point streak to three games (1-2—3). ... Buffalo forward Brian Gionta (2-0—2) posted his second multi-goal performance of the season. ... Buffalo forward Matt Moulson (1-1—2) recorded his seventh multi-point game of the season. ... Colorado forward Gabriel Landeskog (1-1—2) recorded his 12th multi-point game of the season. ... Colorado forward Ryan O’Reilly (0-2—2) posted his fifth multi-assist game of the season and extended his point streak to four games (3-3—6), which matched a season-high. ... Colorado forward Alex Tanguay (1-0—1) scored his 161st goal and recorded his 458th point as a member the Avalanche (161-297—458), allowing him to pass Paul Stastny for sole possession of eighth on the Avalanche's all-time goals list and tie Stastny for eighth on their all-time points list. ... Colorado forward Jarome Iginla skated in the 1,382nd game of his NHL career and tied Trevor Linden for 39th on the NHL's all-time games played list. ... Edmonton forward Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (1-0—1) extended his point streak to a season-high six games (4-7—11), which also matched a career-high. ... Edmonton forward Taylor Hall (0-1—1) extended his point streak to three games (0-3—3). ... Winnipeg Jets goaltender Ondrej Pavelec, Ottawa Senators center Kyle Turris and Tampa Bay Lightning goaltender Ben Bishop have been named the NHL's "Three Stars" for the week ending March 22... Toronto defenseman Eric Brewer was honored in a pre-game ceremony for skating in the 1,000th game of his NHL career on March 21 versus the Ottawa Senators.