Avalanche, Senators to play in Sweden next season

AVALANCHE, SENATORS TO FACE OFF IN 2017 SAP NHL GLOBAL SERIES

FRIDAY'S RESULTS

NY Islanders 4, PITTSBURGH 3 (SO)
Tampa Bay 2, DETROIT 1 (OT)
DALLAS 6, San Jose 1
ANAHEIM 3, Winnipeg 1

EXTRA-TIME VICTORIES FUEL WILD-CARD RACE

The New York Islanders (35-26-12, 82 points) and Tampa Bay Lightning (36-29-9, 81 points) earned victories in the shootout and overtime, respectively, to improve their standing in the Eastern Conference Wild Card race.
* John Tavares (0-2-2) had the 300th and 301st assists of his career and scored the shootout winner as the Islanders overtook the Boston Bruins (38-30-6, 82 points) for the final Wild Card position in the Eastern Conference. Tavares, who became the first member of the 2009 NHL Draft class to reach the 300-assist plateau, extended his point streak to five games (2-4-6). New York and Boston will conclude their season series on Saturday.

* Nikita Kucherov (1-1-2) recorded his fourth straight multiple-point game and scored his first overtime goal of the season to help the Lightning move within one point of the Islanders and Bruins for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. Kucherov (38-40-78), who has 17-12-29 in his past 16 games, moved into sole possession of second place in the Richard Trophy race, four goals behind Sidney Crosby (42). Per the Elias Sports Bureau, Kucherov is the first Lightning player to record four consecutive multipoint games since Martin St. Louis posted 3-5-8 from Jan. 20-31, 2012.

DUCKS JOIN SHARKS ATOP PACIFIC DIVISION

Andrew Cogliano scored his first game-winning goal of the season in the second period to help the Anaheim Ducks (40-23-11, 91 points) improve to 7-1-1 in their past nine games overall and 8-1-1 in their past 10 at Honda Center. Anaheim pulled even in points with the San Jose Sharks (42-25-7, 91 points) for first place in the Pacific Division, where the top three teams are separated by only two points. Jakob Silfverberg (1-1-2) scored his 21st goal of the season to establish a career-high, and Jonathan Bernierimproved to 7-0-1 in his last eight games. He has a 1.47 goals-against average, .950 save percentage and one shutout during that span.

LOOSE PUCKS

Adam Cracknell (3-0-3) recorded his first NHL hat trick (195 GP) to propel the Dallas Stars to a 3-1-1 record in their last five games. … Penguins captain Sidney Crosbyscored his League-leading 42nd goal. … Islanders forward Josh Bailey earned the 300th point of his NHL career (105-195-300). … Stars forward Tyler Seguin (500) and Penguins forward Nick Bonino (400) each skated in milestone games.

SNEAK PEEK AT SATURDAY'S ACTION

All Times Eastern
Vancouver @ Minnesota, 2 p.m., FS-N, FS-WI, SNP
Philadelphia @ Columbus, 2 p.m., SN1, NHLN, FS-O, CSN-PH
Calgary @ St. Louis, 7 p.m., CITY, FS-MW
Toronto @ Buffalo, 7 p.m., CBC, MSG-B
Ottawa @ Montreal, 7 p.m., SN, TVA Sports
Chicago @ Florida, 7 p.m., NHLN, FS-F, WGN
Carolina @ New Jersey, 7 p.m., MSG+ 2, FS-CR
Boston @ NY Islanders, 7 p.m., MSG+, NESN
Arizona @ Washington, 7 p.m., CSN-DC+, FS-A
San Jose @ Nashville, 8 p.m., FS-TN, CSN-CA
Colorado @ Edmonton, 10 p.m., CBC, SN, ALT
NY Rangers @ Los Angeles, 10:30 p.m., FS-W, MSG+

BRUINS, ISLANDERS BATTLE FOR FINAL WILD-CARD POSITION

The Bruins (38-30-6, 82 points) visit the Islanders (35-26-12, 82 points) as the teams continue their pursuit of the final wild card spot in the Eastern Conference. New York has won the first two games between the clubs this season by a combined score of 8-2 and holds a game in hand.

PLAYOFF RACES FEATURED ON HOCKEY NIGHT IN CANADA

Four of Saturday's 12 games will be broadcast on Hockey Night in Canada:
* The Ottawa Senators (41-24-8, 90 points) visit the Montreal Canadiens (41-24-9, 91 points) as the teams continue to battle for first place in the Atlantic Division when they wrap up their season series at Bell Centre. Montreal, which will try to snap a two-game skid, won both games of a home-and-home set between the clubs on March 18-19 (OTT: 0-1-1). Ottawa has won its past two games.
* The Toronto Maple Leafs (35-23-15, 85 points), who are 4-0-1 in their past five games, take on the Buffalo Sabres (30-32-12, 72 points) at KeyBank Center as they try to close the gap on the Senators for second place in the Atlantic. William Nylander looks to extend his rookie franchise record 10-game point streak (4-8-12) while Auston Matthews (33-27-60) attempts to regain a share of the rookie points lead.
* The Calgary Flames (41-29-4, 86 points) and St. Louis Blues (40-28-5, 85 points) conclude their season series in St. Louis after splitting the first two games. Calgary looks to snap a two-game slide and gain ground on the rival Edmonton Oilers (40-25-9, 89 points) for third place in the Pacific Division. St. Louis will try to create separation from the Nashville Predators (37-25-11, 85 points) and maintain their hold on third place in the Central Division.
* The Oilers host the Colorado Avalanche (20-50-3, 43 points) as they look to equal the Sharks (42-25-7, 91 points) and Ducks (40-23-11, 91 points) for the most points in the Pacific Division. Edmonton is 5-1-0 in its past six games, powered by multiple-point efforts from Leon Draisaitl (3-10-13) in each of those games.