Crosby and Ovechkin shine in Penguins’ 5-2 win over Capitals

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin placed on a present within the regular-season finale on Thursday evening, showcasing their greatness within the Pittsburgh Penguins’ 5-2 win over the Washington Capitals.

Ovechkin completed his record-breaking season by netting his 897th profession objective within the second interval. Crosby, in the meantime, completed his twentieth season within the NHL with a objective and an help to push him previous the 90-point barrier for the ninth time.

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The Capitals start the search for the franchise’s second Stanley Cup on Monday in opposition to the Montreal Canadiens.

The 73rd regular-season assembly between two of the sport’s largest stars was the uncommon one with out stakes. The Capitals clinched the highest seed within the Japanese Convention playoffs weeks in the past. The rebuilding Penguins missed the postseason.

Bryan Rust scored twice to complete the season with a career-best 31 objectives. His second objective got here on a ridiculous whip-around backhand feed from Crosby that gave Pittsburgh a 3-1 lead. Alex Nedeljkovic stopped 18 pictures for the Penguins.

Ovechkin’s forty fourth objective of the season moved him three away from Wayne Gretzky, whose profession report Ovechkin smashed earlier this month. Clay Stevenson made 33 saves in his NHL debut.

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RANGERS 4, LIGHTNING 0

NEW YORK (AP) — Mika Zibanejad scored twice and Igor Shesterkin made 27 saves as New York beat Tampa Bay.

Vincent Trocheck and Chris Kreider additionally scored for the Rangers, who missed the playoffs a yr after profitable the Presidents’ Trophy because the league’s greatest workforce.

The Lightning host the defending-champion Florida Panthers within the first recreation of a first-round Stanley Cup playoff collection on Tuesday.

Trocheck scored his twenty sixth objective this season — his sixth short-handed — at 1:02 of the center interval. The Rangers lead the NHL with 18 short-handed objectives this season.

Kreider scored at 4:02 of the third to make it 2-0 then Zibanejad scored at 12:50 and 16:24.

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The shutout was the sixth this season for Shesterkin, who completed with a career-worst 27-29-5 mark.

The playoff-bound Lightning completed with 47 wins and 102 factors.

Lightning netminder Jonas Johansson made 19 saves.

SABRES 5, FLERYS 4

BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — Ryan McLeod scored a objective and added two assists, and Lindy Ruff turned the NHL’s fifth coach to achieve 900 wins in Buffalo’s victory over Philadelphia.

Alex Tuch, JJ Peterka and Jack Quinn had a objective and help every, and Peyton Krebs scored a short-handed objective for Buffalo. James Reimer made 21 saves for his eighth win in 10 begins to complete the season 10-10-2.

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Ruff joined Florida’s Paul Maurice (916 wins) because the NHL’s solely energetic coaches with 900 or extra wins. In his second stint teaching the Sabres, Ruff ranks second with 607 victories with one workforce, behind solely Al Arbour, who had 740 with the Islanders.

Flyers rookie Matvei Michkov snapped a six-game objective drought by scoring twice and Tyson Foerster and Bobby Brink had a objective and help. Rookie Aleksei Kolosov stopped 26 pictures, and the loss secured Philadelphia ending final within the Japanese Convention standings for the second time in workforce historical past.

After practically blowing a 4-1 second-period lead, McLeod sealed the win with an empty-netter with 48 seconds left in a recreation the Sabres by no means trailed.

MAPLE LEAFS 4, RED WINGS 3, OT

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TORONTO (AP) — Scott Laughton scored 56 seconds into time beyond regulation and Toronto beat Detroit.

Auston Matthews, Philippe Myers and Chris Tanev — with 1.8 seconds left in regulation —additionally scored for Toronto (52-26-4). Joseph Woll stopped 30 pictures, and Mitch Marner had two assists.

The Maple Leafs received the Atlantic Division and can host the Ottawa Senators in Recreation 1 on Sunday.

Justin Holl had a objective and an help in opposition to his former workforce and Austin Watson and Alex DeBrincat additionally scored for Detroit (39-35-8). Cam Talbot made 16 saves.

BLUE JACKETS 6, ISLANDERS 1

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Cole Sillinger and Zach Werenski every had a objective and an help and Columbus routed New York.

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A season that started with heartache over the dying of Johnny Gaudreau left the Blue Jackets in probably the most unlikely of positions. A preseason choose to complete thirty first within the NHL, they as an alternative battled by way of all 82 video games for the ultimate Japanese Convention wild-card spot that went to Montreal with the Canadiens’ win over Carolina on Wednesday.

Columbus ended the season with 89 factors, good for fourth within the Metropolitan Division.

Dante Fabbro, Dmitri Voronkov, Sean Kuraly and Adam Fantilli additionally scored for the Blue Jackets (40-33-9), who received six straight to finish the season and tied a franchise report with 57 house factors. Jet Greaves stopped 36 pictures and was 5:12 from his third straight shutout.

Hudson Fasching scored and Marcus Hogberg made 19 saves for the Islanders (35-35-12). They completed with 82 factors, good for sixth within the Metro.

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SENATORS 7, HURRICANES 5

OTTAWA, Ontario (AP) — Drake Batherson scored the tying and go-ahead objectives within the third interval and Ottawa tuned up for the playoffs with a victory over Carolina.

Brady Tkachuk returned to Ottawa’s lineup after lacking eight video games due to an upper-body damage, then took a keep on with the face with about 5 minutes left within the second interval and didn’t return.

Adam Gaudette additionally scored twice for Ottawa. Dylan Cousins, Shane Pinto and Tim Stutzle added objectives, and Linus Ullmark made 28 saves. Ottawa will open playoffs at Toronto on Sunday.

Skyler Brind’Amour, the son of Carolina coach Rod Brind’Amour scored his first NHL objective, and Jesperi Kotkaniemi, Andrei Svechnikov, Jack Roslovic and Tyson Jost additionally scored for the Hurricanes. Carolina will open the postseason Sunday at house in opposition to New Jersey.