Quick makes stupendous midair kick save to rob sure goal

Quick save and a beauty.

On Sunday night, Los Angeles Kings goalie Jonathan Quick made one of the finer pad/kick saves you're ever going to see. Arizona Coyotes forward Peter Holland was the victim. Spare a thought or two for him.

With the Kings on life support in the Western Conference playoff race, literally every save matters. And there won't be many prettier than that this season.

Copyright © 2017 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Flames’ Versteeg proves value with pair of clutch power-play tallies

The Calgary Flames are undoubtedly getting their money's worth from Kris Versteeg.

The veteran winger - who signed a modest one-year, $950,000 deal with Calgary last summer - flashed his skillful side during the Flames' Sunday night matchup with the Anaheim Ducks, wiring in two timely power-play goals to give him 15 tallies on the season.

Versteeg kicked things off with a top-shelf snipe on Jonathan Bernier early in the second period, cutting the Ducks' 2-0 lead in half:

He added another seven minutes later, capitalizing on a 5-on-3 opportunity to tie it up after stickhandling his way around Bernier.

With those 15 goals in the bag, Versteeg now sits tied for fifth on the Flames' roster this season - not too shabby considering the veteran earns just a hair more than the club's entry-level crowd.

Copyright © 2017 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Rangers eliminate Flyers, will finish no worse than 1st wild-card spot

NEW YORK - Oscar Lindberg and Chris Kreider scored 2:09 apart midway through the third period, and the New York Rangers held on to beat the Philadelphia Flyers 4-3 Sunday night for their first win at home in six weeks.

Mika Zibanejad and Brendan Smith scored in the first period, and Henrik Lundqvist stopped 20 shots to help the Rangers win at Madison Square Garden for the first time since beating Washington on Feb. 19. New York was 0-5-3 on home ice since.

The Rangers are guaranteed to fall no lower than the first wild card in the Eastern Conference. They are fourth in the Metropolitan Division, trailing third-place Columbus by six points. New York has three games remaining and Columbus has four.

Valtteri Filppula had two goals and Brayden Schenn also scored for Philadelphia, which was eliminated from postseason contention. Anthony Stolarz finished with 20 saves.

Mats Zuccarello had three assists to become the first Rangers player to have at least 44 since Marian Gaborik in 2009-10.

Leading 2-1, New York appeared to put the game away in a span halfway through the third. Lindberg scored from in front for his eighth at 7:01, and Kreider made it 4-1 with his 28th at 9:10.

However, Schenn scored with 2:06 remaining and Filppula's second of the game - and fourth in his last five games - pulled the Flyers within one 51 seconds later.

Following a scoreless opening period, Filppula gave the Flyers a 1-0 lead with his 11th of the season just 33 seconds into the second. Philadelphia's trade deadline acquisition curled around New York defenseman Marc Staal before lifting a backhander over Lundqvist.

Zibanejad drew New York even with a power-play goal 3:24 later. The New York center fired an end-over-end shot from the top of the left circle over Stolarz's stick.

The Rangers were 1 for 4 on the man advantage and dating back to Mar. 9, are 12 for 35. New York also killed all three Philadelphia power plays.

It took just 3:13 for the Rangers to strike again as Smith's backhander over Stolarz's glove put New York ahead 2-1. The goal was his third of the season and his first since being acquired from Detroit on Feb. 28.

NOTES: Prior to the game, Flyers GM Ron Hextall said G Michal Neuvirth was ''released from Pennsylvania Hospital and is at home resting,'' in a statement. Neuvirth collapsed in his crease and was carted off the ice on a stretcher during the first period of Philadelphia's 3-0 win over New Jersey Saturday night. ''He will be reevaluated (Monday) afternoon,'' Hextall said. ... Flyers RW Matt Read missed his second straight game with an upper body injury. ... Philadelphia scratched D Radko Gudas, C Nick Cousins, LW Roman Lyubimov and RW Mike Vecchione. Philadelphia signed Vecchione to an entry level contract Friday after he finished his college career at Union. ... New York D Ryan McDonagh missed his second straight game with an undisclosed injury. Rangers coach Alain Vigneault said McDonagh ''will come back when he's 100 percent.'' ... The Rangers scratched D Adam Clendening, D Steven Kampfer, LW Pavel Buchnevich and LW Matt Puempel.

Copyright © 2017 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Poll: Was Ovechkin’s hit on Werenski dirty?

It was a costly loss for the Blue Jackets on Sunday, and that's got nothing to do with Columbus losing three straight games for the first time this season.

Phenom rookie defenseman Zach Werenski was injured early in the third period after Alex Ovechkin hit him in the corner. Here's the play:

Here's a still of the hit, which won't sit will with those who didn't like it:

That was the beginning of what turned into a very scrappy third period, with Ovechkin in the middle of most of it, and even Braden Holtby involved in some extracurricular activities late in the game. The question is: Did Ovie leave his feet? Was it dirty? You tell us.

The Blue Jackets offered no update on Werenski after the game, and it could be his shoulder or collarbone or head that took the brunt of the damage. Here is some reported, sort of good, news:

Werenski, only 19, has been an absolute beast in his freshman NHL season, and went into Sunday's game with 11 goals and 36 assists in 77 games. He played 17:26 against Washington, and was on track to log a lot more than his usual 20:57. Obviously, his loss for any portion of the playoffs would be a massive blow to Columbus' chances.

As for the Capitals, they improved to 8-1-1 in their last 10 and are putting the finishing touches on back-to-back Presidents' Trophy seasons.

Copyright © 2017 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Lightning remain in playoff hunt with big win over Stars

TAMPA, Fla. - Adam Erne scored twice and Ondrej Palat added a power-play goal and two assists as the Tampa Bay Lightning defeated the Dallas Stars 6-3 on Sunday night.

Brayden Point scored the go-ahead goal in the third period to break a 2-2 tie, and Braydon Coburn and Anton Stralman also had goals for Tampa Bay. Backup Peter Budaj made 23 saves to help the Lightning move within three points of the idle Ottawa Senators, who hold the second wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference.

Gemel Smith, Jason Spezza, and Brett Ritchie scored for Dallas, and Esa Lindell assisted on all three goals.

Erne opened up the scoring at 11:47 in the first. Erne, who had just one goal entering the game and hadn't scored since March 3, added a power-play goal in the third.

Dallas answered quickly in the second with Smith's goal less than two minutes into the period.

Smith nearly had a short-handed goal after that, but it was overturned on an offsides call after a Lightning challenge and official review. Dallas did take the lead at 10:57 in the second when Spezza scored his 14th of the season. Spezza also assisted on Smith's goal.

With just 18 seconds left in the second, Tampa Bay tied it on Coburn's goal with assists from Stralman and Palat, who has 32 assists this season.

Point's tiebreaking goal was his 14th of the season, while Palat's power-play goal was his 17th.

Ritchie scored Dallas' third goal late in the third. Stralman had an empty-netter with 2 seconds remaining.

NOTES: Tampa Bay C Steven Stamkos, out since right knee surgery in November, did not play Sunday and remains day to day. ... Lightning C Tyler Johnson returned Sunday after sitting out 11 games with a lower-body injury. ... Lightning D Jason Garrison returned after missing four games due to a lower-body injury. Garrison would later leave during the second intermission with another lower-body injury. ... Stars LW Patrick Sharp missed his fifth game with a hip injury. ... Stars LW Antoine Roussel missed his 15th game with an upper-body injury.

UP NEXT

Stars: Wrap up the season with a three-game homestand, beginning with Arizona on Tuesday.

Lightning: Begin a three-game road trip, starting with a key game at Boston on Tuesday.

Copyright © 2017 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Burns scoring more goals than 5 clubs’ entire defensive rosters

Observers of the 2016-17 campaign are running out of ways to accurately put into words just how phenomenal Brent Burns has been. With 28 goals and 73 points through 79 games, Burns has made burning the opposition a nightly habit.

But how's this for perspective: Burns isn't just outscoring the rest of the NHL's defensemen this season - he's also outscoring whole defensive units.

CSN California highlighted this fact during their Sunday night broadcast of the San Jose Sharks' 3-1 win over the Vancouver Canucks, showing Burns' 28 goals in comparison to those scored by all Canucks' rearguards combined:

Needless to say, it wasn't a great look for the Canucks.

But Vancouver isn't the only club to see their total blue line goal-scoring output quashed by The Bearded One.

In total, Burns' 28 tallies sit above the combined totals of five clubs' defensive units, while tying one other:

Team (Defensemen Only) Total Goals
*Brent Burns 28
Toronto Maple Leafs 28
Washington Capitals 26
New Jersey Devils 27
Vancouver Canucks 19
Colorado Avalanche 17
Buffalo Sabres 16

The most surprising club listed is undoubtedly the Washington Capitals. Alex Ovechkin's crew is no stranger to putting goals on the board, ranking as the NHL's second-best offensive team, but it seems goal-scoring prowess doesn't extend to the back end.

Meanwhile, in San Jose, Burns continues to carry the Sharks' mail all by his lonesome.

The craziest thing about that goal total? Burns has just one goal in his past 20 games. And yet, even with that extensive drought, he continues to outscore entire groups of blue-liners from other teams.

That sound? It's the Norris Trophy debate quickly quieting to a low murmur.

Copyright © 2017 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Blue Jackets drop 3 straight for 1st time all season

The high-flying Columbus Blue Jackets have entered uncharted territory in their best-ever season.

Thanks to Sunday's 3-2 loss to the Metropolitan-leading Washington Capitals, the Blue Jackets have now lost three in a row for the first time all season.

With Columbus already locked into a top-three seed in the stacked Metro, the ramifications of the mini-skid aren't-season altering, but considering last year's Blue Jackets - who finished the season in 27th place - had eight losing streaks of three games or more, it truly shines a light on how consistent John Tortorella's group has been in 2016-17.

Columbus' next opportunity to snap the slump comes Tuesday in a pivotal contest against Pittsburgh, which trails the Blue Jackets by just a single point in the standings.

Copyright © 2017 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Dubnyk sets Wild’s single-season wins record

Perhaps setting a franchise record can aid Devan Dubnyk in his quest to get back on track.

The struggling Minnesota Wild netminder made 30 saves Sunday versus the Colorado Avalanche to secure his 38th victory of the season, the highest single-season wins total for any goalie in franchise history.

Dubnyk set the record despite enduring a miserable March, during which the Wild limped to a 4-10-2 record while falling out of contention in the race for the Central Division crown.

On the season, Dubnyk is 38-19-5 with a 2.23 goals against average and .924 save percentage. A return to his early-season form will be imperative to Minnesota's success come the postseason.

Copyright © 2017 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Shattenkirk heating up for Capitals as postseason nears

When the Washington Capitals managed to snag the prize of the 2017 trade deadline, Kevin Shattenkirk, it was pretty clear the result was going to be increased offensive dominance - a frightening prospect given the Capitals were already one of the top offensive clubs in the game.

But there are never any guarantees when adding a new name to a roster - especially on the blue line, where a change in address usually brings a significant change in approach as well, as each team utilizes an array of varied defensive schemes.

Now, 15 games into Shattenkirk's tenure in Washington, it's clear the move has paid off.

Since joining the likes of Alex Ovechkin and Nicklas Backstrom, Shattenkirk has posted 12 assists through 15 games. He's been particularly hot as of late, registering eight points over his past seven appearances.

And while he's certainly benefiting from suiting up alongside Washington's elite scorers, Shattenkirk is doing his part as well. Nine of those assists have been primary helpers, with only three secondary assists - where Shattenkirk might have had less impact - rounding out the total.

It may be a small sample size, but that sample is all the more important given the time of year. With the postseason just a handful of games away, and with Washington once again facing Stanley Cup-or-bust pressure, the fact that Shattenkirk has fit in seamlessly is key.

He's actually done more than just fit in, however, as the veteran rearguard is registering points at a career-high clip. His 0.79 points per game has matched his career-best scoring pace from 2014-15.

Whether he could sustain that pace over a full season in Washington is irrelevant at the moment. All that matters now - with his club loading up for a shot at redemption - is that Shattenkirk is rolling. And if he can keep it going once the schedule transitions from regular season to post, then the ever-dangerous Capitals will be all the more lethal as they begin their march.

Copyright © 2017 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Watch: Thornton helped to dressing room after apparent leg injury

This is the last thing the struggling San Jose Sharks wanted to see.

Joe Thornton needed to be helped to the dressing room and was clearly in distress after sustaining an apparent left leg injury in the first period Sunday against the Vancouver Canucks.

There are early concerns that his knee took the brunt of the collision. Thornton missed the second period and the Sharks announced after 40 minutes that he wouldn't return.

Thornton's started each of San Jose's 79 games this season, and his remarkable durability into his late thirties is something that isn't talked about enough. Since 2006-07, he's missed only nine regular-season games.

While it's been an offensively down season for Thornton, the Sharks will certainly trade his 0.64 points per game - his lowest since 1998-99, when he was 19 - for another deep playoff run, and ideally two more wins this time around. But make no mistake, for the Sharks to win 16 games and the Stanley Cup, they're going to need "Jumbo Joe" every bit of the way.

Copyright © 2017 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Remember, we are all Canucks!