Columbus Blue Jackets defenseman Seth Jones joined an exclusive group after notching his 40th point of the season Thursday.

Jones scored against the Washington Capitals to pick up his 11th goal, and in doing so became just the fifth defenseman in franchise history to reach the 40-point plateau.

Jones' rookie teammate Zach Werenski reached the 40-point mark earlier this season after registering an assist against the Buffalo Sabres on March 10.

Werenski has since climbed to 47 points on the campaign, four back of tying James Wisniewski for the most points by a defenseman in Blue Jackets' history.

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Marc Methot's gruesome finger injury is without a quick fix.

The Ottawa Senators defender will reportedly miss weeks with a "shattered" finger suffered on a nasty slash across the hands from Pittsburgh Penguins superstar Sidney Crosby in Thursday's shootout win, according to Bruce Garrioch of Postmedia.

Part of Methot's finger was severed when he removed his glove to check the damage.

Related: Crosby hacks off portion of Methot's finger

Ottawa announced during the game that Methot was ineligible to return with a laceration on his left hand.

The Senators pulled to within three points of the first-place Montreal Canadiens with the extra point earned versus the Penguins.

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Don't count the Carolina Hurricanes out just yet.

The club picked up a commanding 4-1 win Thursday over the Montreal Canadiens and in so doing kept their heads above water in the tight playoff race in the East.

With the win, the Hurricanes have pushed their point streak to nine games, going 6-0-3 in that span. The club sits just one win back of the Tampa Bay Lightning, with a game in hand. More importantly, though, they have two games in hand and are just five points back of the Boston Bruins, who occupy the final wild-card spot in the East.

Boding well for the Hurricanes is that the team plays six of its remaining 10 games against teams outside a playoff spot - including two games against the Detroit Red Wings and one versus the New Jersey Devils.

Of course, the Hurricanes would also have to leapfrog the New York Islanders, which will be no easy task. The Islanders sit three points up on the Hurricanes with the same number of games played.

Things won't be easy, but with seven wins and points in 11 of 13 March games, the Hurricanes are doing all they can to earn a playoff berth.

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Nikita Kucherov took some shine away from Boston's Brad Marchand in a head-to-head matchup of Hart Trophy dark horses Thursday night.

Recording his second hat trick in less month in the next most important game of the season for Tampa Bay, Kucherov cemented his place as the next trendy MVP candidate, lifting the Lightning to within three points of the Bruins for the final wild-card slot in the Eastern Conference in a 6-3 win.

Kucherov now has an NHL-best 27 points over the last 15 games, contributing 16 goals and 11 assists over that span.

The Bolts still have a deficit to overcome to slide into the eighth seed, but do own a game in hand on the Bruins, who are suddenly reeling after four straight losses.

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WASHINGTON - T.J. Oshie scored the shootout winner as the Washington Capitals overcame a stellar performance from Columbus goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky to beat the Blue Jackets 2-1 Thursday night.

Despite 44 saves from Bobrovsky, the Capitals reached 104 points and extended their lead atop the Metropolitan Division and NHL standings. Oshie engendered memories of his Sochi Olympic shootout performance by again beating Bobrovsky, the goalie he scored on four times in six chances that day.

Dmitry Orlov finally cracked Bobrovsky early in the third period on Washington's 35th shot of the game. Orlov's goal tied the score after Seth Jones beat Braden Holtby on a wild scramble early in the third for his first goal since Feb. 7.

Holtby had 29 saves in regulation and overtime and three more in the shootout to pick up his 38th victory of the season, one shy of Bobrovsky for the league lead.

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Two goals for Jonathan Marchessault.

The Florida Panthers forward tallied his second in 26 seconds Thursday versus the Arizona Coyotes, bringing his total to 25 goals on the season.

Marchessault grabbed a feed from winger Thomas Vanek before firing it past goaltender Mike Smith.

Marchessault is the Panthers' leading goal scorer, three ahead of center Vincent Trocheck.

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There's something you don't see everyday.

Florida Panthers forward Shawn Thornton scored his second goal of the season Thursday on a wild play that saw the net fall on Arizona Coyotes goaltender Mike Smith as the puck crossed the line.

Per the NHL, the goal counted because, while the net was falling, the pegs remained inside the goal posts and the holes in the ice.

Unfortunately for Smith, the goal would hold up. To make matters worse, the Panthers would add two more before the end of the second period.

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Seth Jones has rediscovered his scoring touch.

The Columbus Blue Jackets defenseman wired his 11th of the season Thursday against the Washington Capitals. Netminder Braden Holtby stopped the initial attempt by forward Brandon Dubinsky but was bested after the puck bounced loose to Jones.

The tally marked Jones' first goal in 21 games.

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Warning: The following video isn't for the squeamish.

Sidney Crosby's still wielding a dangerous weapon.

Two nights after whacking Ryan O'Reilly between the legs with an irrefutably cheap shot, Pittsburgh's captain nearly sawed off the end of Marc Methot's finger with a short slash across the hands Thursday in Ottawa.

Methot, as you might imagine, was ruled out for the remainder of the game.

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Another goal, another record.

Mitch Marner picked up an assist on James van Riemsdyk's second-period marker Thursday and in the process tied the Toronto Maple Leafs' rookie record for assists in a season.

Related: Nylander sets Leafs rookie record with 10-game point streak

Marner matched the mark set by Gus Bodnar, who collected 40 helpers during the 1943-44 season.

The point gives Marner 57 on the season and creates a pretty Toronto-heavy rookie scoring race:

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