The St. Louis Blues foiled the Columbus Blue Jackets' quest to gain sole possession of the longest win streak in the NHL this season, halting Columbus' run at 10 games with a 2-1 victory Saturday night.

St. Louis earned its fifth consecutive win in the process, moving past the Anaheim Ducks and into the second Western Conference wild-card spot by virtue of having five more regulation or overtime wins.

The five-game run is the Blues' longest of the 2017-18 campaign.

On Thursday, the Blue Jackets tied the Nashville Predators and Colorado Avalanche for the longest such streak in the NHL this season with their 10th straight victory in a shutout win over the Florida Panthers.

Copyright © 2018 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

It appears Dylan Sikura is ready to turn pro.

With his college season finished, the Northeastern forward is expected to sign with the Chicago Blackhawks, a source told Mark Lazerus of the Chicago Sun-Times.

Lazerus added that Sikura is expected to be in the Blackhawks' lineup as soon as Thursday against the Winnipeg Jets.

In 34 games with Northeastern this season, Sikura netted 21 goals and 32 assists.

Sikura was a sixth-round draft choice by the Blackhawks in 2014.

Copyright © 2018 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Cue the "Jaws" theme, because the San Jose Sharks are circling.

The Sharks cruised to their seventh consecutive win with a 5-1 victory over the Calgary Flames on Saturday.

San Jose moved to within six points of the Vegas Golden Knights for first place in the Pacific Division. The expansion club picked up a single point in a shootout loss to the Colorado Avalanche earlier in the day.

Both the Sharks and Golden Knights have seven games remaining in their regular-season schedules.

Evander Kane scored twice for San Jose in Saturday's win. He now has seven goals and 12 points in 12 games with the Sharks since arriving in a trade from the Buffalo Sabres on deadline day.

Copyright © 2018 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Evgeny Kuznetsov is on the mend.

The Washington Capitals star returned to the team from injury Saturday night against the Montreal Canadiens.

Kuznetsov was forced to miss the last three games after exiting last Friday's win over the New York Islanders.

He left that contest late in the second period holding his arm after taking a slash from Islanders defenseman Thomas Hickey and then crashing into the boards.

Kuznetsov ranks second on the Capitals in goals (21) and first in assists (50), having collected exactly a point per game this season.

Copyright © 2018 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Things got a little testy at Winnipeg Jets practice Saturday, as captain Blake Wheeler and defenseman Ben Chiarot exchanged punches.

The fight was witnessed by several reporters, including Pro Hockey Talk's Scott Billeck.

Neither player was hurt in the dust-up, and things cooled down pretty quickly - at least according to Mark Scheifele, who said the incident was simply the result of an "intense practice."

Though head coach Paul Maurice warned the players not to fight, he suggested afterward that the altercation didn't bother him.

The Jets recently reached 100 points for the first time in franchise history, and have eight games remaining before the playoffs begin. Their next contest is Sunday against the Central Division-leading Nashville Predators.

Copyright © 2018 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Ottawa Senators defenseman Erik Karlsson will play Saturday versus the Carolina Hurricanes after missing two games following the death of his son, head coach Guy Boucher confirmed after the morning skate.

Karlsson and his wife, Melinda, announced their son was stillborn earlier in the week, and after taking time off, the Senators captain made the decision himself to return.

In 66 games this season, Karlsson has recorded 56 points. He will have the support of an entire arena behind him Saturday night in what's sure to be an emotional atmosphere at Canadian Tire Centre.

Copyright © 2018 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

The Pittsburgh Penguins made one of their biggest fans' dreams come true.

Roman Marcotte, a 9-year-old from Anchorage, Alaska, went viral after he showcased his impressive skills on his front-yard rink at in a Sidney Crosby jersey.

After catching wind of the youngster's skills, the Pens invited Marcotte to meet his idol and catch a game in Mario Lemieux's suite at PPG Paints Arena.

Copyright © 2018 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

The St. Louis Blues will be a little shorthanded on the back end for the rest of their playoff push.

Carl Gunnarsson is out for the remainder of the season with an ACL tear in his left knee suffered in Friday's win over the Vancouver Canucks, the Blues confirmed postgame.

The defenseman sustained the injury in the first period and was later taken to hospital where an MRI revealed the tear.

Gunnarsson contributed nine points in 63 games while averaging 16:09 in ice time for the Blues this season.

Copyright © 2018 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Through the remainder of the regular season, we'll take a look at how the night's action impacts the playoff race, highlighting which teams' postseason odds went up or down significantly.

The jockeying between the New Jersey Devils and Florida Panthers looks like it could come down to the final day of the regular season at this point.

After giving up a two-goal lead in the third period, the Devils rallied, on the back of a Taylor Hall overtime winner to earn a critical two points against the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Of course, the Devils' good fortune is anything but for the Panthers who watched in agony during an idle Friday.

Eastern Conference

The Dallas Stars let another game get away from them, giving up a 2-0 third-period lead to the Boston Bruins, topped off by a David Pastrnak winner with just 11 seconds left to play. The Stars have now lost nine of their last 10 contests.

On the other hand, the St. Louis Blues made up ground on the final wild-card spot with their fourth straight win to keep their slim playoff hopes alive.

Western Conference

To see percentages for the entire NHL, visit Sports Club Stats.

Copyright © 2018 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Players are reportedly on board with the league's new plan for the draft lottery.

The NHLPA signed off Friday on the new percentages that the NHL submitted to it for approval, TSN's Pierre LeBrun reports.

Here are the new odds of winning the lottery for the three worst clubs and the best non-playoff squad, according to Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman:

Last season, the worst team had an 18 percent chance of securing the No. 1 overall pick. That didn't stop the New Jersey Devils, Philadelphia Flyers, and Dallas Stars from landing the top-three picks despite possessing the fifth-, 13th-, and eighth-best odds, respectively.

The Buffalo Sabres entered Friday's games with the NHL's worst record at 23-38-12 and only 58 points in 73 games.

Copyright © 2018 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.