Thursday in the NHL | Bruins win over Flyers

Bruins beat Flyers 3-2

David Pastrnak scored three times as the Boston Bruins defeated the Philadelphia Flyers 3-2 on Thursday.

Pastrnak signed his 11^and career hat trick.

Tuukka Rask made 24 saves after returning from hip surgery over the summer.

The Bruins earned their fourth straight win. They have lost only once in their last eight meetings.

Their next game is Saturday afternoon at home against the Nashville Predators.

Cam Atkinson and Joel Farabee fought back for the Flyers, who lost for the sixth straight time.

Carter Hart blocked 33 shots.

It took nine minutes for Philadelphia to get a first shot.

Doug Alden, Associated Press

Blue Jackets beat Carolina 6-0

Yegor Chinakhov scored twice, Elvis Merzlikins made 31 saves and the Columbus Blue Jackets defeated the Carolina Hurricanes 6-0 on Thursday.

The 20-year-old Russian’s second goal came on a flurry of three goals in 67 seconds early in the third period.

Merzlikins got a second shutout this season.

Emil Bemstrom, Patrik Laine, Jack Roslovic and Cole Sillinger were the other scorers.

Eric Robinson and Jake Bean each provided two assists.

Columbus will play again Saturday night at Sunrise.

Frederik Anderson allowed four goals on 28 shots and then Jack LaFontaine blocked one of three shots in his NHL debut.

The Hurricanes will host Vancouver on Saturday afternoon.

The Canadian Press

The Lightning defeat the Canucks 4-2

Steven Stamkos scored his 18th goal of the season, a season high for the Lightning, and the Tampa Bay squad beat the Vancouver Canucks 4-2 on Thursday night.

Anthony Cirelli, Boris Katchouk and Brayden Point also threaded the needle for the Lightning. Andrei Vasilevskiy made 24 saves.

Katchouk gave the Lightning a 3-1 lead in the third period on a two-man run against the goaltender. Moments later, Vasilevskiy frustrated Elias Pettersson on a breakaway.

Matthew Highmore and Tyler Motte both had a goal and an assist for the Canucks, who are 8-2-1 since Bruce Boudreau replaced Travis Green as head coach.

Thatcher Demko stopped 17 shots for Vancouver, which returned to action Tuesday night in a 5-2 loss to the Florida Panthers.

Motte reduced the lead to 3-2 with just 4:14 left in the game. Point, however, sealed the outcome of the meeting in an empty net.

Mark Diddler, The Canadian Press

Hellebuyck and the Jets shut out the Red Wings

Connor Hellebuyck was perfect in front of 33 shots and the Winnipeg Jets shut out the Detroit Red Wings 3-0 on Thursday night.

Hellebuyck recorded a second shutout this season. It was the first game for the Manitobans since losing 7-1 to the Colorado Avalanche a week ago.

Andrew Copp moved the ropes twice for the Jets as Kyle Connor completed the scoring in an empty net.

Alex Nedeljkovic blocked 29 shots past the goal for the Red Wings, who were shut out for the fifth time this season.

Copp opened the scoring at 5:41 of the first period. His shot hit defender Nick Leddy before beating Nedeljkovic. Dylan Samberg, who was making his NHL debut, had an assist on the streak.

Copp’s second goal of the match, and his 10^and of the campaign, came just after the Jets had passed a penalty.

Dana Gauruder, The Canadian Press

Islanders win 3-2 over Devils

Mathew Barzal threaded the needle with less than five minutes left in the third period and the New York Islanders beat the New Jersey Devils 3-2 on Thursday night.

Josh Bailey and Adam Pelech also scored for the Islanders, while veteran Zach Parise assisted in two goals for his team.

The New York formation extended its streak to five games with at least one point (4-0-1). Ilya Sorokin made 30 saves for his ninth save this season.

Yegor Sharangovich and Nathan Bastian replied for the Devils, who lost for the third time in their last four outings.

Goaltender Jon Gillies blocked 22 pucks in a losing cause. It was his first start since December 19.

Lane Lambert coached the Islanders from behind the bench, while head coach Barry Trotz is currently in the NHL’s COVID-19 protocol.

Scott Charles, The Canadian Press

Sabers win 4-1 in Nashville

Jeff Skinner scored twice as the Buffalo Sabers defeated the Nashville Predators 4-1 on Thursday.

Skinner reached the milestone of 500 points in the NHL. The 29-year-old Torontonian has 278 goals.

Skinner is successful against the Preds, posting 11 goals and 19 points against them in 17 games.

Mark Jankowski and Vinnie Hinostroza also scored for Buffalo, which snapped a six-game losing streak.

Aaron Dell made 29 saves, being beaten only by Matt Duchene.

Juuse Saros blocked 17 shots for Nashville, which had won five straight games.

Captain Roman Josi added an assist to his tally, leading the Predators with 38 points this season.

Associated Press

Blues come from behind to win 2-1

Robert Thomas and Pavel Buchnevich scored in the third period and the St. Louis Blues came from behind to defeat the Seattle Kraken 2-1 on Thursday night.

Ville Husso stopped 31 pucks and the Blues extended their home game streak to 13 with at least one point. The streak, the third longest in team history, began on November 18.

Alex Wennberg was the only goalscorer for the Kraken, who lost for the sixth time in seven games. Chris Driedger made 25 saves.

Buchnevich’s power-play goal came after a great pass from Ivan Barbashev, 5:30 into the third period.

It was a second consecutive third period comeback for the Blues, who scored two quick goals in the final minute of Sunday’s game against the Dallas Stars.

The St. Louis team leads the NHL with 13 wins this season after trailing.

Joe Harris, The Canadian Press

Senators beat Flames 4-1

Nick Paul scored twice in the first period as the Ottawa Senators defeated the Calgary Flames 4-1 on Thursday night.

The Senators were playing their first game since New Year’s Day and only their second in 26 days. However, they outshot the Flames 34-28.

Drake Batherson and Connor Brown also shone the red light for the Senators, who saw 11 of their games postponed. They have played 30 games this season, the lowest total in the NHL tied with the New York Islanders.

Matt Murray made 27 saves for his first win of the season. He had not known victory since April 22, 2021.

Matthew Tkachuk was the only Flames player to beat Murray. The Alberta squad suffered a fourth loss in a row.

Jacob Markstrom stopped 30 of 34 shots he faced and his record improved to 12-8-5.

Darren Haynes, The Canadian Press