Thursday in the NHL | Hurricanes qualify for playoffs

Hurricanes triumph by shutout at home

Frederik Andersen stopped 24 shots, Sebastian Aho and Seth Jarvis each had a goal and two assists and the Carolina Hurricanes qualified for the playoffs with a 4-0 win over the Detroit Red Wings on Thursday.

The Hurricanes will be in the playoffs for the sixth straight year.

Aho and Jarvis scored 57 seconds apart and the Hurricanes scored four goals in the second period.

Martin Necas and Brady Skjei also found the back of the net. Jake Guentzel had two assists.

Andersen posted his second shutout in his last five games, going 7-0-0 since returning to play after missing more than four months of activity.

James Reimer made 29 saves against his former team, having won his last three games.

The Hurricanes opened the scoring after 19 shots, when Guentzel passed the puck to Aho for his 32^e goal of the season, a team high.

Forwards Patrick Kane and Austin Czarnik were out of uniform for the Red Wings due to illness.

The Leafs offer themselves a decisive victory

Joseph Woll made 24 saves and Mark Giordano scored in his return to action after a long absence to help the Toronto Maple Leafs defeat the Washington Capitals 5-1 on Thursday.

Tyler Bertuzzi scored twice in the victory, giving him six goals in his last seven games. Conner Dewar and Bobby McMann were the other Maple Leafs scorers.

Nic Dowd responded for the Capitals and Charlie Lindgren stopped 43 pucks.

Woll has been solid after allowing a goal on the first shot in his last two starts, including in a 6-3 loss to the New Jersey Devils on Tuesday.

Giordano played his first match since February 29 due to a concussion. It was his second goal of the season and his first in 31 games.

The Leafs entered this meeting in second place in the Atlantic Division with a lead of only two points over the Tampa Bay Lightning. The Florida team has an 8-1-1 record in its last 10 meetings.

Joshua Clipperton, The Canadian Press

A fourth straight win for the Senators

The Ottawa Senators won their fourth straight game with a 2-0 victory over the Chicago Blackhawks on Thursday night.

Anton Forsberg signed the shutout with 19 saves.

The Senators had not won against the Blackhawks since December 20, 2016.

Claude Giroux and Parker Kelly found the back of the net for the Senators in the first period.

Peter Mrazek stopped 32 pucks for the Blackhawks.

The Senators were playing their second game in as many days, having beaten the Buffalo Sabers 6-2 on Wednesday.

Trailing 2-0 after 40 minutes, the Blackhawks took only five shots in the third period

Giroux opened the scoring after 36 seconds of play, shorthanded.

Lisa Wallace, The Canadian Press

The Penguins defeat the Blue Jackets 3-2

Evgeni Malkin scored two goals to reach the 20-goal plateau for 15^e time in his career and the Pittsburgh Penguins defeated the Columbus Blue Jackets 3-2 on Thursday.

The Russian became the 31^e player in the history of the National Hockey League to experience 15 campaigns of 20 goals. He added himself to this list with two power play goals, each time creating a tie.

Drew O’Connor then gave the Penguins the lead 35 seconds into the third period. Alex Nedeljkovic stopped 17 pucks and the Pennsylvania team has a record of 21-2-3 in its last 26 games against the Blue Jackets.

Sidney Crosby has two assists and has 995 in his career, 11^e rank in the history of the Bettman circuit. The Penguins captain has totaled nine points in his last three games.

Mathieu Olivier and Cole Sillinger scored for the Blue Jackets, who lost a sixth straight game. Daniil Tarasov made 33 saves.

Will Graves, Associated Press

The Islanders win 3-2 against the Panthers

Semyon Varlamov blocked 26 shots and Jean-Gabriel Pageau scored the game-winning goal midway through the second period to help the New York Islanders defeat the Florida Panthers 3-2 on Thursday night.

The Panthers could advance to the playoffs with a win. The team still qualified for spring ball as the Detroit Red Wings lost to the Carolina Hurricanes.

Ryan Pulock and Mathew Barzal also scored in the win. Casey Cizikas had two assists.

The Islanders had lost seven of their last eight games before Thursday’s matchup.

Finding the back of the net for the Panthers’ second goal, Aleksander Barkov became the first player in team history to reach the 700-point plateau.

Vladimir Tarasenko also scored in the loss. Goaltender Anthony Stolarz stopped 21 pucks for the Panthers, who have lost six of their last seven games.

Panthers defenseman Aaron Ekblad was back in the lineup after missing seven games with a lower-body injury.

Colby Guy, Associated Press

The Wild have the upper hand 3-1 over the Sharks

Matt Boldy broke the tie 18 seconds into the third period and the Minnesota Wild defeated the San Jose Sharks 3-1 on Thursday.

Joel Eriksson Ek had previously hit the target and Ryan Hartman put the finishing touches in an empty cage. Kirill Kaprizov collected two assists.

Filip Gustavsson stopped 26 pucks, giving the Wild a 7-1-3 record in their last 11 games.

The Wild, who had not played in the last five days, are nine points behind the Vegas Golden Knights and third place in the Pacific Division with 10 games remaining. The two teams will cross swords on Saturday.

Mikael Granlund made the red light shine for the Sharks, last in the general standings. The California team has lost 18 of its last 19 meetings.

Mackenzie Blackwood made 29 saves in the loss.

Mike Cook, Associated Press