Thursday in the NHL | Sabers defeat Blackhawks 3-0

A 2^e straight shutout for goalie Luukkonen

Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen made 20 saves for his second straight shutout on Thursday as the Buffalo Sabers defeated the Chicago Blackhawks 3-0.

It was the third career shutout for Luukkonen, who blanked the San Jose Sharks 3-0 on Monday. His best save came with 5:45 left in the third when he blocked a Reese Johnson shot on a two-on-one run.

Zemgus Girgensons, JJ Peterka and Rasmus Dahlin hit the target during this match initially scheduled for Wednesday, but which was postponed a day due to a snowstorm.

Arvid Soderblom stopped 27 shots for the Blackhawks, who have won just two of their last 11 games.

Blackhawks center Philipp Kurashev received a major penalty for slashing defenseman Erik Johnson at 5:19 of the third. Johnson’s head took the impact with the tape.

Mark Ludwiczak, Associated Press

TJ Oshie scores hat trick in Capitals win

TJ Oshie scored a hat trick as the Washington Capitals won 5-2 against the St. Louis Blues on Thursday.

Oshie scored twice on the power play. He then completed his hat-trick into an empty net, scoring his seventh goal this season.

Oshie has scored five goals in his last four games.

Dylan Strome and Nicolas Aube-Kubel also scored for the Capitals, who have won three of their last four games.

Strome leads the Capitals with 16 goals this season.

Max Pacioretty had two assists and Charlie Lindgren stopped 18 shots.

Alexander Ovechkin returned to action after a three-game absence due to a lower body injury. He was complicit in Strome’s goal.

Nathan Walker scored twice for the Blues, who lost a third game in a row.

Associated Press

The Flyers defeat the Stars 5-1

Owen Tippett scored twice, including a spectacular goal late in the game, and the Philadelphia Flyers defeated the Dallas Stars 5-1 on Thursday for their fifth straight victory.

Scott Laughton also found the back of the net on a penalty shot. Sean Walker and Cam Atkinson were the other scorers for the Pennsylvania club, which had lost its last seven outings against the Stars.

Tippett put the finishing touches on the victory at 5:30 with a spin that beat defender Joel Hanley and a backhand shot that fooled Jake Oettinger. The latter made 38 saves.

Tyler Seguin threaded the needle for the Stars, who have still won four of their last six games.

The Flyers are currently second in the Metropolitan section. They are trying to qualify for the playoffs for the first time since 2020.

Samuel Ersson stopped 14 pucks in the victory.

Aaron Bracy, Associated Press

Bruins defeat Avalanche 5-2

David Pastrnak scored on his first shift and added two insurance goals in the third period to lead the Boston Bruins to a 5-2 victory over the Colorado Avalanche on Thursday.

Jake DeBrusk and Jakub Lauko also lit the red light for the Bruins, who have won their last three games and are 8-1-3 in their last 12.

Jeremy Swayman started a fourth straight game for the first time since the 2022 playoffs. He made 30 saves for the Bruins.

Nathan MacKinnon and Miles Wood found the back of the net for the Avalanche, who suffered only their fourth loss in their last 14 outings.

Alexandar Georgiev stopped 26 shots. He got a 37^e start this season, a peak among goalkeepers on the circuit.

Avalanche defenseman Cale Makar collected an assist. It wasn’t enough, however, to tie Bobby Orr as the fastest guard to total 300 points in the National Hockey League.

Orr did it in 279 games, on December 13, 1970. Makar played his 279^e career match on Thursday, but he has 299 points.

Ken Powtak, Associated Press

Nikita Kucherov reaches 500 assists in Lightning victory

Nikita Kucherov collected three assists to reach the 500 mark in his career, Anthony Cirelli had a double and the Tampa Bay Lightning defeated the Minnesota Wild 7-3 on Thursday.

Kucherov, who leads the National Hockey League with 75 points, had his fourth game with three or more assists this season. He reached 500 assists in 688 games, being the third-fastest active player to do so after Connor McDavid (527) and Sidney Crosby (554).

The Russian reached the plateau by being an accomplice of the 205^e power play goal by Steven Stamkos. The latter thus overtook Wayne Gretzky and joined Joe Sakic at 16^e rank of history.

Viktor Hedman, Waltteri Merela, Brayden Point, Steven Stamkos and Michael Eyssimont also found the back of the net. It was Merela’s first goal on the Bettman circuit.

Hedman finished the game with four points. Andrei Vasilevskiy stopped 30 pucks.

Jake Middleton had a goal and two assists for the Wild, who have lost nine of their last 11 games. Joel Eriksson Ek and Marco Rossi also scored. Filip Gustavsson made 31 saves.

Erik Erlendsson, Associated Press