NHL Scores: Andrei Vasilevskiy earns big shutout win for Lightning, Kings win sixth straight, and more
Anthony Scultore
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The Central Division battle for first place continues to heat up. Tampa’s second straight win over Carolina has them in a tie for second place, with each team just one point behind first place Florida.
NHL Scores: Lightning shutout Hurricanes move into tie for second
Andrei Vasilevskiy stopped all 25 shots hurled his way for a 3-0 Lightning (12-4-1) win over the Hurricanes (12-5-1). Ross Colton made his NHL debut and scored the first goal of the game, that’s wall Vasilevskiy would need to lead them to victory.
“It was a great effort from our guys. In the first two periods I didn’t have that much work,” the winning goalie said. “In the third they started pushing us. But it was a great job defensively.”
These two teams will play a third straight game tonight for sole possession of second place, and quite possibly first. That’s because the Stars (6-4-4) defeated the Panthers (12-4-2) on the strength of a Anton Khudobin 43 save 3-0 shutout.
If Dallas can beat Florida again tonight, Tampa or Carolina can move into first alone.
NHL Scores: Kings stay hot, beat Blues for sixth straight win
The Kings (9-6-3) are having a really nice stretch in the West as they defeated the Blues (10-8-2) 2-1. That’s now six straight wins for this young Kings teams. Alex Iafallo got his 6th of the season to open the scoring while Cal Petersen stopped 35 for the win.
“I think guys are playing like we expect to play,” Petersen explained after the win. “We’re all doing our jobs. We’re not getting too far ahead of ourselves. We’re taking it game by game. I think it’s paying off for us.”
In other division action, the Coyotes (6-10-4) rally again from three goals down and take out the Ducks (9-7-3) in a shootout 4-3. Phil Kessel completed the rally with his 7th goal of the year late in the third. Christian Dvorak decided it in the shootout.
Remaining Games:
- Flyers (9-4-3) outlast Rangers (6-8-3) 4-3
- Maple Leafs (15-4-2) win in OT over Flames (9-9-2) 2-1
- Wild (10-6) over Avalanche (9-6-1) 6-2
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