NHL Roundup: Islanders Fall on Zdeno Chara’s Record Night

San Jose Sharks left wing Jeffrey Viel (63) and New York Islanders defenseman Zdeno Chara (33) fight during the second period at SAP Center at San Jose, Calif., on Feb 24, 2022. (Darren Yamashita/USA TODAY Sports via Field Level Media)

Logan Couture scored in regulation and added the lone goal in the shootout as the San Jose Sharks snapped a seven-game losing streak by edging the visiting New York Islanders, 4–3.

New York’s Zdeno Chara played in his 1,652nd game, breaking a tie with Chris Chelios for the most games played by a defenseman in NHL history. The 44-year-old veteran saw 16:26 of ice time and also became the oldest player ever to earn a fighting major when he tussled with Jeffrey Viel—who was born nine months before Chara made his NHL debut in 1997.

The Sharks also received goals from Alexander Barabanov and Jasper Weatherby, and Tomas Hertl had two assists. San Jose goalie James Reimer made 47 saves in regulation and overtime—including 18 in the third period and the extra session—and he wasn’t beaten in the shootout.

Brock Nelson, Zach Parise and Adam Pelech scored for the Islanders, who have lost nine of 14 (5–7–2). Parise’s tally was the 400th of his career. New York goalie Ilya Sorokin made 25 saves.

Canucks 7, Flames 1

J.T. Miller scored two goals, including one on a penalty shot, and Bo Horvat also scored twice to highlight a five-goal second period as host Vancouver snapped Calgary’s franchise-record-tying 10-game winning streak with a blowout victory.

Miller also had two assists, Elias Pettersson had two goals and an assist, and Conor Garland also scored for Vancouver, which won for the fourth time in its last five games.

Brock Boeser and Quinn Hughes each added two assists for the Canucks, who closed within three points of Edmonton for the final wild-card spot in the Western Conference. Thatcher Demko finished with 29 saves. Andrew Mangiapane scored for Calgary, which lost for the first time since a 5–1 setback to St. Louis on Jan. 27.

Devils 6, Penguins 1

Jesper Bratt had two goals and an assist and rookie Nico Daws made 37 saves as visiting New Jersey clobbered Pittsburgh.

Nico Hischier added a goal and two assists, Yegor Sharangovich, Dawson Mercer and Damon Severson also scored and Jack Hughes added three assists for the Devils, who had lost two in a row, nine of 11, and were coming off an eight-day layoff.

Evgeni Malkin scored for the Penguins, who lost their third straight. Tristan Jarry allowed five goals on 19 shots before being pulled in the second period. Casey DeSmith took over and stopped 16 of the 17 shots he faced.

Rangers 4, Capitals 1

Igor Shesterkin made 36 saves and Alexis Lafreniere and Mika Zibanejad each had a goal and an assist as New York collected a win over visiting Washington.

Barclay Goodrow and Chris Kreider also scored for the Rangers, with Kreider collecting his 34th goal of the season to remain near the NHL lead. The Rangers are 5–0–1 in their last six games, a hot streak that has carried New York to second place in the Metropolitan Division.

Washington continues to sit in fourth place in the Metro, treading water with an 8–8–0 record over its last 16 games. Alexander Ovechkin scored with 62 seconds remaining for the Capitals’ lone goal of the game.

Predators 2, Stars 1 (SO)

Mikael Granlund scored the lone goal in the shootout to give Nashville a win against visiting Dallas.

Philip Tomasino scored in regulation for the Predators, who won their second straight game. Juuse Saros made 27 saves, including all four in the shootout. Jason Robertson scored for Dallas, and Jake Oettinger made 19 saves.

Prior to the game, the Predators raised retired goaltender Pekka Rinne’s No. 35 to the rafters. He is the first player in franchise history to have his number retired.

Bruins 3, Kraken 2 (OT)

Jake DeBrusk scored his second goal of the game 33 seconds into overtime to lift visiting Boston past Seattle.

David Pastrnak also scored, Charlie McAvoy had two assists, and Linus Ullmark made 25 saves for the Bruins in the opener of a six-game road trip. Boston earned its third consecutive victory.

Mark Giordano and Jordan Eberle scored and Philipp Grubauer made 36 saves for the Kraken, who have lost six in a row (0–5–1).

Blue Jackets 6, Panthers 3

Patrik Laine extended his points streak to 11 games and Boone Jenner had the go-ahead tally as Columbus stunned Florida in Sunrise, Florida.

Florida still leads the NHL in home wins (23–5–0), and the Panthers rank No. 1 in the NHL in goals scored. However, they have lost two straight home games.

Columbus won its fourth straight game and beat the Panthers for the first time in nine tries. Gabriel Carlsson, Cole Sillinger, Justin Danforth, and Oliver Bjorkstrand (empty-netter) added third-period goals for Columbus.

Maple Leafs 3, Wild 1

Auston Matthews scored his second goal of the game midway through the third period to end a tie, and Toronto defeated visiting Minnesota.

Alexander Kerfoot also scored for the Maple Leafs, who had lost their previous three games. Mitchell Marner added two assists and Petr Mrazek made 29 saves for Toronto.

Frederick Gaudreau scored for the Wild, who have lost four of five. Kaapo Kahkonen stopped 22 shots for Minnesota.