PHILADELPHIA (AP) -Nicklas Backstrom scored in overtime to make Bruce Boudreau’s debut as the Washington Capitals’ interim head coach a success with a 4-3 win over the Philadelphia Flyers on Friday.
Backstrom, who also had two assists, slipped a loose puck past Philadelphia goaltender Marty Biron at 1:55 of the extra period to snap the Capitals’ five-game losing streak.
Philadelphia’s Mike Richards had tied the score on a rebound goal with 4:15 left in regulation.
The 52-year-old Boudreau was named to the interim position Thursday, replacing Glen Hanlon, who was fired a day after the Capitals lost to the Atlanta Thrashers, 5-1. He took over a team that had lost nine of its previous 10, and 15 of 18.
Bruins 2, Islanders 1
BOSTON (AP) – Tim Thomas stopped 25 shots and Glen Metropolit scored the winner to lift the Boston Bruins to their fourth win in five games.
Mike Sillinger scored for the Islanders, who have two goals or fewer in their last seven games, but have won three.
Boston embarks on a tough stretch the next 2 1/2 weeks, playing nine of its next 10 away from the TD Banknorth Garden beginning Saturday night with a rematch against the Islanders in Uniondale, N.Y.
Blue Jackets 4, Wild 0
ST. PAUL (AP) – Pascal Leclaire stopped 32 shots for his club record sixth shutout this season, Michael Peca had a goal and an assist in his return from a groin injury, and Columbus snapped a five-game road winless streak.
Minnesota has dropped 10 of its last 14 and continues to struggle after starting the season 7-0-1.
David Vyborny, Dan Fritsche and Rick Nash also scored for Columbus, which took advantage of several turnovers by the Wild.
Ducks 3, Coyotes 3, SO
ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) – Radim Vrbata scored his second goal of the game on a power play with 1:07 left in regulation, then added the clinching goal in the shootout to give Phoenix a victory over Anaheim.
Ilya Bryzgalov, who made 23 saves, was Jean-Sebastien Giguere’s backup in Anaheim before he was claimed off waivers by the Coyotes on Nov. 17. Giguere had a rinkside seat at the end of the Anaheim bench for Bryzgalov’s return, while new Ducks backup Jonas Hiller stopped 35 shots in his third NHL start.
Shane Doan scored on the first of Phoenix’s two shots in the tiebreaker, while Bryzgalov thwarted attempts by Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry. Bryzgalov was 0-5 in shootouts while playing for the Ducks, allowing seven goals on 16 shots for a .563 save percentage.
Hurricanes 4, Lightning 3
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) – Glen Wesley capped a third-period comeback with his first goal in more than nine months to help Carolina beat Tampa Bay for the first time this season.
Down 3-1 entering the final 20 minutes and headed toward another lopsided loss to their Southeast Division rival, the Hurricanes scored three goals in less than 7 minutes. Ray Whitney and Justin Williams had a hand in the comeback as well, beating Holmqvist with nearly identical shots to tie the game at 3.
Carolina’s Erik Cole returned after missing four games with a neck injury and assisted on Eric Staal’s first-period goal, the 100th of his NHL career.
Vincent Lecavalier, the league’s top scorer, padded his lead with a goal and an assist, and Vaclav Prospal and Paul Ranger also had goals for the Lightning.
Sabres 4, Canadiens 2
BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) – Thomas Vanek scored to break a third-period tie, Tim Connolly had a goal and an assist and Ryan Miller made 30 saves to help Buffalo.
Derek Roy and Daniel Paille also scored for the Sabres, who matched a season high with their third straight win.
Chris Higgins and Tomas Plekanec scored for Montreal, which lost for just the fourth time in regulation in 12 road games.
Devils 3, Thrashers 0
ATLANTA (AP) – Martin Brodeur made 22 saves in his first shutout of the season, and Rod Pelley and Paul Martin scored second-period goals for New Jersey in a victory over Atlanta.
Jay Pandolfo scored an empty-net goal, his eighth, with 28 seconds left and the Devils won their season-high third straight game. Brodeur, who won the Vezina Trophy as the top goalie in the league last season, earned the 93rd shutout of his career.
The Devils cooled off the Thrashers, who had won four in a row and seven of eight.
Panthers 3, Rangers 2, SO
SUNRISE,Fla. (AP) -Olli Jokinen scored the only goal of the shootout and Tomas Vokoun made 28 saves for Florida, which ended New York’s five-game road win streak.
Each team missed four shots before Jokinen’s wrist shot beat New York goalie Stephen Valiquette. Chris Drury, who scored twice for the Rangers in regulation, missed on the ensuing turn.
Stephen Weiss and David Booth also scored for the Panthers, who have won four of five.
Valiquette stopped 33 shots in his second start of the season for New York.
Blues 3, Canucks 1
ST. LOUIS (AP) – Paul Kariya had a goal and an assist, and backup goalie Hannu Toivonen made 25 saves for St. Louis in a win over Vancouver.
Rookie Erik Johnson and Martin Rucinsky also scored for the Blues, who had a four-game winning streak snapped in a 3-0 loss at Detroit Wednesday. They have won four in a row at home.
The Canucks lost for the first time in regulation in their last nine games. They were 6-0-2 in their previous eight games.
Ryan Kesler scored for Vancouver, 5:11 into the third period, to break up Toivonen’s bid for his second career shutout.
Stars 3, Maple Leafs 1
DALLAS (AP) – Antti Miettinen scored the tiebreaking goal late in the second period, and Marty Turco made 18 saves to help Dallas stretch its season-best winning streak to four games.
Turco was back in goal after backup Mike Smith started and won the previous three games.
Mike Ribeiro added a goal for the Stars, 4-0-1 since a front-office shakeup by owner Tom Hicks that included the firing of general manager Doug Armstrong.
Alexei Ponikarovsky scored for the Maple Leafs.
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