Chris Kreider scored the tiebreaking goal with 3:11 remaining in the third period and the New York Rangers beat the host Columbus Blue Jackets 3-1 on Friday night.
The Rangers won their season-high fourth straight game and won for the fifth time in six games thanks to Kreider, who scored his seventh goal in the last nine games.
Pavel Buchnevich scored 22 seconds into the game and Ryan Strome added an empty-net goal as the Rangers also won their fifth straight road game.
Oliver Bjorkstrand, who scored twice in the Blue Jackets’ 2-1 win in New York on Jan. 19, tallied for Columbus, which dropped its fourth straight game (0-2-2). The Blue Jackets also allowed the winning goal shortly after Boone Jenner’s shot went off the post on a short-handed breakaway.
Penguins 4, Canadiens 1
Jason Zucker scored two goals in his second game with Pittsburgh, leading the way in a victory over visiting Montreal.
Zucker, who was acquired from the Minnesota Wild in a trade on Monday, scored both goals in the final two minutes of the second period to give the Penguins a 3-1 lead.
Sidney Crosby had three assists, Kris Letang and Zach Aston-Reese also scored, and Tristan Jarry made 34 saves for Pittsburgh.
Hurricanes 5, Devils 2
Nino Niederreiter and Martin Necas each delivered a goal and an assist as Carolina drilled visiting New Jersey.
Carolina goalie Petr Mrazek made 35 saves for his first triumph in his last four outings.
Warren Foegele, Andrei Svechnikov and Joel Edmundson also scored for Carolina, which improved to 23-3-1 when scoring a game’s first goal. Mirco Mueller and Joey Anderson scored for the Devils, who were playing their third game in four nights. Anderson, a right winger, scored his first goal of the season with 5:03 remaining.
Sharks 3, Jets 2
San Jose scored twice in the third period for a come-from-behind road victory over Winnipeg.
After Melker Karlsson scored the equalizer 5:18 into the final frame, it took only 89 seconds for Timo Meier to follow up by firing a rebound past Jets goalie Connor Hellebuyck.
Blake Wheeler had a goal and an assist for the Jets, with both points coming during an 86-second span in the second period.
–Field Level Media
