Pavel Datsyuk came back from 19 games out with a broken wrist to score one goal and set up another, helping the Detroit Red Wings beat the New York Rangers 3-2 on Monday.
Jiri Hudler and Drew Miller also scored for the Red Wings, who extended their lead in the Central Division to seven points.
Brandon Dubinsky scored with 4 minutes, 5 seconds left in the game to pull the Rangers within a goal, but they couldn’t find a third despite being on the power-play to end the game.
Derek Stepan had New York’s other goal.
CANUCKS 4, SENATORS 2
In Vancouver, Mikael Samuelsson scored twice and added an assist as streaking Vancouver built an early lead and hung on for a win over struggling Ottawa.
Ryan Kesler had a goal and assist, while Alex Burrows also scored and Mason Raymond added three assists as Vancouver won their sixth straight game.
The Canucks have only two regulation losses in the past two months (21-2-6). They extended their lead atop the NHL to four points and remained nine points up on Detroit for first in the Western Conference.
Nick Foligno and Jason Spezza scored less than two minutes apart in the second period to pull Ottawa to 3-2.
COYOTES 3, AVALANCHE 0
In Glendale, Arizona, Ilya Bryzgalov stopped 26 shots for his second straight shutout, helping Phoenix defeat Colorado.
Bryzgalov put in another sterling performance to give Phoenix consecutive shutouts for the first time since Brian Boucher set the modern-day NHL record with five straight in 2003-2004.
Radim Vrbata scored twice for Phoenix and Scottie Upshall netted the other.
MAPLE LEAFS 5, THRASHERS 4
In Toronto, Nikolai Kulemin and Tim Brent each scored third--period goals to give Toronto victory over Atlanta.
Dion Phaneuf, Mikhail Grabovski and Clarke MacArthur also scored for the Leafs, who played another high-scoring game against Atlanta.
The teams have combined for 30 goals in three meetings this season.
Dustin Byfuglien, Evander Kane, Nik Antropov and Andrew Ladd scored for the Thrashers, who have won only two of 13 games in regulation and have fallen out of the top eight in the Eastern Conference.
In other NHL action, it was:
‧ Flames 3, Blackhawks 1
‧ Oilers 4, Predators 0
A sumo star was born in Japan on Sunday when 24-year-old Takerufuji became the first wrestler in 110 years to win a top-division tournament on his debut, triumphing at the 15-day Spring Grand Sumo Tournament in Osaka despite injuring his ankle on the penultimate day. Takerufuji, whose injury had left him in a wheelchair outside the ring, shoved out the higher-ranked Gonoyama at the Edion Arena Osaka to the delight of the crowd, giving him an unassailable record of 13 wins and two losses to claim the Emperor’s Cup. “I did it just through willpower. I didn’t really know what was going
The US’ Ilia Malinin on Saturday produced six scintillating quadruple jumps, including a quadruple Axel, in the men’s free skate to capture his first figure skating world title. The 19-year-old nicknamed the “Quad god,” who is the only skater to land a quadruple Axel in competition, dazzled with an array of breathtakingly executed jumps starting with his quad Axel and including a quadruple Lutz in combination with a triple flip and a quadruple toe loop in combination with a triple toe. He added an unexpected triple-triple combination at the end to earn a world-record 227.79 in the free program for a championship
Shohei Ohtani’s interpreter is being criminally investigated by the IRS, and the attorney for his alleged bookmaker said Thursday that the ex-Los Angeles Dodgers employee placed bets on international soccer — but not baseball. The IRS confirmed Thursday that interpreter Ippei Mizuhara and Mathew Bowyer, the alleged illegal bookmaker, are under criminal investigation through the agency’s Los Angeles Field Office. IRS Criminal Investigation spokesperson Scott Villiard said he could not provide additional details. Mizuhara, 39, was fired by the Dodgers on Wednesday following reports from the Los Angeles Times and ESPN about his alleged ties to an illegal bookmaker and debts well
MLB on Friday announced a formal investigation into the scandal swirling around Shohei Ohtani and his former interpreter amid charges that the Los Angeles Dodgers superstar was the victim of “massive theft.” The Dodgers on Wednesday fired Ippei Mizuhara, Ohtani’s long-time interpreter and close friend, after Ohtani’s representatives alleged that the Japanese two-way star had been the victim of theft, which was reported to involve millions of dollars and link Mizuhara to a suspected illegal bookmaker in California. “Major League Baseball has been gathering information since we learned about the allegations involving Shohei Ohtani and Ippei Mizuhara from the news media,” MLB