The Buffalo Sabres prevailed 2-1 after a shootout in a clash of NHL divisional leaders on Wednesday, handing another defeat to the suddenly punchless New Jersey Devils.
Jason Pominville and Jochen Hecht scored shootout goals, after Adam Mair had scored in regulation.
Brian Rolston scored for the offensively-challenged Devils, who’ve scored just 12 times during an eight-game stretch in which they’ve won only twice.
The game featured a potential Olympic matchup between the goalies. Buffalo’s Ryan Miller finished with 39 saves, while New Jersey’s Martin Brodeur had 30.
CAPITALS 5, DUCKS 1
In Washington, the Capitals got three goals in less than three minutes in the third period to cap an easy win over Anaheim.
Shaone Morrisonn, Mike Knuble and Alexander Semin scored on consecutive shots early in the third period to break open the game.
Alex Ovechkin scored his 34th goal in the first period and had two assists in the third, while Semin added another goal in the third. Since Ovechkin became captain on Jan. 5, Washington has won 11 of 12 games and scored at least four goals in all but one of them.
Dan Sexton scored for the Ducks.
CANUCKS 3, BLUES 2
In Vancouver, defenseman Christian Ehrhoff scored a late power-play goal from a sharp angle to give Vancouver a win over St Louis.
Mason Raymond had put the Canucks ahead with his second goal of the game early in the third period, but St Louis’ T.J. Oshie tied it midway through.
The Canucks won a sixth straight game for the first time since 2006-2007 and moved two points ahead of Colorado atop the Northwest Division.
Keith Tkachuk also scored for St Louis.
STARS 4, FLAMES 3, SO
In Dallas, Loui Eriksson scored in the third round of the shootout to give Dallas victory over Calgary.
Stars goalie Alex Auld stopped all three shots he faced in the shootout as Dallas won its fourth straight at home.
Modano scored his 553rd career goal, and Richards and James Neal also connected for Dallas in regulation.
Iginla, Dion Phaneuf and Olli Jokinen scored for Calgary.
WILD 5, RED WINGS 2
In St Paul, Minnesota, Antti Miettinen got Minnesota going with a pair of first-period goals, and Detroit’s defense fell apart late.
Andrew Ebbett, Guillaume Latendresse and Martin Havlat also scored for the Wild.
Pavel Datsyuk scored twice for Detroit.
LIGHTNING 3, CANADIENS 0
In Tampa, Florida, Vincent Lecavalier scored a nifty goal with his stick between his legs and added an assist to help Tampa Bay defeat Montreal.
Antero Niittymaki made 33 saves for Tampa Bay for his first shutout of the season.
Martin St Louis and Steven Stamkos also scored for Tampa Bay.
HURRICANES 5, RANGERS 1
In New York, Patrick Dwyer and Eric Staal scored in a 25-second span early in the first period to set up Carolina’s win over New York.
Staal and Sergei Samsonov each finished with two goals while New York’s goal came via Ryan Callahan.
The former interpreter for baseball star Shohei Ohtani on Thursday was sentenced to nearly five years in prison for bank and tax fraud after he stole nearly US$17 million from the Los Angeles Dodgers player’s bank account. Ippei Mizuhara, who was supposed to bridge the gap between the Japanese athlete and his English-speaking teammates and fans, was sentenced in federal court in Santa Ana to four years and nine months after pleading guilty last year. He was ordered to pay US$18 million in restitution, with nearly US$17 million going to Ohtani and the remainder to the US Internal Revenue Service. He was
Aaliyah Edwards on Monday pulled off the stunner of the opening round of the Unrivaled one-on-one tournament, beating top-seeded Breanna Stewart 12-0. The tournament to be played over three days featured 23 of the WNBA’s 36 players. A few had other commitments and a couple others were out with injuries. Stewart got the ball first against Edwards and missed a contested layup. Edwards then hit a three-pointer from the corner and a jumper from the elbow to go up 5-0. The player who scores keeps the basketball. Edwards hit two layups and a three-pointer to seal the win. Stewart, a two-time WNBA Most Valuable Player,
SPEEDSKATER: Her bronze medal ended Taiwan’s run at the Asian Winter Games without a medal since the nation first participated in the second iteration in 1990 Speedskater Chen Ying-chu yesterday made history as the first athlete representing Taiwan to secure a medal at the Asian Winter Games. Competing at the HIC Speedskating Oval in Harbin, China, Chen clocked 10.510 seconds in the women’s 100m event, finishing third behind South Koreans Lee Na-hyum and Kim Min-sun, who posted times of 10.501 and 10.505 seconds respectively. Her bronze medal ended Taiwan’s drought at the Asian Winter Games since the nation first participated in the second iteration in 1990. This year’s Games mark Chen’s debut at the event. Previously excelling in roller speedskating, she won six medals at world championships before transitioning
The 40-year-old LeBron James on Thursday became the oldest player to score 40 points in an NBA game, putting up a season-high 42 in the Los Angeles Lakers’ 120-112 victory over the Golden State Warriors. James passed the record held by Michael Jordan, his idol and the only other NBA player to score 40 after his 40th birthday. “I’m old, that’s my take,” James said when asked about his latest achievement. “I need a glass of wine and some sleep, that’s what I think.” Jordan did it for the Washington Wizards just three days after turning 40 in February 2003. James is 38