The Vancouver Canucks moved within a point of the NHL Western Conference lead with a 6-2 win over the Philadelphia Flyers on Tuesday.
Ryan Kesler scored twice early in the second period and the Flyers responded by replacing goalie Brian Boucher. Kesler added an assist in the third.
Jeff Tambellini had a goal, Manny Malhotra scored late in the first period, Daniel Sedin added a goal in between Kesler’s two, and Jannik Hansen scored early in the third as Vancouver beat the Flyers at home for the first time since 1989.
PHOTO: REUTERS
Danny Briere and Jeff Carter, on a late power play, scored for Philadelphia.
PENGUINS 6, THRASHERS 3
In Pittsburgh, Sidney Crosby got two goals to extend his scoring streak to 25 games, as Pittsburgh won its final home game before the Winter Classic by beating Atlanta.
Crosby twice answered Thrashers goals by scoring in the first period, then set up Chris Kunitz’s goal nine seconds into the third period and another by Matt Cooke. Craig Adams also scored short-handed for Pittsburgh.
Crosby is the first NHL player to have a streak this long since Penguins’ Mario Lemieux’s 28-game run to begin the 1995-1996 season, according to STATS LLC.
The Penguins captain, peaking just as the NHL’s midseason outdoor game against Washington approaches on Saturday, continues to torment the Thrashers, who have lost their past nine in Pittsburgh.
Crosby has six goals and four assists in three games against Atlanta this season.
Wayne Gretzky (1990-1991), Bryan Trottier (1981-1982), Brett Hull (1991-1992) and Bernie -Nicholls (1984-1985) also had 25-game streaks.
The NHL record is Gretzky’s 51-game run in 1983-1984, during a more wide-open era in which he averaged three points per game. Lemieux had a team-record, 46-game streak in 1989-1990.
BRUINS 4, LIGHTNING 3
In Tampa, Mark Recchi scored a power-play goal with 20 seconds left to lift Boston over Tampa Bay.
Recchi’s goal from the slot was his seventh this season and 570th overall in the NHL.
Boston also got goals from Michael Ryder, Steven Kampfer and Brad Marchand.
Steve Stamkos scored his 29th goal of the season for Tampa Bay.
Vincent Lecavalier and Martin St Louis also netted.
STARS 4, PREDATORS 2
In Nashville, the hosts crashed to their fifth straight loss, beaten by Dallas.
Loui Eriksson scored a goal and added an assist, and Andrew Raycroft made 44 saves for the Stars. Steve Ott, Mark Fistric and Krystofer Barch also scored for the visitors.
CAPITALS 3, CANADIENS 0
In Washington, Semyon Varlamov made 25 saves to shut out Montreal and give victory to Washington.
Varlamov posted his second shutout this season, making several strong stops early as Montreal recorded the first six shots in the opening seven minutes.
BLUES 3, BLACKHAWKS 1
In St Louis, Ty Conklin shut down a team that burned him for seven goals in one game last month, stopping 25 shots in St Louis’ victory over Chicago.
Vladimir Sobotka, Brad Boyes and Brad Winchester scored for the Blues, who dominated much of the way to win their fourth in a row and end the Blackhawks’ four-game winning streak.
In other NHL play, it was:
Ducks 3, Coyotes 1
Hurricanes 4, Maple Leafs 3
Sabres 4, Oilers 2
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For almost 30 minutes, Vitomir Maricic did not take a breath. Face down in a pool, surrounded by anxious onlookers, the Croatian freediver fought spasming pain to redefine what doctors thought was possible. When he finally surfaced, he had smashed the previous Guinness World Record for the longest breath-hold underwater by nearly five minutes. However, even with the help of pure oxygen before the attempt, it had pushed him to the limit. “Everything was difficult, just overwhelming,” Maricic, 40, told reporters, reflecting on the record-breaking day on June 14. “When I dive, I completely disconnect from everything, as if I’m not even there.
An amateur soccer league organized by farmers, students and factory workers in rural China has unexpectedly drawn millions of fans and inspired big cities to form their own, raising hopes China can grow talent from the ground up and finally become a global force. The nation of 1.4 billion people has about 200 million soccer fans, more than any other country, but it has failed to build world-class teams, partly due to a top-down approach where clubs pick players from a very small pool of prescreened candidates. The professional game is marred by a history of fixed matches, corruption, and dismal performances,
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