AROUND THE NHL | Thursday’s games

Blue Jackets 6, Islanders 4

COLUMBUS

Zach Werenski had a goal and an assist, and Sergei Bobrovsky knocked down 21 shots as Columbus held off a rally by the New York Islanders. Markus Nutivaara, Pierre-Luc Dubois, Seth Jones, Nick Foligno and Josh Anderson also scored for the Blue Jackets, who snuffed out a New York comeback attempt in the second and third periods that included a hat trick by wing Josh Bailey. Columbus (20-11-1) has won 11 of their last 15 and is in a knot of teams battling for supremacy in the tough Metropolitan Division. The Islanders (17-12-3) were a point behind Columbus and Washington coming into the game, but the Blue Jackets found various ways to beat Thomas Greiss, who finished the game with 29 saves. New York tied the score 3-3 in the second period, and pulled back within one in the final frame but couldn’t grab the lead. Casey Cizikas also scored for New York, and John Tavares had two assists. The Islanders have lost six of their last eight games.

Flyers 2, Sabres 1

PHILADELPHIA

Valtteri Filppula scored the game-winner with 21/2 minutes left in the second period and Travis Sanheim netted his first career goal to help Philadelphia win its fifth straight game. Brian Elliott made 19 saves for the Flyers, whose winning streak comes on the heels of a 10-game losing streak. Ryan O’Reilly scored for the Sabres (8-18-6), who are in the cellar of the Eastern Conference. The winning stretch began with a three-game Canadian trip that started with coach Dave Hakstol changing the team’s formation to a more defensive-minded 1-2-2 alignment. Philadelphia (13-11-7) has outscored opponents 19-8 since.

Capitals 5, Bruins 3

BOSTON

Alex Chiasson scored two third-period goals, the second on a short-handed breakaway with 8:29 left. Patrice Bergeron scored twice for Boston, moving past Bobby Orr on the team’s all-time list with his 265th career goal and adding another in the final seconds. Braden Holtby stopped 33 shots for the Capitals, who have beaten Boston 11 straight times. Jakub Vrana and Nicklas Backstrom also scored for Washington, and Alex Ovechkin added an empty netter to make it 5-2 before Bergeron cut the deficit to two with 27 seconds left.

Canadiens 2, Devils 1

MONTREAL

Tomas Plekanec scored 1:52 into overtime and Montreal beat New Jersey to snap a three-game slide. Andrew Shaw scored for the Canadiens (14-14-4) in the first period and Carey Price made 31 saves in his ninth straight start. Stefan Noesen had the goal for the Devils (17-9-5), who remained third in the rugged Metropolitan Division. Cory Schneider stopped 34 shots in defeat.

Wild 2, Maple Leafs 0

ST. PAUL, MINN.

Alex Stalock stopped 28 shots to complete his first NHL shutout in three seasons, steering Minnesota past Toronto for its fourth straight victory. Tyler Ennis scored early and Mikael Granlund added a late goal for the Wild, whose first three wins on the streak were all in extra time. They handed the Maple Leafs their first blank slate in more than a year, since a 3-0 loss at Calgary on Nov. 30, 2016. The Maple Leafs, who have the second-best record in the Eastern Conference and entered the game with the fifth-highest scoring average in the league, have totaled three goals over their last three games without young star center Auston Matthews because of an upper-body injury.

Associated Press