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NHL roundup: Rangers beat Kraken 5-2 behind Wheeler, Kakko

Jan 16, 2024 | 11:39 PM

NEW YORK (AP) — Blake Wheeler had two goals, Kaapo Kakko scored in his second game back from a long injury absence, and the New York Rangers beat the Seattle Kraken 5-2 in NHL action on Tuesday night.

Igor Shesterkin made 29 saves as the Rangers won their second straight after four consecutive losses. Vincent Trocheck and Erik Gustafsson scored in the first period for New York.

Jordan Eberle and Jared McCann had the goals for Seattle, which has dropped two in a row following a nine-game winning streak.

Mika Zibanejad and Adam Fox each had two assists for the Rangers.

Elsewhere in the NHL on Tuesday:

OILERS 4 MAPLE LEAFS 2

EDMONTON, Alta. (AP) — Ryan McLeod had a goal and an assist as Edmonton rallied past slumping Toronto for its franchise-record 11th consecutive victory.

Leon Draisaitl, Derek Ryan and Evan Bouchard also scored for the Oilers (24-15-1), who erased a 2-0 deficit to improve to 19-3-0 in their last 22 games. Stuart Skinner made 25 saves, and Connor McDavid picked up an assist to extend his point streak to 11 games.

Auston Matthews and Morgan Rielly scored for the Maple Leafs (21-13-8), who have lost four straight. Matthews got his NHL-leading 34th goal just 27 seconds in.

STARS 5 KINGS 1

DALLAS (AP) — Roope Hintz and Joe Pavelski each scored his 18th goal this season to share the team lead, and Jake Oettinger won a matchup of Western Conference All-Star goaltenders as Dallas pulled away from Los Angeles.

Dallas got three goals in the first 10 minutes of the third period to take complete control. Hintz, Wyatt Johnston and Evgenii Dadonov each had a goal and an assist, and Sam Steel scored short-handed for the Stars, who are 4-1-0 in their last five games. Jason Robertson added two assists.

Veteran defenceman Drew Doughty scored his 150th career goal for the Kings, who finished a six-game trip by splitting a back-to-back. They won at Carolina on Monday night to end an eight-game skid (0-4-4).

Oettinger (13-8-2) made 32 saves, while Cam Talbot stopped 23 shots for Los Angeles.

JETS 4 ISLANDERS 2

WINNIPEG, Man. (AP) — Kyle Connor scored into an empty net after a 16-game absence and Mason Appleton snapped a 25-game goal drought to help Winnipeg get back to its winning ways with a victory over New York.

Gabriel Vilardi and Neal Pionk also scored for the Jets, who had an eight-game win streak and 14-game point run halted Saturday in a 2-0 loss to Philadelphia. Connor Hellebuyck made 35 saves for Winnipeg.

Anders Lee scored twice and Ilya Sorokin stopped 40 shots for the Islanders, who are 1-5-0 in their last six games and 2-5-1 during January.

Winnipeg has allowed three or fewer goals in a franchise-record 33 consecutive games. The NHL mark in the modern era (since 1967) is 35 by the Minnesota Wild in 2014-15.

The Jets have also given up two or fewer goals in a club-record 13 straight games.

CAPITALS 2 DUCKS 0

WASHINGTON (AP) — Ethan Bear scored his first NHL goal in almost a year, Darcy Kuemper stopped all 24 shots he faced and Washington blanked Anaheim.

Bear’s goal with 37.8 seconds left in the first period came in his ninth game with the Capitals after signing with them in December. The defenceman, who spent the summer and fall rehabbing from shoulder surgery, last scored Jan. 15, 2023.

Kuemper’s shutout was his first this season and the 31st of his 12-year career. 

Wearing a full face shield to protect his broken nose, Tom Wilson sealed Washington’s third win in five games with an empty-net goal with 57.6 seconds remaining. The Capitals are staying afloat despite being without captain Alex Ovechkin, who has missed the past three games with a lower-body injury.

John Gibson made 26 saves for the rebuilding Ducks, who have lost eight of 10.

AVALANCHE 7 SENATORS 4

OTTAWA, Ont. (AP) — Mikko Rantanen scored twice and Colorado closed with four unanswered goals in the third period to beat Ottawa.

Trailing 4-3 to start the third, Colorado tied it on a goal by Miles Wood. Sam Malinski gave the Avalanche the lead with a power-play goal at the eight-minute mark. Logan O’Connor provided insurance with a late goal, and Devon Toews added an empty-netter.

Jason Polin also scored for Colorado, and Justus Annunen made 36 saves in his season debut. Samuel Girard had three assists.

Ridly Greig had two goals for the Senators, and Drake Batherson and Jake Sanderson also scored. Mads Sogaard, also making is season debut in net, stopped 27 shots.

BLACKHAWKS 2 SHARKS 1 (SO)

CHICAGO (AP) — Boris Katchouk scored in the ninth round of a shootout and Petr Mrazek made the clinching save on Filip Zadina to lift Chicago over San Jose.

Chicago broke a three-game losing streak in the matchup between the NHL’s two worst teams, sending San Jose to its third straight defeat and 15th in 16 games.

Cole Guttman scored in regulation for the Blackhawks, and Mrazek stopped 37 shots.

Ryan Carpenter scored for the Sharks, and Mackenzie Blackwood made 24 saves.

FLAMES 3 COYOTES 2 (OT)

CALGARY, Alta. (AP) — Yegor Sharangovich scored a power-play goal late in overtime to complete Calgary’s comeback against Arizona.

The Coyotes were penalized for too many men at 3:03 of OT and Sharangovich roofed a sharp-angled shot with 18 seconds remaining in extra time.

Nazem Kadri had a goal and an assist and Blake Coleman also scored for the Flames, who won their fourth in a row. Dan Vladar made 25 saves.

Sean Durzi had a goal and assist and Logan Cooley also scored for the Coyotes, who led 2-0 before Coleman scored with 11:06 left in the third period. Connor Ingram stopped 27 shots.

AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl

The Associated Press