Month: April 2008

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Keith Tkachuk took the shot from beyond centre ice toward an empty net. One “lucky bounce” later, his entire team was swarming him.

PHILADELPHIA – Penguins centre Sidney Crosby was scratched from Sunday’s season finale against the Flyers with Pittsburgh playing for the No.

DETROIT – The Detroit Red Wings can now concentrate on the Stanley Cup Playoffs.Nicklas Lidstrom scored twice to lift Detroit to a 4-1 win over the Chicago Blackhawks on Sunday, the final day of the regular season.

MONTREAL – Coach Guy Carbonneau’s smile of satisfaction spoke volumes about what his Montreal Canadiens accomplished this season.A 3-1 victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday gave the Canadiens a final regular-season record of 47-25-10, good for 104 points, their highest total since Carbonneau was a player in 1988-89.

VANCOUVER – Jarome Iginla got both a confidence-building win and a milestone Saturday night.He reached the 50-goal plateau for the second time in his career as the Calgary Flames prepared for the Stanley Cup playoffs by dominating the sagging Vancouver Canucks 7-1.

ATLANTA – Ending the season with a victory was no consolation to Kari Lehtonen. When the Atlanta Thrashers reported to training camp, their No.

MONTREAL – After missing the playoffs for a third season in a row for the first time in 80 years, winger Mark Bell perfectly summed up the sentiment of uncertainty in the Toronto Maple Leafs dressing room heading into a summer where there is sure to be sweeping changes.

VANCOUVER – Roberto Luongo was named the Vancouver Canucks’ most valuable player for the second straight season Saturday night as the NHL club handed out its annual awards.

BOSTON – Buffalo Sabres defenceman Teppo Numminen played his first game Saturday night since having open-heart surgery 6 1/2 months ago.Numminen took a regular turn, playing 16 minutes, three seconds in Buffalo’s season-ending 3-0 win over the playoff-bound Boston Bruins.

RALEIGH, N.C. – The stage was set for the Carolina Hurricanes to cruise back into the playoffs. They were playing their regular-season finale in front of a rowdy bunch of Caniacs, needed a victory against a Florida team that hadn’t won in Raleigh in more than five-plus years and even jumped out to an early lead.

MONTREAL – It will be Original Six rivals Montreal versus Boston in the NHL playoffs for a 31st time.Christopher Higgins scored two goals in a regular season-ending 3-1 victory over the already-eliminated Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday night.

WASHINGTON – Long before the final horn sounded, the sea of red-clad fans turned the arena into an earsplitting din of cheers for their team, “M-V-P!” chants for Alex Ovechkin, a chorus of “Bruuuuuuce” for their coach.

BOSTON – First, the Bruins were shut out Saturday night. Then they learned their playoff opponent will be a team they haven’t beaten in eight matchups this season.

ST. LOUIS – With the game already well in hand, the St. Louis Blues turned their attention to helping Keith Tkachuk reach a milestone.Tkachuk scored the 498th and 499th goals of his career in the Blues’ 3-0 victory over the Columbus Blue Jackets on Saturday, and coach Andy Murray left him out on the ice late in the game so the veteran could try for No.

LOS ANGELES – Teemu Selanne is going to the playoffs. Scott Thornton could be headed for retirement.The 37-year-old stars left the ice with opposite emotions on Saturday after Selanne scored two goals, including the game winner to lift the Anaheim Ducks to a 4-3 win over the Los Angeles Kings.

MONTREAL – The Montreal Canadiens will play host to the NHL all-star game and the entry draft at the Bell Centre in 2009 as part of the club’s 100th anniversary celebrations.

TAMPA, Fla. – Canada’s entry at this year’s world hockey championship can scratch Vincent Lecavalier from its wish list.The Tampa Bay Lightning centre will have surgery to repair damage to his right shoulder.

MONTREAL – Saku Koivu is optimistic his fractured left foot will heal enough to let him start the playoffs but the Montreal Canadiens captain said Saturday nothing is certain.

Scoring summaries from Friday’s games:Bruins 2 at Senators 1First PeriodNo Scoring.Penalties – Donovan Ott (holding) 7:35, Donovan Ott (hooking) 9:53, Sturm Bos (high-sticking) 10:24.