Puck Podcast

TORONTO – Getting healthy has helped the Montreal Canadiens climb up the Eastern Conference standings, and there’s more help on the way.The Habs had their six-game winning streak snapped by a 3-2 shootout loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday night, but have still managed to pick up at least a point in their last seven games and are 7-1-1 since the Olympic break

NASHVILLE – This time, the Columbus Blue Jackets have Cody Franson and Pekka Rinne to thank for extending their misery in Music City.Franson scored 1:54 into overtime and Rinne posted his second straight shutout as the Nashville Predators stretched their winning streak to five games with a 1-0 victory over the Blue Jackets on Saturday night

CLEVELAND – Brian Willsie scored his second of the night with just over three minutes left in the third as the Erie Monsters beat the Abbotsford Heat 3-2 in American Hockey League play Saturday

TAMPA, Fla. – On a night Alex Ovechkin scored in his return from a two-game suspension, another NHL MVP was the player of the game.Jose Theodore made a case to be the Washington Capitals playoff goalie with 33 saves in a 3-1 victory over the Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday night

ATLANTA – The new-look Atlanta Thrashers are showing they didn’t give up on the playoffs when they traded Ilya Kovalchuk.Colby Armstrong and Nik Antropov have helped lead a more balanced scoring attack that has the Thrashers back in playoff contention

TORONTO – The Toronto Maple Leafs believe they’re starting to build the foundation for better times ahead.Several of the youngsters stepped up again as the Maple Leafs dispatched another playoff-bound opponent, beating the Montreal Canadiens 3-2 in a shootout on Saturday night

SUNRISE, Fla. – They weren’t necessarily pretty goals, but the Buffalo Sabres will take what they can get.Jochen Hecht, Patrick Kaleta and Mike Grier each scored to lift the Sabres to a 3-1 win over the Florida Panthers on Saturday night

NEWARK, N.J. – Ty Conklin has gone from backup goalie to a key part of the St. Louis Blues’ late-season push for a playoff spot.Conklin made 29 saves in his fourth shutout of the season, and the Blues beat the New Jersey Devils 1-0 on Saturday night

TAMPA, Fla. – Alex Ovechkin has returned from a two-game NHL suspension in style, scoring in the first period for the Washington Capitals.Ovechkin scored his 45th goal of the season on Saturday night to give the Capitals a 2-1 lead 10:47 into their game against the Tampa Bay Lightning

TORONTO – Joey MacDonald downplayed his performance on Saturday afternoon, but his coach knows how valuable the goaltender is to the Toronto Marlies

DALLAS – If the Dallas Stars are to make a late run at the playoffs, their offence will need to keep clicking at the current rate.Brad Richards had two goals, Trevor Daley scored the winner, and the Stars beat Ottawa 5-4 on Saturday, handing the Senators their fifth straight defeat despite Jason Spezza’s hat trick

PITTSBURGH – Carolina Hurricanes goaltender Manny Legace was lifted in the second period Saturday against the Pittsburgh Penguins with an undisclosed injury

PITTSBURGH – There wasn’t a second to spare for Jamie McBain to beat Stanley Cup champion Pittsburgh with his first NHL goal.Turns out nine-tenths of a second was all the rookie needed

AHL Hamilton 5 Lake Erie 3Grand Rapids 4 Manitoba 3Binghamton 4 Rochester 2Bridgeport 3 Syracuse 2Hershey 8 Albany 2Norfolk 8 Adirondack 4Peoria 3 Rockford 1Portland 4 Manchester 3 (SO)Providence 4 Lowell 2Wilkes-Barre/Scranton 5 Springfield 4 (OT) ECHLVictoria 5 Bakersfield 1Alaska 3 Las Vegas 2Charlotte 4 Trenton 3Kalamazoo 5 Wheeling 2Ontario 7 Idaho 4Reading 6 Elmira 2South Carolina 5 Florida 3Toledo 3 Cincinnati 1Utah 6 Stockton 2IHLFlint 6 Bloomington 1 Fort Wayne 5 Quad City 3Port Huron 4 Dayton 2CentralAmarillo 5 Rapid City 4 (SO)Arizona 7 Colorado 6Bossier-Shreveport 5 Missouri 0Corpus Christi 5 Allen 2Mississippi 6 Tulsa 4Odessa 4 Laredo 3 (OT)Rio Grande Valley 3 Wichita at 0QMJHLPlayoffs First Round(Best-of-7)Drummondville 7 Lewiston 2(Drummondville leads series 1-0)Moncton 6 Cape Breton 3(Monton leads series 1-0)Montreal 3 Gatineau 2 (OT)(Montreal leads series 1-0)Quebec 5 Acadie-Bathurst 4 (OT)(Quebec leads series 2-0)Rimouski 4 Chicoutimi 3 (OT) (Rimouski leads series 1-0)Saint John 8 P

Scoring summaries from Friday’s games in the NHL:Sharks 3 at Flames 4First Period1. Calgary, Iginla 32 (Stajan, Giordano) 3:242. Calgary, Langkow 14 (Hagman) 8:52Penalties – Huskins SJ (holding) 1:18, Langkow Cal (tripping) 11:41, Bourque Cal (boarding) 14:22

ANAHEIM, Calif. – The Anaheim Ducks found a way to bounce back – literally.Saku Koivu blocked a pass from Bruno Gervais that bounced off his stick and helmet, and turned the carom into a breakaway goal 14 seconds into overtime as the Ducks rallied from a two-goal, third-period deficit to beat the New York Islanders 5-4 on Friday night

EDMONTON – It was beginning to look like rookie goalie Devan Dubynk would never get this first NHL win.The Edmonton Oilers were winning 2-1 and holding on for dear life in the final minutes when Detroit’s Brian Rafalski beat Dubnyk on a mad scramble in front of the net with just 0

Movements in the world of hockey Friday:National Hockey LeagueCAROLINA HURRICANES-Recalled D Bryan Rodney From Albany (AHL).CHICAGO BLACKHAWKS-Reassigned G Corey Crawford to Rockford (AHL)

CALGARY – With the Calgary Flames getting two key points in the Western Conference playoff race, Mikael Backlund could laugh off the embarrassing mistake that almost let the San Jose Sharks back in the game