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MONTREAL – Sergei Kostitsyn, Maxim Lapierre and Guillaume Latendresse scored in the first period and the Montreal Canadiens went on to a 6-2 victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs in a chippy game Thursday night at the Bell Centre.

SUNRISE, Fla. – Jay Bouwmeester and Nathan Horton scored early in the third period to break a tie, and the Florida Panthers beat Carolina 4-2 on Thursday night to snap the Hurricanes’ winning streak at a season-high four games.

DETROIT – Marian Hossa, Dan Cleary, Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterberg each had a goal and an assist in the Detroit Red Wings’ 6-1 victory over the Dallas Stars on Thursday night.

BOSTON – David Krejci and Marc Savard scored 4:16 apart midway through the third period to help the Boston Bruins beat the Ottawa Senators 6-4 on Thursday night.

NEWARK, N.J. – Ilya Kovalchuk had a goal and an assist, and Kari Lehtonen made 29 saves for his first shutout of the season in the Atlanta Thrashers’ 4-0 victory over the New Jersey Devils on Thursday night.

PHILADELPHIA – Mike Knuble, Scott Hartnell and Scottie Upshall scored goals and the Philadelphia Flyers returned home from two weeks on the road to beat the Minnesota Wild 3-1 on Thursday night.

BUFFALO, N.Y. – Sabres forward Thomas Vanek never considered himself a trailblazer when he left Austria as a teenager to pursue a dream to play professional hockey.

CALGARY – Mikael Backlund figured he had two choices for the remainder of the season: play for either the Calgary Flames’ AHL affiliate in Quad City, or for the Kelowna Rockets of the Western Hockey League.

VANCOUVER, B.C. – You can forgive Vancouver Canucks coach Alain Vigneault for his cat-that-swallowed-the-canary smile.Not only was Mats Sundin’s debut with the NHL club a success but all-star goalie Roberto Luongo is practising again with his teammates after missing 22 games with a groin injury.

BUFFALO, N.Y. – Two severe concussions, one hip surgery and numerous broken bones later, Buffalo Sabres centre Tim Connolly is looking forward to his latest comeback.

There something different about the Columbus Blue Jackets this season.Just ask captain Rick Nash, who has been around for all but two of the franchise’s eight seasons.

ARLINGTON, Va. – After Alex Ovechkin became the Washington Capitals’ only player headed to the NHL all-star game, teammates Mike Green and Nicklas Backstrom said all the right things Thursday about not being chosen.

MONTREAL – If the Toronto Maple Leafs lack leadership and grit, Brad May says he’ll do what he can to provide it.”I’ve been able to wear different hats for many years on different teams, but first and foremost my role is to be an energy guy, a physical player and to bring a lot of life into the locker room,” he said.

BOUCHERVILLE, Que. – The Shawinigan Cataractes completed several last-minute deals as part of a flurry of moves made just ahead of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League trade deadline Thursday.

PITTSBURGH – The Pittsburgh Penguins ended any debate about whether they should re-sign Jordan Staal, locking up the 20-year-old centre with a US$16-million, four-year contract on Thursday.

NEW YORK – There will be no shortage of goal-scorers on the NHL’s Eastern Conference all-star team.Alex Ovechkin, Thomas Vanek and Jeff Carter – each tied for the league lead with 27 goals entering play Thursday – are among the 15 players added to the team’s roster.

Scoring summaries from Wednesday’s NHL games:Canadiens 6 at Rangers 3First Period1. Montreal, Kovalev 10 (Pacioretty) 3:052. N.Y. Rangers, Drury 12 (Dawes, Prucha) 17:223.

EDMONTON – It was Mats Sundin’s coming-out party, but Steve Bernier and his linemates stole the show.Bernier scored twice in 12 seconds and added one assist as the Vancouver Canucks defeated the Edmonton Oilers 4-2 in NHL action Wednesday in Sundin’s first NHL game in nine months.

Movements in the world of hockey Wednesday:National Hockey LeagueNHL-Suspended Ottawa F Jarkko Ruutu for two games, without pay, for his actions in a game on Jan.

NEW YORK – Robert Lang started the third period with two shots and no points. He finished it with his second NHL hat trick in the most balanced of ways.