Highlights of Thursday's NHL games

(The Sports Xchange) - Highlights of Thursday's National Hockey League games: - - - Ducks 3, Bruins 2 (overtime) The Anaheim Ducks tied the game with a deflected goal in the last minute of regulation before captain Ryan Getzlaf scored with 1:51 left in overtime to give his team a 3-2 victory over the slumping Boston Bruins. The loss was the sixth straight (0-3-3) for the Bruins, who at least collected a point to match the Ottawa Senators with 85 points in the race for the eighth and final Eastern Conference playoff spot. - - - Rangers 5, Senators 1 The New York Rangers cooled off the red-hot Ottawa Senators with a 5-1 victory and became the first team to clinch a playoff spot. Winger Chris Kreider scored two goals as the Rangers posted their eighth win in their last 10 games and stopped Ottawa’s winning streak at seven. - - - Panthers 4, Maple Leafs 1 The Florida Panthers kept their playoff hopes alive with a 4-1 win over the lowly Toronto Maple Leafs. Brandon Pirri scored two goals for Florida (34-26-14), who moved three points back of Ottawa and Boston. - - - Kings 3, Islanders 2 Anze Kopitar scored the winner with 4:23 left in the third period, and the Los Angeles Kings (37-23-14) moved into playoff position in the Western Conference with a 3-2 win over the New York Islanders. With their third consecutive win, the defending Stanley Cup champions moved a point ahead of the idle Calgary Flames for third place in the Pacific Division. - - - Capitals 3, Devils 2 (OT) Goaltender Braden Holtby stopped 29 of 31 shots, and the Washington Capitals needed an overtime goal by defenseman Matt Niskanen to earn a 3-2 victory over the New Jersey Devils. Devils right winger Steve Bernier scored with 29.2 seconds remaining in regulation to force overtime, where the Capitals (40-24-10) prevailed to match their point total from last season, when they missed the playoffs. - - - Predators 3, Lightning 2 The Nashville Predators killed off a power play in the final five minutes and beat the Tampa Bay Lightning 3-2. The Predators (46-21-8) scored twice in the opening five minutes, and then got what proved to be the winner from Michael Santarelli in the second period as the Lightning’s four-game winning streak ended. - - - Hurricanes 5, Penguins 2 The Carolina Hurricanes displayed rare offensive execution in a 5-2 victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins. Eric Staal was among the scorers for the Hurricanes, who won for the first time in five games. The Penguins (40-23-11) have won only once in seven games but remain in solid position to make the playoffs. - - - Jets 5, Canadiens 2 Mark Scheifele scored and added an assist as the Winnipeg Jets boosted their playoff hopes with a 5-2 win over the Montreal Canadiens, who missed a chance to clinch a playoff spot. The Jets (39-24-12) hold the second wild-card spot in the tight West race. - - - Sharks 6, Red Wings 4 Patrick Marleau had two goals and an assist to lead San Jose to a 6-4 win against the Detroit Red Wings as the Sharks kept their slim playoff hopes alive. - - - Coyotes 4, Sabres 3 (OT) Sam Gagner scored 56 seconds into overtime, giving Arizona a 4-3 win over the Buffalo Sabres in a battle between teams bottom of their respective conferences. (Compiled by Andrew Both; Editing by Peter Rutherford)