MURRAY JOINS ELITE COMPANY AS PENGUINS CLIMB METROPOLITAN
Four different skaters scored and Matt Murray turned aside all 29 shots he faced when the Pittsburgh Penguins extended their point streak to seven games (5-0-2).
* The Penguins (35-13-7, 77 points) moved into sole possession of second place in the Metropolitan Division, seven points back of the League-leading Washington Capitals (39-11-6, 84 points). Pittsburgh holds a game in hand.
* Murray picked up his third shutout of the season (fourth career) and is 30-8-3 in 44 NHL regular-season appearances (2.19 GAA, .927 SV%, 4 SO). Elias notes that Murray required the fourth-fewest appearances (tied) in NHL history to reach 30 wins:
Fewest appearances to 30 career wins, NHL history
40 - Frank Brimsek (BOS) on March 9, 1939
41 - Bill Durnan (MTL) on Feb. 26, 1944
43 - Ross Brooks (BOS) on Dec. 8, 1974
44 - Pete Peeters (PHI) on April 3, 1980
44 - Matt Murray (PIT) on Feb. 14, 2017
TUESDAY'S RESULTS
Home Team in Caps
NEW JERSEY 3, Colorado 2
PITTSBURGH 4, Vancouver 0
TORONTO 7, NY Islanders 1
Buffalo 3, OTTAWA 2
Anaheim 1, MINNESOTA 0
WINNIPEG 5, Dallas 2
EDMONTON 5, Arizona 2
LAINE, MATTHEWS KEEP PACE IN CALDER TROPHY RACE
Winnipeg Jets forward Patrik Laine (3-0-3) and Toronto Maple Leafs forward Auston Matthews (2-0-2) each had multi-goal performances to help their respective teams to victory and keep pace in the tightly contested race for the Calder Memorial Trophy:
* Laine had his third hat trick of the season to help the Jets ende a four-game slide (0-4-0). The No. 2 pick in the 2016 NHL Draft is second among rookies with 47 points (26 goals, 21 assists) (51 GP), trailing Toronto's Mitchell Marner (15-33-48 in 55 GP). Elias notes that Laine became the first NHL rookie to earn three hat tricks in a season since Teemu Selanne (5) and Eric Lindros (3) in 1992-93.
* Matthews had his fourth multi-goal game of the season to help the Maple Leafs earn a 7-1 win against the New York Islanders. The No. 1 selection in the 2016 NHL Draft leads all rookies with 27 goals (55 GP) and trails Marner and Laine with 46 points. Elias notes that Matthews climbed within seven goals of the record for most in a single season by a Maple Leafs rookie, set by Wendel Clark (34) in 1985-86.
DUCKS, OILERS INCH CLOSER TO PACIFIC DIVISION LEAD
The Anaheim Ducks (30-18-10, 70 points) and Edmonton Oilers (30-19-8, 68 points) each reached the 30-win mark to move closer to the idle San Jose Sharks (34-18-5, 73 points) for first place in the Pacific Division:
* John Gibson (37 saves) picked up his fourth shutout of the season (10th in his NHL career) to help the Ducks defeat the Western Conference-leading Minnesota Wild. Gibson earned his NHL career-high 22nd win and is 22-14-8 with a 2.30 goals-against average and .921 save percentage.
* Oscar Klefbom (1-2-3) had the first three-point game of his NHL career and Leon Draisaitl also scored a goal and an assist when the Oilers earned a 5-2 victory. Connor McDavid (0-2-2) continues to lead the League with 63 points (18 goals, 45 assists) in 57 games.
LOOSE PUCKS
Kyle Palmieri scored the 20th game-winning goal of his NHL career and the New Jersey Devils improved to 4-1-1 in their past six games . . . Robin Lehner made 39 saves against his former team when the Buffalo Sabres improved to 6-0-2 in their past eight games versus the Ottawa Senators since Jan. 26, 2016 (OTT: 2-6-0) . . . Penguins captain Sidney Crosby (0-1-1) is second in the NHL with 61 points (30 goals, 31 assists) (49 GP) and moved within a point of the 1,000-point milestone (368-631-999) . . . Dallas Stars captain Jamie Benn (211-290-501) scored a goal with an assist to become the second player from the 2007 NHL Draft class to eclipse the 500-point milestone (also Patrick Kane) . . . Maple Leafs goaltender Frederik Andersen (33 saves) won the 100th game of his NHL career . . . Vancouver Canucks forward Daniel Sedin (1,200), Arizona Coyotes forward Jamie McGinn (500) and Colorado Avalanche captain Gabriel Landeskog (400) each skated in milestone games . . . Sabres forward Kyle Okposo (0-1-1) extended his point streak to seven games (3-4-7) . . . The Oilers, Detroit Red Wings and Senators each hosted events in support of Hockey Is For Everyone month . . . Stars play-by-play announcer Dave Strader will return to the broadcast booth during their upcoming homestand . . . The Montreal Canadiens hired Claude Julien as coach.
SNEAK PEEK AT WEDNESDAY'S ACTION
All Times Eastern
Toronto @ Columbus, 7 p.m., SN, TVA Sports, FS-O
St. Louis @ Detroit, 8 p.m., NBCSN
Philadelphia @ Calgary, 9:30 p.m., SN360, SNW, TCN-PH
Florida @ San Jose, 10:30 p.m., NBCSN
BLUES, RED WINGS CLASH ON WEDNESDAY NIGHT RIVALRY
NBCSN's Wednesday Night Rivalry features an interconference matchup when the St. Louis Blues (29-22-5, 63 points) play the Red Wings (22-24-10, 54 points) in their final visit to Joe Louis Arena. St. Louis is on a four-game winning streak and 5-1-0 since Mike Yeo was named coach, while Detroit is looking to halt a four-game slide (0-3-1). The Blues have earned points in their past five visits to The Joe since Feb. 13, 2013 (4-0-1), outscoring the Red Wings 13-6.
- NHL Public Relations
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