NHL roundup: Alex Ovechkin earns assist in possible finale

Alex Ovechkin had an assist in what might have been his final NHL game, Jakob Chychrun scored the go-ahead goal and the Washington Capitals beat the host Columbus Blue Jackets 2-1 in the season finale for teams on Tuesday. Neither team will be in the playoffs.

Chychrun scored on a power play with about four minutes left in regulation.

The secondary assist went to Ovechkin, the NHL’s all-time leading goal-scorer who has completed his 21st NHL season and a five-year contract. The 40-year-old left winger, who has scored 929 regular-season goals, said recently he will not decide his future until the offseason.

Anthony Beauvillier also scored for the Capitals, who got 27 saves from Clay Stevenson. Boone Jenner scored for the Blue Jackets, and Jet Greaves stopped 19 shots.

Bruins 4, Devils 0

Mark Kastelic scored two of Boston’s four first-period goals as the Bruins wrapped up the first Eastern Conference wild card with a shutout of visiting New Jersey.

Boston’s Jeremy Swayman made 21 saves in the regular-season finale for both teams. Morgan Geekie and Viktor Arvidsson also lit the lamp for the Bruins, who will meet the Buffalo Sabres in the first playoff round. Sean Kuraly notched two assists, and David Pastrnak had one, securing his fourth consecutive 100-point season.

Nico Daws, in his second straight start for the Devils, stopped 22 shots.

Mammoth 5, Jets 3

Nick Schmaltz scored twice as Utah held on late to defeat Winnipeg in Salt Lake City and secure the first Western Conference wild-card spot with one game remaining in the regular season.

Logan Cooley had a goal and an assist, Alex Kerfoot scored a goal and Karel Vejmelka made 21 saves for the Mammoth, who snapped a two-game skid.

Mark Scheifele and Kyle Connor each had a goal and an assist, Isak Rosen added a goal and Gabe Vilardi had two assists for the Jets, who were eliminated on Monday and finished their season on a three-game losing streak. Eric Comrie made 31 saves.

Flyers 4, Canadiens 2

Matvei Michkov had a goal and two assists for Philadelphia in a win against visiting Montreal.

Porter Martone and defenseman Oliver Bonk, in his NHL debut, each had a goal and an assist. Samuel Ersson made 27 saves for the Flyers, who won their last three games of the regular season and finished third in the Metropolitan Division. They play the rival Pittsburgh Penguins in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs.

Brendan Gallagher and Jake Evans scored for the Canadiens, who finished third in the Atlantic Division. Jakub Dobes made 21 saves.

Wild 3, Ducks 2

Hunter Haight scored his first NHL goal and Minnesota held on for a win over Anaheim in Saint Paul, Minn.

Danila Yurov and Robby Fabbri also scored one goal apiece for Minnesota, which wrapped up its regular season. The Wild will face the Dallas Stars in the first round of the Western Conference playoffs. Wild goaltender Jesper Wallstedt made 35 saves.

Mason McTavish scored two goals to lead Anaheim, which also is headed to the postseason. Ducks goaltender Lukas Dostal allowed three goals on 20 shots.

Hurricanes 2, Islanders 1

Mark Jankowski scored the tiebreaking goal with 5:22 left for Carolina, which tuned up for the playoffs with a win over New York in the regular season finale for both clubs at Elmont, N.Y.

Nikolaj Ehlers scored in the first for the Hurricanes, who won the Metropolitan Division and earned the top seed in the Eastern Conference. Carolina will play the Ottawa Senators in a first-round series beginning this weekend. Brandon Bussi made 28 saves.

Bo Horvat scored his 300th career goal for the Islanders, who missed the postseason for a second straight year. David Rittich recorded 19 saves.

Avalanche 3, Flames 1

Gabriel Landeskog scored a tiebreaking goal late in the third period, Martin Necas had an assist to reach 100 points for the first time in his career and visiting Colorado beat Calgary.

Artturi Lehkonen and Nathan MacKinnon scored goals and Mackenzie Blackwood turned away 30 shots. The Avalanche have 119 points, tying the franchise record. MacKinnon notched his NHL-leading 53rd goal, and Cale Makar logged three assists in his return after missing seven games due to an upper-body injury.

Blake Coleman had a goal and Dustin Wolf made 36 saves for Calgary.

Canucks 4, Kings 3 (OT)

Jake DeBrusk scored twice, including the overtime winner, as Vancouver edged visiting Los Angeles.

DeBrusk tapped in an Elias Pettersson feed at the side of the net at 2:58 of the extra frame. Elias Pettersson and Zeev Buium also scored for Vancouver, who have won three straight. Kevin Lankinen made 31 saves as the Canucks finished the season 9-27-5 on home ice.

Quinton Byfield and Alex Laferriere each scored and added an assist, Adrian Kempe had the other goal for the Kings and Darcy Kuemper stopped 21 shots. Los Angeles, currently in the second wild-card spot in the Western Conference, still has a shot of finishing second or third in the Pacific Division. The Kings wrap up the regular season on Thursday in Calgary.

Blues 7, Penguins 5

Jimmy Snuggerud had two goals and two assists to help St. Louis rally for a win against visiting Pittsburgh.

Dylan Holloway had two goals and an assist, Logan Mailloux added a goal and an assist, Jake Neighbours produced two assists and Jordan Binnington made 18 saves for the Blues, who rallied from a three-goal deficit to win their third in a row.

Avery Hayes scored two goals, Anthony Mantha had a goal and an assist and Kevin Hayes had two assists in the regular-season finale for the Penguins. Stuart Skinner made 17 saves through two periods before Arturs Silovs stopped seven shots in the third for Pittsburgh, which had already clinched second place in the Metropolitan Division.

–Field Level Media