Players of the Night:
Taylor Hall: There are some great choices from Tuesday, but when you consider overall output and the importance of such production, Hall is up there. He extended his current point streak to nine games with a splendid two-goal, two-assist performance, greatly improving the Devils’ chances of making the playoffs.
Will Butcher was impressive in his own right, collecting two goals.
Also great scorers for teams in the hunt: Artemi Panarin scored one goal and two assists for the Columbus Blue Jackets, playing an integral role in their comeback win against Detroit. (Seth Jones also collected three assists). It’s only taken Panarin one season to set quite the milestone for the Blue Jackets franchise.
Artemi Panarin is the first player in @BlueJacketsNHL history to reach the 80-point mark in a season. #NHLStats #DETvsCBJ pic.twitter.com/heKmdvycrp
— NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL) April 4, 2018
William Karlsson continues his sensational season for the Golden Knights, generating a goal and two assists of his own. He now has 43 goals and 78 points in 2017-18, and is heating up toward the postseason with an absurd 12 points in his last five contests.
🤠Will Karlsson now with the most single-season goals scored by a player on an expansion team in NHL history (passing Brian Bradley, TBL 92-93)
— 🏆 - Vegas Golden Knights (@GoldenKnights) April 4, 2018
ALSO has the most single-season goals scored in Golden Knights history (passing Will Karlsson, VGK 2017-18)
Finally, Kyle Connor continues his fantastic work as a rookie for the Jets. Like Karlsson and Panarin, Connor collected a goal and two helpers, pushing his season total to 30. Maybe he can at least grab a slice of Patrik Laine’s limelight?
The @NHLJets are the eighth team in NHL history to feature at least one rookie with 30+ goals in consecutive seasons and first since the Penguins (Sidney Crosby in 2005-06, Evgeni Malkin in 2006-07). #NHLStats #WPGvsMTL pic.twitter.com/OalX10LL3d
— NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL) April 4, 2018
Goalies impress: With 33 saves, Andrei Vasilevskiy collected his eighth shutout of 2017-18, tying Pekka Rinne for the NHL lead. Read more about his win with the Lightning here.
Roberto Luongo stopped 45 of 46 shots to keep Florida’s slim hopes alive tonight. Of course, some believe that he actually allowed two goals. That’s a whole thing. Finally, Antti Raanta continues his great work in “garbage time,” making 42 saves in Arizona’s win against Calgary.
(One guy who’s still absorbing being in “garbage time” who had a strong night was Jamie Benn. He generated a hat trick in the Stars’ rally against the Sharks.)
[The 2018 NHL Stanley Cup playoffs begin April 11 on the networks of NBC]
Highlights
A day after the Sedins announced their retirement, they received a great ovation from Canucks fans. This is their second-to-last home game in Vancouver.
No surprise that other teams tip their caps to the Sedins.
Congratulations on an incredible career! @canucks #ThankYouSedins pic.twitter.com/s4nu14fppP
— 🏆 - Vegas Golden Knights (@GoldenKnights) April 4, 2018
Max Domi seems to be improving lately, and his mind games are on point.
.@max_domi appreciates a good beard. pic.twitter.com/hTSbxhQOBG
— NHL GIFs (@NHLGIFs) April 4, 2018
Scores
Devils 5, Rangers 2
Islanders 5, Flyers 4
Blue Jackets 5, Red Wings 4 (OT)
Jets 5, Canadiens 4 (OT)
Lightning 4, Bruins 0
Panthers 2, Predators 1
Coyotes 4, Flames 1
Golden Knights 5, Canucks 4 (SO)
Stars 4, Sharks 2
—
James O’Brien is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @cyclelikesedins.