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The Buzzer: Donskoi dominates; Campbell stays unbeaten for Maple Leafs

NHL Scores

DENVER, COLORADO - MARCH 31: Joonas Donskoi #72 of the Colorado Avalanche skates back to the bench after scoring his third goal of the period against the Arizona Coyotes on March 31, 2021 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Michael Martin/NHLI via Getty Images)

NHLI via Getty Images

Three Stars

1. Joonas Donskoi, Colorado Avalanche. What a night for Donskoi and the Avalanche. He needed just seven minutes to record a hat trick in Colorado’s 9-3 win over Arizona, scoring his three goals as part of a wild stretch in the first period where the two teams combined for six goals (five from Colorado) in the first 10 minutes of the game. Donskoi also added an assist in the game and now has 15 goals on the season. He has become a big part of a Colorado team that is starting to get on a roll. This game also featured a chaotic ending with Nathan MacKinnon tossing Conor Garland’s own helmet at him. You can read all about that right here.

2. Jack Campbell, Toronto Maple Leafs. Campbell has been incredible for the Maple Leafs in Frederik Andersen’s absence, winning his first seven starts. That streak continued on Wednesday with a 26-save effort in a 3-1 win over the Winnipeg Jets. He is now 7-0-0 on the season with a .948 save percentage. As long as the Maple Leafs get competent goaltending they have been the team to beat in the North Division this season.

3. Cal Petersen, Los Angeles Kings. The Kings are not going away in the West Division playoff race, and they picked up two huge points on Wednesday night thanks in large part to a 40-save effort from Petersen. They are four points back of the St. Louis Blues for the fourth playoff spot in the division. Petersen does not have a huge track record in the NHL so far, but in 38 games over parts of three seasons he has consistently maintained a save percentage north of .924. That is really good goaltending. You can read all about that game here.

Other Notable Performances From Wednesday

• Steven Fogarty had a goal and an assist for the Buffalo Sabres in a 6-1 win over the Philadelphia Flyers as they finally put an end to their 18-game winless streak. You can read all about that game here.

• Auston Matthews scored his league-leading 24th goal of the season for the Maple Leafs in their win.

• The San Jose Sharks played the role of spoiler on Wednesday by handing the Minnesota Wild a 4-2 loss thanks to a couple of big efforts from Tomas Hertl and Brent Burns.

Highlights Of The Night

Fogarty scores his first NHL goal for the Sabres in their big win over Philadelphia.

Donskoi scores his third goal of the first period to complete the hat trick.

Nikolai Knyzhov scores his first NHL goal for the San Jose Sharks, and it is a game-winner over the Minnesota Wild.

Scores

Toronto Maple Leafs 3, Winnipeg Jets 1
Buffalo Sabres 6, Philadelphia Flyers 1
Colorado Avalanche 9, Arizona Coyotes 3
Los Angeles Kings 4, Vegas Golden Knights 2
San Jose Sharks 4, Minnesota Wild 2
Calgary Flames vs. Vancouver Canucks (Postponed)

Adam Gretz is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @AGretz.