UNDATED (AP) — MacKenzie Weegar, Carter Verhaeghe and Anthony Duclair scored in the third period to rally the Florida Panthers past the New York Rangers 4-3.
Duclair blocked a shot in the Panthers end then joined the rush the other way to score what ultimately proved the game-winner.
Chris Kreider got the Rangers back within one with 45 seconds to go, after New York pulled Shesterkin for an extra attacker. But they couldn’t get the equalizer.
It was the Panthers’ first game in 13 days and the Rangers’ first in 12 following the NHL’s extended Christmas break because of rising COVID-19 cases.
In other NHL action:
— The Vancouver Canucks beat the Anaheim Ducks 2-1 for their seventh straight win since Bruce Boudreau took over behind the bench. Boudreau is the third coach in NHL history to start 7-0 with a new team. J.T. Miller scored 26 seconds into overtime on a breakaway.
— Evgeny Kuznetsov scored a late short-handed goal in his return from an 18-day absence to put the Washington Capitals ahead for good in a 5-3 victory over the Nashville Predators. Kuznetsov’s wrist shot from a tight angle helped the Capitals beat the Predators for the first time in nine games.
— Vladimir Tarasenko had a goal and two assists as the St. Louis Blues beat the Edmonton Oilers 4-2. Brandon Saad, Robert Thomas and Jordan Kyrou also scored for the Blues, while Jordan Binnington made 26 saves in his second start since being activated off the COVID-19 list.
— Ivan Provorov scored 2:14 into overtime and the Philadelphia Flyers beat the Seattle Kraken 3-2. James van Riemsdyk’s second goal of the game with 5:13 left in regulation pulled the Flyers even at 2.
— Jack Hughes and Jesper Bratt each had a goal and two assists to help the New Jersey Devils end their six-game losing streak with a 4-3 win against the Buffalo Sabres. It was the first game in 12 days for the Sabres after four straight postponements. They were still without six players and head coach Don Granato.
NHL cuts isolation time to 5 days in US
UNDATED (AP) — The NHL is following other leagues and the CDC by cutting COVID-19 isolation times to five days under certain conditions and where it is allowed by local laws. The change applies only in the U.S. because of stricter pandemic regulations in Canada.
Rest of world junior championship canceled over COVID-19
UNDATED (AP) — The remainder of the world junior hockey championship in Canada has been canceled after a few positive tests prompted fears of a COVID-19 outbreak.
The top tournament in the world for players under age 20 had completed nine games in Edmonton and Red Deer, Alberta. But positive coronavirus test results among U.S. and Czech players had led to two games being forfeited, and another was imminent with Russia.
Citing the spread of the coronavirus and the omicron variant, the International Ice Hockey Federation’s council determined the integrity of the event had been compromised by the forfeits.
