Highlights of Thursday's National Hockey League games

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Blues 6, Lightning 3

The St. Louis Blues scored twice in the first five minutes, then added three quick goals in the second period en route to a win over the Tampa Bay Lightning.

St. Louis (36-15-4) got a goal and two assists from left winger Alexander Steen in jumping out to a 5-1 lead, with Lightning goalie Ben Bishop giving up a season-high five goals and leaving after two periods.

The Lightning added goals from right wing Brett Connolly and center Steven Stamkos (his 29th) to pull within 5-3.

Tampa Bay pulled its second goalie, Andrei Vasilevskiy, with 90 seconds left, and Blues right winger Vladimir Tarasenko scored an empty-net goal with 1:05 left for the final margin. Tarasenko also has 29 goals this season.

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Ducks 2, Hurricanes 1

The Anaheim Ducks scored two goals in a three-minute span to overcome a brief deficit and end their worst three-game stretch of the season, defeating the Carolina Hurricanes.

Anaheim goalie John Gibson stopped 35 shots.

Defenseman Francois Beauchemin and left winger Matt Beleskey scored the second-period goals for the Pacific Division-leading Ducks (35-14-7), who had gone 0-2-1 in their previous three games.

Center Jeff Skinner's power-play goal in the second period opened the scoring for the Hurricanes (19-27-7).

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Islanders 3, Maple Leafs 2

Anders Lee scored two goals, including the eventual game-winner with 7:58 left in the second period, as the New York Islanders edged the Toronto Maple Leafs.

It was the fourth career two-goal game for Lee but his second of the month. He scored both Islanders goals in a 4-2 loss to the Florida Panthers on Feb. 3.

Casey Cizikas also scored for the Islanders (36-18-1), who won for the fourth time in five games to ensure they remain at least one point ahead of the Pittsburgh Penguins in the Metropolitan Division.

Goalie Jaroslav Halak had 32 saves in earning his career-high 30th win.

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Oilers 4, Canadiens 3

Anton Lander scored the overtime winner to lift the Edmonton Oilers to a win over the Montreal Canadiens.

Goaltender Dustin Tokarski stopped 34 shots for the Canadiens (35-15-4), who saw their three-game winning streak snapped.

Netminder Viktor Fasth made 22 saves for Edmonton (16-31-9), which won the last four meetings in Montreal.

Christian Thomas, Alex Galchenyuk and Max Pacioretty scored for the Canadiens in regulation.

Centers Matt Hendricks and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (twice) replied for the Oilers.

The Canadiens' fourth line made the most of a strong shift to get the scoring started late in the first period. Rookie center Jacob de la Rose forced an Oilers turnover just outside the Edmonton blue line.

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Penguins 5, Senators 4 (Shootout)

The Pittsburgh Penguins blew a three-goal third-period lead but came out on top in a shootout.

David Perron had the only goal in the tie breaking skills contest as Pittsburgh walked away with a victory over the resilient Ottawa Senators.

Penguins center Sidney Crosby scored twice, while also cashing goals were defenseman Kris Letang and center Evgeni Malkin.

Mika Zibanejad and Kyle Turris and wingers Mike Hoffman and Mark Stone scored for the Senators.

Penguins goalie Thomas Greiss stopped 29 shots through three periods and the overtime, while Senators goalie Robin Lehner made 25 saves.

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Predators 3, Jets 1

Nashville Predators goalie Pekka Rinne was considered a leading candidate for the Hart Trophy as the NHL MVP before missing eight games with a knee injury suffered Jan. 13.

Making 32 saves, some of the spectacular variety, Rinne notched his NHL-high 32nd win as Nashville bounced the Winnipeg Jets.

It was the fourth straight win for the Predators (37-12-6), which maintained a four-point lead over St. Louis in the Central Division.

Winnipeg (28-19-10) lost for the seventh time in nine games but remains fifth in the Western Conference.

Nashville left winger James Neal iced the verdict with a wraparound goal at 16:10, his 19th. The Predators upped their league-best home record to 23-3-1.

Jets goalie Ondrej Pavalec (13-12-7) recorded 23 saves.

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Wild 2, Panthers 1

Jason Pominville and Zach Parise scored goals, and the Minnesota Wild beat the Florida Panthers.

Goalie Devan Dubnyk stopped 26 shots for Minnesota, and center Mikko Koivu recorded two assists.

The Wild (27-20-7) won for the seventh time in eight games. They are 9-1-2 in their past 12, all since Dubnyk was acquired from the Arizona Coyotes on Jan. 14.

Center Nick Bjugstad scored for the Panthers, who lost in regulation for the first time in five games.

Florida netminder Roberto Luongo stopped 21 shots but fell to 3-10-3 in 16 career starts at Xcel Energy Center.

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Rangers 6, Avalanche 3

Kevin Haynes had a goal and two assists, goaltender Cam Talbot stopped 26 shots and the New York Rangers beat the Colorado Avalanche.

Rick Nash scored his 34th goal, tops in the NHL, while Mats Zuccarello, Carl Hagelin and defenseman Dan Boyle also scored for the Rangers.

Defenseman Ryan McDonagh added an empty-net goal for New York.

The Rangers (32-16-5) moved into third place in the Metropolitan Division with their fourth win in the last six games. They are three points behind Pittsburgh for second and have played one fewer game than the Penguins.

The Avalanche (22-22-11) lost four straight to fall into last place in the Central Division and 12th in the Western Conference.

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Kings 5, Flames 3

Tyler Toffoli recorded his first hat trick, and the Los Angeles Kings rallied for a victory over the Calgary Flames.

Toffoli's goal at 8:18 of the third period, on a breakaway, capped his scoring and lifted the Kings (24-18-12) to their third straight win. They also defeated the Flames (30-22-3), who had won four of their previous five games, for the first time this season in four contests.

The score was tied at 2 after two periods before Los Angeles pulled away with three goals in the third.

Left winger Dwight King started the run, gathering a pass from center Jeff Carter, who finished with three assists, and converting for a 3-2 Los Angeles lead just 59 seconds into the third period. The Kings are 12-0-0 when Carter records two or more points.

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