NEW YORK, 28 February 2004 — Sean Burke made 39 saves to earn the Philadelphia Flyers a 1-1 tie with the host Ottawa Senators in an Eastern Conference showdown Thursday.
Philadelphia clinched its 83rd point of the season to remain one ahead of Ottawa at the top of the overall standings in the East. Burke was the difference between the teams as the Flyers were outplayed and outshot 40-18, including 6-2 in overtime.
Marian Hossa (Senators) and Simon Gagne (Flyers) traded first-period powerplay goals. The Flyers also maintained a one-point lead over the Senators and the Detroit Red Wings in the overall NHL standings.
Patrick Lalime produced 17 stops for the Senators. Ottawa lost in regulation for the first time in 10 games Tuesday. The Senators have picked up at least one point in 10 of the last 11 games. The Senators have not been beaten in regulation time at home since Dec. 13, going 14-0-3-2 at the Corel Center.
In Tampa Bay, Brad Richards scored twice, including a short-handed marker in the first period, to help the Lightning edge the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-3.
Pavel Kubina and Vincent Lecavalier also netted while Martin St Louis and Cory Stillman both had two assists as the Lightning racked up their third straight win.
Alexander Mogilny, Mats Sundin and Joe Nieuwendyk replied for the Leafs, who have dropped three in a row.
In Uniondale, Jaromir Jagr and Chris Simon both tallied twice to pace the New York Rangers to a 6-3 victory over the host New York Islanders. Brian Leetch and Bobby Holik also scored to stake the Rangers to a 6-0 lead early in the second period.
In Boston, Craig Rivet’s goal with one minute left in overtime lifted the Montreal Canadiens to a 3-2 win over the Bruins. Yanic Perreault and Michael Ryder netted in the first period for the Canadiens, who have won four of their last five games.
In Denver, Keith Tkachuk’s powerplay goal late in the second period led the St Louis Blues to a 2-2 tie with the Colorado Avalanche.
In Nashville, Tomas Vokoun made 27 saves for his third shutout of the season to back the Predators to a 4-0 rout of the Minnesota Wild. Vladimir Orszagh had a goal and an assist. Dan Hamhuis, Steve Sullivan and Andreas Johansson also counted for the Predators.
In Calgary, Steve Thomas notched the winning goal in the second period to hand the Detroit Red Wings a 2-1 triumph over the Flames.
In Vancouver, Brent Sopel’s goal at 2:14 of overtime pushed the Canucks to a 3-2 win over the San Jose Sharks. Sopel scored twice for the Canucks while Mattias Ohlund tallied with less than four minutes remaining to force overtime.
