The Toronto Maple Leafs pulled within a point of the idle Florida Panthers in the standings with a 5-3 road win over the Washington Capitals, thanks to Rasmus Sandin’s go-ahead goal with 3:23 remaining in regulation. Mitch Marner dished out a pair of assists, and Petr Mrazek made 30 saves for the Maple Leafs, who have won three straight games.
The Buds (who have 74 points) are now just a single point behind the Atlantic Division-leading Cats with both teams having played 53 games. The Tampa Bay Lightning also have 74 points and hold two games in hand on both Toronto and Florida. The Bolts host the Panthers next opponent, the Ottawa Senators tonight at AMALIE Arena.
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Jake DeBrusk notched a natural hat trick, and Jeremy Swayman stopped 34 shots for the visiting Boston Bruins in their fifth straight win, a 7-0 rout over the Los Angeles Kings at Crypto.com Arena.
The fourth place Bruins are now seven points behind the Panthers with each team having played 53 games.
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The other game last night, of no importance to the Panthers, saw the host New Jersey Devils romp to a 7-2 win over the Vancouver Canucks. Jack Hughes had a goal and assist for the Devils.
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With things getting even tighter in the Atlantic, the Panthers need to bring rediscover the winning formula and close out the homestand with wins over both the Senators and Detroit Red Wings.