Hype for March 17, 2010

With Alex Ovechkin out, the rest of the Washington Capitals knew they needed to step up. Against the Florida Panthers on Tuesday night, the Capitals proved they could.

Brooks Laich scored twice and five other Washington players had goals to lift the short-handed Capitals to a 7-3 win over the Panthers.

The surging Montreal Canadiens can stop looking at the teams behind them and focus on the clubs they are chasing down in the Eastern Conference playoff race.

Sergei Kostitsyn snapped a third-period tie with a deflected goal and the Canadiens stretched their winning streak to six with a 3-1 victory over the New York Rangers on Tuesday night in the 600th meeting between the Original Six rivals.

The Toronto Maple Leafs spent most of Tuesday night looking like a team headed for the playoffs, while the Ottawa Senators looked like one on the outside looking in.

If the Senators aren't careful, they could be before long.

Although it took longer than the Predators would have liked, the result was worth the wait.

Martin Erat scored the only goal of the shootout to lead the Nashville to a 4-3 victory over the Philadelphia Flyers on Tuesday night.

John Tavares broke out of his prolonged scoring slump in a big way Tuesday night.

The Islanders rookie scored two goals and added three assists as New York downed the Vancouver Canucks 5-2.