NHL: Knights rally past Kraken to clinch Pacific Division

Reilly Smith scored twice during a three-goal third period and added an assist as the Vegas Golden Knights rallied for a 4-1 win over the Seattle Kraken on Wednesday in Las Vegas to clinch the Pacific Division title.

It marked the 31st multi-goal game of Smith’s career and his second of the season. Jack Eichel recorded two assists, while Shea Theodore and Mitch Marner also scored for Vegas (39-26-17, 95 points), which will face the Utah Mammoth in the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Carter Hart made 22 saves for the Golden Knights, who extended their point streak to a season-high 10 games (7-0-3). Vegas captured its third Pacific Division title in four years and sixth in nine seasons, improving to 7-0-1 since John Tortorella replaced Bruce Cassidy as head coach.

Shane Wright scored the lone goal for Seattle (34-36-11, 79 points), which has gone 2-7-1 in its last 10 games. Nikke Kokko stopped 22 shots for the Kraken, who will close the regular season Thursday at Colorado.

Stars 4, Sabres 3 (SO)

Wyatt Johnston scored the shootout winner as the Dallas Stars defeated the Buffalo Sabres in Buffalo.

Esa Lindell and Justin Hryckowian each had a goal and an assist for Dallas, which finished the regular season on a five-game winning streak. Mavrik Bourque added his 20th goal of the season, while Jake Oettinger made 21 saves.

For Buffalo, Zach Benson had a goal and an assist, while Josh Norris and Alex Tuch also scored. Owen Power contributed two assists, and Colten Ellis stopped 25 shots as the Sabres saw their four-game winning streak snapped.

Senators 3, Maple Leafs 1

Drake Batherson and Warren Foegele scored power-play goals as the Ottawa Senators defeated the visiting Toronto Maple Leafs in the regular-season finale for both clubs.

Dylan Cozens added an empty-net goal, while Claude Giroux had two assists. Former Maple Leafs goaltender James Reimer made 19 saves for Ottawa, which won the season series 3-1-0.

William Nylander scored the lone goal for Toronto in a matchup that lacked the usual intensity of a Battle of Ontario rivalry. Dennis Hildeby made 35 saves in the loss.

Panthers 8, Red Wings 1

Mike Benning scored his first two NHL goals as the Florida Panthers dominated the Detroit Red Wings in Sunrise, Florida.

Wilmer Skoog recorded his first two assists in just his third NHL game, while Mikulas Hovorka also picked up his first career point. Luke Kunin led Florida with two goals and an assist, Cole Reinhardt added a goal and an assist, and Matthew Tkachuk and Marek Alscher each had two assists. Daniil Tarasov made 24 saves.

Justin Faulk scored the only goal for Detroit, which finished 2-6-2 over its last 10 games. Cam Talbot made eight saves in relief after John Gibson exited following a second-period injury.

Rangers 4, Lightning 2

Tye Kartye scored twice and finished with three points as the New York Rangers closed their season with a road win over the playoff-bound Tampa Bay Lightning.

Mika Zibanejad added a power-play goal and an assist, Gabe Perreault also scored, and J.T. Miller recorded two assists. Goaltender Dylan Garand made 29 saves to improve to 2-0-1.

Oliver Bjorkstrand and Corey Perry scored for Tampa Bay, while Brandon Halverson stopped 17 shots in his second appearance of the season.

Blackhawks 5, Sharks 2

Louis Crevier scored twice in the third period as the Chicago Blackhawks rallied past the San Jose Sharks to close the season with a win in Chicago.

Sam Rinzel, Ryan Greene, and Nick Lardis also scored, while Connor Bedard added two assists. Spencer Knight made 15 saves as Chicago snapped a four-game losing streak (1-8-1 over its last 10).

Mario Ferraro and Michael Misa scored for San Jose, while Kiefer Sherwood had two assists. Yaroslav Askarov made 19 saves and stopped a penalty shot in the loss. -Field Level Media/Reuters