NEW YORK — Sidney Crosby scored at 10:51 of the third to give the Penguins the lead for good and also assisted on Chris Kunitz's power-play goal two minutes later to lead Pittsburgh to 5-3 victory over Columbus Blue Jackets Sunday. James Neal registered a hat trick for Pittsburgh (29-11-1) in a game that was tight for 2 1/2 periods before Crosby took over and netted his 22ndgoal of the season. The Blue Jackets (17-18-4) saw their season-best three-game winning streak end. Jets 2, Avalanche 1 (OT): Blake Wheeler scored with two seconds left in overtime and the Winnipeg Jets beat the Colorado Avalanche. Goalie Al Montoya stopped 32 shots and left winger Andrew Ladd also scored for the Jets (18-18-5), who stopped a two-game road losing streak as Colorado (23-11-4) dropped their fourth straight overall. Rangers 4, Lightning 3: Mats Zuccarello had a goal and two assists, and the New York Rangers scored three power-play goals to beat the Tampa Bay Lightning. Henrik Lundqvist made 37 saves for New York (19-19-2) who assumed control against the Lightning (23-12-4) with a high-energy, two-goal second period. Canucks 2, Flames 0: Backup goaltender Eddie Lack stopped all 18 shots he faced in place of injured Roberto Luongo (lower-body) to lead Vancouver to victory. Right-winger Jannik Hansen and center Mike Santorelli provided the goals for the Canucks (22-11-6) as the Flames (14-18-6) were shutout for the second straight game. Blues 3, Stars 2 (OT): Kevin Shattenkirk scored the game-winner with 10 seconds remaining in overtime to emerge the hero for St. Louis for the second straight day. Shattenkirk netted the deciding score in a shootout win over Chicago on Saturday, and proved just as clutch in helping the Blues (26-7-5) knock off Dallas (19-12-7). Islanders 5, Wild 4: Kyle Okposo scored twice in the third period as the New York Islanders rallied from a 3-0 deficit to beat the Minnesota Wild. The Islanders (12-21-7) trailed by three goals midway through the game but had forged a 3-3 tie less than seven minutes into the final period and got their final two goals from Okposo to hand Minnesota (20-16-5) a fifth straight defeat. Sabres 2, Capitals 1 (SO): Goaltender Ryan Miller made 49 saves and stopped all six shooters in the shootout to lead the Buffalo Sabres to a victory over the Washington Capitals. Buffalo captain Steve Ott scored the game-winning goal in the sixth round of the shootout while Drew Stafford scored in regulation for the Sabres (11-24-4). Troy Brouwer scored for the Capitals (20-14-5). Panthers 4, Canadiens 1: Florida backup goaltender Scott Clemmensen stopped 21 of 22 shots in his third straight start and the Panthers snapped a three-game losing streak. Panthers (15-20-5) starting goaltender Tim Thomas has been slowed by a groin injury. He was taken off the injured list Christmas Eve, but again remained on the bench against Montreal (23-14-3). Maple Leafs 5, Hurricanes 2: Phil Kessel scored two goals and the Toronto Maple Leafs defeated the Carolina Hurricanes. Goaltender Jonathan Bernier stopped 41 shots for the Maple Leafs (20-16-5), who won their second game in a row while the Hurricanes (14-16-9) lost their fifth in a row. — Agencies
