The Boston Bruins maintained their hold on the final playoff spot in the NHL's Eastern Conference with a 4-0 win over the Ottawa Senators on Saturday. Tim Thomas stopped 34 shots for his third shutout of the season, and David Krejci had a goal and two assists for Boston, which stayed two points ahead of Washington for the eighth and final playoff spot in the East. The Bruins have a game in hand on the Capitals. Flyers 4, Islanders 3, SO: In Uniondale, New York, Philadelphia rallied twice in the third period and escaped with a shootout victory over New York. Danny Briere scored the only goal of the shootout for the Flyers, who stayed level with the New York Rangers in equal sixth in the Eastern Conference playoff race. The Flyers are three ahead of Washington, the first team below the postseason cutoff. Stars 7, Kings 2: In Los Angeles, Loui Eriksson scored twice in less than 3-1/2 minutes in the second period as Dallas downed Los Angeles. The Stars got four goals in the second period and connected three times on power plays. Maple Leafs 4, Canadiens 2: In Toronto, the home team beat Eastern Conference-leading Montreal despite having already been eliminated from playoff contention. Rookies Anton Stralman and Jiri Tlusty each scored two goals for the Maple Leafs. The Canadiens missed a chance to move three points clear of Pittsburgh in the Eastern Conference title race. Capitals 3, Panthers 0: In Sunrise, Florida, Washington continued its playoff push with victory over Florida. Cristobal Huet stopped 32 shots for his fourth shutout of the season, and Viktor Kozlov had a goal and two assists for the Capitals, who have won eight of their past nine. With three games to play, Washington is two points behind Boston in the eighth and final playoff qualifying berth in the East. Lightning 2, Hurricanes 1: In Tampa, Florida, Jeff Halpern scored the go-ahead goal early in the third period to lead Tampa Bay past Southeast Division leader Carolina. Karri Ramo made 38 saves for the Lightning, which is last in the Eastern Conference. The Hurricanes lead over second-placed Washington in the Southeast was cut to two points. Blackhawks 4, Blues 3: In St. Louis, Chicago kept its faint playoff hopes alive with a win over St. Louis. The Blackhawks moved within four points of eighth place for the final playoff slot in the Western Conference with four games to play. Duncan Keith and Craig Adams scored short-handed goals for Chicago. Oilers 2, Flames 1: In Calgary, Alberta, Edmonton moved into a tie for the final playoff spot in the Western Conference by downing Calgary. Dustin Penner scored the go-ahead goal in the third period for the Oilers, who are tied with Nashville and Vancouver for eighth place in the conference, but the Predators and Canucks have two games in hand. __
