Who says hockey can't thrill in the absence of goals?

Henrik Lundqvist and Frederik Andersen were spectacular in Thursday's clash in Toronto, matching each other save for save in a classic goaltender's duel won 2-1 in a shootout by the veteran New York Rangers stopper.

Together, the netminders combined to make 69 saves, including seven in a wild overtime frame. However, it was the two Lundqvist made on three opportunities in the shootout which proved decisive.

For Lundqvist, it was an outing consistent with his form of late. He has kept a dazzling .943 save rate since his struggles last month. But for Andersen, despite suffering the loss, the performance represents something to build on. He had allowed at least four goals in five of his eight appearances in February before making 37 saves versus the Rangers in perhaps his best game with the Maple Leafs.

Still, for a netminder that has struggled in the shootout throughout his career, it was another frustrating outing.

"I think pretty much everyone in hockey wanted this (game) to keep going," he told TSN's Mark Masters. "It was a good overtime."

Despite their shootout record falling to 1-7, it was an important point earned for the Leafs. The Montreal Canadiens and Tampa Bay Lightning each failed to earn a point Thursday, losing traction in the tight Atlantic Division race.

Lundqvist's Rangers, meanwhile, moved past the Columbus Blue Jackets into the No. 3 seed in the Metropolitan Division.

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One, two, three by Mike Smith.

Chicago Blackhawks sniper Patrick Kane scored a hat trick Thursday versus the Arizona Coyotes, the first time this season he's tallied three goals in a contest.

The three markers lifted Kane to 23 goals on the season, passing both Artem Anisimov and Marian Hossa to lead all Blackhawks.

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Don't underestimate the value of depth between the pipes.

After the Boston Bruins dismissed coach Claude Julien earlier this month, general manager Don Sweeney acknowledged his own failure to equip his club with proper depth in goal, a factor that led to too many lost nights under Julien.

This season, after franchise netminder Tuukka Rask, the Bruins have run through a slew of net options. A combination of second stringers have chipped in on crease time but have come away with a collective five wins.

"We've seen teams with 1A and 1B (goaltending) that have really hung around - even though they have had other injuries - because of it," Sweeney told Kevin Paul Dupont of The Boston Globe. "We've had a tough time with that this year. No question about it."

Sitting two points outside of a playoff position, Sweeney notes his club could pursue netminding insurance prior to the March 1 trade deadline.

"It's tough to find at this time, but they exist," Sweeney added. "But it's just a matter of teams are like, 'Well, what are you giving up for it?' That's a big part of it."

After waiving Anton Khudobin in January, he has since returned to the Bruins following a short stint in the AHL. Khudobin won his last outing, a 4-3 result over the Vancouver Canucks on Feb. 11. The veteran goalie is signed through the 2017-18 campaign.

If Sweeney elects to go shopping ahead of the deadline, among the more affordable options who could be available include Philadelphia Flyers netminder Michal Neuvirth and Anders Nilsson of the Buffalo Sabres.

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There was time when it didn't seem certain Filip Forsberg would muster half as many goals as he scored last season. Now it appears 33 is in reach.

The Nashville Predators star completed a hat trick in consecutive outings in a 4-2 win over the Colorado Avalanche on Thursday night.

Forsberg scored three earlier in the week versus the Calgary Flames.

He now has 18 goals across his last 30 games after managing just three in his first 30 starts this season. And with his six goals across three nights, he now has more than any player since the holiday break.

Forsberg still lags just a touch behind a pace that would match his career-best totals from last year. However, a third consecutive 30-goal, 60-point campaign is suddenly very attainable.

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Score one for Sean Monahan.

The Calgary Flames center set a record Thursday with his goal against the Tampa Bay Lightning. With the tally, Monahan became the youngest player in Flames history to reach 100 goals.

The 22-year-old is in his fourth campaign, having scored 22, 31, and 27 in the three previous seasons. Thursday's goal marked Monahan's 20th of the year.

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Anthony Beauviller's already far along in his rookie season, but the treatment and emotions of being a freshman were on display during a special moment Thursday night in his first NHL game played in his home province of Quebec.

Beauviller scored within the first few shifts at Bell Centre, and among his 50 friends and family in attendance was a proud father who couldn't hide his emotions.

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Instant plaudits.

Working the bench for just the third time in his return stint, head coach Claude Julien was celebrated by the Montreal Canadiens and their fans Thursday night during his 1,000th career game.

At Julien's request, the Canadiens eschewed a pregame ceremony in favor of a quick tribute during a first-period stoppage.

The 27th coach in NHL history to hit the millennial milestone, Julien's accrued 539 wins in his career and holds a .603 points percentage.

The majority of those games came with the Boston Bruins, who fired the former Jack Adams Award winner in his 10th season earlier this month. Julien holds the Bruins' franchise record for wins with 419 in 760 appearances.

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It's no secret the Los Angeles Kings rely on Jeff Carter to score goals.

After all, he leads Los Angeles with 29 tallies, 10 more than Tanner Pearson, while Tyler Toffoli is the only other Kings skater to reach double digits.

The Kings have scored 145 times this season, better than only five clubs league wide, averaging 2.44 goals per game.

When Carter finds the back of the net, the Kings are 17-2-3, but only 13-24-1 when he doesn't score. The 32-year-old has seven multi-goal efforts this season.

In all, Carter has accounted for 20 percent of the Kings' tallies this season. But in the midst of a four-game goal drought, things have gone sideways in Hollywood. Carter has not scored since Feb. 9, while the Kings have managed just one win in the following four contests.

It marks the fourth four-game stretch this season in which Carter hasn't shown up on the goal column:

In the combined 16 contests, Los Angeles grabbed just 11 of a possible 32 points. As the campaign enters its stretch run, the Kings sit on the outside of the playoff picture, two points behind the Calgary Flames.

With 23 games left on the season, time is running out for Carter and his teammates to rediscover that offensive touch.

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How badly have things gone for the Colorado Avalanche?

When the Denver club lost blue-liner Erik Johnson to a devastating leg injury on Dec. 3, the team held down a 9-13-1 record.

Four games under .500, but still salvageable, particularly with five months left on the season.

But in the ensuing weeks, the Avalanche have fallen hard without their top defenseman, posting a 7-26-2 showing in his absence. Colorado now sits dead last in the NHL.

It's no secret that the Avalanche have a problematic blue line, and with things going this poorly, it's understandable why general manager Joe Sakic is contemplating moving a star player like Matt Duchene or captain Gabriel Landeskog to reshape his back end.

As for Johnson, after suffering a broken fibula, he was expected to be on the shelf for six-to-eight weeks. He'll make his return to the lineup Saturday when the Avalanche take on the Buffalo Sabres.

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Sell high.

The Tampa Bay Lightning now have the opportunity to do as such when it comes to goaltender Ben Bishop and his future with the club.

A pending unrestricted free agent, Bishop is a candidate to be moved before the March 1 trade deadline, with the Lightning sitting outside of the playoff picture and prepared to turn over the keys to young goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy.

Part of Bishop's eventual move from the Lightning is tied to his contract. The lanky netminder has been one of the league's best in recent seasons and should cash in on that performance this summer.

That doesn't work for the Lightning, already in a cap crunch and with a host of restricted free agents to entertain this summer, namely forwards Tyler Johnson, Ondrej Palat, and Jonathan Drouin, who will cost a bundle to retain.

The writing was on the wall for Bishop when the club opted to re-sign Vasilevskiy to a three-year contract that kicks in next season, when the 22-year-old will hold a $3.5-million cap hit.

Last offseason, the Lightning were prepared to move Bishop to the Calgary Flames only for the deal to fall apart in its latter stages.

Bishop has persisted despite the trade noise. After slugging through the season's early goings, where he came away with just nine wins in 19 outings, his game has turned around since returning from injury Jan. 12.

Since then, Bishop has been one of the Lightning's best performers, winning seven of 10 games, while his save rate has climbed to .922. As a result, the Lightning are back in the thick of the playoff race, four points back of a wild-card position as of Thursday.

But Bishop's play likely isn't enough to preserve his time in the Tampa Bay crease, and with the trade deadline less than a week out, he's now on borrowed time with the Lightning.

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