New York Rangers head coach Peter Laviolette blasted the New York Islanders following his team's 4-2 loss on Tuesday for a pair of "vicious" hits on Mika Zibanejad and Vincent Trocheck.

Both collisions occurred in the third period of the contest.

The first hit involved Zibanejad, who collided with Islanders defenseman Adam Pelech's elbow at center ice. There was no penalty called on the play.

"(Zibanejad) came back at the end from that vicious hit," Laviolette said. "He came back. That vicious shoulder elbow to the head. Watch it."

When asked if he thought the hit was intentional, the bench boss said, "I do."

Islanders head coach Patrick Roy disagreed with Laviolette's assessment.

"The referee was in a really good position to see, and he saw it," Roy said, according to SNY Islanders. "I was more afraid that Pelly might get hurt on that one. (Zibanejad) was the one that hit Pelly. ... It was totally accidental, there was no doubt in my mind."

He added: "Sometimes, frustration makes you say things."

The second hit came in the dying seconds of the game, when Islanders rearguard Noah Dobson shoved Trocheck into the boards right before captain Anders Lee iced the game with an empty-netter.

An incensed Trocheck took up his frustrations with referee Kelly Sutherland after there was no penalty assessed for the collision.

"Vicious," Laviolette said. "From behind."

"It was hard out there tonight, having to get through all of that. ... But our guys kept fighting and battling until the end," he continued.

The Rangers and Islanders will square off once again on April 13.

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The Nashville Predators earned one point in a 4-3 overtime loss against the Winnipeg Jets on Tuesday night to secure their ninth playoff berth in the last 10 seasons.

Spencer Stastney and Ryan O'Reilly scored just over two minutes apart in the final frame to force the extra frame.

The Predators' success this season has been buoyed by a 16-0-2 run that was spurred by a canceled team trip to see U2 perform at Las Vegas' The Sphere in February.

Prior to that franchise record-setting 18-game point streak, Nashville was four points back of a wild-card spot.

The Predators finished last season three points out of the playoff picture. They had made the postseason in each of the last eight campaigns, but only advanced past the first round three times in that span, including a run to the Stanley Cup Final in 2017.

Nashville was swept by the Colorado Avalanche during its last postseason appearance in 2022.

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Toronto Maple Leafs sniper Auston Matthews scored his 66th goal of the season Tuesday, setting a new salary-cap-era record for most tallies in a single campaign.

The tally served as an insurance marker in Toronto's 5-2 win against the New Jersey Devils.

Mario Lemieux was the last player to light the lamp at least 66 times back in 1995-96.

Matthews became the first player to post a 65-goal season since Alex Ovechkin, hitting the mark during the Maple Leafs' 3-2 overtime victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins on Monday.

The 26-year-old now has the most goals in a single campaign by any active player.

"It's cool," he said of surpassing Ovechkin's career high, per TSN's Mark Masters. "Like, he's obviously who he is, and what he's done for the game and what he's accomplished, so it's a big honour just to be in the same sentence as him."

Matthews is riding a six-game goal streak as he pursues his third career Maurice "Rocket" Richard Trophy.

He has four more games to get to 70 goals.

"The process is the same every night," Matthews said. "I find when you really ... overthink it and kind of want it too much, it almost doesn't go your way. I just try to approach every game the same."

The Maple Leafs will square off against the Devils again on Thursday.

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Alex Ovechkin buried his 30th goal of the season Tuesday night, reaching the benchmark for the 18th time and moving past Mike Gartner for the most 30-goal campaigns in league history.

The record-breaking tally was the 852nd of Ovechkin's career, moving him to within 42 of Wayne Gretzky's all-time mark.

Gartner congratulated Ovechkin on Tuesday's feat and wished him luck in his quest to break Gretzky's record.

The 38-year-old Capitals star has scored 22 of his 30 goals this season in the last 32 games.

Ovechkin has netted at least 30 in every 82-game campaign he's played. The only time he fell short was when he produced 24 over 45 contests in the abbreviated 2021 season.

The Russian sniper's goal Tuesday night held up as the winner in Washington's 2-1 victory over the Detroit Red Wings, a club that's also chasing an Eastern Conference playoff berth. The Capitals moved into a wild-card spot with the win.

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New Jersey Devils star Jack Hughes was shut down for the rest of the 2023-24 season with a shoulder injury, the team announced Tuesday.

Hughes will undergo surgery April 10. He's expected to recover in time for training camp.

There are three games remaining on New Jersey's schedule.

Hughes leads the Devils with 27 goals and ranks second on the team with 74 points in 62 outings. He sat out 11 games earlier this season with an upper-body injury, which caused him to miss the All-Star Game.

The 22-year-old was also sidelined for five contests in November following an awkward crash into the boards against the St. Louis Blues.

Hughes amassed a career-high 99 points in 78 outings in 2022-23. The young center was eager to become the first player in franchise history with a 100-point campaign.

The Devils currently sit in seventh place of the Metropolitan Division with a 37-36-5 record and virtually no chance of making the playoffs.

New Jersey appeared in the postseason last spring, putting an end to a four-year drought. The Devils beat the New York Rangers in the first round before getting bounced by the Carolina Hurricanes.

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Milestone night as the Canucks beat a playoff team for the first time in a month, taking down Vegas! Boeser to 40 goals, Miller to 100 points, while Hughes and Garland shine as well, so lots for Matt and Blake to discuss on this edition of the show. Plus, with the performance of the undefeated Arturs Silovs, who gets the start between the pipes on Wednesday vs. the Yotes?

Rink Wide’s Jeff Paterson joins the boys live from practice with the latest on Thatcher Demko’s imminent return, and Jeff gives his thoughts on the day’s poll question and Miller’s impact on the Canucks since he arrived. 

John Shannon makes his weekly appearance as well and talks about the winding road of Garland as a Canuck, and the team’s efforts to hold back Edmonton for the Pacific Division title. Plus, John’s informed opinion on the fate of the Coyotes and Salt Lake’s bold venture of naming an NHL franchise that they don’t even have. All that and more, including the NCAA tourney & the Jays & Mariners series! Presented by Applewood Auto Group.

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