It was the biggest goal the Calgary Flames have scored in some time.

Johnny Gaudreau finished off a beauty 2-on-0 passing play with Mikael Backlund to give his club a 3-2 win over the Ottawa Senators. It also put an end to the Senators' four-game winning streak.

As for Gaudreau, the goal was a huge monkey off his shoulders, ending the star's 11-game goalless skid.

With the win the Flames momentarily hold onto the final wild-card spot in the Western Conference heading into the All-Star break.

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Eddie Lack is close to making his return.

The Carolina Hurricanes netminder has been sidelined since Nov. 22 after he suffered a concussion.

On Thursday, the Hurricanes assigned Lack to Charlotte, their minor-league affiliate, where he will have an opportunity to get in some playing time on a conditioning stint.

Lack has appeared in just five games with Carolina this season, posting a 1-2-1 record with a save percentage of .856.

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In a word, the price was wrong for Carey Price on Thursday night.

That was the point made by New York Islanders broadcaster and former goalie Rick DiPietro, who channeled the great Bob Barker as he summed up the Islanders' big 3-1 win over the Montreal Canadiens.

Of course, DiPietro is not wrong in his assessment of Thomas Greiss. The 30-year-old has now won four of his last five games while posting a .961 save percentage over that span.

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Frustration continues in the Dallas crease.

Stars netminder Antti Niemi was given the early hook Thursday after allowing two goals on five shots to the Buffalo Sabres. Niemi lasted just one period before Stars coach Lindy Ruff changed hands and called on Kari Lehtonen.

It marked the third straight start in which Niemi finished the game on the bench.

The Finnish netminder was yanked Jan. 14 after allowing three goals in just 4:01 against the Minnesota Wild. Three nights later, Niemi allowed six goals on 28 shots to the New York Rangers, with Lehtonen coming in for mop-up duty late in the third frame.

In all, Niemi has stopped just 25 of the past 36 shots that have come has way, resulting in an ugly .694 save percentage over that stretch.

Niemi has one year remaining on his contract, carrying a $4.5-million cap hit.

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It won't take long for Tommy Wingels to make friends in Ottawa with plays like that.

Just two days following a trade from the San Jose Sharks, Wingels scored in his first game with the Senators, putting the puck by Calgary Flames netminder Brian Elliott.

Early in the third frame, Wingels redirected a point shot by Ottawa blue-liner Fredrik Claesson to tally his sixth goal on the season.

(Video courtesy: NHL.com)

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Score one for Sean Monahan.

Late in the second frame, Calgary Flames defenseman Dougie Hamilton dragged the puck toward the Ottawa Senators cage, but saw his shot denied by netminder Mike Condon. Monahan was there, however, to capitalize on the second opportunity by burying a between-the-legs goal.

The tally marked Monahan's sixth goal in his past eight games.

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Winnipeg Jets rookie Patrik Laine is back to scoring goals.

The 18-year-old fired a one-timer past Chicago Blackhawks netminder Scott Darling for his first goal in his second game since returning to the lineup from a concussion.

The goal was Laine's 22nd of the season, leaving him one behind Auston Matthews for tops among all first-year players.

(Video courtesy: NHL.com)

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Jack Eichel to the rescue.

The Buffalo Sabres center and franchise forward has made a big-league impact since returning to the lineup on Nov. 29.

After suffering a high-ankle sprain on the eve of the season opener, it was a gloomy state of affairs in Western New York after what had been a promising offseason.

Over the summer, Sabres general manager Tim Murray made a handful of recruits in an effort to build on his team's 81-point finish in 2015-16, Eichel's first year in the NHL after being drafted second overall the previous June.

Several new faces arrived in Buffalo. High-profile winger Kyle Okposo, fresh off a 22-goal campaign with the cross-state New York Islanders, was added in free agency. Veteran blue-liner Dmitry Kulikov was acquired from the Florida Panthers. Meanwhile, starting goaltender Robin Lehner was looking forward to a fresh start after an injury-riddled season the year prior.

But then Eichel was lost one day before the season opener versus the divisional rival Montreal Canadiens, after an awkward fall resulted in an ankle injury that sidelined him for six weeks. In all, Eichel missed 21 games, while the Sabres struggled in his absence, posting a 7-9-5 record and tallying just 1.81 goals per game.

But things have turned around since his return, as Eichel has already collected 12 goals and nine assists in what will be an abbreviated season for the Massachusetts native. He's been the biggest reason the Sabres have a winning record since his return, as the team has gone 13-9-4 over that stretch and its goals-per-game ratio has also jumped more than a full point - coming in at 2.93 - since Jack came back.

How far can the turnaround go? Playoffs are now a possibility for the Sabres, although slim, given the muck that is the bottom of the East - Buffalo is among a group of teams battling it out in the conference's basement, where no club stands more than five points behind the final playoff slot.

That certainly wasn't the case just a few months ago, when the Sabres were seemingly holding on for Eichel's return. Now, he's back, and the Sabres are winning. It's no wonder why the Buffalo faithful like Eich.

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Brad Marchand is counting his blessings Thursday night.

The Boston Bruins forward got his club back into Thursday's game thanks to two goals in a span of 4:49 to knot the game at 2-2.

The goals come the same day it was announced the 28-year-old would not be suspended for his dangerous trip on Detroit Red Wings defenseman Niklas Kronwall and would instead be fined $10,000.

Related: Marchand fined $10K for dangerous trip on Kronwall

Marchand now has 21 goals on the year, hitting the 20-goal mark for the fourth straight season.

(Videos courtesy: NHL.com)

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Everything is turning up spades for Justin Schultz.

The Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman is among the league leaders in points by defensemen this season and he can thank Boston Bruins rookie Brandon Carlo for his latest goal.

The Bruins blue-liner accidentally redirected Schultz's cross-ice feed into his own net on Thursday night, giving his opponent his eighth goal and 33rd point of the season.

Schultz would pick up another assist on Phil Kessel's goal later in the first period, putting him in sole possession of fourth in defensemen scoring.

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