TAMPA, Fla. - Adam Erne scored twice and Ondrej Palat added a power-play goal and two assists as the Tampa Bay Lightning defeated the Dallas Stars 6-3 on Sunday night.

Brayden Point scored the go-ahead goal in the third period to break a 2-2 tie, and Braydon Coburn and Anton Stralman also had goals for Tampa Bay. Backup Peter Budaj made 23 saves to help the Lightning move within three points of the idle Ottawa Senators, who hold the second wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference.

Gemel Smith, Jason Spezza, and Brett Ritchie scored for Dallas, and Esa Lindell assisted on all three goals.

Erne opened up the scoring at 11:47 in the first. Erne, who had just one goal entering the game and hadn't scored since March 3, added a power-play goal in the third.

Dallas answered quickly in the second with Smith's goal less than two minutes into the period.

Smith nearly had a short-handed goal after that, but it was overturned on an offsides call after a Lightning challenge and official review. Dallas did take the lead at 10:57 in the second when Spezza scored his 14th of the season. Spezza also assisted on Smith's goal.

With just 18 seconds left in the second, Tampa Bay tied it on Coburn's goal with assists from Stralman and Palat, who has 32 assists this season.

Point's tiebreaking goal was his 14th of the season, while Palat's power-play goal was his 17th.

Ritchie scored Dallas' third goal late in the third. Stralman had an empty-netter with 2 seconds remaining.

NOTES: Tampa Bay C Steven Stamkos, out since right knee surgery in November, did not play Sunday and remains day to day. ... Lightning C Tyler Johnson returned Sunday after sitting out 11 games with a lower-body injury. ... Lightning D Jason Garrison returned after missing four games due to a lower-body injury. Garrison would later leave during the second intermission with another lower-body injury. ... Stars LW Patrick Sharp missed his fifth game with a hip injury. ... Stars LW Antoine Roussel missed his 15th game with an upper-body injury.

UP NEXT

Stars: Wrap up the season with a three-game homestand, beginning with Arizona on Tuesday.

Lightning: Begin a three-game road trip, starting with a key game at Boston on Tuesday.

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Observers of the 2016-17 campaign are running out of ways to accurately put into words just how phenomenal Brent Burns has been. With 28 goals and 73 points through 79 games, Burns has made burning the opposition a nightly habit.

But how's this for perspective: Burns isn't just outscoring the rest of the NHL's defensemen this season - he's also outscoring whole defensive units.

CSN California highlighted this fact during their Sunday night broadcast of the San Jose Sharks' 3-1 win over the Vancouver Canucks, showing Burns' 28 goals in comparison to those scored by all Canucks' rearguards combined:

Needless to say, it wasn't a great look for the Canucks.

But Vancouver isn't the only club to see their total blue line goal-scoring output quashed by The Bearded One.

In total, Burns' 28 tallies sit above the combined totals of five clubs' defensive units, while tying one other:

The most surprising club listed is undoubtedly the Washington Capitals. Alex Ovechkin's crew is no stranger to putting goals on the board, ranking as the NHL's second-best offensive team, but it seems goal-scoring prowess doesn't extend to the back end.

Meanwhile, in San Jose, Burns continues to carry the Sharks' mail all by his lonesome.

The craziest thing about that goal total? Burns has just one goal in his past 20 games. And yet, even with that extensive drought, he continues to outscore entire groups of blue-liners from other teams.

That sound? It's the Norris Trophy debate quickly quieting to a low murmur.

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The high-flying Columbus Blue Jackets have entered uncharted territory in their best-ever season.

Thanks to Sunday's 3-2 loss to the Metropolitan-leading Washington Capitals, the Blue Jackets have now lost three in a row for the first time all season.

With Columbus already locked into a top-three seed in the stacked Metro, the ramifications of the mini-skid aren't-season altering, but considering last year's Blue Jackets - who finished the season in 27th place - had eight losing streaks of three games or more, it truly shines a light on how consistent John Tortorella's group has been in 2016-17.

Columbus' next opportunity to snap the slump comes Tuesday in a pivotal contest against Pittsburgh, which trails the Blue Jackets by just a single point in the standings.

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Perhaps setting a franchise record can aid Devan Dubnyk in his quest to get back on track.

The struggling Minnesota Wild netminder made 30 saves Sunday versus the Colorado Avalanche to secure his 38th victory of the season, the highest single-season wins total for any goalie in franchise history.

Dubnyk set the record despite enduring a miserable March, during which the Wild limped to a 4-10-2 record while falling out of contention in the race for the Central Division crown.

On the season, Dubnyk is 38-19-5 with a 2.23 goals against average and .924 save percentage. A return to his early-season form will be imperative to Minnesota's success come the postseason.

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When the Washington Capitals managed to snag the prize of the 2017 trade deadline, Kevin Shattenkirk, it was pretty clear the result was going to be increased offensive dominance - a frightening prospect given the Capitals were already one of the top offensive clubs in the game.

But there are never any guarantees when adding a new name to a roster - especially on the blue line, where a change in address usually brings a significant change in approach as well, as each team utilizes an array of varied defensive schemes.

Now, 15 games into Shattenkirk's tenure in Washington, it's clear the move has paid off.

Since joining the likes of Alex Ovechkin and Nicklas Backstrom, Shattenkirk has posted 12 assists through 15 games. He's been particularly hot as of late, registering eight points over his past seven appearances.

And while he's certainly benefiting from suiting up alongside Washington's elite scorers, Shattenkirk is doing his part as well. Nine of those assists have been primary helpers, with only three secondary assists - where Shattenkirk might have had less impact - rounding out the total.

It may be a small sample size, but that sample is all the more important given the time of year. With the postseason just a handful of games away, and with Washington once again facing Stanley Cup-or-bust pressure, the fact that Shattenkirk has fit in seamlessly is key.

He's actually done more than just fit in, however, as the veteran rearguard is registering points at a career-high clip. His 0.79 points per game has matched his career-best scoring pace from 2014-15.

Whether he could sustain that pace over a full season in Washington is irrelevant at the moment. All that matters now - with his club loading up for a shot at redemption - is that Shattenkirk is rolling. And if he can keep it going once the schedule transitions from regular season to post, then the ever-dangerous Capitals will be all the more lethal as they begin their march.

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This is the last thing the struggling San Jose Sharks wanted to see.

Joe Thornton needed to be helped to the dressing room and was clearly in distress after sustaining an apparent left leg injury in the first period Sunday against the Vancouver Canucks.

There are early concerns that his knee took the brunt of the collision. Thornton missed the second period and the Sharks announced after 40 minutes that he wouldn't return.

Thornton's started each of San Jose's 79 games this season, and his remarkable durability into his late thirties is something that isn't talked about enough. Since 2006-07, he's missed only nine regular-season games.

While it's been an offensively down season for Thornton, the Sharks will certainly trade his 0.64 points per game - his lowest since 1998-99, when he was 19 - for another deep playoff run, and ideally two more wins this time around. But make no mistake, for the Sharks to win 16 games and the Stanley Cup, they're going to need "Jumbo Joe" every bit of the way.

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That's one way to reach a milestone.

Carolina Hurricanes defenseman Justin Faulk netted his 17th goal of the season Sunday - marking a new career high for the 25-year-old - but it's safe to say the tally didn't come as he thought it would.

Faulk's career-best tally came by way of a fortuitous bounce at the expense of the Pittsburgh Penguins, as the smooth-skating rearguard fired a slapper from the point and watched it hit the end boards, bounce high towards Matt Murray, and roll in off the netminder's back.

Faulk's 17 goals are the most ever scored by a Hurricanes defender. He tied the all-time mark with 16 last season, putting him level with Anton Babchuck's 2008-09 total.

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Jayson Megna will be with the Vancouver Canucks next season.

The club announced a one-year, one-way contract extension with the 27-year-old Sunday worth $675,000.

Megna signed with Vancouver in July and has four goals and eight points in 53 games, averaging 12:26 in ice time.

(Courtesy: Own the Puck HERO Charts)

In 107 career NHL games with Pittsburgh, New York, and Vancouver, Megna has 10 goals and 10 assists.

"Jayson is a strong skater who has added depth to our forward group," general manager Jim Benning said. "We value his character and professionalism and are pleased to re-sign him for another year."

The rebuilding Canucks rank 27th in the league in points, and they'll need bodies next season. That's likely where Megna comes into play.

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New Jersey Devils defenseman Dalton Prout has a hearing Monday afternoon after a questionable hit Saturday on Philadelphia Flyers defender Radko Gudas, the NHL's Department of Player Safety announced Sunday.

Prout got five minutes and a game misconduct for interference after he drilled Gudas, who moments earlier had clocked Prout's teammate John Quenneville with a hit just inside the Flyers' blue line.

It was a very chippy affair - a 3-0 Flyers final - between the rivals, who will face each other again Tuesday in Newark.

Gudas is out of the Flyers' lineup Sunday, with Philly in Manhattan, looking to keep its slim postseason hopes alive against the New York Rangers. The Flyers haven't disclosed the nature of his injury.

Prout was suspended one game last March for a sucker punch on Tampa Bay Lightning forward Nikita Kucherov, so the league's got his contact information.

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New Jersey Devils defenseman Dalton Prout has a hearing Monday afternoon after a questionable hit Saturday on Philadelphia Flyers defender Radko Gudas, the NHL's Department of Player Safety announced Sunday.

Prout got five minutes and a game misconduct for interference after he drilled Gudas, who moments earlier had clocked Prout's teammate John Quenneville with a hit just inside the Flyers' blue line.

It was a very chippy affair - a 3-0 Flyers final - between the rivals, who will face each other again Tuesday in Newark.

Gudas is out of the Flyers' lineup Sunday, with Philly in Manhattan, looking to keep its slim postseason hopes alive against the New York Rangers. The Flyers haven't disclosed the nature of his injury.

Prout was suspended one game last March for a sucker punch on Tampa Bay Lightning forward Nikita Kucherov, so the league's got his contact information.

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