OTTAWA — Chris Higgins scored the go-ahead goal and David Aebischer made 44 saves to help the Montreal Canadiens match their longest winning streak in more than 13 years with a 5-3 victory over the Ottawa Senators on Thursday night.
Mike Ribeiro had three points, including his 15th goal, and Alex Kovalev had three assists. Mathieu Dandenault, Saku Koivu and Jan Bulis also scored for Montreal, which extended its winning streak to eight games and tied New Jersey for sixth in the Eastern Conference with 89 points.
The Canadiens, who play four of their last six games at home, have their longest win streak since an eight-gamer from Oct. 24 to Nov. 11, 1992.
RANGERS 3, ISLANDERS 1: At New York, Jarkko Immonen scored his first NHL goal in the opening minute of the second period and Martin Straka scored twice, giving him seven in five games, to help the Rangers stretch their Atlantic Division lead.
BRUINS 3, MAPLE LEAFS 2 (SO): At Boston, Brad Boyes scored the only goal in the shootout to lift Boston to a victory over Toronto. Mats Sundin salvaged a point for the Maple Leafs when he tied the game with 13 seconds left.
PREDATORS 3, BLUES 0: At St. Louis, rookie Shea Weber scored his first goal and Paul Kariya had his 28th, helping Nashville hand St. Louis its franchise-record 12 straight loss. The Blues were shutout for the fifth time this season.
LIGHTNING 3, THRASHERS 2 (SO): At Tampa, Fla., Vincent Lecavalier and Brad Richards scored shootout goals and Tampa Bay tightened its grip on the final playoff position in the Eastern Conference. The defending Stanley Cup champions remain in eighth place in the East with 87 points — six more than ninth-place Atlanta. Each team has six games remaining.
WILD 2, OILERS 1 (SO): At St. Paul, Minn., Brian Rolston beat old teammate Dwayne Roloson with a stick-side wrist shot to lift Minnesota. Edmonton's Sergei Samsonov and Minnesota's Mikko Koivu each scored on their team's first shootout chance, but Ales Hemsky and Marian Gaborik were denied.
STARS 5, MIGHTY DUCKS 3: At Anaheim, Dallas clinched the Pacific Division title, getting power-play goals from Antti Miettinen and Jussi Jokinen less than 1 1/2 minutes apart. The victory could prove costly for Dallas, which lost leading-scorer Mike Modano with an apparent knee injury.
SHARKS 5, KINGS 0: At Los Angeles, Jonathan Cheechoo had two goals and an assist as San Jose moved one step closer to securing a playoff spot with a victory over Los Angeles.