New York Rangers 4-5 Colorado Avalanche
The day's most exciting match came in New York, as the visiting Colorado Avalanche struck with seconds left to defeat the New York Rangers 5-4.
Within the first 10 minutes of the opening period, there were four goals, all coming within a short period of time. Jack Drury put the Avalanche in front, with teammate Cale Makar adding a second less than a second later.
Although they were behind early, the Rangers roared back in no time, with Sam Carrick and Vincent Trocheck getting goals 86 seconds apart to tie the game. Later on in the opening frame, Makar got his second from a power play to put Colorado back ahead.
The next goal would come in the latter stages of the second period, where Juuso Parssinen gave the Avalanche their second two-goal lead of the game. Once again, New York would not give up. Will Borgen halved the deficit with less than two minutes left in the period. Then, with five minutes to go, Artemi Panarin tied things up.
With time ticking towards the end of regulation, the visitors would find a way to get a winner. Artturi Lehkonen grabbed the last goal of the game, nine seconds after the Avalanche successfully defended a power play. The win sees them sit alone in sixth spot in the Western Conference, ending a three-game losing streak. As for the Rangers, they are three points and three places out of the final playoff spot in the East.
Ottawa Senators 3-1 Utah
The game with the fewest goals of the day came in the Canadian capital, as the Ottawa Senators topped the Utah Hockey Club 3-1.
After a scoreless opening period, Ridly Gregig got the first goal of the game 12:16 into the second. The short-handed goal put the home team in front.
Less than two minutes later though, the game would be level as Clayton Keller tied things up for Utah, but Claude Giroux restored the Ottawa lead 7:33 into the final period. Brady Tkachuk added a third with 6:48 to play. Despite outshooting the Senators 46-38, it was Utah who came away from the game empty-handed.
The victory saw the Senators jump into the playoff places in the East, though it is just a one-point advantage over the Lightning and Blue Jackets. It is back-to-back losses for Utah, who are six points out of a postseason place.
Winnipeg Jets 5-2 Calgary Flames
The Winnipeg Jets continued their fine form with a 5-2 win in the all-Canadian duel versus the Calgary Flames.
Kyle Connor got the scoring underway five and a half minutes into the game. Having had nearly triple the shots in the opening period, the Jets could have been up by more before the first intermission.
Midway through the second, Mason Appleton doubled the hosts' lead. The 29-year-old would go into the penalty box for cross-checking two minutes later, and the Jets would be made to play. Mackenzie Weegar converted on the man advantage to give Calgary some life. Just before the end of the period, Gabriel Vilardi restored Winnipeg's two-goal advantage.
The winger then scored again three minutes into the final period. Sitting pretty at this point, everything was looking good for the Jets. Nazem Kadri got one back for Flames, but they could not get any closer than that. Mark Scheifele rounded out the scoring on a power play to give Winnipeg a third win on the spin.
The Jets continue to lead the Western Conference on 71 points. Their 180 goals scored so far is the most in the NHL. Calgary's three-game winning streak came to an end as they continue to have possession of the last playoff spot in the conference.
Chicago Blackhawks 2-4 Minnesota Wild
The Minnesota Wild gave the Chicago Blackhawks their third straight loss, coming out on top 4-2 in Illinois.
The guests dominated the opening proceedings as Jared Spurgeon put ahead 5:43 into the contest. A minute and a half later, it was 2-0 courtesy of Frederick Gaudreau.
Joel Eriksson grabbed the game's goal on a power play halfway through the second period, and the match seemed to be put to bed. Chicago did not look like scoring until they did a minute into the third. Seth Jones got one back for the Blackhawks, before Frank Nazar made the game more interesting with a second two minutes later.
A leveller would not come for Chicago, as Marcus Foligno added an empty netter with less than two minutes left to give Minnesota the win. They stay fifth in the Western Conference, while the Blackhawks are second from bottom.
Las Vegas Golden Knights 4-1 Florida Panthers
The Las Vegas Golden Knights defeated the Florida Panthers 4-1 to round out Sunday's action. Brayden McNabb got things started with a goal 5:26 into the fixture. At around the same mark of the second period, Tanner Pearson doubled the Golden Knights' lead.
Florida had 56 shots in the contest, but their only goal would come two minutes into the final frame, as Anton Lundell brought them back into the game. Unfortunately for them, they could not get any closer to their opponents on the scoreboard. Jack Eichel made it 3-1 with 8:29 left to play before Tomas Hartl put the game beyond doubt with 29 seconds left.
The Golden Knights jump ahead of the Edmonton Oilers with their second win from their last three. The Panthers stay fifth in the Eastern Conference, and will look to get back to winning ways on Tuesday as the Los Angeles Kings come into town.