WASHINGTON -- Justin Williams remembered that the last time he recorded a hat trick was 2006 when he played for the Carolina Hurricanes.
"It was a long time ago," Williams said.
It has also been a while since the Washington Capitals lost back-to-back games in regulation. They kept up their impressive streak of bouncing back from losses Sunday by beating the New York Rangers 5-2 on the strength of Williams' second career hat trick (see full recap).
Blackhawks push run to 11, match club mark
CHICAGO -- Patrick Kane had a big grin on his face as he skated around the back of the net to congratulate Artemi Panarin on his nifty pass in the third period.
Lots of smiles for the Chicago Blackhawks these days.
The Blackhawks matched a franchise record with their 11th straight victory, using two goals from Jonathan Toews to beat the slumping Montreal Canadiens 5-2 on Sunday (see full recap).
Crosby nets 2, Fleury blanks Hurricanes
PITTSBURGH -- Coach Mike Sullivan knows the Penguins have had mieresults have been mixed for Pittsburgh since he took over a month ago. Still, he likes his players' effort.
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The Penguins were able to put it all together for a lopsided win on Sunday.
Sidney Crosby scored two goals and Marc-Andre Fleury stopped 22 shots for his third shutout of the season and 41st of his career as the Penguins beat the Carolina Hurricanes 5-0 (see full recap).
Lightning beat Panthers to push run to 5
TAMPA, Fla. -- The Tampa Bay Lightning's best stretch this season has them looking like the defending Eastern Conference champions at last.
Nikita Kucherov had two goals and the Lightning extended a season-high winning streak to five games by beating the Atlantic Division-leading Florida Panthers 3-1 on Sunday night.
"When you start stringing a few together, all of a sudden confidence starts going," Tampa Bay coach Jon Cooper said. "You win a few in a row, you think you can win every single game. The more we've won, that's what that feeling has been on the bench," (see full recap).