Sunday, Nov. 15, 2009

ATLANTA (AP) If Ilya Kovalchuk plays this well with a gimpy right foot, how much better will he perform when he's 100 percent?

Tough play: Calgary's David Moss tries to deflect a shot past Buffalo's Ryan Miller on Friday. The Sabres beat the Flames 2-1 in a shootout. AP PHOTO

Kovalchuk hardly seems to care. The Atlanta captain knows he and the Thrashers can only improve.

"Oh, definitely," he said. "It's still going to take me time to heal all the way."

Kovalchuk and Maxim Afinogenov each had two goals and two assists to help the Thrashers beat the Los Angeles Kings 7-0 on Friday night for their third straight victory.

Atlanta rookie Evander Kane, the fourth overall draft pick, also scored two goals and had an assist. His fifth goal made it 1-0 at the 10:22 mark of the second. His sixth was a short-handed goal that ended the scoring with 3:26 remaining.

Kovalchuk, who returned the night before in New York from a broken foot bone that sidelined him for three weeks, finished with a goal and two assists in Thursday's 5-3 win over the Rangers.

"The most important thing is we got four points in the bank," he said. "It doesn't matter who scores."

The Kings, who have lost three of four, outshot Atlanta 38-21, but couldn't keep Ondrej Pavelec from getting his first career shutout.

Capitals 3, Wild 1

In Washington, Brian Pothier scored the go-ahead goal early in the third period and the Capitals won their fourth in a row without Alex Ovechkin.

Mike Green scored in the second period for the Capitals, Brooks Laich added an empty-net goal in the final minute, and Semyon Varlamov made 29 saves.

Sabres 2, Flames 1 (SO)

In Buffalo, Jason Pominville scored the winner in the fourth round of the shootout, and Ryan Miller made 25 saves for the Sabres.

Pominville beat Miikka Kiprusoff with a wrist shot that went between the goalie's legs. Miller then stopped Rene Bourque's attempt to secure the bonus point.

Blue Jackets 3, Ducks 2 (SO)

In Columbus, Rick Nash scored the shootout winner and also had a goal in regulation for the Blue Jackets, and Mathieu Garon stopped both Anaheim shooters in the tiebreaker after making 32 saves in regulation and overtime.

Islanders 4, 'Canes 3 (OT)

In Raleigh, N.C., Kyle Okposo scored with 14.4 second left in overtime, and rookie John Tavares had his first two-goal game to help New York extend Carolina's winless streak to 14 games — matching the franchise record.

Blackhawks 3, Maple Leafs 2

In Chicago, Patrick Kane scored an early unassisted goal, and Cristobal Huet made 29 saves in the Blackhawks' third straight win and sixth in a row at home.

We welcome your opinions. Click to send a message to the editor.