Apr 26, 2013; Buffalo, NY, USA; New York Islanders left wing Matt Martin (17) deflects a shot past Buffalo Sabres goalie Ryan Miller (30) during the overtime period at the First Niagara Center. Sabres beat the Islanders 2-1 in a shootout. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Hoffman-USA TODAY Sports

1. The Islanders got a single point in a 2-1 shootout loss to the Sabres.  Keith Aucoin capitalized on a Ryan Miller stumble to even the score at 1 just over 7 minutes into the third to lift the Islanders, at least temporarily, out of the 8th seed and into 6th, a point ahead of the Senators and Rangers.  Brian Flynn had put the Sabres up a goal in the second period, and Thomas Vanek had the lone goal in the shootout to end the Sabres season on a winning note.
2. The Minnesota Wild, needing a win in one of their final two games, got booed off home ice after falling to the Oilers 6-1.  Nikolai Khabibulin made 38 saves to get the win, with Corey Potter and Nail Yakupov each scoring twice.  Taylor Hall and Jordan Eberle each added a goal and two assists to play spoiler and keep three teams in the race for the final two playoff spots. Minnesota must win its final game in Colorado or have Columbus lose against Nashville to make the playoffs.
3. Calgary closed out their season with a 3-1 loss to the Blackhawks.  Patrick Kane, Jonathan Toews and Marcus Kruger scored for the Hawks, with Chris Butler notching his first of the season in the loss.  Chicago has one more game, but expect a skeleton NHL lineup as they travel to St. Louis to play the Blues.
4. Matt Duchene and P.A. Parenteau scored in the shootout to give the Avalanche a 5-4 win over the Coyotes.  Stefan Elliott, Parenteau, Patrick Bordeleau and Ryan O’Reilly  scored for Colorado, while Antoine Vermette scored twice along with Rob Klinkhammer and David Schlemko for Phoenix.  Colorado can play spoiler for the Wild on Saturday while the Coyotes have one more stop in Anaheim.

That concludes our tour around the NHL.  Saturday is the de-facto final day of the season, and the league goes out with a bang, with 13 games on the schedule.  Every team but Boston and Ottawa will conclude their season, so most playoff matchups will be determined Saturday, and 9 games have some playoff implication.  Check back tomorrow for a full recap of the action.

Apr. 22, 2013; Buffalo, NY, USA; Buffalo Sabres goalie Jhonas Enroth (1) stops a shot by Winnipeg Jets right wing Chris Thorburn (22) during the third period at First Niagara Center. Winnipeg beats Buffalo 2 to 1. Mandatory Credit: Timothy T. Ludwig-USA TODAY Sports

1. Antti Miettinen scored with just over 7 minutes left to give the Jets a 2-1 lead and a huge save by Ondrej Pavelec off Thomas Vanek kept the lead and the Jets held on for the win, moving within a point of Ottawa and the Rangers for a playoff spot.  Aaron Gagnon had given the Jets a 1-0 lead in the second and Vanek scored on the power play to even it up, setting the stage for Miettinen’s winner in the third.
2. Detroit needed a big game and they got one from Jimmy Howard as the goalie make 34 saves in shutting out the Coyotes 4-0.  Johan Franzen had 2 goals, with Damien Brunner adding a goal and an assist and Valtteri Filppula adding a goal.  Henrik Zetterberg and Niklas Kronwall had two assists each for the Wings, who moved within a point of 7th and 8th place.  Phoenix is 5 points out with 3 to play, meaning they now need to run the table and get a ton of help, in other words, a miracle to make the playoffs.
3. Viktor Fasth posted a 24 save shutout to help the Ducks clinch the Pacific Division with a 3-0 win over the Oilers.  Ryan Getlzaf, Radek Dvorak and Sami Vatanen scored for the Ducks, who swept their 2 game mini-series in Edmonton.
4. Vancouver used a 3-1 win over the rival Blackhawks to clinch the Northwest Division and the third seed in the West.  Jannik Hansen, Zack Kassian and Daniel Sedin did the honors for the Canucks, while Daniel Carcillo broke Cory Schneider‘s shutout bid with just over 8 minutes left as the Hawks seemed to just go through the motions for most of the game.

That concludes our tour around the NHL for Monday.  All eyes will be on Washington where the Capitals host the Jets with first place in the southeast on the line as well as the 8th seed.  The Islanders and Rangers also play against the Canes and Panthers respectively as they will attempt to create a cushion between themselves and the Senators/Jets battle.   Check back tomorrow for a recap of all 10 games.