Sharks’ Playoff Spot Protected by Shields

Niklas Sundstrom scored a short-handed goal at 4:37 of the third period Monday night, lifting the visiting San Jose Sharks to a 1-0 victory over the Edmonton Oilers.

Edmonton lost the puck in its own end and Sundstrom jammed it past Oiler goalie Tommy Salo for the Sharks’ 15th short-handed goal this season.

Steve Shields recorded his fourth shutout of the season, stopping 20 shots.

San Jose, with 83 points, has a three-point lead in the Western Conference over ninth-place Vancouver for the final playoff position. Edmonton is in seventh place with 84 points.

Pittsburgh 3, Carolina 2--Alexei Kovalev scored twice in 33 seconds of the second period as the Penguins defeated the Hurricanes at Pittsburgh to strengthen their hold on a playoff spot.

The victory gave seventh-place Pittsburgh 84 points--three more than Buffalo. The Hurricanes fell to ninth place.

Hurricane center Rod Brind’Amour sustained a concussion and was removed from the ice on a stretcher after being checked into the boards by Pittsburgh’s Bob Boughner.

Buffalo 3, Toronto 2--Dixon Ward’s early go-ahead goal stood up and the Sabres’ stifling defense did the rest in a victory over the Maple Leafs at Buffalo, N.Y. that put the Sabres back into playoff position.

The Sabres moved back into eighth place in the Eastern Conference standings, jumping over Carolina.

Washington 4, New York Rangers 1--Joe Sacco had his first two-goal game of the season, lifting the Capitals to a victory over the Rangers at Washington.

Washington moved within two points of New Jersey in the race for the top seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs.

Calgary 2, Dallas 2--Phil Housley scored the tying goal with 6:52 left as the Flames rallied from a two-goal third-period deficit to tie the Stars at Dallas.

Dallas’ Brett Hull scored his 610th career goal to tie his father, Bobby, for ninth place on the career list.

Florida 5, New Jersey 2--Pavel Bure scored his league-leading 56th and 57th goals and extended his point streak to a career-high 12 games as the Panthers defeated the Devils at Sunrise, Fla.

Around the League

An infant girl was hit in the forehead by a puck, but escaped with only a bruise. The 7-month-old baby was treated at Tampa General Hospital on Sunday night and sent home a few hours later. The baby was struck early in the second period when a slap shot from Tampa Bay’s Fredrik Modin was deflected by a New Jersey player into the stands. “Every time something like that happens, you just hope people are paying attention and can get out of the way,” Modin said. “I didn’t know I had hit a baby until I got back to the bench. It really bothered me.”