Buffalo moves into No. 1 spot

Chris Drury scored twice, sparking Buffalo’s five-goal first period in a 6-4 victory over the New York Islanders on Friday night at Buffalo, N.Y. -- moving the Sabres to within a victory of clinching the top seeding in the Eastern Conference playoffs.

The Sabres (50-20-7) become the first team to reach the 50-win plateau this season and gain sole possession of first place in the NHL standings with 107 points, one more than Detroit.

The Islanders played without starting goalie Rick DiPietro (concussion) for a second straight game. They also were minus high-scoring left wing Ryan Smyth, who’s listed day-to-day because of a leg injury.

Dallas 4, Detroit 3 -- Sergei Zubov scored the only goal of the shootout to give the Stars the victory at Detroit. Dallas improved its points streak to six straight games.

New Jersey 3, Philadelphia 1 -- The victory ended the Devils’ five-game losing streak at home and moved them into a tie with the Pittsburgh Penguins atop the Atlantic Division.

Ottawa 5, Montreal 2 -- At Ottawa, Dany Heatley scored his 47th goal of the season to help the Senators reach 100 points for the for the fourth consecutive season and sixth time in the last eight.

Montreal’s Sheldon Souray scored his 18th power-play goal of the season in the first period, tying Hall of Famer Denis Potvin and Adrian Aucoin for the NHL single-season record by a defenseman.

Tampa Bay 4, Carolina 2 -- Vincent Lecavalier scored his league-leading 50th goal at Raleigh, N.C., to lead the Lightning, who moved past the New York Rangers into sixth place in the Eastern Conference.

Florida 3, Washington 2 -- Martin Gelinas scored two goals, including the winner in overtime at Sunrise, Fla., leading the Panthers to their fifth straight win.

Chicago 3, Columbus 1 -- At Chicago, Martin Havlat ended a 13-game goal drought to help the Blackhawks end a six-game losing streak.

San Jose 4, Phoenix 2 -- Joe Thornton set up Jonathan Cheechoo’s seventh goal in five games with his NHL-leading 84th assist in the Sharks’ fifth straight home victory.