Red Wings Vs. Hurricanes: Cam Ward Dominates Detroit, Keeps Carolina Alive In East Race

A loss against the Detroit Red Wings would have all but killed the Carolina Hurricanes on Wednesday, but Cam Ward made sure that wasn't in the cards. The goaltender made 42 rather fantastic saves to keep the Red Wings completely off the board, pitching a shutout when his team needed it most.

Derek Joslin, Jeff Skinner and Erik Cole each scored for Carolina in the 3-0 victory. Had they lost, the Canes would have seen their tragic number fall to just a single point. The New York Rangers still control their own fate for the No. 8 spot in the Eastern Conference, and with two games left, the Hurricanes are back by two points. Should New York win those remaining two games, it's all over, but if the teams wind up in a tie and the tiebreaker goes to the season series, Carolina has the upper hand.

Blackhawks 4, Blues 3 (OT): One night after sitting in the penalty box while his team lost in overtime, Jonathan Toews redeemed himself with a little separation from the defenseman and a goal that beat Ty Conklin on the short side. Two huge points for Chicago.

Flames 6, Oilers 1: Calgary knew coming in that they needed a win and a loss by either Anaheim or Chicago to stay alive in the playoff race. They took care of their own business quite fine, but couldn't get any help. They're out of the playoffs despite a giant win over rival Edmonton.

Capitals 5, Panthers 2: With the East lead firmly in their grasp, Washington showed yet again that they're not keen on letting it slide away. With another two points against Florida, the Caps lowered their magic number to clinch that spot to just a single point over Philadelphia.

Bruins 3, Islanders 2: Coach Claude Julien didn't seem completely pleased with the effort, but on the scoreboard, Boston bounced back from that nasty blown lead against the Rangers earlier in the week to top New York's other team.

Devils 4, Leafs 2: A few weeks ago, both of these teams surely hoped this game would mean something. It didn't.