National Hockey

MONTREAL — The Montreal Canadiens never took their foot off the gas pedal in an 11-goal thriller as the race to the playoffs intensifies.

TORONTO — After leaking 17 goals in their last three home games, the Toronto Maple Leafs tightened up on defence in their return to the Scotiabank Arena on Saturday after a three-game absence.

RALEIGH, N.C. — As the final minutes ticked down off the clock Saturday night, the nearly sold-out crowd at PNC Arena began chanting: "We Want Play-OFFS!" at high volume and in perfect unison.

OTTAWA — General manager Pierre Dorion is going to get some help rebuilding the Ottawa Senators.

SUNRISE, Fla. — Patrice Bergeron, David Pastrnak, Brad Marchand and Zdeno Chara each had a goal and an assist help the Boston Bruins clinch a playoff berth with a 7-3 win over the Florida Panthers on Saturday night.

EDMONTON — The Ottawa Senators played the kind of game Saturday that head coach Marc Crawford enjoys watching.

NEWARK, N.J. — Despite being eliminated from post-season contention, the banged-up New Jersey Devils have hurt the playoff hopes of some wild-card contenders in recent weeks.

PHILADELPHIA — Josh Bailey picked a perfect time to break out of his scoring slump. Bailey scored twice 1:23 apart in the third period, stopping a 12-game drought, and the New York Islanders beat the Philadelphia Flyers 4-2 on Saturday.

BOSTON — The Boston Bruins have signed 42-year-old defenceman Zdeno Chara to a one-year, $2 million contract extension. General manager Don Sweeney made the announcement Saturday, adding the deal through the 2019-20 season includes an additional $1.

ANAHEIM, Calif. — Jakob Silfverberg and the Anaheim Ducks long saw their playoff hopes evaporate, but that hasn't stopped them from trying to end the season with some momentum.