Detroit 4, Buffalo 2
Jimmy Howard stopped 25 shots and Darren Helm had one of three third-period goals for Detroit in a pivotal win over host Buffalo.
Ottawa 4, NY Islanders 1
Captain Jason Spezza scored twice and added an assist and Craig Anderson made 45 saves to lead visiting Ottawa over New York.
NY Rangers 4, Carolina 1
Brad Richards scored a pair of power-play goals and Martin St. Louis notched three assists as New York defeated Carolina for the sixth consecutive time at Madison Square Garden.
Columbus 4, Phoenix 3
Ryan Johansen scored his team-leading 32nd goal at 3:33 of overtime as Columbus won its final home game of the season.
Tampa Bay 3, Toronto 0
Ondrej Palat scored twice and Anders Lindback turned aside all 25 shots he faced after replacing injured Ben Bishop as host Tampa Bay ended Toronto’s playoff hopes.
Philadelphia 5, Florida 2
Captain Claude Giroux scored twice to highlight a four-goal second period and Steve Mason finished with 38 saves as visiting Philadelphia clinched a postseason berth.
Washington 4, St. Louis 1
Nicklas Backstrom scored a pair of goals as visiting Washington kept its slim playoffs hopes alive and handed St. Louis its season-high third straight defeat.
Minnesota 4, Boston 3
Captain Mikko Koivu scored the lone goal in the second round of the shootout and added a pair of assists as host Minnesota clinched the top wild card in the Western Conference.
Dallas 3, Nashville 2
Vernon Fiddler scored after falling down in the third round to extend the shootout and Tyler Seguin netted the decisive goal on Dallas' next attempt as visiting Nashville officially was eliminated from playoff contention.
Colorado 4, Edmonton 1
Defenseman Erik Johnson scored a goal and set up another as visiting Colorado extended its point streak to eight games (7-0-1).