Rangers Beat Blues, Blackhawks Reacquire Ladd

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Published on February 26 2016 6:33 am
Last Updated on February 26 2016 6:34 am

New York Rangers goalie Henrik Lundqvist celebrated a milestone night in style.

Chris Kreider and Tanner Glass scored and Lundqvist made 35 saves as the New York Rangers beat the St. Louis Blues 2-1 on Thursday night.

Lundqvist got his 30th victory of the season, joining Martin Brodeur and Patrick Roy as the only goalies in NHL history to have at least 30 wins in 10 different seasons.

"Growing up, those guys were guys I was watching and now I'm up there with wins," Lundqvist said. "To me, it's just a sign of I've been given a chance for a lot of years. I've been lucky to play with a lot of good players and been able to have a competitive team every year."

Lundqvist also passed Mike Richter as the team's all-time regular season saves leader with stop on Vladimir Tarasenko's wrist shot late in the first period.

"Every game you know that you're going to get his best effort and you're going to get great preparation and he's going to give you a chance to win and that's what you want from your goaltender," Rangers coach Alain Vigneault said.


Predators Win, Blackhawks Reaquire Ladd

With Pekka Rinne in goal, the Nashville Predators travel quite well. Rinne made 38 saves and Calle Jarnkrok scored with 1:51 remaining, sending the surging Predators to a 3-1 victory over the Chicago Blackhawks on Thursday night.

"We're playing some good hockey, we're competing, we're getting contributions from a lot of guys," said Mike Fisher, who had two assists. "We're definitely playing a better game all around. It's obviously showing."

Viktor Arvidsson scored in the first and Miikka Salomaki added an empty-net goal as Nashville won for the fourth time in its last five games and extended its point streak to eight in a row. The Predators also extended their franchise-record road point streak to 10 games.

"We're gaining some confidence all the time," Rinne said.

It was a lousy ending to a big night for Chicago, which bolstered its shot for a second straight Stanley Cup title by reacquiring forward Andrew Ladd in a trade with Winnipeg announced right before the game.

One of the biggest players on the NHL trade market moved Thursday night when the Chicago Blackhawks reacquired pending free agent Andrew Ladd from the Winnipeg Jets.

As part of the trade, the Jets get 21-year-old forward Marko Dano plus a first-round draft pick this June and another conditional pick.

The Blackhawks get Ladd, 30, plus Jay Harrison and Matt Fraser. The Jets also retain 36 percent of Ladd's remaining cap hit and salary, sources told ESPN.

"It's a great acquisition," Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville said. "There's a lot of familiarity. I'm sure his old teammates are pretty excited in a lot of ways. He brings the intangibles that you look for. He knows his way around our team. I'm sure he's excited to come to Chicago as well."

The conditional pick the Jets received is a 2018 third-round choice if the Blackhawks win the Stanley Cup this season, a source told ESPN.

Ladd, who can become an unrestricted free agent July 1, returns to the team with which he won the 2010 Stanley Cup. Salary-cap issues prompted the Blackhawks to then trade him to the Atlanta Thrashers, which relocated to Winnipeg in 2011.


Thursday, February 24 Scoreboard

Philadelphia 3, Minnesota 2

Columbus 6, New Jersey 1

Toronto 3, Carolina 1

Florida 3, Arizona 2

NY Rangers 2, St. Louis 1

Nashville 3, Chicago 1

Winnipeg 6, Dallas 3

NY Islanders 2, Calgary 1 (OT)

Vancouver 5, Ottawa 3

Los Angeles 2, Edmonton 1


Friday, February 26 Schedule (All Times Central)

Tampa Bay at New Jersey, 6 p.m.

Minnesota at Washington, 6 p.m.

Boston at Carolina, 6 p.m.

Edmonton at Anaheim, 9 p.m.

Buffalo at San Jose, 9:30 p.m.