Associated Press
The NBA roundup …
PITTSBURGH ó Evgeni Malkin and Sidney Crosby scored power-play goals and the Pittsburgh Penguins ended one of the best homestands in franchise history, twice scoring two goals in a matter of seconds against Martin Brodeur during a 6-1 rout of the skidding New Jersey Devils on Wednesday night.
Brodeur and the Devils have lost six straight (0-5-1). He hasn’t won since going 9-1 following his return from a biceps injury.
Matt Cooke and Bill Guerin scored 36 seconds apart in the first period to make it 2-0, and Crosby and Jordan Staal made the game one-sided by scoring in a 13-second span of the second.
The Penguins finished 6-1-1 during the longest homestand in franchise history, improving to 13-1-2 since Feb. 25.
Capitals 5, Islanders 3
WASHINGTON ó Mike Green’s two power-play goals less than 11/2 minutes apart in the third period and Alex Ovechkin’s NHL-leading 54th tally helped Washington close in on a second consecutive division title.
Green’s 18 man-advantage goals set a franchise record for a defenseman, breaking the mark of 16 held by Scott Stevens. Ovechkin has 33 home goals, one more than the Capitals record he set in 2007-08.
Washington trailed 2-0 early in the second period, then 3-2 after Richard Park scored for New York 2:12 into the third by splitting two Capitals players and flipping a backhand past Jose Theodore.
Nicklas Backstrom added a final-minute goal for Washington.
Kyle Okposo and Frans Nielsen each had a goal and an assist for New York.
Maple Leafs 3, Flyers 2
TORONTO ó Jamal Mayers, Lee Stempniak and Ian White scored for already-eliminated Toronto in a win over playoff-hopeful Philadelphia.
Arron Asham and Claude Giroux scored for the Flyers, who were outworked all night by the Maple Leafs.
Mayers and Asham exchanged goals in an evenly played opening period.
The Flyers, fourth in the Eastern Conference, are tied in points with the Pittsburgh Penguins with just over one week left in the season.
Curtis Joseph, who will turn 42 this month, earned the win in his 10th start of the season.
Thrashers 3, Sabres 2, OT
ATLANTA ó Ilya Kovalchuk scored on an unassisted breakaway with 29.9 seconds left in overtime to lift Atlanta over Buffalo. The goal was Kovalchuk’s 41st and gave him 30 in 37 games.
Buffalo ended a three-game winning streak. With 83 points, the Sabres are four behind ninth-place Florida and five behind Montreal and the playoff cutoff in the Eastern Conference.