The Penguins’ Sidney Crosby and the Ducks’ Cutter Gauthier are tied for the goal-scoring lead, the Devils hold first place in the Eastern Conference, the Bruins extend their points streaks, and more in today’s NHL Morning Coffee Headlines.

RECAPS OF THURSDAY’S GAMES

NHL.COM: Sidney Crosby tallied twice to lead the Pittsburgh Penguins to a 5-3 victory over the Washington Capitals. The Penguins blew a 3-0 lead until Bryan Rust scored and Connor Dewar collected an empty-net insurance goal to improve their record to 9-4-2. Rust finished the night with three points. Alex Ovechkin had two assists, and Dylan Strome scored and had two helpers for the 7-6-1 Capitals, who have lost five of their last six games.

Pittsburgh Penguins captain Sidney Crosby (NHL Images).

SPECTOR’S NOTE: The 38-year-old Crosby has 11 goals, tying him for the league lead in that category. This game was the 99th time that Crosby and Ovechkin have faced each other since their NHL debut in 2005-06. Meanwhile, Penguins rookie winger Filip Hallander missed this game as he’s day-to-day with a lower-body injury.

Anaheim Ducks winger Cutter Gauthier had a goal and an assist, and Chris Kreider scored twice to help their club upset the Dallas Stars 7-5. Leo Carlsson also had a goal and an assist for the Ducks, who scored seven goals for the second straight game as they moved into sole possession of first place in the Pacific Division with 19 points (9-3-1). Miro Heiskanen had four assists and Wyatt Johnston had a goal and two assists for the 7-4-3 Stars, whose points streak ended at seven games (4-0-3).

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Gauthier, 21, is tied with Crosby for the league goal-scoring lead. That’s a 17-year age gap between the two stars.

The New Jersey Devils overcame a 3-2 deficit on goals by Timo Meier and Jesper Bratt to nip the Montreal Canadiens 4-3 in overtime. Jack Hughes picked up two assists for the 10-4-0 Devils, who hold first place in the Eastern Conference over the 9-3-2 Canadiens. Kirby Dach, Jake Evans, and Oliver Kapanen scored, and Noah Dobson had two assists for the Canadiens.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Devils defenseman Dougie Hamilton left the game in the second period with an undisclosed injury. They activated forward Cody Glass off injured reserve for this game after being sidelined for seven games with an upper-body injury. They also placed defenseman Brett Pesce (upper-body injury) on IR.

Canadiens captain Nick Suzuki’s point streak ended at 12 games.

An overtime goal by Pavel Zacha extended the Boston Bruins’ win streak to five games as they downed the Ottawa Senators 3-2. Morgan Geekie and Sean Kuraly also scored for the 9-7-0 Bruins, who moved up into third place in the Atlantic Division. Michael Amadio and Claude Giroux replied for the 6-5-3 Senators.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Bruins forward John Beecher left this game in the first period with an upper-body injury.

Meanwhile, the NHL is taking another look at gambling allegations against Senators forward Arthur Kaliyev after his former girlfriend, model Lauren Mochen, claimed he owes her and others around the league thousands of dollars. The league has yet to find any evidence of wrongdoing, but will continue to examine the case. Kaliyev currently plays for the Senators’ AHL affiliate in Belleville.

The Philadelphia Flyers beat the Nashville Predators 3-1. Noah Cates snapped a 1-1 tie, and Travis Konecny and Cam York each had two points for the 8-5-1 Flyers. Ryan O’Reilly scored for the Predators, who dropped to 5-7-4.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: O’Reilly ripped his team’s performance following this game. He was also critical of his own efforts. “The number one center and I turn the puck over everywhere,” he said. “I can’t make a six-foot pass to save my life. Not going to have much success if I’m playing pathetic like that.”

St. Louis Blues goaltender Joel Hofer turned in a 28-save shutout to blank the Buffalo Sabres 3-0. Mathieu Joseph, Nick Bjugstad, and Justin Faulk scored for the 5-8-0 Blues. Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen stopped 14 shots for the Sabres, who dropped to 5-5-4.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: The struggling Blues raised eyebrows when they made leading scorer Jordan Kyrou a healthy scratch. That had some observers wondering if a trade might be afoot, but it was head coach Jim Montgomery’s way of sending a message to his players about his unhappiness with their performance this season.

Meanwhile, the Buffalo Sabres placed forward Jiri Kulich on injured reserve. He’s been dealing with an issue related to fluid in his ears.

Tampa Bay Lightning forwards Nikita Kucherov and Brandon Hagel each scored two goals in a 6-3 victory over the Vegas Golden Knights. Kucherov, Hagel, and rookie forward Dominic James each had three points for the Lightning, who improved to 7-5-2. Ivan Barbashev and Mitch Marner each had three points for the 7-3-3 Golden Knights.

The Carolina Hurricanes tamed the Minnesota Wild by a score of 4-3. Jackson Blake and Sean Walker each had a goal and an assist for the Hurricanes as they improved to 9-4-0. Matt Boldy tallied twice for the Wild, who dropped to 5-7-3.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Wild forward Tyler Pitlick received a major and a match penalty for a hit to the head of Hurricanes defenseman Jalen Chatfield, who left the game and did not return. Hurricanes blueliner K’Andre Miller collected an assist in his return to action after missing six games with a lower-body injury.

Florida Panthers winger Brad Marchand scored two goals in a 5-2 win over the Los Angeles Kings. Sergei Bobrovsky made 24 saves as the Panthers improved their record to 7-6-1. Anze Kopitar and Corey Perry tallied for the 6-5-4 Kings.

IN OTHER NEWS…

NEW YORK POST: Struggling Rangers winger Artemi Panarin has shaved his head in a light-hearted effort to try to break out of his slump. He also admitted that concerns about the future are on his mind. The 34-year-old winger is in the final season of his contract and eligible for unrestricted free-agent status next July. To date, there’s no indication the two sides are close to an extension.

TSN: St. Louis Blues goaltender Jordan Binnington explained he had every intention of handing over Alex Ovechkin’s 900-goal puck after tucking it into his goalie pants after the Capitals star scored the milestone goal on Wednesday.

Binnington joked that he had a claim to the puck since it was his turnover that led to the goal. “I had full intention to give it back to him.”

ROTOWIRE: Columbus Blue Jackets center Sean Monahan underwent evaluation after suffering an upper-body injury during Wednesday’s loss to the Calgary Flames. More information on his condition is expected before Saturday’s game against the Vancouver Canucks.

SAN JOSE HOCKEY NOW: The Sharks placed rookie forward Michael Misa on injured reserve. He suffered a lower-body injury during the morning skate before Wednesday’s game against the Seattle Kraken.

DAILY FACEOFF: The Toronto Maple Leafs have suspended forward David Kampf for leaving their AHL affiliate, the Toronto Marlies. It’s expected this situation will be resolved soon, either by his reporting back to the Marlies, the two sides agreeing to terminate his contract, or he gets traded to another club.