Maple Leafs 4, Bruins 3 (OT)
Nazem Kadri buried a rebound during a power play 2:51 into overtime to give host Toronto its second straight win following an eight-game losing streak.
Defenseman Paul Ranger, Tyler Bozak and James van Riemsdyk also scored for the Maple Leafs, who prevailed despite blowing a two-goal third-period lead to remain one point behind Columbus for the second wild card in the Eastern Conference. James Reimer stopped 10-of-11 shots in relief of an injured Jonathan Bernier (25 saves) while Phil Kessel and blue-liner Cody Franson each notched two assists for Toronto, which has played two more games than Columbus.
Milan Lucic and Patrice Bergeron scored third-period goals and Brad Marchand also tallied for Boston, which lost its second straight following a white-hot 15-0-1 stretch. Chad Johnson turned aside 27 shots but had his six-start winning streak come to an end.
The Maple Leafs snapped a 1-1 deadlock with 12 seconds left in the first period, when Kessel fired a pass from the left side that caromed off Bozak in the crease and over the shoulder of Johnson. Kessel also set up the next goal, intercepting a pass behind the net and sliding the puck to an unguarded van Riemsdyk, who scooped a shot over Johnson 52 seconds into the second period for his 30th goal.
The Bruins crept within a goal five minutes into the third as David Krejci circled the net and fed Lucic for a one-timer from the top of the left faceoff circle, and Bergeron notched the equalizer, burying Marchand's pass in the slot with 7:09 left for his ninth goal in nine games.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Bernier was hurt when Ranger checked Bergeron into the netminder with 11:38 left in regulation. Toronto said Bernier suffered a lower-body injury and will undergo an MRI exam. ... Bergeron extended his point streak to a career high-tying 10 games with his 28th goal, three shy of his career high set in 2005-06. ... Van Riemsyk joined Kessel as 30-goal scorers, marking the first time Toronto has had two players reach the plateau in a season since Kessel and Nikolai Kulemin accomplished the feat in 2010-11. ... Maple Leafs RW Joffrey Lupul was an unexpected scratch with a lower-body injury.