Walker at the double for Capitals

Scott Walker scored twice on his debut as the Washington Capitals edged the Tampa Bay Lightning 5-4.

Walker hit the winning goal deep into the third period on his first appearance since joining from the Carolina Hurricanes.

Mike Knuble also scored twice, and Eric Fehr hit the game's first goal, while Vincent Lecavalier (2), Steven Stamkos and Steve Downie netted for the Lightning.

Walker's old team won again, with the lowly Hurricanes posting a seventh straight victory, 4-1 over the Ottawa Senators thanks to goals from Chad LaRose, Brandon Sutter, Tom Kostopoulos and Rod Brind'Amour.

The San Jose Sharks turned around a 2-1 deficit in the final eight minutes to beat the Montreal Canadiens 3-2, with Dany Heatley and Manny Malhotra getting the crucial late goals.

The St Louis Blues won a fifth successive game, thrashing the Dallas Stars 6-1 with two goals from Paul Kariya.

The Los Angeles Kings were beaten 4-2 by the Nashville Predators, while the Phoenix Coyotes hit two goals in the last 22 seconds to beat the Colorado Avalanche 3-1.

The Pittsburgh Penguins needed overtime to overcome the New York Rangers, Jordon Staal deflecting home the decisive strike to earn a 5-4 win.

Nik Antropov scored twice for the Atlanta Thrashers, as they overcame the New York Islanders 6-3, while it took a shoot-out for the Boston Bruins to edge the Toronto Maple Leafs 3-2 - Miroslav Satan's strike winning it for the home side.