(Sports Network) - The Washington Capitals will welcome Nicklas Backstrom back tonight when they continue their fight for the playoffs against the Montreal Canadiens. Backstrom returns to the line-up after missing 40 games with a concussion, and his timing couldnt be better as the Caps continue to fight the Sabres for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. The game can be heard live on TSN Radio 990 and TSN.ca/Montreal at 7pm et/8pm at. Washington went into Friday tied with Buffalo for the eighth spot with 86 points, but the Sabres held the tiebreaker because it had played one fewer game. Buffalo used up that game in hand last night and lost to Pittsburgh, putting the Capitals into the eighth spot because both clubs now have four games left to play and Washington has five more non-shootout wins, the next tiebreaker. Buffalo is also in action today as it visits Toronto, while Washington still has its eye on first place in the Southeast division. The Capitals trail the idle Panthers by four points for the spot. After getting slammed 5-1 at home by the Sabres, the Capitals rebounded a bit with a 3-2 shootout win over the Bruins on Thursday. Washington got goals from Dennis Wideman and Marcus Johansson, but was unable to hold a late lead as Boston scored twice in the third periods final 3:10. However, Brooks Laich rescued his team by scoring the game-winner in the fourth round of the shootout. The Capitals had lost five of seven, but are now 3-1-2 in their past six. "We kept them in check pretty much until the last couple minutes," Capitals head coach Dale Hunter said about Boston. "Thats hockey. You have to battle back." Tomas Vokoun made his first start in seven games because of a groin injury and stopped all seven shots he faced before aggravating the injury with 1:35 left in the first period. Michal Neuvirth replaced Vokoun and stopped 19-of-21 shots fired his way. Washington has outscored Montreal 10-1 this season, posting consecutive 3-0 wins at Montreal before a 4-1 triumph at home on Feb. 24. The Capitals have won five straight and nine of the past 12 encounters overall, taking six of the past eight played in Washington. The Canadiens hope to put the brakes on a three-game slide tonight as they wrap up a disappointing season. Montreal is last in the Eastern Conference with 72 points and four games to play. The Habs were dealt a 4-1 loss by the Eastern Conference-leading Rangers last night, getting a late goal from Rene Bourque and 25 saves by Carey Price. The defeat came one day after the firing of general manager Pierre Gauthier. "Our heart was in the game and that is a hard team to outwork," said Montreal head coach Randy Cunneyworth. "I thought we did a good job of getting some pucks on the net, but their goaltender played well. I liked the way we played tonight." The Canadiens have lost six of their past seven overall and nine of their last 11 on the road. Buffalo Sabres at Toronto Maple Leafs (Sports Network) - The Sabres have been on a roll that most teams would love to copy, but they are still left with the slightest margin of error. After having a nine-game point streak snapped last night and falling out of the eighth spot in the Eastern Conference, Buffalo looks to rebound this evening and extended the Toronto Maple Leafs franchise-worst home losing streak. The Sabres carried a 7-0-2 record into last nights meeting with the slumping Penguins and had put together a 14-2-4 span before getting dealt a 5-3 defeat by visiting Pittsburgh. The loss kept Buffalos point total at 86, the same amount as the Washington Capitals. However, the Caps hold the current tiebreaker with five more non-shootout wins as both clubs have four games remaining. Jordan Leopold, Thomas Vanek and Tyler Ennis each had a goal for the Sabres last night, while Ryan Miller gave up four goals 33 shots. Buffalo had a five- game win streak halted, but is still 4-0-1 in its past five on the road. "Its been a playoff mentality for us for a while now," said Miller. "If this was a playoff game wed be talking about how we have to put this behind us and look to the next game. Thats exactly what we have to do." Buffalo played without Christian Ehrhoff (left knee), Matt Ellis (knee) and Nathan Gerbe (upper body), then lost Mike Weber to an undisclosed injury in the loss. Toronto, meanwhile, has just two chances left to end its longest home losing streak in club history. The Maple Leafs have dropped 11 in a row at the Air Canada Centre and will wrap a four-game homestand this evening after suffering a 7-1 setback to the Flyers on Thursday. Mikhail Grabovski had the lone goal for his 200th career point as Toronto lost its third straight games and fifth in its past six outings overall. With Jonas Gustavsson taking a shot off his left knee during warmups, Jussi Rynnas was pressed into his first NHL start and was tagged for all seven goals on 30 shots. Rynnas, an emergency call-up when James Reimer sustained a lower- body injury, made his NHL debut in relief of an ineffective Gustavsson on Tuesday. "When you have a young guy that steps in and is going to play his first full [game] in the NHL, I wouldve expected more from our group from a protection standpoint," said Toronto head coach Randy Carlyle. Instead, the Maple Leafs remain winless at home since Feb. 6 and will play in Buffalo on Tuesday before returning home for the final time this season two nights later against the Lightning. Toronto has also matched its longest winless streak at home in club history, an 0-7 drought that included four ties during the 1987-88 campaign. Toronto has won both of its home games versus the Sabres this season while losing a pair of tests in Buffalo. The Maple Leafs have also captured five of the past seven encounters overall as well as four in a row and five of the past six played in Toronto. New Balance 574 Women . Greg Chase had a goal and an assist for the Hitmen (3-1-0), who have won three games in a row, while Brady Brassart scored once. Jaedon Descheneau led the Ice (2-2-1) by scoring twice and Jagger Dirk had the other. New Balance Trainers Sale . Numbers Game looks at the Marlins dealing away Hanley Ramirez, Anibal Sanchez and Omar Infante, among others. The Dodgers Get: 3B Hanley Ramirez and LHP Randy Choate Ramirez, 28, was an elite player for five seasons before falling off dramatically last season. New Balance 574 Trainers Uk . This is the second year the tournament is part of the official European Tour schedule. It was scheduled for Dec. 12-15 at Mount Edgecombe Country Club. The European Tour and Sunshine Tour say it now will start Wednesday and end Saturday. . In all, some two dozen 2015 planners are poking their heads into every imaginable corner of Mexicos Pan American Games, looking to soak up as much local intel as possible. On this days agenda: a trip to the aquatic centre, and presentations on media and food services. "Our objective is to learn as much as we can about Guadalajara, so we can be in a position to take the good things we learn and roll it forward into our Games," said Ian Troop, CEO of the Toronto 2015 Pan American Games organizing committee.BOSTON -- Boston Bruins captain Zdeno Chara gave his team a spark with his rare fight. Then he won the game with his usual blistering slap shot. Chara and Patrice Bergeron scored third-period goals to lift the Bruins to a 3-2 comeback win over the New York Rangers on Friday. With just under 9 minutes left, Chara unloaded a low slap shot from straight away about 10 feet inside the blue line that beat Rangers goaltender Henrik Lundqvist between his pads. After he fired his shot, Chara was knocked to the ice. When the puck went into the net, while still on his knees, he pumped his fists in the air in celebration. "I saw an opening. I put a puck on net as quick and as hard as I could," said the 6-foor-9 Chara, still in uniform standing at his locker. "It was a good job by everybody." In the second period, Chara squared off with the Rangers Brian Boyle, knocking him to the ice and bringing a loud roar from the sellout TD Garden crowd. It was Charas first fighting major of the season. "I feel its been a while since the last time weve had a fight like that," Boston goalie Tuukka Rask said. "It usually happens in the blink of an eye. It gives a team a boost and really wakes up a crowd, a crowd gets really loud. I think as a team -- I cant say we woke up -- but it definitely gave us an extra boost and we never looked back after that." Brad Marchand also scored for the Eastern Conference-leading Bruins, who improved to 9-2-2 in their last 13 games. Rick Nash and Ryan McDonagh scored for the Rangers, who completed a five-game road trip 3-2. Rask stopped 17 shots for Boston, which hasnt lost in regulation at home in its last 10 games (8-0-2). Lundqvist made 25 saves for the Rangers, who played their first game in Boston since the Bruins eliminated them in five games in the second round of the Eastern Conference playoffs last spring. "I dont think we played the way we needed to in the second or the third," Rangers captain Ryan Callahan said. "They seemed to be all over us and they eventually get the tying goal and the winning goal there. Weve got to be better in the second and third. It wasnt good enough." Boston had tied it 2-2 on Bergerons goal early in the third period. His shot was stopped by Lundqvist, but caromed into the net off defenceman Dan Girardi, who was in front with the Bruins Loui Eriksson. "Its nice to get one of those," Bergeron said. "I havent got one in a while." Chara pushed Boston ahead laterr with his shot that Lundqvist said he misplayed.dddddddddddd "Bad read. For some reason, I was reading a high shot and then just made a bad move," Lundqvist said. "Instead of playing it the way I should, I read his stick, and I thought it was going high. I dont know if he fell down or kind of missed it, but it definitely fooled me a little bit. Tough one." The Bruins were called for too many men on the ice with 4 1/2 minutes left, but held the Rangers without any good scoring chances. With New York trailing 1-0 in the first period, Nash and McDonagh scored 1:22 apart. Nash, playing his sixth game after missing 17 with a concussion sustained on Oct. 8, tied it when he spun around near the right circle and slipped a wrister inside the left post. McDonagh moved the Rangers ahead when his rising shot from the high slot beat Rask inside the left post. Benoit Pouliot screened Rask on the shot. "He was right there," Rask said. The Bruins had jumped ahead 1-0 when Marchand one-timed Charas cross-ice pass under the crossbar from the bottom of the right circle for just his second goal in 11 games. Midway into a well-paced but scoreless second, Bostons Torey Krug nailed the left post with a wrist shot. The Bruins had a handful of other good scoring bids that were shot just wide or turned aside by Lundqvist. Both teams had excellent scoring chances in the games opening minutes. Bostons Chris Kelly redirected a shot that hit the post and Carl Soderberg fired one that sneaked between Lundqvists pads but trickled just wide. New Yorks Derick Brassard cut in alone for a decent bid that Rask stopped 6 minutes into the contest. Boston was coming off a 6-1 loss at Detroit on Wednesday, its first of three games in four days. "Those kinds of games do happen," Chara said. "Its good to bounce back and regroup from games like that." NOTES: Bruins D Dennis Seidenberg returned after missing the last four games with an undisclosed lower body injury. ... Rangers LW Taylor Pyatt played his second consecutive match after missing eight with a concussion. ... New York faces Vancouver and former Rangers coach John Tortorella at home Saturday. Rangers coach Alain Vigneault was Vancouvers coach before joining New York. ... Boston hosts Columbus on Saturday. ... The Bruins won the first meeting 2-1 at Madison Square Garden on Nov. 19. The teams meet one more time in the regular season, March 2 in New York. ... The Rangers entered tied for the NHL lead with nine road wins. 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