Most teams are happy to have one dependable goaltender heading into the playoffs. The Vancouver Canucks have two. Backup goalie Cory Schneider made 43 saves, Chris Higgins scored short-handed and Vancouver extended its domination of Colorado with a 1-0 victory Wednesday night over the fading Avalanche. It was the second straight 1-0 win for the Canucks, who beat the Los Angeles Kings on Monday night behind top goalie Roberto Luongo. Vancouver (47-21-9) won its fourth straight overall, moving the Northwest Division champions within two points of St. Louis for the top spot in the Western Conference. Vancouver cannot finish lower than second in the West. Schneider is 11-1-1 since Christmas, fifth in the NHL in goals-against average, second in save percentage and a restricted free agent at the end of the season. Still, he's not thinking about becoming the leading man ahead of Luongo in the playoffs. “Not at all,” Schneider said. “I think Lou and I are so beyond that, we both respect the heck out of each other and we just root each other on and whoever is in net, we have a good feeling they are going to win.” It was Schneider's third shutout of the season. Luongo earned his fourth Monday against Los Angeles. “Lou's played great the last three games, not to mention the entire year basically, so I think clearly he's the guy that's going to start and if it's necessary for me to hop in at some point, so be it,” Schneider said. Higgins' goal came in the first period and was his third in four games against the Avalanche, who dropped to 0-6 against Vancouver this season. Rangers 4, Jets 2: The New York Rangers moved to the top of the NHL standings with a 4-2 win over the fading Winnipeg Jets. Ryan Callahan and Michael Del Zotto each had a goal and an assist, while Brian Boyle and Derek Stepan also scored for the Rangers, who lead Pittsburgh by five points in the Eastern Conference. New York is tied with Western Conference-leading St. Louis with 105 points, but the Rangers have the edge because of one more non-shootout victory. Spencer Machacek and Bryan Little scored for the Jets, who are 10 points off the final playoff-yielding position in the East. Winnipeg went 0-4 against New York this season. Blue Jackets 4, Red Wings 2: In Columbus, the hosts avenged a rout by Detroit two days earlier by beating Columbus. Blue Jackets third-string goalie Allen York stopped 29 shots and earned his first NHL victory in an emergency start. Vinny Prospal and Derek Dorsett scored in the first period, and Derick Brassard and R.J. Umberger added goals in the second. Henrik Zetterberg and Niklas Kronwall scored for the Red Wings. Kings 3, Calgary 0: Jonathan Quick stopped 19 shots against flames for his ninth shutout of the season and the visiting Kings moved into the eighth place in the Western conference. Willie Mitchell, Dustin Brown and Justin Williams scored for the Kings, who snapped a two-game losing streak. Anze Kopitar had two assists. Dallas 3, Edmonton 1: Michael Ryder scored two goals and added an assist to lift the Stars over the Oilers. In another game, Anaheim ducks downed San Jose sharks 3-1.
