The Phoenix Coyotes clinched the No. 4 seed in the Western Conference and home advantage in the first round of the NHL playoffs by beating the Nashville Predators 5-2 Wednesday. Shane Doan ended a 23-game goal drought and Wojtek Wolski scored his career-high 23rd goal for Phoenix. Taylor Pyatt, Lauri Korpikoski and Petteri Nokelainen also scored in the Coyotes' seventh straight home victory. Shea Weber scored 12 seconds into the game, and Steve Sullivan added a goal for Nashville in its first game since clinching its fifth playoff berth in six seasons. Blackhawks 6, Blues 5: In Chicago, the hosts scored four goals in just over three minutes of the first period and held on to edge St. Louis. Duncan Keith, Ben Eager, Bryan Bickell and Kris Versteeg netted in the early scoring burst as Chicago notched a fifth straight victory. Andrew Ladd and Jordan Hendry also scored to help Chicago reach a franchise-record 109 points and tie San Jose for first place in the Western Conference. Versteeg added three assists to set a career high for points in a game and become the first Blackhawks player to have a four-point game this season. David Perron, Roman Polak, Brad Winchester, T.J. Oshie and Brad Boyes scored for the Blues, who nearly overcame a 6-1 deficit. Red Wings 4, Blue Jackets 3: In Detroit, Tomas Holmstrom scored twice and Dan Cleary also netted in a 1:16 span of the third period as Detroit fought back to down Columbus. Rangers 5, Maple Leafs 1: In New York, the hosts gave their tenuous playoff hopes a boost by beating Toronto. Oilers 5, Avalanche 4, OT: In Edmonton, Alberta, Ryan Whitney scored in overtime to give Edmonton a victory over playoff
