Sport Leak

Daymond Langkow scored two goals and the Calgary Flames surged past the San Jose Sharks 5-2 on Tuesday night. The Flames have been one of the NHL’s hottest teams since losing 6-1 to the Sharks on Nov. 13. Calgary has gone 15-4-3 since then, and kept up its strong play with an impressive performance against the NHL’s top team.

Samuel Pahlsson and Bobby Ryan scored power-play goals, and Jonas Hiller made 17 saves Tuesday night to lead the Anaheim Ducks to a 3-1 victory over the Los Angeles Kings. Pahlsson snapped a tie with 10:15 remaining, redirecting a centering pass from Scott Niedermayer for his fourth goal. Rob Niedermayer added an empty-net goal with 7 seconds left.

Adam Burish started a four-goal outburst in the opening period with his first score of the season, and the Chicago Blackhawks routed the Phoenix Coyotes 6-0 Tuesday night behind Cristobal Huet’s 22 saves. Huet earned his second shutout this season and the 19th of his career. Jonathan Toews had two late goals and an assist, and Kris Versteeg, Ben Eager and Colin Fraser also scored for the…

Bengals quarterback Carson Palmer won’t need surgery on his right elbow and should be ready for the team’s regular offseason workouts. Team spokesman Jack Brennan said Tuesday night the latest MRI on Palmer’s elbow indicates the quarterback won’t need an operation to repair a ligament and tendon partially torn from the bone.

What appeared to be a lopsided victory turned into a nail-biter, but the Oklahoma City Thunder didn’t complain. Wins have been rare this season for the Thunder, so they wanted to celebrate after holding off the New York Knicks 107-99 on Tuesday night — after nearly blowing a 23-point, second-half lead.

Jarkko Ruutu added another chapter to the bitter rivalry between the Ottawa Senators and the Buffalo Sabres. He bit the gloved thumb of Sabres enforcer Andrew Peters during a first-period altercation Tuesday night, overshadowing Buffalo’s 4-2 win. “It’s a pretty goofy thing that happened,” Peters said.

Ben Gordon scored 24 points and the Chicago Bulls beat the Sacramento Kings 99-94 on Tuesday night to snap a three-game losing streak. The Bulls converted 33 of 36 free throws, and the three foul shots they missed nearly cost them. After making its first 29, Chicago converted just four of its final seven, allowing Sacramento to stay in the game.

Dirk Nowitzki scored 34 points, including the go-ahead jumper with 37 seconds left right after he blocked a shot, and the Dallas Mavericks survived for a 107-102 victory over the short-handed Los Angeles Clippers on Tuesday night. The Mavericks needed a game-ending 11-1 run to avoid being upset at home by Los Angeles, which had only eight players in uniform because of injuries and a suspension.

Andre Iguodala scored 28 points and the reeling Philadelphia 76ers returned home from a dreadful road trip to beat the Houston Rockets 104-96 on Tuesday night. The Sixers needed to escape the Lone Star State to finally defeat a team from Texas. They lost at Dallas and San Antonio in the final two games of a 1-5 road trip and had lost six of seven overall, parking them in last place in the Atlantic…

Their coaching search on hold and seemingly locked on Eric Mangini, the Cleveland Browns plan to interview Philadelphia Eagles general manager Tom Heckert for their GM opening. The meeting between Browns owner Randy Lerner and Heckert, who has been with the Eagles since 2001, has not yet been scheduled.