Perron caps Senators' three-goal second period in 3-2 win over Devils

NEWARK, N.J. (AP) — David Perron scored a power-play goal to cap Ottawa's three-goal second period, and the Ottawa Senators held on to beat the New Jersey Devils 3-2 on Saturday night.

Brady Tkachuk and Drake Batherson also scored to help the Senators win for the seventh time in their last nine games. Linus Ullmark finished with 25 saves.

Nico Hischier and Erik Haula scored for the Devils, who have lost three of four. Jake Allen had 16 saves.

Tkachuk gave Ottawa a 1-0 lead with his 28th at 4:05 of the second, and Batherson doubled the lead with his 20th at 4:38.

Hischier's power play goal at 7:13 got the Devils on the scoreboard. It was his 30th and extended his point streak to six games.

However, Perron extended the lead to 3-1 with his sixth 1:31 later.

Haula pulled the Devils back within one with his eighth with 23 seconds left in the third.

New Jersey had several prime chances in the final 20 seconds, looking to tie it, but Ullmark made several stops and Sanderson clearing the puck near the goalmouth.

Ottawa: The Senators hold the first wild card spot in the Eastern Conference, and pulled one point behind the Devils for third place in the Metropolitan Division. Ottawa has played two fewer games.

New Jersey: The Devils have lost six of their last 10 games, and are in danger of falling into a wild card spot.

Stutzle and Sanderson scored 33 seconds apart early in the second period to give the Senators a 2-0 lead.

Jesper Bratt got his 61st assist of the season on Hischier's goal, passing Scott Stevens (60 in 1993-94) for the franchise record.

Ottawa visits Buffalo on Tuesday, while Devils host Vancouver on Monday to finish a three-game homestand.

AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl

Ottawa Senators center Ridly Greig (71) and New Jersey Devils goaltender Jake Allen keep their eyes on the puck during the third period of an NHL hockey game Saturday, March 22, 2025, in Newark, N.J. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)

New Jersey Devils goaltender Jake Allen reacts during the third period of an NHL hockey game against the Ottawa Senators Saturday, March 22, 2025, in Newark, N.J. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)

Ottawa Senators center Tim Stützle (18) shoots past New Jersey Devils defenseman Luke Hughes during the third period of an NHL hockey game Saturday, March 22, 2025, in Newark, N.J. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)

Ottawa Senators goaltender Linus Ullmark defends his net in front of New Jersey Devils center Curtis Lazar (42) during the second period of an NHL hockey game Saturday, March 22, 2025, in Newark, N.J. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)

New Jersey Devils center Nico Hischier, center, celebrates with teammates after scoring a goal during the second period of an NHL hockey game against the Ottawa Senators, Saturday, March 22, 2025, in Newark, N.J. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)

Ottawa Senators left wing David Perron (57) celebrates with teammates after scoring a goal during the second period of an NHL hockey game as New Jersey Devils defenseman Johnathan Kovacevic, left, looks on Saturday, March 22, 2025, in Newark, N.J. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump's nominee to be ambassador to Israel faced a confirmation hearing Tuesday on Capitol Hill as U.S. and Arab mediators struggle to get a ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas back on track after Israeli forces resumed the war in Gaza last week with a surprise wave of deadly airstrikes.

Trump nominated Mike Huckabee, a well-known evangelical Christian and vehement supporter of Israel, to take on the critical post in Jerusalem days after he won reelection on a campaign promise to end the now 17-month war.

If Huckabee, a Republican, is confirmed by the Senate, his posting will likely complicate an already unstable situation in the Middle East as the former governor of Arkansas has taken stances on the conflict that sharply contradict longstanding U.S. policy in the region.

Huckabee, a one-time presidential hopeful, has spoken favorably in the past about Israel’s right to annex the West Bank and incorporate its Palestinian population into Israel. He has repeatedly backed referring to the West Bank by its biblical name of “Judea and Samaria,” a term that right-wing Israeli politicians and activists have thus far fruitlessly pushed the U.S. to accept.

Most notably, Huckabee has long been opposed to the idea of a two-state solution between Israel and the Palestinian people. In an interview last year, he went even further, saying that he doesn't even believe in referring to the Arab descendants of people who lived in British-controlled Palestine as “Palestinians.”

“There really isn’t such a thing,” he said on the podcast show “Think Twice” with Jonathan Tobin. “It’s a term that was co-opted by Yasser Arafat in 1962,” referring to one of the early leaders of the Palestine Liberation Organization.

During the same interview, Huckabee described himself as an “unapologetic, unreformed Zionist.”

As the situation in Gaza has deteriorated with the recent collapse of the Israel-Hamas ceasefire and hostage release deal, Israeli officials have begun to talk more seriously about reoccupation of the territory, something to which President Joe Biden's administration had been adamantly opposed.

Trump has made his own proposals about a potential U.S. takeover of Gaza, which have attracted attention as well as strong criticism from Arab nations and others.

Huckabee will likely be asked about all of these points in addition to ongoing Israeli military action against Hezbollah in Lebanon and persistent threats to the country from Iran and Iranian-backed proxy groups, like the Houthi rebels in Yemen. Even before his hearing, Democrats and centrist Jewish groups voiced their opposition to his nomination, saying that his views on the conflict are “extreme” and “counter to Americans' interests.”

“Huckabee’s positions are not the words of a thoughtful diplomat — they are the words of a provocateur whose views are far outside international consensus and contrary to the core bipartisan principles of American diplomacy,” Rep. Jerry Nadler, a senior Jewish Democrat, said in a statement Monday. “In one of the most volatile and violent areas in the world today, there is no need for more extremism, and certainly not from the historic ambassador’s post and behind the powerful seal of the United States.”

Jeremy Ben-Ami, president of the centrist pro-Israel group J Street, echoed that sentiment, saying that Huckabee's views “would undermine American interests and the administration’s own stated commitment to pursuit of long-term regional peace and security.”

He added, “Mr. Huckabee’s embrace of annexation, extremist settlers and fanatical Christian Zionism stands in stark contrast to the Jewish, democratic values held by the overwhelming majority of our community — and in stark contrast to Israel’s founding values of justice, equality and peace.”

In remarks prepared for his testimony, obtained by The Associated Press, Huckabee does not explicitly mention either annexation or Trump’s Gaza plan. But he can be expected to offer qualified praise of both, given that he blasts many past Mideast policies as “failed” and speaks of the need to look “at entirely new ways” of promoting peace.

He plans to reaffirm his strong endorsement of Trump's policies toward Israel during his first term in office, notably his recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, his decision to move the U.S. embassy to the holy city from Tel Aviv, his recognition of the Golan Heights as sovereign Israeli territory and his sealing of the Abraham Accords, in which several Arab nations normalized relations with Israel, including the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain.

“President Trump’s first term was the most consequential for Israel and the Middle East ever with his historic Abraham Accords, and finally moving our embassy to Jerusalem, the ancient, indigenous and biblical eternal capital of the Jewish people,” Huckabee’s prepared remarks say.

Another nominee testifying before the committee on Tuesday is Kevin Cabrera, Trump’s nominee to be ambassador to Panama, a country that has bristled at the Republican president’s repeated calls for the U.S. to retake control of the Panama Canal for national security reasons due to potential threats from China. The status of the canal was one of the top items on Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s agenda when he visited Panama City on his first trip as America's top diplomat in February.

“One of the key aspects of our cooperation is ensuring the security of the Panama Canal, a critical international waterway that facilitates global trade and economic growth,” Cabrera will say, according to remarks prepared for the hearing.

He plans to praise decisions by the Panamanian government to withdraw from China’s Belt and Road Initiative and to review contracts with a China-based company that is running ports at both ends of the canal. The company has preliminarily agreed to sell its interests in the subsidiaries that run the ports, but the deal is not yet complete.

Amiri reported from New York.

FILE - Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee gestures as a campaign event at the Drexelbrook Catering & Event Center, Oct. 29, 2024, in Drexel Hill, Pa. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, File)