Stanley Cup Playoffs Buzz: Kucherov uncertain for Lightning in Game 5

Welcome to the Stanley Cup Playoffs Buzz, a daily in-depth look at the 2021 NHL postseason. There are four playoff games scheduled for Sunday and there were four on Saturday.

Tampa Bay Lightning

It's not clear if forward Nikita Kucherov and defenseman Mikhail Sergachev will be available for the Tampa Bay Lightning when they visit the Florida Panthers in Game 5 of Stanley Cup First Round on Monday (8 p.m. ET; CNBC, FX-CA, TVAS2, BSFL, BSSUN).
Kucherov and Sergachev did not finish Game 4 on Saturday because of undisclosed injuries sustained in the third period. The Lightning won 6-2 and lead the best-of-7 series 3-1.
Tampa Bay did not practice Sunday.
"I don't have a status report yet," Lightning coach Jon Cooper said Sunday.
Kucherov was injured when he was slashed on the left leg by Panthers forward Anthony Duclair at 10:57 of the third period. Duclair received a minor penalty.
Sergachev was injured when he was hit into the boards by Panthers forward Patric Hornqvist at 16:24. He appeared to be favoring his left arm or shoulder as he left the ice.
Kucherov scored four points (one goal, three assists) in Game 4 and leads the NHL with nine points (three goals, six assists) in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. He didn't play in the regular season while recovering from hip surgery he had Dec. 29.
Sergachev has one assist in the series. He scored 30 points (four goals, 26 assists) in 56 regular-season games.
Cooper didn't have an update on the status for forward Barclay Goodrow, who has missed the first four games of the series with an upper-body injury. -- Dan Rosen, senior writer

On Tap

There are four games on the Stanley Cup Playoffs schedule Sunday:
Carolina Hurricanes at Nashville Predators (2:30 p.m. ET; NBCSN, SN, TVAS, BSSO): The Predators will try to even the best-of-7 series after defeating the Hurricanes 5-4 in double overtime in Game 3. The home team has won each of the first three games. Sebastian Aho had a goal and an assist for the Hurricanes in Game 3 and the center leads all skaters with five points (three goals, two assists) in the series. Jaccob Slavin has missed the past two games with a lower-body injury and Hurricanes coach Rod Brind'Amour said the defenseman would likely be a game-time decision throughout the playoffs.
Colorado Avalanche at St. Louis Blues (5 p.m. ET; NBCSN, SN360, TVAS, BSMW, ALT): The Avalanche can sweep the Blues and advance to the Stanley Cup Second Round with a win. They are 4-0 winning a best-of-7 playoff series when leading 3-0. Teams that lead 3-0 are 192-4 (.979) winning a best-of-7 series; 121 have ended in a sweep. The Blues are 0-9 when trailing a series 3-0. Five different players scored a goal including defenseman Ryan Graves, who also had two assists, and Philipp Grubauer made 31 saves when the Avalanche defeated the Blues 5-1 in Game 3. Colorado will be without forward Nazem Kadri, who was suspended eight games for an illegal check to the head of Blues defenseman Justin Faulk at 6:30 of the third period in Game 2. Faulk and defenseman Robert Bortuzzo is each doubtful for St. Louis with an upper-body injury, though defenseman Vince Dunn, who has missed 14 straight games with an upper-body injury, might return to the lineup.
Boston Bruins at Washington Capitals (7 p.m. ET; USA, SN1, TVAS2, NBCSWA, NESN): The Bruins have won three straight after losing Game 1 of this best-of-7 series and can eliminate the Capitals with a road win in Game 5. Boston is 20-2 when leading a series 3-1; Washington is 2-9 when trailing a series 3-1. Bruins forward Brad Marchand has scored a goal in each of the past three games and forward Taylor Hall also has a three-game point streak (two goals, one assist) for Boston. Alex Ovechkin, who scored Washington's goal in a 4-1 loss in Game 3, has scored 71 goals in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, tied with Bryan Trottier for 16th all-time.
Edmonton Oilers at Winnipeg Jets (7:30 p.m.; NBCSN, CBC, SN TVAS): The Jets have a 2-0 lead in the best-of-7 series after a 1-0 overtime win in Game 2. Winnipeg has allowed one goal in the series and goalie Connor Hellebuyck has made 70 saves on 71 shots. Edmonton has not scored since forward Jesse Puljujarvi gave them a 1-0 lead 8:24 into the second period of Game 1. Oilers center Connor McDavid, who led the NHL with 105 points (33 goals, 72 assists) in 56 regular-season games, has been held without a point in the first two games. Edmonton is 1-7 when trailing 2-0 in a best-of-7 series.

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What we learned

Here are some takeaways from Day 7 of the Stanley Cup Playoffs:
Lightning's killer instinct returns
The Tampa Bay Lightning were bothered by how they let a two-goal third-period lead against the Florida Panthers in Game 3 of the Stanley Cup First Round slip away and turn into a 6-5 overtime loss Thursday. They didn't let it happen again in Game 4 on Saturday, when they defeated the Panthers 6-2 and took a 3-1 lead in the best-of-7 series. The Lightning, the No. 3 seed in the Discover Central Division, did it by turning a two-goal lead after the first period into a four-goal lead less than halfway through the second against the No. 2 Panthers. Forward Ondrej Palat's goal at 16:45 of the first period that gave Tampa Bay a 3-1 lead might have been its biggest of the game. It rebuilt the two-goal advantage they lost after Florida forward Jonathan Huberdeau scored on the power play to make it 2-1 at 8:49. Palat's goal gave them momentum going into the first intermission before forward Alex Killorn scored twice in the first 7:15 of the second to make it 5-1. The Lightning can eliminate the Panthers by winning Game 5 on the road Monday (8 p.m. ET; CNBC, FX-CA, TVAS.ca, BSFL, BSSUN). -- Dan Rosen, senior writer
All-around performance for the Islanders
The New York Islanders unquestionably played their most complete game of the Stanley Cup Playoffs thus far in their 4-1 win against the Pittsburgh Penguins in Game 4 to even their best-of-7 Stanley Cup First Round series. Forward Jordan Eberle scored his first goal of the series, and goalie Ilya Sorokin held the Penguins off the scoreboard until forward Zach Aston-Reese broke through with 2:35 to play. Pittsburgh center Sidney Crosby was held without a point for the third straight game, and center Evgeni Malkin did not have a shot on goal after he had two assists in the Penguins' 5-4 win in Game 3. "That was key for us. You had everybody engaged and you had everybody contributing," Islanders coach Barry Trotz said. "When you look at when we have success, everybody contributes. We rely on each other. There's a great brotherhood in our room and there's a style that we play, and everybody has a piece of the big picture. All four lines, when they're contributing and playing the right way and invested, that's when we have the best chance to win most nights." If New York can duplicate this type of effort in Game 5 at Pittsburgh on Monday, its chances of advancing to the second round for a third straight season increase exponentially. -- Brian Compton, deputy managing editor
Maple Leafs PP vs Canadiens PK matchup is dictating series
Through the first two games of the Stanley Cup First Round between the Toronto Maple Leafs and Montreal Canadiens, the determining factor in each has been the matchup between Toronto's power play and Montreal's penalty kill. In Game 1, the Maple Leafs power play went 0-for-4 and surrendered the game-winning shorthanded goal by forward Paul Byron in the Canadiens' 2-1 victory Thursday. The tables turned in Game 2 on Saturday, when Toronto scored two power-play goals in six opportunities in a 5-1 win that evened the best-of-7 series. Montreal took four consecutive minors in the second period in Game 2 and must be more disciplined. Center Auston Matthews had two assists on the power play, and a surprising key for the Maple Leafs was 21-year-old defenseman Rasmus Sandin, who scored his first postseason goal and is proving to be a slick quarterback on the power play. -- Mike Zeisberger, staff writer
Wild struggling to score
The defining image of the Minnesota Wild's 4-0 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights in Game 4 of the Stanley Cup First Round on Saturday was forward Kevin Fiala breaking his stick over the Vegas goal after failing to convert on another scoring chance. The Wild have lost three in a row and trail 3-1 in the best-of-7 series in large part because they have struggled to score. They have scored four goals, three in regulation; their win was 1-0 in overtime in Game 1. Rookie forward Kirill Kaprizov has one assist in the series. Fiala has no points. "You look at the shots, and you look at our quality of chances, we should be able to score a few more goals, and for whatever reason, they're not going in," coach Dean Evason said. -- Nicholas J. Cotsonika, columnist

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About Last Night

There were four playoff games Saturday:
Tampa Bay Lightning 6, Florida Panthers 2: Forward Nikita Kucherov (one goal, three assists) and Killorn (two goals, two assists) each had four-point games for the Lightning, who have a 3-1 lead in the best-of-7 series. Kucherov and defenseman Mikhail Sergachev were injured in the third period and Tampa Bay coach Jon Cooper did not have an update on either after the game. The Lightning are 10-0 when leading a series 3-1. Huberdeau had a goal and an assist and center Carter Verhaeghe scored a goal for the Panthers.
New York Islanders 4, Pittsburgh Penguins 1: Forward Oliver Wahlstrom had a goal and an assist, and the Islanders evened the best-of-7 series with a Game 4 win. Ilya Sorokin made 29 saves to become the second rookie goalie along with Alex Nedeljkovic of the Carolina Hurricanes this season to win each of his first two postseason starts in the NHL. Aston-Reese scored a shorthanded goal with 2:35 remaining in the third period for the Penguins, who are 15-9 all-time when a best-of-7 series is tied 2-2. The Islanders are 5-6.
Toronto Maple Leafs 5, Montreal Canadiens 1: Matthews scored three points (one goal, two assists), forward William Nylander had a goal and an assist and forward Mitchell Marner had two assists for the Maple Leafs, who tied the Canadiens 1-1 in their best-of-7 series. Jack Campbell made 22 saves for Toronto. Forward Jesperi Kotkaniemi scored and Carey Price made 29 saves for the Canadiens.
Vegas Golden Knights 4, Minnesota Wild 0: Center Nicolas Roy scored two goals and the Golden Knights took a 3-1 lead in their best-of-7 series against the Wild. Marc-Andre Fleury made 30 saves for his 16th career postseason shutout in the NHL. Vegas is 3-1 when they lead a series 3-1. Minnesota has scored four goals in the series and have not scored since center Joel Eriksson Ek's goal 8:30 into the first period of Game 3 on Thursday.