Stanley Cup Playoffs Buzz: Hurricanes look to go up 3-0 on Bruins
Maple Leafs try to be more disciplined against Lightning; Kings must be better on special teams vs. Oilers
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NHL.com @NHLdotcom
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On Tap
Carolina Hurricanes at Boston Bruins (7 p.m. ET; TNT, SN360, TVAS, NESN, BSSO)
Goalie Jeremy Swayman will start Game 3 for the Bruins, who are looking to avoid going down 3-0 to the Hurricanes. Linus Ullmark started Games 1 and 2 and allowed eight goals on 57 shots. Carolina goalie Antti Raanta could start Game 3 after he left Game 2 in the first period following a hit by Boston forward David Pastrnak. The Bruins will be without defenseman Hampus Lindholm, who left Game 2 after taking a hit from Hurricanes forward Andrei Svechnikov late in the second period.
Toronto Maple Leafs at Tampa Bay Lightning (7:30 p.m. ET; TBS, CBC, SN, TVAS, BSSUN)
The Maple Leafs will look to cut down on the penalties that contributed to the Lightning's 5-3 win in Game 2 on Wednesday that evened the series 1-1. Tampa Bay went 3-for-7 on the power play with goals by Victor Hedman, Nikita Kucherov and Brayden Point. The Lightning will try to keep Maple Leafs forward Auston Matthews, who led the NHL with 60 goals this season, in check. Matthews had two goals and an assist in Toronto's 5-0 win in Game 1. He had two assists in Game 2.
Minnesota Wild at St. Louis Blues (9:30 p.m. ET; TNT, SN360, TVAS2, BSMW, BSN, BSWIX)
The series is 1-1 after the Wild's 6-2 win in Game 2 on Wednesday. Kirill Kaprizov scored a hat trick, the first in Wild postseason history, and Joel Eriksson Ek had two goals and an assist. Minnesota was 2-for-3 on the power play after going 0-for-6 in Game 1. Vladimir Tarasenko had a goal and an assist and Jordan Kyrou scored for the Blues.
Edmonton Oilers at Los Angeles Kings (10 p.m. ET; TBS, CBC, SN, TVAS, BSSC)
The series is tied 1-1 after Mike Smith made 30 saves and Evander Kane scored two goals for the Oilers in a 6-0 win in Game 2. Smith bounced back after his turnover in the third period of Game 1 led to Phillip Danault's game-winning goal in the Kings' 4-3 victory. Los Angeles' special teams will look to rebound after allowing power-play goals by Leon Draisaitl and Kane and a shorthanded goal by Darnell Nurse in Game 2.
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What We Learned
Penguins have to figure out special teams
Pittsburgh coach Mike Sullivan and center Sidney Crosby brought up on their own, unprovoked, how the Penguins must improve on special teams. Sullivan talked about the power play and the penalty kill needing to be better after a 5-2 loss to the New York Rangers in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference First Round on Thursday. Crosby had comments specific to the need for the power play, his area of expertise, to be better. Each was 100 percent accurate. The Penguins have been outscored 3-1 on special teams through the first two games of the series; the Rangers have scored two power-play goals and one shorthanded goal while the Penguins have scored one 5-on-3 power-play goal. In Game 2, Pittsburgh was 0-for-2 with three shots on goal on the man-advantage while New York was 1-for-4 with nine shots on goal. The Rangers are generating momentum from their kills and their power plays. The Penguins are struggling to clear the puck on their penalty kill and keep the puck in the offensive zone when they have the man-advantage. Reversing it will be a main focus going into Game 3. -- Dan Rosen, senior writer
Rangers better, but have more to give
There was a lot for the Rangers to like about their play in their 5-2 win in Game 2, particularly the resiliency they showed to come back strong after losing 4-3 in triple-overtime in Game 1 on Tuesday. They were more consistent in their effort, except for the first 5:13 of the third period, when they led 3-2 and needed goalie Igor Shesterkin to bail them out with nine straight saves as the Penguins pushed for the tying goal. But the Rangers still need to find a way to slow down the Penguins' top line of Crosby, Jake Guentzel and Bryan Rust, who combined for two goals and 17 shots on goal after they totaled seven points (three goals, four assists) and 24 shots in Game 1. They still have to be quicker in the defensive zone, and coach Gerard Gallant said they must do better at sustaining momentum. Guentzel made it 1-1 in the first period 2:02 after Andrew Copp gave New York a 1-0 lead and Crosby scored 6:28 after Chris Kreider gave New York a 3-1 lead in the second. Consistency in their defensive game will be their main talking point before Game 3. -- Rosen
Predators improve, but not enough
The Nashville Predators gave a far better effort in a 2-1 overtime loss to the Colorado Avalanche in Game 2 of the Western Conference First Round on Thursday than they did in a 7-2 loss in Game 1 on Tuesday. They blocked 34 shots, got 49 saves from Connor Ingram and went 4-for-4 on the penalty kill. But if they want to get back into the best-of-7 series, let alone win it, they're going to have to be far better yet again. They need better breakouts, more puck possession and more offense. They had 26 shots on goal and went 0-for-4 on the power play in Game 2. "You don't want to defend as much, and that comes back to your puck execution and I think our intensity level in the offensive zone and a couple structure things we can adjust," coach John Hynes said. -- Nicholas J. Cotsonika, columnist
Déjà vu for the Avalanche?
The Avalanche won 7-2 in Game 1 after taking a 5-0 lead in the first period, then won 2-1 in overtime in Game 2. Sound familiar? It should. In the second round of the playoffs last season, they won 7-1 against the Vegas Golden Knights in Game 1 after taking a 5-0 lead, then won 3-2 in overtime in Game 2. What happened next? They lost four straight. Now, the 2021-22 Predators, the second wild card in the Western Conference, are not the 2020-21 Golden Knights (tied with the Avalanche for the best record in the NHL). Still, the parallel is striking, and this will be the first test to see if the Avalanche learned lessons from last season's heartbreak. -- Cotsonika
Oettinger is unflappable
Sure, Jake Oettinger lost his first start in the Stanley Cup Playoffs in Game 1 against the Calgary Flames on Tuesday. But the 23-year-old, who made 25 saves in that 1-0 Dallas Stars loss, responded with a 29-save shutout and got his first playoff win in Game 2 on Thursday. Much has been said about Oettinger's laid-back demeanor and it's been evident on and off the ice. This could have been a rough go for Oettinger, whose previous playoff experience had been two relief appearances during the 2020 postseason. Instead, he's embraced the challenge and the Stars are heading home with a 1-1 split in the best-of-7 series largely thanks to him. -- Tracey Myers, staff writer
Flames just off
When the Flames are clicking, they play like a well-oiled machine. But in Game 2 they just weren't in sync. Passes to teammates were slightly behind or in front of them. When Oettinger gave up rebounds early, the Flames either weren't there for the second chance or missed the net high or wide. A night where the timing is off happens to every team. But in a tight series like this it can be costly, and it was for Calgary in Game 2. -- Myers
Panthers offense comes alive
It was only a matter of time before the Florida Panthers' high-scoring offense broke out, and that's just what happened during their 5-1 victory against the Washington Capitals in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference First Round on Thursday. Florida started slowly, with four shots on goal in the first 16 minutes of the game, but the Panthers found their offensive confidence with goals 1:38 apart from Aaron Ekblad and Aleksander Barkov late in the first period. The Panthers relaxed after that and pulled away in the second period, displaying the firepower that helped it average an NHL-best 4.11 goals per game during the regular season. Now Florida has the momentum and its scoring mojo back with the best-of-7 series tied 1-1 heading into Game 3 at Washington on Saturday. -- Tom Gulitti, staff writer
A goalie question for Capitals?
The Capitals goaltending dilemma isn't settled. Vitek Vanecek was solid in Washington's 4-2 victory in Game 1 on Tuesday, making 30 saves. But the inconsistency that plagued the Capitals goalies during the regular season returned in Game 2. Although Vanecek wasn't to blame on most of the goals, he gave up a momentum-swinging score to Mason Marchment that increased Florida's lead to 3-1 at 3:11 of the second period, 27 seconds after Nicklas Backstrom scored a power-play goal to pull Washington within 2-1. Vanecek left after allowing five goals on 19 shots, including three goals on the first eight shots, in two periods. Ilya Samsonov stopped all 17 shots he faced in the third. That leaves Capitals coach Peter Laviolette again with a decision to make about his starting goalie for Game 3. -- Gulitti
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About Last Night
New York Rangers 5, Pittsburgh Penguins 2
Artemi Panarin and Frank Vatrano each had a goal and two assists, and the Rangers tied the series against the Penguins 1-1. Kreider scored the game-winning goal, tying him with Mark Messier for most in Rangers playoff history (seven). Igor Shesterkin had 39 saves. Crosby had a goal and an assist, and Guentzel scored for the Penguins.
Florida Panthers 5, Washington Capitals 1
Barkov and Carter Verhaeghe each had a goal and an assist for the Panthers, who evened their series against the Capitals 1-1. Vanecek was pulled after allowing five goals on 19 shots through two periods. Samsonov replaced him for the third and made 17 saves. Backstrom scored for the Capitals.
Colorado Avalanche 2, Nashville Predators 1 (OT)
Cale Makar scored at 8:31 of overtime to give the Avalanche a 2-0 lead in the best-of-7 series. Nathan MacKinnon scored in the first period for Colorado. Yakov Trenin scored in first for the Predators, and Ingram, in his first Stanley Cup Playoffs start, made 49 saves.
Dallas Stars 2, Calgary Flames 0
Oettinger made 29 saves for the Stars, who tied the series 1-1. He became the second-youngest goalie (23 years, 139 days) in Stars/Minnesota North Stars history to win a playoff game, after Don Beaupre (19 years, 202 days) in Game 2 of the 1981 Preliminary Round. Joe Pavelski scored at 7:47 of the first period and Michael Raffl closed the scoring with an empty-net goal at 18:51 of the third.
