The Minnesota Wild were back on their home ice, with a prime opportunity to take another step toward the playoffs.
Despite long stretches of dominance, they remain stuck due to a plucky performance by the noncompliant Calgary Flames.
Joey MacDonald made 34 saves, Mark Cundari scored a goal in his first NHL game and the Flames beat the Wild 4-1 on Sunday night.
``We certainly don't seem to like doing things the easy way,'' said Minnesota coach Mike Yeo, whose team lost for the fifth straight time at home.
Mikael Backlund, Mike Cammalleri and Jiri Hudler also scored for the Flames, who are long out of the postseason hunt but have won six of their last eight games.
``It's not about spoiling. It's just about playing hard and winning,'' MacDonald said. ``We've got a lot of young guys here trying to prove a point for next year.''
Zach Parise got his team-high 17th goal for the Wild, who will likely need to win two of their three remaining games to make the playoffs without help from others. They're in seventh place in the Western Conference with 51 points, while Columbus, Detroit, Dallas and Phoenix remain in a tight pack still alive behind them.
``We put ourselves in a tough spot, but we're still in the driver's seat. It makes it more difficult now, but we've just got to dig deeper,'' center Kyle Brodziak said.
The Wild, who are 0-6 in April against the six teams ahead of them in the West, entered this final stretch with the supposed fortune of facing teams in the bottom four spots in the conference in three of four games, counting this one.
``We played OK, had some good stretches, but we can't lose that game,'' center Matt Cullen said.
The Wild lost despite outshooting the Flames 35-24, including 25-12 over the first two periods. Parise had nine shots on net himself.
``We've got to put `em in. That's all there is to it,'' Parise said.
Rookie right wing Ben Hanowski played his first NHL game in his home state, after being traded to Calgary from Pittsburgh in the Jarome Iginla swap last month and signing with the Flames last week following a four-year career at St. Cloud State. Hanowski's former college teammates watched the game from a suite.
Trading Iginla and veteran defenseman Jay Boumeester signaled the official start of a renovation project for the Flames, who haven't won a playoff series since they reached the Stanley Cup finals in 2004 and last reached the postseason in 2009.
But a young team with nothing to lose and a lot to prove can be just as dangerous of an April opponent as one fighting for a spot in the playoffs. The Flames won five of their previous seven games coming in.
``Whoever we put in the lineup, they play with pride,'' coach Bob Hartley said. ``Yes, some people might say we have zero pressure and the guys are loose, but at the same time they deserve credit.''
McDonald has won four of his last five starts, allowing a total of nine goals. The only loss came at home against the Wild last Monday by a 4-3 decision, a game that Minnesota had to hang on to win after the Flames scored twice late in the third period. Hanowski had a goal in that game, his NHL debut.
If the 36-year-old Miikka Kiprusoff doesn't come back next season, MacDonald, who was signed off waivers in February after spending the previous two seasons with Detroit, will give Calgary a candidate to consider for the net. He was beaten only by Parise after a slick-passing, extra-effort score by Minnesota's first line down low.
Cundari, who came to the Flames in the trade with St. Louis that sent Boumeester to the Blues, scored on a power play in the first period. Backlund's goal came in the middle of the game. Cammalleri added another man-advantage goal, and Hudler tacked on an empty-netter for good measure in the final minute.
``We've got a lot of young guys who are getting opportunities, and we're trying to develop a winning culture, a hard-working culture and that identity for next year,'' right wing Lee Stempniak said.
For the Wild, this felt like their previous home game, April 13 against Columbus, when they outshot the Blue Jackets 41-22 but lost 3-2 in a shootout. They controlled the pace of play for most of the evening, but Calgary refused to quit. Clayton Stoner tried to fire up the home crowd by fighting with Cory Sarich in the second period, but Backlund scored to put the Flames back in front and quiet the building less than 3 minutes later.
The Wild play at home Tuesday against the defending Stanley Cup champion Kings, who began the weekend in fourth place. They host Edmonton Friday and wrap up the regular season Saturday at Colorado.
So how do they keep calm and carry on?
``If we're going to sit here and pretend that other teams aren't feeling the same thing, then you're kidding yourself. That's part of the challenge. You should actually relish that,'' Yeo said.
NOTES: The Wild fell to 11-4-2 against Northwest teams this season, ending an eight-game intra-division winning streak. ... St. Paul native and recently retired NFL player Matt Birk, who spent 10 seasons with Minnesota and four with Baltimore, was at the game to make the traditional ``Let's Play Hockey'' call to introduce the puck drop.
Calgary vs Minnesota - Recap - NHL - Sports - CBC.ca
Daniel Sedin recorded a goal and an assist to become the second-leading scorer in franchise history as hosts Vancouver clinched their fifth consecutive Northwest Division title.
Jannik Hansen and Zack Kassian also scored, captain Henrik Sedin notched two assists and Cory Schneider made 24 saves for the Canucks, who have won eight in a row at home.
Daniel Carcillo tallied and Corey Crawford turned aside 29 shots for the Blackhawks, who had their 11-game point streak snapped (9-1-2).
Chicago's lead over Pittsburgh in the race for the Presidents' Trophy is down to three points with three games remaining.
- - -
Ducks 3, Oilers 0
Viktor Fasth made 24 saves en route to his fourth shutout as visiting Anaheim clinched their first Pacific Division title since its 2006-07 championship season by continuing their dominance of Edmonton.
Captain Ryan Getzlaf, Radek Dvorak and rookie defenseman Sami Vatanen scored for the Ducks, who swept their season series with the Oilers for the second time in four campaigns.
Nikolai Khabibulin stopped 25 shots in his third start in April for the Oilers, who were eliminated from playoff contention after a 3-1 home loss to the Ducks on Sunday.
Edmonton, who have one win in nine games, have been held to two goals or fewer in each of their last 10 games against Anaheim.
- - -
Penguins 3, Senators 1
Dustin Jeffrey recorded a goal and an assist while Brenden Morrow set up two scores as visiting Pittsburgh extended their winning streak to seven games and earned coach Dan Bylsma his 200th victory.
The Penguins pulled within three points of Chicago in the race for the Presidents' Trophy. Tomas Vokoun made 34 saves to record his 300th career win in his 700th NHL game.
The Senators fell to eighth place in the Eastern Conference.
The sixth-placed New York Islanders have a one-point edge over Ottawa while the Rangers hold the tiebreaker.
- - -
Red Wings 4, Coyotes 0
Jimmy Howard turned aside all 34 shots he faced for his second shutout in four games and Johan Franzen scored twice as hosts Detroit pulled within one point of the final postseason spot in the Western Conference.
Defenseman Niklas Kronwall had a pair of assists for the Red Wings, who posted just their second win in seven outings (2-2-3) to remain on the heels of idle Minnesota and Columbus.
Mike Smith finished with 19 saves for the Coyotes, who sit five points out of eighth place with three games remaining.
- - -
Jets 2, Sabres 1
Antti Miettinen scored his first goal since March 24 with 7:36 remaining in the third period as visiting Winnipeg kept their slim playoff hopes alive.
Aaron Gagnon also scored for the Jets, who earned points in their seventh straight game (6-0-1) and moved within one of both eighth place in the Eastern Conference and first in the Southeast Division.
Buffalo dropped their second game in a row after being eliminated from playoff contention on Friday in a loss to the New York Rangers. Jhonas Enroth stopped 37 shots.
Austin Watson scored his first NHL goal. David Legwand netted his 200th.
The Nashville Predators needed both to beat the Calgary Flames and end a long losing streak.
Watson and Matt Halischuk scored 1:23 apart in the third period to lead the Predators to a 4-3 win on Tuesday night.
Legwand and Nick Spaling had the other goals for Nashville, which ended the franchise's longest losing streak at eight games. Shea Weber added two assists.
``We won the game. We haven't won for a while, so we weren't quite sure what to do,'' Nashville coach Barry Trotz joked. ``The guys have been working hard and they are not getting rewarded. Tonight it was good to get rewarded.''
Roman Cervenka scored two goals, and T.J. Brodie had the other goal for Calgary, which had a three-game winning streak snapped.
Brodie gave the Flames a 1-0 lead at 5:59 of the first period.
With the teams skating 4-on-4, Brodie had the puck at the top of the right circle and made a toe-drag move to the faceoff dot. He then fired a wrist shot that beat goalie Pekka Rinne on the far side.
Legwand tied it at 14:39 of the first when he got to a rebound of Weber's slap shot from the top of the right circle.
``It has been four or five games since I got one, so it was nice to get it here,'' Legwand said of his 200th.
Legwand, Nashville's first draft pick, has played all 892 NHL games with the Predators.
Filip Forsberg earned the second assist on Legwand's goal. It was the 18-year-old rookie's first NHL point.
Calgary regained the lead at 7:06 of the second on a goal by Cervenka.
Approaching the Nashville blue line, Cervenka corralled a bouncing pass off the stick of Sven Baertschi and slipped behind the Predators defense. In the low slot, he fired a wrist shot past Rinne high to the stick side.
Spaling tied it at 2 at 18:31 of the second with a power-play goal, deflecting Weber's wrist shot from the right point past goalie Miikka Kiprusoff.
``It was some mistakes and they used it,'' Kiprusoff said. ``It was a close game, but they were the better team.''
Early in the third, Watson and Halischuk scored at 3:17 and 4:40 to give the Predators control of the game.
Watson, recalled earlier in the day from Milwaukee of the AHL, scored his first NHL goal.
``It is something you dream about, and it is even better than the dreams when it finally does happen,'' Watson said.
The Flames were outshot 32-18 in the game and 22-9 over the last two periods.
``I think we worked hard,'' Flames coach Bob Hartley said. ``I would've liked us to put more pucks at the net than we did. I felt that we passed on shots and opportunities that we could have put pucks on the net rather than trying a pass in the high slot.
``They took advantage of this to create outnumbered situations on us.''
Cervenka's second of the game came at 15:10 of the third when he scored on a redirection of Chris Butler's shot from the left point.
Butler and Baertschi had a pair of assists for Calgary.
NOTES: Nashville D Hal Gill played in his 1,100th NHL game. ... The Predators are 5-21-4 this season when their opponent scores first. ... Baertschi has a career-high, six-game point streak. ... The Flames will close out this season with two more games against Central Division opponents: road games at St. Louis and Chicago on Thursday and Friday.
Calgary vs Nashville - Recap - NHL - Sports - CBC.ca
The Detroit Red Wings needed this one, and for one night they played like the Red Wings team that we've been used to seeing in recent years in a 3-1 win over the defending Stanley Cup Champion Los Angeles Kings.
The win moves Detroit back into the top-eight (for the time being) of the Western Conference and pushes them ahead of the Columbus Blue Jackets, who fall down to ninth place.
The scoreboard may not fully indicate it, but this was a pretty dominant showing by the Wings. It was almost as if they hopped into Dr. Brown's DeLorean and set the date for 2008, because this looked like the Red Wings team that used to compete for Stanley Cups.
They dominated the puck, they controlled the pace of the game from the opening faceoff (nearly 63 percent of the shot attempts in the game belonged to Detroit, which is incredible, especially against one of the best possession teams in the league), and they received some big goals from their best players.
Like this beauty from Pavel Datsyuk in the second period to tie the game at one. Along with goals from Datsyuk and Johan Franzen, the Red Wings also had some huge contributions from some of their lower lines, including Jordin Tootoo and Patrick Eaves. Tootoo scored what proved to be the game-winning goal midway through the third period and with his line on the ice they outshot Los Angeles 8-1 during 5-on-5 situations.
If the Red Wings can play like this over their final two games (home against Nashville on Thursday and at Dallas on Saturday) they might have no trouble getting one of the remaining playoff spots, and they might even be able to make some noise in the playoffs. If they had played like this two months ago they might not be in these must-win situations late in the year.
Toronto gets blown out in Tampa Bay
The Maple Leafs, having already clinched a playoff spot, have nothing else to play for at this point other than seeding in the Eastern Conference.
They entered Wednesday's game in Tampa Bay in fifth place with 55 points and seemingly on a path to meet longtime rival Montreal in the first round. But after getting blown out by the Lightning 5-2, there's a chance the New York Islanders could still catch them (the Islanders trail Toronto by just one point) over the next couple of days and knock Toronto down to sixth and set up a first-round matchup with Washingotn.
Blackhawks win Presidents' Trophy
It was only a matter of time until they clinched it but the Chicago Blackhawks won the Presidents' Trophy on Wednesday night with a 3-1 win in Edmonton, locking up the best record in the NHL this season. They've been at the top of the NHL standings all season and now have home-ice advantage throughout the Stanley Cup playoffs.
Sharks lose to Phoenix, remain in fourth
The Phoenix Coyotes were already eliminated from playoff contention before their game against San Jose started, but that didn't stop them from pulling off a 2-1 win over the Sharks thanks to a stellar performance from Mike Smith in net.
The Sharks remain in fourth place in the Western Conference with 57 points, tied with their division rivals from Los Angeles. San Jose would have fallen down to fifth place with the loss had the Kings gained a point in Detroit, but they fell to the Red Wings 3-1.
NHL Playoff Picture Update: Red Wings move back into top eight - CBSSports-com
Erik Karlsson stood outside the visiting locker room, munching on a celebratory slice of pizza.
Must have tasted pretty good.
Karlsson spent the evening on the ice for the first time in about 2 1/2 months, and he and the Ottawa Senators are heading back to the NHL postseason.
They might even wind up back in the same arena next week.
Sergei Gonchar scored a power-play goal 47 seconds into overtime on Karlsson's second assist of his successful and sooner-than-anticipated return from a torn Achilles tendon, and Ottawa clinched a playoff berth by beating the Washington Capitals 2-1 on Thursday night.
``I would have been happy if I sat in the stands and we would have won this game, as well, I think, and that's the main goal,'' Karlsson said. ``I'm going to have to work on my stuff, and as long as this team keeps winning, I'm going to be happy.''
The overtime wins by the Senators and New York Rangers eliminated the Winnipeg Jets from the playoff chase.
Ottawa had lost its previous two games.
``I'm just glad to put all the doubters behind us,'' said Craig Anderson, who made 19 saves. ``We lost a couple games there ... and I think that was kind of the talk: Are we going to fold the tent and go home? But I think we all kind of strapped on the belt and went to work and found ways to make people believers.''
The only shot that got past him was Alex Ovechkin's NHL-leading 32nd goal, which tied the game 8 1/2 minutes into the third period.
But ex-Capitals defenseman Gonchar took a pass from Karlsson and put the winner past Michal Neuvirth, who made 39 saves.
The Southeast Division champion Capitals had nothing at stake. They already are locked into the No. 3 seed in the Eastern Conference.
The Senators, who have two games left, moved up to sixth in the East. If they remain there, Ottawa would face the Capitals, who have won 10 of 12 overall - with the only losses against the Senators.
``If we end up playing them, we'll be ready,'' Washington's first-year coach Adam Oates said.
Ottawa won all three regular-season matchups against the Capitals.
``We just came out flat,'' Washington defenseman Mike Green said. ``I don't know what it is the last couple times we've played against them. But it's the way it's gone.''
The Capitals secured their sixth consecutive playoff appearance by clinching the division title with a 5-3 victory over Winnipeg on Tuesday.
So while the Capitals didn't need a victory on Thursday, the Senators most certainly did.
``It was a big game,'' Neuvirth pointed out, ``for them.''
For Karlsson, last season's Norris Trophy winner as the NHL's top defenseman, this was his first game since Pittsburgh's Matt Cooke stepped on the back of his leg on Feb. 13.
Karlsson originally was expected to miss the rest of the season after surgery, but recently returned to practice. He sat out 31 games, but now is back in time to get into game shape ahead of the playoffs.
``I felt OK,'' Karlsson said. ``Did battle some issues out there, and didn't feel quite as comfortable as I used to, but overall I think it was a solid game. I still have to work through some mistakes and clean those up.''
Karlsson played a game-high 27-plus minutes and managed to demonstrate just how valuable he is.
With the game scoreless 12:35 into the second period, from barely inside the blue line, he shook his stick to get the attention of Milan Michalek, whose pass was strongly one-timed by Karlsson toward the net. The puck was redirected by Jakob Silfverberg. Then came the set up for Gonchar.
``Obviously, our team was a different team with him on the ice, and the things that he can do that others can't do. He's a very special player,'' Senators coach Paul MacLean said about Karlsson. ``He's done, obviously, a ton of work.''
Silfverberg briefly stayed down on the ice with about three minutes left after appearing to take a glove to the face from Capitals defenseman Steve Oleksy. No penalty was called.
But Capitals forward Mike Ribeiro was sent to the box twice in the final five minutes of regulation, and teammate Jason Chimera was given a 10-minute misconduct in the last minute. The game was chippy throughout, including a scrum involving eight players along the boards earlier in the third period. The first period had a handful of near-fights and some late hits.
Ovechkin scored his fourth goal in three games, but his first point against Ottawa this season.
He gathered the puck near the boards on the right side - Oates moved him from left wing - and swept in front of the net with defenseman Chris Phillips riding his back, before flipping a backhander past Anderson.
Nearly seated on the ice afterward, Ovechkin spun around and kissed his glove, while fans responded with loud chants of ``M-V-P!''
NOTES: It was Ovechkin's 600th NHL game. ... Ottawa will play at home against Philadelphia on Saturday, and at the Bruins on Sunday in a game rescheduled because of the Boston Marathon bombings. ... The Capitals finish the regular season Saturday against visiting Boston.
Ottawa vs Washington - Recap - NHL - Sports - CBC.ca
The lockout-shortened 48-game NHL season was supposed to be a wild and chaotic sprint to the finish line, and it has lived up to the promise.
There was the hurry-up training camp after a bitter four-month work stoppage. There was the Chicago Blackhawks’ start, a record 24 games in a row without a regulation loss. There was the Pittsburgh Penguins’ surge, which featured a 15-game winning streak in March and a seven-game streak in April. There was Sidney Crosby, apparently galloping his way to the NHL scoring title until a broken jaw sidelined him for the final month, and threw the scoring race wide open. In the Eastern Conference, the three worst teams last year, the Montreal Canadiens, the New York Islanders and the Toronto Maple Leafs, all unexpectedly qualified for the playoffs. Over in the West, last year’s 13th-place team, the Anaheim Ducks, made it, too, while the 15th-ranked Columbus Blue Jackets – the absolute worst team a year ago – were in the playoff hunt as the regular season comes to an end this weekend.
Meanwhile, two of last year’s Stanley Cup semi-finalists, the New Jersey Devils and the Phoenix Coyotes, will be on the outside looking in, when the playoffs begin Tuesday.
It was a topsy-turvy year, when up was down, and about the only thing anybody could agree upon was how good the Penguins were, even before trading-deadline deals that brought in the likes of Jarome Iginla, Brenden Morrow, Jussi Jokinen and Douglas Murray. The Penguins were already ripping their way through the schedule, without their highly regarded reinforcements. How good could they be when all their injured parties – Crosby, James Neal and Paul Martin – returned?
But if the past teaches you anything, having the best team on paper at the start of the playoffs is not the same thing as celebrating a Stanley Cup championship two months later. The playoffs are a two-month marathon, and once in a while, a team can come out of nowhere and catch lightning in a bottle.
In the seven years between 2004 and 2011, that happened a couple of times to a couple of dark-horse Canadian contenders. In that span, four Canadian teams made it all the way to the Stanley Cup final: Calgary (2004), Edmonton (2006), Ottawa (2007) and Vancouver (2011). All except for the Senators pushed their series to the limit and ultimately fell in seven games. But with four teams qualifying this year out of seven, and two with home-ice advantage in the opening round, the possibilities of a deep playoff run have a lot of Canadian fans crossing their fingers and hoping this year could be their year.
As the Islanders did 20 years ago. In 1993, the Islanders were a young and unproved team and in the second round, came up against a juggernaut, the two-time defending champion Penguins, who had completed the best regular season in the Mario Lemieux era, running up 119 points.
The Penguins finished the year on a 17-0-1 roll and quickly eliminated the New Jersey Devils in five games. They were loaded with all-stars and future Hall of Famers that year – Lemieux, Jaromir Jagr, Ron Francis, Joey Mullen, Rick Tocchet, Kevin Stevens, Larry Murphy, Ulf Samuelsson, Tom Barrasso on the ice; and behind the bench, the most successful coach in history, Scott Bowman.
John Davidson, then an analyst, now the president of the Blue Jackets, famously predicted that if the Penguins didn’t win, “there ought to be an investigation.” Nor was Davidson alone in his assessment. Pittsburgh really was that good – and the NHL playoffs, that year, felt more like a coronation than a competition.
But somewhere along the way to the parade route, the Islanders did what no one thought was possible and eliminated a Penguins team that finished 32 points ahead of them in the regular-season standing, one of the most unexpected upsets in NHL playoff history.
Moreover, with Pittsburgh out, a far more lightly regarded Montreal Canadiens team found a clear path to the final, and became Stanley Cup champions, the last Canadian team to win – 20 years ago now and counting.
More Related to this Story: Expect the unexpected in NHL playoffs - The Globe and Mail
It's been nine years since the Maple Leafs have made the playoffs and they're going into the 2013 post-season playing as if they don't belong.
"I was mystified tonight," Toronto coach Randy Caryle said in the aftermath of Saturday night's sluggish 4-1 loss to the Montreal Canadiens in the regular-season finale for both team.
The Leafs showed a bit of jump to start — the Habs went without a shot for the first 11 minutes of the game, — and led 1-0 on a first-period Phil Kessel power-play goal. But they faded fast and Montreal went to the dressing room tied 1-1 and outshooting Toronto 9-6.
There was barely signs of a pulse in a second period that saw Montreal score twice.
"For whatever reason, it was like we went brain-dead," said Carlyle. "Our execution level went way down."
How bad were the Leafs before a season-high crowd of 19,730? They managed one shot in the second period despite having three power plays.
One of those man-advantages saw captain Dion Phaneuf mishandle the puck at the blue-line, a Leafs player fire the puck into the netting above the glass and an icing call.
They might as well have sent a line of Larry, Curly and Moe over the boards. It couldn't have been worse.
Could still meet in playoffs
Toronto and Montreal could meet in the playoffs. But that wasn't decided Saturday because Boston added to its point total by going to overtime in a loss to Washington, meaning that the Eastern Conference playoff matchup picture won't be complete until Sunday when Boston plays Ottawa in a makeup game.
If Boston wins Sunday, the Leafs play Montreal. A Bruins loss and it's Boston versus Toronto.
Forward Jay McClement said the Leafs had to look after their own house, rather than wonder about their playoff opponent.
"We need to figure out our own game, no matter who we're playing. Because if we play like that tonight, it won't be good enough."
The way Toronto is playing, Boston fans may not regret losing Sunday.
"The idea of (Montreal versus Toronto) is pretty cool," said Montreal forward Brendan Gallagher. "Obviously I'm assuming it would be the most emotional first-round series ever, so that aspect of it is cool. But for us, we don't really care who we're playing. It's about us. It matters what we do and that's all we're talking about. We'll watch the game (Sunday) and find out who we play."
The Leafs (26-17-5) end the season having lost four of their last six, during which they've been outscored 20-15.
Kessel on a roll
Kessel scored his 20th goal of the season for Toronto, notching his 10th goal in as many games.
Lars Eller had a goal and two assists to pace the Canadiens' pre-playoff message to Toronto. Gallagher, Andrei Markov, and Thomas Plekanec also scored for Montreal, which won despite going 0-for-6 on the power play.
The Canadiens (29-14-5) did it without No. 1 goalie Carey Price, who was given the night off in favour of Peter Budaj. Rubbing salt into the wound, Montreal chased Toronto starter James Reimer early in the third period.
"We wanted to impose the rhythm," Montreal coach Michel Therrien said in French. "The players did a fantastic job executing the game plan. These are games with a lot of emotion and the type of game you want to play. They executed it fantastically tonight."
Montreal outshot Toronto 28-17 on the night. And by the final whistle the Leafs had lost their discipline with a string of penalties.
Tough guy Kyle McLaren got an early shower at 3:05 of the third period when he got minors for roughing and charging, a 10-minute misconduct and a game misconduct after misbehaving during a melee. There were no other penalties on the play.
Toronto's Clarke MacArthur also exited early with minors for slashing and unsportsmanlike conduct and a 10-minute misconduct.
The final penalty count was 44 minutes for Toronto to 16 for Montreal.
Coach pulls Reimer
Carlyle replaced Reimer with Ben Scrivens after Montreal made it 4-1 on the Canadiens' 23rd shot, a soft goal that Plekanec sent over Reimer's shoulder at 2:25 of the third period.
"It wasn't my best game," said Reimer. "A couple of unlucky bounces and stuff like that. You take some of the positives and then you flush it."
Carlyle agreed on both counts.
"I don't think he was as sharp as he's been, that's for sure," the coach said of Reimer. "He's been outstanding for our hockey club so it's hard to cast anything in that direction. I don't think we supported him ... tonight."
Asked how much time he would spend on the game, Carlyle wasted no time answering.
"None. It's over."
Said defenceman Mark Fraser: "The mindset now is to move on. Thankfully we're in a position where we can."
McClement had a different view.
"I don't think it's time to quite flush this game quite yet," he counselled. "I think we can still learn from it and have this in the back of our minds, that's it's only going to get tougher and we have to have our A game every night and regroup from there."
Toronto came into the game having won three of the four previous meetings between the two this season, outscoring the Canadiens 15-7. The Habs' lone win prior to Saturday was a 5-2 decision Feb. 27 in Toronto.
Montreal had gone 2-5-0 since clinching its playoff spot April 11 with a win in Buffalo.
The Leafs chased Price in their last meeting, beating him three times on just four shots in a 5-1 win April 13 at Air Canada Centre.
Toronto's first-line centre Tyler Bozak sat out for the second game in a row with an upper-body injury. Nazem Kadri took his place alongside Kessel and James Van Riemsdyk or Joffrey Lupul.
The Leaf power play went 1-for-7.
Mayhem seemed imminent when Carlyle started Colton Orr, McLaren and Fraser for the opening faceoff. Orr and Montreal's Brandon Prust were jawing before the puck drop but stuck to hockey after one of the referees skated over to have words.
With the Ottawa Senators beating the Boston Bruins 4-2 in the NHL's final regular-season game Sunday, the NHL's first-round playoff matchups were set.
The Bruins, who lost Saturday in overtime to the Washington Capitals before the Sunday defeat, blew a chance to capture the Northeast Division title. Instead, the Montreal Canadiens claimed the division by a single point, taking the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference. The Bruins slipped to the No. 4 seed.
Meanwhile, the Senators sneaked past the New York Islanders to claim the No. 7 seed.
A brief look at the first-round playoff matchups:
EASTERN CONFERENCE
No. 1 Pittsburgh Penguins (36-12-0) vs. No. 8 New York Islanders (24-17-7) -- The Penguins reeled off a seven-game winning streak before losing two of their final three regular-season games after they'd clinched the top record in the East.
The big questions is when Penguins star Sidney Crosby might return from a broken jaw. There's no timetable for him to play again. Crosby tied for third in the league with 56 points.
The Penguins, who led the league with 165 goals, had three of the league's top four players in plus-minus rating: Pascal Dupuis (plus-31), Chris Kunitz (plus-30) and Crosby (plus-26).
The Islanders' John Tavares placed third in the league with 28 goals.
Pittsburgh swept the four-game, regular-season series.
No. 2 Montreal Canadiens (29-14-5) vs. No. 7 Ottawa Senators (25-17-6) -- The Canadiens didn't exactly soar to the division title, as they lost six of their final 10 games. However, they won their last two, and that was enough to edge the Bruins.
Ottawa, meanwhile, won six of its last nine, including the finale at Boston.
Senators goalie Craig Anderson led the NHL in two major categories: goals-against average (1.69) and save percentage (.941).
Montreal won two of the teams' three regular-season meetings, with each team winning once in a shootout.
No. 3 Washington Capitals (27-18-3) vs. No. 6 New York Rangers (26-18-4) -- The Capitals surged into the postseason, having won 11 of their last 13 games. The Rangers also finished hot, ending on a 7-2 run.
Washington left wing Alex Ovechkin led the league with 32 goals in the 48-game, lockout-shortened season. Ovechkin also tied for third with 56 points.
The Rangers won two of the three regular-season meetings, losing only in a March 24 shootout.
No. 4 Boston Bruins (28-14-6) vs. No. 5 Toronto Maple Leafs (26-17-5) -- The Bruins needed three points in their last two games to win their Northeast crown, but they wound with two losses and one point. Overall, Boston dropped seven of its last nine games.
Only five teams scored more often this season than Toronto, which finished with 145 goals. The Bruins, meanwhile, allowed the third-fewest goals, 109, thanks in large part to goalie Tuukka Rask, whose 1.97 GAA ranked fourth in the league.
WESTERN CONFERENCE
No. 1 Chicago Blackhawks (36-7-5) vs. No. 8 Minnesota Wild (26-19-3) -- The Blackhawks cruised to the Presidents' Trophy, which goes to the league's top regular-season team. Their 77 points were five more than the Penguins' runner-up total.
The Blackhawks were dominant on both ends of the ice, posting the league's second-highest goal total (155) and allowing the fewest goals (102).
The Wild scored 33 fewer goals than the Blackhawks and ranked tied for 22nd in the NHL with an average of 2.48 goals per game. They tied for 15th in goals against, allowing 2.60 goals a game.
Left wing Zach Parise is their leading scorer with 38 points, including 18 goals.
Chicago won the season series 2-0-1.
No. 2 Anaheim Ducks (30-12-6) vs. No. 7 Detroit Red Wings (24-16-8) -- The Ducks were one of the surprise teams in the NHL this season, but they were just 5-4-1 over their last 10 games.
Anaheim goalie Viktor Fasth was 15-6-2 with a 2.18 goals-against average, but he has never played in a playoff game. Center Ryan Getzlaf leads Anaheim in scoring with 49 points.
Detroit had to scramble to make it into the postseason for the 22nd consecutive year, but the Red Wings come into the postseason on a four-game winning streak.
Detroit goalie Jimmy Howard has a 2.13 goals-against average, and has 28 games of postseason experience.
Center Pavel Datsyuk is the Red Wings' top scorer with 49 points.
Detroit won the season series 2-1.
No. 3 Vancouver Canucks (26-15-7) vs. No. 6 San Jose Sharks (25-16-7) -- The Canucks lost all three regular-season games against the Sharks, and Vancouver lost five of its final eight games overall.
The Canucks rank 19th in the NHL in scoring, averaging 2.54 goals a game, while yielding 2.40 goals per game. Henrik Sedin is their top scorer with 45 points.
The Sharks did not finish the season very well either, losing three of their last four games. They rank sixth in the NHL in scoring defense, yielding just 2.33 goals per game, and goalie Antti Niemi has a 2.16 goals-against average.
Center Joe Thornton leads the team in scoring with 40 points, which includes just seven goals.
No. 4 St. Louis Blues (29-17-2) vs. No. 5 Los Angeles Kings (27-16-5) -- The Kings, the defending Stanley Cup champs, won all three games against the Blues during the regular season, outscoring the Blues 14-7.
The Blues have made significant improvement since Ken Hitchcock was named their head coach early in the season. They were 6-7 when he took over before finishing among the West's top teams.
The Blues ended the regular season with three straight wins, and they won 12 of their final 15 games.
The Kings came in 10th in the NHL in scoring at 2.73 goals per game. Center Anze Kopitar is their leading scorer with 42 points, including 10 goals.
Los Angeles goalie Jonathan Quick has a 2.45 goals-against average.
Finishing last in the Western Conference standings and out of the NHL playoffs paid huge dividends for the Colorado Avalanche on Monday.
Colorado won the NHL draft lottery and the right to make the first pick in this year’s entry draft. The Avalanche had an 18.8 per cent chance of winning the lottery after finishing the regular season with a dismal 16-25-7 record. The Florida Panthers, who finished last overall with a 15-27-6 mark, had the best odds of winning at 25 per cent. But they had to settle for the No. 2 pick when the draft is held June 30 at the Prudential Center in Newark, N.J.
The Avs will have first shot at Portland Winterhawks defenceman Seth Jones, the No. 1 ranked North American skater according to the NHL Central Scouting Bureau. The six-foot-four, 206-pound Jones had 14 goals and 42 assists in 61 regular-season games and also helped the U.S. capture the world junior hockey title.
“There’s a lots to like (about Jones),” said Rick Pracey, Colorado’s amateur scouting director. “His size and skating are two things that jump off the page and are attention-grabbers.
“But his ability to rush the puck and make decisions coming out of the defensive zone and create offence from the back end has our attention. He’s an individual that brings two-way ability and size, the reach, the ability on the back end serve him well in the D-zone. He’s certainly a well-rounded, two-way defenceman that is getting plenty of attention and hype at the top of the board and rightly so.
Jones, 18, is the son of Popeye Jones, an assistant coach with the NBA’s Brooklyn Nets who spent time as a player with the Toronto Raptors (1996-’98).
If the Avalanche draft Jones, it’ll be a homecoming of sorts. He learned to skate and got his start in hockey in Denver when his father played for the Nuggets.
But Pracey said Halifax Mooseheads forwards Nathan MacKinnon and Jonathan Drouin are both very much in the picture to be selected first overall in what is very deep talent pool.
“This is not a slam-dunk decision by any means,” he said. “Our philosophy has always been best player available.
“It may sound like a cliche or we’re dancing but that isn’t the case. We firmly believe in building our list the right way and we’ll make our decisions based on our core scouting beliefs that we think have served us well in the past.”
The lottery adopted a different format this year, with all of the 14 non-playoff teams having a shot at the first overall pick. In previous years, the lottery-winning team could move up no more than four spots in the draft order.
The remaining teams, in order of selection based upon the lottery, are Tampa Bay, Nashville, Carolina, Calgary, Edmonton, Buffalo, New Jersey, Dallas, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Winnipeg and Columbus.
The Oilers have made the first pick overall in the last three NHL drafts, becoming the first team to do so since Quebec (1989-1991). This year, all seven rounds will be held on the same day for the first time since 2006.
Pracey gave the NHL’s new lottery format the thumbs up, even if it was a little nerve-wracking.
“It’s truly exciting, that’s probably the best way to describe it,” he said. “There’s some anxious moments, it’s great it turned out our way.”
Panthers GM Dale Tallon said the No. 2 pick will secure his club a talented player but admitted not garnering the top selection stung.
“We were hopeful to get the pick to weather some of the storm we had over the year and lessen some of the pain,” he said. “It would’ve been nice to pick first but second is pretty good to.
“The top four, five, six or seven are pretty good players. They can make a difference to your franchise. They’re different, they bring different qualities to the game and that’s exciting. We’re looking forward to getting one of those players.”
And Tallon has a definite idea of the kind of player he’ll be looking for in New Jersey.
“I like offence,” he said. “I like puck-moving defencemen, I like to score goals.
“I like to play an exciting brand of hockey so some of those players will help us do that.”
Nashville GM David Poile liked the drama the intrigue created by the new lottery format. He said the prospect of landing a top-flight prospect will help lessen his disappointment of the Predators missing the post-season.
“It’s not fun being a non-playoff team and being in the bottom five of the league,” he said. “But having said that this is a terrific year.
“The top five or six players are outstanding so we’re going to be rewarded very nicely for not making the playoffs . . . so from that standpoint we’re very happy.”
So too was Carolina GM Jim Rutherford.
“The fact of the matter is right through the first round and even in the second round there’s going to be some impact players if you get the right ones,” he said. “We’re not excited about picking where we are because of the season but it is what it is.
“We’re going to get somebody that’s going to fit into our team and help us.”
Colorado Avalanche win the NHL draft lottery - The Globe and Mail
Bryan Bickell scored in overtime on a two-on-one rush, and the Chicago Blackhawks opened the playoffs on a winning note after dominating the regular season, beating the Minnesota Wild, 2-1, on Tuesday night. Marian Hossa also scored for host Chicago, and goalie Corey Crawford settled down after allowing a soft goal in the opening minutes. Game 2 is Friday at United Center.
In a game tied since early in the second period, the Blackhawks won after Johnny Oduya chipped the puck off the boards to Viktor Stalberg on the right side. Stalberg then dished it to Bickell on the two-on-one rush, and he scored from in front 16 minutes 35 seconds into overtime.
Big things are expected in Chicago after a spectacular regular season that included a record start and the team’s first Presidents’ Trophy since 1991.
The Blackhawks are eyeing a run to the Stanley Cup for the second time in four years. They have been eliminated in the first round the past two seasons after beating Philadelphia for the championship in 2010.
They seemingly caught a break before the game when Minnesota goalie Niklas Backstrom was scratched because of a leg injury sustained while reaching for a puck in the pregame warm-ups.
But Josh Harding replaced him and held his own after being limited to five games following a multiple sclerosis diagnosis last summer. Harding made 35 saves.
The Wild took the lead a little less than five minutes into the game when Cal Clutterbuck fooled Crawford with a soft shot from the left circle.
Hossa tied it just over two minutes into the second period, streaking down the left side, getting behind Minnesota’s Jonas Brodin and firing the puck between Harding’s pads.
BLUES 2, KINGS 1 Alex Steen stole the puck from goalie Jonathan Quick behind the net and scored a short-handed goal as St. Louis beat the defending Stanley Cup champion Los Angeles in Game 1 of their series. Steen scored unassisted on a backhander at 13:26 of overtime, less than a minute after Blues defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk was whistled for a double-minor high-sticking penalty when he cut Dustin Penner. Steen also scored on a rebound during a first-period power play.
ROLSTON RETIRES Brian Rolston retired after a 17-year career in which he played for five teams and helped the Devils win their first Stanley Cup. Rolston, a 40-year-old forward, did not play this season after splitting time with the Islanders and the Boston Bruins in 2011-12.
As a rookie, he helped the Devils win the Cup in the 1994-95 season. He also played for Colorado and Minnesota and completed his career with 342 goals and 419 assists.
Sidney Crosby's broken jaw can take its time healing.
The way his teammates are playing, there is no need for the Pittsburgh Penguins star to rush back.
Pascal Dupuis scored twice, Marc-Andre Fleury made 26 saves, and the top-seeded Penguins opened the playoffs with a 5-0 romp over the New York Islanders on Wednesday night.
``It's one win,'' Dupuis said. ``We definitely feel good about it but we've just got to put this one behind us and get ready to work for the next one. They'll definitely look at tape and come out harder, that's for sure.''
The Islanders will have to if they have any hope of making the series competitive. Making its first playoff appearance since 2007, New York fell behind less than 5 minutes in and never recovered.
``I thought some guys worked hard and played a good game,'' Islanders coach Jack Capuano said. ``Again, with our club we need all 20 guys going, and we didn't have all 20.''
That isn't an issue for the staggeringly deep Penguins.
Rookie Beau Bennett, enforcer Tanner Glass and defenseman Kris Letang also scored for Pittsburgh, which had no trouble against the upstart Islanders even with Crosby relegated to cheerleader.
Fleury earned his sixth career playoff shutout while playing behind a defense that appears to have learned a few lessons from last spring's embarrassing opening-round loss to Philadelphia.
The Flyers shredded Pittsburgh for 30 goals in six chaotic games. The Penguins have emphasized being responsible on defense all season, knowing their wealth of offensive talent will come to life when needed.
Pittsburgh wasted no time against the Islanders, beating Evgeni Nabokov four times in the game's first 22 minutes, including goals by Letang and Dupuis 32 seconds apart early in the second period. That sent Nabokov to the bench after he stopped just 11 shots. Kevin Poulin came on in relief and surrendered a soft goal to Glass. Capuano said it is too early to decide who will start in goal for Game 2 on Friday night.
Whoever it is will need help from the guys in front of him. The Islanders haven't won a playoff series in 20 years, and the drought will extend to 21 quickly if they can't keep Pittsburgh's skaters in check.
``When you make it easy on them, they're going to light you up,'' New York forward Matt Martin said. ``For most of the game we made it pretty easy on them, and if you do that they're just going to run up the score on you.''
Pittsburgh rolled to the top of the East even though Crosby missed the final quarter of the season. The Penguins have been bolstered by the arrival of trade deadline acquisitions Jarome Iginla, Brenden Morrow, Jussi Jokinen and Doug Murray.
All four players are searching for their first Cup championship, and all four made an immediate impact in the series opener. Iginla and Jokinen both had two assists, and Morrow and Murray helped bottle up New York captain John Tavaraes.
The Islanders star failed to find much room to maneuver and didn't muster a shot on goal all night.
``"We're going to need to (forget it quickly),'' Tavares said. ``These series are long, but they can be real quick, too.''
Those who did get pucks in on Fleury didn't fare any better. He tied Tom Barrasso's franchise record for career playoff shutouts and received a boost from a group that blocked 17 shots before they got to the net.
Capuano insisted his team - which had 16 players making their playoffs debut - wouldn't be overcome by the moment. Still, the Islanders looked jittery.
Bennett most certainly didn't.
The 21-year-old forward earned a start over veteran Tyler Kennedy due in part to his quick maturation during the season. He repaid coach Dan Bylsma for the vote of confidence instantly, needing only 25 seconds of ice time to score his first playoff goal. The Islanders had nearly killed Brian Strait's penalty when a clearing attempt hit linesman Greg Devorski at center ice and stopped. Evgeni Malkin brought the puck into the zone and lost control, but Bennett chased it down and raced in on the right side before flipping a shot over Nabokov's shoulder from in close to give the Penguins the lead 3:30 in.
Dupuis made it 2-0 about 10 minutes later following a mad scramble in front. Craig Adams bullrushed Nabokov at the left post, setting off a chaotic sequence that ended with Dupuis smacking the puck out of the air from 10 feet out. It sailed by a badly out of position Nabokov and into the net.
The situation quickly got worse for New York after the first intermission. The 37-year-old goalie - making his 81st playoff start - had no chance on Letang's wrist shot from the left circle 1:19 into the second period. Dupuis followed by pouncing on a rebound off Mark Eaton's shot from the point to push Pittsburgh's edge to 4-0 and send Nabokov skating slowly to the bench in favor of Poulin.
Nabokov was struck by a shot directly in his mask and was briefly stunned before Bennett opened the scoring moments later.
NOTES: Pittsburgh F James Neal left in the second period with an undisclosed injury and didn't return. ... Jokinen left with 2:20 to play after taking a hit to the knee from New York's Marty Reasoner. ... The Islanders went 0-for-4 on the power play. ... Pittsburgh D Brooks Orpik was scratched due to a lower body injury. ... New York's loss was its second in regulation since March 30.
New York vs Pittsburgh - Recap - NHL - Sports - CBC.ca
The extremes of beauty and ugliness in hockey came quickly for Steve Oleksy in his playoff debut Thursday night. The 27-year-old Capitals defenseman, who was making his playoff debut after spending several years bouncing between the American Hockey League and the third-tier E.C.H.L., first set up a beautiful breakaway goal for center Marcus Johansson that gave the Capitals a 2-1 lead in their eventual 3-1 victory over the Rangers.
Minutes later, he took a Derick Brassard slap shot to the face.
Circling between the dots in his own defensive zone, Oleksy spotted Johansson near the Rangers’ blue line, and his pass zoomed straight up the middle of the ice, perfectly splitting Rangers defensemen Ryan McDonagh and Dan Girardi. Johansson was in alone, and beat Henrik Lundqvist low.
“I didn’t think he was even going to try,” Johansson said. “But when I saw when he passed it I knew right away it was going to make it. It was the perfect pass.”
Oleksky said: “I was taking a couple extra seconds to calm it down there, and I saw Jojo streaking. He did a great job giving me a spot there, and I saw a little lane, and obviously, you know, he did the job.”
Minutes later, Oleksy would be face down on the ice after dropping to his knees in attempt to stop Brassard’s fast-rising slap shot, which him in the jaw, just below his right cheek.
“Yeah, it’s one of those things,” Oleksy said. “You go down to block, and he was trying to go high, and he got it up quick, and you know, luckily there wasn’t more damage.”
Once Oleksy collected himself, he skated quickly to the Capitals bench, drawing cheers from the crowd. His face and teeth were checked by the trainer, who quickly cleared him to return.
“I’m pretty fragile, I cut pretty easy, so just made sure I wasn’t leakin’ too bad,” Oleksy joked. “And fortunately there wasn’t more damage then there was.’
Oleksy no longer wears a visor because of a N.H.L. rule that penalizes a player who wears one and is deemed an instigator in a fight.
“It’s one of those freak things,” he said. “And to be honest where it hit me, visor or no visor it really wouldn’t have mattered. Especially with the visor and the fighting rule, that’s the reason I took it off in the first place. So it’s one of those things that’s going to happen. Hockey’s a rough sport, and visor or no visor it’s going to hit me."
Fellow defenseman Karl Alzner glowed over the I impressive transition that Oleksy, a rookie, has made to the N.H.L.
“He played great,” Alzner said. “Confident, calm, and he did all the right things. Like I’ve been saying the entire time he’s been here, he’s an amazing player. I think it’s the start to a good career for him.”
As promising as he has been, Oleksy was already 27 before he made it to the N.H.L.
“It took a while for somebody to realize it,” Alzner said. “It’s nice that they did figure out that he could play. And obviously he’s stepping up to that challenge right now. He’s a got a good head on his shoulders. He’s a smart kid, so he knows how to play.”
Alzner quickly corrected himself.
"I shouldn’t say kid — because he’s older than I am. He’s a smart guy.”
The first games of this year’s Stanley Cup playoffs may be as belligerent as last year’s, but the N.H.L.’s initial response has been far more proactive, and may signal a stricter stance against checks to the head. On Friday afternoon, the league suspended Ottawa defenseman Eric Gryba two games for his devastating open-ice hit on Montreal forward Lars Eller in Thursday’s Game 1 of the Canadiens-Senators series. The hit knocked Eller unconscious and left him lying in a pool of blood with facial and dental fractures before he was carried off the ice on a stretcher.
Gryba’s suspension was a surprising decision by the N.H.L.’s Department of Player Safety. Under Rule 48, which governs checks to the head, a check is illegal only if the head is the target and is also the principal point of contact. Many in hockey considered Gryba’s hit legal, then, because although Gryba thrust his shoulder into Eller’s head, he also made contact with Eller’s body.
But in the official video on the ruling, the N.H.L. vice president Brendan Shanahan said that Gryba did “not make enough of a full body check” for the hit to escape qualifying as an illegal check to the head.
Shanahan also said that “Gryba’s route was not correct” but did not elaborate.
Canadiens forward Brandon Prust told reporters Friday morning that N.H.L. defensemen had a choice in how they hit puck carriers.
“He has him lined up,” Prust said in remarks recorded on audio files. “He chose not to hit him on his front shoulder, and he went for his far shoulder. If you’re going to try to avoid his front shoulder to go for his far shoulder, what are you going to pass? You’re going to pass his face. And that’s why he hit him in the face. He didn’t want the impact of a full body check. He wanted to just hit him, and when you just hit somebody, you’re going to usually catch their face.”
It was the second Rule 48 suspension in two days. On Thursday, Boston’s Andrew Ference was suspended for one game after he went for the head of Toronto’s Mikhail Grabovski with his forearm during the opening game of that series on Wednesday.
What was noteworthy about the punishment was that Grabovski was not injured on the play. The absence of an injury can sometimes be a reason for the league not to suspend the perpetrator.
But the first round of last year’s playoffs, which began with a carnival of carnage, might have changed that thinking somewhat.
In April 2012, the league was criticized for its initial leniency, most glaringly for not suspending Nashville’s Shea Weber after he punched and rammed the head of Detroit’s Henrik Zetterberg into the glass at the end of a game on the first night of the playoffs.
The league’s reasoning for not suspending Weber, as Shanahan said then in a news release, was partly because Zetterberg was not injured.
Weber escaped with a mere $2,500 fine, and that seemed to send a message, intentional or not, that the league would be tolerant in the highly charged playoff atmosphere.
Over the next week, player behavior deteriorated in numerous overly aggressive hits.
Many, but not all, were punished with suspensions ranging from one game to four as the league grappled to regain control, which it finally did after issuing a suspension of 21 games to Raffi Torres of Phoenix for a leaping head shot that sidelined Chicago’s Marian Hossa for the rest of the playoffs.
With the suspensions of Gryba and Ference, the league appears intent on avoiding a reprise of the mayhem.
As for the Ottawa-Montreal series, it became perhaps the most compelling of the opening round.
“First Blood Sens,” read the headline in The Ottawa Sun, embedded in a photograph of Canadiens trainers working on the bloodied, prone Eller. That did not go over particularly well in Montreal or elsewhere.
Prust and Canadiens Coach Michel Therrien criticized Senators Coach Paul MacLean, who they thought made disrespectful comments about Eller and his teammate Rafael Diaz, who passed Eller the puck just before Gryba’s hit.
“If I’m Eller, I’m mad at Player 61, whoever he is, because he passed me the puck in the middle of the rink when I wasn’t looking,” MacLean said after the game.
Therien called MacLean’s remarks “inappropriate.” Prust called MacLean, who is bespectacled, plump and mustachioed, a “bug-eyed fat walrus.”
And what had been a first-time playoff matchup between teams located about 100 miles apart needed less than 34 minutes of game action to escalate into a fierce rivalry.
Joe Pavelski and Logan Couture each scored twice to spoil Cory Schneider's return to the net for Vancouver and the San Jose Sharks won their third straight game to open the playoffs, beating the Canucks 5-2 on Sunday night.
Pavelski scored the first two goals and Couture and Patrick Marleau added scores 9 seconds apart to break the game open early in the third period and give the Sharks a 3-0 series lead.
Couture added a second power-play goal early in the third to end Schneider's night and give him a playoff-best four points for the game. Antti Niemi made 28 saves.
San Jose will attempt to complete the first series sweep in franchise history at home on Tuesday night.
Mike Gillis wasn’t around to be interviewed Monday, probably because he sensed the media’s eagerness for a post-mortem on his Vancouver Canucks, and it’s bad form to perform an autopsy on a corpse that’s still twitching.
But who’s kidding whom?
This series, this season, and this Canuck era are all over.
For a lot of reasons — not the least of which is the coming realignment that will no longer allow them an exalted playoff seeding by virtue of sitting atop the weakest division in hockey — it is time to start getting used to how the other half lives.
Yes, Vancouver. Again.
There is only one way for an organization to remain strong while its core ages gracefully, a la the Detroit Red Wings, and that is with a constant replenishment of NHL-level talent that can grow into bigger roles as the stars begin to fade.
That will not happen with the Canucks, not soon enough, because the cupboard is, if not entirely bare, decidedly bereft of young impact players capable of curing the team’s No. 1 deficiency: a lack of offensive firepower.
To use the elegant analogy of Detroit’s Pavel Datsyuk: lots of piano movers, not many who actually play the instrument.
Henrik and Daniel Sedin are still there front and centre, superior human beings that they are, to answer nightly for the club’s impotence. But without a lot more help than Gillis has given them in the way of a supporting cast, they are not going to be able to dominate games even remotely the way they once did.
And the San Jose Sharks — with ample assistance from a rule book that has been allowed to slide back nearly to pre-2005 levels of permissible interference — have provided a pretty good road map, in building their 3-0 series lead, for future opponents to short-circuit the twins’ cycling, telepathic Sedinery.
Ryan Kesler has been hurt too often to hold out hope of ever seeing him return to his 41-goal, Selke-winning form of 2010-11. Moreover, he and Alex Burrows and Max Lapierre made such a bed of nails for themselves over the years with antagonistic behaviour and embellishment, it hardly matters if they’ve tried to reform — and Burrows, at least, has.
Kevin Bieksa’s artful skewering Monday of Sharks’ “so-called Canadians” Joe Thornton and especially Logan Couture for diving and overacting doesn’t change the fact that referees apparently have no intention of ever looking at the three Canucks with an unjaundiced eye. When they’re on the ice, the calls will always tend to go the other way.
“We’re the embellishers,” Vigneault said Monday, stone-faced. The question mark was implied.
Meanwhile, Canuck management is carrying a plethora of albatrosses into the off-season — roughly $13.8 million worth of wasted contracts with Roberto Luongo twiddling his thumbs, Keith Ballard evidently consigned to the discard heap and the ever-injured, grossly overrated David Booth taking up space — and unless Gillis can go, cap in hand, to owner Francesco Aquilini and ask him to buy out a couple of them, and eat some of Luongo’s salary in order to move him, they will be hamstrung when they try to re-stock the shelves.
And wouldn’t you love to be a fly on the wall when that conversation takes place?
So far, we haven’t come to anything that’s Alain Vigneault’s fault, unless you think a sterner hand earlier, by the head coach would have broken Burrows and Lapierre and Kesler of their thespian tendencies.
Sunday night’s third-period meltdown by Cory Schneider — in a game that, arguably, might have been Luongo’s to lose, based on his play in the first two — obscured a whole lot of other ills, most glaringly the lack of scoring, but also the utter invisibility of any number of forwards who’ve been exposed next to the dynamic, deep and muscular cast of the Sharks.
But really, it’s a little late now to be terribly outraged about the demise of the Canucks, because the die was cast last summer.
That’s when (we only found out much later) they were already all but certain that Manny Malhotra wasn’t going to make it back, yet made no provision for the day when they’d have no one who could win a faceoff, let alone anchor a decent third line.
It’s when they didn’t trade Luongo, gambling that the market was going to improve if they held onto him. No one could have predicted how abjectly that gamble would fail, or how the consequences of that failure would dog the team all season long.
And then, at the trade deadline, Gillis’s cure for the lack of scoring depth was to trade for Derek Roy, another smurf centre for an organization that is fairly teeming with them. The Sharks have brushed Roy aside like a mosquito, as surely as they, or any other sizable playoff opponent, would have dismissed Jordan Schroeder or Andrew Ebbett.
The expression on Vigneault’s face after Game 3, the redness in his eyes, said: “I’m all out of ideas.”
The atmosphere in the Canucks room was shell-shocked, funereal.
“There’s not much to draw from right now,” said Luongo, who didn’t allow a goal in his 15:53 of relief work and looked as though he might bite a hole in his tongue when someone asked if he felt he should have started the game.
“There are not many positives in the first three games,” he said. “There are a couple of guys who are playing their hearts out. Other than that …”
And still we search in vain for the compelling reason to fire Vigneault that’s such a popular theme as this team’s era of excellence winds down, and Gillis’s loyal cornermen try to misdirect the responsibility.
Anyone who thinks that arranging the forward lines differently, or changing the defence pairs, or putting this player or that out on the ice at the end of a game would have made the difference is dreaming in Technicolor.
Not that coaching doesn’t have an impact; it surely does. Not that there isn’t some truth to the idea that after seven seasons, a fresh voice, some fresh ideas, can sometimes be a tonic to a group that’s lost its way.
The Ottawa Senators have adopted the “Pesky Sens” nickname this season. They lived up to that role Tuesday night. Kyle Turris scored at 2 minutes 32 seconds of overtime as the Senators fought back from a 2-0 third-period deficit to beat the Montreal Canadiens, 3-2, in Ottawa to grab a 3-1 lead in their playoff series.
Turris took a shot from the sideboards that sneaked past the backup goalie Peter Budaj, who came on for the injured starter Carey Price at the start of overtime.
With only 22.6 seconds left in regulation, Ottawa had tied the score on a goal by Cory Conacher during a scramble in front of Price.
“That was a bit of a lucky shot tonight, but I’ll take it,” Turris said of his winner. “How we did it tonight, sticking around and kind of giving ourselves a chance to win — you know, pesky.”
A team ravaged by injuries all season, the Senators found a way to make the playoffs with a patchwork roster and now have the East’s No. 2 seed on the brink of elimination.
Mika Zibanejad had the other goal for Ottawa, which got 26 saves from Craig Anderson in a game the Canadiens controlled for lengthy stretches.
“We came to play and that’s exactly what we did,” said Canadiens Coach Michel Therrien, whose team will look to stay alive in Game 5 at home Thursday night. “We certainly deserved a better fate.
“It’s one of those nights, tough to explain.”
P. K. Subban and Alex Galchenyuk scored 62 seconds apart in the second period for Montreal.
Price, who made 30 saves for the Canadiens two nights after allowing all six goals in Ottawa’s 6-1 victory in Game 3, sustained a lower-body injury at the end of regulation.
BLACKHAWKS 3, WILD 0 Patrick Sharp scored 2 goals and Corey Crawford stopped 25 shots as Chicago won at Minnesota and took a 3-1 lead in their first-round Western Conference series.
Sharp has four goals in the series for the top-seeded Blackhawks, who can close out the Wild on Thursday night in Chicago.
Minnesota goalie Josh Harding, who has multiple sclerosis, left the game with a left leg injury with nine seconds remaining in the first period.
SHARKS 4, CANUCKS 3 At San Jose, Patrick Marleau scored a power-play goal 13:18 into overtime as the Sharks completed their first playoff sweep in franchise history.
Joe Pavelski scored his second power-play goal of the game to tie it with 4:27 left in regulation. Brent Burns also scored for the Sharks, who will now get a break before beginning the second round of the playoffs next week.
“A win like this feels good; now we will get some rest,” Pavelski said.
Mason Raymond, Alex Burrows and Alexander Edler scored for the Canucks, who were unable to hold onto a late third-period lead for the second time this series.
SABRES STICK WITH ROLSTON Ron Rolston was hired as head coach of the Sabres, dropping the interim title he was given on Feb. 20. He becomes the 16th head coach in Sabres history.
Rolston was the only candidate considered for the job by the Sabres. He led Buffalo to a 15-11-5 record after being promoted from Buffalo’s A.H.L. affiliate, the Rochester Americans. The team began the season 6-10-1, leading to the firing of Lindy Ruff, the longtime Sabres coach. Ruff spent 16 years as coach of the Sabres and 10 years as a player.
The Los Angeles Kings had every reason to be deflated.
Instead, they're going home with a chance to wrap up their first-round series against the St. Louis Blues because they refused to let it a letdown linger.
Defenceman Slava Voynov scored on an odd-man rush eight minutes into overtime and the defending Stanley Cup champions, after surrendering the lead in the final minute of regulation, beat the Blues for the third straight time with a 3-2 victory Wednesday night. "We are a resilient group," said Jeff Carter, who had the Kings' other two goals. "A lot of guys have been through a lot of different experiences over their careers and I think we all kind of draw off that.
"We don't get too high, we don't get too low, and that's a big thing for us."
Game 6 is in Los Angeles on Friday (CBC, CBCSports.ca, 10 p.m. ET) and the Kings have won nine in a row at home, including the regular season.
Blues rookie Jaden Schwartz took Voynov's winner hard, smashing his stick several times against the sideboards and glass before leaving the ice.
"We lost an important hockey game. Frustration is definitely part of it," Schwartz said. "We live to fight another day."
Strong effort
Coach Ken Hitchcock didn't sound at all defeated, calling Game 5 the team's best overall effort of the series and calling overtime "a crapshoot."
"If we play like that again, I like our chances," Hitchcock said. "All we've got to do is win a road game and get it back here."
Alex Pietrangelo scored on a wrist shot from the point with 44.1 seconds remaining in regulation and goalie Brian Elliott off for an extra attacker. That forced overtime for the second time in the series, and was the third goal in the final minute of the third period in the series.
"I saw him release it," Quick said. "Usually when you see it come off the stick you have a better chance of stopping it, but I just couldn't seem to pick it up, so it was disappointing at the time.
"But we were able to bounce back and get one there in overtime, which was huge."
The Kings' Justin Williams scored in the final minute of a 2-1 overtime loss in Game 1, also in St. Louis. The Blues had a 2-0 series lead after Barret Jackman scored in the final minute of Game 2.
All five games have been decided by one goal, the only first-round series with that distinction.
The Kings ended the Blues' eight-game home win streak in which Elliott allowed one goal each time.
Early strikes
Carter scored in the opening minute of the second and third periods and Quick had another strong game for the Kings, the first road team to win in the series.
Voynov scored the only goal in the Kings' 1-0 Game 3 victory. That had been the defenceman's lone point of the series before he joined the attack and slid the puck underneath Elliott's pads off a setup by Anze Kopitar, confessing he'd been aiming high to the glove side.
"I think it's very important for us to win on the road because we played so hard the last couple of games in St. Louis," Voynov said. "So it will be a little bit easier for us to play in Los Angeles, where are fans are."
Alex Steen's third goal of the series tied it 1-1 in the second period for St. Louis. Steen, whose short-handed overtime goal decided Game 1, twice took the puck from defenseman Jake Muzzin on the play.
Pietrangelo got the puck at the point off a clean faceoff win by David Backes and slid into the middle before threading a shot past Quick after two teammates were unsuccessful at deflection attempts.
Carter's power-play goal capitalized on a tripping penalty to Jackman at the end of the second period. Kopitar got Elliott out of position on an odd-man rush before Carter converted a one-timer to put the Kings up 2-1.
The Blues dominated much of the scoreless opening period, responding from their fadeout while blowing a pair of leads in a 4-3 loss in Game 4. The reunited CPR fourth line of Adam Cracknell, Chris Porter and Ryan Reaves had a handful of nice scoring chances in addition to setting the tone physically.
It took the Kings just 14 seconds to take the lead in the second period, though, when Carter tapped a rebound past Elliott. Carter, among the NHL leaders with 26 goals, had no points in the first three games.
The Blues' No. 1 line was victimized again, with Patrik Berglund and David Perron on the ice for the fifth straight goal by the Kings.
Steen tied it a little over five minutes later. Steen knocked Muzzin's clearing effort out of the air with his stick and won a battle for the puck behind the net before wheeling around and scoring on a high shot.
Los Angeles vs St. Louis - Recap - NHL - Sports - CBC.ca
Dustin Penner could have simply dumped the puck and allowed the clock to run out on the second period of yet another dead-even game.
Instead, he ripped a long slap shot at the net, and it ramped off a St. Louis stick and flew past Brian Elliott right before the buzzer sounded.
"You might as well try," Penner said with a shrug. "You never know if you don't throw it on net." That's the type of positive thinking that made the Los Angeles Kings into champions, and that's why they finally got rid of the Blues after a bruising first round of their title defence.
Penner scored the tiebreaking goal in the final second of the second period, and the Kings advanced with their fourth straight victory over the Blues, 2-1 in Game 6 on Friday night.
Jonathan Quick made 21 saves and Drew Doughty scored his first goal of the post-season for the reigning Stanley Cup winners, who won four straight to finish off fourth-seeded St. Louis. The Blues seemed poised to head into the final minutes with ample momentum after Chris Stewart's tying goal early in a period dominated by St. Louis. Instead, Penner heeded his teammates' instructions to shoot from just inside the blue-line — and his rocket of a shot glanced off St. Louis defenseman Roman Polak's stick blade and beat Elliott for his second goal of the playoffs.
"I was trying to look at the clock, to see if it counted," Kings center Mike Richards said. "It all happened pretty quick. That's a great feeling."
Last-second goal
The clock ran out while Penner's slap shot rattled around in Elliott's net, but video replay confirmed the puck entered the net in plenty of time. The goal — officially with 0.2 seconds left — entered Kings lore alongside Penner's winning overtime score to end last season's Western Conference finals in Phoenix.
"When the game means a lot more, it's definitely a lot more fun to play," said Penner, who spent part of the season in coach Darryl Sutter's doghouse as a healthy scratch. "These types of games bring out the best in this team."
Indeed, the Kings held up well under enormous pressure from the hungry Blues: Every game in this bitter, physical series was decided by one goal, and Quick allowed just 10 goals in the six-game series. The Blues won the first two at home, but the Kings responded with four straight gritty victories, winning a playoff series after trailing 0-2 for just the second time in franchise history. Elliott stopped 14 shots for the Blues, who were eliminated by Los Angeles for the second straight season, this time despite taking a 2-0 series lead. St. Louis physically beat up the Kings, who responded with hard-nosed play of their own, but Quick outplayed Elliott by a minor margin.
"What I'm going to tell them is it's not good enough," St. Louis coach Ken Hitchcock said. "If you want to be a champion, it's not good enough. You can't allow the goalie to outwork you. If you want to be a champion, you're going to have to find a way. … We took everything to the beach, but we didn't finish putting it in the water."
Los Angeles has won 10 straight games at Staples Center since March, and its sellout crowd waved white towels and roared as the Kings became the first Stanley Cup champion in three years to advance to the second round.
The defending champs won't know who they'll face next until Anaheim and Detroit finish their series Sunday night. If the second-seeded Ducks win, Southern California's two NHL teams will meet in the playoffs for the first time.
The Blues seriously tested the Kings, whose title defense already has been tougher than last season's championship run in one respect. That eighth-seeded club roared to a 3-0 series lead in all four matchups and beat the Western Conference's top three seeds during a 16-4 rampage through the post-season.
Difference-maker
The difference yet again was Quick, who showed off his Conn Smythe Trophy form while stopping every shot in the third period. He stopped 167 of 177 shots in the series (.944 save percentage).
"We hit a few posts, and left a couple sitting right there in the crease," Blues captain David Backes said. "It's beginning to be a broken record. We didn't get the job done. We were up 2-0, and to lose four straight, it's pretty sour right now."
The Kings went ahead with 7 1/2 minutes left in the first period of Game 6 when Colin Fraser made a drop pass to Doughty. He froze Polak with a fake slap shot before firing a nasty wrist shot past Elliott.
Doughty, another playoff standout last year, hadn't scored a goal in the series despite logging more than 29 1/2 minutes per game. Doughty plays nearly seven more minutes per game than any other Los Angeles player.
St. Louis responded with appropriate desperation, pressing the Kings and barely missing a goal when Chris Stewart ripped a shot off Quick's post late in the first period. The Blues equalized early in the third when Polak's long slap shot deflected off Porter's body and sneaked inside Quick's far post. Porter, who turns 29 later this month, made his NHL playoff debut in Game 1.
The Kings played solid defence in the third until midway through the period, when Patrik Berglund jumped on a turnover and skated in alone for two chances. Quick stopped the first, and the second sailed above the crease.
St. Louis wasn't whistled for a penalty in Game 6 until 9:32 remained. The Blues pressed the attack in the final minutes, but Quick had little serious trouble.
"There wasn't much ebb and flow to the series," Sutter said. "It was so close. It was always one goal. It was always a shift-to-shift competition the whole way."
St. Louis vs Los Angeles - Recap - NHL - Sports - CBC.ca
Montreal Canadiens center Lars Eller had a big scare when he was hit by Ottawa Senators defenseman Eric Gryba on May 2, but nine days later Eller said he is feeling better and expects to make a full recovery.
Eller sustained a concussion and a broken nose after being knocked unconscious by the hit and having his face crash against the ice in the second period of Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals.
He said there's about 10 minutes of that night he doesn't remember, but his recovery from the concussion is nearly complete.
"I feel good," Eller said Saturday as the Canadiens cleaned out their lockers following their five-game elimination by the Senators. "I feel clear in my mind, I don't have any headaches or stuff like that. But I have had some tests that confirmed there are still some effects from the brain trauma. I'm not completely healed yet in my brain, neurologically-wise there's still some healing going on. How long that is going to take I can't say, but the way things are going, looking back a week now, there's no reason to think I shouldn't be able to make a full recovery." Eller called the whole episode a "tough experience" for him and his family.
The debate over the legality of Gryba's hit, which earned him a two-game suspension from the NHL, was fierce. Eller did not want to discuss what he thought of the hit, saying the NHL dealt with it, but he said the chatter surrounding it didn't particularly concern him while he was being treated in the hospital.
"You're worried about other things," Eller said, somewhat obviously. "Do you have bleeding in your brain? What's the doctor going to say when he walks in?"
One aspect of the hit that appeared to influence a lot of people's opinions on it was the pass delivered by Montreal defenseman Raphael Diaz just before impact. Ottawa coach Paul MacLean referred to Diaz by his jersey number in blaming him for making the pass, something that got a serious rise out of Montreal coach Michel Therrien the following day.
"I feel really bad for him," Eller said of Diaz. "It's not his fault. Definitely not his fault, not at all. If he feels guilty in any way, he shouldn't. People don't understand how fast it happens out there and you have a split second to make a decision. It's just that fast."
The injury put an end to what was a promising season for Eller, one that began with him being scratched for the second and third games of the season by Therrien for a lack of intensity, but which ended with him becoming one of the team's top forwards and its leading scorer in April with 13 points in 14 games.
"I'm happy with my progression," Eller, 24, said. "I feel I took another step forward this year, as was my intent, but I still feel there's more I can do better."
The good news is that Eller should get that opportunity next season, when he should be fully recovered from a devastating hit that was thankfully not as damaging as it initially looked.
Montreal Canadiens forward Lars Eller expects full recovery - NHL-com - News
Despite long stretches of dominance, they remain stuck due to a plucky performance by the noncompliant Calgary Flames.
Joey MacDonald made 34 saves, Mark Cundari scored a goal in his first NHL game and the Flames beat the Wild 4-1 on Sunday night.
``We certainly don't seem to like doing things the easy way,'' said Minnesota coach Mike Yeo, whose team lost for the fifth straight time at home.
Mikael Backlund, Mike Cammalleri and Jiri Hudler also scored for the Flames, who are long out of the postseason hunt but have won six of their last eight games.
``It's not about spoiling. It's just about playing hard and winning,'' MacDonald said. ``We've got a lot of young guys here trying to prove a point for next year.''
Zach Parise got his team-high 17th goal for the Wild, who will likely need to win two of their three remaining games to make the playoffs without help from others. They're in seventh place in the Western Conference with 51 points, while Columbus, Detroit, Dallas and Phoenix remain in a tight pack still alive behind them.
``We put ourselves in a tough spot, but we're still in the driver's seat. It makes it more difficult now, but we've just got to dig deeper,'' center Kyle Brodziak said.
The Wild, who are 0-6 in April against the six teams ahead of them in the West, entered this final stretch with the supposed fortune of facing teams in the bottom four spots in the conference in three of four games, counting this one.
``We played OK, had some good stretches, but we can't lose that game,'' center Matt Cullen said.
The Wild lost despite outshooting the Flames 35-24, including 25-12 over the first two periods. Parise had nine shots on net himself.
``We've got to put `em in. That's all there is to it,'' Parise said.
Rookie right wing Ben Hanowski played his first NHL game in his home state, after being traded to Calgary from Pittsburgh in the Jarome Iginla swap last month and signing with the Flames last week following a four-year career at St. Cloud State. Hanowski's former college teammates watched the game from a suite.
Trading Iginla and veteran defenseman Jay Boumeester signaled the official start of a renovation project for the Flames, who haven't won a playoff series since they reached the Stanley Cup finals in 2004 and last reached the postseason in 2009.
But a young team with nothing to lose and a lot to prove can be just as dangerous of an April opponent as one fighting for a spot in the playoffs. The Flames won five of their previous seven games coming in.
``Whoever we put in the lineup, they play with pride,'' coach Bob Hartley said. ``Yes, some people might say we have zero pressure and the guys are loose, but at the same time they deserve credit.''
McDonald has won four of his last five starts, allowing a total of nine goals. The only loss came at home against the Wild last Monday by a 4-3 decision, a game that Minnesota had to hang on to win after the Flames scored twice late in the third period. Hanowski had a goal in that game, his NHL debut.
If the 36-year-old Miikka Kiprusoff doesn't come back next season, MacDonald, who was signed off waivers in February after spending the previous two seasons with Detroit, will give Calgary a candidate to consider for the net. He was beaten only by Parise after a slick-passing, extra-effort score by Minnesota's first line down low.
Cundari, who came to the Flames in the trade with St. Louis that sent Boumeester to the Blues, scored on a power play in the first period. Backlund's goal came in the middle of the game. Cammalleri added another man-advantage goal, and Hudler tacked on an empty-netter for good measure in the final minute.
``We've got a lot of young guys who are getting opportunities, and we're trying to develop a winning culture, a hard-working culture and that identity for next year,'' right wing Lee Stempniak said.
For the Wild, this felt like their previous home game, April 13 against Columbus, when they outshot the Blue Jackets 41-22 but lost 3-2 in a shootout. They controlled the pace of play for most of the evening, but Calgary refused to quit. Clayton Stoner tried to fire up the home crowd by fighting with Cory Sarich in the second period, but Backlund scored to put the Flames back in front and quiet the building less than 3 minutes later.
The Wild play at home Tuesday against the defending Stanley Cup champion Kings, who began the weekend in fourth place. They host Edmonton Friday and wrap up the regular season Saturday at Colorado.
So how do they keep calm and carry on?
``If we're going to sit here and pretend that other teams aren't feeling the same thing, then you're kidding yourself. That's part of the challenge. You should actually relish that,'' Yeo said.
NOTES: The Wild fell to 11-4-2 against Northwest teams this season, ending an eight-game intra-division winning streak. ... St. Paul native and recently retired NFL player Matt Birk, who spent 10 seasons with Minnesota and four with Baltimore, was at the game to make the traditional ``Let's Play Hockey'' call to introduce the puck drop.
Calgary vs Minnesota - Recap - NHL - Sports - CBC.ca