Five Minute Major

*Photo from PensBurgh*     The Pittsburgh Penguins and Washington Capitals entered Thursday night's matchup against each other both needing at least one point to clinch a playoff berth. Well, the game went to overtime, and the New York Rangers lost, so both teams have locked up a playoff spot. Kasperi Kapanen scored twice, Jake Guentzel scored the winning goal, and the Penguins took down the Capitals with a 5-4 overtime win.    In the first period, each side recorded a goal to leave it at 1-1 after the opening period, with TJ Oshie scoring for the Caps and Kapanen scoring for the Pens. Both teams then scored two goals apiece in the second to make it a 3-3 game, with Dmitry Orlov and Daniel Sprong scoring for Washington, and Frederick Gaudreau and Zach Aston-Reese scoring for Pittsburgh. In the 3rd, a goal by Kapanen for Pittsburgh and Tom Wilson for the Caps made it 4-4 entering OT, where Guentzel scored 2:11 into overtime to give the Pens a big win.    Gue...

*Photo from SaltWire*     Edmonton Oilers captain and superstar Connor McDavid did not score any goals Wednesday night. That didn't prevent him from producing. McDavid tallied 3 assists, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins scored, and the Oilers topped the Winnipeg Jets with a 3-1 win Wednesday night. Tyson Barrie and Leon Draisaitl also scored for the Oilers.    Barrie got the Oilers on the board 10:52 into the first period with his 7th goal of the season to make it 1-0 Edmonton. In the second, Blake Wheeler scored for the Jets to tie it at one, but around two minutes later, Nugent-Hopkins scored for the Oilers to make it 2-1 after two periods. In the 3rd, Draisaitl scored on an empty net to make it 3-1 Oilers.    Nugent-Hopkins talked about the 3 assists by McDavid, saying that "It's pretty amazing. We know how special a player he is, but to be able to do it every night is another story. He does it in practice every day too, so we do get a taste of it. But obviously...

*Photo from NESN*     Ever since the Boston Bruins traded for Taylor Hall and put him on a line with David Krejci, both players have seen big increases on the scoreboard, particularly Hall. Both players got on the board against the Pittsburgh Penguins. Hall scored his 6th goal of the season, Krejci got his 7th, and the Bruins topped the Penguins with a 3-1 win Tuesday night.     Krejci started the scoring in the second period, scoring with 1:50 remaining in the second to make it 1-0 Bruins after two periods. 9:11 into the 3rd period, Brad Marchand scored his 26th goal of the season for the Bruins, and 3:07 later, Hall scored to make it 3-0 Bruins quickly. Jeff Carter later scored for the Penguins to make it 3-1, but that was all they could manage.    Krejci talked about the game plan against the Penguins, saying that "We addressed some things before the game. Obviously, we know where we're at in the standings, what's going on around us. We talked ...

*Photo from Eyes on the Prize*     The Montreal Canadiens were 4 points ahead of the Calgary Flames for the last playoff spot in the North Division entering their matchup Monday night. They increased that lead to 6 points. Shea Weber scored, Tyler Toffoli scored the game winning goal, and the Canadiens topped the Flames with a 2-1 win Monday night.    Weber started the scoring on the power play for the Canadiens 9:59 into the first, with his 6th goal of the season to make it 1-0 early. At the 12:17 mark, Elias Lindholm scored on the power play for the Flames, his 15th goal of the season to make it a 1-1 game after one period. In the second, with 1:55 left in the period, Toffoli scored his 25th of the season to make it 2-1 Canadiens, which held.    Toffoli said of scoring the game winning goal that "I think we're all kind of expecting to score the big goals, and that's what everybody wants to do. Things have just been going my way right now. I know othe...

*Photo from Blackhawk up*     One of the newest members of the Chicago Blackhawks will be in town for 3 more seasons. The Blackhawks have signed D Riley Stillman to a 3 year, $4.05 million deal, according to a release from the team. Stillman's deal carries a $1.35 million annual cap hit, and the deal starts next season and runs through the 2023-2024 season.     Blackhawks president of hockey operations and GM Stan Bowman said of the extension that "Having a young, physical defenseman like Riley in the fold is exciting for the future of our team. He is growing into an excellent all-around defenseman and that continued development is something we look forward to seeing firsthand. We love his size, and his toughness adds another piece to our defense."    In 14 games this season, split between the Blackhawks and Florida Panthers, Stillman has zero goals and zero assists, with a +1 rating this season. Stillman has no career goals to his name, and only 5 ass...

*Photo from the Winston-Salem Journal*     Maybe Aleksander Barkov just knew the puck was going to go in no matter what. So he just decided not to look. The puck still went in. Alexander Wennberg scored the game tying goal, Barkov scored a no look overtime winner, and the Florida Panthers defeated the Carolina Hurricanes with a 4-3 overtime win Saturday night.     Dougie Hamilton started the scoring for the Hurricanes in the first period, then MacKenzie Weeger tied it up for the Panthers, leaving it a 1-1 game after one period. In the second period, Hamilton scored again to make it 2-1 Hurricanes. In the 3rd, Brett Pesce added to the Hurricanes lead to make it 3-1, then, goals from Gustav Forsling and Wennberg tied it up for the Panthers, setting the stage for Barkov's game winner.    Weegar said of the OT win that "This was a huge win for us. Lots of emotions coming in before the game. We really wanted to win this one. Credit to everybody that pl...

*Photo from AP News*     The New York Rangers have taken pleasure in beating the Philadelphia Flyers this season. While on Friday they did not beat them by 9 goals, as they did earlier in the year, they will still take a win any way they can get one. Alexis Lafreniere scored a goal, Pavel Buchnevich scored the game winning goal, and the Rangers defeated the Flyers by a 4-1 score Friday night.    Chris Kreider started the scoring for the Rangers in the first period with his 20th goal of the season to make it 1-0. Just 45 seconds after Kreider scored, Oskar Lindblom scored for the Flyers to tie things up at one apiece. Not even a minute after Lindblom tied it, Buchnevich scored to make it 2-1 after one period. It remained that way until the 9:24 mark of the 3rd, when Lafreniere scored to increase the lead to 3-1. Just over 4 minutes later, Filip Chytil made it 4-1 Rangers with his 8th goal of the season.    Rangers coach David Quinn said of being a few points...

*Photo from TSN*     The Colorado Avalanche are in the playoffs. After the Vegas Golden Knights clinched recently, the Avalanche got in the fun themselves. Andre Burakovsky scored twice, Nathan McKinnon contributed 3 assists, and the Avalanche took down the St.Louis Blues with a 4-2 win Thursday night.     Jaden Schwartz got the Blues on the board to start, but a goal by Brandon Saad tied things up at one apiece after one period. In the second, Burakovsky scored on the power play, his 13th goal of the season, to give the Avs a 2-1 lead. In the 3rd, Burakovsky scored again to make it 3-1. Schwartz then scored for the Blues to cut it to 3-2, but Pierre-Edouard Bellemare then scored for the Avs to make it 4-2.    Tyson Jost made a defensive play on one end that led to an Avalanche goal. When asked how that felt, Jost said "It felt good. St. Louis got a power play there and the period was winding down and we had to respond. I knocked it down. We score...

*Photo from the Arizona Daily Star*     The Minnesota Wild continue to hold their playoff position. They've gotten some good play to be able to do so. Kirill Kaprizov scored, Marcus Foligno scored the game winning goal, and the Wild took down the Arizona Coyotes with a 4-1 win Wednesday night. Kevin Fiala also scored for the Wild.    The Coyotes got on the board first, with Christian Dvorak scoring at the 7:38 mark of the first to give Arizona an early 1-0 lead. 2:58 into the second period, Fiala scored for the Wild to even things up at one apiece. In the 3rd period, goals from Foligno, Kaprizov, and Nico Sturm on an empty net sealed the 4-1 win for the Wild.    Sturm said of Kaprizov's outstanding rookie season that "It's undeniable that he's taken this team and moved it to the next level with his play. He fights off guys on the boards, he's so strong. That's just really impressive what he's done this year."    Cam Talbot got the start for t...

*Photo from TSN*     It was a battle of Central Division heavyweights, the Carolina Hurricanes and the Tampa Bay Lightning. The Hurricanes were the ones who rose to the occasion. Steven Lorentz scored, Jordan Staal added a goal, and the Hurricanes topped the Lightning with a 4-1 win.     Nino Niederreiter started the scoring for the Hurricanes 7:48 into the game with his 16th goal of the season, making it a 1-0 lead. Staal then added his 14th of the season to make it a 2-0 lead. Lorentz then scored to make it 3-0, but a late goal from Brayden Point of the Lightning made it 3-1 after one period. It remained 3-1 until just 3 seconds left in the game, when Jordan Martinook scored on an empty net to make it 4-1.     Lorentz said of the big win that "I think there was a little more at stake here tonight. I think our group did a really good job of bouncing back today, and I'm really proud of the way we responded. Once we got on the board, we kind o...

*Photo from the Los Angeles Times*     Patrick Marleau has eclipsed hockey's highest mountain. He has passed the Gordie Howe record for the most regular season games played in NHL history. However, he could not get a win on the same night. Mark Stone scored twice, Alex Tuch added the shootout winner, and the Vegas Golden Knights defeated the San Jose Sharks with a 3-2 win Monday night.     In the first period, Nikolai Knyzhov started the scoring for the Sharks with his second goal of the season to make it 1-0 Sharks. In the second period, a quick goal by Noah Gregor made it 2-0 Sharks, but Stone answered for the Golden Knights to make it 2-1 after one period. In the 3rd, Stone scored again to make it a 2-2 game, which lasted until the shootout. Tuch was the only player to score for either team in the shootout, giving Vegas the win.    Marleau said of playing the most regular season games in NHL history that "I think it's very meaningful. It's huge...

*Photo from the San Diego Union Tribune*     After a mass Covid-19 outbreak on the Vancouver Canucks, many were wondering if they would even be able to resume the season. They were able to Sunday night, and man they fought hard. Nils Hoglander scored, Bo Horvat contributed the OT winner, and the Canucks defeated the Toronto Maple Leafs with a 3-2 win Sunday night in the first game in almost a month.     William Nylander got the Leafs on the board 3:45 into the first period, and Auston Matthews scored 14:57 into the second period to give Toronto a 2-0 lead. Horvat then scored near the end of the second to make it 2-1 Leafs. 12:03 into the 3rd, Hoglander scored his 8th goal of the season to tie things at two. Just 1:19 into overtime, Horvat scored his second of the night to make it 3-2 Canucks.    Horvat, who finished his game with two goals and an assist, was very proud of the team after their win, saying that "I couldn't prouder of our guys in that roo...

*Photo from Sportsnet*     The Buffalo Sabres are officially the first team to be eliminated from playoff contention. Everyone saw it coming too. Jared McCann scored, Bryan Rust added the game winning goal, and the Pittsburgh Penguins topped the Sabres with a 3-2 win Saturday afternoon.    McCann got the Pens on the board 10:30 into the first to make it 1-0 early. In the second, Tage Thompson scored for the Sabres, but goals from Evan Rodrigues and Rust made it 3-1 Pittsburgh after two periods. In the 3rd, Casey Middlestadt scored for Buffalo, but that was all they could muster.     Rodrigues said of the win that "We're focused on where we are in the standings and trying to put ourselves in the best position moving forward and into the playoffs. I think we're taking it one game at a time. Our mentality is the next game, and we're just trying to get better as a team so we can be going strong the rest of the season into the playoffs."    T...

*Photo from AP News*     Some of the veteran faces of the Minnesota Wild were a big reason for their win Friday night. Nick Bonino scored a goal, Zach Parise scored the game winner, and the Wild topped the San Jose Sharks with a 3-2 win Friday night. Mats Zuccarello scored as well.    In the first period, Tomas Hertl scored to give the Sharks a 1-0 lead 3:32 into the game, but Bonino tied things for the Wild at the 9:30 mark of the first, making it 1-1 after the first period. The second period was all Wild, with Zuccarello and Parise scoring to make it 3-1 Wild. In the 3rd, Evander Kane scored for the Sharks to make it 3-2, but they couldn't muster any more goals.    Bonino said of his goal that "Sometimes you get the bounces, sometimes you don't. I feel like for the most part, Sturm, Parise and myself, our game hasn't changed from Game One to now. The puck didn't go in as much as we would have liked probably the first little bit here, but just try to ...

*Photo from MassLive*     The Boston Bruins needed a win to keep pace in the East Division playoff race. What a good time to beat the New York Islanders for the first time this season. Brad Marchand scored two goals, Taylor Hall scored his first goal with the Bruins, and the Bruins toppled the Islanders with a 4-1 win Thursday night.     Marchand started the scoring for the Bruins, giving them a 1-0 lead just 1:49 into the game with his 20th goal of the season. With 2:05 left in the first period, Craig Smith scored on the power play to extend the lead to 2-0. In the second, Travis Zajac scored his first goal with the Islanders to cut the deficit to 2-1. In the 3rd period, Hall scored his first with the Bruins on a breakaway goal, and Marchand scored on the empty net to seal the win.    Hall said of scoring his first goal with the Bruins in his second game with them that "I mean you always want to contribute. As an offensive guy, you don't come int...

*Photo from Western Slope Now*     Welcome to the Colorado Avalanche Devan Dubnyk. Dubnyk saved 31 shots, JT Compher scored, and the Avalanche topped the St.Louis Blues with a 4-3 win Wednesday night to give Dubnyk the win in his first start with the Avalanche. Brandon Saad also scored for Colorado.    Pierre-Edouard Bellemare got the Avs on the board in the first to make it 1-0, but Vince Dunn then scored for the Blues to make it a 1-1 game after one period. In the second, Compher, Mikko Rantanen, and Saad all scored for the Avs to make it a 4-1 lead after 40 minutes of hockey. In the 3rd, Mike Hoffman scored twice for the Blues to cut the deficit to 4-3, but that was all the Blues could muster.    With Philipp Grubauer on the shelf due to a positive test for Covid-19, the Avs had to decide between two recently acquired goalies, Dubnyk and Jonas Johansson, to make the start. In the end, Dubnyk got the start, although both will get plenty of work, as Grubau...

*Photo from NoVa Caps*     Welcome to Washington Anthony Mantha. Mantha scored a goal and assist, Conor Sheary tallied 3 points,  and the Washington Capitals rolled past the Philadelphia Flyers with a 6-1 win on Tuesday night, the first game after acquiring Mantha and Michael Raffl on Monday, despite the fact that Raffl didn't play.     Sheary started the scoring 7:07 into the first period, making it 1-0 Caps early. At 8:45, Sean Couturier scored for the Flyers to tie things up. Then, it was all Washington. Tom Wilson, Nick Backstrom, and Carl Hagelin scored to make it 4-1 after one period. In the second, Mantha scored to make it a 5-1 game. In the 3rd, Alex Ovechkin scored to make it 6-1.    Mantha said of scoring a goal and getting an assist in his debut that "Obviously when a team comes to get you, you want to look the best you can, and I think tonight was just a step forward for myself and kind of calmed the nerves a little bit. Have a go...

*Photo from the Detroit News*     Another NHL trade deadline has come and go, and quite a lot of moves were made. I can't really write about all of them, but I figured I would write about the teams in the playoff picture and the improvements they made, division by division.  *Photo from The Athletic* East Division The East is one of the more loaded divisions, with the top 3 teams separated by just a couple points, with the Bruins hanging back by a few. The Capitals added Anthony Mantha and Michael Raffl, improving their scoring to make them one of the better offensive teams in the league. The Islanders made the splash for Kyle Palmieri and Travis Zajac earlier in the week, and also acquired defensemen Braydon Coburn. The Penguins got Jeff Carter, while the Bruins added Taylor Hall, Curtis Lazar, and Mike Reilly.  *Photo from the Toronto Star* Central Division The Carolina Hurricanes did nothing, but the other teams in playoff position did. The Lightning added David S...

  *Photo from TSN*     The Washington Capitals are going all in. The Capitals have acquired F Anthony Mantha from the Detroit Red Wings in exchange for F's Jakub Vrana and Richard Panik, along with a first round pick this year and a second rounder next year, according to Darren Dreger of TSN. No salary is being retained. The deal has been confirmed.     Mantha, who is in the first year of a 4 year deal signed with the Red Wings in free agency, has scored 11 goals and 10 assists in 42 games played with Detroit this season. He was a first round pick by Detroit in the 2013 draft, and his rookie season was in the 2015-2016 campaign. Mantha scored a career high 25 goals in 2018-2019, to go along with 23 assists. He is under contract through the 2023-2024 season.    Vrana, who is a pending RFA, has tallied 11 goals and 14 assists in 39 games with the Capitals this season. He is a $3.35 million cap hit for Detroit, and will slot in as likely a middle 6 f...

*Photo from the Buffalo News*     The Boston Bruins needed to address their scoring woes. They did so by nabbing a pair of Buffalo Sabres. The Bruins have acquired RW Taylor Hall and C/RW Curtis Lazar from the Sabres in exchange for LW/RW Anders Bjork and a second round pick, according to Pierre LeBrun of TSN. The Sabres  are retaining 50 percent of Hall's salary. The deal has been confirmed.     Hall has had a dismal season so far with the Sabres after signing a one year deal at the start of free agency, scoring just 2 goals, but adding 17 assists in 37 games played with Buffalo. Hall has been healthy scratched for the last 4 games as a trade precaution, so he hasn't played since April 3. Hall has 220 career goals and 362 assists in 11 NHL seasons with the Edmonton Oilers, New Jersey Devils, Arizona Coyotes, and the Sabres.    Hall said in his introductory zoom meeting that "I don't want to set expectations too high, I want to come and win games....

*Photo from the Columbus Dispatch*     Columbus Blue Jackets captain Nick Foligno is on the move. Foligno has been traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs as part of a 3 team trade with the San Jose Sharks, according to Frank Seravalli of TSN. Foligno was first traded to the Sharks, who then immediately flipped him to Toronto. Both Columbus and San Jose are retaining part of Foligno's salary. The deal has been confirmed.    In the 3 team trade, Foligno and Sharks forward Stefan Noesen are heading to the Maple Leafs, a first and a 4th round pick are heading to the Blue Jackets, and the Sharks are getting a 4th round pick. Foligno has been captain of the Blue Jackets since May of 2015, and will be a UFA after the season.    Foligno said of being traded amidst the trade rumors that "It was an emotional couple of days. I have the utmost respect for Jarmo and how he brought this to my attention, talking about how if there was something that made sense for the tea...

*Photo from the Winnipeg Sun*     Connor Hellebuyck keeps setting Winnipeg Jets records. He didn't set a record Saturday night, but he was still very good in net. Hellebuyck recorded his 22nd shutout of his career, Andrew Copp scored a goal and an assist, and the Jets shut out the Montreal Canadiens with a 5-0 win Saturday night.     Paul Stastny started the scoring 10:13 of the second period, scoring his 12th goal of the season to make it 1-0 Jets. Nikolaj Ehlers and Derek Forbort also scored in the second to make it 3-0 Jets after two periods. In the 3rd, goals from Copp and Mathieu Perreault made it 5-0, which sealed the win.    Jets coach Paul Maurice said of the win that "I think the best part of the game was, for us, that we improved from our first game in here. We We had given up a fair amount off the rush. And we were much, much better at it. I also think we got stronger with it as the game went on. The areas that we thought we needed to i...

*Photo from Yahoo! Sports*     With backup goalie Pavel Francouz out for the season and Jonas Johansson being a number 3 goalie, the Colorado Avalanche needed a true number two goalie. They got one. The Avalanche have acquired G Devan Dubnyk from the San Jose Sharks in exchange for D Greg Pateryn and a 2021 5th round draft pick. The Avalanche have confirmed the trade.    For the Avalanche, they get a lucky bounce in this deal to help their cap situation. Although the Sharks aren't retaining any of Dubnyk's salary, the Minnesota Wild were already retaining half of his salary from the trade that sent Dubnyk to the Sharks to begin with. Dubnyk has a 3-9-2 record, 3.18 GAA, and a .898 save percentage this season with the Sharks.    Dubnyk has played for a variety of teams. He has suited up for the Sharks, Wild, Edmonton Oilers, Arizona Coyotes, and the Nashville Predators across 537 career games. Minnesota was the most lengthy stop in Dubnyk's career, spending ...