Five Minute Major

*Photo from NHL.com* Florida leads series 3-2     The cats are one win away. Sam Bennett had a goal and an assist, Anton Lundell scored, and the Florida Panthers defeated the New York Rangers with a 3-2 victory Thursday night in Manhattan.    By winning the game 3-2, the Panthers take a 3-2 series lead in the Eastern Conference final, one win away from knocking out the Presidents Trophy winners and advancing to the Stanley Cup final. It was a 3 goal surge from the second to the 3rd period that was the difference for the Panthers.    After a scoreless first period, Chris Kreider got the Rangers on the board in the second period. He gave them a 1-0 lead when he scored shorthanded 2:04 into the period, assisted by Mika Zibanejad. At the 8:21 mark of the second, Bennett and Aaron Ekblad got assists on Gustav Forsling's 4th goal of the playoffs to tie the game 1-1.    Lundell scored 10:22 into the 3rd period for the Panthers, giving them a 2-1 lead on ...

*Photo from the Hockey News* Series tied 2-2     Buckle up, this will be one to watch. Connor McDavid had 3 assists, Mattias Janmark scored the game winning goal, and the Edmonton Oilers defeated the Dallas Stars with a 5-2 victory Wednesday night in Edmonton.    Down 2-0 in the first period, the Oilers rattled off 5 unanswered goals to take control of the game, tying the series 2-2 and forcing at least a game 6. The tale of this series has been sudden momentum swings, and what transpired in game 4 was no different.    Oilers head coach Kris Knoblauch said of the win that "I was thinking it was going to be a long night. Yeah, it didn’t look very good. Things weren’t going our way. They looked much sharper making plays. It wasn't the start we wanted, but you’ve seen this right through the series where both teams have absolutely dominated, and then the other team has dominated. Like, it’s been back-and-forth."    Wyatt Johnston scored just...

*Photo from the Miami Herald* Series tied 2-2     Just like that, we're tied again. Aleksander Barkov had two assists, Sam Reinhart scored the game winning goal, and the Florida Panthers defeated the New York Rangers with a 3-2 victory Tuesday night in Sunrise.    With the Rangers previously at 4-0 in overtime in the playoffs, the Panthers handed them their first overtime loss of the postseason as they tied the series. Barkov was the lone multi point player for the Panthers, who forced a game 6 with the win.    Panthers forward Sam Bennett said of the win that "We wanted it so bad. I think we were gripping our sticks a little tight in the first. Then we started to loosen up and just relax, started making more plays, got back to our game that we've had success with all year. It was good composure by our part, and we just calmed down in the second and third there."    Vincent Trocheck scored the only goal of the first period, giving the Rangers...

*Photo from NHL.com* Dallas leads series 2-1     This'll be one fun series. Roope Hintz had two assists, Jason Robertson had a hat trick, and the Dallas Stars defeated the Edmonton Oilers with a 5-3 victory Monday night in Edmonton.    After the Stars rallied to win game two at home, they outscored the Oilers 5-1 over the final two periods to take control of game 3, taking the series lead in the process. Hintz, Tyler Seguin, and Jamie Benn each had two assists to compliment Robertson's hat trick.    Zach Hyman opened the scoring, giving the Oilers a 1-0 lead just 2:02 into the game on his 13th goal of the playoffs. Connor McDavid scored unassisted 7:37 into the game to double the Oilers lead to 2-0. Robertson got the Stars on the board 5:35 into the second period, cutting it to 2-1 with Hintz and Seguin assisting.    At the 8:05 mark of the period, Robertson scored his second goal of the night, tying the game 2-2 with Hintz getting the lone assist...

*Photo from the Miami Herald* New York leads series 2-1     Anyone want a barn burner here? Barclay Goodrow scored two goals, Alex Wennberg scored the game winning goal, and the New York Rangers defeated the Florida Panthers with a 5-4 overtime win Sunday in Sunrise.    Having split the first two games, the Rangers won the first game in Florida to take the series lead. Goodrow and Alexis Lafreniere each had two goals while Vincent Trocheck and Jacob Trouba each had two assists. The Rangers also remained undefeated in overtime, sitting at 4-0 these playoffs.    Sam Reinhart opened the scoring 2:50 into the game for the Panthers, making it 1-0 as he scored on the power play. At the 7:17 mark of the first, Lafreniere scored his 5th goal of the playoffs, tying the game 1-1. Goodrow scored 25 seconds later, giving the Rangers a 2-1 lead with Braden Schneider and Will Cuylle assisting.    On the power play at the 14:46 mark of the period, Reinhart score...

*Photo from Yahoo Sports* Series tied 1-1     Through two, it's tied. Wyatt Johnston had two assists, Mason Marchment scored the game winning goal, and the Dallas Stars defeated the Edmonton Oilers with a 3-1 victory Saturday night in Dallas.    After losing a double overtime contest in game one, the Stars bounced back in game two, scoring twice in the 3rd period to deliver the series tying win. Johnston and Jamie Benn each had two points for the Stars.    Dallas goalie Jake Oettinger said of the win that "It’s not always going to go your way every night. It’s about not letting it be two nights in a row. Everyone’s got to respond, not just me. It’s not just me that’s responded. It’s the group in front of me and the guys and the leadership from the top down that kind of starts that."    It was the Stars who got on the board first in game two. It was the captain Benn who got it started, giving the Stars a 1-0 lead 3:39 into the game with assist...

*Photo from the San Diego Union Tribune* Series tied 1-1     Just like that, it's tied. Igor Shesterkin came up big in net, Barclay Goodrow scored the game winning goal, and the New York Rangers defeated the Florida Panthers with a 2-1 overtime victory Friday night in Manhattan.    After being shut out on home ice in game one, the Rangers responded in game two, tying the series on the back of a timely goal and having the better goalie performance. The Rangers have gone into overtime 3 times in the playoffs, and they're undefeated in those games.    Rangers head coach Peter Laviolette said of the win that "I thought it was a pretty competitive game both ways. I did like our game better and we end up getting a big overtime goal to move in. You definitely feel a lot better going down to Florida 1-1 than 0-2, and so it was a big win for us."    It was the Rangers who got the lead first in this one. Vincent Trocheck found the back of the net for t...

*Photo from CTV News Edmonton* Edmonton leads series 1-0     What a way to start a series. Zach Hyman had a goal and an assist, Connor McDavid scored the game winning goal, and the Edmonton Oilers defeated the Dallas Stars with a 3-2 victory Thursday night in Dallas.    The series opener of the western conference final took extra time, requiring two overtimes to settle. The Oilers won the marathon this time around, jumping out to the early series lead over the Stars. Both Hyman and McDavid had a goal and an assist to pace the Oilers on the scoresheet.    Edmonton defenseman Mattias Ekholm said of the win that "I thought we matched up good. I thought we played really well, at times they had the upper hand at times we had the upper hand. That’s the way it’s supposed to be in the playoffs. I really enjoyed the way we played Game 1, but again, it’s one win. Doesn’t really matter in the long run. We have to be ready to go in Game 2."    Leon Drais...

*Photo from the New York Post* Florida leads series 1-0     Talk about taking control early. Sergei Bobrovsky shined in goal, Matthew Tkachuk had a goal and an assist, and the Florida Panthers defeated the New York Rangers with a 3-0 shutout victory Wednesday night in Manhattan.    The Panthers made a statement early in the series, handing the Presidents Trophy winning Rangers a shutout loss on home ice to open the conference finals, a matchup of eastern conference division champions. It's the second straight win for the Panthers and the Rangers 3rd in 4 games.    Florida got the only "standard" goal of this game in the first. It came from Tkachuk, who scored at the 16:26 mark of the opening period, giving the Panthers a 1-0 lead with Carter Verhaeghe and Gustav Forsling assisting on his 5th goal of the playoffs. After that, things got weird in the final period. Pretty weird.    After a scoreless second period, the Panthers doubled their lead in t...

*Photo from the New York Times*     He's coming back to town. The Tampa Bay Lightning have acquired D Ryan McDonagh and a 2024 4th round draft pick from the Nashville Predators in exchange for a 2025 second round pick and a 2024 7th round pick, according to both teams.    According to Predators GM Barry Trotz, McDonagh approached the team at the end of the season about trading him back to Tampa Bay after the Predators acquired him before the 2022-2023 season from the Lightning. McDonagh waived his no trade clause to get the deal done.    Trotz said of the conversation that "We talked at the end of the year and he's got so many good memories of his time in Tampa, that's probably where him and his wife are going to settle. We just had a conversation about a little bit of life and what that holds in the future. For me, he's been such a fantastic leader and someone who I have so much respect for. He said if there's ever an opportunity for me to get back to Tamp...

*Photo from Clutch Points* Edmonton wins series 4-3     Game over, series over. Evan Bouchard had two assists, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins had a goal and an assist, and the Edmonton Oilers defeated the Vancouver Canucks with a 3-2 victory Monday night in Vancouver.    It was the Oilers who prevailed in game 7, sending the Canucks packing with two straight wins after trailing the series 3-2. The Oilers are now the only Canadian team left in contention, trying to bring the Stanley Cup back to Canada for the first time since 1993.     This was a meaningful game for Nugent-Hopkins as well, picking up a two point game in not only the biggest game of the season so far for the Oilers, but doing it just 20 minutes from his hometown in Burnaby, British Columbia.    Nugent-Hopkins said after the game that "It's something you kind of dream of as a kid. It truly hasn't sunk in yet that it's here because you're so focused on playing, but my brother and I and...

*Photo from the Durham Herald Sun*     We have a coaching move to discuss. Or lack thereof. Carolina Hurricanes head coach Rod Brind'Amour has agreed to a 5 year contract extension to remain with the team, according to Pierre Lebrun of TSN. The team has confirmed the news.    Carolina GM Don Waddell said of the extension that "The number one priority for us was to make sure we got Rod taken care of. And Rod's got a great team that he picked as coaches. It was important for Rod and myself to make sure that we have all of them under contract moving forward."    Brind'Amour was set to hit the open market on July 1 as his previous contract was set to expire. He now gets extended long term along with his assistant coaches Tim Gleason and Jeff Daniels, plus video coach Chris Huffine and goalie coach Paul Schonfelder. Brind'Amour has been a part of the Hurricanes organization for 24 years.    After spending 9 full seasons and part of a 10th as a pla...

*Photo from Yahoo Sports* Series tied 3-3     We'll go to 7. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins had a goal and two assists, Connor McDavid had 3 assists, and the Edmonton Oilers defeated the Vancouver Canucks with a 5-1 victory Saturday night in Edmonton.    The Oilers had to win on home ice to force the series to a deciding game 7, and they did just that, riding 4 unanswered goals in the second and 3rd period to take down the Canucks. Leon Draisaitl also chipped in two assists while Evan Bouchard had a goal and an assist.    McDavid, the Oilers captain, said of the win that "Nothing to be satisfied or excited about. We just bought ourselves another day, and I would expect the same level of urgency and desperation from our group. I would expect Vancouver to play a better game as well, and I would expect it to be a highly competitive, great Game 7."    Dylan Holloway kicked off the scoring for the Oilers, giving them a 1-0 lead 8:18 into the game on his 3rd ...

*Photo from Spectrum News* Dallas wins series 4-2     The third of 4 series in round two is done. Jamie Benn tied the game, Matt Duchene won the game, and the Dallas Stars defeated the Colorado Avalanche with a 2-1 double overtime victory Friday night in Denver.    It took more than a full game to settle, but the Stars came out on top in this one, officially knocking out the Avalanche and securing their spot in the western conference finals. The Stars are making their second straight trip to the conference finals, hoping for a better result than last year.    Stars head coach Pete Deboer said of the win that "Our team comes in here and wins three road games against the best home team in the NHL. Just fantastic character to be able to do that against that team in this building. What a gauntlet. Colorado was a more rested team after their first round. I just couldn't be prouder of our group. I thought everybody dug deep, and our depth did carry us throug...

*Photo from ESPN* Florida wins series 4-2     The eastern conference is all done with round two. Anton Lundell had a goal and an assist, Gustav Forsling scored the game winning goal, and the Florida Panthers defeated the Boston Bruins with a 2-1 victory Friday night in Boston.    With the win, the Panthers have secured a spot in the eastern conference finals for the second year in a row, also eliminating the Bruins on the TD Garden ice for the second year in a row. The Panthers won all 3 games of the series in Boston, having won 6 straight playoff games in Boston overall, dating back to last year.    Florida head coach Paul Maurice said of the series that "This was an amazing series from behind the bench. It was dirty on both sides, it was heavy, it was clean, it was brilliantly skilled at times. It didn't feel in-control, it didn't feel methodical. Everybody had a plan, and then they spent the rest of the six games trying to punch each other in the fa...

*Photo from MSN* Vancouver leads series 3-2     How about some more late game drama? Arturs Silovs delivered in goal, JT Miller scored the game winner, and the Vancouver Canucks defeated the Edmonton Oilers with a 3-2 victory Thursday night in Vancouver.    After the teams scored twice in the last two minutes of game 4, a late game goal by Miller was the difference in game 5 as the Canucks took a 3-2 series lead and pushing the Oilers to the brink of elimination with the win. Holding the top power play in the league to 3 shots on 5 tries helps.    Canucks head coach Rick Tocchet said after the game that "Almost every single guy gave us everything they had. Resilient. I thought the guys were terrific tonight. They really came to play. It thought it was obviously one of our best games in the playoffs."    Evander Kane started the scoring in this one, putting the Oilers ahead 1-0 with his 3rd goal of the playoffs 4:34 into the game. Carson Soucy...

*Photo from the Toledo Blade* New York wins series 4-2     Another series has reached the end. Artemi Panarin had two assists, Chris Kreider had a natural hat trick, and the New York Rangers defeated the Carolina Hurricanes with a 5-3 victory Thursday night in Raleigh.    The win secures the series victory for the Rangers, stamping their ticket to the eastern conference finals in the process. Trailing by two goals entering the 3rd period, the President's Trophy winning Rangers flexed their offensive muscles with 4 unanswered goals in the 3rd.    New York captain Jacob Trouba said of the series win that "There’s a belief in the room and a trust in the guys that’s been built over the time we’ve spent together here. We know what’s on the line, we only get so many cracks at it. We wanted to end this thing tonight after letting it slip away in New York, so that was the focus. We knew we had one more period to get it done. A lot of guys stepped up big." ...

*Photo from ESPN* Dallas leads series 3-2     We're going back to mile high. Artturi Lehkonen had a goal and an assist, Cale Makar had two goals, and the Colorado Avalanche defeated the Dallas Stars with a 5-3 victory Wednesday night in Dallas.    Needing a win to keep their season alive, the Avalanche did just that and forced a game 6 in the series. The Avalanche held their first lead of the series as well, the first time they had been ahead since Miles Wood scored in OT of game one. Lehkonen, Makar, and Nathan MacKinnon each had two points.    MacKinnon said after the game that "I don’t think we’ve had a lead for one second in this series. Finally got one. Obviously, we wanted one in the first, but that’s a tough goal for them to give up with less than one second left. It was big for us. Tied it up again. Finally got a lead. It was nice to get the lead for once."    Joe Pavelski started the scoring in this one, getting the Stars on the boar...

*Photo from Sportsnet* Series tied 2-2     How's this for some late game magic? Leon Draisaitl had a goal and an assist, Evan Bouchard scored the game winning goal, and the Edmonton Oilers defeated the Vancouver Canucks with a 3-2 victory Tuesday night in Edmonton.    Having lost the first game at home to fall behind 2-1, the Oilers didn't let that happen again as they won game 4 to even the series at two games apiece, forcing a game 6 back in Edmonton. Draisaitl and Bouchard each had a goal and an assist.    Oilers head coach Kris Knoblauch said of the win that "There’s not much more adversity than giving up a two-goal lead late in the game the way we did, and coming up big and scoring late in the third period. So, it just makes the win even sweeter."    Draisaitl got the scoring started, giving the Oilers a 1-0 lead on the only goal of the first period, assisted by Bouchard and Connor McDavid. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins scored the only goal of the...

*Photo from The Rink Live* Florida leads series 3-2     We'll get at least 6 games out of this one. Jeremy Swayman starred in net, Charlie McAvoy had a goal and an assist, and the Boston Bruins defeated the Florida Panthers with a 2-1 victory Tuesday night in Sunrise.    Needing to win to stay alive in the playoff race, the Bruins did so, forcing at least a game 6 in the series with their second road win of the series. The Bruins got out to a fast start, outshooting the Panthers 13-4 in the first period to keep their hopes alive.    Boston head coach Jim Montgomery said of the win that "I thought we made really good decisions with the puck in the first period, which led to the most O-zone time in a period, which led to quality scoring chances. Tonight was our best game of the series."    As part of the Bruins fast start in the first period, they did find a goal among the shots they peppered on goal. Morgan Geekie got the scoring started, giving th...