NHL 2020 Playoffs - Second Round Day 2

We're back with two games on day two of the second round. First up...

The Tampa Bay Lightning face the Boston Bruins. Jaroslav Halak and Andrei Vasilevskiy are the goalies. Boston began in the first period with a Charlie Coyle goal, his third of the postseason, assisted by Brandon Carlo and Brad Marchand. The Bruins added on with a David Pastrnak power play goal, his second of the playoffs, powered by David Krejci and Torey Krug. Boston extended the lead Marchand scored his fourth of the postseason in the third period, thanks to Pastrnak and Patrice Bergeron. Tampa Bay got on the board with a Victor Hedman goal, his second of the playoffs, coming off of Brayden Point and Ondrej Palat. The Lightning got closer with a Hedman goal, his second of the game and third of the postseason, via Kevin Shattenkirk and Tyler Johnson. This only made it 3-2, the final, with the three stars being Pastrnak, Marchand, and Hedman. The Bruins have a 1-0 series lead. 

Out west, the Vegas Golden Knights take on the Vancouver Canucks. Jacob Markstrom and Robin Lehner are the goalies. Vegas led off in the first period with a Jonathan Marchessault goal, his third of the postseason, courtesy of Reilly Smith and Shea Theodore. The Golden Knights added on in the second period with a Smith power play goal, his fourth of the playoffs, powered by Alex Tuch and Alec Martinez. Vegas extended the lead as Mark Stone scored his fifth of the postseason, with the help of Nate Schmidt and William Karlsson. The Golden Knights padded the lead on a Tuch goal, his fifth of the playoffs, fueled by Nick Cousins and Theodore. Vegas chased Markstrom in the third period with a Max Pacioretty goal, his second of the postseason, made possible by Stone and Chandler Stephenson. The final held at 5-0, with the three stars being Lehner (26 save shutout), Smith, and Tuch, while Stone gets an honorable mention. The Golden Knights are up 1-0 in the series. 

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NHL 2020 Playoffs - Second Round Day 1

There's no time to rest in the NHL playoffs with the immediate start of the second round. We begin with...

The Colorado Avalanche versus the Dallas Stars. Anton Khudobin and Philipp Grubauer play in goal. Dallas led off in the first period with a Tyler Seguin goal, via Jamie Benn and Alexander Radulov. Colorado tied it on a Nathan MacKinnon goal, his fifth of the postseason, assisted by Gabriel Landeskog and Mikko Rantanen. The Stars retook the lead with a Blake Comeau goal, fueled by Jamie Oleksiak and Miro Heiskanen. Dallas added on with a Radulov goal, his third of the playoffs, guided in by Benn and Radek Faksa. The Avalanche pulled one back in the second period with a Landeskog goal, coming off of MacKinnon and Samuel Girard. The Stars responded on a Radulov goal, his fourth of the postseason, made possible by Seguin and Benn. Colorado chipped back on a MacKinnon goal, his second of the game and sixth of the playoffs, with helpers from Girard and Nazem Kadri. Dallas capped it at 5-3 with a Roope Hintz goal, courtesy of Jason Dickinson and John Klingberg. The three stars were Radulov, Benn, and Seguin, while MacKinnon, Landeskog, and Girard get the honorable mentions. The Stars are ahead 1-0 in the series. 

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NHL 2020 Playoffs - First Round Day 11

Two games again today, beginning with...

The Montreal Canadiens versus the Philadelphia Flyers. Carter Hart and Carey Price are in goal. Philadelphia opened in the first period with an Ivan Provorov goal, via Kevin Hayes. The Flyers added on with a Hayes goal, courtesy of Derek Grant and Tyler Pitlick. Montreal got on the board with a Nick Suzuki power play goal, his third of the postseason, powered by Joel Armia and Jonathan Drouin. Philadelphia replied in the second period with a Michael Raffl goal, his third of the playoffs, assisted by Travis Sanheim and Jakub Voracek. The Canadiens pulled back on a Suzuki goal, his second of the game and fourth of the postseason, coming off of Drouin and Armia. This only made it 3-2, the final, with the three stars given to Hayes, Suzuki, and Drouin, while Armia gets an honorable mention. The Flyers won the series 4-2 and will take on the New York Islanders in the second round.

Out west, the Vancouver Canucks take on the St. Louis Blues. Jordan Binnington and Jacob Markstrom are the masked men. Vancouver started in the first period with an unassisted Jay Beagle goal. The Canucks added on with an Antoine Roussel goal, his second of the postseason, fueled by Brandon Sutter. Vancouver extended the lead as Troy Stecher scored his second of the playoffs, with the help of Sutter and Elias Pettersson. The Canucks padded the lead on a Brock Boeser power play goal, his third of the postseason, powered by Quinn Hughes and Pettersson. St. Louis got on the board in the third period with a Jaden Schwartz goal, his third of the playoffs, via Vince Dunn and Ryan O'Reilly. Vancouver replied with a Tyler Motte goal, his third of the postseason, with helpers by Beagle and Sutter. The Blues got one back with another Schwartz goal, his second of the game and fourth of the playoffs, made possible by David Perron and Alex Pietrangelo. The Canucks replied with an empty net goal by Motte, his second of the game and fourth of the postseason, going in unassisted. The final stood at 6-2 with the three stars given to Beagle, Sutter, and Motte, while Pettersson and Schwartz get the honorable mentions. The Canucks advanced on a 4-2 series win and will face the Vegas Golden Knights in the second round. 

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NHL 2020 Playoffs - First Round Day 10

Just two games on as the First Round starts to wind down. First up...

The Washington Capitals take on the New York Islanders. Semyon Varlamov and Braden Holtby are the goalies. New York opened in the first period with an Anthony Beauvillier power play goal, his fifth of the postseason, powered by Brock Nelson and Josh Bailey. The Islanders added on with another Beauvillier goal, his second of the game and sixth of the playoffs, courtesy of Bailey. New York extended the lead on a Nick Leddy empty net goal, his second of the postseason, going in unassisted. The Islanders iced it at 4-0 with an unassisted empty net goal by Bailey, his second of the playoffs. The three stars were Beauvillier, Bailey, and Varlamov (21 save shutout). The Islanders won the series 4-1. 

The other game today has the Calgary Flames versus the Dallas Stars. Anton Khudobin and Cam Talbot draw the starts in goal. Calgary started in the first period with an Andrew Mangiapane goal, his second of the postseason, coming off of T.J. Brodie and Mark Giordano. The Flames added on with a Johnny Gaudreau power play goal, his fourth of the playoffs, powered by Sam Bennett. Calgary extended the lead as Rasmus Andersson scored his third of the postseason, passed from Tobias Rieder and Noah Hanifin. Dallas got on the board with a Miro Heiskanen power play goal, his third of the playoffs, with assists provided by Corey Perry and Roope Hintz. The Stars got closer in the second period with a Denis Gurianov goal, his third of the postseason, courtesy of Heiskanen. Dallas tied it on a Gurianov goal, his second of the game and fourth of the playoffs, with helpers from Joe Pavelski and Esa Lindell. The Stars took the lead with a Radek Faksa power play goal, assisted by Gurianov and Heiskanen. Dallas padded the lead on a Pavelski goal, his sixth of the postseason, fueled by Heiskanen. The Stars continued with a Gurianov goal to complete his hat trick on his fifth of the playoffs, helped along by Pavelski and the goalie Khudobin. Dallas kept going in the third period with a Gurianov goal, his fourth of the game and sixth of the postseason, set up by Joel Kiviranta. The final remained at 7-3, with the three stars going to Gurianov, Heiskanen, and Pavelski. The Stars won the series 4-2 and will match up with the Colorado Avalanche in the next round. 

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NHL 2020 Playoffs - First Round Day 9

There's five games on today, four of which could be the last of their series. We begin with...

The Tampa Bay Lightning versus the Columbus Blue Jackets. Joonas Korpisalo and Andrei Vasilevskiy are the masked men. Tampa Bay began in the first period with a Tyler Johnson goal, his third of the postseason, via Erik Cernak and Anthony Cirelli. The Lightning added on with a Blake Coleman goal, coming off of Zach Bogosian. Columbus got on the board with a Nick Foligno goal, his second of the playoffs, fueled by Alexander Wennberg and Cam Atkinson. The Blue Jackets tied it with a Kevin Stenlund power play goal in the second period, powered by Seth Jones and Atkinson. Columbus took the lead on a Wennberg goal, his third of the postseason, helped along by Vladislav Gavrikov and Foligno. The Blue Jackets extended the lead as Oliver Bjorkstrand scored his third of the playoffs in the third period, thanks to Pierre-Luc Dubois and Gavrikov. Tampa Bay got one back on a Kevin Shattenkirk goal, guided in by Brayden Point and Nikita Kucherov. The Lightning tied it as Cirelli scored, with the help of Point and Kucherov. Tampa Bay won 5-4 in overtime with a Point goal, his fifth of the postseason, with a lone helper from Kucherov. The three stars went to Point, Kucherov, and Cirelli, while Wennberg, Foligno, Atkinson, and Gavrikov get the honorable mentions. The Lightning won the series 4-1. 

Next up, the Boston Bruins take on the Carolina Hurricanes. Petr Mrazek and Jaroslav Halak are the goalies. Carolina led off in the first period with a Haydn Fleury goal, his second of the postseason, courtesy of Sebastian Aho and Jordan Martinook. Boston tied it in the second period on a David Krejci power play goal, his third of the playoffs, via David Pastrnak and Patrice Bergeron. The Bruins took the lead with a Bergeron power play goal, his second of the postseason, with assists provided by Pastrnak and Krejci. This stood for a 2-1 win, with the three stars being Bergeron, Krejci, and Pastrnak. The Bruins won the series 4-1. 

Out west, the Colorado Avalanche face the Arizona Coyotes. Darcy Kuemper and Philipp Grubauer are set to start in goal. Colorado started in the first period with a Nazem Kadri power play goal, his fifth of the postseason, powered by Gabriel Landeskog and Nathan MacKinnon. The Avalanche added on with a Samuel Girard power play goal, with helpers from Andre Burakovsky and J.T. Compher. Colorado extended the lead as Kadri scored his second of the game and sixth of the playoffs, thanks to Burakovsky and Joonas Donskoi. The Avalanche padded the lead in the second period with a MacKinnon goal, his third of the postseason, with a lone assist by Mikko Rantanen. Colorado kept going with another MacKinnon goal, his second of the game and fourth of the playoffs, guided in by Rantanen and Cale Makar. The Avalanche struck again with a Nikita Zadorov goal, made possible by MacKinnon and Landeskog. Arizona got on the board in the third period with a Clayton Keller goal, his fourth of the postseason, fueled by Jason Demers and Derek Stepan. Colorado iced it at 7-1 with a Compher goal, his third of the playoffs, via Matt Nieto. The three stars were MacKinnon, Kadri, and Compher, while Landeskog, Burakovsky, and Rantanen get the honorable mentions. The Avalanche clinched the series at 4-1. 

Back east, the Philadelphia Flyers meet the Montreal Canadiens. Carey Price and Carter Hart tend the twines. Montreal opened in the first period with a Joel Armia shorthanded goal, his second of the postseason, set up by Xavier Ouellet and Brett Kulak. Philadelphia tied it in the second period with a Jakub Voracek power play goal, his third of the playoffs, powered by Claude Giroux and Ivan Provorov. The Flyers took the lead with a Voracek power play goal, his second of the game and fourth of the postseason, with assists from Giroux and Sean Couturier. The Canadiens retied it on an Armia goal, his second of the game and third of the playoffs, fueled by Kulak. Montreal took the lead with a Brendan Gallagher power play goal, guided in by Nick Suzuki and Jonathan Drouin. Philadelphia tied it on a Joel Farabee power play goal in the third period, his third of the postseason, made possible by Voracek and Couturier. The Canadiens took the lead back on a Suzuki goal, his second of the playoffs, via Drouin. Montreal iced it at 5-3 with a Phillip Danault empty net goal, courtesy of Artturi Lehkonen. The three stars were Suzuki, Armia, and Voracek, while Drouin, Kulak, Giroux, and Couturier get the honorable mentions. The Canadiens stay alive, cutting the Flyers' series lead to 3-2. 

Finally, the St. Louis Blues oppose the Vancouver Canucks. Jacob Markstrom and Jake Allen are set to start in goal. Vancouver struck first in the first period with a shorthanded and unassisted Tyler Motte goal. St. Louis tied it on a Brayden Schenn goal, his second of the postseason, coming off of Oskar Sundqvist. The Blues took the lead with a Ryan O'Reilly goal, his fourth of the playoffs, assisted by Sammy Blais and Vince Dunn. St. Louis added on in the second period with a Zach Sanford power play goal, powered by Robert Thomas and Tyler Bozak. The Canucks got one back with a J.T. Miller goal, his fifth of the postseason, made possible by Jake Virtanen and Elias Pettersson. Vancouver tied it on a Virtanen goal, courtesy of Miller and Pettersson. The Canucks gained the lead on a Motte goal, his second of the game, via Brandon Sutter and Troy Stecher. This held for the eventual 4-3 final score, with the three stars being Motte, Miller, and Virtanen, while Pettersson gets an honorable mention. The Canucks retook the series lead at 3-2. 

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NHL 2020 Playoffs - First Round Day 8

Four games again today, beginning with...

The Montreal Canadiens against the Philadelphia Flyers. Carter Hart and Carey Price guard the cages. Philadelphia began in the first period with a Michael Raffl goal, his second of the postseason, coming off of Sean Couturier and Jakub Voracek. The Flyers added on with a Philippe Myers goal, his second of the playoffs, courtesy of Travis Konecny and Kevin Hayes in the second period. This stood for a 2-0 win, with the three stars being Hart (29 save shutout), Raffl, and Myers. The Flyers lead the series 3-1. 

Out west, the Dallas Stars face the Calgary Flames. Cam Talbot and Anton Khudobin are in goal. Dallas led off in the first period with a Jamie Benn shorthanded goal, his second of the of the postseason, set up by Tyler Seguin. Calgary tied it on a Mikael Backlund goal, his fourth of the playoffs, going in unassisted. The Stars took the lead in the third period with a John Klingberg goal, fueled by Mattias Janmark. This stood for the 2-1 final score, with the three stars being Khudobin (28 for 29 in saves), Klingberg, and Benn. The Stars are ahead 3-2 in the series. 

In the east, the New York Islanders take on the Washington Capitals. Braden Holtby and Semyon Varlamov man the nets. New York started in the first period with a Jean-Gabriel Pageau goal, his fourth of the postseason, assisted by Scott Mayfield and Casey Cizikas. The Islanders added on with a Mathew Barzal goal, his third of the playoffs, via Nick Leddy and Andy Greene. Washington got on the board in the second period with an Evgeny Kuznetsov goal, his third of the postseason, coming off of John Carlson and the goalie Holtby. The Capitals tied it on an Alex Ovechkin power play goal, his third of the playoffs, powered by Carlson and Kuznetsov. Washington took the lead with an Ovechkin goal in the third period, his second of the game and fourth of the postseason, courtesy of Dmitry Orlov. This held for a 3-2 win, with the three stars going to Ovechkin, Kuznetsov, and Carlson. The Capitals stay alive, but the Islanders lead the series 3-1. 

Finally, the Vegas Golden Knights oppose the Chicago Blackhawks. Corey Crawford and Robin Lehner tend the twines. Chicago opened in the first period with a Jonathan Toews goal, his fifth of the postseason, coming off of Dominik Kubalik and Brandon Saad. The Blackhawks added on with an Alex DeBrincat goal, his second of the playoffs, guided in by Dylan Strome and Connor Murphy. Vegas got on the board with a Max Pacioretty goal, assisted by Brayden McNabb and William Karlsson. The Golden Knights tied it with a Mark Stone goal, his fourth of the postseason, via Karlsson and Pacioretty. Chicago regained the lead with a Patrick Kane goal, his second of the playoffs, fueled by Drake Caggiula. Vegas retied it with a power play goal by Alec Martinez, powered by Reilly Smith and Nate Schmidt. The Golden Knights pulled ahead in the third period with an Alex Tuch goal, his fourth of the postseason, helped along by Jonathan Marchessault and Shea Theodore. This stood for a 4-3 win, with the three stars given to Pacioretty, Karlsson, and Tuch. The Golden Knights advanced on a 4-1 series win. 

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NHL 2020 Playoffs - First Round Day 7

There's four games on today, beginning with...

The Columbus Blue Jackets versus the Tampa Bay Lightning. Andrei Vasilevskiy and Joonas Korpisalo man the nets. Tampa Bay got going in the second period with a Barclay Goodrow goal, assisted by Blake Coleman and Yanni Gourde. The Lightning added on with a Gourde goal, his second of the postseason, coming off of Kevin Shattenkirk and Goodrow. Columbus got on the board with a Cam Atkinson goal, his third of the playoffs, guided in by Pierre-Luc Dubois and Zach Werenski. The final remained at 2-1, with the three stars being Vasilevskiy (28 for 29 in saves), Gourde, and Goodrow. The Lightning are ahead 3-1 in the series. 

Next up, the Arizona Coyotes take on the Colorado Avalanche. Philipp Grubauer and Darcy Kuemper start in goal. Colorado led off in the first period with a Matt Nieto goal, assisted by Matt Calvert and Pierre-Edouard Bellemare. The Avalanche added on with a Nazem Kadri power play goal, his third of the postseason, powered by Gabriel Landeskog and Mikko Rantanen. Colorado extended the lead as Kadri scored again on the power play, his second of the game and fourth of the playoffs, with the help of Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar. The Avalanche padded the lead in the second period with a Joonas Donskoi goal, his third of the postseason, helped along by Andre Burakovsky and Kadri. Arizona got on the board with a Jakob Chychrun power play goal, with assists provided by Jordan Oesterle and Vinnie Hinostroza. Antti Raanta replaced Kuemper in goal. Colorado replied in the third period with a Makar goal, his second of the playoffs, going in unassisted. The Avalanche continued with a Calvert goal, coming off of MacKinnon and Ryan Graves. Colorado capped it at 7-1 with a Rantanen power play goal, his third of the postseason, passed from Erik Johnson and Landeskog. The three stars were Kadri, Calvert, and Rantanen, while Makar, Landeskog, and MacKinnon get the honorable mentions. The Avalanche have a 3-1 series lead. 

Back east, the Carolina Hurricanes face the Boston Bruins. Jaroslav Halak and James Reimer are the goalies. Carolina began in the first period with a Justin Williams goal, assisted by Vincent Trocheck and Jake Gardiner. The Hurricanes added on with a Jordan Martinook goal, his second of the postseason, courtesy of Sebastian Aho in the second period. Boston got on the board in the third period with a Jake DeBrusk goal, his second of the playoffs, coming off of Ondrej Kase and Connor Clifton. The Bruins tied it with a Clifton goal, made possible by Joakim Nordstrom and Chris Wagner. Boston took the lead with a Brad Marchand goal, his third of the postseason, helped along by Torey Krug. The Bruins extended the lead as DeBrusk scored his second of the game and third of the playoffs, via Kase and David Krejci. Carolina got one back with a Teuvo Teravainen goal, his third of the postseason, passed from Brady Skjei and Dougie Hamilton. This only made it 4-3, the final, with the three stars given to DeBrusk, Clifton, and Kase. The Bruins moved ahead 3-1 in the series. 

Finally, the Vancouver Canucks oppose the St. Louis Blues. Jake Allen and Jake Markstrom occupy the creases. St. Louis kicked off the scoring in the first period with a Ryan O'Reilly power play goal, his second of the postseason, powered by Alex Pietrangelo. Vancouver tied it in the second period with a J.T. Miller goal, his fourth of the playoffs, guided in by Alexander Edler. The Blues took the lead back on an O'Reilly goal, his second of the game and third of the postseason, via David Perron. St. Louis added on with a Pietrangelo power play goal, with assists provided by O'Reilly and Perron. This stood for a 3-1 win, with the three stars awarded to O'Reilly, Pietrangelo, and Perron. The series is tied at 2. 

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