NHL 2022 Western Conference Finals - Game 1

The Colorado Avalanche open the Western Conference Finals against the Edmonton Oilers. Mike Smith and Darcy Kuemper are the goalies. Edmonton started in the first period with an Evander Kane goal, his thirteenth of the postseason, assisted by Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Kailer Yamamoto. Colorado tied it on a J.T. Compher goal, his third of the playoffs, via Alex Newhook and Andre Burakovsky. The Avalanche took the lead with a Nathan MacKinnon goal, his ninth of the postseason, passed from Devon Toews and Cale Makar. The Oilers tied it again with a Zach Hyman goal, his ninth of the playoffs, guided in by Brett Kulak and Connor McDavid. Colorado retook the lead on a Makar goal, his fourth of the postseason, going in unassisted. The Avalanche added on with a Nazem Kadri power play goal in the second period, his sixth of the playoffs, powered by Gabriel Landeskog and Mikko Rantanen. Edmonton pulled one back with a Ryan McLeod goal, his second of the postseason, with helpers from Warren Foegele and Darnell Nurse. Colorado fired back with a Rantanen goal, his second of the playoffs, made possible by MacKinnon and Artturi Lehkonen. The Avalanche extended the lead as Compher scored his second of the game and fourth of the postseason, thanks to Makar and Toews. Mikko Koskinen replaced Smith in goal. Pavel Francouz also replaced Kuemper in goal shortly after that. Colorado padded the lead on an Andrew Cogliano goal, his second of the playoffs, fueled by Logan O'Connor. The Oilers pulled one back on a McDavid goal, his eighth of the postseason, coming off of Leon Draisaitl and Kane. Edmonton got closer in the third period with a Derek Ryan goal, courtesy of Zack Kassian and Evan Bouchard. The Oilers pulled closer with a power play goal by Nugent-Hopkins, his fifth of the playoffs, with assists provided by Draisaitl and McDavid. The Avalanche iced it at 8-6 with a Gabriel Landeskog empty net goal, his seventh of the postseason, an unassisted goal. The three stars were Makar, Compher, and MacKinnon, while McDavid, Rantanen, Nugent-Hopkins, Kane, Toews, and Draisaitl get the honorable mentions. The Avalanche established a 1-0 series lead. 

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NHL Playoffs 2022 - Day 27

The second round ends here, with the Carolina Hurricanes hosting the New York Rangers. Igor Shesterkin and Antti Raanta are the goalies. New York opened in the first period with an Adam Fox power play goal, his fifth of the postseason, powered by Alexis Lafreniere and Andrew Copp. The Rangers added on with a Chris Kreider power play goal, his seventh of the playoffs, with assists provided by Mika Zibanejad and Fox. New York extended the lead in the second period as Ryan Strome scored his second of the postseason, thanks to Artemi Panarin and K'Andre Miller. The Rangers padded the lead on a Kreider goal, his second of the game and eighth of the playoffs, coming off of Frank Vatrano and Zibanejad. Carolina got on the board with a Tony DeAngelo goal, his second of the postseason, fueled by Sebastian Aho. New York shot back with a Filip Chytil goal, his fifth of the playoffs, guided in by Kaapo Kakko. The Hurricanes got one back with a Max Domi goal, his third of the postseason, helped along by Jordan Martinook and Jesperi Kotkaniemi. The Rangers iced it at 6-2 with a Copp empty net goal, his sixth of the playoffs, set up by Zibanejad and Barclay Goodrow. The Rangers won the series 4-3, and they'll face the Tampa Bay Lightning in the Eastern Conference Finals. 

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NHL Playoffs 2022 - Day 26

Another one-game day sees the New York Rangers bringing in the Carolina Hurricanes. Antti Raanta and Igor Shesterkin protect the nets. New York kicked off the scoring in the first period with a Tyler Motte goal, his second of the postseason, going in unassisted. The Rangers added on with a power play goal by Mika Zibanejad, his seventh of the playoffs, powered by Adam Fox and the goalie Shesterkin. New York extended the lead in the second period as Filip Chytil scored his third of the postseason, thanks to Fox. Pyotr Kochetkov replaced Raanta in goal. Carolina got on the board with a Brady Skjei goal, passed from Sebastian Aho and Seth Jarvis. The Rangers shot back on another Chytil goal, his second of the game and fourth of the playoffs, guided in by Alexis Lafreniere and the goalie Shesterkin. The Hurricanes got one back with a Vincent Trocheck goal, his fifth of the postseason, made possible by Martin Necas and Skjei. New York replied in the third period with an Artemi Panarin power play goal, his fourth of the playoffs, with assists provided by Chris Kreider and Ryan Strome. The final held at 5-2, with the three stars going to Chytil, Shesterkin (37 for 39 in saves, two assists), and Fox, while Skjei gets an honorable mention. The series is tied at 3-3 and will see a Game 7 on Monday. 

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NHL Playoffs 2022 - Day 25

They're all one-game days from here on out. Today's is the St. Louis Blues hosting the Colorado Avalanche. Darcy Kuemper and Ville Husso man the nets. St. Louis led off in the first period with a Justin Faulk goal, via Robert Thomas and Niko Mikkola. Colorado tied it in the second period with a J.T. Compher goal, assisted by Josh Manson and Andre Burakovsky. The Blues retook the lead with a Jordan Kyrou goal, his seventh of the postseason, passed from Brayden Schenn. The Avalanche tied it again in the third period with a Compher power play goal, his second of the game, powered by Bowen Byram and Devon Toews. Colorado won with a Darren Helm goal, guided in by Logan O'Connor and Erik Johnson. This stood for a 3-2 win, with the three stars going to Compher, Helm, and Kyrou. The Avalanche won the series 4-2 and will have home-ice advantage against the Edmonton Oilers in the Western Conference Finals. 

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NHL Playoffs 2022 - Day 24

We're back for a two-game night, beginning with...

The Carolina Hurricanes welcoming the New York Rangers. Igor Shesterkin and Antti Raanta are the goalies. Carolina opened in the first period with a Vincent Trocheck shorthanded goal, his fourth of the postseason, set up by Jordan Staal. New York tied it on a Mika Zibanejad power play goal, his sixth of the playoffs, powered by Artemi Panarin and Adam Fox. The Hurricanes took the lead back in the second period with a Teuvo Teravainen power play goal, his fourth of the postseason, with assists provided by Seth Jarvis and Tony DeAngelo. Carolina added on in the third period with an Andrei Svechnikov goal, his fourth of the playoffs, coming off of Martin Necas and Brett Pesce. The final held at 3-1, with the three stars going to Teravainen, Svechnikov, and Trocheck. The Hurricanes retook the series lead at 3-2.

Out west, the Calgary Flames bring in the Edmonton Oilers. Mike Smith and Jacob Markstrom man the nets. Calgary started in the first period with an Andrew Mangiapane goal, his third of the postseason, courtesy of Blake Coleman and Mikael Backlund. The Flames added on in the second period with a Backlund goal, his fifth of the playoffs, via Michael Stone and Coleman. Edmonton got on the board with a Darnell Nurse goal, his second of the postseason, helped along by Leon Draisaitl and Zach Hyman. The Oilers tied it on a Jesse Puljujarvi goal, his second of the playoffs, guided in by Hyman. Edmonton took the lead with a Hyman power play goal, his eighth of the postseason, powered by Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Draisaitl. Calgary tied it again with a Johnny Gaudreau goal, his third of the playoffs, fueled by Oliver Kylington. The Flames retook the lead with a Calle Jarnkrok goal, assisted by Nikita Zadorov. The Oilers retied it on an Evan Bouchard goal, his third of the postseason, with helpers from Draisaitl and Duncan Keith. Edmonton won 5-4 in overtime with a Connor McDavid goal, his seventh of the playoffs, set up by Draisaitl. The three stars were Draisaitl, Hyman, and Backlund, while Coleman gets an honorable mention. The Oilers won the series 4-1 and will play in the Western Conference Finals. 

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NHL Playoffs 2022 - Day 23

There's just one game on today, with a season on the line as the Colorado Avalanche host the St. Louis Blues. Ville Husso and Darcy Kuemper man the nets. Colorado struck first in the first period with a Nathan MacKinnon goal, his sixth of the postseason, via Artturi Lehkonen and Bowen Byram. The Avalanche added on with a MacKinnon power play goal, his second of the game and seventh of the playoffs, powered by Mikko Rantanen and Cale Makar. Colorado extended the lead in the second period as Gabriel Landeskog goal, his sixth of the postseason, made possible by Devon Toews and MacKinnon. St. Louis got on the board with a Vladimir Tarasenko goal, his sixth of the playoffs, guided in by Brayden Schenn and Nick Leddy. The Blues got one back in the third period with a Robert Thomas goal, courtesy of Pavel Buchnevich and Leddy. St. Louis tied it on a Justin Faulk goal, with helpers from Alexei Toropchenko and Leddy. The Avalanche retook the lead on a MacKinnon goal, completing his hat trick on his eighth of the postseason, assisted by Byram. The Blues tied it again with a Thomas goal, his second of the game, helped along by Tarasenko and Buchnevich. St. Louis won 5-4 in overtime with a Tyler Bozak goal, his second of the playoffs, fueled by Leddy. The three stars were MacKinnon, Leddy, and Thomas, while Tarasenko, Buchnevich, and Byram get the honorable mentions. The Avalanche are still ahead 3-2 in the series heading back to St. Louis. 

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NHL Playoffs 2022 - Day 22

We're up for two more games today. First up...

The New York Rangers host the Carolina Hurricanes. Antti Raanta and Igor Shesterkin man the nets. New York started in the first period with a Frank Vatrano power play goal, his third of the postseason, powered by Andrew Copp and Adam Fox. The Rangers added on with a Fox goal, his fourth of the playoffs, with assists provided by Ryan Lindgren and Copp. New York extended the lead in the second period as Mika Zibanejad scored his fifth of the postseason, thanks to Lindgren and Vatrano. Carolina got on the board in the third period with a Teuvo Teravainen goal, his third of the playoffs, guided in by Sebastian Aho. The Rangers fired back with a Copp goal, his fifth of the postseason, made possible by Ryan Strome. The final held at 4-1, with the three stars going to Copp, Fox, and Vatrano, while Lindgren gets an honorable mention. The series heads south again tied at 2-2.

Out west, the Edmonton Oilers host the Calgary Flames. Jacob Markstrom and Mike Smith are in the creases. Edmonton opened in the first period with a Ryan Nugent-Hopkins goal, his third of the postseason, going in unassisted. The Oilers added on with a Zach Hyman power play goal, his seventh of the playoffs, powered by Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl. Edmonton extended the lead as Evander Kane scored his eleventh of the postseason, via Draisaitl and Cody Ceci. Calgary got on the board with an Elias Lindholm power play goal, his fifth of the playoffs, with assists provided by Noah Hanifin and Tyler Toffoli. The Flames got closer with a Mikael Backlund goal, his fourth of the postseason, coming off of Christopher Tanev. Calgary tied it on a shorthanded Rasmus Andersson goal, his third of the playoffs, going in unassisted. The Oilers retook the lead with a Nugent-Hopkins goal, his second of the game and fourth of the postseason, with helpers from Tyson Barrie and Kailer Yamamoto. Edmonton iced it at 5-3 with a Kane empty net power play goal, his second of the game and twelfth of the playoffs, set up by McDavid. The three stars were Nugent-Hopkins, Kane, and Draisaitl, while McDavid gets an honorable mention. The Oilers hold a 3-1 series lead. 

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