NHL 2021 - Day 126/Playoff Day 5

Five games are on today, beginning with the end of the regular season as...

The Calgary Flames host the Vancouver Canucks. Braden Holtby and Jacob Markstrom are the veterans in goal. Calgary led off in the first period with a Matthew Tkachuk goal, his fifteenth of the season, courtesy of Johnny Gaudreau and Juuso Valimaki. The Flames added on with a Dillon Dube goal, his eleventh of the year, fueled by Derek Ryan and Brett Ritchie. Calgary extended the lead as Andrew Mangiapane scored his eighteenth of the season, thanks to Mikael Backlund and Joakim Nordstrom. The Flames padded the lead in the second period on a Ritchie goal, his fourth of the year, guided in by Ryan and Dube. Vancouver got on the board with a Bo Horvat power play goal, his nineteenth of the season, powered by Brock Boeser and Jack Rathbone. The Canucks got closer with a J.T. Miller goal, his fifteenth of the year, helped along by Boeser and Tyler Myers. Calgary shot back with another Tkachuk goal, his second of the game and sixteenth of the campaign, with helpers from Gaudreau and Christopher Tanev. The Flames continued in the third period with a Connor Mackey goal, assisted by Ritchie and Ryan. This stood for a 6-2 win, with the three stars going to Tkachuk, Ryan, and Ritchie, while Dube, Gaudreau, and Boeser get the honorable mentions. 

Back east, the Boston Bruins welcome the Washington Capitals. Ilya Samsonov and Tuukka Rask are the masked men. Washington got going in the second period with an Alex Ovechkin power play goal, powered by Anthony Mantha. Boston tied it on a Taylor Hall goal, his second of the postseason, via Craig Smith and Kevan Miller. The Capitals retook the lead with a Nic Dowd goal, his second of the playoffs, coming off of Garnet Hathaway. The Bruins tied it in the third period with a Brad Marchand power play goal, his second of the postseason, fueled by Patrice Bergeron and Charlie McAvoy. Boston won 3-2 in double overtime with a Smith goal, going in unassisted. The three stars belonged to Smith, Marchand, and Hall. The Bruins now lead the series 2-1.

Down to Raleigh, as the Carolina Hurricanes host the Nashville Predators. Juuse Saros and Alex Nedeljkovic are the young goalies. Carolina began in the first period with a Sebastian Aho power play goal, powered by Andrei Svechnikov and Dougie Hamilton. The Hurricanes added on in the third period with an Aho empty net goal, his second of the game, set up by Brett Pesce. Carolina iced it at 3-0 with a Warren Foegele goal, guided in by Jordan Staal and Jesper Fast. The three stars were Nedeljkovic (32 save shutout), Aho, and Foegele.

Out in Edmonton, the Oilers bring in the Winnipeg Jets. Connor Hellebuyck and Mike Smith tend the twines. Edmonton dented the scoreboard in the second period with a Jesse Puljujarvi goal, assisted by Tyson Barrie and Darnell Nurse. Winnipeg tied on a Tucker Poolman goal, fueled by Blake Wheeler and Nate Thompson. The Jets took the lead with a Dominic Toninato goal, guided in by Logan Stanley and Thompson. Winnipeg added on with a Kyle Connor empty net goal, set up by Mark Scheifele and Neal Pionk. The Jets extended the lead as Wheeler scored an empty net goal, thanks to Connor and Scheifele. This made it 4-1, the final, with the three stars given to Wheeler, Thompson, and Connor, while Scheifele gets an honorable mention.

Finally, the Colorado Avalanche host the St. Louis Blues. Jordan Binnington and Philipp Grubauer guard the cages. Colorado struck first in the first period with a Joonas Donskoi goal, coming off of Ryan Graves and Nazem Kadri. The Avalanche added on with a Nathan MacKinnon power play goal, his third of the postseason, powered by Cale Makar and Donskoi. Colorado extended the lead in the second period as Donskoi scored his second of the game, thanks to MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen. St. Louis got on the board with a Sammy Blais goal, via Kyle Clifford and Torey Krug. The Blues got closer in the third period with a Brayden Schenn power play goal, with helpers from Tyler Bozak and Krug. Colorado replied with a MacKinnon goal, his second of the game and fourth of the playoffs, guided in by Devon Toews and Gabriel Landeskog. St. Louis got one back with a Mike Hoffman goal, helped along by Niko Mikkola and Robert Thomas. Colorado fired back with a Brandon Saad empty net goal, set up by Tyson Jost. The Avalanche iced it at 6-3 with a MacKinnon empty net goal, completing his hat trick on his fifth of the postseason, with helpers from Rantanen and Landeskog. The three stars were MacKinnon, Donskoi, and Landeskog, while Rantanen and Krug get the honorable mentions. 

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NHL 2021 - Day 125/Playoff Day 4

Four games on today, beginning with a regular-season clash with...

The Vancouver Canucks hosting the Calgary Flames. Louis Domingue and Thatcher Demko are the goalies. Vancouver opened in the first period with a Travis Hamonic goal, his third of the season, made possible by Tyler Graovac and Quinn Hughes. The Canucks added on with a Nils Hoglander goal, his thirteenth of the year, guided in by Tyler Myers and Bo Horvat. Vancouver extended the lead in the third period as Myers scored his sixth of the season, thanks to Brock Boeser and J.T. Miller. Calgary got on the board with an Andrew Mangiapane goal, his seventeenth of the year, fueled by Milan Lucic and Adam Ruzicka. The Flames got closer with a Matthew Tkachuk goal, his fourteenth of the season, assisted by Johnny Gaudreau and Mark Giordano. The Canucks iced it at 4-2 with a Boeser empty net goal, his twenty-third of the year, set up by Hamonic. The three stars were Hamonic, Myers, and Boeser. 

In Pittsburgh, the Penguins welcome the New York Islanders. Semyon Varlamov and Tristan Jarry are in goal. Pittsburgh started in the first period with a Bryan Rust goal, going in unassisted. The Penguins added on with a Jeff Carter goal, coming off of Jared McCann and Kasperi Kapanen. New York got on the board in the second period with a Josh Bailey goal, helped along by Brock Nelson and Scott Mayfield. This only made it 2-1, the final, with the three stars going to Jarry (37 for 38 in saves), Carter, and Rust. The series heads to New York tied at 1-1.

Down in Florida, the Panthers bring in the Tampa Bay Lightning. Andrei Vasilevskiy and Chris Driedger are the masked men. Tampa Bay led off in the first period with a Steven Stamkos goal, via Alex Killorn and David Savard. The Lightning added on with an Ondrej Palat goal, coming off of Brayden Point and Nikita Kucherov. Florida got on the board in the second period with a Mason Marchment goal, assisted by Carter Verhaeghe and Aleksander Barkov. Tampa Bay replied in the third period with a Yanni Gourde empty net goal, set up by Palat. The three stars of the 3-1 game were Vasilevskiy (32 for 33 in saves), Palat, and Stamkos. The Lightning lead the series 2-0 and will now head home for the next two games.

Finally, the Vegas Golden Knights host the Minnesota Wild. Cam Talbot and Marc-Andre Fleury tend the twines. Minnesota got going in the second period with a Matt Dumba goal, via Jonas Brodin. Vegas tied it on a Jonathan Marchessault goal, assisted by Reilly Smith and William Karlsson. The Golden Knights took the lead with an Alex Tuch goal, courtesy of Mattias Janmark and Alex Pietrangelo. Vegas added on with a Tuch power play goal, his second of the game, powered by Chandler Stephenson and Mark Stone. This stood for a 3-1 win, with the three stars given to Tuch, Fleury (34 for 35 in saves), and Marchessault. The series heads to Minnesota tied at 1-1. 

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NHL 2021 - Playoff Day 3

Three games on for today, beginning with...

The Washington Capitals hosting the Boston Bruins. Tuukka Rask and Craig Anderson man the nets. Boston led off in the first period with a Jake DeBrusk goal, his second of the postseason, assisted by Charlie Coyle and Nick Ritchie. Washington tied it on a T.J. Oshie power play goal, powered by Alex Ovechkin and John Carlson. The Bruins took the lead back with a Patrice Bergeron goal, coming off of David Pastrnak. The Capitals retied it on a Garnet Hathaway goal, via Dmitry Orlov and Lars Eller. Washington pulled ahead with Hathaway's second goal of the game in the third period, courtesy of Orlov and Carl Hagelin. Boston tied it with a Taylor Hall goal, helped along by Craig Smith and Matt Grzelcyk. The Bruins won 4-3 in overtime on a Brad Marchand goal, passed from David Krejci and Grzelcyk. The three stars were Hathaway, Grzelcyk, and Marchand. The series heads to Boston tied at 1-1.

Down in Raleigh, the Carolina Hurricanes welcome the Nashville Predators. Juuse Saros and Alex Nedeljkovic are in the creases. Nashville began in the first period with a Filip Forsberg goal, fueled by Ryan Johansen and Ryan Ellis. Carolina tied it on a Teuvo Teravainen goal, via Brett Pesce and Steven Lorentz. The Hurricanes took the lead in the second period with a Jordan Staal goal, made possible by Pesce. The Predators retied it with an Erik Haula goal, guided in by Matt Duchene and Alexandre Carrier. Carolina reclaimed the lead in the third period with a Nino Niederreiter goal, coming off of Martin Necas and Vincent Trocheck. The Hurricanes added on with another Staal goal, his second of the game, going in unassisted. Carolina iced it at 5-2 with an Andrei Svechnikov empty net goal, an unassisted goal. The three stars were Staal, Pesce, and Niederreiter. 

Out in Colorado, the Avalanche bring in the St. Louis Blues. Jordan Binnington and Philipp Grubauer guard the cages. Colorado struck first in the first period with a Cale Makar power play goal, powered by Mikko Rantanen. St. Louis tied it in the second period with a Jordan Kyrou goal, coming off of Ivan Barbashev and Robert Thomas. The Avalanche took the lead back with a Nathan MacKinnon, via Rantanen and Gabriel Landeskog. Colorado added on with a Landeskog, guided in by MacKinnon and Samuel Girard. The Avalanche iced it at 4-1 with a MacKinnon empty net goal, his second of the game, set up by Landeskog. The three stars were MacKinnon, Landeskog, and Rantanen. 

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NHL 2021 - Day 124/Playoff Day 2

There's four games on today, with the first three being playoff contests. First up...

The Pittsburgh Penguins host the New York Islanders. Ilya Sorokin and Tristan Jarry are in goal. New York opened in the first period with a Kyle Palmieri goal, via Jean-Gabriel Pageau and Noah Dobson. Pittsburgh tied it on a Frederick Gaudreau goal, coming off of Evan Rodrigues. The Penguins took the lead in the second period with a Sidney Crosby goal, fueled by Brian Dumoulin and Jake Guentzel. The Islanders tied it again with a Pageau goal, courtesy of Scott Mayfield. New York took the lead with a Brock Nelson goal, guided in by Anthony Beauvillier and Ryan Pulock. Pittsburgh retied it on a Kasperi Kapanen goal, assisted by Jeff Carter and Cody Ceci. The Islanders won 4-3 in overtime with Palmieri's second goal of the game, with helpers from Pageau and Oliver Wahlstrom. The three stars were Palmieri, Pageau, and Nelson. 

Out in Nevada, the Vegas Golden Knights welcome the Minnesota Wild. Cam Talbot and Marc-Andre Fleury man the nets. Minnesota won 1-0 in overtime with a Joel Eriksson Ek goal, courtesy of Marcus Foligno and Jordan Greenway. The three stars were Eriksson Ek, Talbot (42 save shutout), and Fleury (29 for 30 in saves). 

To Florida, where the Panthers bring in the Tampa Bay Lightning. Andrei Vasilevskiy and Sergei Bobrovsky are the Russian goalies. Tampa Bay started in the first period with a Blake Coleman shorthanded goal, set up by Yanni Gourde and Ryan McDonagh. Florida tied it on an Aleksander Barkov power play goal, powered by Jonathan Huberdeau and Keith Yandle. The Panthers took the lead with a Carter Verhaeghe goal, coming off of Barkov and Yandle. The Lightning tied it in the second period with a Nikita Kucherov power play goal, with assists provided by Victor Hedman and Steven Stamkos. Tampa Bay pulled ahead with a Kucherov goal, his second of the game, fueled by Hedman. Florida retied it in the third period with a Huberdeau goal, courtesy of Sam Bennett and Owen Tippett. The Panthers gained the lead on a Tippett goal, via Huberdeau and Bennett. The Lightning evened the score again with a Brayden Point power play goal, helped along by Kucherov and Hedman. Tampa Bay went ahead with a Point goal, his second of the game, set up by McDonagh. This made it 5-4, the final, with the three stars going to Kucherov, Point, and Huberdeau, while Hedman, McDonagh, Barkov, Tippett, Bennett, and Yandle get the honorable mentions.

Finally, in regular-season action, the Vancouver Canucks host the Calgary Flames. Jacob Markstrom and Braden Holtby are the masked men. Calgary struck first in the first period with an unassisted Josh Leivo goal, his sixth of the season. The Flames added on in the second period with a Milan Lucic goal, his tenth of the year, via Leivo and Michael Stone. Calgary extended the lead as Matthew Tkachuk scored his thirteenth of the season, thanks to Elias Lindholm and Johnny Gaudreau. The Flames padded the lead with an Andrew Mangiapane goal, his fifteenth of the year, courtesy of Dillon Dube and Mikael Backlund. Vancouver got on the board with a Travis Hamonic goal, his second of the season, assisted by Quinn Hughes. Calgary shot back with a Mangiapane goal, his second of the game and sixteenth of the year, guided in by Connor Mackey and Backlund. The Canucks pulled one back in the third period with a Tyler Graovac power play goal, his third of the season, powered by J.T. Miller and Hughes. Vancouver got closer with a Brock Boeser power play goal, his twenty-first of the year, with a lone helper by Hughes. The Canucks pulled closer on a Miller shorthanded goal, his fourteenth of the season, set up by Jimmy Vesey. Vancouver tied it on a Boeser goal, his twenty-second of the year, fueled by Alexander Edler and Miller. Calgary won 6-5 in overtime with a Lindholm goal, his nineteenth of the campaign, made possible by Juuso Valimaki. The three stars were Mangiapane, Lindholm, and Leivo, while Boeser, Miller, Hughes, and Backlund get the honorable mentions. 

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NHL 2021 - Day 123/Playoff Day 1

Two games today, one regular season and one playoff. First up...

The Edmonton Oilers welcome the Vancouver Canucks. Thatcher Demko and Mikko Koskinen are the goalies. Edmonton led off in the first period with an Adam Larsson goal, his fourth of the season, made possible by Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl. Vancouver tied it on a Bo Horvat shorthanded goal, his eighteenth of the year, set up by Tanner Pearson in the second period. The Canucks took the lead in the third period with a Matthew Highmore goal, his second of the season, courtesy of J.T. Miller and Quinn Hughes. Vancouver added on with a Travis Boyd goal, his fifth of the year, via Jimmy Vesey. The Canucks extended the lead as Highmore scored his second of the game and third of the season, thanks to Brock Boeser and Miller. This made it 4-1, the final, with the three stars going to Highmore, Miller, and Demko (31 for 32 in saves). 

The playoffs begin with the Washington Capitals bringing in the Boston Bruins. Tuukka Rask and Vitek Vanecek are the masked men. Washington began in the first period with a Tom Wilson goal, assisted by T.J. Oshie and Daniel Sprong. Boston tied it on a Jake DeBrusk goal, via Curtis Lazar. Craig Anderson replaced an injured Vanecek. The Capitals took the lead back in the second period with a Brenden Dillon goal, coming off of Anthony Mantha and Alex Ovechkin. The Bruins tied it with a power play goal by Nick Ritchie, powered by David Pastrnak and Charlie McAvoy. Washington won 3-2 in overtime with a Nic Dowd goal, guided in by Oshie and Wilson. The three stars were Wilson, Oshie, and Anderson (21 for 22 in saves in relief). 

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NHL 2021 - Day 122

Just a single game on for the last day with only regular-season action. The Winnipeg Jets host the Toronto Maple Leafs, with Jack Campbell and Connor Hellebuyck in goal. Toronto struck first in the first period with a Pierre Engvall goal, his seventh of the season, assisted by Ilya Mikheyev and Alex Galchenyuk. Winnipeg tied it in the second period with a Mason Appleton goal, his twelfth of the year, courtesy of Diminic Toninato and Adam Lowry. The Maple Leafs reclaimed the lead on a Mihkeyev goal, his seventh of the season, helped along by Jake Muzzin and Alexander Kerfoot. The Jets tied it again with a Kyle Connor goal, his twenty-fifth of the year, fueled by Mark Scheifele and Blake Wheeler. Winnipeg pulled ahead in the third period with a Wheeler goal, his second of the game and twenty-sixth of the season, guided in by Wheeler and Scheifele. The Jets iced it at 4-2 with a Jansen Harkins empty net goal, set up by Trevor Lewis. The three stars were Connor, Scheifele, and Wheeler, while Mikheyev gets an honorable mention. 

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NHL 2021 - Day 121

Just three games on as we march closer to the end of the regular season. First up...

The St. Louis Blues host the Minnesota Wild. Kaapo Kahkonen and Jordan Binnington protect the nets. Minnesota opened in the first period with a Nico Sturm goal, his eleventh of the season, made possible by Nick Bonino and Nick Bjugstad. The Wild added on with a Ryan Suter goal, his third of the year, guided in by Marcus Foligno. Minnesota extended the lead as Foligno scored his eleventh of the season, thanks to Ian Cole and Jordan Greenway. St. Louis got on the board with a Zach Sanford goal, his tenth of the year, fueled by Kyle Clifford and Niko Mikkola. The Blues got closer with a Brayden Schenn power play goal, his fifteenth of the season, powered by Ryan O'Reilly and Mike Hoffman. St. Louis tied it on a David Perron goal, his eighteenth of the year, via Ivan Barbashev and Justin Faulk. The Blues pulled ahead with another Schenn power play goal, his second of the game and sixteenth of the season, with assists provided by Perron and Hoffman. St. Louis padded the lead in the third period with another Perron power play goal, his second of the game and nineteenth of the year, helped along by Hoffman and Torey Krug. The Blues continued with a Jordan Kyrou goal, his thirteenth of the season, assisted by Klim Kostin and Marco Scandella. St. Louis kept going with a Kyrou goal, his second of the game and fourteenth of the year, coming off of Robert Bortuzzo and Steven Santini. This made it 7-3, the final, with the three stars going to Perron, Schenn, and Kyrou, while Hoffman and Foligno get the honorable mentions.

Over in Colorado, the Avalanche welcome the Los Angeles Kings. Troy Grosenick and Jonas Johansson draw the starts in goal. Los Angeles kicked off the scoring in the first period with a Sean Walker goal, his fifth of the season, going in unassisted. Colorado tied it in the second period on a Tyson Jost goal, his sixth of the year, courtesy of Mikko Rantanen and Gabriel Landeskog. The Avalanche took the lead with a Jost goal, his second of the game and seventh of the season, via Conor Timmins and Rantanen. Colorado added on with a Pierre-Edouard Bellemare goal, his ninth of the year, coming off of Jayson Megna and Andre Burakovsky. The Avalanche extended the lead as Joonas Donskoi scored his seventeenth of the season, thanks to Nazem Kadri and Timmins. Colorado padded the lead with a Burakovsky power play goal, his nineteenth of the year, powered by Devon Toews and Cale Makar. The final stood at 5-1 with the three stars being Jost, Burakovsky, and Rantanen, while Timmins gets an honorable mention.

Finally, the Calgary Flames bring in the Vancouver Canucks. Thatcher Demko and Jacob Markstrom guard the cages. Vancouver started in the first period with a Matthew Highmore goal, assisted by Travis Hamonic and Brock Boeser. Calgary tied it with a Rasmus Andersson goal, his fifth of the season, passed from Johnny Gaudreau and Elias Lindholm. The Flames pulled ahead with an Andrew Mangiapane goal, his fourteenth of the year, courtesy of Nikita Nesterov and Joakim Nordstrom. Calgary added on in the third period with a Lindholm goal, his eighteenth of the season, coming off of Matthew Tkachuk and Christopher Tanev. The Flames extended the lead as Tkachuk scored his twelfth of the year on the power play, thanks to Gaudreua and Mikael Backlund. This made it 4-1, the final, with the three stars going to Lindholm, Gaudreau, and Tkachuk. 

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