3 days agoEdmonton Oilers forward Leon Draisaitl (undisclosed) is a game-time call for Friday's Game 2 against Vancouver. He was bothered by cramps in the series opener on Wednesday, missing some time in the second period before returning in the third. Draisaitl didn't skate on Thursday, but it would be a major surprise if he isn't in the lineup Friday night. The German star is enjoying another excellent postseason campaign with 12 points (five goals, seven assists) collected across six appearances. He's had multiple points in five games, notching three goals and five assists on the power play.
--Taavi Pailk - RotoBallerSource: Brendan Bachelor
3 days agoFlorida Panthers center Sam Bennett (upper body) is considered a game-time decision for Friday's matchup against Boston. He's on the cusp of returning to the lineup after missing five games. Bennett recorded two points (one goal, one assist) in as many games before suffering an upper-body injury early into the postseason. If he's ready to return in Game 3 on Friday, Bennett is expected to replace either Steve Lorentz or Kyle Okposo in the Panthers lineup. He should resume his duties as the second-line center, with Anton Lundell moving down in the lineup.
--Taavi Pailk - RotoBallerSource: Colby Guy
3 days agoColorado Avalanche winger Valeri Nichushkin remained red-hot in front of goal Thursday night in Game 2 against the Stars, scoring his ninth postseason goal in a 5-3 defeat. He joined Pat LaFontaine as just the second player in league history to score in each of his team's first seven games of a postseason campaign. The Russian forward leads the goal-scoring charts with Edmonton's Zach Hyman, who has scored nine times in six games. Nichushkin's work in these playoffs includes one assist, as he sits among six Avalanche players who have averaged at least a point per game in seven contests. More success appears to be guaranteed for Nichushkin & Co., with Colorado averaging a whopping 5.00 goals per game in the playoffs.
--Taavi Pailk - RotoBallerSource: ESPN
3 days agoDallas Stars defenseman Miro Heiskanen had a productive outing with two power-play goals in Thursday's Game 2 victory over Colorado. He had the Stars' first and third goals in a 5-3 win, joining Brian Glynn as the second blue-liner in franchise history with multiple power-play goals in a playoff game. Heiskanen boasts three goals in total and eight points in nine games this postseason. The Finnish rearguard has been a terrific performer in the playoffs throughout his career, as he has collected 53 points (13 goals, 40 assists) in 75 postseason games -- only Cale Makar (77) and Victor Hedman (69) have scored more points among defensemen since Heiskanen made his Stanley Cup Playoffs debut in 2019.
--Taavi Pailk - RotoBallerSource: ESPN
3 days agoDallas Stars center Roope Hintz produced his second career four-point postseason game as the team tied the Western Conference semifinals series against Colorado in Game 2 with a 5-3 victory. Hintz finally got things clicking in the offensive zone after posting only one point through his first eight appearances this postseason. He scored Dallas' second goal and had three assists, including two on the power play. Hintz will head into Saturday's Game 3 boasting the third-most three-point efforts in the playoffs among Finnish players. He moved past Sebastian Aho on Thursday with his seventh such game and now trails only Esa Tikkanen (10) and Jari Kurri (28).
--Taavi Pailk - RotoBallerSource: ESPN
3 days agoCarolina Hurricanes winger Andrei Svechnikov factored in both goals in Thursday's 3-2 overtime loss to the Rangers. He helped Jake Guentzel get the scoring started with his sixth assist of the 2024 playoffs and sent the game past regulation with only 1:36 left to play in the third period, scoring his second postseason goal. The Russian forward posted his third multi-point performance of this year's playoffs. He's averaging a point per game through eight contests, and the Hurricanes will need another big effort from Svechnikov in Saturday's Game 4 as the team faces early elimination.
--Taavi Pailk - RotoBallerSource: ESPN
3 days agoNew York Rangers left wing Artemi Panarin provided the game-winning goal as the team grabbed a 3-0 series lead against Carolina on Thursday with a 3-2 overtime win. The Russian star also collected an assist in the contest for his third multi-point effort in four games. Panarin has exploded for eight points over a four-game stretch after posting only one point through his first three postseason appearances this year. It was a worrying start from him, but Panarin has now begun to replicate his regular-season form, which resulted in a career-high 120 points.
--Taavi Pailk - RotoBallerSource: ESPN
3 days agoNew York Rangers center Vincent Trocheck contributed two assists in Thursday's 3-2 overtime win against Carolina to register his third consecutive multi-point outing. He helped Alexis Lafreniere get his third postseason goal in the third period and was also among the helpers when Artemi Panarin finished the game with 1:43 played in overtime. Trocheck has shown off incredible form in the postseason, notching five goals and seven assists. Only Edmonton's Connor McDavid (13) has more points than him, despite Trocheck playing in only seven games. He had scored in five consecutive games before coming up empty-handed with four efforts on goal Thursday night.
--Taavi Pailk - RotoBallerSource: ESPN
3 days agoNew York Rangers center Filip Chytil made his long-awaited return to the lineup in Game 3 against the Hurricanes on Thursday, logging 12:02 of ice time in a 3-2 overtime win. After missing six months with a head injury, Chytil had a quiet outing on the offensive front with zero points and one shot on goal but registered two hits. He skated on the third line with Alex Wennberg and Kaapo Kakko. The Rangers have enjoyed a perfect 7-0 start to the postseason and should be even stronger now with Chytil, who had six points in 10 regular-season appearances.
--Taavi Pailk - RotoBallerSource: ESPN
4 days agoAccording to TSN insider Pierre LeBrun, the New Jersey Devils plan to interview Sheldon Keefe as part of their coaching search. Keefe was relieved of his duties as Toronto Maple Leafs head coach on Thursday. The Ontario native led the Maple Leafs to a 212-97-40 record through four and a half seasons but won only one playoff series. Keefe was fired despite the team agreeing to a contract extension with him last year, which doesn't officially start until the 2024-25 season. Lindy Ruff and Travis Green worked behind the Devils bench in 2023-24. The team finished 13th in the Eastern Conference with a 38-39-5 record.
--Taavi Pailk - RotoBallerSource: Pierre LeBrun
4 days agoColorado Avalanche winger Joel Kiviranta (lower body) could be back in action Thursday in Game 2 against Dallas. On Thursday morning, Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar said that "hopefully" Kiviranta will be good to go for the contest. The Finnish winger has been out for three games with a lower-body injury. Before getting hurt, Kiviranta had one assist with three shots on goal in three games while logging 10:14 of ice time on the fourth line in the first round against Winnipeg.
--Taavi Pailk - RotoBallerSource: Evan Rawal
4 days agoDallas Stars winger Mason Marchment (undisclosed) will rejoin the lineup in Game 2 against Colorado on Thursday. The power forward has been absent for the past six games with an undisclosed injury. Marchment, who had a career year with 53 points (22 goals, 31 assists) in 81 appearances during the regular season, will head straight back to the second line, where he's had a lot of success playing with Tyler Seguin and Matt Duchene. His return pushes Radek Faksa out of the lineup, with Evgenii Dadonov dropping to the fourth line.
--Taavi Pailk - RotoBallerSource: Lia Assimakopoulos
4 days agoCarolina Hurricanes defenseman Brett Pesce (lower body) has yet to skate and remains out indefinitely. He got hurt early into the postseason and will miss a sixth consecutive game against the Rangers on Thursday. Tony DeAngelo will continue to fill in for Pesce at the back. The former Ranger picked up his first postseason point with an assist in Tuesday's 4-3 double-overtime loss and has recorded 10 shots on goal through five outings with four hits and four blocks.
--Taavi Pailk - RotoBallerSource: Chip Alexander
4 days agoCarolina Hurricanes center Evgeny Kuznetsov will be back in the lineup for Game 3 against the Rangers on Thursday. He was a healthy scratch for Tuesday's Game 2. Kuznetsov has posted four points (two goals, two assists) in six playoff appearances this year, but he's done all his scoring across two games. He comes in for Max Comtois on the fourth line. The winger logged only 6:19 of ice time in Tuesday's 4-3 double-overtime loss, finishing with a minus-one rating.
--Taavi Pailk - RotoBallerSource: Chip Alexander
4 days agoCarolina Hurricanes goaltender Pyotr Kochetkov will be the team's starter between the pipes in Game 3 against the Rangers on Thursday. Carolina is making a change in goal after losing both of the first two games in the series 4-3 with Frederik Andersen in the crease. Andersen has registered a lowly .871 save percentage against the Rangers, but Hurricanes head coach Rod Brind'Amour appeared to suggest on Thursday that the Danish netminder sits out Game 3 for rest purposes. Kochetkov will play his sixth career Stanley Cup Playoffs game. He's coming off a solid regular-season campaign, which saw Kochetkov go 23-13-4 with four shutouts. He allowed 2.33 goals and had a .911 save percentage.
--Taavi Pailk - RotoBallerSource: Chip Alexander
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