BUFFALO, NEW YORK - APRIL 19: David Pastrnak #88 talks with Jonathan Aspirot #45 of the Boston Bruins before a faceoff during the second period in Game One of the First Round of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs against the Buffalo Sabres at KeyBank Center on April 19, 2026 in Buffalo, New York. (Photo by Joe Hrycych/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Tage Thompson: 2G-1A-3PTS; Alex Tuch: 1G-1A-2PTS; Mattias Samuelsson: 1G-0A-1PT
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen: 1-0-0, 3.01 GAA, .850 save percentage
Game notes
After a calamitous five-minute stretch saw them lose control of Game 1, the Bruins will be looking to bounce back with a more solid all-around effort in Game 2. 60 minutes of good play instead of 52, or something like that.
Marco Sturm has called on his group to regroup and recharge after Game 1, saying that his team is ready for a long series. He also got philosophical, according to NHL.com, saying “yesterday was yesterday, today is today. It’s actually sunny here in Buffalo.” Valid points, Marco.
Performance at the face-off dot was supposed to be a strength for the Bruins in this series: they had the fourth-best team winning percentage in the league during the regular season, while Buffalo was the worst face-off team in the NHL. In Game 1, however, the teams were just about even: the Bruins won 32 face-offs, while the Sabres won 31.
Sturm didn’t mention any lineup changes in his media availability on Monday, though that doesn’t necessarily mean he doesn’t have any up his sleeve. It seems a little early to be bringing in a new body on defense or up front, but he may have to consider some line-juggling if the second line struggles again tonight.
The Bruins can make things significantly easier on themselves if they take care of the puck better, particularly below their own goal line. While Buffalo certainly deserves credit for seizing their opportunities (and forcing those turnovers), the Bruins’ own carelessness with the puck led directly to Buffalo’s three non-empty-net goals in Game 1.
The B’s will also need to adjust to Buffalo’s tenacious forecheck, which seemed to wear the Bruins defensemen down as the game progressed. After dealing with it for 60 minutes, the Bruins will need to be better equipped to handle the pressure or this will be a short series.
While shots on net aren’t everything, it’s worth pointing out that the Bruins failed to land double-digit shots on net in any period on Sunday: they went 9-4-7 across the three periods, with that second period particularly woeful.
The day after their 4-3 overtime win over the Tampa Bay Lightning, the Montreal Canadiens were back at work at the Benchmark International Arena. What was originally supposed to be an optional skate turned into a regular practice an hour before the time. A regular practice, but a short one.
While the Canadiens came out on top on Sunday, they did so by scoring three power-play goals; if you take special teams out of the equation, the score would have been 1-1 after 60 minutes. Of course, nobody will complain about a power play that strikes as often, but you cannot take for granted that you’ll get so many calls every night, especially not in the playoffs, when the referees do tend to put the whistle away.
Both Martin St-Louis and Cole Caufield were asked about the Nick Suzuki line being kept in check by the Anthony Cirelli line, and neither had a magic formula for the Habs’ top line to produce at even strength. The sniper was up front saying: There’s a lot to talk about five-on-five that we could do better at, and we’ll do that for game two. Asked if there was a workaround for the Cirelli line, the American simply replied:
Yeah, we’re going to have to figure it out. It’s the first game; there’s a little feeling-out process. It’s a line you can’t take any risk, and they don’t give up much, so we’re going to find ways, we’re going to find the answers, and hopefully, we’ll find some ways to do it.
As for the coach, when asked about that, he simply replied that they’d keep on going, as they have all season. Of course, if they did find a magical way to solve that line, they wouldn’t come out and say it, but so early in a series, it’s far from surprising that some adjustments have to be made, especially between two teams so evenly matched.
Once again, the coach spoke about the importance of playing the right way, of being calculated on both sides of the puck, which can lead to more offensive opportunities. That’s nothing new; that’s what he’s been selling to his players all season, and to be fair, for the most part, that’s how they played on Sunday.
The fact is, though, the Tampa Bay Lightning is the team on the other side, and they, too, are playing the right way. It wasn’t easy to come away with the win, but it wasn’t supposed to be easy; this is the Stanley Cup playoffs, and nothing comes easy.
PITTSBURGH, PA - APRIL 18: Philadelphia Flyers right wing Tyson Foerster (71) puts a shot on Pittsburgh Penguins goaltender Stuart Skinner (74) as Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Kris Letang (58) defends during the first period of the Philadelphia Flyers versus Pittsburgh Penguins in Game One of the 2026 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs First Round on April 18, 2026, at PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh, PA. (Photo by Jeanine Leech/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) | Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
Monday night was a chance for the Pittsburgh Penguins to make things right after a lackluster showing in Game 1 and tie up this first round series before heading to the road for Games 3 and 4. That was not at all how Game 2 went for the Penguins as they turned in another letdown performance in a 3-0 defeat to the Philadelphia Flyers and will now head east trailing 2-0 in the series. It was another scoreless first period between the two sides before the Flyers notched a pair of second period goals to take complete control of the game. Dan Vladar was at his very best and turned away all 27 shots the Penguins threw his way to register his first career playoff shutout. [Pensburgh]
Now the series shifts to Philadelphia with Game 3 scheduled for Wednesday night at Xfinity Mobile Arena.
Pens Points…
Justin Brazeau was a surprising healthy scratch for Game 1 of the playoff series against the Flyers and found himself in the same position last night for Game 2. Though this is not the situation he drew up in his mind, if he’s called on at any point, Brazeau knows he will be ready to contribute. [Trib Live]
In case anyone forgot since it hasn’t been a hot topic in a while, the Penguins are in the midst of being sold. That sale between Fenway Sports Group and the Hoffman Family is still in the works but nothing has been finalized and the final vote by the NHL has not been set according to Gary Bettman. [Trib Live]
NHL News and Notes…
One of the biggest questions to be answered across the NHL this offseason will be about the future of Alex Ovechkin. Many think this season was his last in the NHL, but the Washington Capitals are in no rush for an answer for their captain and are giving him all the time he needs to make a decision. [NHL]
Dallas Stars (50-20-12, in the Central Division) vs. Minnesota Wild (46-24-12, in the Central Division)
Saint Paul, Minnesota; Wednesday, 9:30 p.m. EDT
LINE: Wild -128, Stars +108; over/under is 6
NHL PLAYOFFS FIRST ROUND: Series tied 1-1
BOTTOM LINE: The Dallas Stars visit the Minnesota Wild for game three of the first round of the NHL Playoffs with the series tied 1-1. The teams meet Monday for the seventh time this season. The Stars won the last meeting 4-2. Wyatt Johnston scored two goals in the win.
Minnesota has a 46-24-12 record overall and a 14-11-3 record in Central Division games. The Wild are 10th in NHL play with 268 total goals (averaging 3.3 per game).
Dallas is 18-7-3 against the Central Division and 50-20-12 overall. The Stars are first in league play with 71 power-play goals.
TOP PERFORMERS: Kirill Kaprizov has 45 goals and 44 assists for the Wild. Ryan Hartman has six goals and four assists over the last 10 games.
Jason Robertson has 45 goals and 51 assists for the Stars. Johnston has scored seven goals with four assists over the past 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Wild: 6-4-0, averaging 3.8 goals, six assists, 4.3 penalties and 10.2 penalty minutes while giving up 2.7 goals per game.
Stars: 7-3-0, averaging 3.1 goals, 5.2 assists, 4.7 penalties and 10.8 penalty minutes while giving up 2.7 goals per game.
INJURIES: Wild: Yakov Trenin: day to day (upper-body), Mats Zuccarello: day to day (upper-body).
Stars: Nathan Bastian: out (hand), Roope Hintz: out (lower body), Tyler Seguin: out for season (acl).
___
The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
Jordan Martinook and Logan Stankoven discuss Carolina's 3-2 OTW
"I was on such a high there for two minutes."
After a tense, back-and-forth thriller, the Carolina Hurricanes scored the overtime game winner in Game 2 of their first-round series on a delayed penalty, as Mark Jankowski jumped over the boards as an extra skater and banged home a rebound past Linus Ullmark.
At least, that's what the team thought had happened.
As the team mobbed around Jankowski, the on-ice officials started to gather around the penalty box and the Ottawa Senators weren't leaving the bench either.
Soon enough, it became clear to the nearly 20,000 attendees at Lenovo Center's Monday night game that the goal was under review.
After five minutes of deliberation, official Furman South broke from the huddle and took to center ice.
He flipped on his microphone and, much to the dismay of the home crowd, announced that the play had originally been offside 30 seconds earlier and that the goal was being rescinded.
The NHL situation room had deemed that while Jordan Staal had possession of the puck as he crossed the blueline, he did not have full control of puck, thereby making the play offside.
"I pick up the puck, I look up where Marty is and apparently I lost control of it," Staal said. "And then I make a nice pass to Marty for a breakaway... I don’t really get it. To call back an overtime goal for that is..."
However, it wasn't all for naught, as Jordan Martinook was to be awarded a penalty shot for the call he had initially drawn, just the fifth time ever in NHL history that one had been awarded in overtime of a playoff game.
As "Rockstar" by Nickelback blared across the speakers, Martinook composed himself at the opposite blueline, waiting for the official's signal.
Once he got it, he collected the puck, cut to the left, cut back to the middle and snapped one glove-side on Ullmark.
But it wasn't to be, as the big Swede stymied the Hurricanes alternate captain, keeping the game alive.
"I felt pretty bad when I didn't score that one," Martinook said. "I was trying to tell them we needed the power play and not the penalty shot."
Fate has a funny way of showing itself though and after nearly another full overtime period, Martinook would once again be given the chance to end it and this time, he delivered.
"I'd be lying if I said I picked my head up and looked and picked the corner," Martinook said. "At that point, you're just trying top put as many pucks on net as you can. I felt we kind of had them on the run a little bit and Fly made a great play in the middle and I just got it and ripped it. Luckily it went in."
From the terrible low of thinking you may have just cost your team to the jubilant highs of your first ever playoff overtime goal.
"I didn't feel very good about myself after that penalty shot," Martinook said. "The intermission felt really long and it was going to be a long night if that penalty shot came back to bite me. That was cool though. I'm happy it worked out that way. Hockey's crazy. Sport's are crazy. Being able to score after that, I'll tell my grandkids about that one, that's for sure."
"You couldn’t have written it any better," Staal said. "What a shot. The place was electric, so it was super fun. Definitely in the memory bank."
"Just happy for Marty," Brind'Amour said. "It's nice to see him get that recognition for a game like that.
Game 2 of the Carolina Hurricanes' first-round series against the Ottawa Senators couldn't have been more different than Game 1.
After a tight, but straight forward 2-0 shutout, the Canes and Sens flipped the script en route to a double overtime thriller.
In Game 1, the two teams combined for two goals, 51 shots on goal and 114 shot attempts.
In Game 2, both teams found themselves all of a sudden with a lot more space and a lot more time as the final counts were five total goals, 85 shots on goal and 208 shot attempts.
The trio of Logan Stankoven, Jackson Blake and Taylor Hall were once again doing their thing — as the three combined for the Canes' first goal on the power play, with Stankoven notching his second of the postseason — and even Sebastian Aho got involved too as he scored off of a nice rush play set up by Staal.
But the tale of the tape for this game was the outstanding performances put on by both netminders.
Frederik Andersen had a little hiccup on the game-tying goal as a Dylan Cozens shot from well outside the circles and from a bad angle beat him five-hole, but outside of that he was tremendous.
"You're gonna make mistakes," Andersen said. "Everyone does. But it's about what's next. Obviously we had to play a lot going forward. Just refocused and get ready for the next one."
Andersen would stop all 15 of the shots he faced in overtime, including multiple in-tight and in-alone looks, and was credited with 2.67 goals saved above expected for the game according to Natural Stat Trick.
On the other side, Linus Ullmark was sensational too, stopping 43 total shots and saving 2.24 goals above expected.
In fact, it was Ullmark's save on Taylor Hall in the second period that was really the turning point of the game for Ottawa.
If Hall scores there, Carolina goes up 3-0 and probably easily wins in regulation.
Instead, the Senators were given life and they scored their first goal just 1:14 after the miraculous save as Drake Batherson got a fortunate bounce.
The Sens would keep pushing from there and eventually tie the game, but Andersen wasn't going to be beat again, setting the stage for Martinook's thrilling goal.
"Every moment matters, and any situation, it's right then and there," Andersen said. "You just prepare like you would any other shot and every time you make a save, you give the boys a new chance to score."
The Hurricanes will now take their 2-0 series lead onto the road as they head to Ottawa to try and steal a game.
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Apr 20, 2026; Raleigh, North Carolina, USA; Carolina Hurricanes left wing Jordan Martinook (48) scores the game winner in the second overtime against the Ottawa Senators in game two of the first round of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Lenovo Center. Mandatory Credit: James Guillory-Imagn Images | James Guillory-Imagn Images
Jordan Martinook notched the game-winner in double overtime to lead the Carolina Hurricanes to a 3-2 victory over the Ottawa Senators on Monday night at the Lenovo Center. The win gives Carolina a 2-0 lead in this playoff series and allows them to keep their home ice advantage.
The Canes thought they had won the game in the first overtime when Mark Jankowski ripped in a goal, but after a long review, it was ruled that Jordan Staal was offsides on the play because the desk in Toronto determined that he did not have control of the puck when he crossed the blueline.
Staal was not happy with the controversial call and said post game that he looked to pass the puck to Martinook, he did not feel like he lost possession or control. Poor Mark Jankowski said that he was on cloud nine for about two minutes when he celebrated his supposed goal.
Martinook had been the victim of a penalty earlier and weirdly enough, was awarded a penalty shot after the offsides decision. He missed the shot so he was certainly looking for redemption afterward and eventually got it.
When asked after the game how difficult was it to recover after celebrating and thinking you had won the game, to settling back down to the business and seriousness of playing hockey, “Try shooting a penalty shot right after that!” Martinook quipped.
The game started off with fast skating and hitting for both teams. The Canes took the lead off another goal by Logan Stankoven, who has been red hot since the Olympic break. He got a perfect pass by Taylor Hall, who set him up on the powerplay.
In the second period, the Hurricanes jumped to a 2-0 lead when Jordan Staal led Sebastian Aho, who made no mistake. This was another shorthanded goal for Carolina, who leads the league with shorties.
The Sens would strike back though with two goals of their own later in that period.
Ottawa came close to scoring several times in this game but had the worse luck as the puck either hit the crossbar or post or stopped just short of the goal line. Fred Andersen let in a goal he wished he didn’t on goal number two, but he was scrambling and played very well afterward, especially in the overtime periods.
In all, he made 37 saves on 39 shots.
Linus Ullmark played lights out in his own right, making several high level saves throughout. He made 43 saves on 46 Carolina shots.
It is late so I’m going to wrap this up and choose a “Player of the Game” later. The Canes will take Tuesday off before a practice on Wednesday and a flight to Ottawa.
Postgame notes and interviews from Carolina's 3-2 2OT win over the Ottawa Senators on Monday in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference First Round. https://t.co/MgTISD3788
The Hurricanes will not practice on Tuesday. General Manager Eric Tulsky will be available to the media at…
Apr 20, 2026; Edmonton, Alberta, CAN; Edmonton Oilers defenseman Mattias Ekholm (14) and right winger Kasperi Kapanen (42) celebrate a goal on the Anaheim Ducks in game one of the first round of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs during the third period at Rogers Place. Mandatory Credit: Walter Tychnowicz-Imagn Images
Walter Tychnowicz-Imagn Images
EDMONTON, Alberta — Kasperi Kapanen scored his second goal of the game with 1:54 left in the third period to give the Edmonton Oilers a 4-3 victory over the Anaheim Ducks in the opener of their first-round playoff series Monday night.
Jason Dickinson also scored twice for the Oilers, who trailed 3-2 entering the third after squandering a 2-0 lead.
Oilers star Leon Draisaitl returned to the ice after missing the final 14 regular-season games with an injury. Draisaitl and Jake Walman each had two assists for Edmonton, while Connor McDavid was held without a point.
McDavid and the Oilers are seeking their third consecutive trip to the Stanley Cup Final, having lost each of the last two seasons to the Florida Panthers, who missed the postseason this year.
Troy Terry had two goals and an assist and Leo Carlsson also scored for the Ducks, who are in the playoffs for the first time since 2018.
Connor Ingram made 25 saves, including a doozy in the waning seconds, to earn the win. Lukas Dostal stopped 30 shots for Anaheim.
Game 2 in the best-of-seven series is Wednesday in Edmonton.
The Oilers started the scoring with 2:39 remaining in the first period as Walman made a long stretch pass to Dickinson, who undressed Dostal with a great move. Edmonton was 30-5-5 when scoring first this season.
Edmonton scored again exactly a minute later as Kapanen took a feed from Draisaitl and then had two cracks at his own rebound to score his first of the playoffs.
The Oilers outshot the Ducks 14-4 in the first period.
Anaheim only needed 19 seconds into the middle frame to make it 2-1 as Terry scored on a huge rebound off Carlsson’s shot.
The Ducks tied it 4:38 into the second period as Carlsson returned the favor by banging in a rebound of Terry’s shot.
Anaheim had 26 comeback wins this season, tied for the NHL lead with Montreal. The Ducks won 17 games when trailing by a goal and nine when down by two.
The Ducks took the lead on the power play with 5:31 left in the second as Terry, playing his first career playoff game, sent a shot through traffic for his second goal of the game.
Edmonton tied it at 3 when Radko Gudas slipped and fell as a huge rebound on Mattias Ekholm’s shot came to Dickinson for his second goal of the game.
The Oilers went ahead for good when Vasily Podkolzin made a great backhand pass from behind the net to set up Kapanen’s second of the game.
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Dan Vladar stopped 27 shots, rookie Porter Martone scored for the second straight game and the Philadelphia Flyers shut out Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins 3-0 on Monday night to take a 2-0 lead in their best-of-seven first-round series.
The 19-year-old Martone became the sixth-youngest player in NHL history to score in each of his first two playoff games when he beat Stuart Skinner deep into the second period to put Philadelphia in front. Garnet Hathaway added a short-handed goal a few minutes later, and Luke Glendening chipped in an empty-netter late in the third.
Vladar made it stand up as the red-hot Flyers, who needed a scorching finishing stretch just to reach the playoffs, frustrated the suddenly offensively challenged Penguins all night.
Game 3 is Wednesday night in Philadelphia.
HURRICANES 3, SENATORS 2, 2OT
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Jordan Martinook beat Linus Ullmark from the slot at 13:53 of the second overtime to help Carolina beat Ottawa and take a 2-0 lead in their first-round series in the NHL playoffs.
Martinook — who was stopped on a penalty shot in the first OT — kept the winning play alive by chasing down a loose rebound toward the boards to keep the possession in the offensive zone. Moments later, Nikolaj Ehlers found Martinook between the circles to beat Ullmark, who was partially shielded by Carolina captain Jordan Staal at the top of the crease.
That set off a mob celebration by the Hurricanes around Martinook in a corner of the ice, ending a game that saw them hang on despite blowing a 2-0 lead and having an apparent winner by Mark Jankowski waved off in the first overtime due to an offside call on review.
The series moves to Canada’s capital for Game 3 on Thursday.
STARS 4, WILD 2
DALLAS (AP) — Wyatt Johnston had two unusual goals, Matt Duchene scored a tiebreaking power-play goal and had an assist, and Dallas beat Minnesota in Game 2 to even their first-round Western Conference series.
The Stars went ahead to stay with a power play winding down about four minutes into the penalty-filled second period when Duchene made a quick pass to Mikko Rantanen and then got the puck back just in front of the crease. That made it 2-1.
Dallas goalie Jake Oettinger stopped 28 shots, including a point-blank attempt by Kirill Kaprizov with 2 1/2 minutes to play when the Wild were on a power play after Dallas was penalized for too many men on the ice.
Brock Faber scored his first two career playoff goals for Minnesota, which won the opener 6-1 on Saturday but missed a chance in its 15th playoff appearance to take its first-ever 2-0 series lead.
Jason Robertson, who like Johnston scored 45 goals in the regular season, also scored for Dallas. Nils Lundkvist had two assists.
Game 3 is Wednesday night at Minnesota.
OILERS 4, DUCKS 3
EDMONTON, Alberta (AP) — Kasperi Kapanen scored his second goal of the game with 1:54 left in the third period to give Edmonton a victory over Anaheim in the opener of their first-round playoff series.
Jason Dickinson also scored twice for the Oilers, who trailed 3-2 entering the third.
Oilers star Leon Draisaitl returned to the ice after missing the final 14 regular-season games with an injury. Draisaitl and Jake Walman each had two assists for Edmonton.
The Oilers are seeking their third consecutive trip to the Stanley Cup Final, having lost each of the last two seasons to the Florida Panthers, who missed out on postseason play this year.
Jordan Martinook made amends after an earlier overtime opportunity went awry by scoring with 6:07 remaining in the second OT, lifting the Carolina Hurricanes to a 3-2 victory in Game 2 on Monday, April 20.
Martinook scored coming down the slot to end the game and send the Hurricanes to a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven series.
Logan Stankoven and Sebastian Aho scored the first two goals for Carolina. Frederik Andersen made 36 saves for the win.
Drake Batherson and Dylan Cozens had Ottawa's goals, with Jake Sanderson assisting on both tallies. Goalie Linus Ullmark seemed dialed in to steal a victory for Ottawa, making 43 saves.
The Hurricanes appeared to win it on a Mark Jankowski goal with 2:42 left in the first overtime, but an offside ruling after a video review negated the score and reset the clock to slightly more than three minutes. Yet Martinook was awarded a penalty shot as part of the sequence, with Ullmark making the stop to extend the game.
Game 3 is Thursday night in Ottawa.
There were stretches, including in overtime, when Ullmark and Andersen seemed to take turns making game-saving stops. Ottawa's Tim Stutzle nearly ended it in OT, but his shot bounced off the post.
Stankoven converted on the game's first power play 6:31 into the game off a feed from Taylor Hall, who was stationed behind the net. Stankoven has scored the first goal in both games in the series. Ottawa's Brady Tkachuk was in the penalty box for roughing.
Aho's first goal of the postseason came 7:50 into the second period in transition after he took a pass from Jordan Staal.
Ullmark's recovery for a save on Hall's blast prevented Carolina from taking a three-goal lead.
The Senators didn't score for the first 90 minutes of the series, and then they notched two goals in less than a six-minute stretch.
Batherson scored by shoveling the puck into the net after a deflection ended back near his stick on the left side of the net.
Cozens pulled the Senators even with 3:20 to play in the second period.
The pace was much accelerated from Game 1, with the Hurricanes holding a 28-16 edge in shots through two periods. The Senators outshot Carolina 8-5 in the scoreless third, which was played without a penalty called.
Stars 4, Wild 2
Wyatt Johnson scored twice as the Dallas Stars tied their series against the Minnesota Wild 1-1.
Johnson scored the opening goal and an empty netter as the Stars overcame a 6-1 loss in Game 1. Brock Faber scored twice for the Wild.
Game 3 is Wednesday in Minnesota.
Oilers 4, Ducks 3
Kasperi Kapanen scored twice, including the game-winner, as Edmonton won its opener.
Leon Draisaitl had two assists in his return from a 14-game injury absence.
Jason Dickinson also scored twice for the Oilers and Troy Terry scored twice for Anaheim.
Jordan Martinook's goal 13:53 into the second overtime gave the Carolina Hurricanes a 3–2 victory over the Ottawa Senators on Monday night. The victory gives the 'Canes a 2–0 lead in their first-round Stanley Cup Playoff series.
Linus Ullmark made 33 saves in regulation and 44 overall in what was likely his finest performance since joining the Senators in the summer of 2024.
For Ottawa, this wild, exciting, exhausting game didn’t start much better than it ended.
Just over five minutes in, Brady Tkachuk was called for a neutral-zone shove on Sebastian Aho, and the Hurricanes capitalized. Logan Stankoven, sitting alone in the slot, quickly ripped home a centering pass to make it 1–0.
In the second period, Tim Stützle's errant pass led to an odd-man rush. Jordan Staal’s pass went off Thomas Chabot’s skate, and Aho deflected it past Ullmark with his skates to double the lead.
Shortly after the Senators passed the midway point of the game (and series) without a goal, they finally caught a break.
Drake Batherson, at the side of the net, attempted a centering pass, but the puck bounced off a defender right back to him. He quickly shoveled it into a nearly empty net to cut the lead in half.
Almost six minutes later, Dylan Cozens tied the game at two with what appeared to be a harmless shot along the ice that slipped through Frederik Andersen’s pads. Cozens may have fanned on the attempt, which seemed to momentarily freeze Andersen.
Ottawa carried that momentum into the third period and controlled the pace of play, but their puck luck was done for the night. The period closed with yet another unreal Ullmark save, one of many he made in the game.
With under six minutes to play in overtime, Stützle had a chance to put the game away, but after a slick feed from Tkachuk, he beat Andersen but not the goalpost. It was the second time in the game Stützle had Andersen completely at his mercy.
Then, in the wildest series of events, Carolina's Jordan Martinook took a stick in the hands area while on a breakaway, which led to a delayed penalty on Ottawa.
With the extra attacker, the 'Canes scored what appeared to be the game-winning goal. But after Ottawa challenged the goal for offside, the review showed that Jordan Staal had put himself offside, crossing the line first without clear control of the puck.
But the penalty being called was going to be an overtime penalty shot for Martinook, which, by rule, apparently still stood, even though it happened after the offside.
Ullmark stood tall once again, stopping Martinook's wrist shot, and the Sens brought the game back from the dead for a second time.
With under nine minutes to play in the second overtime, Michael Amadio broke in all alone and tried to roof it. The puck just grazed Andersen's shoulder, and it fluttered off the post.
For all the help he got from his posts on Monday, Andersen had better spring for a new coat of red paint or something. The Sens struck iron five times on the night.
Then, as it so often goes, a minute after Amadio was a millimetre from being a hero, Carolina transitioned back and Martinook made no mistake with his shot this time, beating a screened Ullmark.
Unlike their last double-overtime loss nine years ago in Game 7 of the Eastern Final against Pittsburgh, there's still plenty of hockey left in this series, with the next two games back in Ottawa, but their margin for error is gone.
After a wild, emotional game like that, it will be interesting to see how the Senators respond in Game 3 on Thursday night.
Apr 20, 2026; Raleigh, North Carolina, USA; Carolina Hurricanes center Seth Jarvis (24) and Ottawa Senators right wing Drake Batherson (19) battle in the first overtime period in game two of the first round of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Lenovo Center. Mandatory Credit: James Guillory-Imagn Images
James Guillory-Imagn Images
RALEIGH, N.C. — Jordan Martinook beat Linus Ullmark from the slot at 13:53 of the second overtime to help the Carolina Hurricanes beat the Ottawa Senators 3-2 on Monday night and take a 2-0 lead in their first-round series in the NHL playoffs.
Martinook — who was stopped on a penalty shot in the first OT — kept the winning play alive by chasing down a loose rebound toward the boards to keep the possession in the offensive zone. Moments later, Nikolaj Ehlers found Martinook between the circles to beat Ullmark, who was partially shielded by Carolina captain Jordan Staal at the top of the crease.
That set off a mob celebration by the Hurricanes around Martinook in a corner of the ice, ending a game that saw them hang on despite blowing a 2-0 lead and having an apparent winner by Mark Jankowski waved off in the first overtime due to an offside call on review.
The series moves to Canada’s capital for Game 3 on Thursday.
After dropping Game 1 at home in rather unceremonious fashion, the Pittsburgh Penguins entered Game 2 against the Philadelphia Flyers in what was as close to a must-win situation as they could get without actually being in involved in an elimination game.
In Game 2, the Flyers ousted the Penguins, 3-0, in yet another frustrating, disjointed effort by the team. Pittsburgh was able to generate a bit more in terms of shots, as they outdid Philly in that department with a 27-23 advantage, but it was not nearly enough to rattle Dan Vladar, who earned his second-straight win between the pipes for the Flyers.
"You have to give [Vladar] credit. He made some big saves as well," Penguins' head coach Dan Muse said. "But we can be doing things here to be getting better quality. Better quality, and just more in general. So that falls on us."
The game was, once again, scoreless after one, and there wasn't a whole lot of space out there - especially in the neutral zone - to begin this game. There were only seven total shots on goal in the first period, and Philadelphia was credited with five of them. This was despite the fact that the Penguins had three power play opportunities.
And, just like Game 1, much was the same for the first half of the second period, even if the Penguins did generate some chances. Bryan Rust hit iron a few minutes in, and Egor Chinakhov had an opportunity from the slot that he simply just whiffed on.
After the Penguins failed to score during that stretch, it was only a matter of time before the Flyers took advantage of mistakes. About 13 minutes into the second, A TV timeout gave the Flyers a chance to reset after a strong wave of o-zone pressure from the Penguins, and they were able to generate a strong shift in the offensive zone for, really, the first time in the middle frame. The result was a Porter Martone goal on a nice seam pass across the low slot from Travis Konecny, and the Flyers took the 1-0 lead.
However, Luke Glendening took a cross-checking penalty a couple of minutes later, putting the Penguins on their fourth power play at a crucial moment in the game. They could not get anything generated, and conversely, Philadelphia pressured in the Penguins' zone on the penalty kill. Garnet Hathaway essentially had a tap-in opportunity from Owen Tippett due to some blown coverage by the Penguins' second unit, and the shorthanded goal put the Flyers up, 2-0.
That was, really, the nail in the coffin. The Penguins did generate some good looks in the third period, but it was simply not enough, and Glendening added the empty-netter with two minutes remaining in regulation.
"When we sustained some zone time, when we moved the puck to open areas and separated ourselves a little bit from their tight checks - and, you know, their good defensive work - something will eventually open up," Erik Karlsson said. "It's really hard to defend in this league with the way everybody's skating these days, and we just don't do enough of it.
"Come the end of the second to third period, you knew they have a little bit more energy than we do, and that starts right from the beginning."
The Penguins will head to Philadelphia to face the Flyers in Game 3 on Wednesday at 7:00 p.m. ET. Pittsburgh trails in the series, 2-0.
- This power play is their undoing right now, and it's a serious problem.
The Penguins' man advantage is now 0-for-7 in this series, and it has cost them momentum in both of these hockey games. They had plenty of chances to establish an early lead in the first period, and they were barely able to set up against a bottom-10 penalty kill during the regular season. And, when they did, they either missed the net or attempted an ill-advised pass.
They had one shot across five power plays today. That's simply not good enough. Philadelphia legitimately generated more on the penalty kill against them. The unit is entirely disjointed, there's way too much perimeter play, and they're fumbling way too many opportunities to get pucks on net.
And, as the cherry on top, the shorthanded goals continue to be a legitimate problem from this unit.
"I said it before. I think there's different things every time, but there has to be awareness on the power play," Muse said. "It doesn't matter who you're out there against. Which team. They get the puck, they're going to be on the attack, and I think we have to have awareness of what's behind us."
I don't know if there is a quick fix for the power play, whether personnel-wise or strategy-wise. But something needs to change between Game 2 and Game 3; otherwise, it could very well be the primary reason they get eliminated.
- Once again, Stuart Skinner was outstanding in this game, and he deserves a lot more support from the team in front of him.
He made a ten-bell save on a shorthanded 2-on-0 opportunity during the third period on Glendening that would have given the Flyers two in the game and an earlier 3-0 lead. He stopped a third-period penalty shot by Owen Tippett to continue giving his team a chance to come back in this one. He made a lot of key saves in the second period as well.
For the first time in a while during the playoffs, the Penguins are actually getting really solid goaltending. Skinner is literally doing everything he can to keep them in this series.
Once again, he has earned the next start. This series could be looking much, much uglier right now without him, and if there's a silver lining through these first two, that's it. If the Penguins can simply start scoring goals, they should be in good shape.
Stuart Skinner makes a great stop to keep the Penguins within two.
- And the Penguins won't start scoring goals if their top-six can't figure things out.
Sidney Crosby has not looked anything close to himself in these first two games, and the case is the same with Rust, Karlsson, Tommy Novak, and Evgeni Malkin. Even Chinakhov looks off. Everything about the top-six is off, and trickling further down the lineup, too, I don't think Anthony Mantha or Connor Dewar have played particularly well, either.
Muse did adjust the lines in the third period for good, slotting Rickard Rakell back up with Crosby and Rust and Chinakhov back alongside Malkin and Novak, and that seemed to help a little bit. But, simply put, if these guys can't get going, the Flyers are going to make quick work of this series.
It's easy to tell frustration is starting to boil over. Tensions were high throughout the game, and especially at the end, when Mantha, Kris Letang, Noel Acciari, and Parker Wotherspoon were all assessed misconducts.
They need to turn the page, work it out in practice Tuesday, and not let the frustration seep into the next one.
"There should be frustration," Muse said. "We should be frustrated. We just lost two games at home, and so I think with frustration comes, 'How are you going to respond?' I would hope every single guy in that room, entire staff... nobody's happy right now. Nobody should be.
"Tomorrow, we're going to have to make a decision in terms of, are we going to stay with this? Stay with what we want to do? Get to our game, which we haven't gotten to in two games? Or are we going to let frustration continue to boil over into the next one? That's a choice that we, together, and all of us, including myself, are going to make here, hopefully, in the next 24 hours."
NHL hits leader Yakov Trenin had to go to the dressing room after absorbing a massive hit on Monday, April 20.
The Minnesota Wild forward had just received a pass as he skated up ice when the Dallas Stars' Colin Blackwell stepped into him with a clean hit and sent him flying. Trenin was down on the ice for several minutes as trainers came out to tend to him and hold a towel to his face.
He eventually got up and started skating off the ice with assistance, then by himself.
Trenin was the NHL's leader in hits during the regular season with 413. He had 13 hits in Game 1, a 6-1 Minnesota rout.
PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA - APRIL 18: Nick Seeler #24 of the Philadelphia Flyers exchanges punches with Rickard Rakell #67 of the Pittsburgh Penguins in the third period of Game One of the First Round of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs at PPG PAINTS Arena on April 18, 2026 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin Berl/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Pregame
No lineup changes for the Penguins from Game 1, including going back to Stuart Skinner as the starting goalie.
Penalties are the story of the first period, the teams combine for eight minutes on four minors (three for Philadelphia, one for Pittsburgh) that ends up with the Penguins spending 4:00 of the period on the power play, where they don’t score and mostly don’t come close to doing so.
Other than that, the first period looked like Game 1 in many ways. The Flyers continue to gum things up in the neutral zone and play tight defense. The Penguins did better to cut through the defense at times — shot attempts were 19-5 PIT at one point — but still are unable to make much out of it just only getting two of those 19 attempts on goal. The Penguins are still butting their heads against the wall by attempting low-percentage cross-ice passes frequently. The Flyers are doing the typical Flyer things (Travis Sanheim dove forward and on his butt after feeling a stick in his skates to draw a penalty, Rasmus Ristolainen punched Sidney Crosby in the head after the whistle).
Shots for the period end up 5-2, PHI. Certainly not the style and way that Pittsburgh wants these games to go, it’s still right up the Flyers’ aisle. No goals through 20 minutes.
Second period
The Penguins get caught with six players on the ice 5:34 into the period. That happens before they can manage an official shot on goal in the period but they kill it off without much problems.
The game chugs along for a while, the Pens get some pressure and coming out of a TV timeout put Egor Chinakhov with Evgeni Malkin, Tommy Novak and the third pair defense. That group gets caught on the ice for a 1:30 shift and a bad bounce leads to the first goal. Ryan Shea blocks away a Travis Konecny shot but unfortunately the puck flips out right to Porter Martone. The rookie has a wide open net. 1-0 with 6:21 to play in the second.
A good shift by the fourth line draws a power play for Pittsburgh with 4:12 left in the period. It leads to disaster with a shorthanded goal against. Owen Tippett wants the puck way more than Tommy Novak, who compounds the mistake of an indirect path to the puck by then colliding with Kris Letang to hand the Flyers a late 2-on-1 down low. Tippett feeds Garnet Hathaway, who matches his regular season goal total of one in the playoffs with an easy finish to extend the PHI lead to 2-0.
Evgeni Malkin and a Flyer both get their sticks up and contact a Flyer up high, after review Malkin gets two minutes for the high-stick but avoids getting four minutes for not causing the injury.
End of the period and it wasn’t a good one. The Pens fall behind by two goals.
Third period
The Penguins kill off the carryover power play at the start of the period.
The newly reunited Rakell-Crosby-Rust line gets a very good shift, culminating in Sam Girard all alone from the middle getting a good shot that Dan Vladar answered with a big save.
Pittsburgh stacks a couple more good shifts with a second and third line playing well, followed up by Crosby getting a shot. Shots are 6-1 Pens and it’s the Flyers finally having to ice the puck to relieve pressure from the first sustained and decent push that Pittsburgh has made. Konecny hits Crosby once the puck is gone to open the door for yet another Penguin power play.
It starts out with near disaster, Bryan Rust can’t handle a zone entry pass and somehow the Flyers end up with a clean 2-on-0 break after Erik Karlsson misplays it. Skinner stands tall with by far his best save of the game to keep it from totally getting off the rails.
A little later, Ben Kindel gets a glorious chance but sails a puck well high of the goal.
Karlsson has to water ski on Tippett after the Flyer got behind the defense, the refs award Tippett the rare playoff penalty shot. It goes outside the far post and stays out, still a 2-0 game.
There isn’t a lot more sustained pressure for Pittsburgh, they pull Skinner but there’s no late-game magic to be found this time. Luke Glendening scores on the open net. 3-0 game with 2:05 to go.
Tempers flare in garbage time, Letang gets called for a penalty hitting a Flyer away from the puck. Anthony Mantha feeds Tippett a couple of uppercuts and gets tossed. Letang picks up an extra penalty along the way, ending up in a four minute Flyer power play with 1:47 to go.
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Some thoughts
The Pens’ power play went 7/18 vs PHI during the regular season, it’s at 0/7 for the playoffs with a SHG against tonight. That’s a big problem that’s actively hurting them. Situationally tonight there were some unfortunate circumstances (Erik Karlsson was stuck in the penalty box himself for a chunk of one power play) but there’s not much within the power plays to feel good about how it’s running at the moment.
Two shots in the first, the team’s lowest playoff output since 2000. Fast starts were such a key to the series, so far the Penguins haven’t been able to get out to anything at all. Another huge, huge issue.
The Flyers stick with starting the Sean Couturier checking line to open periods, today’s adjustment by Pittsburgh was to throw the Novak-Rakell-Malkin line out there to meet them. It’ll be interesting to see what happens at the start of periods now that the Pens have to make the first selection on the road in Games 3+4. A good bet: the Lizotte fourth line will start to see if Philadelphia will move accordingly to keep Couturier off the ice until a scoring line goes out for the Pens.
Another reason this game was way too much like Game 1 was the continued struggles of the Girard/Letang pair. Girard doesn’t look like he’s lost confidence but try as he may, he’s not having very many successful puck touches in all three zones. Letang’s struggles have continued.
Same could be said for Kindel too, he’s got no time or space to do anything and now might be clutching the stick a little too tightly. Subbing in Justin Brazeau isn’t alone going to fix all that ails the lineup right now, the players within it aren’t performing up to a playoff standard right now.
The Flyers’ teenager, on the other hand, is making a huge difference. Philadelphia had 23 shots on goal today, Martone had six of them and the only 5v5 goal.
The one good thing is the Flyers’ focus clearly being defensive-minded to layer their defense and often stack three near the blueline is that it’s difficult for them to generate a lot of sustained offense of their own. It’s a tight checking game that almost devolves into which team is going to get a good bounce or find some breakthrough that cracks the ice and forces the action to open up. Today the Flyers got that break out of nowhere (they hadn’t had a shot in 7:28 of game time before scoring).
It was good to see the lines get switched in the second period, Chinakhov and Crosby had nothing going on at all through a game and a half of these playoffs. The decision to put the Shea-Clifton pair out for an offensive-zone draw coming out of a TV timeout with a scoring line on the ice looked questionable and ended up coming back to bite the Penguins in that instance.
If you only knew that shot attempts were 75-38 PIT and at one point in the third period were 66-33, you’d be excused to think suggested good things on the scoreboard. That would end up being misleading, especially since the Pens only got 27 of those 75 shots on net and only a handful of them even had remote chances of being goals. The Pens got a bit of pressure at the start of the third period and required Vladar to look alive and make a couple of nice saves but just not nearly enough Grade A chances.
It’s back to the wall time now, the Penguins head on the road for Game 3 on Wednesday night and will need to come up with a lot better play than what they’ve showed so far.
Fans of the Detroit Red Wings got several up-close and personal looks at former Michigan State Spartans forward Porter Martone, whom the Philadelphia Flyers selected with the sixth overall pick in the 2025 NHL Draft.
He picked up his first NHL point earlier this month against the Red Wings in Philadelphia, and picked up another point with several friends from Michigan State in attendance at Little Caesars Arena just days later.
He's already made a considerable impact for the Flyers, who punched their ticket to the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time since 2020.
Martone has now scored in consecutive postseason games for the Flyers, and in doing so, became just the 12th teenager in NHL history to score in each of his first two playoff games.
He's already become one of their top forwards at just 19 years of age, showing that the sky truly is the limit for him.
In 35 games played with the Spartans this season before officially signing with the Flyers and making his NHL debut, Martone scored 25 goals with 25 assists.
He also racked up 78 penalty minutes while posting an impressive plus-24 rating.
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