Cam Fowler had just scored a goal on Saturday afternoon to give the St. Louis Blues a 4-2 lead against the Chicago Blackhawks late in the second period.
It was a capper to a solid period for the visitors, but what they didn't know at the time was seconds before, their season was made official.
Despite the Blues' 5-3 win over the Blackhawks at United Center in Chicago, they were officially eliminated from postseason contention when the Los Angeles Kings downed the Edmonton Oilers 1-0.
The Blues (34-33-12) are seven points behind L.A. but with just three games left in their season, they can max out with only six points. It was more of a formality for a team that was trying to overcome at one point, a 14-point deficit that closed within three as late as April 5 but unlike last season when the Blues used a franchise-record 12-game winning streak to get in with 96 points as the second wild card out of the Western Conference, there were too many teams and too much a deficit to pull this off for a second straight season.
It almost felt at the time when the Blues fell 5-4 to the San Jose Sharks on March 30 when they lost that game with 22 seconds remaining in regulation, then fell to the Kings 2-1 in overtime on April 1, coming up with only one of a possible four points in those two games, that was like getting kicked into the coffin and waiting for someone to put the final nail down, which came Saturday.
The silver lining to this also is the Blues getting some good out-of-town news when the Detroit Red Wings fell to the New Jersey Devils, eliminating the Red Wings from playoff contention in the Eastern Conference.
As you may remember, the Blues hold the Red Wings' first-round pick from the trade that sent Justin Faulk to Motown. And depending on how the lottery plays out, the Blues can look mighty good having two potential higher-end picks on the positive end. But we'll know about how all that plays out when the NHL holds its draft lottery on May 5.
As for the game Saturday, 13 players got onto the scoresheet as the Blues split the season series with the Blackhawks (28-38-14) with five different goal scorers (Jimmy Snuggerud, Alexey Toropchenko, Jordan Kyrou, Cam Fowler and Dalibor Dvorsky) while Jonatan Berggren and Tyler Tucker each picked up two assists.
Snuggerud's 18th of the season put the Blues ahead 1-0 at 9:26 of the first period:
Down a goal early in the second, Toropchenko's first in 21 games (Feb. 4 at Dallas) tied the game 2-2 at 4:10 of the second period on this backhand breakaway:
Kyrou put the Blues ahead for good with the lone power play the Blues had in the game with this top shelf shot from the left circle at 12:06 of the second for a 3-2 lead:
Joel Hofer made 32 saves in the game for his 22nd win of the season, and with an assist, Dylan Holloway now has 29 points (12 goals, 17 assists) in 22 games since the Olympic break.
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DALLAS (AP) — Jason Robertson scored a power-play goal midway through the third period and added an empty-netter in the final minute while Jake Oettinger made 22 saves for his fourth shutout of the season as the Dallas Stars beat the New York Rangers 2-0 on Saturday and clinched second place in the Central Division.
The Stars were already assured of facing the Minnesota Wild in the first round of the NHL playoffs. They secured the position late in the third period when the Wild lost in regulation to the Nashville Predators.
Robertson collected a rebound of Matt Duchene’s shot and flipped a backhander into the far side to beat Igor Shesterkin with 7:11 left to play. Robertson has 44 goals, two short of his career high scored three years ago.
Duchene assisted on both goals.
It was Oettinger’s 34th win of the season. He was on the U.S. men’s team that Rangers head coach Mike Sullivan led to the gold medal at the Milan Cortina Olympics.
Shesterkin stopped 17 shots while absorbing only his second regulation loss in 10 career decisions against Dallas.
The Rangers began a season-ending three-game road trip. They’re last in the Eastern Conference and will miss the playoffs for a second straight season after winning the Presidents’ Trophy in 2024.
The Rangers, with the second-best road power play in the league, went 0 for 5 with the man advantage. That included 1:02 of 5-on-3 late in the second period.
Up next
Both teams will play on the road Monday, the Rangers at Florida and the Stars at Toronto.
DALLAS (AP) — Jason Robertson scored a power-play goal midway through the third period and added an empty-netter in the final minute while Jake Oettinger made 22 saves for his fourth shutout of the season as the Dallas Stars beat the New York Rangers 2-0 on Saturday and clinched second place in the Central Division.
The Stars were already assured of facing the Minnesota Wild in the first round of the NHL playoffs. They secured the position late in the third period when the Wild lost in regulation to the Nashville Predators.
Robertson collected a rebound of Matt Duchene’s shot and flipped a backhander into the far side to beat Igor Shesterkin with 7:11 left to play. Robertson has 44 goals, two short of his career high scored three years ago.
Duchene assisted on both goals.
It was Oettinger’s 34th win of the season. He was on the U.S. men's team that Rangers coach Mike Sullivan led to the gold medal at the Milan Cortina Olympics.
Shesterkin stopped 17 shots while absorbing only his second regulation loss in 10 career decisions against Dallas.
The Rangers began a season-ending three-game road trip. They’re last in the Eastern Conference and will miss the playoffs for a second straight season after winning the Presidents’ Trophy in 2024.
The Rangers, with the second-best road power play in the league, went 0 for 5 with the man advantage. That included 1:02 of 5-on-3 late in the second period.
Up next
Both teams will play on the road Monday, the Rangers at Florida and the Stars at Toronto.
DETROIT (AP) — Jesper Bratt scored his second goal with 3:34 left in the third period, helping the New Jersey Devils eliminate the Detroit Red Wings from the NHL playoff picture with a 5-3 win on Saturday.
Detroit extended the league’s longest active postseason drought, dating to the 2016 season when the franchise earned a berth for the 25th consecutive season in what was a remarkable run that included four Stanley Cup championships.
The Red Wings were in a playoff position for 148 days of the season, according to Sportradar, to raise expectations higher than they’ve been since the hockey-crazed state has experienced the playoffs a long time ago.
They went ahead against New Jersey in the first, second and third periods — and lost every lead.
On an odd-man rush, Bratt scored the go-ahead goal from the left circle off a perfect pass from Jack Hughes in the right circle with John Gibson flailing around in an attempt to stop the puck. Dawson Mercer added an empty-net goal with a minute left.
Gibson had 27 saves for the Red Wings and Jake Allen stopped 25 shots for the Devils.
Detroit’s Justin Faulk broke a scoreless tie midway through the opening period.
Olympic hero Hughes, playing about 25 miles from where he skated in high school at USA Hockey Arena, scored his 27th goal of the season a minute later.
The Red Wings went back ahead on David Perron’s goal with 8:01 left in the second period, but failed to keep the lead again. Bratt scored a game-tying goal, giving him at least 21 for a fifth straight season.
Emmitt Finnie scored a tiebreaking goal seven minutes into the third to put the Red Wings ahead again, but Cody Glass pulled the Devils into another tie midway through the period.
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS - MAY 17: Sam Reinhart #13 of the Florida Panthers skates against Charlie McAvoy #73 of the Boston Bruins in Game Six of the Second Round of the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs at the TD Garden on May 17, 2024 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Steve Babineau/NHLI via Getty Images) | NHLI via Getty Images
It’s not exactly the way you want to clinch a playoff spot, but you’ll take it!
After throwing away a point or two via a late regulation loss to Tampa Saturday afternoon, the Bruins officially clinched a playoff spot via a Detroit Red Wings loss later in the day.
The Red Wings, playing at home, needed to either beat New Jersey or lose beyond regulation to stay in playoff contention.
They did neither, allowing three New Jersey goals in the third period en route to a 5-3 loss that ended their slim playoff hopes.
While the B’s are officially in, there’s still plenty to be decided in the last few days of the regular season.
The Bruins and Ottawa will go back-and-forth over the first and second wild card spot, with Ottawa currently in WC1 via the regulation wins tiebreaker.
Both the Bruins and Senators have two games left:
Bruins: at Columbus, vs. New Jersey
Ottawa: at New Jersey, vs. Toronto
The Bruins will be playing out their string Sunday and Tuesday, while the Senators will be playing tomorrow and Wednesday.
There’s also the not-so-small matter of who the B’s (and Senators) will be playing in the first round.
It’s likely that the second wild card team will be facing the Carolina Hurricanes, though there’s a chance they could flop in their last three games and let an Atlantic team catch them.
However, the second wild card is almost certainly beginning the playoffs in Raleigh, while WC1 will be facing a to-be-determined Atlantic team.
Interestingly enough, that could be any one of Buffalo, Montreal, or Tampa Bay at this point, with the three teams separated by two points (prior to Montreal’s Saturday night game, at least).
I don’t think there’s an easy out in the Atlantic, but I’d prefer to play one of those three teams instead of Carolina.
Regardless, the Bruins are officially back in the playoffs after a season away.
Their last postseason game was on May 17, 2o24, a 2-1 loss to the Florida Panthers at TD Garden.
Given where the Bruins were predicted to finish this season, making the playoffs is no small feat.
The Kings' Anze Kopitar waves to fans after his final regular-season home game, a 1-0 win over Oilers on Saturday. (Scott Strazzante/For The Times)
When the final horn sounded Saturday on the Kings’ 1-0 matinee win over the Edmonton Oilers, Anze Kopitar made his way to center ice, a microphone in his hand and his heart in pieces.
"Thank you very much," he said to the fans, his voice cracking. "Thank you for being here."
Kopitar then held his hands in front of him and folded his fingers into the shape of a heart before skating away — not quite into the sunset, but headed in that direction.
Kopitar announced in September that this season would be his last, so unless the Kings make the playoffs — a distinct possibility after the team's fourth win a row and fifth in six games, its best streak of the season — Saturday marked the final home appearance of a brilliant 20-year career spent entirely in Los Angeles.
The Kings' Anze Kopitar vies for position in front of the Oilers' Darnell Nurse during the second period on Saturday at Crypto.com Arena. (Scott Strazzante/For The Times)
And the announced crowd of 18,145 at Crypto.com Arena made sure he knew that parting is such sweet sorrow, standing and cheering long after the game had ended.
“Eventually it was going to happen,” Kopitar, 38, reflected before the game. “Whether it was this year or two years from now, there was going to be a last day. And I’m very OK with my decision.”
Kopitar will leave having written his name all over the Kings’ record book. He’s the all-time franchise leader in points (1,314), assists (862), game-winning goals (79) and games played (1,518). He ranks third in goals (452) and power-play goals (129).
And most importantly, he played a starring role on the Kings’ only two Stanley Cup championships, leading both the 2011-12 and 2013-14 teams in goals, assists and points.
“Over 700 people have put the Kings’ uniform on,” said Daryl Evans, who was one of the 700 before retiring to become a broadcaster with the team. "He stands at the top of the mountain as one of the greatest — if not the greatest — to do so. He’s a great hockey player, as we can all see. But he’s a better person off the ice.”
It’s that second part, Evans said, that will make Kopitar difficult to replace.
“Records are made to be beaten. But the intangibles, the things that he did as the team’s captain, the leadership that he provided, the type of a player he was, very unselfish,” Evans said. “He’s one of those guys who’s a special player.”
The Kings got the only goal they would need Saturday 7:34 into the first period when Artemi Panarin stripped Edmonton’s Evan Bouchard of the puck at the Kings’ blue line and took off the other way, skating in alone on Oilers’ goalie Connor Ingram, then beating him on a wrist shot from between the circles.
Kings players react as Anze Kopitar speaks to fans after his final regular-season home game, a 1-0 win over the Edmonton Oilers on Saturday. (Scott Strazzante/For The Times)
The goal was Panarin’s ninth in 23 games since joining the Kings just ahead of the Olympic break. Edmonton nearly pulled that back midway through the period when Curtis Lazar tipped the puck by Kings’ goalie Anton Forsberg, only to have defenseman Cody Ceci dive through the crease and swipe it away with a desperate one-handed wave of his stick.
Forsberg was brilliant the rest of the way, stopping 27 shots to post his 11th career shutout and win his season-best fourth game in a row, preserving the Kings' one-point lead over Nashville in the race for the Western Conference's final wild-card playoff berth.
The son of a coach, Kopitar was born in the former Yugoslavia, in the mining town of Jesenice near the border with Austria, an area that became part of Slovenia when that country declared independence just before Kopitar’s fourth birthday.
At 16, he led the new country’s first-tier professional league in scoring, so he moved to Sweden in search of a challenge — and led that country’s top junior league with 49 points in 30 games. That drew the attention of the Kings, who took Kopitar with the 11th overall pick in the 2005 draft.
Fourteen months later he became the first Slovenian to play in the NHL, making his debut as a teenager and scoring two goals against the Ducks. He never looked back — nor looked to play elsewhere, twice signing contract extensions with the Kings rather than test the free-agent market. (Not that he needed to test the free-agent market since he made more than $140 million in his two decades with the Kings, becoming the best-paid player in team history.)
“I've always felt extremely comfortable in L.A.,” said Kopitar, whose two children were born here. “The organization has been world-class since I got here, so I had no desire to go anywhere else.”
Anze Kopitar celebrates with the Stanley Cup after the Kings' win over the New Jersey Devils in 2012. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
As a result only six players in league history have played more games with a single organization, making Kopitar’s name synonymous with the franchise.
“The greatest to play for the Kings,” said Luc Robitaille, the franchise leader in goals (557) as a player and now the team’s president. “What’s he meant to this franchise — you know this franchise never won and he came along and we won two [Stanley Cups]. So he deserves all the credits and everything that’s coming his way.”
He’s also among the last of a dying breed: a two-way center who stood out on both ends of the ice, but was also gentlemanly enough to win the Lady Byng trophy three times. Only one player has won the NHL’s top sportsmanship award more often this century.
“Every coach would love to have him because he never cheats the game,” Evans said of Kopitar, who this month was also nominated for the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy, which recognizes the player who “best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship and dedication to ice hockey.”
“He’s got a lot of pride and he doesn’t want to let his teammates down,” Evans said. “He’s been a student of the game from Day 1. He plays the game the right way. If you could tell a player ‘watch somebody,’ there’s a guy you want to watch.”
Kopitar’s numbers have declined this season, owing partly to a pair of lower-body injuries that caused him to miss significant time in both October and January. That’s left him on pace to finish with fewer than 16 goals in a full season for just the third time while his 24assists and 36 points are career lows.
But he has the best plus/minus number on the team and he’s winning a career-best 57.7%of his faceoffs, including four crucial draws deep in the Kings' end in the final minute Saturday.
“It’s been, obviously, an up-and-down season,” he said. “Some good, some bad, some ugly.”
Kopitar admits the goodbyes have been emotional at times. On his final visit to Madison Square Garden last month, for example, he and former teammate Jonathan Quick exchanged several hugs after the game.
“I’m enjoying it,” he added. “I’m not sad about it. I guess I’m staying in the moment and enjoying the moment.”
The Kings' Anze Kopitar tries to flip a shot past Edmonton goaltender Connor Ingram Saturday at Crypto.com Arena. (Scott Strazzante/For The Times)
The Kings can extend Kopitar’s farewell tour by at least a couple of weeks by making the playoffs, a task that's looking much more likely than it did a week ago. After Saturday's win the Kings not only lead Nashville in the wild-card race, holding a game in hand over the Predators, but they are just two points out of third place in the Pacific Division standings.
"He hopes he's going to play here again," Kings coach D.J. Smith said of Kopitar's possible postseason encore.
Just where and when the team might open the postseason — if, indeed, it qualifies — is up in the air since the Kings could finish anywhere from first to fifth in the division, leaving them with more than a dozen possible playoff scenarios. So when the team leaves for its final three-game trip of the season Sunday, the players have been told to pack for 10 days.
Either way Kopitar isn’t changing his mind; when the Kings’ season ends — whenever that is — his career will end as well. So will his time in Los Angeles since Kopitar is selling his Manhattan Beach home and moving back to Slovenia to accept a new role as a full-time father.
“I’m going to be a dad,” he said. “I’m going to just relax and see how long it takes to get bored and then we’ll figure it out from there. Of course I’m going to miss this place. But it was a family decision, obviously, to move.
“As much as this place is super nice and the community was great to us, it’s time to slow down the tempo a little bit and enjoy life. But I’ll make it back here for sure.”
On January 27th, the Senators were ten points and seven teams out of a playoff spot in the NHL's Eastern Conference standings.
What a difference a couple of months can make.
Ottawa's 3-0 victory on Long Island on Saturday afternoon, combined with the Detroit Red Wings' 5-3 Loss to the New Jersey Devils later in the day, means the Senators have officially clinched a playoff spot for the second straight season.
Since January 27th, the Senators have only lost six games in regulation, posting a record of 19-6-3. Not quite as good as the 2015 Hamburglar Run, but it's right there among the best in-season turnarounds in Ottawa Senators history.
That included the win on Long Island, where Linus Ullmark earned his 3rd shutout of the season and 15th of his career. Mike Amadio and Ridly Greig each had a goal and an assist. Jake Sanderson provided the insurance, giving the Senators a 2-0 advantage on a 5-on-3 third-period power play. Ottawa managed only 16 shots in the game.
In Detroit on Saturday, the Wings just couldn't get the Devils out of their hair, blowing three one-goal leads in the game. Jesper Bratt scored the winner for the Devils with under four minutes to play.
Once the Senators won their game, Detroit's comeback was destined to be a long shot anyway. They would have had to win their last three games, including two in Florida, while the Senators would have had to lose their last two.
Detroit will officially miss the playoffs for the tenth straight season, and with the Buffalo Sabres snapping their record skid, Hockeytown is the NHL's new active playoff drought leader.
Ottawa currently holds down Wild Card 1 with two games to play. If they win out, it's theirs. But the conundrum now is rest versus rust. They'll want some guys to heal up and/or rest a little, but with a week still before the playoffs start, they also don't want to lose their mojo right now.
There's still a lot to be decided for playoff positioning, but as a Wild Card team, the Senators will likely get either Buffalo or Carolina in round one. The 'Canes have clinched the Metro, so they will definitely play a wild-card team, either Boston or Ottawa.
Buffalo is in good shape to clinch the Atlantic and face one of the wild-cards, but that's not official yet. So as of this writing, Montreal and Tampa aren't totally off Ottawa's first-round radar.
The final road game will be in New Jersey on Sunday. Their regular-season finale will be at home to Toronto on Wednesday, which is fan appreciation day, when fans will be excited to show their appreciation for a phenomenal turnaround and fuel the boys for Game 1 on the road next week.
Steve Warne The Hockey News
This article was first published at The Hockey News Ottawa. Check out more great Sens features from The Hockey News at the links below:
DENVER — Sometimes, the chaos of an NHL bench extends beyond line changes and matchups—on Saturday night, it placed Colorado Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar on the injury report.
At the 3:21 mark of the third period, Vegas Golden Knights forward Keegan Kolesar attempted to clear the puck with Jack Drury applying pressure, but the puck sailed into the Avalanche bench and struck Bednar on the right cheek. Trainers immediately rushed to his aid before escorting him down the tunnel.
Nick Blankenburg's post-game comments.
UPDATE: Bednar took a puck to the right cheek. He’s awake and alert but going to the hospital for a CT scan.#goavsgo@thehockeynews
Following Colorado’s 3–2 overtime loss to the Vegas Golden Knights, the Avalanche announced that Bednar was awake, alert, and fully conscious, but was transported to a local hospital for precautionary imaging, including a CT scan.
The injury concerns extended beyond the bench, as Colorado also lost defenseman Josh Manson in the second period. He is currently undergoing further evaluation.
Despite the setbacks, the Colorado Avalanche received goals from Devon Toews and Nick Blankenburg, the latter marking his first goal with the club since being acquired in a trade from the Nashville Predators. Brock Nelson, Martin Nečas, and Nicolas Roy each recorded an assist. In goal, Mackenzie Blackwood made 25 saves on 28 shots.
With the Presidents' Trophy already locked up, it was more or less a meaningless game for the Avalanche, but unfortunately, the results could prove to be costly depending how long Manson is out. The team is already without the services of Nazem Kadri, who is out with a broken finger, and Cale Makar, who continues to recover from an upper-body injury.
Mark Stone and Pavel Dorofeyev found the net for the Golden Knights and Carter Hart made 30 saves.
First Period
The Avalanche came out flying, pressuring Carter Hart and firing six shots on goal within the opening minutes. However, Vegas made its first shot count as a dangerous opportunity—after Brent Burns broke his stick, Ivan Barbashev picked up the loose puck, raced down the left wing, and fired a shot that rang off the post.
After successfully killing off a bench minor for too many men on the ice, the Avalanche drew their first power play of the night when Golden Knights forward Nic Hague was called for boarding Nick Blankenburg, driving him from behind and sending him hard into the boards.
With 10:43 remaining in the period, Devon Toews took a pass from Brock Nelson at the point and snapped a wrist shot through traffic that slipped past Carter Hart, giving Colorado a 1–0 lead on the power play. With an assist on the goal, Martin Nečas recorded his 99th point of the season.
Mark Stone tied the game for Vegas with 6:16 remaining in the period, finishing off a deft sequence that began with a shot from Mitch Marner. It was pure artistry from Stone, who jumped on the rebound and quickly shifted from his forehand to backhand, fooling Mackenzie Blackwood before burying the chance to even the score.
Second Period
At 2:09 of the period, the Golden Knights took a 2–1 lead off a beautiful setup. Ivan Barbashev fed Pavel Dorofeyev for a one-timer, and despite the awkward angle from the middle of the left circle, Dorofeyev blasted it top shelf, sailing it over Mackenzie Blackwood’s glove.
Over eight minutes later, the Avalanche delivered the equalizer as Nick Blankenburg scored his first goal as an Av, firing a wrister through traffic that Carter Hart was too late to react to, tying the game.
On the ensuing sequence, Colorado was sent to the penalty kill after Gabe Landeskog was called for hooking.
Manson exited the game at this point and was not seen on the bench. It was later revealed that he had suffered an upper-body injury and would not return.
Josh Manson has suffered an upper-body injury and will not return to tonight’s game. #goavsgo@thehockeynews
Near the halfway point of the third, the Avalanche caught a huge break when Golden Knights forward Tomasz Hertl turned around from the right circle and whipped a shot that clanged off the post.
After a scoreless period, the game went to overtime.
Overtime
Eichel scored the game-winning goal for Vegas 1:19 into overtime, finishing off a rush with a shot from the right circle.
Next Game
The Avalanche (52-16-11) will take on Connor McDavid and the Edmonton Oilers (40-30-10) as the latter continue to fight for a playoff spot in the Pacific Division.
Even though he isn't on the Philadelphia Flyers anymore, Claude Giroux, with the help of his Ottawa Senators teammates, lent his former club a helping hand in their playoff race Saturday afternoon.
The last playoff spot is effectively down to the third place Metropolitan Division team, which will be either the Flyers, Washington Capitals, Columbus Blue Jackets, or New York Islanders.
The Islanders, with 91 points, were only 1 point behind the 92-point Flyers with the same amount of games played (79), but on Saturday, Giroux and Co. got the job done in sensational fashion.
Forward Ridly Greig (son of longtime Flyers scout Mark Greig) and defenseman Jake Sanderson (son of ex-Flyers forward Geoff Sanderson) tallied short-handed and power play goals, while Greig added an assist on the empty-net goal to seal a 3-0 defeat of the Islanders.
Giroux, 38, was the Senators' lead faceoff man, winning 10 of his 17 faceoff attempts (58.8%) and finishing second only to Greig (71.4%) in faceoff percentage on the night.
To make the playoffs and finish ahead of the Islanders, the Flyers need to only earn as many points as the Islanders, or more, in their final three games of the season.
With their win over the Islanders, the Senators effectively bought the Flyers a free loss which, if nothing else, makes the brutal 6-3 loss to the Detroit Red Wings on Thursday night a wash.
If the Flyers can defeat the Winnipeg Jets in any fashion on Saturday night, they'll expand their lead over the Islanders to three points with an equal amount of games played.
CHICAGO (AP) — Chicago Blackhawks forward Frank Nazar left Saturday's 5-3 loss to St. Louis after he was hit in the face by a puck.
Nazar dropped his stick and discarded his gloves in frustration as he made his way off the ice after the play occurred about 3 1/2 minutes into the second period.
“I think Frank's going to be all right,” coach Jeff Blashill said. “He had to get some dental work done, but I think he'll be all right.”
The last-place Blackhawks (28-38-14) have two games left in the season.
The 22-year-old Nazar was sidelined for a month after he broke his jaw when he was hit in the face by a puck during a 6-4 loss at Ottawa on Dec. 20. He returned on Jan. 22 at Carolina.
Nazar, a first-round pick in the 2022 draft, has 15 goals and 26 assists in 64 games in his third NHL season. He agreed to a $46.2 million, seven-year extension with Chicago in August.
Forward Andrew Mangiapane departed in the third period after crashing hard into the net with 9:17 left. Blashill said Mangiapane is day to day.
Ethan Del Mastro was scratched because of an unspecified injury. With Del Mastro sidelined, veteran forward Sam Lafferty was inserted into the lineup as a defenseman.
“(Lafferty) has played D with our team in practice a decent amount in the last three, four weeks,” Blashill said. “(Lafferty) has been committed to this team all year. ... He played D in college, so it's not like he's foreign to it. I mean he actually knows our systems probably as good as anybody.”
New York Islanders head coach Peter DeBoer looks on during the third period against the Ottawa Senators at UBS Arena, Saturday, April 11, 2026, in Elmont, NY.
Technically, the Islanders were not eliminated from playoff contention on Saturday with a 3-0 defeat to the Senators.
But the first word in that sentence is doing some heavy lifting.
The only pathway for the Islanders now is to win their last two games — against Montreal on Sunday and Carolina on Tuesday — and get significant help.
Head coach Peter DeBoer looks on during the third period of the Islanders’ 3-0 loss to the Senators at UBS Arena on April 11, 2026. Corey Sipkin for the NY POST
For starters, the Flyers need to lose their final two game against Carolina on Monday and Montreal on Tuesday. The Islanders also were passed by both Columbus and Washington, which both were victorious late in the day.
So they need not only the Flyers to lose, but also the Blue Jackets and Capitals.
“We gotta control what we can control,” captain Anders Lee said. “Let’s have a good response tomorrow. Win our games. We’re gonna need some help but all we can do now, this game’s over, unfortunately. We just gotta respond with our own game.”
Had the Islanders beaten Ottawa, they would have suddenly felt quite good about their playoff chances. With the Flyers not playing until later Saturday, the Isles would have gotten back into a spot for at least a few hours, putting significant pressure on Philadelphia.
So much for that. The Flyers later won, making matters worse.
It took eight losses in their past 12 games, all of which came in regulation. But after being in a playoff spot uninterrupted for more than three months, the Islanders are on the brink of completing a monumental collapse.
“It doesn’t feel great right now but we’re still alive,” coach Pete DeBoer said. “We gotta win our last two games and make somebody earn that last spot.”
Lee said that he asked Brady Tkachuk to fight off the opening draw, with the Ottawa captain reciprocating after Lee had acceded to his request last month in the Canadian capital.
“Want to get the crowd going. I thought we had a great response,” Lee said. “Our guys were ready to go. They didn’t need that. They didn’t need that to get going tonight. But thought we could do it again.”
Max Shabanov was out with an upper-body injury and called day to day. Kyle MacLean reentered the lineup, taking his usual spot on the fourth line while Ondrej Palat moved up to the third.
The Vancouver Canucks will play a significant role in whether or not the San Jose Sharks make the post-season with their matchup tonight. Ironically enough, if San Jose is able to make it to the playoffs, they’ll be one of four teams that currently has the league-high in former Canucks currently on their roster. All four of these teams have yet to officially clinch a playoff spot, meaning that 16 former Canucks’ post-season hopes will be dictated in the next few days.
As it stands, the Sharks currently have four former Canucks on their roster: Kiefer Sherwood, Vincent Desharnais, Adam Gaudette, and Tyler Toffoli. All but Toffoli played in at least 30 games for the Canucks, with Gaudette recording the highest number of games played for Vancouver with 153. Despite feeling like a much bigger part of the team that went to seven games of the 2020 Pacific Division Finals, Toffoli only ended up playing in 10 regular-season games for the Canucks in 2019–20.
Around the rest of the league, there are still three other playoff-bound and playoff-hopeful teams that have four former Canucks on them. The Edmonton Oilers have Vasily Podkolzin, Jason Dickinson, Curtis Lazar, and Riley Stillman (brother of current Canucks prospect Chase Stillman), though the latter has only played in four NHL games for Edmonton this season. The Oilers have the opportunity to clinch a playoff spot tonight if the Winnipeg Jets lose in regulation or overtime to the Philadelphia Flyers, though they would have secured this spot if they'd recorded at least one point against the Los Angeles Kings today.
In the Eastern Conference, one Atlantic Division team and one Metropolitan Division team each have four former Canucks in their organization. The Boston Bruins were in a similar position as the Oilers heading into Saturday’s matchups, with Boston able to secure their spot in the playoffs with a win against the Tampa Bay Lightning. However, the Bruins ended up losing 2-1 earlier today, meaning former Canucks Elias Lindholm, Nikita Zadorov, Lukas Reichel, and Michael DiPietro will have to look to the New Jersey Devils in hopes of a clinch today. The other clinching scenario for the Bruins today would see the Devils defeat the Detroit Red Wings in regulation.
Apr 8, 2026; San Jose, California, USA; Edmonton Oilers center Jason Dickinson (16) and San Jose Sharks left wing Kiefer Sherwood (44) collide after going for the puck in the second period at SAP Center at San Jose. Mandatory Credit: David Gonzales-Imagn Images
The final team with four former Canucks in the organization is the Columbus Blue Jackets, who are also pushing for a playoff spot but currently trail the Red Wings (91), the Washington Capitals (91), and the New York Islanders (91) for the second Wild Card spot currently occupied by the Bruins (95 points). Having said that, Philadelphia currently occupies third in the Metropolitan Division with 92 points, which would make for a much easier target for Columbus, who currently have 90. Former Canucks Conor Garland, Danton Heinen, Erik Gudbranson, and Brendan Gaunce will look to help push the Blue Jackets into a playoff spot in the coming days.
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Dec 27, 2025; Las Vegas, Nevada, USA; Colorado Avalanche center Martin Necas (88) collides with Vegas Golden Knights goaltender Carter Hart (79) after scoring a goal during a shoot out at T-Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images | Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images
The Colorado Avalanche, fresh off a Presidents Trophy-clinching performance on Thursday, play their final weekend game of the regular season tonight.
After a three and a half month hiatus, they will wrap up the season series against the Vegas Golden Knights, who pay their only(?) visit to the Mile High City this spring.
Colorado Avalanche (52-16-10)
The Opponent: Vegas Golden Knights (36-26-17)
Time: 6:00 P.M. MDT/8:00 P.M. EDT
Watch: ABC, ESPN (US National Broadcast), SN+, NHL Centre Ice (Outside Colorado and Vegas broadcast areas – Canada)
Listen: Altitude Sports Radio KKSE-FM 92.5 FM
Colorado Avalanche
As mentioned above, the Avalanche secured their rightful place as the undisputed leader across the Central Division, Western Conference, and League standings in their 3-1 defeat of the Calgary Flames on Thursday night. Gabe Landeskog would open the scoring late in the first period, and Martin Nečas scored on a pretty play as he skated through the Calgary defense to double the lead in the second period. A sleepy third period (and an extra skater in place of goaltender Dustin Wolf late in the frame) cracked open the door for Calgary, who had a tying goal wiped out due to a successful offside challenge by Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar. Nathan MacKinnon would ice the game on an empty net goal late in regulation for his League-leading 52nd goal of the season, ensuring that Colorado would claim the fourth Presidents Trophy in franchise history. Mackenzie Blackwood stopped 28 of 29 shots for his 22nd win of the season.
With the win, Avs locked in home ice advantage throughout the upcoming Stanley Cup Playoffs. With their position as the top seed in the playoffs now secured, Bednar has the option to rest players up and down the lineup. Speaking on the option to rest some players leading up to the end of the season, he said, “I’d like to see all of our guys play games yet before the playoffs […] If they’re able to play, we’ll get them as much rest as we can in between games, and then some guys, I’m going to try to get some guys a little bit of a breather that, I think, could probably benefit from it.”
Tonight wraps up the three game series against Vegas, with the Avs having won both of the previous two games. The last time both teams met was coming out of the holiday break back on December 27 at T-Mobile Arena. With Vegas leading 4-2 at the beginning of the third period, Nečas and MacKinnon would score to pull the Avs back on even footing, and despite falling behind with four minutes to play in regulation, a goal from Artturi Lehkonen with under two minutes pushed the game to overtime. Neither team scored in the extra session, and MacKinnon scored the shootout winning goal to complete the comeback as the Avs walked out with a 6-5 decision.
MacKinnon remains atop the League lead in goals coming into tonight’s game, having set a career high with his 52nd goal of the season on Thursday. With four games remaining in the regular season, his 126 points ranks third behind Tampa’s Nikita Kucherov (128) and Edmonton’s Connor McDavid (133). Nečas is two goals shy of his first ever 40 goal season, and two points away from his first 100 point season. Bednar indicated that Nazem Kadri will require further evaluation before rejoining the lineup, and he expects Cale Makar to return to action prior to the end of the season.
Scott Wedgewood is likely to start in goal for the Avs tonight. A win against Vegas would see him reach the thirty win mark for the first time in his career.
Projected Lineup
Forwards: Artturi Lehkonen – Nathan MacKinnon – Martin Nečas Gabe Landeskog – Brock Nelson – Valeri Nichushkin Ross Colton – Nicolas Roy – Joel Kiviranta Parker Kelly – Jack Drury – Logan O’Connor
Defense: Devon Toews – Sam Malinski Brett Kulak – Josh Manson Nick Blankenburg – Brent Burns
Between the Pipes: Scott Wedgewood Mackenzie Blackwood
Vegas Golden Knights
A hot start that saw Vegas begin the season with a near identical record to Colorado through the month of October was derailed by a combination of injuries to key personnel: forwards Jack Eichel, William Karlsson Brandon Saad, Colton Sissons, Mark Stone, defensemen Brayden McNabb, Noah Hanafin, Jérémy Lauzon, and goaltenders Adin Hill and Carter Hart all missed time throughout the season. Even with so many injuries through their lineup, Vegas strung together several modest winning streaks through the year, including a stretch that saw them win seven straight games in January. However, they struggled to maintain their winning ways, winning only five games coming out of the Olympic break, and those hardships would only continue through February and March. As the season winds down, Vegas finds themselves tied with the Anaheim Ducks in points (89), but due to tiebreakers, currently occupy second place in the porous Pacific Division.
This isn’t the same Vegas team that previously faced Colorado back in December. They made their first trade of 2026 in January, sending longtime defenseman Zach Whitecloud, defenseman Abram Wiebe, a 2027 first round pick, and a 2028 second-round pick in 2028 to Calgary for defenseman Rasmus Andersson. Leading up to the trade deadline, they acquired depth forward Cole Smith from Nashville for defenseman Christoffer Sedoff and a 2028 third round pick, and forward Nic Dowd from the Washington Capitals for goaltender Jesper Vikman, a 2027 third round pick, a 2029 second round pick.
Vegas didn’t limit themselves to roster makeovers this season. On March 29, head coach Bruce Cassidy was relieved of his head coaching duties, replacing him with John Tortorella in an interim capacity. Vegas marks the seventh stop for the two-time Jack Adams and former Stanley Cup-winning coach. The team responded with a four game winning streak to kick off the Tortorella era, which came to an end this past Thursday in a 4-3 shootout decision against the Seattle Kraken. Tortorella has yet to lose in regulation in his short time behind the Vegas bench, and a win tonight against Colorado could make things interesting in the chase for first place in the Pacific. The Edmonton Oilers, who currently lead the division, face the Los Angeles Kings this afternoon. By the time the puck drops in Denver, Vegas will know whether if they’re in a position to overtake Edmonton for the top spot, or if they’re still chasing them down. As of this writing, neither team has clinched a playoff spot, but the outcomes of both games could change that.
Eichel leads all Vegas skaters in points (83) and assists (58) while Mitch Marner ranks second in both categories (78 points and 55 assists, respectively). Pavel Dorofeyev leads all Vegas forwards in goals (35), while Theodore leads all Vegas defenders in goals (9), assists (29), and points (38).
This is the final road game of the season for Vegas, as they wrap up a four game road trip. Hart, who played the first three games of the road trip since (his first action since January 8), may return to the crease this evening. Hill was the goaltender of record in the loss this past Thursday in Seattle.
Vegas finishes out the regular season with a brief two game home stand against the Winnipeg Jets on April 13, and close out the regular season against Seattle on April 15.
Projected Lineup
Forwards: Ivan Barbashev – Jack Eichel – Mark Stone Brett Howden – Mitch Marner – Pavel Dorofeyev Brandon Saad – Tomáš Hertl – Colton Sissons Cole Smith – Nic Dowd – Keegan Kolesar
The Los Angeles Kings (34-26-19) shutout the Edmonton Oilers (40-30-10) 1-0 on Saturday afternoon to win their final home game of the season. Los Angeles continues to climb the standings and now has a great chance to move into the top three in the Pacific Division.
Strong defensive effort from the Kings, led by Anton Forsberg, gave Los Angeles their best home win of the year against the Oilers.
The opening period gave us the playoff intensity we expected, with both teams fighting for playoff seeding in the Pacific Division. Through nine minutes, it was a very scrappy game, with Los Angeles getting off three shots, while Edmonton getting just two shots up.
Los Angeles amped up its defensive intensity to start and was great at forechecking, forcing turnovers, applying pressure to Edmonton, creating scoring opportunities, and getting physical with the Oilers.
It was at the 12:26 mark when Artemi Panarin forced a turnover and got off to the races alone at the breakaway, scoring the goal, beating Connor Ingram to give LA the early advantage.
LAK Goal - Bread is on the menu!
Panarin with a steal at the defensive blue line, goes in on a breakaway and buries top shelf! 1-0 Kings.
The biggest game that Panarin has played so far has been with Los Angeles, and he's already making big plays on the defensive end and continuing his strong play on offense.
We saw a lot of physicality between the two heated rivals, with Drew Doughty and Connor McDavid getting tangled up and pushing the goal line out of the crease, resulting in roughing penalties for both players.
We knew this would be the intensity as both teams always bring that physicality against each other, especially near playoff time.
The Oilers had a chance to tie the game a few minutes later with a loose puck, but Cody Ceci came up with the unreal defensive stop, diving behind Anton Forsberg to whack the loose puck out of the crease, keeping the Kings on top 1-0.
Turnovers and struggles to get easy shots up were costly for Edmonton in the first period, as LA did a great job setting the tone in their final home game of the season.
Forbserg was once again great in the opening period, saving all 9 shots that the Oilers threw at him, bringing that defensive intensity under the crease for Los Angeles and continuing to show why he should be the starter moving forward into the postseason.
Los Angeles was also great in the faceoff, winning 61.1%, while the Oilers won 38.9% in the first period. All this was setting up an intense second period that the Kings have struggled in all season long.
We entered the second period with the Oilers going on the power play after an offensive interference was called on Brandt Clarke. Forsberg did a good job, continuing his excellent play on defense, denying Edmonton on nearly three shots that almost went in.
The early sequences of the second period were the same as the opening frame: both teams struggled to get shots on goal and couldn't capitalize on second-chance opportunities.
LA was doing a good job creating open shots, but kept shooting the puck wide to the right, preventing the Oilers from capitalizing on their poor shots. The rest of the period would go exactly that way, neither team able to score, and the Oilers, especially, playing with no urgency or physicality.
It’s been a mediocre effort by the #Oilers so far. They need more urgency, more physicality and more pucks to the net in the 3rd. Forsberg has been good but there needs to be more traffic. He likes to challenge shooters so a pass for a back door goal looks to be the best bet.
Give credit to Forsberg for the defense and to the rest of the players for making it tough for Edmonton to score. In the first 40 minutes, neither team shot on goal in double digits, with all shots single-digit.
It was smash-out physical hockey being played out there, with intense defense, and the Kings, recognizing their playoff lives were on the line, were playing with more urgency and physicality than the Oilers.
Edmonton outshot the Kings 7-6, but still couldn't get anything going on the offensive side of things. Everything was so tough for the Oilers, who had to work hard on every possession just to get a shot on goal.
What was working well for the Kings was that they were not letting Edmonton get into transition or get any rush plays down the ice, while Los Angeles was forcing careless turnovers from the Oilers, who couldn't control the puck.
The third period was the same again: Edmonton kept turning the puck over, forcing several opportunities for the Kings to get off a shot, but couldn't convert. Even with LA leading, the lead never felt safe because it was just a one-goal cushion.
The Oilers did have the puck more in the third period, but the Kings did a good job keeping it (mostly to the outside). Forbserg, once again in the final frame, was clutch.
The game never felt like it was in the Kings' favor; despite their incredible defensive effort, they couldn't extend their one-goal lead.
Still, Los Angeles was frustrating Edmonton and Connor McDavid, which was helping the Kings in that advantage in the game.
Los Angeles had an empty net for nearly a minute, but couldn't get the puck out of the Oilers' possession. Despite Edmonton holding the puck for the entire game, the Kings were very strong on defense, not letting the Oilers tie it, and the game ended with LA shutting out Edmonton.
FINAL - Kings 1, Oilers 0!
Anton Forsberg with a 28-save shutout to move Los Angeles within two wins of clinching a playoff berth.
Anton Forsberg was the big hero of this game, recording his third shutout of the season and saving 27 shots against the Oilers, definitely saving the Kings, who couldn't get anything going on offense after their first-period goal. Without Forbserg, Los Angeles wouldn't have had a chance to win this game.
Panarin scored the lone goal in the first period, which was huge, considering neither team was able to score the rest of the way. No one else was really present on offense, but the defense stepped up in this win, showing what kind of difference the Kings' defense can be.
Great win, especially on the day that Anze Kopitar will be playing the last home game of his career. With this win now, Los Angeles secures its 87th point and is now two points back of Anaheim and Vegas for the second seed and three points ahead of Nashville for the final playoff spot.
The Kings will play their final three games of the season on the road, starting on Monday against the Vancouver Canucks at 6:30 PM PT.
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PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA - APRIL 11: Pierre-Luc Dubois #80 of the Washington Capitals skates with the puck against Anthony Mantha #39 of the Pittsburgh Penguins in the second period during the game at PPG PAINTS Arena on April 11, 2026 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin Berl/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Penguins went into full coast mode after clinching a playoff berth and their place as second seed in the division by resting several players. All of Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Bryan Rust, Erik Karlsson, Kris Letang, Ben Kindel and Parker Witherspoon were held out with “day-to-day injuries” in the meaningless game.
The skeleton crew that did play only managed 12 shots on goal and dropped a 6-3 game to the Washington Capitals. Enjoy some of the highlights of the game.
