Photo by Andy Devlin/NHLI via Getty Images
The Kings and the Wild deliver overtime stunners as the NHL playoffs begin
There is really only one true way to describe playoff hockey.
With perhaps the most accurate tweet of all time:
why watch overtime playoff hockey when you can simply snort cocaine and ride a motorcycle out of a helicopter
— Jon Bois (@jon_bois) April 17, 2014
Playoffs are always fantastic theater, but there is something different about the NHL playoffs.
The first round of the NHL playoffs got underway Monday night. Here’s what went down.
The Carolina Hurricanes won the season series with the New York Islanders 3-1. Their third win came in the final regular-season meeting between the two teams back on April 2 by a final score of 2-1.
That is how their series began, with the Hurricanes taking Game 1 by a final score of 2-1.
Special teams were the story of the win.
Carolina opened the scoring with a power-play goal early in the first period. Hudson Fasching was whistled for a tripping penalty, putting the Hurricanes on the early power play. They made the most of the advantage, thanks to a scorching one-timer from Sebastian Aho:
The Hurricanes doubled-up their lead early in the second with another power-play goal, this time coming on a redirect from Stefan Noesen:
New York cut the lead in half moments later, on a goal from Ryan Pulock. But that marked the end of the scoring, giving Carolina the 1-0 series lead.
As noted, special teams were the difference. Both teams had four power-play opportunities. Carolina converted two of them. The Islanders?
Game 2 is Wednesday night on ESPN2.
The Boston Bruins entered Game 1 against the Florida Panthers As perhaps the team to beat in the Eastern Conference.
Nothing that happened on Monday night should move people off that opinion.
Boston — playing without forward Patrice Bergeron due to an illness — matched the physical style of play from Florida and pushed ahead to a 3-1 lead through two periods. While the Panthers posted a season-high in hits, the Bruins not only matched that physicality, they delivered on the offensive end.
The Bruins opened the scoring on the power play, thanks to an incredible no-look pass from Tyler Bertuzzi which found the tape on the stick of David Pastrnak:
Boston did withstand some consistent pressure from Florida midway through the first period, but the first period ended with the Bruins holding the 1-0 lead. They would double that advantage early in the second period with a goal from pesky Brad Marchand:
It was Marchand’s 50th playoff goal.
Florida was able to cut into the lead on an unassisted goal from Matthew Tkachuk, but Boston kept up the pressure, and converted when Jake DeBrusk pushed a loose puck off the pad of Florida goalie Alex Lyon, and into the net:
Boston looked to net a fourth goal later in the game, but that was disallowed for goalie interference.
It was not a flawless performance from the Bruins, who did commit some neutral-ice turnovers that they would love to eliminate going forward. But still, it looks like the Bruins are picking up where they left off in the regular season.
We now turn to the Western Conference, and the fulfillment of the Bois Prophecy.
Both games went to overtime, and the contest between the Wild and the Stars went to double overtime. In the two extra frames, both teams had incredible scoring chances. First it was Dallas goalie Jake Oettinger, turning aside this effort from Minnesota winger Marcus Johansson:
But then in the second overtime, the play of the game was turned in by Wild defenseman Brock Faber. Just when it looked like the Stars were going to pull out the win, Faber’s full-body extension deflected the potential game winner over the crossbar:
That game-saving effort set the stage for the game winner, off the stick of Ryan Hartman:
Minnesota center Sam Steel is able to chop at the puck in the corner, keeping the puck in the offensive zone for the Wild. The loose puck slides out toward Hartman, who dekes around Oettinger and buries his shot, giving the Wild the series lead.
Game 2 is set for Wednesday night.
The Edmonton Oilers are one of the favorites to hoist the Stanley Cup when the playoffs are said and done, and one of the reasons is what they can do in the offensive zone. Edmonton averaged nearly four goals per game this season (3.96), leading the NHL.
They showed that offensive firepower early Monday night against the Los Angeles Kings.
Unfortunately for the Oilers, the Kings showed some offensive firepower of their own late.
First-period goals from Leon Draisaitl and Evan Bouchard gave the Oilers a 2-0 lead at the first intermission. Draisaitl opened the scoring with this goal, assisted by Mattias Janmark and Evander Kane:
Then it was Bouchard’s chance, as the defenseman scored on the power play:
Bouchard takes advantage of the space created by the two-man advantage and pushes into the circle, before firing a wrister by Joonas Korpisalo to give the Oilers the 2-0 lead.
Los Angeles had a great chance to cut into the lead early in the second period, as they went on the power play. But the Oilers were able to kill the penalty, with goalie Stuart Skinner turning aside a number of scoring chances from the Kings.
But they finally broke through in the third. Adrian Kempe’s breakout goal off the backhand got the Kings on the scoreboard:
And after Draisaitl added his second of the game to push the Oilers’ advantage back to two, Kempe doubled up:
Kempe’s wrister past Skinner again cut the Edmonton advantage to one, and the Kings would eventually tie the game with just seconds left. Bouchard was whistled for a high-sticking penalty to put Los Angeles on the power play, and the Kings pulled Korpisalo for the two-man advantage. With just seconds left Anze Kopitar was able to push one past Skinner to knot the game at three:
In overtime, the Kings were able to pull out the win on this power-play goal from Alex Iafallo:
The power play itself was somewhat questionable. Oilers defenseman Vincent Desharnais was whistled for tripping Blake Lizotte, although it did look like Lizotte skated over a broken stick, causing him to fall. “My initial thought on the play was that the player stepped on the broken stick, but those are the things you know, that happen in the playoffs sometimes,” Oilers head coach Jay Woodcroft said after the game.
The stunning comeback from the Kings probably will not cause panic in Edmonton. Edmonton also dropped the opener of a first-round series between these teams a season ago, but the Oilers took it in seven games to advance.
Game 2 is set for Wednesday night.
