PHILADELPHIA — His gloves dropped, his helmet off, his stringy hair falling into his face, Travis Konecny barked and shouted and cursed at Bryan Rust, the two of them seemingly oblivious now to the chaos they had inspired. Konecny had come close to sweeping a wrist shot into the Penguins’ net, and Rust had responded by shoving him down and ...Read more

PHILADELPHIA — After losing the first two games of their first-round series against the Philadelphia Flyers, the Pittsburgh Penguins got off to the start they needed in Game 3.

They finally scored on a power play. They finally took a lead. They were limiting the rush chances that had killed them in the first two games of the series.

But ...Read more

TAMPA, Fla. — After the Tampa Bay Lightning’s last game at the Bell Centre, coach Jon Cooper was frustrated that it seemed like every time the officials separated a big scrum, they’d send an extra Lightning player to the bench or hand out an extra penalty to Tampa Bay.

In that April 9 2-1 loss to the Montreal Canadiens, the teams combined...Read more

The Utah Mammoth use their speed well. The Vegas Golden Knights fell victim to it on the goal that decided Game 2 of their first-round series.

Mammoth center Logan Cooley scored the winning goal with six minutes remaining, and the Knights lost 3-2 at T-Mobile Arena on Tuesday to even the best-of-7 series at a game apiece.

Utah winger Dylan ...Read more

TAMPA, Fla. — The Lightning certainly took a fighting attitude into Game 2 of their first-round playoff series against Montreal Tuesday night at Benchmark International Arena.

They got some good punches in, and for a while it looked like their muscle-flexing was just what they needed to get back into the series.

In a matchup that could end ...Read more

PITTSBURGH — The puck came trundling to Pittsburgh Penguins goaltender Stuart Skinner late in the second period Monday night, and he extended its fateful journey by backhanding it along the boards. His teammate Tommy Novak took his good sweet time retrieving it, as if he were a rollerblader coasting along a Southern California boardwalk, and ...Read more

RALEIGH, N.C. — They’ve been here before, these Carolina Hurricanes.

This is the eighth consecutive season they’ve been to the NHL playoffs. Saturday marked the Canes’ seventh consecutive win in a postseason opener, and Monday they made it 7 for 7 going 2-0 to start the playoffs, though this Game 2 took a game and a half.

After nearly ...Read more

PITTSBURGH ― The Flyers are a freight train, and the Pittsburgh Penguins are standing on the tracks.

Philly went into Western Pennsylvania and left with a 2-0 lead in their best-of-seven series thanks to a 3-0 win in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference’s first round.

Porter Martone and Garnet Hathaway scored, the Flyers delivered several big-...Read more

The Boston Bruins blew a two-goal third period lead, melting down in their own zone and lost a very winnable Game 1 to the Buffalo Sabres, 4-3. They completely fell apart with the game on the line.

This one hurts.

The B’s had a 2-0 lead and were doing a good job taking the crowd of the game, but when the B’s failed to clear their zone when...Read more

DENVER — It wasn’t a party, but it was step one.

Artturi Lehkonen and Logan O’Connor scored, while Scott Wedgewood made 24 saves in his first career Stanley Cup Playoffs start, and the Colorado Avalanche ground out an 2-1 victory over the Los Angeles Kings in Game 1 of its opening-round series Sunday at Ball Arena.

The Avs, winners of ...Read more

MINNEAPOLIS — The Minnesota Wild discovered the perfect plan to make their rookie goalie feel comfortable in his playoff debut. Score a bunch of goals and use relentless effort to overwhelm and stun the home team.

Coach John Hynes could not have envisioned a better start to the postseason than what his team put on the ice at Dallas on ...Read more

PITTSBURGH — Pittsburgh Penguins fans showed out in full force Saturday evening at PPG Paints Arena. After a three-year wait, the Steel City was more than ready to make some noise in the NHL postseason. Unfortunately for them, their hockey team didn’t get the memo.

Despite having more than a week to rest and prepare for the playoffs, the ...Read more

PITTSBURGH — The PPG Paints Arena crowd was roaring with towels waving long before puck drop. It took little time for the “Flyers suck” chants to echo through the building.

Playoff hockey returned to Pittsburgh for the first time in four years Saturday. The fans did their part. But the Penguins were overwhelmed by Philadelphia’s speed ...Read more

The Minnesota Wild have been hyped as a Stanley Cup contender for most of their season, and their arrival to the playoffs showed why.

They creamed the Stars 6-1 in Game 1 on Saturday at American Airlines Center to snatch home-ice advantage away from Dallas in the best-of-seven series.

Game 2 is at 9:30 p.m. ET Monday.

Kirill Kaprizov scored ...Read more

RALEIGH, N.C. — (You’ll have to learn to pace yourself — Pressure

You’re just like everybody else — Pressure)

Billy Joel released an anthem to handling adversity three years after the Hartford Whalers joined the NHL, some 16 years before the Carolina Hurricanes existed.

Yet, the words are oddly prophetic as they relate to Tom Dundon...Read more

SAN JOSE, Calif. – San Jose Sharks leading scorer Macklin Celebrini will likely be one of the NHL’s highest-paid players by the time the 2027-28 season begins.

It’s just a question of when Celebrini and the Sharks can come to an agreement on a contract extension, whether that’s this offseason or sometime next year.

After finishing as ...Read more

TAMPA, Fla. — Even though Victor Hedman won’t be available for the start of the Lightning’s postseason run, the team will have its captain back as he begins to work his way toward an on-ice return.

On the eve of Tampa Bay’s playoff opener, coach Jon Cooper said Saturday that Hedman has rejoined the team following a leave of absence and ...Read more