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

The 2025-26 Seattle Kraken went out with a whimper, blanked in the NHL’s regular-season finale. They lost 2-0 to the undermanned, playoff-bound Colorado Avalanche on Thursday night.

Nick Blankenburg’s second-period goal was enough to win it. Kraken defenseman Vince Dunn took an extra shot at Avalanche forward Parker Kelly after the puck ...Read more

Macklin Celebrini put a historic exclamation point on a turnaround season for the San Jose Sharks.

With the Sharks facing the Winnipeg Jets on Thursday night, Celebrini had two assists in the first period and scored at the 1:14 mark of the third, giving him 115 points on the season as he broke the franchise’s single-season scoring record set ...Read more

SUNRISE, Fla. — After years of continuity in the Florida Panthers’ front office, Bill Zito will be seeing some changes around him.

The New Jersey Devils on Thursday named Sunny Mehta as their new general manager. Mehta, who grew up in New Jersey, spent six seasons in the Panthers’ front office, including the past three as one of Florida�...Read more

Defenseman Mario Ferraro and center Michael Misa each scored before everything went off the rails for the San Jose Sharks, who allowed five unanswered goals in a 5-2 loss to the Chicago Blackhawks on Wednesday at the United Center in Chicago.

Leading 2-0, the Sharks allowed a goal to defenseman Sam Rinzel with 30 seconds left in the second ...Read more

SUNRISE, Fla. — Not a pleasant way for the Detroit Red Wings to end this season.

Having been eliminated from playoff contention last weekend and seeing their playoff drought reach an NHL-high 10 consecutive years, the Wings put a stamp on the season Wednesday with an 8-1 loss to the Florida Panthers.

The two-time defending Stanley Cup ...Read more

TAMPA, Fla. — There wasn’t anything on the line for the Lightning in their regular-season finale against the Rangers Wednesday night at Benchmark International Arena. Going into Game 82, Tampa Bay’s first-round matchup with Montreal already had been set and it had gained home-ice advantage for the series.

So the 4-2 loss to the Rangers ...Read more