NHL Three Stars: Pavelski pushes Predators to brink No. 1 Star: Joe Pavelski, San Jose Sharks  The Sharks sniper scored two goals in their 5-1 win over the Nashville Predators, giving him eight on the postseason. Not a bad way to respond to that whole "no goal" thing in Game 4.  No. 2 Star: Alex Ovechkin, Washington Capitals Ovechkin’s power-play blast in the first period gave the Capitals … [Read more...]

Sharks take Game 5, one win away from conference final In Game 4 of their Western Conference semifinal, the Nashville Predators and San Jose Sharks played 111:12 of playoff hockey. The Sharks lost in triple-overtime, and the series was tied.  So it was with great curiosity that the hockey world watched Game 5, waiting to see how the Sharks responded to that gut-punch. And they responded with … [Read more...]

Panthers reassign Dale Tallon, shake up front office to spotlight analytics The Florida Panthers had their best season in franchise history in the 2015-16 regular season. It’s not often you see a 103-point team reshuffle its front office, but shuffle the Panthers have. As first reported by Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet, associate general manager Tom Rowe has been promoted to general manager … [Read more...]

Roman Polak gets physical with linesman after Sharks win The final moments of the San Jose Sharks’ Game 5 win over the Nashville Predators was a contentious one.  Barret Jackman jabbed Joe Thornton in the stomach. Thornton gave him a slash to the lower extremities. Ryan Johansen and Mike Ribeiro were given misconduct penalties. At the end of regulation, Jackman again got into it with the … [Read more...]

Bruce Boudreau chooses Minnesota Wild for next coaching gig After a week of being the belle of the coaching vacancy ball, Bruce Boudreau has chosen the Minnesota Wild as the next team that he’ll lead to unparalleled regular season success before inevitable postseason failure.  Wild general manager Chuck Fletcher announced that the team came to terms with Boudreau, who was fired by the … [Read more...]

Capitals survive, force Game 6 vs. Penguins in 3-1 win Alex Ovechkin had a goal and set up another. Braden Holtby was a brick wall. The power play was dangerous. The defense was stout when it needed to be at game’s end, and the offense was pressured all night.  In Game 5, the Washington Capitals looked like the Washington Capitals again. And when they look like that, they usually win. … [Read more...]

Hart Trophy Finalists: Kane vs. Benn vs. Crosby The NHL announced Saturday that Chicago Blackhawks forward Patrick Kane, Dallas Stars forward Jamie Benn and Pittsburgh Penguins forward Sidney Crosby were finalists for the Hart Trophy, which is awarded annually “to the player adjudged to be the most valuable to his team.” The award is voted on by the Professional Hockey Writers’ Association. … [Read more...]

Kings' offseason hinges on Lucic contract, Brown decision The Los Angeles Kings can’t start the rest of their offseason plans until they come to some sort of decision on winger Milan Lucic. That was the message general manager Dean Lombardi told reporters in a teleconference Friday. “If there’s a domino effect so to speak, that depends. The discussions are much further along with (Lucic) … [Read more...]

NHL Three Stars: Lightning take series control with another OT win No. 1 Star: Ben Bishop, Tampa Bay Lightning Tampa’s goaltender gave up an early goal to New York Islanders forward Kyle Okposo. After that, Bishop kept the Islanders off the scoreboard, stopping 27 of 28 shots on goal in the Lightning’s 2-1 overtime win in Game 4. Bishop moved to 5-0 in overtime playoff games in his career. … [Read more...]

Jason Garrison's OT goal finishes off another Lightning comeback BROOKLYN, N.Y. – “It’s a nice feeling,” was how Jason Garrison described firing one of his patented bombs from the point for the winning goal in Game 4. Nicknamed “Boom Boom” for all the right reasons, the Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman was the hero as his goal 1:34 into overtime beat the New York Islanders 2-1 to give his team … [Read more...]