Tuesday's hockey: Leafs force Game 6 with OT win; Hurricanes advance

Boston — Matthew Knies scored less than three minutes into overtime off a feed from John Tavares and the Toronto Maple Leafs beat the Boston Bruins 2-1 on Tuesday night to stave off elimination in their first-round playoff matchup.

Jack McCabe added a goal and Joseph Woll finished with 28 saves to help Toronto cut Boston’s lead in the series to 3-2. Game 6 is set for Thursday in Toronto.

Ilya Lyubushkin, Max Domi, Mitch Marner had assists for the Maple Leafs, who outshot the Bruins 33-28.

Trent Frederic scored for Boston. Jeremy Swayman finished with 31 saves.

The Maple Leafs played without star Auston Matthews, who sat out with an unspecified illness after making only a brief appearance in the team’s morning skate Tuesday.

Matthews had an NHL-leading 69 goals in the regular season and the winner in Game 2 but managed only four shots combined in Toronto’s losses in Games 3 and 4.

(At) Carolina 6, N.Y. Islanders 3: Jack Drury scored the go-ahead goal early in the third period and Stefan Noesen cleaned up a fluky puck bounce off the boards for another 8 seconds later as Carolina beat the New York Islanders, clinching their first-round NHL playoff series in five games.

The Hurricanes twice blew two-goal leads and entered the final 20 minutes in a 3-3 tie before Drury struck for his first career postseason goal, controlling a dribbling puck to zip it past Semyon Varlamov to his blocker side at 4:36 of the third.

Then, after a faceoff win, the Hurricanes dumped the puck into the Islanders end toward the corner. But as Varlamov went behind the net to play the puck, it took an unexpected bounce near the door and caromed right into the crease.

Noesen charged in to bury it as Varlamov tried desperately to get back to the netfront, pushing Carolina to a 5-3 lead at 4:44.

That was ultimately enough to help the Hurricanes finally push past the determined Islanders, earning at least one playoff series win for the sixth time in as many seasons. And that earned them a date with the Presidents’ Trophy-winning New York Rangers in the second round.

Colorado 6, (at) Winnipeg 3: Mikko Rantanen scored his first two goals of the playoffs in the third period, leading Colorado to a victory over Winnipeg that clinched their opening-round playoff series in five games.

Rantanen, who had an assist, scored twice in a span of just under four minutes early in the third period to snap a 3-3 tie.

Valeri Nichushkin, Yakov Trenin, Artturi Lehkonen and Josh Manson also scored for the Avalanche, who will play the winner of the series between the Dallas Stars and Vegas Golden Knights.

Nashville 2, (at) Vancouver 1: Roman Josi and Alexandre Carrier scored and the Nashville Predators kept their season alive with a 2-1 victory over the Vancouver Canucks in Game 5 of their first-round playoff series on Tuesday night.

Filip Forsberg assisted on both goals and Juuse Saros made 19 saves as the Predators narrowed their deficit in the best-of-seven matchup to 3-2.

Nikita Zadorov scored for the Canucks and rookie goalie Arturs Silovs stopped 20 shots.

The series returns to Nashville for Game 6 on Friday night.

Ex-Wing Namestnikov sidelined

Winnipeg, Manitoba — Former Red Wings forward Vladislav Namestnikov and defenseman Brenden Dillon are recovering from injuries and won't be available for Game 5 against Colorado on Tuesday night as the Jets try to avoid playoff elimination.

Namestnikov fractured his cheekbone in Game 4 on Sunday when he was hit by a deflected puck on a shot. Dillon suffered a deep laceration on his hand in a scrum after the final horn of Game 3 when he appeared to be cut by a skate blade. The Jets trail 3-1 in the first-round, best-of-seven series.

Jets coach Rick Bowness said Tuesday following the morning skate in Winnipeg that he checked in with Namestnikov the night before. Namestnikov stayed an extra day in Denver to recover.

“He’s nauseous. He hasn’t eaten. So he’s not feeling great,” Bowness said. "Dilly, of course, you know him – two broken hands and he’d still want to play, but we’ll give him a couple days.”

Forward Cole Perfetti, a first-round pick in 2020, is expected to make his NHL playoff debut. It's a difficult moment for the 22-year-old after seeing the injury to Namestnikov.

“He’s one of our brothers and such a great guy. He plays his heart out every single game,” Perfetti said. “To see that happen, I mean, for the people that were there in the rink it was silent. You could hear a pin drop. It was tough to watch, to see one of your really good friends and teammate and brother go down like that and kind of not know really what was happening.”

The 31-year-old Namestnikov was trying to jump out of the way of a shot from teammate Nate Schmidt when the puck hit a stick and struck him. Namestnikov stayed down on the ice as trainers rushed out. He went to the hospital for further evaluation.

“It was great to see him after he saw the doctors and what-not, and he was doing relatively OK,” Perfetti said. “That was a big relief for us.”

Capitals' Oshie hopes to play next season

T.J. Oshie lingered on the ice long after many of his Washington Capitals teammates departed for the locker room following the loss that eliminated them from the playoffs.

His family was at all four games, including in New York, just in case.

They could be the final ones he plays in the NHL.

Oshie isn't calling it a career just yet, but the 37-year-old winger acknowledged Tuesday he and doctors must find a solution to his chronic back problems before committing to return for a 17th season.

“I’d love to play next year, but I will need to come back with somewhat of a guarantee that my back won’t be – it’s hard putting everyone through the situation,” Oshie said. "I’d like to find just an answer and a fix to the problem before I make another run at it.”

Oshie's back and other injuries limited him to 52 of 82 games during the regular season, and he played the series finale against the Rangers with a broken left hand.

“A broken hand is like a hangnail compared to what I go through with my back,” Oshie said, adding he's often on the floor unable to move when it gives out. “There’s been a lot of just extra things that I have to do to make sure that my back is ready to play an NHL game.”

Already expecting center Nicklas Backstrom to remain on long-term injured in the final year of his contract after stepping away in November because of a nagging hip issue, general manager Brian MacLellan said the team will support Oshie whichever decision he makes and doesn't have a date by which he'd like an answer.

“If he determines at some point that he feels good, he wants to come back to play, let’s go that way,” MacLellan said. “If he doesn’t, we’ll work it out that way, too.”

Oshie's presence or lack thereof would certainly affect how the Capitals affect the offseason, whether they can use his $5.75 million salary space or need to fill a major void.

"He’s a big part of our team," MacLellan said. “You have him, or you go out and find a guy.”

Oilers can knock out Kings again

The Edmonton Oilers have won in these NHL playoffs with a couple of big-scoring games.

They got their latest victory when limited to 13 shots on net and with only one of those going in for a goal.

The versatile Oilers, who scored a combined 13 goals in the first two wins of their series against the Los Angeles Kings, are now back home Wednesday night with a chance to advance to the second round. Edmonton will take a fourth win in the best-of-seven series any way it can get it.

“Having in our portfolio that we can play a lot of different games is going to be huge here coming down the stretch," Oilers defenseman Mattias Ekholm said. “These games, we’re not afraid of them.”

After an extra day off since that 1-0 win on Sunday night for a 3-1 series lead, the Oilers will try to eliminate the Pacific Division rival Kings in the first round for the third year in a row when they play Game 5. Los Angeles has dropped its past four playoff series since being Stanley Cup champions 10 years ago.

The only other NHL game Wednesday night is Game 5 in Dallas, with the Stars and reigning Stanley Cup champion Vegas Golden Knights tied 2-2. The road team has won every game in that series, with the Stars winning 4-2 on Monday night to sweep both games in Vegas after the Western Conference's No. 1 seed lost twice at home last week.

“You look at the four games, I don't think we've played a poor game yet,” Stars coach Pete DeBoer said. “I thought the first two games in Dallas, (the Knights) were opportunistic in different situations. I loved Game 3, and for Game 4, you're going to see their best, and I thought we were good considering the situation. So I'm excited about our group getting home.”

Team USA 9, Finland 4

James Hagens had three goals and three assists in Team USA's 9-4 win over Finland at the U18 world championships on Tuesday in Espoo, Finland.

The U.S. finished in first in the Group A standings and will face Switzerland in the quarterfinals on Thursday (5 a.m., The Hockey Network).

Saginaw's Parekh named top OHL defenceman

Saginaw Spirit defenceman Zayne Parekh is the 2023-24 recipient of the Max Kaminsky Trophy awarded to the Ontario Hockey League's defenceman of the year as voted by OHL general managers.

Parekh led OHL blueliners with 33 goals and 96 points, both Spirit single season franchise records at the position. He follows John Slaney (Cornwall, 1989-90) as just the second defenceman in OHL history to score more than 30 goals in his first season of NHL Draft eligibility.

Parekh is the first Spirit player to ever win the OHL Defenceman of the Year Award. An 18-year-old from Nobleton, Ont., Parekh joined the Spirit as a first round (19th overall) pick in the 2022 OHL Priority Selection from the Markham Majors U16 program.

After setting a new OHL record with 21 goals as a 16-year-old defenceman in 2022-23, he closed out his 2023-24 campaign with career totals that include 54 goals, 79 assists and 133 points over 116 regular season games, registering a plus/minus of plus-42.

He enters the 2024 NHL Draft this summer as the highest-ranked OHL skater on Central Scouting’s final rankings, coming in at fifth in North America.

Eastern Conference playoff matchups

Rangers vs. Capitals

(Rangers win 4-0)

▶ Game 1: Rangers 4-1

▶ Game 2: Rangers 4-3

▶ Game 3: Rangers 3-1

▶ Game 4: Rangers 4-2

Bruins vs. Maple Leafs

(Bruins lead 3-2)

▶ Game 1: Bruins 5-1

▶ Game 2: Leafs 3-2

▶ Game 3: Bruins 4-2

▶ Game 4: Bruins 3-1

▶ Game 5: Leafs 3-2 (OT)

▶ Game 6: Thursday @ Toronto, TBA*

▶ Game 7: Saturday @ Boston, TBA*

Panthers vs. Lightning

(Panthers win 4-1)

▶ Game 1: Panthers 3-2

▶ Game 2: Panthers 3-2 (OT)

▶ Game 3: Panthers 5-3

▶ Game 4: Lightning 6-3

▶ Game 5: Lightning 6-1

Hurricanes vs. Islanders

(Hurricanes win 4-1)

▶ Game 1: Hurricanes 3-1

▶ Game 2: Hurricanes 5-3

▶ Game 3: Hurricanes 3-2

▶ Game 4: Islanders 3-2 (2OT)

▶ Game 5: Hurricanes 6-3

Western Conference playoff matchups

Dallas vs. Vegas

(Series tied 2-2)

▶ Game 1: Vegas 4-3

▶ Game 2: Vegas 3-1

▶ Game 3: Dallas 3-2 (OT)

▶ Game 4: Dallas 4-2

▶ Game 5: Wednesday at Dallas, TBD

▶ Game 6: Friday at Vegas, TBA

▶ Game 7: Sunday @ Dallas, TBA

Winnipeg vs. Colorado

(Avalanche win 4-1)

▶ Game 1: Jets 7-6

▶ Game 2: Avalanche 5-2

▶ Game 3: Avalanche 6-2

▶ Game 4: Avalanche 5-1

▶ Game 5: Avalanche 6-3

Vancouver vs. Nashville

(Canucks lead 3-2)

▶ Game 1: Canucks 4-2

▶ Game 2: Predators 4-1

▶ Game 3: Canucks 2-1

▶ Game 4: Canucks 4-3 (OT)

▶ Game 5: Predators 2-1

▶ Game 6: Friday @ Nashville, TBA

▶ Game 7: Sunday @ Vancouver, TBA

Edmonton vs. Los Angeles

(Oilers lead 3-1)

▶ Game 1: Oilers 7-4

▶ Game 2: Kings 5-4 (OT)

▶ Game 3: Oilers 6-1

▶ Game 4: Oilers 1-0

▶ Game 5: Wednesday @ Edmonton, TBA

▶ Game 6: Friday @ Los Angeles, TBA

▶ Game 7: Sunday @ Edmonton, TBA

Michigan-area hockey

Monday

▶ Saginaw 6, London 2

Tuesday

▶ NTDP U18s 9, Finland 4

Wednesday

▶ Rockford at Grand Rapids, 7 (AHL/96.1)

▶ London at Saginaw, 7

Friday

▶ Rockford at Grand Rapids, 7 (AHL/96.1)

▶ Saginaw at London, 7

Sunday

▶ Grand Rapids at Rockford, 5 (AHL/96.1)

▶ London at Saginaw, 2

American Hockey League playoffs

Central Division semifinal

(Grand Rapids leads 1-0)

▶ Game 1: Grand Rapids 3-2 (OT)

▶ Game 2: Wednesday @ Grand Rapids, 7

▶ Game 3: Friday @ Grand Rapids, 7

▶ Game 4: Sunday, May 5 @ Rockford, 4

▶ Game 5: Friday, May 10 @ Grand Rapids, 7

ECHL

Central Division Semifinal

(Best-of-seven series)

▶ Game 1: Toledo 3-2 (OT)

▶ Game 2: Toledo 5-2

▶ Game 3: Toledo 6-2

▶ Game 4: Toledo 4-2

Road to the Memorial Cup in Saginaw

(Saginaw hosts May 24-June 2)

▶ Friday, May 24: WHL vs. Saginaw, 7:30

▶ Saturday, May 25: OHL vs. QMJHL, 4

▶ Sunday, May 26: Saginaw vs. QMJHL, 7:30

▶ Monday, May 27: OHL vs. WHL, 7:30

▶ Tuesday, May 28: QMJHL vs. WHL, 7:30 

▶ Wednesday, May 29: Saginaw vs. OHL, 7:30 

▶ Thursday, May 30: Tie breaker (if necessary)

▶ Friday, May 31: Semifinal, 7:30

▶ Sunday, June 2: Final, 7:30

CHL playoffs in WHL, OHL, QMJHL

Western Hockey League

▶ Saskatoon Blades vs. Moose Jaw Warriors

▶ Prince George Cougars vs. Portland Winterhawks

Ontario Hockey League

▶ Oshawa Generals vs. North Bay Battalion

▶ London Knights vs. Saginaw

Quebec Major Junior Hockey League

▶ Baie-Comeau Drakkar vs. Cape Breton Eagles

▶ Drummondville Voltigeurs vs. Victoriaville Tigres