Hockey  

Late-blooming, mustached goalie Charlie Lindgren carries the Washington Capitals into the playoffs

ARLINGTON, Va. (AP) — Alex Ovechkin scored a lot of goals down the stretch for the Washington Capitals, yet he is not the biggest reason they made the playoffs.

That would be undrafted, unheralded, late-blooming, mustached goaltender Charlie Lindgren, who emerged as the starter and carried the Capitals the second half of the season. No one in the NHL faced more shots or made more saves over the past three months since supplanting Darcy Kuemper for the No. 1 job.

Lindgren's play in net has made him their MVP when it matters most.

“I’ve had a blast," Lindgren said. “I’ve dreamed about this for 20 years, legitimately. And just to have the chance to play a lot of games and just the faith that this team has put in me, I appreciate it greatly.”

Lindgren earned it, finally at age 30, and on Sunday he will make his Stanley Cup playoff debut against brother Ryan and the heavily favored New York Rangers. Game 1 at Madison Square Garden comes less than a week since Minnesota native played on back-to-back nights to get Washington into the postseason.

Go back one further and Lindgren stopped 75 of the 78 shots he faced over a three-game winning streak, coming off a rough performance in Buffalo. Not winning would have sent he and his teammates to the golf course.

“Any adversity that he faces, it’s just like, ‘no big deal, I’m going to figure out a way to get through it,’” coach Spencer Carbery said. “Those are some quality, quality characteristics of a professional hockey player that can really help you. I think that’s been impressive to watch and seeing how all his teammates have rallied around him.”

Fourth-line center Nic Dowd, who overlapped one season with him at St. Cloud State, said Lindgren has become a leader without even knowing it. He noted Lindgren's mustache game has improved, too.

“He’s really taken hold of it,” retired defenseman Karl Alzner said of Lindgren's 'stache, several years since they played together with Montreal and in the minors. “That’s his thing now. He’s channeling the ’80s and ’90s hockey players again.”

Lindgren is a throwback personality off the ice. He talks to reporters on game days, often a no-no for a superstitious goalie, and nothing seems to faze him in the crease.

“I have a lot of faith and confidence in myself, I have a lot of faith and confidence in my teammates, and I think when you’re prepared, that lessens the stress,” Lindgren said. “A lot of it just comes down to experience and confidence."

It would have been easy for Lindgren to lose confidence shuttling between the NHL and American Hockey League into his late 20s. Alzner figured it was hard for teams to see Lindgren as anything more than a backup but believed the Caps were getting a possible gem based on what he had seen in Montreal and AHL Laval.

“He battles harder in practice than a lot of goalies do,” Alzner said this week, praising Lindgren's attitude. “I thought, ‘If this guy can find his confidence again, he’s going to get back to that level.’”

Kuemper is in the second season of a five-year, $26.25 million deal, while Lindgren is making $1.1 million a year through 2024-25. When Kuemper started struggling, rookie head coach Carbery didn't let that sway his thinking of who to put in net.

It has been challenging for Kuemper, who said he's “trying to help Charlie out the best I can whenever he needs help with anything. I’ve gone through these experiences, so I try to share those with him and help him along the way.”

Lindgren after beating Boston on Monday night made a point to thank Kuemper for handling the situation “like an absolute pro” and always being in his corner. Plenty of people are in his corner now, even as his family will have split rooting interests in the first round, but he's already won over the Capitals for everything he has done to let them continue playing hockey.

“His work ethic — not only in games but in practice as well, off the ice — is definitely noticed,” veteran winger T.J. Oshie said. "To see all that work be rewarded is awesome. You’re always cheering on your teammates and wanting the best for them. Anyone that knows Chuckie or meets him, or even comes to the game and watches how hard he battles in there, it’s hard not to root for that guy.”

___

AP NHL: https://apnews.com/NHL

We meet again: Hurricanes and Islanders reunite to open NHL playoffs for 2nd straight year

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — The Carolina Hurricanes and the New York Islanders are getting another postseason reunion.

The teams are meeting in the first round of the NHL playoffs for the second straight season, and this marks the third time the teams will meet in six postseasons. The Hurricanes won both previous matchups, including a six-game series in last year's first round.

The Hurricanes are the favorite to win the Stanley Cup, according to Bet MGM Sportsbook, as they enter Saturday's Game 1 at home in this best-of-7 series. Carolina is in the playoffs for the sixth time in as many seasons under Rod Brind'Amour, continuing a multi-year push for the Cup that has twice ended in the Eastern Conference Final.

“The consistency's been great but now we've got to take that next step,” team president and general manager Don Waddell said Friday.

The teams both enter after late-season surges, though the stakes were very different.

Carolina had the league's second-best record in terms of points percentage (.775), trailing only Dallas (.778), since the March 8 trade deadline and clinched a playoff spot weeks ago to turn its final games into a chase for postseason positioning.

“We’ve got a team we believe can win it all,” Carolina captain Jordan Staal said, adding: “It’s just a matter of pushing through and find a way.”

The Islanders, meanwhile, won eight of their last nine to clinch a playoff spot Monday. That came after an up-and-down season that led to a January coaching change (firing Lane Lambert to hire Patrick Roy) and included a six-game skid as recently as mid-March.

“The whole goal is to be playing your best hockey at the right time and we’re putting things together here, to continue to build off of a foundation that’s putting ourselves in a position every night to win,” Islanders captain Anders Lee said.

HEALTHY CANES

The Hurricanes are largely healthy, a big change from the past two years.

Forward Jesper Fast didn't practice Thursday or Friday due to what Waddell described as a neck strain, an injury he has dealt with previously. Fast was knocked from Tuesday's loss at Columbus in the regular-season finale.

Brind'Amour ruled Fast out for Game 1, though Waddell said he thought it was “just a matter of days at this point” before Fast can return.

Overall, though, Carolina isn't dealing with a major injury like top goaltender Frederik Andersen missing the 2022 playoffs due to a late-season lower-body injury or physical forward Andrei Svechnikov missing last year's postseason due to a knee injury.

Svechnikov is back after tallying 52 points (19 goals) in 59 regular-season games.

“I've been waiting for this moment for a long time,” Svechnikov said, adding: “I'm excited and can't wait, I've got goosebumps thinking about it.”

IN NET

The Islanders have a strong goalie tandem with Ilya Sorokin (25-19-12, 3.01 goals-against average, .909 save percentage) and Semyon Varlamov (14-8-4, 2.60, .918).

Sorokin lost six straight starts before going 3-0-1 during the Islanders’ key late-season push. Varlamov was especially stellar during that same stretch, going 8-1-1 with a 2.08 GAA over his last 10 starts.

“Both our goalies have played incredibly well down the stretch and they’re the reason we’re gearing ourselves up for a playoff,” forward Kyle Palmieri said.

For Carolina, Frederik Andersen is 9-1 in 10 starts since his March 7 return from a four-month absence due to a blood-clotting issue, posting a league-best .951 save percentage to go with a 1.30 goals-against average in that span. Carolina leaned on 24-year-old Pyotr Kochetkov (23-13-4, 2.33, .911) to carry much of the load with Andersen out.

BALANCED SCORING

The Islanders were 22nd in the league in scoring (2.99 goals per game), with Brock Nelson (34), Bo Horvat (33) and Palmieri (30) giving the Islanders three 30-goal scorers for the first time since the 1993-94 season. Defenseman Noah Dobson (60) and star center Mathew Barzal (57) nearly gave the team two with 60 assists.

SPECIAL TEAMS

The Hurricanes have the clear edge on special teams. Carolina is ranked second in the NHL on the power play (26.9%) behind Tampa Bay and leads the league on the penalty kill (86.4%). New York is 19th with the man advantage (20.4%) and last on the kill (71.5%).

DEADLINE BUMP

Carolina has been looking for another top scorer and finisher from past postseason stumbles, an issue made worse with Svechnikov's injury last year. The trade-deadline addition of forward Jake Guentzel from Pittsburgh has led to a big bump.

Guentzel had eight goals and 17 assists in 25 games for Carolina, and the Hurricanes have outscored opponents 34-6 when he's been on the ice, according to Natural Stat Trick.

Carolina also acquired Evgeny Kuznetsov from Washington after he had spent a month receiving care from the NHL/NHLPA player assistance program, further bolstering the team's depth.

___

AP Sports Writer Vin A. Cherwoo contributed to this report.

___

AP NHL playoffs: https://apnews.com/hub/stanley-cup and https://apnews.com/hub/nhl

Leafs, Jets, Oilers and Canucks carry Canada's Cup hopes with drought at 30 years

Josh Morrissey remembers the city coming to life before his eyes.

A nine-year-old Flames fan in the spring of 2004, he was captivated by every Jarome Iginla chance and Miikka Kiprusoff save during Calgary's run to the Stanley Cup final.

"It was just an awesome experience," said Morrissey, now a star defenceman for the Winnipeg Jets. "Living and dying on every win and loss."

Hockey fans across Canada are once again preparing themselves to experience that annual thrill and torment.

The Jets, Vancouver Canucks, Edmonton Oilers and Toronto Maple Leafs make up the north-of-the-border contingent set to embark on the 16-team race for the sport's silver chalice when the playoffs open Saturday.

Morrisey was far too young to hit Calgary's electric "Red Mile" after games 20 years ago, but could feel the pulsating energy in his hometown as the Flames advanced through three gruelling rounds to the final.

"That's the best part about Canadian teams doing well in the playoffs … it means so much," he added. "A special time of the year. The longer you go, the more that excitement ramps up. It can really mean a lot to the cities.

"I know as a kid, it meant a ton to me."

Canada's well-documented Cup drought dates back to Montreal's triumph in 1993. The Canucks (twice), Flames, Oilers, Canadiens and Ottawa Senators have all made it to the final since only to fall short.

The four Canadian clubs in this year's post-season tournament represent the most to make the cut in a normal campaign since 2017.

Vancouver defenceman Carson Soucy, who grew up southeast of Edmonton in Irma, Alta., remembers the Oilers' march to the 2006 final.

"That was when they came out with the car window flags," he said. "They were everywhere … those were popular that year."

He added it would be "insane" to bring the Cup back through customs.

"It'd be crazy, honestly, just the support, I think from all of Canada — maybe besides a couple of rivalry teams," Soucy said. "I think Canadians, in general, would be so pumped to have a Canadian team have it back."

Jets blueliner Brenden Dillon grew up a Canucks fan and was in the city when the team lost to the Boston Bruins in Game 7 of the 2011 final.

"There really is nothing like playoff hockey (in Canada)," said the New Westminster, B.C., product. "Everyone bonds together."

Vancouver blueliner Noah Juulsen, who grew up in nearby Abbotsford, B.C., also enjoyed the 2011 run as a fan, but remembers the black eye that came afterwards.

"The riot," he said. "Not the best memory you want, but it is a memory."

Leafs defenceman Simon Benoit, who grew up in the Montreal suburb of Laval, recalls watching his Canadiens go on a couple playoff runs when he was a kid.

"Having a chance here to play for that Cup, it's pretty special," he said of this opportunity with Toronto. "I'm pretty excited about it. When the time comes, I'll be ready."

Edmonton Oilers centre Adam Henrique is set to play his first playoffs on home soil after making the 2018 final with the New Jersey Devils.

"You see the passion in the fan base," said the native of Brantford, Ont. "I've certainly watched in the past, and even on TV you can see it and feel that emotion."

Canucks head coach Rick Tocchet won the Cup as a player with the Pittsburgh Penguins in 1992. He said the team that brings hockey's holy grail home will have bragging rights for a long time.

"It's going to be a hell of a party," he said. "You might be Canada's team after that Stanley Cup. There's a lot at stake for the Canadian teams that are in. As a Canadian, it could be huge.

"That would be the ultimate, right?"

Like so many Canadian fans over the last 30 years, Morrissey was left bitterly disappointed when the Flames bowed out in Game 7 to the Tampa Bay Lightning two decades ago.

"I remember being just absolutely devastated," he said.

But there were plenty of good times along the way.

"My friends and I from that era still talk about some of the games," Morrissey continued. "It lives on for a long time."

The glow of a Cup victory would last even longer.

-With files from Judy Owen in Winnipeg, Gemma Karstens-Smith in Vancouver, and Steven Sandor in Edmonton.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 19, 2024.

___

Follow @JClipperton_CP on X.

John Tortorella says he failed to get Flyers to 'close the deal' in wake of late-season collapse

VOORHEES, N.J. (AP) — Put those playoff plans on hold, Flyers fans.

And not just this season.

Philadelphia is stuck on the outside of the postseason for the fourth straight year after its fate was decided in Game 82. The Flyers’ acceleration from expected painful rebuild to the cusp of the playoffs was faster than expected — especially among those whose opinions matter most, coach John Tortorella and general manager Danny Briere — which made the late-season freefall all the more puzzling and gut-wrenching.

As far as next season? Even then, the playoffs aren’t necessarily a benchmark in the process.

“We are a ways away,” Tortorella said Friday. “We have so much work to do with this team. There are holes in the team. It’s going to take more time.”

Added Briere: “I know the expectation next year will be, oh, we've got to get in the playoffs. I don't even know that we're there yet. It was a great year. But there's still a long ways to go.”

Don't all rush to order those season tickets!

The reality is, preaching patience over playoffs has been the long-term blueprint in Philadelphia since Briere took over late last season. This season — which ended when the Flyers were eliminated last week in the final game of the season — was more about finding which of the young core are worth developing as the team grows into a hopeful eventual Eastern Conference contender.

Tyson Foerster. Cam York. Owen Tippett. Morgan Frost. Samuel Ersson.

Not a bad start. Just not enough to chase a Stanley Cup.

“I think we still need to add talent to our team,” Tortorella said.

Pushing 66, Tortorella said he's “as energized as I’ve ever been, already thinking about next year” and will return to the bench to do his part to see the rebuild through.

“I am totally in,” Tortorella said, “until Danny says, ‘Get the hell out of here.’”

Not a chance.

Briere championed the job Tortorella did this season as he guided the Flyers to the last game of the season with meaningful hockey to play. The Flyers were widely predicted by experts, fans and oddsmakers to finish near the bottom of the NHL. In his second season on the bench, Tortorella instead squeezed every ounce of talent, and summoned all the grit he could out of his players to thrust them into a playoff race.

For most of the season, the Flyers not only played over their heads, they succeeded while navigating the loss of No. 1 goalie Carter Hart to sexual assault charges and the murky circumstances that led to 2022 No. 1 draft pick Cutter Gauthier forcing a trade.

Yet the end was so crushing because a playoff berth was in hand until an eight-game losing streak that bridged March and April that proved the death knell for their season.

Tortorella largely took the blame for the collapse.

“I couldn’t get the team to close the deal,” Tortorella said. “It was a concern of mine, 25 games left or so in the season, can we stay with it? I think it’s my job to get it to the end. I think the team played hard right to the end. I just did not close the deal.”

But why? The answers are somewhat obvious on the surface. Ersson went from backup goalie to workhorse and faded down the stretch under the stress of heavy minutes. The team ran out of gas after a rugged early March schedule against some of the top teams in the NHL. Perhaps a notoriously prickly Tortorella pushed his players past the point where they could produce more than what he expected out of them.

“I’ve made some mistakes this year," Tortorella said, ”not the ones you may think I did."

The big mistake — arguably, of course — was benching Sean Couturier only 34 days after he was named team captain.

Only those inside the locker room know the true consequences of Tortorella’s choice in mid-March to make a such a bold and controversial call. But Tortorella fielded multiple questions and needed nearly 10 minutes to defend himself Friday — and stood by his decision.

While Tortorella admitted the timing wasn't great, he added, “the captaincy's not going to stop me from holding people accountable.”

Couturier said at the time he was “frustrated with the way I’ve been treated” and his agent called out the franchise for a lack of communication.

Tortorella said Friday the criticism “kind of caught me off guard, a little bit” but defended his style inside the locker room and insisted his players always know where they stand with the coaching staff. Tortorella also blasted agent Erik Lupien calling him, “a little piss-ant out there pounding his chest that really doesn’t know what’s going on between Sean and I.”

“I think it turned into a bunch of drama,” Tortorella said.

Torts? Drama? Who, him?

“You’ve got the wrong coach here then if we’re going to be hugging,” Tortorella said.

Tortorella, who won a Stanley Cup with Tampa Bay in 2004, brandished his reputation as a fiery, no-nonsense coach on a team still mostly full of young 20-somethings finding their way in the NHL. Briere has Tortorella's back — and the coach seems to have the support of the locker room that largely expects him to return next year.

With the 12th pick in the draft, there's little expectation of getting an impact player and the Flyers are mostly looking at cheap, short-term deals — such as the one-year, cap-friendly deal given last year to Marc Staal — for veteran help.

“I still think there's more that we need to do before we can take that next step and start pushing the envelope, taking some risks a little bit more," Briere said. “I still think we're at a stage where we need to think about the future, we need to build the right way to give us the best chance to be serious contenders for years to come and not just for a year or two.”

___

AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl

At playoff time, NHL teams march to the beat of their goaltenders and count on them to save the day

DENVER (AP) — Colorado goaltender Alexandar Georgiev went home after a recent shaky outing and immediately watched film — the car-racing thriller “The Fast and the Furious.”

Anything to keep his own mind from racing.

It's playoff time, where teams march to the beat of their goaltenders. They want them laser-focused, full of confidence and ready to save the day.

There are quite a few teams going into the postseason with big decisions in net. That includes Boston, which could split the goaltending duties, and the Avalanche, where Georgiev led the league in wins (38) but also goals against (183). Not every team has a Connor Hellebuyck, the Winnipeg goaltender who will try to shutdown the Avalanche and is a favorite to capture the Vezina Trophy as the league’s best.

“Your goalie (in the playoffs) is the most important thing, like a quarterback or a pitcher. You need them to be on top of their game,” said former NHL goaltender Michael Leighton, who now lives in Windsor, Ontario, and runs a goalie academy. “If they’re not, your team’s in trouble.”

It simply boils down to that. When a goalie is going good, everything seems to be going good.

“It gives us a ton of confidence," Jets defenseman Neal Pionk said of Hellebuyck's big-save ability. "It lets you play freely, make some plays. Because when we play these good teams, they’re going to make some plays no matter what we do. We could play a perfect game and still give up a few scoring chances and that’s where the goalie helps us out.”

All across the league, the situations vary in net heading into the playoffs:

— Nashville vs. Vancouver. For Nashville, it’s the Juuse Saros Show after leading the NHL in saves (1,672). Thatcher Demko is back from a knee injury for the Canucks.

— Florida vs. Tampa Bay. Andrei Vasilevskiy has rounded into familiar stellar form for the Lightning after returning from back surgery earlier this season. Florida has its own star Russian goalie in Sergei Bobrovsky (six shutouts).

— New York Rangers vs. Washington. With the Presidents’ Trophy-winning Rangers, it’s Igor Shesterkin, who won at least 36 games for a third straight season. Washington's Charlie Lindgren will be making his NHL postseason debut.

— Boston vs. Toronto. The Maple Leafs will rely on Ilya Samsonov while the Bruins have two standouts in Linus Ullmark and Jeremy Swayman.

— Edmonton vs. Los Angeles. Stuart Skinner is in the crease for Edmonton as a familiar foe awaits. The Kings used both Cam Talbot and David Rittich down the stretch as they prepare to face the Oilers for the third consecutive postseason.

— Carolina vs. the New York Islanders. Hurricanes goaltender Frederik Andersen is 9-1 in his 10 starts since his March 7 return, posting a league-best .951 save percentage while his 1.30 goals-against average is second among goalies with more than three starts in that span. Coach Patrick Roy figures to go with a red-hot Semyon Varlamov.

— Dallas vs. Vegas. Logan Thompson and Adin Hill each have compelling cases to be in the net for the defending champion Golden Knights. No such questions for Dallas, who will rely on Jake Oettinger (allowed two goals or less in 10 of his last 11 games).

Last postseason, Oettinger was up-and-down. The ups included his first playoffs shutout and the downs saw him pulled from two games.

“It’s all about forgive and forget and one game at a time," Oettinger explained. "I learned a lot last year and the year before, and I feel like I’m ready for this one.”

Some teams are weighing their options in net and may go with a platoon system, including Vegas and Boston. And even though Andersen is on a roll, Carolina coach Rod Brind’Amour wouldn’t tip his hand and could work in Pyotr Kochetkov, who won his last four games.

Having two quality goaltenders can be both a luxury and a challenge. Leighton once split time with Brian Boucher in guiding the Philadelphia Flyers to the 2010 Stanley Cup Final, where they lost six games to Chicago.

The luxury: “Just in case one isn’t sharp or because of injury,” Leighton said.

The challenge: “Sometimes it’s not about the goalie, it’s about the team,” Leighton explained. “The team plays different in front of some goalies. You’re risking your players playing differently in front of a certain goalie.”

Down the stretch, Georgiev has surrendered 22 goals over his last five appearances for Colorado. Should he struggle, Justus Annunen is waiting on the bench.

“Trying to just stay positive and see the positive,” Georgiev said. “I’ve made a lot of good saves and trying to focus on that and bringing that into the next games.”

Goaltending 101: Look forward, not back.

"It’s kind of keeping a cool head, not getting too caught up in everything, not getting too excited,” said Washington’s Darcy Kuemper, who backstopped Colorado to the Cup title in 2022. “Just make sure you’re going out there and doing the things that you’ve done all year and stick to your structure. Obviously, there’s highs and lows all season but you get in the playoffs and it’s even to more extreme levels. You’ve just got to keep a cool head.”

Not to mention a confident one, because it's infectious.

“He’s our brick wall back there,” Stars forward Mason Marchment said of Oettinger. “He’s our stud.”

___

AP Hockey Writer Stephen Whyno, and AP Sports Writers Stephen Hawkins, Aaron Beard, Jimmy Golen and Mark Anderson contributed to this report.

___

AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl

The Florida Panthers are weird. And coach Paul Maurice says that as a compliment

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — Ordinarily at playoff time, this would be bulletin-board material: A coach in the NHL referred to the Florida Panthers as weird.

Except this time, nobody minded. Because the guy who said it was Panthers coach Paul Maurice.

Weird, goofy and unique are just some of the terms Maurice uses to describe his team, and he's saying those words in the most endearing way possible. To him, they're all badges of honor, part of the reasons why the Panthers finished with 110 points, won the Atlantic Division for the second time in three years and have a full head of steam going into a first-round playoff series with the rival Tampa Bay Lightning.

“There’s a lot of guys that have been here for a long time, we’ve been together and everyone’s great," Panthers captain Aleksander Barkov said. “Everyone's serious when we go on the ice and when we have to work. That’s the best part of it. And, off the ice, obviously we want to be as relaxed as possible, joke around, that kind of stuff. We love spending time together.”

The way Maurice sees it, the more fun the Panthers have, the better. The team's practice facility that opened this season was designed with some of that in mind, loaded with amenities designed to make the players want to spend even more time together. And every locker room in sports has a personality, a heartbeat to it — but Maurice insists there's something different about Florida's.

Nobody is safe from the jokes in there. Not Barkov, not Matthew Tkachuk, not Aaron Ekblad, not Sergei Bobrovsky, not even Maurice himself.

“Goalies have this weird superstitious thing and I'm not superstitious," backup goalie Anthony Stolarz said. "I’m cracking jokes with the guys, talking on the bench in between periods, trying to just lighten the mood any way I can. But goalies are kind of known for being a little weird. So, I try to stick to that stigma just a little bit.”

Like all hockey rooms, Florida's is a melting pot filled with Americans, Canadians, Russians, Swedes, Finns, even a Latvian. Countless different backgrounds, tons of languages spoken, and it's only natural for players with similar stories to gravitate toward one another.

Not so with the Panthers. Stolarz says he's been to dinner on road trips with just about everybody on the roster, and Maurice figures that just about everyone in the room can say that as well.

“It's a tight group for sure," said Florida forward Sam Reinhart, who scored 57 goals this season, 27 of them on the power play. “I've known that from Day 1. I think as I’ve progressed here, year in and year out, it’s gotten even closer. I think when you've got that core group, it's easy for guys to come in and just fit in and feel comfortable. It's important.”

This is why it's so important: The Stanley Cup playoffs will test any team. Wins are great, losses are tragic. The emotional ebbs and flows can vary not just by the day, but by the period, even by the shift in some cases.

If bonds and trust within a roster haven't been formed by now, they probably won't be. Maurice knows he doesn't have to worry about that — the weirdness, as he calls it, puts him at ease with the team about to enter the most important part of the season.

As he put it, the room allows every player — and the coach — to be goofy when needed, without fear.

“We've got some unique guys in there," Maurice said. “We've got some guys that just don’t look like professional athletes and they're elite at it. Lots of different personalities. So, what I think you find is because of the room the way it is, so accepting, guys are completely comfortable truly being themselves — and then that weirdness or uniqueness comes out."

___

AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl

History with Maple Leafs could help Bruins snap short playoff slump

BOSTON (AP) — The Boston Bruins may have found just the solution to their playoff slump: A first-round matchup with the Toronto Maple Leafs.

The Bruins haven't lost a playoff series to Toronto since 1959, winning six straight series that have helped extend their Original Six rival's Stanley Cup drought to more than half of a century. Boston won all four regular-season matchups with the Leafs during the regular season — all motivation, no doubt, for Toronto to turn things around.

“I think just with the history we’ve had with them recently, they’re probably our biggest rival now over the last decade,” Bruins captain Brad Marchand said Thursday as the team began practicing for the Saturday’s series opener.

“It definitely brings the emotion and the intensity up for the fans. It’s a lot of fun to play,” he said. “It’s always extremely competitive. You never know which way the series is going to go. But that’s what you want and what you love about hockey.”

Although the outcomes have been one-sided, the Bruins have had to work for their victories.

Boston also won back-to-back seven-game series in 2018 and ’19. In their first-round matchup in 2013, the Bruins rallied from a three-goal, third-period deficit in Game 7 and won in overtime.

“Completely new game and a new season,” Auston Matthews, one of five Toronto holdovers from the last matchup five years ago, told the Canadian Press after the regular season-ending loss to Tampa. “Do our due diligence and make sure that we’re recovering and ready.”

The lopsided history raised questions about whether the Bruins engineered a matchup with the Leafs by losing three of their last four games of the season. That dropped Boston out of first place in the Atlantic Division — and a potential matchup with the more dangerous Tampa Bay Lightning.

The Bruins haven't advanced in the playoffs since 2021 — despite setting NHL records for points and wins last season.

Marchand thinks it would be foolish to underestimate Toronto.

“Nothing you do in the season has any bearing on what’s going to happen in the future,” he said. “You start getting caught up in the past, whether it’s good or bad, it’s going to affect your play. You need to stay in the moment, playoffs time.”

SCORING THREAT

Matthews is turning his attention to the playoffs after falling short of his bid for 70 goals, going scoreless in back-to-back losses to end the season and finishing with 69.

“The most important thing is the team and the team’s success, making sure I’m pulling my weight as a leader on this team and help the team win,” he said. “That’s where my focus is at.”

Toronto coach Sheldon Keefe said he doesn’t measure Matthews’ contribution in goals.

“I know there’s been a lot of focus on him reaching 70 goals; you kind of lose sight of how well he’s played,” Keefe said. “It wasn’t meant to be, and that’s OK. Sixty-nine is an unbelievable season.”

GOAL SQUADS

The Bruins aren’t saying who will start in net, though indications are that they will at least begin by rotating Linus Ullmark and Jeremy Swayman.

“Our goalies know what the plan is,” general manager Don Sweeney said. “They know what their strengths are for our hockey club and how much we rely on them. And performance and results will dictate some of this. But we know what the plan is going in. And we’re comfortable with it.”

The Bruins goalies have alternated this season, except when injuries necessitated an adjustment. Swayman, who played three of the four games against Toronto, was 25-10-8 overall in 43 starts with a 2.53 goals-against average and Ullmark was 22-10-7 in 39 starts, allowing 2.57 goals per game.

Ullmark was the playoff starter last year, when he won the Vezina Trophy after leading the Bruins to a record-setting regular season. But after he allowed six goals in 32 shots in a Game 6 loss to Florida, Swayman started — and lost — the first-round clincher.

“We’re very confident in our goaltending,” Sweeney said. “I think it’s been a strength of our hockey club, certainly the past two years.”

STUMBLING TO THE FINISH

Both teams finished up the regular season on losing streaks.

While Boston lost three of its last four, Toronto dropped four straight to finish third in the Atlantic, seven points behind the Bruins and still four points better than Tampa Bay.

“Definitely not how we want to be playing going into the post-season,” Matthews said. “I don’t think we can just think we’re going to turn it on.”

Toronto is hoping to build on last year’s postseason, when it beat Tampa in six games to advance for the first time since 2004. The Bruins are hoping to forget last year, when they set NHL records with 65 wins and 135 points but were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs by Florida.

“Looking back, we definitely looked at going on a long run and preparing for a long run," Marchand said. “Looking day to day, it’s definitely a lesson we can learn and build upon.”

___

AP NHL: https://apnews.com/NHL

Alberta spring signals another Oilers-Kings NHL playoff showdown

EDMONTON — There are a few sure signs of spring in Alberta. The snow turns to slush, the Canada geese return to the ponds, lakes and streams, and the Edmonton Oilers and Los Angeles Kings face each other in the first round of the Western Conference Playoffs.

The two rivals will meet in the first round for the third season in a row, with the Oilers looking to make it a hat trick of victories. 

The Oilers rebounded from a 3-2 series deficit to win a seven-game thriller two seasons ago. In 2023, the Oilers beat the Kings in six.

“It could only be you,” the Kings social-media team posted on X just minutes after Los Angeles beat Chicago 5-4 in overtime Thursday night, clinching third spot in the Pacific on the final day of the season. 

The victory saw the Kings leapfrog the Vegas Golden Knights for third in the Pacific Division, and the right to play the second-place Oilers in Round 1.

The series starts at Edmonton's Rogers Place, with Game 1 scheduled for Monday.

“There’s definitely been a lot of lessons learned,” said Kings forward Quinton Byfield. “We had a younger group coming in a couple of years ago. For myself, I got more playoff experience. A lot of guys in [our] room got more playoff experience. We know they’re a really good team, they have some star players. It’s going to be a really hard series, but hopefully it’s our time, now.”

While the foes are familiar with each other, the two head coaches are not. Both the Kings and Oilers made coaching changes this season, predicated by long slumps. For the Oilers, Jay Woodcroft was ousted after the team got off to a shocking 3-9-1 start.

The Oilers then went a blistering 46-18-5 under rookie head coach Kris Knoblauch, including a midseason 16-game winning streak that was just one shy of the NHL record.

“It’s been a wild ride, starting real low, then having a real high there in the middle with that win streak and getting ourselves back into it,” said Oilers captain Connor McDavid. “And here we are, about to host a playoff series. It’s hard to think from where we’ve come, it’s a credit to everybody in this room and the resiliency of this group.”

The Kings fired Todd McLellan after a 17-game midseason stretch which saw the team win just three times. Jim Hiller was brought in to steady the team, and the Kings finished with a 44-27-11 mark.

While Hiller is a new voice behind the bench, the Kings’ playing style hasn’t changed. They still employ the 1-3-1 system that clogs up the neutral zone, and limits their opponent’s ability to break out on the rush. 

The 1-3-1 system, which has yet to beat the Oilers in the playoffs, serves as a necessary evil, bridging the significant firepower gap between the teams. 

Adrian Kempe topped the Kings with 75 points, while McDavid ranked third in NHL scoring with 132 points, Draisaitl seventh at 106, and Hyman, a standout with 54 goals, solidified his role as a premier net-front presence in the league.

The “playoffs are a new season” will be a cliché we’ll all hear hundreds of times over the next few days. But Kempe, who got an assist on the game-tying goal and scored the overtime winner in the season finale over Chicago, hopes the post-season will see the Kings carry over the momentum from a season-ending stretch that saw them win six of their last eight.

“It doesn’t matter who you play, you have to win four rounds to make it all the way,” said Kempe, who on Thursday was named the team MVP for 2023-24. “It’s kind of a new season. But, obviously, we’ve worked so hard all year to be here. And, all those things we’ve done well and the things we haven’t done as well, we bring that with us into the playoffs.”

Meanwhile, the Oilers have been managing their minutes. McDavid, Hyman, Draisaitl, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and the top defence pairing of Evan Bouchard and Mattias Ekholm were all rested for the team's final game in Colorado. Forward Evander Kane, meanwhile, sat out a third straight game. 

The Oilers played 10 times between April 1 and 18. So, with rest and rotation being the priority, there wasn't much to take away from the team’s two losses to end the season, at Arizona and Colorado.

Knoblauch says his team is ready for the grind.

“We’re going into the playoffs coming off quite a few games in April,” he said. "I don’t think anyone’s played more games than we have (in the last three weeks)."

TALE OF THE TAPE:

Regular-season series: Oilers 3-1-0; Kings 1-2-1

Goals per game: Edmonton, 3.59 (4th); Los Angeles, 3.12 (T16th).

Top scores: Edmonton, Connor McDavid, 132; Los Angeles, Adrian Kempe, 75.

Starting goaltender: Edmonton, Stuart Skinner, 36-16-5, 2.62 GAA, .905 save percentage; Los Angeles, Cam Talbot, 27-20-6, 2.50 GAA, 913 save percentage

Power play percentage: Edmonton — 26.3 (4th); Los Angeles Kings — 22.6 (12th).

Penalty kill percentage: Edmonton — 79.5 (15th); Los Angeles Kings — 84.6 (2nd).

The Big Stat: Trevor Moore led the Kings with 31 goals this season. That total would place him fourth on the Oilers behind Hyman (54), Draisaitl (41) and McDavid (32) 

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 19, 2024.

NHL PLAYOFFS: West best Dallas vs. defending champion Vegas headlines 1st-round matchups

All eight first-round matchups in the NHL playoffs are set after the last day of the regular season flipped two of the biggest series in the West.

The defending Stanley Cup champion Vegas Golden Knights will open against West top seed Dallas. Connor McDavid’s Edmonton Oilers will face the Los Angeles Kings, a team they’ve defeated each of the past two years in the same round.

In the East, the Presidents’ Trophy-winning New York Rangers begin their championship pursuit against Washington. Cup favorite Carolina faces the New York Islanders in the first round, but any of nearly a dozen teams could win it all.

A glance at the first-round series (times Eastern):

RANGERS vs. CAPITALS

Game 1: Sunday at New York, 3 p.m.

New York was the best team in the league. Washington needed to win its regular-season finale to get into the playoffs, doing so with an unusual empty-net goal.

The Rangers are heavily favored, according to BetMGM Sportsbook. But Capitals center Dylan Strome pointed out the teams not only split four games but each scored and allowed nine goals in the season series.

“Anything can happen in playoffs,” Strome said. “You saw what happened last year: The best team in regular-season history (Boston) loses to Florida because they had a good end of the season and they kind of carried it towards playoffs. We’ve won three in a row, we’re feeling good. The momentum’s kind of with us, and obviously we feel good.”

HURRICANES vs. ISLANDERS

Game 1: Saturday at Carolina, 5 p.m.

This is a rematch from last year, when the Hurricanes beat the Islanders in six games. It's also another series pitting Carolina's Sebastian Aho (a Finnish forward) against New York's Sebastian Aho (a Swedish defenseman), no relation.

What has changed: The Islanders upgraded at coach, hiring Hall of Fame goaltender Patrick Roy midseason, and won seven of eight games down the stretch to make a surprise run to the playoffs. Speaking of goaltending, Hurricanes starter Frederik Andersen is 9-1-0 with a 1.30 goals-against average and .951 save percentage since returning from blood-clotting issues.

PANTHERS vs. LIGHTNING

Game 1: Sunday at Florida, 12:30 p.m.

Defending Eastern Conference champion Florida looked on track to play Toronto in the first round until the Panthers came back to beat the Maple Leafs on Tuesday while Boston lost to Ottawa. So now they will face cross-state rival Tampa Bay.

The Lightning have 2019 Vezina Trophy winner and 2021 playoff MVP Andrei Vasilevskiy in net, while Florida has two-time Vezina winner Sergei Bobrovsky. The play of the Russian goalies could decide the series.

BRUINS vs. MAPLE LEAFS

Game 1: Saturday at Boston, 8 p.m.

A year removed from setting NHL records for the most wins and point in a season and losing in the first round, coach Jim Montgomery hopes the Bruins learned “how to handle adversity when it smacks you in the face.” That could come in the form of 69-goal scorer Auston Matthews or any of the Leafs' other elite offensive players.

Facing Boston is a chance for Toronto, which has one playoff series victory with its current core, to slay a dragon that has tormented the team. The Bruins eliminated the Leafs in 2018 and '19.

STARS vs. GOLDEN KNIGHTS

Game 1: Monday at Dallas, 9:30 p.m.

Congratulations on clinching the top seed in the Western Conference, Dallas. Your reward is the reigning champs getting captain Mark Stone back from a lacerated spleen just in time to make another run.

The Stars, who lost to the Golden Knights in the West final last year, have been “a wagon” down the stretch, in the words of Colorado coach Jared Bednar, looking like the class of the conference with a deep roster and a mountainous goalie in Jake Oettinger. Starting with Vegas is a steep test.

JETS vs. AVALANCHE

Game 1: Sunday at Winnipeg, 7 p.m.

The first matchup to get locked in was Winnipeg vs. Colorado, a classic clash in styles. The high-octane Avalanche tend to overwhelm opponents but went 0-3 against the Jets this season, outscored 17-4 and never putting up more than two goals in any game and looking absolutely smothered by the best defensive team in the league in terms of goals allowed.

The most recent game was a 7-0 Jets rout in Denver, but the Avalanche, with their core mostly intact from their 2022 Cup run, know how to flip a switch when the playoffs arrive. That starts with MVP candidate Nathan MacKinnon, who finished second to Tampa Bay's Nikita Kucherov in the scoring race and is motivated to win another championship.

Colorado's biggest question is in goal, where Alexandar Georgiev has been up, down and inconsistent. The same cannot be said of his standout counterpart, the Jets' Connor Hellebuyck.

CANUCKS vs. PREDATORS

Game 1: Sunday at Vancouver, 10 p.m.

Rick Tocchet-coached Vancouver was one of the biggest surprises of the season. In October, making the playoffs would have made it a good year for the Canucks, but now they're Pacific Division champions and have their sights set on making it through the West.

Nashville stands in the way of that after a late-season 16-0-2 surge propelled the Predators into a wild-card spot in their first year under coach Andrew Brunette and with Barry Trotz in charge as general manager.

OILERS vs. KINGS

Game 1: Monday at Edmonton, 10 p.m.

Here we go again. This is the third consecutive year Edmonton and Los Angeles have played in the first round. The Oilers won each of those series and are favored to advance to face either Vancouver or Nashville after winning 46 of 69 games since the coaching change from Jay Woodcroft to Kris Knoblauch.

This could be three-time MVP Connor McDavid's chance to carry the Oilers to their first title since 1990. McDavid and Leon Draisaitl talk and look a lot like MacKinnon, Mikko Rantanen and Gabriel Landeskog did before Colorado won it all two years ago.

___

AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl

GM Staios taking cautious approach to off-season after Sens miss playoffs again

OTTAWA — Another season out of the playoffs has left Ottawa Senators players frustrated and disappointed, but a complete overhaul doesn't appear to be in Steve Staios's plans.

In his media availability with media Friday morning, the Senators general manager acknowledged his players' feelings — captain Brady Tkachuk said Thursday as players cleaned out their lockers that he was “sick and tired of losing" — but was cautious in revealing plans for next season.

“I think the word frustration comes from not being able to meet expectations,” said Staios. “I think we need to take it back a little bit to be able to start to build towards those expectations.”

Staios is new to the job in Ottawa. He joined the team as president of hockey operations when new owner Michael Andlauer took over the team in September, and added general manager to his duties when longtime GM Pierre Dorion was fired Nov. 1.

He believes the challenges of the past season will make the team better in the long run.

“The players need to go through, as hard as it is, they need to go through these scenarios and situations and years where it’s utter disappointment,” Staios said. “Because it will only drive them to get better. They have to go through a year where there is conflict and there is turmoil. They need to learn how to deal with that.”

First on Staios’ to-do list this off-season is hiring a new head coach.

Jacques Martin, who filled in as interim after D.J. Smith was fired, will remain with the organization as a consultant.

Staios wouldn’t put a timeline on when an announcement might take place.

“We’re really digging in,” said Staios. “There’s a long list of coaches who are very good coaches that could come in and coach the Ottawa Senators. What we’re really trying to do is find the right person for the job at this time with our group. We’ve had time to evaluate our group on where we think they are and trying to find that personality and that style of coach.”

Staios added it would be a bonus if that person happened to be bilingual.

Decisions will also need to be made regarding supporting staff, but he did clarify that Daniel Alfredsson, who served as an assistant coach to Martin, wasn’t in consideration for head coach. Alfredsson will likely be given the opportunity to return if he chooses.

There’s no denying the Senators are on the edge of a precipice. After missing the playoffs for the past seven seasons this group will only be given so many chances to prove itself before significant changes are made.

That’s not to say there won’t be changes this off-season. The Senators could benefit from additional veteran leadership. 

Aside from veteran Claude Giroux, only goalie Joonas Korpisalo (15) has played more than 10 playoff games.

A goaltending corps led by Korpisalo and Anton Forsberg finished last in the league with an .888 save percentage. Staios believes the goaltenders are better than the numbers they posted.

“The question is do you address that because they had off years,” he said. “You know, there’s a number of areas that we need to address."

While most of the team’s core group of players are already under contract there are some decisions to be made.

Dominik Kubalik is the lone unrestricted free agent. He was acquired in the trade for Alex DeBrincat but never really found his place in Ottawa, putting up four goals and 15 assists in 74 games.

Forwards Shane Pinto, Parker Kelly, Boris Katchouk and defenceman Erik Brannstrom, are all restricted free agents and will be looking for contract extensions.

Staios said he didn’t think exit interviews were the place to discuss contract negotiations, and so no player was told he wouldn’t be returning to the organization.

Defenceman Jakob Chychrun is entering the final year of his contract, but Staios said he wouldn’t discuss contract negotiations through the media. 

Notes: Cenrtre Josh Norris is expected to be ready for the start of training camp following successful shoulder surgery.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 19, 2024.

Canucks set to face Predators in first playoff appearance since 2020

VANCOUVER — Expectations for the Vancouver Canucks were not high heading into the season. 

Asked in September if he expected the team to make the playoffs, president of hockey operations Jim Rutherford hedged.

“To be very to the point, the changes that we made, we have a playoff team if everything goes right,” he said. 

Things did go right. 

On Sunday, the Canucks will host their first home playoff game since 2015 when they kick off a first-round matchup against the Nashville Predators.

Vancouver has been one of the big surprises of the NHL season. The team went 23-9-3 ahead of the Christmas break and consistently hovered near the top of the league standings before capturing the Pacific Division title with a 50-23-9 record. 

“I think if someone told us where we would be this time (of the) year in the summer, obviously we’d take it," said captain Quinn Hughes. "It’s different when you're building something every day and you're living it. But we knew we had some good pieces in here and we’ve got a great staff, and management did a really good job with putting pieces together. 

"And it hasn't been easy, but we did everything we were supposed to do."

Players arrived in Vancouver well ahead of training camp last fall, trading their late-summer plans for group skates.

Brock Boeser, the team's longest-tenured player, says it feels "amazing" to see the hard work result in a playoff spot and division title.

“Obviously, we were sick and tired of losing," he said. "And that’s why we came here early to try and set that standard, set those expectations. I think we had that great start to the year and just built off it. We’ve had our ups and downs, but I think we’ve learned a lot.”

Several of the Canucks' top players shone throughout the season, putting up career-high numbers.

Hughes led all NHL defenceman with 92 points. Boeser hit the 40-goal mark. Three Vancouver players were among the league's top-20 scorers, including forward J.T. Miller with a team-high 103 points. Even after missing a month with a knee injury, goalie Thatcher Demko finished with a 35-14-2 record, a .918 save percentage and five shutouts. 

Point totals and division titles don't count in the post-season, noted winger Conor Garland. 

“It’s nice, but once Game 1 comes around, it’ll all be meaningless," he said. "We give ourselves a chance getting into the playoffs. It really doesn’t matter if you’re the eighth seed or the No. 1 seed, everybody has a chance. And that’s what everybody fights for all year.”

Head coach Rick Tocchet preached the importance of having a "day-to-day mindset" throughout the season. That won't change come playoffs, he said. 

“I think for our group, we just have to worry about Game 1," he said. "You can’t look at the big thing, ‘What if?’ or ‘You’ve got to win a series,’ all that stuff. I think it’s dangerous when you think that way. 

"I think, honestly, we’ve got to prepare for that first period against Nashville and be ready to play from that first shift. … I think when you think big picture, that’s when you get nervous.”

NHL playoff experience is one thing many of Vancouver's stars lack. The Canucks' last playoff run came in the Edmonton bubble during the COVID-abbreviated 20219-20 season.

“That was different. That was tough," said Garland, who played for the Arizona Coyotes at the time. "Our games were at like, 10 in the morning. So I was eating pasta at 8 a.m. It wasn’t the most fun I’ve had in my life. 

"This year is different. I’ll find out.”

Six current Canucks played for Vancouver in the bubble, including Boeser. Playoffs this year will be completely different, he said.

"I think we’ve just got to look at it as our first time," Boeser said. "Just with the fans and the momentum shift and all that, it’s something new to us and something I think we’re going to have to embrace."

The Canucks swept their season series against Nashville, but all three games took place before Christmas and the Predators were one of the NHL's hottest teams coming out of the all-star break. Nashville took points from 18 straight games across February and March, and finished the regular season fourth in a ultra-competitive Central Division. 

The late-season push doesn't scare Canucks winger Dakota Joshua. 

“I feel good about facing anybody," he said. "I think this group is a confident one."

The results of the Vancouver-Nashville season series will help going into the playoffs, Joshua added. 

"You know you can beat them," he said. "But at the end of the day, you start off 0-0. They were a pretty hot team here down the stretch, so they’re feeling probably a lot better than the times we played them during the season. And it should be a great series.” 

TALE OF THE TAPE

Regular-season series: Vancouver 3-0

Goals per game: Vancouver — 3.40 (6th); Nashville — 3.24 (10th).

Top scorers: Vancouver — J.T. Miller, 103 points; Nashville — Filip Forsberg, 94

Starting goaltender: Vancouver — Thatcher Demko, 35-14-2, 2.45 GAA, .918 save percentage; Nashville — Juuse Saros, 35-24-5, 2.86 GAA, .906 save percentage

Power play percentage: Vancouver — 22.7 (11th); Nashville — 21.6 (16th)

Penalty kill percentage: Vancouver — 79.1 (17th); Nashville — 76.9 (22nd)

The Big Stat: Vancouver went 17-12-4 after the all-star break while Nashville was 21-7-3.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 19, 2024.

Flames want to promote their team as a desirable destination for NHL players

CALGARY — Winning more games and the construction of a new arena will convince more NHL players that Calgary is a desirable place to play, some Flames say as they head for the exits.

Calgary finished 17 points out of a playoff spot this season with a record of 38-39-5, and missed the post-season a second straight year. 

A slow start to the season combined with big-name pending free agents not signing contract extensions produced midseason lineup changes that hampered the club's progress.

Other players such as Tyler Toffoli, Matthew Tkachuk and Johnny Gaudreau have headed for other markets in the last two years, although Nazem Kadri signed as a free agent two seasons ago.

Defenceman MacKenzie Weegar says a winning culture and making playoffs can help lift what he calls the black cloud over the Flames.

The city and the Flames have an agreement in place for a new arena to replace the Saddledome, which is the oldest NHL building behind New York's Madison Square Garden, but shovels are not yet in the ground.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 19, 2024.