What is there to say about Nathan MacKinnon? The Colorado Avalanche forward is always a must-watch, but get him in the post-season and he's simply unstoppable.
Wednesday night was proof of that. MacKinnon tallied three goals and an assist in Game 2 of Colorado's first-round series against the St. Louis Blues, propelling the club to a dominant 6-3 win and a 2-0 series lead. This, after registering two goals and an assist in the series opener Monday night.
That's FIVE goals -- SEVEN points! -- in just two playoff games so far. And he truly is just getting started.
Joonas Donskoi almost had himself a hat trick, too -- he opened the scoring just 35 seconds into the game, then opened the second frame with another. He also assisted on MacKinnon’s first goal of the night, a power-play marker in the first period.
MacKinnon's feat, completed with an empty-netter late in regulation, is his first career playoff hat trick, and it doesn't feel like a stretch to suggest it's most definitely not his last.
Kadri crosses the line
Colorado forward Nazem Kadri has landed himself in hot water with the league once again. Midway through the third period of Wednesday's Game 2 against the St. Louis Blues, Kadri caught Blues defenceman Justin Faulk with an illegal check to the head mid-ice.
The infraction brought a scary sight, with Faulk remaining down on the ice after the blindside hit. He was able to skate off under his own power. Blues head coach Craig Berube didn't have an update on Faulk's condition post-game.
Kadri was initially sent to the penalty box, but that was upgraded to a game misconduct after it was confirmed that the main point of contact was Faulk's head. It's very likely he'll be getting a call from the league as well, especially considering his standing as a multiple repeat offender.
"The guy can't control himself. In the playoffs he's a repeat offender, bad hits,” Blues forward Brayden Schenn said of Kadri after the game. “He's got a guy in a vulnerable position and picks nothing but the head. We need to focus on Games 3-4 and the league will take care of those guys' hits."
Kadri has earned a reputation for these kinds of plays -- particularly in the post-season. Two years ago, he delivered a dangerous cross-check to the head of Bruins forward Jake DeBrusk in Game 2 of the Toronto Maple Leafs’ first-round matchup and was suspended for the remainder of that series, which the Leafs went on to lose. The dangerous nature of Wednesday's hit on Faulk, combined with a lengthy track record -- he's now been suspended five times since 2013 -- could make for a similar suspension this spring.
Smith's impatience pays off for Bruins
Just like Games 1 and 2 of the first-round series between the Washington Capitals and Boston Bruins, Wednesday’s Game 3 required more than 60 minutes of hockey to deliver a winner.
Unlike Monday, which needed just 39 seconds of extra time before Brad Marchand buried the game-winner, Wednesday night required a little more patience — something that isn’t necessarily Craig Smith’s strong suit, apparently.
"I love winning, but I hate waiting," he told reporters after the game, a 3-2 double-overtime victory to take a 2-1 series lead.
His impatience (eventually) paid off -- five minutes into the second overtime period Wednesday night, it was Smith who stole the show after pouncing on a misplay by Capitals netminder Ilya Samsonov.
It wasn't the prettiest of goals we've seen this series -- that belongs to his linemate, Taylor Hall. By now, you’ve probably seen this absolutely ridiculous goal scored by Hall in the second period of Wednesday's Game 3. Watch it again — only, this time, keep a close eye on Smith:
Smith’s creative little backhand pass to set up Hall is a perfect example of what he’s brought to the Bruins this season after signing with the club in free agency. Boston’s search for secondary scoring landed them the do-it-all centreman last fall, and his impressive regular-season numbers — 13 goals, 32 assists in 54 games of 2020-21 — were proof of the strong fit forged between team and player. Put him on a line with the newest Bruins star in Hall and one of the oldest in David Krejci, and Boston’s finally got a suitable second punch of the one-two combo it’s been looking for in the post-season. In three playoff games on that line, Smith now has a goal and two assists -- and a ton of respect from his teammates.
Samsonov's playoff debut starts strong, but ends on an error
Fresh off his second stint on the Capitals' COVID reserve, goaltender Ilya Samsonov got the start for Game 3 -- Washington's third starting goalie in as many games after Vitek Vanecek went down with a lower body injury in Game 1 and Craig Anderson, who came in in relief in Game 1 and started Game 2, was given the night off (body maintenance).
Despite not having played since May 1, Samsonov had a really strong game. Tested early and often by the Bruins, any concerns about conditioning and preparation were quickly put to rest.
The end of the game, however, was a bit of a netminding nightmare, with Samsonov looking a little too casual after playing the puck behind the net in what should've been an innocent play.
Cameras caught Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin in the immediate aftermath, visibly frustrated and yelling in the direction of Samsonov.
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) May 20, 2021
Earlier in the night, The Great Eight (hundred) made history with his second-period goal to open the scoring:
That’s NHL goals for @ovi8 (regular season and playoffs). #StanleyCup
He's the sixth player in League history to reach the milestone and sits three back of tying Mark Messier for the NHL’s fifth highest combined total. #NHLStats: https://t.co/blmgZJQLEC pic.twitter.com/dgDGNvMOFv— NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL) May 19, 2021
Surprisingly, one of the few feats he hasn't accomplished is scoring an overtime winner in the playoffs. At the rate this series is going with all three games so far needing OT, that could soon change.
Hurricanes’ killer penalty kill comes up big
After stalling in Game 1, Carolina’s lethal power play pulled off perfection with a gorgeous tic-tac-Aho goal midway through the first period Wednesday night…
…but the big story of Game 2 was their penalty kill. Ranked third league-wide this regular season thanks to their 85.2 kill percentage, Carolina's now 100 per cent in the playoffs when Nashville plays with the man advantage — and it’s not for lack of opportunity on the Predators' part, especially given the officials' busy whistles in this one. In totals, the Hurricanes had to kill off seven penalties Wednesday night.
Carolina's elite P.K. has been especially strong against Nashville all season, whose 24th-ranked power play isn't exactly known for being dangerous. In eight regular-season meetings between the two clubs this year, Nashville scored just three PP goals against Carolina.
Nashville can't beat Ned
The other big story to come out of Game 2 in Carolina? Alex Nedeljkovic. The Predators simply couldn't solve the rookie netminder, whose red-hot numbers seemingly out of nowhere this season earned him the role of playoff starter despite veteran Petr Mrazek being healthy enough to resume his position. Now up 2-0 in the series thanks to Nedeljkovic's 32-save performance, he's really owning the crease. In the series' two games so far, Nashville has scored on him just once.
The rookie's excellent play was even more clutch considering the club was without top-pair defender Jaccob Slavin. Slavin played in Game 1 Monday night but was ruled out ahead of Game 2, with Jake Gardiner being slotted into the lineup and Jake Bean stepping up with a big blue line performance in Slavin's absence as well.
https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMibWh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LnNwb3J0c25ldC5jYS9uaGwvYXJ0aWNsZS9zdGFubGV5LWN1cC1wbGF5b2Zmcy10YWtlYXdheXMtbWFja2lubm9uLXB1dHMtc3BlY3RhY3VsYXItc2hvdy12cy1ibHVlcy_SAWxodHRwczovL3d3dy5zcG9ydHNuZXQuY2EvbmhsL3N0YW5sZXktY3VwLXBsYXlvZmZzLXRha2Vhd2F5cy1tYWNraW5ub24tcHV0cy1zcGVjdGFjdWxhci1zaG93LXZzLWJsdWVzL3NuLWFtcC8?oc=5
2021-05-20 06:31:00Z
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