The offence wasn’t about to slow down on day six of the 2018 Stanley Cup Playoffs. The Leafs stayed alive to breathe some life back into their playoff hopes; the Devils did the same scoring three unanswered goals, Colorado got some revenge on Nashville lighting them up for five goals, and the Sharks dominated the Ducks for a 3-0 stranglehold on the series.
Heres what happened:
Boston Bruins 2-4 Toronto Maple Leafs
Boston leads series 2-1
Ain't that one pretty sound by @AM34? #StanleyCup pic.twitter.com/hBTaFHNp2l
— NHL (@NHL) April 17, 2018
Toronto started out playing a more physical game and piled on some early pressure. The Leafs outshot Boston 12-8 in the first period.
After a day of game penalty on Riley Nash where it appeared the puck hit the glass before going out of play, James Van Riemsdyk scored down low to give Toronto a 1-0 lead after one period of play.
The floodgates opened a little in the second period. Both teams traded goals back and forth throughout the second frame.
Adam McQuaid slapped one home from the point that snuck its way past Frederik Andersen to tie the game at one.
Toronto wasted no time retaliating as Patrick Marleau became the oldest Leafs player ever to score a playoff goal, on a two on one with Mitch Marner, who had two assists in the game, regaining the lead for the Leafs 2-1.
The oldest defensemen to score a goal for the Bruins, Zdeno Chara tied the game back up at two as he roofed one over Andersen’s shoulder from the bottom corner.
The tie did not last for long as Auston Matthews collected his first point of the 2018 Playoffs, scoring with five minutes left in the period and a 3-2 Toronto lead.
Patrick Marleau scored his second of the game and his second of the playoffs with under four minutes left in the game to give the Leafs a 4-2 lead and ultimately the win.
Frederik Andersen gave an elite playoff performance stopping 40 out of 42 Bruins shots. He was exceptionally solid in the dying seconds, making a clutch save with his stick to secure the Leafs lead and win.
Andersen will be a key piece moving forward if the Leafs want to make a legit run in this series.
Toronto has seemed to find some life in Game 3 and will be looking to tie the series Thursday night at the ACC. Puck drop is at 5 p.m. MT.
Tampa Bay Lightning 2-5 New Jersey Devils
Tampa Bay leads series 2-1
Beauty setup. Game-winner for the @NJDevils.#StanleyCup Playoff hockey is fantastic. pic.twitter.com/JKfhs1bv1L
— NHL (@NHL) April 17, 2018
Cory Schneider got the start for New Jersey in Game 3 after Keith Kinkaid allowed six goals on 46 shots combined in games one and two.
Tampa Bay took the lead early in the second period, as Alex Killorn scored 40 seconds in, on the powerplay, his fourth goal of the playoffs.
Andrei Vasilevskiy was outstanding making save after save especially on two breakaway stops in the second period. Despite the loss, Vasilevskiy made 36 saves on 39 shots.
Cory Schneider was also impressive turning away 34 of 36 Lightning shots, although he seemed to be dealing with an injury as the game wound down.
The Devils eventually broke through after being shut down by Vasilevskiy with Taylor Hall’s second career playoff goal, tying the game at one in the second period.
Steven Stamkos took the lead for Tampa Bay scoring his first goal of the playoffs 38 seconds into the third period.
The lead did not last for long as New Jersey scored four unanswered goals to cruise to victory. It started with Will Butcher, who tied things up for the Devils with his first career playoff goal.
Taylor Hall piled up on his playoff point total with a beautiful set-up pass to Stefan Noesen to bury a one-timer for his first career playoff goal, and 3-2 Devils lead with just under six minutes left. Hall finished with a goal and two assists, and first star honours.
New Jersey went on to add two empty net goals to win 5-2. Things heated up in the dying seconds with both teams getting into it, especially Brian Boyle and Mikhail Sergachev who not only threw fists but also had to be contained by officials as each had words for the other on the way to their respective dressing rooms.
Things are starting to heat up with New Jersey having a chance to tie the series at home on Wednesday night at 5:30 p.m. MT.
Nashville Predators 3-5 Colorado Avalanche
Nashville leads series 2-1
One is simply not enough for @Mackinnon9. #StanleyCup pic.twitter.com/XghWCgXbO5
— NHL (@NHL) April 17, 2018
The Avalanche broke out to an explosive start since being outscored by a combined score of 10-6 in the first two games of the series.
Blake Comeau started things off for Colorado scoring a minute and a half into the first period. It was his first playoff goal since 2014-15 with the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Gabriel Bourque redirected a shot from Patrick Nemeth a little over halfway through the period to push the Avs lead to 2-0 before Nathan MacKinnon netted two consecutive goals.
MacKinnon’s first came with two minutes left in the first period, his second four minutes into the second, his second and third goals of the playoffs.
Ryan Johansen gave Nashville a little bit of life, scoring on the five-on-three powerplay. Johansen’s goal came six minutes after MacKinnon’s second goal, cutting Colorado’s lead down to 4-1 going into the third.
Nashville cut the Avalanche lead to two with a goal by Colton Sissons seven minutes into the third period.
Jonathan Bernier had a solid game making 28 saves on 31 shots and standing tall through a Nashville attack with under a minute left in the game.
Pekka Rinne however, did not have a good night. Rinne was chased after giving up four goals on 15 shots. Juuse Saros played in relief and stopped all 18 shots he faced in the last half of the game.
Filip Forsberg who assisted on the Johansen goal became Nashville’s all-time leading playoff scorer.
The Avalanche added an empty-netter and fought their way back into the series. Be ready for an angry and motivated Predators team ready to go on Wednesday night at 8 p.m. MT.
Anaheim 1-8 San Jose
San Jose leads series 3-0
Get a load of the moves on @EricFehr. #StanleyCup pic.twitter.com/QC1qPUwGMU
— NHL (@NHL) April 17, 2018
The Sharks wasted no time trying to take a strangle hold on the series. Logan Couture scored four minutes into the game. It was Couture’s second of the playoffs after he played a major role in the Sharks 3-2 win on Saturday.
Rickard Rakell tied things up for the Ducks with his first of the playoffs, tying the game up heading into the second period. Again the Sharks wasted no time getting back on the board.
The Ducks seemed to control the game through the second period, but San Jose took advantage of early second period opportunities to take the lead back, scoring four unanswered goals and never looked back.
Two Sharks scored, two and a half minutes apart. Joonas Donskoi scored his first of the playoffs and Marcus Sorensen his second giving the Sharks a 3-1 lead early.
It didn’t end there for San Jose. Eric Fehr skated his way around Andrew Cogliano and put the puck through the legs of Francois Beauchemin and past John Gibson for a 4-1 Sharks lead.
Tomas Hertl would add another goal for the Sharks, this time on the powerplay for a 5-1 San Jose lead going into the third period. The four goals in the second period is a franchise record for most goals in a period in a playoff game.
Martin Jones was an absolute monster for San Jose, making 45 saves on 46 shots with a .978 SV%.
The Sharks dominated this game netting a total of six goals, four on seven powerplays and a franchise record for goals in a playoff game. San Jose easily cruised their way to a 3-0 series lead. With Game 4 in San Jose and the ability to sweep a Ducks team with their backs to the wall, it should make for a very entertaining night on Wednesday night. Puck drop is at 8:30 p.m. MT.
