A few minutes after his New York Rangers moved on to the second round of the NHL playoffs by beating the Pittsburgh Penguins, Gerard Gallant had not mentally moved on to what’s next.
“I don’t even know who we play,” Gallant said with a chuckle.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Alex Ovechkin thinks it's pretty messed up that the Washington Capitals haven't won a playoff series since hoisting the Stanley Cup in 2018.
WASHINGTON (AP) — When the Florida Panthers faced their first real adversity of the season trailing their playoff series against the Washington Capitals, players held a meeting to set things straight.
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Chris Kreider’s long slap shot bounced over Louis Domingue and into the net with 1:28 left and the New York Rangers beat the Pittsburgh Penguins 5-3 on Friday night to push their thrilling first-round series to a deciding Game 7.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Jonathan Huberdeau couldn't remember what it was like to be on the smiling side of a handshake line.
The feelings were so strong after he and the Florida Panthers beat the Washington Capitals 4-3 in overtime Friday night to win Game 6 and move on to the second round that Huberdeau wants to replicate it over and over.
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Sidney Crosby made his way down the tunnel and out of sight. Any sense of security the Pittsburgh Penguins had in their first-round playoff series against the New York Rangers disappeared right along with their captain.
SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) — Carter Verhaeghe set a Florida postseason record with a five-point night, and the Florida Panthers escaped a three-goal deficit to beat the Washington Capitals 5-3 and take a 3-2 lead in an Eastern Conference first-round series Wednesday night.
SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) — Carter Verhaeghe was brought to the Florida Panthers for big postseason moments.
Like this one.
Verhaeghe set a Panthers franchise playoff record with a five-point night — two goals, three assists — and the Comeback Cats pulled off another rally, this one obviously the most important of their season.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The “Comeback Cats” are back — in playoff form.
Known for their propensity to play from behind and win on the way to the NHL's best regular season, the Florida Panthers finally delivered a little of that magic in the postseason, and not a minute too late.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Aaron Ekblad paused for almost 10 seconds to consider what the Florida Panthers need to do better to even their series against the Washington Capitals.
“I think there’s a lot of things that we could do better,” he said.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Fans' cheers brought Ilya Samsonov close to tears on the way to his first NHL playoff victory.
Chants of “Sammy! Sammy!” followed one of many important saves he made in Washington's 6-1 rout of Florida in Game 3 on Saturday.
There was a 6-foot-4, 220-pound hole in the Washington lineup in Game 2 against the Florida Panthers.
Tom Wilson's injury is one of many around the NHL playoffs that could tip the balance of a series.
SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) — Aleksander Barkov and Carter Verhaeghe each had a goal and an assist and the Florida Panthers beat the Washington Capitals 5-1 on Thursday night to even the Eastern Conference first-round series at a game apiece.
SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) — The bounce-back game that the Florida Panthers needed started, perhaps fittingly, with a puck that took a fortuitous bounce.
A burst here. A burst there. And just like that, series tied.
DENVER (AP) — Speedy Colorado Avalanche forward Nathan MacKinnon took his turn at the wheel “driving the bus.”
That's his description of top players buckling into the driver's seat and going full throttle this time of year to lead their team.
SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) — T.J. Oshie scored the go-ahead goal midway through the third period, Vitek Vanecek stopped 30 shots and the Washington Capitals rallied past the top-seeded Florida Panthers 4-2 in the opener of their Eastern Conference first-round series Tuesday night.
SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) — T.J. Oshie didn't see his go-ahead goal get into the net. The Florida Panthers didn't see this coming, either.
And right away, the top overall seed in the Stanley Cup playoffs finds itself in some trouble.
SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) — The Florida Panthers are aware of the narratives.
The franchise hasn’t won a playoff series in 26 years going back to the 1996 Eastern Conference finals, by far the longest active drought in the NHL.
The path to the Stanley Cup is rarely a straight line. Sometimes it’s the direction a puck takes when it banks off the post and in — or out.
Four years ago, Artemi Panarin clanked a shot off the post late in regulation that could have put Columbus up three games to none in the first round against Washington.
Steven Stamkos and the Tampa Bay Lightning understand the difficult challenge that lies ahead for the two-time defending Stanley Cup champions.
The team’s quest for a third straight NHL title begins on the road Monday night against the Auston Matthews-led Toronto Maple Leafs, who had a terrific regular season but have yet to prove they have what it takes to be successful in the playoffs.
Two months after the eight playoff teams in the Eastern Conference were locked in before the NHL even reached the All-Star break, Rod Brind’Amour set Carolina’s lineup for a game against Pittsburgh with the future in mind.
CORAL SPRINGS, Fla. (AP) — Alex Ovechkin and Aaron Ekblad both practiced on Sunday. Those are excellent developments for the Washington Capitals and Florida Panthers.
All signs point to Ovechkin being in the lineup for Game 1 of an Eastern Conference first-round series against the Panthers on Tuesday night after missing the final three games of the regular season with what the team is calling an upper-body injury.
SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) — The phenomenon of the Comeback Cats really seemed to take off back in late November. The Florida Panthers were trailing the Washington Capitals 4-1 early in the third period, and a three-goal deficit that deep into a game almost always means a loss.
It took until the final game on the final night of the NHL regular season to set the matchups for the first round of the playoffs.
Naturally, the battle for the Stanley Cup starts in less than 72 hours.
MONTREAL (AP) — Cole Caufield had his first NHL hat trick and the Montreal Canadiens routed the Presidents’ Trophy champion Florida Panthers 10-2 on Friday night in the regular-season finale for both teams.
NEW YORK (AP) — Dryden Hunt scored the go-ahead goal in the third period, Alexandar Georgiev made 34 saves and the New York Rangers downed the Washington Capitals 3-2 in the regular-season finale on Friday night.
OTTAWA, Ontario (AP) — Carter Verhaeghe scored twice and Spencer Knight stopped 27 shots for his second career shutout as the Florida Panthers beat the Ottawa Senators 4-0 on Thursday night.
With the victory and Nashville’s 5-4 shootout win over Western Conference-leading Colorado (56-18-7), the Panthers (58-17-6) clinched their first Presidents' Trophy for the best record in the regular season and home ice advantage throughout the Stanley Cup playoffs.
OTTAWA, Ontario (AP) — Carter Verhaeghe scored twice and Spencer Knight stopped 27 shots for his second career shutout as the Florida Panthers beat the Ottawa Senators 4-0 on Thursday night.
With the victory and Nashville's 5-4 shootout win over Western Conference-leading Colorado (56-18-7), the Panthers (58-17-6) clinched their first Presidents' Trophy for the best record in the regular season and home ice advantage throughout the Stanley Cup playoffs.
BOSTON (AP) — Jake DeBrusk snapped a 2-2 tie in the second period, Linus Ullmark made 19 saves and the Boston Bruins beat the Florida Panthers 4-2 on Tuesday night to clinch the first wild card in the Eastern Conference.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Alex Ovechkin was injured, and the Washington Capitals missed a major opportunity to move up in the standings on Sunday by blowing a lead and losing 4-3 in a shootout to the Toronto Maple Leafs.
SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) — Jon Cooper walked into his postgame interview clutching a pair of hand warmers, something the Tampa Bay Lightning coach never recalled using during any game other than one played outdoors.
SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) — Brandon Montour scored 2:26 into overtime and the NHL-leading Florida Panthers extended their win streak to a franchise-record 13 games by beating the Toronto Maple Leafs 3-2 on Saturday night.
SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) — Brandon Montour scored 2:26 into overtime and the NHL-leading Florida Panthers extended their winning streak to a franchise-record 13 games by beating the Toronto Maple Leafs 3-2 on Saturday night.
SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) — Aleksander Barkov scored his 38th goal of the season and the Florida Panthers tied a franchise record with their 12th straight win, beating the Detroit Red Wings 5-2 on Thursday night and claiming first in the Atlantic Division and the top spot in the Eastern Conference.
SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) — The Florida Panthers are champions of the NHL's Atlantic Division. They look like a team that's ready to win even more.
Aleksander Barkov scored his 38th goal of the season and the Panthers tied a franchise record with their 12th straight win, beating the Detroit Red Wings 5-2 on Thursday night.