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.
DENVER (AP) — The swelling around Colorado Avalanche goalie Darcy Kuemper's right eye has subsided a week after catching a stick blade through his mask. '
“I can see now,” he said with a laugh Sunday after practice.
While the Minnesota Wild were stacking up franchise records and securing the extra home game for the first round, general manager Bill Guerin carefully acknowledged a “great year” for the club during an interview session — with the caveat that it means little in the long run.
ST. LOUIS (AP) — The St. Louis Blues eliminated the Minnesota Wild in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs with a mid-series goalie change and an unconventional lineup.
Now, the team heads to Colorado to face the top-seeded Avalanche in the second round.
ST. LOUIS (AP) — It was a Jordan Binnington type of game.
The St. Louis Blues goalie has earned a reputation as a clutch performer when the team has a chance to close out a playoff series. And he proved it again Thursday night.
ST. LOUIS (AP) — Jordan Binnington made 25 saves and the St. Louis Blues beat the Minnesota Wild 5-1 on Thursday night in Game 6 of their series to advance to the second round of the Western Conference playoffs.
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Connor McDavid has stood on this precipice several times before, and he does not care for the view.
The Edmonton Oilers are one loss away from their third consecutive opening-round playoff exit after back-to-back losses to the upstart Kings.
ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — Vladimir Tarasenko broke out for the St. Louis Blues with a well-timed natural hat trick, putting the Minnesota Wild in real trouble.
Afterward, Tarasenko tried to shrug off the significance of his feat — with the singular focus of a player who was a major part of the run to the Stanley Cup championship three years ago.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — The Colorado Avalanche are the first NHL team to advance to the second round this postseason, and the top-seeded team in the Western Conference is coming off simply a dominating performance.
Kevin Fiala has often let his frustration show if he's not producing up to his star potential, and the Minnesota Wild left wing was in a tense mood after another flat performance in St. Louis.
Four games into the first round against the Blues, with the teams tied at two games, Fiala has not scored.
ST. LOUIS (AP) — St. Louis goalie Jordan Binnington didn't lose any sleep when he was informed by coach Craig Berube that he would be starting for the first time this postseason on Sunday.
“He's always the same, he doesn't give me much of a reaction," Berube said.
ST. LOUIS (AP) — Kirill Kaprizov had a goal and an assist, Marc-Andre Fleury stopped 29 shots, and the Minnesota Wild beat the St. Louis Blues 5-1 on Friday night to take a 2-1 lead in their Western Conference playoff series.
BOSTON (AP) — Brad Marchand had a goal and two assists on Friday night to help the Boston Bruins take their first lead against the Hurricanes all season — and hold onto it for a 4-2 victory over Carolina in Game 3 of their first-round playoff series.
ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — The scoreless streak for the Minnesota Wild was pushing 70 minutes when they finally caught a break with a broken St. Louis stick.
Joel Eriksson Ek got the game's first goal a few seconds later, and the entire Wild bench jumped up in elation — with a bit of relief.
TORONTO (AP) — Victor Hedman had a goal and three assists for his first four-point playoff game and the Tampa Bay Lightning beat the Toronto Maple Leafs 5-3 on Wednesday night in Game 2 to even the first-round series.
So much for the notion that goals are hard to come by in the playoffs. If the opening night of the chase for the Stanley Cup is an indication of what’s to come, the NHL is in for another wildly unpredictable postseason.
ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — The Minnesota Wild fell behind St. Louis early and into a pattern of frustration-fueled gaffes late, playing right into the hands of the Blues in the Game 1 blowout.
ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — David Perron was quarantined in his basement last year, listening to his kids run around upstairs and watching the St. Louis Blues get swept out of the first round.
The 15-year veteran right wing sure showed his appreciation for being back in the playoffs.
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.
In assessing the status of his Pacific Division champion Calgary Flames, coach Darryl Sutter may have at the same time aptly captured the unpredictable state of the entire Western Conference once the playoffs open on Monday.
ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — The Minnesota Wild and the St. Louis Blues were two of the best teams in the NHL down the stretch of the regular season, with these long-running rivals locked in a relentless heavyweight fight for second place in the Central Division.
ST. LOUIS (AP) — Jack Eichel had two goals and an assist, leading the Vegas Golden Knights to a 7-4 victory over the St. Louis Blues on Friday night in the regular-season finale for both teams.
“It’s always good to win hockey games,” Eichel said.
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Evgeni Malkin scored his 20th goal of the season and had an assist, and the Pittsburgh Penguins beat the Columbus Blue Jackets 5-3 Friday night in the season finale to clinch third place in the Metropolitan Division.
These are not the St. Louis Blues that marched to the Stanley Cup in 2019 by plowing through opponents and wearing them down.
If the Blues are going to make another long run this spring, it will be predicated on speed, skill and scoring — a lot of scoring.
TORONTO (AP) — Auston Matthews scored his NHL-leading 59th and 60th goals of the season, and the Toronto Maple Leafs beat the Detroit Red Wings 3-0 on Tuesday night to clinch home-ice advantage in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs.
DENVER (AP) — The Colorado Avalanche met Tuesday morning to figure out what was suddenly ailing one of the top teams in the league.
Team leaders had their say. Coaches, too. The message sank in — whatever that exact message may have been.
ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — Travis Boyd scored the go-ahead goal, which stood after a long review, and the last-place Arizona Coyotes beat the Minnesota Wild 5-3 on Tuesday night to slow their pursuit of home-ice advantage in the first round of the playoffs.
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.
ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Ryan Getzlaf skated in with the puck on his stick and a clear path to goal. With an entire building practically begging him to shoot, the Anaheim Ducks' longtime captain glanced left, spun right and feathered a breathtaking, behind-the-back pass to trailing teammate Adam Henrique, who did not miss.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Dmitry Kulikov scored with 1.3 seconds remaining in overtime to give the Minnesota Wild a 5-4 victory over the Nashville Predators on Sunday night.
Joel Eriksson Ek had two power-play goals and an assist, Nick Bjugstad and Kevin Fiala also scored, and Marc-Andre Fleury made 21 saves for Minnesota.
GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) — The St. Louis Blues had everything clicking, scoring goals and shutting down shooting lanes while building a pair of three-goal leads.
SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) — Robert Thomas scored his 20th goal to extend his points streak to 15 games and the St. Louis Blues beat the San Jose Sharks 3-1 on Thursday night.
Dakota Joshua also scored and Pavel Buchnevich added an empty-netter to lead the Blues to their 12th win in 14 games.
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.