- The Columbus Blue Jackets take a stunning 2-0 lead and the Tampa Bay Lightning might be without Nikita Kucherov in Game 3.
- The New York Islanders are in total control after frustrating the Pittsburgh Penguins again.
- A surprising offensive star makes a big impact for the St. Louis Blues as they take a 2-0 series lead.
- The San Jose Sharks power play and goaltending holds them back on Friday.
Columbus Blue Jackets 5, Tampa Bay Lightning 1 (CBJ leads series 2-0)
A year ago the Columbus Blue Jackets opened Round 1 by taking the first two games on the road against a division champion and a Stanley Cup contender. They ended up losing the series. They get a chance to make up for that this year by putting themselves in the exact same position after dismantling the Tampa Bay Lightning on Friday night, taking a 2-0 series lead. After the game Lightning coach Jon Cooper called the situation a “five alarm fire,” which doesn’t exactly sound encouraging. We will see how -- and if -- they put it out. Making matters worse: Nikita Kucherov, the MVP front-runner from the regular season, is likely to be suspended for Game 3 after an ugly boarding incident late in the game.
New York Islanders 3, Pittsburgh Penguins 1 (NYI leads series 2-0)
The Islanders have the Penguins on the ropes and looking completely frustrated after two games. The Islanders are controlling the play and making things look easy at times while the Penguins can’t seem to get out of their own way when trying to exit the defensive zone. The series now shifts to Pittsburgh on Sunday afternoon and the Penguins need a complete 180 turnaround from just about everybody on their roster to get back in this series.
St. Louis Blues 4, Winnipeg Jets 3 (StL leads series 2-0)
When you start a series on the road you start off hoping to take at least one of the first to so you can steal home-ice advantage. When you win the first two, well, that just puts you at a huge advantage and the St. Louis Blues are there right now after their 4-3 win on Friday night. Oskar Sundqvist scored two goals and Ryan O’Reilly scored the game-winner early in the third period.
Vegas Golden Knights 5, San Jose Sharks 3 (Series tied 1-1)
The San Jose Sharks had some problems on Friday night. Among them, the fact Martin Jones could not get out of the first period and they gave up five goals on 23 shots, and also a terrible power play performance that saw them go 1-for-8 while giving up two shorthanded goals. There is your difference in the game and why the series is going back to Vegas tied 1-1.
[NBC 2019 STANLEY CUP PLAYOFF HUB]
Three Stars
1. Matt Duchene, Columbus Blue Jackets. Games like this are what the Blue Jackets had in mind when they traded for Matt Duchene. He was incredible on Friday night, scoring his first career playoff goal and finishing with four total points in the Blue Jackets’ win that now has them half way to their first postseason series win in franchise history.
2. Oskar Sundqvist, St. Louis Blues. Before this season Sundqvist had scored just two goals in 72 NHL games. He matched that total on Friday night alone in the Blues’ 4-3 win and is now up to 16 goals in 76 games, including playoffs, this season. Everything is clicking for the Blues right now as they continue to play great defense and get balanced offense from all over their lineup.
3. Jordan Eberle, New York Islanders. For the second game in a row Eberle was an impact player for the Islanders, tallying his second goal of the series (this one the game-winner) and finishing with two points for an Islanders team that has looked even better than it did during the regular season.
Highlight Of The Night
Eberle’s game-winning goal was a heck of a finish.
Factoids of the Night
- This seems almost impossible to believe, but it is true: The Columbus Blue Jackets’ win on Friday night was the first time in the history of the franchise they have won a playoff game by more than one goal. This team is almost 20 years old! [Aaron Portzline]
- Marc-Andre Fleury is one win away from tying Mike Vernon for seventh on the NHL’s all-time postseason wins list. [NHL PR]
- This is the first time since 1983 the New York Islanders have had a 2-0 series lead. [NHL PR]
Saturday’s schedule
Carolina Hurricanes at Washington Capitals, Game 2 (WSH leads 1-0), 3 p.m. ET, NBC (Live Stream)
Dallas Stars at Nashville Predators, Game 2 (DAL leads 1-0), 6 p.m. ET, CNBC (Live Stream)
Toronto Maple Leafs at Boston Bruins, Game 2 (TOR leads 1-0), 8 p.m. ET, NBC (Live Stream)
Colorado Avalanche at Calgary Flames, Game 2 (CGY leads 1-0), 10:30 p.m. ET, NBCSN (Live Stream)
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Adam Gretz is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @AGretz.
