With his team on a four-minute power play thanks to some bad behavior on the part of Pittsburgh's Kris Letang, the young forward recorded his third goal in four Eastern Conference Final games against the Penguins.
The goal was Drouin's fourth of the postseason, and 12th point in 14 games.
HERSHEY, Pa. - Carter Camper and Liam O'Brien both scored in the second period as the Hershey Bears rallied for a 3-1 win over the Toronto Marlies on Friday in Game 1 of the American Hockey League's Eastern Conference final.
O'Brien's goal wa...
In the dying seconds of the first period of Game 4, the Pittsburgh Penguins goaltender was bumped by teammate Brian Dumoulin behind the net.
The defenseman's shoulder appeared to catch his netminder in the mask, which is significant considering Murray was not available to begin the postseason due to a suspected head injury.
However, he was able to return for the start of the second period.
Murray is appearing in his 13th playoff game, matching his career regular-season total.
— Jeremy Houghtaling (@JGHoughtaling) May 20, 2016
While he was listed in the official lineup, he wasn't on the bench at puck drop. He did emerge shortly thereafter, with some extra equipment protecting his face.
Johnson recorded five goals and nine assists in 13 playoff games.
Shawn Michaels is quickly crossing over from wrestling legend to hockey lore.
The former WWE superstar - who will attend Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Final in Pittsburgh - opened Sportsnet's coverage of Game 4 in Tampa Bay with a personal message from his home, followed by a montage set to his old "Sexy Boy" intro music.
Michaels, of course, became linked to the Penguins by way of the red-hot line of Carl Hagelin, Nick Bonino, and Phil Kessel, dubbed 'HBK', synonymous with his Heartbreak Kid nickname.
The decision comes in the wake of two consecutive losses, in which St. Louis was outscored 7-0.
Surely the Blues' struggles can't be pinned on Brian Elliott, as their offensive unit has gone missing through three games, but Hitchcock is hoping his team can build momentum off of the switch.
In 17 starts this postseason, Elliott has posted a 9-8 record with a 2.34 goals against average, and a strong .925 save percentage. Allen's made two appearances in relief, but has only faced nine shots.
However, Allen started 44 regular season games to Elliott's 38, and compiled a record of 26-15-3, stopping pucks at a 92 percent clip with a goals against average of 2.35.
Allen has started six postseason games in his career, going 2-4.
Now that the decision has been made, it's up to the team in front of Allen to even the series Saturday night. Scoring a goal might help.
Matt Murray is about to have as much playoff as regular-season experience.
With a start in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Final against the Tampa Bay Lightning, the Pittsburgh Penguins rookie goalie will have an equal number of games played in both formats, with impressive numbers to boot.
Games
Record
Save %
GAA
Shutouts
Regular Season
13
9-2-1
.930
2.00
1
Playoffs
12
9-3-0
.928
2.13
1
The 2012 third-round pick was thrust into the fire in light of an injury to longtime No.1 option Marc-Andre Fleury, and has more than held his own.
He's played so well, in fact, that general manager Jim Rutherford was forced to address Fleury's long-term standing with the club, and it's expected Murray will certainly add to his regular-season resume in 2016-17.
For now, he'll keep building the postseason legend, with another round quite possibly on tap.
Already without Steven Stamkos, the Tampa Bay Lightning simply can't survive if the offensively gifted Russian forward doesn't find his game, and soon.
Kucherov, who led the playoffs in goals through two rounds, has been held without one in the Eastern Conference final, and the Pittsburgh Penguins are also doing a fine job of limiting his shots.
Round
Opponent
Games
Goals
Assists
Shots/Game
1
Red Wings
5
5
3
3
2
Islanders
5
4
0
4.4
3
Penguins
3
0
2
2
Nikita Kucherov (TB): 0 goals in series..hadn’t gone longer than 1 game without a goal this postseason prior.
"I've got to be better," Kucherov said Thursday. "Everybody's got to be better."
True, the Lightning as a group have faltered over the past two games against the Penguins, affording Pittsburgh a bevy of transition opportunities off turnovers.
But it was Kucherov who led the team in scoring with 66 points in 77 regular seasons games, and who appeared on the verge of super stardom through the first two rounds of the postseason.
Since the beginning of 2014-15, and including the playoffs, only seven players have scored more than Kucherov's 78 (according to Corsica Hockey). In order for the Lightning to even the series and return to the Stanley Cup Final, they'll need him to add to that total, ideally beginning in Game 4 on home ice.
