After the Columbus Blue Jackets defeated the Pittsburgh Penguins on Tuesday to stave off elimination, coach John Tortorella was happy his club got the chance to carry over some of its regular-season magic to the playoffs.
"I wasn't even thinking about the series tonight, I was thinking about the players," Tortorella told reporters following the victory. "They've put in a lot of time. To play a regular season like they had and not get to enjoy what it is to win a playoff game ... I want them to enjoy that."
The Blue Jackets had the fourth-best regular-season record, finishing with 108 points. Tuesday marked just the third playoff win in franchise history.
Columbus climbed to a 3-0 lead early in the second period of Game 4. The Penguins made it interesting, but were never able to get a lead on the Blue Jackets.
"We've got to take it one game at a time here and try to manage the series that way," Tortorella added. "I'm not bullshitting you here, I just wanted them to see what it's like to win a playoff game with this team together."
The Blue Jackets will look to stay alive Thursday in Pittsburgh.
The NHL's latest expansion team will air select Spanish broadcast games in its inaugural season in an effort to grow its fan base among the local Hispanic population.
"Hispanics and Latinos are generally soccer-oriented, but we believe we can bring the kids along with our youth hockey programs that we will be developing," Golden Knights owner Bill Foley told Jesse Granger of the Las Vegas Sun. "If the kids take (the sport of hockey) home, the parents will convert."
After grabbing a 3-0 series lead, the Nashville Predators needs just one more win to close out their opening-round series against the Chicago Blackhawks. That task shifts all of the burden to the Music City club, according to Chicago coach Joel Quenneville.
"It's up to them. They've got to win," Quenneville said. "We're in an awful spot and we've got to go in there with nothing to basically lose. Definitely the pressure is on them."
The Blackhawks held home ice advantage, but dropped both games in Chicago before losing Game 3 in overtime in Nashville. The Predators have a chance to pull off the sweep at home Thursday.
A series win would mark just the fourth in Predators history, with none of its previous victories finishing faster than five games. The Blackhawks haven't been swept since 1993.
"To find a way to get back into it, you've got to look at the real short-term, the small picture, and try to get tomorrow's momentum back," Quenneville added.
The Blackhawks nearly pulled off the rare comeback in 2011, when down 0-3 to the Vancouver Canucks. Chicago stormed back with three straight wins only to fall in overtime of Game 7.
Just four teams in NHL history have climbed back from 0-3 deficits, the most recent coming in 2014 when the Los Angeles Kings upset the San Jose Sharks.
Quenneville noted the Blackhawks will need everyone to contribute if they are to make the historic comeback, adding the team needs the most from its top players.
Captain Jonathan Toews has just one point through three games, while star winger Patrick Kane has a single goal. All together, the Blackhawks have managed just two goals in three games.
"We always find that when we're in tough spots, our top guys always find a way to lead the charge and find a way to overcome all obstacles," Quenneville said. "We're going to need them but we need everybody else too because it's a tough challenge."
The young Buffalo Sabres center saw his name in the headlines Wednesday when it was reported he has no desire to sign a contract extension this summer if Dan Bylsma is still employed as head coach.
"I want to be a Sabre and I want to be a Sabre for a long time and I want to be a part of Buffalo when we win," Eichel said. "I know it’s an organization that is capable of doing that, and I want to be a part of it, and I want to be a centerpiece of it."
As to whether that's contingent on who's behind the bench, Eichel appears to be all about looking at himself in the mirror first and foremost.
"I definitely am not the type of guy to point the finger and blame other people," he said. "I said in my exit interview and I’ll say it again, it’s self-reflection. You’ve got to look yourself in the mirror before you can call out other guys.
"I said it all year, if you want to be a leader and be vocal, you’ve got to play well yourself. For me, I don’t think I was good enough this year, so I need to be better. The onus is on me."
In terms of the initial report, Eichel said he's dumbfounded as to where that could have emanated from, insisting he never said anything of the sort.
He further echoed his agent in saying he believed his exit interviews with general manager Tim Murray and Bylsma went well, something he admits his body language may not have expressed in his statements to the media prior to heading out of town.
Still, Wednesday's report came quite out of the blue.
"I think I told (Bylsma) some things that I think as a group we can all improve on. He was very receptive. I don’t think what’s being said about the way things ended is accurate in any way."
Eichel has one year remaining on his entry-level contract and can sign a long-term contract extension that would begin in 2018-19 as early as July 1.
Though getting whooped in the playoffs is never ideal, it's not always the dagger.
The Edmonton Oilers are licking their wounds after being humiliated 7-0 by the San Jose Sharks in Game 4 of their first-round series Tuesday night, but plenty of humbled clubs have gotten the last laugh.
Here are five teams that bounced back to win a series after suffering a playoff blowout:
Philadelphia Flyers
The Flyers jumped out to a 3-0 series lead over the Pittsburgh Penguins in their 2012 first-round matchup. Then there was Game 4, which didn't exactly go Philadelphia's way.
Pittsburgh won again in Game 5 - this time by a much tighter 3-2 score - to cut Philadelphia's series lead to that same 3-2 margin, but the Flyers knocked out the Penguins two days later with a 5-1 victory in Game 6.
San Jose Sharks
The Sharks and the Calgary Flames engaged in a wild first-round series in 1995, combining for eight goals or more in six of the seven games.
Calgary dismantled San Jose 9-2 in Game 3, thanks to a hat trick and a four-point night from current Penguins head coach Mike Sullivan, two goals and an assist from Joe Nieuwendyk, and four helpers from Theo Fleury.
The drubbing notched the Flames their first win of the series. They'd win again in Games 4 and 5 - the latter a 5-0 blowout - but the Sharks responded with a victory in Game 6, and Ray Whitney scored the double-overtime winner in Game 7.
The Sharks, again
Maybe it's something in the water in San Jose.
The Sharks were again unfazed in 2010 when they managed to recover from a 7-1 thrashing by the Detroit Red Wings in Game 4 of the Western Conference semifinal.
It certainly helped that the Sharks had earned a 3-0 advantage with three consecutive 4-3 wins before the blowout. Neither Johan Franzen's four-goal effort nor Todd Bertuzzi's five-point night were ultimately enough to prevent San Jose from moving on to the conference final with a 2-1 victory two nights later.
The Sharks had rallied to win their 1994 first-round series against the Red Wings after suffering a 7-1 loss in Game 6, edging Detroit 3-2 in Game 7.
Detroit Red Wings
The Red Wings pulled off a series win of their own after being blown out in 1997.
This time, it was Detroit on the losing end of a 6-0 rout courtesy of the Colorado Avalanche in Game 5 of the Western Conference Final. Joe Sakic chipped in three points including a pair of goals and Claude Lemieux scored twice to help the Avalanche cut the Red Wings' series lead to 3-2.
Detroit shook it off and eliminated Colorado, advancing to the Stanley Cup Final with a 3-1 win in Game 6. The Red Wings went on to sweep the Flyers, winning their eighth championship and first title since 1955.
Vancouver Canucks
Opening a playoff run with a blowout loss rarely bodes well, but the Canucks overcame a humiliating defeat to the St. Louis Blues back in 2003.
The Blues walloped the Canucks 6-0 in the first game of their first-round series that year. Alexander Khavanov scored twice for St. Louis, and the Blues got a goal apiece from Doug Weight, Keith Tkachuk, Cory Stillman, and Tyson Nash. Canucks goalie Dan Cloutier allowed all six.
Vancouver won Game 2, then dropped the next two contests and fell behind 3-1 in the series before reeling off three straight wins.
Team Canada revealed its initial roster for the 2017 World Championship on Wednesday, designating 18 players to the tournament, which will be played in France and Germany.
Canada's brain trust includes Philadelphia Flyers general manager Ron Hextall and Tampa Bay Lightning head coach Jon Cooper, who will assume the same role overseas, and will have plenty familiar faces to work with.
The players listed on the team so far are as follows:
Forwards
Player
Team
Sean Couturier
Flyers
Matt Duchene
Avalanche
Claude Giroux
Flyers
Alex Killorn
Lightning
Travis Konecny
Flyers
Ryan O'Reilly
Sabres
Nathan MacKinnon
Avalanche
Brayden Point
Lightning
Mark Scheifele
Jets
Wayne Simmonds
Flyers
Jeff Skinner
Hurricanes
Defense
Player
Team
Tyson Barrie
Avalanche
Calvin De Haan
Islanders
Jason Demers
Panthers
Michael Matheson
Panthers
Josh Morrissey
Jets
Goalies
Player
Team
Eric Comrie
Jets
Calvin Pickard
Avalanche
Of course, more players can and will fill out the remainder of the roster, which includes the option of adding members eliminated from the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Canada has won back-to-back gold medals at the tournament, and will aim for a three-peat beginning May 5 versus Czech Republic.
The Edmonton Oilers prospect was loaned to Finland's national team for the upcoming World Championship, the NHL club announced Wednesday.
He helped Finland win gold at the 2016 world juniors, racking up 17 points in seven games.
The 18-year-old posted 28 points in 37 contests for the AHL's Bakersfield Condors this season after a 28-game NHL stint in which he scored a goal and added seven assists.
Puljujarvi was taken fourth overall by the Oilers in last year's draft.
The video above shows two men in Penguins jerseys engaged in a shouting match with a group of Blue Jackets fans. One of the Penguins fans takes a swing at a Blue Jackets fan and then quickly makes his way towards the exit.
Buffalo Sabres superstar Jack Eichel will sport the stars and stripes this spring, as the 20-year-old was added to the United States' World Championship roster Wednesday.
