Apparently needing 40 stitches in your ear warrants a good amount of time to recover, as Boston Bruins forward Riley Nash will miss Game 1 against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Thursday night, the team announced Wednesday.
Nash has been out of the lineup since taking an errant point shot in the ear from teammate Torey Krug on March 31 against the Florida Panthers, missing the final five games of the season.
Prior to getting his ear split open, Nash was having a career year, registering 15 goals and 26 assists in 15:25 of ice time per night. His status for Game 2 is still unclear.
Stamkos sat out the club's final three games of the regular season as he dealt with a lower-body injury suffered April 1 versus the Nashville Predators.
The 28-year-old was listed as day to day as he recovered, but the Lightning managed to win two of three down the stretch to clinch the top spot in the Atlantic Division and Eastern Conference with 113 points.
In 78 games, Stamkos recorded 86 points - his highest total since 2011-12.
With a quick glance at the matchups set to make up the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, few pop off the page like the impending tilt between the Pittsburgh Penguins and Philadelphia Flyers.
The Pennsylvanian rivals routinely combine for high-octane, entertaining games throughout the regular season, and the last time they met in the playoffs - Round 1 in 2012 - it was anarchy. Philly jumped out to a 3-0 series lead, winning Games 2 and 3 with eight goals apiece, only to allow 10 in Game 4 before advancing two games later.
Aside from the absurd rate in which both teams found the back of the net, three Penguins players received suspensions for extracurricular activities, then head coach Dan Bylsma was fined $10,000, and Claude Giroux was deemed ready to take over Sidney Crosby's spot as top player in the world. Ha.
Six years later, it would be foolish to expect the same sort of goonery, but don't be surprised if the Pens and Flyers engage in another constantly entertaining, offense-friendly battle.
It's no grand revelation, but the Penguins can put the puck in the net. Their arsenal of firepower has led to back-to-back Stanley Cups, and a tie for the third-most goals for this campaign (270). Evgeni Malkin led the charge with 98 points this season, besting teammates Phil Kessel (92) and Crosby (89), as they all finished in the league's top 10 in scoring. Throw a healthy Kris Letang in to the mix, and Pittsburgh is as dynamic as ever.
But, the Flyers are one of few teams that present a group of superstars potentially capable of matching the Pens' relentless output.
Philadelphia opted to try Giroux on the wing this season, and it paid immediate dividends, as the captain recorded a personal-best 102 points and should earn some consideration for the Hart. Sean Couturier (76 points), and Jakub Voracek (85) also had career years, while the top defensive pairing of Ivan Provorov and Shayne Gostisbehere combined for 106 points.
Both teams have the weapons to consistently light the lamp, and considering Pittsburgh's depth and goaltending advantage, it will be paramount for Philadelphia's stars to find ways to create offense.
Outgunning Crosby & Co. is a tall task, but Philadelphia enters the postseason with one regulation loss in its last 10 games, with Giroux earning 19 points in those contests. That may instill some confidence in the Flyers' faithful, but the Penguins won all four regular-season games, pouring in five goals each time.
So all things considered, how does each group of All-Star-caliber players stack up?
Pittsburgh's biggest advantage is it can spread Crosby, Malkin, and Kessel on three different lines, and have them join forces for one hell of a power play. Philadelphia began the year with its big three together, but have since decided to spread the wealth, separating Voracek from Giroux and Couturier.
Here's a look at the difference in numbers on the top line with and without Voracek, who was third in the league with 65 assists this season.
Regardless of the right winger, Couturier and Giroux manage to control both shots and goals for at even strength very well, but up head to head with Crosby's line, posting those numbers would be nothing short of extraordinary.
Crosby, as usual, has gone through his fair share of wingers this season, but enters the playoffs on a line flanked by Bryan Rust and Jake Guentzel. Here's a look at the numbers they've put forth, as well as Malkin and his linemates.
Combo
TOI
CF%
GF%
Rust-Crosby-Guentzel
268:52
58.63%
58.82%
Hagelin-Malkin-Hornqvist
294:22
57.41%
64.29%
Both units have limited minutes together, but have heavily dictated play. That Pittsburgh can roll out a unit so dominant even with Crosby on the bench, may leave the Flyers in serious trouble.
At even strength, the Penguins appear to hold the advantage, so what about the power play?
Unfortunately for the Flyers, things aren't looking much better. Philadelphia's top unit is undoubtedly dangerous, with Giroux, Voracek, and Gostisbehere landing seventh, ninth, and 10th, respectively, in regular-season power-play points. Who else is on that list, though? That would be Kessel, Crosby, and Malkin, who ranked first, third, and fourth.
To nobody's surprise, the Pens' power-play efficiency led the league at 26.2 percent. Ominously, the Flyers finished the season killing penalties at a woeful 75.8 percent clip, good for 29th in the NHL.
Based on the excitement of the rivalry and abundance of superstars on both sides, this Penguins-Flyers rematch should easily be one of the most entertaining series of the opening round, it just appears Philadelphia will have to battle the misfortune of pulling one of a handful of teams that can match or overpower its offensive abilities.
Still, these are the Stanley Cup Playoffs. An overtime hero can emerge from anywhere, and a goalie can single-handedly win or blow a series, so the door remains open. And based on the history of these teams, something bizarre is bound to occur. It may not be Jaromir Jagr in Flyers colors, or the teams combining for 45 goals in four games, but be ready to expect the unexpected.
Due to injuries, the two stars laced up in just one game against each other this season, but in that Feb. 3 meeting, Chara went to work. Matthews was held pointless in a 4-1 loss, one of just a handful of games this season in which he failed to pick up a point.
It's no secret that the Maple Leafs superstar is most dangerous in front of the opponent's net, and since the Arizona native is as skilled a playmaker as he is a goal-scorer, his creativity makes him even more difficult to defend.
Shutting him down is a role Chara relishes, as the hulking greybeard can still neutralize oncoming attacks thanks to his intensity and tremendous reach.
When the veteran defenseman is on the ice, it's especially difficult for opponents to get shots from Bruins netminder Tuukka Rask's doorstep.
Still, it's not all bad news for Matthews; as strong as Chara's performance has been in front of the cage, his shot-suppression abilities dip below the league average further out between the dots. That leaves plenty of dangerous areas for the forward.
Round 1 of Matthews versus Chara begins Thursday in Boston.
How do you up the ante of playoff hockey? Put a little money on the line.
With the Vegas Golden Knights set to host their first-ever playoff game Wednesday against the Los Angeles Kings, the bookies have prepared a few prop bets prior to puck drop:
Will either team score in the first 10 minutes of the game?
The Senators reportedly fielded offers for the superstar defenseman in February before opting to keep him through the trade deadline. The prevailing sentiment at the time was that Ottawa would revisit the matter at the draft.
Karlsson has one year remaining on his contract, meaning Ottawa can offer him an extension as early as July 1, 2018.
Last month, Dorion said they plan to do just that, and the GM repeated that Tuesday night, according to The Athletic's Chris Stevenson, adding that he had a 30-minute chat with Karlsson on Monday.
Dorion also said at the town hall that he plans to offer Karlsson an eight-year deal, per TSN's Brent Wallace. That would be the longest term the Senators can give him under the CBA, while other teams could offer him a maximum of seven years if he reaches unrestricted free agency on July 1, 2019.
The 2018 NHL Draft will be held in Dallas on June 22 and 23.
The Detroit Red Wings are preaching patience with their head coach after another disappointing season.
Jeff Blashill will be back as Detroit's bench boss in 2018-19, general manager Ken Holland confirmed Tuesday.
Blashill failed to guide the Red Wings to a playoff berth for the second straight campaign, but Holland expressed confidence in him.
"I think in Jeff's case, he's got three years of experience," Holland said. "Some of those ideas that he might have had when he became an NHL head coach, with the success that he had in the American Hockey League, the success he had in college, the success that he had in junior hockey, this is a totally different set of circumstances.
"The team played hard right to the end. We've been out of it for … unless we went on a massive, won seven or eight or nine in a row, we really just sort of stayed behind and then we lost nine in a row in March and the bottom fell out. But I thought even when we lost nine in a row, we lost a lot of games by a goal, we played hard."
Holland added that he was happy with how Detroit's young core developed under Blashill this season.
"I thought that the young kids that have been brought up, they improved," the GM said. "He played them, they were important, they got minutes. I think the experience of three years in the National Hockey League, he's been a guy that had success along the way, there's a reason for him to continue to be the head coach of the Detroit Red Wings."
Blashill has one season remaining on the contract he signed in June 2015. Holland was in the final year of his deal, but he signed a two-year extension Saturday.
The Red Wings made the playoffs in Blashill's first season as their head coach, but they were eliminated in the first round by the Tampa Bay Lightning.
He will coach Team USA at the World Championship next month for the second straight year.
