The Charlotte Checkers, AHL affiliate of the Carolina Hurricanes, clinched their first-ever Calder Cup on Saturday night with a 5-3 win over the Chicago Wolves in Game 5 of their championship series.

The Wolves, the Vegas Golden Knights' farm squad, were victorious in the opening game of the series, but the Checkers won four unanswered contests to clinch the title.

Charlotte was the AHL's best team from start to finish this year, ending the regular season with the league's best record at 51-17-7-1.

Morgan Geekie, a third-round pick of the Canes in 2017, had a goal and an assist on Saturday, capping an impressive playoff run that saw him amass 18 points in 19 games. Andrew Poturalski scored twice to finish with 12 goals and 23 points en route to playoff MVP honors.

With 14 playoff points for the Wolves, Golden Knights 2017 first-round selection Cody Glass - the first draft pick in franchise history - is now sixth all-time in AHL playoff scoring among players age 20 or younger.

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Peyton Krebs, a projected first-round pick at the 2019 NHL Draft, underwent surgery to repair a partial tear in his Achilles tendon Friday, his agent Kevin Korol told The Athletic's Scott Cruickshank.

The injury occurred Tuesday when another player's skate blade cut through Krebs' cut-proof sock and into his Achilles, Cruickshank added. He's expected to make a full recovery, but the timeline is unclear.

Krebs is projected to be a borderline top-10 pick, with most mock drafts placing him between Nos. 8-11. NHL Central Scouting listed him 10th among North American skaters in its final rankings.

The 5-foot-11, 180-pound forward led the Western Hockey League's Kootenay Ice with 68 points in 64 games this past season.

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Robert Thomas' availability for Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final will be determined shortly before puck drop.

The St. Louis Blues forward will be a game-time decision for Sunday's contest, head coach Craig Berube told reporters, including NHL.com's Lou Korac, on Saturday.

Thomas practiced Saturday on a line with Patrick Maroon and Tyler Bozak but didn't work with the power-play groups.

The 19-year-old has been out with an undisclosed injury since Game 1 of the series.

Thomas has provided a goal and five assists in 20 playoff games this spring.

Vladimir Tarasenko and Alex Steen missed practice Saturday but Berube said both players took maintenance days. Tarasenko's wife gave birth on Friday.

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Doug Armstrong doesn't believe Ivan Barbashev's one-game ban was warranted.

The St. Louis Blues general manager made his feelings known after the fourth-line forward was suspended for Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final following a hit to the head of Boston Bruins forward Marcus Johansson in Game 5.

“We feel that the suspension to Ivan is excessive for the play on the ice,” Armstrong told Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. “Regardless, we need to prepare for a quality Boston team on Sunday."

The GM did acknowledge that the referees don't have it easy.

“The NHL on- and off-ice officials have a difficult job and we respect their integrity," he said.

Barbashev caught Johansson up high early in the first period Thursday. Johansson remained in the game, which the Blues ultimately won to move within one win of capturing the Cup.

Game 6 is scheduled for Sunday night in St. Louis.

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The Buffalo Sabres and forward Jeff Skinner are closing in on an eight-year contract extension with an expected average annual value of $9 million, according to TSN's Bob McKenzie.

Skinner is set to become an unrestricted free agent on July 1. A $9-million AAV would make him the sixth-highest-paid winger in the league.

Buffalo traded prospect Cliff Pu, a second-round pick in 2019, a third-round pick in 2020, and a sixth-rounder in 2020 to acquire Skinner from the Carolina Hurricanes last summer. The 27-year-old went on to tally a career-high 40 goals in his first season with the Sabres.

Skinner ranks 10th in the NHL with 129 goals since the start of the 2015-16 season and has reached the 30-goal mark four times in his nine-year career. He and playmaking center Jack Eichel formed a dynamic one-two punch on Buffalo's top line this past season.

An eight-year extension would take the former Calder Trophy winner through his age-34 season.

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St. Louis Blues forward Ivan Barbashev has been suspended one game for his hit on Boston Bruins forward Marcus Johansson in Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final on Thursday night.

No penalty was assessed on the play. Johansson, who has a long history of concussions, stayed in the game.

Barbashev, 23, has played primarily in a fourth-line role for the Blues. After a career-high 14 goals and 26 points during the regular season, the former second-round pick has chipped in three goals and three assists in 24 games during St. Louis' postseason run.

Game 6 will take place Sunday at 8 p.m. ET in St. Louis, where the Blues will have a chance to hoist Stanley Cup for the first time in club history.

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If you were planning to attend Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final in St. Louis on Sunday, hopefully you saved up.

The contest - which could see the host Blues win their first-ever Stanley Cup against the visiting Boston Bruins - is the most expensive Stanley Cup Final game this decade, on average, and the second-most expensive game among the four major North American sports leagues in the same span, according to prices at Ticket IQ.

* Prices according to Ticket IQ

The Blues have won two straight games, setting themselves up for a chance at history on Sunday night.

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