Toronto Maple Leafs forward Andreas Johnsson is in the lineup for Sunday's winner-take-all Game 5 against the Columbus Blue Jackets, according to the roster report obtained by the Toronto Star's Kevin McGran.

Johnsson, who hasn't played since Feb. 13 after suffering a knee injury which eventually required surgery, will replace 18-year-old Nick Robertson in the lineup and is projected to play on Toronto's third line with Alexander Kerfoot and Ilya Mikheyev.

More to come.

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After going 3-0-0 in round-robin play, the Vegas Golden Knights are welcoming back their top scorer.

Max Pacioretty has joined the club in the Edmonton bubble, and head coach Pete DeBoer anticipates the winger to be ready for Game 1 against the Chicago Blackhawks in the round of 16, according to The Athletic's Jesse Granger.

The 31-year-old suffered a minor injury during training camp and did not travel with the team for the beginning of Phase 4 of the league's return-to-play plan.

Pacioretty led the Golden Knights in goals (32) and points (66) while averaging 17:55 of ice time through 71 games this season.

He contributed an impressive five goals and 11 points in seven contests during his first playoff run with Vegas in 2019.

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Head coach Barry Trotz is looking forward to competing against his old team as his New York Islanders prepare for a clash with the Washington Capitals in the round of 16.

"I think it will be a hell of a series," Trotz said Sunday, according to The Athletic's Tarik El-Bashir. "Both teams are well-equipped to go at each other."

Trotz spent four seasons (2014-2018) as Washington's bench boss and led the Capitals to their first Stanley Cup in his final campaign with them.

The 58-year-old also coached the Capitals to back-to-back Presidents' Trophies in 2016 and 2017, and he earned the Jack Adams Award as the league's top bench boss in the former season.

Trotz won his second Jack Adams Award after his first season in Long Island in 2018-19. Under his tutelage, the Islanders have reached the round of 16 in consecutive campaigns for just the second time in the post-lockout era.

New York owns an 83-50-17 regular-season record over two campaigns with Trotz at the helm.

The Islanders won their play-in series against the Florida Panthers in four games to advance.

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TORONTO (AP) T.J. Oshie and Tom Wilson scored, Braden Holtby made 30 saves and the Washington Capitals beat the Boston Bruins 2-1 in round-robin play Sunday to clinch the No. 3 seed in the Eastern Conference and set up a first-round matchup against former coach Barry Trotz's New York Islanders.

Boston, which won the Presidents' Trophy as the top team during the NHL regular season that was cut short in March, lost all three of its seeding games and fell to fourth in the East. The Bruins will face the Carolina Hurricanes in the first round in a rematch of the 2019 East final.

Trotz coached Washington to its first Stanley Cup title in franchise history in 2018, then left in a contract dispute. Trotz went to the Islanders, while the Capitals hired his top assistant, Todd Reirden, as head coach. This is the first time they've faced off in a playoff series since.

''It'll be interesting,'' Wilson said. ''We know them well, some personnel and the coaching staff that we're familiar with, obviously a good rivalry, so we're excited for it and ready to go.''

Washington shook off a shootout loss to Tampa Bay and a regulation loss to Philadelphia to continue its years-long dominance of Boston. The Capitals have now won 17 of their past 19 games against the Bruins and by earning the third seed cannot play the top-seeded Flyers until the conference final.

It's unclear whether Norris Trophy finalist John Carlson will be ready for Game 1 against the Islanders after missing the all of round-robin play with an injury. The 30-year-old defenseman went down to the ice awkwardly in Washington's exhibition game vs. Carolina on July 29 and has practiced but not played since.

Jake DeBrusk scored and Tuukka Rask made 23 saves for Boston, which also got an assist from winger Ondrej Kase in his round-robin debut.

NOTES: With Carlson still out, rookie Martin Fehervary made his round-robin debut, replacing Radko Gudas on the Capitals blue line. ... Connor Clifton played on defense for the Bruins in place of Matt Grzelcyk.

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Columbus Blue Jackets defensemen Zach Werenski and Ryan Murray will both be in the team's lineup for the deciding Game 5 match against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Sunday, head coach John Tortorella said, according to Sportsnet's Chris Johnston.

Werenski was injured during the third period of Game 4 Friday and didn't return to the game. Murray was scratched after appearing in the first three games of the series.

Goaltender Joonas Korpisalo will also be back in the starter's net after conceding the Game 4 start to teammate Elvis Merzlikins, Johnston added.

More to come.

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Tampa Bay Lightning workhorse Victor Hedman left Saturday's round-robin game against the Philadelphia Flyers and will not return after taking an awkward fall.

Hedman was visually frustrated as he left the ice.

Hedman has been a Norris Trophy finalist for four straight years, winning the award in 2018. He posted 55 points in 66 contests while averaging over 24 minutes per game this season.

The Lightning were already without captain Steven Stamkos, who's yet to appear in the postseason due to an undisclosed ailment.

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Columbus Blue Jackets defenseman Zach Werenski will have an MRI Saturday for an upper-body injury, and his status is unknown for Game 5 against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Sunday, TSN's Darren Dreger reports.

The 6-foot-2 blue-liner played 21:24 during Friday's Game 4 overtime loss but exited midway through the third period and did not play in the extra frame. The cause of his injury is unclear.

Werenski has logged 26:42 of ice time per game in the series and has matched up primarily against the Maple Leafs' top talents. He's also contributed one assist while posting a Corsi For of 52.33% at five-on-five.

The 23-year-old was the only NHL defenseman to record 20 goals in 2019-20 and the first rearguard in Blue Jackets history to hit that single-season mark.

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After a shocking upset at the hands of the 12th-seeded Montreal Canadiens in the NHL's qualifying round, Sidney Crosby believes the window for the Pittsburgh Penguins' championship core may soon be closing.

"With age, it's a possibility," Crosby said, according to NHL.com's Wes Crosby. "But I can only speak personally. Obviously, I would've liked to stay a little bit healthier and play a full season."

He added: "It's a really hard one to evaluate. That's the honest truth as far as trying to break this all down. It's a tough one to evaluate overall."

Crosby - who turned 33 years old Friday - Evgeni Malkin (34), and Kris Letang (33) have all been with the Penguins during their three Stanley Cup wins since 2009.

The trio has struggled to stay healthy recently. Crosby played in 41 games during the 2019-20 season, while Malkin and Letang appeared in 55 and 61 contests, respectively.

However, head coach Mike Sullivan believes those three players still have years left in the tank.

"I think these guys are still elite players. I believe in this core," Sullivan said. "They're elite hockey players, and I still think there's elite play left in them. So, that's just what I believe. Obviously, at some point, everybody's window closes. ... But I strongly believe that this group has a lot of elite hockey (left)."

Letang echoed his coach's sentiment and said he believes Pittsburgh will contend in the near future.

"I think we still believe in the core group of this team," Letang said. "I think we have a lot left in the tank. We're going to keep playing hard and give everything for the Penguins. I think we have to be better. This year, we didn't play good enough to win, but I feel comfortable with the group of guys that we have."

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