Nylander focused after avoiding sweep: ‘It’s going to take even more’

William Nylander knows the Toronto Maple Leafs' job is far from over after they narrowly avoided being swept by the Florida Panthers on Wednesday night.

"It's going to take even more than it did tonight, but I think winning one here is obviously a step on the way," the winger said postgame when looking ahead to Game 5. "Don't want to get too high, it's just one win. We've got a long ways to go."

He added: "If we battle, we have a chance against these guys."

After facing criticism for their quiet series so far, two of Toronto's "Core Four" forwards had a big night in the 2-1 Game 4 win. Nylander opened the scoring with a power-play marker in the middle frame for his first goal since Game 2 against the Tampa Bay Lightning, while Mitch Marner also collected his first tally of the series with the eventual game-winner in the third period.

Maple Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe lauded the victory as his team's "best effort of the season." Toronto blocked 21 shots in the contest, with forwards Auston Matthews and Noel Acciari leading the way with three apiece.

Keefe was particularly pleased with the way his key players rebounded from a weak showing in Game 3.

"The first thing is that they care, they care deeply," he said. "Because of that, you give that type of effort. They didn't want to go quietly, and that's what we've been talking about. We were going to leave it all out there here today.

"Of course, from the coach side of it, now you look and say, 'That's the standard. That's what we've been trying to get to, that is what's required.' So, we can't have any letup in that regard."

Maple Leafs netminder Joseph Woll made 24 stops in his first career playoff start and saved 1.33 goals above expected at all strengths, according to Natural Stat Trick. The rookie's poised play didn't go unnoticed by Keefe.

"Our team in front of him gave him every opportunity for success today with how they competed in front of him. ... Anything that did get through, he looked really confident and in control," he said.

Puck drop is set for Game 5 on Friday at 7 p.m. ET in Toronto.

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Report: Flyers to hire Keith Jones as president of hockey operations

The Philadelphia Flyers are hiring Keith Jones as their president of hockey operations, according to Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman.

The club will also remove the interim tag from general manager Daniel Briere's title, Friedman added.

Philadelphia will reportedly announce the moves Thursday morning.

Jones has no front-office experience. He played nine NHL seasons during the 1990s and early 2000s, including three campaigns with the Flyers to end his career. Jones has worked as an analyst for NBC Sports Philadelphia and TNT in his post-playing days.

Known as a hard-nosed winger, Jones tallied 117 goals, 141 assists, and 765 penalty minutes in 491 career NHL games.

Eddie Olczyk, John Chayka, Scott Mellanby, Chris Pronger, and Doug Wilson were reportedly among the candidates considered for the president vacancy.

Chuck Fletcher previously served as the team's president of hockey operations and general manager before being fired in March. Briere immediately assumed Fletcher's GM duties on an interim basis.

Briere also lacks significant NHL front-office experience. He began his executive career in 2015-16 with the Flyers as a special assistant to the GM under Ron Hextall, a position he held for two seasons. Briere then worked for the ECHL's Maine Mariners in various roles, including vice president of hockey operations, general manager, and president. He started working with Philadelphia again as a team consultant in 2020-21 before becoming a special assistant to Fletcher the following campaign.

Philadelphia went 31-38-13 in 2022-23, missing the playoffs for the third year in a row for the first time since the early '90s. The team holds the seventh overall pick in the upcoming draft.

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McDavid, Pastrnak, Karlsson voted Ted Lindsay Award finalists

Edmonton Oilers superstar Connor McDavid, Boston Bruins sniper David Pastrnak, and San Jose Sharks defenseman Erik Karlsson were named 2022-23 Ted Lindsay Award finalists on Wednesday.

Like the Hart Trophy, the Ted Lindsay Award is given annually to the league's "most outstanding player," but it is voted on by members of the NHL Players' Association rather than the Professional Hockey Writers Association.

McDavid has won the trophy three times (2017, 2018, 2021). Another victory would put him in the same rarefied air as Mario Lemieux and Wayne Gretzky as the only players to win the award at least four times.

McDavid handily won his first career Maurice "Rocket" Richard Trophy this season as well as his third straight Art Ross Trophy - and fifth overall - after blitzing the league with his high-octane offense. He established new career highs with 64 goals and 153 points while skating in all 82 contests. The 26-year-old also became the first player to hit the 150-point plateau since Lemieux in 1995-96.

Both Pastrnak and Karlsson are first-time finalists for the Ted Lindsay Award.

Pastrnak was a force for the record-setting Bruins this season, leading the way with a career-high 61 goals and 113 points in 82 games while trailing only McDavid in the "Rocket" Richard Trophy race. The 26-year-old factored in on 37.5% of Boston's 301 goals scored this season.

The Czech winger potted the most even-strength goals (43) and game-winning goals (13) in the NHL while pacing the league with 407 shots. Pastrnak also boasted the second-best goals-per-game rate (0.74) and ranked top 10 in both goals above replacement (22.9) and wins above replacement (3.9), according to Evolving Hockey.

Karlsson, 32, can become the second defenseman to win the Ted Lindsay Award after Bobby Orr won the award in 1975. The Sharks veteran logged a 101-point campaign this season, making him the first rearguard to hit the century mark since Brian Leetch in 1991-92.

The Swede was named a Norris Trophy finalist last week. He led all blue-liners with 25 goals and 76 assists and averaged the fifth-most ice time (25:37) while appearing in all 82 games. Karlsson also ranked fourth among all skaters in even-strength points (74) and finished top five among defensemen in goals above replacement (18.3) and wins above replacement (3.1).

Toronto Maple Leafs star Auston Matthews won the Ted Lindsay Award last season.

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Prospect Central – Tony Ferrari With Targets for the Canucks at 11th

Dan and Sat discuss the options that are available to the Canucks as they try to figure out their cap situation. Also, hear from Tony Ferrari of The Hockey News as he breaks down some of the top prospects and who could be there at 11th overall.

This podcast was produced by Josh Elliott-Wolfe.

The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the hosts and guests and do not necessarily reflect the position of Rogers Media Inc. or any affiliate.

The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the hosts and guests and do not necessarily reflect the position of Rogers Media Inc. or any affiliate.

Overrated/Underrated – Getting Swept, Alek Manoah, and John Garrett Day

Dan and Sat debate whether topics such as getting swept, Alek Manoah's season, and much more are overrated or underrated!

This podcast was produced by Josh Elliott-Wolfe.

The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the hosts and guests and do not necessarily reflect the position of Rogers Media Inc. or any affiliate.

The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the hosts and guests and do not necessarily reflect the position of Rogers Media Inc. or any affiliate.

Report: Eddie Olczyk, Keith Jones finalists for Flyers’ president job

Turner Sports broadcasters Eddie Olczyk and Keith Jones are the finalists for the Philadelphia Flyers' president of hockey operations vacancy, sources told Daily Faceoff's Frank Seravalli.

An announcement is expected this week, Seravalli adds.

The club fired Chuck Fletcher in March after four-plus seasons in the position. Fletcher's general manager duties were handed to Daniel Briere, who is expected to keep that job after initially receiving an interim tag.

Olczyk had a 16-year NHL career and got into broadcasting after retiring in 2000. He had a stint as Pittsburgh Penguins head coach from 2003-05 but only oversaw 113 contests behind the bench due to the 2004-05 lockout. He was fired 31 games into the following campaign and then returned to the booth where he's worked for NBC, Versus, and TNT.

Jones played three-plus seasons with the Flyers and is the lead color commentator for the club's games on NBC Sports Philadelphia, as well as serving on TNT's national broadcasts. The 54-year-old doesn't have any experience in an NHL front office.

The Flyers also interviewed John Chayka, Scott Mellanby, Chris Pronger, and Doug Wilson for the position, among others, according to Seravalli.

Philadelphia finished seventh in the Metropolitan Division this season and missed the playoffs for the third consecutive year.

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NHL Wednesday best bets: Oilers to outduel Golden Knights

We have a pair of high-stakes games ahead of us on Wednesday night. The Florida Panthers have the ability to punch their ticket to the final four with a win on home ice, while the series out west carries huge swing potential.

Let's take a look at a few of the best ways to attack these games.

Golden Knights (+160) @ Oilers (-190)

The Oilers have been a roller coaster through most of these playoffs. One night they look the part of a legitimate Stanley Cup contender, the next they can't keep the puck out of their net.

We saw one of the lows in Game 3 - the Oilers struggled as a team and Stuart Skinner didn't help the cause - and I expect them to bounce back in Game 4. That's a common theme we've seen with the Oilers over the past few weeks.

They dropped Game 1 and Game 3 against the Kings in the opening round and responded with wins where their offense was borderline unstoppable, posting expected goal outputs of 4.62 and 4.16.

We saw the same kind of rebounding ability earlier in this series. After getting trounced in the opener against the Golden Knights, the Oilers generated 4.66 xG in a dominant 5-1 win.

I don't know if I'd expect another blowout - now mostly healthy, this Golden Knights team is at the peak of its powers - but I do envision a much better effort from this Oilers team.

We know, at their best, they are not just a lethal power play. They're also very good at five-on-five. Playing in front of their home crowd, and desperate to avoid hitting the road down 3-1, I think we are going to see the Oilers put their best foot forward in this game.

Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl are going to get all the ice time they can handle, and - as a team - some anger and extra motivation should help them tighten the screws defensively.

Look for a much better 60-minute effort from the Oilers.

Bet: Oilers in regulation (-120)

Auston Matthews over 4.5 shots (-120)

Matthews put up an absolute dud in Game 3. He didn't record a point for the first time during this year's playoffs, attempted only four shots, and spent most of his shifts chasing play in the defensive zone. It was bad.

I expect a much better effort from Matthews with the season on the line. Prior to Game 3, he had attempted 60 shots over six games while logging no fewer than 22 minutes in any game.

Even in tougher matchups come playoff time, Matthews is generally an ultra efficient shot generator. He can pile up the shots in bulk if the minutes are there, and ice time certainly won't be an issue with the team's season on the line.

He should get as large of a workload as he can handle, especially having benefited from an extra day of rest. Win or lose, look for Matthews to make the most of it on the shot clock.

Leon Draisaitl over 3.5 (-130)

Draisaitl is on a shooting heater. He has recorded three shots or more in each of his last 10 games, attempting at least six shots in nine straight.

He is routinely going over this number and giving himself a real chance to do so every single night.

What I love about this run is the attempt volume - even more so of late. Draisaitl has registered seven or more in five of the past six games, including all three against the Golden Knights.

That is sort of the sweet spot for Leon this season. Of the 27 games he attempted seven shots or more, he successfully hit his total 22 times. That's an 81% hit rate.

I think he can get there again in Game 4. He'll be deployed in more advantageous situations on home ice, and it is essentially a must-win game for the Oilers. They can't go down 3-1 with two of the final three games being played in Vegas.

Draisaitl has logged at least 21 minutes in six of the past seven, with Game 2's blowout victory being the lone exception. He is playing a ton and will have every opportunity to go over this number.

Todd Cordell is a sports betting writer at theScore. Be sure to follow him on Twitter @ToddCordell.

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Hurricanes dominate to put Devils on edge of elimination

The Carolina Hurricanes pushed the New Jersey Devils around during Tuesday night's 6-1 Game 4 victory and are now one win away from advancing to the Eastern Conference Final for the first time since 2019.

The Hurricanes did most of their damage in an electric second period by scoring five goals, including four in a 5:20 span. Martin Necas kicked off the middle frame with his second tally of the contest, while Brett Pesce and Jesper Fast struck 1:16 apart as the Devils started to unravel.

Just under two minutes later, veteran defenseman Brent Burns made his presence known with a booming shot for his first goal of the playoffs to chase New Jersey netminder Vitek Vanecek. Jordan Martinook scored with 24 seconds remaining in the stanza for his third point of the game and ninth of the series.

"We just let our heads hang," Devils captain Nico Hischier said postgame, according to team beat reporter Amanda Stein. "It's definitely not the recipe. We had a game going on there, and that five minutes, we just got away from our game right there and (they) made us pay."

Devils star Jack Hughes opened the scoring within the first two minutes of the contest, but Carolina ran the show for the remainder of Game 4 with six unanswered tallies.

New Jersey head coach Lindy Ruff was critical of his team's performance, calling it "a hard one to explain," per ESPN's Greg Wyshynski.

"We had guys that just went rogue," he said. "You can call that lack of experience. Even the power play turned into one man trying to something and the next time trying to do something. There was no team effort."

The Jack Adams Trophy finalist added, "I look at the way we played after Game 7 (against the New York Rangers). It resembled some of this. Are we having a tough time dealing with a little bit of success? Play a really good game and then you bounce back with a game like that?

"We didn't make it to a high enough level to win a tonight."

Hurricanes goalie Frederik Andersen made 21 saves in the victory, rebounding from a shaky performance in Game 3 when he got pulled after allowing four goals on 12 shots.

Carolina has outscored the Devils 21-11 in the series so far.

The Hurricanes will get their first chance to put the Devils away during Thursday's Game 5 at 7 p.m. ET in Raleigh.

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