Tampa Bay Lightning captain Steven Stamkos is entering the final year of his contract next season, but he's hoping to stay with the only NHL franchise he's known.
"In my eyes, this is the only jersey I ever want to wear in my career," Stamkos said Tuesday, according to NHL.com's Chris Krenn.
Stamkos will carry an $8.5-million cap hit in 2023-2024 after inking an eight-year, $68-million contract with the Lightning in 2016.
The 33-year-old had another excellent campaign for Tampa Bay, notching 34 goals and 50 assists for 84 points in 81 games. He added two goals and four points in his team's first-round playoff loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Stamkos is already one of the greatest players in Lightning history. He has 515 goals and 1,056 points in 1,003 career games. The eight-time All-Star is a two-time Maurice “Rocket” Richard Trophy winner and helped Tampa Bay win consecutive Stanley Cups in 2020 and 2021.
The New Jersey Devilsprevailed in Game 7 on Monday night to become the eighth and final team to win a first-round playoff series. These questions, one per Stanley Cup contender, will shape what happens in Round 2 once the puck drops Tuesday.
Toronto Maple Leafs Can 'The Factor' be an X-factor?
Icon Sportswire / Getty Images
Ryan "The Factor" O'Reilly was brought in at the trade deadline to add another weapon to the Maple Leafs' center position, help shut down opposing top lines, and assume the daily been-there-done-that role within the dressing room.
O'Reilly's importance to Toronto's success will rise as the postseason progresses, and Leaf fans hope the right O'Reilly shows up to start Round 2.
The 32-year-old was an X-factor to start the first round. He triggered a mini-comeback in Game 1. He scored the game-tying goal with a minute left in regulation, then won an offensive-zone faceoff to earn the primary assist on the overtime marker in Game 3. He forced a turnover ahead of the opening goal, then won the O-zone faceoff before the tying goal in Game 4.
O'Reilly was far less impactful to close out the series against the Tampa Bay Lightning. He went pointless in the final three games and posted brutal underlying numbers, including an 11.7% expected goals rate at five-on-five in Game 5. He generated zero offense and lost 11 of 13 draws in Game 6.
While there's a chance O'Reilly continues to sputter, the smart money's on O'Reilly bouncing back. This is a Conn Smythe and Stanley Cup winner who seemingly never gets rattled. When he's on his game, he does just about everything right when he doesn't have the puck. He finds ways to contribute.
Florida Panthers Can Florida stay out of the box?
China Wong / Getty Images
The Panthers took the most minor penalties out of any team in the regular season and then tied the Devils for most minors in the first round with 32.
Facing a physical opponent in the Boston Bruins over the maximum number of games definitely skewed the numbers. Plus, it's hard to argue with the on-ice results, especially since some of the Panthers' top guys - Matthew Tkachuk, Sam Bennett, Brandon Montour - tend to perform best when physicality's ratcheted up. Case in point: Tkachuk paired 109 points (tied for sixth in the NHL) with 123 penalty minutes (tied for fourth) during the regular season.
Series win or not, averaging 4.6 minors a game is an unsustainable brand of hockey. It'll eventually come back to haunt them. It's fine if the Panthers' identity is soaked in battle-hardened grit, but controlling the sticks would go a long way; 20 of the 32 infractions were trips, slashes, cross-checks, hooks, and high sticks.
Boston capitalized on 11 of its 27 power-play opportunities for a killer 40.6% rate. Florida can't give Toronto's power play, which ranked second in the regular season and boasted a 28.6% rate in the first round, that many chances to heat up.
Carolina Hurricanes Who'll generate offense?
Josh Lavallee / Getty Images
The Hurricanes are the most predictable team in the playoffs - and possibly the entire NHL. They don't cut corners in the work-ethic department. They backcheck and forecheck like crazy. They control the game by funneling a ton of pucks on net from virtually any spot on the ice and by stopping the opposition from doing the same. And they do all of these things very well.
Even if all goes according to plan, though, the Hurricanes need to score goals.
Against the New York Islanders in Round 1, Carolina potted 2.67 goals per game, the third-lowest rate among the eight remaining playoff teams. They also sat seventh in "quality chances," according to Sportlogiq. (The metric counts only grade A and B scoring opportunities, filtering out grade Cs.)
The Canes addressed a lack of finishing talent in the offseason with the acquisition of six-time 30-goal scorer Max Pacioretty. But Pacioretty's been hurt all year, fellow sniper Andrei Svechnikov has been sidelined since March, and neither is expected back in the playoffs. Losing Teuvo Teravainen in the Isles series was another bit of bad luck; he's out indefinitely after undergoing hand surgery.
Indeed, the forward group has been decimated by injury. It wouldn't just be nice if offensive drivers Sebastian Aho, Seth Jarvis, and Martin Necas received a helping hand from the likes of Stefan Noesen, Paul Stastny, Jesper Fast, and Jesperi Kotkaniemi. They flat-out need goals from unlikely contributors.
New Jersey Devils If Meier returns, can he end drought?
Bruce Bennett / Getty Images
Timo Meier, the Devils' prized midseason acquisition, took a thunderous hit from Jacob Trouba in the third period of Monday's Game 7. He didn't play another shift but did return to the Devils' bench. Coach Lindy Ruff didn't have a postgame update on Meier's status, putting future availability in question.
If Meier isn't OK, New Jersey might be in trouble. If he's able to play, the Swiss forward can continue generating offense better than almost anyone in the postseason. Meier went nuts during five-on-five action in the first round, registering the most high-danger shot attempts (16), second-most total attempts (49) and expected goals (2.58), and third-most shots on goal (25).
You'll notice there's no mention of how many goals he scored. That's because somehow, after pumping multiple pucks at the net virtually every shift, Meier failed to slip a single puck past New York Rangers superstar goalie Igor Shesterkin. His goalless drought includes three regular-season games, too.
There's no doubt Meier's puck luck should turn sooner than later, particularly with the Hurricanes' goaltending tandem - Antti Raanta and Frederik Andersen - casting a smaller shadow in the crease. Will Meier even suit up, though?
Vegas Golden Knights Can Stone pull a Kucherov?
Jonathan Kozub / NHL / Getty Images
Acting within NHL rules, Vegas skirted the salary cap by activating Mark Stone from long-term injured reserve the moment the playoffs started. Stone was a minus-3 in his first game back from back surgery, then burned the Winnipeg Jets for three goals and eight points over four ensuing victories.
He produced like Nikita Kucherov, whose return from hip surgery in the 2021 postseason notoriously enabled the Tampa Bay Lightning to play "$18 million over the cap." Kucherov's league-high 32 points in 23 playoff contests sparked the Lightning to a second straight championship. Playing without him all regular season, Tampa Bay had amassed the NHL's eighth-best record.
The Golden Knights won the Pacific Division and put up 111 points, a franchise record, even though Stone was shelved from mid-January onward. He turbocharged Vegas' offense in Round 1. Beyond assisting on all four of linemate Chandler Stephenson's goals, Stone scored on a drive to the net and via multiple snipes from the high slot.
Availability is paramount at this time of year. Stone delivered against the Jets by skating for 20 minutes a night across all situations. Vegas outscored Winnipeg 8-1 in his five-on-five shifts from Game 2 onward, per Natural Stat Trick. Will he dominate a stronger Canadian opponent?
Edmonton Oilers Can this power play be contained?
Harry How / Getty Images
Edmonton's historically successful power play scored on 32.4% of its regular-season attempts. The Oilers made that proportion look paltry against the Los Angeles Kings. They scored on nine of 16 opportunities to capitalize at a whopping 56.3% rate.
The main quintet of Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl, Zach Hyman, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, and Evan Bouchard produced eight of the goals. Bouchard picked up points on each tally by crushing shots from the blue line - one ricocheted in off of Hyman's chin - or deferring to the superstars on either side of him. McDavid's seam passes to the right flank teed up Draisaitl for one-timers, and the Edmonton captain scored twice himself from the left faceoff dot.
This will be a key battleground in Round 2. The Oilers didn't get many whistles against the Kings, drawing the second-fewest penalties per 60 minutes among Round 1 squads. The Golden Knights limited the Jets to 12 power-play tries, yet let in five goals in that phase. The shooting gallery will open whenever Vegas visits the box.
Dallas Stars Is Hintz a budding Conn Smythe candidate?
Tom Pennington / Getty Images
Overshadowed by 109-point linemate Jason Robertson this season, Roope Hintz broke out in Round 1 by menacing the Minnesota Wild in every situation.
Hintz's eight points on special teams - he recorded seven on the power play and bagged a shorthanded breakaway goal - tie him with Bouchard for the postseason lead. At five-on-five, the Stars outscored the Wild 4-2 in Hintz's minutes and trailed 7-5 on aggregate when he sat. Hintz and Robertson clicked instantly with Tyler Seguin after Joe Pavelski's concussion midway through Game 1 forced head coach Peter DeBoer to shuffle his forward lines.
Hintz was Dallas' seventh-leading playoff scorer when the club rocketed to the 2020 Stanley Cup Final. Now he's an offensive linchpin. A speedster at 6-foot-3, Hintz leveled up as a shooter in the past couple of years, ranking 18th league-wide in goals (74) since the start of 2021-22. He'll now be expected to elevate the Stars - with or without Pavelski by his side.
Seattle Kraken Will Grubauer keep shining?
Christopher Mast / NHL / Getty Images
Masterful starts from Philipp Grubauer, the former Colorado Avalanche netminder, bookended the Kraken's seven-game victory over the reigning Cup champs.
Grubauer stopped 34 of 35 shots in the Seattle-Colorado opener, then denied 33 of 34 on the road Sunday to seal the mammoth upset. He held the fort as the Kraken scored first in all seven contests. The 2004 Maple Leafs were the only team that had done that in postseason history.
Goaltending was one of Seattle's weaknesses this season, though Grubauer was markedly better than partner Martin Jones. His .895 save percentage didn’t impress, but Grubauer was passable relative to shot quality, saving 4.94 goals above expected as tracked by Evolving Hockey. His first-round stats - .926 save rate, 3.76 GSAx - ranked near the top of the league.
Dependable in the playoffs, Grubauer has maintained a .922 save percentage over 36 starts since 2019. Dallas wunderkind Jake Oettinger (.944 save percentage over 13 career starts) has the next-most playoff experience in the Western Conference bracket. The Kraken ranked second behind Toronto in Round 1 in blocked shots per 60 minutes, suggesting they'll commit to helping Grubauer win this goalie duel.
With an electrifying Round 1 of the Stanley Cup Playoffs in the books, the NHL unveiled the schedule for the first two games of each second-round series.
* if necessary.
Atlantic Division
Eliot J. Schechter / National Hockey League / Getty
Toronto Maple Leafs (A2) vs. Florida Panthers (WC2)
Game
Home
Date
Time (ET)
1
Maple Leafs
May 2
7 p.m.
2
Maple Leafs
May 4
7 p.m.
3
Panthers
TBD
4
Panthers
TBD
5*
Maple Leafs
TBD
6*
Panthers
TBD
7*
Maple Leafs
TBD
Metropolitan Division
Carolina Hurricanes (M1) vs. New Jersey Devils (M2)
Josh Lavallee / National Hockey League / Getty
Game
Home
Date
Time (ET)
1
Hurricanes
May 3
7 p.m.
2
Hurricanes
May 5
TBD
3
Devils
TBD
4
Devils
TBD
5*
Hurricanes
TBD
6*
Devils
TBD
7*
Hurricanes
TBD
Central Division
Dallas Stars (C2) vs. Seattle Kraken (WC1)
Christopher Mast / National Hockey League / Getty
Game
Home
Date
Time (ET)
1
Stars
May 2
9:30 p.m.
2
Stars
May 4
9:30 p.m.
3
Kraken
TBD
4
Kraken
TBD
5*
Stars
TBD
6*
Kraken
TBD
7*
Stars
TBD
Pacific Division
Vegas Golden Knights (P1) vs. Edmonton Oilers (P2)
The New Jersey Devils defeated the New York Rangers 4-0 in Monday's Game 7 to advance to the second round.
Michael McLeod's and Tomas Tatar's second-period goals gave the Devils the lead before Erik Haula netted the dagger in the final frame. Jesper Bratt added an empty-netter later in the period.
Rookie sensation Akira Schmid made 31 saves for his second shutout of the series. Martin Brodeur is the only other Devils goaltender to post a Game 7 shutout. His .951 save percentage in the postseason leads all goaltenders with more than one start.
New Jersey turned to the 22-year-old after dropping the first two games of the series at home. Schmid was scored on only twice in his first three starts as the Devils stormed back to take a 3-1 lead, before allowing five goals in Game 6.
The series victory is the Devils' first since 2012 when they reached the Stanley Cup Finals. New York fails to advance to the second round after making the Eastern Conference Finals last season.
"Some people would be like, 'Oh, they're inexperienced,' but really we're just like … 'We don't know better,'" Jack Hughes said postgame, according to team reporter Amanda Stein. "We just play, and we do the best we can.“
Rangers forward Chris Kreider scored six goals in the series but was disappointed with his performance in the finale.
"Personally, I feel responsible for some of the goals they scored," Kreider said, according to New York Post's Mollie Walker. "Being a veteran guy, I'm supposed to be defensively responsible. ... Can't be on the ice for all four goals and hurt us like that."
Timo Meier exited the game after being on the receiving end of a massive hit from Jacob Trouba in the third period. Meier returned to the New Jersey bench but didn't play a shift.
Jacob Trouba sends Timo Meier to the Devils dressing room with an open ice hit. pic.twitter.com/sRmGAegROP
Calgary Flames forward Jonathan Huberdeau gave a glaringly honest assessment of his relationship with ex-head coach Darryl Sutter, who was fired earlier Monday.
"It really didn't click between me and Darryl last year," Huberdeau told French-language radio station BPM Sports, as translated by The Athletic's Julian McKenzie. "There were a lot of factors. There was a big difference in points between my last two years. And the style of play he wanted to play, it didn't fit my style."
He added, "Having a new coach is going to help my game and my confidence, too."
When the Flames acquired Huberdeau last summer in the blockbuster trade that sent Matthew Tkachuk to Florida, he was coming off a career-best 115-point campaign.
His first year in Calgary was underwhelming. Huberdeau put up 55 points (15 goals, 40 assists) in 79 games for his lowest output since 2016-17 when he missed significant time due to injury. He also saw his ice time under Sutter decrease by two-and-a-half minutes.
The Flames failed to make the playoffs just one year after Sutter piloted them to a first-place finish in the Pacific Division and earned a Jack Adams Award as the NHL's top head coach.
Shortly after announcing Sutter's firing, Flames president of hockey operations and interim general manager Don Maloney said that, after speaking with players and staff, it was clear the team needed a new voice. Maloney added that there's a "shelf life" for Sutter's hard-nosed style.
Sutter drew criticism after he shrugged off a question about rookie Jakob Pelletier's NHL debut on Jan. 21 in a 6-3 victory over the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Here are Sutter's comments on Pelletier's debut tonight.
Not sure why he has to be so sarcastic and negative about Pelletier. The kid just played in his first game and played really well in it.
"Why say that to the media and then go see the kid to tell him he played well?" he said.
He continued, "We were all disappointed. Especially for a young kid who comes in and doesn't need that as a young player. He just wants to play well for himself and the team. ... We were saying, 'That's Darryl.'"
Huberdeau will enter the first season of an eight-year, $84-million extension in 2023-24. General manager Brad Treliving - who signed Huberdeau to that pact in August - parted ways with Calgary in April.
Dan and Sat are joined by Don Taylor of Donnie and Dhali to discuss the weekend of playoff action and what the Canucks may or may not take away from it.
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.
Dan and Sat are joined by Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff to talk about what the offseason holds for teams who were eliminated over the weekend, what happened with Darryl Sutter in Calgary, and more. They also discuss Rick Tocchet's comments on Quinn Hughes.
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.
The New York Islanders signed forward Hudson Fasching to a two-year contract extension, the team announced Monday.
The extension has an average annual value of $775,000, according to CapFriendly. It's the first one-way contract of Fasching's career. The 27-year-old was set to become an unrestricted free agent this summer.
Fasching set career highs with 10 goals and 19 points in 49 games this season. He played in all six of New York's postseason contests against the Carolina Hurricanes, failing to register a point while recording 11:40 per contest.
"I love playing here," Fasching said Monday prior to the announcement of his new contract, according to Newsday's Andrew Gross. "I love being here, and they gave me the opportunity."
"This is what I've always worked towards, and to be able to look down on the season and be like, 'I finished the season playing in the Stanley Cup Playoffs,' it's kind of a dream come true for me," Fasching added, per The Hockey News' Stefen Rosner.
Fasching was a touted prospect coming out of the University of Minnesota, having played for Team USA at the U17s, U18s, world juniors, and world championships. He couldn't become an NHL regular in stints with the Buffalo Sabres and Arizona Coyotes, though, playing just 38 total NHL games in seven years prior to 2022-23.
After clearing waivers and beginning the campaign in the AHL, Fasching was recalled by the Islanders on Dec. 1. He played the remainder of the season in the NHL.
Fasching was drafted by the Los Angeles Kings in 2013.
