Wednesday, April 30, 2014

Stanley Cup Playoffs: Rangers, Wild (In OT), Kings (Who Overcome Three-Games-To-None Deficit) Advance To Conference Semifinals At Opening Round Ends

Three games were played on Wednesday as the opening round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs concluded.

EASTERN CONFERENCE:

At New York:

Daniel Carcillo and Benoit Pouliot each scored a second-period goal while Henrik Lundqvist saved 26 of 27 shots as the New York Ranges held off the visiting Philadelphia Flyers 2-1 in game seven of their conference quarterfinal series, which they won four games to three.  The Rangers will open their conference semifinal series against the Pittsburgh Penguins on Friday on the road.



WESTERN CONFERENCE:

At Denver:

Nino Niederreiter scored his second goal of the game at 5:02 of overtime as the Minnesota Wild upended the Colorado Rapids 5-4 in the seventh and deciding game of their opening-round series.  The Wild, who won the series four games to three---their first playoff series triumph since 2003---will take on the defending Stanley Cup champions Chicago Blackhawks in the second round.

At San Jose, California:

Drew Doughty (Power Play), Anze Kopitar, Tyler Toffoli, Dustin Brown (Empty Net), and Tanner Pearson (Empty Net) each scored a goal while Jonathan Quick stopped 39 of 40 shots as the Los Angeles Kings defeated the San Jose Sharks 5-1 to complete only the fourth comeback from a three-games-to-none deficit to win a seven-game series in Stanley Cup Playoff history.  The Toronto Maple Leafs (1942), New York Islanders (1975), and Philadelphia Flyers (2010) were the only other teams to do the trick.  The Kings will now get ready for their first-ever playoff encounter with the Anaheim Ducks in the conference semifinals.

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