Stanley Cup Playoffs: Sabres, Golden Knights Win Opening-Round Series, Advance To Conference Semis; Lightning Force Game 7 With Habs

 Three games were decided on Friday with the continuation of the Stanley Cup Playoffs:

EASTERN CONFERECE:

At Bell Centre, Montreal:

Gage Goncalves scored the game's lone goal at 9:03 of overtime as the Tampa Bay Lightning squared their conference quarterfinal series with the homestanding Montreal Canadiens 1-0 to square this series at three games apiece.

This series will be decided in Tampa on Sunday at 3:00 PM (TNT, TruTV, HBO Max).  The winner would face the Buffalo Sabres in a conference semifinal series.

At TD Center, Boston:

Alex Tuch, Mattias Samuelsson, Zach Benson, and Josh Norris (empty net) each tallied once as the Buffalo Sabres posted a 4-2 road win over the Boston Bruins to win their opening-round series four games to two.

For the Sabres, it marks their first playoff series victory since 2007.  

Buffalo will face the winner of the Tampa Bay-Montreal series, which is currently deadlocked at three games apiece.

WESTERN CONFERENCE:

At Delta Center, Salt Lake City, Utah:

Mitch Mamer scored twice (once on the power play) as the Vegas Golden Knights, on the road, overpowered the Utah Mammoth 5-1 to win their series four games to two.

Carter Hart saved 22 of 23 Utah shots.

The Golden Knights will take on the Anaheim Ducks in a conference semifinal series, opening at the T-Mobile Arena in suburban Paradise, Nevada, with date, time, and network and/or streaming service to be determined.

The Ducks won all three regular-season games amongst the clubs.

NBA Playoffs: Pistons, Raptors Force Game 7s; Lakers Close Out Rockets, Get Thunder

 Three games were contested on Friday as the NBA Playoffs continued.

EASTERN CONFERENCE:

At Kia Center, Orlando, Florida:

Cade Cunningham scored 32 points and grabbed 10 rebounds as the Detroit Pistons came from behind (they were down 22 points at halftime) to upend the hosts Orlando Magic 93-79.

Tobias Harris added 22 points and ten rebounds to the Detroit cause. 

Paulo Banchero (with ten rebounds) and Desmond Bane each scored 17 points to lead Orlando.

This conference quarterfinal-round series, now deadlocked at three games apiece, will be decided on Sunday in Detroit at 12:30 PM Pacific Time on ABC.

At Scotiabank Arena, Toronto:

Scottie Barnes scored 25 points(with 14 assists) while RJ Barrett (who pulled in nine rebounds and scored the game-winning basket in overtime) and Ja'Kobe Walker each added 24 as the Toronto Raptors upended the visiting Cleveland Cavaliers 112-110 in game six of their conference quarterfinal series, deadlocking it at tree games piece.

Evan Mobley scored 26 points (while grabbing 14 rebounds) and Donovan Mitchell added 24 to pace the visitors.

The series will be decided on Sunday in Cleveland at 4:30 PM Pacific Time on NBC/Peacock.

WESTERN CONFERENCE:

At Toyota Center, Houston:

LeBron James scored 28 points (with seven rebounds and eight assists) as the Los Angeles Lakers finally closed out the homestanding Houston Rockets 98-78 to win their conference quarterfinal series four games to two.

Rui Hachimura helped the Lakers with 21 points.

Amen Thompson led the Rockets with 18 points while grabbing eight rebounds.  Alperen Sengun added 17 points to go with 11 rebounds.

Next up for Los Angeles, a conference semifinal series with the top Western Conference seed (and defending NBA champs) Oklahoma City Thunder, with the opening game at OKC's Paycom Center this coming Tuesday at 5:30 PM Pacific Time on NBC/Peacock.

Stanley Cup Playoffs: Wild, Ducks Win Opening-Round Series

Two games were contested on Thursday as the Stanley Cup Playoffs continued. 

WESTERN CONFERENCE: 

At Xcel Energy Center, St. Paul, Minnesota: 

Matt Boldy scored a pair of empty-net goals as the Minnesota Wild defeated the visiting Dallas Stars 5-2 and won their opening-round series four games to two. 

The Wild will next face the Colorado Avalanche in a conference semifinal series, starting in Denver, with date, time, and network/streaming series to be determined.  

At Honda Center, Anaheim, California:  

Ryan Poehling, Chris Kreider, Cutter Gauthier (power play), Troy Terry, and Leo Carlsson (empty net) each scored once as the Anaheim Ducks closed out the Edmonton Oilers 5-2 to win their conference quarterfinal series four games to two.  

The Ducks will next take on the winner of the Vegas Golden Knights-Utah Mammoth series, in which Vegas leads three games to two.

NBA Playoffs: Knicks, Wolves Advance To Conference Semis; 76ers Force Game 7 With Celtics

 The NBA Playoffs continued on Thursday with three game.

EASTERN CONFERENCE:

At State Farm Arena, Atlanta:

O.G. Anunoby scored 29 points while Mikal Bridges added 24 as the New York Knicks, with all five starters scoring in double-digits, made fried chicken of the visiting Atlanta Hawks 140-89 in game six of their conference quarterfinal series and won it four games to two.

Jalen Johnson paced the Hawks with 21 points while pulling in eight rebounds.

The Knicks will take on the winner of the Boston-Philadelphia series, deadlocked at three games and to decided on Saturday.

At Xfinity Mobile Arena, Philadelphia:

Tyrese Maxey scored 30 points while Paul George added 23, and Joel Embiid contributed 19 (to go with ten rebounds and eight assists) as the Philadelphia 76ers squared their series with the Boston Celtics at three games apiece with a 106-93 home victory.  All five starters scored in double-figures for the Sixers.

Jaylen Brown led the Beantowners with 18 points while Jayson Tatum added 17, to go with his 11 rebounds.

The series, and the right to face the New York Knicks in a conference semifinal series,  will be decided on Saturday at 4:30 PM Pacific Time on NBC/Peacock.

WESTERN CONFERENCE:

At Target Center, Minneapolis:

Jaden McDaniels scored 34 points and grabbed 10 rebounds as the Minnesota Timberwolves eliminated the visiting Denver Nuggets 110-98 to win their conference quarterfinal series four games to two.

Terrance Shannon, Jr. added 24 points to the Wolves' cause.

Nikola Jokic led the Nuggets with 28 points, along with 10 assists and nine rebounds.  Cameron Johnson added 27, to go with his eight rebounds.

The Timberwolves will face the San Antonio Spurs in a Western Conference semifinal series, starting this coming Monday at Frost Bank Center in San Antonio, Texas (time and network/streaming service to be determined).

Stanley Cup Playoffs: Flyers Finish Off Penguins, Get Hurricanes Next: Habs, Golden Knights Take 3-2 Series Leads

The opening round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs resumed with three Wednesday matches. 

EASTERN CONFERENCE:  

At Benchmark International Arena, Tampa, Florida: Brendon Gallagher, Kirby Dach, and Alexandre Texier each tallied a goal as the Montreal Canadiens defeated the homestanding Tampa Bay Lightning 2-1 in game five of their conference quarterfinal series.  

The Habs, now up three games to two, can close out the Lightning back home at the Bell Centre with a victory on Friday at 7:00 PM Pacific Time on ESPN 2.  

At  Xfinity Mobile Arena, Philadelphia:

Cam York scored the only goal of the contest at 17:32 of overtime as the Philadelphia Flyers won the battle of the Keystone State, defeating the visiting Pittsburgh Penguins 1-0 in game six and won their series, four games to two.

Next for the Flyers, a conference semifinal series with the Carolina Hurricanes, starting at the Lenovo Center in Raleigh, North Carolina with the date, time, network to be determined.

WESTERN CONFERENCE:

At T-Mobile Arena, Paradise, Nevada:

Pavel Dorofeyev delivered a hat trick (scoring once on the power play) while Brett Howden scored the shorthanded winning goal at 5:28 of the second overtime as the Vegas Golden Knights came from behind to knock off the visiting Utah Mammoth 5-4 in game five of their opening-round series for a three-games-to-one lead.

The Knights can finish off the Mammoth in Salt Lake City on Friday in game six, 7:00 PM Pacific Time on ESPN.

  

NBA Playoffs: Pistons, Rockets Stay Alive; Cavaliers Take 3-2 Series Lead

Three games were contested on Wednesday as the NBA Playoffs continued. 

EASTERN CONFERENCE:  

At Little Caesars Arena, Detroit:  

Cade Cunningham scored 45 points (a Detroit franchise playoff record) while Tobias Harris added 23 (to go with eight rebounds) as the Detroit Pistons avoided elimination by defeating the visiting Orlando Magic 116-109 in game five of their conference quarterfinal series.  

Paolo Banchero paced Orlando with 45 points while grabbing nine rebounds.  

The Magic, up three games to two, can close out the Pistons with a game-six home victory on Friday (4:00 PM Pacific Time, Prime Video).  

At Rocket Arena, Cleveland: 

Evan Mobley and James Harden each scored 23 points and pulled in nine rebounds as the Cleveland Cavaliers outlasted the visiting Toronto Raptors 125-120 for a three-games-to-two conference quarterfinal series advantage.  

R.J. Barrett paced Toronto with 25 points (to go with 12 rebounds) while Ja'Kobe Walker added 20. The Cavaliers can finish off the Raptors in Toronto on Friday (4:30 PM PDT, Prime Video).

WESTERN CONFERENCE:

At Crypto.com Arena, Los Angeles:

Jabari Smith, Jr. scored 22 points while Tari Eason added 18 as the Houston Rockets, with all five starters scoring in double-figures, again staved off elimination by defeated the Los Angeles Lakers 99-93 on game five of their conference quarterfinal series.

The Lakers are paced by LeBron James' 25 points.

The Lakers will try again to finish this series by beating the Rockets in Houston in game six on Friday at 6:30 PM Pacific Time (Prime Video).

Although there have been several instances in the Stanley Cup Playoffs and once, most famously, in Major League Baseball (in 2004, the Boston Red Sox overtook the New York Yankees in the American League Championship Series), no team has ever come back from down three games to none to win a best-of-seven series in the NBA Playoffs.  The Houston Rockets are trying to change that.

Stanley Cup Playoffs: Bruins, Oilers Stay Alive, Wild Take 3-2 Series Lead On Stars

The opening round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs continued on Tuesday with three games. 

EASTERN CONFERENCE: At KeyBank Center, Buffalo, New York:  David Pastmak scored the winning goal 9:14 seconds into overtime as the Boston Bruins stayed alive by defeating the Buffalo Sabres 2-1 on the road.  

The Sabres, up three games to two in their conference quarterfinal series, can still finish off the B's with a game-six road win on Friday at 4:30 PM Pacific Time on ESPN. 

WESTERN CONFERENCE: 

At American Airlines Center, Dallas: 

Mats Zuccarello, Matt Boldy (power play), Michael McCarron, and Kirill Karizov (empty net) each scored once as the Minnesota Wild took a three-games-to-two opening round series advantage over the Dallas Stars with a 4-2 game-five road win.  

The Wild can wrap up this series with a game-six road win in St. Paul, Minnesota this coming Thursday at 5:30 PM Pacific Time on TNT and TruTV.  

At Rogers Place, Edmonton, Alberta:  

Leon Drasisaitl scored twice (one of the goal was on the power play) as the Edmonton Oilers stayed alive with a 4-1 home win in game five of their conference quarterfinal series with the Anaheim Ducks.  

The Ducks, up three games to two on the Oilers, can wrap up their series with a game-six home victory on Thursday at 7:00 PM PST on TBS and TruTV.

NBA Playoffs: Spurs Finish Off Blazers; 76ers Stay Alive; Knicks Take 3-2 Series Lead Over Hawks

 Three games were contested on Tuesday as the NBA Playoffs continued:

EASTERN CONFERENCE:

At TD Garden, Boston:

Joel Embiid scored 33 points and dished out eight assists as the Philadelphia 76ers avoided elimination and knocked off the Boston Celtics 113-97 on the road in game five of their conference quarterfinal series.

Tyrese Maxey added 25 points and grabbed 10 rebounds to the Philadelphia cause.

Jayson Tatum scored 24 points and grabbed 16 rebounds while Jaylen Brown added 22 points to lead Boston.

The Celtics, now up three games to two, can still finish off the Sixers at Philadelphia's Xfinity Mobile Arena with a game-win victory on Thursday at 5:00 PM Pacific Time, airing on Peacock/NBC Sports Network.

At Madison Square Garden, New York:

Jalen Brunson scored 38 points while dishing out eight assists as the New York Knicks thumped the visiting Atlanta Hawks 126-97 in game five of their conference quarterfinal series for a three-games-to-two series lead.

Jalen Johnson paced the Hawks with 18 points while pulling in 10 rebounds.

The Knicks can close out the Hawks with a game-six road win on Thursday at 4:00 PM Pacific Time on ESPN.

WESTERN CONFERENCE:

At Frost Bank Center, San Antonio, Texas:

De'Aaron Fox scored 21 points while coming up with nine assists as the San Antonio Spurs, with all five starters scoring in double-figures, smothered the visiting Portland Trail Blazers 114-95 to win their conference quarterfinal series four games to one.

Deni Avdija paced Portland with 22 points.

The Spurs will next take on the winner of the Denver-Minnesota series (which the Timberwolves lead three games to two).

Stanley Cup Playoffs: Penguins Stay Alive By Topping Flyers; Golden Knights Level Series With Mammoth At Two Games Apiece After OT Victory

The Stanley Cup Playoffs' opening round continue on Monday with two contests. EASTERN CONFERENCE:  At PPG Paints Arena, Pittsburgh: Kris Letang scored the winning goal with 2:48 remaining in regulation time as the Pittsburgh Penguins again avoided elimination by defeating the visiting Philadelphia Flyers 3-2 in the fifth game of their conference quarterfinal series.  The Flyers can still finish off the Penguins with a game-six victory at the Xfinity Mobile Arena in the City of Brotherly Love this coming Wednesday at 4:30 PM PDT on TBS and TruTV.  

WESTERN CONFERENCE:  

At Delta Center, Salt Lake City, Utah:  Shea Theodore scored the winning goal with 52 seconds remaining in overtime as the Vegas Golden Knights came from behind to overtake the homestanding Utah Mammoth 5-4, tying their opening-round series at two games apiece.

NBA Playoffs: Thunder Complete Sweep Of Suns; Magic Place Pistons On Verge Of Elimination; Nuggets Force Game Six With Wolves

The Round-og-16 phase of the NBA Playoffs continued on Monday with three games: 

EASTERN CONFERENCE:

At Kia Center, Orlando, Florida: Desmond Blake scored 22 points while Franz Wagner added 19 and Paolo Banchero 18 as the Orlando Magic defeated the visiting Detroit Pistons 94-88 to take a three-games-to-one conference quarterfinal series lead.  

Cade Cunningham scored 25 points (and grabbed nine rebounds) while Tobias Harris added 20 for the Pistons.  

The Magic can finished off top-seeded Detroit with a game-five road win in the Motor City on Wednesday night (Prime Video, 4:00 PM PDT). 

WESTERN CONFERENCE:  

At Mortgage Matchup Center, Phoenix, Arizona: 

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 31 points (to go with eight assists) while Chet Holmgren added 24 (to go with 12 rebounds) and Ajay Mitchell 22 as the Oklahoma City Thunder completed a four-game conference quarterfinal series sweep of the Phoenix Suns with a 131-122 victory. 

Despite the fact that four of the Suns' starters scored 20 or more apiece (Devin Booker with 24, Dillon Brooks and Jalen Green with 23 apiece, and Colin Gillespie with 20, Phoenix's season is over.  

The Thunder will next face the winner of the Los Angeles Lakers-Houston Rockets series, which the Lakers lead three games to one. 

At Ball Arena, Denver:  

Nikola Jokic scored 27 points, dished out 16 assists, and pulled in 12 rebounds for a triple-double as the Denver Nuggets staved off elimination by defeating the visiting Minnesota Timberwolves 125-113 at home in game five.  

Jalen Murray helped the Nuggets' cause with 24 points while Spencer Johnson chipped in 20.  

Julius Randle led the injury-depleted Wolves with 27 points while grabbing nine rebounds.  

Minnesota, up three games to two, can still finish off Denver with a game-six home win on Thursday (time and television network and/or streaming service to be determined).

 

Stanley Cup Playoffs: Avalanche Complete Sweep Of Kings; Sabres. Ducks Take 3-1 Series Leads; Lightning Even Series With Habs At 2-2

 The Stanley Cup Playoffs continued on Sunday with four games.

EASTERN CONFERENCE:

At TD Garden, Boston:

Peyton Krebs, Josh Doan, Zach Benson, and Bowen Byram each scored a first-period, while Beck Malenstyn, and Alex Tuch each tallied once in the third period as the Buffalo Sabres defeated the homestanding Boston Bruins 6-1 in game four of their opening-round series.

Buffalo goaltender Alex Lyon saved 23 of 24 Boston shots.

The Sabres, up three games to one, can finish off the Bruins with a game-five victory at home on Tuesday at 4:30 PM PDT (TNT, TruTV).

At the Bell Centre, Montreal:

Brandon Hagel scored twice in the third period as the Tampa Bay Lightning squared their conference quarterfinal series with the Montreal Canadiens at two games apiece with their 3-2 game-four road win.

WESTERN CONFERENCE:

At Crypto.com Arena, Los Angeles:

Nathan MacKinnon scored twice (once on a power play, the other, an empty-netter) as the Colorado Avalanche complete a four-game opening-round series sweep of the Los Angeles Kings with a 5-1 road victory.

Colorado goalie Scott Wedgewood saved 24 of 25 Los Angeles shots.

At Honda Center, Anaheim, California:

Ryan Poehling scored the winning goal at 2:29 of overtime as the Anaheim Ducks defeated the visiting Edmonton Oilers 3-2 in game four of their conference quarterfinal series.

With a three-games-to-one advantage, the Ducks can close out this series with a game-five victory at Edmonton's Rogers Place on Tuesday at 7:00 PM PDT (TNT, TruTV).

NBA Playoffs: Raptors Tie Cavaliers At 2-2; Spurs, Celtics Take 3-1 Series Leads; Rockets Hold Off Elimination By Beating Lakers

 The NBA Playoffs continued on Sunday with four games.

EASTERN CONFERENCE:

At Scotiabank Arena, Toronto:

Brandon Ingram and Scottie Barnes (with nine rebounds) each scored 23 points as the Toronto Raptors evened their conference quarterfinal series with the Cleveland Cavaliers at two game apiece with a 93-89 home triumph.

Donovan Mitchell and James Harden scored 20 and 19 points, respectively, to lead Cleveland.

At Xfinity Mobile Arena, Philaelphia:

Payton Pritchard came off the bench to score 32 points while Jayson Tatum added 30 (to go with 11 assists) and Jaylen Brown 20 as the Boston Celtics smothered the homestanding Philadelphia 76ers 128-96 in game four of their conference quarterfinal series.

Josh Embiid scored 26 points and pulled in 10 rebounds to lead the 76ers while Tyrese Maxey added 22 points of his own.

The Celtics, who now lead three games to one, can finish off Philadelphia with a home victory in game five on Tuesday (5:00 PM PDT, ESPN).

WESTERN CONFERENCE:

At Moda Center, Portland, Oregon:

De'Aaron Fox scored 28 points while Victor Wembanyama added 27, while grabbing 12 rebounds, as the San Antonio Spurs came back from a 15-point deficit to smother the visiting Portland Trail Blazers 114-93 in game four of their conference quarterfinal series.

Deni Avdija paced the Blazers with 26 points while Jrue Holiday added 20. 

The Spurs, now up three games to one, can finish off the Blazers with a game-five victory back home in San Antonio (5:30 PM PDT, ESPN).

At Toyota Center, Houston:

Amen Thompson scored 23 points while Tari Eason added 20 and Alperen Sengun 19 as the Houston Rockets, with all five starters scoring in double-figures, avoided elimination by knocking off the visiting Los Angeles Lakers 115-98 in game four of their conference quarterfinal series.

Deandre Ayton led Los Angeles with 19 points while grabbing ten rebounds.

The Lakers, now up three games to one, can still close out the Rockets with a game-five home victory in the City of Angels (Wednesday, 7:00 PM PDT, ESPN).         

Stanley Cup Playoffs: Canes Complete Sweep Of Senators; Penguins Stay Alive; Wild Even Series With Stars With OT Goal

 Three games were contested as the Stanley Cup Playoffs continued on Saturday.

EASTERN CONFERENCE:

At Continental Tire Centre, Ottawa:

Sebastian Aho scored two empty-net goals as the Carolina Hurricanes defeated the homestanding Ottawa Senators 4-2 to complete a four-game sweep of their opening-round series.

The Hurricanes never trailed in this series.

At Xfinity Mobile Center, Philadelphia:

Sydney Crosby (power play), Rickard Rakell, Kris Letang, and Connor Dewar (empty net) each scored once as the Pittsburgh Penguins avoided elimination by defeating the Philadelphia Flyers 4-2 on the road in game four of their conference quarterfinal series.

The Flyers, up three games to one, can still knock out the Penguins with a game-five victory at Pittsburgh's PPG Paints Arena (4:00 PM PDT, ESPN).

WESTERN CONFERENCE:

At Xcel Energy Center, St. Paul, Minnesota:

Matt Boldy scored the winning goal at 19:31 of overtime as the Minnesota Wild squared their firs-round series with the Dallas Stars at two games apiece with a 3-2 home victory in game four.

NBA Playoffs: Knicks Level Series With HawksAt 2-2; Magic Lead Pistons 2-1; Thunder, Wolves One Game Away From Advancing

 The NBA Playoffs resumed with four games on Saturday.

EASTERN CONFERENCE:

At Kia Center, Orlando, Florida:

Paolo Banchero (12 rebounds) and Desmond Blake each scored 25 points as the Orlando Magic took game three of their conference quarterfinal series with the Detroit Pistons 113-105 at home for a two-games-to-one lead.

Cade Cunningham led the Pistons with 29 points (nine assists) while Tobias Harris added 23.

At State Farm Arena, Atlanta:

O.G. Anunoby scored 22 points (with ten rebounds) while Karl-Anthony Towns delivered a triple-double--20 points, 10 rebounds, ten assists as the New York Knickerbockers squared their conference quarterfinal series with the Atlanta Hawks at two games apiece with 114-98 road victory.

C.J. McCollum led the Hawks with 17 points.

WESTERN CONFERENCE:

At Mortgage Matchup Center, Phoenix, Arizona:

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 42 points making 15 of 18 shots from the field as the Oklahoma City Thunder outrun the hosts Phoenix Suns 121-109.

Dillon Brooks paced the Suns with 33 points while Jalen Green added 26.

The Thunder, now up three games to none, can complete a four-game sweep of Phoenix with a road victory on Monday at 7:30 PM PDT on Peacock.

At Target Center, Minneapolis:

Ayo Dosunmu popped in 42 points, making 13 of 17 shots from the field (including all five three-point shots) and converting all 12 free throw attempts as the Minnesota Timberwolves defeated the visiting Denver Nuggets 112-96.

Jamal Murray scored 30 points while Nikola Jokic added 25 (to go with 15 rebounds) to lead Denver.

The Wolves, who lead this conference quarterfinal series three games to one, can close out the Nuggets with a road win in game five on Monday (7:30 PM PDT on NBC).