Daily Stanley Cup playoffs – Leafs take control, flames are out

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8:29 am ET

  • Emily KaplanESPN

Does anyone know what's the interference of the goalkeeper? Bueller?

Ok, here's a recap of the action of last night (watch the replayed parts of each playoff game on ESPN +), and what to watch tonight in the edition of ### Today's ESPN Stanley Cup Playoffs Daily:

Go from the front: the games of last night | Three stars
Game of the night | Games today | Social position of the day

About last night …

Game 5: Toronto Maple Leafs 2, Boston Bruins 1. (Toronto leads series 3-2.) The series was chippy, but Friday night it was jerky; the ice conditions in a wet TD Garden were less than ideal and it slowed down. "Ice is really hard to play right now," admitted Brad Marchand. We will talk a lot about the interference of the goaltender who gave Toronto a 1-0 lead (maybe Patrice Bergeron said it best: "That could have happened without one or the other. "Other way"), but the Maple Leafs have managed a great defensive effort on the road. including stopping the three Boston power games.

to play

0:31

After two periods without points, Auston Matthews and Kasperi Kapanen placed the puck on the back of the net while the Maple Leafs won the match 5 2-1.

Part 5: Colorado Avalanche 5, Calgary Flames 1. (Colorado wins the series, 4-1.) The Avalanche took the momentum from overtime winner Nathan MacKinnon in Game 2 and thwarted the first-seeded West Swagger, winning four straight wins. With the season in play, Johnny Gaudreau could not buy a goal. Johnny Hockey had a penalty shot stopped, a broken breakaway, and then when he thought he'd scored in the second period, it was interference from the goalkeeper. It was a disappointing end to a spectacular season for Calgary, but at least they have other Cup contenders with whom they can wallow.

Three stars

1. Auston Matthews, C, Toronto Maple Leafs. When the game needed a hero, the young American imposed himself. After scoring a goal in his first nine playoff games (all against the Bruins), Matthews now has four goals in his last three. Matthews' four goals in the first five games of a playoff series are most marked by a Maple Leafs player since Alexander Mogilny in 2003. This is not just the goal that made the center of the head. "It was his best 200 feet [game] playoffs, "said Mike Babcock.

2. Mikko Rantanen, RW, Colorado Avalanche. The emergence of the Finnish in this series is a boon to the Avalanche. The top winger has missed the last eight regular-season games due to an injury, but he's recovered well. Rantanen scored two goals and added help in the fifth match.

3. Frederik Andersen, G, Toronto Maple Leafs. The defense played well in front of him, but we must not forget that the Toronto goaltender has stopped 28 shots for a win on the road and his team is about to win its first playoff in 15 years. The Dane was sharp.

Game of the night

Tic tac toe, it's a beauty.

Dud of the night

It was the most important game of the Calgary Flames season, and their fourth highest paid player, James Neal. He was in good health. The 31-year-old striker signed a five-year deal, worth $ 28.75 million, but underperformed. He has seven career goals this season, reducing his ice time to 14:57 per game. .

On the calendar

Dallas Stars vs. Nashville Predators, Game 5, 3 pm ET. (Series tied, 2-2)

Nashville has one of the first most talented teams in the league, but it is Mr.I.A. these series. In four games, Ryan Johansen, Viktor Arvidsson and Filip Forsberg combined for only two points. The Preds also want to put a stop to capital punishment; they took 22 penalties in four games and allowed three power play goals in their fourth game draw. As for the stars? Suddenly, the secondary notation is no longer a problem. Thanks to rookies Roope Hintz and Mats Zuccarello, the latter having exceeded expectations since his return from injury, for that.

Winnipeg Jets at St. Louis Blues match 6 at 7 pm ET. (St. Louis leads the series, 3-2)

If there is a resounding message that the Blues have sent this season, it is: never give up on them. A wild rally in the fifth match gave the Blues the opportunity to seal the first round of frustration today at home. The home victories have been elusive until now in this series; it's only for the fourth time in Stanley Cup playoff history that the team on the road wins each of the first five games of the best-of-seven series. The Jets, a team built to win a Stanley Cup now, will be tested for grain. "Everything is mental," said coach Paul Maurice about the surprise home defeat in Game 5.

Carolina Hurricanes at Washington Capitals, Game 5, 8 pm ET. (Series tied, 2-2)

He begins to test, but he also tests the depth of both teams. The canes are without three regular fronts: Micheal Ferland, Andrei Svechnikov and Jordan Martinook. The Caps suffered a huge loss in Match 4 when winger T.J. Oshie – an energetic and emotional leader – crashed against the boards at the end of the third period. Coach Todd Reirden said that Oshie would be absent "in a while". Oshie will miss a lot on the ice and in the locker room, but the Caps will get a boost by reminding Devante Smith-Pelly, a popular Stanley Cup hero last year and a popular player among his teammates.

Social position of the day

Okay, so these are not the NHL playoffs … but here's your periodic reminder that the mullet always has it in him.

To note

"You do not want to start selling it, I imagine that if I came across a ball there, the situation would have been different," Tuukka Rask said of the guardian's interference that allowed in Toronto to score 1-0. lead in the third period.

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