Wild, Oilers even up series in a big way in Stanley Cup Playoffs

To make matters worse for the Blues, the blue line just keeps getting hurt. Defenseman Nick Leddy wasn’t able to play due to an upper body injury, so Calle Rosen took his place in the lineup, and then Robert Bortuzzo left the game in the first period after blocking a shot on the side of the head.

Mike Smith’s shutout — and lack of turnovers — help even up series for Edmonton

You’d be hard-pressed to find a story from Game 1 of the series between the Edmonton Oilers and Los Angeles Kings that didn’t talk about Mike Smith’s questionable play, especially his brutal turnover late in the third period that lead to the game-winning goal. He was definitely scrutinized for the play, with some people even calling for Mikko Koskinen to play the second game.

But, Jay Woodcroft went with Smith for Game 2, and Smith didn’t make him pay. He stopped all 30 shots he faced from the Kings, and helped the team to 6-0 shutout win. The win ended a personal 10-game losing streak in the playoffs for Mike Smith, as he hadn’t won since he got another shutout in Game 1 of the Western Conference Quarterfinals in 2019 against the Colorado Avalanche as a member of the Calgary Flames, and also ended a seven-game losing streak in the playoffs for the Oilers, who hadn’t won since Game 2 against the Chicago Blackhawks in their play-in series in 2020.

Smith also helped get the Oilers a call early in the second that led to the first goal from Leon Draisaitl with a strong performance after getting bumped by Kings forward Andreas Athanasiou. The Oilers followed up the scoring in the second with a Darnell Nurse shorthanded goal and another from Ryan McLeod late in the period.

The Oilers made it a blowout in the third period, as Evander Kane scored his first two playoff goals as an Oiler. Jesse Puljujarvi, who gets a lot of flak for his production, or lack thereof, playing in the top six, also scored in the third.

The bad news for the Kings didn’t start during the game, either, as they were absent forward Viktor Arvidsson for the game.

Injuries the big story in Carolina as the Hurricanes take a 2-0 lead over the Bruins

The Hurricanes continued where they left off in Game 1, outplaying the Bruins with a 5-2 win thanks to two-goal games from Sebastian Aho and Nino Niederreiter. There was still some cause for concern for the Canes in the series, as goalie Antti Raanta got hurt in the first period. Already without Frederik Andersen, the mantle fell on Pyotr Kochetkov, who stopped 30 of 32 in the win. There’s more on the Raanta injury, as well as Bruins defenseman Hampus Lindholm’s injury, here.

Tampa Bay take advantage of undisciplined Leafs team to even series

After a dominant performance in Game 1, the Leafs gave the Lightning every opportunity to get back into the series in Game 2, taking seven penalties over the course of the game. While they got another shorthanded goal, they were lit up by Tampa’s terrifying power play for three goals in the 5-3 loss. For a deeper dive into the game, check out Matt Larkin’s story on it here.