Lightning 6, Panthers 2
Tampa Bay leads series 3-1
TTAMPA, Fla. — Alex Killorn scored a pair of second-period goals and the Tampa Bay Lightning rebounded from its first postseason loss to rout the Florida Panthers 6-2 and take a commanding 3-1 lead in the first-round Central Division playoff matchup on Saturday.
The reigning Stanley Cup champions pushed their intrastate rivals to the brink of elimination by scoring three first-period goals, then building their advantage to 5-1 when Killorn beat goalie Sergei Bobrovsky twice in a span of 94 seconds to break the game open.
Nikita Kucherov had a goal and three assists, while Andrei Vasilevskiy stopped 39 of 41 shots for the Lightning.
Anthony Cirelli, Yanni Gourde and Ondrej Palat scored in the opening period for Tampa Bay, setting the tone for a rough afternoon for Bobrovsky.
Islanders 4, Penguins 1
Series tied 2-2
UNIONDALE, N.Y. — Ilya Sorokin stopped 29 shots, Oliver Wahlstrom and Ryan Pulock each had a goal and an assist and the New York Islanders beat the Pittsburgh Penguins 4-1 in Game 4 Saturday to even the first-round series.
Josh Bailey and Jordan Eberle also scored for New York. Sorokin, who had 39 saves in the Islanders’ 4-3 win in Game 1, was back in goal after Semyon Varlamov started Games 2 and 3 — both losses.
Tristan Jarry had 23 saves for Pittsburgh, and drew mocking chants of “Jar-ry! Jar-ry!” from Islanders fans.
Game 5 is Monday night in Pittsburgh, and Game 6 back at Nassau Coliseum on Wednesday.
With the teams skating 4 on 4 in the third period, Pittsburgh’s Kris Letang was whistled for interference to put the Islanders on their third power play. Just as a penalty on Scott Mayfield was expiring, Wahlstrom fired a one-timer that was stopped by Jarry.
Maple Leafs 5, Canadiens 1
Series tied 1-1
TORONTO — Auston Matthews broke a tie early in the second period and the Toronto Maple Leafs beat the Montreal Canadiens 5-1 in Game 2 on Saturday night to even the first-round playoff series.
Matthews also had assists, William Nylander added goal and an assist, and Jason Spezza, Rasmus Sandin and Alexander Kerfoot, into an empty net, also scored. Jack Campbell stopped 22 shots, and Mitch Marner had two assists.
Jesperi Kotkaniemi scored for Montreal, and Carey Price stopped 29 shots.
The best-of-seven matchup between the Original Six rivals shifts to the Bell Centre for games Monday and Tuesday nights. The Canadiens won the opener 2-1.
The Maple Leafs were without captain John Tavares after he sustained a concussion and knee injury on a scary collision 10 minutes into Game 1.
Golden Knights 4, Wild 0
Vegas leads series 3-1
ST. PAUL, Minn. — Marc-Andre Fleury made 35 saves for his 16th career postseason shutout, Nicolas Roy scored twice and Vegas beat Minnesota 4-0 in Game 4 to take a 3-1 series lead,
Alex Tuch and Mark Stone each got their third goal of the series and Keegan Kolesar had two assists for the Golden Knights.
Game 5 is Monday night in Las Vegas.
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