Jaden Schwartz, Vladimir Tarasenko have Blues close to Cup Final
ST. LOUIS — Jaden Schwartz is on a scoring run that has the St. Louis Blues dreaming big. Schwartz’s hat trick in Game 5 on Sunday helped give the Blues a 3-2 series lead against the San Jose Sharks in the Western Conference finals and set the single-season franchise record...
Blues move to brink of Stanley Cup final with 5-0 rout of Sharks
SAN JOSE, Calif. — From last in the league in early January all the way to the brink of their first Stanley Cup Final in nearly a half-century, it has been quite a ride for the St. Louis Blues. A remarkable turnaround continued Sunday with perhaps their most convincing win...
Sharks, Blues confident, and even, heading into Game 5
SAN JOSE, Calif. — The San Jose Sharks have been at their best this postseason when they had little margin for error. That’s probably why they feel comfortable heading home for Game 5 of the Western Conference final against the Blues after a lackluster start led to a Game 4...
Blues top Sharks to even Western Conference final
ST. LOUIS — Jordan Binnington made 29 saves to set a franchise record with his 10th playoff win this postseason, and the St. Louis Blues edged the San Jose Sharks, 2-1, on Friday night to even the Western Conference final at two games apiece. Tyler Bozak and Ivan Barbashev scored...
Bruins bring back NHL trophy superstition
Despite the best efforts of Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin, a championship NHL superstition just won’t die. After the Boston Bruins defeated the Carolina Hurricanes 4-0 Thursday night to complete a sweep of the Eastern Conference finals, captain Zdeno Chara did not touch the Prince of Wales Trophy. In 1997,...
Sharks not sorry for controversial Game 3 win over Blues
ST. LOUIS — Don’t tell San Jose coach Peter DeBoer his Sharks have gotten lucky during their playoff run. “It irks me when you use words like that because this is a team that we’ve played four or five elimination games, not moments, games, 12 to 15 periods of elimination...
St. Louis Blues fan, angry over missed call, hopes to raise money for blind
An angry St. Louis Blues fan is trying to turn the pain of a blown call that cost his team a playoff game Wednesday night into a fundraiser. John Randall, a fan from Chesterfield, Mo., has started a GoFundMe page in honor of Marc Joanette, the referee who missed a...
Sharks escape Blues in OT to grab 2-1 series edge
ST. LOUIS — Timo Meier handed a big win to Erik Karlsson and the San Jose Sharks. Karlsson scored 5:23 into overtime after the officials missed a hand pass by Meier, and the Sharks rallied to beat the St. Louis Blues 5-4 on Wednesday night to take a 2-1 lead...
Tuukka Rask’s roll has Bruins a win away from Stanley Cup Final
RALEIGH, N.C. — Tuukka Rask is stopping just about any puck playoff opponents can shoot his way — even the ones he doesn’t see. The goaltender has been dominant in the Boston Bruins’ six-game postseason winning streak that has them on the doorstep of the Stanley Cup Final. Just don’t...
Goalie switch can’t save Hurricanes vs. Bruins in Game 3
RALEIGH, N.C. — Chris Wagner and Brad Marchand scored 5 minutes, 7 seconds apart in the second period, and the Boston Bruins beat the Carolina Hurricanes, 2-1, on Tuesday night to take a 3-0 lead in the Eastern Conference finals. Tuukka Rask stopped 35 shots for the Bruins, who have...
Defensive switch helps Blues even West final vs. Sharks
ST. LOUIS — With the game — and perhaps the season — in the balance, assistant coach Mike Van Ryn of the St. Louis Blues made a decision. With the Blues battling with the Sharks in San Jose in Game 2 on Monday night, Van Ryn decided to tweak his...
Bro, Beau Bennett predicted Robert Bortuzzo’s huge goal for the Blues
Sure, it’s cliche. But Beau knows. Not necessarily how to score goals himself. Or stay healthy. We know how that went during his Penguins tenure. But Beau Bennett’s hunch about his good buddy Robert Bortuzzo came true during the Stanley Cup Playoffs on Monday night. Bennett tweeted a screenshot of...
Blues even series with Game 2 road victory over SharksVideo
SAN JOSE, Calif. — Defensemen Vince Dunn and Robert Bortuzzo scored second-period goals that helped the St. Louis Blues overcome another big game from San Jose’s Logan Couture with a 4-2 victory Monday night that tied the Western Conference final at one game apiece. Dunn’s second goal of the postseason...
Down 2-0, Hurricanes seek special teams spark against Boston
RALEIGH, N.C. — It doesn’t matter which team goes on a power play. The Carolina Hurricanes rarely seem to wind up with the advantage. Of all the teams that made it out of the first round of the playoffs, the Hurricanes have been the league’s worst when they’re up a...
Carolina captain Justin Williams sums up playoff loss with disgusting analogy
Playoff losses can be hard to swallow. Just ask Carolina Hurricanes captain Justin Williams. After his team suffered a 6-2 loss to the Boston Bruins on Sunday, Williams summed up the experience with an unappetizing analogy. “Sometimes you gotta eat a poop sandwich,” Williams said. “It doesn’t taste good. You...
First call: Kawhi Leonard’s dagger, Putin’s hockey stumble, LeBron being that dad
In “First Call” Monday, Kawhi Leonard’s unreal Game 7 buzzer-beater for Toronto. Vladimir Putin’s on-ice stumble. LeBron James is every sports dad you’ve ever known. Is this the dagger? That was play-by-play man Kevin Harlan’s question on TNT as Kawhi Leonard chucked up a potential series-winning shot to send Toronto...
Tim Benz, Mark Madden on Steelers RB situation, Pirates’ series win, Penguins model
In this week’s “Madden Monday” podcast, Mark Madden of 105.9 the X and the Tribune-Review joins me to talk about finding interest in the NHL playoffs without the Penguins’ participation. Are the Bruins more of a model for the Penguins’ reconstruction than the Islanders ever were? We get into the...
Luke DeCock: Things going south in a hurry for Hurricanes vs. Bruins
BOSTON — People talk about pushing the panic button like it’s always a bad thing. When things are desperate but not quite dire, there’s a lot to be said for staying the course, pushing a little harder, renovating instead of demolishing. Then there are those moments when there aren’t any...
Bruins open series lead by trouncing HurricanesVideo
BOSTON — Matt Grzelcyk scored twice — his first career multigoal game — and Tuukka Rask made 21 saves Sunday to lead the Bruins to a 6-2 victory over the Carolina Hurricanes and a 2-0 lead in the Eastern Conference finals. Connor Clifton had his first career NHL goal, Jake...
Timo Meier scores twice as Sharks take Game 1 vs. Blues
SAN JOSE, Calif. — Timo Meier scored twice and set up one of Logan Couture’s two goals with a hard hit, sending the San Jose Sharks to a 6-3 victory over the St. Louis Blues in Game 1 of the Western Conference final Saturday night. Meier’s hit on Alex Pietrangelo...
Five points that could help the Hurricanes in Game 2 against the Bruins
BOSTON — Here are five points that could help the Hurricanes even their series with the Bruins. 1. Touuggher on Tuukka The two goals the Hurricanes scored Thursday on Tuukka Rask both came with traffic on the doorstep, Sebastian Aho’s power-play deflection at the edge of the crease and Greg...
Charlie McAvoy’s back for Bruins, and now comes easy part
BOSTON — When he’s playing, Bruins defenseman Charlie McAvoy said, it’s easy for him to maintain his composure and concentrate on the game in front of him. Up in the press box, that’s the hard part. “I’m not a very good hockey watcher,” McAvoy said as he prepared to return...
Whalers fans still rooting, 22 years after the team’s move
HARTFORD, Conn. — For Mark Anderson, the opening game between the Carolina Hurricanes and the Boston Bruins was a trip down memory lane. Anderson was watching Game 1 closely Thursday night at a gathering in suburban Hartford as the Bruins rallied to beat the Hurricanes, 5-2, behind four goals in...
Bruins run away with Game 1 against HurricanesVideo
BOSTON — Marcus Johansson and Patrice Bergeron scored power-play goals 28 seconds apart, and Boston scored four times in the third period to rally from a one-goal deficit and beat the Carolina Hurricanes, 5-2, on Thursday night in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals. Tuukka Rask stopped 29 shots...
Blues’ young star Robert Thomas playing beyond his years in Stanley Cup playoffs
ST. LOUIS — He is the youngest player on either roster in the Western Conference finals, but Blues rookie Robert Thomas is playing well beyond his age. Thomas, who won’t turn 20 until July 2, showed off the offensive skill and speed against Dallas that led St. Louis to make...
