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ANAHEIM 4 EDMONTON 3 OT (Series tied 2-2)
Jakob Sifverberg scored :45 into OT as the Ducks squashed a late 3rd period Oilers rally and knotted their series at 2 games a piece. Ryan Getzlaf was an absolute beast last night, scoring twice and assisting on the 2 other goals, and is making himself a serious candidate for Conn Smythe trophy discussion should the Ducks move on. The Oilers had charged out to a 2 goal lead in the 1st, Milan Lucic on the PP and Connor McDavid both set up by Leon Draisaitl. The Ducks stormed back in the 2nd though, with a Richard Rakell goal sandwiched between two from Getzlaf.
The Oilers battled back, and tied it late on Drake Caggiula's 1st of the playoffs. It seemed like they were in a good place, but before the crowd could return from the pee-in-the-sink lineups, Silfverberg potted the winner.
PITTSBURGH 3 WASHINGTON 2 (Penguins lead 3-1)
Folks, the Washington Capitals are at it again. With the Penguins missing Sidney Crosby and Connor Sheary, it looked like a prime opportunity to get the series tied up and head back to DC, but Marc-Andre Fleury wasn't having any of that, stopping 36 shots en route to a 3-2 win. The Penguins had blown a 2 goal lead, when Evgeny Kuznetsov and Nate Schmidt scored in just over a minute to tie it in the 2nd. That held up til halfway through the 3rd when Justin Schultz scored what proved to be the winner, setting up an elimination game at the Verizon Center Saturday.
One thing that the Senators need to do differently if they hope to head back for Game 5 up 3-1 is not wait too long to actually get going. The Sens were downright lackadaisical in Game 3 and let the Rangers back into the series as a result. Zack Smith, injured in Game 3 will be a gametime decision. Bobby Ryan, also dinged up, is good to go for tonight.
The Rangers meanwhile need to just keep doing what they're doing if they hope to tie up the series. They were pretty dominant in that game, though the Senators D gave them free reign all night long, and one would think there will be a focus to eliminate that from tonight's contest.
GAME DAY BATTLE HYMN
I think you can apply this song to the playoffs (for those of us who can actually watch when our boys aren't there), it's Isreal's HAMMERCULT with 'I Live For This Shit'.
Just a reminder, tomorrow sees Team Canada getting underway at the World Hockey Championships in Paris, and we will be here for all your daytime hockey open thread goodness!