STANLEY CUP PLAYOFF RECAP APRIL 28, PLUS NHL DRAFT LOTTERY ODDS

TALBOT, OILERS LEAVE ANAHEIM WITH 2-0 SERIES LEAD
Cam Talbot turned aside 39 of 40 shots he faced as the Oilers left Anaheim with a 2-0 lead in their Second Round series.

TARASENKO, BLUES EVEN SERIES AT 1-1
Vladimir Tarasenko scored twice – including the go-ahead goal with 3:51 remaining in regulation – as the Blues rallied from 1-0 and 2-1 deficits to hand the Predators their first loss of the 2017 Stanley Cup Playoffs and even their series at 1-1.

2017 NHL DRAFT LOTTERY TAKES PLACE TONIGHT
The 2017 NHL Draft Lottery, a weighted system utilized to determine the order of selection for the first 15 picks in the first round of the 2017 NHL Draft, takes place tonight in Toronto (8 p.m. ET,).

The 2017 NHL Draft Lottery will consist of three drawings: the 1st Lottery Draw will determine the club selecting first overall, the 2nd Lottery Draw will determine the club selecting second overall and the 3rd Lottery Draw will determine the club selecting third overall.

Participants in the 2017 NHL Draft Lottery include the expansion Vegas Golden Knights, who begin play in 2017-18, and all other teams that did not qualify for the 2017 Stanley Cup Playoffs (or the clubs that have acquired the first-round picks of those non-playoff teams).

The allocation of odds for the 1st Lottery Draw is as follows:
1. Colorado Avalanche: 18.0%
2. Vancouver Canucks: 12.1%
t-3. Arizona Coyotes: 10.3%
t-3. Vegas Golden Knights: 10.3%*
5. New Jersey Devils: 8.5%
6. Buffalo Sabres: 7.6%
7. Detroit Red Wings: 6.7%
8. Dallas Stars: 5.8%
9. Florida Panthers: 5.4%
10. Los Angeles Kings: 4.5%
11. Carolina Hurricanes: 3.2%
12. Winnipeg Jets: 2.7%
13. Philadelphia Flyers: 2.2%
14. Tampa Bay Lightning: 1.8%
15. New York Islanders: 0.9%
VGK assigned same lottery odds as team finishing 2016-17 regular season in 28th place

STANLEY CUP PLAYOFF MUSINGS

  • Oilers forward Patrick Maroon scored the game-winning goal against his former club
  • Predators defenseman Ryan Ellis (1-1—2) extended his point streak to five games (2-5—7), the longest such run by a blueliner in franchise playoff history
  • The Ducks suffered consecutive regulation losses for the first time since Oct. 13-15, their first two games of the 2016-17 season
  • The Hurricanes acquired goaltender Scott Darling from the Blackhawks in exchange for a third-round pick in the 2017 NHL Draft.

FRIDAY’S STANLEY CUP PLAYOFF RESULTS
Home Team in Caps
ST. LOUIS 3, Nashville 2 – series tied 1-1
Edmonton 2, ANAHEIM 1 – EDM leads 2-0

SATURDAY’S STANLEY CUP PLAYOFF ACTION
All Times Eastern
NY Rangers @ Ottawa, OTT leads 1-0, 3 p.m.
Pittsburgh @ Washington, PIT leads 1-0, 8 p.m.

Stanley Cup Schedule