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Stanley Cup Playoff Review April 18 2018
19
Apr

Stanley Cup Playoff Review April 18 2018 plus Selke Trophy Finalists Announced

Sharks sweep Ducks, will face Golden Knights in Second Round; Crosby leapfrogs Lemieux in Penguins’ Game 4 victory; Lightning take 3-1 series lead, Kucherov climbs franchise’s all-time list

WEDNESDAY’S RESULTS
The Sharks swept their First Round series with the Ducks, while a trio of teams took 3-1 leads in their series. 

SHARKS SWEEP DUCKS, WILL FACE GOLDEN KNIGHTS IN SECOND ROUND
Anaheim tied the game in the third period, but Tomas Hertl scored the clinching goal with 10:51 remaining in regulation as the Sharks swept their First Round series with the Ducks. San Jose swept a best-of-seven Stanley Cup Playoffs series for the second time in franchise history (also 2013 CQF vs. VAN).

The Sharks outscored the Ducks 16-4 through four games, highlighted by an 8-1 victory in Game 3. Elias notes that San Jose established a franchise record for fewest goals against in a playoff series (4), eclipsing the mark of seven set in the 2002 Conference Quarterfinals vs. PHX and matched in the 2004 Conference Semifinals vs. COL.

Martin Jones (30 saves) improved to 4-0 in the 2018 Stanley Cup Playoffs, with a 1.00 goals-against average, .970 save percentage and one shutout. He earned his 20th career postseason win with the Sharks to pass Antti Niemi (19) for sole possession of second place on the franchise’s all-time list among goaltenders, trailing only Evgeni Nabokov (40).

The Sharks will face the Golden Knights in the Second Round of the 2018 Stanley Cup Playoffs – the only other team to advance thus far. This marks just the eighth time in NHL history – and second time in the past 22 years – that two teams will meet after both sweeping their preceding best-of-seven playoff series. In six of the seven previous instances, the winner went on to win the Stanley Cup (including two instances where the meeting occurred in the Final).

CROSBY LEAPFROGS LEMIEUX IN PENGUINS’ GAME 4 VICTORY
Sidney Crosby (1-1—2) was one of four Pittsburgh players to post multiple points and Matt Murray turned aside all 26 shots he faced as the Penguins took a 3-1 lead in their First Round series. Pittsburgh holds an all-time series record of 14-3 when taking a 3-1 lead in a best-of-seven (82.4%).

Crosby boosted his career playoff totals to 62-111—173 (all w/ PIT) and leapfrogged Mario Lemieux (76-96—172) for the most postseason points in franchise history. Among active players with at least 50 games of playoff experience, only two others are franchise leaders for postseason points: Washington’s Alex Ovechkin (48-46—94) and Anaheim’s Ryan Getzlaf (37-83—120).

Crosby moved within two playoff points of tying Denis Savard (66-109—175) for 16th place on the NHL’s all-time list. He owns a 1.14 career points per game average in the postseason (152 GP), the fourth-highest in Stanley Cup Playoffs history (min. 150 GP).

Murray has posted a shutout in four of his last six postseason appearances dating to Game 5 of the 2017 Stanley Cup Final versus Nashville. He registered his sixth career playoff shutout overall and moved into a tie with Harry Lumley and Terry Sawchuk for the most by a goaltender before celebrating their 24th birthday.

The First Round between the Penguins and Flyers is the third series in Stanley Cup Playoffs history in which each of the first four games were decided by a margin of at least four goals. The others: 1946 Semifinals (MTL vs. CHI) and 1995 Conference Semifinals (DET vs. SJS).

LIGHTNING TAKE 3-1 SERIES LEAD, KUCHEROV CLIMBS FRANCHISE’S ALL-TIME LIST
Nikita Kucherov (2-1—3) factored on all three goals to help the Lightning take a 3-1 lead in their First Round series against the New jersey Devils. Tampa Bay holds an all-time series record of 4-0 when taking a 3-1 lead in a best-of-seven.

Kucherov (26-25—51) scored his 25th and 26th career playoff goals (all w/ TBL) to pass Vincent Lecavalier (24) for sole possession of second place on the franchise’s all-time list. He trails only Martin St. Louis (33-35—68) and Lecavalier (24-28—52) for the most postseason points in Lightning history.

Kucherov is the franchise’s all-time leader in multi-goal outings (7) and games with at least three points (8) in the postseason. He shares the League lead with nine points in the 2018 Stanley Cup Playoffs (4-5—9).

David Putty was there without Elaine! No Jerry Seinfeld either…no Jerry!


PREDATORS HANG ON TO WIN GAME 4
The Predators built a 3-0 lead and held off a late Avalanche rally to win Game 4 and go up 3-1 in their First Round series. Nashville holds an all-time series record of 2-0 when taking a 3-1 lead in a best-of-seven.

The Predators will host Game 5 at Bridgestone Arena, where they own an 11-2 record in postseason games since the beginning of the 2017 Stanley Cup Playoffs. All three of Nashville’s series-clinching wins in the 2017 postseason came on home ice (Game 4 of FR vs. CHI, Game 6 of SR vs. STL and Game 6 of CF vs. ANA).

The Predators have won 13 of their last 14 games against the Avalanche dating to April 5, 2016 (regular season and playoffs).

JETS MORRISSEY SUSPENDED ONE GAME FOR CROSS CHECKING

Winnipeg Jets defenseman Josh Morrissey has been suspended for one game for cross-checking Minnesota Wild forward Eric Staal during Game 4 of the teams’ First Round series in Minnesota on Tuesday, April 17, the National Hockey League’s Department of Player Safety announced today. The incident occurred at 16:38 of the first period.

Stanley Cup Schedule for Thursday, Apr 2018

Matchup

 Time

 Boston@ Toronto

 7:00 PM ET

 Washington@ Columbus

 7:30 PM ET

BERGERON, COUTURIER AND KOPITAR VOTED SELKE TROPHY FINALISTS

Centers Patrice Bergeron of the Boston Bruins, Sean Couturier of the Philadelphia Flyers and Anze Kopitar of the Los Angeles Kings are the three finalists for the 2017-18 Frank J. Selke Trophy, which is awarded “to the forward who best excels in the defensive aspects of the game.”

Members of the Professional Hockey Writers Association submitted ballots for the Selke Trophy at the conclusion of the regular season, with the top three vote-getters designated as finalists. The winner will be announced Wednesday, June 20, during the 2018 NHL Awards in Las Vegas.

Following are the finalists for the Selke Trophy, in alphabetical order:

Patrice Bergeron, Boston Bruins

Bergeron placed sixth in the NHL in face-off win percentage (57.3%, min: 750) and was a League-best 58.3% while shorthanded (min: 50). Bergeron also ranked first among NHL forwards in the individual puck possession metric SAT% (shot attempts percentage – min. 50 GP), as Boston registered 57.6% of all shot attempts when Bergeron was on the ice while each team had five skaters per side. The 14th-year Bruin has four career Selke wins, tied for the all-time lead with Montreal Canadiens forward Bob Gainey, who took home the prize in each of the first four years it was presented from 1978 through 1981. Bergeron is a finalist for a record seventh consecutive year, surpassing the six-year streak of Detroit’s Pavel Datsyuk from 2008 through 2013.

Sean Couturier, Philadelphia Flyers

Couturier tied for third place in the NHL in plus-minus with a +34 rating, the best by a Philadelphia player since John LeClair (+36) and Eric Lindros (+35) in 1998-99. Among forwards, he ranked second League-wide in total ice time (1,770:31) and third in average ice time per game (21:35). He logged an average of 1:53 in shorthanded ice time per game, nearly 50% more than the next Flyers forward. Couturier topped Philadelphia in puck possession with a shot attempts percentage of 53.2% (min. 50 GP) and ranked second on the team in face-off win percentage (52.8%, 529 of 1,001). The first-time Selke finalist is vying to become the first Flyer to capture the award since Dave Poulin in 1987 and third winner in franchise history (also Bobby Clarke, 1983).

Anze Kopitar, Los Angeles Kings

Kopitar led all NHL forwards in total ice time (1,810:58), an average of 22:05 per game, on the club that led the League in team defense, allowing an average of 2.46 goals a contest. He topped Los Angeles forwards in shorthanded ice time (2:10 per game) on the NHL’s top-ranked penalty-killing unit (85.0%). The 12th-year King ranked third League-wide in total face-offs and face-off wins with 1,816 and 983, respectively, setting career highs in both categories. He took 37% of his team’s face-offs, the third-highest percentage in the NHL, and his face-off win rate of 54.1% led the Kings and also marked a career best. Kopitar is a Selke finalist for the fourth time in five seasons; he placed second in 2014, third in 2015 and captured the award for the first time in 2016.

History

The trophy was presented in 1977 by the National Hockey League Board of Governors in honor of Frank J. Selke, one of the great architects of Montreal and Toronto championship teams.

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IPM Editor