What You Missed From Day Six Of The Stanley Cup Qualifiers

Posted on August 6, 2020 by Harrison Brown
Chase Agnello-Dean:Getty ImagesPhoto: Chase Agnello-Dean/Getty Images

Thursday’s Stanley Cup Qualifier action saw two shutouts, a big comeback, and the second team advance to the 2020 Stanley Cup Playoffs. Miss anything? NoVa Caps has you covered.

The Vancouver Canucks took a 2-1 series lead against the Minnesota Wild with a 3-0 win in Game 3 at Rogers Place on Thursday. Forward Brock Boeser opened the scoring, burying center Elias Pettersson’s blast from the dot that was stopped by Wild goaltender Alex Stalock into a wide-open net at 13:49 of the second on the power-play. Forward Antoine Roussel extended the lead to 2-0, going backhand and to the glove-side of Stalock on a breakaway. Pettersson would score off a two-on-one rush after defenseman Quinn Hughes fed him across the ice on the power-play to make it 3-0 with 1:22 left. Canucks goaltender Jacob Markstrom made 27 saves while Stalock stopped 26 shots that came his way. Game 4 is set for Friday at 10:45 PM ET, which can be seen on NBCSN.

The Philadelphia Flyers (2-0-0) defeated the Washington Capitals (0-1-1) by a score of 3-1 in the second round-robin game for both teams. Flyers forward Scott Laughton buried the first goal of the game into a wide-open net after forward Travis Konecny fed him all alone in front of the cage from the side of the net to make it 1-0 Philadelphia 13:03 into the first. Defenseman Travis Sanheim sneaked behind the Capitals’ defense and beat Capitals goaltender Braden Holtby to the high blocker after deking back and forth and getting a feed from center Kevin Hayes along the right half-wall to make it 2-0 at 11:30. Laughton buried one blocker-side after sneaking behind the Capitals’ defense and getting a no-look cross-ice feed from center Kevin Hayes for his second of the game to make it 3-0 8:37 into the third. Center Travis Boyd cut the Flyers’ lead to 3-1, deflecting forward Carl Hagelin’s shot from the half-wall in the slot past goaltender Brian Elliott 12 seconds later. Holtby made 18 saves for the Capitals while Flyers goaltender Brian Elliott recorded 16. The Capitals finish off their round-robin tournament against the Boston Bruins (0-2-0) on Sunday while the Flyers do the same against the Tampa Bay Lightning (2-0-0) on Saturday. Times and television information have yet to be released for both games.

The St. Louis Blues, who led the Western Conference during the regular season, fell to the Vegas Golden Knights by a score of 6-4 in each club’s second round-robin contest, which included a six-goal second period. The Blues cannot earn the top spot in the West for the tournament. Forward David Perron slid one through the five-hole of goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury after getting a feed to the slot from forward Zach Sanford, who was in the left dot, to give the Blues a 1-0 lead at 4:02 of the first. Defenseman Colton Parayko gave the Blues a 2-0 lead down low, pitchforking center Brayden Schenn’s feed in the crease into the net 1:45 into the second. Golden Knights defenseman Shea Theodore cut the lead in half with a wrister from up top on the power-play at 6:50 of the second. Forward Alex Tuch tied it up for Vegas 3:57 later, tucking the rebound off of defenseman Nick Holden’s initial shot into an open net at the side of the goal. Tuch gave the Golden Knights the lead on the backhand after accidentally blocking forward Reilly Smith’s initial shot with 6:47 left in the second. Parayko stuffed a rebound attempt with 5:53 to go and forward Troy Brouwer buried a cross-ice feed from center Tyler Bozak from the left circle 21 seconds later. Defenseman Zach Whitecloud tied it again, pinching in down low and ripping one high blocker-side after getting fed by center Nic Roy behind the net. Forward Mark Stone deflected defenseman Brayden McNabb’s pass into a wide-open net in front to make it 5-4 Golden Knights with 7:29 left. Theodore added one more with 5:11 left to make it 6-4, which would be the final. Fleury made 13 saves for the Golden Knights while Blues goaltender Jordan Binnington pitched 32 stops. The Golden Knights face the Colorado Avalanche (2-0-0) on Saturday and the Blues clash with the Dallas Stars (0-2-0) on Sunday in the clubs’ final round-robin games.

The Columbus Blue Jackets took a 2-1 series lead over the Toronto Maple Leafs with a 4-3 overtime win, who led 3-0 in the second period on Thursday. Defenseman Cody Ceci’s wrist shot from the blueline hit Blue Jackets defenseman Seth Jones in front of goaltender Joonas Korpisalo and went past him with 1:08 to go in the first to open the scoring for the Maple Leafs. Forward William Nylander jammed one in after some great puck movement by the Maple Leafs 7:08 into the second after getting a power-play. Forward Nick Robinson scored the first Stanley Cup Playoff goal of his career, one-timing a shot after forward Kasperi Kapanen fed him from behind the net 1:40 later to end Korpisalo’s night. The Blue Jackets cut the lead to 3-1 as center Pierre-Luc Dubois sniped one top shelf with Maple Leafs goaltender Frederik Andersen down and out after getting a cross-ice pass from defenseman Zach Werenski. Defenseman Seth Jones got Columbus back in it, firing from the top of the right dot with traffic in front to make it 3-2 with 12:33 left. Dubois tied it, calling his own number going backhand to forehand on a two-on-one blocker side with 9:12 left. Dubois capped the hat-trick and comeback 18:24 into overtime, going backhand top shelf on a breakaway to win it for the Blue Jackets. Korpisalo made 12 saves, and goaltender Elvis Merzlikins pitched 21 in relief while Andersen stopped 40.

The Calgary Flames defeated the Winnipeg Jets by a score of 4-0 to win the series, 3-1. Flames forward Dillon Dube gave the Flames the lead 3:21 into the game, finishing a third opportunity after his rebound effort off of defenseman Erik Gustafsson’s initial shot from the point was thwarted by Jets goaltender Connor Hellebuyck. With 0.7 seconds left in the first period, forward Sam Bennett slammed home a puck in front that was initially put on net by defenseman Noah Hanifan to extend the Flames’ lead to 2-0. The Flames added two empty betters to take a 4-0 lead, which would be the final. Flames goaltender Cam Talbot made 31 saves while Hellebuyck made 30. The Jets will now enter the NHL Draft Lottery, which will be held on Sunday.

Three Stars Of The Day

  • Laughton (PHI) – two goals, three points, +3 rating, three shots, 13:16 TOI
  • Dubois (CBJ) – three goals, OT winner, +2 rating, six shots, 27:30 TOI
  • Markstrom (VAN) – 27 saves on 27 shots, including eight for eight on the power-play

Friday’s Schedule

  • New York Islanders at Florida Panthers Game 4, 12 PM ET (NBCSN) – Islanders lead 2-1
  • Nashville Predators at Arizona Coyotes Game 4, 2:30 PM ET (NHL Network) – Coyotes lead 2-1
  • Pittsburgh Penguins at Montreal Canadiens Game 4, 4 PM ET (NBCSN) – Canadiens lead 2-1
  • Edmonton Oilers at Chicago Blackhawks Game 4, 6:45 PM ET (NBCSN) – Blackhawks lead 2-1
  • Maple Leafs at Blue Jackets Game 4, 8 PM ET (NHL Network) – … lead 2-1
  • Canucks at Wild Game 4, 10:30 PM ET (NBCSN) – Canucks lead 2-1

By Harrison Brown

About Harrison Brown

Harrison is a diehard Caps fan and a hockey fanatic with a passion for sports writing. He attended his first game at age 8 and has been a season ticket holder since the 2010-2011 season. His fondest Caps memory was watching the Capitals hoist the Stanley Cup in Las Vegas. In his spare time, he enjoys travel, photography, and hanging out with his two dogs. Follow Harrison on Twitter @HarrisonB927077
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