Tkachuk and Domi made headlines on Day 4 of the NHL’s Stanley Cup playoffs – but it wasn’t Keith and Tie.
The last time Keith Tkachuk and Tie Domi were in the playoffs at the same time was in 2004. This time, it was the Florida Panthers’ Matthew Tkachuk and Toronto Maple Leafs’ Max Domi scoring important goals on Tuesday night, although Ottawa Senators captain Brady Tkachuk recorded his first career goal as well.
Here are the key storylines from each game.
Carolina Hurricanes Defeat New Jersey Devils 3-1 (CAR leads series 2-0)
Carolina Hurricanes goaltender Frederik Andersen took over the spotlight in Game 2 against the New Jersey Devils. In a low-scoring 2-1 win for the Hurricanes, Andersen made 25 stops on 26 shots to record a .962 save percentage.
Aside from the opening five minutes of the game when they scored, the Devils didn’t have many grade-A chances. According to naturalstattrick.com, New Jersey had seven high-danger chances, while Carolina had 15.
Although the Hurricanes controlled most of this game, the Devils put up a strong fight defensively. Brett Pesce kept the game close, with six blocked shots and two goal-line clearances.
Devils coach Sheldon Keefe liked his team’s game as the series moves to New Jersey for two games.
“I liked a lot about our game today,” Keefe said. “We showed attitude, we showed competitiveness, we showed care.”
Toronto Maple Leafs Defeat Ottawa Senators 3-2 OT (TOR leads series 2-0)
The Toronto Maple Leafs took Game 2 over the Ottawa Senators in overtime thanks to a Max Domi snipe. With that, the Leafs take a 2-0 series lead for the first time since 2002 against the New York Islanders.
Max isn’t the first Domi to score a game-winner against the Senators in the playoffs. His father, Tie, scored a game-winning goal in Game 5 of their first-round series against the Sens in 2004.
Domi’s reaction to his goal?
“Big win, on to the next one now,” he told reporters.
Ottawa had a tough time hitting the net in the third period with only three shots on goal. Nonetheless, the Senators forced overtime with a goal from Adam Gaudette. With that, they applied heavy offensive pressure on the Leafs, which coach Travis Green praised.
“I really liked the way we played tonight,” Green told reporters. “To play a road game like that was encouraging for our team.”
The Senators will get another crack at the Maple Leafs on Thursday at the Canadian Tire Centre.
Florida Panthers Defeat Tampa Bay Lightning 6-2 (FLA leads series 1-0)
It took four days from the opening night of the playoffs before fans could see the Battle of Florida between the Florida Panthers and Tampa Bay Lightning. However, Game 1 might not have ended the way many would’ve anticipated.
Speaking of waiting, Matthew Tkachuk finally returned to the Panthers roster after being out with a lower-body injury since the 4 Nations Face-Off. He made his presence known, scoring two goals and an assist in his return, all on the power play.
The Panthers went on to steamroll the Lightning in a 6-2 win on the road to set the tone for the series. Defenseman Nate Schmidt added another two goals past Andrei Vasilevskiy, who had a rough outing for the Bolts.
It was a night to forget for Vasilevskiy, who finished the game with a .625 SP, allowing six goals on 16 shots.
The third period was when things got out of hand for Tampa Bay. They allowed three goals that sucked the energy out of the team. The Lightning challenged Schmidt’s first goal and lost the argument, which then led to another goal 14 seconds later on the power play.
Eventually, they added a third, and fans began to leave Amalie Arena early.
“You have to stop the bleeding,” Victor Hedman said to reporters.
Minnesota Wild Defeat Vegas Golden Knights 5-2 (Series Tied 1-1)
The Minnesota Wild flipped the script on the Vegas Golden Knights in Game 2, with a 5-2 win. It was a hot start for the Wild, scoring three goals in the opening period past Adin Hill, to give the team a large cushion for the rest of the contest.
Minnesota’s first line led the way, with Kirill Kaprizov making multiple highlight plays in the game. He started with a shoulder-high, breakaway pass to Matt Boldy, who opened the scoring. Boldy has three goals and four points, while Kaprizov has two goals and five points in this series.
“I think (Joel Eriksson Ek, Boldly, and Kaprizov), they play a playoff-style type of hockey,” Wild coach John Hynes told reporters. “They play north. They play direct. They can use their competitive level in combination with skill. It gives them a chance to be a line that’s hard to play.”
Kaprizov iced the game with 2:26 left on the clock with the empty net. While protecting their lead, he pounced on a loose puck after a save from Filip Gustavsson and threw it the length of the ice, into Vegas’ empty net to secure the win.
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