The Playoff Buzzer: Pavelski returns for Game 7 to lead Sharks past Avs

By Ryan DadounMay 9, 2019, 12:13 AM EDT

- Joe Pavelski made his series debut and was a major impact player right out of the gate.

- The Avalanche thought they battled back from a 2-0 deficit, but their second goal was taken away because Gabriel Landeskog was ruled as being offside during a line change.

- Colorado out shot San Jose 15-2 in the third period, but the Sharks held onto the lead.

San Jose Sharks 3, Colorado Avalanche 2 (Sharks win series 4-3)

The Sharks didn’t confirm until nearly the last minute that Joe Pavelski would play, but the captain certainly made it worth the wait. He scored the opening goal and assisted on Tomas Hertl‘s marker to give San Jose a 2-0 lead by 11:35 of the first period. Meanwhile, Nathan MacKinnon left the contest early after crashing into the boards. Everything seemed to be trending towards a clean Sharks victory, but momentum swung to the Avalanche’s side when MacKinnon returned late in the first period and Mikko Rantanen scored with just seven seconds before intermission. Colorado seemed to tie the contest in the second, but the goal was overruled due to an odd offside call on Gabriel Landeskog. To add insult to injury, Joonas Donskoi scored a stunner midway through the second to put the Sharks up 3-1. Tyson Jost put the Avalanche back within one again early in the third period, but San Jose held on despite being out shot 15-2 in the third period.

Three Stars

1. Joe Pavelski, San Jose Sharks. This one is easy. Not only did Pavelski manage to rejoin the Sharks after suffering a scary injury in Game 7 of Round 1, but he was a huge factor in this game. He had a goal and an assist while logging 19:49 minutes of ice time. Only two Sharks forwards were used more in Game 7.

2. Tomas Hertl, San Jose Sharks. One of the two forwards who was used more. Hertl recorded 24:01 minutes of ice time, which is incredible for a forward in a game that didn’t go to overtime. No one on the Avalanche — forward or defenseman — matched Hertl in terms of minutes played. A big part of it was Hertl’s work on special teams. He got 4:39 power-play minutes and 2:42 shorthanded minutes. Of course, it wasn’t just how much work Hertl got in. He also contributed a goal and an assist.

3. Joonas Donskoi, San Jose Sharks. His goal proved to be the game-winner. It was his first marker of the playoffs after he scored 14 goals during the regular season. It wasn’t just how important the marker was though, it also was an amazing goal to cap a great sequence for San Jose.

Highlights of the Night
Pavelski’s deflection goal early in the game gave the Sharks an edge early on. The game had so many twists and turns so it might be a stretch to say that this marker defined the game, but it certainly made a big impact.

Factoids

The Sharks are the sixth team in NHL history to start their run with two Game 7 victories at home. [TSN’s StatsCentre]
This will be Peter DeBoer’s third trip to the Conference Final as a head coach. The other two times he got this far, his team ended up losing in the Stanley Cup Final.
The Western Conference Final will be a rematch of the 2016 series between the Sharks and Blues. San Jose won that one in six games.
Mikko Rantanen’s playoff run ends with him recording six goals and 14 points in 12 games.

Thursday’s Schedule

Game 1: Carolina Hurricanes at Boston Bruins, 8 p.m. ET, NBCSN

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Ryan Dadoun is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @RyanDadoun.

PHT Morning Skate: Mrazek set for Game 1 return? Holland knew it was Yzerman’s time

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By Scott BilleckMay 9, 2019, 8:00 AM EDT

NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs 2019: Round 3 schedule, TV info

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By James O'BrienMay 9, 2019, 12:14 AM EDT

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The NHL’s feverish field of 16 has now been whittled down to a fascinating final four.

The San Jose Sharks and St. Louis Blues emerge from Game 7s out West, while the Boston Bruins will take on the Carolina Hurricanes in the East. Could we see a first-time champion in the Sharks or Blues? Will the Hurricanes go from a decade of playoff misses to glory? Will Brad Marchand get a chance to lick the Stanley Cup?

We’ll begin to get answers very soon, as Game 1 of the 2019 Eastern Conference Final kicks off at 8 p.m. ET on Thursday on NBCSN. Here’s the full schedule and TV info, so you can start lining up sick days and excuses to leave family functions early.

Here is the complete schedule (All times ET, subject to change):

EASTERN CONFERENCE FINAL

Boston Bruins (A2) vs. Carolina Hurricanes (WC1)

Thursday, May 9, 8 p.m.: Hurricanes @ Bruins | NBCSN, SN, CBC, TVA Sports

Sunday, May 12, 3 p.m.: Hurricanes @ Bruins | NBC, SN, CBC, TVA Sports

Tuesday, May 14, 8 p.m.: Bruins @ Hurricanes | NBCSN, SN, CBC, TVA Sports

Thursday, May 16, 8 p.m.: Bruins @ Hurricanes | NBCSN, SN, CBC, TVA Sports

*Saturday, May 18, 7:15 p.m.: Hurricanes @ Bruins | NBC, SN, CBC, TVA Sports

*Monday, May 20, 8 p.m.: Bruins @ Hurricanes | NBCSN, SN1, CBC, TVA Sports

*Wednesday, May 22, 8 p.m.: Hurricanes @ Bruins | NBCSN, SN360, CBC, TVA Sports

WESTERN CONFERENCE FINAL

San Jose Sharks (P2) vs. St. Louis Blues (C3)

Saturday, May 11, 8 p.m.: Blues @ Sharks | NBC, SN, CBC, TVA Sports

Monday, May 13, 9 p.m.: Blues @ Sharks | NBCSN, SN, CBC, TVA Sports

Wednesday, May 15, 8 p.m.: Sharks @ Blues | NBCSN, SN360, CBC, TVA Sports

Friday, May 17, 8 p.m.: Sharks @ Blues | NBCSN, CBC, TVA Sports

*Sunday, May 19, 3 p.m.: Blues @ Sharks | NBC, SN, CBC, TVA Sports

*Tuesday, May 21, 8 p.m.: Sharks @ Blues | NBCSN, CBC, TVA Sports

*Thursday, May 23, 9 p.m.: Blues @ Sharks | NBC, SN1, CBC, TVA Sports

* if necessary

MORE: 2019 Stanley Cup Playoffs: Schedule, Bracket, Streams and More

For the third consecutive postseason, NBC Sports’ coverage of Stanley Cup Playoff first-round games on NBCUniversal cable networks (NBCSN, USA Network and CNBC), as well as NHL Network, will air side-by-side and will be available for streaming on NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app in local markets alongside regional sports network game telecasts. (Local blackouts apply in Las Vegas and Pittsburgh in the first round).

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James O’Brien is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @cyclelikesedins.

Pavelski, Sharks stave off scrappy Avalanche in Game 7

By James O'BrienMay 8, 2019, 11:43 PM EDT

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Joe Thornton and the San Jose Sharks will continue their push for a first-ever Stanley Cup victory after eliminating the Colorado Avalanche in Game 7, but the biggest story of San Jose’s 3-2 win was the other Joe: Joe Pavelski.

Pavelski returned to the 2019 Stanley Cup Playoffs a full round after suffering a gnarly, tide-turning injury in Game 7 against Vegas, and this wasn’t just a Willis Reed situation where a hero makes a brief return, pops the crowd, and then just make a minimal actual impact. Instead, Pavelski was brilliant, particularly early on.

[NBC 2019 STANLEY CUP PLAYOFF HUB]

The courageous Sharks captain scored the 1-0 goal on a deft deflection, then fed Tomas Hertl with a beautiful pass to make it 2-0.

A lesser team would have wilted, especially when they saw a player like Nathan MacKinnon leave the ice with what sure looked like a separated shoulder, or something similar and significant. Instead, the Avalanche just kept fighting and fighting; while they’re entering the off-season nonetheless, it’s easy to envision this as the start of something big for Colorado.

Mikko Rantanen made it 2-1 late in the first, giving Colorado life. The second period sent more body blows to the Avalanche, as a would-be 2-2 goal for Colin Wilson was negated by a strange offside/too many men on the ice situation with Gabriel Landeskog; after that, the Sharks made it 3-1 … but Colorado still wouldn’t stop pushing.

The Avalanche sent, well, an avalanche of pucks toward Martin Jones during the third period, generating a 15-2 shots on goal advantage during the final frame. Only Tyson Jost could score on all of those chances, however, as Jones allowed the Sharks to get away with sitting on that lead.

Joonas Donskoi‘s 3-1 goal was rare. It was also the game-winner, and awfully pretty:

Brent Burns ranked among the other non-Pavelski stars for the Sharks in Game 7, generating two primary assists. The Sharks boast more weapons than the Avs – and arguably most, if not every, other team in the NHL – and it showed on nights like these. The Avalanche have plenty to build on, but they fell short of the finish line versus San Jose.

And now, we have the final four locked up, as the Sharks will take on the St. Louis Blues in Round 3. That figures to be a rugged, tightly-matched series, and one that could very well test San Jose in new ways. In other words, it should be a blast.

The Sharks will be glad they have leaders like Joe Pavelski then, as they were delighted to deploy him – finally, somehow – in Game 7 on Wednesday.

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James O’Brien is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @cyclelikesedins.

Pavelski makes quick Game 7 impact, MacKinnon shakes off injury

By Ryan DadounMay 8, 2019, 10:00 PM EDT

1 Comment

Joe Pavelski‘s return for Game 7 has already proven to be huge for the San Jose Sharks. Meanwhile, the Avalanche lost Nathan MacKinnon for a chunk of the first, but the news for them isn’t as dreary as it initially seemed.

Pavelski’s fingerprints were all over the first period. He set the tone, scoring the opening goal on a deflection just 5:57 minutes into the game.

He also got the primary assist on Tomas Hertl‘s goal to make the game 2-0 and drew a penalty from Ian Cole. So it’s fair to say that Game 7 could have gotten off to a very different start if Pavelski wasn’t able to make his series debut.

The Avalanche weren’t nearly as fortunate early on. Less than two minutes into the game, MacKinnon ran into the boards during a power play and immediately left with what looked like a shoulder or arm injury.

Amazingly, he was able to return late into the first. We can’t know if he’s playing hurt or not, but for what it’s worth, he still managed to come close to scoring. To make matters better for the Avalanche, Mikko Rantanen scored in the dying seconds of the period, so at least they went into the intermission down by just a goal.

This is shaping up to be a wild Game 7.

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Ryan Dadoun is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @RyanDadoun.