LOS ANGELES — When the final horn sounded Saturday on the Los Angeles Kings' 1-0 matinee win over the Edmonton Oilers, Anze Kopitar made his way to center ice, a microphone in his hand and his heart in pieces.

"Thank you very much," he said to the fans, his voice cracking. "Thank you for being here."

Kopitar then held his hands in front of ...Read more

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — One team already knew its first-round playoff opponent, and the other was still trying to advance.

There was no confusing who was who.

The Nashville Predators held off the Minnesota Wild 2-1 Saturday at Bridgestone Arena for the Wild’s second consecutive loss.

The loss made it official that the Wild will finish third in...Read more

PITTSBURGH — Saturday’s showdown between the Pittsburgh Penguins and Washington Capitals was billed as potentially one of the final meetings between Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin.

Instead, Ovechkin spent more time on the ice at PPG Paints Arena with Joona Koppanen.

With Pittsburgh clinching a playoff spot and home-ice advantage Thursday,...Read more

SEATTLE — The 2025-26 Seattle Kraken will officially miss the playoffs.

In the end, it was out of their hands. There were at least seven ways the Kraken could have been mathematically eliminated Saturday, five of which had nothing to do with them beating the Calgary Flames.

About a half-hour before puck drop at Climate Pledge Arena, the L.A....Read more

DETROIT — For the 10th consecutive season, the Red Wings aren't going to the NHL playoffs.

Jesper Bratt scored his second goal of the game at 16 minutes, 26 seconds, giving New Jersey a 5-3 victory Saturday and sending the Wings home for the season.

Bratt scored on a feed from Jack Hughes on a 2-on-1 rush, shocking the fans at Little Caesars...Read more

BOSTON — The equation was easy for the Boston Bruins. Beat the Tampa Bay Lightning and they would clinch a playoff spot.

No dice.

The B’s coughed up a third-period lead and then gave up a late goal to come away with nothing in a 2-1 loss to the Bolts at TD Garden Saturday for their fifth straight loss (0-3-2).

That completed the season ...Read more

PHILADELPHIA — Joe Amodei attended a Flyers alumni golf tournament in 2022 as the guy he’d always been: a devoted fan who just wanted to hang with his heroes for an afternoon.

Having grown up in Northeast Philly, then Bucks County, he was in his early 20s when the Broad Street Bullies won their two Stanley Cups and, on Jan. 11, 1976, upheld...Read more

DALLAS — Wyatt Johnston does not need to be a mathematician to grasp that what he and his teammates are trying to do doesn’t normally add up.

To win the Stanley Cup, the Dallas Stars will have to at least reach the conference finals a fourth consecutive year. Can happen. Usually doesn’t.

“Even in my first year, everyone talked about ...Read more

SEATTLE — The Seattle Kraken lived to see another day, staving off playoff elimination on Thursday night at Climate Pledge Arena. Matty Beniers and Berkly Catton scored in a shootout and Seattle downed the Vegas Golden Knights, 4-3.

The Kraken needed a win and for the Nashville Predators to lose to the Utah Mammoth in regulation. The ...Read more

DALLAS – When all the shots, hits, punches, saves and goals were done, and the final horn sounded sending fans out into the warm Texas night, the message sent by the Minnesota Wild and Dallas Stars after 60 minutes of crazy, intense hockey was a simple one:

“Let’s get together and do this again next week.”

When they do, it will almost ...Read more

The San Jose Sharks’ playoff hopes were hanging by a thread even before they played the Anaheim Ducks on Thursday night.

They’re just about over now.

Looking for a response after a lopsided loss to the Edmonton Oilers the previous night, the Sharks instead allowed two goals in the opening seven minutes – and didn’t get a shot of their ...Read more

DENVER — The path to the Stanley Cup runs through Denver.

The Avs beat the Flames, 3-1, on Thursday at Ball Arena, securing the Presidents’ Trophy and home-ice advantage throughout the playoffs. MacKenzie Blackwood stopped 29 shots before finally yielding a goal late, while Gabriel Landeskog, Martin Necas and Nathan MacKinnon all lit the ...Read more

DETROIT — The odds are slim, the task of making of playoffs nearly impossible at this point. But the Red Wings showed Thursday they're not giving up.

Not at all, actually. Captain Dylan Larkin isn't going to allow it.

Larkin scored three goals — one each power play, shorthanded and sides skating 4-on-4— as the Wings powered to a 6-3 ...Read more

MONTREAL — The Lightning have been one of the league’s top road teams because they’ve gone into opposing arenas and taken control of games. They’ve quieted crowds. They’ve worn teams down. They’ve pulled out games late.

But during their final road trip of the season — one that in many ways is a dress rehearsal for the atmosphere ...Read more

ST. LOUIS — An April matchup between the Blues and Jets a year ago meant an entirely different thing.

Now, both teams entered Thursday's game clinging to faint playoff hopes in the Western Conference, one year after engaging in a seven-game first-round series. Thursday's 3-2 by the Jets kept their dreams alive, while all but extinguishing St....Read more

NEWARK, N.J. — The Penguins were projected to be one of the worst teams in the league this season. They missed the memo.

Pittsburgh clinched its first postseason berth since 2022 with a 5-2 win over the New Jersey Devils on Thursday at the Prudential Center.

Egor Chinakhov had three points for the Penguins. Evgeni Malkin, Sidney Crosby and ...Read more

SAN JOSE – The San Jose Sharks didn’t have much margin for error against Connor McDavid and the Edmonton Oilers on Wednesday night.

Now the Sharks have almost no room for error this season if they want to make the playoffs.

The Sharks fueled McDavid with too many penalties and mistakes and saw the NHL’s leading scorer put up five points,...Read more

SEATTLE — After the Kraken finish their third straight season without a playoff run next week, team architect Ron Francis is set to step down from his role as president of hockey operations.

The decision was mutually agreed upon, according to a team release.

“Ron and I agreed that this is the right moment to make a thoughtful transition ...Read more