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Defector

Ray Ratto

Nathan MacKinnon of the Colorado Avalanche smiles during warmups ahead of Round Two Game Two of the Stanley Cup Playoffs against the Minnesota Wild.

The Colorado Avalanche Don’t Need Luck

Lauren Theisen

Taylor Hall #71 of the Carolina Hurricanes celebrates after scoring the game-winning goal

Could This Finally Be The Hurricanes’ Year?

What The Hell Was That?

Barry Petchesky

TAMPA, FLORIDA - MAY 03: Nikita Kucherov #86 of the Tampa Bay Lightning reacts after the 2-1 defeat against the Montréal Canadiens in Game Seven of the First Round of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Amalie Arena on May 03, 2026 in Tampa, Florida. (Photo by Mike Carlson/Getty Images)

Tampa Lost An Unlosable Game

Jakub Dobes #75, Alexandre Carrier #45 and Kaiden Guhle #21 of the Montréal Canadiens celebrate after defeating the Tampa Bay Lightning 2-1 in Game Seven of the First Round of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs on May 3, 2026.

The Canadiens Butted Their Way Into An Upset

Logan Stankoven #22 of the Carolina Hurricanes shoots the puck for a goal against goalie Dan Vladar #80 of the Philadelphia Flyers in Game One of the Second Round of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs.

The Hurricanes Aim To Keep It Boring

ANAHEIM, CA - APRIL 30: Jackson LaCombe #2 and Leo Carlsson #91 of the Anaheim Ducks celebrate a goal scored in the first period of the game against the Edmonton Oilers in Game Six of the First Round of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Honda Center on April 30, 2026 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by Debora Robinson/NHLI via Getty Images)

Duck, Duck, Goals!

Vegas And Utah Are Murder On Early Bedtimes

TAMPA, FL - APRIL 29: Montréal Canadiens right wing Ivan Demidov (93) checks Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman Emil Lilleberg (78) into the boards in the third period during game five of the first round playoff series between the Montreal Canadians and the Tampa Bay Lightning on Wednesday, April 29. 2026 at Benchmark Intl Arena in Tampa, FL (Photo by Peter Joneleit/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

These Canadiens Will Not Be Pushed Around

DALLAS, TX - APRIL 28: Minnesota Wild goaltender Jesper Wallstedt (30) blocks a shot during the Stanley Cup Playoffs First Round game 5 between the Dallas Stars and the Minnesota Wild on April 28, 2026 at American Airlines Center in Dallas, TX. (Photo by Matthew Pearce/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

They Don’t Call Him Jesper Sievestedt

ANAHEIM, CALIFORNIA - APRIL 26: Connor Murphy #5 , Trent Frederic #10, Darnell Nurse #25 and Tristan Jarry #35 of the Edmonton Oilers fill the goal after a shot by Ryan Poehling #25 of the Anaheim Ducks trickled over the line for a goal during the overtime period of Game Four of the First Round of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Honda Center on April 26, 2026 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)

The Oilers, As Usual, Have Bigger Problems

PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA - APRIL 22: Trevor Zegras #46 of the Philadelphia Flyers celebrates his second period power-play goal against the Pittsburgh Penguins with teammates Christian Dvorak #22, Travis Konecny #11, Matvei Michkov #39, Cam York #8(all in the penalty box), and Jamie Drysdale #9 in Game Three of the First Round of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs at the Xfinity Mobile Arena on April 22, 2026 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Len Redkoles/NHLI via Getty Images)

Philadelphia’s Hottest Club Is The Penalty Box

Brandon Hagel #38 of the Tampa Bay Lightning cheers on the crowd as heads to the penalty box after a fight against the Montréal Canadiens

This Frickin’ Guy

Frederik Andersen #31 of the Carolina Hurricanes makes a save against Michael Amadio

Can’t Miss That

EDMONTON, CANADA - APRIL 20: Kasperi Kapanen #42 of the Edmonton Oilers scores a first-period goal against Lukas Dostal #1 of the Anaheim Ducks during Game One of the First Round of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Rogers Place on April 20, 2026, in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. (Photo by Andy Devlin/NHLI via Getty Images)

Connor McWhovid?

BUFFALO, NEW YORK - APRIL 19: Mattias Samuelsson #23 of the Buffalo Sabres celebrates his third period goal against the Boston Bruins with Jack Quinn #22 and Jason Zucker #17 in Game One of the First Round of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs at KeyBank Center on April 19, 2026 in Buffalo, New York. (Photo by Bill Wippert/NHLI via Getty Images)

It Ain’t Over Till It’s Buffalover

Charle-Edouard D'Astous #51 of the Tampa Bay Lightning and Alexandre Texier #85 of the Montréal Canadiens fight during the second period at the Bell Centre

The Sweeties And Enemies Of The NHL Playoffs

DENVER, COLORADO - APRIL 09: Nathan MacKinnon #29 of the Colorado Avalanche skates against the Calgary Flames prior to the game at Ball Arena on April 9, 2026 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Michael Martin/NHLI via Getty Images)

The Avs Have Won Nothing

OTTAWA, CANADA - OCTOBER 24: Anton Forsberg #31 of the Ottawa Senators and Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen #1 of the Buffalo Sabres shake hands after a ceremonial face-off recognizing Craig Anderson after he signed a one-day contract to retire as a member of the Ottawa Senators at Canadian Tire Centre on October 24, 2023 in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. (Photo by André Ringuette/NHLI via Getty Images)

2026 nhl playoffs