David Pastrnak scored on a feed from Hampus Lindholm 1:54 into overtime and the Boston Bruins beat the Toronto Maple Leafs 2-1 in Game 7 to clinch their first-round series and advance in the NHL playoffs.

Jeremy Swayman made 35 saves to lead the Boston Bruins to a 5-1 victory over the the Toronto Maple Leafs in Game 1 of their first-round playoff series.

Joseph Woll stopped 24 shots in his first playoff start, Mitch Marner and William Nylander had the goals and the Toronto Maple Leafs staved off elimination by beating the Florida Panthers 2-1 in Game 4 of their Eastern Conference semifinal series Wednesday night.

Sam Reinhart scored 3:02 into overtime and the Florida Panthers beat the Toronto Maple Leafs 3-2 to take a commanding 3-0 lead in their Eastern Conference semifinal series.

Morgan Reilly scored at 19:15 of overtime to give the Toronto Maple Leafs a 4-3 victory over the Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday night in Game 3 of the first-round NHL playoff series.

Phil Kessel matched the NHL record for consecutive games played, Chandler Stephenson scored the go-ahead goal early in the third period and the Vegas Golden Knights defeated the Toronto Maple Leafs 3-1.

The Columbus Blue Jackets made the biggest splash in NHL free agency, stunning the league by landing Johnny Gaudreau with a seven-year contract for $68.25 million.

The goalie carousel continues to spin even before the second day of the NHL draft begins.

Carter Verhaeghe set a Florida postseason record with a five-point night and the Florida Panthers escaped a three-goal deficit to beat the Washington Capitals 5-3 and take a 3-2 lead in an Eastern Conference first-round series.

Sam Reinhart tied it late in regulation, Carter Verhaeghe scored his second of the game in overtime and the Presidents’ Trophy-winning Florida Panthers beat the Washington Capitals 3-2 in Game 4 to tie the first-round series.

The pressure is squarely on the Florida Panthers, New York Rangers and Calgary Flames down two games to one in their respective first-round series.

Ilya Samsonov made 29 saves as the Washington Capitals beat the Florida Panthers 6-1 in Game 3 to take a lead in their first-round playoff series.

Aleksander Barkov and Carter Verhaeghe each had a goal and an assist, and the Florida Panthers topped the Washington Capitals 5-1 on Thursday night to even their Eastern Conference first-round series at a game apiece.

The eight playoff teams in the Eastern Conference have been set since before the All-Star break.

The first-round matchups are set for the NHL playoffs that begin Monday.

Most Russian players in the National Hockey League have remained silent about their country's invasion of Ukraine.

Alex Ovechkin had two goals in the third period, including the go-ahead score with 2:51 remaining, and the Washington Capitals topped the Detroit Red Wings 3-1.

Alex Ovechkin scored his 20th goal of the season and the 750th of his NHL career to help the Washington Capitals beat the Columbus Blue Jackets 3-1 and snap a two-game skid.

Garnet Hathaway a pair of goals during a two-minute span in the third period and the Washington Capitals snapped the Los Angeles Kings eight-game point streak with a 2-0 victory Wednesday night.

Alex Ovechkin got his 742nd career goal, Conor Sheary scored with 1:22 left and the Washington Capitals beat the Columbus Blue Jackets 4-3.

The New York Rangers locked up their goaltending by agreeing to sign Igor Shesterkin to a four-year contract.

Alex Ovechkin has re-signed with the Washington Capitals for $47.5 million over five years.

Trade deadline acquisitions are already paying big dividends for teams that have advanced to the second round of the NHL playoffs.

Players testing positive for the coronavirus late in the NHL's regular season and at the start of the playoffs affected multiple teams.

The Boston Bruins beat the Washington Capitals 3-1 to close out their first-round series in five games and advance in the playoffs.

David Pastrnak and Charlie Coyle scored 34 seconds apart to break the game open early in the third period and give Boston to a 4-1 victory over the Washington Capitals.

Craig Smith scored 5:48 into the second overtime to give the Boston Bruins a 3-2 victory over the Washington Capitals and a 2-1 lead in their East Division first-round playoff series.

The NHL has cleared the St. Louis Blues and Vegas Golden Knights after virus testing errors.

Brad Marchand scored 39 seconds into overtime and the Boston Bruins rallied to beat the Washington Capitals 4-3 and even the East Division first-round series at a game apiece.

Conor Sheary scored the overtime winner and the short-handed Washington Capitals beat the Philadelphia Flyers 2-1 to guarantee they’ll open the playoffs at home.

Daniel Sprong scored twice in injured Alex Ovechkin's place on Washington’s top line , Ilya Samsonov made 21 saves and the Capitals beat the New York Islanders 6-3.

Alex Ovechkin scored twice to move within one goal of Marcel Dionne for fifth place on the NHL’s career goals list as the Washington Capitals downed the Philadelphia Flyers 6-3.

Anthony Mantha had a two points in his Washington debut, Alex Ovechkin scored the 728th goal of his NHL career and the Capitals beat the Philadelphia Flyers 6-1.

Henrik Lundqvist says a checkup last week showed inflammation around his heart, a setback that will prevent the 39-year-old goaltender from playing for the Washington Capitals this season.

Mathew Barzal had three goals and two assists, Jordan Eberle scored twice, and the New York Islanders beat the Washington Capitals 8-4.

(AP Photo/Nick Wass)WASHINGTON – Capitals players and coach Peter Laviolette sounded as if they'd lost after holding on to beat the New York Rangers 5-4 Sunday. Washington has won 10 of 11 games to move two points up on the second-place New York Islanders and looks primed for another deep playoff run. “If there’s a trend, we want to address it,” said Wilson, who has five points in four games since returning from a seven-game suspension. And their best players are producing: Ovechkin has 11 goals in 11 games and leads the team with 18; Kuznetsov has 12 points in 10 games and Jakub Vrana picked up his first point in five games. Keith Kinkaid made 17 saves for the Rangers, who have lost back-to-back one-goal games after a three-game winning streak.

Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin (8) celebrates his goal with the bench during the first period of an NHL hockey game against the New Jersey Devils, Friday, March 26, 2021, in Washington. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)WASHINGTON – Alex Ovechkin scored twice, Ilya Samsonov made 24 saves and the Washington Capitals rode their best players to a 4-0 victory Friday night and two-game sweep of the New Jersey Devils. Ovechkin has scored 10 times in his past 10 games and has a team-best 17 goals this season. Nicklas Backstrom scored his 13th goal of the season, while Evgeny Kuznetsov and Tom Wilson each had two assists. With Ovechkin rolling, the Capitals have won nine of their past 10 games and are back atop the East Division.

Washington Capitals right wing T.J. Oshie (77) celebrates his goal during the second period of an NHL hockey game against the New Jersey Devils, Sunday, Feb. 21, 2021, in Washington. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)WASHINGTON – T.J. Oshie scored twice to end a lengthy drought, Alex Ovechkin had a late power-play goal and the Washington Capitals erased a two-goal deficit to beat the New Jersey Devils 4-3 on Sunday. Anderson and New Jersey's Aaron Dell each hadn't started an NHL game in more than 11 months. Ovechkin made Washington 3 of 4 on the power play, just his second goal on the man advantage this season. The Capitals and Devils each played at home Saturday afternoon, so this adjustment was possible.

New York Rangers left wing Alexis Lafrenire (13) scores a goal past Washington Capitals goaltender Vitek Vanecek (41) during the second period of an NHL hockey game, Saturday, Feb. 20, 2021, in Washington. Also seen are Capitals defenseman John Carlson (74) and Rangers center Mika Zibanejad (93). Lafrenière scored his second NHL goal, Panarin had two assists and the Rangers made the best of a new-look lineup, beating the Washington Capitals 4-1 Saturday for their second consecutive victory. Panarin set up Lafrenière on the doorstep late in the second period, and his shot provided the rebound for Chris Kreider's power-play goal in the first. Zibanejad's goal was just his second since last season after scoring 41 in 57 games in 2019-20.

Boston Bruins right wing David Pastrnak (88) celebrates his goal with the bench during the second period of an NHL hockey game against the Washington Capitals, Monday, Feb. 1, 2021, in Washington. Buoyed by their top scorer's first two goals of the season and a big rookie's fight against one of the toughest players in hockey, the Bruins erased a three-goal deficit to beat the Washington Capitals 5-3 on Monday night. “In the box, I was like a little kid in there just jumping around when we scored,” Frederic said. The Capitals had front-row seats for Pastrnak's breakout performance in his second game after undergoing offseason hip surgery. Former Bruins captain Zdeno Chara scored in his second game against his old team.

Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin (8), of Russia, celebrates his game-winning goal in overtime of an NHL hockey game against the Boston Bruins, Saturday, Jan. 30, 2021, in Washington. In his first game since Jan. 19, Ovechkin scored the overtime winner to help the Washington Capitals beat the Boston Bruins 4-3 Saturday night in a showdown between the top teams in the NHL’s East Division. After Ovechkin missed the previous four games because of COVID-19 protocols, the high-scoring forward showed his career-long flair for the dramatic by beating Tuukka Rask with a perfect shot 28 seconds into overtime. “It was fun,” said Ovechkin, who also had an assist while being eased back in with 14 minutes of ice time. The Capitals beat the Bruins for the 17th time in 19 regular-season games dating to 2015.

(AP Photo/Nick Wass)WASHINGTON – Jakub Vrana had a goal and an assist, Vitek Vanecek made 24 saves through overtime and the short-handed Washington Capitals beat the Buffalo Sabres 4-3 in a shootout Friday night in their home opener. Vanecek was perfect in the shootout to pick up his second victory of the season as defenseman John Carlson scored the shootout winner. Buffalo rookie Dylan Cozens scored his first NHL goal on a top-shelf snipe past Vanecek in the second period. Eric Staal and Riley Sheahan each scored his first goal since joining the Sabres. Linus Ullmark made 29 saves and was spotless in the shootout until Carlson beat him.

For Peter Laviolette, his Washington Capitals will keep playing for the next week without four prominent players who broke the rules. There's no indication the Capitals are being shut down, though they will have to play the next four games without captain Alex Ovechkin, No. The NHL defers to local authorities, and the minimum four games for the Capitals players relates to the District of Columbia's quarantine regulations. The Hurricanes have so far had three games postponed because of their outbreak and won't play for at least a week. I think that’s really what we’re going to find out.”___AP Sports Writers Aaron Beard and Stephen Hawkins contributed.

Five players from the Carolina Hurricanes also are on the list and that team’s games were called off by the league through “at least” Saturday. The postponements were announced Wednesday, a day before the Hurricanes were set to host the Florida Panthers in their home opener. This is the first instance this season of Capitals players appearing on the NHL’s COVID-19 list, which could include those who test positive, have a potential exposure or face quarantine requirements. The league didn’t specify which team prompted that night’s postponement, although four Hurricanes players — Warren Foegele, Jordan Martinook, Jaccob Slavin and Teuvo Teravainen — were added to the daily COVID-19 list later Tuesday afternoon. Their past five games have been postponed during a stretch in which six Wizards players tested positive for the illness caused by the coronavirus and three others were sidelined after contact tracing determined they might have been exposed.

DeSmith figured Ovechkin would try to fire one past him rather than deke his way to the net. DeSmith stayed upright as Ovechkin closed in and felt the familiar smack of rubber hitting him and not the net. “I thought our guys played hard in the second and third against a really good team,” Penguins coach Mike Sullivan said. While Sullivan remains confident Jarry will be fine, he turned to DeSmith to help get Pittsburgh going. Washington went 1 for 4 on the power play, a tap-in goal by Backstrom in the second that gave the Capitals a 3-2 lead.

DETROIT – Bobby Ryan was looking for a fresh start and a place to revive his career after it was stunted in part by alcohol issues. Ryan was sold on that happening with the Detroit Red Wings. The 33-year-old Ryan missed more than two months of last season after entering the NHL/NHLPA players assistance program in November, 2019. A decade ago, Ryan ranked among the league's top scorers when he had 35 and 34 goals in consecutive years. Simmonds signed a $1.5 million, one-year deal to bring some of what he called “functional toughness,” to the skilled team.

Lundqvist signed with the Capitals when free agency opened Friday, Oct. 9, 2020. (AP Photo/Nick Wass, File)Nets around the NHL will look very different next season after a flurry of musical goaltenders in free agency. "You saw the goalie carousel take place," said San Jose Sharks general manager Doug Wilson, who traded for goalie Devan Dubnyk this week. 1 goalies.”After trading Dubnyk to San Jose, the Minnesota Wild signed former Flames goalie Cam Talbot to an $11 million, three-year deal. After losing series to them in 2009 and 2011, Lundqvist eliminated the Capitals three times: 2012, 2013 and 2015.

The Rangers defeated the Capitals 6-5 in overtime; Zibanejad scored five goals. And, the last put him in the New York Rangers' record books and delivered them a big-time victory. Zibanejad is the first Rangers center with at least 35 goals in a season since Hall of Famer Eric Lindros in 2001-02. Zibanejad joined Don Murdoch (Oct. 12, 1976) and Mark Pavelich (Feb. 23, 1983) as Rangers with five goals in a game. That came after Zibanejad scored on a rebound with 1:42 remaining to give New York a brief 5-4 lead.