Jordan Binnington made 28 saves and snapped his nine-game postseason losing streak as the St. Louis Blues defeated the visiting Minnesota Wild 5-2 on Sunday to even the first-round playoff series at two games each.

Binnington, who replaced Ville Husso as starting goaltender, earned his first playoff victory since Game 7 of the 2019 Stanley Cup Final.

Jordan Kyrou and David Perron each scored two goals and Ryan O’Reilly had a goal and two assists for the injury-depleted Blues.

Kirill Kaprizov and Matt Boldy scored goals for the Wild, while Marc-Andre Fleury made 29 saves.

With veteran defensemen Torey Krug, Nick Leddy and Robert Bortuzzo all sidelined by injuries, the Blues dressed rookie Scott Perunovich and AHL emergency call-up Steven Santini.

Defenseman Marco Scandella also played, but he lasted just 1:34 before exiting the game with a lower-body injury. He missed the first two games of the series while injured before returning in Game 3.

The Blues built an early 14-3 shots advantage in the opening period and took a 1-0 lead after Pavel Buchnevich found Kyrou breaking through the slot. Kyrou fired a shot, got his own rebound and scored.

The Wild followed a 4-minute penalty kill by tying the game 1-1 with 5:54 left in the period. Jared Spurgeon fed Kaprizov in the slot for his fifth goal in the series.

Despite getting out-shot 18-5 and out-hit 11-6, the Wild escaped the first period with a 1-1 tie with the help of three penalty kills.

The Blues scored twice in a 54-second span of the second period to take a 3-1 lead. First Perron cut to his backhand and shoveled a shot through Fleury. Wild forward Marcus Foligno stepped in behind Fleury but failed to keep the puck out.

Then Kyrou broke in, cut to his backhand and beat Fleury cleanly.

Minnesota cut the lead to 3-2 with 17:21 left to play when Boldy scored during a goal-mouth scramble. But Perron’s empty-net goal with 1:28 left clinched the victory and O’Reilly tacked on a power-play goal with a minute remaining.

–Field Level Media

The Colorado Avalanche will be chasing a sweep when they visit the Nashville Predators on Monday for Game 4 of their first-round Stanley Cup playoff series.

The Avalanche took a 3-0 series lead after their 7-3 victory in Game 3 on Saturday. It was the second time in the series that Colorado has scored seven goals, and the Avalanche have outscored (16-6) and outshot (138-81) Nashville by lopsided margins during the series.

Despite those statistics, the Predators have been more competitive than the numbers and the 0-3 deficit would suggest. Game 2 was a narrow 2-1 overtime victory for the Avalanche, and Game 3 was tied 3-3 before Gabriel Landeskog gave Colorado the lead for good at 14:02 of the second period.

The Predators challenged Landeskog’s tally on a charge of goaltender interference, but a video review confirmed the score. Nashville was then assessed a penalty for the failed challenge, and Nazem Kadri added a power-play goal to extend Colorado’s lead.

Despite the devastating momentum swing, Predators coach John Hynes stood by the decision to request the review.

“Basically (every) goalie interference call that goes through, you review it, and in our opinion, you take all those things into account,” Hynes said. “But we felt in our review and judgment that it was goaltender interference.”

The risk was compounded by the fact that Colorado’s power play was on fire in Game 3, scoring four times on five attempts with the extra attacker. The Avalanche never scored more than three power-play goals in a single game during the regular season, while Nashville hadn’t allowed more than three power-play tallies in a game.

With the Avalanche scoring six power-play goals over the three games, the series has become a worst-case scenario for Nashville’s struggling penalty-kill unit. Between the Predators’ last nine regular-season games and their three playoff games with Colorado, opponents have scored 16 goals on 49 power-play chances.

Game 3 took a scary turn late in the first period when Avalanche goalie Darcy Kuemper had to leave the game after being accidentally struck in the face by Ryan Johansen’s stick. Fortunately, Kuemper wasn’t concussed on the play, and his swollen eye may not be severe enough to keep him out of the net in Game 4.

Pavel Francouz stopped 18 of 20 shots in relief of Kuemper, and will get the starting nod Monday if Kuemper is unavailable.

Kuemper’s status is another reason why the Avalanche are eager to end the series as soon as possible and start resting up for the next round.

“There’s no easy games in the playoffs,” said Landeskog, who had two goals and two assists in Game 3. “They’ve got their backs against the wall at home. They definitely don’t want to get swept at home, and we want to try to end this thing and don’t give them any life, so it’s going to be a big game on Monday.”

The Predators have their own issues in net, as it still isn’t clear if Juuse Saros (lower-body injury) will be able to play in the series. Rookie Connor Ingram has emerged as Nashville’s top goaltending choice with Saros out, and Ingram has a respectable .919 save percentage against the Avalanche’s high-powered offense.

The Predators have never been eliminated by a postseason sweep in their franchise history.

–Field Level Media

It had been nearly four months since any team had held the Florida Panthers to one or fewer goals.

The Washington Capitals, who accomplished that feat on Saturday afternoon, will try again Monday night when they host the Panthers in Game 4 of their first-round Eastern Conference playoff series.

Washington leads the best-of-seven series, 2-1, thanks in part to goalie Ilya Samsonov, who has stopped 46 of the 47 shots sent his way in the series. Samsonov played the third period in Thursday’s Game 2 loss and got the start in Saturday’s 6-1 win, his first-ever playoff victory.

“I stay ready all the time,” Samsonov said. “If you want to win (the Stanley Cup), you need 16 wins.”

The Capitals now need just 14 more victories after holding the Panthers to their fewest goals since a 5-1 loss at Calgary on Jan. 18.

Florida had the NHL’s best regular-season record. But the Panthers haven’t looked consistently sharp against the eighth-seeded Capitals, who still have a core of players remaining from their 2018 Stanley Cup championship team.

“A little bit of nervousness,” interim coach Andrew Brunette said of his Panthers. “Our power play hasn’t been as smooth as it normally is, but we’ll figure it out.

“As a 20-man group, we have to play better. Regardless of what you draw up, if you don’t play better, it doesn’t matter.”

The power play has separated these teams. Washington, led by superstar Alex Ovechkin, is 4-for-11 with the man advantage in this series.

The Panthers, led by Jonathan Huberdeau and his team-high 115 points in the regular season, are 0-for-9 on the power play in this series.

Huberdeau, who had the Panthers’ only goal on Saturday, now has 18 playoff points in his career, tying Ray Sheppard for the most in franchise history.

Washington’s T.J. Oshie made some history of his own on Saturday, scoring his 14th postseason power-play goal. That moved him past Peter Bondra for second place in Capitals history, trailing only Ovechkin (28).

Credit to slowing down the Panthers goes to Samsonov but also penalty-killers such as Trevor Van Riemsdyk, Nick Jensen, John Carlson, Lars Eller, Garnet Hathaway, Nic Dowd, Conor Sheary and Evgeny Kuznetsov, among others.

Look for some added grit from the Panthers, who feel like they didn’t give it their best effort in Game 3 even though they outhit the Capitals, 49-44.

“We weren’t ready to play (on Saturday),” Panthers defenseman Brandon Montour said. “Our energy level — we can say as much as we want in the locker room, but we get on the ice, and I don’t think we were on it.

“(The Capitals) have strategies to cover us, but we have to fight for every inch. We have to play harder. That’s where it starts. We have to dictate the pace of play.”

Brunette was asked how he wants his team to respond on Monday.

“Hopefully mad,” Brunette said. “Hopefully we can channel our anger and compete on pucks.

“The story written so far in this series is that we have been outcompeted and outwilled on nearly every puck battle. It’s something we will have to figure out.”

–Field Level Media

BOSTON — Brad Marchand scored a pair of third-period goals and had three assists as the Boston Bruins earned a 5-2 win over the Carolina Hurricanes to even their Eastern Conference first-round series at two games each on Sunday afternoon.

Boston began the third period on a 36-second 5-on-3 and capitalized as Sebastian Aho’s double-minor for high-sticking continued. At the 44-second mark, Marchand buried the go-ahead goal from the left circle following Charlie Coyle’s feed.

Patrice Bergeron finished with a goal and two assists. Jake DeBrusk and David Pastrnak each logged a goal and an assist, and Coyle added two helpers.

Game 5 of the best-of-seven series will be played Tuesday in Raleigh, N.C.

Jeremy Swayman earned his second consecutive victory, making 24 saves.

After Marchand netted the winner, Bergeron’s faceoff win set up a Pastrnak tally at 5:41. Off the draw, Marchand fed his fellow winger, who was open at the top of Antti Raanta’s crease.

Marchand finished his five-point game on an empty-netter with 34.4 seconds left.

The Bruins played without top defensemen Charlie McAvoy (COVID-19 protocol) and Hampus Lindholm (upper body). Coach Bruce Cassidy called Lindholm a “possibility” to play Tuesday.

Jordan Staal had a goal and an assist for Carolina. Brett Pesce also scored.

In his return from a Game 2 injury, Raanta made 23 saves.

Carolina was dominant through most of the first period, though it didn’t convert on two power-play opportunities. The visitors got on the board just after Boston completed its second penalty kill as Pesce scored in the slot, putting home Staal’s feed on the rush at 14:06.

The Canes held a 10-3 shot advantage when they took the lead.

Boston responded 2:03 later as Bergeron buried his third goal of the series. After Pastrnak centered the puck off the side of the goal, the Bruins captain was quick to tuck it past Raanta at the right post.

It didn’t take long — just 33 seconds — in the second period for Carolina to break the 1-1 tie. Staal crashed toward the net and nailed Nino Niederreiter’s backhand centering feed from the bottom of the left circle.

It didn’t take long — just 33 seconds — in the second period for Carolina to break the 1-1 tie. Staal crashed toward the net and nailed Nino Niederreiter’s backhand centering feed from the bottom of the left circle.

DeBrusk buried a loose puck in the blue paint to knot the score at 2-2 with 1:16 left in the second. To set it up, Marchand threw the puck toward the crease from behind the goal line.

–By Joshua Kummins, Field Level Media

The NHL fined the Dallas Stars’ Jamie Benn and the Washington Capitals’ Evgeny Kuznetsov $5,000 each on Sunday for high-sticking violations in Saturday’s playoff games.

The fines are the maximum allowable under the collective bargaining agreement. Neither forward was penalized in their respective games.

Benn, the Dallas captain, was fined for high-sticking Calgary Flames forward Andrew Mangiapane during the Stars’ 4-2 home win in Game 3. The Stars have a 2-1 lead in the first-round series, which resumes Monday with Game 4 in Dallas.

Benn, 32, has not scored in the series. He had 46 points (18 goals, 28 assists) in 82 games in the regular season.

Kuznetsov was fined for high-sticking Florida Panthers forward Noel Acciari during the Capitals’ 6-1 home win in Game 3. Washington leads the first-round series 2-1 and hosts Game 4 on Monday night.

Kuznetsov, 29, has one goal in the series. He tallied 78 points (24 goals, 54 assists) in 79 games during the regular season.

–Field Level Media

The first-round playoff matchup between the Pittsburgh Penguins and visiting New York Rangers has heated up off the ice going into Game 4 on Monday.

But they’re not sniping at each other. Rather, both clubs are expressing faith in their own game.

Perhaps that is at least partly due to the way the series has arrived at the Penguins leading 2-1 — a 4-3 triple-overtime Pittsburgh win, a 5-2 Rangers win and Saturday, as the series shifted to Pittsburgh, a 7-4 Penguins win that featured New York erasing a three-goal deficit only to have Pittsburgh seal it with three goals in the third period.

Game 4 also is in Pittsburgh.

“We believe in ourselves,” said Penguins goaltender Louis Domingue, the organization’s third-stringer who has been pressed into starting duty because of injuries.

“Once you enter the dance, any team can win. We entered the series maybe as the underdog, but we certainly feel like we belong.”

Domingue came in cold in the second overtime of Game 1. Pittsburgh’s No. 1 goalie Tristan Jarry skated separately from the team Saturday morning, but his return from a suspected broken foot does not seem imminent. Casey DeSmith, who pulled himself out in Game 1, had core muscle surgery over the weekend and is out for the playoffs.

In addition to Domingue stepping up, Pittsburgh finally started getting secondary scoring in Game 3.

The team’s six goals through the first two games came from first-liners Jake Guentzel, Sidney Crosby and Bryan Rust, along with fellow star player Evgeni Malkin.

Saturday, while Guentzel picked up his fourth goal on an empty-netter, four others notched their first goals of the series.

“Obviously, when you get balanced scoring, it certainly helps your chances to win games,” Penguins coach Mike Sullivan said.

The Penguins on Saturday chased Rangers goaltender Igor Shesterkin, widely considered the Vezina Trophy favorite, after he gave up four goals on 15 shots in the first period.

It seems highly likely New York will come back with Shesterkin for Game 4.

“Igor’s been our MVP all season, as everybody knows, and in the playoffs,” Rangers coach Gerard Gallant said. “I thought we’d give him a little rest (Saturday) and, hopefully, spark our team, and it worked.”

Until it didn’t, as Pittsburgh pulled away from the 4-4 tie.

Gallant remained steadfast. He seemed calm and confident.

“That’s the way she goes,” he said. “We’ll get back at them again next game.”

New York forward Chris Kreider dismissed any notion that his club was in any way a no-show early in Game 3. It was a lack of cohesion, he said.

“I don’t think we were playing together, especially (for it being) this point of the season,” Kreider said. “Effort is not something you question; it’s a matter of working smart, not hard.”

The Rangers were 0-for-3 on the power play Saturday after going 2-for-5 over the first two games.

“In a series, you have to adjust,” New York forward Ryan Strome said. “They made some good adjustments, so we have to adjust and be ready for Game 4, on the power play and five-on-five.”

Like the Penguins, the Rangers are playing short-handed because of injuries. Forward Barclay Goodrow has been ruled out for the series, and defenseman Ryan Lindgren has missed the past two games.

–Field Level Media