* The highly-anticipated series opener between the Avalanche and Oilers lived up to the hype as the teams combined for 14 goals – the most in a Conference Finals game in 37 years – with at least three goals in every period, a 7-3 lead reduced to 7-6 in the third period and 25 players finding the score sheet.
* Cale Makar factored on three of Colorado’s franchise-record tying eight goals to register his fourth three-point outing in the 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs. Only two defensemen in NHL history have notched more in a single postseason.
* The Oilers duo of Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl continued to pile up the points this postseason, joining elite company in the process and the latter adding yet another NHL-first to his 2022 playoff resume.
* A pair of Norris Trophy winners will take to the ice for Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Final when Adam Fox and the Rangers host Victor Hedman and the Lightning.
AVALANCHE OUTLAST OILERS IN HIGH-SCORING OPENER TO CONFERENCE FINALS
After the Avalanche and Oilers traded goals in spans of 36 seconds and nine seconds in the first period, the clubs then combined for six goals in the second period and tacked on three more in the final frame – which saw Edmonton pull within one after facing a four-goal deficit – to finish as the second-highest scoring game in Conference Finals history (tied).
* It was the highest-scoring Conference Finals game in 37 years and the highest-scoring playoff game since… two weeks ago when the Oilers and Flames played their memorable 9-6 opener in the “Battle of Alberta.”
* In the end, Colorado came out victorious in the 10th-highest scoring playoff contest in NHL history (tied) and highest-scoring Game 1 ever in the round leading into the Stanley Cup Final.
* Tuesday marked the seventh Conference Finals/Semifinals game to see both teams each score a goal 40 seconds apart or fewer multiple times in the same contest, and first since Game 2 of the 1985 Conference Final between Chicago and Edmonton.
* Colorado, which matched a franchise record for goals in a playoff game, notched its third outing with seven-plus goals in the 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs following Game 1 and Game 3 of the First Round. Only two teams in the past 30 years have registered as many performances in a single playoff year: Buffalo (3x in 2006) and Los Angeles (3x in 1993).
* Cale Makar (23 years, 213 days) led Avalanche players with 1-2—3 en route to his sixth career three-point game in the postseason and fourth of the 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs. Only two other defensemen in Stanley Cup Playoffs history have recorded as many such performances before their 24th birthday: Paul Coffey (10x) and Ray Bourque (6x).
COLORADO’S TOP SCORERS CONTRIBUTE IN GAME 1 VICTORY
Each of Colorado’s top five goal scorers from the 2021-22 regular season found the back of the net in Game 1 as Mikko Rantanen, Nathan MacKinnon, Gabriel Landeskog, Cale Makar and Nazem Kadri contributed one tally apiece.
* MacKinnon, who matched a career high with nine goals in a single postseason (also 9 G in 2020), scored his 17th playoff tally since the 2021 Stanley Cup Playoffs – the most among all skaters through that span and one more than the next closest, Brayden Point (16 G in 30 GP), who concluded each of the previous two playoff years atop the category.
McDAVID, DRAISAITL CONTINUE POTENT PERFORMANCES
Oilers captain Connor McDavid (1-2—3) and teammate Leon Draisaitl (0-2—2) each notched multiple points in their Conference Finals debut, continuing their remarkable scoring pace into the third round of the 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
* McDavid eclipsed 50 career postseason points in his 34th game, the sixth player in NHL history to reach the benchmark that quickly and one more than Draisaitl (33 GP) required when he hit the mark last week. The others: Wayne Gretzky (23 GP), Barry Pederson (28 GP), Mario Lemieux (29 GP) and Jari Kurri (34 GP).
* While he saw his stretch of five consecutive three-point games end, Draisaitl had his sixth consecutive multi-point showing and extended his assist streak to nine games (tied for a franchise record and a feat surpassed by only four players in NHL history).
* McDavid (8-21—29 in 13 GP) and Draisaitl (7-21—28 in 13 GP) each surpassed the 20-assist mark in their 13th game, joining Gretzky (11 GP in 1985, 11 GP in 1983 & 13 GP in 1987) and Rick Middleton (13 GP in 1983) as the only players in League history to hit the benchmark that quickly.
* This marks the first playoff year in NHL history in which two players – from any team – have had a multi-point streak of six or more games, with Draisaitl (6 GP) having an active run and McDavid notching seven straight earlier this postseason. Gretzky (8 GP in 1983) holds the NHL record.
* Evander Kane (1-1—2) opened the high-scoring affair by netting his 13th goal of the 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs (13 GP). Only three players have scored more playoff goals in their first season with a franchise: Marian Gaborik (14 w/ LAK in 2014), Dino Ciccarelli (14 in 1981 w/ MNS) and Frank Mahovlich (14 in 1971 w/ MTL).
* Zach Hyman also continued his scoring ways by extending his goal streak to six contests and matching the longest such run in the postseason by an Oilers player in franchise history – a feat Esa Tikkanen first established in 1990.
QUICK CLICKS
* #NHLStats: Live Updates for Tuesday, May 31
* Series Scenarios for Wednesday, June 1
* Stanley Cup Final TV spot: “The Handoff”
* Best moments in Stanley Cup Playoffs so far debated by NHL.com
* John Elway joins ‘NHL on TNT’ crew before Game 1 of Western Conference Final
RANGERS, LIGHTNING SET TO CLASH IN GAME 1 AT MADISON SQUARE GARDEN
After helping his team sweep their regular-season series against the Lightning, 2021-22 Vezina Trophy finalist Igor Shesterkin and the Rangers are set to host Andrei Vasilevskiy and the two-time defending Stanley Cup champions at Madison Square Garden in Game 1. This marks the second-ever playoff meeting between the two clubs, with Tampa Bay winning the 2015 Eastern Conference Final in seven games.
* Shesterkin is set to make his first Conference Finals appearance tonight at Madison Square Garden, where he is riding an active six-game home winning streak dating to Game 2 of the First Round – the longest home winning streak in a single postseason by a goaltender in Rangers history. Shesterkin can become the first goaltender to post a seven-game home win streak in a playoff year since Corey Crawford with the Blackhawks in 2014.
* Vasilevskiy enters his sixth Conference Finals with an active shutout streak of 103:53, following the sixth series-clinching shutout of his career (all since 2020). A perfect first period in Game 1 against the Rangers would put Vasilevskiy among the top five in franchise history for longest shutout streak by a goaltender and move him within 15 seconds of besting his career high (124:07 from Game 1 to Game 2 of the 2020 First Round – 90:27 of which came in overtime in the opener).
EASTERN CONFERENCE FINAL TO FEATURE BLUELINE BATTLE
In addition to a showdown between the pipes, the Eastern Conference Final also pits two Norris Trophy winners against each other in Tampa Bay’s Victor Hedman (2017-18), who also has a Conn Smythe Trophy to his name, and New York’s Adam Fox (2020-21).
*Hedman needs two points to record 100 in his playoff career (21-77—98 in 143 GP). He would become just the 14th defenseman in NHL history to reach the mark – the last blueliner to do so was Brian Rafalski (29-71—100 in 165 GP) in 2011.
* Fox enters Wednesday with the most points among all defenseman this postseason (5-13—18 in 14 GP). He sits one point shy of matching Sergei Zubov (19) for the second most in a playoff year by a Rangers defenseman and two back of becoming the seventh player in franchise history to post 20 points in a single postseason – last achieved by Wayne Gretzky (10-10—20 in 15 GP) in 1997.
