“Washington” – “Florida” – 2:3 Overtime
Florida tied the series with Washington and defeated the Capitals on the ice in Game 4 in overtime. At the first timeout, the score stood 1:1 after goals from TJ Oshie and Carter Verhage. The second period produced no goals, and in the final 20 minutes Evgeny Kuznetsov gave Washington the lead following a setup from Alexander Ovechkin. With two minutes remaining in regulation, Sam Reinhart kept Florida from losing, sending the game to overtime where Verhage struck again to clinch the win for the visitors.
Officials reviewed the decisive moment on video to determine if the Washington goalie Ilya Samsonov had been interfered with. The ruling stood that there was no violation, and Florida walked away with the victory.
Ovechkin, Washington’s captain, did not showcase his usual goal-scoring touch in this game. Still, the assist he earned on Kuznetsov’s tally pushed him to 140 career playoff points, composed of 72 goals and 68 assists, placing him 37th on the all-time Stanley Cup playoff list. That tally also moved him past Jacques Lemaire on the playoffs scoring ladder and placed him two points ahead of Ron Francis. In terms of assists, Ovechkin climbed past several notable names and matched the totals of Sergey Gonchar, Brad Richards, and Brad Marchand, tying with Igor Larionov, Frank Mahovlich, and Sandis Ozolinņš for a moment in the rankings.
After the game, Ovechkin reflected to reporters that a strong third period had slipped away due to rough rebounds and deflections. He emphasized the length of the series and the need to move forward beyond this result.
Markus Johansson created a promising late chance for Washington by driving one-on-one against Florida’s Sergei Bobrovsky, but the Russian netminder made a critical save to preserve the Panthers’ lead. Panthers head coach Andrew Brunette credited Bobrovsky for the pivotal stop and spoke about the risk taken and its payoff when it paid off for the team.
Bobrovsky was named the second star of the game, with Samsonov earning the third star recognition for his performance in goal.
Pittsburgh 7-2 Rangers
The Penguins widened their series advantage to 3-1, riding high after a dominant performance in New York. The Rangers opened with pressure, but Pittsburgh responded quickly and built a lead that grew through the middle period. A burst of goals with Jamie Fox finishing a feed from Artemi Panarin gave the Rangers hope briefly, yet the Penguins answered with a late flurry that left the score at 6:2 before Evgeni Malkin added the final tally late in the game.
Igor Shesterkin, the Rangers’ goaltender, faced heavy workload and was charged with five goals against during the tilt. Penguins coach Mike Sullivan stood by his goalie in candid remarks, asserting that Shesterkin remains among the league’s elite and that he would be back to compete in the next game.
Shesterkin’s performance drew praise from Pittsburgh’s side as well. Jeff Carter of the Penguins lauded the Rangers’ netminder, acknowledging his skill while noting that the Penguins had found ways to test him effectively and that their plan had started to bear fruit as the game progressed.
On the Pittsburgh side, Malkin reached another milestone in playoff play. His latest goal marked his 66th in the playoffs, moving him into a clear third place on the franchise’s all-time list for playoff goals, surpassing Jaromir Jagr. Across the playoffs, Malkin logged 174 games and 177 points (66 goals, 111 assists), and he also surpassed Sergei Fedorov’s Russian playoff points record with his performance in this series.
Nashville 3-5 Colorado
Colorado capped a strong series with a win in Nashville, sealing the series in four games. Nashville fought hard to extend the matchup, and the game remained close at 3:2 early in the third period before Colorado pulled away. The decisive goal came from Valery Nichushkin, who delivered when Colorado needed it most, shaping the next round’s matchup.
The Avalanche will meet the winner of the Minnesota–St. Louis pairing in the next round, with Nichushkin set to face either Kirill Kaprizov or Vladimir Tarasenko on the next ice appearance.
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