Pavelski denies Vegas sweep with OT goal

Good morning and happy Friday, May 26th.

We were way off yesterday, fam! 85.7% of yesterday’s poll participants believed Vegas was going to finish the sweep last night. 🙈

Today’s lineup:

• 🔫 Pavelski’s OT blast forces game 5

• 🗓️ NHL announces Stanley Cup Final schedule

• 📈 Scotty Bowman calls Florida ‘team of destiny’

• 👇 And a lot more

No player in the NHL today has scored more playoff goals than 38-year-old Dallas Stars forward Joe Pavelski.

That’s why it was fitting that Pavelski drove home a power play goal at 3:18 of overtime to help the Stars stave off elimination with a 3-2 win against the Vegas Golden Knights in Game 4 of the Western Conference Final.

Pavelski, who will turn 39 on July 11, is the oldest player in NHL history to net an OT tally while facing elimination. The player previously holding that distinction was Pittsburgh’s Chris Kunitz who was 37 years, 241 days when he scored in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Final in 2017.

Miro Heiskanen served up the perfect feed for Pavelski’s winning blast. It was the 73rd playoff goal of Pavelski’s career, allowing him to pass Alex Ovechkin to become the league’s active career leader. It was his fourth career overtime playoff goal. Patrick Kane and Corey Perry, both with five, are the only active players with more.

The Stars were on the power play in overtime because Vegas defenseman Brayden McNabb high-sticked Ty Dellandrea.

Dallas forward Jason Robertson scored twice and Stars goalie Jake Oettinger made 37 saves in what could be viewed as an act of redemption. He was pulled in Game 3 after giving up three goals on the first five shots he faced.

It was a good effort by the Stars who understand the difficulty of what they are trying to achieve. Only four teams in NHL history have come back from a 3-0 series deficit and won it. Teams claiming a 3-0 lead in a playoff series are 201-4.

Dallas was playing without its captain Jamie Benn who was sitting out the first game of a two-game suspension for cross-checking Mark Stone in the neck in Game 3. He will also not play Game 5 Saturday in Las Vegas.

🏆 NHL announces Stanley Cup Final schedule, starts May 31st or June 3rd. If the Golden Knights win game 5, the Finals will start Wednesday, May 31st in Vegas. But if Dallas forces a game 6 or 7, the Finals won’t start until Saturday, June 3rd in Vegas or Dallas as both teams collected more regular season points than Florida. That gives the Panthers at least a week off and possibly up to ten days, which is great for rest purposes but maybe not momentum as Florida is on an 11-1 tear since being on the brink of elimination in their 1st round matchup against the Bruins.

No surprise Wayne Gretzky holds the NHL’s all-time record for most playoff points with 382, but can you name the rest of the top 5?

• Golden Knights lament effort level after failing to sweep Western Final

• Hill authoring his own Cinderella story in Stanley Cup Playoffs

• Five keys to the Panthers’ surprising run to the Stanley Cup Final

• Panthers run to Cup Final proves they are 'team of destiny,' Bowman says

• Marchessault surprised Panthers didn’t keep him in ‘17

• Hurricanes left stunned by Panthers sweep: 'Almost a little confusing what happened'

• Three areas for the Carolina Hurricanes to address this offseason

• Weegar, Toffoli excited for Flames future with Conroy as general manager

• Evaluating the massive job and huge opportunity facing the next Leafs GM

• World Championships semifinals preview: Canada, Latvia, USA, and Germany advance

• How to coach your players to understand F1, F2, and F3 on the forecheck

• 5 types of exercises that will make you a faster skater

NHL’s top 5 all-time playoff point producers:

1. Wayne Gretzky, 382 pts

2. Mark Messier, 295 pts

3. Jari Kurri, 233 pts

4. Glenn Anderson, 214 pts

5. tie: Jaromir Jagr and Sidney Crosby, 201 pts