NHL playoffs: One top seed takes 3-1 lead while other falters again

Andrew Mangiapane scored the go-ahead goal with 3:37 remaining in the third period and the visiting Washington Capitals beat the Montreal Canadiens 5-2 in Game 4 of their Eastern Conference first-round series on Sunday night.

Dylan Strome controlled a stretch pass at center ice from Trevor van Riemsdyk, crossed the blue line and dropped the puck to Mangiapane, who scored his first goal of the series on a high wrist shot from the slot.

Brandon Duhaime scored into the empty net with 2:39 left and Tom Wilson did so with 55 seconds remaining for the 5-2 final.

The Capitals lead the best-of-seven series 3-1, and Game 5 is Wednesday night in Washington.

Duhaime scored two third-period goals and Strome had a goal and an assist for the Capitals, who are the No. 1 seed from the Metropolitan Division and in the conference. Van Riemsdyk had two assists and Logan Thompson, who left Game 3 with a lower-body injury, started and made 16 saves.

Juraj Slafkovsky and Cole Caufield scored for the Canadiens, who are the second wild card from the East. Ivan Demidov and Lane Hutson each had two assists and Jakub Dobes, starting in place of the injured Sam Montembeault, made 21 saves.

Montreal was 2-for-4 on the power play; Washington was 0-for-5.

Leon Draisaitl lifts Oilers to OT win over Kings to even series

Leon Draisaitl scored his first career playoff overtime goal to cap a four-point performance as the host Edmonton Oilers claimed a thrilling 4-3 comeback victory over the Los Angeles Kings on Sunday to even their Stanley Cup playoff series.

Evan Bouchard scored twice and Corey Perry added a single for the Oilers, who erased a two-goal third-period deficit to force overtime. With the win, they tied the best-of-seven Western Conference first-round series at 2-2.

Connor McDavid netted two helpers and goaltender Calvin Pickard made 38 saves.

With Vladislav Gavrikov in the penalty box for a tripping infraction, Draisaitl buried a loose puck in a wild scramble at 18:18 of extra time. Draisaitl has collected points in 18 consecutive playoff games against the Kings (17 goals, 18 assists).

Game 5 of the series will be Tuesday in Los Angeles. The home team has won all four games.

Blues light up Connor Hellebuyck again, tie series

Jake Neighbours scored his first playoff goal and added two assists as the St. Louis Blues defeated the visiting Winnipeg Jets 5-1 on Sunday to tie their Western Conference first-round playoff series at two games apiece.

Game 5 is scheduled for Wednesday night in Winnipeg.

Captain Brayden Schenn had a goal and an assist while Robert Thomas and defensemen Tyler Tucker and Justin Faulk also scored for the Blues. Defenseman Colton Parayko had two assists and Jordan Binnington stopped 30 shots.

‘Playoffs are full of momentum swings,’ Schenn said. ‘We’re happy with where we’re at right now.’

Kyle Connor netted the goal for the Jets.

Connor Hellebuyck made 13 saves on 18 shots before being pulled early in the third period. It is the second consecutive game that Hellebuyck has been removed; he has allowed 11 goals on 43 shots in the last two contests. Hellebuyck has won two Vezina Trophies as the NHL’s top goalie and is the favorite to win his third this season.

He was replaced by Eric Comrie, who stopped six shots.

‘Tired of watching them make nice plays and put the puck in the net,’ Jets coach Scott Arniel said. ‘That’s on us.’

Hurricanes lose goalie but take 3-1 lead

Andrei Svechnikov’s hat trick helped the Carolina Hurricanes overcome the second-period loss of goalie Frederik Andersen to beat the New Jersey Devils 5-2 on Sunday in Newark, New Jersey, and take a commanding 3-1 lead in the Eastern Conference quarterfinal series.

The Hurricanes, the only NHL team to win at least one playoff round in each of the last four seasons, will attempt to close out the Devils in Game 5 of the best-of-seven series on Tuesday night in Raleigh, North Carolina.

Svechnikov, the lone player in Hurricanes/Hartford Whalers history to post a hat trick in a postseason game, did it for the second time on Sunday. He scored in the opening minute of the first and second periods, and then iced the win with an empty-netter with 3:17 left in the third.

Svechnikov posted his first playoff hat trick on Aug. 3, 2020, when he scored three times against the New York Rangers in a qualifying-round game during the COVID-19 bubble tournament.

Jaccob Slavin scored in the first and Brent Burns began adding insurance by scoring with 5:46 left in the third. Burns added an assist, and Sebastian Aho and Jackson Blake had two assists apiece.