Morning Chirps: Capitals & Panthers Advance, Jon Cooper on the Move?

Tonight will be a fun night for hockey fans as four Game 6s will be played. While that is happening in the NHL, the Rockford IceHogs will open the best-of-five AHL Central Division Semifinals against the Milwaukee Admirals. I’ll be in Milwaukee to give you live updates and a full recap of Game 1.

Blackhawks Chirps

• We started the Blackhawks Head Coaching Tracker yesterday. Be sure to check it often, as we’ll be updating it as breaking news and speculation become available.
• Scott Powers of The Athletic outlined what the Blackhawks’ “dream offseason” could look like if everything goes right.
• The Blackhawks no longer have any prospects playing in the CHL after the London Knights completed their sweep of the Kitchener Rangers in the OHL Western Conference Finals. Jack Pridham had a goal and an assist, but it wasn’t enough in a 4-2 loss. He had seven goals and 13 points in 16 playoff games after 27 goals and 54 points in 48 regular-season games. Pridham will play for Boston University. The Knights are the first team in league history to win the Wayne Gretzky Trophy, given to the Western Conference champions, three years in a row. They have yet to lose in the postseason and await the winner of the Eastern Conference Finals between the Oshawa Generals and Barrie Colts. The Generals have a 3-0 lead in that series.
• On this date in 1965, the Blackhawks lost 4-0 to the Montreal Canadiens in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final. The legendary Jean Beliveau scored the fastest goal in Stanley Cup Final history, just 14 seconds after the opening faceoff. After the game, Beliveau was the first player to be awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy for being the postseason’s most valuable player.

NHL Chirps

• Tampa Bay Lightning forward Nikita Kucherov, forward Nathan MacKinnon, and defenseman Cale Makar of the Colorado Avalanche
•  were named the three finalists for the Ted Lindsay Award.
• Larry Brooks of the New York Post revealed that a source told him Lightning head coach Jon Cooper could head out west to “take over” the Utah Hockey Club, owned by close friend Ryan Smyth, when his contract expires after next season.
• A day after advancing to the second round, the Carolina Hurricanes signed former Blackhawk Taylor Hall to a three-year, $9.5 million contract extension.
• The Los Angeles Kings recalled six “black aces” for the remainder of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, including former Blackhawks blueliner Caleb Jones.
• Columbus Blue Jackets head coach Dean Evason was named Canada’s head coach for the IIHF World Championship. He will take three former Blackhawks with him to round out his staff: Steve McCarthy, Andrew Brunette, and Ryan Huska.
• The Washington Capitals are on to the second round after beating the Montreal Canadiens 4-1 in Game 5. Alex Ovechkin opened the scoring with his fourth goal of the playoffs. Dylan Strome had two more assists to bring his postseason total to seven. This was the Capitals’ first series win since the 2018 Stanley Cup Final. They will play the Hurricanes in the next round.

• The Florida Panthers won their fifth straight playoff series with their 6-3 Game 5 victory over the Lightning. The defending Stanley Cup champs await the winner of the series between the Toronto Maple Leafs and Ottawa Senators.

• The Winnipeg Jets beat the St. Louis Blues 5-3 to take a 3-2 lead in their series. Connor Hellebuyck gave up two goals on the nine shots he faced in the first two periods, including a weak one to Jimmy Snuggerud. However, he stood tall in the third period by stopping nine of the 10 shots he faced. The physical play continued as the Jets lost Mark Scheifele to an injury after a high hit from Brayden Schenn in the first period. Game 6 will be in St. Louis on Friday.

• Four of the five remaining series can be wrapped up tonight. The Maple Leafs can shut out the outside noise by beating the Senators, starting at 6 p.m. The Vegas Golden Knights and Minnesota Wild drop the puck at 6:30. The late-night doubleheader features the Avalanche and Dallas Stars at 8:30, and the Edmonton Oilers and Los Angeles Kings at 9.