Morning Chirps: Rantanen Gets Revenge, Scheifele Upgraded Ahead of Game 7

The Rockford IceHogs are taking a 2-0 lead back home after beating the Milwaukee Admirals again last night. Plus, a pair of contract extensions were dished out while some revenge was served ice cold in Dallas. May the Chirps be with you!

Blackhawks Chirps

• Since it was quiet on the news front on Saturday, we’ll go right to the history chirps. On this date in 1971, Jim Pappin scored in the second overtime to give the Blackhawks a 2-1 road win over the Montreal Canadiens in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final. Pappin had the primary assist on Bobby Hull’s third-period power-play goal that sent the game to overtime.
• Happy Birthday to former Blackhawks Art Michaluk, Fred Stanfield, Kevin Todd, John Madden, Matthew Barnaby, and Kyle Baun.

IceHogs Chirps

• Read the full recap from last night’s Game 2 victory in Milwaukee. Joey Anderson’s natural hat trick was the first in IceHogs playoff history.

• In case you’re wondering about the other Central Division Semifinal, the Texas Stars beat the Grand Rapids Griffins 4-0 on Tuesday. Game 2 isn’t until Monday because the Van Andel Arena is booked. Having six days in between playoff games is absurd!

NHL Chirps

• The Calgary Flames rewarded Matt Coronato with a seven-year, $45.5 million contract extension. The 23-year-old Chicago Steel alum finished this past season third on the team with 24 goals and 47 points.
• The Carolina Hurricanes gave goaltender Frederik Andersen a one-year contract extension. The deal is worth $2.75 million guaranteed, but could be worth as much as $3.5 million based on games played and how far the Hurricanes get in the postseason next year. This was a smart move for Carolina, considering how weak the free-agent market will be for goaltending this summer.
• John Shipley of the Pioneer Press noted that Kirill Kaprizov re-signing with the Minnesota Wild may not be the slam dunk people believe it is. With the salary cap going up, nearly every team in the league can make him a huge offer, so the Wild need to show him a commitment to winning.
• James Nichols at NJ Hockey Now has some insight into defenseman Johnathan Kovacevic’s injury and why he hasn’t had surgery yet.
• As Sheng Peng of San Jose Hockey Now reports, William Eklund is in stable condition after suffering a scary injury. While playing for Sweden in a World Championships tune-up game against Czechia, his left wrist was cut by the skate of defenseman Filip Hronek.
• The Dallas Stars are on to the second round after beating the Colorado Avalanche 4-2 in Game 7 Saturday night. The Avalanche were riding high after Nathan MacKinnon gave them a 2-0 lead in the opening minute of the third period. Then the Stars scored four unanswered goals, including a hat trick by Mikko Rantanen. The former Avalanche star came back to haunt his ex-teammates with five goals and 11 points in the final three games of the series.

• The Stars await tonight’s Game 7 winner between the Winnipeg Jets and St. Louis Blues, starting at 6 pm. According to TSN’s John Lu, Jets forward Mark Scheifele has been upgraded to a game-time decision for Game 7.
• The NHL announced the schedule for the three set Second-Round series. The schedule for the Stars vs. Jets/Blues series will be released after tonight’s game.