Sidney Crosby Drops Five-Word Statement on Avalanche-Stars
Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins are watching the Stanley Cup Playoffs from home for the third straight year. Before that, they made 16 consecutive appearances dating back to the 2006–07 season, winning three Cups in that span.
Many might wonder what a player of Crosby's caliber does when his team is eliminated. Does he get back on the ice immediately to train?
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The answer is simple: he watches the playoffs just like any other fan. And he's been tuned into arguably one of the most exciting first-round matchups between two heavyweights.
The Colorado Avalanche and Dallas Stars have delivered a series to remember so far. In Game 1, the Avalanche dominated, winning 5-1, but the Stars quickly bounced back in the next two matchups. Colorado answered with a 4-0 blowout in Game 4, only for Dallas to return the favor with a 6-2 win in Game 5.
Game 6 was a wild one, with Colorado edging out Dallas 7-4 in a contest that felt like a goal every few minutes.
Now, the two teams will face off in a decisive Game 7 on Saturday night. The winner will advance to the second round to meet the Winnipeg Jets vs. St. Louis Blues series winner.
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Crosby shared his thoughts on everything that has transpired so far in the Avalanche-Stars first-round matchup.
It has been great hockey," Crosby said.
Dallas Stars' Evgenii Dadonov (63) and Colorado Avalanche's Gabriel Landeskog (92)Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images
Dallas has been shorthanded this series, missing two key players: forward Jason Robertson and defenseman Miro Heiskanen. Even so, the Stars have put themselves in a position to get the job done as they push for a return to the Stanley Cup Final for the first time since 2020.
The Avalanche, meanwhile, are looking to get back for the first time since winning it all in 2022.
Game 7 is set for 8 p.m. ET. According to ESPN Bet, Colorado enters as a -170 favorite, while Dallas sits at +145.
Related: Wayne Gretzky Predicts 2025 Stanley Cup Final Matchup
Related: Avalanche React to NHL's Cale Makar Announcement
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USA Today
26 minutes ago
- USA Today
5 shots of Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce canoodling at Oilers-Panthers
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New York Times
an hour ago
- New York Times
After another Stanley Cup Final goalie benching, NHL netminders discuss the dreaded yank: ‘A brutal feeling'
The Edmonton Oilers' comeback in Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Final was electrifying. It was incredible for the Oilers, who looked headed for a 3-1 series hole after an abysmal first period and instead will return home for Game 5 with the series tied. It was incredible for Leon Draisaitl, who added to his legend by scoring his second overtime winner of this Cup Final alone, sending Edmonton to a 5-4 victory. It was incredible for the thousands of Oilers faithful back in Edmonton, who partied well into Thursday night outside of Rogers Place. Advertisement There is one player for whom it was less incredible, though. Goaltender Stuart Skinner was the biggest reason this miraculous comeback was even possible in the first place. He made several key saves in the first period while the Panthers dominated over the first 20 minutes. He was the Oilers' best player, standing tall in the crease to keep the deficit to only three goals. His reward? One of the most embarrassing moments any goalie will face: the dreaded yank. Oilers coach Kris Knoblauch spared Skinner the usual skate of shame, benching him for good during the second intermission after Skinner allowed three goals on 17 shots. It was the second straight game Knoblauch pulled Skinner from the net in favor of backup Calvin Pickard, and the third time he's done so this postseason. 'It's unfortunate for Stu to be pulled there,' Knoblauch said after the game. 'Our team was flat. We didn't give him any opportunities, again taking three penalties in the first period. Unfortunately we needed to change things up, and the change was great.' It's hard to lay much blame at Skinner's skates for the three goals he allowed (we'll go over that in more detail later). Rather, the decision was made to 'spark' a team that was getting thoroughly outplayed for the fourth straight period. It helps that the backup happens to be undefeated this posteason, and this time it seemed to work – to the tune of four unanswered Edmonton goals. Would the Oilers have re-focused after the intermission, and rallied for the win with Skinner still in net? We'll never know, but Pickard seems to think so. 'I felt for (Skinner) today,' Pickard said after the win. 'He came ready to play today and made some big saves early, we just didn't have it as a team early. I think (Knoblauch) just wanted to switch it up. If he was playing behind our team in the second, third and overtime he would've done what I did too.' Advertisement No goalie is immune to the yank, whether performance-related or not. Skinner hasn't played great this postseason with a .894 save percentage, but every netminder experiences it. Many times, it's through no fault of their own. It's a unique situation that unfairly punishes a player for the good of the team, but it's nothing new. 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'It's never easy to be the guy who's coming out of the net and the night's over with,' Lindgren said. 'That's not a fun thing to go through. Instinctually, especially for goalies at this level, there's so much heart, so much battle and so much compete. You always think that the next shot is going to be yours. You're going to find a way to keep your team in it.' Skinner was doing that on Thursday night: keeping his team in it. He made several great saves in the opening 20 minutes, and none of the goals he allowed were particularly soft. Advertisement The first was a screened shot by Florida's Matthew Tkachuk on a 5-on-3 power play from less than 20 feet away. Skinner wasn't able to see the release as he scrambled to look around two of his own players and Aleksander Barkov in front, and the save would've been tough even if he had. It's fair to criticize Skinner's rebound control on the second goal, as a shot spilled off his chest protector to Tkachuk's waiting stick in front of the net. 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The Oilers looked like a completely different team over the final 51 minutes. In the first period Florida held commanding edges shots (17-7), scoring chances (22-5) and high-danger chances (13-2) according to Natural Stat Trick. In the final 51 minutes Edmonton flipped that, outshooting the Panthers 28-23, and out-chancing them 20-10. 'We wanted to come out strong tonight, but they put us on our heels early and we were kind of lollygagging around a little bit,' Draisaitl said. Why professional players were 'lollygagging around' in the first period of a Stanley Cup Final game is an entirely different topic for another story. One thing is clear, though: Coaches believe benching their goalie sends a message to the team that can only be accomplished by such a drastic measure. The coach could easily sit the players in front of Skinner – the ones who were lollygagging – for a shift or two, but it doesn't have the same jarring effect. Advertisement 'When the goalie comes out, and he was the guy who started the game, and you're expecting to be a rock back there,' Lindgren explained. 'When he gets pulled it's a wake up call. You know your backup is going in. He's probably cold. He probably wasn't expecting to play. So it gives the players even more reason to sharpen up and better themselves.' Lindgren's goalie partner in Washington, Logan Thompson, agreed. 'You're sending a message,' Thompson said. '(The starter) has been your go-to guy and he's gotten you to this point. I think it's a 'holy s—' moment for the rest of the guys saying, 'He's not going to bail us out tonight. We need to change something about us. We're clearly not helping him out.' ' An NHL goalie typically knows when the pull is due to his own play. He is well aware of which goals he should've stopped, and which ones he did everything in his process correctly, but still gave up. 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Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Three takeaways: Both teams enjoyed similar dominant segments in Game 4, goaltending has been sneaky good
Are we witnessing one of the best Stanley Cup Final of all time? Through four games, it sure feels like it. The Florida Panthers and Edmonton Oilers have played four games that have each felt like their own mini-novellas. Advertisement Considering how talented and tightly matched both the teams are proving to be, it comes as no surprise that we're heading back to Edmonton with the series locked at two games apiece. Let's get to the Game 4 takeaways: DIFFERENT, BUT THE SAME The first period and the second period of Game 4 were quite similar in a lot of ways. Both saw one of the teams control play for much of the frame, and each period saw one club outscore the other by three goals. Penalties also played a large role. Florida was given three consecutive power plays during the first period, two of which they scored on, before the Oilers had their own opportunity with back-to-back power plays when the second period arrived. Advertisement Ryan Nugent-Hopkins' goal 3:33 into the middle frame while on the man advantage started a massive momentum shift in Edmonton's favor. Things finally evened out during the final 20 minutes, but by then there was so little time left, the margin for error had all but vanished and both teams were fighting like the next goal would be the last. '(The second period) was just a mirror of the first period,' said Panthers Head Coach Paul Maurice. 'They got into a little penalty trouble there, and we took advantage of it, and the second period was just the opposite. I think we were plus-three on the power play side early and minus-three on the power play side in the second half, and then we came out and even tight games, right? Both teams had some chances there, cracked some bars and had some chances that didn't go, and it's a bad break on the overtime winner. So three of the four games have gone to overtime, and I think that's probably the expectation of what we have going forward.' SOME GREAT GOALTENDING This year's Stanley Cup Final has seen plenty of goals scored. Advertisement The Panthers and Oilers have combined to put 32 pucks in the net during the first four games of the series. Both teams have struggled at times defensively, which is to be expected when two high-powered teams like Florida and Edmonton are going at it. From the outside looking in, it would be easy to point to all the offense and assume the goaltending has not been anything to write home about. Those who have been paying attention know that if not for some outstanding saves on both sides, we could have seen some pretty ridiculous scores so far in this series. 'From my point of view, there's been phenomenal goaltending in this series,' said Maurice. 'The numbers tell me I'm lying, the final score says I'm lying, but the goaltending has been incredible, because the game can break on a slot pass to Sam Bennett (and he) cracks a (crossbar). Everything is dangerous all the time, so there's a mental intensity, a mental toughness I think both teams show. The game's not going to be over till it is. You get three of four games in a final into overtime, you've get two really good, evenly matched teams.' Advertisement EXPECTED A LONG SERIES Before the Final began, you would've been hard pressed to find anyone who felt this series would be a quick one. A matchup between powerhouse teams like Edmonton and Florida was going to provide some fireworks, but the history between them has added some incredible drama and intrigue. Considering three of the four games we've seen so far have gone to overtime, it's pretty clear we're seeing two very evenly matched teams. The entertainment value of the Stanley Cup Final has been as high as any in recent memory, and there's no reason to think that's going to stop as we get into the latter stages of the series. Advertisement 'If you plan for seven games, it means you're losing three of them,' Maurice said after Game 4. 'You have to take that pain, eat it and use it to come back.' LATEST STORIES FROM THE HOCKEY NEWS - FLORIDA Panthers blow three-goal lead, lose Game 4 to Oilers in overtime Paul Maurice Makes This Prediction For Game 4 vs. Oilers Panthers host Oilers in Game 4 looking to take control of Stanley Cup Final Sound meter hit ridiculously high level when Sam Bennett scored during Game 3 of Stanley Cup Final Rod Brind'Amour doesn't agree with Paul Maurice, will go back to participating in playoff handshake lines Photo caption: Jun 12, 2025; Sunrise, Florida, USA; Florida Panthers goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky (72) defends against Edmonton Oilers right wing Corey Perry (90)during the third period in game four of the 2025 Stanley Cup Final at Amerant Bank Arena. (Sam Navarro-Imagn Images)
