AVALANCHE CUT SERIES DEFICIT IN HALF AFTER THRILLING THIRD AGAINST STARS
After three lead changes and a six-goal third period that saw the Stars overcome yet another multi-goal deficit, it was the Avalanche who emerged victorious in Game 3 thanks to three unanswered goals in the final eight minutes of regulation (including tying and go-ahead markers 1:52 apart by Mikko Rantanen and Nazem Kadri).



* Cale Makar had three assists, including one on Kadri’s winning goal, to set a franchise record for assists by a rookie defenseman in a playoff game. His three points also matched the Avalanche/Nordiques single-game benchmark for a rookie blueliner in the playoffs.

* Makar became the 21st rookie defenseman in NHL history to record three or more points in a playoff game and second to do so this postseason after Vancouver’s Quinn Hughes in Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Qualifiers. Overall, it was the 24th time a rookie blueliner had three points in a postseason game – Ray Bourque, Al MacInnis and Chris Chelios each did it twice.

* Nathan MacKinnon set a franchise playoff record by extending his point streak to 11 games. In doing so, he became the 11th player in NHL history to begin a postseason with a point streak of 11 or more games; it now has happened 13 times overall.

* MacKinnon recorded his second assist of the game on Rantanen’s tying goal in the third period to become the third player in Avalanche/Nordiques history to record multiple points in five straight playoff games (joining Peter Stastny and Peter Forsberg, 3x).

* MacKinnon leads the League with 7-13—20 in 11 games this postseason. He is one of five players in the last 25 years to record 20 points in 11 or fewer games within a postseason - Jake Guentzel (10 GP), Sidney Crosby (11 GP) and David Pastrnak (11 GP) all did so in 2018, while Mario Lemieux (11 GP) achieved the feat in 1996.

KUCHEROV FACTORS ON FOUR OF SEVEN LIGHTNING GOALS IN GAME 3 WIN
The Lightning set a franchise record with goals 15 seconds apart in the first period and matched one with four goals in the middle frame en route to a Game 3 victory and a 2-1 series lead.



* Nikita Kucherov (1-3—4) and Mikhail Sergachev (1-2—3) also tied franchise records Wednesday. Kucherov equaled the highest assist and point totals in a playoff game by a Lightning player, while Sergachev matched the mark for most points in a postseason game by a Tampa Bay defenseman.

* Kucherov now has 75 career points in the postseason (33-42—75 in 76 GP) to rank second in the NHL since 2014 when he made his Stanley Cup Playoffs debut; only Sidney Crosby (28-56—84 in 86 GP) has more in that span.

* Already the franchise leader in career playoff points, Kucherov matched Martin St. Louis (33) for the most playoff goals among Lightning players and moved within two assists of tying teammate Victor Hedman (44) for the most in Lightning playoff history.

* Tampa Bay scored at least seven goals in a playoff game for the second time, following an 8-2 victory in Game 5 of the 2011 Conference Quarterfinals against Pittsburgh. They became the first team since 1992 to score seven or more goals in a playoff game against Boston (BUF had a 9-3 W vs. BOS in Game 6 of DSF).

FLYERS SCORE OT WIN TO SURVIVE ISLANDERS’ COMEBACK ATTEMPT, TIE SERIES
The Islanders scored three consecutive goals to erase an early 3-0 deficit, including a tying goal with 2:09 remaining in regulation, but Philippe Myerspotted the winner at 2:41 of overtime as the Flyers withstood New York’s rally to even their Second Round series.

* Philadelphia earned its first overtime victory in a playoff game since 2012, when Daniel Briere scored the winner in Game 1 of the Conference Semifinals against the Devils. Current Flyers Sean Couturier, Claude Giroux, James van Riemsdyk and Jakub Voracek skated in that game, with Voracek getting the primary assist in overtime.

* Philadelphia won a playoff game after surrendering a tying goal in the final 2:30 of regulation for the fifth time in franchise history. Three of the other instances came against the Rangers - Game 1 of the 1985 Division Semifinals, Game 1 of the 1995 Conference Semifinals and Game 4 of the 1997 Conference Finals - while the other was against the Bruins in Game 4 of the 2010 Conference Semifinals.

* Myers became the seventh defenseman in franchise history – and first in over 20 years – to score an overtime goal in the playoffs. He is the third-youngest among that cohort.



* Either the Flyers or Islanders will take a 2-1 lead in their Second Round series when they contest Game 3 tonight at 7 p.m. ET. Philadelphia and New York each earned six wins in the second half of back-to-back sets during the 2019-20 regular season (PHI: 6-5-2, NYI: 6-1-1). The Flyers and Islanders are both 0-1 in those contests during the 2020 postseason.

QUICK CLICKS

* NHL announces sanctions to Coyotes for violating combine testing policy
* Zach Whitecloud Indigenous role model for Golden Knights in Playoffs
* Mike Green announces retirement from NHL
* NHL Power Players seeks fans ages 13-17 for youth advisory board
* Carey Price followed Jacques Plante as Canadiens icon

PREVIEW OF TODAY’S ACTION
After an overtime showdown in Game 2, the Flyers and Islanders will aim for the edge in the second half of their back-to-back in Toronto while the Golden Knights and Canucks clash for a series lead in Edmonton. Both series are tied at 1-1.

* When a best-of-seven Stanley Cup Playoffs series is tied 1-1, the winner of Game 3 holds an all-time series record of 218-107 (67.1%). That includes a 3-1 mark in 2020.

Thanks to the NHL PR department for the information above.