On Saturday of the Stanley Cup playoffs, the Washington Capitals and Carolina Hurricanes kick off the action with the series tied 1-1. The Canes are tied for third in the odds (with the Toronto Maple Leafs) to win the Stanley Cup at +450, while the Caps have 10-to-1 odds. But, Washington took Game 2 3-1 and is a contender. The second game of the day is between the Vegas Golden Knights and the Edmonton Oilers, who have a 2-0 lead in the series. The Oilers are the Stanley Cup favorites at +300 and are showing why against Vegas.

Viewing guide for Saturday
GameTime (ET)TV Stream

Capitals at
Hurricanes

6 p.m.

US: TNT, truTV
CAN: Sportsnet

Max

Golden Knights at
Oilers

9 p.m.

US: TNT, truTV
CAN: Sportsnet, CBC

Max

Watching in person? Get tickets on StubHub.

Washington Capitals at Carolina Hurricanes

Series is tied 1-1

Series odds: Hurricanes -220, Capitals +180

In Game 1, the Hurricanes overpowered Washington in shots and scoring chances and won in overtime. In Game 2, the Capitals found ways to take back control.

The Capitals’ second line was one of the biggest differences in Game 2. That trio got absolutely steamrolled in matchup minutes against the Sebastian Aho line in Game 1. This time, their minutes were split between the Aho and Jordan Staal lines. Connor McMichael opened the scoring in the second period. His right wing, Tom Wilson, was active on both ends of the ice — he played a solid defensive game, was physical and chipped in two points. With the series shifting back to Carolina, the Canes can try to adjust those matchups back in their favor.

John Carlson’s power-play goal early in the third ended up being the game-winner for Washington. It was the first power-play goal against the Hurricanes this postseason, after 20 successful kills.

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Vegas Golden Knights at Edmonton Oilers

Oilers lead series 2-0

Series odds: Oilers -600, Golden Knights +425

No goals through regulation from Leon Draisaitl and Connor McDavid? No problem for the Oilers. Edmonton’s depth scoring stepped up in the second period, with goals from Jake Walman, Vasily Podkolzin and Darnell Nurse.

Vegas responded late in the second, with a William Karlsson goal to help keep the Golden Knights in this. Victor Olofsson’s power-play goal pulled Vegas within one, then Alex Pietrangelo tied the game 4-4 to force overtime. After some iffy goaltending from Adin Hill through two periods, Calvin Pickard had a tough third period but was more composed for overtime.

Nicolas Roy’s major penalty (and game misconduct) for cross-checking sent Edmonton to the power play for five minutes. The Golden Knights killed that off, but still fell short in overtime. McDavid flew past Jack Eichel, who did a good job slowing down the Oilers’ top line in regulation, and set up Draisaitl off the rush for the game-winner. The Oilers head home with a 2-0 series lead.

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