Nail Yakupov recorded his first NHL hat trick in the Oilers’ final game of the season. Yakupov was all the offense Edmonton would need in a 7-2 thrashing of the Canucks. Jordan Eberle scored twice in the finale as well for the Oilers. Edmonton broke open a 2-2 game with five goals in less than four minutes.
SPIN: In an utterly meaningless game, Edmonton shows what they can be capable of. Keep it in mind when getting ready for a full-length 2013-2014 campaign. Vancouver also sat a big part of its starting lineup for this game as well. Hopefully Edmonton can find better success next season.
Phoenix knocked off Anaheim 5-3 with Radim Vrbata racking up a hat trick for Phoenix.
SPIN: The Coyotes went through a massive goal drought in early March and it cost them a playoff spot. Anaheim gets Detroit in a 2-7 matchup in the first round.
Minnesota clinched a playoff spot by beating Colorado 3-1. Niklas Backstrom made 29 saves to get Minnesota in the playoffs for the first time in five years. Minnesota gets Chicago in the first round.
SPIN: Backstrom (23-15-3) was one of the better goalies in fantasy this season and was strong in the second half. Look for him to be one of the first goalies off the board in the fall.
The Rangers blanked New Jersey 4-0 to end their season and wrap up the sixth seed. New Jersey ends up at .500 at 19-19-10.
SPIN: Henrik Lundqvist picked up his second shutout of the season for the Rangers. Rick Nash scored twice and was one of the 20-goal scorers this season.
Montreal bumped off Toronto 4-1 with Lars Eller’s three-point night (G,2A) leading the way.
SPIN: This was a first round preview if Boston doesn’t beat Ottawa Sunday.
Philly knocked off Ottawa 2-1 and the Flyers finished on the right side of .500 with the win.
SPIN: Steve Mason made 43 saves and looks like a good backup goaltender to handcuff Ilya Bryzgalov with.
Washington beat Boston 3-2 in overtime. Mike Green scored both goals in regulation and assisted on Eric Fehr’s overtime winner.
SPIN: Boston has one game to left to figure out if they will be the #2 or #4 in the East.
Florida took down Tampa Bay 5-3. Martin St Louis had a goal and an assist to wrap up the league scoring title with 60 points. Teammate Steven Stamkos was second with 57 points.
SPIN: Tomas Fleischmann scored twice in the loss for Florida and both teams from the Sunshine State had miserable seasons.
Columbus beat Nashville 3-1 but finished just outside of the playoffs. Cam Atkinson had a goal and an assist in the win.
SPIN: Sergei Bobrovsky will be the hot goaltending commodity in 2013-14.
Detroit blanked Dallas 3-0 to get the Wings into the playoffs for a 22nd straight season. Jimmy Howard posted a 17-save shutout.
SPIN: Henrik Zetterberg had two goals and an assist while Pavel Dastyuk had three assists. Those three were the most consistent Red Wings over the season.
Pittsburgh thumped Carolina 8-3 with James Neal bagging a hat trick for the Penguins.
SPIN: Neal came back after missing time with a concussion and should be good to go for the playoffs. Jussi Jokinen scored twice in the rout and Evgeni Malkin had a goal and two assists in the win.
St. Louis wrapped up home ice in the first round with a 3-1 win over Chicago. Jaden Schwartz scored twice in the win.
SPIN: The Blues beat the Hawks in a throwaway game but it’s still their 12th win in their last 15 games.
Los Angeles took the fifth seed and left the Sharks as the sixth seed in the West with the Kings’ 3-2 win over the Sharks.
SPIN: Logan Couture continues to be consistent and potted his 21st goal of the season for the Sharks.
Multiple Goal Scorers
Yakupov-EDM, Vrbata-PHX, Neal-PIT HAT TRICK
Eberle-EDM, Nash-NYR, Green-WSH, Fleischmann-FLA, Zetterberg-DET, Westgarth-CAR, Jokinen-PIT, Schwartz-STL
Stat of the Night–Oh So Close
Columbus went 19-5-5 over the final 29 games of the season and just missed the playoffs.
Three Stars of the Night
1 Yakupov
2 Neal
3 Green
Sunday’s Game (all times ET) The LAST ONE OF THE SEASON!
Ottawa at Boston 7pm This is a make-up of the game that was postponed after the attack on the Boston Marathon.
